LAND, WATER, AND PRODUCTIONS. 19 
spelled Taloo, and the name of the rock thus 
mistaken ’for that of the harbour. Separated from 
Opunohu by a high mountain, is another capacious 
bay, called, after its discoverer, Cook’s harbour; 
it is equally convenient for anchorage with the 
former, but rather more difficult of access. 
On the north-eastern side of Eimeo, between 
the mountain and the sea, is an extensive and 
beautiful lake, called Tamai, on the border of 
which stands a sequestered village, bearing the 
same name. The lake is s’tocked with fish, and 
is a place of resort for flocks of wild ducks, which 
are sometimes taken in great numbers. The 
rivers of Eimeo, like those of the other islands, 
are but small, and are principally mountain 
streams, which originate in the high lands, roll 
down the rocky bottoms of the ravines, and wind 
their way through the valleys to the sea. The 
mountains are broken, and considerably elevated, 
but not so high as those'of Tahiti, which are pro¬ 
bably 7000 feet above the level of the sea. 
The South Sea islands are not more distin¬ 
guished by the elevation of their mountains, the 
picturesque outline of their landscapes, and the 
richness of their verdure, than by the extent, 
variety, and beauty, of those natural breakwaters 
of coral by which they are surrounded. The large 
islands, though not of coral formation, all share 
the advantages of that secure protection which the 
reefs afford. Among the smaller islands four, viz. 
Tetuaroa, Tobua, Moupiha, and Fenuaara, appear 
to rest on coral foundations. The former, which 
is about twenty miles north of Tahiti, includes 
five small islets, the names of which are Rimatu, 
Onehoa, Moturua, Hoatere, and Reiona. They 
are enclosed by one reef, in which there is an 
c 2 
