Mark's Pages

"A little further north canoes were troublesome: 'in order to get rid of them we were at the expense of 2 or 3 Musquet Balls and one 4 pound shot but as no harm was intended them none they received unless they happened to over heat themselves in pulling a shore.' The Cook who gave the doll, his wife's 'Picter', to Purea [on Tahiti] is evident again here; things were going cheerfully, he was not above the humour of the Court of Aldermen, or, a little later, of Cape Brett - because off the cape lay a high rock with a hole pierced through it, and the distinguished admiral after whom he named it was Sir Piercy. That cape stood outside another deep bay, which at first he passed by; but losing ground steadily before a strong westerly wind, he bore away for it again and anchored in shoal water before one the many islands within its entrance, Motu Arohia. The day was 29 November [1769]." — J.C. Beaglehole, The Life of Captain James Cook.