1773.
April.
precipices which they met on their way, and along most of which they contrived to slide down by the help of trees and bushes. At a considerable height they met with three or four trees, which they took for palms, and of which they cut down one, and used its middlemost shoot for their refreshment. These trees, however, were not the true cabbage-palms, nor did they belong at all to the class of palms, which are generally confined to more temperate climates. They were properly speaking, a new species of dragon-trees, with broad leaves, (dracæna australis) of which the central shoot when quite tender, tastes something like an almond's kernel, with a little of the flavour of cabbage. We afterwards observed more of them in other parts of this bay.
The next morning I accompanied captain Cook to the cove on the N.W. part of the bay, which from the transaction of this day, received the name of Goose Cove. We had five tame geese left, of those which we had taken on board at the Cape of Good Hope, and these we intended to leave in New Zeeland to breed, and run wild. This cove was looked upon as the most convenient place for that purpose, since there were no inhabitants to disturb them, and because it afforded an abundance of proper food. We set them on shore, and they immediately ran to feed in the mud, at the head of the cove where we left them, pronouncing over them the crescite & multipliciamini, for thebenefit
