Page:Journal of the Right Hon. Sir Joseph Banks.djvu/235

1769 of these classes during our stay in the island, I know little of their real situation.

Each of the earees keeps a kind of court, and has a large attendance, chiefly of the younger brothers of his own family and of other earees. Among these were different officers of the court, as Heewa no t' Earee, Whanno no t' Earee, who were sometimes sent to us on business. Of all these courts Dootahah's was the most splendid, indeed we were almost inclined to believe that he acted as locum tenens for Otow, the Earee ra hie being his nephew, as he lived upon an estate belonging to him, and we never could hear that he had any other public place of residence.

The earees, or rather the districts which they possess, are obliged in time of a general attack to furnish each their quota of soldiers for the public service; those of the principal districts which Tupia recollected, when added together, amounted to 6680 men, to which army it is probable that the small quotas of the rest would not make any great addition.

Besides these public wars, which must be headed by the Earee ra hie, any private difference between two earees is decided by their own people without in the least disturbing the tranquillity of the public. Their weapons are slings, which they use with great dexterity, pikes headed with the stings of sting-rays, and clubs six or seven feet long, made of a very heavy and hard wood; with these they fight by their own account very obstinately, which appears the more probable as the conquerors give no quarter to any man, woman, or child who is unfortunate enough to fall into their hands during or for some time after the battle, that is, until their passion has subsided.

Otahite at the time of our stay there was divided into two kingdoms, Oporenoo, the larger, and Tiarrebo; each had its separate king, etc. etc., who were at peace with each other; the king of Oporenoo, however, called himself king of both, in just the same manner as European monarchs usurp the title of king over kingdoms in which they have not the least influence.