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. 197

[Page 196]
New Zealand

[Written in margin:] Charlotta Sound
January 1770
out of their Canoes than 5 or 6 Women set down together & cut & scarified themselves (Viz Their legs, Shins, Arms & faces, some with shells & others with peices of jasper, so far as our people could understand them this was done on accot of their husbands being lately kill'd & devoured by their Enemies: while the women was performing this Ceremony the Men went about repairing the Huts without shewing the least Concern. The Carpenter went with part of his people into the Wood to cut & Square some Timber to saw into boards for the use of the Ship & to prepare two Posts to be set up as Marks.

Wednesday 31st Little wind & variable. In the PM the Carpenter having prepared the 2 Posts with inscriptions upon them setting forth the Ships name month & year, one of them was set up at the Watering place on which was hoisted the Union flag & in the morning I took the other over to the Island which is known by the name of Motuouru and is the one that lies nearest to the Sea but before I attempted to set up the post I went first to the Hippa having  Dr Monkhouse & Tupia along with me, we here met with the old man I have before spoke of, the First thing I did was to inquire after the Man said to be kill'd by our People & the one that was wounded at the same time, when it did not appear to me that any such Accidents had hapned. I next (by means of Tupia) explain'd to the old man & several others that we were come to set up a Mark upon the Island in order to shew to any ship that might put into this place that we had been here before, they not only gave their free Consent to set it up, but promised never to pull it down. I then gave every one present of one thing or another, to the old man I gave Silver three penny peices dated 1763 & spike Nails with the Kings Broad Arrow cut deep in them, things that I thought were most likely to remain long among them, After I had thus prepared the way for setting up the Post we took it up to the highest part of the Island & after fixing it fast in the ground hoisted thereon the Union Flag & I dignified this Inlet with the name of Queen Charlottes Sound & took formal possession of it & the Adjacent lands in the Name & for the use of her Majy, we then drank Her Majesty's health in a Bottle of wine & gave the Empty bottle to the old man (who had attended us up the hill) with which he was highly pleased whilst the Post was setting up we asked the old man about the Strait or Passage into the Eastern sea & he very plainly told us there was a passage & as I had some Conjectures that the lands to the SWt of this strait (which we are now at) was an Island & not any part of the a Continent we questioned the old man about it who said it consisted of two Wannua's, that is 2 lands or Islands that might be Circumnavigated in