tonga presided, and the king and his chiefs, out of respect, sat on the outside of the ring among the great body of the people. The large hogs which had been deposited in the neighbourhood of the marly were now to be brought in, each by one man, and, as it had been found that one man's strength was not sufficient to raise any of them upon his shoulders, two others were allowed to lift the hog and place it upon his shoulders for him, and then he tottered in with his load, followed by another man with the liver; and in this manner all the hogs and their livers were carried in and deposited in two or three rows before Tooitonga. Their number was then counted by the head cooks of Tooitonga and Finow, and announced aloud to Tooitonga by his own 'head cook; the number of cars and piles of yams was also announced at the same time.

This being done, about twenty of the largest hogs were carried to Tooitonga's buryingplace, nearly an hundred yards distant: those which were too heavy for one man to lift being put upon his shoulders by two others, &c., as before, and deposited near the grave; one car of yams was also taken and left in like manner. This portion of pork and yam being disposed of, the remainder was shared out in the

following manner: one column of yams was allotted to the king, to be removed in the afternoon, and to be disposed of as he pleased: (he always shares it among his chiefs and fighting men:) another column was allotted to Veachi* and two or three other chiefs: the third was given to the gods; (the priests always take care of this portion;) and the fourth Tooitonga claimed for his own share. As to the cars of yams, they were never inquired after: Tooitonga generally takes care of them, and appropriates them to his own use, and that of his numerous household, not that he has any legal right to them beyond custom and silent consent. The hogs were disposed of in like manner: the greatest quantity to the greatest chiefs, who share them out to the chiefs immediately below them in rank, and these again to their dependants, till every man in the island gets at least a mouthful of pork and yam. The ceremony now concluded with dancing, wrestling, &c. after which, every person present having secured his portion, retired to his home to share it with his family. From this

* Veachi, like Tooitonga, is a divine chief, that is, descended from a god; he is, however, inferior to Tooitonga, but higher in rank than the king: see second vol. of the work.

moment the taboo, or prohibition upon hogs, fowls, and cocoa nuts, was null and void.

The hogs and yams left at Tooitonga's grave, having remained there several days, (till the pork stunk,) were shared out, by order of Tooitonga, to all who chose to apply for a portion. They belong indeed properly to the principal chiefs; but as they are accustomed to feed upon meat in a better state of preservation, they forego their claims, and allow the lower orders to eat it for them. Mr. Mariner could not learn why the pork was thus left till it was scarcely eatable—the only answer he could get was, that such was the ancient custom. It may be considered an offering to Tooitonga's ancestors, which it would be sacrilegious to take away while it was good for any thing.

Finow had three daughters, the eldest of whom, now about eighteen years of age, had been long betrothed to Tooitonga, who having expressed his wish that the marriage should take place, Finow gave orders for the necessary preparations, about five days after the above-mentioned ceremony. Tooitonga was now about forty years of age. The particulars of this chief's marriage, which was somewhat different

from those of other chiefs, shall be here described.

The young lady having been profusely anointed with cocoa-nut oil, scented with sandal-wood, was dressed in the choicest mats of the Navigator's islands, of the finest texture, and as soft as silk; so many of these costly mats were wrapped round her, perhaps more than forty yards, that her arms stuck out from her body in a ludicrous manner; and she could not, strictly speaking, sit down, but was obliged to bend in a sort of half-sitting posture, leaning upon her female attendants, who were under the necessity of again raising her when she required it. A young girl, about five years of age, was also dressed out in a similar manner, to be her immediate and particular attendant. Four other young virgins, about sixteen years of age, were also her attendants, and were dressed in a manner nearly similar, but not with quite so many mats. The lady and her five attendants being all ready, proceeded to the marly of Tooitonga, who was there, waiting for their arrival, together with a number of other chiefs, two matabooles sitting before him. The lady and her attendants being arrived, seated themselves on the green

before Tooitonga. After the lapse of a little time a woman entered the circle with her face covered up with white gnatoo; she went into the house of the marly, and proceeded towards the upper end, where there sat another woman in waiting with a large roll of gnatoo, a wooden pillow*, and a basket containing bottles of oil. The woman, whose face was veiled, took the gnatoo from the other, wrapped herself up in it, and laying her head upon the wooden pillow, went, or pretended to go, fast asleep. No sooner was this done than Tooitonga rose up, and taking his bride by her hand, led her into the house, and seated her on his left hand. Twenty baked hogs were now brought into the circle of the marly, and a number of expert cooks came with knives (procured from European ships; formerly they used bamboo) to try their skill in carving with speed and dexterity, which is considered a great recommendation. A considerable part was shared out to the chiefs, each taking his portion and putting it in his bosom t. The remainder of

* A pillow to sleep on in these islands consists merely of a rod of wood about an inch in diameter, and a foot and a half long, and raised about half a foot by two diverging pieces at each end: the nape of the neck rests upon this.

It is a peculiarity in this ceremony, that the chiefs