[Footnote 4: This paper, presented by the Corean Chief, has been translated by Mr. Morrison at Canton, and is as follows: "Persons, of what land--of what nation (are you)? On account of what business do you come hither? In the ship are there any literary men who thoroughly understand, and can explain what is written?"]
[Footnote 5: See note at the end of the Loo-choo vocabulary.]
CHAPTER II.
Enter the j.a.pan Sea--Sulphur Island--Volcano--See the Great Loo-Choo Island--Lyra nearly wrecked--First Interview with the Natives--Anchor at Napakiang--Natives crowd on Board--Their interesting Appearance and Manners--Several Chiefs visit the Alceste--Land to make Observations--Astonishment of the Natives--Six Chiefs visit the Ships--Alceste and Lyra proceed farther in Sh.o.r.e--A Chief of high Rank waits upon Captain Maxwell--Return his Visit--Feast--Projected Survey of the Anchorage--Visit Reef Island--The Lyra sent to look for another Harbour--Arrangements for landing the Alceste"s Stores--Description of the Temple and Garden--First Acquaintance with Madera--Study of the Language.
After leaving Corea, we stood to the southward and eastward, with a strong breeze from the north, and a mountainous swell from the north-east. Shortly after daybreak on the 13th of September, we saw Sulphur Island, in the south-west quarter, and by eleven in the forenoon were close up to it. We intended to land, but were prevented by the high wind, which caused so great a surf all round the island, as to render this impracticable. The sulphuric volcano from which the island takes its name is on the north-west side; it emits white smoke, and the smell of sulphur is very strong on the lee side of the crater. The cliffs near the volcano are of a pale yellow colour, interspersed with brown streaks: the ground at this place is very rugged, as the strata lie in all directions, and are much broken; on the top is a thin coat of brown gra.s.s. The south end of the island is of considerable height, of a deep blood red colour, with here and there a spot of bright green: the strata, which are here nearly horizontal, are cut by a whin d.y.k.e running from the top to the bottom of the cliff, projecting from its face like a wall. As the weather still looked threatening, we gave up the intention of examining this spot, and proceeded to the southward till four o"clock, at which time land was seen in the south-west quarter; but as there was not sufficient daylight to close with it, we hauled off to the westward for the night. Shortly after sunset the sky became overcast, the wind veered about from one point to another, the air became suddenly quite chill, the sea rose high, and every thing, in short, seemed to indicate an approaching tyfoong or hurricane. All our preparations were made to encounter a violent tempest; but we were much pleased at finding it turn out nothing more than an ordinary gale of wind.
14th of September.--The weather was still stormy, but being anxious to close with the land, we bore up, and steered in the supposed direction of the Great Lieou Kieou, or Loo-choo Island. At eight o"clock we saw the Sugar Loaf of Captain Broughton, which is a small green island, having a high remarkable cone in the middle. We left this to the eastward, and continued steering to the south south-west, hoping to get to leeward of the great island before night, where we might remain in smooth water till the weather became fine. While going along at a quick rate, we suddenly saw breakers close to us; we instantly hauled to the wind, and made all the sail we could carry. Our situation was now very critical, for the swell caused by the recent gale checked our way considerably, and a lee current drifted us gradually towards the reef.
From the mast head we could look down upon the reef, which was of a circular form, with a low island on its southern side; the surf broke all round, but in the inside the water was quite smooth, and being only a few feet deep, the coral, which was of a bright green, appeared distinctly through it. At the distance of one-third of a mile from where we were, no bottom was to be found with our lead lines, so that anchoring was out of the question. After being in this unpleasant predicament for some time, we succeeded in weathering the western end of the reef, which we had no sooner done, than we saw a pa.s.sage four or five miles wide, by which we proceeded to leeward of the reef island, where we found the water perfectly smooth. The Alceste rounded the reef without difficulty, being half a league farther off than the Lyra, which, as usual, had been stationed a-head to look out, but had not perceived the danger sooner, owing to the extreme haziness of the weather.
15th of September.--In the morning, it was arranged that the Lyra should proceed in sh.o.r.e in search of a harbour, while the frigate remained in deep water. At ten o"clock I thought we had discovered a place of security, and having anch.o.r.ed the Lyra, sent three boats to examine it.
A sort of harbour was found, formed by coral reefs; but the pa.s.sages being all intricate for large ships, and the water shallow inside, it is by no means safe. We fell in with several people in canoes; one man, who seemed to know what we were searching for, directed us to a point of land to the northward, and waved for us to go round it. While the boats were away, several natives came off to the Lyra. No people that we have yet met with have been so friendly; for the moment they came alongside, one handed a jar of water up to us, and another a basket of boiled sweet potatoes, without asking or seeming to wish for any recompense. Their manners were gentle and respectful; they uncovered their heads when in our presence, bowed whenever they spoke to us; and when we gave them some rum, they did not drink it till they had bowed to every person round. Another canoe went near the Alceste, and a rope being thrown to them, they tied a fish to it, and then paddled away. All this seemed to promise well, and was particularly grateful after the cold repulsive manners of the Coreans.
The day was spent in trying to beat round the point to windward, but the tide was too strong against us, and when it became dark, we found ourselves awkwardly situated. To the east and west of us there were islands at the distance of a few miles. To leeward was a circular coral reef, just appearing above the surface at low water; and to windward were seen the reefs upon which we were so nearly wrecked on Sat.u.r.day. As the exact position of these numerous dangers was unknown to us, we were determined to anchor for the night, though in eighty fathoms water.
16th of September.--At daylight we weighed, and beat to windward all the morning; but owing to the tide being contrary, it was two o"clock before we pa.s.sed the point mentioned above; which we had no sooner done, than we came in sight of an extensive town, having a harbour filled with vessels at anchor. On steering towards the town, we had to sound our way cautiously amongst coral reefs, which were tolerably well defined by the surf breaking upon them[6]. The Alceste followed as soon as we had ascertained that the pa.s.sage was clear, and both ships anch.o.r.ed at the distance of half a mile from the town.
In a short time we were surrounded by canoes, full of the natives, who, with their children, flocked on board. They wear a loose dress, tied with a belt round their waist; their hair is brought tight up from all sides, and formed into a knot on the top of the head, with two metal pins stuck in it. In the course of an hour, a native came on board who appeared to be somewhat higher in rank than the rest; and we now discovered, to our great satisfaction, that this man understood our Chinese servant, who had been of no use to us at Corea. As it was found that there were other chiefs on sh.o.r.e superior in rank to this man, Captain Maxwell declined receiving his visit; as well with the view of inducing the princ.i.p.al people to come on board, as of maintaining an appearance of dignity, a point of great importance in all transactions with the Chinese and their dependents, who invariably repay condescension with presumption. As we had heard of these people being tributary to China, it was natural to conclude that there might be some similarity in manners. At all events, it was evidently much easier at any future time to be free and cordial with them, after having a.s.sumed a distance and reserve in the first instance, than it would be to repress insolence, if at first encouraged by too hasty familiarity.
Before this man went on sh.o.r.e, he requested to know the reason of our coming into this port; the interpreter was instructed to acquaint him that the ships had experienced very bad weather, and had been a long time at sea; that the large ship had sprung a leak, and required repairs which could only be done in a secure harbour: further explanations, it was observed, would be given to the superior chiefs when they came on board. We had been prepared for these inquiries, not only from the reception we had met with at Corea, but from the well-known character of the nations in this quarter of the globe; and it was so far fortunate, that the Alceste was actually in want of repairs; because to have a.s.signed curiosity, and a desire of gaining information as our object, to people wholly unconscious of such feelings, would naturally have led them to ascribe our actions to some more interested, and consequently more dangerous motive.
The canoes which we have seen to-day are mostly made of one piece of wood; they have two sails, and are moved with considerable velocity, by two or more paddles, a.s.sisted by an oar over the stern, which acts both as a scull and a rudder. There is a neat low seat, made of rattans, for each person in the canoe. As the day closed, the fishing canoes came in great numbers from sea, and all came on board the ships on their way; some of the fishermen pulled up our lines and baited the hooks. The whole sh.o.r.e abreast of the ships was covered with people, but the crowd was greatest on two pier-heads, forming the entrance to the harbour; and the variety of colour in their dresses made this a very lively exhibition. In the evening, Captain Maxwell and I rowed round to examine the anchorage, which we found tolerably clear of rocks. An officer was at the same time sent to examine the inner harbour, but he did not go far within the entrance, which was much too shallow for the frigate.
On returning to the Lyra, I found that Mr. Clifford had been entertaining several respectable looking natives who had paid him a visit. As they readily comprehended his desire to know their words for various things, he has succeeded in collecting a considerable number, among which we are surprised to find their name for tobacco the same as ours; all the others are quite new to us.
17th of September.--I carried the interpreter to the Alceste, after breakfast, where I found two chiefs, who had been on board some time, and had been taken care of by the officers, as Captain Maxwell was not prepared to receive them. A message was then sent to intimate that the Ta-yin (a Chinese t.i.tle, used also by these people to persons of rank) was desirous of seeing the chiefs, and they were introduced into the after-cabin, where they were received in form. They objected to sitting down, making at the same time many low obeisances, which they did by stooping the body, and raising the hands, closed one over the other, to their face. Their scruples about being seated were at length overcome, and the first chief took his place on Captain Maxwell"s left hand, the next on my left, and a third, who was evidently of a lower rank, sat beyond the second. The chiefs sat respectfully silent, and Captain Maxwell finding that he was expected to speak first, communicated to them that the ships under his command belonged to the King of England; that they had gone to China with an Emba.s.sador, carrying presents to the Emperor, at Pekin; that on their way back to Canton, they had experienced very bad weather, and had been obliged to put in here to refit, and to procure supplies.
In reply, they expressed their willingness to a.s.sist us as much as lay in their power, but said that the harbour was too shallow for so large a ship, and recommended our proceeding to another harbour called Kinching, which they described as being secure and commodious, and only a few hours sail from this anchorage: they offered to furnish pilots and a boat to conduct us. Captain Maxwell, however, was unwilling to quit this anchorage unless certain of finding a better; he therefore proposed to send the Lyra to examine and report upon the harbour alluded to. The chiefs paused upon this, and said they could not take upon them to send pilots to the Brig without consulting the Great Man on sh.o.r.e. We were very curious to know who this great personage might be, but they evaded all our inquiries. Captain Maxwell asked where the king resided, and intimated his intention of waiting upon him; to this they strongly objected, declaring moreover, that it was impossible, as his majesty lived a thousand miles off. They did not seem aware of their inconsistency, when they undertook, immediately afterwards, to get an answer from court about pilots for the Lyra, in a few hours.
We had been led to hope, from the frankness and kindness of these people, that no restraint would be imposed on us; and we were the more disappointed at observing, that whenever we spoke of landing, or asked any questions about the king, the chiefs became uneasy, and replied in a mysterious manner. We consoled ourselves, however, with the supposition, that upon further acquaintance their apprehension would wear off.
Business being over, the chiefs were asked to walk round the cabin, an invitation which they accepted with manifest satisfaction. During the conference they had preserved a gravity suited to an important ceremony, and, though surrounded by new and curious objects, had never expressed the least curiosity. They were now no longer formal, and looked over the various articles with attention, taking particular notice of the globes, books, and mirrors. Their manners are remarkably gentle and una.s.suming.
They are observant, and not without curiosity, but they require encouragement to induce them to come forward, being restrained, it would seem, by a genteel self-denial, from gratifying curiosity, lest it might be thought obtrusive. Their dress is singularly graceful; it consists of a loose flowing robe, with very wide sleeves, tied round the middle by a broad rich belt or girdle of wrought silk, a yellow cylindrical cap, and a neat straw sandal, over a short cotton boot or stocking. Two of the chiefs wore light yellow robes, the other dark blue streaked with white, all of cotton. The cap is flat at top, and appears to be formed by winding a broad band diagonally round a frame, in such a manner, that at each turn a small portion of the last fold shall be visible above in front, and below at the hinder part. The sandal is kept on by a stiff straw band pa.s.sing over the instep, and joining the sandal near the heel; this band is tied to the forepart by a slight string, drawn between the great toe and the next, the stocking having a division like the finger of a glove for the great toe. They all carry fans, which they stick in their girdles when not in use, and each person has a short tobacco pipe in a small bag, hanging, along with the pouch, at the girdle. When they had satisfied themselves with looking over the cabin, they went away, with a promise of returning in the evening as soon as the answer from the Great Man should arrive.
During all this morning, the whole s.p.a.ce between the ships and the sh.o.r.e has been covered with canoes, each containing about ten persons. The scene was very lively, for few of the parties which came to visit the ships remained long on board, so that the canoes were continually pa.s.sing backwards and forwards, and the number which came in this way must have been immense. They all seemed highly gratified at being allowed to go wherever they liked over the ships, nor was this liberty ever abused. The manners even of the lowest cla.s.ses are genteel and becoming; their curiosity is great, but it never makes them rudely inquisitive: their language is musical, and in most cases easy of p.r.o.nunciation. We heard a boat song to-day, the air of which was sweet and plaintive; we tried in vain to catch the words, and unfortunately, none of us had skill enough to note down the air. We observed several people in canoes, making drawings of the ships, but they hid their work when they were observed. In consequence of what had been said last night of our wanting repairs, a party of shipwrights and caulkers was sent on board the Alceste this morning, but their tools were of a Lilliputian order, and quite unsuited to the rough work required.
The variety of colour and pattern in the dresses of the people to-day, is remarkable. Many wear printed cottons, others have cotton dresses with the pattern drawn on it by hand, instead of being stamped; but blue, in all its shades, is the prevalent colour, though there were many dresses resembling in every respect Highland tartans. The children, in general, wear more shewy dresses than the men, and of the dress of the women we can say nothing, as none have yet been seen. Every person has one of the girdles before described, which is always of a different colour from the dress, and is, in general, richly ornamented with flowers in embossed silk, and sometimes with gold and silver threads.
This dress is naturally so graceful, that even the lowest boatmen have a picturesque appearance. Their hair, which is of a glossy black, is shaved off the crown, but the bare place is concealed by their mode of dressing the hair in a close knot over it. Their beards and mustachios are allowed to grow, and are kept neat and smooth. They are rather low in stature, but are well formed, and have an easy graceful carriage, which suits well with their flowing dress. Their colour is not good, some being very dark and others nearly white, but in most instances they are of a deep copper. This is fully compensated for by the sweetness and intelligence of their countenance. Their eyes, which are black, have a placid expression, and their teeth are regular and beautifully white. In deportment they are modest, polite, timid, and respectful, and in short, appear to be a most interesting and amiable people.
Two of our friends who had visited us in the morning, and whose names we have discovered to be Ookooma and Jeema, came on board again about half past five, and staid an hour; they had not received any answer, they said, from the Great Man, and therefore could not send pilots to the "hoonee gua," or little ship. They were accompanied by a chief whom we took to be a Chinese from his looks, and his appearing to understand the interpreter better than the others. His formal and suspicious manner did not promise so well as that of the others. They came to say that a present of stock and vegetables had been sent to the ships. It was intimated to them that we intended to land the next day, and upon their objecting to this, we said that our wish was to wait upon the Great Man; to which they replied, that no person answering to this description resided here. We then said, that it was right we should return their visit. This argument they combated by saying that they were men of unequal rank to us, and therefore nowise ent.i.tled to such an honour; and that we, at the same time, would be degrading ourselves by such undue condescension. This having failed, Captain Maxwell told them of his illness; upon which, our new acquaintance, who seemed more earnestly bent against our landing than the others, offered to send a physician on board to see him. Captain Maxwell replied, that his own doctor had recommended a ride on sh.o.r.e; upon which they laughed, and turned the discourse to something else.
In this way every proposal to land, or even allusion to the sh.o.r.e, was industriously put aside; and as it was our wish to gain their good will, the matter was dropped for the present. Before they went away, Captain Maxwell, pointing to their pipes, begged them to smoke if they wished it; they were grateful for this considerate attention, but would not on any account begin till we shewed them the example, by smoking with pipes which they prepared for us. They appeared more at their ease after this incident, and after sitting for some time, took leave for the night on the most friendly terms.
18th of September.--Captain Maxwell sent to me to say that he meant to land on a point at some distance from the town, in order to observe the sun"s meridian alt.i.tude with an artificial horizon. Just as I was setting out to accompany him, I was taken by surprise by two well-dressed natives, who were halfway down the cabin ladder before I knew of their approach. One came to superintend the measurement of the Lyra, and the other, who seemed of inferior rank, to explain why some poultry, only then sent, had not come on the preceding night, along with the other presents. I forgot to mention, that a bullock, two hogs, two goats, a dozen and a half of fowls, some candles, wood, and water, were sent to each of the ships. I asked them to sit down, and they were so well satisfied with the Constantia which I gave them, that they remained for some time; owing to which delay, I did not reach the sh.o.r.e till the time for observing the sun had gone by. I found Captain Maxwell with Ookooma and several of the chiefs, and an immense crowd of the natives, all of whom had left the town on seeing the boat put off, and had hastened to this spot, either out of curiosity or respect, or more probably to watch our proceedings. At our request, Ookooma, who appears to possess considerable authority, made the whole crowd, chiefs and all, sit down on the gra.s.s in a circle round us. Their astonishment at our operations was strongly expressed in their countenances, and, indeed, our apparatus and behaviour must have looked, to perfect strangers, somewhat magical.
In the first place the quicksilver, which to them would appear like melted metal, was poured into a trough, in a fine stream from a wooden bottle; while it was running out the people repeated in an under tone "yi, yi, yi, yi!" but were silent when the gla.s.s roof was placed over the trough. The circular instrument and s.e.xtant, fixed on stands, next attracted their notice, and they looked on in profound silence while we were taking the sun"s alt.i.tude. As we were too late for the desired observation, we amused the natives by letting them look at the two reflected images of the sun through the telescope of the instruments.
Ookooma was the first who looked, and being quite unprepared for what he saw, started back in astonishment, as if he had unconsciously beheld something supernatural and forbidden. The other chiefs, in their turn, placed themselves at the instrument, as well as several old men who stepped forward from the crowd. Some testified their surprise by a sudden exclamation; others were perfectly calm, so that we could not guess what they thought; and some held up their hands, and looked as if the whole matter was totally beyond the reach of their comprehension.
When this was over, and there was no longer any necessity for the crowd being seated, they closed round and watched us while we were putting the instruments up. Some of the boys held out their hands for quicksilver, with which they ran off, quite happy.
During this time we were about fifty yards from the foot of a cliff, on the brow of which was posted a group of women with baskets on their heads; we were unfortunately not near enough to discern their features, nor to make out their dress distinctly; it appeared, however, to be like that of the men, though somewhat shorter, and without any girdle round the waist.
The rock here rises in perpendicular rugged cliffs of coral, with a number of rude square excavations on its face, which, at first sight, appear to have been worn by the elements, but on examination shew evident traces of art. Most of these caves are closed up by a wall of loose stones, but in one, of which the mouth was open, several human bones were found lying amongst the sand. On removing a stone from a closed cave, a vase was observed in the inside, of an elegant shape; the people signified to us that these were the remains of the dead, but we did not make out distinctly whether the bones or the ashes only were thus preserved. They made no objections to our examining these caves, though they certainly were not pleased with it. No notice was taken of what Captain Maxwell and I did; but Mr. Clifford, who had remained below collecting words from some intelligent natives, was strongly recommended by Ookooma to go back to the boat; he walked up, however, without opposition, to the cave which we had been examining, and they ceased to importune him. A number of little boys who had observed us occasionally pulling flowers and plants, ran about collecting for us, and after presenting what they had gathered, with much politeness, ran away laughing with an arch expression of ridicule at our curiosity.
On our way back, instead of going directly off to the ships, we coasted along sh.o.r.e in our boats, which gave us a new view of a stone bridge, of one arch, connecting two parts of the town. On the south side of the bridge we pa.s.sed a s.p.a.ce of considerable extent, probably set apart as a burying ground. We saw here a number of large horse-shoe tombs like those used in China, whitewashed, and apparently kept in good repair.
Most of the tombs, however, are in the form of small square houses, with low pyramidal roofs; some of these were tiled, others thatched. It is evident that, in what relates to the dead, they follow, in some respects, the Chinese customs.
[Ill.u.s.tration: NAPAKIANG.]
The whole coast at this place is of coral cliffs, the base of which appears to have been scooped out by the action of the sea. As this excavation is at some places higher than the waves of the sea can be supposed to have ever reached, there is difficulty in a.s.signing the sea as the cause; yet the roof of the excavation is horizontal for a great extent, and its appearance, in every other respect, suggests that it has been formed by the dashing of the waves. There is, moreover, some difficulty in accounting for coral cliffs being so much above the level of the sea, in which, according to every supposition, they must have been formed.
The scenery here, as in most countries in these climates, does not admit of a satisfactory description. It may be said, however, that it is more pleasing to the eye than that of islands near the equator, where the vegetation is so profusely luxuriant, as to overload the picture with foliage to the exclusion of every thing else. Here there is much variety; the numerous groves of pine-trees give some parts of it an English air, but the style of landscape is what is called tropical. The general character of the scenery at this spot is faithfully preserved in the drawing of Napakiang.
19th of September.--No answer having yet come from the Great Man, we begin to apprehend that they are going to treat us in Chinese style, and exclude us from their country altogether. We have tried in vain to discover whether the King is at this place, or a hundred, or as some maintain, a thousand miles off; in the mean time, as we know the island to be not more than sixty miles long, it is fair to suppose that they wish to deceive us.
We conjecture that a large building on a rising ground, three or four miles from us in an eastern direction, with two flag-staffs near it, is the palace mentioned in the account quoted by Pere Gaubil, Lettres Edifiantes et Curieuses, Tom. XXIII. The natives always refuse to give any information when asked about this building.
Whenever the natives come on board, if at all well dressed, they are asked into the cabin, where we treat them with cherry brandy and Constantia. In the course of conversation they contribute a number of new words, and, in general, when they see what the object is, are very willing to lend their a.s.sistance, and take much pains to teach us the true p.r.o.nunciation of their words. One man, however, who was not so quick as they generally are, was in the cabin to-day for some time; Mr.
Clifford was getting from him the Loo-choo words for sour, sweet, salt, &c.; and in order to make him comprehend the questions, made him taste different things that were sour, sweet, and so on: the poor fellow stood this very well, till some qua.s.sia was given to him to get the word "bitter;" he had no sooner tasted it, than he ran off quite astonished at the manner in which he had been entertained.
It blew hard this morning, so that there was little intercourse with the sh.o.r.e; but towards sunset it moderated, and Ookooma, Jeema, and four other Chiefs, came on board, bringing with them a present of a bullock, two hogs, goats, and vegetables. The Chief whose name is Shayoon is the most clever of them all; he is next in rank to Ookooma, but he generally takes the lead in discussion; he has a quick intelligent look, with more determination in his manner than any of the others. They were very particular on all these state occasions to observe the order of precedence, and no one sat down till his superior was seated. When any subject was discussed, one at a time rose to speak, but not in order of rank, and they never attempted to interrupt one another.
The weather at this moment looked so stormy, that I went on board the Lyra to prepare for a gale; by which I lost a very interesting conference with the chiefs. I learnt from Captain Maxwell afterwards, that he had remonstrated with them on their inconsistency and the pretended difficulty of getting answers from court; he gave them to understand, that he did not conceive it was treating the King of England with due respect to deny his officers permission to walk on sh.o.r.e.
Again, that they had promised to send pilots, but that none had come; and that many other promises had not been performed. He desired the interpreter to say, that he was not pleased with their telling him so many different stories, all of which could not be true; first they said that the bullocks, hogs, &c. were gifts from themselves; then, that they were sent by the Great Man; then, that there was no Great Man here: in fine, he urged them strongly to tell him the truth on all points. They made the interpreter repeat six times over what Captain Maxwell had desired him to say; they then consulted amongst themselves a long time, and at last a.s.sured Captain Maxwell, that a reply to the communications made by them to government would reach this place next day.
As the stock and vegetables received by the ships had, by this time, amounted to a considerable quant.i.ty, a bag of dollars was offered to them, and they were urged to take payment for what had been sent on board; this offer, which had been made more than once before, was still declined; upon which they were informed, that we considered it improper, as servants of government, to receive presents to such an extent from individuals. Upon this they gave their a.s.surance, that the stock had been sent on board by order of the Loo-choo government, on their being informed that the King of another country"s ships had arrived. No payment they said could therefore be taken. With this Captain Maxwell was satisfied. Their wish seems to be, to prevent our opening any communication with their government, and they appear so decided upon these matters, that they will probably succeed, notwithstanding all our efforts.
The chiefs have dresses adapted to the state of the weather; yesterday being cold and threatening, they all came on board with a sort of cloak or great coat made of a thick blue stuff like woollen cloth, b.u.t.toned in front. It is tighter than the ordinary dress, and is worn over it. It is only in fine weather, and on state occasions, that they wear the band turban, called by them "hatchee matchee;" at all other times they go uncovered, having their hair dressed like the rest of the people.
20th of September.--The mercury in the barometer fell last night from 29. 72, to 29. 51, and the sky a.s.sumed a yellow appearance. We expected a heavy gale, more particularly as it was so near the equinox, but we were so sheltered by the land, that though it appeared to blow hard at sea, we felt nothing of it where we lay.
Three or four canoes came round the south-west point of land this forenoon; the people in them were supposed to have come from the other side of the island, for they did not appear to have seen the ships before. One of these people was much delighted with a looking-gla.s.s which was shewn to him; he took it in his hands, and calling his companions about him, shewed them in turn its effect. Having done so several times, he held it opposite to his own face for four or five minutes without altering his countenance in the least; at last he smiled, and immediately and involuntarily nodded a.s.sent to the image in the gla.s.s, which had so exactly expressed what he felt himself; he seemed, however, aware, that it was a reflection of his own countenance, as he pointed to himself, yet he could not restrain his curiosity from looking behind, but instantly turned it round again. While the gla.s.s was in his hands, he made us several long speeches, in which he frequently repeated the word "Kagung," the Loo-choo name for mirror; but, from his behaviour, it is probable he knew it only by name. One of this party sold his "Jeewa" or head ornaments for a wine gla.s.s. Sometime afterwards, the others saw a bottle, which they wished to purchase in the same way; it was, however, given to them as a present, and they went away very well satisfied. These canoes were of pine, from twelve to twenty feet long, and from two to four wide; their anchor is made of wood loaded with stones.
As no answer came this morning from the Great Man, Captain Maxwell took the ships into a more secure anchorage at the north-east corner of the bay; our first anchorage being too close to a reef, and moreover open to the south-west winds. The place we had now shifted to, though apparently exposed, is, in fact, sheltered by a chain of reefs under water outside of us to the westward. By this change, we have been brought close to the bridge spoken of before, and are now abreast the east end of the town: the Lyra not being more than a quarter of a mile from the sh.o.r.e. A strict watch is kept on sh.o.r.e, so that no boat leaves the ships without being observed. Orders have been given for the whole anchorage to be carefully sounded; in doing this, the boats often approach the sh.o.r.e, and whenever this happens, a crowd of the natives, headed by one or other of the chiefs, repair to the spot, and wave them to keep farther off.
21st of September.--There appears to be some embargo upon the canoes, for there has not been one near us this morning, and only one on board the Alceste. It was found necessary to-day to move the frigate still farther in, and four or five hawsers were laid out for the purpose of warping her a-head. While this was going on, the beach, and all the heights near us, were crowded with people, wondering, no doubt, how the ship was made to move without sails, for the hawsers were low down, and might have escaped their observation. In the canoe which visited the Alceste, there came two men, who had not been seen before; they remained but a short time, which was spent in examining the hawsers and the mode of warping the ship. As soon as they had made themselves master of this subject, they went on sh.o.r.e, as if to make a report. During their visit they said little, being intent upon what was going on; but the interpreter learnt from one of them, that a Great Man had actually come, or was expected in the town to-day. A report prevails, that the King of the island has lately been on board in disguise. We cannot trace the report to any good foundation, and it is probably false. At the same time, if his Majesty has any curiosity, it is not unlikely that he may have come near enough to see such a strange sight as we must be.
It is possible that our moving up so close to the town has alarmed the people, and may have prevented their visiting us as heretofore; at all events, it is very unfair in our friends, the Chiefs, neither to let the people come on board, nor to allow us to go on sh.o.r.e to look at them.
Our occupation in the mean time is to observe the natives through the telescope placed on a table on the Lyra"s p.o.o.p. The stone bridge appears to be a great thoroughfare, several roads from the country leading to it; it seems also to be the only entrance to the town on this side.
n.o.body crosses it without stopping to look at us, and a crowd of idle people have taken post on and about it. We see a number of women coming from the country with baskets on their heads. Their outer dress differs from that of the men, it is open in front, and they have no girdle; they have an under dress, or sack, which is also loose, but not open; in some we can see that this comes nearly to the feet, in others just to the knee, and we imagine that those who work in the fields have the short dress: most of them allow their upper garment to flow out with the wind behind them. We observe a woman carrying a child across the hip as in India, with its hands on its mother"s shoulder, while her arm is round the child"s waist. One young lady has been seen for some time amusing herself by making a dog bark at the ships. We see women beating rice in wooden mortars. On the banks of the stream which the bridge crosses, there are a number of people washing clothes, which they perform in the Indian way, by dipping the clothes in water and beating them on stones.
From one end of the beach to the other there is a range of people watching us, they are formed here and there into groups; one of which, on a craggy knoll abreast of the ships, has struck us as being particularly interesting. A fine majestic looking man, whose full beard and flowing garments remind us of a figure in the Cartoons of Raphael, is standing in the middle of a circle of old men, who are lying on the gra.s.s, and appear to be listening to him.
22nd of September.--This morning brings us no news, no permission to land! A number of flags and streamers are displayed on the masts of the vessels in the inner harbour, and there seems to be something going on on sh.o.r.e; no boats have come to us, and we have no occupation but looking through the gla.s.s, which, however, affords a good deal of entertainment, particularly as the people whom we see with it act in the usual way, being unconscious of our scrutiny.