ACROSS THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS, ETC. 211 



many of the rude customs of his forefathers, must sip a little poe 

 to conclude his supper. I remarked, however, that on this occa- 

 sion, he did not soil his fingers, as is usual, but fed himself with 

 a spoon as delicately as possible. The queen, on the contrary, 

 and all the chiefs assembled at the board, plunged their hands 

 into the paste, and sucked their fingers after the approved 

 fashion. 



When the supper was concluded, the people were all assembled 

 under a ranai, or shed, which had been constructed for the 

 occasion, and prayer was made in a loud and solemn tone, by 

 John li, the king's chaplain. At its conclusion, the people 

 scattered themselves about as before ; some were collected in 

 little groups on the ground, smoking their short pipes, and re- 

 salins themselves with sea-urchins and succulent cuttle-fish, 

 while the stenlor voices of the royal guard pealed out an " all's 

 well" from their station near the palace of the monarch. 



This royal guard, whicTi we had an opportunity of seeing next 

 morning, would not do discredit to a militia gathering in yan- 

 kee land. Like our own redoubtable troops, the men were of all 

 sizes, in every variety of costume, and with all sorts of v/eapons; 

 muskets without bayonets or locks, and no muskets at all, broom- 

 sticks, and tin pans, swords, pistols, and taro tops. They were 

 arranged every morning in line before the door of the palace, 

 and laboriously drilled in the manual exercise, by James Young, a 

 half-caste who has been in America. Poor fellows ! they had 

 hard duty to perform, and were no doubt longing for the time 

 when his majesty should depart, that they might exchange the 

 arduous and uncongenial duties of the camp, for the toil of their 

 simple husbandry. 



About a week after, as I was strolling near the palace, which, 

 being on a hill, commanded a fine view of the ocean, the cry of 

 " sail, O !" was uttered in a joyful tone, by a bevy of urchins, who 



