THIRD VOYAGE 267 



then present. I instructed Omai to tell them that there 

 were no such animals within many months' sail of their 

 island ; that we had brought them for their use, from that 

 immense distance, at a vast trouble and expense ; that 

 therefore they must be careful not to kill any of them till 

 they had multiplied to a numerous race ; and lastly, that 

 they and their children ought to remember that they had 

 received them from the men of Britain. He also explained 

 to them their several uses, and what else was necessary 

 for them to know, or rather as far as he knew ; for Omai 

 was not very well versed in such things himself. 



" Next day I dined ashore. The king sat down with us, 

 but he neither ate nor drank. I found that this was owing 

 to the presence of a female, whom, as we afterwards under- 

 stood, had superior rank to himself. As soon as this great 

 personage had dined, she stepped up to the king, who put 

 his hands to her feet, and then she retired. He immediately 

 dipped his fingers into a glass of wine, and then received 

 the obeisance of all her followers. This was the single 

 instance we ever observed of his paying this mark of 

 reverence to any person. At the king's desire, I ordered 

 some fireworks to be played off in the evening, but un- 

 fortunately being damaged, this exhibition did not answer 

 expectation. 



" As no more entertainments were to be expected on 

 either side, and the curiosity of the populace was by this 

 time pretty well satisfied, most of them left us. We still, 

 however, had thieves about us ; and encouraged by the 

 negligence of our own people, we had continual instances of 

 their depredations. 



" Some of the officers belonging to both ships, who had 

 made an excursion into the interior parts of the island 

 without my leave, and, indeed, without my knowledge, 

 returned this evening after an absence of two days. They 

 had taken with them their muskets, with- the necessary 

 ammunition, and several small articles of the favourite 

 commodities, all which the natives had the dexterity to 

 steal from them in the course of their expedition. Feenou 

 and Poulaho, upon this occasion, very justly observed, that 

 if any of my people at any time wanted to go into the 

 country, they ought to be acquainted with it, in which case 

 they would send proper persons along with them, and then 

 they would be answerable for their safety. Tliough I gave 

 myself no trouble about the recovery of the things stolen 

 upon this occasion, most of them, through Feenou's inter- 

 position, were recovered, except one musket and a few 

 other articles of inferior value. 



" We had now recruited the ships with wood and water, 



