CHOISEUL BAY. 27 



canoes, who were only routed after the second discharge of fire-arms. 

 Two canoes were captured, in one of which was found the jaw of 

 a man half-broiled. The number of shoals, and the irregularity of 

 the currents prevented the ships coming up to the anchorage before 

 night fell ; and Bougainville, abandoning his design, continued his 

 course through the Straits.^ The description which the French 

 navigator gave of these natives in 1768, applies equally well to 

 those of the present dsby. When H.^l.S. " Lark " revisited Choiseul 

 Bay in October, 1884, not a shigle native was seen; so that it would 

 behove future visitors to be very cautious in their dealings with 

 these natives. Whilst off the coast north of this bay, a fishing-party 

 of half-a-dozen men came off to the ship from the village of Kan- 

 delai; but they showed great suspicion of us. They would not 

 come alongside for some time ; and when a present of calico waf> 

 flung to them at the end of a line, they were divided amongst 

 themselves whether to come and take it, some paddling one way 

 and some another. At length they took the present and came 

 alongside, but did not stay long, and soon paddled toward.s the 

 shore, their suspicions by no means allayed. What had happened 

 to cause this change of attitude, we could not learn. Evidently, 

 the good impression which we had left behind us a year before, had 

 borne no fruit, Probabh', some inconsiderate action on the part of 

 the crew of a trading- vessel had undone our work. 



The professional head-hunter of the eastern islands of the group 

 does not appear to be represented amongst the islands of Bougain- 

 ville Straits. Raids are occasionally made on the villages of the 

 adjoining Bougainville coast, but more, 1 believe, for the purpose of 

 procuring slaves, than from the mere desire of fighting. There is> 

 however, frequent friendly communication between the natives of 

 the islands of the Straits and those of certain Bougainville villages, 

 the former usually exchanging articles of trade for spears and tor- 

 toise-shell, and acting as middle-men in the traffic with the white 

 men. It is however singular that the natives of the Straits ti-ade 

 with different villages on the Bouo-ainville coast; and that, althoufjh 

 on usually such friendly terms with each other, they are often on 

 terms of hostility with the particular Bougainville village with 

 which their neighbours trade. Thus, Mule, the Treasury chief, 

 trades with the people of the village of Suwai, over which his 

 brother Kopana is chief Gorai, the Alu chief, on the other hand, is 



1 " Voyage autour du Monde," 2nd edit. augm. vol. II., Paiis, 1772. 



