«26 A V O Y A G E T O 



o 



»777- and died upon the fpot. I had brought three turkey-hens 

 v_ -J^_f to thefe iflands. One was killed, as above mentioned; and 

 -the other, by an ufelefs dog belonging to one of the officers. 

 Thefe two accidents put it out of my power to leave a pair 

 here j and, at the fame time, to carry the breed to Ota- 

 heite, for which illand they were originally intended. I 

 was forry, afterward, that I did not give the preference to 

 Tongataboo, as the prefent would have been of more value 

 there than at Otaheite ; for the natives of the former ifland, 

 I am perfuaded, would have taken more pains to multiply 

 the breed. 



Thurfday 3. The ucxt day we took up our anchor, and moved the 

 fhips behind Pangimodoo, that we might be ready to take 

 the advantage of the firft favourable wind, to get through 

 the narrows. The king, who was one of our company, 

 this day, at dinner, I obferved, took particular notice of the 

 plates. This occafioned me to make him an oflfer of one, 

 either of pewter, or of earthen ware. He chofe the firft ; 

 and then began to tell us the feveral ufes to which he in- 

 tended to apply it. Two of them are fo extraordinary, that 

 I cannot omit mentioning them. He faid, that, whenever 

 be fliould have occalion to vifit any of the other iflands, he 

 would leave this plate behind him at Tongataboo, as a fort 

 of reprefentative, in his abfence, that the people might pay 

 it the fame obeifance they do to himfelf in perfon.* He 

 was afked, what had been ufually employed for this pur- 

 pofe, before he got this plate ; and we had the fatisfadlion 

 of learning from him, that this fingular honour had hither- 

 to been conferred on a wooden bowl in which he wafhed 

 his hands. The other extraordinary ufe to which he meant 

 to apply it in the room of his wooden bowl, was to difcover 

 a thief. He faid, that, when any thing was ftolen, and the 



thief 



