484 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1889. 



ful rewards, performed valuable service in the way of locating water- 

 holes, identifying localities, naming objects of interest, etc. 



December 21. — Preparations were made for an early start on the ex- 

 pedition already planned. The native contingent was dispatched about 

 daylight with camp equipage and instructions to form Camp Mohican at 

 a spot where it was reported good water could be found in abundance. 

 We were somewhat handicapped for the march by the fatigue of the 

 last few days, added to the want of rest. The hospitality of the Brauder 

 establishment had been cordially extended, but such a large and varied 

 assortment of insects and noxious animals had possession of the premises, 

 that we preferred the open air, though there were several passing showers 

 during the night. A working party from the ship, consisting of nine 

 men, including a boatswain's mate and quartermaster, landed at an early 

 hour, each man equipped with knapsack, canteen, shovel and pick. 

 The expedition took the road passing through the villages of Mataveri 

 and Hanga Koa to the coast, followed by almost every man, woman, and 

 child on the island. The interest displayed by the natives in our move- 

 ments gradually died out after a few hours of hard walking, and towards 

 uoon the last party returned to their homes, leaving us a clear field. 



Following the coast-line to the northwest, every part of the ground 

 was carefully examined, platforms measured and plotted, excavations 

 made, and objects of interest collected and catalogued. 



Near Auahoirangaroa Point, on seme ledges of hard volcanic rock we 

 found numerous depressions that evidently were made at the cost of 

 great labor. Some are elliptical in shape, others perfectly circular, 

 averaging about 3 feet in diameter and 2 feet deep. The majority are 

 above high water Hue and others just awash when the tide is full. No 

 explanation could be obtained in regard to these holes, and it was con. 

 eluded that they were originally intended as live-boxes for the preser- 

 vation of fish. 



The natives have a superstition to the effect that any one who walks 

 over these rocks will be afflicted with sore feet, and we received many 

 solemn warnings in regaid to it. If there is any foundation for it at 

 all, it is probably due to a succulent vine that grows here, coming in 

 contact with the wounds caused by the sharp rocks. A short dis- 

 tance farther on stands a round tower 12 feet in diameter and 20 feet 

 high (Fig. 9), said to have been erected as a lookout station from whence 

 the movements of turtles could be watched. We found here, as well 

 as under every other pile of stones of any description on the island, 

 tombs and receptacles for the dead, all filled with human remains in 

 various stages of decay, from freshly interred bodies to the bones that 

 crumbled into dust upon exposure to the air. The entire island seems to 

 be one vast necropolis, and the platforms along the sea-coast appear to 

 have been the favorite burial places in all ages. Natural caves were 

 utilized as places of deposit for the dead. 



Considerable time was devoted to the examination of the platforms, 



