Genie Hermosa. 
109 
the present century by the enthusiast Williams 
could teach them sense in this respect ; and the 
natives themselves, though now accustomed to 
the use of European costume from their earliest 
childhood, assert that the ravages of pulmonary 
disease, to which they are particularly liable, 
first began to decimate them after they accepted 
Christianity. 
Without doubt the Rakahaaga natives may 
claim to be one of the handsomest races in 
Polynesia. Their complexion is very light, and 
their smooth, glossy skins are not now disfigured 
by tattooing, except in the cases of the men, 
who have been tattooed at other islands when 
voyaging about the Pacific in whaleships. The 
younger women and girls are perfect models of 
symmetry of form, and their large dark and 
languishing eyes, oval faces and pearly teeth, and 
rosy flush of cheek under their clear skin, at 
once give reason for their being so sought after 
as wives by the old-time traders. In their 
dispositions they are bright and cheerful, and 
both men and women seem passionately devoted 
to children, and mingle with them in their 
childish games in a manner that at once 
impresses the beholder with a very high estimate 
