A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels — Volume 13Kerr, Robert
History
A General History and Collection of Voyages and Travels — Volume 13
Kerr, Robert
Voyages and travels
Huaheine seems to be a month forwarder in its productions than Otaheite,
as we found the cocoa-nuts full of kernel, and some of the new
bread-fruit fit to eat. Of the cocoa-nuts the inhabitants make a food
which they call _Poe_, by mixing them with yams; they scrape both fine,
and having incorporated the powder, they put it into a wooden trough,
with a number of hot stones, by which an oily kind of hasty-pudding is
made, that our people relished very well, especially when it was fryed.
Mr Banks found not more than eleven or twelve new plants; but he
observed some insects, and a species of scorpion which he had not seen
before.
The inhabitants seem to be larger made, and more stout, than those of
Otaheite. Mr Banks measured one of the men, and found him to be six feet
three inches and a half high; yet they are so lazy, that he could not
persuade any of them to go up the hills with him: They said, if they
were to attempt it, the fatigue would kill them. The women were very
fair, more so than those of Otaheite; and in general, we thought them
more handsome, though none that were equal to some individuals. Both
sexes seemed to be less timid, and less curious: It has been observed,
that they made no enquiries on board the ship; and when we fired a gun,
they were frightened indeed, but they did not fall down, as our friends
at Otaheite constantly did when we first came among them.. For this
difference, however, we can easily account upon other principles; the
people at Huaheine had not seen the Dolphin, those at Otaheite had. In
one, the report of a gun was connected with the idea of instant
destruction; to the other, there was nothing dreadful in it but the
appearance and the sound, as they had never experienced its power of
dispensing death.
While we were on shore, we found that Tupia had commended them beyond
their merit, when he said that they would not steal; for one of them was
detected in the fact. But when he was seized by the hair, the rest,
instead of running away, as the people at Otaheite would have done,
gathered round, and enquired what provocation had been given: But this
also may be accounted for without giving them credit for superior
courage; they had no experience of the consequence of European
resentment, which the people at Otaheite had in many instances purchased
with life. It must, however, be acknowledged, to their honour, that when
they understood what had happened, they showed strong signs of
disapprobation, and prescribed a good beating for the thief, which was
immediately administered.[42]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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