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Easter Island: Early Witnesses
William Thomson
462
PERSONAL APPEARANCE OF THE NATIVES.
In describing the personal appearance of the islanders (Plate XIV) the early writers give us a pleasing variety to choose from. Behrens solemnly states that a boat came off to the ship steered by a single man, a giant 12 feet high, etc. He afterwards observes, "with truth, I might say that these savages are all of more than gigantic size. The men are tall and broad in proportion, averaging l2 feet in height. Surprising as it may appear, the tallest men on board of our ship could pass between the legs of these children of Goliath without bending the head. The women can not compare (Fig. 3) in stature with the men, as they are
FIG. 3.
NATIVE WOMEN.
commonly not above 10 feet high." Roggeveen does not commit himself to a measurement, but states "the people are well proportioned of limb, having large and strong muscles, and are great in stature. They have snow-white teeth, which are uncommonly strong; indeed, even among the aged and gray we were surprised to see them crack large hard nuts whose shells were thicker than those of our peach seeds." La Pérouse contradicts the account as to their enormous height and praises the beauty of the women, who, he says, resemble Europeans in color and features. M. Rollin states that the females were more liberally endowed with grace and beauty than any which were afterwards
462
