THE PACIFIC OCEAN. 137 



yellow feathers, and a collar of che fame. Others ae;ain »779- 



1 r r 1 i , ■ . , March. 



are made or feathers entirely white, with variegated bor- 

 ders. The helmet has a ftrong lining of wicker-work, ca- 

 pable of breaking the blow of any warlike inftrument, and 

 feems evidently defigned for that purpofe. 



Thefe feathered drefTes feemed to be exceedingly fcarce, 

 appropriated to perfons of the highefl: rank, and worn 

 by the men only. Durin g the whole time we lay in Karaka- 

 kooa Bay, we never faw them ufed but on three occafions ; 

 in the curious ceremony of Tcrreeoboo's firft vifit to the 

 fliips ; by fome Chiefs, who were fcen among the crowd on 

 more, when Captain Cook was killed ; and, afterward, when 

 Eappo brought his bones to us. 



The exact refemblance between this habit, and the cloak 

 and helmef formerly worn by the Spaniards, was too fink- 

 ing not to excite our curiofity to inquire, whether there 

 were any probable grounds for fuppofing it to have been 

 borrowed from them. After exerting every means in 

 our power, of obtaining information on this fubjecl, we 

 found that they had no immediate knowledge of any other 

 nation whatever; nor any tradition remaining among them 

 of thefe iflands having been ever vifited before by fuch mips 

 as ours. But notwithstanding the refult of thefe inquiries, 

 the uncommon form of this habit appears to me a fufficient 

 proof of its European origin ; efpecially when added to ano- 

 ther circumflance, that it is a lingular deviation from the 

 general refemblance in drefs, which prevails amongft all the 

 branches of this tribe, difperfed through the South Sea. 

 We were driven indeed, by this conclufion, to a fuppofition 

 of the fhipwreck of fome Buccaneer, or Spanifh iliip, in 

 the neighbourhood of thefe iflcUids. But whcr> it is recol- 



Vol. III. T letted, 



