PACIFIC AND BEERING'S STRAIT. 161 



flowers, and upon the middle one a drum was sus- 

 pended by thongs in a handsome japanned stand. 



A building in front of this jos house, mentioned by 

 Captain Hall, has been rebuilt, but was not quite 

 finished at the time of our visit : though so near to 

 the temple the panels were scrawled over with groups 

 of figures, some of which were very inappropriate to 

 such a situation. 



After we had partaken of tea in the dwelling-house, 

 we determined upon a walk in the interior, much to 

 the discomfiture of the old gentleman, who used every 

 means he could think of to induce us to desist, and 

 produced pipes, sweet cakes, tcha, and masa chorassa, 

 preserves with which they tempted us whenever they 

 feared our walk would be directed inland. Finding 

 he could not detain us, he determined to be our com- 

 panion, and endeavoured to confine us to the beach by 

 praising the freshness of the breeze, saying how hot 

 we should find it inland, and what bad paths there 

 were in that direction, every word of which proved to 

 be false, as we found the roads very good, and by 

 gaining elevated situations we enjoyed more of the 

 breeze. 



We passed some tombs excavated in the cliffs, and 

 in one that was broken down we discovered a corpse 

 lying upon its back, half decayed and covered over with 

 a mat ; a jar of tea and some cups were placed by it, 

 that the spirit might drink ; but there was nothing to 

 eatj and our guide informed us that it was customary 

 to place tea only by the side of the bodies, and that 

 food was never left there. He turned us away from 

 this shocking spectacle as much disgusted as ourselves, 

 and seemed sorry that we had hit upon it. This dis- 

 covery seems to strengthen some information which 



VOL. II. M 



