26o A V O Y A G E T O 



1777- forae foundation for the flory of this unexpecled arrival. 

 1....-)^-^ tJowever, to gain fome farther information, I went on Ihore 

 with Omai, in quell of the man who, it was faid, had 

 brought the firft account of this event from Annamooka. 

 We found him at the houfe of Earoupa ; where Omai pu-t 

 fuch queftions to him as I thought necefTury ; and the an- 

 fwers he gave, were fo clear and fatisfa6lory, that I had not 

 a doubt remaining. But, juft about this time, a Chief, of 

 fome note, whom we well knew, arrived from Annamooka; 

 and declared, that no fliip was, at that ifland, nor had 

 been, fmce our leaving it. The propagator of the report, 

 finding himfelf detected in a falfehood, inllantly withdrew, 

 and we faw no more of him. What end the invention of 

 this tale could anfwer, was not eafy to conjecture ; unlefs 

 we fuppofe it to have been artfully contrived, to get us re- 

 moved from the one iiland to the other. 



Sunday 25. In my walk, on the 25th, I happened to ftep into a houfe, 

 where a woman was dreffing the eyes of a young child, who 

 feemed blind ; the eyes being much inflamed, and a thin 

 film fpread over them. The inftruments flie ufed were tw3 

 llender wooden probes, with which fhe had bruflied the 

 eyes fo as to make them bleed. It fecms worth mention^ 

 ing, that the natives of thefe illands fhould attempt an ope*- 

 ration of this fort; though I entered the houfe too late,, to 

 defcribe exactly how this female ocuiifi: employed the 

 wretched tools fhe had to work with. 



I was fortunate enough to fee a different operation going 

 on in the fame houfe, of which I can give a tolerable ac- 

 count. I found there another woman fhaving a child's 

 head, witii a fhark's tooth, (luck into the end of a piece of 

 flick. I obfervcd, that flie iiril wet the hair with a rag 



dipped 



