XI 
FEMININE INQUISITIVENESS 
147 
from those on Banks Island, and are not “ Binghis ” 
(natives of this part of Australia), but a colony of 
South Sea Islanders. The men are strong and well 
made, and the women are buxom. They seem very 
pleased to see us, and anxious to do what they can for 
us. They have the greatest respect and admiration for 
Mrs. Jardine, for at one time she and her husband lived 
not very far from this island, and they speak of him 
always as the “ Mamoose ” (first chief). The men had 
had a great time of dugong-fishing the day before, and 
we had slices of this for our dinner, and exceedingly 
good it was too. We also had fish, yams, and cocoa- 
nut milk from the young green nuts, which last has a 
tart and sparkling taste, and is cool and refreshing. 
There were other delicacies that I looked upon with 
caution, and over which I exercised my own discre- 
tion. 
You would have laughed to watch my efforts in 
writing to you this afternoon, as the inquisitive black 
girls leaned over my shoulders wondering what it all 
meant. Sometimes a piccaninny joined, and I couldn’t 
keep him from sticking his fingers into the ink. 
When they become too troublesome I have to call for 
Mrs. Jardine’s aid. In the evening we went for a tour 
of inspection round the village, which contains about 
400 to 500 people. Here and there through the 
camp there were graves, each of which is ornamented 
with shells, bottles, clothes, pots, and everything be- 
longing to the dead person who is buried there. The 
last one we saw had a most grotesque appearance with 
a slate, a comb, an old purse, and one boot, besides the 
usual shells and decorations, and over all an old 
mosquito net. 
There is a large fire under the cocoa-nut palms at 
night, and men, women, and children all sit there and 
