Page:An account of the natives of the Tonga Islands.djvu/141

Rh the three chiefs and their brave warriors were already on their march towards Hihifo. Their equally brave and determined opponents met them about half-way. Both paused as if instinctively at the same moment. They summoned up their spirits to endure a mighty and bloody conflict: liberty on the one side, loyalty on the other, fired them with the desire of performing matchless achievements. The active and impetuous mind of Tooi Hala Fatal could brook no delay: anxious to set the glorious example of an heroic spirit, he and his Fiji warriors began the battle by rushing forward on a party of the enemy. Immediately the contest became general, with such unconquerable determination on both sides, that the plains of Tonga had perhaps