Page:An account of the natives of the Tonga Islands.djvu/492

426 the better to convince them of this, he feigned to imagine that the bits of buried gnatoo, &c. must have been hidden there by some dogs in their play: by expressing himself in this way, he was in hopes of emboldening the conspirators to proceed with less caution in their plan, under the idea that he was off his guard. All this precaution, however, and studied policy, were unnecessary, as no signs of conspiracy became evident, and, perhaps, no conspiracy existed. In the mean time, the building and fortifying the garrison with extra ditches went on with dispatch, and, in a short time, was completed to the perfect satisfaction of Finow.

Shortly after the fortress was finished, a canoe arrived from the Hapai islands with Tonga-mana, a chief of the line of Tooitonga, who came from Toobó Toa, with a request to know how the inachi was to be sent to Tooitonga, seeing that Finow had declared that no communication whatever was to be kept up with Hapai. As all on board were habited in mats, with leaves of the ifi tree round their necks, as a token of submission, and that they came upon a religious duty, they were permitted to land. After having presented cava to several consecrated houses, they came before Finow, and