A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels | Page 9

built over it. There were scuttles
all around, which served as air holes; and, perhaps, they were also
meant to fire from with muskets, if ever this should have been found
necessary. At a little distance from the front stood a wooden cross, on
the transverse part of which was cut the following inscription:
_Christus vincit._
And on the perpendicular part (which confirmed our conjecture that the

two ships were Spanish),
Carolus III. _imperat._ 1774.
On the other side of the post I preserved the memory of the prior visits
of the English, by inscribing,
_Georgius Tertius Rex, Annis_ 1767, 1769, 1773, 1774, & 1777.
The natives pointed out to us, near the foot of the cross, the grave of the
commodore of the two ships, who had died here while they lay in the
bay the first time. His name, as they pronounced it, was Oreede.
Whatever the intentions of the Spaniards in visiting this island might be,
they seemed to have taken great pains to ingratiate themselves with the
inhabitants, who, upon every occasion, mentioned them with the
strongest expressions of esteem, and veneration.
I met with no chief of any considerable note on this occasion, excepting
the extraordinary personage above described. Waheiadooa, the
sovereign of Tiaraboo (as this part of the island is called), was now
absent; and I afterward found that he was not the same person, though
of the same name with the chief whom I had seen here during my last
voyage; but his brother, a boy of about ten years of age, who had
succeeded upon the death of the elder Waheiadooa, about twenty
months before our arrival. We also learned that the celebrated Oberea
was dead; but that Otoo and all our other friends were living.
When I returned from viewing the house and cross erected by the
Spaniards, I found Omai holding forth to a large company; and it was
with some difficulty that he could be got away to accompany me on
board, where I had an important affair to settle.
As I knew that Otaheite, and the neighbouring islands, could furnish us
with a plentiful supply of cocoa-nuts, the liquor of which is an
excellent succedaneum for any artificial beverage, I was desirous of
prevailing upon my people to consent to be abridged, during our stay
here, of their stated allowance of spirits to mix with water. But as this
stoppage of a favourite article, without assigning some reason, might

have occasioned a general murmur, I thought it most prudent to
assemble the ship's company, and to make known to them the intent of
the voyage, and the extent of our future operations. To induce them to
undertake which with cheerfulness and perseverance, I took notice of
the rewards offered by parliament to such of his majesty's subjects as
shall first discover a communication between the Atlantic and Pacific
Oceans, in any direction whatever, in the northern hemisphere; and also
to such as shall first penetrate beyond the 39th degree of northern
latitude. I made no doubt, I told them, that I should find them willing to
co-operate with me in attempting, as far as might be possible, to
become entitled to one or both these rewards; but that, to give us the
best chance of succeeding, it would be necessary to observe the utmost
economy in the expenditure of our stores and provisions, particularly
the latter, as there was no probability of getting a supply any where,
after leaving these islands. I strengthened my argument by reminding
them that our voyage must last at least a year longer than had been
originally supposed, by our having already lost the opportunity of
getting to the north this summer. I begged them to consider the various
obstructions and difficulties we might still meet with, and the
aggravated hardships they would labour under, if it should be found
necessary to put them to short allowance of any species of provisions,
in a cold climate. For these very substantial reasons, I submitted to
them whether it would not be better to be prudent in time, and rather
than to run the risk of having no spirits left, when such a cordial would
be most wanted, to consent to be without their grog now, when we had
so excellent a liquor as that of cocoa-nuts to substitute in its place; but
that, after all, I left the determination entirely to their own choice.
I had the satisfaction to find that this proposal did not remain a single
moment under consideration; being unanimously approved of
immediately, without any objection. I ordered Captain Clerk to make
the same proposal to his people, which they also agreed to.
Accordingly we stopped serving grog, except on Saturday nights, when
the companies of both ships had full allowance of it,