The ancient government of Easter Island was an arbitrary monarchy. The supreme authority was vested in a king and was hereditary in his family. The person of the king was held sacred. Clan tights and internecine struggles were common, but the royal person and family were unmolested. The king reigned over the entire island and was not disturbed by the defeat or the victory of any of the clans. The island was divided into districts having distinct names and governed by chiefs, all of whom acknowledged the supremacy of the king. The title of chief was also hereditary, and descended from father to son, but the king reserved the right to remove or put to death any of them and of naming a successor from the people of the clan.
There was no confederation, each clan being independent of all the rest, except as the powerful are naturally dominant over the weak. The chiefs wore peculiar feather hats to denote their rank, and they presided at feasts and councils in the absence of the king. Other grades of rank were recognized, such as that required by feats of valor, public