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tore out to a great didancc from the land, when fome foips 

 can fcarccly carry any fail. 



Piihlc, a boat of the Society iflands ; it is bovv-fided, and 

 fliarp-bottomed. The pahie, according to captain Cook, 

 is of different fizes, from thirty to fixty feet long, but like 

 the ivahah, is very narrow. One that was mcafnred was fifty- 

 one feet long, and only one foot and an half wide at the 

 top ; in the widell part it was about three feet, and this is 

 the general proportion. It does not, however, widen by a 

 gradual I'lVcll, but the fides being ilraight and parallel for a 

 little way btlow the gunwale, it fwcUa abruptly, and dravvs 

 to a ridge in the bottom ; fo that a tranfverfe fecnon of it 

 has fomewhat the appearanee of the mark upon cards, 

 called a fpade, the whole being much wider in proportion to 

 its length. Thife, like the largeil ivahahs, are ufcd for 

 fighting, but principally for long voyages. The fighting 

 pahie, which is the largeil, is fitted with the ftage or plat- 

 form, which is proportionably larger than thofe of the 

 ivahah, as their form enables them to fuftain a much greater 

 weight. Thofe that are ufed for failing are double, and thofe 

 of the middle fize are faid to be thf bell fea-boats. They are 

 fometimes out a month together, going from ifland to ifland, 

 and fometimes, as is credibly reported, thjy are not unfre- 

 quently a fortnight, or twenty days at lea, and could keep 

 it longer, if they had more (lowage for provifions, and con- 

 veniences to hold frelh water. 



When any of ihefe boats casTy fail fingle, they make ufe 

 of a log of wood which is fallened to the end of two poles 

 that lie acrofs the veffel, and projeft from fix to ten feet, 

 according to the fize of the veffel, beyond its fide ; fome- 

 what hke what is ufed by the flying proa of the Ladrone 

 iflands, and called, in the account of lord Anfou's voyage, 

 an Outrigger ; to which the iTirouds are fallened. 



Some of them have one malt, and others tv.'o ; they are 

 made of a fingle ftick ; and when the length of the canoe 

 is 30 feet, that of the mad is fomewhat lefs than 25 feet ; it 

 is fixed to the frame that is above the canoe, and receives a 

 fail of matting about one-third longer than itfelf ; the fail 

 is pointed at the top, fquare at the bottom, and curved at 

 the fide, fomewhat refembling what is called a (houlder of 

 mutton fail, and ufed for boats belonging to men of war ; 

 it is placed in a frame of wood, which furrounds it 

 on every fide, and has no contrivance cither for reefing 

 or furling, fo that if either fhould become neceflary, it muft 

 be cut away, which, however, in thefe climates, can feldom 

 happen. To the top of the mad are fallened ornaments of 

 feathers, which are placed inclining obliquely forwards, 

 the (liape and pofition of which will be conceived at once 

 from the figure in l\\e plate of Boats. 



The oars or paddles that are ufed with thefe boats, have 

 a long handle and flat blade, not unlike a baker's peel. Of 

 thefe, every pcrfon in the boat has one, except thofe that 

 fit under the awning, and they pufh her forward with them 

 at a good rate. Thefe boats, however, admit fo much 

 water at the feams, that one perfon at leail is continually 

 employed in throwing it out. The only thing in which 

 they excel is landing and putting off from the Ihore m a 

 furf ; by their great length, and high fterns, they cuuld 

 land every day, where the Englifh boats could fcarcely 

 Ijnd at all : they have alfo the fame advantages in putting 

 off by the height of the head. 



The exaft dimenfions of a pahie, given from a careful 

 admeafurement, will fo very materially contribute to the 

 elucidation of the defcription fubfequently given, as to the 

 manner and particular form in which this clafs of canoes is 

 built, that they might perhaps enable an European draughtf- 

 4r.an, to conftriiA one fo nearly refembli'ig them as to 



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crMle fome diflicuky in pointing out the true from that 

 which was lietitious : 



Feet, lnc)'€S. 



Extreme length from Hem to ftern, 

 reckoning tlie bending up of either 



not 



5' 

 I 



I 



I 



2 



2 

 2 



O 

 2 



6 

 a 

 S 

 II 

 9 



+ 

 6 



4 

 1 i 



9 

 o 



Ereadth in the clear of the top forward 

 Breadth in the midlhips 

 Breadth aft ... 



— In the bilge forward 

 — In the midfliips ... 

 —Aft .... 



Depth ill the m.idfliips - - ■ ' 



Height from the ground on which flic ftood 3 

 Height of the head from the ground with- 

 out, including that of the figure - 4 

 Height of the figure - - - o 

 Height of the Ikrn from the ground - 8 

 Height of the figure - - - 2 

 To illu Urate the defcription of the manner in which thefe 

 veffcls are built, it will be neccffary to refer to fig. 2. 



Pifl'C II. 



The firll ftage or keel under a a, is formed of a tree 

 hollowed out like a trough, for which the longell trees are 

 chofen that can be procured, fo that there are never mere 

 than three in the whole length ; the next llage under b b, 

 is formed of ftraight planks, about four feet long, fifteen 

 inches broad, and two inches thick ; the third ftage under 

 c c, is like the bottom, made of the trunks hollowed into 

 its bilging form ; the lall is alfo cut out of trunks, fo that 

 the moulding is of one piece with the upright. To form 

 thefe parts fcparately without faw, plane, chiffel, or any- 

 other iron tool, may vi-ell be thought no eafy tafli ; but the 

 great difficulty is to join them together. 



When all the parts are prepared, the keel is laid upon 

 the blocks ; and the planks, being fupported by flanchions, 

 are fewed or clamped together with llrong thongs of plait- 

 ing. Thefe are paffed feveral times through holes that are 

 bored v>-ith a gauge or auger of bone, which performs its 

 office with tolerable exaftnefs ; and the nicety with which 

 this is done, may be inferred from their being fufficiently 

 water-tight for ufe without caulking. As the plaiting 

 foon rots in the water, it is renewed, at leafl, once a year, 

 in order to which the veffel is taken entirely to pieces ; the 

 head and ftern are rude, with refpefl to the defign, but very 

 neatly finiflied, and pohflied to the higheft degree. 



Thefe pahies are kept with great care in a kind of houfe, 

 built on purpofe for their reception ; the houfes are formed 

 of poles let upright in the ground, the tops of which arc 

 drawn towards each other, and fallened together with thei? 

 ftiongeft cord, fo as to fonn a kind of Gothic arch, which is 

 completely thatched quite to the ground, being open only 

 at the ends : they are fometimes fifty or fixty paces long. 



Peter-loat, a boat employed in the river Thames in fiftling. 

 They in general fail well, and are good fea boats. 



Pleajure-loai, a veffel employed by gentlemen in excurfions, 

 upon the water, for their anmfement. Their fize and man- 

 ner of equipment are very various, being from a few tons 

 burthen, to upwards of two or three hundred tons, and hav- 

 ing on^' or more mafts. 



Pojl-boats, are boats cftablilhed on the river Loire in 

 France, tor the convenience of the public. They are long in 

 refpeft to their breadth, and go very fart. There are alfa 

 fomv. oil the Rhone, which go from Lyons to Avignon \n 

 24 hours. 



Proa; fee that article. 



Pu:it, a fort of flat-bottomed boat, whofe floor refembles 

 the plaifoira of a floating ftage. It is ufed by the naval 



artificers, 





