158 A MISSION TO VITL 
said Kuruduadua, when this loss was communicated to 
him, “I allow no thieving here; I club all thieves: they 
don’t do that at Rewa or Bau. A man shall go back 
for it at once, and in a short time the purse will be 
brought.” A messenger was sent accordingly, and, sure 
enough, when it was brought not a coin was missing. 
Covered with mud and very tired, we reached towards 
sunset the town of Namosi, where Danford many years 
ago took up his residence. The beauty of its situa- 
tion had not been exaggerated, and the accompanying 
sketch, for which I am indebted to Dr. Macdonald, will 
give some conception of it. It is built in a lovely valley, 
very much reminding me of Ischl. High mountains are 
rising on every side of an extremely fruitful valley, 
through which the Wai dina is winding its serpentine 
course, and passing many miles of fertile country, ulti- 
mately discharges its waters into the sea at Rewa. The 
temperature being considerably lower than that of the 
coast, a European is filled with a thrill of delight as he 
begins to breathe the air so much resembling that to 
which his constitution is best accustomed ; and it requires 
no prophetic soul to predict that if ever the Fijis be- 
come a European colony, Namosi will be a favourite 
resort during the hot season, and the surrounding hills 
a mass of coffee and tea plantations. 
We went straight to Danford’s house, one of the 
largest in the town, built close to the rocky banks 
of the river, and surrounded by a neat bamboo fence, 
enclosing fine cocoa-nut, bread-fruit, orange, and Tahi- 
tian chestnut-trees, which diffused an agreeable shade 
over the extensive courtyard, whilst gay-coloured dra- 
