Joseph Banks - Endeavour Journal, 25 August 1768 - 12 July 1771 - No. 0378
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[Page 378]
Ulhietea
We walkd up to her as soon as we aproachd she stretchd out her hand to receive the beads we were to give but had she been a princess royal of England giving her hand to be kissd no instruction could have taught her to have done it with a better grace So much is untaught nature superior to art that I have seen no sight of the kind that has struck me half so much
Gratefull possibly for the presents we had made to these girls the people in our return tryd every method to Oblige us particularly in one house the master orderd one of his people to dance for our amusement which he did thus
he put upon his head a large cylindrical basket about 4 feet long & 8 inches in diameter on the front of which was fastned a kind of facing of feathers bending forwards at the top & edged round with sharks teeth & the tail feathers of tropick birds with this on he dancd moving slowly & often turning his head round sometimes swiftly throwing the end of his headdress or whow so near the faces of the spectators as to make them start back which was a joke that seldom faild of making every body laugh especialy if it happned to one of us
in our return home We had also an opportunity of seeing the inside of the Ewharre no Eatua so often mentiond There were 3 of them much ornamented with jaw bones & very full of bundles lapd up