TO RADAGK. 6S 



of them presents, and delighted Rarick very much 

 by a red apron, which I tied round his hips; upon 

 which he immediately sent for a number of cocoa- 

 nuts from his canoe. When he was going on shore, 

 he invited me to accompany him in his canoe, 

 which I accepted, while our scientific gentlemen 

 followed us in a boat. Rarick conducted us to 

 his habitation, which was distinguished from the 

 rest by its spaciousness, and treated us with a be- 

 verage made from pandanus juice, and which had 

 a sweet and spicy taste. One of our gentlemen af- 

 firmed he had seen a piece of iron which had not 

 come from us ; and when I repaired to the place, 

 where a canoe was just then building, I really 

 found a piece, four inches long, and two broad, 

 made use of by the builder instead of an axe. I 

 exerted all my skill in pantomime to discover 

 whence they had it. They understood me, land 

 told me, that a large beam had swum there from 

 N. E., round the middle of which there had been 

 an iron band, which they took off, broke into 

 several pieces, and divided among them. The 

 keel for the new boat, which was hollowed out by 

 means of the little piece of iron, with infinite ex- 

 pense of time, was laid, and it will take at least a 

 year before a boat of twenty feet is finished. The 

 keel is generally made of the bread-fruit tree, and 

 they would be glad to make a whole boat of it, if 

 its fruit did not form part of their food ; at present 

 they are obliged to content themselves with wood 



