Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
But Cook was still determined to pursue his westerly course
farther south than any previous captain and to seek land where
European expeditions had sought it before. He even offered a gallon
of rum to the first man to sight it. The prize fell to Nick Young, a
ship's boy, who, at 2 p.m. on 6 October, shouted excitedly from the
masthead and pointed to the horizon dead ahead. The next day
En-
deavour
stood into a broad bay that was obviously part of a consid-
erable land mass. Officers and scientists gathered in eager groups
along the ship's rail pointing out to each other mountains, forests
and signs of habitation. Surely, here was the long-sought continent,
and they were the first to make the greatest discovery since Colum-
bus. The captain was more circumspect. The position they had now
reached was very close to that in which Abel Tasman had located a
stretch of coast which he had named New Zealand. But the Dutch-
man had not known whether the mark newly-added to his chart rep-
resented an island or the tip of something stretching far to the South.
It was Cook who, during the next six months, sailed right round the
two islands, thoroughly surveyed the coastline and established that
New Zealand was a landmass comparable in size to Great Britain and
occupying a place in the southern hemisphere almost identical to
that occupied by his homeland in the northern. More importantly it
afforded him timber, water, fish, meat and vegetables - especially the
invaluable wild celery and scurvy grass.
But the story of the first contact of Europeans with Maoris was
not an altogether happy one. The islanders, a warlike, cannibalistic
people, were naturally frightened at the strange sight of the
Endeav-
our,
especially when men put off from her in 'canoes' which they
rowed backwards. Had these newcomers got eyes in the back of
their heads? In most cases the Maoris reacted with a show of hostil-
ity. Inevitably, although Cook ordered his men to be reticent in the
use of force, the end result was that the white men, just as nervous
