Late 1807 — Mid 1808
The day after the return of the expedition, the gods were invoked in the usual way, and the oracular answer was, to proceed immediately to war against Vava’u. All things being in readiness, the following morning the King embarked with the whole of his forces, about 5000 men, besides 1000 women, in fifty large canoes, with the four carronades, ammunition, and everything necessary for a vigorous attack upon the strong fortress of Vava’u. Towards evening, the fleet arrived at Fonuafo’ou (one of the small islands in the neighborhood of Vava’u), whence Finau dispatched four canoes, manned with select warriors, up the inlet, towards the fortress, with orders to kill whomsoever they could. They succeeded in killing three men, and severely wounding a fourth, whom, with the three dead bodies, they brought to Finau. Killing these three men, in the first attempt upon the enemy, was by no means to be considered a trifling advantage, for it was supposed to augur the protection of the gods, and great future successes.
Early in the morning, the Ha’apai fleet proceeded up the inlet to Neiafu (the consecrated spot) where they landed safely, leaving the women in the canoes. The four carronades were planted opposite the house of a neighboring mala’e, ready to be drawn up the following morning to the fortress, which was about three miles off. The day was spent in settling and arranging sundry matters. During the night, which was exceedingly dark, a considerable degree of alarm was excited by two or three of the enemy, who approached, and threw a spear among a number of Finau’s people, asleep near the house. It happened, however, to strike a bundle of spears that was placed upright against a tree, and, throwing it down, occasioned such a noise, that several of the men were awakened by it, who, thinking that the main body of the enemy was coming down upon them, began to run away; at this moment, one of them, more courageous than the rest, snatching up a piece of lighted wood, applied it to the touch-hole of one of the guns, which instantly went off, and produced such an effect on the enemy, that no more was heard of him that night. This certainly was a bold act for a man who had never before fired a gun in his life, and might, in the worst case, have been productive of the best effects, for, if the enemy had come in considerable numbers, as was at the moment falsely imagined, and this man had not had such presence of mind, all Finau’s army might have been put completely to the rout, their guns taken from them, and a vast number of them slain. As it was, the report of the gun, awakening all who were yet asleep, induced such a degree of consternation as is scarcely to be conceived; they ran in all directions, but most of them to the canoes, and it was some time before their fears were sufficiently calmed for them to be induced to return. The man who performed this exploit received much praise and respect for his bravery; as to promotion, it is a thing not known among them, for no man can hold a rank in society which he is not born to; and as to other modes of reward, the merit of a good or brave action is considered its best reward, together with the admiration and respect which it creates, unless the party makes a point to boast of it, and then his merit is set almost at nought.
Early the following morning Finau divided his army into three grand divisions: the right wing was commanded by Tupouto’a, the left by Liufau, chief of Ha’ano, and the center by Finau himself. The guns were allotted, two to the center, and one to each flank, and were managed by seven Englishmen, beside myself, and a black native of South America, taken by the Port au Prince in one of her prizes. Matters being thus arranged, and Finau having repeated the orders he had formerly issued, namely that his men should keep themselves perfectly steady, and not attack the enemy till they were quite close to them — the army began its march towards the garrison. After four or five hours of interrupted progress, owing chiefly to the weight of the guns and the badness of the road, they arrived before the fortress, on the banks of which a vast number of the enemy were assembled. As they approached, a shower of arrows was discharged upon them; but Finau ordered a matapule to advance forward and request an armistice, that each party might take leave of what friends and relations they might have among their opponents; which being granted, a number came out of the garrison to take a farewell of their relatives — perhaps the last farewell of those who were about to fight against them. Here ensued a moving scene; many tears were shed on both sides, and many a last embrace exchanged. In a civil war at these islands, as well as at other places, it often happens that sons have to fight against their fathers, and brothers against their brothers; but what renders this circumstance still more common at Tonga, is the adherence to an old established custom, which binds every man in honor to join the cause of that chief on whose island he happens to be at the time the war is declared, unless some circumstance, as particular relationship between great men, engages the chief of the island, upon earnest request, to give him liberty to depart.
This affecting spectacle had lasted about two hours, when a circumstance accidentally occurred, unfortunate enough in its consequences, but which might have turned out still more so. One of the enemy, upon the outer bank of the fortress, wantonly shot an arrow at me, but which fortunately missed me, and stuck in a tree close at my elbow. I immediately turned about, and discovering the man who discharged it, leveled my musket, on the impulse of the moment, and shot him dead upon the spot. Instantly the enemy sounded the war-whoop, and all was uproar and confusion. The King, not understanding the cause, was in a most violent rage with me, and would forthwith have dispatched me with his club, had he been near enough, His matapules did all they could to calm his temper, but he was not easily pacified. He sent a man to me to demand my musket, but feeling myself aggrieved, I peremptorily refused. Finau, by this time, becoming somewhat more calm, and learning the true cause of the disaster, was speedily reconciled. In the meantime the enemy, conceiving this to be a piece of treachery, returned to their entrenchments, and assailed the besiegers with showers of arrows. The King now ordered the great guns to open a fire upon the fort, but they seemed to do little or no injury to the works, owing to the height of the place and the strength of the embankment; several, however, were killed who ventured outside of it. The firing had lasted, with occasional intermissions, during six or seven hours, when a considerable number of the enemy were perceived coming out of the fencing, and sheltering themselves behind the banks, with the evident intention of sallying forth. Upon this the King ordered all his men to sit down, and to remain perfectly quiet and steady, although the enemy should advance quite close to them, till they received his further orders to rise up and rush upon them. They accordingly sat down. A party of fifteen or sixteen now came down from the fort, and seven or eight of Ha’apai people ran forward to skirmish with them. One of the advanced party of the enemy came up to within fifteen or sixteen yards of the carronade, of which I had the charge, and there stood, brandishing his spear in a threatening attitude. I immediately fired the gun at him, but the moment the match was applied the man fell flat on his face, and the shot missed him. The moment after, he sprung up again, and advanced forward to within ten paces of the gun, dancing and making sundry warlike gesticulations; he then brandished and threw his spear, intending it to enter the gun, but it struck against the muzzle. I was astonished at the boldness and presumption of this warrior, and was determined to punish him for his rashness. I accordingly leveled my musket, but just as I was pulling the trigger, an arrow struck the barrel of the piece, and caused me to miss my aim. The warrior then shouted aloud, and returned with all speed to the fortress. Here the reader will no doubt recollect the bravado of a man who assumed the name of Fanna Fonnua, and declared that he would advance boldly up to a gun and throw his spear into the mouth of it, by way of expressing his contempt for this instrument of warfare. This warrior was the man; and he no doubt would have shared a severer fate, had I been prepared for him, but having treated that threat as an idle boast, I had altogether forgotten the circumstance, and did not again reflect on it till after it was over.
The main body of the enemy was still stationed behind the banks, upon places cut for them to stand on, so that they were defended breast high, and thus had an opportunity of discharging their arrows in abundance, without much risk of receiving a shot in return. After a time, however, they came forth from their strong hold, and assembled on the outside, forming themselves quickly into three divisions, the same as Finau’s army. Most of the greatest and bravest warriors stationed themselves in the left wing, with the view of descending, with all their concentrated power, on Finau’s right wing, commanded by Tupouto’a, along with whom were the other principal men that had assassinated Tupouniua, six or seven in number. Against each of these, twenty of the enemy’s left wing had orders to throw their spears, at a signal to be given, without directing their attention particularly to anyone else, each party of twenty having singled out its man. These matters having been arranged, and having stationed themselves outside the bank as above stated, the whole advanced slowly and steadily forward. Finau’s men still remained seated on the ground, according to the orders that had been given them, except a few who danced before them, by way of showing their contempt for the enemy, and of provoking them to hostilities. I requested Finau to order these men in, that a cannonade might be opened upon the enemy; but the King objected, stating that as the enemy ventured forward in an open body he would receive their attack, and fight them upon equal terms; that these guns gave him too great an advantage over them, such as he scorned to take; that it was more honorable to fight them man to man than to use against them arms that were rather fitted for the hostilities of spirits than of men. At the same time he returned his thanks for the advantages formerly derived from the use of these weapons, which he thought well calculated for the destruction of forts.
The enemy now advanced within thirty paces, and threw their spears; instantly the Ha’apai army, too eager to remain longer quiet, sprang up, and rushing upon their foes. A close engagement commenced, which was obstinately maintained for about an hour, when the enemy was repulsed, and beaten completely back into the fortress. It was now twilight, but the Ha’apai warriors pursued them to their very doors. One chief in particular, Siulua [literally, to fish on a sunken reef.], although he was wounded in the breast by a five-barbed spear, the shaft of which he had broken off, rushed even within the banks of their fortress, and there knocked out a man’s brains; in making his retreat, however, he was wounded in the back by another spear, which, not being barbed, he drew out, and ran back to his own party; but the wound was mortal, and he lingered till the next day. This was the same chief, who, on the day of Tupouniua’s burial, challenged any of the Vava’u people to fight him. He came to battle, he said, with a kind of presentiment that he should be killed, and was determined, therefore, to sell his life as dearly as possible.
It is not at all extraordinary that most of those who had assisted in the assassination of Tupouniua should fall victims, in this battle, to the vengeance of the enemy; but it is very extraordinary that one among them, Latuila, (who, as may be remembered, insulted the body of Tupouniua, and upbraided him with the murder of his father) should altogether escape without a single wound or hurt worth mentioning; although he, like the rest of the assassins, was the object of the vengeance of twenty men combined against him. This circumstance gave rise to the general opinion that he was defended by the gods. He certainly fought with uncommon bravery, and this was the first time that he had distinguished himself; but it must be kept in recollection, that he was fighting against a party whose late chief had slain his own father.
During this battle several of the Ha’apai women came to the scene of action, that they might be near their husbands to assist them if wounded. One of them, the wife of Tupouto’a, (Tupou ‘Ahome’e) was taken prisoner by the enemy, but extremely well used by them; and about three weeks afterwards she was sent back, from motives of respect, because she was a great ‘Eiki (chief) of the family of Tu’i Tonga. Had she been of Finau’s family, she would no doubt have been retained a prisoner.
Night was now set in, but, by Finau’s orders, a firing was kept up, merely with stones, to avoid a waste of shot, because no good aim could be taken. This lasted for about an hour. The King’s matapules then made several speeches to the garrison, soliciting the Vava’u chiefs to submit to the government of Finau, but they objected, under the apprehension that they should be afterwards killed by the treachery of the King or of Tupouto’a. Finau then addressed them, threatening to remain there the whole night, and the next day to set about building a fort opposite theirs, and to keep up the war until they either yielded or were destroyed.
Shortly after this, however, he gave orders to his men to repair as silently and as speedily as possible to Neiafu. He deceived the enemy in this way, to prevent them proceeding by another road, and cutting off his retreat. The guns were given in charge to some of the principal warriors, with men under their command to drag them along. The labour of doing this for three miles was by no means trifling, particularly as the road was very uneven, and the task rendered the men very impatient; they swore heartily at all guns, and all Englishmen for making them, and wanted to know why they could not construct them a little lighter; or at least, as they had ingenuity enough to make the guns, they ought to have, they said, the ingenuity also to make legs for them to walk with.
Being arrived at Neiafu, the King, his chiefs, matapules, myself, and some of the Englishmen, went on board the canoes to pass the night. I now found, as well as in numerous other instances, the advantage of having an adopted mother, by whom I was provided with plenty of good food, consisting of cooked yams, ripe bananas, and raw fish. We had partaken of no food all the day, and even now not above thirty or forty, consisting of chiefs and matapules, got anything to eat, for the time was too late, and the common men too fatigued, to cook yams enough for themselves that night. As to raw fish, it was considered too good, and at that time too scarce, to give to them.
The idea of eating raw fish is not one of the least revolting to the imagination. We are readily disposed to believe, that nothing but excessive hunger could render this species of food at all palatable; hence voyagers, on witnessing this act among the natives of these islands, have reasonably supposed them to be some of the lower orders much distressed for want of food. But the fact is, raw fish is a very palatable diet, and is accordingly eaten as a matter of choice, not of necessity.
The next morning, after the men had refreshed themselves, armed parties were sent out to cut reeds, for the purpose of building a fortress at Neiafu. Finau and his principal chiefs remained to lay out the plan, while others were employed in digging a ditch about fourteen feet wide and ten feet deep. The spot on which this fortress was planned out was so situated, that one side was close upon the sea-shore, on a steep rocky bank, and therefore requiring no further defense, for the enemy had no large canoes, having broken up all they had to make small ones, and with these it would be imprudent to venture as far as Neiafu, lest their retreat should be cut off by Finau’s larger and swifter canoes. In the course of the day the fencing and ditch were tolerably well completed, so that the following night the greater part of the army slept on shore; but they were not without alarm, for about midnight, a small party of the enemy having come down to reconnoitre, looked through the openings of some part of the fencing that was not quite finished, and seeing several of the men sitting round a fire conversing together, they threw several spears at them, which wounded many, and struck all with a panic. The whole garrison was instantly in a state of confusion; and a great number so far lost their presence of mind as to endeavor to make their escape on board the canoes, In this attempt, forgetting that it was low water, they leapt from off the banks, and fell upon the shelf of rocks below, in consequence of which several of them had broken arms and legs, and sundry contusions, which, together with the fright, producing universal spasm (tetanus) in some of them, caused their death a day or two afterwards. In about a quarter of an hour the alarm perfectly subsided, and they passed the rest of the night quietly.
During the following day the fencing was completed, and a second ditch was planned round the former; this, however, was to be without any fencing, that the guns might be brought to bear more readily upon the enemy, in case they should make a descent upon Neiafu. This ditch was to be eighteen feet wide, and about ten deep. In three days the ditch was dug and the fortress completed. In the meantime the canoes were hauled up within the fencing, and no active operations effected on either side. Four or five women, however revolted from the enemy, and brought information that the chiefs of Vava’u, having now revenged themselves on most of Tupouniua’s murderers, had come to the resolution of waiting a little time without having recourse to any offensive measures, with a view of ascertaining what Finau’s real intentions were.
The fortress being now quite completed, and guns stationed one at each of the four entrances, of which there were two in front (on the inland side) and one on each of the other two sides; Finau gave orders that a strong party should go forth early in the morning, towards the enemy’s fortress, and destroy all the plantations they could come at, but in case of an attack, they should make their retreat as speedily as possible. In the afternoon they returned laden with yams, plantains, etc., but having met with a sudden attack from the enemy, had lost several of their men. They brought intelligence that they had discovered a large field of fine yams nearly full grown, but it was so well defended that they could not with prudence make an attack upon it. Finau however resolved to remain quiet the following night, lest the enemy should be lying in wait for him, and the night after that to proceed with a large and strong party to plunder and destroy this plantation.
In the meantime a young chief revolted to the enemy, and communicated Finau’s intentions with certain additional details, which, however false, served to raise him in the opinion of the enemy, and establish his credit with them. He informed them, over and above the actual truth, that his own father Liufau was to remain behind in the kolo (fortress) with a small party to defend it, but that being secretly an enemy to Finau, he would without doubt readily yield up the place to them. Upon the strength of this information they laid their plan accordingly. Two large parties of warriors, well armed, were to conceal themselves in a thick wood at no great distance from the field of yams, through which wood passed a road leading from Finau’s kolo. They were to lie down on the ground and cover themselves with branches, that as soon as Finau’s army had passed, they might be able to cut off their retreat. At the same time another strong party was to advance upon Neiafu, and take advantage of the supposed treacherous disposition of Liufau.
Finau, having arranged his plan, set off very early in the morning with the far larger part of his men, leaving the remainder under the command of Liufau to take care of the kolo. Very fortunately for Finau, before he had advanced far, he met a man who had deserted from the enemy, and who informed him of their knowledge of his expedition, their plan of frustrating his object, as well as the alleged treachery of Liufau. The King upon hearing this, before he advanced a step farther, ordered Liufau into immediate confinement, with a strong guard over him. This being done, he proceeded towards the fortress of Feletoa, and taking advantage of the information given him by the deserter, actually hemmed in the very party that would otherwise have done the same to him. These, finding themselves, contrary to their expectations, surrounded by Finau’s army, and seeing no other resource than to endeavor to force their way through, made the attempt, and succeeded, after a hard struggle, attended by great slaughter. Sixty of the enemy were killed, and fourteen or fifteen of the Ha’apai people also fell. The enemy now retreated towards the field of yams, to join those who were stationed there for its defense; and Finau, thinking it hazardous to make a farther attack, retired back upon Neiafu, taking with him the sixty dead bodies. The other party of the enemy that had, in the meanwhile, advanced to Neiafu, finding the place not under the command of Liufau, suspected some deception, and made a speedy retreat.
The settlements of Feletoa and Neiafu exist to this day. The author (PWD) was able to locate the remains of the old earth-work fortifications at Feletoa, built to defend the place against the forces of Finau.
The King and his army being arrived at their fortress, the sixty bodies were shared out to the different gods that had houses dedicated to them within the place. In performing this ceremony the people formed a large circle on the ground, with the King at the upper end. The bodies being placed in a row before Finau, a man rose up, and counting the bodies, declared aloud their number. The King then ordered that so many should be allotted to such a god, and so many to such another, and so of the rest. The names of these gods were Taliai Tupou, Tu’ifuapulotu, Laufilitonga, Tupou Lalotonga, and Sinaitakala. The two first only are imaginary beings, the others are souls of departed chiefs; the last of all is a goddess, the soul of a female chief of that name. This being done, the bodies were carried away, and laid before the houses of the different gods to whom they were allotted. After they had remained three or four hours, those who had left relations among the garrison of Neiafu, were carried away and buried; and the remainder, which were only nine or ten in number, were conveyed to the water side, and there disposed of in different ways. Two or three were hung up on a tree; a couple were burnt; three were cut open from motives of curiosity to see whether their insides were sound and entire, and to practice surgical operations upon (which I will describe later); and lastly, two or three were cut up to be cooked and eaten, of which about forty men partook. It is a firm belief with the people that if a man infringes upon the taboo or commits any sacrilege, his liver or some other viscus is liable to become enlarged and scirrhous. They therefore often open dead bodies out of curiosity, to see if they have been sacrilegious in their life time. The natives of these islands are particularly subject to scirrhous tumors.
This was the second instance of cannibalism that I witnessed, but the natives of these islands are not to be called cannibals on this account. So far from its being a general practice, it is on the contrary generally held in abhorrence, and where it is occasionally done, it is only by young warriors, who do it in imitation of the Fiji islanders, attaching to it an idea that there is something in it designating a fierce, warlike, and manly spirit. When they returned to Neiafu after their inhuman repast, several persons, particularly women, avoided them, saying, “Iaue moe kai tangata” (“Away! You are a man-eater.”).
The bodies being thus all disposed of, Finau began to make inquiries respecting the alleged treason of Liufau, and finding no one capable of urging anything against him, and he solemnly declaring his innocence, and stating that his son must have invented this tale to answer some purpose with the enemy; moreover, having always borne a good character and been well beloved by his men, and believed to have been always firmly attached to the interests of Finau, he was set at liberty and restored to his post.
The day after this chief was reinstated, Finau ordered the ceremony of drinking kava to the priest of his tutelar god Tupou Toutai, [Literally, God of fishermen.] by way of gratitude for the late victory.
This ceremony is exactly the same as that of invoking a god through the medium of his priest, and consists merely in the customary form of sitting down to make kava in the presence of a priest (he presiding at the head of the ring). In this instance, after the kava, pork, etc. had been served out, one of the matapules, in a few words, thanked the God in the person of the priest, for the late signal victories. The priest in answer, after waiting for another dish of kava, declared that Finau would at length succeed in his war against Feletoa, but that this fortress was not the strongest power he had to contend with, for the seeds of insurrection were already sown in his own army, and although Liufau was perfectly innocent of what had been alleged against him, yet there was one at no great distance from him for whom so much could not be said. The God having condescended to declare this, left his priest, and the latter arose and went away; the company then broke up. Finau pretended to take no notice of what the priest declared, not wishing the circumstance to be much noticed by others.
The following day an adopted son of Finau brought him secret intelligence that he had heard that several men had been sent off at different times, by Mapa Ha’ano, to the fortress of Feletoa, to concert with the enemy on the subject of revolt, and that this chief had the intention of doing what Liufau had been unjustly accused of and imprisoned for. The King immediately sent for Mapa Ha’ano, who obeyed the summons, and came drest up in mats, with green leaves round his neck, (marks of humiliation and fear) attended by a priest. When they arrived opposite Finau’s house, they sat down before it; then the priest rose and advancing nearer to Finau, who was seated just within the eaves of the house, he again sat down before him, and stated that Mapa Ha’ano had requested his intermediation, to express for him the sentiments of self-accusation with which he felt himself oppressed, and his acknowledgment of the justice of his fate, if Finau should think proper to take away his life. The King replied, that he did not mean to take away his life, for that it was not the custom at Tonga, to kill those of whom one has no reason to be afraid, and that he did not think it worth his while to destroy a mere butterfly (an insignificant being), but that he should take other measures of punishment not less exemplary. He then desired the culprit to consider himself for the future as divested of all power and rank, no longer to be the commander of men, but a single and unprotected individual; that his chiefship from that moment was null, and that consequently he was never more to take his seat as a chief at his kava ceremonies. A certain chief, who was present, observed to Finau that if he suffered this man to live, although he was deprived of power, he might nevertheless by pernicious counsel, inspire other chiefs with sentiments derogatory to the welfare of Finau’s government. To which the King replied, that this was not a war between men, in whose success or ill success the gods took no interest, but one in which his tutelar god, Tupou Toutai, presided in a particular manner over his fortune and welfare, and that this God would take care that such pernicious attempts, on the part of the disgraced chief, should not affect the other chiefs of his army, or if they did, that he should be made acquainted with it by the priest. The company now dispersed.
After this period Mapa Ha’ano always wore mats as significant of his degraded state. He seldom attended any public ceremonies or assemblies, because it obliged him to sit along with the common people, and he could not brook, on such occasions, to feel so much his inferiority to other chiefs who formerly were his equals. It must not be supposed that he always wore these mats from pure humility, but rather from fear, for had he appeared without them, Finau might have been angry, and death might have been the consequence.
There being now every day some desertion or another of either army to the opposite one, the King issued orders that every deserter from the enemy should be put to death, the same as if he had been a deserter from himself. This he did the better to avoid all communication between the two contending armies.
For some time past several of Finau’s men had been killed in different instances, by three or four of the enemy, under the command of a warrior named Moteita, a most expert and daring fellow, who often ventured by night and early in the morning close up to the kolo of Neiafu to kill any stragglers they could meet with. One morning, I and a party of Finau’s men, twelve or fourteen in number, being out on a little excursion, surprised four of the enemy, who were busily employed digging ma in a pit. Ma is a species of prepared food, consisting of breadfruit, or plantains, or bananas, buried for a considerable time under ground, in order to ferment [In modern Tonga, the word, ma, is used as a general term for bread.] These men they immediately laid hold of, and dragged out of the pit, to take them home prisoners; imagining they had got Moteita and his followers who had so often committed depredations upon them; and resolving therefore to make a signal example of their prisoners. A young chief, however, opposed this measure, and proposed that it would be better to cut off their heads at once, and take their heads home. This plan was immediately assented to, but some one observing that they had no knives with them, another casting his eyes upon the ground, remarked, there was something that would do as well; and taking up a shell from a neighboring spot, where some persons had been eating large pearl oysters, he proposed to proceed to work with oyster-shells as substitutes for knives. This was immediately approved of, and the four unfortunate victims were taken in hand. It was in vain that they begged their lives, protesting that they were not the persons they had taken them for. In vain did I point out the cruelty of the act, urging them at least to kill them first speedily, and cut off their heads afterwards. To this remonstrance they answered that their prisoners deserved to be severely punished for the many atrocities they had committed; and as to killing them first, and cutting off their heads afterwards, they thought it unnecessary trouble. This horrible piece of cruelty was accordingly committed on the spot. They began the operation, (after having stripped themselves, to prevent their garments from getting bloody,) by haggling at the back of the neck; they then cut gradually round the throat, till they had got through everything but the spine, which they divided by turning the head down, and giving it a violent twist. This being done, they washed themselves, resumed their ngatus, and proceeded with the four heads to the garrison. It was still early when they arrived, and they found the King sitting with his friends on the mala’e drinking kava. The four heads were brought to him by different men, and placed in the middle of the circle upright with their faces towards Finau, who returned his thanks (as customary) to those who had killed them. Having seated myself near Finau, the latter asked me why they did not kill them at once, without cutting off their heads. This question he asked partly from motives of humanity, and partly to know why they took so much trouble about them.
Even in a so-called “paradise,” mankind behaved in a savagely brutal manner towards his fellow beings. It is tempting to say that this outrageously cruel beheading, as well as the many other similar occurrences witnessed by Mariner in these warm and bountiful islands was inhuman. Yet, it is probably more “human” than most of us would care to admit.
A few days after this event, Tupou Puku [puku means, small] a certain priest, belonging to the kolo of Feletoa, and who was a relation of Finau, having been consulted, regarding some matters of policy, gave advice which appeared to the Vava’u chiefs more consonant to Finau’s interests than their own, and they accordingly objected to it, declaring that he wanted to act a treacherous part by befriending his relation. Upon which the priest told them that if they could place no credit in his word, nor confidence is his honesty, he was of no use to them, and therefore they had better kill him at once, or at least confine him; or if they had a mind to behave generously towards him, permit him to go away and live with Finau. The chiefs replied that they should take a little time to consider of it. He did not think proper, however, to wait for their decision, but made his escape early one morning, and took refuge with Finau, whom he informed of a design the enemy had of besieging him. In consequence of this information every preparation was made to put the fortress in the best possible state of defense.
Some time now elapsed in expectation of the enemy’s approach; but there were no signs of them. Finau, in the meanwhile, came to a determination of making Vava’u his place of constant residence. This he did for two reasons, first, because it was the largest and most fruitful of all his islands; and secondly, because by his presence he could better govern a people who appeared to be so little attached to his interests. It was now the scarce time of the year, and his stock of provisions began to grow short. It was necessary therefore to dispatch canoes to the Ha’apai Islands for a fresh supply, that might last them till the season had so far advanced as to provide them with the vegetable produce of the surrounding country. A large canoe was therefore got ready, with orders to return with yams and ma; it had an additional number of hands on board, with which to man another canoe that they were to bring back with them, laden in like manner. Several women and children also took this opportunity of going to Ha’apai to see their friends. One morning the canoe set sail for one of the Vava’u islands, called Taunga [See photograph of Taunga taken from the summit of ‘Euakafa.] with the intention of remaining there during the night, and of departing again very early the following morning, to prosecute the voyage. While here, however, the wind unfortunately changed, and they were under the necessity of remaining at Taunga several days. For the first two or three days they kept a good look out, lest they should be surprised by the enemy, and at night slept on board the canoe; but not finding themselves disturbed by anyone, they at length relaxed their vigilance, and slept on shore by large fires; in consequence of which they met with a sad disaster. On the fifth night they had lighted their fires as usual, and the greater part had fallen asleep, when forty or fifty of the enemy’s choicest warriors, commanded by Makapapa, [Literally, a flat, hard sandstone.] rushed suddenly upon them. The enemy had heard from some stragglers, that this expedition to Ha’apai had been obliged to remain at Taunga. They accordingly put to sea in their small canoes, and arrived at the opposite side of the island after dark. A great part of them landed, and being guided by the fires, fell upon those who were reposing in imaginary security, and with their clubs made an end of about eight and twenty. The remainder escaped to the canoe, but not without much difficulty; for some of their companions who had remained to take care of it, being alarmed by the uproar of this sudden attack on shore, had pushed off into deep water. Those who made their escape from the beach were obliged to swim, and several of them were much wounded by spears thrown at them. Under cover of the darkness they got off to a neighboring island; and early in the morning, the wind becoming more favorable, they proceeded on their voyage.
In the meanwhile a man ran away from the enemy’s garrison, and brought information of the departure of Makapapa to attack the Ha’apai expedition. Finau ordered several large canoes to put to sea immediately, in pursuit of them. This was speedily accomplished, and in the course of a few hours they came up with Makapapa’s canoes, and took ten of them. Many attempted to make their escape to the shore; but being prevented by the large canoes from proceeding to the regular landing places, they were under the necessity of venturing their necks by climbing up steep rocks that rose almost perpendicularly from the water. In this attempt some fell and were killed.
A fortnight now elapsed without any material circumstance occurring. Almost every day, however, there was some little skirmish with the enemy; but which led to no particular result. At the end of this time, the canoes from Ha’apai not being yet returned, Finau began to turn his thoughts more seriously than ever towards the large field of yams I spoke of. He made preparations therefore for an attack upon it; hoping that if he did not succeed in procuring some yams, he should at least be able to bring the enemy to a general engagement. With this view he picked out some of the choicest of his men, about eighty in number, and gave them orders to conceal themselves, during the night, in a thicket close to the enemy’s fortress, and on one side of the road. Finau in the meanwhile proceeded with a party of six hundred towards Feletoa. When he arrived within a quarter of a mile of the fort; it being yet dark, he took up his station in a field of high grass, situated in a valley, which could not be seen by the enemy. He then dispatched a hundred men to dig up the yams, and fifty more, under the command of Hala’api’api [Literally, the crowded road.] (an adopted son of the late Tupouniua) to the fortress, with a view of enticing the enemy out, and leading them beyond the ambuscade. The enemy, however, kept close within his entrenchments. The fact was, there were not many men in the place, at least not great warriors, the rest having gone to another part of the island to launch a large canoe, for the purpose of bringing it round to the garrison to break up and make small ones of. But as soon as the enemy discovered Hala’api’api, they sent down to their companions at the further side of the island, to inform them of what was going forward. They came as soon as they possibly could, but too late to save the yams. As soon as they arrived at the fort and saw the field of yams completely despoiled, they became dreadfully enraged, and rushed out in a body upon Hala’api’api, who immediately retreated, with a design of drawing them on beyond the two ambuscades. In this, for the most part, he succeeded to his wishes; for the enemy were so blinded by their rage, and pushed on by desire of revenge, that they did not reflect on the probability that there was some stratagem. They continued to follow, and he to retreat, till they passed the first ambush, where Finau lay concealed, and were fast advancing towards the second, when Finau’s men, too eager for conquest, rose up and attacked them in the rear. The second ambush, hearing the noise of this attack, immediately started up, and joining Hala’api’api, a hard and close fight was kept up for about a quarter of an hour; when the enemy finding themselves too strongly opposed, retreated towards the fortress, in which they took shelter, being pursued close up to their doors by the Ha’apai warriors. Having recovered themselves a little from their consternation, they prepared to renew the combat, and again sallied forth, and commenced a general engagement with spears and arrows, which lasted about three quarters of an hour; when they again took shelter within their walls. In the first engagement the enemy had forty men killed, and Finau only two. In the last attack they had only one man killed, and Finau none, though several died afterwards of their wounds; but this was only an engagement with arrows and spears, which they are very dexterous in avoiding. Clubs were not used; for the enemy were upon a higher ground, and it would not have been prudent to have attacked them with the club, and risk the loss of their former advantages; and the enemy were too much discouraged to venture into the plain for this purpose. The day was so rainy that no muskets could be well used.
In the last affair I received an arrow in my foot, which passed quite through the broadest part of it; luckily it was not a bearded arrow; but the wound was, nevertheless less, a very bad one; for the weapon being made of a short, splintering wood, it broke, and consequently I was afterwards disabled for several months. The Tonga surgeons are not the most expert in the world, and the pieces of wood they took out from time to time, by no better means than cutting down upon them with sharp shells, or bamboo rendered the affair very tedious and painful.
The Ha’apai army being returned to Neiafu, Finau gave orders that no man should venture out for some time, lest the vigilance and anger of the enemy being now so strongly excited, some should fall a prey to their rashness.
About a week afterwards, a warrior, named Havili, [Literally, a gale.] requested leave of Finau to permit him to go in a large canoe, with an armed party, to the north-west part of the island, to secure a number of hogs, which the enemy kept there in a fencing, observing, that it would be but proper to relish the Vava’u yams with a little Vava’u pork. Havili was a man remarkable for laying hold of every opportunity of undertaking secret expeditions by night; and he was thought to have killed more men in his life than any other warrior.
The King having granted him leave, he went on board a canoe, with forty stout men, and proceeded towards the place. The enemy, however, had previously sent an additional force to take care of their hogs, thinking, very justly, that Finau might be encouraged to turn his attention to that quarter, from having met with such success in the field of yams. It happened, one night, that part of this body-guard, sauntering about upon the beach, perceived a large canoe coming towards them. They immediately sent word to their companions, and separating into two parties, concealed themselves on either side of the road leading to the fencing. The canoe having reached the shore, half the men landed with Havili at their head, and proceeded towards the place where the hogs were kept. They had no sooner passed the spot where the enemy lay concealed, than the latter rushed out, and attacked them in the rear so suddenly, and with such effect, that fifteen were quickly dispatched, the enemy only losing one man, who was killed by Havili. This warrior and his four remaining men effected their escape to their companions in the canoe, and pushed from the shore as quickly as possible. As they were paddling off, the enemy called out to them in derision, “What! You wanted some pork, did you? How do you like your treat? But stay, here are some fine pigs for you, ready killed (alluding to the dead bodies). Why don’t you come and take them away?” But Havili and his men, sorely discomfited, returned home without making any further attempt.
A few days after Havili’s unsuccessful attempt to secure the enemy’s hogs, one of Finau’s wives ran away from Neiafu; being shortly missed by the rest of the women, in searching for her, it was found that one of his son’s wives had taken the same step, and it was supposed they had gone together. When this was made known to the King, he left the fortress instantly, accompanied by five or six men, and directed his course along the main road leading to Feletoa, but without any success. He returned very much dejected, and sent to his aunt, Toe’umu (the chief of the enemy), requesting to have his wife returned, stating, that it was a war between men, and not women; but his remonstrances had no effect. These women both laboured under the jealousy and tyrannic influence of Mo’unga Tupou, [Literally, a mountain god.] Finau’s favorite wife. Partly to rid themselves of this, and partly to visit and live with relations they had in the opposite garrison, they made their escape, and took a by road near the sea-shore. On the morning of their departure, I was at some distance from Neiafu, gathering shaddocks in a thicket. [The shaddock is a pear-shaped citrus fruit which resembles a grapefruit, but has a coarse dry flesh. The fruit was named after Captain Shaddock who transported the seed from the East Indies to Barbados in 1696.] Although my wound did not allow me to use any active exertions, yet I now and then went abroad by the help of a stick, which, no doubt, was one cause that rendered the cure very tedious. Being up in a tree, I heard a rustling noise in the bushes below, and, directing my attention to the spot, was surprised to see one of Finau’s wives. Prompted by curiosity, I came quickly down, and, seizing her by the arm, I inquired what caused her to stray so far from the fortress, and to expose her person and her life to the insults and cruelty of the enemy. She replied, that she had only come out for a walk, and was going shortly to return. To this account I objected, that it was too far, and too dangerous a walk for her to take alone, with the risk of meeting Moteita and his followers, who often concealed themselves in those woods, and declared my suspicion that she intended to run away. She immediately fell on her knees, clasped her hands, and begged and entreated most earnestly, that I would not prevent her flight from the dominion of tyranny to the bosom of her relations, and appealed most pathetically to my own feelings and affections towards my mother, or whatever relatives I might have in my own country, and represented how hard and cruelly severe it would be for anyone to prevent me flying to them, if it were otherwise in my power. Being moved by the earnestness of her manner, and the unfortunate circumstances of her situation, I raised her up, and promised not to interfere in her escape, nor to divulge the matter to anyone, and gave her full liberty to proceed whichever way she thought proper.
Finau had, for a long time past, entertained the idea of seizing upon several of the enemy’s women, who were in the habit of assembling at a certain part of the inlet, to gather shellfish, and now, that his wife had run away, he was more than ever encouraged to do this, by way of retaliation upon Toe’umu, for the detention of her. The place where they procured this sort of fish, was upon a shelf of rocks (about a foot and a half deep at low water), that ran across the inlet at no great distance from Feletoa. Upon this shelf they were accustomed to fish every day, wading through the water. On these occasions, several men of their own party had frequently alarmed them by rushing out upon them, pretending to be the enemy, and had repeated this so often, that, at length, they only laughed at the joke, and ridiculed the idea of running away. One evening a party of Finau’s men, who had formed themselves for the express purpose of making an attack upon these women, set out in a canoe, and sailed to a part of the island where they could land unobserved, and proceed to the spot where they were fishing, without any danger of discovery, on account of the high bushes that were there in abundance. Being arrived on the spot, at an appointed signal they rushed out upon the women, who immediately set up a hearty laugh, taking them for their old friends, so fond of a joke; but, when they saw two or three knocked down with clubs, they ran away as fast as their strength and the resistance of the water would let them, and the men after them is full pursuit. There were thirty of them, of which number five were killed, and thirteen taken prisoners, the other twelve escaping safe to the opposite shore. In this affair the wife of Finau’s son was very nearly retaken; she ran so exceedingly swift through the water, knee-deep, and the young chief in pursuit of her exerted himself so much to overtake her, although he was near enough to knock her down with his club, that he actually fell through fatigue. It must, however, be said in favor of the chief, that the weight of his club was a great disadvantage, whereas his lovely fugitive ran without any incumbrance, for, in her endeavor to quicken her pace, her ngatu (dress), became loose, and fell from her waist. This was the only time that she looked back, from a sense of modesty, to see if it was recoverable, but she was under the necessity of pursuing her flight without it.
The thirteen prisoners were conducted to Neiafu, though Finau had given orders that all that should be taken should be killed on the spot. The women were obliged, however, by the way, to submit to the will of their captors, for this is always considered a thing of course, and not at all an act of brutality. These transactions are generally conducted in neighboring woods, and by no means in an open, public, or outrageous way. In short, notions of delicacy, in respect to the female sex, have a much higher influence in the Tonga Islands that what would be commonly understood from the accounts of some travellers. Among the lower orders, of course, there are abuses everywhere, but these do not constitute the legal customs of a country.
The captors saved their lives, however, partly from motives of humanity, and partly from those of profit (as they could employ them in making ngatu, etc.). When they arrived at Neiafu, there happened a strong dispute between several relations of the prisoners, and those who had taken them; the former arguing that they had a claim to the women, according to the old Tonga custom, which decrees, that all persons shall be in the service of their older and superior relations, if those relations think proper to employ them. The captors, on the other hand, strenuously grounded their claims on the right of conquest. The dispute ran very high, and they referred it to Finau, who replied, that he should not interfere in it, and they might settle it themselves as well as they could, for they had no right to bring the prisoners there at all to create disturbances, but should have knocked out their brains according to his orders. At length he condescended to give his opinion, namely that the most proper method would be, under these circumstances, to cut each woman in two, and give one half to her relation, and the other to the captor. The affair, however, was amicably settled, without having recourse to such bloody measures; some being given up to their relatives, and others retained, upon terms mutually agreeable to all parties.
About this time the two long expected canoes arrived from Ha’apai, laden with provisions. They had been detained partly by contrary winds, and partly by the people going to visit their relatives at different islands.
Places, which have been consecrated either by express declaration, or by the burial of great chiefs, are forbidden to be the scene of war, and it would be highly sacrilegious to attack an enemy, or spill his blood within their confines. This circumstance, however, occurred a few days after the dispute about the female prisoners; the particulars of it are as follow.
Palavale, brother of Havili, went out one day on a foraging party with six men in two small canoes, and landed near a consecrated inclosure, called Ngakau, one of the most fertile places in the whole island. Here they met with four of the enemy, who, perceiving their inferiority, made an endeavor to get into the consecrated place, where they would have been perfectly safe. Palavale, however, seeing their intention, got between them and the fencing, when one of the enemy made a bold push to pass his antagonist, and scramble over the reed-work. He had actually got one leg over, when Palavale struck him a furious blow on the head, and felled him dead within the place; seeing now what he had done, he was struck with fear, and ran away to the canoes, followed by his men. As soon as he arrived at the fortress, he communicated to Finau what had passed, saying, in his defense, that he was so eager in pursuit, as to be out of all self-command. The King immediately ordered kava to be taken to the priest of his own tutelar God, that the divinity might be consulted as to what atonement was proper to be made for so heinous a sacrilege. The priest being inspired, made answer, that it was necessary a child should be strangled to appease the anger of the gods. The chiefs, then, held a consultation, and came to the determination of sacrificing a child of Tupouto’a, by one of his female attendants. On such occasions, the child of a male chief is always chosen, as being worthier than others, and a child by an inferior female attendant, because it is not a chief; only those children being chiefs whose mothers are chiefs.
Tupouto’a was present, and gave his consent that his child (about two years old) should be immolated to appease the anger of the gods, and turn aside their vengeance for the sacrilegious crime committed. The child was accordingly sought for, but its mother, thinking her child might be demanded, had concealed it. At length, being found by one of the men who were in search of it, he took it up in his arms, smiling with delight at being taken notice of. Its poor mother wanted to follow, but was held back by those about her; on hearing its mother’s voice it began to cry, but, when it arrived at the fatal place of its execution, it was pleased and delighted with the band of ngatu that was put round its neck, and, looking up in the face of the man who was about to destroy it, displayed in its beautiful countenance a smile of ineffable pleasure; such a sight inspired pity in the breast of everyone. But veneration and fear of the gods was a sentiment superior to every other. Its destroyer could not help exclaiming, as he put on the fatal bandage, “‘Oiaue si’i vale!” (poor little innocent!) [or, “Oh! Look here! How unreasonable!”] Two men then tightened the cord by pulling at each end, and the guiltless and unsuspecting victim was soon relieved of its painful struggles. The body was then placed upon a sort of hand-barrow, supported upon the shoulders of four men, and carried in a procession of priests, chiefs, and matapules clothed in mats, with wreaths of green leaves round their necks. In this manner it was conveyed to various houses consecrated to different gods, before each of which it was placed on the ground, all the company sitting behind it, except one priest, who sat beside it, and prayed aloud to the God that he would be pleased to accept of this sacrifice as an atonement for the heinous sacrilege committed, and that punishment might accordingly be withheld from the people. After this was done before all the consecrated houses in the fortress, the body was given up to its relations, to be buried in the usual manner.
About four or five days after the above horrible immolation, this same Palavale was killed in a skirmish with the enemy. He went out again on a foraging excursion with about 30 or 40 men, not professed warriors, but men on whose courage and honor no reliance could be placed. They met with a smaller body of the enemy, but who were all staunch fighting men; in a very short time Palavali’s men turned about to run away; he vainly endeavored to rally them, and facing the enemy again to set them the example, he received several wounds and fell. At this moment his men faced about, and seeing the perilous situation of their chief, became animated with courage, and drove the enemy a few paces back, while two or three picked him up and carried him back to the garrison. When they arrived they proceeded to take out four spears which had pierced him, but he desired them to desist from so useless a task, as he was certain the gods had decreed his death as a punishment for his late offence. This, too, was the general opinion of the people, and was the subject of their conversation for a long time afterwards, contributing to spread a considerable gloom throughout the garrison. Palavale died about half an hour after he was brought home.