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POLYNESIAN RESEARCHES. 
priests had been unremitting in their prayers that 
the ra atua , &c. the influence of the gods, &c. 
might be turned against their enemies, or that the 
gods would leave them defenceless. When their 
prayers were successful, it was supposed that the 
gods of their enemies left them, and came to the 
party by whom they were thus implored, and, 
entering the canoes, clubs, spears, and other 
weapons of their army, insured its triumph. As a 
compensation for this important service, the chiefs 
assembled ; a quantity of cloth, mats, and perhaps 
a canoe, was spread before them, surmounted by 
a branch of the sacred miro, and a few red fea¬ 
thers, emblematical of the tutelar gods. The priests 
were then sent for, and the whole presented to 
them from the heads of the army by an orator, the 
burden of whose address was—“ This is the recom¬ 
pense for your fatigue in imploring the aid of the 
gods by night and by day.” 
A second ceremony followed, called fairaro: 
a large quantity of cloth, mats, &c. were given to 
the priests, that they might persevere in their 
labours. This was succeeded by a third, of the 
same kind, called the haameii , in which, in addi¬ 
tion to the other kinds of property, a number of 
fine pigs, each distinguished by a distinct name, 
were given to the priests, that they might redouble 
their vigilance to induce their own gods to keep 
with them, and the gods of their enemies to forsake 
those enemies, and, by means of the weapons of 
those who now sought their favour, to exert their 
power against the parties they had formerly aided. 
The atoa fare ia Manaha —the building of the 
house of Manaha, or hosts of gods—was a singu¬ 
lar ceremony. It was designed for the abode 
of the gods and spirits, who they supposed fought 
