udian? _You_ call yourself a
missionary? Jove, you're more like a blooming play hactor in a penny
gaff! Easy, then, my hearties," he added, seeing that the fishermen were
approaching him again, with ropes in their hands. "Avast! stow your
handcuffs."

In spite of his oaths and struggles, the inebriated mariner was firmly
bound, hand and foot, and placed in the centre of the assembly. I only
wished that the natives had also gagged him, for his language, though, of
course, unintelligible to them, was profane, and highly painful to me.

Before returning to business, the chiefs carefully inspected the black
bottle, of which they had dispossessed William Bludger. A golden vase
was produced--they had always plenty of _them_ handy--and the dark fluid
was poured into this princely receptacle, diffusing a strong odour of
rum. Each chief carefully tasted the stuff, and I was pained, on
gathering, from the expression of their countenances, that they obviously
relished the "fire-water" which has been the ruin of so many peoples in
these beautiful but benighted seas. However, there was not enough left
to go round, and it was manifestly unlikely that William Bludger had
succeeded in conveying larger supplies from the wreck.

The meeting now assumed its former air of earnestness, and it was not
hard to see that the arrival of my unhappy and degraded fellow-countryman
had introduced a new element into the debate. Man after man spoke, and
finally the chief rose, as I had little doubt, to sum up the discussion.
He pointed to myself, and to William Bludger alternately, and the words
which I had already noted, Thargeelyah, and farmakoi, frequently recurred
in his speech. His ideas seemed to meet with general approval; even the
old priest laid aside his sickle, and beat applause with his hands. He
next rose, and, taking two garlands of beautiful flowers from the horns
of the altar, placed one wreath on the head of the drunken sailor, who
had fallen asleep by this time. He then drew near me, and I had little
doubt that he meant to make me also wear a garland, like some woman of
rank and fashion at a giddy secular entertainment. Whatever his motive
might be I was determined to wear nothing of the kind. But here some
attendants grappled and held me, my hat was lifted from my brows, and the
circlet of blossoms was carefully entwined all round my hat. The head-
covering was then replaced, the whole assembly, forming a circle, dan