Joseph Banks - Endeavour journal, 25 August 1768 - 12 July 1771 - No. 0299
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[Page 299]
Georges Land
May 1769
1. This morn in walking round the point I saw a canoe which I suppose to have come from a distance by her having a quantity of fresh water in her in Bamboes in every other respect she is quite like those we have seen her people however are absolute strangers to us before noon our freinds visit us as usual & the day passed without any events
2. About 10 this morn the astronomical quadrant which had been brought ashore yesterday was miss'd a circumstance which alarmd us all very much it had been laid in Captn Cook's birth where no one slept the telescopes were in my tent safe every place was searchd aboard & ashore but no such thing to be found it appeard very improbable that the Indians could have carried so large a thing out of the tents without being observd by the sentries our people might have stole as it was packd up in a deal case & might by them be suppos'd to contain nails or some kind of traffick a large reward was therefore offerd to any one who could find it & all hands sent out to search round the fort upon a supposition that the indians would immediately quit a prize that could be of so little use to them in about an hour all returnd no news of the Quadrant. I now went into the woods to get intelligence no longer doubting but that it was in the hands of the Indians Tubourai met me crossing the river & immediately made with 3 straws in his hand the figure of a triangle the Indians had opend the cases no time was now to be lost I made signs to him that he must instantly go with me to the place where it was he agreed & out we set acompanied by a midshipman & Mr Green we went to the Eastward. at every house we went past Tubourai enquird after the theif by name the people readily told him which way he had gone & how long ago it was since he pass'd by a circumstance which gave great hopes of coming up with him the weather was excessive hot the Thermometer before we left the tents up at 91 made our