POLYNESIAN RESEARCHES. 
63 
Within sight of the spot where our vessel lay, four of 
the Missionaries were stripped and maltreated by the 
natives, two of them nearly assassinated, from the anger 
of the king, and one of them was murdered. Here the first 
Missionary dwelling was erected, the first temple for 
the worship of Jehovah reared, and the first Missionary 
grave opened; and here, after having been obliged to 
convert their house into a garrison, and watch night and 
day in constant expectation of attack, the Missionaries 
were obliged, almost in hopeless despair, to abandon a 
field, on which they had bestowed the toil and culture of 
twelve anxious and eventful years. 
On the 7th of March, 1797^ the first Missionaries went 
on shore, and were met on the beach by the late Pomare 
and his queen, then called Otoo and Tetua; by them 
they were kindly welcomed, as well as by Paitia, an 
aged chief of the district. They were conducted to a 
large, oval-shaped native house, which had been but 
recently finished for Captain Bligh, whom they expected 
to return. Their dwelling was pleasantly situated on 
the western side of the river, near the extremity of Point 
Venus. The natives were delighted to behold foreigners 
coming to take up their permanent residence among 
them; as those they had heretofore seen, with the excep¬ 
tion of a Spaniard, had been transient visitors. The Spa¬ 
niard had saved his life by escaping from Langara's ship, 
while it was lying at anchor in Tairabu, in March 1773^ 
at which time three of his shipmates were executed. The 
benefit the natives had derived from this individual, and 
the mutineers of the Bounty, prior to their appre¬ 
hension by the people of the Pandora, and the residence 
of several of the crew of the Matilda, which had been 
wrecked on a reef not far distant, led them to desire the 
