Before supper was announced, the queen disappeared in an adjoining room to smoke a cigar or two, while her husband passed the time in playing billiards.

At table I was seated between Prince Albert of Tahiti and the canary-coloured King Otoume.  They were both sufficiently advanced in the rules of good breeding to show me the usual civilities; that is, to fill my glass with water or wine, to hand me the various dishes, and so on; but it was evident that they were at great trouble to catch the tone of European society.  Some of the guests, however, forgot their parts now and then:  the queen, for instance, asked, during the dessert, for a second plate, which she filled with sweetmeats, and ordered to be put on one side for her to take home with her.  Others had to be prevented from indulging too much in the generous champagne; but, on the whole, the entertainment passed off in a becoming and good-humoured manner.

I subsequently dined with the royal family several times at the governor’s.  The queen then appeared in the national costume, with the coloured pareo and chemise, as did also her husband.  Both were barefoot.  The heir apparent, a boy of nine years old, is affianced to the daughter of a neighbouring king.  The bride, who is a few years older than the prince, is being educated at the court of Queen Pomare, and instructed in the Christian religion, and the English and Tahitian languages.

The arrangements of the queen’s residence are exceedingly simple.  For the present, until the stone house which is being built for her by the French government is completed, she lives in a wooden one containing four rooms, and partly furnished with European furniture.

As peace was now declared in Tahiti, there was no obstacle to my making a journey through the whole island.  I had obtained a fortnight’s leave of absence from the captain, and was desirous of devoting this time to a trip.  I imagined that I should have been able to join one or other of the officers, who are often obliged to journey through the island on affairs connected with the government.  To my great surprise I found, however, that they had all some extraordinary reason why it was impossible for me to accompany them at that particular time.  I was at a loss to account for this incivility, until one of the officers themselves told me the answer to the riddle, which was this:  every gentleman always travelled with his mistress.

Monsieur —–­, {78} who let me into the secret, offered to take me with him to Papara, where he resided; but even he did not travel alone, as, besides his mistress, Tati, the principal chief of the island, and his family, accompanied him.  This chief had come to Papeiti to be present at the fete of the 1st of May.

On the 4th of May we put off to sea in a boat, for the purpose of coasting round to Papara, forty-two miles distant.  I found the chief Tati to be a lively old man nearly ninety years of age, who remembered perfectly the second landing of the celebrated circumnavigator of the globe, Captain Cook.  His father was, at that period, the principal chief, and had concluded a friendly alliance with Cook, and, according to the custom then prevalent at Tahiti, had changed names with him.