﻿318 
  PROCEEDINGS 
  OF 
  THE 
  CALIFORNIA 
  

  

  state 
  of 
  things, 
  both 
  with 
  reference 
  to 
  the 
  " 
  statues," 
  and 
  to 
  the 
  dress, 
  dances, 
  

   and 
  appearance 
  of 
  their 
  people 
  at 
  home. 
  Mr. 
  De 
  Greno 
  also 
  substantiates 
  

   their 
  statement. 
  

  

  I 
  have 
  numbered 
  and 
  otherwise 
  classified 
  the 
  " 
  photos," 
  (ordering 
  the 
  photo- 
  

   grapher 
  to 
  preserve 
  the 
  margins 
  for 
  that 
  purpose) 
  so 
  that 
  I 
  think 
  you 
  will 
  be 
  

   enabled, 
  from 
  the 
  directions 
  written 
  by 
  me 
  on 
  them 
  and 
  in 
  the 
  letter 
  accompany- 
  

   ing 
  them, 
  to 
  arrange 
  them 
  properly. 
  One 
  of 
  the 
  blocks 
  is 
  more 
  than 
  a 
  yard 
  

   long, 
  and 
  I 
  was 
  obliged 
  to 
  have 
  the 
  " 
  photo 
  " 
  taken 
  in 
  six 
  sections 
  — 
  three 
  on 
  

   each 
  side 
  — 
  in 
  order 
  to 
  have 
  the 
  characters 
  sufficiently 
  large 
  and 
  distinct 
  to 
  ena- 
  

   ble 
  you 
  to 
  read 
  them. 
  

  

  The 
  blocks 
  are 
  of 
  different 
  sizes 
  and 
  shapes. 
  I 
  will 
  explain 
  why 
  they 
  are 
  so. 
  

   Many 
  long 
  ages 
  ago, 
  (according 
  to 
  the 
  account 
  the 
  natives 
  of 
  Easter 
  Island, 
  

   now 
  living 
  in 
  Tahiti, 
  give 
  me) 
  the 
  population 
  of 
  that 
  island 
  had 
  grown 
  to 
  be 
  

   very 
  great, 
  numbering 
  some 
  thousands 
  ; 
  and 
  as 
  the 
  island 
  is 
  small, 
  being 
  only 
  

   about 
  twenty 
  miles 
  long, 
  they 
  found 
  it 
  was 
  necessary, 
  on 
  account 
  of 
  having 
  to 
  

   depend 
  entirely 
  on 
  their 
  own 
  resources, 
  to 
  cultivate 
  every 
  spot 
  of 
  land 
  that 
  was 
  

   capable 
  of 
  cultivation. 
  For 
  this 
  reason 
  they 
  destroyed 
  all 
  the 
  trees, 
  and 
  plant- 
  

   ed 
  sweet 
  potatoes, 
  yams, 
  etc., 
  where 
  those 
  trees 
  had 
  grown. 
  From 
  that 
  time 
  to 
  

   this, 
  they 
  have 
  never 
  had 
  a 
  tree 
  more 
  than 
  say 
  two 
  inches 
  in 
  thickness, 
  and 
  that 
  

   of 
  a 
  soft, 
  quick-growing 
  kind, 
  which 
  they 
  were 
  obliged 
  to 
  use 
  before 
  its 
  wood 
  

   had 
  time 
  to 
  harden. 
  Owing 
  to 
  this 
  circumstance, 
  after 
  they 
  had 
  consumed 
  

   all 
  the 
  wood 
  from 
  their 
  ancient 
  forests, 
  they 
  were 
  obliged 
  to 
  pick 
  up 
  the 
  drift- 
  

   wood 
  cast 
  on 
  their 
  shores 
  by 
  the 
  ocean, 
  aud 
  collect, 
  from 
  whatever 
  other 
  source 
  

   they 
  could, 
  any 
  kind 
  of 
  hard 
  wood 
  they 
  could 
  procure 
  in 
  order 
  to 
  record 
  what- 
  

   ever 
  they 
  wished 
  to 
  record. 
  This 
  accounts 
  for 
  the 
  varieties 
  of 
  wood, 
  the 
  singu- 
  

   lar 
  shapes, 
  and 
  the 
  variable 
  thickness 
  of 
  the 
  bjpcks. 
  

  

  These 
  records 
  or 
  blocks, 
  they 
  say, 
  were 
  extremely 
  numerous 
  in 
  former 
  times 
  ; 
  

   but 
  a 
  great 
  many 
  were 
  destroyed 
  during 
  their 
  frequent 
  wars, 
  when 
  each 
  party 
  

   would, 
  in 
  their 
  anger, 
  injure 
  the 
  valuables 
  of 
  the 
  opposing 
  party. 
  Some 
  of 
  the 
  

   natives, 
  however, 
  have 
  told 
  me, 
  with 
  what 
  truth 
  I 
  know 
  not, 
  (for 
  the 
  natives 
  of 
  

   all 
  these 
  islands 
  cannot 
  be 
  depended 
  upon 
  for 
  the 
  truth) 
  that 
  soon 
  after 
  the 
  Catho- 
  

   lic 
  missions 
  were 
  established 
  on 
  their 
  island, 
  the 
  missionaries 
  persuaded 
  many 
  of 
  

   their 
  people 
  to 
  consume 
  by 
  fire 
  all 
  the 
  blocks 
  in 
  their 
  possession, 
  stating 
  to 
  them 
  

   that 
  they 
  were 
  but 
  heathen 
  records, 
  and 
  that 
  the 
  possession 
  of 
  them 
  would 
  have 
  

   a 
  tendency 
  to 
  attach 
  them 
  to 
  their 
  heathenism, 
  and 
  prevent 
  their 
  thorough 
  con- 
  

   version 
  to 
  the 
  new 
  religion, 
  and 
  the 
  consequent 
  saving 
  of 
  their 
  souls. 
  Others 
  of 
  

   the 
  natives 
  deny 
  this 
  statement 
  altogether, 
  and 
  are 
  very 
  strenuous 
  in 
  saying 
  that 
  

   it 
  is 
  false. 
  I 
  may 
  here 
  mention 
  that 
  the 
  latter 
  are 
  Catholics, 
  and 
  are 
  living 
  

   with 
  the 
  Bishop. 
  Their 
  statements 
  should 
  be 
  taken 
  with 
  some 
  allowance. 
  

   Those 
  who 
  make 
  the 
  charge, 
  on 
  the 
  other 
  hand, 
  are 
  employed 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Brander, 
  a 
  

   merchant 
  and 
  planter 
  here, 
  and 
  are 
  not 
  subject 
  to 
  the 
  control 
  of 
  the 
  Catholics. 
  

  

  Mr, 
  De 
  Greno, 
  the 
  Swede 
  before 
  spoken 
  of, 
  tells 
  me 
  that 
  when 
  he 
  first 
  landed 
  

   on 
  the 
  island, 
  the 
  natives 
  showed 
  him 
  and 
  his 
  friends 
  quite 
  a 
  number 
  of 
  the 
  rec- 
  

   ords, 
  and 
  they 
  seemed 
  to 
  attach 
  a 
  great 
  value 
  to 
  them 
  ; 
  for 
  some 
  three 
  or 
  four 
  

   months 
  after, 
  when 
  he 
  was 
  about 
  leaving, 
  and 
  desired 
  to 
  take 
  one 
  or 
  more 
  of 
  

  

  