638 



THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE 



AN EXCAVATED STATUE ON EASTER ISLAND 



This unusual specimen shows the form of the hands. Here the 

 position of the eyes is indicated by a straight line below the brow. 

 In the images found on the terraces the sockets are always hollowed 

 out (see illustration, page 628). 



being swamped by making a sea-anchor 

 of their blankets. 



"The spray, of course, kept washing 

 over them, and as the boat was only 20 

 feet long and there were eleven of them, 

 there was no room for them to lie down. 

 Each day they had between them a tin of 

 the soup and one of milk and an allow- 

 ance of water, but the sea got into the 

 water-cask and made it brackish, and be- 

 fore the end their sufferings from thirst 

 were so great that one or two of them 

 attempted to drink salt water. The mate 

 stopped that by saying that he would 

 shoot the first man who did it. 



"After nine days 

 they sighted this 

 island; but then luck 

 was against them, for 

 the wind changed, and 

 it was 48 hours after 

 they saw the coast be- 

 fore they were able to 

 beach the boat. They 

 got on shore at the 

 other end of the island, 

 which is uninhabited. 

 "They were pretty 

 much at the last stage 

 of exhaustion and 

 their skin was in a 

 terrible condition from 

 salt water; their feet 

 especially were so bad 

 that they could hardly 

 walk. 



"One of them fell 

 down again and again, 

 but struggled on, say- 

 ing, 'I won't give up, 

 I won't give up.' At 

 last my man, who looks 

 after the cattle over 

 there, saw them and 

 brought me word. The 

 officers were put up 

 here — you must really 

 forgive the limitations 

 of my wardrobe, for I 

 had to give away 

 nearly everything that 

 I had in order to 

 clothe them. 



"The most curious 

 part of the whole busi- 

 ness was that after 

 they had been here three or four months 

 the captain took to the boat again. I be- 

 lieve that he was buying his house at 

 home on the installment plan, and that if 

 he did not get in the last payment by the 

 end of the year the whole would be for- 

 feited. 



"Anyway, as soon as the fine weather 

 came on he had out the boat and patched 

 her up. He got two of his men to go 

 with him. I lent him a watch for navi- 

 gation purposes, and we did all we could 

 for him in the way of food; there were 

 no matches on the island, so he learned 

 how to make fire with two pieces of 



