OKAN KEGA AND PABOK. 459 



from which long strings of shells hung down to the 

 ground, giving the village a most picturesque ap- 

 pearance. 



The houses were arranged with considerable 

 regularity, so as to form one wide street of con- 

 siderable extent, from which narrow alleys branched 

 on each side. 



Our conductor led us to the Oran Kega, whom we 

 found seated in front of a small house in the widest 

 part of the street, opposite to which there was a 

 circular space marked out by a row of stones placed 

 on the ground, and which appeared to be set aside 

 for religious purposes, as they seemed unwilling we 

 should set foot within it. Here the natives soon 

 afterwards assembled in considerable numbers, and 

 were for some time enoraored in serious discussion. 



The Oran Kega, who was an elderly man, received 

 us very civilly, and invited us to sit down beside him. 

 Soon afterwards Pabok came up. He was very 

 old, had lost the sight of one eye, and wore an old 

 straw hat of European manufacture, decorated with 

 stripes of red and blue cloth sewn round it. I tried 

 in vain to get more information from him about 

 the European boy 5 and on pressing him to come 

 down to the boat to receive a present, he made 

 signs he was too old to do so. 



After remaining a short time in the village, during 

 which one of our party caught a transient glimpse 

 of souie of the women, we returned to the beach ; 

 where we found that the natives had brought a 



