NOTIONS OF HOSPITALITY. 
345 
home again, and, in return, are most likely visited 
by a friend, who will not think of leaving them so 
long as any of their provisions remain uncon¬ 
sumed. This, however, is only the case where 
friendship has previously existed between the 
parties. A transient visitor, on arriving among 
them, will generally have an entertainment pro¬ 
vided, of which the persons who furnish it seldom 
partake. The family with which we lodged were, 
however, induced to join us this evening at sup¬ 
per, though contrary to their ideas of propriety. 
Whenever we have remarked to the natives that 
their conduct in this respect is unsocial, they have 
usually answered,“ Would it be right for us to present 
food to our friends, and then sit down and eat of 
it ourselves ?” Connected with this, another cus¬ 
tom, equally at variance with our views of hospi¬ 
tality, is practised by the guests, who invariably 
carry away all that remains of the entertainment, 
however abundant it may have been. Hence, 
whenever a pig, &c. has been dressed for us, and 
our party have finished their meal, our boys always 
put the remainder into their baskets, and carried 
it away. To this we often objected: but they 
usually replied, “ It is our custom ; and if we don’t 
take it, the people will think you are dissatisfied 
with what they have provided.” 
The entertainment given to strangers or visitors 
is regulated by the means of the host, or the rank 
of the guests. In the Society Islands their feasts* 
were formerly characterized by a degree of pro¬ 
digality extremely oppressive to the people who 
had to furnish the provisions. I once saw in the 
island of Raiatea upwards of fifty large baked 
hogs, and a proportionate quantity of poe, yams* 
&c. served up at one time for a party of chiefs on 
