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[Page 491]

Manners & Customs of the South Sea Islands

Island is divided (in Otahite there may be about 100 such districts) which are by the Earees parceld out to the Manahounies who cultivate each his part & for the use of it owe their Cheif service when calld upon & provisions, especialy when he travels which he often does accompanied by many of his freinds & their families often amounting to near 100 principals beside their attendants. Inferiour to the Manahounes are the toutous who are upon almost the same footing as the Slaves in the East indian Islands only that they never appeard to us transferrable from one to the other these these do all kinds of Laborious work till the land fetch wood & water dress the victuals under the direction however of the Mistris of the family Catch fish &c. Besides these are the two classes of Erate & Towha which seem to answer to Yeoman & Gentleman as they came between Earee & Manahouni but as I was not acquainted

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