CAPTAIN TUCKEY’S NARRATIVE, 139 
by a space from the men and boys. Though not one of them 
had ever seen a white man, they did not seem to feel any 
timidity, but on the contrary we had abundant opportunity 
’ of discovering that, as far as depended on themselves, they 
were perfect Otaheitans in their manners. One woman we 
saw spinning cotton for a fishing net exactly in the manner 
the French women do while tending their sheep. 
The latter part of our journey, as we again approached 
the river, was even worse than our road going, being 
obliged to ascend and descend a succession of hills, of 
smooth rocks, so nearly perpendicular, that it required 
almost the legs of flies to crawl over them, and here 
the natives had greatly the advantage of us, the soles of 
their naked feet seizing hold of the rock, while our shoes 
slipped over them and threatened us every moment with a 
fall that would not have been without danger ; at length we 
reached the boats at 4 o’clock extremely fatigued, though 
the distance of the banza is not more than three miles in a 
direct line from the river, but by the circuitous route we 
took, could not be less than seven or eight. 
The most striking features of the country we passed 
over are the extreme barrenness of the hills near the river, 
the whole being still composed of slate with masses of 
quartz, and sienite, the latter becoming the main for- 
