CUSTOMS OF THE TAHAITIANS. 127 
Yeris invaders, who at some remote period had 
subjugated them; for the latter are the exclu- 
sive possessors of the land ; the others obtaining 
only a certain remuneration in fruits and vege- 
tables for cultivating the fields and plantations 
of their masters. The kings and all great per- 
sonages are of this race, which is held by the 
common people in much veneration. 
That the language and customs of both races 
should have assimilated is natural; but with 
respect to their intermarriages, Bougainville 
was in error; the pride of the Yeris keeps 
them aloof from any such connections, which, 
had they subsisted, must have long since de- 
stroyed the broad and acknowledged line of 
distinction. It is, however, only fair to con- ~ 
fess, that this hypothesis of an invasion is un- 
supported by any Tahaitian tradition. 
9 
‘¢The men of both races,” continues this tra- 
veller, ‘allow the lower part of the beard to 
grow, but shave the whiskers and the upper 
lip. Some cut their hair short off, others bind it 
together at the top of the head; both hair and 
beard they grease with the oil of the cocoa-nut. 
A girdle round the middle often serves for 
