pen to the country. At the Fiji islands, the principal wife of every chief, or at least of every considerable chief, undergoes this ceremony on the death of her husband. (See Vol. I. p. 341.)

TOOTOO-NIMA, or cutting off a portion of the little finger, as a sacrifice to the gods, for the recovery of a superior sick relation. This is very commonly done; so that there is scarcely a person living at the Tonga islands but who has lost one or both, or a considerable portion of both little fingers. Those who can have but few superior relations, such as those near akin to Tooitonga, or the king, or Veachi, have some chance of escaping, if their relations are tolerably healthy. It does not appear that the operation is painful. Mr. Mariner has witnessed more than once little children quarrelling for the honour (or rather out of bravado), of having it done. The finger is laid flat upon a block of wood: a knife, axe, or sharp stone is placed with the edge upon the line of proposed separation; and a powerful blow being given with a mallet or large stone, the operation is finished. From the nature and violence of the action, the wound seldom bleeds much the stump is then held in the smoke and steam arising from the combus

tion of fresh plucked grass: this stops any flow of blood. The wound is not washed for two days; afterwards it is kept clean, and heals in about two or three weeks, without

any application whatever. One joint is generally taken off, but some will have a smaller portion, to admit of the operation being performed several times on the same finger, in case a man has many superior relations.

BooToo, or funeral ceremonies. For a partial description of these, reference may be made to the burial of Toobó Neuha; (Vol. I. p. 150.) for a particular one, as it regards the burial of a king, to that of Finow, (p. 393.) What remains, therefore, principally to be described, are the peculiarities attending the burial of Tooitonga in the first place, however, we shall give the names of the different parts of the ceremony of burials in general; the modes of all which have been already related in the instance last referred to: the names are these.

FALA, or procuring small stones, (white and black), and sand, to cover the grave.

Too Too, or burning the body in spots, with lighted rolls of tapa.

LA'FA burning the arm in about six places, each in form of five or six concentric circles. TOOGI: beating the cheeks, and rubbing off

the cuticle, with cocoa-nut husk, or some sort of plait, wound round the hand.

FOA OOLOO: Wounding the head, and cutting the flesh in various parts, with knives, shells, clubs, spears, &c. in honour of the deceased, and as a testimony of respect for his memory and fidelity to his family.

All these have been accurately described in the ceremony of burying the late king. There is one remark, nevertheless, to be made in respect to the four last, particularly Foa Ooloo; which appears, however inhuman, to be a very ancient and long established custom in the history of mankind. On turning to Leviticus, Chap. xx. verse 28, we find this command, "Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you."

The above-mentioned five ceremonies are common at all burials, and are conducted with more or less pomp, according to the rank of the individual deceased: in saying all burials, however, we must make one exception, viz. that of Tooitonga, on which occasion the ceremony of Foa Ooloo is never performed; but the reason of this Mr. Mariner was never able to learn. At the funeral of the greatest chiefs, in general, this outrage is usually exercised with the utmost readiness and enthusiasm ;

but at that of Tooitonga, who is far higher than any other, it is altogether omitted: the natives have no law for this, but custom.

LANGI, or the ceremony of burying Tooitonga: this word is also applied to signify the grave of this chief during the whole of the funeral ceremonies it literally means the sky; but there appears no connection between these different meanings. When Tooitonga is ill, the intercessions with the gods for his recovery are the same, though perhaps in a greater degree, as are made on the illness of other high chiefs: prayers are offered up; priests are inspired; some children have their little fingers sacrificed; others are strangled, &c. When he is dead, his body is washed with oil and water, as usual; his widows come to mourn over him, &c.; and, according to the former custom, his chief widow should be strangled, but whether on the day of his death or of his burial Mr. Mariner does not know. His fytoca, or burialplace, is of the same form as that of other chiefs. The day after his death, (which is the day of his burial) every individual at every island, man, woman, and child, has his head closely shaved this is a peculiarity, and so is the custom of depositing some of his most valuable property along with the body in the grave, such as beads, whales' teeth, fine Ha

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moa mats, &c.; so that his family buryingplace, at the island of Tonga, where all his ancestors have been buried, must have become very rich; for no native would dare to commit the sacrilege of theft. The ceremony of interment is exactly the same as that of the king. The mourning is also the same, viz. old ragged mats, with leaves of the if tree round the neck but for Tooitonga the time of mourning is extended to four months; the mats being generally left off at the end of nearly three, whilst the leaves are still retained for another month. The Táboo, for touching his body, or any thing that he had on when he died, extends to at least ten months, and for his nearest relations fifteen months. (See Vol. I. p. 150.) Every man neglects to shave his beard for at least one month; and during that time merely oils his body at night, but not his head. The female mourners remain within the fytoca about two months, night and day, only retiring occasionally to the neighbouring temporary houses, to eat, &c. It will be seen, that what we have already related of these ceremonies differ in many respects, some in kind, and all in degree, from those attending the burial of the king: but those we are about to describe are altogether peculiar to Tooitonga's funeral.