Journal - The Voyage Home James Morrison Journal - The Mutiny
Revised May 29 2021
We were presently surrounded by the Natives in their Canoes, who brought off Hogs, Bread fruit & Cocoa Nuts, in abundance, and a trade for Nails hatchets &ca. soon commenced; of the Cocoa Nuts the sick were desired to drink plentifully and these contributed so much to their recovery, that in a few days there was no appearance of sickness or disorder in the ship, and the Great Plenty of Provisions with [which] the Natives supply'd us soon renewd their Strength.
Imediatly on anchoring, an order signd by Mr. Bligh was stuck up on the Mizen Mast, Prohibiting the Purchase of Curiosities or any thing except Provisions—there were few or no instances of the order being disobeyd, as no curiosity struck the seamen so forcibly as a roasted pig & some bread fruit, and these Came in abundance evry species of Ships Provision except grog being stop'd.
November, 1788.
As soon as the Ship was moord, a tent was pitchd on Point Venus, Map and Mr. Nelson & his Assistant went on Shore to Collect Plants, the Gunner also went to the Tent to trade for Hogs for the Ships Use; it being found more convenient then trading alongside, as the Canoes came so thick as to put a stop to all Work. Mr. F. Christian Mr. Heywood & Mr. Peckover the Gunner & four men were also sent on shore as a guard in case the natives should behave amiss.
A shed was built for the reception of the Plants and the Pots Carried on shore as Mr. Nelson filld them. Mean time the Carpenter and his Mates fitted the Cabbin for their reception. Some hands were employd Cutting Wood & filling Water for present Use, the Forge was set up and the Armourer set to work to make trade and all the Salt in the ship was soon expended in curing pork for sea store and evry thing seemd to go on in a prosperous manner. While the salting time lasted, provisions were in great Plenty, as each Man was allowd two Pounds of the Bones and such parts as were not fit for salting, Pr. day which with what they could get by purchace themselves was always sufficient to enable them to live well.
December, 1788. On the 11th of December Departed this life Mr. Thos. Huggan [the Surgeon] & next day his remains were Inter'd on Point Venus and a board fixd to a tree near his grave with an Inscription on it to his Memory—the sailmaker got the sails on shore to repair.
The Market for Hogs beginning now to slacken Mr. Bligh seized on all that came to the ship big & small Dead or alive, taking them as his property, and serving them as the ship's allowance at one pound pr. Man pr. Day. He also seized on those belonging to the Master, & killd them for the ships use, tho He had more then 40 of different sizes on board of his own, and there was then plenty to be purchaced: nor was the price much risen from the first, and when the Master spoke to him, telling him the Hogs were his property, he told him that 'He Mr. Bligh would convince him that evry thing was his, as soon as it was on board, and that He would take nine tenths of any mans property and let him see who dared say any thing to the contrary', those of the seamen were seized without ceremony, and it became a favour for a man to get a Pound extra of His own hog.
The Natives observing that the Hogs were seized as soon as they Came on board, and not knowing but they would be seized from them, as well as the People, became very shy of bringing a hog in sight of Lieut. Bligh either on board or on shore, and watchd all opportunitys when he was on shore to bring provisions to their friends but as Mr. Bligh observed this, and saw that His diligence was like to be evaded, he ordered a Book to be kept in the Binnacle wherein the Mate of the Watch was to insert the Number of Hogs or Pigs with the Weight of each that came into the Ship to remedy this, the Natives took another Method which was Cutting the Pigs up, and wraping them in leaves and covering the Meat with Bread fruit in the Baskets, and sometimes with peeld Cocoa Nuts, by which means, as the Bread was never seized, they were a Match for all his industry; and he never suspected their artifice. By this means provisions were still plenty.
On the 20th we had heavy rains & a strong Gale of Wind from the N W which brought with it a heavy sea from that Quarter breaking so violently on the Dolphin Bank that the Surge run fairly over the Ship, and the Carpenter who was the evening before Confined to his Cabbin, was now released to secure the Hatches. Several things were washd overboard & had not the Cables been very good the ship must have gone on shore. Next day the Gale abated, but the surf run very high on the shore so as to prevent landing either in Canoes or Boats. However several of the Natives found the way off through it, and brought bunches of Cocoa Nuts with them that were full as much as one of us could haul up the side tho they had swam off with them through a tremendous surf. As the Weather Modrated, the Canoes came off and of them we learnt the situation of the Party on shore who had been in danger of being washd away by the overflowing of the river, and observed them opening a sluice in the Bank which soon assumed the appearance of a large river.
As soon as a boat Could land, the sails were got off and Bent, and the Plants got on board, and the Ship unmoord the Master sent to examine Oparrie Harbour, as this Mataavai Bay was judged unsafe Dec 25, 1788 to remain any longer in, he returned with a favourable account of the Place, and on the Morning of the 25th the tent was struck & sent down in the launch, at 7 o'clock the ship weighd and followed, but standing in, she run on a coral rock which had escaped the Masters sight; the sea Breeze being set in gave us some trouble before we got her off which however we did before night, & moord with one Bower & the Kedge, till Morning; when we moord with Both bowers: Got the Plants on shore and a house was provided by Otoo or Matte, the Chief mentioned by Capt. Cook, in lieu of a Tent for the shore party and a place fenced in for the Plants. Map
Having got the ship in order, we kept our Christmass on the 28th: each man having double allowance of Grog which was stopd from those who had not Crossd the Equator before this voyage, and on the 1st of January 1789 this was repeated, after which the Grog was reduced to half the allowance but as we had plenty of Cocoa Nut Milk, the Grog was not missd and the natives took care to keep us well supplied with them notwithstanding the frequent seizures made by Mr. Bligh who Drank nothing else in his Grog.
January, 1789. It would be difficult to account for evry transaction that happend while we lay at this Island and shall only make a few remarks—
On our first Arrival the Ship was visited by numbers of the Inhabitants of all descriptions, among whom were several Chiefs who brought large Presents and were presented in their turn by Mr. Bligh who found some of His old acquaintance as did Mr. Nelson and Coleman who had been here before and evry officer and man in the ship were provided with new friends tho none understood the language, yet we found it very easy to Converse by signs at which these people are adepts, and some of the Weomen who came on board became very Intiligent in a short time and soon brought their quondum husbands into a method of discourse by which evry thing was transacted and by them we found that the stock left by Capt. Cook was for the most part distroyd, there being but one Sheep in the Island which was killd by the dogs soon after our arrival. I observed that this sheep Contrary to those in most warm Climates had not lost its Wool—the only Horn'd Cattle on the Island were an Old Bull and a Young Cow (the rest being destroyd and Carried away by the Morea People soon after Capt. Cook had left the Island) and these were kept at the Distance of 25 or 30 miles from each other, these Mr. Bligh purchased & they were brought to Mataavye and put under Poeno's Care—Poeno was Chief of Mataavye & he had the charge of Capt. Cooks picture which he brought on board to get repaird and it remaind in the ship till she saild.
We also learnt by them that O'Mai was dead tho we could not learn by what means he died, but it was thought that he had been killd for the sake of his property, however we were better informd afterwards as shall be shown in its proper place. oToo, the Chief whom we supposed to be King, & Eddea his Queen often slept on board the ship and frequently entertaind Mr. Bligh and the officers on shore with Hiwas (or Dances plays, &c.) and such diversions as they thought most pleasing and from which he generally returned with presents of Cloth &ca.
They also informd us that the name of oToo, or Too was now transfer'd to the son (of the Man whom we knew by that name) who was now Earee rahi or king, and that the name of the Father, was now Matte, and that he was only regent during his sons minority—our Imperfect knowledge of the Language prevented us from enquiring into these misterious Customs, however we learnt that as soon as a Child is born, the honors & titles of the father immediately become his or hers, and the Father commences Guardian to his Child and honors it as his superior. The Present Too, King of Taheite, is a Boy of 9 or 10 years old but for reasons to be explaind hereafter he never came on board, but Mr. Bligh went once to see him on shore. He frequently paddled round the ship in his Canoe, & received homage from all who saw the canoe. He was generally Carried on the Shoulders of a man who sat on the Bow of the Canoe, it being the Custom of this country to prefer the Bow to the Stern.
When any strange visitors Came they were entertaind by Mr. Bligh, who gratified their curiosity by firing a Gun, at which they appeard much amazed & always stopd their ears & fell down as soon as they saw the Flash, and a Pistol was to all appearance as much dreaded as a four pounder. Mr. Bligh took the opportunity at such times, to shew them the effects of round and Grape Shot, which to them appeard Wonderful, and they always exclaim'd in amaze when they saw the shot fall, scarcely giving credit to what they saw.
While we lay in Matavye Bay, the Nun Buoy was Cut from the Best bower anchor, the Cutters rudder stoln and several Hooks & thimbles Cut from the rigging & several other things missd; on which Mr. Bligh applyd to oToo or Matte, to have them returned —Some of them were brought back, but the Buoy & Rudder were destroyd, and only some pieces of the wood brought—as these things were readily found it was thought that the Chiefs were accessary to the thefts, the numbers that frequented the ship & tent rendered it impossible to observe all their actions, and as the thefts were not very considerable, and large allowance being made by Mr. Bligh in favour of the natives, it was thought the best method to prevent thieving was by keeping things as much out of their way as possible, by fixing Wooden Buoys and removing all the loose Iron work into the Store rooms till wanted; and few accidents of the kind happend after.
While we lay at Oparrie we Cut wood for Sea store, filld our Water and overhauld the Blocks sails & rigging, and here we found the ship began to swarm with Cockroaches to get rid of which evry Method was tried but to no purpose after repeated washing & Carrying evry Chest & box on shore where the Cloaths &ca. were cleard of them they appeard as plenty in two or three days as ever, the Cables appeard alive with them and they seemd to Encrease instead of deminish tho great quantitys were destroyd evry day. Hot water was now applied twice a Week and the Cables & evry part of the Ship from stem to stern washd with it but to no purpose they flew to the Hold rigging & mast heads & returnd as before, and our attention was now drawn to the Sail room & Store rooms where the Hot water had found its way but had done no other damage then Weting evry thing in them, the Hot water was now disused & the sails & Canvas lines &ca were got on shore & washd with Salt Water dry'd & made up while the Carpenters Caulk'd over the store & sail rooms.
On the 24th of January at 4 in the Morning, the Small Cutter was missd from alongside Lieut. Bligh was acquaintd with it, and the Hands being Calld, it was found that Chas. Churchill, Jno Millward & Willm. Musprat were missing, and as Mr. Hayward the Midshipman had been asleep on his watch and a small bag with trade being found on deck, it was readyly supposed that they had taken the boat, especially as it was known that Millward was Centry from 12 till 2, and on examination it was found that with the Boats Arm Chest they had Eight stand of arms compleat, & eight cartouch boxes of amunition; the large Cutter was hoisted out, & the Master sent in her to Mataavye in quest of the Boat and Mr. Hayward ordered in Irons— the Master returnd about 8 o'clock having met the Cutter with five natives who were coming to the ship they informd us that the three men before named had brought her to Mataavye and left her, taking the Arm Chest on board a Canoe and were saild for Tetooroa Map a number of small Islands inclosed by a reef 8 Leagues North of Point Venus —on examining Churchills Chest a paper was found Containing his own name & that of three of the Party on shore, which Churchill had written, on which Lieut. Bligh went on shore to the House and informd Mr. Christian of the Business, calling the men and challenging them with being concerned with Churchill and intending to disert.
They persisted in their Innocence, and denyd it so firmly,
that He was inclined from Circumstances to believe them
and said no more to them about it
—He then went in quest of Matte
who was by this time informd by his men of the affair and was coming to the tent;
as soon as Mr. Bligh saw him, he told him the affair
& desired him to have the men brought back, which he promised to do,
and Several Canoes under the command of Moana, an Old Chief,
and Areepaeea, (Chief of Oparre) Mattes Brother,
were dispatchd after them, with instructions how to proceed
to take them by stratagem,
but three weeks elapsed be fore any account was heard of them
Feb 15, 1789
when on the 15th of February Hetee-hetee,
(the same mentioned by Captain Cook)
came on board and informd Mr. Bligh
that they were landed at the upper part of Tettahah,
about 6 Miles to the westward;
on which Mr. Bligh mann'd the Launch and went after them.
On coming to the place he learnt from them
that they had been oversett within the reef and had lost a Musquet
and were near being drown'd;
the Night being very bad he did not return to the ship till next morning,
when they were put in Irons, and after a months confinement were punishd,
Churchill with 2 Dozen [lashes]
& the others four dozen each and returnd to duty
and Mr. Hayward, after receiving a severe rebuke for his neglect of Duty,
was also set at liberty and return'd to his duty.
February, 1789. A little time after the small bower Cable was observed to be Cut through two strands at the waters edge but as the Cable hung slack under the bottom it was not observed till a squall from the Westward brought it to bear a head, when we hove it in and spliced it before the wind became sufficiently strong to part it.
This gave rise to many oppinions and strict inquiry was made, but no person on board could give any account of it, tho it was the private oppinion of men as well as Officers that no native had been so bold as to attempt it tho some supposed they had, as the Buoy was sunk, thinking to be well paid for their trouble in diving after it, as they had been paid for their assistance in Clearing the Cable of the rocks when the ship got on shore coming in, at which they were expert and had passd a lead line round a buoy rope before in 17 fathoms the Buoy having sunk. However tho they are not very guilty of keeping secrets, this remaind a perfound one, and was not found out while the ship remaind here. While we were Watering, the Casks were all got on shore and the Cooper set to work to put them in order at the tent, when after a dark rainy Night a Puncheon was miss'd, together with some of the Gunners Bedding out of his Cot and a Azimuth Compass (which was kept at the tent for the Purpose of surveying, Mr. Bligh having made a strict survey of the Harbour & Mataavye Bay) broken and part of it Carried away, as soon as Mr. Bligh heard of this he went on shore and rebuked the Officers at the tent for neglecting their duty, who alledged that the night was so dark & the rain fell so fast that they could not see or hear each other and that the theif had taken a full cask tho the Empty ones stood Close by.
He then went in a passion to Matte and insisted on having the theif delivered up & in a short time the theif & Cask were both brought to the tent and Matte told Mr. Bligh to shoot him, which he said would make the others afraid to steal. As soon as he was delivered up he was tyed, & brought on board, where he was punnishd with a hundred lashes and put in Irons, Mr. Bligh intending to keep him prisoner, till the ship saild; but he found means to get out and make his escape without being perceived by any one but the Centry, who heard him plunge over board, but never saw any more of Him, the darkness of the night favouring his escape and we heard no more of Him. It seems he had observed the Yeoman putting the Marlin spikes in by the Fore Mast near which he lay in the Gally, and with one of them He twisted the lock to pieces, without being heard, & going up the fore scuttle Jump'd overboard.
Towards the latter end of March, we put the rigging in order and bent the sails and Mr. Nelson having collected upwards of a Thousand fine Bread fruit plants, with many others of value, We got ready for Sea getting them on board by the 1st of April, and the Natives to show the last token of their Freindship loaded us with presents, & the Ship became lumbered with Hogs Cocoa Nuts & Green Plantains for Sea store—the Plantains were all taken aft, and such hogs as Mr. Bligh thought fit to keep, were pen'd up in the Waist, and the rest either Killd or returned, as the owners thought fit, evry cask being filld & good Store of Fire Wood on board, on the 4th we placed Buoys in the Channel and the Morning being Calm, Weighd, & towd out; when a Breeze sprung up, & we hove to to stow the Boats, and Anchors but on fishing the best bower the stock being much wormeaten broke & fell over board. Captain Cooks picture was now sent on shore by Poeno with the Bountys Name & the intent of Her Voyage put on the Back.
Journal - The Voyage Home James Morrison Journal - The Mutiny