It is now on its
travels; but I am not the least anxious about it. A man pointed to
a hut some distance on the other side of the river, and appeared
interrogative, and on my replying affirmatively, he mounted a horse
and carried off the watch in the direction indicated. Mr. Ellis
came to this valley in a canoe, and he mentions that when he
preached, the natives, who seemed to be very indifferent to the
general truths of Christianity, became very deeply interested when
they heard of Ora loa ia Jesu (endless life by Jesus). While I was
up the valley the poor people made a wonderful bed of seven fine
mats, one over the other, on one side of the house, and screened it
off with a flaring muslin curtain; but on the other side there are
ten pillows in a row, so that I wonder how many are to occupy the
den during the night. I am now writing inside the house, with a
hollowed stone, with some beef fat and a wick in it, for a light,
and two youths seem delegated to attend upon me. One holds my ink,
and if I look up, the other rushes for something that I am supposed
to want. They insist on thinking that I am cold because my clothes
are wet, and have thrown over me several folds of tapa, made from
the inner bark of the wauti or cloth plant (Broussonetia
papyrifera).
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