,?73- can employ in this kind of work. All the different
compartments were wrought and divided with a regularity
which quite furprifed us, and the whole furface
of the plain clubs was as highly polilhed, as if our
heft workmen had made them with the beft inftru-
ments. Befides clubs, they had fpears of the fame wood,
which were fometimes plain, {harp pointed flicks, and
fometimes barbed with a fting-ray’s tail. They had like-
wife bows and arrows, of a peculiar conftruaion. The
how which was fix feet long, was about the thicknefs of a
little finger, and when flack, formed a flight curve. Its
convex part was channelled with a fingle deep groove, in
which the bow firing was lodged, and which was hkewtfe
big enough fometimes to contain the arrow made of reed,
near fix feet long, and pointed with hard wood. When the
bow was to be bent, inftead of drawing it fo as to encreafe
the natural curvature, they drew it the contrary way, made
it perfectly ftrait, and then formed the curve on the.other
fide. The bow-ftring by this means never needed to be
tenfe, as the arrow received fufficient moment by changing
the natural bent of the bow , the recoil of which was never
violent enough to hurt the arm. Our feamen, unacquainted
with the nature of thefe weapons, broke feveral
of them by drawing them like other bows. The immenfe
quantity of arms belonging to the natives, correfponded
very ill with the pacific difpofition, which had ftrongly
{hone
{hone through their whole behaviour towards us, and „ ,77!-
which ftill manifefted itfelf in their readinefs to difpofe of
them. It is;;probable that they have fometimes quarrels
amongft themfelves, or wage war with the neighbouring
illands, but we could by no means difcover any thing from
their converfation or figns, which might have ferved to
throw a light on this fubjetft. The feveral articles above
enumerated, together with all their forts of cloth, their
elegant mats, which for workmanfliip and variety excelled
even thofe of Taheitee, and a great many other trifles too
tedious to mention, they brought to fell, and with great
eagernefs exchanged for fmall nails, and fometimes for
beads. But in refpcct of the latter their tafte was different
from that of the Taheitians; for the latter always chofe
thofe that were tranfparent, but the people of Ea-oowhe
would take no other than black opaque beads, with red, blue,
and white ftripes. We traded with them till dinner-time
and then re-embarked in order to return on board the {hips;
but were obliged to fit down contented with the lofs of a
grapnel, which the natives had contrived to fteal almoft as
foon as it was let down into the water. Their kind looks
and acclamations followed us till we returned on board,
where a number of them traded in their canoes with the
fame forts of goods which we had purchafed on {hore. We
faw feveral perfons among them afflicfted with leprous
complaints, in fome of which the diforder had rifen to a
high