DEMONS, OR GENII. 335 
presented offerings, to avoid being cursed or 
destroyed, when they were employed by the 
sorcerers. 
They seem to have been regarded as a sort of 
demons. In the Leeward Islands, the chief ora- 
matuas were spirits of departed warriors, who had 
distinguished themselves by ferocity and murder, 
attributes of character usually supposed to belong 
to these evil genii. Each celebrated tii was hon¬ 
oured with an image, through which it was sup¬ 
posed his influence was exerted. The spirits of the 
reigning chiefs were united to this class, and the 
skulls of deceased rulers, kept with the images, 
were honoured with the same worship. Some 
idea of what was regarded as their ruling passion, 
may be inferred from the fearful apprehensions 
constantly entertained by all classes. They were 
supposed to be exceedingly irritable and cruel, 
avenging with death the slightest insult or neglect, 
and were kept within the precincts of the temple. 
In the marae of Tane at Maeva, the ruins of their 
abode were still standing, when I last visited the 
place. It was a house built upon a number of 
large strong poles, which raised the floor ten or 
twelve feet from the ground. They were thus 
elevated, to keep them out of the way of men, as 
it was imagined they were constantly strangling, 
or otherwise destroying, the chiefs and people. To 
prevent this, they were also treated with great 
respect; men were appointed constantly to attend 
them, and to keep them wrapped in the choicest 
kinds of cloth, to take them out whenever there 
was a pae atua, or general exhibition of the gods ; 
to anoint them frequently with fragrant oil; and 
to sleep in the house with them at night. All 
this was done, to keep them pacified. And though 
