James Cook - A Journal of the proceedings of His Majesty's Bark Endeavour on a voyage round the world, by Lieutenant James Cook, Commander, commencing the 25th of May 1768 - 23 Oct. 1770: No. 103

                           Georges Island

discoveries were resolved to bring away one whose name is Tupia a Chief & a Priest, this man had been with us the most part of the time we had been upon the Island which gave us an opportunity to know something of him, we found him be a very intelligent person & to know more of the Geography of the Islands situated in these Seas, their produce & the religion laws & customs of the inhabitants than anyone we had met with & was the likeliest person to answer our purpose for these reasons, & at the request of Mr Banks I received him on board together with a young Boy his Servant.
        For the first 2 Months we were at this Island the Natives supplied us with as much Bread fruit, Cocoa Nuts etc as we could well well dispence[sic] with & now & then a few Hogs but of these hardly sufficient to give the Ships company one & sometimes two fresh Meals a Week, as to fowls I did not see above 9 doz.n upon the whole Island & which they seldom would part with, but during the last Month we got little refreshment of any sort the detaining there[sic] Canoes broke of[sic] Trade at that time & it never after was begun again with any Spirit. However it was not wholy[sic] owing to this but to a Scarcity, the Season from Bread fruit was wholy over, & what other fruits they had were hardly sufficient for themselves at least they did not care to part with them.   All sorts of Fruit we purchased with Beads & Nails Not less than 40 Penny ~ for a Nail under that Size was of no Value, but we could not get a Hog above 10 or 12 pounds weight for anything less than a Hatchet not but that they set great value upon Spike Nails, but as this was an Article many in the Ship was were provided with the Women soon found a much easier way at coming at them than by bringing Provisions, our Traffick[sic] with this People was carried on with as much Order as in the best regulated Market in Europe, it was managed ashore chiefly by Mr Banks who took uncommon Pains to procure from the Natives every kind of refreshments that was to be got .
     Axes, Hatchets, Spikes, large Nails, looking Glasses, Knives & Beads are all highly valued by this People & nothing more is wanting to Traffick with them for everything they have to dispose of they are likewise very fond of fine Linnen[sic] Cloth both white & printed, but an Axe, worth half a Crown will fetch more than a piece of Cloth worth twenty shillings -

               Discription of King Georges Island 
This Island is called by the Natives Otaheite & was first discovered by Cap.t Wallis in his Maj.s Ship Dolphin on the 19.th of June 1767 & to the Credit of him & his Officers the Long.de of Royal Bay was by them settled to within half a degree of the Truth hand the whole figure of the Island not ill described. It is situated between the Lat.de of 17:29 & 17.53 S.o & between the Long.de of 149.º.10' & 149.39 W.t from the Meridian of Greenwich, Point Venus so called from the Observation being made there is the Northern extremity of the Island & lies in the Long.de of 149º.30' being the means result of a Great number of Observations made upon the Spot.  The Shores of this Island are mostly guarded from the Sea by Reefs of Coral rocks & these form sev.l excellent Bays & Harb.or wherein are room & depth of Water suff.t for the largest ships, Royal Bay called by the Natives Matavie in which we lay & the Dolphin before us, is not inferior to any on the Island both in.   Cont