T O T H E S O U T H S E A S . 17
. On the 20th, one of their chiefs, named Tubora Tumaida, whom we called
Lycurgus, with his wife and fon, came to viiit and dine with us: While we were
at dinner, one of his attendants made up a diih with ibme garbage which they
brought with them, mixing it with cocoa nut liquor in a ihell, and it tailed like
fowens This feemed to be a favourite diih with them, but we could not reliih
it. They have alfo a kind of food like wheat flour in appearance, of which Lycurgus
brought a fmall quantity, and mixed that alib with cocoa nut liquor ; and,
dropping two or three hot ftones into it, he ftirred it about till it formed a ilrong
jelly: on tailing; it we found it had an agreeable flavour, not unlike very good
blanc-mange, Thefe people make up various kinds of paile, one of which, called
Makey Poe Poe, is made of fermented bread-fruit, and a fubftance called Meiya,
mixt with cocoa-nut milk, and baked, tailes very iweet. In making thefe paftes,
they ufe a peftle made of a hard black ilone, a kind of bafaltes, with which they
beat them in a wooden trough. See pi. X lil. fig. 10.
• The mode of dreifing their food too is very lingular : they make a hole in the
ground, and, placing ftones in it, kindle a fire upon them j and when they are
fufficiently heated, they fweep off the aihes, and then lay their food upon them.
At their meals the married women ate apart from the men, and we could not prevail
on them to join us. The men, efpecially, feemed to like the manner of our
eating, and handled knives and forks very well. Hogs and fowls are not very
plentiful amongft them ; yams, and the belt bananas, are very fcarce in this iiland;
the natives bring down but few of either fort, and eat of them very fparingly.
When the natives want to make a fire, they take a piece of light wood, make a
groove in it, and rub along that with another piece till the fmall dull catches fire:
This is very laborious, and requires a confiderable time to effedt it.
On the 21 ft, we went round the point, and met with Lycurgus fitting on the
ground, with his wife by his fide, having a canoe covering, which he brought
there on purpofe to be near us: he gave us a hearty Welcome j and, to divert us,
jordereJ two of his boys to play on their flutes, while another fang a fort of melan-
3 A kind of flummery made of oatmeal.
D choly