[Note: this transcription was produced by an automatic OCR engine]
CHAPTER XIV
LOLOWAY—«MALO—THE BANKS ISLANDS
HAVING traversed the western part of the island, I
sailed to Loloway, near the eastern point, one of the
loveliest spots in the archipelago. Lofty cliffs flank
two sides of a round bay; at the entrance a barrier—
reef breaks the swell, which glides in a soft undulation
over the quiet water, Splashing up on the sandy beach.
All around is the forest, hanging in shadowy bowers
over the water, and hardly a breeze is astir. The
white whale-boat of the Anglican missionary floats
motionless on the green mirror; sometimes a fish
leaps up, or a pigeon calls from the woods. In the
curve of the bay the shore rises in two terraces; on
the lower lies the Anglican missionary’s house, just
Opposite the entrance. In the evening the Sun sets
between the cliffs, and pours a stream of the purest
gold through the narrow gap. It is a pity this fairy
Spot is so rarely inhabited; Melanesian missionaries
are not often at home, being constantly on the road,
or at work in the native villages. Mr. G., too, was
on the point of departure, and agreed to take me with
him on his trip.
In his alarmingly leaky boat we sailed westward,
two boys baling all the time. We ran into a small
anchorage, pulled the boat ashore, and marched off
