rd of him or the _Harriet_. The
natives now told me that about a year ago she had put into this harbour,
there being no other vessels here at the time. You remember what a
good-natured, yet somewhat careless fellow he was. The natives came in
numbers on board his ship, and appeared to be on the most friendly terms
with him and his crew. They at length, one day, invited his men to go
ashore, and he consequently allowed the greater number of them to land.
This sort of thing continued while he lay in the harbour. King George
and most of his though they came down to visit the ship when she first
arrived, were, at that time, living in another part of the island, and
the people just here did pretty much as they liked.

"Barber, with a boat's crew, only remained on board, when, on going on
deck in the morning, he caught sight of three of his men running down
towards the beach as fast as they could go, with a posse of natives
after them. Presently they were overtaken. First one was struck down
by the club of a savage, and directly afterwards the other two shared
the same fate. The natives, on reaching the shore, jumped into their
canoes, a whole fleet of which came paddling off towards the ship. The
crew, on seeing this, I suspect, took fright, thinking that they should
all be murdered, as their mates on shore had been. Captain Barber
himself would, I am certain, have stopped to defend his ship, but
probably fearing that it would be of no use to make the attempt while
his crew were so faint-hearted, he ordered the boat to be lowered with
such provisions and water as could be hastily thrown into her. They had
scarcely left the side of the ship before the savages were up to her.
They pursued the boat for some distance, but at length gave up the
chase, eager to get back and secure their prize. They then set to work
to plunder the vessel of everything they considered of value. They
stripped her of her sails and rigging, and all the iron-work they could
get at, managing even to carry away her topmasts, jib-boom, and yards.
Having done this, they towed the vessel higher up the harbour and
scuttled her.

"When King George, who had known Captain Barber and some of his people--
for he had been down at the harbour when the ship first arrived--heard
of the massacre he was very indignant, and Jackey and Tubbs told me that
he killed no less than thirty of those who had taken part in it with his
own hand. Whether this was actu