181. 



PLEASANT WALK. 



for garden or cultivated ground. A little beyond 

 this we came out on the grassy slopes of the south 

 side of the island, furrowed by little narrow valleys 

 full of wood, stretching from the hill on our left to 

 the sea-beach, with its belt of cocoa-nut trees on our 

 right As we had a very good foot-path through the 

 long tangled grass, we had a most delightful walk, 

 the fine fresh breeze of the S.E. trade wind mode- 

 rating the heat of the sun. The grass was generally 

 excellent : long, fine, green, and juicy; but here and 

 there were patches of a broad-bladed and ranker 

 grass, more like the alang alang of Java. When we 

 had arrived at the back of the cove of Moggor, our 

 two hoys refused to go any farther, and wanted us to 

 come down and have cocoa-nuts ; and as we per- 

 sisted in proceeding, they left us. 



Crossing a small gully with a deep water-course, 

 now dry, we came on another grassy slope ; but 

 here the path turned for the beach, as a great belt 

 of woods came sweeping down from the hill. Id 

 walking along the beach, we came on several huts 

 we had not yet visited, but which were now shut 

 up, their inhabitants being probably at Keriam. 

 Near one of these huts was a stump of wood that 

 had been rudely carved into the human shape, re- 

 presenting a woman. Just before it, on the ground, 

 were several old large murex-shclls, and behind it 

 was arranged a series of split cocoa-nut shells, in a 

 semicircular form.* Whether they attached any 



* This figure was 5 ft. G in. high. It had holes at the sides of 

 the head, apparently for cars to be fixed into, and others at the 



