are drawn towards each other, and fattened together with
their ftrongeft cord, fo as to form a kind of Gothic arch,
which is completely thatched quite to the ground, being
open only at the ends; they are fometimes fifty or fixty paces
long.
As connected with the navigation of thefe people, I fhall
mention their wonderful fagacity in foretelling the weather,
at lead the quarter from which the wind lhall blow at a future
time; they have feveral ways of doing this, -of which
however I know but one. They fay, that the Milky-way is
always curved laterally; but fometimes in one direction,
and fometimes in another: and that this curvature is the
efieCt of its being already aided upon by the wind, and its
hollow part therefore towards i t ; fo that, i f the fame curvature
continues a night, a correfponding wind certainly blows
the next day. Of their rules, I fhall not pretend to judge;
but I know that, by whatever means, they can predict the
weather, at leaft the wind, with much greater certainty than
we can.
In their longer voyages, they fleer by the fun in the day,
and in the night by the liars ; all of which they diftinguifh
feparately by names, and know in what part o f the heavens
they will appear in any of the months during which they
are vifible in their horizon; they alfo know the time of their
annual appearing and difappearing with more precifion than
will eafily he believed by an European aftronomer.
CH AP .
227
CHAP . XIX.
O f the D ivifion o f Time in O taheite; Numeration, Computation
o f D ifla n ce, Language, D ifeafes, D ifp o fa l o f
the D ea d , Religion, W a r, Weapons, and Government;
with fome general Obfervations fo r the XJfe o f fu tu r e
Navigators.
WE w^re not able to acquire a perfect idea o f their
method of dividing time; but obferved, that in
fpeaking of it, either paft or to come, they never ufed any
term but Malama, which fignifies Moon. Of thefe moons
they count thirteen, and then begin again; which is a de-
monftration that they have a notion of the folar year: but
how they compute their months fo that thirteen of them
fhall be commenfurate with the year, we could not difco-
ver; for they fay that each month has twenty-nine days,
including one in which the moon is not vifible. They have
names for them feparately, and have frequently told us the
fruits that would be in feafon, and the weather that would
prevail, in each of them; and they have indeed a name for
them collectively, though they ufe it only when they fpeak
of .the myfteries of their religion.
Time.
Every day is fubdivided into twelve parts, each of two
hours, of which fix belong to the day, and fix to the night.
At thefe divifions they guefs pretty nearly by the height of
the fun while he is above the horizon ; but there are few of
them that can guefs at them, when he is below it, by the
ftars.
Vol. II. In
I
i l l