THE PACIFIC OCEAN. 
23 S 
of a red colour, not very coarfe, and feems to be much the 1778. 
fame with what our ftragglers found at Chriftmas Illand. , Febru ary ‘ 
It has its colour, doubtlefs, from a mixture of the mud, at 
the bottom of the part where it is formed ; for fome of it, 
that had adhered in lumps, was of a fufficient whitenefs 
and purity. 
They bake their vegetable food with heated hones, as at 
the Southern Iflands ; and, from the vaft quantity which we 
faw dreffed at one time, we fufpefted, that the whole vil¬ 
lage, or, at leaft, a conliderable number of people, joined 
in the ufe of a common oven. We did not fee them drefs 
any animal food at this illand; but Mr. Gore’s party, as 
already mentioned, had an opportunity of fatisfying them- 
felves, that it was dreffed in Oneeheow in the fame fort of 
ovens ; which leaves no doubt of this being alfo the practice 
in Atooi; efpecially as we met with no utenlil there, that 
could be applied to the purpofe of ftewing or boiling. The 
only artificial difh we met with, was a taro pudding ; which, 
though a difagreeable mefs from its fournefs, was greedily 
devoured by the natives. They eat off a kind of wooden 
plates, or trenchers ; and the women, as far as we could 
judge from one inftance, if refrained from feeding at the 
fame difh with the men, as at Otaheite, are, at leaf:, per¬ 
mitted to eat in the fame place near them. 
Their amufements feem pretty various ; for, during our 
fhort flay, feveral were difcovered. The dances, at which 
they ufed the feathered cloaks and caps, were not feen ; but 
from the motions which they made with their hands, on • 
other occalions, when they fung, we could form fome judg¬ 
ment that they are, in fome degree at leaft, fimilar to thofe 
we had met with at the Southern Iflands, though not exe¬ 
cuted fo fkilfully. Neither had they, amongft them, either 
H h 2 flutes 
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