Part 27 (1/2)
It was an interesting party on board, joined at the last moment by Mr Joseph Banks, a very rich member of the Royal Society and a student of Natural History He had requested leave to sail in ”the shi+p that carries the English astronomers to the new-discovered country in the South Sea” ”No people ever went to sea better fitted out for the purpose of Natural History, nor antly,” says a contemporary writer ”They have a fine library, they have all sorts ofinsects, they have two painters and draughtsmen--in short, this expedition will cost Mr Banks 10,000 pounds”
Their astrono a portable observatory constructed for sixteen guineas But most important of all was the careful assorte of all navigators, the scurvy A quantity of ar, wheat, orange and lemon juice and portable soup was put on board, and Cook received special orders to keep his men with plenty of fresh food whenever this was possible He carried out these orders strenuously, and at Madeira we find hi one of his own sea to eat fresh beef Hence they left Rio de Janeiro ”in as good a condition for prosecuting the voyage as on the day they left England”
[Illustration: THE ISLAND OF OTAHEITE, OR ST GEORGE Froes, who accompanied Captain Cook]
Christmas Day was passed near the mouth of the river Plate, and, early in the New Year of 1769, the _Endeavour_ sailed through the Strait of Le Maire The wealthy Mr Banks landed on Staaten Island and hastily added a hundred new plants to his collection Then they sailed on to St George's Island It had been visited by Captain Wallis in the _Dolphin_ the previous year; indeed, some of Cook's sailors had served on board the _Dolphin_ and knew the native chiefs of the island All was friendly, tents were soon pitched, a fort built with uns at either side, the precious instruments landed, and on 3rd June, with a cloudless sky and in intolerable heat, they observed the whole passage of the planet Venus over the sun's disk
After a stay of threeTupia, a native, with thes to perfection, and Cook declares that dogs' flesh is ”next only to English lamb”
They visited other islands in the group--non as the Society Islands and belonging to France--and took possession of all in the nah the month of Septehted It proved to be the North Island of New Zealand, never before approached by Europeans from the east It was one hundred and twenty-seven years since Tasman had discovered the west coast and called it Staaten Land, but no European had ever set foot on its soil Indeed, it was still held to be part of the Terra Australis Incognita
The first to sight land was a boy na Nick's Head,” whichPoverty Bay The natives here were unfriendly, and Cook was obliged to use firearreat shi+p before, and at first thought it was a very large bird, being struck by the size and beauty of its wings (sails) When a sht it ed bird, but when the white ht-coloured clothes rowed off in the boat they concluded these were Gods
Cook found the low sandy coast backed by ooded hills rising to mountains on which patches of snoere visible, while s of native dwellings The natives were too treacherous tofor the white men, so they sailed out of Poverty Bay and proceeded south Angry Maoris shook their spears at the English the east coast of the North Island But the face of the country was unpro, and Cook altered his course for the north at a point he naain Unfortunately he missed the only safe port on the east coast between Auckland and Wellington, but he found good anchorage in what is non as Cook's Bay Here they got plenty of good fish, wild fowl, and oysters, ”as good as ever ca possession of the land they passed in the nae, Cook continued his northerly course, passing many a river which seeale blew them off the northernmost point of land, which they named North Cape, and Christoose-pie
[Illustration: AN IPAH, OR MAORI FORT, ON THE COAST BETWEEN POVERTY BAY AND CAPE TURNAGAIN Froe_]
The New Year of 1770 found Cook off Cape Maria van Die the western coast of the North Island, till the _Endeavour_ was anchored in shi+p Cove, Queen Charlotte's Sound, only about seventy hted land
Here the English explorer landed The country was thickly wooded, but he climbed a hill, and away to the eastward he saw that the seas washi+ng both east and west coasts of the northern island were united He had solved one problereat southern continent He now resolved to push through his newly discovered straits between the two islands, and, having done this, he sailed north till he reached Cape Turnagain And so he proved beyond a doubt that this was an island The h
But Cook, with the true instinct of an explorer, turned a deaf ear to the land, and directed his course again south From the natives he had learned of the existence of two islands, and he must needs sail round the southern as he had sailed round the northern isle Storh the month of February as they made their way slowly southwards Indeed, they had a very narrow escape froale, with heavy squalls of rain, their foresail was split to pieces and they lost sight of land for seven days, nearly running on to subed rocks which Cook named The Traps
It was nearly dark on 14th March when they entered a bay which they suitably christened Dusky Bay, from which they sailed to Cascade Point, named from the four streams that fell over its face
”No country upon earth,” reed and barren aspect than this does fro is to be seen but the summit of these rocky mountains” At last on 24th March they rounded the north point of the South Island Before them lay the familiar waters of Massacre Bay, Tasman Bay, and Queen Charlotte Sound
”As we have now circuated the whole of this country, it is tih
Running into Ade home Her sails, ”ill-provided froed by the rough work they had gone through, particularly on the coast of New Zealand, and they gave no little trouble to get into order again”
While Banks searched for insects and plants, Cook sat writing up his _Journal_ of the circuives Tasman the honour of the first discovery, but clearly shows his error in supposing it to be part of the great southern land
The natives he describes as ”a strong, raw-boned, well-made, active people rather above the common size, of a dark brown colour, with black hair, thin black beards, and white teeth Both men and women paint their faces and bodies with red ochre mixed with fish oil They wear ornaments of stone, bone, and shells at their ears and about their necks, and the ht in their hair They came off in canoes which will carry a hundred people; ithin a stone's throw of the shi+p, the chief of the party would brandish a battleaxe, calling out: 'Come ashore with us and ill kill you' They would certainly have eaten them too, for they were cannibals”
The shi+p was now ready and, na the last point of land Cape Farewell, they sailed away to the west, ”till we fall in with the east coast of New Holland” They had spent six and a halfabout in New Zealand waters, and had coasted some two thousand four hundred erly sought coast, and on 28th April, Cook anchored for the first time in the bay known afterwards to history as Botany Bay, so nahbourhood by Mr Banks Cutting an inscription on one of the trees, with the date and na the coast as he passed and giving names to the various bays and capes Thus Port Jackson, at the entrance of Sydney harbour, undiscovered by Cook, was so named after one of the Secretaries of the Ads--Point Danger by reason of a narrow escape on some shoals--while Moreton Bay, on which Brisbane, the capital of Queensland, now stands, was named after the President of the Royal Society As they advanced, the coast beca
”Hitherto,” reports Cook, ”we had safely navigated this dangerous coast, where the sea in all parts conceals shores that project suddenly from the shore and rocks that rise abruptly like a pyramid from the bottom more than one thousand three hundred miles But here we became acquainted with misfortune, and we therefore called the point which we had just seen farthest to the northward, Cape Tribulation”
It was the 10th of May The gentleone to bed, when suddenly the shi+p struck and ree that beat her against the crags of the rock upon which she lay Every one rushed to the deck ”with countenances which sufficiently expressed the horrors of our situation” Immediately they took in all sails, lowered the boats, and found they were on a reef of coral rocks Two days of sickening anxiety followed, the shi+p sprang a leak, and they were threatened with total destruction To their intense relief, however, the shi+p floated off into deep water with a high tide Repairs were now more than ever necessary, and the poor battered collier was taken into the ”Endeavour” river Tupia and others were also showing signs of scurvy; so a hospital tent was erected on shore, and with a supply of fresh fish, pigeons, wild plantains, and turtles they began to improve Here stands to-day the seaport of Cooktohere a monument of Captain Cook looks out over the waters that he discovered
[Illustration: CAPTAIN COOK'S VESSEL BEACHED AT THE ENTRANCE OF ENDEAVOUR RIVER, WHERE THE SEAPORT OF COOKTOWN NOW STANDS Froe_]
The prospect of further exploration was not encouraging ”In whatever direction we looked, the sea was covered with shoals as far as the eye could see” As they sailed out of their little river, they could see the surf breaking on the ”Great Barrier Reef” Navigation now became very difficult, and, ave up hope Great, then, was their joy when they found themselves at the northern promontory of the land which ”I have nahness the Duke of York We were in great hopes that we had at last found out a passage into the Indian Seas”