310 FROM CALIFORNIA TO 



and making much noise, but at the same time be- 

 having with great propriety. We were veiy kindly 

 received by Tamaahmaah, who, after inquiring 

 how I Uked the place, ordered wine to be brought, 

 and conducted us to a neat house, built near the 

 moral, where we found the table already laid out, 

 after the European fashion. He pretended, that 

 no pork was allowed to be eaten, in the house in 

 which we had first been, because his wives lived 

 near it ; but Young, who was perfectly acquainted 

 with the king's character, gave me a very different 

 reason : he was of opinion, that the king had 

 chosen the house near the moral, in which he ge- 

 nerally holds his sacrificial repasts, for our house 

 of entertainment, because he desired to offer the 

 hog baked for our repast to his gods, out of grati- 

 tude for the reconciliation with the Russians. 

 The women dare not be present at the meals of the 

 men, on pain of death ; for which reason every 

 family, besides their dwelling house, has two others, 

 one for the repasts of the men, and one for those 

 of the women. The table was laid only for us 

 Europeans, and the king and his ministers partook 

 of nothing, though they were present ; because, he 

 said, that pork was tabooed (forbidden) to-day. 

 The hog, which was laid on a palm branch, on the 

 middle of the table, was cut up by one of the min- 

 isters, with various ceremonies ; and besides this 

 dish, we had sweet potatoes, yams, and baked taro- 

 roots. The king was very talkative during the 



