Page:Journal of the Right Hon. Sir Joseph Banks.djvu/232

174 the names and rank of the different Eatuas, or divinities, the origin of the universe and all its parts, etc. This knowledge has been handed down to them in set sentences, of which those who are clever can repeat an almost infinite number.

Besides religion, the practice of physic and the knowledge of navigation and astronomy is in the possession of the priests: the name indeed, Tahowa, signifies a man of knowledge, so that even here the priests monopolise the greater part of the learning of the country in much the same manner as they formerly did in Europe. From their learning they gain profit as well as respect, each in his particular order; for each order has priests of its own; nor would those of the manahounis do anything for a toutou who is below them.

Marriage in these islands is no more than an agreement between man and woman, totally independent of the priest; it is in general, I believe, well kept, unless the parties agree to separate, which is done with as little trouble as they came together. Few people, however, enter this state, but rather choose freedom, though bought at the inhuman expense of murdering their children, whose fate is in that case entirely dependent on the father, who if he does not choose to acknowledge both them and the woman, and engage to contribute his part towards their support, orders the child to be strangled, which is instantly put in execution.

If our priests have excelled theirs in persuading us that marriage cannot be lawful without their benediction having been bought, they have done it by intermingling it so far with religion that the fear of punishment from above secures their power over us; but these untaught persons have secured to themselves the profit of two operations without being driven to the necessity of so severe a penalty on the refusal, viz. tattowing and circumcision; neither of these can be performed by any but priests, and as the highest degree of shame attaches to the neglect of either, the people are as much obliged to make use of them as if bound by the highest ties of religion, of which both customs are totally independent. They give no reason for the tattowing but