they had killed.  Though stronger evidence of this horrid practice prevailing among the inhabitants of this coast will scarcely be required, we have still stronger to give.  One of us asked if they had any human bones with the flesh remaining upon them, and upon their answering us that all had been eaten, we affected to disbelieve that the bones were human, and said that they were the bones of a dog; upon which one of the Indians with some eagerness took hold of his own fore-arm, and thrusting it towards us, said, that the bone which Mr Banks held in his hand had belonged to that part of a human body; at the same time, to convince us that the flesh had been eaten, he took hold of his own arm with his teeth, and made shew of eating:  He also bit and gnawe’d the bone which Mr Banks had taken, drawing it through his mouth, and shewing, by signs, that it had afforded a delicious repast; the bone was then returned to Mr Banks, and he brought it away with him.  Among the persons of this family, there was a woman who had her arms, legs, and thighs frightfully cut in several places; and we were told that she had inflicted the wounds upon herself, in token of her grief for the loss of her husband, who had been lately killed and eaten by their enemies, who had come from some place to the eastward, towards which the Indians pointed.

The ship lay at the distance of somewhat less than a quarter of a mile from the shore, and in the morning we were awakened by the singing of the birds:  The number was incredible, and they seemed to strain their throats in emulation of each other.  This wild melody was infinitely superior to any that we had ever heard of the same kind; it seemed to be like small bells, exquisitely tuned, and perhaps the distance and the water between, might be no small advantage to the sound.  Upon enquiry, we were informed that the birds here always began to sing about two hours after midnight, and continuing their music till sunrise, were, like our nightingales, silent the rest of the day.[67] In the forenoon, a small canoe came off from the Indian village to the ship, and among those that were in it, was the old man who had first come on board at our arrival in the bay.  As soon as it came alongside, Tupia renewed the conversation that had passed the day before, concerning their practice of eating human flesh, during which they repeated what they had told us already; but, said Tupia, where are the heads? do you eat them too?  Of the heads, said the old man, we eat only the brains, and the next time I come I will bring some of them, to convince you that what we have told you is truth.  After some farther conversation between these people and Tupia, they told him that they expected their enemies to come very shortly, to revenge the death of the seven men whom they had killed and eaten.

[Footnote 67:  This is a vulgar error, though at the same time a poetical one.  It is known that nightingales do sing in the day; but their song is then less attended to or distinguished, because it forms a part only of the harmony of the feathered choir.—­E.]