Of tame animals they have only hogs, dogs, and poultry; neither is there a wild animal in the island, except ducks, pigeons, paroquets, with a few other birds, and rats, there being no other quadruped, nor any serpent.  But the sea supplies them with great variety of most excellent fish, to eat which is their chief luxury, and to catch it their principal labour.[2]

[Footnote 2:  It was no doubt a work of supererogation in the missionaries, to attempt to augment the stock of animal provision in this island, to which nature had been so bountiful in dispensing her favours.  This however they did, but with little success.  The natives were too amply furnished with pleasant and wholesome aliment, to undertake the care of cattle, which accordingly either perished from neglect, or were suffered to turn wild in their mountains.  The imperfection too of their cookery operations not a little tended to bring beef and mutton into contempt.  Instead of dressing them in some of the European methods, they treated them, as they did their dogs and hogs, by the process of burning.  The consequence was, the skin became as tough as leather, and the taste very offensive.  These were formidable difficulties, to people of such nice sense as the Otaheitans, who were therefore readily induced to revert to their own stock.  See account of the missionary voyage, for a good deal of information on the subjects alluded to in this note.—­E.]

As to the people, they are of the largest size of Europeans.  The men are tall, strong, well-limbed, and finely shaped.  The tallest that we saw was a man upon a neighbouring island, called Huaheine, who measured six feet three inches and a half.  The women of the superior rank are also in general above our middle stature, but those of the inferior class are rather below it, and some of them are very small.  This defect in size probably proceeds from their early commerce with men, the only thing in which they differ from their superiors, that could possibly affect their growth.

Their natural complexion is that kind of clear olive, or brunette, which many people in Europe prefer to the finest white and red.  In those that are exposed to the wind and sun, it is considerably deepened, but in others that live under shelter, especially the superior class of women, it continues of its native hue, and the skin is most delicately smooth and soft; they have no tint in their cheeks, which we distinguish by the name of colour.  The shape of the face is comely, the cheek-bones are not high, neither are the eyes hollow, nor the brow prominent; The only feature that does not correspond with our ideas of beauty is the nose, which, in general, is somewhat flat; but their eyes, especially those of the women, are full of expression, sometimes sparkling with fire, and sometimes melting with softness; their teeth also are, almost without exception, most beautifully even and white, and their breath perfectly without taint.[3]