170 INTERVIEW WITH NATIVES. 



rocks, and those between that line and the volcanic 

 islands of Erroob and Murray group are all flat 

 coral islands. 



Captain Blackwood, Mr. Bell, and I landed in 

 the afternoon at the small group of huts near us, 

 which we afterwards found was called Keriam. A 

 crowd of 50 or 60 people awaited us, waving green 

 boughs, shouting " poud, poud," and inviting us 

 ashore. As soon as we stept on to the rocks, we were 

 surrounded by the natives, all shouting, shaking 

 hands, offering " boonarri" (cocoa-nuts), " kaisu " 

 (tortoise-shell), and asking for " sapara " (axes). 

 As we were yet unacquainted with the meaning of 

 these words, and all we had heard of the islanders 

 was by no means in their favour, we kept pretty 

 much on our guard at first ; but seeing many women 

 about, several of the elder of whom now came and 

 shook, or rather scraped, hands with us, and the 

 evidently friendly and delighted manner of the 

 people, we soon dismissed all anxiety, though not 

 all caution. Our principal object now was to get 

 some yams or other vegetables for the ship's company, 

 but in this we did not succeed, as though single yams 

 and cocoa-nuts were offered us they did not appear 

 able to afford a sufficiently large quantity at once. 



The men were fine, active, well-made fellows, 

 rather above the middle height, of a dark brown or 

 chocolate colour. They had frequently almost hand- 

 some faces, acquiline noses rather broad about the 

 nostril, well-shaped heads, and many had a singu- 

 larly Jewish-cast of features. The hair was frizzled, 



