ese natives than
during our former visit, some additional information regarding them may
be given here. The inhabitants of Redscar Bay, judging from what was seen
alongside the ship, are rather smaller in stature than those seen at
Dufaure and Brumer Islands and the Louisiade, but perhaps more frequently
show handsome features and good expression. Neither were there any men
exceeding the rest in height by even three inches, as had often been the
case in other places. They are usually of a very light copper colour, but
one man was of a very pale yellow and much resembled a Chinaman in hue;
although it may at first appear strange, yet this pale-skinned individual
by his very colour excited feelings of disgust in the minds of some of
us, such as would be created by the sight of a person whose body was
covered with a loathsome eruption and who still publicly exposed it. And
why should not our pale faces be regarded by these savages in a similar
light? Some had perfect Malayan features, but none seen on this occasion
appeared to practice betel-chewing--a remarkable circumstance, since the
men who on our former visit came off to the ship, then only about fifteen
miles to the north-west, had their teeth discoloured.

PIGTAILS AND TATTOOING.

None of the natives had any hair upon the face; various ways of dressing
that of the head were practised, the most singular of which has already
been described in Volume 1. The hair was usually of its natural dark
colour at the base, with the remainder dyed reddish brown and frizzled
out into a mop with long-toothed combs of wood or tortoise-shell. One
child had the head so shaved as to leave a long tuft on the forehead, and
another on the back of the head--precisely in the same manner as is
sometimes practised in Java. Nor must I omit noticing a singular
appendage formerly alluded to--analogous to the pigtail once in
vogue--worn by many of these people; it is formed of human hair wrapped
round with twine, and ends in one or more bunches of shells, dogs' teeth,
and tails of pigs--the longest one which I saw measured twenty-one inches
in length. Among numerous ornaments the most common is a large round
concave portion of melon shell, sometimes beautifully inlaid with
filagree work of tortoise-shell, worn on the breast. Fillets of cassowary
feathers, fur of the spotted bare-tailed opossum, or woven stuff studded
with shells, were often seen.

Painting the face or body does not seem to be p