Joseph Banks - Endeavour journal, 25 August 1768 - 12 July 1771 - No. 0369
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[Page 369]
Ulhietea
July 1769
men we saw also Cocoa nut trees the stemms of which were hung round with nutts so that no part of them could be seen these we were told were put there that they might dry a little & be prepard for making poe we saw also a tree of Ficus prolixa in great perfection the trunck or rather congeries of roots of which was 42 paces in circumference
21. Dr Solander & myself walkd out this morn & saw many large Boathouses like that describd at Huahine page 303 & 401. on these the inhabitants were at work making & repairing the large Canoes calld by them Pahee at which business they workd with incredible cleverness tho their tools certainly were as bad as possible I will first give the dimensions & description of one of their boats & then their method of building her extreme lenght from stem to stern not reckoning the bending up of both those parts 51 feet breadth in the clear at the top forward 14 inches midships 18, aft 15, in the bilge forward 32 inches midships 35, aft 33, depth midships 3 ft 4, hight from the ground she stood on 3ft 6 her head raisd without the figure 4ft 4 from the ground the figure 11 inches her stern 8 ft 9, the figure 2 feet alongside of her was lashd another like her in all parts but less in proportion being only 33 feet in her extreme lengh. The form of these Canoes is better to be expressd