L44 
MISSIONARY TOUR 
hideous form, the mouth armed with triple rows of dog’s 
or shark’s teeth, the eyes of mother of pearl, the head 
crowned with a helmet, the crest sometimes formed of 
long tresses of human hair. They were fixed on a 
small pillar or pedestal; were sometimes carried by the 
priests, or placed on the ground, upheld and defended 
by them. We have often conversed with Hevaheva, 
the priest of Tamehameha’s war-god, and though there 
is nothing naturally repulsive in his countenance, we 
have been told, that, in the battle, he often distorted 
his face into every frightful form, and uttered most 
terrific and appalling yells, which were supposed to 
proceed from the god he bore or attended 
At times the whole army, except the reserve, engaged 
at once, but their battles were most commonly a suc¬ 
cession of skirmishes, or partial engagements. The 
hooparau, single combat, was not unusual. A haughty 
and boastful warrior would advance beyond the line of 
his companions, and toko or aa, (insult,) in opprobrious 
terms the whole army of his enemies. A warrior from 
that army would hasten to meet him, and the encounter 
was continued till one was disabled or slain. We do 
not know whether, like the Grecian heroes, these com¬ 
batants addressed each other before engaging in the 
mortal strife, as did their neighbours in the southern 
seas. There the challenger, when he beheld his anta¬ 
gonist approaching, would exclaim, “ Who are you, that 
come to contend with me?—I am so and so, who slew 
such a one, whose name is famous to the farthest of 
these islands; the son of such a one, who achieved such 
an action: are you come to add to our fame?” &c. &c. 
The other would answer, “ I am such a one, the son of 
so and so, who performed such an action, celebrated in 
