442 
TAHITI 
CHAP. 
Sunday 22nd .—The harbour of Papiete, where the queen 
resides, may be considered as the capital of the island : it is also 
the seat of government, and the chief resort of shipping. 
Captain Fitz Roy took a party there this day to hear divine 
service, first in the Tahitian language, and afterwards in our own. 
Mr. Pritchard, the leading missionary in the island, performed 
the service. The chapel consisted of a large airy framework of 
wood ; and it was filled to excess by tidy, clean people, of all 
ages and both sexes. I was rather disappointed in the apparent 
degree of attention ; but I believe my expectations were raised 
too high. At all events the appearance was quite equal to that 
in a country church in England. The singing of the hymns 
was decidedly very pleasing; but the language from the pulpit, 
although fluently delivered, did not sound well : a constant 
repetition of words, like “ tat a ta , mata mai ,” rendered it 
monotonous. After English service, a party returned on foot 
to Matavai. It was a pleasant walk, sometimes along the 
sea-beach and sometimes under the shade of the many beautiful 
trees. 
About two years ago, a small vessel under English colours 
was plundered by some of the inhabitants of the Low Islands 
which were then under the dominion of the Queen of Tahiti. 
It was believed that the perpetrators were instigated to this act 
by some indiscreet laws issued by her majesty. The British 
government demanded compensation ; which was acceded to, 
and a sum of nearly three thousand dollars was agreed to be 
paid on the first of last September. The Commodore at Lima 
ordered Captain Fitz Roy to inquire concerning this debt, and 
to demand satisfaction if it were not paid. Captain Fitz Roy 
accordingly requested an interview with the Queen Pomarre, 
since famous from the ill-treatment she has received from the 
French ; and a parliament was held to consider the question, at 
which all the principal chiefs of the island, and the queen, were 
assembled. I will not attempt to describe what took place, 
after the interesting account given by Captain Fitz Roy. The 
money, it appeared, had not been paid ; perhaps the alleged 
reasons were rather equivocal ; but otherwise I cannot sufficiently 
express our general surprise at the extreme good sense, the 
reasoning powers, moderation, candour, and prompt resolution, 
which were displayed on all sides. I believe we all left the 
