er behind the
canoes was churned into a white froth by the jumping, splashing fish,
which x were following the canoes in a solid wall, snapping up the food
so industriously thrown to them. In a few minutes the canoes had entered
the open end of the trap, and were paddling noiselessly past the inner
lines of nets, not a hundred yards from where we stood. At last, when
the whole inclosure was literally swarming with fish, the outside canoes
quickly closed up the gap by stretching the nets across it, and almost
at the same moment there was a tremendous splashing and churning up of
the water around each knoll and boulder of coral. The _tautau_ had left
off eating the bait thrown them from the canoes, and were attacking the
myriads of small fish that clustered round the boulders. And then, at
a signal given by one of the outside canoes, the torches sprang
into flame, and by the bright light that flooded the scene the most
extraordinary sight was revealed, for from one side to the other the
great inclosure was full of magnificent _tautau_ about three feet six in
length. They were all swimming on the surface; and as soon as the
blaze of the torches illumined the water they at once became almost
stationary; or, after the manner of flying-fish, when subjected to a
strong light, swam slowly about in a dazed, hesitating manner.

The work of capturing some very large turtle, that had come into the
fatal circle of nets, was now at once begun, lest in their endeavours to
escape the nets might be broken and the fish escape. There were six of
these creatures speared before they could do any damage; as well as two
or three small sharks, which, having gorged themselves to repletion,
were killed as they lazily swam along the circle of nets.

So well had the natives judged of the time it would take to carry out
their scheme, that within half an hour of the inclosure of the fish the
tide began to fall, and the imprisoned swarms showed signs of anxiety to
escape, but as fresh supplies of torches were brought from the village,
and kept continuously alight, their alarm seemed to disappear. Had a
heavy shower of rain fallen--so the trader told us--and extinguished the
torches, the fish would have rushed at the nets and carried them away by
sheer weight.

Meanwhile, as the tide continued to fall, many of the women and girls
amused themselves by stunning all the fish that came within reach
of them, and loading the canoes with them. Once some fi