A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels Volume Xv Part 49

[Footnote 175: See Captain Wallis's Voyage in this Collection, vol. xii.

Captain Wallis calls both these islands high ones. But the superior height of one of them may be inferred, from his saying, that it appears like a sugar-loaf. This strongly marks its resemblance to Kao. From comparing Poulaho's intelligence to Captain Cook, with Captain Wallis's account, it seems to be past all doubt that Boscawen's Island is our Kotahee, and Keppel's Island our Neeootabootaboo. The last is one of the large islands marked in the foregoing list. The reader, who has been already apprized of the variations of our people in writing down what the natives p.r.o.nounced, will hardly doubt that Kottejeea and Kootahee are the same.--D.]

But the most considerable islands in this neighbourhood that we now heard of, (and we heard a great deal about them,) are Hamoa, Vavaoo, and Feejee. Each of these was represented to us as larger than Tongataboo.

No European that we know of, has, as yet, seen any of them. Tasman, indeed, lays down in his chart an island nearly in the situation where, I suppose Vavaoo to be, that is about the lat.i.tude of 91.[176] But then that island is there marked as a very small one, whereas Vavaoo, according to the united testimony of all our friends at Tongataboo, exceeds the size of their own island, and has high mountains, I should certainly have visited it, and have accompanied Feenou from Hapaee, if he had not then discouraged me, by representing it to be very inconsiderable, and without any harbour. But Poulaho, the king, afterward a.s.sured me that it was a large island; and that it not only produced every thing in common with Tongataboo, but had the peculiar advantage of possessing several streams of fresh water, with as good a harbour as that which we found at his capital island. He offered to attend me if I would visit it; adding, that if I did not find every thing agreeing with his representation, I might kill him. I had not the least doubt of the truth of his intelligence; and was satisfied that Feenou, from some interested view, attempted to deceive me.

[Footnote 176: Neither Dalrymple nor Campbell, in their accounts of Tasman's voyage, take any particular notice of his having seen such an island. The chart here referred to by Captain Cook, is probably Mr Dalrymple's, in his Collection of Voyages, where Tasman's track is marked accurately; and several very small spots of land are laid down in the situation here mentioned.--D.]

Hamoa, which is also under the dominion of Tongataboo, lies two days sail N.W. from Vavaoo; it was described to me as the largest of all their islands, as affording harbours and good water, and as producing in abundance every article of refreshment found at the places we visited.

Poulaho himself frequently resides there. It should seem that the people of this island are in high estimation at Tongataboo; for we were told that some of the songs and dances with which we were entertained, had been copied from theirs; and we saw some houses said to be built after their fas.h.i.+on. Mr Anderson, always inquisitive about such matters, learnt the three following words of the dialect of Hamoa;

_Tamolao_,[177] a chief man.

_Tamaety_, a chief woman.

_Solle_, a common man.

Feejee, as we were told, lies three days sail from Tongataboo, in the direction of N.W. by W. It was described to us as a high, but very fruitful island, abounding with hogs, dogs, fowls, and all the kinds of fruit and roots that are found in any of the others, and as much larger than Tongataboo; to the dominion of which, as was represented, to us, it is not subject, as the other islands of this archipelago are. On the contrary, Feejee and Tongataboo frequently make war upon each other. And it appeared from several circ.u.mstances, that the inhabitants of the latter are much afraid of this enemy. They used to express their sense of their own inferiority to the Feejee men by bending the body forward, and covering the face with their hands. And it is no wonder that they should be under this dread; for those of Feejee are formidable on account of the dexterity with which they use their bows and slings, but much more so on account of the savage practice to which they are addicted, like those of New Zealand, of eating their enemies whom they kill in battle. We were satisfied that this was not a misrepresentation; for we met with several Feejee people at Tongataboo, and, on enquiring of them, they did not deny the charge.

[Footnote 177: In two or three preceding notes, extracts have been made from the Lettres Edifiantes et Curieuses, as marking a strong resemblance between some of the customs of the inhabitants of the Caroline Islands, and those which Captain Cook describes as prevailing at an immense distance, in the islands which he visited in the South Pacific Ocean. Possibly, however, the presumption arising from this resemblance, that all these islands were peopled by the same nation, or tribe, may be resisted, under the plausible pretence, that customs very similar prevail amongst very distant people, without inferring any other common source, besides the general principles of human nature, the same in all ages, and every part of the globe. The reader, perhaps, will not think this pretence applicable to the matter before us, if he attends to the following very obvious distinction: Those customs which have their foundation in wants that are common to the whole human species, and which are confined to the contrivance of means to relieve those wants, may well be supposed to bear a strong resemblance, without warranting the conclusion, that they who use them have copied each other, or have derived them from one common source; human sagacity being the same every where, and the means adapted to the relief of any particular natural want, especially in countries similarly uncultivated, being but few.

Thus the most distant tribes, as widely separated as the Kamtschadales are from the Brazilians, may produce their fire by rubbing two sticks upon each other, without giving us the least foundation for supposing, that either of them imitated the other, or derived the invention from a source of instruction common to both. But this seems not to be the case, with regard to those customs to which no general principle of human nature has given birth, and which have their establishment solely from the endless varieties of local whim and national fas.h.i.+on. Of this latter kind, those customs obviously are, that belong both to the North and to the South Pacific Islands, from which we would infer, that they were originally one nation; and the men of Mangeea, and the men of the New Philippines, who pay their respects to a person whom they mean to honour, by rubbing his hand over their faces, bid fair to have learnt their mode of salutation in the same school. But if this observation should not have removed the doubts of the sceptical refiner, probably he will hardly venture to persist in denying the ident.i.ty of race, contended for in the present instance, when he shall observe, that, to the proof drawn from affinity of customs, we have it in our power to add that most unexceptionable one, drawn from affinity of language.

_Tamoloa_, we now know, is the word used at Hamoa, one of the Friendly Islands, to signify a chief: And whoever looks into the Lettres Edifiantes et Curieuses, will see this is the very name by which the inhabitants of the Caroline Islands distinguish their princ.i.p.al men. We have, in two preceding notes, inserted pa.s.sages from Father Cantova's account of them, where their _Tamoles_ are spoken of; and he repeats the word at least a dozen times in the course of a few pages. But I cannot avoid transcribing from him, the following very decisive testimony, which renders any other quotation superfluous:--"L'autoritie du Gouvernement se partage entre plusieurs familles n.o.bles, dont les Chefs s'appellent _Tamoles_. Il y a outre cela, dans chaque province, un princ.i.p.ale _Tamole_, auquel tous les autres sont soumis."--Lettres Edifiantes et Curieuses, tom, xv p. 312.--D.

Mr Faber, in a prospectus to his work on Pagan Idolatry, has availed himself of the important principle contained in this note, to infer a common origin from the peculiar resemblance of religious opinions and ceremonies among the various systems of paganism. His reasoning is precisely the same as that which is used in tracing the descent of nations, and it is very distinctly stated by him in the following pa.s.sage:--"Things, in themselves not _arbitrary_, prove nothing whatsoever: And tribes may be alike hunters, and fishers, and bowmen, though they have sprung from very different ancestors. But things, in themselves _altogether arbitrary_, are acknowledged to form the basis of a reasonable argument: And, if tribes are found to speak dialects of the same language, and to be attached throughout to the same whimsical customs, which are not deducible from _the nature of things_, but from _pure caprice_ merely, _such _points of coincidence are commonly and rationally thought to furnish a moral demonstration of the common origin of those tribes." An objection to this reasoning instantly rises from a denial of the notion, that any thing can be arbitrary, in which such a limited being as man is concerned. A skilful opponent, in other words, will move the previous question respecting man's free agency, and will not move a step in consequences, till it be decided. Nay, even if it were so, in favour of the highest claims which have ever been put in on the side of liberty, still he might demur, and with good reason indeed, till the fact of arbitrariness in any case, or cases, was ascertained.

Obviously, would he say, we are not ent.i.tled to make inferences from the nature of things, till we are acquainted with it. But who, he would ask, can with propriety say, his acquaintance with nature is so complete, that he can at once, and without possibility of mistake, determine, what does and what does not belong to it? It is to be feared, that a man has but a bad case in hand, who, in order to establish its truth, must first prove his own infallibility. Such an objection, therefore, as has been now stated, is evidently not dest.i.tute of strength. But on the whole, a careful examination will convince any unprejudiced person, that the reasoning alluded to, is ent.i.tled to considerable regard, and yields very probable deductions. Only let us not urge it too far, and let us by all means recollect, that things which to lookers-on seem altogether arbitrary, may nevertheless be accounted for by the agents themselves, on principles which have their foundation in the common nature of our species, independent of any casual communication or intercourse between us.--E.]

Now that I am again led to speak of cannibals, let me ask those who maintain, that the want of food first brings men to feed on human flesh, what is it that induces the Feejee people to keep it up in the midst of plenty? This practice is detested very much by those of Tongataboo, who cultivate the friends.h.i.+p of their savage neighbours of Feejee, apparently out of fear, though they sometimes venture to skirmish with them on their own ground, and carry off red feathers as their booty, which are in great plenty there, and, as has been frequently mentioned, are in great estimation amongst our Friendly Islanders. When the two islands are at peace, the intercourse between them seems to be pretty frequent, though they have, doubtless, been but lately known to each other; or we may suppose that Tongataboo, and its adjoining islands, would have been supplied before this with a breed of dogs, which abound at Feejee, and had not been introduced at Tongataboo so late as 1773, when I first visited it. The natives of Feejee, whom we met with here, were of a colour that was a full shade darker than that of the inhabitants of the Friendly Islands in general. One of them had his left ear slit, and the lobe was so distended, that it almost reached his shoulder, which singularity I had met with at other islands of the South Sea, during my second voyage. It appeared to me that the Feejee men whom we now saw were much respected here, not only perhaps from the power and cruel manner of their nation's going to war, but also from their ingenuity. For they seem to excel the inhabitants of Tongataboo in that respect, if we might judge from several specimens of their skill in workmans.h.i.+p which we saw, such as clubs and spears, which were carved in a very masterly manner, cloth beautifully chequered, variegated mats, earthen pots, and some other articles, all which had a cast of superiority in the execution.

I have mentioned that Feejee lies three days sail from Tongataboo, because these people have no other method of measuring the distance from island to island, but by expressing the time required to make the voyage in one of their canoes. In order to ascertain this with some precision, or at least to form some judgment how far these canoes can sail in a moderate gale in any given time, I went on board one of them, when under sail, and, by several trials with the log, found that she went seven knots, or miles, in an hour, close hauled, in a gentle gale. From this I judge, that they will sail, on a medium, With such breezes as generally blow in their sea, about seven or eight miles in an hour. But the length of each day is not to be reckoned at twenty-four hours. For when they speak of one day's sail, they mean no more than from the morning to the evening of the same day, that is, ten or twelve hours at most. And two days sail with them signifies from the morning of the first day to the evening of the second, and so for any other number of days. In these navigations, the sun is their guide by day, and the stars by night. When these are obscured, they have recourse to the points from whence the winds and the waves came upon the vessel. If during the obscuration, both the wind and the waves should s.h.i.+ft, (which, within the limits of the trade-wind seldom happens at any other time,) they are then bewildered, frequently miss their intended port, and are never heard of more. The history of Omai's countrymen, who were driven, to Wateeoo, leads us to infer, that those not heard of are not always lost.

Of all the harbours and anchoring places I have met with among these islands, that of Tongataboo is by far the best, not only on account of its great security, but of its capacity, and of the goodness of its bottom. The risk that we ran in entering it from the north, ought to be a sufficient caution to every future commander, not to attempt that pa.s.sage again with a s.h.i.+p of burden, since the other, by which we left it, is so much more easy and safe. To sail into it by this eastern channel, steer in for the N.E. point of the island, and keep along the north sh.o.r.e, with the small isles on your starboard, till you are the length of the east point of the entrance into the _lagoon_, then edge over for the reef of the small isles, and, on following its direction, it will conduct you through between Makkahaa and Monoofai, or the fourth and fifth isles, which you will perceive to lie off the west point of the _lagoon_. Or you may go between the third and fourth islands, that is, between Pangimodoo and Monooafai, but this channel is much narrower than the other. There runs a very strong tide in both. The flood, as I have observed before, comes in from the N.W., and the ebb returns the same way; but I shall speak of the tides in another place. As soon as you are through either of these channels, haul in for the sh.o.r.e of Tongataboo, and anchor between it and Pangimodoo, before a creek leading into the _lagoon_, into which boats can go at half flood.

Although Tongataboo has the best harbour, Annamooka furnishes the best water, and yet it cannot be called good. However, by digging holes near the side of the pond, we can get what may be called tolerable. This island too is the best situated for drawing refreshments from all the others, as being nearly in the centre of the whole group. Besides the road in which we anch.o.r.ed, and the harbour within the south-west point, there is a creek in the reef before the eastern sandy cove, on the north side of the island, in which two or three s.h.i.+ps may lie very securely by mooring head and stern, with their anchors or moorings fast to the rocks.

I have already described the Hepaee Islands, and shall only add to that description, by mentioning that they extend S.W. by S., and N.E. by N., about nineteen miles. The north end lies in the lat.i.tude of 19 39" S., and 33' of longitude to the east of Annamooka. Between them are a great many small islands, sand-banks, and breakers; so, that, the safest way to arrive at Hepaee, is either by the course I held, or round by the north, according to the situation of the s.h.i.+p bound thither. Lefooga, off which we anch.o.r.ed, is the most fertile isle of those that are called Hepaee, and consequently is the best inhabited. There is anchorage along the north-west side of this island; but it will be necessary to examine the ground well before you moor. For, although the lead may bring up fine sand, there are nevertheless some sharp coral rocks, that would soon destroy the cables.

What has been here omitted concerning the geography of these islands, will be found in the narrative of my last voyage. To that narrative I must also refer, for such particulars concerning the inhabitants, their manners, and arts, as I had observed then, and about which I saw no reason to change my judgment. At present, I shall confine myself to such interesting particulars, as either were not mentioned in that narrative, or were imperfectly or incorrectly represented there, and to such as may serve to explain some pa.s.sages in the foregoing account of our transactions with the natives.

It may, indeed, be expected, that after spending between two and three months amongst them, I should be enabled to clear up every difficulty, and to give a tolerably satisfactory account of their customs, opinions, and inst.i.tutions, both civil and religious, especially as we had a person on board, who might be supposed qualified to act the part of an interpreter, by understanding their language and ours. But poor Omai was very deficient. For unless the object or thing we wanted to enquire about, was actually before us, we found it difficult to gain a tolerable knowledge of it from information only, without falling into a hundred mistakes; and to such mistakes Omai was more liable than we were. For, having no curiosity, he never gave himself the trouble to make remarks for himself; and, when he was disposed to explain matters to us, his ideas appeared to be so limited, and perhaps so different from ours, that his accounts were often so confused, as to perplex instead of instructing us. Add to this, that it was very rare that we found amongst the natives, a person who united the ability and the inclination to give us the information we wanted; and we found, that most of them hated to be troubled with what they probably thought idle questions. Our situation at Tongataboo, where we remained the longest, was like-wise unfavourable. It was in a part of the country where there were few inhabitants, except fishers. It was always holiday with our visitors, as well as with those we visited; so that we had but few opportunities of observing what was really the domestic way of living of the natives.

Under these disadvantages, it is not surprising that we should not be able to bring away with us satisfactory accounts of many things; but some of us endeavoured to remedy those disadvantages by diligent observation, and I am indebted to Mr Anderson for a considerable share of what follows in this and in the following section. In other matters, I have only expressed, nearly in his own words, remarks that coincided with mine; but what relates to the religion and language of these people is entirely his own.

The natives of the Friendly Islands seldom exceed the common stature (though we have measured some who were above six feet), but are very strong and well-made, especially as to their limbs. They are generally broad about the shoulders, and though the muscular disposition of the men, which seems a consequence of much action, rather conveys the appearance of strength than of beauty, there are several to be seen who are really handsome. Their features are very various, insomuch, that it is scarcely possible to fix on any general likeness by which to characterize them, unless it be a fullness at the point of the nose, which is very common. But, on the other hand, we met with hundreds of truly European faces, and many genuine Roman noses amongst them. Their eyes and teeth are good; but the last neither so remarkably white nor so well set, as is often found amongst Indian nations; though to balance that, few of them have any uncommon thickness about the lips, a defect as frequent as the other perfection.

The women are not so much distinguished from the men by their features, as by their general form, which is, for the most part, dest.i.tute of that strong fleshy firmness that appears in the latter. Though the features of some are so delicate, as not only to be a true index of their s.e.x, but to lay claim to a considerable share of beauty and expression, the rule is by no means so general as in many other countries. But, at the same time, this is frequently the most exceptionable part; for the bodies and limbs of most of the females, are well proportioned, and some absolutely perfect models of a beautiful figure. But the most remarkable distinction in the women, is the uncommon smallness and delicacy of their fingers, which may be put in compet.i.tion with the finest in Europe.

The general colour is a cast deeper than the copper brown; but several of the men and women have a true olive complexion, and some of the last are even a great deal fairer, which is probably the effect of being less exposed to the sun, as a tendency to corpulence, in a few of the princ.i.p.al people, seems to be the consequence of a more indolent life.

It is also amongst the last, that a soft clear skin is most frequently observed. Amongst the bulk of the people, the skin is more commonly of a dull hue, with some degree of roughness, especially the parts that are not covered, which perhaps may be occasioned by some cutaneous disease.

We saw a man and boy at Hepaee, and a child at Annamooka, perfectly white. Such have been found amongst all black nations; but I apprehend that their colour is rather a disease, than a natural phenomenon.

There are nevertheless, upon the whole, few natural defects or deformities to be found amongst them, though we saw two or three with their feet bent inward, and some afflicted with a sort of blindness, occasioned by a disease of the _cornea_. Neither are they exempt from some other diseases. The most common of which is the tetter, or ring-worm, that seems to affect almost one half of them, and leaves whitish serpentine marks every where behind it. But this is of less consequence than another disease which is very frequent, and appears on every part of the body in large broad ulcers, with thick white edges, discharging a clear thin matter, some of which had a very virulent appearance, particularly those on the face, which were shocking to look at. And yet we met with some who seemed to be cured of it, and others in a fair way of being cured; but this was not effected without the loss of the nose, or of the best part of it. As we know for a certainty, (and the fact is acknowledged by themselves), that the people of these islands were subject to this loathsome disease before the English first visited them, notwithstanding the similarity of symptoms, it cannot be the effect of the venereal contagion, unless we adopt a supposition, which I could wish had a sufficient foundation in truth, that the venereal disorder was not introduced here from Europe by our s.h.i.+ps in 1773. It a.s.suredly was now found to exist amongst them, for we had not been long there, before some of our people received the infection; and I had the mortification to learn from thence, that all the care I took when I first visited these islands to prevent this dreadful disease from being communicated to their inhabitants, had proved ineffectual. What is extraordinary, they do not seem to regard it much; and as we saw few signs of its destroying effects, probably the climate, and the way of living of these people, greatly abate its virulence. There are two other diseases frequent amongst them; one of which is an indolent firm swelling, which affects the legs and arms, and increases them to an extraordinary size in their whole length. The other is a tumour of the same sort in the t.e.s.t.i.c.l.es, which sometimes exceed the size of the two fists. But, in other respects, they may be considered as uncommonly healthy, not a single person having been seen, during our stay, confined to the house by sickness of any kind. On the contrary, their strength and activity are every way answerable to their muscular appearance; and they exert both, in their usual employment and in their diversions, in such a manner, that there can be no doubt of their being; as yet, little debilitated by the numerous diseases that are the consequence of indolence, and an unnatural method of life.

The graceful air and firm step with which these people walk, are not the least obvious proof of their personal accomplishments. They consider this as a thing so natural, or so necessary to be acquired, that nothing used to excite their laughter sooner, than to see us frequently stumbling upon the roots of trees, or other inequalities of the ground.

Their countenances very remarkably express the abundant mildness or good-nature which they possess; and are entirely free from that savage keenness which marks nations in a barbarous state. One would, indeed, be apt to fancy that they had been bred up under the severest restrictions, to acquire an aspect so settled, and such a command of their pa.s.sions, as well as steadiness in conduct. But they are, at the same time, frank, cheerful, and good-humoured; though sometimes in the presence of their chiefs, they put on a degree of gravity, and such a serious air, as becomes stiff and awkward, and has an appearance of reserve.

Their peaceable disposition is sufficiently evinced from the friendly reception all strangers have met with who have visited them. Instead of offering to attack them openly or clandestinely, as has been the case with most of the inhabitants of these seas, they have never appeared, in the smallest degree, hostile; but, on the contrary, like the most civilized people, have courted an intercourse with, their visitors by bartering, which is the only medium that unites all nations in a sort of friends.h.i.+p. They understand barter (which they call _f.u.kkatou_) so perfectly, that at first we imagined they might have acquired this knowledge of it by commercial intercourse with the neighbouring islands; but we were afterward a.s.sured, that they had little or no traffic, except with Feejee, from which they get the red feathers, and the few other articles mentioned before. Perhaps no nation in the world traffic with more honesty and less distrust. We could always safely permit them to examine our goods, and to hand them about one to another; and they put the same confidence in us. If either party repented of the bargain, the goods were re-exchanged with mutual consent and good-humour. Upon the whole, they seem possessed of many of the most excellent qualities that adorn the human mind; such as industry, ingenuity, perseverance, affability, and, perhaps, other virtues which our short stay with them might prevent our observing.

The only defect sullying their character, that we know of, is a propensity to thieving, to which we found those of all ages, and both s.e.xes, addicted, and to an uncommon degree. It should, however, be considered, that this exceptionable part of their conduct seemed to exist merely with respect to us; for, in their general intercourse with one another, I had reason to be of opinion, that thefts do not happen more frequently (perhaps less so) than in other countries, the dishonest practices of whose worthless individuals are not supposed to authorise any indiscriminate censure on the whole body of the people. Great allowances should be made for the foibles of these poor natives of the Pacific Ocean, whose minds were overpowered with the glare of objects, equally new to them, as they were captivating. Stealing, amongst the civilized and enlightened nations of the world, may well be considered as denoting a character deeply stained with moral turpitude, with avarice unrestrained by the known rules of right, and with profligacy producing extreme indigence, and neglecting the means of relieving it.

But at the Friendly and other islands which we visited, the thefts, so frequently committed by the natives, of what we had brought along with us, may be fairly traced to less culpable motives. They seemed to arise solely from an intense curiosity or desire to possess something which they had not been accustomed to before, and belonging to a sort of people so different from themselves. And, perhaps, if it were possible, that a set of beings, seemingly as superior in our judgment, as we are in theirs, should appear amongst us, it might be doubted, whether our natural regard to justice would be able to restrain many from falling into the same error. That I have a.s.signed the true motive for their propensity to this practice, appears from their stealing every thing indiscriminately at first sight, before they could have the least conception of converting their prize to any one useful purpose. But I believe with us, no person would forfeit his reputation, or expose himself to punishment, without knowing, before-hand, how to employ the stolen goods. Upon the whole, the pilfering disposition of these islanders, though certainly disagreeable and troublesome to strangers, was the means of affording us some information as to the quickness of their intellects. For their small thefts were committed with much dexterity; and those of greater consequence with a plan or scheme suited to the importance of the objects. An extraordinary instance of the last sort, their attempts to carry away one of the Discovery's anchors at mid-day, has been already related.

Their hair is, in general, straight, thick, and strong, though a few have it bushy and frizzled. The natural colour, I believe, almost without exception, is black; but the greatest part of the men, and some of the women, have it stained of a brown or purple colour, and a few of an orange cast. The first colour is produced by applying a sort of plaster of burnt coral, mixed with water; the second, by the raspings of a reddish wood, which is made up with water into a poultice, and laid over the hair; and the third is, I believe, the effect of _turmeric_ root.

When I first visited these islands, I thought it had been an universal custom for both men and women to wear the hair short; but, during our present longer stay, we saw a great many exceptions. Indeed, they are so whimsical in their fas.h.i.+ons of wearing it, that it is hard to tell which is most in vogue. Some have it cut off from one side of the head, while that on the other remains long; some have only a portion of it cut short, or perhaps shaved; others have it entirely cut off, except a single lock, which is left commonly on one side; or it is suffered to grow to its full length, without any of these mutilations. The women in general wear it short. The men have their beards cut short; and both men and women strip the hair from their arm pits. The operation by which this is performed has been already described. The men are stained from about the middle of the belly, to about half way down their thighs, with a deep, blue colour. This is done with a flat bone instrument, cut full of fine teeth, which, being dipped in the staining mixture, prepared from the juice of the _dooe dooe_, is struck into the skin with a bit of stick, and, by that means, indelible marks are made. In this manner they trace lines and figures, which, in some, are very elegant, both from the variety, and from the arrangement. The women have only a few small lines or spots, thus imprinted, on the inside of their hands.

Their kings, as a mark of distinction, are exempted from this custom, as also from inflicting on themselves any of those b.l.o.o.d.y marks of mourning, which shall be mentioned in another place.

The men are all circ.u.mcised, or rather supercised; as the operation consists in cutting off only a small piece of the foreskin at the upper part, which, by that means, is rendered incapable ever after of covering the _glans_. This is all they aim at; as they say, the operation is practised from a notion of cleanliness.

The dress of both men and women is the same, and consists of a piece of cloth or matting (but mostly the former), about two yards wide, and two and a half long; at least, so long as to go once and a half round the waist, to which it is confined by a girdle or cord. It is double before, and hangs down like a petticoat, as low as the middle of the leg. The upper part of the garment, above the girdle, is plaited into several folds; so that when unfolded, there is cloth sufficient to draw up and wrap round the shoulders, which is very seldom done. This, as to form, is the general dress; but large pieces of cloth, and fine matting, are worn only by the superior people. The inferior sort are satisfied with small pieces, and very often wear nothing but a covering made of leaves of plants, or the _maro_, which is a narrow piece of cloth, or matting, like a sash. This they pa.s.s between the thighs, and wrap round the waist; but the use of it is chiefly confined to the men. In their great _haivas_, or entertainments, they have various dresses made for the purpose; but the form is always the same, and the richest dresses are covered, more or less, with red feathers. On what particular occasion their chiefs wear their large red feather-caps, I could not learn. Both men and women sometimes shade their faces from the sun with little bonnets, made of various materials.

As the clothing, so are the ornaments, worn by those of both s.e.xes, the same. The most common of these are necklaces, made of the fruit of the _pandamus_, and various sweet-smelling flowers, which go under the general name of _kahulla_. Others are composed of small sh.e.l.ls, the wing and leg-bones of birds, shark's teeth, and other things; all which hang loose upon the breast. In the same manner, they often wear a mother-of-pearl sh.e.l.l, neatly polished, or a ring of the same substance carved, on the upper part of the arm; rings of tortoise-sh.e.l.l on the fingers, and a number of these joined together as bracelets on the wrists.

The lobes of the ears (though most frequently only one) are perforated, with two holes, in which they wear cylindrical bits of ivory, about three inches long, introduced at one hole, and brought out of the other; or bits of reed of the same size, filled with a yellow pigment. This seems, to be a fine powder of turmeric, with which the women rub themselves all over, in the same manner, as our ladies use their dry rouge upon the cheeks.

Nothing appears to give them greater pleasure than personal cleanliness; to produce which, they frequently bathe in the ponds, which seem to serve no other purpose.[178] Though the water in most of them stinks intolerably, they prefer them to the sea; and they are so sensible that salt water hurts their skin, that, when necessity obliges them to bathe in the sea, they commonly have some cocoa-nut sh.e.l.ls, filled with fresh water, poured over them, to wash it off. They are immoderately fond of cocoa-nut oil for the same reason; a great quant.i.ty of which they not only pour upon their head and shoulders, but rub the body all over, briskly, with a smaller quant.i.ty. And none but those who have seen this practice, can easily conceive how the appearance of the skin is improved by it. This oil, however, is not to be procured by every one; and the inferior sort of people, doubtless, appear less smooth for want of it.

[Footnote 178: So at the Caroline Islands. "Ils sont accoutumes a se baigner trois fois le jour, le matin, a midi, et sur le soir." _Lettres Edifiantes et Curieuses_, tom. xv. p. 314.--D.]

SECTION XI.

_Employments of the Women, at the Friendly Islands.--Of the Men.--Agriculture.--Construction of their Houses.--Their working Tools.--Cordage and fis.h.i.+ng Implements.--Musical Instruments.--Weapons.

--Food and Cookery.--Amus.e.m.e.nts.--Marriage.--Mourning Ceremonies for the Dead.--Their Divinities.--Notions about the Soul, and a Future State.--Their Places of Wors.h.i.+p.--Government.--Manner of paying Obeisance to the King.--Account of the Royal Family.--Remarks on their Language, and a Specimen of it.--Nautical, and other Observations_.

Their domestic life is of that middle kind, neither so laborious as to be disagreeable, nor so vacant as to suffer them to degenerate into indolence. Nature has done so much for their country, that the first can hardly occur, and their disposition seems to be a pretty good bar to the last. By this happy combination of circ.u.mstances, their necessary labor seems to yield in its turn to their recreations, in such a manner, that the latter are never interrupted by the thoughts of being obliged to recur to the former, till satiety makes them wish for such a transition.

The employment of the women is of the easy kind, and, for the most part, such as may be executed in the house. The manufacturing their cloth is wholly consigned to their care. Having already described the process, I shall only add, that they have this cloth of different degrees of fineness. The coa.r.s.er sort, of which they make very large pieces, does not receive the impression of any pattern. Of the finer sort, they have some that is striped and chequered, and of other patterns differently coloured. But how these colours are laid on, I cannot say, as I never saw any of this sort made. The cloth, in general, will resist water for some time; but that which has the strongest glaze will resist longest.

The manufacture next in consequence, and also within the department of the women, is that of their mats, which excel every thing I have seen at any other place, both as to their texture and their beauty. In particular, many of them are so superior to those made at Otaheite, that they are not a bad article to carry thither by way of trade. Of these mats, they have seven or eight different sorts, for the purposes of wearing or sleeping upon, and many are merely ornamental. The last are chiefly made from the tough membraneous part of the stock of the plantain tree; those that they wear from the _panda.n.u.s_, cultivated for that purpose, and never suffered to shoot into a trunk; and the coa.r.s.er sort, which they sleep upon, from a plant called _evarra_. There are many other articles of less note, that employ the spare time of their females; as combs, of which, they make vast numbers; and little baskets made of the same substance as the mats, and others of the fibrous cocoa-nut husk, either plain, or interwoven with small beads; but all finished with such neatness and taste in the disposition of the various parts, that a stranger cannot help admiring their a.s.siduity and dexterity.

The province allotted to the men is, as might be expected, far more laborious and extensive than that of the women. Agriculture, architecture, boat-building, fis.h.i.+ng, and other things that relate to navigation, are the objects of their care.[179] Cultivated roots and fruits being their princ.i.p.al support, this requires their constant attention to agriculture, which they pursue very diligently, and seem to have brought almost to as great perfection as circ.u.mstances will permit.

The large extent of the plantain fields has been taken notice of already, and the same may be said of the yams; these two together, being at least as ten to one, with respect to all the other articles. In planting both these, they dig small holes for their reception, and afterward root up the surrounding gra.s.s, which, in this hot country, is quickly deprived of its vegetating power, and, soon rotting, becomes a good manure. The instruments they use for this purpose, which they call _hooo_, are nothing more than pickers or stakes of different lengths, according to the depth they have to dig. These are flattened and sharpened to an edge at one end, and the largest have a short piece fixed transversely, for pressing it into the ground with the foot. With these, though they are not more than from two to four inches broad, they dig and plant ground of many acres in extent. In planting the plantains and yams, they observe so much exactness, that, whichever way you look, the rows present themselves regular and complete.

[Footnote 179: How remarkably does Captain Cook's account of the employments of the women and men here, agree with Father Cantova's, of the Caroline Islanders?--"La princ.i.p.ale occupation des hommes, est de construire des barques, de pecher, et de cultiver la terre. L'affaire des femmes est de faire la cuisine, et de mettre en oeuvre un espece de plante sauvage, et un arbre,--pour en faire de la toile."--_Lettres Edifiantes et Curieuses_, tom. xv. p. 313.--D.]

The cocoa-nut and bread-fruit trees are scattered about without any order, and seem to give them no trouble, after they have attained a certain height. The same may be said of another large tree, which produces great numbers of a large, roundish, compressed nut, called _eeefee_; and of a smaller tree that bears a rounded oval nut, two inches long, with two or three triangular kernels, tough and insipid, called _mabba_, most frequently planted near their houses.

The _kappe_ is commonly regularly planted, and in pretty large spots; but the _mawhaha_ is interspersed amongst other things, as the _jeejee_ and _yams_ are; the last of which I have frequently seen in the insters.p.a.ces of the plantain trees at their common distance. Sugar-cane is commonly in small spots, crowded closely together; and the mulberry, of which the cloth is made, though without order, has sufficient room allowed for it, and is kept very clean. The only other plant, that they cultivate for their manufactures, is the _panda.n.u.s_, which is generally planted in a row, close together, at the sides of the other fields; and they consider it as a thing so distinct in this state, that they have a different name for it, which shews, that they are very sensible of the great changes brought about by cultivation.

It is remarkable, that these people, who, in many things shew much taste and ingenuity, should shew little of either in building their houses, though the defect is rather in the design than in the execution. Those of the lower people are poor huts, scarcely sufficient to defend them from the weather, and very small. Those of the better sort are larger and more comfortable, but not what one might expect. The dimensions of one of a middling size, are about thirty feet long, twenty broad, and twelve high. Their house is, properly speaking, a thatched roof or shed, supported by posts and rafters, disposed in a very judicious manner. The floor is raised with earth smoothed, and covered with strong thick matting, and kept very clean. The most of them are closed on the weather-side, (and some more than two-thirds round), with strong mats, or with branches of the cocoa-nut tree plaited or woven into each other.

These they fix up edgewise, reaching from the eaves to the ground, and thus they answer the purpose of a wall. A thick strong mat, about two and one-half or three feet broad, bent into the form of a semicircle, and set up on its edge, with the ends touching the side of the house, in shape resembling the fender of a fire-hearth, incloses a s.p.a.ce for the master and mistress of the family to sleep in. The lady, indeed, spends most of her time during the day within it. The rest of the family sleep upon the floor, wherever they please to lie down; the unmarried men and women apart from each other. Or, if the family be large, there are small huts adjoining, to which the servants retire in the night; so that privacy is as much observed here as one could expect. They have mats made on purpose for sleeping on; and the clothes that they wear in the day, serve for their covering in the night. Their whole furniture consists of a bowl or two, in which they make _kava_; a few gourds, cocoa-nut sh.e.l.ls, some small wooden stools which serve them for pillows; and, perhaps, a large stool for the chief or master of the family to sit upon.