78 Porter'' s Voyage 



them the articles they had to sell, which consisted of hogs, 

 plantains, bread-fruit, cocoa-nut, &c. &c. 



After remaining with these people about two hours, I pro- 

 ceeded to a small cove, two miles to leeward, where were as- 

 sembled about fifty male natives and three females. Some of the 

 men were highly ornamented with plumes of black feathers, large 

 gorgets similar to those we had before purchased, and a kind of 

 cloak formed of white cloth, in appearance somewhat like paper. 

 Each held in his hand a handsome white fan, and had large 

 tufts of human hair bound round the wrist, their ancles and 

 loins, with large white oval ornaments, apparently intended as 

 false ears, and large shells and whales' teeth hung round their 

 neck. They made altogether no inelegant appearance. They 

 were all highly tatooed, and supposing one of the best dressed 

 among them to be the chief, I gave him to understand that our 

 object was trade, and that we had come with the most friendly 

 views, showing, at the same time, fish-hooks, iron-hoops and 

 knives, which seemed to produce a general joy among them. 

 They informed me that their chief, whom they called Othauough 

 had not arrived, and in a few minutes afterwards, pointed out to 

 me an old man, who approached entirely naked, with the ex- 

 ception of a piece of cloth about his loins, and a small fillet of 

 palm leaves about his temples. This they told me was their chief : 

 and on his addressing a few words to them, they threw by their 

 arms and ornaments, and plunged into the water to gain the 

 boat. I gave to each a small present, but they had no article to 

 offer in return but their women ; and as two of them were not 

 more than sixteen years of age, and both handsome, they no 

 doubt considered them the most acceptable present they could 

 offer us. 



The men of this island are remarkably handsome; of large 

 stature and well proportioned: they possess every variety of 

 countenance and feature, and a great difference is observable 

 in the colour of the skin, which for the most part is of a copper 

 colour. But some are as fair as the generality of working 

 white people much exposed to the sun of a warm climate. The 

 old men (but particularly the chiefs) are entirely black. This is 

 owing entirely to the practice of tattooing, with which they are 

 entirely covered, and it requires a close inspection to perceive 

 that the blackness of their skin is owing to this cause. On a 

 minute examination, may be traced innumerable lines, curved, 

 straight, and irregular, drawn with the utmost correctness, taste, 

 and symmetry, and yet apparently without order, or any de- 

 termined plan. The young men, the fairness of whose skin is 

 contrasted by the ornaments of tattooing, certainly have, at first 

 sight, a more handsome appearance than those entirely covered 



