THROWING THE SPEAR. 211 
Their martial games were numerous ; and to 
these preparatory sports, the youth paid great 
attention. The moto, or boxing, and the maona, 
or wrestling, were regarded as a sort of military 
drilling; but the vero patia, throwing the spear 
or javelin, and the practice of throwing stones 
from a sling, were the principal military games. 
In the latter, the Tahitians excelled most of the 
nations of the Pacific ; devoting to its practice a 
considerable portion of their time, and being able 
to cast the stone with great accuracy. 
Throwing the spear, or darting the javelin, was 
an amusement in which they passed many of their 
juvenile hours. It was not a mere exercise of 
strength, like that exhibited in shooting with the 
bow and arrow, but a trial of skill. The stalk, or 
stem, of a plantain tree was their usual mark or 
target. This they fixed perpendicularly in the 
ground ; and, retiring to a spot a number of yards 
distant, endeavoured to strike the mark with their 
missiles. These, thrown with precision and force, 
readily penetrated its soft and yielding substance. 
Although this was with some a favourite amuse¬ 
ment, the Tahitians do not appear to have followed 
it with such avidity as the Sandwich Islanders 
were accustomed to do, nor to have made such 
proficiency in the art. In order to avoid accidents 
while practising with the sling, the boys generally 
employed the fruit of the nono, morinda citrifolia , 
instead of a stone. The mark at which they threw 
was a thin cane, or small white stick, fixed erect 
in the ground; and the force and precision with 
which it was repeatedly struck, were truly 
astonishing. 
Besides these games, they often had what might 
be termed reviews of their land and naval forces, 
p 2 
