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able to land, and the sea running very high, he was obliged to change his course, and make for Hamoa, (the Navigator's islands ;) but the wind soon increasing to a heavy gale, drifted him to the island of Fotoona, situated to the N.W. of Hamoa. As soon as the natives of this place observed his approach, a number of small canoes, (for they were not in possession of sailing canoes,) came from the shore to meet him; and, consistently with the laws and customs of the island, took possession of his canoe, and all his property. It forms an important part of the religion of this island to consider every thing that arrives there, whether of great or little value, as the property of their gods; no matter whether it be a large canoe, or a log of wood. It is first offered to the gods by the priest, with an appropriate address*, and is afterwards shared out among the chiefs. This spoliation is believed to be necessary for the welfare of the country; lest the gods should send a sickness among them, and cut them off, for infringing upon this great doctrine of their religion. This seems a very arbitrary

*This is the method of making offerings to the gods in Tonga; and, as Cow Mooala made no mention of any thing particular in this ceremony, among the people of Fotoons, it is presumed to be conducted in the same way.

law, and likely to have been invented for the purpose of plundering strangers, under the mask of religion; this, however, is not absolutely the case; for although they strip all strangers, without distinction, that come within their power, yet in return they fit them out with other canoes, (entirely at the expense of the chiefs who shared the plunder;) and supply them with so much of the produce of the island as may be necessary to support them in their way home; together with presents of their gnatoo, mats, tortoise-shell, &c.; and withal behave very kindly: but not one single article that has been taken from them, however small the value, is again returned, even with the most earnest entreaty. Cow Mooala's canoe was laden with sandal wood*, esteemed a very rich commodity at Tonga, but not one splinter of it was ever returned to him; although the natives of Fotoona could make no use of it, not having adopted the practice of oiling themselves. His canoe was drag

* Sandal wood is of the growth of one of the Fiji islands, called Pau, and of only one spot upon this island, called Vooía. It has, indeed, been planted upon other of the Fiji islands, but without coming to any state of perfection. It has also been transplanted to the Tonga islands, but with as little success: for the wood thus produced possesses little or no scent, and consequently is unfit for their purpose, viz. to perfume the oil with which they anoint themselves.

ged on shore, broken to pieces, and offered up to the gods; afterwards the planks were shared out among the chiefs, who devoted them to the purpose of building smaller canoes, one large canoe making four small ones. They seem to have no inclination to visit distant islands, and never therefore build large canoes for themselves; and consequently have no personal knowledge of any country but their own, except a few individuals among them, who have gone away with strangers from motives of curiosity, in large canoes built for the purpose.

Cow Mooala described their method of fighting, (for it appears they cannot do without civil wars) which is conducted, according to his account, in two different modes, that is to say, with spears and with shark's teeth. When a man pierces his enemy with a pike, he endeavours to lift him up from the ground on one end of it, or if opportunity will allow, he calls some of his comrades to his assistance, who thrusting their pikes also into him, they lift him high in the air, and carry him in triumph. The mode of fighting with shark's teeth is as follows the teeth being fixed in three rows on the palm and fingers of a species of glove made of the plaited bark of the heábo, and both hands being armed in this manner, every

man endeavours to come to a close scuffle with his antagonist, and to tear open his bowels with these horrid weapons. The supreme chief in Cow Mooala's time was a man of remarkable bodily strength, and was always accustomed to fight with this sort of gauntlet in preference to the pike, not however to tear open the bowels of his enemy, but merely to catch a firmer hold of him whilst he threw him on his face; he would then place his foot upon the small of his back, and, seizing fast hold of the hair of his head, so bend his spine as to break it: with little men or boys however he would not take so much trouble, but laying them across his knee, as one would a stick, break their backs without farther ceremony! By way of defence from the pikes of their adversaries, they wear on the left side a species of armour made of the husk of the cocoa-nut plaited thick, and stuffed and quilted on the inside with the loose husk, picked fine: this reaches from the axilla down to the hip. Their wars generally originate in quarrels about hereditary right, or the exaction of tribute.

Some time before Cow Mooala arrived, an European vessel, according to their description, (or an American) came to an anchor there.

VOL. I.

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The natives as usual put off in their canoes, with a view to take possession of her according to the authority with which they were invested by the gods. The crew readily allowed them to come on board, supposing them to be governed by the usual spirit of curiosity; but shewed very strong symptoms of opposition when they began, without ceremony, to plunder, and opened such peals of thunder on them that they were obliged to jump overboard and swim to their canoes with all expedition, sustaining the loss of 40 men. If this account be true, it would argue that they had not seen a ship before, or they certainly would have known her power, and not have made such an attempt. There is no ascertaining the point of time when this happened, for the natives keep no account of years, much less of months.

Mr. Mariner does not know how long Cow Mooala remained at Fotoona, but it must have been at least a twelvemonth, to have afforded him time to build another large canoe fit for his voyage which having at length accomplished, he again set sail, with presents of gnatoo, mats, &c. and a sufficient quantity of provisions for his voyage, and directed his course for the Fiji islands, for the purpose of laying in another cargo of sandal wood. He

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