TE TITO TE 1IKMA. OE EASTER ISLAND. 489 



ANAKENA BAY. 



December 23. — A dip' in the sea at daylight, and a breakfast of mut- 

 ton which had been slowly roasting all night on hot stones placed in 

 the ground and covered with earth to prevent the escape of heat, put 

 us in prime condition for the work in hand. Our route lay along the 

 north coast of the island and around Anakena Bay, the place where 

 Hotu-Matua and his followers landed when they arrived from the un- 

 known and much-disputed locality from which they migrated. On the 

 sand beach of this bay we found the small univalve, the remains of which 

 were noticed in all the caves and ruins on the island and which are still 

 highly esteemed by the natives as an article of food. Jelly-fish, such as 

 are known to the sailors as "Portuguese men-of-war," also abound, and 

 are esteemed a delicacy by the natives. The entire plain back of An- 

 akena (La Perouse) Bay is covered with small platforms, cairns, tombs, 

 and the ruins of dwellings of various sorts. Houses built of loose stones, 

 nearly circular in shape, are plentiful ; but they belong to a comparatively 

 recent date, as is indicated by the fact that the stones, of which they 

 are constructed, have been taken from the platforms and from the foun- 

 dations of the thatched tents. Any sort of material that came handy 

 appears to have been freely used by the builders of these houses. In 

 several we found well-cut heads that had formerly ornamented image 

 platforms, built in the walls, some facing inside and others in the op- 

 posite direction. The ruins in the vicinity show that this had been the 

 site of a large settlement, and that it continued to be a place of impor- 

 tance through many generations; but the greatest mystery is how such 

 a number of people obtained a sufficient supply of fresh water. 



Near Anakena is a large image in the best state of preservation of 

 any found about the platforms of the island. The traditions assert that 

 this was intended to represent a female, and that it was the last image 

 completed and set up in place. Our guides informed us that it was 

 only thrown down about twenty-four years ago, and previous to that 

 time it had remained for many years the only statue standing upon a 

 platform on the island. Camp Whitney was located at Hangaone Bay, 

 where we found shelter in a bug-infested cave. The water supply was 

 obtained from an ancient tomb near by, and was both scant in quantity 

 and nasty in quality. We were, however, in such an indifferent state of 

 mind that anything wet was acceptable. 



December 24. — With the knowledge that we had a particularly hard 

 march before us, we struck cam]) early and got underway before it was 

 fairly light in the morning. Around Tape Pokokoria the rugged nat- 

 ure of the ground passed over was extremely exhausting. The slopes 

 of Mount Puakalika are in places covered with coarse hummock-grass 

 and flowering vines, which look green and attractive during the rainy 

 season of the year, but which were at this time almost :is dry and parched 

 as though scorched by fire. The toilsome march of this day was height- 

 ened by the absence of water, and all suffered severely from thirst. 



