490 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1889. 



Starting' out in the morning - with empty canteens, our throats soon be- 

 came dry and painful. A small quantity of water was found in the 

 afternoon in Mount Puakalika crater, thick and unpleasant to look 

 upon, but affording valuable relief to oar sufferings. 



THE POIKE PLAINS. 



The Poike Plains are extensive tracts of fine red volcanic sand and 

 dust with occasional patches of hummock-grass struggling for exist- 

 ence in this barren waste. Manga Tea-tea (White Mountains), so called 

 from the grayish appearance of the rocks, furnished the stone imple- 

 ments of the natives. The material was chipped as nearly as possible 

 into the desired shape and then ground down to a point or edge by 

 friction upon a hard surface with sand and water. At Anakena and 

 other points convenient to the sand beach we found grinding-stones, 

 together with unfinished and broken implements. 



The traditions assert that the island was in former ages densely pop- 

 ulated, and the legends are supported by the gigantic works of the 

 image and platform builders and the ruins of various sorts scattered 

 about. While the accounts are probably greatly exaggerated in regard 

 to the number of inhabitants at one time, there is every reason to be- 

 lieve that the people were numerous enough to severely tax for their 

 support the limited area of ground available for cultivation. The Incas 

 of Peru usually selected for burial-places the rocky and steep slopes of 

 the hills or the low sandy plains, where cultivation was impossible, and 

 presuming that a similar economy might have been practiced here, 

 much time was devoted to a thorough examination of the sand-wastes 

 at the eastern extremity of the island. Excavations were made at the 

 expense of great labor in several places where the indications were 

 most promising, but with barren results. Digging to a depth of 9 feet 

 in a depression near Cape Anataavanui we found several flat stones of 

 large size, such as were used for facing the platforms, but the loose, 

 shifting nature of the sand made it impossible with our small force to 

 thoroughly investigate them. The trade-winds freely sweep these ele- 

 vated plains, blowing the sand about, and creating ridges that may be 

 leveled again by stronger currents at some other season. Hills and 

 depressions simply represent the force and direction of the wind at the 

 time. 



TONGARIKI. 



Camp Baird was delightfully located in a commodious cave called 

 Ana Havea, on the bay of Hauga jSTui, near Point Onetea, and its 

 proximity to Bana Eoraka where all the monoliths on the island had 

 been quarried. Tongariki with its rich remains of platforms, images, 

 cairns, and tombs, and Vailm and other points not yet explored, were 

 sufficient to induce a permanent establishment during the remainder of 

 our stay at Easter Island. The cave was dry, with spacious entrance 

 exposed to the full force of the trade- winds, and we were comfortable 

 to a degree, after dried grass and bulrushes had been collected to 



