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These are indeed so various, that they cannot readily be recognised as derivatives from the same stock. The principal dialects are, that spoken in the Sandwich Islands, or the Hawaiian; that of the Marquesas; that of New Zealand; the Tongatabuan, spoken by the inhabitants of the Friendly Islands, and the Tahaitian. All the others, as far as they are known, are more or less related to these.
They belonged to the London Missionary Society, and had left England three years before to visit the Missionary Settlements in the South Sea. The chief Missionary, to whom the others are subordinate, is named Nott, and lives in the capital where the King resides. He is now far advanced in life. He has made himself master of the Tahaitian language, and was the first who ever wrote it.
Though the vice of theft has certainly greatly diminished among the Tahaitians, they cannot always refrain from endeavouring to appropriate the articles they prize so highly. For instance, I think if any one of the Tahaitian ladies had found an opportunity of stealing a bit of the mock gold lace, the temptation would have been too great to withstand.
If, as the Tahaitian captain said, they are subject to the Friendly Islanders, and must pay a yearly tribute to Tongatabu, the island Maouna, which Nature herself has made a strong fortress, and whose inhabitants are such fierce warriors, is probably excepted. The following day we surveyed the magnificent island of Pola.
It is, however, only fair to confess, that this hypothesis of an invasion is unsupported by any Tahaitian tradition. "The men of both races," continues this traveller, "allow the lower part of the beard to grow, but shave the whiskers and the upper lip. Some cut their hair short off, others bind it together at the top of the head; both hair and beard they grease with the oil of the cocoa-nut.
The article te often stands before proper names; also before God, Te Atua; sometimes o, which then appears to be an article; as, O Pomare, O Huaheine, O Tahaiti. Sometimes this o is placed before the personal pronouns in the nominative case. O vau, I; o oe, thou; o oia, she, he, it. In these pronouns the Tahaitian, and those languages to which it bears affinity, are particularly rich.
Maititi, a soldier in the royal Tahaitian army, bore the insignia of his rank in a musket, to which nothing but the lock was wanting, and a cartouche-box without powder. He had learnt a few English words, and, by their help, advised Mr.
The old man fetched a pig, and Maititi, with great dexterity, played the part both of butcher and cook. Mr. Hoffman describes the operation of lighting the fire on this occasion, in the following manner: A Tahaitian took two pieces of wood of different degrees of hardness, laid the softer upon the ground, and very rapidly rubbed its length backwards and forwards with the harder.
The Tahaitian therefore, finding a complete suit of clothes very expensive, contents himself with a single garment; whoever can obtain an English military coat, or even a plain one, goes about with the rest of his body naked, except the universally-worn girdle; the happy owner of a waistcoat or a pair of trowsers, thinks his wardrobe amply furnished.
With the chastity of the Tahaitian women, the case is similar; and it does not appear to me that the breaches of this virtue are more frequent on the whole than in Europe. It was with the utmost caution and secrecy, and in the most fearful anxiety lest their errors should be betrayed to the Missionaries, that the females complied with the desires of our sailors.
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