90 MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF 



appeased, nor is the occasion of offence remembered with any feelings 

 of rancour. The women seem to possess stronger passions than the 

 men, and more enduring wrath ; jealousy is the principal exciting 

 cause with them, and they will sometimes carry a small weapon, made 

 of a shark's tooth, concealed for months, watching an opportunity of 

 making an attack ; desperate fights are the consequence of this, and 

 so much injury is done before these ferocious combatants can be 

 parted, that they often suffer from terrible wounds. Yet Kirby says, 

 he found in other respects than this the women always more humane 

 and gentle than the men. 



Like all savages, they are treacherous and cruel to the last degree ; 

 although they seem less prone to fighting than other natives whom 

 we had met during our cruise. Kirby mentioned, that they had had 

 no war on the three islands where he was resident, for upwards of 

 five years. This may be partly owing to the difficulty of fitting out 

 expeditions to attack the other islands, and the hazard of communi- 

 cating with those islands of which they have a knowledge. 



Another custom is remarkable: when a fisherman arrives with a 

 well-loaded canoe, his neighbours assemble around him, selecting and 

 taking away such as they please, leaving the owner nothing in return 

 but the satisfaction of knowing, that on a similar occasion he has a like 

 privilege to help himself. Custom has so far sanctioned this habit of 

 appropriating things belonging to another, that, according to Kirby, 

 they have no term to designate a poor man, except that of slave. Any 

 one who owns land can always call upon others to provide him with a 

 house, canoe, and the necessaries of life ; but one who has none is con- 

 sidered as a slave, and can hold no property whatever. 



The courtesies of life with them are few, and the want of them 

 probably arises from their privilege of making use of what belongs to 

 another as their own. Their salutations on meeting are confined to 

 simple inquiries, " Where are you going ?' or, " Whence do you 

 come V The rubbing of noses is only practised on special occasions. 

 On meeting a chief, the other natives leave the path and stand aside 

 until he passes, but make no gestures or expression of obeisance. This 

 same mark of respect is also rendered to all the women by the other 

 sex. 



They are said to be kind and affectionate to their children, and to 

 indulge them in every thing ; they never punish them even for the most 

 insolent and passionate behaviour, only using kind and affectionate 

 words : this may account, for the rude treatment that was observed to 

 be in practice among the natives of Drumtnond's Island towards our 

 gentlemen as well as their conduct towards each other. There is, how- 



