64 
MISSIONARY TOUR 
sweet-scented flowers of the gardenia on their necks, 
and branches of the fragrant mairi, (another native 
plant,) bound round their ancles, now made their way 
by couples through the crowd, and, arriving at the 
area, on one side of which the musicians stood, began 
their dance. Their movements were slow, and though 
not always graceful, exhibited nothing offensive to 
modest propriety. Both musicians and dancers alter¬ 
nately chanted songs in honour of former gods and 
chiefs of the islands, apparently much to the gratifi¬ 
cation of the numerous spectators. After they had 
continued their Tiara , (song and dance,) for about half 
an hour, the queen, Keopuolani, requested them to 
leave off, as the time had arrived for evening worship. 
The music ceased ; the dancers sat down ; and, after 
the missionaries and some of the people had sung one 
of the songs of Zion, I preached to the surrounding 
multitude with special reference to their former idola¬ 
trous dances, and the vicious customs connected there¬ 
with, * from Acts xvii. 30. “ The times of this igno¬ 
rance God winked at, but now commandeth all men 
every where to repent.” The audience was attentive; 
and when the service was finished, the people dispers¬ 
ed, and the dancers returned to their houses. 
On our way home, the voice of lamentation arrested 
our attention. Listening a few moments, we found it 
proceeded from a lowly cottage, nearly concealed by 
close rows of sugar-cane. When we reached the spot, 
we beheld a middle-aged woman, and two elderly men, 
weeping around the mat of a sick man, apparently 
near his end. Finding him entirely ignorant of God, 
and of a future state, we spoke to him of Jehovah, of 
the fallen condition of man, of the amazing love of 
