POLYNESIAN RESEARCHES. 237 
supposed the god had forsaken them^ and fought with 
their enemies. 
On another occasion^ of more recent date^^ the god and 
the prophet were not treated with quite so much respect^ 
but were rather rudely handled. The natives of Rurutu 
having determined to renounce idolatry^ it was proposed 
by the native teachers that the people should meet 
together at the sacred enclosure^ near the idol temple^ 
where both sexes would unitedly partake of those kinds 
of food which had heretofore been regarded as sacred^ and 
the eating of which by any female, especially in such a 
place, the gods would have punished with death. 
At a previous meeting, Auura, one of the chiefs, had 
told a priest, who pretended to be inspired, that he was 
the very foundation of the deceit, and that he should never 
deceive them again. The priests, however, appeared at 
the appointed meeting | and one of them, pretending to 
be inspired, began denouncing, in the name of his god, 
the most awful punishment upon those that had violated 
the sacred place. One or two of the natives of Raiatea 
went up to him, and told him to desist, and not attempt 
to deceive them any longer, that the people would not 
tolerate their imposition. The priest answered, that it 
was the god that was within him, and that he was the 
god. When uruhia^ (under the inspiration of the spirit,) 
the priest was always considered as sacred as the god, 
and was called, during this period, atua^ god, though at 
other times only denominated taura^ or priest. Finding 
him determined to persist in his imprecations, one of the 
Christian boatmen from Raiatea said, ^^If the god is 
in, we will try and pinch, or twist, him out.'" Imme¬ 
diately seizing the priest, who already began to shew 
symptoms of violent convulsive muscular action, they 
