A V O Y A G E ROUND T H E WO R L D .
mTy. nails, Alins, and red feathers, for which (he was indebted to
the friendfliip which every body felt for Mahine. This"
youth told us he had a great mind to fettle at Taheitee,
fince his friends had offered him land, houfe, and property
of all kinds there. He was received into an aree’s family,
efteemed by the king himfelf, and refpecTed by all the people
; nay, one of his friends had given him an attendant, or
towtow, a boy who conftantly waited on him wherever he'
went; who pundtually executed all his orders, and ftemed
to be but little different from a flave.
Though Mahine had laid afide the idea of going to England,
yet the lively boy, Noona, Was very defirous of vifiting;
that country, and fpoke to my father and feveral other gentlemen,
in the rnoft urgent terms, to take him on board:
As my father propofed to take him entirely at his own expence,
captain Cook confented immediately to his reception.
The boy was however told, that he mud never expedt to'
come back, fince it was very doubtful whether another Ihip'
would be fent to Taheitee again. Noona was too much
bent upon going with us, to hefitate a moment even at this
difficulty. He refigned the hope of returning to his country,
for the pleafure of vifiting ours. In the evening however
of the fame day captain Cook declared he would not
take him on board, and he was accordingly obliged to remain
at Taheitee. As it was intended to teach him the rudiments
of the arts of the carpenter and fmith, he would
have
A V O Y A G E ROUND THE WORLD. 91
have returned to his country at lead as valuable a member mIy.
of fociety as O-Mai, who, after a flay of two years in England,
will be able to amufe his countrymen with the mufic
of a hand-organ, and with the exhibition of a puppet-
fhow.
We paffed feveral days in vifiting the plains of Matava'f,
and the extenfive valley of Ahonnoo, which is one of the mod
fertile, and, at the fame time, mod pidturefque, in the whole
idand. On the 6th, in the afternoon, my father and Dr, Fridays.
Sparrman went up to the hills a fecond time, and I accompanied
them, in hopes of meeting with fome new plants
there, fince we had entirely exhauded the Flora of the
plains. We paffed the night again in Tahea’ s hut, with
this difference, that we did not keep watch. Tahea was a
merry humorous fellow ; and it was his condant requed to
us to call him medua (father), and his wife o-fattea *
(mother.)
We went up early the next day, but did not care to go
quite to the fummit. In the fored we colleided a number of
new plants, and ffiot a fwallow. As we fet out before fun-
rife, Tahea and his brother, who went up with us, caught
fome terns, which dept on the bullies along the path. He
told us that many aquatic-birds come to red on the moun-
* Pattea is properly a word of endearment, equivalent to our mamma. T h is lafl:
■ the Taheitians like wife -make' ufe of in the identical fenfe that we do.
N 2 stains,