THE PACIFIC OCEAN. 
305 
I kept them there till near four o’clock, when I conducted 1777 . 
them afhore; and, foon after, the kid, and one of the t 
turkey-cocks, were brought back. The other, they faid, 
fhould be reflored the next morning. I believed this would 
happen, and releafed both them and the canoes. 
After the Chiefs had left us, I walked out with Omai, 
to obferve how the people about us fared ; for this was the 
time of their meals. I found that, in general, they were 
at fhort commons. Nor is this to be wondered at, hnce 
moft.of the yams, and other provilions which they brought 
with them, were fold to us; and they never thought of re¬ 
turning to their own habitations, while they could find 
any fort of fubfiftence in our neighbourhood. Our flation 
was upon an uncultivated point of land; fo that there 
were none of the iflanders, who, properly, refided within 
half a mile of us. But, even at this diftance, the multitude 
of flrangers being fo great, one might have expe£ted, that 
every houfe would have been much crowded. It was quite 
otherwife. The families refiding there were as much left 
to themfelves, as if there had not been a fupernumerary 
vifiter near them. All the flrangers lived in little tempo¬ 
rary fheds, or under trees and bullies ; and the cocoa-trees 
were ftripped of their branches, to ere£t habitations for the 
Chiefs. 
In this walk we met with about half a dozen women, in 
one place, at fupper. Two of the company, I obferved, 
being fed by the others, on our afking the reafon, they 
faid taboo mattee . On farther inquiry we found, that one 
of them had, two months before, wafhed the dead corpfe 
of a Chief; and that, on this account, fhe was not to 
handle any food for five months. The other had performed 
the lame office to the corpfe of another perfon of inferior 
^ 0L « h Rr ranks 
