THE FIJIS 329 



more about coral reefs and islands than in all my expe- 

 ditions put together, and it looks to me as if I had got 

 hold of the problem of deep [lagoons of] atolls, and of 

 the history of the coral reefs of the group. But I '11 not 

 go into details now except to say that I am more than 

 ever satisfied that each district must be judged by itself, 

 and that no such sweeping theory as that of Darwin can 

 apply to coral reefs as a whole, or even to atolls. I don't 

 believe from what I have seen that a single atoll in the 

 Fijis has been formed by subsidence ! — Darwin and Dana 

 to the contrary notwithstanding. This is eminently a 

 region of elevation at least to eight hundred feet! and 

 subsidence has never shaped the reefs here. Without my 

 experience in the West Indies, etc., it would have been 

 impossible for me to have got a proper and correct idea 

 of the Fiji Islands and their reefs. But I will not go 

 into details until I get through here. 



I only hope I shall have as good weather as we have 

 had, not a day lost, working hard from 5 a.m. till we 

 came to anchor for the night, and often steaming at 

 night the huge stretches to save time. The Yaralla has 

 proved herself eminently well fitted for this kind of 

 work, and had the Croyden, in which I cruised along 

 the Barrier Reef, been as good a boat, I could have 

 bucked the trades and felt safe as I do here. She is 

 very comfortable; we are well cared for, and have all 

 been getting as black as the natives, from whom we 

 can only be distinguished by the amount of clothing 

 we wear ! Besides coral work, we have greatly enjoyed 

 seeing the natives in their villages, of which we have 

 seen some of the best specimens. The islanders are the 

 most friendly, jolly, and hospitable people, fully up to 

 jokes, and most grateful for the smallest kindness. We 



