Next day crowds of canoes kept arriving from every neighbouring island, and dancing and feasting went on all day. The grand _mékés_ came off in the afternoon, but many of the occasional ones were quite as pretty. Each district has dances peculiar to itself. Here there was not one spear-dance,—all clubs or fans. The men on these occasions are generally so painted and dressed up that you cannot recognise your dearest friend; and we were quite puzzled by the king’s handsome sons, Ratu Joe and Ratu Timothy, appearing, one scarlet the other black, down to the waist. But we were chiefly puzzled and attracted by one very fine fellow, all painted black, with a huge wreath and neck-garland of scarlet hybiscus and green leaves, and rattling garters made of many hanging strings of large cockle-shells, and the usual _liku_ (a sort of kilt or waist-drapery) of fringes of coloured _pandanus_ leaves, or fresh ferns, &c. Of course he carried a club, and was barefooted. This man distinguished himself greatly, and afterwards acted the part of a huge dog in a dance where all the children appeared on all-fours as cats (“pussies”). Eventually we discovered him to be a European known as Jack Cassell. One very pretty girl, Andi Karlotta, who is engaged to Ratu Joe, wore a rose-coloured bodice and _sulu_, and a tinge of red sprinkled over her hair, all to match. Very often now the girls wear streamers of English ribbon; but these Bau ladies hold their heads very high, and decided that, as girls on the mainland had adopted ribbon, they would _tambu_ it; so only a little lace-edging was allowed. In addition to the actual kilt, many of the men wear innumerable loops and folds, and even a trailing train, of white _tappa_, the effect of which is graceful. Some wore a headdress made of very delicate bands of it, from the forehead to the back of the neck, looking like tiny white wreaths; others wore a kind of turban of smoke-dried gauze, and large beautiful breast-plates of pearly shell inlaid with ivory. Just when the principal _mékés_ were over, a tremendous shower came on; happily not till the people had gone home to feast. Later it cleared up, and they danced the whole night in the moonlight, though the rain had converted half the grass into a lake. But as they had no satin shoes to think about, they danced right through it, and seemed very happy. Their commonest figure is a great double circle, working opposite ways, the orchestra standing in the middle, singing and beating time with bamboos; and sometimes they dance off like a very curly letter S to join another double circle.