tivate and plant his quota; and ordering what iliould be 
eat, and what not. By this wife regulation, they effectually 
guard againft a famine; a fufficient quantity of ground is 
employed in railing provilions; and every article, thus 
raffed, is fecured from unneceffary wafte. 
By another prudent regulation, in their government, 
they have an officer over the police; or fomething like it. 
This department, when we were amongft them, was admi- 
niftered by Feenou; whofe bulinefs, we were told, it was, to 
puniffi all offenders, whether againft the ftate, or againft in¬ 
dividuals. He was alfo Generaliffimo, and commanded the 
warriors, when called out upon fervice ; but, by all ac¬ 
counts, this is very feldom. The king, frequently, took 
fome pains to inform us of Feenou’s office; and, among 
other things, told us, that if he himfelf Ihould become a bad 
man, Feenou would kill him. What I underftood, by this 
expreffion of being a bad man, was, that, if he did not go¬ 
vern according to law, or cuftom, Feenou would be ordered, 
by the other great men, or by the people at large, to put 
him to death. There Ihould feem to be no doubt, that a 
Sovereign, thus liable to be controuled, and punilhed for an 
abufe of power, cannot be called a defpotic monarch. 
When we conftder the number of illands that compofe 
this little ftate, and the diftance at which fome of them lie 
from the feat of government, attempts to throw off the 
yoke, and to acquire independency, it fhould feem, might 
be apprehended. But they tell us, that this never happens. 
One reafon why they are not thus difturbed, by domeftic 
quarrels, may be this : That all the powerful Chiefs, as we 
have already mentioned, relide at Tongataboo. They alfo 
fecure the dependence of the other illands, by the celerity 
of their operations; for if, at any time, a troublefome and 
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