IX.—Tourist Traffic.

There is nowhere in the Pacific a mort enchanting spot for the lover of the beautiful than Tahiti, and for this reason alone it ought to receive many visitors. Then the climate in the winter months is most delicious. The mornings and evening are delightfully cool; it only rains about once a month; and the heat of mid-day is not extreme, European bricklayers, carpenters, etc., work nine hours a day all the year round, in the open air, without suffering from the heat. Visitors can depend upon getting well-cooked food in any of the restaurants, and lodgings can also be obtained. Invalids can here find every comfort and luxury of life; for instance, ice is an article of daily consumpt, and this we could not obtain at any of the other islands.