FIJI ISLANDS. 309 



The ridge where we crossed it was very narrow, and we 

 almost immediately commenced a steep descent down the bed 

 of a stream on the other side. On the way down, a flock of 

 Lories (Domicella solitaria, " Kula," Fijian), flew by, whilst the 

 trees were full of warbling birds (Ptilotis procerior). 



We reached Livoni, formerly a populous village, and the 

 head-quarters of the Kaivolo or mountaineers of Ovalau, who 

 long defied King Thackombau, murdered one of his envoys, 

 and were the terror of the Levuka people. The place was now 

 entirely in ruins, the inhabitants having been made prisoners, 

 and their town burnt by Thackombau. There remain now, 

 only the oblong mounds of earth on each of which formerly 

 stood a house, and the ditch and bank of earth, with which the 

 village was fortified. 



The place is used now as a convict station, and here a num- 

 ber of prisoners, mostly Kaivolos, or " devil men," from the hill 

 tribes of the large island "Viti-levu," were undergoing their 

 various terms of imprisonment. Eight Tongan soldiers and an 

 old English drill-sergeant were sufficient to keep the convicts in 

 subjection. The men were made to work at clearing the sur- 

 rounding land, and planting sweet potatoes and yams ; whilst 

 they were at work, the Tongans mounted guard over them with 

 loaded muskets, and though the opportunities in the thick bush 

 seemed so great, they were said never to escape ; they are very 

 much afraid of the Tongans. 



I was shown amongst the convicts one of the Burns mur- 

 derers, who was said to have been caught when dragging the 

 body of a white woman by the hair through the bush, with a 

 view to eating it. I put a few questions through an interpreter : 

 the man protested that he had never eaten human flesh, and 

 that he would have no desire to eat me if he had a chance. He 

 had evidently learnt that this was the proper attitude to assume 

 with regard to this question. I expected that he would have 

 made no scruple in confessing to former Cannibalism. 



A drum was used at Livoni for summoning the prisoners, 

 which was new to me in its construction: three cylindrical 

 holes were cut in the ground in a row, the central one being 

 about twice as large as the others. They were about 1 foot 



