"That is so," was the reply. "The Cingalese, as the people of Ceylon are called, are famous for the lightness and swiftness of their boats, and their speed is something marvellous. They have been known to sail fifteen or twenty miles an hour, and when at their best speed they hardly seem to touch the waves, which they skim with the velocity of a bird; they go far out to sea, and have been known to make voyages of hundreds of miles. Their carrying capacity is not great, but the wants of these people are so few that they can get along with a much smaller stock of provisions than the majority of sailors."
"Why don't they put two boats together, and make a double one?" inquired one of the boys.
DOUBLE CANOE, FRIENDLY ISLANDS.
"As to that," answered Doctor Bronson, "I can only say, because they don't. Double canoes are in use in some of the South Pacific Islands, and have been found very successful; they sail finely, and have a great carrying capacity, and when used in sheltered bays, or in parts of the ocean where the waves are not likely to rack them too much, a deck or platform is built to cover both boats. This is the case in the Society and Friendly Islands, where the double canoe has long been used, and is famous for its high speed; in the Ladrone Islands the outrigger is more popular, and is made on the same principle as that of Ceylon; but the boat is neither so sharp nor so long in proportion to its length.
DOUBLE CANOE, SOCIETY ISLANDS.
"These outrigger boats sail in either direction; the sail is attached to two poles, which are raised and lowered with it; the mast is in the centre, and the ends of the craft are exactly alike. The change of direction is made by raising one pole and lowering the other; when this is done the boat immediately reverses her movements, and the outrigger is always kept to windward. The same is the case with the double canoes of the Friendly Islands, which sail either way, but the canoes of the Society Islands are pointed at the bow and flat at the stern, and consequently can only go in one direction.