Chap, xiii.] FIJIAN FORTIFICATIONS. 28 1 



There are sharks inhabiting fresh water in other parts of the 

 world, as in South America, in the Lake of Nicaragua ; * and 

 in a fresh water lake in the Philippines there lives permanently 

 a " Ray," a species of Saw-fish. A peculiar genus of Muo^ilida- 

 occurs in the Wai Levu, Gonostomyxus ("sa loa," Fijian). It 

 has been described by Dr. Macdonald.f 



Joe, our pilot, was, I suppose, about 35 years old. He had 

 no notion of his age, but said, when asked by the interpreter in 

 his own language (he knew no English at all), that he was five 

 years old. When asked if he had eaten human flesh, he said 

 " No " ; that he had killed four men, but had never been allowed 

 a taste by the chiefs. He evidently thought himself in this 

 respect an injured man. He had had four wives. He suffered 

 much from cold on the river in the early morning ; but, dressed 

 up in a blanket suit by the Blue-jackets, who were very kind 

 to him, managed to keep alive, and seemed to enjoy himself 

 pretty well, especially at meal times. 



We passed a hill, opposite which the water of the river is 

 supposed to have the effect of making the whiskers and beard 

 grow, and the spot is resorted to by young Hjians, in order to 

 force their hair. Joe said that he had been and bathed there 

 when young. 



We passed numerous villages on the river side and landed at 

 some to buy clubs, spears, kaava bowls, and other implements, 

 and the river was lively with canoes laden with yams and cocoa- 

 nuts. In most places the people crowded to the banks to stare 

 at us, and the girls and boys shouted as we passed. On the 

 upper part of the river I heard a call used which reminded me 

 somewhat of a European mountaineer's jodel ; it sounded like 

 " He, Hah, ho, ho, ho." Our guides to the top of the mountain 

 in Matuku, used the same call when at the summit. Moun- 

 taineers in all parts of the world seem to have some such cry. 

 The echo no doubt provokes it. 



One village, Navusa, some few miles above Nadawa, inter- 

 ested me, as having its fortifications still perfect. It occupies 

 an oblong rectangular area, two sides of which are protected by 

 a natural water defence. On the other two a deep ditch is dug 

 and the earth has been thrown up inwards to form a bank, on 

 the summit of which is set a strong palisade, which is extended 

 around the whole area. Three narrow openings, only wide 

 enough to admit one man at a time, give means of access. The 

 openings are guarded by a sort of stile, over which a slab with 

 notches for the foot leads up on one side, a similar one leading 

 down the other. 



* Thos. Belt, "The Naturalist in Nicaragua," p. 45- 



T J. D. Macdonald, R.N., M.D., F.R.S., " Proc. Zool. Soc." 1869, p. 3b. 



