CAPITAL PUNISHMENTS. 141 
sionary Society. The laws were printed on a large 
sheet of paper, and not only sent to every chief 
and magistrate throughout both islands, but posted 
up in most of the public places. 
The sentence to be passed on individuals who 
should be found guilty of many of the crimes pro¬ 
hibited by these laws, was left to the discretion of 
the judge or magistrate; but to several, the 
penalty of death was annexed; and, only a few 
months after their enactment, the sentence of 
capital punishment was passed on two individuals, 
whose names were Papahia and Horopae. They 
were inhabitants of the district of Atehuru, and 
were executed on the twenty-fifth of October, 1819, 
for attempting to overturn the government. 
Papahia had been a distinguished warrior, and was 
in the very prime of life. He was a man of daring 
character, and turbulent conduct. He came 
several times to my house, during our residence 
at Eimeo; and although, in consequence of his 
restless and violent behaviour, I was not prepos¬ 
sessed in his favour, my personal acquaintance 
made me feel additional interest in the melancholy 
fate of the first malefactor on whom the dreadful 
sentence of the law was inflicted. The lives of 
these unhappy men were not taken by thrusting a 
spear through the body, or beating out the brains 
with a club, or by decapitation, which were the 
former modes of punishment, but they were hanged 
on a cocoa-nut tree, in a conspicuous part of the 
district. In the year 1821, a conspiracy was formed 
to assassinate the king, and two men, who were pro¬ 
ceeding to the accomplishment of their murderous 
purpose, were apprehended, with others concerned 
in the plot. The names of the two leaders were 
Pori and Mariri. Sentence of death was passed 
