i88 
A VOYAGE TO 
177s. the bad effects of an animal diet; which, in all probability, 
)an uar^ WO uld foon prove fatal alone. On the few cocoa-trees upon 
the illand, the number of which did not exceed thirty, very 
little fruit was found; and, in general, what was found, 
was either not fully grown, or had the juice fait, or 
brackilh. So that a fhip touching here, muft expedt no¬ 
thing but fifh and turtles; and of thefe an abundant fupply 
may be depended upon. 
On fome parts of the land were a few low trees * Mr. 
Anderfon gave me an account, alfo, of two fmall Ihrubs, 
and of two or three fmall plants; all which we had feen on. 
Palmerfton’s Illand, and Otakootaia. There was alfo a fpe- 
cies of fida , or Indian mallow ; a, fort of purflain; and ano¬ 
ther fmall plant, that feemed, from its leaves, a mefembryan - 
ihemum ; with two fpecies of grafs. But each of thefe ve¬ 
getable productions was in fo fmall a quantity, and grew 
with fo much languor, that one is almoft furprized that the 
fpecies do not become extinct. 
Under the low trees above-mentioned, fat infinite num¬ 
bers of a new fpecies of tern, or egg-bird. Thefe are black 
above, and white below, with a white arch on the fore¬ 
head ; and are rather larger than the common noddy. Moft 
of them had lately hatched their young ; which lay under 
old ones, upon the bare ground. The reft had eggs; of 
which they only lay one, larger than that of a pigeon, 
bluifh and fpeckled with black. There were alfo a good 
many common boobies; a fort that are almoft like a gan- 
net; and a footy, or chocolate-coloured one, with a white 
belly. To this lift we muft add men-of-war-birds; tropic- 
birds ; curlews; fand-pipers; a fmall land-bird like a hedge- 
fparrow ; land-crabs; fmall lizards ; and rats. 
As we kept our Chriftmas here, I called this difcovery 
Chrijimas 
