“ The eyes of the Feejeeans are usually fine, being black
and penetrating; Soiiie, however, have them red and bloodshot,
which may probably be ascribed to ava drinking.
“ The esfprhssion of their cbuntenances is usually restless
and watchful; th e y rare observing and quick in their movements.
a The hair of the boys is cropped elose, while that of the
young girls is allowed to grow« In the latter it is1 to be seen
naturally arranged in tight corkscrew locks, many incheein
length, which fall in all directions from the crown of the
head. “'The natural colour of the hair of the girls can hardly
be ascertained, for they are in the habit of acting upon it by
lime and pigments, which make it white, red, brown,> or
black, according to the taste of the individual.”
On their landing they saw an Albino, who had “ the
features of his countrymen, although he resembled the lower
elass of Irish ; so much so that the s a i l o r s r e m a r k e d
that a blunder had been committed by his having been born
in a wrong country. Ilis skin was a dirty white, and fairer
than that of an European would be if exposed to the su n ;
he was marked with many brown spots, about the-Size of a
sixpence or less; his hair was of the same colour as that of
the natives, who use lime water for cleaning 'it; his eyebrows
and eyelashes were of a flaxen colour; his eyes were almost
constantly closed, as if the light affected them; the iris was
blue, with no tinge of red. On a subsequent visit he had
dyed his. hair a coal black, which gave him an odd and
ludicrous appearance. The natives called him Areea. He
was about thirty years of age.”
The religious notions of the Vitians, of which the American
Voyagers have given us the best and indeed the only account*
are different from those of the Polynesians.
They have a tradition that they and other races were born
from two original parents. The Fiji was first-born: he was
wicked and. wasblack: the Tongan next, was less wicked, whiter,
and had therefore more clothes given to him. White men or
Papalangis came last : . they were virtuous, white, and had
plenty of clothes. They have a tradition of a great flood,
from which eight persons escaped to the island of Mbenga,
where ..theiyjgfds madpTiif appearance. By
virtue of this tradition the chiefs-of Mbenga take precedence
of all others, Thisss$em& to ij}d,ipat£,: that the tradition is at
least fundamentally, genuine: without such, confirmation we
should suspect it to be the,distorted relation of something
told originally by missionaries,;-*
The Vitian panthpon^outaius numerous deities. The
highest is Ndengei, whot is worshipped.; in the; form of a great
serpent, alleged to dwell* in a district near the .western end of
Yiti-levu. He is the,judge pf the dead, but all spirits are
vnot ablest© .re^eh^hisr.. abode.. ‘ A grout giant f armed? with an
axe stands in . the,. ^ a y .and an(*
wounded spirits cannot appear beforeJ^dengei;a they wander
about the mountains. Next to Ndengej$ Toikarambe and
Tai Lakambe;come: they are suns of Ndengei. His grandchildren
ar% likewise numerous; they preside oyer woods and
In addition to theirs beneficent gods they, have,
malicious-oness, who-dwell in Mhulu$pr Hades, a subterranean
vault, jf They have various notion’s) about the-fate^»f the dead:
the only general fact is: that a belief in the futurp-state of spirits
is universally and undoubtingly.: re eved. It is connected
with'no notion of .ipjigigfisipr moral ©hs%i#if% The passage
to the future state is looked, upon a srem o v a l from a state of
suffering-to one of happinessi.;,,The:Ambate .or prions, have
great influence and support the powey^of the chiefs. The
office, of Ambate is mostly .hereditary. :
Formal human sacrifices are common, and the victims are
usually brought from a distant tribe. They aye fattened, and,
when, ready, are tied by cords? J|% a and are
placed in an oven, wheie:.;thep ,are -roasted alive. When
cooked, the body is carried to the mbura, where it is offered
to the gods, and then is removed and-cut up to.rhe eaten by
the people. Women are not allowed to e%t human flesh.
Human sacrifices are a prelude to nearly.;: all their undertakings.
When Tanoa launches a canoe, ten or more men
are slaughtered on the deck that it may be washed with
human blood.
The Vitians are said to be generally kind to their parents
and relatives, but they always strangle them or bury them