The Simile May Be A Fanciful One,
But I Thought The Body Of A Man Thus Ornamented Was Like
The Trunk Of A, Noble Tree Embraced By A Delicate Creeper.
Many of the elder people had their feet covered with
small figures, so placed as to resemble a sock.
This fashion,
however, is partly gone by, and has been succeeded by others.
Here, although fashion is far from immutable, every one
must abide by that prevailing in his youth. An old man
has thus his age for ever stamped on his body, and he cannot
assume the airs of a young dandy. The women are tattooed
in the same manner as the men, and very commonly on their
fingers. One unbecoming fashion is now almost universal:
namely, shaving the hair from the upper part of the head,
in a circular form, so as to leave only an outer ring. The
missionaries have tried to persuade the people to change this
habit; but it is the fashion, and that is a sufficient answer
at Tahiti, as well as at Paris. I was much disappointed in
the personal appearance of the women: they are far inferior
in every respect to the men. The custom of wearing a white
or scarlet flower in the back of the head, or through a small
hole in each ear, is pretty. A crown of woven cocoa-nut
leaves is also worn as a shade for the eyes. The women
appear to be in greater want of some becoming costume even
than the men.
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