222 MESSAGE FROM KAREMAKU. 



times allow their customers credit, in which 

 case they never fail to charge double, though 

 their profits are at all times enormous. I have 

 myself seen young girls paying two Spanish dol 

 lars for a string of common glass-beads which 

 would scarcely reach round the throat. The 

 tradespeople practise every species of deception 

 with impunity, for the laws are not yet suffi 

 ciently civilized to meet offences of this descrip 

 tion ; which therefore inflict a double injury on 

 their dupe, by robbing him of his property, 

 and affording him an example of successful 

 fraud, which he will generally at least endea 

 vour to imitate. On Sunday, the inhabitants 

 of Wahu make their appearance at church in 

 full dress to be admired ; and if the spectacle 

 on these occasions is not so thoroughly laughable 

 as at O Tahaiti, it is certainly sufficiently comic. 



The domestic utensils, formerly in use here, 

 have entirely disappeared even from the poorest 

 huts ; and Chinese porcelain has superseded the 

 manufactures from the gourd or the cocoa-nut. 



Fourteen days after our arrival, I received 

 a message from Karemaku, who was still at 

 O Tuai. He assured me that he was rejoiced at 



