A VOYAGE TO 
\u 7 ft -^ Tortl1 the reef appears in detached pieces, be- 
tween which, the fea feems to break upon the fliore. Small 
as the ifland is, there are hills in it of a confiderable eleva¬ 
tion. At the foot of the hills, is a narrow border of flat 
land, running quite round it, edged with a white fand 
beach. The hills are covered with grafs, or fome other her¬ 
bage, except a few fteep rocky cliffs at one part, with patches 
of trees interfperfed to their fummits. But the plantations 
are more numerous, in fome of the vallies; and the flat 
border is quite covered with high, ftrong trees, whofe dif¬ 
ferent kinds we could not difcern, except fome cocoa-palms, 
and a few of the etoa. According to the information of the 
men in the canoes, their ifland is flocked with hogs and 
fowls; and produces the feveral fruits and roots that are 
found at the other iflands in this part of the Pacific Ocean. 
We had an opportunity, from the converfation we had 
with thofe who came off to us, of fatisfying ourfelves, that 
the inhabitants of Toobouai fpeak the Otaheite language ; 
a circumftance that indubitably proves them to be of the 
fame nation. Thofe of them whom we faw in the canoes, 
were a flout copper-coloured people, with ftraight black 
hair, which fome of them wore tied in a bunch on the 
crown of the head, and others, flowing about the flioulders. 
Their faces were fomewhat round and full, but the features, 
upon the whole, rather flat; and their countenances feemed 
to exprefs fome degree of natural ferocity. They had no 
covering but a piece of narrow fluff wrapped about the 
waift, and made to pafs between the thighs, to cover the 
adjoining parts ; but fome of thofe whom we faw upon 
the beach, where about a hundred perfons had affembled, 
were entirely clothed with a kind of white garment. We 
could obferve, that fome of our vifiters, in the canoes, wore 
pearl 
