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Easter Island: Early Witnesses
William Thomson
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invention and industry, but it is not very durable when compared with woven goods. The colors with which the decorations are made are procured from roots, leaves, and berries of indigenous plants and are prepared with considerable skill. Several kinds of earth are used for the dark colors, the pigment being ground down and boiled in the juice of the sugar-cane.
MATS.
The natives excel in the manufacture of fine mats, specimens of which will be found in our collection. They are made of bulrushes obtained from the craters in the vicinity of the lakes formed by the collection of the rain-water. They are woven by hand, and fine specimens are highly prized.
AMUSEMENTS.
The amusements of the people were reduced to a minimum when the customs of their heathen forefathers were abandoned, and at present there is no general assemblage for the purpose of enjoyment except an occasional marriage feast or some accidental occasion, such as the arrival of a foreign ship. Prominent among the ancient customs were feasts to celebrate the return of the different seasons and various anniversaries in their history, such as the landing of Hotu-Metua at Anakena Bay. Upon the latter occasion the ancient traditions were repeated by recognized orators, and a prominent feature of all fetes was athletic sports, such as running, spear-throwing, and feats of skill and dexterity. Dancing was the most common of all amusements and there was no assemblage without its appropriate dance.
THE NATIVE DANCE.
Just as the traditions are cherished and repeated from father to son, the native dances are remembered and held in esteem, although never publicly practised. Mr. Salmon secured the services of the "star performers" and we were fortunately enabled to witness the peculiarities of the native dance at his house at Viahu, on the eve of our departure from the island. The music was furnished by three persons seated upon the floor, who accompanied their discordant voices by thumps upon a tom-tom improvised from old cracker-boxes, and the dance was performed by an old woman and a young girl, the latter possessing some claim to symmetry of figure. The dancers wore a single loose garment, short enough to expose the bare ankles and sun-browned feet. Over the head and shoulders was thrown a white cloak, composed of a few yards of cotton cloth, which was sometimes spread open and occasionally made to hide the whole figure as they went through the various evolutions of the dance. This mantle was not managed with any particular skill or grace and seemed to be identified with one particular
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