Little wind and Variable. In the P.M. the Carpenters
having prepared the 2 Posts with inscriptions upon them, setting forth
the Ship's Name, Month, and Year, one of them was set up at the Watering
Place, on which was hoisted the Union flag; and in the Morning I took the
other over to the Island which is known by the name of Motuouru, and is
the one that lies nearest to the Sea; but before I attempted to set up
the Post I went first to the Hippa, having Dr. Monkhouse and Tupia along
with me. We here met with the old Man I have before spoke of. The first
thing I did was to inquire after the Man said to be kill'd by our people,
and the one that was wounded at the same time, when it did not appear to
me that any such accidents had happened.
I next (by means of Tupia)
explain'd to the old Man and several others that we were Come to set up a
Mark upon the Island, in order to shew to any ship that might put into
this place that we had been here before. They not only gave their free
Consent to set it up, but promised never to pull it down. I then gave
every one a present of one thing or another; to the old man I gave
Silver, three penny pieces dated 1763, and Spike Nails with the King's
Broad Arrow cut deep in them; things that I thought were most likely to
remain long among them. After I had thus prepared the way for setting up
the post, we took it up to the highest part of the Island, and after
fixing it fast in the ground, hoisted thereon the Union flag, and I
dignified this Inlet with the name of Queen Charlotte's Sound, and took
formal possession of it and the Adjacent lands in the Name and for the
use of his Majesty. We then drank her Majesty's health in a Bottle of
wine, and gave the Empty bottle to the old man (who had attended us up
the hill), with which he was highly pleased.
Whilst the Post was setting
up we asked the old man about the Strait or Passage into the Eastern sea,
and he very plainly told us there was a Passage, and as I had some
Conjectures that the lands to the South-West of this Strait (which we are
now at) was an Island, and not a Continent, we questioned the old Man
about it, who said it consisted of two Wannuas, that is 2 lands or
Islands that might be Circumnavigated in a few days, even in 4. This man
spoke of 3 lands, the 2 above mentioned which he called Tovy-poinammu,*
(* The two Wannuas were doubtless the peninsulas lying west of Queen
Charlotte's Sound. The third was the North Island. Te Wai Pounamu (The
Water of the Greenstone, of which the most prized weapons were made) is
the native name of the Middle Island; but there must have been some
confusion as to the possibility of getting round this in four days. The
name of the North Island is Te Ika o Maui (The Fish of Maui), but is
given by Cook as Aeheino Mouwe. It has been suggested (Rusden) that the
name given to him was Tehinga o Maui (The Fishing of Maui), and
imperfectly rendered.) which Signifies green Talk or Stone, such as they
make their Tools or ornaments, etc., and for the third he pointed to the
land on the East side of the Strait; this, he said, was a large land, and
that it would take up a great many Moons to sail round it; this he called
Aeheino Mouwe, a name many others before had called it by. That part
which borders on the strait he called Teiria Whitte. After we had done
our business upon the Island we returned on board, bringing the old Man
along with us, who after dinner went ashore in a Canoe that came to
attend upon him.
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