A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels, Vol. 11 | Page 3

remainder of the day was spent with our wild visitors, who behaved in general very quietly. The officer returned with an account of having been very civilly received, and we prepared our casks for being sent ashore next morning. Although, at first view, the country and inhabitants might dissuade us from venturing freely among them, I had formerly read such accounts of these people, that I was under no apprehension of being molested in wooding and watering. The Californians, however, appeared very terrible to our negroes, insomuch, that one of them, who accompanied the officer on shore, was afraid to stir from the boat, and held an axe constantly in his hand, to defend himself in case of being attacked. On the approach of night, all the Indians swam ashore, leaving us a clear ship, after the fatigues of the day.
Next morning, at day-break, our boat went ashore with the people appointed to cut wood and fill our water-casks; and before the sun was up, our ship was again filled with our former guests, who seemed never satisfied with gazing at us and every thing about the ship. That nothing might be wanting to keep up our amity, I sent a large boiler on shore, with a good store of flour and sugar, and a negro cook, who continually boiled hasty-pudding, to serve the numerous guests on the beach. At first the natives remained idle spectators of our labours; but at length, taking compassion to see our few men labouring hard in rolling great casks of water over the heavy sand in the sultry heat of the day, they put forth their hands to help them, encouraged by the particular readiness of their chief to serve us; for, after seeing Mr Randal take up a log of wood to carry to the boat, he took up another, and was immediately followed by two or three hundred of the natives, so that they eased our men mightily. They also rolled our casks down to the beach, but always expected a white man to assist them, though quite satisfied if he only touched the cask with his finger. This eased our men of a great deal of fatigue, and shortened the time of our stay at this place. We even found means to make those who used to stay all day on board, of some use to us; for, when we came to heel the ship, we crowded them, all over on one side, which, with other shifts, gave her a deep heel, while we cleaned and paid her bottom with pitch and tallow.
The natives seemed every day more and more attached to us. When our boat went ashore in the morning, there was constantly a large retinue in waiting on the beach for our people, and particularly for those whom they guessed to be above the common rank, by their better dress. By this time, the news of our arrival had spread through all the neighbouring parts, and some natives of different tribes from that which dwelt about the bay, came daily to visit us. Those who came from any distance in the inland country could not swim, and were differently painted, besides some other visible distinctions; but all united amicably to assist us, and hardly any were idle except the women, who used to sit in circles on the scorching sand, waiting for their shares of what was going forwards, which they received without any quarrelling among themselves about the inequality of distribution. Having completed our business in five days, we prepared for our departure on the 18th August, and employed that morning in making a large distribution of sugar among the women, and gave a great many knives, old axes, and old iron among the men, being the most valuable presents we could make them; and, in return, they gave us bows and arrows, deer-skin bags, live foxes and squirrels, and the like. That we might impress them with awe of our superior power, we saluted them with five guns on loosing our top-sails, which greatly frightened them, and there seemed an universal damp on their spirits on seeing our sails loosed, as sorry for our approaching departure. The women were all in tears when my people were coming off to the ship; and many of the men remained till we were under sail, and then leapt into the sea with sorrowful countenances.
Having made some stay in California, some account of that country and its inhabitants may be expected; though I believe a complete discovery of its extent and boundaries would produce few real advantages, except satisfying the curious. That part of California which I saw, being the southern extremity of its western coast, appears mountainous, barren, and sandy, much like some parts of Peru: yet the soil about