Fiji and the Fijians . cama is secured, rest onthe gunwale. The camakau^ as its nameimports, has a solid spar for its cama: thehulk has a deck over the middle third ofits length, twice its own width, and raisedon a deep plank built edgeways on eachgunwale. Between the edge of this deckand the outrigger all is open. The pro-jecting ends of the canoe, which are lower than the main-deck or plat-form, as much as the depth of the plank on which it is raised, are eachcovered with one solid triangular piece of wood, hollowed underneath, andthickest at the broad end next the centre deck, to which it t
Fiji and the Fijians . cama is secured, rest onthe gunwale. The camakau^ as its nameimports, has a solid spar for its cama: thehulk has a deck over the middle third ofits length, twice its own width, and raisedon a deep plank built edgeways on eachgunwale. Between the edge of this deckand the outrigger all is open. The pro-jecting ends of the canoe, which are lower than the main-deck or plat-form, as much as the depth of the plank on which it is raised, are eachcovered with one solid triangular piece of wood, hollowed underneath, andthickest at the broad end next the centre deck, to which it thus forms agradual ascent. The two ridges, formed by the hollomng underneathon the sides of the triangle, are imited to the edge of the hulk, so ascompletely to box it up. Tlie rig of the camakau is the same as that ofthe double canoe described presently ; and from the small resistancethis build offers to the water, it is the clipper of Fiji, and the vesseldescribed under the name oipirogue in the Imperial TRAXSVERSE SECTION OP CAMAKAU. 56 FIJI AND THE FIJIANS. The tahilai is a link between the camakau and drua^ and is made withthe outrigger of either. It is often of great length, several feet at eachend being solid wood, cut away something like the hull of a ship stern-ward, the stern-post of the ship representing the cut-water of the canoe,which, instead of being sharp, presents a square perpendicular edge tothe water. Tliis is the same at both ends, and is the distinctive of theclass. The drua^ or double canoe, differs from the rest in having anothersmaller canoe for its outrigger, and the deck is laid across both. When not more than thirty or forty feet long, canoes are often cutout of a single tree, and require comparatively little skill in their con-struction. When, however, a first-class canoe is to be built, the case isfar otherwise, and its creditable completion is a cause of great triumph. A keel is laid in two or three pieces carefully scarfed
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