In 1792 D’Entrecasteaux’s vessels got among the New Hebrides, and found themselves in the midst of coral reefs and shoals of which they knew nothing, and which caused no small alarm. In consequence of the danger of these reefs, the captain did not touch at all the islands which were seen, but contented himself with naming them, and marking their places on a chart. As it turned out, one of these islands, VANIKORO, or Recherche Island, as D’Entrecasteaux named it, was the place on which La Pérouse was wrecked, so that the expedition actually passed within sight of the very spot which was the object of their voyage. Indeed, D’Entrecasteaux practically completed the voyage which La Pérouse began, and his narrative furnishes a necessary supplement to that of the voyager in search of whom he sailed. It was not until some forty years afterward that the relics were discovered which proved beyond a doubt that Vanikoro was the place in which La Pérouse and his companions perished. Vanikoro is sometimes called Pitt’s Island. An illustration is given on the 973d page, which represents a woman of Vanikoro, and her child, and is a type of the expression and features of these islanders. CHAPTER XCIX. TONGA. GOVERNMENT AND GRADATIONS OF RANK. FRIENDLY RELATIONS BETWEEN TONGA AND FIJI -- THE ARMY OF OCCUPATION -- GENERAL APPEARANCE OF THE TONGANS -- THEIR DRESS -- THE GNATOO, AND MODE OF WEARING IT -- MAKING THE GNATOO -- BEATING, JOINING, AND PRINTING THE PIECES -- THE DISTINCTION BETWEEN GNATOO AND TAPPA -- ORNAMENTS WORN BY THE TONGANS -- WHALE’S TEETH, AND THE VALUE SET ON THEM -- FINOW AND THE TEETH -- DISTINCTIONS OF RANK -- SECULAR AND RELIGIOUS RANK -- THE TOOI-TONGA, HIS ORIGIN AND PRIVILEGES -- THE VEACHI -- THE HOW, OR KING, OFTEN INFERIOR IN RANK TO MANY OF HIS CHIEFS -- THE EGI, OR NOBLES -- THE MATABOOLES, THEIR RANK AND DUTIES -- THE MOOAS, OR GENTRY; AND THE TOOAS, OR COMMON PEOPLE -- MATRIMONIAL ARRANGEMENTS BETWEEN PEOPLE OF DIFFERENT RANKS -- TREATMENT OF WOMEN. Our readers may remember that, in the account of the Fiji Islands, it was mentioned that there was one nation which was held by the Fijians as free from their usual custom of killing and eating all visitors to their coast. These people are the inhabitants of the Tongan group, popularly known as the Friendly Islands. Owing to their courage in war and superior intellect, they have performed toward the Fijians the same part that has so often been played by more civilized people. On one or two occasions they found the Fijian chiefs hard pressed by rebellion, took the part of their hosts, crushed the rebel forces, and restored the chiefs to power.