{"id":"01KG8AKYRK20C40ZGM140KYCQ1","cid":"bafkreigc26oip5cxqfko62lsk53qhs2hatvyc46gfxdzm3axnveulclpdi","type":"chunk","properties":{"end_line":5840,"extracted_at":"2026-01-30T20:48:15.149Z","extracted_by":"structure-extraction-lambda","label":"Chunk 2","source_file":"01KG89J1H7Y803CZ7X80F0QFHZ","start_line":5768,"text":"At last, the ship was at hand, and we approached with much caution,\r\nwishing to avoid being hailed by anyone from the quarter-deck. Dropping\r\nsilently under her bows, we heard a low whistle—the signal agreed\r\nupon—and presently a goodly-sized bag was lowered over to us.\r\n\r\nWe cut the line, and then paddled away as fast as we could, and made\r\nthe best of our way home. Here, we found the rest waiting impatiently.\r\n\r\nThe bag turned out to be well filled with sweet potatoes boiled, cubes\r\nof salt beef and pork, and a famous sailors’ pudding, what they call\r\n“duff,” made of flour and water, and of about the consistence of an\r\nunderdone brick. With these delicacies, and keen appetites, we went out\r\ninto the moonlight, and had a nocturnal picnic.\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\nCHAPTER XLII.\r\nMOTOO-OTOO A TAHITIAN CASUIST\r\n\r\n\r\nThe Pill Box was sometimes employed for other purposes than that\r\ndescribed in the last chapter. We sometimes went a-pleasuring in it.\r\n\r\nRight in the middle of Papeetee harbour is a bright, green island, one\r\ncircular grove of waving palms, and scarcely a hundred yards across. It\r\nis of coral formation; and all round, for many rods out, the bay is so\r\nshallow that you might wade anywhere. Down in these waters, as\r\ntransparent as air, you see coral plants of every hue and shape\r\nimaginable:—antlers, tufts of azure, waving reeds like stalks of grain,\r\nand pale green buds and mosses. In some places, you look through\r\nprickly branches down to a snow-white floor of sand, sprouting with\r\nflinty bulbs; and crawling among these are strange shapes:—some\r\nbristling with spikes, others clad in shining coats of mail, and here\r\nand there, round forms all spangled with eyes.\r\n\r\nThe island is called Hotoo-Otoo; and around Hotoo-Otoo have I often\r\npaddled of a white moonlight night, pausing now and then to admire the\r\nmarine gardens beneath.\r\n\r\nThe place is the private property of the queen, who has a residence\r\nthere—a melancholy-looking range of bamboo houses—neglected and falling\r\nto decay among the trees.\r\n\r\nCommanding the harbour as it does, her majesty has done all she could\r\nto make a fortress of the island. The margin has been raised and\r\nlevelled, and built up with a low parapet of hewn Hocks of coral.\r\nBehind the parapet are ranged, at wide intervals, a number of rusty old\r\ncannon, of all fashions and calibres. They are mounted upon lame,\r\ndecrepit-looking carriages, ready to sink under the useless burden of\r\nbearing them up. Indeed, two or three have given up the ghost\r\naltogether, and the pieces they sustained lie half buried among their\r\nbleaching bones. Several of the cannon are spiked; probably with a view\r\nof making them more formidable; as they certainly must be to anyone\r\nundertaking to fire them off.\r\n\r\nPresented to Pomaree at various times by captains of British armed\r\nships, these poor old “dogs of war,” thus toothless and turned out to\r\ndie, formerly bayed in full pack as the battle-hounds of Old England.\r\n\r\nThere was something about Hotoo-Otoo that struck my fancy; and I\r\nregistered a vow to plant my foot upon its soil, notwithstanding an old\r\nbareheaded sentry menaced me in the moonlight with an unsightly musket.\r\nAs my canoe drew scarcely three inches of water, I could paddle close\r\nup to the parapet without grounding; but every time I came near, the\r\nold man ran toward me, pushing his piece forward, but never clapping it\r\nto his shoulder. Thinking he only meant to frighten me, I at last\r\ndashed the canoe right up to the wall, purposing a leap. It was the\r\nrashest act of my life; for never did cocoa-nut come nearer getting\r\ndemolished than mine did then. With the stock of his gun, the old\r\nwarder fetched a tremendous blow, which I managed to dodge; and then\r\nfalling back, succeeded in paddling out of harm’s reach.\r\n\r","title":"Chunk 2"},"relationships":[{"peer":"01KG8AJK787DP46KQK6575RP1D","peer_type":"chapter","predicate":"in"},{"peer":"01KG89J1H7Y803CZ7X80F0QFHZ","peer_type":"file","predicate":"extractedFrom"},{"peer":"01KG89HMDZKNY753EZE1CJ8HZW","peer_type":"collection","predicate":"collection"},{"peer":"01KG8AKYRKHNV7ETTZE509J3QE","peer_type":"chunk","predicate":"prev"},{"peer":"01KG8AKYRKHJVZ3T3N67H5W81T","peer_type":"chunk","predicate":"next"}],"ver":2,"created_at":"2026-01-30T20:48:21.267Z","ts":"2026-01-30T20:48:28.648Z","edited_by":{"method":"manual","user_id":"01KFF0H3YRP9ZSM033AM0QJ47H"}}