BOAT-BUILDING. 15 1 



procession, and all unite in chanting a song of 

 rejoicing as they slowly move along, to the effect 

 that now more food can be brought into the 

 land by the aid of the boat. 



Fish is plentiful, good, and cheap, and I fully 

 expect that when the long-promised railway 

 arrives an opening will be found for a large and 

 advantageous trade with the interior in this 

 most important article of food. The rock-cod 

 and. a large fish shaped like a perch, called 

 muquaqua, are especially good. 



The prawns found here are sometimes enor- 

 mous, measuring over eight inches I had one ten 

 inches long without the feelers but they are very 

 good and sweet-flavoured in spite of their size. 



Crawfish and crabs are here rather coarse in 

 quality. Oysters are plentiful, but very small, 

 the allowance of rough shell to each oyster 

 being something astonishing. Nevertheless it is 

 a favourite way of spending Sunday amongst 

 the Europeans to sail out to the oyster-beds 

 opposite Reuben Point and picnic off the en- 

 ticing mollusc. 



