Page:An account of the natives of the Tonga Islands.djvu/382

316 that he was sure they were bones, though they were not at all like any human bones, and he supposed they must have belonged to some fish. To any new coiner from Lo- tooma the first question is, " have you seen the "giant's bones?" But it would appear that com- munications with Lotooma were not very fre- quent, since the inhabitants made so sad a mistake as to think Gow Mooala and his fol- lowers gods.

Cow Mooala shortly took his departure from Lofooma, with three of the native women on board, in addition to his other followers, and sailed for the Fiji islands. Owing to the wind he deviated a little from his course, but at length arrived safe at Navihi Levoo, (as the natives call it, meaning large Fiji : the word Navihi is corrupted by the Tonga people to Fiji,) one of the Fiji islands, to the north-west. Here Cow Mooala took up his residence with the chief of the island, where he remained*a considerable length of time, assisting in the ' war with other islands. The inhabitants of Navihi Levoo are much more ferocious than those of most of the other Fiji islands ; this, however, is not stated merely upon the authority of Cow Mooala, who occasionally was apt to exaggerate a little, as will by and by be seen, but upon that of Mr. Mariner, who frequently saw and con-