1779. THE PACIFIC OCEAN. \$3 



Whilst I was ashore at the observatory at Karaka- 

 kooa Bay, I had twice an opportunity of seeing a 

 considerable part of their funeral rites. Intelligence 

 was brought me of the death of an old chief in a 

 house near our observatories, soon after the event 

 happened. On going to the place, I found a number 

 of people assembled and seated round a square area, 

 fronting the house in which the deceased lay, whilst 

 a man in a red-feathered cap advanced from an in- 

 terior part of the house to the door, and putting out 

 his head, at almost every moment uttered a most la- 

 mentable howl, accompanied with the most singular 

 grimaces and violent distortions of his face that can 

 be conceived. After this had passed a short time, 

 a large mat was spread upon the area, and two men 

 and thirteen women came out of the house and 

 seated themselves down upon it, in three equal rows, 

 the two men and three of the women being in front. 

 The necks and hands of the women were decorated 

 with feathered ruffs, and broad green leaves, curiously 

 scolloped, were spread over their shoulders. At one 

 corner of this area, near a small hut, were half a dozen 

 boys waving small white banners, and the tufted 

 wands or taboo sticks which have been often men- 

 tioned in the former chapters, who would not permit 

 US to approach them. This led me to imagine that 

 the dead body might be deposited in this little hut ; 

 but I afterward understood that it was in the house 

 where the man in the red cap opened the rites, by 

 playing his tricks at the door. The company just 

 mentioned being seated on the mat, began to sing a 

 melancholy tune, accompanied with a slow and gentle 

 motion of the body and arms. When this had con- 

 tinued some time, they raised themselves on their 

 knees, and in a posture between kneeling and sitting, 

 began bv degrees to move their arms and their bodies 

 with great rapidity, the tune always keeping pace 

 with their motions. As these last exertions were too 

 violent to continue long, they resumed at intervals 



