Page:An account of the natives of the Tonga Islands.djvu/462

396 in the ground, the principal chiefs and mata- booles requested the prince to intimate to Voona and certain other chiefs, their wish that they should go to the Hapai islands : this he did j but, at the same time, gave them liberty to stop till the funeral ceremony was concluded. Voona received this intimation in a becoming man- ner, acknowledging the impropriety of his stay, if the people were any way jealous of his pre- sence. The prince apologized for this step, urging the will of his people as his sol^ motive; and expressed, with great warmth, his wish that he who had been so long his friend and com- panion could still remain his associate. The following day, at a general assembly of the chiefs and matabooles, after the cava was prepared, and the two first cups handed out, the third, which, according to custom, is pre- sented to the chief who presides, was next filled ; and when an attendant, as usual, de^ clared aloud that the cup was filled, all eyes were fixed on the prince, whilst the mataboole who sat next to him exclaimed, " Give it to rinow!"-^and it was accordingly handed to him, whilst he preserved an appearance of per- fect unconcern at the name by which, for the first time, he was called*. And this was a matter of no small importance ; for had he ap.
 * See note^ p. 370.