9th July 1769

Tahiti

When, sometime in the Middle Watch, Clement Webb and Saml. Gibson, both Marines and young Men, found means to get away from the Fort (which was now no hard matter to do) and in the morning were not to be found. As it was known to everybody that all hands were to go on board on the Monday morning, and that the ship would sail in a day or two, there was reason to think that these 2 Men intended to stay behind. However I was willing to stay one day to see if they would return before I took any step to find them.

Joseph Banks Journal

Our freinds with us early in the morning as usual, some I beleive realy sorry at the aproach of our departu[r]e others desirous to make as much as they can of our stay. Several of the people were this evening out on liberty. Two foreign seamen were together and one had his knife stolen; he atempted to recover it, may be roughly, for the Indians attackd him and wounded him greivously with a stone over his eye, the other was also slightly wounded in the head; the people who had done this immediately fled to the mountains.  Two of our marines left the fort some time last night or this morn without leave. Their doing this at a time when our departure is so near makes us suspect them of an intention of staying among these people; nothing however has been said about them today in hopes of their returning which they have not yet done.

Sydney Parkinson’s Journal

Two of our marines being enamoured with a girl, one of the natives deserted from the sort, and fled to the west part of the island, and intended to have staid there. On the same day one of the natives stole a knife from one of our sailors, and wounded him with it in the forehead, almost through his skull: — a fray ensued, and the Indians ran away. Most of the materials which composed the fort having been taken down, and put on board the ship, we prepared to set fail.