Hino , the Apostate. 
353 
to and fro throughout the night and the day ? 
And thou, O Tati, hast thou forgotten those 
old days on the ocean when the sun was bloody 
red, and the sea hot to the touch of thy hand, 
and thy people lay and hungered and thirsted 
and died ? Who was it that came to thee then 
and gave back part of the live flesh of the woman 
who was cast to them ? Who was it that sent 
the strong, fair wind and brought thee back to 
Vahitahi ? Who was it that gave thee victory 
over the men of Vairaatea and Nukutavake, so 
that in all these motu 1 thou art called Tati the 
Slaughterer ? ” 
Then he ceased, and Tati fell upon his face 
and stretched out his hands, and Hino-riri 
clutched her children tightly to her, and her 
eyes ran wild with fear. But again the priest 
began— 
“And why is it, O Tati the chief, that 
famine and thirst and fire and fierce gales have 
come to Vahitahi ? It is because thou hast 
been false to the gods that gave thee riches and 
victory, and hast listened to the new lotu of the 
lying white men ! Who was it, when thy wife 
Hino-riri and two other women worshipped the 
1 Islands, or country. 
24 
