C ILA P . dawned when one of the natives paddled off to the ship npon a small
, , katamaran; he was qnite naked, and had only a pole and a paddle on the
Dec.
1S2.5,
raft. For a considerable time he hesitated to come alongside; hnt on
onr assuring him, in the Otaheitan language, we were his friends, he was
persuaded to make the attempt. After a little further conciliation he
made his raft fast by a rope that was thrown to him, and ascended the
side of the ship, striking her several times with his fist, and examining
her at every step. His surprise on reaching the deck was beyond all description
; he danced, capered, and threw himself into a variety of attitudes,
accompanying them with vehement exclamations; and entered
into conversation with every person, not suspecting that his language
was unintelligible; and was so astonished at all he saw that his attention
wandered from object to object without intermission. He very willingly
accepted every present that was offered him; and having satisfied himself
of our friendly disposition, hastened on shore to his companions,
who were collected in great numbers upon the low point, anxiously
awaiting his return. The report which he gave was undoubtedly of a
favourable nature, as several katamarans, laden with visiters, immediately
pushed off, and came fearlessly alongside.
The decks were soon crowded with delighted spectators, wondering
at every thing they beheld, and expressing their feelings by ludicrous
gestures. The largest objects, such as the guns and spars, greatly attracted
their attention : they endeavoured to lift them, with a view, no
doubt, of bundling them overboard; but finding they could not be
moved, the smaller articles became the more immediate subjects of
curiosity and desire, and it required a vigilant watch to prevent their
being carried off. They were pleased with many articles that were
shown them ; but nothing made them so completely happy as the sight
of two dogs that we had on board. The largest of these, of the Newfoundland
breed, was big and surly enough to take care of himself; but
the other, a terrier, was snatched up by one of the natives, and was so
much the object of his solicitation that it was only by force he was
prevented carrying him away. To people w'ho had never seen any
quadruped before but a rat, so large an animal as a Newfoundland dog,
and that perfectly domesticated and obedient to his master, naturally
excited intense curiosity, and the great desire of these people to possess CH.AP.
themselves of it is not to be wondered at. Had there been a female
dog on board, they certainly should have had them both; but one would
have been of no use, except, probably, to furnish a meal, which is the
fate of all the rats they can catch.
One of the rafts that came off to the ship, a smaller one than any
of the others, brought a person of superior appearance ; his complexion
was much fairer than that of his countrymen, and his skin beautifully
tattooed; his features were of the true Asiatic character ; he had long
black mustaches and hair, and wore a light turban, which gave him
altogether the appearance of a descendant of Ishmael. It w'as natural
to infer that this was a person of some authority ; for as yet we had
seen no distinction whatever between our visiters, except that some
were more unruly than others ; but we found we were mistaken ; he
mingled indiscriminately with his companions, and was deficient in
those little points which are inseparable from a person accustomed to
command. Indeed, by the total disregard they paid to each other,
as also to every person in the ship, we might have concluded that our
visiters were ignorant of any distinctions in society.
Among the many katamarans that came off, not one of them
brought any articles to give or sell, which did not argue much in favour
of the supplies of the place, or the good will of the islanders. A green
banana, lying upon one of the rafts, was the only eatable thing among
them, excepting some boiled tee-root, and bundles of that execrable
paste, which they had provided for their own breakfast. Almost all our
visiters were naked, with the exception of a girdle made of a banana
leaf, cut into strips, which by no means answered our idea of the
intended purpose. Maros were worn only by the aged, and instead of
them ligatures of straw were applied in the manner described at St.
Christina and Nukahiwa*. The average height of the islanders was
five feet nine ; they were, generally speaking, well made, their limbs
round, without being muscular, and their figure upright and flexible.
Tattooing was very extensively practised, in which respect, as also in the
arrangement of the lines, they again reminded us of the Marquesans.
» Kru sen stern ’s Embassy to Jap an , 4to. r;