1769. ROUND THE WORLD. 211 



the next. In this state it remains till the morning, 

 when great part of the water which it contained 

 when it was laid out, is either drained off or evapo- 

 rated, and the several fibres adhere together, so as that 

 the whole maybe raised from the ground in one piece. 

 It is then taken away, and laid upon the smooth 

 side of a long piece of wood, prepared for the pur- 

 pose, and beaten by the women servants, with instru- 

 ments about a foot long and three inches thick, made 

 of a hardwood which they callEtoa, The shape of this 

 instrument is not unlike a square razor strop, only 

 that the handle is longer, and each of its four sides 

 or faces is marked, lengthways, with small grooves, 

 or furrows, of different degrees of fineness ; those 

 on one side being of a width and depth sufficient to 

 receive a small packthread, and the others finer in a 

 regular gradation, so that the last are not more than 

 equal to sewing silk. 



They beat it first with the coarsest side of this mal- 

 let, keeping time like our smiths ; it spreads very 

 fast under the strokes, chiefly however in the breadth, 

 and the grooves in the mallet mark it with the ap- 

 pearance of threads ; it is successively beaten with 

 the other sides, last with the finest, and is then fit 

 for use. Sometimes, however, it is made still thin- 

 ner, by beating it with the finest side of the mallet, 

 after it has been several times doubled : it is then 

 called Hoboo, and is almost as thin as a muslin ; it 

 becomes very white by being bleached in the air, but 

 is made still whiter and softer by being washed and 

 beaten again after it has been worn. 



Of this cloth there are several sorts, of different 

 degrees of fineness, in proportion as it is more or less 

 beaten without being doubled: the other cloth also 

 differs in proportion as it is beaten; but they differ 

 from each other in consequence of the different mate- 

 rials of which they are made. The bark of the bread- 

 fruit is not taken till the trees are considerably longer 

 and thicker than those of the fig, the process after- 

 wards is the same. 



p 2 



