Year: 1879

The following account of a South


Pacific wonder is abridged from an ar


icle in the Fiji argus:


The existence of q floating island,


Wagaqele, in Vanua Levu, is known to


Tery few, probably beside those ma


lives who reside in or near the Dis
trict of Nadogo, to the northeast of the
Provinces of Macuata. On our arrival
at the lake the scene that presented it
self was ut once most lively and most
dreary. Very dreary, for as far as the
eye could reach there was a barren
waste. We stood in the center of a
vast mOorland, and the lake had dwin-
died durin" . fva r-,orths' DROUGHT tn a
swamp. ..,- 4Iu sIyn of life but
what we ourselves had brought. The
''taukei'' had clambered up a tree on
the island (Or tall bush called nalata),
and was adjuring the island god to
move; the girls were on the opposite side
of the mere, in the full flow of a meke;
about half a dozen natives were polling
about small island in the highest
glee, and a number, both men and
women, were on the large island with
TIE "taukei,n VIII seemed to be the
genius loci, helping him with stout
pOles) to move the mass. Every one
was in the highest spirits. One Chief
told US that the Wagaqele had sailed
across the mere that morning, which
we had great pleasure in believing, as
the wind was from that quarter, but it
was lying on the lee side now and
sWayed about without progressing
much. A light spring of three or four
Get landed us on the island, which,
without doubt, is aflOat, and moved a
fathom or two when we were on it.
Had the wind changed l feel sure we
would have been ferried over the
water in the Wagaqele. It is fifty
PAGES in length and twenty in breadth,
and is composed entirely of firm turf,
in some places quite dry, being thickly
covered with tall rushes (kuta) beside
several nalata bushes fifteen to twenty
feet high.


There are four islands in all. Three
are of the size and appearance of that
on which we stood. One has three
balawa trees on it, and appears to have
been more recently detached from the
moor. The fourth island is smaller,
being only about fifteen feet in length,
and on it was the scene of most up
rOariOus mirth. At one time we count
ed ten men on it. The aggregate
weight Of the ten people must have
been 1,500 pounds, and the island sank
several inches, and canted ominously
until relieved of part of its burden.
The men plunged into the water and
swan about, regardless of the grim
warning of the old man up the tree
that they would be seized by unseGE
hands below. We were not slow to fol-
low the example of the natives, and
Jumped in also. The banks are GOV
cred with rushes and are level with the
water. They do not shelVe at all, but
90 down sheer. Where we bathed
there was no bottom for at least two or
three fathoms at the very margin of
the moss. In many places the water
had sapped the loose soil under the
turf to a considerable distance. At the
time of our visit the size of the mere
was about 250 yards by $50; but prob
ably after much rain it is three tim
that size. We had no means of jUs.
ing the depth other than by swimming,
and we can only say that we found it
to be more than two fathoms in the
middle, but how much more we cannot
say, and where the island had drifted
it was two fathoms. The water is
stagnant, but not impure; it is not
pleasant to the taste, but there is hard
ly a suspicion of a boggy flavor. The
sun was extremely hot, and after our
shadeless walk we arrived in q sim
mering condition, and the water felt
cool and refreshing. Weswam the en-
tire length and back again witE5q ut find
ing any snags, or leaves or sticks q
any kind.