at which I was much surprised, for the people were in the utmost distress for the fish, which in a short time would be spoilt; I was, therefore, reduced to a disagreeable situation, either of releasing the canoes, contrary to what I had solemnly and publicly declared, or to detain them, to the great injury of those who were innocent, without answering any good purpose to ourselves:  As a temporary expedient, I permitted them to take the fish; but still detained the canoes.  This very licence, however, was productive of new confusion and injury; for, it not being easy at once to distinguish to what particular persons the several lots of fish belonged, the canoes were plundered, under favour of this circumstance, by those who had no right to any part of their cargo.  Most pressing instances were still made that the canoes might be restored, and I having now the greatest reason to believe, either that the things for which I detained them were not in the island, or that those who suffered by their detention had not sufficient influence over the thieves to prevail upon them to relinquish, their booty, determined at length to give them up, not a little mortified at the bad success of my project.

Another accident also about this time was, notwithstanding all our caution, very near embroiling us with the Indians.  I sent the boat on shore with an officer to get ballast for the ship, and not immediately finding stones convenient for the purpose, he began to pull down some part of an enclosure where they deposited the bones of their dead:  This the Indians violently opposed, and a messenger came down to the tents to acquaint the officers that they would not suffer it.  Mr Banks immediately repaired to the place, and an amicable end was soon put to the dispute, by sending the boat’s crew to the river, where stones enough were to be gathered without a possibility of giving offence.  It is very remarkable, that these Indians appeared to be much more jealous of what was done to the dead than the living.  This was the only measure in which they ventured to oppose us, and the only insult that was offered to any individual among us was upon a similar occasion.  Mr Monkhouse happening one day to pull a flower from a tree which grew in one of their sepulchral enclosures, an Indian, whose jealousy had probably been upon the watch, came suddenly behind him, and struck him:  Mr Monkhouse laid hold of him, but he was instantly rescued by two more, who took hold of Mr Monkhouse’s hair, and forced him to quit his hold of their companion, and then ran away without offering him any farther violence.