fusal, I complied.
I had observed, that the people who carried the poles passed this
_morai_, or what I may as well call temple; and guessing from this
circumstance that something was transacting beyond it, which might be
worth looking at, I had thoughts of advancing by making a round for this
purpose; but I was so closely watched by three men, that I could not put
my design in execution. In order to shake these fellows off, I returned
to the _malaee_, where I had left the king, and from thence made an
elopement a second time; but I instantly met with the same three men, so
that it seemed as if they had been ordered to watch my motions. I paid
no regard to what they said or did, till I came within sight of the
king's principal _fiatooka_ or _morai_, which I have already described,
before which a great number of men were sitting, being the same persons
whom I had just before seen pass by the other _morai_, from which this
was but a little distant. Observing that I could watch the proceedings
of this company from the king's plantation, I repaired thither very much
to the satisfaction of those who attended me.

As soon as I got in, I acquainted the gentlemen who had come with me
from the ships, with what I had seen; and we took a proper station to
watch the result. The number of people at the _fiatooka_ continued to
increase for some time; and, at length, we could see them quit their
sitting-posture, and march off in procession. They walked in pairs, one
after another, every pair carrying between them one of the small poles
above-mentioned on their shoulders. We were told, that the small pieces
of sticks fastened to the poles were yams; so that probably they were
meant to represent this root emblematically. The hindmost man of each
couple, for the most part, placed one of his hands to the middle of the
pole, as if, without this additional support, it were not strong enough
to carry the weight that hung to it, and under which they all seemed to
bend as they walked. This procession consisted of one hundred and eight
pairs, and all or most of them men of rank. They came close by the fence
behind which we stood, so that we had a full view of them.

Having waited here till they had all passed, we then repaired to
Poulaho's house, and saw him going out. We could not be allowed to
follow him, but were forthwith conducted to the place allotted to us,
which was behind a fence, adjoining to the area of the fiatooka, where
the yams