another
green branch, and with this in his hand, he approached the dead body
which the youth had covered with part of his clothes, walking sideways,
with many ceremonies, and then throwing it towards him. When this was
done, he returned to his companions, who had sat down upon the sand to
observe the issue of his negociation: They immediately gathered round
him, and continued in a body above an hour, without seeming to take any
farther notice of us. We were more curious than they, and observing them
with our glasses from on board the ship, we saw some of them cross the
river upon a kind of raft, or catamarine, and four of them carry off the
dead body which had been covered by the boy, and over which his uncle
had performed the ceremony of the branch, upon a kind of bier, between
four men: The other body was still suffered to remain where it had been
first left.

After dinner, I directed Tupia to ask the boys, if they had now any
objection to going ashore, where we had left their uncle, the body
having been carried off, which we understood was a ratification of
peace: They said, they had not; and the boat being ordered, they went
into it with great alacrity: When the boat, in which I had sent two
midshipmen, came to land, they went willingly ashore; but soon after she
put off, they returned to the rocks, and wading into the, water,
earnestly entreated to be taken on board again; but the people in the
boat, having positive orders to leave them, could not comply. We were
very attentive to what happened on shore, and keeping a constant watch
with our glasses, we saw a man pass the river upon another raft, and
fetch them to a place where forty or fifty of the natives were
assembled, who closed round them, and continued in the same place till
sun-set: Upon looking again, when we saw them in motion, we could
plainly distinguish our three prisoners, who separated themselves from
the rest, came down to the beach, and having waved their hands three
times towards the ship, ran nimbly back and joined their companions, who
walked leisurely away towards that part which the boys had pointed to as
their dwelling-place; we had therefore the greatest reason to believe
that no mischief would happen to them, especially as we perceived that
they went off in the clothes we had given them.

After it was dark, loud voices were heard on shore in the bottom of the
bay as usual, of which we could never learn the meaning.[50]

[Footnote 50: It