 He exhibited the deepest grief when he was at
length landed, and would gladly have remained with his friends.

How different was the conduct of Omai to that which was expected!
Abandoning his European dress, he quickly sank into idleness,
barbarously employing his firearms either to assist the chief in his
wars or to shoot those of his countrymen who had offended him.  In three
years he died, despised even by the savages it was supposed that he
would have improved.

At Otaheite, where Cook afterwards touched, three or four of his people
having deserted, several members of the chief's family were seized and
kept as hostages until they should be delivered up.  Oreo, the chief,
fearing that the runaways might not be discovered, formed a plot to
seize the captain and some of his principal officers; but, as they
wisely took care not to put themselves in his power, this was prevented,
and fortunately the deserters were discovered and brought on board.

Bolabola was the next island visited, for the purpose of recovering an
anchor which had been lost by Bougainville at Otaheite, and brought here
as a tribute to its warlike inhabitants; Cook's object being to
manufacture it into iron tools to trade with.  It was easily obtained
from the chief Opoony for some axes and other articles.

Cook here landed, as at other places, goats and hogs, in hopes that the
archipelago would in a few years be stocked with all the valuable
domestic animals of Europe.  Sailing from Bolabola on the 8th of
December, he steered northward, and on the 24th saw a low island, of
barren appearance, to which the name of "Christmas Island" was given.
It was uninhabited, though nearly twenty leagues in circumference.  No
fresh water could be found here, but three hundred green turtles were
taken.

On the 18th of January, 1778, an island appeared north-east by east, and
soon after another was seen bearing north, and the next day a third, in
a west-north-west direction.  From the second some men came off to the
ships in a canoe.  They were of a brown colo