266 CAPTAIN COOK'S VOYAGES 



of a canoe into the quarter gallery of the Resolution, and 

 stole from thence a pewter basin. He was discovered, pur- 

 sued, and brought alongside the ship. On this occasion, 

 three old women who were in the canoe made loud lamenta- 

 tions over the prisoner, beating their breasts and faces in a 

 most violent manner ; and all this was done without 

 shedding a tear. 



" This day I bestowed on Mareewagee some presents in 

 return for those we had received from him the day before ; 

 and as the entertainments which he had then exhibited for 

 our amusement called upon us to make some exhibition in 

 our way, -I ordered a party of marines to go through their 

 exercise on the spot where his dances had been performed ; 

 and in the evening played ofl some fireworks at the same 

 place. Poulaho, with all the principal chiefs, and a great 

 number of people of all denomination^ were present. The 

 platoon firing, which was executed tolerably well, seemed to 

 give them pleasure ; but they were lost in astonishment 

 when they beheld our water rockets. 



" In expectation of this evening show, the circle of 

 natives about our tent being pretty large, they engaged the 

 greatest part of the afternoon in boxing and wrestling. 

 When any of them chooses to wrestle, he gets up from one 

 side of the ring, and crosses the ground in a sort of measured 

 pace, clapping smartly on the elbow joint of one arm, which 

 is bent, and produces a hollow sound ; that is reckoned the 

 challenge. If no person comes out from the opposite side 

 to engage him, he returns in the same manner and sits down, 

 but sometimes stands clapping in the midst of the ground 

 to provoke some one to come out. If an opponent appears, 

 they come together with marks of the greatest good nature, 

 generally smiling, and taking time to adjust the piece of 

 cloth which is fastened round the waist. Their combats 

 seldom last long before one gives in. Some of our people 

 ventured to contend with the natives in both these exercises, 

 but were always worsted. 



" The animals which we had brought were all on shore. 

 Knowing their thievish disposition, I thought it prudent to 

 declare my intention of leaving some of them behind, 

 and even to make a distribution of them previously to my 

 departure. 



" With this view, in the evening of the 19th, I assembled 

 all the chiefs before our house, and my intended presents to 

 them were marked out. To Poulaho, the king, I gave a 

 young English bull and cow ; to Mareewagee, a Cape ram 

 and two ewes ; and to Feenou, a horse and a mare. As my 

 design to make such a distribution had been known the 

 day before, most of the people in the neighbourhood were 



