6 y o captain cook’s last voyage.

tedious, but not painful; and there are men amongft them who feem to profefs thistrade. It was as common, while we were here, ,to fee our lailors go alhore to havetfieir beards fcraped off, after the falhion of Iiapaee, as it was to fee their chiefs comeon board to be lhaved by our barbers.

Finding that little or nothing of the produce of the illand was now brought to thefhips, I refolved to change our ftation, and to wait Feenou’s return from Vavaoo, infome other convenient anchoring place, where refrefhments might ftill be met with.At half pall two in the afternoon of the 26th of May, I hauled into a bay that lies be-tween the fouth end of Lefooga, and the north end of Hoolaiva, and there anchoredin feventeen fathoms water ; the Difcovery did not get to anchor till funfet. She hadtouched upon a fhoal, but backed off again, without receiving any damage.

As foon as we had anchored, I fent Mr. Bligh to found the bay ; and myfelf, ac-companied by Mr. Gore, landed on the fouthern part of Lefooga, to examine thecountry, and to look for frefh water. We were conducted to two wells; but thewater in both proved execrable; and the natives, our guides, alfured us that theyhad none better.

Near the fouth end of the illand, and on the weft fide, we met with an artificial mount.From the fize of fome trees that were growing upon it, and from other appearances,I gueffed that it had been raifed in remote times: I judged it to be about forty feethigh ; and the diameter of its fummit meafured fifty feet. At the bottom of thismount, flood a ftone, which mull have been hewn of coral rock. It was four feetbroad, two and a half thick, and fourteen high ; and we were told by the na-tives prefent, that not above half its length appeared above ground. They called itTangata Arekee * ; and faid, that it had been fet up, and the mount raifed, by fom eof their forefathers, in memory of one of their Kings; but how long fince, theycould not tell.

About noon, a large failing canoe came under our ftern, in which was a perfonnamed Futtafaihe, or Poulaho, or both ; who, as the natives then on board told us,was King of Tongataboo, and of all the neighbouring illands. It was a matter orfurprife to me, to have a ftranger introduced under this character, which I had 1°much reafon to believe really belonged to Feenou. However, it being my intereit,as well as my inclination, to pay court to all the great men, without making inquiryinto the validity of their alfumed titles, I invited Poulaho on board ; he broughtwith him, as a prefent, two fat hogs, though not fo fat as himfelf. If weight of bodycould give weight in rank or power, he was certainly the molt eminent man in tharefpedt we had feen; for, though not very tall, he was very unwieldy, and alm° _fhapelefs with corpulence. I found him to be a fedate,. fenfible man. He viewethe fhip and the feveral new objects with uncommon attention, and afked many P er 'tinent queftions ; one of which w'as : What could induce us to vifit thefe illands-After he had fatisfied his curiofity in looking at the cattle, and other novelties, whiche met with upon deck, I defired him to walk down into the cabin. To this lSattendants objected, faying, that if he were to accept of that invitation, it mull hap-pen, that people would walk over his head; but the chief himfelf, lefs fcrupulous 1°this refpedt than his attendants, waved all ceremony, and walked down.

Poulaho fat down with us to dinner ; but he ate little, and drank lefs. Whenrofe from the table, he defired ine to accompany him alhore. Omai was alked. toof the party ; but he was too faithfully attached to Feenou to Ihew any attention. 0

his

* Tanga(a, in their language, is man ; Arekee, king.