brought were of great size. On seeing the large lobsters, we were afraid that they must have wounded these poor women terribly with their large claws; but we soon found that they had taken the precaution to kill them as soon as they caught them. They quitted the water only to bring their husbands the fruits of their labour, and frequently returned almost immediately to their diving, till they had procured a sufficient meal for their families. At other times they stayed a little time to warm themselves, with their faces towards the fire on which their fish were roasting, and other little fires burning behind them that they might be warmed on all sides at once(!) It seemed as if they were unwilling to lose a moment's time; for while they were warming themselves they were employed in roasting fish, some of which they laid on the coals with the utmost caution, though they took little care of the lobsters, which they threw anywhere into the fire, and when they were ready they divided the claws among the men and children, reserving the body for themselves, which they sometimes ate before they returned into the water."
He gives us a little insight into their domestic arrangements, in the following sketch:—"Two of the stoutest of the party were sitting in the midst of their children, and each had two women by his side. They informed us by signs that these were their wives, and gave us a fresh proof that polygamy is established among them. The other women who had only one husband were equally careful to let us know it. It would be difficult to say which are the happiest, as the most laborious of their domestic occupations devolve upon them, which perhaps might sufficiently compensate their having only a share in their husband s affections."
The last extracts from M. Labillardière's journal relate to the softer sex, ever a favourite subject with our polished neighbours:—
"Four of the young girls were of the party who received with indifference the garments we gave them; and, that they might not be encumbered with a useless burden, immediately hung them on the bushes near the path, intending, no doubt, to take them with them on their return. As a proof that they set little value on such presents, we did not see on any of them one of the garments that we had given them the day before. Three
