Accident gave us specimens of their extraordinary skill in diving. We threw some pieces of barrel-hoops into the sea, when numbers of the islanders instantly precipitated themselves to the bottom, and snatched up the booty, for the possession of which we could plainly distinguish them wrestling with each other under the water. They willingly obeyed our orders not to come on deck, and fastened their goods to a rope, by which they were drawn on board, waiting with confidence for what we should give them, and appearing content with it. Some few had brought arms with them, but for trading, not warlike purposes; and although so vastly superior to us in numbers, they behaved with great modesty. We saw no scars upon them, like those of their neighbours of Maouna--a favourable sign, though they certainly seemed to belong to the same race. It would be interesting to know the cause of this striking difference. In less than an hour we had obtained upwards of sixty large pigs, and a superfluity of fowls, vegetables, and fruits of various kinds, covering our whole deck, all of which cost us only some pieces of old iron, some strings of glass beads, and about a dozen nails. The blue beads seemed to be in highest estimation. A great fat pig was thought sufficiently paid for by two strings of them; and when they became scarce with us, the savages were glad to give two pigs for one such necklace. Some of the fruits and roots they brought were unknown to us; and their great size proved the strength of the soil. The bananas were of seven or eight species, of which I had hitherto seen but three in the most fruitful countries. Some of them were extremely large, and of a most excellent flavour. One of the fruits resembled an egg in size and figure; its colour was a bright crimson; and on the following day when we celebrated the Easter festival after the Russian fashion, they supplied to us the place of the Easter eggs. I must yet mention two more articles of our marketing--namely, tame pigeons and parrots. The former are widely different from those of Europe both in shape and in the splendour of their plumage; their claws are also differently formed. The parrots are not larger than a sparrow, of a lively green and red, with red tails more than four times the length of their whole bodies. All these birds, of which great numbers were brought to us, were so tame, that they would sit quietly on the hand of their master, and receive their food from his mouth; the inclination for taming them, and the method of treatment, is favourable evidence of the mildness which characterises this people.