said, Why should I pay you? in our country it is customary for those instructed to pay their teachers. The woman answered with some earnestness, You asked me to come and learn-I have been here so long-I have learnt. It must be in some way advantageous to you, or you would not have been so anxious about it; and as I have done what you wished me to do, you ought to pay me for it. She was told that the labour of teaching had been gratuitous, and the advantage resulting was all her own; and appeared satisfied when assured, that now she had learned, she should be regularly paid for the needlework she might do. This, however, at the time to which I now refer, 1819, was a rare occurrence; although, in the earlier periods of the Mission, it had been frequently manifested, not only in regard to needlework, but every department of instruction.

Accustomed only to perform those services that were for the advantage of foreigners, the natives had been usually paid for the same. They could not conceive, notwithstanding the frequent explanations given, why the Missionaries should be so desirous for their learning to read, &c. if they were not, in some way or other, benefited thereby hence, many of the early scholars expected to be paid for learning, and I believe some for appearing at the chapel. This, however, was only manifested during the time when very few could be induced to attend, and none perhaps came from the influence of that desire for Christian instruction, which attended the general profession of Christianity. After this period, it was only shewn by those who were actuated by a desire to obtain the favour of their superiors.

European cloth, cottons in particular, had long been

favourite articles of barter with the natives, on account of their durability compared with native manufacture, their adaptation to the climate, variegated and showy colours, and the trifling injury they sustained from wet. They no longer traded for ardent spirits, muskets, powder, &c. and were consequently enabled to procure larger quantities of British woven cloth. Hitherto, however, they had generally worn the European cottons, &c. in the native manner, either as a light tehei, thrown over the shoulder, a pareu wound round the waist; or ahu buu, a kind of large scarf or shawl, loosely covering the greater part of the body. They were now desirous to assimilate their dresses in some degree to ours. Mrs. Nott and Mrs. Crook made one or two loose dressinggowns for Pomare, after a pattern from us. This introduced the fashion, and many of the women made others for their husbands.

The first garment in general use among the females, was a kind of Roman tunic, usually of white or blue calico, these being their favourite colours. It was fastened round the neck with a short collar, which, if possible, was united by a bright gilt or plated button. The sleeves were long and loose, and buttoned at the wrists, while the lower parts reached nearly to the ankles. On the outside of this, they wore the pareu round the waist, and reaching below the knees. The colour of these

articles was generally in perfect contrast. When the loose European dress was white, the pareu, worn round the waist on the outside of it, was of dark blue; one end of it was sometimes thrown carelessly over the shoulder, or hung loosely on the arm, heightening the novel and not unpleasing effect produced by their blending, in the apparel of the same individual, the ancient

native with the modern European costume. Their dress thus indicated, equally with their half-native and halfforeign dwellings, the peculiar plastic, forming state of the nation, and the advancement of that process which was then constantly imparting to it some fresh impression, and developing new traits of character with rapid and delightful progression.

As the natives experienced the convenience of the new dresses, their desire for them increased, and the long loose dress soon became an every-day garment, while others of a finer texture, made after the European fashion, were procured for holidays and special occasions. From making plain, straight-forward garments, the more expert were anxious to advance still higher; and in process of time, frills appeared round the neck; and, ultimately, caps covered the heads, and shoes and stockings clothed the feet. Our assemblies now assumed quite a civilized appearance, every one, whose means were sufficient to procure it, dressing in a garment of European cloth.

These changes in the exterior of the people were sometimes attended with rather humorous circumstances. I shall not soon forget the first time the queen, and about half a dozen of the chief women of Huahine, appeared in public, wearing the caps which had been sent as a present by some ladies in England. It was some time after the adoption of the English dress. When they first entered with their bonnets on, much surprise was not excited; but when these were removed, and the cap appeared, they viewed each other for some time most significantly, without, however, saying a word, yet each seeming to wonder whether her head, with its new appendages, resembled in appearance that of her neigh

bour.

The attendants, and others who were not so distinguished, after recovering from evident astonishment at seeing the Huahinian ladies for the first time in European caps, were by no means sparing in their remarks. Some observed, they were perhaps designed to keep the head cool; others, to keep it warm; and others supposed they were to preserve it from the flies and musquitoes. All agreed that they looked very strange, and the wearers appeared to think so themselves; but it was supposed to be according to the usage of ladies in England, and to the despotism of fashion, even here, all minor considerations were rendered subservient.

The desire to obtain foreign clothing was now very great, equal to that with which they sought iron tools; and whenever they procured one article of it, it was worn forthwith, without waiting till the suit was completed. This often rendered their appearance to a European eye exceedingly ludicrous. There was a degree of propriety usually manifested by all classes of the females, in their dress: they either paid more attention to their appearance than the other sex, or were better informed; and the only inconsistency we ever observed was that of a woman's sometimes wearing a coat or jacket belonging to her husband or brother. The men, however, were less scrupulous; and whether it resulted from their fondness of variety, or a supposition that the same clothes, worn in different ways, would appear like distinct articles of dress, I am not able to say; but I have seen a stocking sometimes on the leg, and sometimes on the arm, and a pair of pantaloons worn one part of the day in the proper manner, and during another part thrown over the shoulders, the arms of the wearer

stretched through the legs, and the waistband buttoned round the chest.

Their own dress was remarkably simple in its form and appearance, and was generally more or less adapted to their vocation. When employed in agricultural pursuits, or in fishing, in which occupation they were as much in the sea as out of it, the men seldom wore any other dress than their tihere or maro, a broad girdle passed several times round the body. At other times they wore a pareu, which reached from the waist to the calf of the leg. Over the shoulders, when not at work, they wore a loose ahu buu, a kind of scarf or mantle, in some degree resembling the Roman toga; or they appeared in the tiputa, an article of dress, having an aperture in the centre through which the head is passed, the other parts extending over the shoulders, breast, and back. The tiputa was generally worn by the chiefs and

all persons of respectability.

This article is common to all the South Sea Islanders, and resembles in every respect, excepting the material of which it is fabricated, the poncho worn by the aborigines of South America, inhabiting the countries adjacent to the Pacific. The combination of these with some parts of the men's apparel worn in Europe, produced an effect less pleasing than the apparel of the females. Appearance and convenience, however, were not much considered by the Society Islanders, and it was often amusing to see a native sans culotte, without waistcoat or shirt, with a maro or pareu round his waist, and a fashionably made black coat on his back. The men are generally above the middle stature, and proportionably stout, and few of the coats, &c. belonging to the captains or officers of