246 TONGATABU. 



a tinge of red. Their hair forms the most remarkable feature 

 in their appearance ; it is worn in a sort of mop sticking straight 

 up from the head, and composed of a mass of small curls ; it is 

 black naturally, as are the eyebrows, beard, and moustache, 

 which latter are, however, scanty as a rule ; but it is altered to 

 a rust colour by the application of coral lime. 



The colouring is usually only applied partially, so as to give 

 a contrast between the black and red locks. Sometimes the 

 centre of the head is left black, and a marginal zone coloured 

 red ; at others isolated locks all over the head are reddened so 

 as to show a black mop variegated with red. Various other 

 fashions are adopted. The Tongans often sit on their heels like 

 Indian races, but more usually sit cross-legged in the posture in 

 which Buddha is ordinarily represented. 



Having studied Mr. Darwin's work, " On the Expressions of 

 the Emotions," I was immediately struck on seeing the men 

 conversing in the boat with one another, by the unusually 

 marked development of facial expression exhibited by them. 

 The muscles of the forehead during animated conversation, 

 are contracted and relaxed incessantly, and in a most varied 

 manner ; the brow is strongly wrinkled, and the eyebrows are 

 jerked up to such an extent as to remind the observer at once 

 of the jerking up of the eyebrows in monkeys. 



I made as careful a study as time would permit of the various 

 expressions of the emotions ; all of them appear to coincide 

 in their intimate character with those of Europeans, and this 

 holds good also in the case of the expressions of children, but 

 the movements made use of are much more strongly marked 

 in the Tongans than in Europeans : thus, for example, in the 

 expression of astonishment I noticed the eyebrows thrown up 

 with a succession of strong jerks, not merely raised once as 

 with Europeans. The use of the forehead muscles is very 

 peculiar, it seems indeed to be the most characteristic feature 

 noticeable about a Tongan. I saw no similar exaggerated 

 facial expression amongst Hawaians or Tahitians. There was 

 nothing interesting to be noted about the means of expression 

 of these latter islanders; probably they have copied European 

 modes of expression to a large extent. 



In some of their gestures, the Tongans differ remarkably 

 from us ; in beckoning, to call a person, they use, like the 

 Malays and others, the hand with its back turned towards their 

 bodies, and the palm directed towards the person called ; the 

 hand is moved downwards and inwards, instead of upwards and 

 inwards as with us. 



In affirmation the head is jerked slightly upwards, the eye- 

 brows being raised a little at the same time. I asked one of 



