WILLIAM TOWEL, Captain's steward; ROBERT FITZGERALD, a boy.-Left Vavaoo in a Botany Bay vessel, at a time when Mr. Mariner was at the Hapai islands. William Towel is now residing in Cross-street, Westmorland-place, City-road.

JOHN WATSON, Seaman.-Had gone to the Fiji islands with a Tonga chief, but Mr. Mariner did not hear any thing of him there. SAMUEL CARLTON, Boatswain; GEORGE WOOD, Carpenter's mate; WILLIAM SINGLETON, Landsman; ALEXANDER MACAY, a boy.-Were at the island of Tonga at the time the Favourite arrived at the Hapai islands, and lost that opportunity of escape. Mr. Mariner has since heard that Samuel Carlton came away afterwards in another vessel.

JAMES WATERS, Ordinary seaman.-Refused to leave Vavaoo on account of age and infirmities.

NICHOLAS BLAKE, Seaman; WILLIAM BROWN, and THOMAS EVERSFIELD, boys; JOHN ROBERTS, a black native of the island of Tortola, a boy.-Refused to leave the Hapai islands under various pretences.

WILLIAM STEVENSON, a child of two years of age, native of the Sandwich islands, the son of a Botany Bay convict, resident at Woahoo, whence the sail-maker had taken him in the Port au Prince, at the request of his father, that he might be brought to his relations in Scotland to be educated. This child was adopted by the daughter of the late king, (the widow of the late Tooitonga,) and was much noticed: he probably still remains at Vavaoo, and must now be about twelve years old, being two when he left his father.

ROBERT BROWN, Cooper; THOMAS DAWSON, Seaman ; THOMAS BROWN, Landsman; MANUEL PEREZ, Seaman;

JOSEF, a black.-These came away with Mr. Mariner in the Favourite; all but Thomas Brown were under the necessity of remaining in the East Indies. Thomas Brown got employment on board one of the homeward-bound vessels from China, and came to England in the same fleet with Mr. Mariner. Thomas Dawson has since been in London.

Mr. Mariner regrets very much not being able to furnish dates; his only method of keeping time was by cutting certain notches on certain trees (unknown to any one,) but even with such rude memoranda, he was only out in his calculation one day at the time of the Favourite's arrival.

In the ensuing pages, we shall endeavour to furnish a correct view of all the manners, customs, and sentiments of the Tonga people, that have not been mentioned, or sufficiently dwelt upon in the foregoing part of the work, and which it is hoped will be found exceedingly interesting, as offering a striking contrast to the manners, customs, and sentiments of civilized nations; and upon these subjects we shall speak in the following order: viz. Rank in society, religious, civil and professional; religion; religious ceremonies; knowledge; dress; domestic habits; pastimes; music and poetry; and lastly, language.

CHAP. XVII.

Preliminary observations-Rank in society-Tooitonga➡ Veachi-Inspired priests-The king-Nobles-Order of succession to rank-Matabooles-Mooas-Tooas-Professional classes of society, hereditary and otherwiseTable of the order of professions-Succession to property-Old age-Female sex-Wives of chiefs-Adopted mothers-Concubines of chiefs-Arts practised by women-Children.

THE rank or estimation in which individuals are held in society at the Tonga islands may be most conveniently treated of, first, under three different points of view, viz. religious, civil and professional, with reference to their mythology, political subordination, and their arts and manufactures; and secondly, with reference to old age, female sex, and infancy. In this chapter, we propose to speak merely of rank in society, and the degree of respect due from one man to another; all which is determined in regard to every individual, by one or other, or more of the foregoing circumstances,

mythology, politics, arts, age, sex, and childhood.

To divide society into distinct classes, and to discourse of the degree of rank or respect accruing to individuals, accordingly as they may belong to one or other of these classes, would be a task very difficult to execute, and perhaps impossible in respect to the people of these islands; at least, not without making numerous exceptions and explanations, which would only be the means of rendering the description both tedious and complicate. For one and the same individual, (a priest,) who today is held in scarcely any estimation, may to-morrow, (under the influence of the inspiration of some god,) take place of every body present, seat himself at the head of the cava ring, be respected as the god himself, and his discourse attentively listened to as oracular.' Again, the king himself, whom one might. suppose to be the greatest person in the country, (and in fact he has the greatest power,) is by no means the highest noble, but must yield in point of rank to many others. In this order of things, therefore, we shall first speak of those persons to whom rank and respect is yielded, on the score of religious circumstances; and these are Tooitonga, Veachi, and the priests.

. We here speak of Tooitonga as if actually existing in his full rank, with all the public honours of religious estimation; but it will be recollected, that before Mr. Mariner's departure from Vavaoo the king had done away entirely with all the ceremonies formerly considered due to the divine character of this chief; and as this was done immediately after Tooitonga's death, his son did not succeed to this high title; so that if affairs still remain in the same state at Vavaoo, there is at present no Tooitonga, and probably never again will be; but if there should happen some violent political change, it is possible the son of the late divine chief may be raised to that honour: we therefore speak of Tooitonga as if actually existing. The family name of Tooitonga is Fatafehi, and the present head of the family, the only son (of legitimate rank,) is now a youth of about sixteen or seventeen years of age; his name is Fatafehi Low fili Tonga: he is still considered a chief of high rank, and has respect paid to him accordingly.

Tooitonga and Veachi are both acknowledged descendants of chief gods who formerly visited the islands of Tonga, but whether their original mothers were goddesses or merely natives of Tonga, is a question which they do not

VOL. II.

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