THE GREAT OCEAN. 39-3 



It is well known that at Otaheite, on the acces- 

 sion of a new sovereign, or other similar occasions, 

 words belonging to the general language are 

 banished, and replaced by new ones. Such arbi- 

 trary changes have, in later times, caused the 

 language of this island, which was formerly but 

 little different from that of Owhyee, to depart 

 more and more from it, so that the natives of the 

 two islands do not now understand each other. 



The following fact in the history of Owhyee, 

 which we owe to a credible witness, a thinking 

 and well-informed man, M. Marin, a Spaniard 

 settled there, and which was confirmed to us by 

 the natives, unexpectedly shows us this strange 

 custom also in the Sandwich islands, and that in 

 the most singular manner. 



About the year 1800, Tamaahmaah, on occa- 

 sion of the birth of a son, invented quite a new 

 language, and began to introduce it. The newly- 

 invented words were not related to any roots of 

 the current language, nor derived from any of 

 them ; even the particles, which supply the gram- 

 matical forms, and are the connectives of the 

 discourse, were transformed in a similar manner. 

 It is said that some powerful chiefs, who were 

 displeased at this metamorphosis, destroyed the 

 child who had caused it, by poison. At his death 

 the enterprise which had been undertaken at his 

 birth was abolished. The old language was again 

 adopted, and the new one forgotten. The inno- 



