The
French commandant lives in a charming residence, surrounded by
gardens, just opposite the palace of Queen Pomare, who is at present
at the island of Bola-Bola, taking care of her little grandchild, aged
five, the queen of the island. She went down in a French man-of-war,
the 'Limier,' ten days ago, and has been obliged to remain, owing to
some disturbances amongst the natives. I am rather disappointed that
she is absent, as I should like to see a person of whom I have heard
so much.
Having completed our tour, we next went to call on the British Consul,
who received us kindly, and entertained us with an interesting account
of the island and its inhabitants, its pearl-fisheries and trade, the
French policy, the missionaries, &c., on all of which subjects he is
well informed. He has just completed an exhaustive consular report on
the condition of the island, which will, no doubt, appear in due
course in the form of a blue-book.
On our return to Messrs. Brander's office, where we had left one of
our letters of introduction, we found the manager, with whom we had a
long chat before returning on board.
[Illustration: Chaetodon Tricolor.]
At 5 p.m. we went for a row in the 'Glance' and the 'Flash' to the
coral reef, now illumined by the rays of the setting sun.
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