234

TRANSACTIONS AT

commission from Finow to treat with the chiefof Hihifo respecting a particular bird of thespecies called kalai (trained for sport). Thislatter chief, although belonging to the island ofTonga , was never professedly Finow’s enemy,otherwise than as Finow had been associatedwith the late Toobo Nuha, whom the chief ofHihifo mortally hated*; but as Toob6 Nuhawas now dead, and consequently all cause ofenmity removed, Finow was in hopes he shouldbe able to prevail upon the chief of Hihifo tomake him a present of one of the first andbest trained birds, of the kind in question, thatever was known, and which this chief hadtrained up with great care, and had long hadin his possession, though it was the envy ofevery chief that had seen it. This particularbird Finow was ardently desirous of, to prac-tise the sport called fanna kalai, of whichwe shall give a description. The sportsman,armed with a bow and arrows, conceals him-self within a large cage, made of a sort ofwicker-work, covered over with green leaves,but not so much but what he may see his game:on the top of this cage is the cock bird tied bythe leg, who makes a noise, and flaps his wings,as if calling other birds to come and fight him :

* The cause of this enmity, Mr. Mariner is not well ac-quainted with.