27(;; THE CRUISE OF THE 'CVRAQOA: 



little village I had the opportunity of seeing and killing one 

 of those superb parrots with a gold and yellow ring lound 

 the breast. Dr. Picken and st>nie ollicers were already at 

 this village, the huts of which were low, small, oblong iu 

 shape, with low gables tcj the rotif, the low sides made with 

 thin strips of wood and crossed; each had a door in front 

 facing the sea. There were some women in these huts, but 

 being ahirined at us, they had closed their doors, and .so 

 baulked our curiosity. One, liowever, I did see Avho was 

 entirely naked, and exquisitely foi'med she was. The men 

 wei'e all armed with spears, and though they did not seem 

 much to like our being there, they made no dilficulty in 

 giving us cocoa-nut milk to quench oiu' thirst. This 

 district seems thinly peopled ; the greater [)art of the men 

 had yellow heads of different shades, some reddish, and 

 seemed about the same in a[)[)eiuance as those we had .seen 

 before, but less ornamented. I foinid some large Hat round 

 fresh-water mother-of-pearl .shells, and some sea shells, 

 red inside, both of which were lying in a hi'up under a 

 tree in the water, and looked as if they had nt)t been 

 long taken. Brazier shot fifteen parrots of a dark red 

 colour, and of a species of which I have never seen a 

 live specimen. Iji'forc six in the evening I got back to the 

 ' Curac;oa.' 



After sunset I could nuike out very distinctly the outline 

 of the Isle of Malata se])arated from Guadalcanarby Indis- 

 pensable Strait. It lies high, and according to the chart it 

 must be pretty nearly of the same extent as Guadalcanar. 



