348 cook's voyage to june, 



received from me such presents as I had reason to 

 believe they were highly satisfied with. When dinner 

 came upon table, not one of them would sit down or 

 eat a bit of any thing that was served up. On ex- 

 pressing my surprize at this, they were all taboo, as 

 they said ; which word has a very comprehensive 

 meaning ; but, in general, signifies that a thing is for- 

 bidden. Why they were laid under such restraints at 

 present was not explained. Dinner being over, and, 

 having gratified their curiosity by showing to them 

 every part of the ship, I then conducted them ashore. 



As soon as the boat reached the beach, Feenou 

 and some others instantly stepped out. Young 

 Fattafaihe following them, was called back by Maree- 

 wagee, who now paid the heir-apparent the same 

 obeisance, and in the same manner that I had seen 

 it paid to the king. And when old Toobou, and one 

 of the old ladies had shown him the same marks of 

 respect, he was suffered to land. This ceremony 

 being over, the old people stepped from my boat into 

 a canoe that was waiting to carry them to their place 

 of abode. 



I was not sorry to be present on this occasion, as 

 I was thus furnished with the most unequivocal 

 proofs of the supreme dignity of Poulaho and his 

 son over the other principal chiefs. Indeed, by this 

 time I had acquired some certain information about 

 the relative situations of the several great men, whose 

 names have been so often mentioned. I now knew 

 that Mareewagee and old Toobou were brothers. 

 Both of them were men of great property in the 

 island, and seemed to be in high estimation with the 

 people ; the former in particular had the very hon- 

 ourable appellation given to him, by every body, of 

 Motooa Tonga; that is to say, Father of Tonga, 

 or of his country. The nature of his relationship 

 to the king was also no longer a secret to us ; for we 

 now understood that he was his father-in-law, 

 Poulaho having married one of his daughters, by 



