MENTAL CAPACITY. 
85 
This impression, however, is now altogether re¬ 
moved by the lengthened intercourse they have 
had with foreigners, and the residence of European 
families among them. 
The mental capacity of the Society Islanders has 
been hitherto much more partially developed than 
their physical character. They are remarkably 
curious and inquisitive, and, compared with other 
Polynesian nations, may be said to possess consi¬ 
derable ingenuity, mechanical invention, and imita¬ 
tion. Totally unacquainted with the use of letters, 
their minds could not be improved by any regular 
continued culture ; yet the distinguishing features 
of their civil polity—the imposing nature, numerous 
observances, and diversified ramifications of their 
mythology—the legends of their gods—the histo¬ 
rical songs of their bards—the beautiful, figurative, 
and impassioned eloquence sometimes displayed in 
their national assemblies—and, above all, the copi¬ 
ousness, variety, precision, and purity of their lan¬ 
guage, with their extensive use of numbers—war¬ 
rant the conclusion, that they possess no contemp¬ 
tible mental capabilities. This conclusion is sup¬ 
ported by a variety of circumstances connected with 
their former state. 
Though unacquainted with the compass, they 
have names for the cardinal points. The north 
they call Apatoa; the south, Apatoerau ; the east, 
Te hitia o te ra, the rising of the sun ; and the west, 
the Tooa o te ra, the falling or sinking of the sun. 
Their genealogies and chronological traditions do 
not appear to have been so correctly preserved as 
those of the Hawaiians, one or two of which I have, 
that appear, at least for nearly thirty generations, 
tolerably correct, though they go back one hundred 
generations. They were, however, as correct in 
