38 



When the bark is beaten out it is called " Tapa ", and the breadths 

 are pasted together with paste made of the flour of Arrow-root 

 or Taro. When dried, it is printed, after which it is called 

 "Gnato". The pattern is devised by the King's family, the 

 type or pattern is raised upon the leaf of the Pandanus, and, 

 contrary to other prints, the side which receives the stamp is the 

 wrong side, the reverse being the right side. King Josiah Tubo, 

 to show what could be produced in this way, had a piece of 

 cloth made, which was, as I am informed, two miles in length 

 and 120 feet wide. When finished, it was necessary to spread 

 it, and the ground had to be cleared to display it upon. When 

 the first piece was cut off there was a great feast of pigs and 

 yams ; it was all distributed, and the specimen sent to the 

 Garden is a part of it.* It is worn round the waist in a large 

 fold, covering the body from above the hips to the knees, and is 

 secured round the middle by a girdle of mat or tapa. The only 

 distinction in dress of the King or his sons, consists in the 

 girdle, which is of Tapa, in the raw state, and of a dull white 

 colour. By loosing the girdle the cloth can be drawn over the 

 whole body, and is so worn in rainy weather. 



In some islands, as at the Navigators, it is made, not by 

 beating, but by scraping or pressing out with cockle shells upon 

 a flat board, held between the knees 5 this operation is performed 

 by the water side, and the cloth is kept constantly wet ; but 

 it is of inferior quality. 



Kava. 



When on a visit to the Tue Tonga, at Tonga-ta-boo, this 

 Chief asked me if I would have some Kava, saying he knew we 

 did not drink it, but, if I pleased, he would have some made ; 

 which offer I accepted. This great man, whose person is held 

 sacred by the natives, sat upon the mat which covered the floor 

 of the house, his back resting against one of the pillars which 

 support the roof. The centre of the room was a clear space ; the 

 opposite side was filled with natives, who sat in silence, forming a 

 semi-circle before him. They sit cross-legged like the Turks. A 

 man being called from amongst them, crouched down in a most 

 humble manner as he received his orders from the Tue Tonga, 

 and having with his right hand touched both his (the Tue Tonga's) 



* Among many valuable contributions made by Sir Everard Home, to our 

 Botanical Museum at Kew, are specimens of this cloth and the apparatus 101 

 preparing it. — Ed. 



