216 JOHN FRASEH. 



At great feasts in Polynesia, the proper ritual is this : — the kava drink 

 having been prepared in the usual way, the official cup-bearer approaches 

 the bowl which contains it, puts in his hands, and, with his fingers, lifts 

 the fibre from the liquid, and so drains it ; he then calls out the name of 

 the god, either Tangaloa or some local god, to whom the first libation is 

 made ; he next carries the cup to the chief who, of those present, is 

 highest in rank, and so, in succession, to the others. With this compare 

 Ganymede and the libations to the gods, both in Greece and Rome. 



35. Tangaloa here claims the bonito as his favourite fish; and the fishers, 

 if they wish to secure his favour and get prosperity, must show him re- 

 spect by offering a bonito, as first fruits, as soon as they come to land. 

 Any neglect will bring disaster. 



36. Fisher Lost often appears in the legends. He is the foremost of his 

 craft. 



37. Tangaloa' s race = Sa-Tangaloa. There were numerous chiefs in 

 Samoa who bore the name of Tangaloa, and claimed descent from him, 

 and yet none of them were 4 high chiefs '; cf. the Homeric Diotrephees 

 basilees. 



38 This name Asia or Atia occurs also in the traditions of the Raro- 

 tongans, for they say that their ancestor-land was in Atia. Where was 

 Atia ? 



39. In the building of a house or a canoe, there is always a ' chief 

 architect ' to give orders and to superintend the work. 



40. Tangaloa destroys 'the beams ' of the house, that ie, the whole 

 house. The next line is the exclamation of the king on seeing his house 

 destroyed. 



41. Samoan recitations end with a long-drawn O-o ! from the mouth 

 of the speaker. 



Postscript to Notes on Legend No. I. — I now find that Tingilau is 

 called Tinirau by the Hervey Islanders, and that he is one of their six 

 primary gods. — Ed. 



Discussion. 

 Rev. Dr. W. Wyatt Gill, b.a., Lond. — These traditions are 

 perfectly new to me. Of course, they are deeply interesting to 

 me, as I have spent most of my life in these islands, not in that 

 particular group, although I have passed it, and the locality is 

 perfectly familiar to me. I only wish the documents referred to 

 could be translated. I have published a good deal myself on the 

 subject in days gone by, but age has perhaps prevented my doing 

 more. The question I have often asked myself is what is to 

 become of the collections of so many years. Is there anybody in 

 the world who can take more interest in them than I do? As to 

 the lady referred to in the first story as Sina, where I lived she 

 is called Ina — in another place she is called by another name. 

 But she is one and the same. I went lately to hear my friend the 

 Rev. Mr. Harley lecture about the moon. He told about the 

 1 man ' in the moon, and I was disappointed that he had never- 

 heard about the ' woman ' in the moon of Polynesia. Any little 

 boy or girl there would say, ' There is Sina, and she is preparing 

 the evening meal for her husband.' She is at one and the same 



