1777' THE PACIFIC OCEAN. 427 



Feejee, as we were told, lies three days' sail from 

 Tongataboo, in the direction of north-west by west. 

 It was described to us as a high, but very fruitful 

 island ; abounding with hogs, dogs, fowls, and all 

 the kinds of fruit and roots that are found in any of 

 the others ; and as much larger than Tongataboo ; 

 to the dominion of which, as was represented to us, 

 it is not subject as the other islands of this archipe- 

 lago are. On the contrary, Feejee and Tongataboo 

 frequently make war upon each other. And it ap- 

 peared, from several circumstances, that the inhabi- 

 tants of the latter are much afraid of this enemy. 



the other, or derived the invention from a source of instruction 

 common to both. But this seems not to be the case with regard 

 to those customs to which no general principle of human nature 

 has given birth, and which have their establishment solely from 

 the endless varieties of local whim, and national fashion. Of this 

 latter kind, those customs obviously are, that belong both to the 

 North, and to the South Pacific Islands, from which, we would 

 infer, that they were originally one nation ; and the men of Man- 

 geea, and the men of the New Philippines, who pay their respects 

 to a person whom they mean to honour, by rubbing his hand over 

 their faces, bid fair to have learned their mode of salutation in the 

 same school. But if this observation should not have removed 

 the doubts of the sceptical refiner, probably he will hardly ven- 

 ture to persist in denying the identity of race, contended for in the 

 present instance, when he shall observe, that, to the proof drawn 

 from affinity of customs, we have it in our power to add that most 

 unexceptionable one, drawn from affinity of language. Tamoloa, 

 we now know, is the word used at Hamoa, one of the Friendly 

 Islands, to signify a chief; and whoever looks into the Lettres 

 Edifiantes et Carieuses, will see that this is the very name by which 

 the inhabitants of the Caroline Islands distinguish their principal 

 men. We have in two preceding notes, inserted passages from 

 Father Cantova's account of them, where their Tamoles are 

 spoken of ; and he repeats the word at least a dozen times, in the 

 course of a few pages. But I cannot avoid transcribing from 

 him, the following very decisive testimony, which renders any 

 other quotation superfluous. " L'autorite du gouvernement se 

 partage entre plusieurs families nobles, dont les chefs s'appellent 

 Tamoles. II y a outre cela, dans chaque province, un principal 

 Tamolc, auquel tous les autres sont soumis." 



Lettres Edifiantes et Curieuses, torn. xv. p. 312. 



