Narrative of the surveying voyages of his majesty's ships Adventure and Beagle (vol.2): between the years 1826 and 1836 : describing their examination of the southern shores of South America, and the Beagles's circumnavigation of the globe

550 PROHIBITION OF SI'IKITS. NoV. just conclusions. I witnessed no improprieties, neither did I see any thing that would not have inclined me to suppose (had I read or heard nothing of them), that their habits are, in most ways, better than those of many civilized nations. The missionaries have succeeded in carrying attention to reli- gion, and general morality, to a high pitch : may they continue to succeed, in future years, and become an example to larger, older, and nominally wiser nations. Is it not a striking fact, that the people of a whole country have solemnly refrained from drinking spirits : does not this act alone entitle them to respect, and high consideration ? So sincere are they on this subject, that, a short time since, when they heard that a small vessel, lying in their harbour, had on board a cask of rum, which the master intended to sell to some of the residents, they went off to the vessel, and des- troyed the obnoxious liquor. Upon enfoi'cing their first law on this subject, every part of each house was searched. They were very minute in their scrutiny, but overlooked a bottle of brandy, which Mr. Pritchard had kept in the house for medical purposes. After their search, when leaving him, he called them back and showed the bottle, saying for what purpose it had been kept, Some said, ' keep it for that purpose ;' others said ' no, it is ' ava,'* destroy it ! let us make no distinction, let us utterly discard the use of so baneful a liquor ! have we not other medicines, about whose use there can be no doubt ?"" However, the milder party prevailed, and the brandy bottle would have preserved its contents had not Mr. Pritchard poured them on the ground before their eyes.-f- One horrible defect in the former character of the Otaheitans has hardly been mentioned in the earlier writers. They were * Or cava, their word for intoxicating liquor of any kind. + I was surprised, when I first arrived at Otaheite, by finding that none of the natives who came on board would touch spirits ; and that they would drink but very little wine. Afterwards, however, one chief was noticed who seemed differently disposed.