been informed of it; and, in the afternoon of the 16th, a chief, named
Etorea, under whose tutorage he was, brought me two hogs as a present
from him, and acquainted me that he himself would be with us the day
after. And so it proved; for I received a message from him the next
morning, notifying his arrival, and desiring I would go ashore to meet
him. Accordingly, Omai and I prepared to pay him a formal visit. On
this occasion, Omai, assisted by some of his friends, dressed himself,
not after the English fashion, nor that of Otaheite, nor that of
Tongataboo, nor in the dress of any country upon earth, but in a
strange medley of all that he was possessed of.

Thus equipped, on our landing, we first visited Etary, who, carried
on a hand-barrow, attended us to a large house, where he was set
down, and we seated ourselves on each side of him. I caused a piece
of Tongataboo cloth to be spread out before us, on which I laid the
presents I intended to make. Presently the young chief came, attended
by his mother, and several principal men, who all seated themselves at
the other end of the cloth, facing us. Then a man, who sat by me, made
a speech, consisting of short and separate sentences, part of which
was dictated by those about him. He was answered by one from the
opposite side, near the chief. Etary spoke next, then Omai, and both
of them were answered from the same quarter. These orations were
entirely about my arrival, and connexions with them. The person who
spoke last told me, among other things, that the men of _Reema_, that
is, the Spaniards, had desired them not to suffer me to come into
Oheitepeha Bay, if I should return any more to the island, for that it
belonged to them; but that they were so far from paying any regard to
this request, that he was authorised now to make a formal surrender of
the province of Tiaraboo to me, and of every thing in it; which marks
very plainly that these people are no strangers to the policy of