’” +• Among the croud we faw no women, they having pro-
A pril. °
bably retired to the mountains on the firft alarm ; but there
were fome men better armed and ornamented than the reft,
who feemed to be their leaders. They were all without
cloathing, having nothing but a fmall piece of cloth to
cover the loins. They were tali', and extremely well
limbed', not one of them unweildly or corpulent like a
Taheitian, nor meagre and fhrivelled like a native of Eafter
Ifland. The punfluation which almoft entirely covered the
men of a middle age, made it difficult to diftinguiffi their
elegance of form ; but among the youths, who were not yet
marked or tattowed, it was eafy to difcover beauties Angularly
ftriking, and often without, a blemifh, fuch as de-
' manded the admiration of all beholders. Many of them
might be placed near the famous models of antiquity, and
would not fufier in the comparifon :
Qualis aut Nireus fuit, aut aquofa
Raptus ab Ida. H o r .
The natural colour of thefe youths was not quite fodark
as that of the common people in the Society Wes; but the
men appeared to be infinitely blacker, on account of the
pundlures which covered their whole body, from head to
foot. Thefe pundlures were difpofed with the utmoft regularity
; fo that the marks on each leg, arm, and cheek,
and
and on the correfponding mufcles, were exadtly fimilar.
They never affumed the determinate form of an animal or
plant, but confifted of a variety of blotches, fpirals, bars,
chequers, and lines, which had a moft motley appearance.
Their countenances were pleafing, open, and full of vivacity
; their eyes were large and dark-coloured ; their hair
black, curled, and ftrong; a few excepted, who had light-
coloured or fandy hair. The beard however was thin in
general, on account of the numerous fears o f punctures
which commonly covered that part of the face. The number
of ornaments, in fome meafure, might be faid to fup-
ply the want of cloathing. On their heads many of them
wore a kind of diadem; this confifted of a flat bandage
wrought of coco-nut core, on the outfide of which feveral
round pieces of mother of pearl, fome of them five inches
in diameter, were fixed, covered in the middle with a plate
of tortoife-fhell, perforated like fret-work. Several tufts of
long, black, and gloffy cock’ s feathers formed the plumes
to this head-drefs, which was really beautiful and noble.in its
kind. Some wore round coronets of the fmall ligulated
feathers of the man of war bird, and others a circle, from
whence feveral ranges of twilled firings of coco-nut core,
about two inches long, either of the natural colour, or dyed
black, diverged round the head. , In their ears they fome-
times placed two flat pieces of a light wood, of an oval
fliape, about three inches long, covering the whole ear, and
painted