But mamma was so
uneasy to see me in their arms, that I broke from them, and returned
to her.
"At last we landed. They carried mamma, who was too weak to walk. About
a hundred yards from the shore, we saw a large building of wood and
reeds, before which there was a crowd of savages. One who was very tall
came to receive us. He was dressed in a short tunic, much ornamented,
and wore a necklace of pierced shells. He was a little disfigured by a
white bone passed through his nostrils. But you saw him, papa, when he
wanted to adopt me; it was Bara-ourou, the king of the island. I was
presented to him, and he was pleased with me, touched the end of my nose
with his, and admired my hair very much. My conductors ordered me to
play on the flageolet. I played some lively German airs, which made them
dance and leap, till the king fell down with fatigue, and made a sign
for me to desist. He then spoke for some time to the savages, who stood
in a circle round him. He looked at mamma, who was seated in a corner,
near her protector Parabery. He called the latter, who obliged mamma to
rise, and presented her to the king. Bara-ourou looked only at the red
and yellow India handkerchief which she wore on her head; he took it
off, very unceremoniously, and put it on his own head, saying, _miti_,
which means beautiful.
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