Page:An account of the natives of the Tonga Islands.djvu/335

Rh THE TONGA ISLANDS. 269 hind him one of the opposite party, then one of the same party with the first, and behind him again one of the other party, afid so on alter- nately. The rules of the game are these : no one may shoot a rat that is in advance of him, except he who happens to be first in the row (for their situations change, as will directly be seen); but any one may shoot a rat that is either abreast of him or behind him. As soon as a man has shot, whether he hits the rat or not, he changes his situation with the man be- hind him, so that it may happen that the last man, if he have not shot so often as the others, may come to be first, and vice versa, the first come to be last : and for the same reason, two or three, or more, of the same party, may come to be immediately behind one another. Which- ever party kills ten rats first, wins the game. If there be plenty of rats, they generally play three or four games. As soon as they arrive at any cross roads they pull up the reeds placed as a tabooy that passengers coming afterwards may not be interrupted in their progress. When they have arrived at the place where the boohi are waiting, they sit down and partake of what is prepared for them ; afterwards, if they are disposed to pursue their diversion, they send the boohi on to prepare another portion of the road : the length of road prepared at a