286 A NATURALIST OX THE "CHALLENGER." 



races subsequently, for scientific purposes, had amusing difficul- 

 ties to contend with, and I suspect some of the girls, from whom 

 I got specimens, thought I was desperately in love with them. 



The most prominent feature in the town of Nukualofa, as the 

 principal place in the island is called, is the small white church 

 which stands on the summit of a rounded hill about 40 feet in 

 height. Conspicuous also is the King's house, a respectable- 

 looking small one-storied wooden building with a verandah. 

 There is, further, the Government building, a neat wooden 

 structure with a tower in the centre and a wing on either side, 

 each containing a single office-room. Here the revenue of the 

 Friendly Island Group, which amounts to about £7,000 or 

 £8,000, is dispensed, and the King's seal is attached to docu- 

 ments. At a small printing office close by, an almanac, a 

 magazine, bibles, and a few books, are printed in the native 

 language. 



The remainder of the town consists almost entirely of native 

 houses. The houses of the Tongans are small and oblong in 

 shape, about 20 feet by 10 feet in dimension. The walls are of 

 reed mats or plaited cocoanut leaves, and the thatch of reeds. 

 The posts and beams, often of cocoanut stems, are lashed 

 together with plaited cocoanut fibre. The ground within is 

 simply covered with Pandanus mats. There are usually two 

 doors or openings opposite one another in the middle of each 

 side of the house, which are closed with a mat only. In most 

 houses a sleeping chamber is partitioned off at one end by 

 means of mats. 



The only furniture to be seen within is the kaava bowl and 

 the pillows, wooden rods supported on four legs, on which the 

 neck is rested in sleep in order that the elaborately dressed hair 

 may not be disarranged. Most Polynesians use similar pillows, 

 and very various other races, such as the ancient Egyptians and 

 the modern Japanese. Long practice is required to allow of 

 their use. I have tried a Japanese pillow, but found it far too 

 painful to be endured for even half an hour. 



Near the houses are small sheds, underneath which a hole in 

 the ground serves as an oven for cooking. 



The houses at Nukualofa are clustered under the cocoanut 



