NARRATIVE OF THE CRUISE 



229 



enough to take down news-broadcasts sent through short-wave 

 stations. 



The trade- winds had been more southerly than expected. We 

 anticipated difficulty in clearing the Tuamotu Group of islands, 

 and decided to head directly through them. This was of ad- 

 vantage in many respects for our scientific work. It would also 

 enable us to make up for the two weeks we had lost in reaching 

 Peru. So, early on the morning of March 7, we skirted the reefs 



'^W^ 



'fnf\ 



The Boat-harbor of Amanu Island 



These tiny vessels collect the copra from the various parts of the atoll to sell to the oc- 

 casional trading-schooner that calls their way. 



of Tatakoto Island. From a note on our chart we had not ex- 

 pected to find it inhabited; but soon we saw a few brown bodies 

 scampering through the trees, headed toward a flag-pole set in a 

 break of vegetation. Another moment, and the red, white, and 

 blue of France was proudly displayed — whether as a warning 

 or as an invitation, we did not stop to discover. 



For many of us this was the first view of a south-sea island. 

 At daybreak it was no more than a long, thin line of dark-green 



