^5 2 Voyage of the Novara. 



1828 by tlie Russian Admiral Liitke, and just as we foimd 

 ourselves off what is called " Middle Harbour," we remarked 

 a boat of European construction making for the frigate. 

 Two hours later it came alongside, with four natives and a 

 white man, the latter of whom came on deck and offered his 

 services to the Commodore as pilot. He proved to be a 

 Yankee named Alexander Tellet, who had lived 20 years 

 on the island as smith and carpenter, to which he added the 

 functions of pilot for the harbour in which he lived. Pre- 

 sently we were surrounded by a considerable number of 

 natives in elegant canoes streaked with red, and formed of 

 hollowed-out trunks of trees with outriggers, which have very 

 peculiar scaffold-like supports, so that there is a kind of 

 platform formed in the centre of the canoe, whereon the 

 master usually seats himself, but which serves on occasion 

 for festive meetings, and even for a small dance ! The sails, 

 made of mats, are triangular, tlie most acute angle being 

 confined between two long bamboos, while a third serves as 

 a mast, the whole capable of being shifted to either end of 

 the boat by one of the crew, according to the direction of the 

 wind. While some were doing what they could in their 

 small boats to keep within the sj)eed of the frigate, though 

 we were going pretty fast, just as parasites make fast to the 

 shark, others followed us a little distance, like dolphins, those 

 faithful companions of ships, as far as the nearest harbour. 

 With the exception of a short apron of cocoa-palm leaves, 

 the natives were quite naked, and seemed pretty well 

 made. On their heads they wore a sort of projecting pent- 



