438 



TAHITI 



vei-)- hcavil\- ; but the yooJ thatch of banana -leaves kept 

 us dr\-. 



November igtii. — At dayhght m\- friends, after their morn- 

 ing pra)-er, prepared an excellent breakfast in the same manner 

 as in the evening. Thc}- themselves certainh' partook of it 

 largely ; indeed I never saw any men eat near so much. I 

 suppose such cnormoush" capacious stomachs must be the effect 

 of a large part of their diet consisting of fruit and vegetables, 



which contain, in a given 



bulk, a comparativel)' 

 small portion of nutri- 

 ment. Unwittingh', I 

 was the means of mj- 

 companions breaking, as 

 I afterwards learned, one 

 of their o\\n laws and 

 resolutions : I took with 

 me a flask of spirits, 

 which they could not 

 refuse to partake of ; 

 but as often as the\' 

 drank a little, the)- put 

 their fingers before their 

 mouths, and uttered the 

 word " iMissionar}^" 

 About two )-ears ago, 

 although the use of the 

 ava was prevented, 

 drunkenness from the 

 introduction of spirits 

 became very prevalent. 

 The missionaries pre- 

 vailed on a few good men, \\\\o saw that their country was 

 rapidly going to ruin, to join with them in a Temperance Society. 

 From good sense or shame, all the chiefs and the queen were at 

 last persuaded to join. Immcdiatel)- a law was passed that no 

 spirits should be allowed to be introduced into the island, and 

 that he who sold and he who bought the forbidden article 

 should be punished by a fine. With remarkable justice, a 



TAHIT1.\N. 



