ne at night, when dark, and,
falling upon the Bolabola men by surprise, killed many of them,
forcing the rest to fly. So that, by this means, they got possession
of their island again, which now remains independent, under the
government of its own chiefs. Immediately after the defeat of the
united fleets of Ulietea and Huaheine, a proposal was made to the
Bolabola men by their allies of Otaha, to be admitted to an equal
share of the conquests. The refusal of this broke the alliance; and
in the course of the war, Otaha itself, as well as Ulietea, was
conquered; and both now remain subject to Bolabola; the chiefs who
govern them being only deputies of Opoony, the sovereign of that
island. In the reduction of the two islands, five battles were fought
at different places, in which great numbers were slain on both sides.

Such was the account we received. I have more than once remarked,
how very imperfectly these people recollect the exact dates of past
events. And with regard to this war, though it happened not many
years ago, we could only guess at the time of its commencement and
its conclusion, from collateral circumstances, furnished by our own
observation, as the natives could not satisfy our enquiries with any
precision. The final conquest of Ulietea, which closed the war, we
know had been made before I was there in the Endeavour, in 1769; but
we may infer, that peace had not been very long restored, as we could
then see marks of recent hostilities having been committed upon that
island. Some additional light may be thrown upon this enquiry, by
attending to the age of Teereetareea, the present chief of Huaheine.
His looks shewed that he was not above ten or twelve years old; and we
were informed that his father had been killed in one of the battles.
As to the time when the war began, we had no better rule for judging
than this, that the young people of about twenty years of age, of whom
we made enquiries, could scarcely remember the first battles; and
I have already mentioned, that Omai's countrymen, whom we found
at Wateoo, knew nothing of this war; so that its commencement was
subsequent to their voyage.

Ever since the conquest of Ulietea and Otaha, the Bolabola men have
been considered by their neighbours as invincible; and such is the
extent of their fame, that even at Otaheite, which is almost out of
their reach, if they are not dreaded, they are, at least, respected
for their valour. It is said that they neve