signification it means sacred or consecrated to a god, having the same signification as fucca égi: it means prohibited or forbidden, and is applied not only to the thing prohibited, but to the prohibition itself, and frequently (when it is in sacred matters), to the person who breaks the prohibition. Thus if a piece of ground or a house be consecrated to a god, by express declaration, or the burial of a great chief, it is said to be taboo; the like if a canoe be consecrated, which is frequently done, that it may be more safe in long voyages, &c. As it is forbidden to quarrel or fight upon consecrated ground, so fighting in such a place would be said to be táboo, and those that fought would be said also to be táboo; and a man who is thus táboo would have to make some sacrifice to the gods as an atonement for the sacrilege, as instanced in Palavali's case. (See Vol. I p. 227.) If any one touches a superior chief, or superior relation, or any thing immediately belonging to him, he táboos himself; but this is not supposed to produce any bad consequence, unless he feeds himself with his own hands, without first removing this táboo, which is to be done by performing the ceremony of mo'ë-mo'ë, directly to be explained. If a person touches the body of a dead chief, or any thing personally

belonging to him, he becomes táboo, and time alone can relieve him. (See note, Vol. I. p. 150.) Certain kinds of food, as turtle, and a certain species of fish, from something in their nature, are said to be táboo, and must not be eaten until a small portion be first given to the gods. Any other kind of food may be rendered ta'boo by a prohibition being laid on it. Fruits and flowers when tábooed are generally marked to be so, by pieces of white tapa, or a piece of plait, in the shape of a lizard or shark. To prevent certain kinds of food from growing scarce, a prohibition or táboo is set on them for a time as after the ina'chi, or other great and repeated ceremonies; and which ta'boo is afterwards removed by the ceremony called fuccala'hi; but this latter term is not only applied to the ceremony which removes the prohibition, but is equally used to express the duration of the taboo itself, and which therefore is often called the time of the fuccala'hi. During certain ceremonies, as that of the ina'chi and the fala (see Vol. I. p. 404), nobody may appear abroad, or at least in sight, it being tabooed to do so.

Any thing that is not tabooed is said to be gnofoo'a (i. e. easy, or at liberty), and is a term used in contradistinction to ta'boo.

When a person is tabooed, by touching a

superior chief or relation, or any thing personally belonging to him, he will perform the ceremony of mo'ë-moë, before he will dare feed himself with his own hands. This ceremony consists in touching the soles of any superior chief's feet with the hands, first applying the palm, then the back of each hand; after which the hands must be rinsed in a little water, or, if there is no water near, they may be rubbed with any part of the stem of the plantain or banana tree, the moisture of which will do instead of washing. He may then feed himself without danger of any disease, which would otherwise happen, as they think, from eating with tabooed hands but if any one think he may have already (unknowingly) eaten with tabooed hands, he then sits down before a chief, and taking the foot of the latter, presses the sole of it against his own abdomen, that the food which is within him may do him no injury, and that consequently he may not swell up and die: this operation is called fota, (i, e. to press.) It is tabooed also to eat when a superior relation is present, unless the back is turned towards him for when a person's back is turned towards another, that other may be said, in one sense, not to be in his presence: also to eat food which a superior relation or chief has touched; and if either of

these taboos is accidentally infringed upon, the ceremony of fota must be performed. If any one is tabooed by touching the person or garments of Tooitonga, there is no other chief can relieve him from his taboo, because no chief is equal to him in rank; and, to avoid the inconvenience arising from his absence, a consecrated bowl (or some such thing), belonging to Tooitonga, is applied to and touched, instead of his feet. In Mr. Mariner's time, Tooitonga always left a pewter dish for this purpose, which dish was given to his father by Captain Cook. Véachi, usually adopted a similar plan. Cava, either the root or the infusion, cannot be tabooed by the touch of any chief of what rank soever; so that a common tooa may chew cava which even Tooitonga has touched.

TOOGOO CAVA. This ceremony consists in merely leaving a small piece of cava root before a consecrated house or grave, out of respect to a god, or to the departed spirit of a chief or relation, at the same time the ceremony of toogi or beating the cheeks is performed, as related (Vol. 1. p. 95.) The toogi, which is performed at burials, is of a more serious

nature.

LoToo is the term used for praying; but it is more commonly applied to prayers offered up in the fields to all the gods, but particularly to

Alo Alo, petitioning for a good harvest. It will be also recollected, that prayers are offered up before consecrated houses and graves.

As omens, to which they give a considerable degree of credit, and charms, which they sometimes practise, are more or less connected with their religion, we shall say something of them, before concluding the present subject. Most of their omens we have already had occasion to mention, and have given instances of in the course of the narrative. As to dreams, (see Vol. I. p. 111. 453.) Thunder and lightning (same vol. p. 369. 452.) Sneezing (same vol. p. 455.) These omens obtain almost universal credit; and they are thought to be direct indications from the gods of some event that is about to happen. There is a certain species of bird which they call chicota', which is very apt to make a sudden descent, and dart close by one, making a shrieking noise: this bird they suppose to be endowed with a knowledge of futuity, and they consider this action to be a warning of some evil that is about to happen.

As Mr. Mariner was once going out with the present king, and a party of men,'upon some excursion against the enemy, one of these birds made a sudden descent, passed over their heads, settled on a tree, passed over their heads again, and again settled; upon which the majority, not