262 TYE AND SUALIB. 



and they will walk off insensible to the sweetest notes. Mr. Drayton 

 says that all their attempts at singing are confined to the major key, 

 and that he does not recollect to have heard a single sound in the 

 minor. 



Although the Feejeeans have little knowledge of musical sounds, 

 and apparently care not for them, yet they are fond of verse-making, 

 and appreciate the difficulties they have to encounter in their compo- 

 sitions, and according to Mr. Hale, in some of them the manner of 

 rhyming is peculiar and difficult, as they are obliged to confine them- 

 selves throughout the stanzas to those vowels which are contained in 

 the two last syllables of the first line of a stanza. For further infor- 

 mation I must refer the reader to the Philological Report. 



The men's voices in speaking are generally higher than those of 

 the natives of the other groups, but some of them speak in a full 

 deep tone. The females speak in a higher note than the Samoans or 

 Tongese ; their voices are very agreeable, full of intonations and 

 musical force, giving expression to every thing they say. 



On the 16th of July, the tender and boats being prepared, I ordered 

 the following officers upon an expedition : Assistant-Surgeon Fox, 

 Acting-Master Sinclair, Passed Midshipman Eld, and Mr. Agate, to 

 accompany me in the tender ; Lieutenant Alden and Midshipman 

 Henry in the first, and Lieutenant Underwood in the second cutter of 

 the Vincennes ; Lieutenant Emmons and Midshipman Clark in the 

 first cutter of the Peacock. The boats being fully manned and 

 armed, left the vessels in the afternoon, for the island of Anganga. 



Orders were left with Captain Hudson to resurvey the Bay of 

 Mbua, (for I was not satisfied with the survey that had been made,) 

 including the outlying reef, and after having completed this duty, to 

 proceed with the Peacock round to Muthuata, and then return for 

 the Vincennes. It was my intention to circumnavigate the whole 

 group of islands, carrying meridian distances from island to island, 

 and likewise to complete and connect by triangulation all the parts 

 that required further examination. I proposed to return to Muthuata 

 by the north and east side of Vanua-levu. 



Having satisfied myself with observations on Lakemba Point, I set 

 out in the tender at eight o'clock p. at., in order to join the boats early 

 the next morning at Anganga Island, about thirty miles from Mbua 

 Bay. The night was beautiful, and with a light air the tender 

 fanned along. Tom was at the masthead, but, towards morning, 

 being somewhat fatigued, he got into a doze, while the man at the 



