Origin and Migrations of the Polynesian Nation. 95 



solitary isle, or one of the other accidents to which the natives 

 of an island in the South Seas are necessarily exposed, may have 

 given the first inhabitants to America. 



In order to demonstrate first the possibility, and then the 

 probability, of such a Polynesian voyage as I have supposed 

 having given the first inhabitants to America, let us glance for 

 a moment at the length and direction of some, at least of the 

 voyages that we know have been actually made by the South 

 Sea Islanders in the course of long ages past. " There are many 

 well authenticated accounts," observes Mr. Ellis, " of long voy- 

 ages performed in native vessels by the inhabitants of both the 

 north and South Pacific' The two canoes for instance that 

 reached the Philippine Islands, from Ancarso in 1696, had made 

 a voyage to the westward of eight hundred miles — mnch farther 

 indeed in my estimation, as I believe they came from the 

 Solomon Islands. "In 1820," says Mr. Ellis, "a canoe arrived 

 at Mawrua, about thirty miles west of Borabora" one of the 

 Society Islands, " which had come from Rurutu, one of the 

 Austral Islands. This vessel had been at sea between a fort- 

 night and three weeks ; and considering its route, must have 

 sailed seven or eight hundred miles." The direction in this case 

 was northerly. " In 1824," says Mr. Ellis, " a boat belonging to 

 Mr. Williams, of Eaiatea, left that island with a westerly wind 

 for Tahiti. The wind changed after the boat was out of sight of 

 land. They were driven to the island of Atiu, a distance of 

 nearly eight hundred miles in a southerly direction, where they 

 were discovered several months afterwards, "f We have seen, 

 from the evidence of language, that, in all probability, the New 

 Zealand group of Islands was discovered and settled from Tonga 

 in the Eriendly Islands. But the distance is seventeen degrees 

 of latitude and longitude combined or 1020 nautical miles, the 

 direction being south-easterly. Erom New Zealand to Aitutaki, 

 where the evidence of language also indicates identity of origin, 

 the unfortunates who landed at length on that solitary island 

 from New Zealand must have made a voyage of twenty-seven 

 degrees, or 1620 nautical miles from their native isle ; the direc- 

 tion being N.E. by E. And the first inhabitants of the Chatham 

 Islands, who speak the dialect of Tahiti, must have made a voyage 

 of the same length in a precisely opposite or south-westerly 

 direction. The Sandwich Islands were in all likelihood dis- 

 covered and occupied by unfortunates from Panning' s Island, or 

 one or other of the smaller islands in or near the same meridian, 

 close on the Equator ; the distance being sixteen degrees of 

 latitude, or nine hundred and sixty nautical miles, and the direc- 

 tion nearly due north. There is a peculiar and melancholy 



t Polynesian Researches, vol. 1, page 126. 



