To this plain diet Salt Water is the universal sauce, hardly any one sets down to a meal without a Cocoa Nut shell full of it standing by them, into which they dip most of what they Eat, especially Fish, drinking at Intervals large sops of it out of their Hands, so that a man may use half a Pint at a Meal.
It is not common for any 2 to eat together, the better sort hardly ever; and the women never upon any account eat with the Men, but always by themselves.

What can be the reason of so unusual a custom it is hard to say; especially as they are a people, in every other instance, fond of Society and much so of their Women.

They were often Asked the reason, but they never gave no other Answer, but that they did it because it was right, and Express'd much dislike at the Custom of Men and Women Eating together of the same Victuals.

We have often used all the intreatys we were Masters of to invite the Women to partake of our Victuals at our Tables, but there never was an instance of one of them doing it publick, but they would Often goe 5 or 6 together into the Servants apartments, and there eat very heartily of whatever they could find, nor were they the least disturbed if any of us came in while they were dining; and it hath sometimes hapned that when a woman was alone in our company she would eat with us, but always took care that her own people should not know what she had don, so that whatever may be the reasons for this custom, it certainly affects their outward manners more than their Principle.
[Natives of Tahiti.] PERSON OF THE NATIVES.
With respect to their persons the Men in general are tall, strong-limb'd, and well shaped.

One of the tallest we saw measured 6 feet 3 inches and a half.