closely approach the happy condition of Neuroomia 0-0-9are the South Sea Islands, scattered over a vast portion of the southern part of our great Pacific Ocean."
I here gave her a concise account of these islands, and the life led by the savages who inhabited them.
She said that it sounded more like a legend than reality, and reminded her of the "tradition of the two lovers." I expressed a desire to hear it, and having chosen a seat in a romantic spot, she began:—
"It happened a very long time ago, some time during the past ages, that a boy and girl from different tribes contracted a passion for each other. The girl, who was a daughter of the chief of her tribe, was beautiful, and her father wished to give her in marriage to one of their own people—a man who had been his friend for a long time. The boy was also the son of a chief who was equally averse to the young pair being together. Nevertheless, certain people from both tribes encouraged them, and also assisted them to meet, for they believed that good would come of it, and might in the end lead to the union of the tribes, which they considered to be a desirable object. But there were others again who prophesied that evil would
