1779- where mentioned; which is, that, even in the handfomeil
_4 1/ faces, there is always a fulncfs o f the noftril, without any
flatnefs or fpreading o f the nofe, that diftinguiihes them
from Europeans. It is not improbable that this may be the'
effect o f their ufual mode o f falutation, which- is performed
, by preffing the ends o f their nqfes together.
The fame fuperiority that is obfervable in the perfons o f
the Erees, through all the other iflands, is found alfo here;
Thofe whom we faw were, without exception, perfectly
well formed; whereas the lower fort, befides their general
inferiority, are fubjeit to all the variety o f make and figure
that is feen in the populace o f other countries, lnftances
o f deformity are more frequent here, than in any o f the
other iflandis. Whilft we were cruifing off Owhyhee, two
dwarfs came on board, one an old man, four feet two
inches high, but exadtly proportioned, and the other a woman,
nearly o f the fame height. We afterward law three
natives, who were hump-backed, and a young man, born
without hands or feet. Squinting is alfo very common
amongft them ; and a man, who, they faid, had been born
blind, was brought to us to be cured. Befides thefe particular
imperfe&ions, they are, in general, very fu b je a to
boils and ulcers, which we attributed to the great quantity
o f fait they eat with their flefli and fiih. T he Erees are very
free from thefe complaints; but many o f them fuffer Hill
more dreadful effedts from the immoderate ufe o f the ava.
Thofe who were the moll affeaed by it, had their bodies covered
with a white feurf, their eyes red and inflamed, their
limbs emaciated, the whole frame trembling and paralytic,
accompanied with a difability to raife the head. Though
this drug does not appear univerfally to ihorten life, as was
evident
evident from the cafes o f Terreeoboo, Kaoo, and fome other '779-
. March,
Chiefs, who were very old m en ; yet it invariably brings on *—
an early and decrepid old age. It is fortunate, that the ufe
o f it is made one o f the peculiar privileges o f the Chiefs.
The young fon o f Terreeoboo, who was about twelve years
old, ufed to boaft o f his being admitted to drink ava, and
ihewed us, with great triumph, a fmall fpot in his fide that
was growing fcaly.
There is fomething very Angular in the hiftory o f this
pernicious drug. When Captain Cook firft vilited the Society
Iflands, it was very little known among them. On
his fecond. voyage, he found the ufe o f it vety prevalent at
Ulie te a ; but it had fiill gained very little ground at
Otaheite. When we were laft there, the dreadful havock
it had made was beyond belief, infomuch that the Captain
fcarce knew many o f his old acquaintances. At
the Friendly Iflands, it is alfo conftantly drunk by the
Chiefs, but fo much diluted with water, that it does not
appear to produce any bad effefts. At Atooi, alfo, it is
ufed with great moderation, and the Chie'fs are, in confe-
quence, a much finer fet o f men there, than in any o f the
neighbouring iflands. We remarked, that, by difcontinu-
ing the ufe o f this root, the noxious effects o f it foon
wore off. Our good friends, Kaireekeea and old Kaoo,
were perfuaded by us to refrain from it; and they , recovered
amazingly during the fhort time we afterward remained in
the ifland.
It may be thought extremely difficult to form any probable
conjectures refpetffing the population o f iflands,
with many parts o f which we are but imperfectly ac-
2 quainted.