84 Concerning South Sea Islands w 



Isle of Pines ; one, called the Didunculus, appears to 

 be trying to turn into a parrot, and is persisting in 

 the attempt. We had great fun palolo fishing. 

 These palolo are sea worms, and when they are 

 baked in plantain leaves they taste like most delicately 

 dressed crab mixed with good spinach. We went 

 after them, out on the reef, at four o'clock in the 

 morning, among a cloud of canoes full of brown men 

 and women, skirling and laughing and chaffing and 

 carrying on anyhow. The sea was covered with 

 innumerable wriggling worms, about the thickness of 

 a pack thread, and from one inch to two feet long ; 

 many were of a dark blackish green, but the general 

 tint was fleshy. We had small muslin scoop nets, 

 and skimmed the top of the water, each scoop bring- 

 ing up some quarter of a pint of the beasties. It 

 was a lovely scene, the glorious surf curling over 

 within a few feet of us, and the golden rays of the 

 rising sun gleaming through the bright sapphire 

 blue water walls, while along the reefs edge were 

 statuesque natives fishing with long bamboo rods, 

 casting their baits into the surge in a most work- 

 manlike fashion. 



' I would I could write more, but the California 

 mail starts to-morrow, so I must confine myself to 

 the closing scene of the poor dear old Albatross. 

 From Samoa we sailed towards Fiji, intending to call 

 at Levuka, and then to run down to New Zealand. 

 We sighted the outlying islands one very dark and 

 stormy evening, but, being afraid to try to thread 



