CHAP. V.

ARRIVAL OF THE SHIPS AT HAPAEE, AND FRIENDLY RECEPTION THERE.—PRESENTS AND SOLEMNITIES ON THE OCCASION.—SINGLE COMBATS WITH CLUBS.—WRESTLING AND BOXING MATCHES.—FEMALE COMBATANTS.—MARINES EXERCISED.—A DANCE PERFORMED BY MEN.—FIREWORKS EXHIBITED.—THE NIGHT ENTERTAINMENTS OF SINGING AND DANCING PARTICULARLY DESCRIBED.

By the time we had anchored, the ships were filled with the natives, and surrounded by a multitude of canoes, filled also with them. They brought from the shore, hogs, fowls, fruit, and roots, which they exchanged for hatchets, knives, nails, beads, and cloth. Feenou and Omai having come on board after it was light, in order to introduce me to the people of the island, I soon accompanied them on shore for that purpose, landing at the north part of Lefooga, a little to the right of the ship’s station.

The chief conducted me to a house, or rather a hut, situated close to the sea-beach, which I had seen brought thither but a few minutes before for our reception. In this Feenou, Omai and myself were seated. The other chiefs and the multitude composed a circle on the outside, fronting us, and they also sat down. I was then asked, how long I intended to stay? On my saying five days, Taipa was ordered to come and sit by me, and proclaim this to the people. He then harangued them in a speech mostly dictated by Feenou. The purport of it, as I learned from Omai, was, that they were all, both old and young, to look upon me as a friend, who intended to remain with them a few days; that during my stay they must not steal any thing, nor molest me any other way; and that it was expected they should bring hogs, fowls, fruit, &c. to the ships, where they would receive in exchange for them, such and such things, which he enumerated. Soon after Taipa had finished this address to the assembly, Feenou left us. Taipa then took occasion to signify to me, that it was necessary I should make a present to the chief of the island, whose name was Earoupa. I was not unprepared for this, and gave him such articles as far exceeded his expectation. My liberality to him brought upon me demands of the same kind, from two chiefs of other isles who were present, and from Taipa himself. When Feenou returned, which was immediately after I had made the last of these presents, he pretended to be angry with Taipa for suffering me to give away so much; but I looked upon this as a mere finesse, being confident that he acted in concert with the others. He now took his seat again, and ordered Earoupa to sit by him, and to harangue the people as Taipa had done, and to the same purpose; dictating, as before, the heads of the speech.

These ceremonies being performed, the chief, at my request, conducted me to three stagnant pools of fresh water, as he was pleased to call it: and indeed, in one of these the water was tolerable, and the situation not inconvenient for filling our casks. After viewing the watering-place, we returned to our former station, where I found a baked hog and some yams, smoking hot, ready to be carried on board for my dinner. I invited Feenou and his friends to partake of it, and we embarked for the ship; but none but himself sat down with us at the table. After dinner I conducted them on shore, and before I returned on board, the chief gave me a fine large turtle and a quantity of yams. Our supply of provisions was copious, for, in the course of the day, we got by barter alongside the ship, about twenty small hogs, beside fruit and roots. I was told, that, on my first landing in the morning, a man came off to the ships and ordered every one of the natives to go on shore. Probably this was done with a view to have the whole body of inhabitants present at the ceremony of my reception, for when that was over multitudes of them returned again to the ships.

Next morning early, Feenou and Omai, who scarcely ever quitted the chief, and now slept on shore, came on board. The object of the visit, was to require my presence upon the island. After some time I accompanied them, and upon landing was conducted to the same place where I had been seated the day before, and where I saw a large concourse of people already assembled. I guessed that something more than ordinary was in agitation, but could not tell what, nor could Omai inform me.

I had not been long seated, before near a hundred of the natives appeared in sight, and advanced laden with yams, bread-fruit, plantains, cocoa-nuts, and sugar-canes. They deposited their burdens in two heaps or piles, upon our left, being the side they came from. Soon after, arrived a number of others from the right, bearing the same kind of articles; which were collected into two piles upon that side. To these were tied two pigs and six fowls, and to those upon the left six pigs and two turtles. Earoupa seated himself before the several articles upon the left, and another chief before those upon the right; they being as I judged, the two chiefs who had collected them, by order of Feenou, who seemed to be as implicitly obeyed here as he had been at Annamooka; and, in consequence of his commanding superiority over the chiefs of Hapaee, had laid his tax upon them for the present occasion.

As soon as this munificent collection of provisions was laid down in order, and disposed to the best advantage, the bearers of it joined the multitude, who formed a large circle round the whole. Presently after a number of men entered this circle or area, before us, armed with clubs, made of the green branches of the cocoa-nut tree. These paraded about for a few minutes, and then retired, the one half to one side, and the other half to the other side; seating themselves before the spectators. Soon after they successively entered the lists, and entertained us with single combats. One champion rising up and stepping forward from one side, challenged those of the other side, by expressive gestures, more than by words, to send one of their body to oppose him. If the challenge was accepted, which was generally the case, the two combatants put themselves in proper attitudes, and then began the engagement, which continued till one or other owned himself conquered, or till their weapons were broken. As soon as each combat was over, the victor squatted himself down facing the chief, then rose up and retired. At the same time some old men, who seemed to sit as judges, gave their plaudit in a few words; and the multitude, especially those on the side to which the victor belonged, celebrated the glory he had acquired in two or three huzzas.

This entertainment was now and then suspended for a few minutes. During these intervals, there were both wrestling and boxing matches. The first were performed in the same manner as at Otaheite, and the second differed very little from the method practised in England. But what struck us with most surprise, was to see a couple of lusty wenches step forth and begin boxing, without the least ceremony, and with as much art as the men. This contest, however, did not last above half a minute before one of them gave it up. The conquering heroine received the same applause from the spectators, which they bestowed upon the successful combatants of the other sex. We expressed some dislike at this part of the entertainment, which, however, did not prevent two other females from entering the lists. They seemed to be girls of spirit, and would certainly have given each other a good drubbing, if two old women had not interposed to part them. All these combats were exhibited in the midst of at least three thousand people; and were conducted with the greatest good humour on all sides, though some of the champions, women as well as men, received blows, which, doubtless, they must have felt for some time after.

As soon as these diversions were ended, the chief told me that the heaps of provisions on our right hand were a present to Omai, and that those on our left hand, being about two-thirds of the whole quantity, were given to me. He added, that I might take them on board whenever it was convenient; but that there would be no occasion to set any of our people as guards over them, as I might be assured that not a single cocoa-nut would be taken away by the natives. So it proved, for I left every thing behind, and returned to the ship to dinner, carrying the chief with me; and when the provisions were removed on board in the afternoon, not a single article was missing. There was as much as loaded four boats; and I could not but be struck with the munificence of Feenou; for this present far exceeded any I had ever received from any of the sovereigns of the various islands I had visited in the Pacific Ocean. I lost no time in convincing my friend that I was not insensible of his liberality; for before he quitted my ship, I bestowed upon him such of our commodities as I guessed were most valuable in his estimation. And the return I made was so much to his satisfaction, that as soon as he got on shore, he left me still indebted to him, by sending me a fresh present, consisting of two large hogs, a considerable quantity of cloth, and some yams.

Feenou had expressed a desire to see the marines go through their military exercise. As I was desirous to gratify his curiosity, I ordered them all ashore from both ships, in the morning of the 20th. After they had performed various evolutions, and fired several vollies, with which the numerous body of spectators seemed well pleased, the chief entertained us in his turn, with an exhibition, which, as was acknowledged by us all, was performed with a dexterity and exactness far surpassing the specimen we had given of our military manœuvres. It was a kind of dance, so entirely different from any thing I had ever seen, that I fear I can give no description that will convey any tolerable idea of it to my readers. It was performed by men, and one hundred and five persons bore their parts in it. Each of them had in his hand an instrument neatly made, shaped somewhat liked a paddle, of two feet and a half in length, with a small handle and a thin blade, so that they were very light. With these instruments they made many and various flourishes, each of which was accompanied with a different attitude of the body, or a different movement. At first, the performers ranged themselves in three lines; and by various evolutions, each man changed his station in such a manner, that those who had been in the rear came into the front. Nor did they remain long in the same position, but these changes were made by pretty quick transitions. At one time they extended themselves in one line; they then formed into a semicircle; and, lastly, into two square columns. While this last movement was executing, one of them advanced, and performed an antic dance before me, with which the whole ended.

The musical instruments consisted of two drums, or rather two hollow logs of wood, from which some varied notes were produced, by beating on them with two sticks. It did not, however, appear to me, that the dancers were much assisted or directed by these sounds, but by a chorus of vocal music, in which all the performers joined at the same time. Their song was not destitute of pleasing melody; and all their corresponding motions were executed with so much skill, that the numerous body of dancers seemed to act, as if they were one great machine. It was the opinion of every one of us, that such a performance would have met with universal applause on a European theatre; and it so far exceeded any attempt we had made to entertain them, that they seemed to picque themselves upon the superiority they had over us. As to our musical instruments, they held none of them in the least esteem, except the drum; and even that they did not think equal to their own. Our French horns in particular, seemed to be held in great contempt; for neither here, nor at any other of the islands, would they pay the smallest attention to them.

In order to give them a more favourable opinion of English amusements, and to leave their minds fully impressed with the deepest sense of our superior attainments, I directed some fireworks to be got ready; and, after it was dark, played them off in the presence of Feenou, the other chiefs, and a vast concourse of their people. Some of the preparations we found damaged; but others of them were in excellent order, and succeeded so perfectly, as to answer the end I had in view. Our water and sky-rockets, in particular, pleased and astonished them beyond all conception; and the scale was now turned in our favour.

This, however, seemed only to furnish them with an additional motive to proceed to fresh exertions of their very singular dexterity; and our fireworks were no sooner ended, than a succession of dances, which Feenou had got ready for our entertainment, began. As [180] a prelude to them, a band of music, or chorus of eighteen men, seated themselves before us, in the centre of the circle, composed by the numerous spectators, the area of which was to be the scene of the exhibitions. Four or five of this band, had pieces of large bamboo, from three to five or six feet long, each managed by one man, who held it nearly in a vertical position, the upper end open, but the other end closed by one of the joints. With this close end, the performers kept constantly striking the ground, though slowly, thus producing different notes, according to the different lengths of the instruments, but all of them of the hollow or base sort; to counteract which, a person kept striking quickly, and with two sticks, a piece of the same substance, split, and laid along the ground, and, by that means, furnishing a tone as acute as those produced by the others were grave. The rest of the band, as well as those who performed upon the bamboos, sung a slow and soft air, which so tempted the harsher notes of the above instruments, that no bye-stander, however accustomed to hear the most perfect and varied modulation of sweet sounds, could avoid confessing the vast power, and pleasing effect, of this simple harmony.

The concert having continued about a quarter of an hour, twenty women entered the circle. Most of them had, upon their heads, garlands of the crimson flowers of the China rose, or others; and many of them had ornamented their persons with leaves of trees, cut with a great deal of nicety about the edges. They made a circle round the chorus, turning their faces toward it, and began by singing a soft air, to which responses were made by the chorus in the same tone; and these were repeated alternately. All this while, the women accompanied their song with several very graceful motions of their hands toward their faces, and in other directions at the same time, making constantly a step forward, and then back again, with one foot, while the other was fixed. They then turned their faces to the assembly, sung some time, and retreated slowly in a body, to that part of the circle which was opposite the hut where the principal spectators sat. After this, one of them advanced from each side, meeting and passing each other in the front, and continuing their progress round, till they came to the rest. On which two advanced from each side, two of whom also passed each other, and returned as the former; but the other two remained, and to these came one from each side, by intervals, till the whole number had again formed a circle about the chorus.

Their manner of dancing was now changed to a quicker measure, in which they made a kind of half turn by leaping, and clapped their hands, and snapped their fingers, repeating some words in conjunction with the chorus. Toward the end, as the quickness of the music increased, their gestures and attitudes were varied with wonderful vigour and dexterity; and some of their motions, perhaps, would, with us, be reckoned rather indecent. Though this part of the performance, most probably, was not meant to convey any wanton ideas, but merely to display the astonishing variety of their movements.

To this grand female ballet, succeeded one performed by fifteen men. Some of them were old; but their age seemed to have abated little of their agility or ardour for the dance. They were disposed in a sort of circle, divided at the front, with their faces not turned out toward the assembly, nor inward to the chorus; but one half of their circle faced forward as they had advanced, and the other half in a contrary direction. They sometimes sung slowly, in concert with the chorus; and, while thus employed, they also made several very fine motions with their hands, but different from those made by the women, at the same time inclining the body to either side alternately, by raising one leg, which was stretched outward, and resting on the other; the arm of the same side being also stretched fully upward. At other times, they recited sentences in a musical tone, which were answered by the chorus; and, at intervals, increased the measure of the dance, by clapping the hands, and quickening the motions of the feet, which, however, were never varied. At the end, the rapidity of the music, and of the dancing, increased so much, that it was scarcely possible to distinguish the different movements; though one might suppose the actors were now almost tired, as their performance had lasted near half an hour.

After a considerable interval, another act as we may call it, began. Twelve men now advanced, who placed themselves in double rows fronting each other, but on opposite sides of the circle; and, on one side a man was stationed, who, as if he had been a prompter, repeated several sentences, to which the twelve new performers, and the chorus, replied. They then sung slowly; and afterward danced and sung more quickly, for about a quarter of an hour, after the manner of the dancers whom they had succeeded.

Soon after they had finished, nine women exhibited themselves, and sat down fronting the hut where the chief was. A man then rose, and struck the first of these women on the back, with both fists joined. He proceeded, in the same manner, to the second and third; but when he came to the fourth, whether from accident or design I cannot tell, instead of the back, he struck her on the breast. Upon this, a person rose instantly from the crowd, who brought him to the ground with a blow on the head; and he was carried off without the least noise or disorder. But this did not save the other five women from so odd a discipline, or perhaps necessary ceremony; for a person succeeded him, who treated them in the same manner. Their disgrace did not end here; for when they danced, they had the mortification to find their performance, twice disapproved of, and were obliged to repeat it. This dance did not differ much from that of the first women, except in this one circumstance, that the present set, sometimes raised the body upon one leg, by a sort of double motion, and then upon the other alternately, in which attitude they kept snapping their fingers; and, at the end, they repeated, with great agility, the brisk movements, in which the former group of female dancers had shown themselves so expert.

In a little time, a person entered unexpectedly, and said something in a ludicrous way, about the fireworks that had been exhibited, which extorted a burst of laughter from the multitude. After this, we had a dance composed of the men who attended or had followed Feenou. They formed a double circle (i. e. one within another) of twenty-four each, round the chorus, and began a gentle soothing song, with corresponding motions of the hands and head. This lasted a considerable time, and then changed to a much quicker measure, during which they repeated sentences, either in conjunction with the chorus, or in answer to some spoken by that band. They then retreated to the back part of the circle, as the women had done, and again advanced, on each side, in a triple row, till they formed a semicircle, which was done very slowly, by inclining the body on one leg, and advancing the other a little way, as they put it down. They accompanied this, with such a soft air as they had sung at the beginning; but soon changed it to repeat sentences in a harsher tone, at the same time quickening the dance very much, till they finished with a general shout and clap of the hands. The same was repeated several times; but, at last, they formed a double circle, as at the beginning, danced, and repeated very quickly, and finally closed with several very dexterous transpositions of the two circles.

The entertainments of this memorable night concluded with a dance, in which the principal people present exhibited. It resembled the immediately preceding one, in some respects, having the same number of performers, who began nearly in the same way; but their ending, at each interval, was different. For they increased their motions to a prodigious quickness, shaking their heads from shoulder to shoulder, with such force, that a spectator, unaccustomed to the sight, would suppose, that they ran a risk of dislocating their necks. This was attended with a smart clapping of the hands, and a kind of savage holla, or shriek, not unlike what is sometimes practised in the comic dances on our European theatres. They formed the triple semi-circle, as the preceding dancers had done; and a person who advanced at the head on one side of the semi-circle, began by repeating something in a truly musical recitative, which was delivered with an air so graceful, as might put to the blush our most applauded performers. He was answered in the same manner, by the person at the head of the opposite party. This being repeated several times, the whole body on one side joined in the responses to the whole corresponding body on the opposite side, as the semi-circle advanced to the front; and they finished, by singing and dancing as they had begun.

These two last dances were performed with so much spirit, and so great exactness, that they met with universal approbation. The native spectators, who no doubt were perfect judges whether the several performances were properly executed, could not withhold their applauses at some particular parts; and even a stranger, who never saw the diversion before, felt similar satisfaction, at the same instant. For though, through the whole, the most strict concert was observed, some of the gestures were so expressive, that it might be said they spoke the language that accompanied them, if we allow that there is any connection between motion and sound. At the same time, it should be observed, that though the music of the chorus and that of the dancers corresponded, constant practice in these favourite amusements of our friends, seems to have a great share in effecting the exact time they keep in their performances. For we observed, that if any of them happened accidentally to be interrupted, they never found the smallest difficulty in recovering the proper place of the dance or song. And their perfect discipline was, in no instance, more remarkable, than in the sudden transitions, they so dexterously made from the ruder exertions, and harsh sounds, to the softest arts and gentlest movements. [181]

The place where the dances were performed, was an open space amongst the trees, just by the sea, with lights, at small intervals, placed round the inside of the circle. The concourse of people was pretty large, though not equal to the number assembled in the forenoon, when the marines exercised. At that time, some of our gentlemen guessed there might be present about five thousand persons; others thought there were more; but they who reckoned that there were fewer, probably came nearer to the truth.