5773- /»lPRJJ.. took the paperupon which captain Cook coming up to
him, took hold of his- hand, and embraced him,, touching
the man’s nofe with- his own, which is their mode of falu-
tation. His apprehenfibn was by this means diffipated, and,
hecalled to the two women, who came and joined him, while
feveral of uS landed- to keep the captain company. A fliort
converfation enfued, of which very little was understood on
both fides1, for want of a competent knowledge of the language.
Mr. Hodges immediately took fketches of their
countenances, and their geftures ftiewed that they clearly
underftood what he was doing ; on which they called him
trja-todi that term being probably applicable to the imitative
arts. The man’s countenance was very pleafingand open;
one of the women, which we afterwards believed to be his
daughter, was not wholly fo difagreeable as one might
have expedited in New Zeeland, but the other was remarkably
ugly, and had a prodigious excrefcence on her upper
lip. They were all of a dark brown or olive complexion;
their hair was black, and curling, and fmeared with oil
and ruddle ; the man wore his tied upon the crown of the
head, but the women had it cut fliort. Their bodies were
tolerably well proportioned in the upper part; but they had
remarkable Sender, ill-made, and bandy legs. Their drefs
conlifted of mats made of the New Zeeland flax-plant *,
* See Hawkefworth’s Compilation, vol. I l l , p. 443.
interwoven with feathers ; and in their ears they wore
fmall pieces of white albatrofs fkins ftained with ruddle
Or ochre. We offered them fome fifties and wild fowl,
but they threw them back to us, intimating that they did
not want provifions. The approaching night obliged us
to retire, not without promifing our new friends a vifit
the next morning. The man remained filent, and looked
after us with compofure and great attention, which feemed
to fpeak a profound meditation ; but the youngeft of the
two Women, whofe -vociferous volubility of tongue exceeded
every thing we had met with, began to dance at our
-departure, and continued to be as loud as ever. Our fea-
men palled -feveral coarfe jells -on this occafion, but nothing
was more obvious to us than the general drift of nature,
which not only provided man with a partner to alleviate
his cares and fweeten his labours, but endowed that partner
likewife with a defrre of pleafing by a fuperior degree
of vivacity and affability.
The next morning we returned to the natives, and pre-
fented them with feveral articles which we had brought
with us for that purpofe. But fo much was the judgment
of the man fuperior to that of his countrymen, and mofl
of the South Sea nations *, that he received almoft every
thing with indifference, except what he immediately con-
A1773. prjl?
Wednesday 7«
* See Hawkefworth’s Compilation.
T 2