Page:Journal of the Right Hon. Sir Joseph Banks.djvu/271

Rh bare. In turning a point, we saw a man in a small canoe fishing, who, to our surprise, showed not the least fear of us. We went to him, and at our request he took up his nets, and showed us his implement, which was a circular net about seven or eight feet in diameter, extended by two hoops. The top of this was open, and to the bottom were tied sea-ears, etc., as bait: this he let down upon the ground, and when he thought that fish enough were assembled over it, he lifted it up by a very gentle and even motion, so that the fish were hardly sensible of being lifted till they were almost out of the water. By this simple method he had caught abundance of fish, and I believe it is the general way of fishing all over this coast, as many such nets have been seen at almost every place we have been in. In this bay, indeed, fish were so plentiful that it is hardly possible not to catch abundance by whatever method is adopted.

20th. Our old man came this morning with the heads of four people, which were preserved with the flesh and hair on, and kept I suppose as trophies, as possibly scalps were by the North Americans before the Europeans came among them. The brains were, however, taken out; maybe they are a delicacy here. The flesh and skin upon these heads were soft; but they were somehow preserved so as not to stink at all.

The bay, wherever we have yet been, is very hilly; we have hardly seen a flat large enough for a potato garden. Our friends here do not seem to feel the want of such places; as we have not seen the least appearance of cultivation, I suppose they live entirely upon fish, dogs, and enemies.

22nd. Made an excursion to-day in the pinnace, in order to see more of the bay. While Dr. Solander and I were botanising, the captain went to the top of a hill, and in about an hour returned in high spirits, having seen the eastern sea, and satisfied himself of the existence of a strait communicating with it, the idea of which has occurred to us all, from Tasman's as well as our own observations.

23rd. Mr. Monkhouse told me that on the 21st he had