PRODUCE OF TREES. 
201 
or the spear. To diminish the number of useless 
animals, and to secure greater care over others, 
the twenty-first regulation was made, which ren¬ 
dered the owners in some degree responsible for 
any mischief they might occasion. 
Such was the population of the islands for¬ 
merly, that every bread-fruit and cocoa-nut tree 
had its owner; and a single tree, it is said, had 
sometimes two proprietors. Subsequently, how¬ 
ever, extensive clusters or groves of trees were to 
be met with, having no other owner than the chief 
of the district in which they grew. The fruit of 
these, it was formerly their practice to gather 
in its season, without asking the consent of 
any one. The proprietor of the land could appro¬ 
priate to his own use any number of the trees, by 
affixing such marks as were indications that they 
were rahuaia , or prohibited. This practice being 
connected with certain idolatrous ceremonies, was 
discontinued with the abolition of the system. As 
the population increased, the people became more 
careful of their trees, and the practice of gathering 
promiscuously the fruit from those trees not en¬ 
closed, appeared generally undesirable. There are, 
however, a number of persons at most of the settle¬ 
ments, who have scarcely any other sources whence 
they can derive a supply. In order to afford them 
an opportunity of procuring this, and at the same 
time securing to the proprietors their right to the 
disposal of the fruit growing on their own lands, 
the twenty-fifth regulation was framed, and applied 
to most of the trees whose fruit is used as an article 
of food. 
The government having been hitherto an arbi¬ 
trary monarchy, the king and chiefs had been 
accustomed, not only to receive a regular supply 
