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is every probability that, some years back, itwas such, in a great degree, though now littletrod : but those who are willing to keep up thespirit of the wonderful have attributed it tothis supernatural cause. Superstitions, in allcountries, are much of the same kind; we havesimilar ones in our own; but, whilst men ofcultivated minds disregard them, the vulgar ingeneral most firmly give their belief, particu-larly where there is some sensible object thatappears to corroborate the tale *.

Whilst Finow was yet at the Hapai islands,he often held conversations at his cava par-ties with Filimoeatoo, respecting the state ofaffairs at Tonga . Among other things, thischief related, that a ship from Botany Bay hadtouched there about a week before he arrived,on board of which there was a Tonga chief,Paloo Mata Moigna, and his wife, Fatafbhi, bothof whom had formerly left Tonga (before thedeath of Toogoo Ahoo), and had resided someyears at the Fiji islands , from which place theyafterwards went along with one Selly (as they

* I observe that some readers have looked upon the aboveexplanation as if I had considered it perfectly satisfactory inregard to all the phenomena: this I did not intend : I havemerely ventured to state what I consider to be the probablecause of the long track. As to the short transverse one,suffice it to say, that I do not believe it to have been occa-sioned by poor Norton’s body.