the fourth class, or those more nearly allied to negroes, thus habited,
but that it seemed to be confined to those of the lightest complexion.
The colour of their eyes is either hazel or dark brown ; they are small,
deep in the head, and have generally an expression of cunning. Their
eyebrows are naturally arched, and seldom meet in front ; the cheekbones
are not so prominent as in the fourth class, and the lips are
thinner ; the ears are moderately large, and the lobes attached to the
cheek, as in all the Pitcairn Islanders, but not perforated ; the nose
in general is aquiline ; the teeth, in the fourth class especially, not
remarkable for evenness or whiteness, and seem to fall out at an early
period ; the hair is turned back and cut straight, and would be quite
black, were it less subjected to the sun, or, like that of the islanders just
mentioned, well oiled ; but, exposed as it is to a scorching sun, it becomes
dried up and of different hues on the same head ; and combs being
unknown, it is bushy and impervious : the mustachios grow long, but
the beards, which are kept from three to four inches in length, are
sometimes brought to a point, at others divided into two ; one man,
however, was observed with a beard which hung down to the pit of the
stomach : the hands are large, but the feet small and elegant, and the
toes close together, from which it is probable that they pass a great portion
of their time upon their rafts, or idly basking in the sun, or lying
upon their stone pavements like theHapaeans. The women are belowthe
common standard height, and in personal shape and beauty far inferior
to the males. The wife of the chief, who has been already described,
was the finest woman I saw among them. Her dress may be considered
a fair specimen of the general covering of the women, who have
no ornaments of any kind, and appeared quite indifferent to the beads
and trinkets which were offered them.
Tattooing is here so universally practised that it is rare to meet a
man without it; and it is carried to such an extent that the figure is
sometimes covered with small checkered lines from the neck to the
ankles, though the breast is generally exempt, or only ornamented with
a single device. In some, generally elderly men, the face is covered
below the eyes, in which case the lines or net-work are more open than
on other parts of the body, probably on account of the pain of the
operation, and terminate at the upper part in a straight line, from ear CMP.
to ear, passing over the bridge of the nose. YVith these exceptions, to
which we may add the fashion, with some few, of blue lines, resembhng Ja„^
stockings, from the middle of the thigh to the ankle, the effect is becoming,
and in a great measure destroys the appearance of nakedness.
The patterns which most improve the shape, and which appear to me
peculiar to this groupe, are those which extend from the armpits to the
hips, and are drawn forward with a curve which seems to contract the
waist, and at a short distance gives the figure an elegance and outline
not unlike that of the figures seen on the walls of the Egyptian tombs.
It would be useless to describe the various fanciful attempts to efface
the natural colour of the skin; the most common only will be noticed
A large cross, about eight inches in diameter, left white on each side,
on the latissimus dorsi; and a smaller one on each shoulder, or on the
upper part of the arm : also a narrow stripe passing from one shoulder
to the other in a curved line over the lower part of the neck, uniting
the tattooing over the fleshy part of the deltoid muscle; and in many
so joined as to leave the natural skin in the form of a cross in the
middle. Imitations of blue pantaloons and breeches are also very
common, and sleeves which divide at the wrist, and extend along the
convexity of the metatarsal bones to the tips of the fingers and thumbs,
leaving a space between the thumb and forefinger, on which the mark
V is punctured. The chief had this mark, the crosses, the slender
waist, and pantaloons. The women are very little subjected to this
torture. The wife of the areghe had an armlet on each arm ; a female
who came with her had a square upon her bosom, and some few had
stockings. From the circumstance of none of the boys being tattooed,
it is probable the practice commences here, as in many other islands,
after puberty.
The lines in all cases are drawn with great precision, and almost
always with taste, and bespeak great proficiency. The practice undoubtedly
improves the appearance of the figure, and may perhaps, as
in the Marquesas, distinguish certain classes or tribes. At Otaheite it
is supposed to harden the skin, and render it less liable to be blistered
by the sun. Covering the face with lines is very rare in the South
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