Page:Voyage in search of La Perouse, volume 2 (Stockdale).djvu/181

] nected with the thieves, for he took care never to return on board again.

When we went ashore, Omalai accompanied us, and admired the boat's rudder for a long time. He was desirous of steering himself, and did so with great skill. These people use nothing but paddles for steering their canoes.

The ladies, in dressing their hair, made use of cocoa-nut oil, previously perfumed with a small seed, which they call langa kali, and which is gathered on the island of Tongataboo. On examining a little of the oil, we observed, that some of the bruised nut, which in their language is called mou, was mixed with it. They exposed the nuts to the sun, after having spread them on mats, in order to dry them, before they press out the oil, with which the women anoint the upper parts of the body, no doubt to preserve the suppleness of the skin, and to prevent too copious perspiration. They preserve the oil in the seed-pod of the melodinus scandens, after having taken out the seed. When we bought some of these little phials, a representation of which may be seen in Plate XXXI, Fig. 14, we frequently threw away the oil, lest it should run out in our pockets; but the women, seeing us with regret waste an article which they much value, commonly came forward to receive it on their heads, and then,