Page:An account of the natives of the Tonga Islands.djvu/61

Rh died a few years before: wherever the king went, Mr. Mariner might accompany him if he chose: in all the battles fought by the king, Mr. Mariner was present. After his death, his son, who succeeded, equally extended to him his patronage and protection, or rather Mr. Mariner might be called his dearest brother, his constant, intimate, and confidential friend; and so sorry was the young king to part with him, that he actually proposed to give up his dominions to his uncle, and accompany Mr. Mariner to England,—a sufficient proof that the latter possessed those qualities of mind calculated to inspire a high degree of confidence and friendship. But perhaps I am anticipating too much of some of the subjects of the following sheets; it appears to me, however, proper to state these things, that the mind of the reader may be prepared, without mistrust, for the quantity of interesting matter which so young a man has collected and remembered.

It is now four years since Mr. Mariner's arrival from the West Indies; during which