Captain Cook's Journal During His First Voyage Round the World
Cloth round their Middles, as well as over their Shoulders. But this is
not common, especially with the Men, who hardly ever wear anything round
their Middles, observing no sort of Decency in that respect; neither is
it at all uncommon for them to go quite Naked without any one thing about
them besides a belt round their waists, to which is generally fastened a
small string, which they tye round the prepuse; in this manner I have
seen hundreds of them come off to and on board the Ship, but they
generally had their proper Cloathing in the boat along with them to put
on if it rain'd, etc. The Women, on the other hand, always wear something
round their Middle; generally a short, thrumbd Matt, which reaches as low
as their Knees. Sometimes, indeed, I have seen them with only a Bunch of
grass or plants before, tyed on with a piece of fine platting made of
sweet-scented grass; they likewise wear a piece of cloth over their
Shoulders as the Men do; this is generally of the Thrum kind. I hardly
ever saw a Woman wear a piece of fine cloth. One day at Talago I saw a
strong proof that the Women never appear naked, at least before
strangers. Some of us hapned to land upon a small Island where several of
them were Naked in the Water, gathering of Lobsters and shell fish; as
soon as they saw us some of them hid themselves among the Rocks, and the
rest remain'd in the Sea until they had made themselves Aprons of the Sea
Weed; and even then, when they came out to us, they shew'd Manifest signs
of Shame, and those who had no method of hiding their nakedness would by
no means appear before us.
The Women have all very soft Voices, and may by that alone be known from
the Men. The Making of cloth and all other Domestick work is, I believe,
wholy done by them, and the more Labourious work, such as building Boats,
Houses, Tilling the ground, etc., by the Men. Both men and women wear
ornaments at their Ears and about their Necks; these are made of stone,
bone, Shells, etc., and are variously shaped; and some I have seen wear
human Teeth and finger Nails, and I think we were told that they did
belong to their deceased friends. The Men, when they are dressed,
generally wear 2 or 3 long white feathers stuck upright in their Hair,
and at Queen Charlotte's sound many, both men and women, wore Round Caps
made of black feathers.
[War Practices of New Zealanders.]
The old men are much respected by the younger, who seem to be govern'd
and directed by them on most Occasions. We at first thought that they
were united under one head or Chief, whose Name is Teeratu; we first
heard of him in Poverty Bay, and he was own'd as Chief by every one we
met with from Cape Kidnappers to the Northward and Westward as far as the
Bay of Plenty, which is a great extent of territories for an Indian
Prince. When we were upon the East Coast they always pointed inland to
the Westward for the place of his residence, which I believe to be in the
Bay of Plenty, and that those Hippas or fortified Towns are Barrier Towns
either for or against him; but most likely the former, and if so, may be
the utmost Extent of his Dominions to the Westwards, for at Mercury bay
they did not own him as their Prince, nor no where else either to the
Westward or Southward, or any other single person; for at whatever place
we put in at, or whatever people we spoke with upon the Coast, they
generally told us that those that were at a little distance from them
were their Enemies; from which it appear'd to me that they were very much
divided into Parties, which make war one with another, and all their
Actions and behaviour towards us tended to prove that they are a brave,
open, war-like people, and void of Treachery.
Whenever we were Visited by any number of them that had never heard or
seen anything of us before they generally came off in the largest Canoe
they had, some of which will carry 60, 80, or 100 people. They always
brought their best Cloaths along with them, which they put on as soon as
they came near the Ship. In each Canoe were generally an old Man, in some
2 or 3; these used always to direct the others, were better Cloathed, and
generally carried a Halbard or Battle Axe in their hands, or some such
like thing that distinguished them from the others. As soon as they came
within about a Stone's throw of the Ship they would there lay, and call
out, "Haromoi harenta a patoo ago!" that is, "Come here, come ashore with
us, and we will kill you with our patoo patoos!" and at the same time
would shake them at us. At times they would dance the War dance, and
other times they would trade with and talk to us, and Answer such
Questions as were put to them with all the Calmness imaginable, and then
again begin the War Dance, shaking their Paddles, Patoo patoos, etc., and
make strange contortions at the same time. As soon as they had worked
themselves up to a proper pitch they would begin to attack us with Stones
and darts, and oblige us, wether we would or no, to fire upon them.
Musquetry they never regarded unless they felt the Effect; but great Guns
they did, because they threw stones farther than they could Comprehend.
After they found that our Arms were so much superior to theirs, and that
we took no advantage of that superiority, and a little time given them to
reflect upon it, they ever after were our very good friends; and we never
had an instance of their attempting to surprize or cut off any of our
people when they were ashore; opportunity for so doing they must have had
at one time or another.
It is hard to account for what we have every where been told, of their
Eating their Enemies killed in Battle, which they most Certainly do;
Circumstances enough we have seen to Convince us of the Truth of this.
Tupia, who holds this Custom in great aversion, hath very often Argued
with them against it, but they have always as streniously supported it,
and never would own that it was wrong. It is reasonable to suppose that
men with whom this custom is found, seldom, if ever, give Quarter to
those they overcome in battle; and if so, they must fight desperately to
the very last. A strong proof of this supposition we had from the People
of Queen Charlotte's sound, who told us, but a few days before we Arrived
that they had kill'd and Eat a whole boat's crew. Surely a single boat's
crew, or at least a part of them, when they found themselves beset and
overpowered by numbers would have surrender'd themselves prisoners was
such a thing practised among them. The heads of these unfortunate people
they preserved as Trophies; 4 or 5 of them they brought off to shew to
us, one of which Mr. Banks bought, or rather forced them to sell, for
they parted with it with the utmost reluctancy, and afterwards would not
so much as let us see one more for any thing we could offer them.
In the Article of Food these People have no great Variety; Fern roots,
Dogs, Fish, and wild fowl is their Chief diet, for Cocos, Yams, and Sweet
Potatoes is not Cultivated every where. They dress their Victuals in the
same Manner as the people in the South Sea Islands; that is, dogs and
Large fish they bake in a hole in the ground, and small fish, birds, and
Shell fish, etc., they broil on the fire. Fern roots they likewise heat
over the fire, then beat them out flat upon a stone with a wooden Mallet;
after this they are fit for Eating, in the doing of which they suck out
the Moist and Glutinous part, and Spit out the Fibrous parts. These ferns
are much like, if not the same as, the mountain ferns in England.
They catch fish with Seans, Hooks and line, but more commonly with hooped
netts very ingeniously made; in the middle of these they tie the bait,
such as Sea Ears, fish Gutts, etc., then sink the Nett to the bottom with
a stone; after it lays there a little time they haul it Gently up, and
hardly ever without fish, and very often a large quantity. All their
netts are made of the broad Grass plant before mentioned; generally with
no other preparation than by Splitting the blade of the plant into
threads. Their fish hooks are made of Crooked pieces of Wood, bones, and
Shells.
[New Zealand Canoes, Houses, etc.]
The people shew great ingenuity and good workmanship in the building and
framing their boats or Canoes. They are long and Narrow, and shaped very
much like a New England Whale boat. Their large Canoes are, I believe,
built wholy for war, and will carry from 40 to 80 or 100 Men with their
Arms, etc. I shall give the Dimensions of one which I measured that lay
ashore at Tolago. Length 68 1/2 feet, breadth 5 feet, and Depths 3 1/2,
the bottom sharp, inclining to a wedge, and was made of 3 pieces hollow'd
out to about 2 Inches or an Inch and a half thick, and well fastned
together with strong platting. Each side consisted of one Plank only,
which was 63 feet long and 10 or 12 Inches broad, and about 1 1/4 Inch
thick, and these were well fitted and lashed to the bottom part. There
were a number of Thwarts laid a Cross and Lashed to each Gunwale as a
strengthening to the boat. The head Ornament projected 5 or 6 feet
without the body of the Boat, and was 4 feet high; the Stern Ornament was
14 feet high, about 2 feet broad, and about 1 1/2 inch thick; it was
fixed upon the Stern of the Canoe like the Stern post of a Ship upon her
Keel. The Ornaments of both head and Stern and the 2 side boards were of
Carved Work, and, in my opinion, neither ill design'd nor executed. All
their Canoes are built after this plan, and few are less than 20 feet
long. Some of the small ones we have seen with Outriggers, but this is
not Common. In their War Canoes they generally have a quantity of Birds'
feathers hung in Strings, and tied about the Head and stern as Additional
Ornament. They are as various in the heads of their Canoes as we are in
those of our Shipping; but what is most Common is an odd Design'd Figure
of a man, with as ugly a face as can be conceived, a very large Tongue
sticking out of his Mouth, and Large white Eyes made of the Shells of Sea
Ears. Their paddles are small, light, and neatly made; they hardly ever
make use of sails, at least that we saw, and those they have are but ill
contrived, being generally a piece of netting spread between 2 poles,
which serve for both Masts and Yards.
The Houses of these People are better calculated for a Cold than a Hot
Climate; they are built low, and in the form of an oblong square. The
framing is of wood or small sticks, and the sides and Covering of thatch
made of long Grass. The door is generally at one end, and no bigger than
to admit of a man to Creep in and out; just within the door is the fire
place, and over the door, or on one side, is a small hole to let out the
Smoke. These houses are 20 or 30 feet long, others not above half as
long; this depends upon the largeness of the Family they are to contain,
for I believe few familys are without such a House as these, altho' they
do not always live in them, especially in the summer season, when many of
them live dispers'd up and down in little Temporary Hutts, that are not
sufficient to shelter them from the weather.
The Tools which they work with in building their Canoes, Houses, etc.,
are adzes or Axes, some made of a hard black stone, and others of green
Talk. They have Chiszels made of the same, but these are more commonly
made of Human Bones. In working small work and carving I believe they use
mostly peices of Jasper, breaking small pieces from a large Lump they
have for that purpose; as soon as the small peice is blunted they throw
it away and take another. To till or turn up the ground they have wooden
spades (if I may so call them), made like stout pickets, with a piece of
wood tied a Cross near the lower end, to put the foot upon to force them