1773.
April.
all the arts of cookery only tended to surfeit the sooner, for those who wisely confined themselves to plain boiling in sea water, always did honour to their meals;
As if increase of appetite had grown
By what it fed on.
But what was more singular than all, was, that in order to prevent any dislike to our food, we confined ourselves, among a great variety of different sorts, chiefly to one species of fishes, which our sailors from its dark colour, called the coal-fish, and which in taste nearly resembled our English cod, being of the same genus. Its meat was firm, juicy, and nutritive; but not so rich and fat as that of many other species, which we found very delicious, but could not continually feed upon. A very fine species of crayfish (cancer bomarus Lin.) larger than the lobster, some shell-fish, and now and then a cormorant, duck, pigeon, or parrot gave us an agreeable variety at our table, which, compared to its appearance when at sea, was now luxurious and profuse.
Every person in our sloop experienced the good effects of this change of diet; nay every animal on board seemed to be benefited by it, except our sheep, which were not likely to fare so well as ourselves. The nature of the country accounts for this disegreeable circumstance. The whole southern extremity of Tavai-poe-namoo, or the southern island of New Zeeland, and especially the landabout
