1778. THE PACIFIC OCEAN. 20.Q 



bably much more various than in the southern islands. 

 For, during our short stay, besides the lapis lydius, 

 which seems common all over the South Sea, we found 

 a species of cream-coloured whetstone, sometimes 

 variegated with blacker or whiter veins, as marble ; 

 or in pieces, as breccice ; and common writing slate, 

 as well as a coarser sort; but we saw none of them 

 in their natural state ; and the natives brought some 

 pieces of a coarse whitish pumice-stone. We got 

 also a brown sort of haematites, which, from being 

 strongly attracted by the magnet, discovered the 

 quantity of metal that it contained, and seems to be- 

 long to the second species of Cronstedt, though Lin- 

 naeus has placed it amongst his intractabilia. But its 

 variety could not be discovered ; for what we saw of 

 it, as well as the slates and whetstones, was cut arti- 

 ficially. 



Besides the vegetable articles bought by us as re- 

 freshments, amongst which were, at least, five or six 

 varieties of plantains, the island produces bread-fruit, 

 though it seems to be scarce, as we saw only one tree, 

 which was large, and had some fruit upon it. There 

 are also a few cocoa-palms ; yams, as we were told, 

 for we saw none ; the kappe of the Friendly Islands, 

 or Virginian arum ; the etooa tree, and sweet-smelling 

 gardenia, or cape jasmine. We saw several trees of 

 the dooe dooe, so useful at Otaheite, as bearing the 

 oily nuts, which are stuck upon a kind of skewer, 

 and burnt as candles. Our people saw them used, in 

 the same manner, at Oneeheow. We were not on 

 shore at Atooi but in the day-time, and then we saw 

 the natives wearing these nuts, hung on strings, round 

 the neck. There is a species of sida, or Indian mal- 

 low, somewhat altered by the climate, from what we 

 saw at Christmas Island \ the morinda citrifolia, which 

 is called none ; a species of convolvulus ; the ava, or 

 intoxicating pepper \ and great numbers of gourds. 

 These last grow to a very large size, and are of a vast 

 variety of shapes, which probably is effected by art. 



VOL. vi. p 



