28 POLYNESIAN RESEARCHES ~ 
to those who visited his dominions. His attach¬ 
ment to the English induced him, during the stay 
of Capt. Vancouver, to cede the island of Hawaii 
to the British crown, and to place himself and his 
dominions under British protection ; an act which 
was repeated by his son, the late king, on his 
accession to the sovereignty of all the islands. 
The natives received many advantages from the 
visit of Capt. Vancouver; a breed of cattle, and a 
variety of useful seeds, had been given. Generous 
and disinterested in his whole behaviour, he 
secured their, friendship and attachment, and many 
still retain grateful recollections of his visit. 
After his departure, the islands were seldom 
resorted to, except by traders from the United 
States of America, who, having discovered among 
them the sandal-wood, conveyed large quantities 
of it to Canton, where it was readily purchased by 
the Chinese, manufactured into incense, and burnt 
in their idol temples. Subsequently, when the 
South Sea whalers began to fish in the North 
Pacific, the Sandwich Islands afforded a convenient 
^rendezvous for refitting and procuring refreshments 
during their protracted voyages, particularly since 
they have found the sperm whale on the coast of 
Japan, where of late years the greater part of their 
cargoes have been procured. 
So early as the year 1796, the London Mis¬ 
sionary Society despatched the ship Duff to the 
South Sea Islands; and early in 1797, Missionary 
settlements were established in the Marquesan, 
Friendly, and Society Islands. The Missionary 
left at the Marquesas, after spending about a year 
among the people, returned. The establishmen 
in the Friendly Islands was relinquished, though 
not till some of the individuals of which it was 
