Every one leemect to be,-occupied with ■ theic.own.huruble
purfuits; an,d*: as far as. our people»: jit,a,vftayr ofutl^reei
months with the natives, could decide, appeared to conduct;
themfelves toward each, other with great eivilityand beneu
yolence;. for they never pbferved any wrangling- .oy> open
paffion.—-Even when children were difputing,; or fighting,;
they ftrongly marked their difpleafure, by
buke their little im£>etuolides.
T H E G E N E R A L .
The next in power was the King’s' brother, R aa Kook,
officially' General of all Ms forces.— It was his duty to fum-
mon the Rupaeks to attend the King, on whate verexpeditinn
or purpofe they were -called; but though Raa K ook, ailed as
Commander in Chief, yet all the executive orders .came from
the King, whenever he attended, in perfon, as fully appeared
when they went on the fecond expedition to A rtjng-aiu.,
where the -canoes -attendant on the King conveyed to the
General all the refolutions wMch he thought advifeable t©
adopts—The General, as the King’s next brother, was his pre*
fumptive heir; the fncceffion o f Pelew not going to the
King’s children, till it had palled through the King’s brothers.;
fo that after the demile of A bba T hulle, the fove-
reignty would have-defcended to R aa Ko.OK,on his demife
to Arra Kooker, and, on the death o f this daft brother,
it
it would -b&Jle' reverted to’the eldeft fon o f A bba T h u l l e ;
on'whichiCóntingency,;QuTBii.L being the prefumptive heir,
would .dnring the:reign' ofhis .laft furvivipgi uncle, have ber-
<come ;of courfe the hereditary General ; as L ee Boo would
when ih e fovereignty had'fallen to his elder brother.
I ‘ T H E M PNTB'T E R.
y The -King was always,attended by,a particular Chief, or
^upqek^ whov did. apt.appear, to.ppftefs. any. hereditary office,
but only-a delegated;. authority — He wasfalways near the
King’s gerlbn, and the .Chief who was firft confultecl: but
whether his office was. religums, or civil, or both, our people
-could, not learn witb any certainty*— He was nat confidered
a warrior, mor.ever bore, arms ;>and had only one wifp,
whereas the other Rupaeks had T he Engti/b were never
invited i to bis* hoüfei :or introduced into it, although they
were condu6led: to almoll all thofe. o f the other Chiefs.
T H E R UP A C KB. •
This clafs, though confiderable in number, could only be
regarded .as Chiefs, or,, to defcri.be them by European notions,
might be denominated the nobles: they were n'ot
all o f the fame degree, as was difting.uilh.able b y a difference
in1 theBia#<? they-wore ;jfome were created whillb
our