After the dance was concluded, the women retired to the hut, and
returned to offer us a collation, served up in the shells of cocoa-nuts.
It was a sort of paste, composed, I believe, of different sorts of
fruit, mixed up with a kind of flour and the milk of the cocoa-nut. This
mixture was detestable to me; but I made up for it with some kernel of
cocoa-nuts and the bread-fruit. Perceiving that I liked these,
Bara-ourou ordered some of them to be gathered, and carried to
the pinnace.
The hut was backed by a wood of palms and other trees, so that our
provision was readily made. Still there was time for my sons to run to
the pinnace, attended by Parabery, and bring from the chest some beads,
mirrors, scissors, needles and pins, to distribute to the ladies. When
they brought the fruit they had gathered, I made a sign to Bara-ourou to
take them to see the pinnace; he called them, and they followed him
timidly, and submitting to his wishes in everything, They carried the
fruit two and two, in a sort of baskets, very skilfully woven in rushes,
which appeared to have a European form. They had no furniture in their
dwelling but mats, which were doubtless their beds, and some trunks of
trees, serving for seats and tables. Several baskets were suspended to
the bamboo which formed the walls, and also lances, slings, clubs, and
other similar weapons; from which I concluded they were a nation of
warriors.
Pages:
402
403
404
405
406
407
408
409
410
411
412
413
414
415
416
417
418
419
420
421
422
423
424
425
426