MANY NATIVES VISIT US. 65 



direction which they were pursuin^j rendered their 

 object a subject for much conjecture. 



We were occasionally visited by parties of 

 natives^ chiefly coming- from the northward^ probably 

 from some of the larp'e river mouths known to 

 exist there. Although in bring-ing- their women 

 and children off to see the ship they indicated little 

 suspicion or fear, yet on one occasion only could 

 we induce any of the men to come on board^ and 

 the two who did so would not be persuaded to g-o 

 below, and made their stay very short. As I had 

 better opportunities of making* observations upon 

 these natives than during* our former visit, some 

 additional information regarding- them may be given 

 here. The inhabitants of Redscar Bay, judging 

 from what was seen alongside the ship, are rather 

 smaller in stature than those seen at Dufaure and 

 Brumer Islands and the Louisiade, but perhaps 

 more fi*equently shew handsome features and good 

 expression. Neither were there any men exceeding 

 the rest in height by e^en three inches, as had often 

 been the case in other places. They are usually 

 of a very light copper colour, but one man was of 

 a very pale yellow and much resembled a Chinaman 

 in hue ; although it may at first appear strange, 

 yet this pale-skinned individual by his very colour 

 excited feelings of disgust in the minds of some of 

 us, such as would be created by the sight of a person 

 whose body was covered with a loathsome eruption 

 and who still publicly exposed it. And Avhy should 



