1777- -night after. My female phyficians repeated their prefcrip-
SepRfeji^ tion the neSt morning, before they went afliore, and again,
T u e f i a y 23. evcn ;ng j when they returned on board ; after which,
I found the pains entirely remo ved; and the cure being
-Wednef. 34. perfected, they took their leave o f me the fo llow in g mornin
g. T his th e y call ramee ; an operation which, in m y opinion,
far exceeds the flefh-brufh, or any thin g o f the kind
-that w e make ufe o f externally. It is univerfally praiilifed
amongft thefe iflanders -, be in g fometimes performed by the
men, but more generally b y the women. If, at any time,
one appears languid and tired, arid fits down b y any o f
them, they immediately be g in to pradlife the romee-upon
his legs ; and I have always found it to have an exceedingly
good efictif *.
trhurfday 2;. In the mo rn in g o f the 25th, Otoo, Mr. King,, and Ornai,
returned from Attahooroo; and Mr. K in g gave me the fo llow
in g account o f what he had feen :
“ Soon after you left me, a fécond mefTcnger came from
Towha to Otoo, w ith a plantain-tree. It was funfet when
we embarked in a canoe and left Oparre. About nine o’clock
w e landed at Tettaha, at that extremity w hich joins to Attahooroo.
Before w e landed, the people called to us from
the Ihore ; probably, to tell us that Towha was there. The
¡meeting o f Otoo and this Chief, I expected, would afford
fome incident worthy o f obfervation, Otoo, and his attendants,
went and feated themfelves on the beach, clofe to
the canoe in w,hich T owh a was, He was then aileeps but
his fervants having awakened him, and mentioning Otoo’s
name, immediately a plantain-tree and a dog, were laid at
■* S e e Captain Wallis’ s account o f tire fame Operation performed on himfelf,-and
i f l firft Lie.uteriant, in -liciztfiejitjorth’ s GolkRion^ V o l. i. p. 463. .
•j* Otoo’s
Otoo’ s fe e t: and many o f T ow h a ’s people came and talked „ *777-
. . S ep tem b e r .
w ith him, as I conceived, about their expedition to Eimeo. 1 .— -
After I had, for fome time, remained feated clofe to Otoo,
T owha neither' Itirring from his canoe, nor holding any
converfation with us, I w en t to him. He aiked trie i f Toote
was angry with him. I anfwered, No: that he was his taio-,
and that he had ordered me to g o to Attahooroo to tell him
fo. Omai now had a lo n g converfation w ith this C h ie f ;
but I could gather rio information o f any kind from him.
On m y returning to Otoo, he feemed defirous, that I fhould
g o to eat, and then to fleep. A ccordingly, Omai and I le ft
him. On queftioning Omai, he faid, the reafon o f T ow h a ’s „
not itirring from his canoe, was his being lame; but that, pre-
fently, Otoo and he wou ld converfe together in private. This
feemed true ; fo r in a little time, thofe w e left w ith Otoo
came to u s ; and, about ten minutes after, Otoo h im fe lf
arrived, and we a ll went to fleep in his canoe.
The next morning, the .ava was in great plenty. One
man drank fo much that he loft his fenfes. I ihould have
fuppofed him to be in a fit, from the convulfions that a g i- •
tated him. Tw o men held him, and kept p lu ck in g o ff his
hair by the roots. I left this fpediacle to fee another that,
was more affecting. This was the meeting o f T owha and
his wife, and a yo u n g gir l, whom I underftood to be his
daughter. Afte r the ceremony o f cutting their heads, and
difcharging a tolerable quantity o f blood and tears, they
vvafhed, embraced the Chiqf, and feemed unconcerned. But
the yo u n g g ir l’s fufferings were not yet come to an- Cnd.
le r r id i r i* arrived ; and flte went, with great comfeofure,
to repeat the fame ceremonies to him, which ihe had juft
performed on meeting her father. T owh a had brought a
* Terridirl is Oberea’s fon. See an account o f the royal family o f Otaheite, in
Hirwktjwortb''s ColleSiion^ V o l. ii. p. 1 54.
V ol. II. K large