ds the tree where Mr Banks
stood, he went out to meet them, and, with great formality, introduced
them into the circle from which the other natives had been excluded. As
it is the custom of these people to sit during all their conferences, Mr
Banks unwrapped a kind of turban of Indian cloth, which he wore upon his
head instead of a hat, and spreading it upon the ground, they all sat
down upon it together. The royal present was then brought, which
consisted of a hog and a dog, some bread-fruit, cocoa-nuts, and other
articles of the like kind. Mr Banks then dispatched a canoe to the
observatory for his present, and the messengers soon returned with an
adze, a shirt, and some beads, which were presented to his majesty, and
received with great satisfaction.

By this time, Tubourai Tamaide and Tomio joined them, from the
observatory. Tomio said, that she was related to Tarrao; and brought him
a present of a long nail, at the same time complimenting Nuna with a
shirt.

The first internal contact of the planet with the sun being over, Mr
Banks returned to the observatory, taking Tarrao, Nuna, and some of
their principal attendants, among whom were three very handsome young
women, with him: He showed them the planet upon the sun, and endeavoured
to make them understand that he and his companions had come from their
own country on purpose to see it. Soon after, Mr Banks returned with
them to the island, where he spent the rest of the day in examining its
produce, which he found to be much the same with that of Otaheite. The
people whom he saw there also exactly resembled the inhabitants of that
island, and many of them were persons whom he had seen upon it; so that
all those whom he had dealt with, knew of what his trading articles
consisted, and the value they bore.

The next morning having struck the tents, they set out on their return,
and arrived at the fort before night.

The observation was made with equal success by the persons whom I had
sent to the eastward, and at the fort, there not being a cloud in the
sky from the rising to the setting of the sun, the whole passage of the
planet Venus over the sun's disk was observed with great advantage by Mr
Green, Dr Solander, and myself: Mr Green's telescope and mine were of
the same magnifying power, but that of Dr Solander was greater. We all
saw an atmosphere or dusky cloud round the body of the planet, which
very much disturbed the times of contact, especially of the int