400 United States Exploring Expedition. 



lected there can be no doubt of their entertaining an actual relish 

 for human flesh. The pottery of the Feejees is among the most 

 remarkable of their manufactures, as this art is not known to the 

 Polynesian races. Collections equally curious were obtained at 

 other places, but we must pass them by without remark. 



The portfolios of the artists are rich in scenes of every kind 

 illustrating the islands or regions visited, and their inhabitants. 

 The scenery of the islands, their mountains and forests, their 

 villages with interior and exterior views of huts and public 

 houses — their spirit houses or temples — fortifications — household 

 utensils — canoes — the natives in council — dressed and painted 

 for war — the domestic scenes of the village — costumes — tattoo- 

 ing — modes of cooking, eating, drinking cava, taking and curing 

 fish, swimming, gambling and other amusements, — their war- 

 dances — club-dances — jugglery — and numerous other particulars 

 illustrating their manners and customs have been sketched with 

 fidelity. The portraits too are numerous, and so faithful that the 

 natives who had not seen them taken, on beholding them would 

 cry out with surprise the name of the individual represented. 



The number of sketches of scenes and scenery amounts to 

 more than five hundred, besides five hundred others of head- 

 lands ; the number of portraits is about two hundred. They 

 have been taken at all the places visited, from Madeira where the 

 vessels first stopped, throughout the cruise, to St. Helena. It is 

 unnecessary to enumerate the particular regions. 



The principal importance of the observations and sketches 

 illustrating the different races, consists in their bearing upon the 

 history of these races, their migrations, and their physical and 

 moral characteristics. These subjects, in connection with the 

 study of languages, which together constitute the science of eth- 

 nography, received special attention during the cruise. The op- 

 portunities for observation have been unusually good, and the 

 information collected will prove, it is believed, highly interesting. 

 Only a few of the results can be here alluded to. 



It has been long known that the inhabitants of the principal 

 groups, scattered over the Pacific to the east of the Feejee islands 

 — those usually included under the general name of Polynesia — 

 belong to one race, and in fact are one people, speaking dialects 

 of one general language closely allied to the Malay. Materials 

 have been obtained for a comparative grammar and dictionary of 



