TO GUAHON. 201 



'riie corpse of a woman which I saw floating about 

 in the harbour was pelted by grown-up persons and 

 children with stones. I was informed that the 

 woman had transgressed a taboo. 



The 11th of October. I was attracted to-day, 

 by the sound of a muffled drum, to the moral. As 

 it was not tahoO'day\ I supposed that the people 

 engaged in it were priests. The attention with 

 which I looked at them was observed from the 

 moral ; two islanders appeared, and saluted me 

 with Arohajeri nue! (hail, great chief!) and pro- 

 posed to me to enter. I was astonished that this 

 permission was extended to me, and was not with- 

 out some fear that the priests might take it into 

 their heads to offer me to their gods. Separated 

 from my people, who could not even learn where 

 I had remained, I resolved at least to be on my 

 guard, and was conducted through the sacred gate. 

 As this moral, as I have previously said, was built 

 up in haste, after the destruction of the old one, it 

 could not give me a right idea of such a sanc- 

 tuary. I found here only a piece of land fifty 

 fathoms square, fenced in all round with bamboo 

 canes ; in the middle of the place six small houses 

 standing close to each other, formed a half circle : 

 each of these chapels was surrounded with a low 

 bamboo fence, above which the colossal heads of 

 the gods looked over like sentinels. The necks 

 which supported their enormous heads w^ere deco- 

 rated with hogs'-flesh j and several gods had only 



