We had not been long in the house, before a pretty large circle of the natives were assembled before us, and seated upon the area. A root of the _kava_ plant being brought, and laid down before the king, he ordered it to be split into pieces, and distributed to several people of both sexes, who began the operation of chewing it; and a bowl of their favourite liquor was soon prepared. In the mean time, a baked hog, and two baskets of baked yams, were produced, and afterward divided into ten portions. These portions were then given to certain people present; but how many were to share in each, I could not tell. One of them, I observed, was bestowed upon the king’s brother; and one remained undisposed of, which, I judged, was for the king himself, as it was a choice bit. The liquor was next served out; but Poulaho seemed to give no directions about it. The first cup was brought to him, which he ordered to be given to one who sat near him. The second was also brought to him, and this he kept. The third was given to me; but their manner of brewing having quenched my thirst, it became Omai’s property. The rest of the liquor was distributed to different people, by direction of the man who had the management of it. One of the cups being carried to the king’s brother, he retired with this, and with his mess of victuals. Some others also quitted the circle with their portions; and the reason was, they could neither eat nor drink in the royal presence; but there were others present, of a much inferior rank, of both sexes, who did both. Soon after, most of them withdrew, carrying with them what they had not ate of their share of the feast. I observed, that not a fourth part of the company had tasted either the victuals or the drink; those who partook of the former, I supposed to be of the king’s household. The servants who distributed the baked meat, and the _kava_, always delivered it out of their hand sitting, not only to the king, but to every other person. It is worthy of remark, though this was the first time of our landing, and a great many people were present who had never seen us before, yet no one was troublesome; but the greatest good order was preserved throughout the whole assembly. Before I returned on board, I went in search of a watering place, and was conducted to some ponds, or rather holes, containing fresh water, as they were pleased to call it. The contents of one of these, indeed, were tolerable; but it was at some distance inland, and the supply to be got from it was very inconsiderable. Being informed that the little island of Pangimodoo, near which the ships lay, could better furnish this necessary article, I went over to it next morning, and was so fortunate as to find there a small pool, that had rather fresher water than any we had met with amongst these islands. The pool being very dirty, I ordered it to be cleaned; and here it was that we watered the ships.