CHASTITY OF WOMEN. 1 77 



wood, open at one end, with the skin of a lizard 

 stretched tightly over the other. On heing beaten 

 by the hand it emitted a low resonant sound. 



The women were now become a little more fami- 

 liar, standing or sitting round in groups ; on our 

 approaching one of which, however, the younger 

 ones laughingly hustled over to the other side. The 

 men seemed amused at their coquetry, and some of 

 the younger fellows made a shew of offering one or 

 two of them to us, using rather coarse gestures, at 

 which there was a general laugh. It seemed all to 

 be done however in jest, as I may mention here that 

 no instance of a breach of chastity by any of the 

 women of these people came to our knowledge dur- 

 ing the whole of our intercourse with them ; although, 

 as may be easily believed, there was no want of 

 solicitation on the part of our ship's company, nor 

 any want of means of inducement, since they look 

 upon all iron implements as the most valuable of 

 commodities. This reserve of the women seems cha- 

 racteristic of the frizzled-haired races of these seas, 

 as distinguished from the straight-haired Polyne- 

 sians, as may be seen in the accounts of all voyages 

 from the time of Cook downwards.* 



A fine straight-limbed and graceful young fellow, 

 called Doodegab, had attached himself to me, and I 

 proposed an exchange of names to him, a custom of 

 which we had yet seen no traces, but which he in- 



* See especially his account of New Caledonia in his second 

 voyage. 



VOL. I. N 



