1769. ROUND THE WORLD. 141 



About eight o'clock, he saw two canoes coining 

 towards the place, and was given to understand by 

 the people about him, that they belonged to Tarrao, 

 the King of the island, who was coming to make 

 him a visit. As soon as the canoes came near the 

 shore, the people made a lane from the beach to the 

 trading-place, and his Majesty landed, with his sister, 

 whose name was Nuna ; as they advanced towards 

 the tree where Mr. Banks stood, he went out to 

 meet them, and, with great formality, introduced 

 them into the circle from which the other natives 

 had been excluded. As it is the custom of these 

 people to sit during all their conferences, Mr. Banks 

 unwrapped a kind of turban of Indian cloth, which 

 he wore upon his head instead of a hat, and spread- 

 ing it upon the ground, they all sat down upon it 

 together. The royal present was then brought, 

 which consisted of a hog and a dog, some bread-fruit, 

 cocoa-nuts, and other articles of the like kind. Mr. 

 Banks then dispatched a canoe to the observatory 

 for his present, and the messengers soon returned 

 with an adze, a shirt, and some beads, which were 

 presented to his Majesty, and received with great 

 satisfaction. 



By this time, Tubourai Tamaide and Tomio joined 

 them, from the observatory. Tomio said, that she 

 was related to Tarrao, and brought him a present of 

 a long nail, at the same time complimenting Nuna 

 with a shirt. 



The first internal contact of the planet with the 

 sun being over, Mr. Banks returned to the observa- 

 tory, taking Tarrao, Nuna, and some of their principal 

 attendants, among whom were three very handsome 

 young women, with him : he showed them the planet 

 upon the sun, and endeavoured to make them under- 

 stand that he and his companions had come from 

 their own country on purpose to see it. Soon after, 

 Mr. Banks returned with them to the island, where 

 he spent the rest of the day in examining its pro- 



