Nov.] 



PLAN OF A VESSEL. 



461 



offing ; four or five hundred in a flock, and about five hundred feet 

 above the surface of the water. The flocks of one species will be all 

 the way chattering like monkeys, while that of another will salute 

 the ear with notes about as melodious as those of a flock of wild 

 geese. There is also a vast difference in the size of these glorious 

 birds ; some of them being as large as a partridge, while others are 

 about the size of a sparrow. One which we saw stuffed and pre- 

 served in the most natural manner, and stuck as an ornament on the 

 head of a chief, was not larger in the body than a humming-bird, 

 while its tail-plumes were at least six inches long. The natives also 

 wear wreaths made of various other kinds of feathers, nearly equal 

 in beauty to those of the bird of paradise. 



This country is beautiful beyond description. The seacoast is 

 bordered with delightful plains and valleys, covered with handsome 

 plantations of yams : interspersed with fruit trees, beyond which are 

 forests comprising many valuable woods, both for diers and cabinet- 

 makers. The inland hills and mountains are clothed in eternal spring, 

 and covered almost entirely with forests of gigantic growth. Here 

 may be found in plenty the highly prized sandal-wood, with the black 

 and yellow ebony ; all of which might be procured with facility, and 

 at a very low rate, by the competent commander of a suitable vessel, 

 properly fitted for the voyage ; a vessel so constructed that it would 

 be impossible to board her, unless the assailants were furnished with 

 sharp-edged steel weapons and firearms, of which nearly all the 

 South Sea islanders are destitute. When the natives are once con- 

 vinced that pilfering is out of the question, and that the vessel is per- 

 fectly secure from their attacks, they will immediately turn their 

 attention to trade, and will soon furnish a cargo that cannot fail of 

 yielding unheard-of profits. My experience has enabled me, should 

 occasion ever offer, to superintend the building and equipping such a 

 vessel, for such a voyage. 



For reaping the golden harvest which now awaits the sickle of 

 enterprise in the Pacific Ocean, the means must be adapted to the 

 object. The vessel, as I have stated before, should be built expressly 

 for the voyage, and should be of a different construction from any 

 other. She should have a high deck, be a fast sailer, of about three 

 hundred and fifty tons burthen ; and manned with a young, chivalric, 

 and enterprising crew. She should be supplied with experienced 

 officers, who are spirited, but humane ; active, but cool and deliberate ; 

 intelligent, honourable, and, above all, temperate. They should be 

 liberally furnished with every necessary for comfort and health, and 

 amply supplied with the suitable articles of trade. The commander 

 should be a first-rate navigator ; one who is familiar with those seas 

 and islands, and well acquainted with the character and habits of the 

 natives, as well as with the quality of the different productions of the 

 country. If possible, he should be a religious man ; at all events, he 

 should combine cool deliberate courage with humanity and gentleness, 

 firmness and dignity with politeness and delicacy. He should be 

 scrupulously attentive to discipline, and not less so to the health and 

 comfort of his crew. He should be a man who would revolt with 



