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the countenance became terrific, the features distorted, 
and the eyes wild and strained. In this state he often 
rolled on the earth, foaming at the mouth, as if labouring 
under the influence of the divinity by whom he was 
possessed, and, in shrill cries, and violent and often 
indistinct sounds, revealed the will of the god. The 
priests, who were attending, and versed in the mysteries, 
received, and reported to the people, the declarations 
which had been thus received. 
When the priest had uttered the response of the oracle, 
the violent paroxysm gradually subsided, and com¬ 
parative composure ensued. The god did not, however, 
always leave him as soon as the communication had 
been made. Sometimes the same taura, or priest, con¬ 
tinued for two or three days possessed by the spirit or 
deity 5 a piece of peculiar native cloth, worn round one 
arm, was an indication of inspiration, or of the indwell¬ 
ing of the god in the individual who wore it. The 
acts of the man during this period were considered 
as those of the god, and hence the greatest attention 
was paid to his expressions, and the whole of his 
deportment. 
In the year 1808, during the civil war between the 
king and rebel chiefs, of whom Taute was the leader, the 
priest of Oro, who was known to be not only attached 
to the king’s interests, but a personal friend of Pomare, 
left the royal camp, and went over to that of the enemy. 
Many of Pomare’s friends endeavoured to persuade him 
to remain with them, but no one dared to use force, as 
it was supposed that he acted under the inspiration of 
the Oro. This circumstance greatly discouraged the 
king and his friends, and probably prepared the way for 
their discomfiture, and retreat from the island, as they 
