H 



U 



M 



A 



N 



S 



P 



E 



C 



I 



E 



S. 



399 



a long beard 



• 



* The hair of the head is commonly black, and manners 



flowing in beautiful 



ral ringlets ; the 



however 



g 



nerally cut it ihort ; and in a few individuals only, from Bolabola 

 we obferved long hair. 



Befides thefe articles belonging to the external appearance o 



f 



the nations in the South- Seas, there are many others, which are 

 equally charad:eriflic, and the language is none of the leafl flriking, 

 curious and interefting. We acquired dnly a very imperfed: know- 



■ - ■ 



ledge of the many languages fpoken in the various ifles of the 



South-S 



we fhall therefore 



pretend to be 



y 



full 



upon 



th 



fubje(5l 



be expected -, wq fhall only offer on that 



head a few general remarks. 



r 



The LANGUAGE of the Society-ifles was better underflood by 

 us than any other, becaufe we had made fo confiderable a flay among 



them, and had 



pportunity of making ufe of the vdcabul 



colle6ied 



in former voyages, and of converfing with the natives 

 whom we had on board ; the other dialeds were only imperfediy 



under- 



* We are thcrefcre forry, that 'a'c cannot, in this inflance, fay of the young, artlft's pic- 

 ture, reprefentingthe landing at the Friendly -ifles, which is en;^ravedfor Capt. Cook's vovaae 

 omne tulit pundlum (pti mijcuit utile Mci^ as he made it a fine compolition at the expcnce ot' 

 truth, by giving all the men large buray beards, contrary to the coftume of the country, and 

 by cloathuig many figures from head to foot, with fine flowing draperies, in the fineft Greek 

 ilyle, though the natives are conftantly naked from the girdle upwards ; the elegant form 

 of their naked bodies would have produced as fine an cfteft, as the drapery: and in reprc- 

 fentaiions of this kind intended to accompany an hiftoryof a voyage, th:^ chief rcquifite and 

 Hicrit is truth 3 which ought not to be facriuced to whim arid caprice^ 



* * 



