They bake their vegetable food with heated stones, as at the Southern Islands; and, from the vast quantity which we saw dressed at one time, we suspected that the whole village, or, at least, a considerable number of people, joined in the use of a common oven. We did not see them dress any animal food at this island; but Mr. Gore’s party, as already mentioned, had an opportunity of satisfying themselves, that it was dressed in Oneeheow in the same sort of ovens; which leaves no doubt of this being also the practice in Atooi; especially as we met with no utensil there, that could be applied to the purpose of stewing or boiling. The only artificial dish we met with, was a _taro_ pudding; which, though a disagreeable mess from its sourness, was greedily devoured by the natives. They eat off a kind of wooden plates, or trenchers; and the women, as far as we could judge from one instance, if restrained from feeding at the same dish with the men, as at Otaheite, are at least permitted to eat in the same place near them.
Their amusements seem pretty various; for, during our stay, several were discovered. The dances, at which they use the feathered cloaks and caps, were not seen; but from the motions which they made with their hands, on other occasions, when they sung, we could form some judgment that they are, in some degree at least, similar to those we had met with at the southern Islands, though not executed so skilfully. Neither had they amongst them either flutes or reeds; and the only two musical instruments which we observed, were of an exceeding rude kind. One of them does not produce a melody exceeding that of a child’s rattle. It consists of what may be called a conic cap inverted, but scarcely hollowed at the base above a foot high, made of a coarse sedge-like plant; the upper part of which, and the edges, are ornamented with beautiful red feathers; and to the point, or lower part, is fixed a gourd-shell, larger than the fist. Into this is put something to rattle; which is done by holding the instrument by the small part, and shaking, or rather moving it, from place to place briskly, either to different sides, or backward and forward, just before the face, striking the breast with the other hand at the same time. The other musical instrument, (if either of them deserve that name) was a hollow vessel of wood, like a platter, combined with the use of two sticks, on which one of our gentlemen saw a man performing. He held one of the sticks, about two feet long, as we do a fiddle, with one hand, and struck it with the other, which was smaller, and resembled a drum-stick, in a quicker or slower measure; at the same time beating with his foot upon the hollow vessel, that lay inverted upon the ground, and thus producing a tune that was by no means disagreeable. This music was accompanied by the vocal performance of some women, whose song had a pleasing and tender effect.