The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1891-01-29

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white man to keep up with him.
Their walk Is poetry perSonified, and /
have sat fo- hours under the hotel porch
overlooking the road along the shore ad-
miring the ease and grace in which they
stride along with the heavy burdens which
they carry on their heads or their backs or
70 either end OF a long pole suspended over
their shoulders. Every movement of the
Fijians is graceful and free, the scant attire
allows the perfect play OF every muscle,
and one may see in scores on every strest
and mountain path models of manly beauty
which might stand without alteration for
the gods and heroes of antique sculpture.
I have not seen in all FIJI a man who was
in any way deformed. or who seemed to be
suffering from disease; even the very aged
and white-haired patriarchs who are 70 be
seen in the remote villages will show the
visitor in a surprisingly vigorous manner
how, in the days of their youth, they hurled
the spear and Drandished the ponderous war
club
The Fijian women are distinguished for
their chastity and devotion to their fami-
lies, many of them are exceedingly pretty,
and although, like the women of most
races which live in warm climates and upon
a nearly exclusive vegetable diet, thew in
cline to corpulency as they approach mid
die life, they are in youth very graceful
and symmetrical, and by their lively and
impression upon the visitor.
The young girls are full of fun, and the
best looking among them are as finished
coquettes as are produced in Paris, London
or New York
1t needs no education to make a woman
understand that she is attractive above her
fellows, SO here in Fiji have seen many
young ladies who showed as many airs in a
garo consisting simply OF belt with a
thick fringe of dyed c. coanut fiber falling
half way to her knees as a white belle would
parade in one of Worths latest ball dresses.
One of these, attended by an ancient
duenna came aboard the steamer the other
day at Leonka.
1t was Sunday, and to keep abreast of the
male population, who were peculiar and
stiff in tho white shirts which the mis-
sionaries have induced them to assume on
the first day of the week, she had put over
her petticoat OF native cloth looss, sleeve
less chemise of thin blue cotton. Her hair.
black as crows wing and in enormous
lustrous masses. was coiled upon the top of
her shapely head, and adorned with flower
Of the hibiscus; art could have gone no
further In matter of decoration, and she
seemed to know it as well as if she and
Oscar Wilde or Walter Crane had BEEN in
conference upon the subject.
Her shapsly brown feet and legs were
bore, as also were her magnihcently-
nodded arms; her hands were small and
taper and well cared for; she was scrupu-
lousy clean, and her shoulders glistaned
like lden bronze under a delicate applica-
ton Of cocoanut oil. Her face was charm
ingly piquant, her eyes dark and dreamy,
and her teeth, perfectly regular and daZ-
zlingly white, would have been raved about
by poets if they had appeared in the mouth
of Caucasian beauty.
She carried a parasol, for these brown
skinned Fiji maids are as solicitous for their
compilations as If they were a compound of
roses and cream, and her gait would have
been the despair of any woman who in
cluded corsets and French heels among her
outfit.
Everybody on the ship rushed to the side
to look at her, and certain of the young
men among the passengers, cordially ad-
dressing her as MARY and Susan" in
vited her to come aboard. She seemed as
unconscious OF the admiration her charms
had excited as If she were a statue of the
coolest marble, but nevertheless was seen
to take it all in from the corner Of her eye,
and to continue the cause of it by animated
conversation with her duenna, by turning
about SO that she might be seen from al
sides, and by certain skittish actions toward
the frizzle-headed beaux who addressed her
as she passed them on the deck.
Finally she leisurely assembled the gang
plank and sauntered aft among tho passen-
gers, seated herself with great dignity, and
bore with much complaceney the attenti ons
which the young men of our party ten
dered. She accepted an invitation to shake
hands all round, but resented any further
familiarity, and although not understand
ing a word that was said to her seemed to
have an intuiJive knowledge of the subject
and tenor Of their conversation. When she
arose to go, after a suitable period, the
young men surrounded her and intimated a
desire that she should honor the ship with
her company back to Melbourne.
She at once took alarm and began to cry
like little child, and her duenna indig-
nantly bore her away off the vessel Out Of
range of practical compliments, however,
she regained her compcsure, gave us another
exposition of her grace and beauty, and as
she left the dock completed the slaughter
she had caused among her tormenters by
4shing back at them Parthian smile.
The experience was instructive-we had
learned that weman's knowledge that sne
is attractive is gift Of nature, not an acqui-
sition from experience In ssciety.
The Fijians, Ike the natives Of nearly all
the other South sea islands, are a people
fond of music and with q remarkable ear
for rhythm. Their practice of the art,
however, is confined TO its vocal branches,
for they have no musical instruments whats
ever il we except the native drums.
w zen, however, IL IL al open question
whether the civilized drum is an instru-
ment Of music or torture, it may we'll he
questioned whether the Fijian substitute of
hollow tree trunk is to be included in the
| outfit of Polyhymnia. The Fijians also
have the conch she'll, which they pick up
on the beach, and by judiciously making
hole in the side and blowing therein pro-
duce sounds of great power and lugubrious-
ness.
1t is their cheerful practice, on steamer
being signaled at night. to parade the town
| in large bodies, loudly sounding these in
| fernal machines in all sorts of discordant
keys, whereby profanity is largely promoted
among the white residents. In former times
the coach shells were blown as an accompa-
niment TO the native drums when a canni-
| bal feast was to be held, and must have
| done much 60 promote the hideousness Of
| the orgie.
On certain occasions, when the governors
| of other British colonies, prominent naval
officers, or other distinguished persons are
visiting the islands, q meke .meke Is ar
ranged, in which sometimes as many as
] 5000 natives take part. They come from
every quarter of the group, bringing with
| them spears, war clubs, feather head-dresses
and fans, with which they go through evo-
lutions which, if placed on the stage of
| Europe or America as a ballet, would excite
| the widest enthusiasm.
| A few nights ago we scraped together
| about forty of the best meke dancers in