177&- ^HE PACIFIC OCEAN. 1)3 



In the night and all the morning of the 22d, it 

 rained almost continually. The wind was at S.E., 

 S. S.E., and S., which brought in a short chopping 

 sea ; and as there were breakers little more than two 

 cables' length from the stern of our ship, her situ- 

 ation was none of the safest. The surf broke so high 

 against the shore that we could not land in our 

 boats ; but the day was not wholly lost ; for the 

 natives ventured in their canoes to bring off to 

 the ships hogs and roots, which they bartered as 

 before. One of our visitors on this occasion, who 

 offered some fish-hooks to sale, was observed to have 

 a very small parcel to the string of one of them, 

 which he separated with great care, and reserved for 

 himself, when he parted with the hook. Being asked 

 what it was ? He pointed to his belly and spoke some- 

 thing of its being dead, at the same time saying it 

 was bad, as if he did not wish to answer any more 

 questions about it. On seeing him so anxious to con- 

 ceal the contents of this parcel, he was requested to 

 open it, which he did with great reluctance, and some 

 difficulty, as it was wrapped up in many folds of 

 cloth. We found that it contained a thin bit of flesh 

 about two inches long, which, to appearance, had 

 been dried, but was now wet with salt water. It 

 struck us that it might be human flesh, and that 

 these people might, perhaps, eat their enemies, as 

 we knew that this was the practice of some of the 

 natives of the South Sea islands. The question being 

 put to the person who produced it, he answered, 

 that the flesh was part of a man. Another of his 

 countrymen, who stood by him, was then asked 

 whether it was their custom to eat those killed in bat- 

 tle ? and he immediately answered in the affirmative. 



There were some intervals of fair weather in the 

 afternoon ; and the wind then inclined to the east 

 and north-east ; but, in the evening, it veered back 

 again to the south south-east, and the rain also re- 

 turned, and continued all night. Very luckily, it 



VOL. vi. o 



