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POLYNESIAN RESEARCHES. 
least apprehension of danger, and they as frequent¬ 
ly resort for amusement to the rivers. It is pro¬ 
bable that the people in general bathe less now 
than they were accustomed to do formerly, yet 
there are none, perhaps, who omit bathing once, 
and many who visit the river twice, in the course 
of the day. The universality and frequency of this 
custom is highly conducive to health, and produces 
a degree of personal cleanliness seldom met with 
among an uncivilized race. 
Although some of their practices are offensive to 
every feeling of delicacy and propriety, yet they 
are certainly a remarkably cleanly people. This 
regards not only their repeated ablutions, but their 
care to remove every thing unsightly from their 
persons. No hair was allowed on their limbs ; for¬ 
merly it was plucked out by the roots, or shaved 
with a shell or a shark’s tooth ; and those who do 
not wear the European dress, are still very particu¬ 
lar in removing the hair from their legs and arms. 
This is usually done with a knife, the razors they 
have among them being reserved for removing the 
beard. 
The adults formerly wore their hair in a variety 
of forms ; the heads of their children they always 
shaved with a shark’s tooth. This operation was 
frequently repeated during their juvenile years. 
The females generally cut their hair short, but the 
men wore theirs in every diversity of form—some¬ 
times half the head almost shaved, the hair being 
cut short, and the other half covered with long hair 
—sometimes the crown cut, and the edges left the 
original length. Frequently it was plaited in a 
broad kind of tail behind, or wound up in a knot on 
the crown of the head, or in two smaller ones above 
each ear. Since the introduction of Christianity it 
