Ma” c cooling for the head. Mr. Hodges drew the figure of a
woman with this cap on, and of a man with one of the
other head drefies; both are extremely charafteriftic of the
nation, and have been engraved for captain Cook’s account
of this voyage. The only ornaments which we faw among
them, were the flat pieces of bone in the fhape of a tongue,
or like a laurel leaf, which both fe-xes wore hanging on their
bread, together with fome necklaces and ear-jewels made
of fhells.
After flaying among the natives for fome time on the
beach, we began to walk into the country. The whole
ground was "covered with rocks and ftones of all fizcs,
which feemed to have been expofed to a great fire, where
they had acquired a black colour and porous appearance.
Two or three flirivelled fpecies of graffes grew up among
tbefe ftones, and in a flight degree foftened the defolate appearance
of the country. About fifteen yards from the
landing-place we faw a perpendicular wall of fquare hewn
ftones, about a foot and a half or two feet long, and one
foot broad. Its greateft height was about feven or eight
feet, but it gradually Hoped on both fides, and its length
might be about twenty yards. A remarkable circumftance
was the junction of tbefe ftones, which were laid after the
moft excellent rules o f art, fitting in fuch a manner as to
make a durable piece of architecture. The ftone itfelf of
which they are cut is not of great hardnefs, being a blackifli
iih brown cavernous and brittle ftony lava. The ground M’77^
rofe from the water’s fide upwards ; fo that another wall,
parallel to the firft, about twelve yards from it and facing
thg country, was not above two or three feet high. The
whole area between the two walls was filled up with foil and
eovered with grafs. About fifty yards farther to the fouth
there was another elevated area, of which the furface was
paved with fquare ftones exacfUy fimilar to thofe which
formed the walls. In the midft of this area, there was a
pillar confining of a Angle ftone, which reprefented a
human figure to the waift, about twenty feet high, and
upwards of five feet wide. The workmanlhip of this figure
was rude, and fpoke the arts in their infancy. The eyes, nofe,
and mouth were fcarcely marked on a lumpilh ill-lhaped
head ; and the ears, which were excefllvely long, quite in the
falhion of the country, were better executed than any other
part, though a European artift would have been alhamed of
them. The neck was clumfy and Ihort, and the ftioulders-
and arms, very llightly reprefented. On the top of the
head a huge round cylinder of ftone was placed upright,,
being above five feet in diameter and in height. This
cap, which refembled the head-drefs of fome Egyptian d i vinity,
confifted of a different ftone from the reft of the
pillar, being of a more reddilh colour ; and had a hole on
each fide, as if it had been made round by turning.. The1
cap together, with, the head, made one half of the wholepill
arc