{"collection":"scripture-revelation","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_21457/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_21457","id":"gutenberg_21457","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/21457","summary":null,"tags":["Category: Adventure","Category: Historical Novels","Category: Religion/Spirituality","Conduct of life -- Fiction","Islands of the Pacific -- Fiction","Missions -- Islands of the Pacific -- Fiction","Sea stories"],"text":"Produced by Nick Hodson of London, England\n\n\n\n\nThe Cruise of the Mary Rose, or Here and There in the Pacific, by\nWilliam H G Kingston.\n\n________________________________________________________________________\n\nThis book is very largely about the work of Christian missionaries in\nthe Pacific.  There is a thin plot, but otherwise we are treated to\nlengthy texts extracted from the reports of various missionaries, and of\nNaval officers who had visited the area.\n\nThe book is dressed up with a cover and a title that makes it look like\na boy's adventure story from the second half of the nineteenth century.\nI imagine that many a kindly old aunt, searching for a Christmas present\nfor a favourite nephew, will have bought a copy, and been surprised when\nthe \"thank-you\" letter didn't seem as effusive as she expected.  But\ndon't let me stop you reading it if you are interested in the work of\nthese brave missionaries.\n\nKingston is generally quite pious in his writings, so you can imagine\nhow pious he is when trying to out-missionary the missionaries.\n\nSome of their more nauseous habits of their \"clients\" are described,\nsuch as eating your enemy when you have killed him.\n\n________________________________________________________________________\n\nTHE CRUISE OF THE MARY ROSE, OR HERE AND THERE IN THE PACIFIC, BY\nWILLIAM H G KINGSTON.\n\n\n\nCHAPTER ONE.\n\nUNCLE JOHN'S JOURNAL.\n\nMy family had for centuries owned the same estate, handed down from\nfather to son undiminished in size, and much increased in value.  I\nbelieve there had been among them in past generations those who feared\nthe Lord.  I know that my father was a man of true piety.  \"Casting all\nyour care upon Him, for He careth for you,\" was his favourite motto.\nWhat a world of doubt and anxiety, of plotting, and contriving, and\nscheming, does this trust in God save those who possess it.  On this\nblessed assurance my father took his stand in all the difficulties of\nlife.  It never failed him, and so we his sons had a good training and a\ngodly example.\n\nThe younger members of each generation followed various honourable\nprofessions, but they failed to rise to high rank in them, owing, I\nfancy, to a want of worldly ambition--the general characteristic of our\nrace.  Altogether, however, I believe them to have been a simple-minded,\nupright, clear sighted set of people, who did whatever their hands found\nto do honestly and with all their might.  Such people ought to rise, it\nmay be said.  So they do,--but not to what the world calls the summit.\nThey generally rise to a position of independence, where they may enjoy\nfair scope for the exercise of their mental and spiritual faculties.\nThere they are content to remain, for a time.  This world is not their\nrest.  Another world opens to their view.  In that they see the goal at\nwhich they aim.  There is the golden crown.  Why then be distracted by\nthe glittering baubles which are held up to draw their attention from\nthe real jewel--the gem without price?  I am happy in the belief that\nsuch was the reason that my ancestors did not become men of much worldly\nnote.\n\nThe occupant of the family estate had always attended to its\ncultivation, and was properly called a gentleman farmer.  Unostentatious\nand frugal, he never lacked means, in spite of bad harvests or\nunexpected losses, to assist the younger members of the family in\nstarting in life, or to help forward any good cause which required aid.\n\nMy father, Paul Harvey, was a perfect type of the family--so was my\nelder brother, his namesake.  John came next; a daughter followed; I was\nhis fourth child.  He kept up a good old custom--never broken through\nfrom any excuse.  An hour before bed-time his children and the whole\nhousehold assembled in the sitting-room, when he read and explained a\nchapter in the Bible.  A hymn was sung, and prayers full of fervour were\noffered up to the throne of grace.  After this a simple supper was\nplaced on the table, and we were encouraged to speak on the events of\nthe day, or on what we had read or thought of.  That hour was generally\nthe pleasantest of the twenty-four.  Our father guided, if he did not\nlead the conversation, and generally managed to infuse his spirit into\nit.  Although many of the subjects discussed even now rise up to my\nmemory, I will mention but one, which had a powerful influence on the\ncareer of some of those present.  I had been reading an account of the\nCrusades, and my enthusiasm had been unusually stirred up on the\nsubject.  \"I wish that I could have lived in those days!\"  I exclaimed\n(I was but a lad it must be remembered.) \"What a glorious work those\nwarriors of old undertook, who with sword and lance, under the banner of\nthe cross, they went forth to conquer infidels, to establish the true\nfaith, to recover the blessed land, hallowed by the Redeemer's\nfootsteps, from the power of the cruel followers of the false prophet of\nMecca.  How degenerate are we Christians of the present generation!  Who\namong us dreams of expelling the Turks from Syria?  On the contrary, our\nstatesmen devote their energies to keep them there.  I really believe\nthat were Peter the Hermit to rise from his grave, he would not find a\ndozen true men to follow him.\"\n\n\"Possibly not,\" said my father, quietly; \"though he might find two dozen\nfully as wise, and as honest, too, as those he led to destruction.  But\nhas it not struck you, David, that there are other conquests to be\nachieved in the present age more important than winning Palestine from\nthe Moslem; that there is more real fighting to be done than all the\ntrue soldiers of the cross, even were they to be united in one firm\nphalanx, could accomplish?  Sword and spear surely are not the weapons\nour loving Saviour desires His followers to employ when striving to\nbring fresh subjects under His kingdom.  That they were to be used was\nindeed the idea of our ignorant ancestors, when the teaching of a\ncorrupt Church had thrown a dark veil over their understandings.\nChristians only in name, the truth was so disfigured and transformed\namong them, that it exercised no influence over their hearts; and though\nthey believed the Bible to be of value, they regarded it rather in the\nlight of a mystic charm than the word of God.  Thus all the great truths\nof our most holy faith were so travestied and changed as to produce\nalone a degrading superstition.  They believed that the Bible had the\npower of exorcising spirits of evil.  So it has; but it is not the\nclosed Bible, which they in their ignorance employed--not the mere\nprinted paper bound into a volume--unread, or if read, misunderstood, at\nwhich the devil and his angels tremble.  No; it is the open Bible--the\nBible in many tongues--read and understood through God's gracious\nteaching, sought for by prayer earnestly.  It is the blessed gospel of\npeace which alone can put to flight debasing superstition, gross\ncustoms, murderous propensities, cruel dispositions, barbarism in its\nvaried forms, and all the works of darkness instigated by Satan and his\nangels.  Again, I say that the Bible, and the Bible alone, is the true\ncrusader's weapon; armed with that sword of the Spirit, with the shield\nof faith on his arm, and under the guidance (never to be withdrawn while\nhe seeks it) of God's Holy Spirit, he may go boldly forth conquering and\nto conquer the numberless hosts of heathenism arrayed for battle against\nthe truth.  These weapons are dreaded by the spirit of evil more than\nall those iron implements of warfare on which man in his folly and\nblindness relies.  The victories won by the Bible are lasting in this\nworld, and not only in this world, but through eternity.\n\n\"To drop metaphor, what is, and what long has been the condition of\nthose lands the crusaders vainly boasted they had won from the followers\nof Mohammed?  In what state do we find those vast territories of the New\nWorld conquered by Spain? both gained by sword and spear, under a banner\nfalsely called the `banner of the cross.'  Compare these and similar\nconquests over heathenism with those victories won in pagan lands by the\nBible--the sword of the Spirit.  How great the contrast!\"\n\nOur father spoke with far more animation than was his wont.  I listened\nrespectfully, though I confess that at first I did not comprehend the\nfull meaning of his remarks.  Still, they considerably dimmed the bright\nhalo with which my imagination had surrounded the crusades.  My second\nbrother, John, however, fixing his eyes attentively on our father, drank\nin every word he uttered.  \"Yes, glorious indeed are the victories\ngained by the gospel of peace in heathen lands, and happy are those\npermitted to fight them,\" he whispered, with a sigh, after a few\nminutes' silence.  John was less robust in health than were most of us,\nand it was intended that he should devote himself to mercantile\npursuits, for which I had long suspected that he had no great taste;\nstill, at the call, as he believed, of duty, he had begun the task of\nacquiring the necessary knowledge.\n\n\"I suppose, father, that you are alluding to the labours of missionaries\nin foreign lands?\"  I observed.  \"But I have heard it said, that in\nspite of all the money expended, their preaching produces but meagre\nresults.  In India, for instance, the Company will not admit them.  In\nAfrica, the climate destroys them.  The fanatical Turks and other\nMohammedan nations will not listen to their message; and it would be but\ntime lost and energies wasted were they to attempt to preach to the\ncannibals of New Zealand and the other islands of the Pacific, or to the\nalmost baboons of Australia and New Guinea.\"\n\n\"You have not, I see, given much thought to the subject, David,\"\nobserved my father, mildly; \"God's grace is sufficient for all men.  The\ngospel is to be preached to all men, without distinction of race, or\ncolour, or nation, or rank.  What says the Bible?  `Go ye into all the\nworld, and preach the gospel to every creature.'  Who is to decide then\nfrom what depths of moral degradation the power of God's grace will fail\nto lift up a human being?  Certainly, we mortals, fallible, helpless,\nsinful, as we must feel ourselves, are not capable of judging.  All we\nhave to do is to receive the plain command, and obey it.  Oh, there is\nscope, believe me, for the exertions, not of one missionary only, but of\nhundreds and thousands of the soldiers of the cross in those very\nregions of which you have spoken.  How can we dare to doubt how the\ngospel will in the end be received?  `Blessed are ye which sow beside\nall waters,' `Cast thy bread upon the waters: for thou shalt find it\nafter many days.'  `In the morning sow thy seed, and in the evening\nwithhold not thine hand, for thou knowest not which shall prosper,\neither this or that, or whether they both shall be alike good.'  Our\nduty as disciples of Christ is plain.  We are to sow.  `God giveth the\nincrease.'  That is not to be our care.  We are to `preach the gospel to\nevery creature.'  Some will hear; some will turn away from the truth.\nWith that we have nothing to do, except to pray and work on, awaiting\nGod's time.  You have none of you seen more than the outside of my Uncle\nJohn's journal.  Indeed, I had not myself till lately looked into it.\nHe was, as you may have heard, a seaman, and he made more than one\nvoyage to the Pacific.  Possessing more education than most officers in\nthe merchant service in those days, he seems to have carefully noted the\nobservations he made as he sailed from place to place.  His descriptions\nare graphic, and he was of an acute and inquiring mind; his remarks,\ntoo, are of value.  I think, therefore, that we may glean from it both\namusement and instruction.\"\n\nWe of course all expressed a wish to hear the contents of our relative's\njournal, and it was agreed that the next few evenings should be devoted\nto its perusal.  I should observe that our father's interest in the\nsubject of missions to the heathen in foreign lands had lately been\nawakened by the visit of an old friend, one of that band of great and\ngood men who were then endeavouring against contumely, ridicule, and\nevery opposition which the prince of this world could raise, to send the\nglad tidings of salvation to the perishing millions scattered thickly on\nthe surface of the globe, over which midnight--the midnight of heathen\ndarkness--reigned.\n\nI believe that the thought of our dear father's heart at that time\nwas--\"I have many sons given me by God; surely not one of them have I a\nright to withhold from His service; all, all, every one of them should\nbe freely, joyfully given if it be His will to accept their services.\"\nI do not mean to say that he uttered these words, but that such was the\nlanguage of his heart spoken to heaven, I am certain, from conversations\nand circumstances which subsequently occurred.  Of all the family our\nbrother, John, appeared to be the most deeply impressed with the remarks\nwhich had dropped from our father's lips, and as I watched his\nexpressive countenance, I observed the changes passing over it, and am\nnow certain that feelings were then working within his bosom too deep\nfor utterance, and which afterwards exerted a powerful influence on his\ncareer.\n\nThe following evening, the word of God having been read and our frugal\nsupper discussed, the looked-for journal, a dogskin-covered, somewhat\nworn folio, was produced.  John, by a unanimous vote, was chosen to read\nit, and I am bound to say that the honest seaman's descriptions gained\nconsiderably by the spirit which our brother's animated voice threw into\nthem.\n\n\n\nCHAPTER TWO.\n\nSupped at the \"Three Crowns\" with Phineas Golding our supercargo, and so\naboard, my leave being up, and work enough and over to get the ship\nready for sea.  A long voyage before us of four, or it may be of five\nyears.  Meeting our supercargo at the owner's, I had deemed him a quiet,\nwell-behaved young man; I now find him a slashing blade, ever ready with\nhis fist, or his sword, as with his pen,--hot in dispute, and always\neager to bring a quarrel to the arbitration of one of the former.  How\ndifferently do men appear when in presence of those they serve and when\nout of their sight!  There exists One out of whose sight we cannot\nescape.  How comes it that we do not always bear that truth in mind?\nAre we more afraid of a fellow-creature than of the Maker and Judge of\nall the world?  I said thus much to Phineas Golding.  He replied with an\noath, which caused me to feel that I had been casting pearls before\nswine.  And yet I was right, surely; for by speaking the truth boldly on\nfitting occasions, I do hold that the truth will in the end prevail, and\nmay be conquer the unbeliever's heart.  On one thing, therefore, I am\nresolved, to go on as I have begun, and speak the truth always with\nearnestness of purpose.\n\nOf my other shipmates I will speak a word.  The master Simon Fuller, is\ngrave man, the snows of nearly sixty winters settling on his head.  He\nhas made many voyages, and seems a fit man to command men.  The first\nmate, too, James Festing, is every inch a seaman, but somewhat handy\nwith his fist, a rope's end, or a marline spike, or, truth to say,\nwhatever lies nearest, and withal not over choice in his words when\nangered, or desirous of getting work done smartly.  Of myself, as second\nmate, it becometh me not to speak.  I have been five years at sea, am a\nfair navigator, and an average seaman.  I fear God, and strive to do my\nduty, though not always succeeding.  Our ship's company muster\nthirty-five good men, I hope, all told fore and aft.  The ship, as is\nrequisite, is well armed, with six guns with swivels on the quarters,\nand muskets, pikes, axes, and cutlasses for all hands.  We have to visit\nmany strange places and strange people, and we must expect often and\nagain to fight for our lives with the savages.  Phineas Golding rejoices\nin adventure, and says such chiefly induced him to leave home.  He has\nnever before been at sea, and dreams not of the troubles in store for\nhim.\n\n_June_.--We have taken our departure from the land, which is even now\nsinking astern, a strong breeze blowing from the north-east.\n\n_July_.--We have touched at Madeira, belonging to the Portingalls, as\nthe old voyagers call them.  They are a suspicious people, though civil\nwhen not angered.  I witnessed some public exhibitions, which I was told\nwere religious.  I cannot suppose that such performances are acceptable\nto our Lord and Master, or He would surely have ordered such.  But it\nbecomes not me, after so slight acquaintance with a people, to pass much\ncensure on their customs, though I see not how to approve them.\n\nCrossing the Line, we had a usual Father Neptune and his Tritons on\nboard.  Tony Hinks, our boatswain, was Neptune.  He and his mates\nseverely handled some of the men who had shown ill manners or bad\ntempers, tarring their faces, and shaving their chins with rusty hoops.\nPhineas vowed that he would not be so treated, but had to succumb,\nescaping with a thorough sousing from a dozen buckets.  Phineas vows\nvengeance on the boatswain; but I warn him that Tony Hinks followed but\nthe custom of the sea, and is not a man over whom it would be easy to\nget an advantage, for he boasts that he always sleeps with one eye open.\n\nWe have touched at Rio, the chief town in the Brazils.  From what I saw,\nI should take the people to be heathens, such as I have read of in Roman\nand Grecian history; but they say that they are Christians.  One thing\nis certain, that if they desire to keep the sabbath holy, they have a\ncurious way of so doing.  Still I say, it would be easy to sail from\nplace to place and to condemn all we visit unheard.  One thought occurs\nto me: \"Look to it that we fall not into like errors.\"\n\nProceeding south before rounding Cape Horn, we again made the land, and\nstanding in, anchored the ship in a sheltered cove.  It was the southern\npart of that region known as Patagonia.  The captain, with Phineas\nGolding and I, with a crew of eight men, well armed, took the long boat\nand went ashore.  The aspect of the country was not pleasant; rocks, and\ntrees, and marshes, but no signs of cultivation.  Suddenly from among\nthe rocks some creatures appeared watching us.  \"Are they men or are\nthey baboons?\" asked Phineas, levelling his musket; but the master held\nback his arm.  They approaching slowly and with hesitation, we\ndiscovered that they were human beings, though marvellously ill-favoured\nin aspect.  Their skin, which seemed of a dark brown, was covered with\ndirt, and their faces, which were flat with high cheek-bones, were\nbesmeared with red and yellow ochre.  Their long black coarse hair\nhanging down straight over their shoulders, their small twinkling\nbleared eyes peeping out between it, like two hot coals.  They had\nspears in their hands and short clubs.  They were nearly naked, their\nchief garment consisting in a piece of sealskin, which they wore on the\nside whence the wind blew.  Again Phineas was about to shoot in very\nwantonness.\n\n\"What's the harm?\" he asked.  \"We have no chance of trading with such\npeople; and if we were to kill a few, what would it matter?\"\n\n\"They have souls, Master Golding,\" said I, for I could not keep silence;\n\"and souls, I have learned, are precious things.\"\n\nA scornful laugh was his reply, and he still kept his musket ready, as\nif to fire.  The savages, however, seemed in no way afraid, but lifted\nup their hands, and made as if they too had muskets; and when we laughed\nthey laughed, and when we shook our fists they shook theirs; and so we\ndiscovered that, though hideous, they were a harmless race, and great\nmimics.  They readily accepted beads, and knives, and coloured\nhandkerchiefs, and such like things.\n\nThese people, we learn from Tony Hinks, who has before been on the coast\n(indeed where has he not been?) are different from the tribes of\nPatagonians who inhabit the country to the north as far as the Spanish\nsettlements.  These latter are a fierce race, often of large stature,\nthough not giants, as some suppose, and dress in skins and ride on\nhorseback.  Again, there are other tribes whose dwellings are among the\nmarshes and inlets of the sea up the Straits of Magellan.  They move\nabout only in their canoes, living on shell-fish, seals' flesh, and\nfish, their habits being more filthy and disgusting even than are those\nof our present friends.  Phineas laughs at the notion of their being our\nfellow-creatures, and says that they must have sprung from apes; but\nTony, who has seen many strange people, says that he would not give a\nfig for the supercargo's opinion, for that he has known white men become\nalmost as brutish in their appearance, and much more brutish in their\nmanners, just from living a few years among born savages, cut off from\nall communication with their fellow whites.  A little practical\nexperience often shows the folly of these would-be philosophers.\n\nOn the Pacific coast of this end of America are found the unsubdued\ntribes of the Araucanians in vast numbers, so that in this one small\nportion of the continent are many hundred thousand savages, all lying in\nthe midnight of heathen darkness.\n\nPhineas observes that it is a pity they cannot be swept away, and\ncivilised men, with whom it would be an advantage to trade, introduced\nin their stead.  He esteems men in proportion as they are able to\nexchange gold dust, ivory, spices or precious stones, not knowing their\nvalue, for glass beads and Brummagem knives and needles.  I cannot help\nthinking that all those savages have immortal souls, and regretting that\nthey should be allowed to pass away from this life without having the\nlight of gospel truth set before them.  Year after year passes by,\nthousands are swept away, and still darkness dense as ever broods over\nthe land.\n\nOnce more we are under weigh.  With a fair breeze gliding over a long\nheavy swell, we pass Cape Horn, which stands out boldly into the blue\nwaters, and enter the mighty Pacific.  Tony Hinks tells us that, though\npeaceable enough at times, he has seen here as fierce gales and heavy\nseas as ever sent tall ships to the bottom.  Grant that we do not\nencounter the loss and disaster met with by Lord Anson, whose voyage I\nhave been reading.  Hitherto a kind Providence has favoured us, and we\nare standing up along the coast of Chili, the lofty Andes rising blue\nand distinct against the sky in the distance.\n\n\n\nCHAPTER THREE.\n\nTAHITI IN HEATHEN DAYS.\n\nAnchored in the Bay of Conception to obtain meat and vegetables, and to\nrefresh our ship's company.  The town whence we obtained supplies is\nTalcaguana, the old town of Conception having been destroyed by an\nearthquake, and the new town standing some way inland.  It is a wealthy\nplace--no lack of silver and gold utensils in the houses, and flocks and\nherds outside, but the inhabitants lead uneasy lives, for not far off\nbeyond the mountains are found tribes of fierce Araucanians, who, riding\nfleet horses, now and again pounce down on the town, and never fail to\ncarry off a rich booty.  They care not for the Spanish artillery and\nmusketry, they keep out of range of them; but might not the power of\ngospel truth spoken in season change their savage natures?  Could some\nChristian men find their way among them, they might tell them of happier\nemployments than killing each other, and robbing their neighbours.  Yet\nI dream.  Such seems to be the chief occupation, not only of savages,\nbut of civilised people all over the world.  What power can assuage such\na flood of iniquity?  There is one and one alone, the bright light of\ngospel truth, and the living power of Divine grace.\n\nHaving shipped our stores, the boat was leaving the shore for the last\ntime, when a brown man, dressed as a seaman, with strange marks on his\nface and hands, came down begging to be taken on board.  His name he\nsaid was Taro, and that he was a native of an island far to the west,\nalso that he had long been on board an English ship, the master of which\nhad left him here sick.  Captain Fuller believing his tale, and well\npleased to obtain the services of one who might prove useful as an\ninterpreter, consented to receive him among the crew.  Our ship's\ncompany gave him at first the name of Tar, and hence he soon became\nknown among them as Tom Tar.  He proves an amusing, and seemingly a\ngood-natured fellow till he is angered, and then he will cast off his\nclothes, and seizing a billet of wood or whatever comes to hand, will\nflourish it, threatening the lives of all near him, exhibiting his body\ncovered with strange devices, appearing, as he is still, the fierce,\nvindictive savage.  He comes from an island called New Zealand, where\nthe inhabitants are terribly fierce, and undoubted cannibals.  I asked\nTaro whether he had ever eaten any of his fellow-creatures.  He nodded,\nlaughing, and I doubt not, from the expression of his countenance, that\nhe had often done so, and would not hesitate in again indulging in such\na practice.  Though living so long among men professing to be\nChristians, he is still a heathen in all his thoughts and ways.  I asked\nhim one day how this was.  His answer was simple: \"They say and do just\nwhat heathen man say and do.  They no pray to their God; they no care\nfor their God; they no love their God.  Why should I?\"\n\nTaro spoke the truth; I felt abashed.  How can we expect the heathen to\nbecome Christians, when those who call themselves so show so little\nregard to the religion of Christ?  I see the same sad shortcoming on\nshore.  Christians do not strive to bring honour to the name of Christ.\n\nFor three weeks and more we traverse the Pacific, keeping bright\nlook-out by night and day for rocks and reefs.\n\n\"Land on the starboard bow,\" is the cry.  We haul up for it.  As the\nship rises and falls on the long, slow swell, now the trees appear\npartly out of the water, now they disappear looking thus at a distance\nlike a fleet at anchor.  There are cocoa-nut palms, pandanus trees, and\nmany shrubs, growing on a low island, fifteen feet at most above the\nlevel of the sea, some twelve miles long, and not a quarter of a mile\nwide, with a deep blue lagoon inside.  This is one of those wonderful\ncoral islands of which I have read, formed by minute insects working\nupwards from rocky foundations amid the ocean, and ceasing their work\nwhen they have reached the surface.  The waves have torn off masses and\nthrown them up so as to form an elevation above the water; then birds\nhave come, dropped seeds, and formed their nests, and dwelt there; and\ntimber and plants floating about have been cast on shore, and their\nvitality not yet destroyed, have taken root; and more coral and shells\nhave been heaved up and ground fine by the toiling waves to form a\nbeach; and thus a fit dwelling-place for man has been formed.  Nearing\nthe sandy beach we heave-to for soundings, but finding none, the ship\nstands off, while Phineas and I, with Tom Tar and our boat's crew, well\narmed, pull in with the intention of landing.  This the surf will not\nlet us do; and as we are lying off on our oars, presently, from out of\nthe bushes, rush a herd of savages with spears and clubs, which they\nflourish furiously, making signs to us to be gone.  We pull on, however,\nand find an opening in the reef, through which we get close to the\nbeach.  The natives shout and gesticulate more vehemently than ever.\nThey declare (so Taro interprets) that we come for no good purpose, and\nthat they want no strangers.  Phineas hopes that they may possess pearls\nwith which to trade, so we row in, he standing up in the bows of the\nboat, holding up a looking-glass and a string of glass beads in one\nhand, while he keeps his musket ready in the other.  He is bold, and\nleaping on shore, approaches the natives.  At first the savages retire;\nthen one advances, stops, gazes at the supercargo, and with a loud\nshout, flourishing his club, rushes towards him.  Phineas, flinging down\nthe looking-glass and the beads, springs back, firing his musket in the\nair.  The savage is upon him.  In another moment that huge club will\nhave dashed out his brains.  I see his danger.  I have no thought but to\nsave him--no feeling that I am about to slay a fellow-creature.  I raise\nmy musket to my shoulder and fire, taking good aim.  The savage falls.\nPhineas, shouting to us to give the Indians a volley, is hauled in.  The\nmen obey as the Indians, with terrific howls, rush towards us.  Five\nmore fall, some in the water, which is tinged with their blood, others\non the land.  Our passions are up.  Golding urges us to load and fire\nagain.  Having thus done, we pull away.  Says Golding, \"They'll not\nmeddle another time with strangers who peaceably visit their shores to\ntrade.\"  We leave ten or twelve poor heathens dead or wounded on their\nnative strand.  My thoughts are sad.  The face of that hapless savage as\nhe turned his eye on me when falling is still in my sight.  True, I\nfired to save the life of a shipmate.  Yet it is an awful thing to shed\nthe blood of a fellow-being, let it be in warfare or in any other way\nwhich men justify as from stern necessity.\n\nAre such, too, the blessings which we Christian and civilised men\ndistribute in our course round the globe?  The loud laugh of my\ncompanion sounds in my ear.  \"Come, rouse thee, John Harvey,\" he says.\n\"Art down-hearted, lad, because we have not been more successful in our\ntraffic?  Not a good beginning, but the Pacific is wide, and there will\nbe no lack of customers.\"\n\nStanding on for three days we sight several islands.  On the nearest is\na grove of fine cocoa-nut trees.  We require a supply of nuts.  Two\nboats with crews well armed leave the ship.  An opening appears in the\nreef--we pull through it and land easily.  Our men climb the tall trees\nand shake down the nuts in heavy showers.  While we are collecting the\nnuts, the men in the trees shout that they see a fleet of large canoes\ncrossing from another island.  We deem that it will be prudent to regain\nthe boats.  The Indians, seeing the broken nuts strewing the ground, and\nthe heap we are carrying away, shriek, and shout, and shake their clubs\nand spears, and then furiously rush towards us.  Golding, as before,\ncries out to the men to fire, but I order them to shove off, that we may\nescape without killing any, for which I see no necessity.  We have\nstolen the savages' provisions, and they have right on their side.  The\nmen obey me, and we strive to get the boat afloat.  No time to lose.\nThe Indians draw their bows, and the arrows fall thick around us; some\ncome on with stones, and others plunge into the water with clubs and\nspears to do battle for their rights.  Our lives are in jeopardy, and\none of our men is fearfully wounded.  The savages throng around the boat\nand try to drag her to the shore.  We keep back the savages with the\nstretchers, and I hope to escape without bloodshed.  Again Golding\nshouts out, \"Fire, lads! fire!  Why keep back the men from firing?  We\nshall all be murdered.\"  Urged by his example, the men fire a volley\namong the surrounding savages.  With fearful howls those grasping the\nboat let go; others fall back killed; the mass rush in terror up the\nbeach.  We escape into deep water, two or three arrows sticking in the\narms of our men and in the sides of the boat.  Golding cries out for\nvengeance; and the men fire till every savage has disappeared.\n\nWe return on board.  It strikes me that we cannot appear very well\nfavoured in the sight of these poor savages.  I say as much that day at\ndinner to the captain.  He is a man of few words.\n\n\"You are right, John; the next comers will suffer,\" he remarks.\n\n\"That matters nought to us,\" says Phineas Golding.  \"We shall not come\nhere again.\"\n\n\"Scant kindness to the next comers; as scant as that we have showed the\nnatives,\" I observe.\n\n\"We must all look out for ourselves in these seas,\" says the captain.\n\"It will be our own fault if we are at any time caught unawares.\nRemember that, Master Harvey.\"\n\nI make no answer, for the captain does not bear contradiction.  The\nfirst mate, Golding, and the doctor, keep always well with him.  So do\nI, for this reason: I heard him once say, \"That John Harvey needs\nkeeping under.\"  On that, I resolved, as far as it should lie in my\npower, to keep myself under--to do my duty, and give him no occasion to\nfind fault.  Thus far I have succeeded--but not always with ease; for\nSimon Fuller has had uncontrolled power as a sea captain for many a long\nyear, often over rogues and vagabonds, whom fear alone will keep in\norder, so he fancies.  I have heard say that the rule of kindness will\nwork wonders.  I have never seen it tried as I could desire, but I find\nthat the worst of our ship's company obey me more readily than they do\nJames Festing, and yet the first mate is an older, and, I truly believe,\na better seaman than I am.  I speak quietly to the lads, eschew oaths,\nand never handle a rope's end in wrath.  He swears loudly, and uses\nboth.\n\nI was called forward to see Tom Collis, the poor fellow who was wounded\nin the boat.  The surgeon can do nothing for him, he says, and I see\nthat the man's countenance is marked by death's hand.  Around us, as I\nsit by him, we hear laughter, and oaths, and gross talking.  Collis is\nsuffering great agony.  \"Mercy! mercy!\" he shrieks out.  \"To die thus--\nno time for repentance, with hideous crimes weighing down my soul!\"\nSometimes he raves, and says things which make my blood run cold; but I\ntalk quietly to him, and he grows calmer.  I tell him in few words of\nthat simple plan God in His gracious mercy arranged before the world\nbegan, by which sinners even great as he might be saved.  He drinks in\nevery word.  I tell him how the loving Jesus came on earth to live as a\nman a life of suffering, that men might understand that He knows how\nthey suffer; that He was tempted, that they might feel assured He\npities, and will help them when they are tempted; that He was\ncrucified,--made a sacrifice, that He might take their sins on His\nshoulders; that His blood was shed that it might wash away the sins of\nall who trust in it, and look to Him; that He was buried, and rose\nagain, that He might conquer death, and show that all who follow Him\nmust conquer too; and that He ascended up on high, that He might present\nall who place their faith in Him washed from their sins pure and\nundefiled before the throne of God.\n\n\"But all that could not be done for such a wretch as me,\" says Collis.\n\"If God would let me live, I might repent, and lead a different sort of\nlife, and do all sorts of things to please Him; and then perchance He\nmight think me more fit for heaven.\"\n\n\"Oh, my dear shipmate,\" I say, \"don't think of such folly.  You could\nnever do anything to make you more fit for heaven than you now are,\nvile, sinful, guilty wretch as you may be.\"\n\nI then read to him how the Israelites, bit by the fiery serpents in the\nwilderness, were saved from death and cured by looking at the brazen\nserpent held up by Moses.  And then I read about the thief on the cross,\nand then I say:\n\n\"Just look to Jesus in that way.  Feel that you are bitten by sin,\nhelpless, and dying, and deserving of death; and He says to you, as He\nsaid to the thief on the cross, `To-day shalt thou be with Me in\nparadise.'--`Thy sins are forgiven thee.'\"\n\n\"What, sir!\" exclaims Collis, \"you don't mean to say that the Son of the\ngreat God who made heaven and earth, and all those thousands of stars we\nsee up there, did all that for me, and such as me,--that He says all\nthat to me, and such as me?\"\n\n\"Shipmate,\" I answer, solemnly, \"He did do all that for you, and such as\nyou,--and He says all that to you.  Take hold of but the hem of His\ngarment, so to speak, by faith, and you are saved.  As to satisfaction\nto Divine justice, it is done.  You have nothing to do with that, you\nhave but to feel that you are sinful and guilty.  You have to repent,\nwhich, may God the Holy Spirit help you to do.  You have to look to\nJesus as the only cure, as the only Saviour,--to His blood as the only\nmeans by which you can be cleansed; and the holy word of God says it,\n`Thy faith hath saved thee,'--`By faith ye are saved,'--`His blood\ncleanseth from all sin.'  He doesn't say from little sins, or slight\nsins, but from all sin.  He doesn't say He will receive you by-and-by,\nperhaps, when you have done something to please Him; but He does invite\nyou, He does receive you.  No power of earth or hell can prevent Him\nfrom presenting you faultless before the throne of grace.  Shipmate, if\nyou only feel your guiltiness, it is you He invites, with all your sins\nupon you, to come to Him,--it is you He will present faultless and\nfearless before God's judgment throne, welcomed as a son of God,--not\ncrying out, as numbers will be doing, for the mountains to cover them,\nfor the rocks to fall on them.\"\n\n\"This is news indeed,--glorious news!\" says the poor fellow, in a\ncheerful, happy tone, very different from what he had before spoken in.\n\"I wish that I had known it before.  But I know it now, and that's\nenough.  Jesus died for me, and I trust in Jesus.\"\n\nI have soon to leave him to attend to my duty on deck.  Captain Fuller\nwould not hold it as an excuse that I was attending to a dying man.\nAfter some time, my watch on deck being almost out, Tony Hinks comes to\nme and tells me that Collis is dead; but says he, \"It was strange to\nhear him saying over and over, again and again, `Jesus died for me, and\nI trust in Jesus.'  What does that mean, Mr Harvey?\"\n\nI tell him.  He goes forward, muttering, \"Strange!  I never heard the\nlike.\"\n\nI see Collis once more before he is sewn up in his hammock.  There is a\nsmile on his features, such as I had never before seen there.\n\nSix days more, and we sight the high land of King George the Third\nIsland, called by the natives Otaheite, or Taheite.  As we draw near it,\nthe prospect becomes truly pleasing to the sight.  Lofty hills, covered\nwith beautiful flowering shrubs, and fringed by pandanus, cocoa-nut, and\nvarious other trees which we see in these tropical regions, rise up into\nthe clear blue sky, with green valleys between them, and sparkling\nwaterfalls rushing down their sides.  A line of white breakers\nintervene, however, foaming over a coral reef, with a belt of deep blue\nwater between it and the white glittering beach and the feathery fringe\nof vegetation which springs up close to the strand, the trees\novershadowing it with their branches.  Never have I seen a more lovely\npicture; and Tony Hinks, who has been here before, tells us there is no\ncountry, to his mind, more pleasant to dwell in.  \"A man may live here,\"\nsays he, \"with nothing to do, abundance to eat, and plenty of people to\ntend on him.\"  He gives the first mate and me a hint to keep a sharp\nlook-out on the ship's company, or some of them may be missing when we\nsail.  No wonder, I think, if the place is such an earthly paradise.  He\nspeaks of many other things likely to prove attractive to seamen.  I ask\nif the natives are Christians.  \"Christians? no,\" he answers, with a\nlaugh.  \"They would be spoilt, to my mind, if they were.  They are much\nbetter as they are, as you'll agree, Mr Harvey, when you go on shore.\"\nI am inclined to be at issue with Tony on that point; but still I would\nfain judge of the savage virtues of which he speaks before I condemn\nthem.\n\nWe coast some way round the island, till we reach an opening in the\nreef, entering through which we moor the ship in a commodious harbour.\nSoon she is surrounded with native canoes, laden with cocoa-nuts,\nbananas, bread-fruits, apples, figs, and other pleasant vegetable\nproductions.  The natives bring boughs with them, which Tom Tar tells us\nwe are to make fast to the rigging, to show that we are friends.  We now\ndrive a brisk trade, giving beads, and trinkets, and looking-glasses,\nand bits of cloth and coloured calico, for fruit, vegetables, pigs, and\nfowls; but the captain will allow no one to come on board.  He says that\nthey are arrant thieves, and so we find them.  By-and-by Phineas, with\nthe doctor, Tony, and I, having Tom Tar to interpret, go on shore, but\ntake ten men well armed at our heels.  It is a hard matter to keep the\nmen together: but it is not safe to let them separate.  The natives are\ntreacherous and revengeful, at least if they are like those we have\nalready encountered.  Our men might easily provoke them, especially by\nrude conduct to the women.  Seldom have I seen more comely females.\nTheir manners are attractive, and they know how to add to their charms,\nby dressing their glossy hair with flowers and shells, and such like\nornaments.  The country is as beautiful as it appeared a distance.  The\nhouses are mostly open at the sides, and thatched with palmetto leaves;\nbut some are enclosed, and all are neat and clean.  A house is offered\nto us by the chief, in which we may take up our abode while we remain on\nshore.  It is amidst a grove of trees, with matting for the walls and\nfloor.  A sparkling torrent, rushing down the side of a hill, flows in\nfront of it, cooling the air, while afar off is seen the deep blue sea.\nProvisions of all sorts are sent us by the king,--baked pig, and roasted\nbread-fruit, and plantains, and fish, and other articles of food, all\nserved in large leaves.  The bread-fruit is about the size of a\nhorse-chestnut, and when baked is somewhat of the consistency of new\nbread.  It is not fit to be eaten raw.  The king and the people seem\nfriendly; but to my mind there is no dependence to be placed on them.\nIt is made clear to us that they are sadly depraved, nor can I describe\nmany of the scenes which take place.  Suffice it to say that, like other\nheathens who know not God, they give themselves up to work all manner of\nabominations without constraint or shame.  We place a guard during the\nnight; but when we awake there is great shouting among our party for\nmissing articles, and it is found that we all have been robbed of\narticles of dress, knives, pistols, handkerchiefs, and pocket-books.\nPhineas declares that he will shoot the first savage he finds\npurloining, chief or not.  We complain of our loss to the king, who gets\nback some of the articles; but Taro surmises that he has got the\nremainder himself.\n\nAfter a bountiful breakfast we continue our progress through the island.\nOur surprise is great to come upon a large edifice of stone among a\npeople supposed only able to erect huts of leaves.  It is a pyramid,\nnearly three hundred feet long and one hundred wide, with a flight of\nsteps on either side leading to the summit, which is fifty feet from the\nground.  On the top is a bird made of wood, and a fish of stone.  This\nbuilding forms one side of a court, the other three sides being composed\nof a wall of hewn stone; the enclosed area is covered with a pavement of\nflat stones.  In this court are several altars of stone, on which are\nplaced baskets of bread-fruit, sweet potatoes, cocoa-nuts, and other\nfood, which we conclude were offerings to their Eatuas, or gods, which\nthey ignorantly worship.  Not far off we come upon a figure of one of\nthese gods.  It is made of wicker-work, in the form of a man; it is\nseven feet high, and covered over with black and white feathers.  We\nlearn that this pyramid is a temple, and that the court is a\nburying-place, called a Morai; the altars are called Ewattuas.  While we\nare about to proceed on our journey we see a concourse of people\ncollecting from all quarters, and hurrying toward the morai.  We inquire\nof Taro for what object they are assembling.\n\n\"To offer a sacrifice to their Eatua, their god,\" he answers.\n\n\"Of what will the sacrifice consist?\"  I ask, thinking that it would be\nof the bread-fruit and other fruits we saw on the altars.\n\n\"You will see,\" he answered, with one of those gleams of savage pleasure\nwhich ever and anon pass over his countenance.\n\nWe remark that there are only men and boys among the crowd,--no women\nnor girls.  The crowd increases,--there is expectation on their\ncountenances, as if something of importance is about to happen.  Still\nwe can obtain no information from Taro; he only says, \"You will see, you\nwill see.\"\n\n\"A very well-behaved set of people are these,\" observes Golding.  \"In\nEngland, among such a crowd, there would be fighting and squabbling.  I\nwould as lief be one of these happy islanders as an Englishman, with all\nour religion and civilisation.\"\n\n\"I have an idea, begging pardon, Master Golding, that you are not yet\nvery well acquainted with these happy islanders,\" observes Tony Hinks.\n\"It strikes me that ere long you will change your opinion.  Wait a bit;\nas Tom Tar says, you will see--you will see.\"\n\n\n\nCHAPTER FOUR.\n\nA NARROW ESCAPE.\n\nThe air is warm and balmy, the blue sea sparkles brightly, the lofty\nmountains, glowing in the sunshine, rise up majestically into the clear\nsky, the graceful palm-trees gently wave their boughs; all nature is\nsmiling with life, and health, and beauty, and all the perfections which\na bountiful Creator has spread over these regions.  \"What a paradise,\"\nexclaims the surgeon.  \"I agree with Golding, I should be well content\nto remain here to end my days.\"\n\nWhile watching for what is next to occur, we see four chief men, so they\nseem by their dress and bearing, walking along the beach.  Taro says\nthey are priests.  There are several men in attendance.  They stop, as\nif waiting for some one.  They are armed with clubs and knives.  Among\nthe crowd comes a young man taller than his companions, and comely in\nhis appearance.  He seems joyous and light of heart, for he sings and\nlaughs, regardless of coming ill.  The priests, watching him\nsteadfastly, slowly approach.  He stops and looks at them with an\ninquiring expression on his youthful countenance.  \"We require one quick\nof foot to bear a message to the Eatua,\" says the chief priest.  The\nyouth starts.  Before he can reply, a blow from the priest's club lays\nhim low on the sand.  The others fall on him with their clubs, and drive\nout any life remaining.  The priests, surrounding the corpse, place it\nwith the feet towards the sea, and utter some long incantations, each\npriest holding in his hand a bunch of red feathers.  Then they rise and\nplace the body of their victim parallel with the line of the sea beach,\nand more incantations are uttered.  The king, meantime, and his\nprincipal chiefs have assembled, and take their stand near the temple.\nHair is now plucked from the head of the victim, and one eye is taken\nout and wrapped in leaves, and presented to the king.  With drums\nbeating slowly the body is now borne up by the attendants of the\npriests, and placed on one of the altars.  The tufts of red feathers are\nat the feet, and rolls of cloth at the head.  After this, for a quarter\nof an hour or more the chief priest addresses it, and pretends to give\nthe message it is to convey to the world of spirits.  The surrounding\npopulace look on with stupid amazement, no one knowing whose turn it may\nbe next to be slaughtered as a sacrifice to their blood-loving deity.\n\nWhile the priests are chanting round the corpse the attendants dig a\nshallow grave, into which it is thrown with little ceremony, and covered\nup with stones and earth.  Fires are now lighted, and dogs and pigs are\nslaughtered and roasted, and these being placed on the altars, the Eatua\nis invited to partake of the feast prepared for him.  When we left the\nspot, I shuddering with a horror I had never before felt, the provisions\nremained on the altars.  Taro tells us that the priests, if angered with\na person, avenge themselves by selecting him as a victim, and that for\nfear of offending them no one ventures to interfere.  The priests have\nthus gained more real power than the chiefs themselves.  They generally,\nhowever, select some of the poorer people as their victims.\n\nWe see arranged near the morai a pile of sixty skulls, and that of the\nyouth just slain is now added to it.  They appear but little changed by\nthe air, and Taro says that they are those of victims who have all been\noffered up within the last few months.  He tells us that whenever one of\nthe chiefs is about to commence an undertaking, he selects some unhappy\nvictim, who is forthwith slaughtered and sacrificed.  We have undoubted\nevidence, too, that they often eat their enemies, and they do this\nwithout shame or compunction.  We see many of the chiefs and warriors\ngoing about with human jawbones hanging as ornaments round their necks,\nand we learn that they are those of enemies slain in war.\n\nSick at heart I accompany my shipmates.  \"Friend Golding, what do you\nnow say of these pleasant-mannered, happy islanders?\"  I ask.\n\n\"I knock under,\" says he.  \"England is a better place; but there are\nthousands there who get on very well without religion, so I say religion\nhas nothing to do with it.\"\n\n\"Religion has everything to do with it,\" I answer, in a somewhat hasty\ntone.  \"Religion influences those who have no religion themselves.  The\nheathen world of old, with all its civilisation, was not one jot better\nthan are these cannibals, equally given over to work all manner of\nuncleanness.  If it were not for the true faith of some, influencing\ngeneral opinion, many Englishmen would even yet be the same as these\nsavages.  I may say, as said a pious minister of whom I have read, if it\nwere not for God's grace, we ourselves should be as are these poor\nbarbarians; we might well see ourselves in them.\"\n\n\"A truce with your preaching, John Harvey.  You would make us all out\nblacker than we are,\" says Phineas, walking on quickly.\n\n\"That were a hard matter,\" I say.  \"Be not offended, I include myself,\nremember.  It is only as we see ourselves in Christ Jesus that we are\notherwise than most black, guilty, and lost.\"\n\n\"I understand you not, John,\" he answers.  \"But you shall not force me\nto acknowledge that I am not better than these half-naked savages.\"\n\n\"I did not say that; by God's grace, or in His providence, there are\ngreat differences, but all are sinners in the sight of God's holy law.\nBut we will talk more of this another time.\"\n\nThis island of Tahiti, or Otaheite, is the largest of a group known as\nthe Society Islands.  It is about fifty miles long, consisting of two\npeninsulas joined by a narrow isthmus.  It contains a mountain rising\ntwelve thousand feet above the level of the sea.  The other islands of\nthe group are mostly lofty.  They are Eimeo, Huaheine, Ulitea, Bolabola,\nand others.  They are volcanic, and mostly fertile in the extreme.\n\nWe visit Ulitea, a beautiful island where there is a vast morai.\nNumbers of priests reside here, and it is looked on as the sacred island\nof the group.  In reality it is more given over to horrible wickedness\nthan any other.  While on shore we witness another terrible human\nsacrifice.  Not a week passes but some unhappy people fall victims to\nthe bloodthirsty passions of the priests.\n\nThis my first introduction to savage life makes me feel doubly grateful\nto God that I was born of Christian parents, and in a land where the law\nof Christ, however imperfectly obeyed, is acknowledged in some sort as\nthe standard.\n\nThe wind being fair, we sail north-east towards the Marquesas.\n\nWe have been for ten days at the anchorage of Taogou, off the island of\nOhevahoa, the most fertile of the Marquesas.  We have been engaged most\nprofitably in purchasing sandal-wood, and hogs, and fruits, and\nvegetables of all sorts, and Phineas Golding is in high spirits, and\ndeclares that these are a people truly after his own heart.  Their\ncountry certainly is beautiful, for though the mountains are not so\nlofty as those of the islands we have lately left, they equally please\nthe eye, as do the groves, the valleys, and the waterfalls.  The men are\ntall, handsome, and athletic, and the women are scarcely inferior in\nbeauty to those of Tahiti.  Alas, that I can say no more in their\npraise.  Both men and women are most depraved, of which we have constant\nevidence.  Hitherto we have been on good terms with these islanders.  We\nhave a strict watch kept, and whatever may be their secret disposition,\nthey have had no opportunity of taking us at advantage.  Taro warns us\nto be on our guard.  He tells us that they are treacherous, and that if\nthey thought they would gain by murdering every man of our crew they\nwould do so.  Taro understands their language, which is much like that\nof Tahiti and his own country.  The men are much tattooed, their only\nclothing being a piece of native cloth round their loins, but the women\nwear a petticoat and a mantle over the shoulder.  This cloth is made of\nthe fibre of a sort of mulberry tree--not woven, but beaten into a\nconsistency of paper.  When torn the rent is mended by beating on a\nfresh piece.  It will bear washing only once.  A garment thus lasts\nabout six weeks.  The women are better treated than among most Indian\ntribes.  Their occupations are entirely domestic--they manufacture\ncloth, cook, tend the house, and look after the children, but from all\nwe hear and see, their morals are degraded in the extreme.\n\nHaving completed refitting the ship as far as is necessary, I have been\nable to go on shore.  We form a strong body, twelve officers and men in\nall, with muskets.  Our chief object is to visit a valley where the\nsandal-wood grows, to learn on what supply we can depend.  High up the\nvalley we come suddenly on a platform on which grows a large grove of\nbread-fruit, cocoa-nut, toa, and other trees.  Amid them is a large idol\nof hewn stone of a man in a squatting posture.  The figure is not ill\nsculptured.  His mouth is wide, and his eyes and ears large, while his\narms and legs are short and out of proportion.  There are numerous other\nidols, of the same size and form, made out of the bread-fruit tree,\narranged on either side and behind him, as if they were his ministers\nand attendants.  To the right and left of these hideous idols are two\nobelisks, about thirty-five feet in height, built very neatly of\nbamboos, with the leaves of palm and cocoa-nut trees interwoven.  At the\nbase are hung the heads of hogs and tortoises, offerings to the idols.\nThey are also ornamented with streamers of white cloth.  A few paces to\nthe right of the grove we see four large war-canoes, furnished with\ntheir out-riggers, and decorated with ornaments of human hair, coral,\nshells, and white streamers.  In the stern of each sits the figure of a\nman steering with a paddle, and in full dress, with plumes, ear-rings\nshaped like whale's teeth, and all the ornaments fashionable in the\ncountry.  These canoes are placed here to be blessed, we suppose, by the\npriests.  These priests have great power, for they are looked upon as\nlittle inferior to the idols.  We see this same stone idol represented\nin a variety of ways, made of human bones, hung round their necks, or\ncarved on their clubs, or making handles to their fans and\nwalking-sticks.\n\nWe find that there is no lack of sandal-wood, which raises Golding's\nspirits.  Mine sink when I see the idolatry of these poor people, with\nno hope that they may be taught better.  On descending the valley we\npass a morai, or worshipping place, I may call it.  On the ground is\nseated the chief, with his sons, and a large number of his attendants,\nor courtiers.  In front of them are a number of little houses, or sheds,\nmade of bamboo, each about two feet long and rather less in height, and\nornamented with shreds of cloth.  There are a dozen or more, forming a\ncluster like a village.  The chief and the rest are singing and clapping\ntheir hands, and thus they go on for an hour or more.  This they call\npraying to their gods,--a fit homage to gods of wood and stone.\nSometimes they stop, and laugh and talk together, as if they have\nforgotten what they are about.  We have seen no human sacrifices, but we\nhave reason to believe that they take place, and from what we hear the\npeople are undoubtedly cannibals.  There are several tribes on the\nislands, in some instances two or more an the same island, who carry on\ndevastating wars with each other, and who all slaughter and eat the\ncaptives taken in battle.  Though they seem much attached to their\ncountry, they firmly hold to the belief that there is a far better land\nto the east, and numbers are seized with a strong desire to visit it.\nYear after year the largest canoes are fitted out and provisioned, and\nmen, women, and children crowding on board, they set sail, and away they\nglide, never to return.  Strange to say, that although those who have\ngone have not again been heard of, others are found equally ready to go\nin the same direction, believing that their predecessors have reached\nthe happy land.  The priests encourage this infatuation, as those who\nembark leave their property to them.  This is faith, but alas! sadly\nmisdirected.  It shows a yearning for something better,--to escape from\ncruel wars and practices and misgovernment, to attain peace and quiet\nand rest.  It is certain that almost all who thus embark perish horribly\nat sea.  A few may be thrown on coral islands,--probably to die,--\ncertainly never to return.\n\nI must speak of the sandal-wood in which we are trading.  It is a small\ntree, with numerous irregular branches, and which with the trunk are\ncovered with a thick red-brown bark.  The leaves, which turn inwards,\nare of a very dark green colour.  The flowers, growing in clusters, are\nwhite, with a red exterior.  The wood is of a light yellow colour, and\nis very fragrant.  It is sold to the Chinese, who burn it as incense in\ntheir temples, and manufacture from it a variety of articles.  Candles\nare also made from it thus: a thin sheet of the wood forms a wick, which\nis surrounded by a mixture of its sawdust and rice-paste.\n\nOur traffic has continued without interruption.  Tony Hinks, in command\nof a boat with Golding, is embarking the sandal-wood, of which a pile\nlies on the beach.  I am watching from the deck through my glass what is\ntaking place.  The vendor of the wood is a young chief: he has been\nexamining the articles given him in barter.  Suddenly he seems\ndiscontented with them, and refuses to put more wood into the boat\nGolding, who is on shore, threatens him.  He lifts his club, and I\nbelieve that the last moment of the supercargo has arrived.  Tony Hinks\nis in the boat; he lifts his musket, and before the club can descend on\nGolding's head a bullet is sent through the chiefs shoulder, and the\nweapon drops powerless.  Howling with rage, he retreats; but it is to\nsummon his countrymen, who with threatening gestures rush on.  Golding\nleaps into the boat amid showers of stones cast from the natives'\nslings, followed by spears and darts.  While some of the men shove off\nothers fire, and load again and fire.  The boat is heavily laden, and\ncan with difficulty be moved.  I fear that my shipmates will be cut off,\nand share the fate of Captain Cook, and many others since his day.  I\norder another boat to be lowered, and cry out for volunteers.  No lack\nof them.  I send down to the captain--there is not a moment to be lost.\nI, with eight hands, leap into the boat.  Away we pull.  The captain\ncomes on deck and calls us back.  He points to a fleet of war-canoes\ncoming round the point: he fears that we also shall be cut off, and that\nthe ship, with the loss of half her crew, may fall a prey to the\nsavages.  Still I cannot without an effort see my shipmates destroyed.\nWe dash on,--the foam flies from our bows.  Hinks has got his boat\nafloat, but several of his men are wounded; yet they struggle bravely.\nWe open fire, and keep the savages at bay.  The war-canoes, however,\napproach,--Hinks' boat gets up to us.  It is doubtful whether we or our\nenemies will gain the ship first.  We pull for our lives.  Simon Fuller\nwill fight his ship to the last.  Our shipmates are casting loose the\nguns ready for action.  The savages in the war-canoes stand up ready to\nshower down their darts and stones at us.\n\n\"Give them a volley,--give them a volley,\" shouts Golding.\n\n\"It were lost time,\" I tell my men.  \"It were better get on board.\"\n\nWe keep ahead of the enemy, and gain the ship's side.  The falls are\nready,--we hook on,--the boats are hoisted up, and we hasten to man the\nguns.  There is a favourable breeze out of the harbour, the anchor is\nbeing hove up, the sails are loosed.  The canoes gather round us; the\nsavages begin to assail us with all their weapons, shouting and\nshrieking terribly.  The ship gathers way; the savages, grown bold, are\nclimbing up the sides.\n\n\"Depress your guns, lads,\" says the captain.  \"Small-arm men, give it\nthem.\"\n\nThe shot goes crashing in among the canoes, knocking many to pieces.\nNot a native clinging to the sides escapes the small-arm men.  Again and\nagain we fire, leaving the natives terrified and amazed at the power of\nour arms.  Our guns loaded with langrage commit great havoc among them.\nThey lose courage,--the ship is clear of them.\n\n\"And so we bid you farewell,\" says Phineas Golding, firing his musket at\na chief with whom he had the day before been lodging.  We sail out of\nthe bay, firing shot on either side.\n\n\"We have a good supply of sandal-wood, however,\" observes Phineas\nGolding.  \"But we had a narrow escape from the savages.\"\n\nNot a word does he say of his merciful preservation from death; and far\nbe it from me to hint that by my promptness I had a second time saved\nhim, and all with him, from destruction.  Tony Hinks, however, when we\nare clear away at sea, comes up to me and says--\n\n\"We owe our lives to you, Mr Harvey.  If you hadn't come when you did,\nit's my belief that not one of us would have escaped.\"\n\n\n\nCHAPTER FIVE.\n\nAMONG THE CANNIBALS.\n\nAfar off appears above the blue line of the horizon a silvery dome\nclearly defined against the sky.  It might be taken for a cloud, but\nthat it never moves its position.  It is the summit of the lofty\nmountain of Mona Roa in Owhyee, the largest of the Sandwich islands, now\nfully fifty miles away.  There are ten of these islands, though eight\nonly are inhabited, the other two being barren rocks on which fishermen\ndry their nets.  As we draw near, other mountain tops are seen, those of\nMona Kea and Mona Huararia.  Mona Roa is a volcano, and the whole\ncountry round is volcanic.  It is said to rise above twelve thousand\nfeet above the level of the sea.  It is night before we cast anchor in a\nsheltered bay.  Next morning we are surrounded by canoes, and many\npeople come swimming off to the ship, for they are as expert as other\nislanders of the Pacific in the water.  We are plentifully supplied with\ntaro, yams, cocoa-nuts, bananas, and water melons, also with hogs, which\nare of a large size.  Friend Golding, however, finds that he cannot\ntrade with them on the same easy terms as with other savages we have\nmet, for many ships have visited them, and they now require firearms,\nand powder and shot.  These people are much in appearance like those we\nhave before seen--they are tall and athletic, and many of the chief\npeople, both men and women, are of great bulk.\n\nI cannot but remember that it was at this island the renowned navigator,\nCaptain Cook, was slain; and the people have long in consequence been\nlooked upon as very savage and treacherous.  This we do not find them to\nbe, but they are heathens given up to gross superstition, and are\nignorant and immoral.  They carry on bloody wars with each other, offer\nup human sacrifices, and are, it is reported, cannibals.  But if so be\nthey are all this, and more, surely it behoves us as Christians to teach\nthem better things.  What, however, do we do?  We sell them firearms and\nammunition to carry on their wars, we partake in their immorality; so\nfar from showing them any of the graces of our religion, we make them by\nour lives believe that we have no religion at all, while by all those\nwho visit these shores not a voice is raised to tell them of the truth.\nWe find them more mild and gentle than the people of Tahiti, and very\ndifferent from the fierce savages of the Marquesas.  Not far off is\nKarakaka Bay, where Captain Cook fell.\n\nWe communicate with two other ships while lying here, and the officers\nall speak in favourable terms of the people.  Captain Fuller, therefore,\nallows us to visit the shore more than he would otherwise have\nconsidered safe.  We find these people very different from the wild\ninhabitants of the coral islands we have visited.  They have attained\nconsiderable proficiency in many arts--their cloth is fine, and\nbeautifully ornamented, as are their mats, but they excel in feather\nwork.  The helmets, and mantles, and capes of their chiefs are very\nbeautiful.  The helmets are in the form of those of ancient Greece, and\nare covered with bright red feathers, worked in to look like velvet,\nwith tall plumes, and as their cloaks are of the same texture and\ncolour, and the wearers are tall, powerful men, they have, when armed\nwith dubs or spears, a very imposing and warlike appearance.  The king\nalone is allowed to wear a dress of yellow feathers.  The common people,\nhowever, wear but scant clothing, none being required in this favoured\nclimate.  Their great war-god is Tairi.  To propitiate him human\nsacrifices are offered up, and his idol is carried at the head of their\narmies.  Lesser chiefs have also their idols carried before them.  One\nof their temples, a morai, merits description.  It is formed by walls of\ngreat thickness, like that at Tahiti.  It is an irregular parallelogram,\ntwo hundred and twenty-four feet long, and a hundred wide.  The walls on\nthree sides are twenty feet high and twelve feet thick, but narrowing\ntowards the top.  The wall nearest the sea is only eight feet high.  The\nonly entrance is by a narrow passage between two high walls leading up\nto an inner court, where stands the grim god of war, with numerous other\nidols on either side of him.  In front rises a lofty obelisk of\nwicker-work, and inside this the priest who acts the part of the oracle\ntakes his stand.  Just outside this inner court is the altar on which\nthe human sacrifices are made.  Near it stands the house occupied by the\nking when he resides in the temple, and numerous other idols fill the\nrest of the space.  All have hideous countenances, large gaping mouths,\nand staring eyes.  Tairi is crowned with a helmet, and covered with red\nfeathers.  Great labour must have been expended in rearing this vast\nstructure, and in carving all these hideous images, and sad indeed is it\nto consider the object for which all these pains have been taken.\n\nThe king, with whom we have been on good terms, sends to Captain Fuller\nto beg that he will lend him some of his ship's guns and muskets, and a\nfew of his crew, as he is about to make war on a neighbouring island.  I\nam on shore with Golding and Taro, and while a message is being\nreturned, he invites us to witness the usual ceremonies which take place\nbefore war.  As we accompany him to the morai, we see dragged on by the\ncrowd no less than eleven men, whose looks of terror, show that\nsomething they dread is about to happen.  Arrived before the temple,\nthere is a cry from the multitude, who instantly set on them with their\nclubs.  Taro tells us not to grieve; that some are prisoners taken in\nwar, others guilty persons who have broken a taboo, and others the\nlowest of the people.  While we stand shuddering, a concourse of people\narrive bearing fruits of all sorts, and hogs, and dogs.  The human\nvictims are stripped of all their garments, and placed in rows on the\naltars; the priests now offer up some prayers to the hideous idol, and\nthen the hogs and dogs are piled up over the human bodies, and the\nwhole, we are told, are left to rot together.  Sometimes, on occasions\nof great importance, twenty-two persons have been offered up.\n\nThe oracle is favourable, we hear, and the king sends round to all his\nsubjects to collect at his camp with their arms--spears, clubs,\njavelins, and slings--ready for battle.  No one dares refuse.  Vast\nnumbers assemble, but a few only of his immediate attendants have\nfirearms.  Nothing can be more fittingly hideous than their idol god of\nwar, with his grinning mouth armed with triple rows of sharks' teeth.  A\nhundred war-canoes are prepared.  The army embarks, and, like a flight\nof locusts, they descend on the opposite coast.  We see flames ascending\nfrom spots where lately stood smiling villages.  A few days pass, and\nthe army returns victorious with numerous captives.  Some are forthwith\noffered up to the war-god, others are kept to be sacrificed on a future\noccasion.  A great chief dies of his wounds, and several victims are\noffered at his tomb, while, as a sign of grief, his relations and\nfollowers knock out their front teeth, and fix them in a tree in his\nmorai.  His people also appear to have gone mad, committing every\nspecies of abomination, and we hear that many people lose their lives on\nthe occasion.\n\nThe Sandwich Islanders have many more idols than those of which I have\nspoken.  There is Mooaru, or the shark god, whose temple stands on\nalmost every point or headland.  To him the fishermen offer, on landing,\nthe first fish they have caught that day--for they imagine that he it is\nwho drives the fish to their shores.  But the greatest of all their\ngods, or, at all events, the most feared, is Pele, the goddess of the\nvolcano.  She resides on the summit of Mona Roa, and descends in fire\nand flames to punish her enemies below.  She has many priestesses, who\nappear in the villages with singed garments and marks of fire on their\npersons, to demand tribute from the inhabitants to avert her vengeance.\nI do not hear of one of their idols who has a mild or beneficent\ndisposition.  All the sacrifices offered are simply to avert their\nvengeance.  The people have no love nor veneration for their idols, and\nthey believe that their idols' chief pleasure is in tormenting and\npunishing them.\n\nOne of the most remarkable objects I have met with in the Sandwich\nIslands is what may properly be called a city of refuge.  It is a sort\nof morai, surrounded by strong walls, with an entrance on each side.  In\nthe interior are temples and numerous houses, in which the priests and\noccasional occupants reside.  Here, whatever crime a fugitive may have\ncommitted, if he can reach it he is safe.  A victorious enemy in pursuit\nof foes will come up to the gates, but if the vanquished have entered\nthey are safe.  During an invasion of the territory, therefore, all the\nwomen and children are sent in here, where they may remain in security.\nThere are several such places of refuge in the islands.\n\nThe taboo system is also very curious.  The priests govern chiefly in\nthis matter.  They settle what or who is to be tabooed, and how long it\nis to last.  To taboo is not only to set aside for a particular object,\nbut to make sacred.  The king, a hog, or a house, may be tabooed.\nDuring that time people may not do certain acts, and animals or things\nmay not be touched or used.  So important are these taboos held, that\nany person breaking through one of them is punished severely, often with\ndeath.\n\nIs it not possible that some of the customs I have mentioned, though\nbarbarous and debased, may have been derived from ancient tradition?\nWhence has sprung that strange expectation of the return of their\nlong-lost god, Rona, to bring a blessing on their nation?  What means\nthat longing for a better land far away in the east, entertained by the\nMarquesas islanders?  The king of this island seems to have great power.\nHe is the owner of all the land, and is the lord and master of all his\nsubjects.  He rules wisely, and has the affection of his people.\n\nI might say a great deal more about these Sandwich islanders--their\nhistory, habits, and customs, and of the events which have taken place\nsince we have been here, but should I write all I might, my journal\nwould be soon filled.  To describe them briefly thus:--Their islands are\ngrand and picturesque; they are very intelligent, and are physically\npowerful, but they seem abandoned to a debased idolatry, to cruel\ncustoms, and to a gross licentiousness.  Constant and barbarous warfare,\ninfanticide, and the diseases introduced by their foreign visitors have\nso rapidly decreased their numbers that the population consists of\none-third less now than it did at the time of Cook.  Captain Fuller, and\nthe other masters and mates of the ships here laugh at the idea of their\never becoming Christians or civilised, and, in truth, unless they have\nfaith in God's grace, it would seem a hard matter; but I know that He\ncan order all things according to His will, and that, in spite of all\nman's theories and doubts, He will find means to accomplish His work.\n\nPhineas Golding has just come on board in high glee.  He says that he\nhas just heard from Taro, who gets the information I know not how, that\nthere are to the southward of this several coral islands, where\nabundance of mother-of-pearl and also pearls of great size are to be\nprocured; and thus, instead of sailing west, as we had proposed, he has\narranged with Captain Fuller to sail once more south towards the Hervey\ngroup, and to touch at the Friendly, Fiji, and many other islands, ere\nwe once more steer north-west towards our destination.  To complete our\nstores, we take in a good supply of salt, to be obtained here in\nabundance; and then bidding farewell to our friends the Sandwich\nislanders, we make sail, and steer south.\n\nWe find a young lad, the son of a chief, who had managed to secrete\nhimself on board.  We ask him why he has done so.  He answers that he\nwishes to see the great country from which we come, and promises to do\neverything we require if we will let him remain.  Captain Fuller\nconsents; but I fear sometimes that he will have a hard life of it.  I\nresolve, however, to protect him as far as I can.  He gets the name of\nCharlie, but no other.\n\nWe have sighted several low coral islands, but at length we reach the\nneighbourhood of a group known as the Penrhyn Islands, about six hundred\nmiles due north of the Hervey group, which we also purpose to visit.  We\nsight a coral island, which we estimate as fifty feet high, nine or ten\nmiles long and five broad, with a deep lagoon in the centre.  It is as\nif a huge coral ring had been thrown down in the ocean.  At one end\nthere is an opening, through which a boat can enter the lagoon.  The\nisland is covered with groves of cocoa-nut, pandanus, and other trees;\nand, from the number of huts we see, and the people moving about, it\nseems to be thickly populated.  While the ship is hove-to, I take charge\nof a boat to carry the supercargo, and Taro, and Charlie; with six men,\non shore.  We pull round, but find that there is so heavy a surf running\nthat we cannot land on the outside.  To save time, Taro and Charlie swim\non shore to communicate with the natives.  I anxiously wait off to\nreceive their report.  After some time we see them running, pursued by\nmany natives.  They leap into the water, and dash through the surf.\nSome of the natives attempt to follow, but our shipmates distance them,\nand are taken safe on board.\n\nThey say the natives, though looking very wild and fierce, were kind in\ntheir manners, and invited them up to their houses, and brought them\nfood; but that they soon pressed round them, and began to strip off\ntheir clothes, and to take possession of everything they had.  Seeing\nthem preparing some hot stones with which to heat an oven, they believed\nthat they were to be cooked and eaten, and so starting up, they rushed\nheadlong for the shore, so completely taking their entertainers by\nsurprise, that no one at first attempted to stop them.  They report,\nhowever, that they saw pearl-shell ornaments, and even pearls, worn by\nthe savages; which so excites Golding's imagination, that he insists on\nour attempting further communication with the people.  Finding at length\nthe opening into the lagoon, we approach the mouth, the surf breaking\nover the rocks on either side with great violence.  There is a narrow\nlane of clear water; we pull in; a strong current carries the boat along\nwith fearful speed, and several seas break into her.  It seems as if we\nwere in a whirlpool.  The rudder has lost its power, and we are spun\nround and round helplessly; about every moment it seems to be hove on\nthe rocks.  She violently rises and falls, and then we are cast, as it\nwere, into the smooth water of the lagoon, though still carried upward\nfor some distance.  It strikes me at the moment that we are like mice\ncaught in a trap, and that it must depend on the pacific disposition of\nthe natives whether or not we escape.\n\nAt length we steer for the shore, where we see several Indians\ncollected.  They retire as we draw near.  We again send Taro and Charlie\non shore with looking-glasses and trinkets; they go not very willingly.\nThe savages stop, and cast at us glances of suspicion.  Then they make a\nrush forward, seize all the articles they can lay hands on, and again\nrun off.  Our two interpreters now come down shaking their heads, and\nsaying that there is no hope of trading with these savages.  Still\nPhineas will not give up the attempt; he has seen the pearls, and is\nlonging for them.\n\n\"Why, such a necklace as that would be worth a hundred pounds, or more,\"\nhe exclaims.  \"We must have the fellow dead or alive.\"\n\nHe stands up in the boat with his piece, ready to fire.  I sternly draw\nhim back, crying out, indignantly:\n\n\"I will not allow murder to be committed; for murder it would be, if the\nmen were ten times more savage than they are.  They have souls immortal\nas ours, which we have no right to drive out of their bodies before\ntheir time.\"\n\n\"Souls or not, mate, you have made me lose my pearl necklace,\" says the\nsupercargo, angrily.\n\n\"It were better to lose a dozen pearl necklaces, or all the pearls the\nbottom of the sea can produce, than commit a great crime,\" I answer,\nmore hotly than usual; and then, knowing that another sort of argument\nwould have more weight with such a man, I added, \"Remember, too, we are\nyet inside the trap.  If we kill one of these people, their countrymen\nmay assemble at the entrance, and slaughter every one of us.\"\n\nThis silenced Golding.  We pull some way up the lagoon.  The water\nswarms with fish, and the shore seems more fertile than any of the coral\nislands we have visited.  In all directions we see signs of inhabitants,\nand in some places small canoes hauled up, but none approach us.  We now\npull back towards the passage by which we entered; but the tide still\nruns in like a mill-stream.  Suddenly we run aground.  The men jump out\nand lift the boat off.  We are in a wrong channel.  We at length get\ninto what we believe to be the right passage.  The men track the boat\nalong, but we make little way.  Night comes on rapidly.  There will be a\nmoon, but it has not yet risen, and without its light we cannot escape.\nWe secure the boat to the rock, and wait anxiously for that time.  Few\nof us can sleep, for we know not any moment whether the savages may be\nupon us.  Both Taro and Charlie declare, from what they saw on shore,\nthat the people are cannibals.  There was also the remains of a wreck\nburnt on the beach, and they declare their belief that some ship has\nbeen cast away there, and the unfortunate crew destroyed.  We wait\nanxiously.  Golding says very little; he is evidently ill at ease.  I\nwrite it, not to boast, but my own mind is far more at ease; for I can\nsay, \"In God put I my trust: I will not fear what man can do unto me.\"\nThus, through God's grace, I have always been allowed to feel when in\npositions of great peril.  My shipmates I have heard speak of me as the\nbravest man among them.  So I verily believe I am; but then I am brave\nnot in my own strength, but in the strength of Him who is strong to\nsave.  There would be many more brave men in the world, if all knew on\nwhom they may leap confidently for support.  There is a kind of bravery\nthat is natural to some, and is a constitutional fearlessness; but a far\nhigher and surer courage belongs to those who have committed their souls\nto their God and Saviour, and who feel that whatever may befall them,\nwhen in the way of duty, must be for the best.\n\nThese thoughts pass through my mind as I keep watch while the men are\nsleeping around me.  Still the night continues dark; but as I peep\nthrough the obscurity, I fancy that I see against the sky some objects\nflitting here and there over the rocks.  I step cautiously back into the\nboat, rouse up the men, who seize their arms, and with the oars ready to\nshove off, if necessary, we wait prepared.  The figures approach\nsilently in great numbers, but cautiously stealing along, as if not\naware that we are awake.  We make no sound.  On they come over the\nrocks, with more ease than we could advance in daylight.  In less than a\nminute they will be upon us.  I wish to save bloodshed.  There is a\nfaint light in the sky: it is the looked-for moon about to rise.\nSuddenly the silence is broken by loud unearthly yells, and hundreds of\nnaked forms spring up as it were from the ground upon us.\n\n\n\nCHAPTER SIX.\n\nSAVED BY A STORM.\n\nNever have I heard yells more terrific than those with which the Penrhyn\nIslanders set on us.  We are assailed also with showers of darts and\nstones, which wound many of our people sorely.  Golding, brave as he is\non most occasions, utters a cry of terror, and nearly leaps overboard on\nthe opposite side of the boat I give unwillingly the word to fire.  Many\nof the foremost savages fall--the rest hang back.  We shove off.  The\noars are quickly got out.  The moon rises.  I distinguish the channel.\nIt is almost slack water.  We pull for our lives.  Golding and Taro\nstand up and fire.  The savages either do not see their comrades fall or\ndo not dread the bullets, for they rush along the rocks still within a\nfew yards of us hurling their stones and darts.  I feel assured that if\nwe strike a rock our lives will pay the penalty.  The rising moon gives\nme more light to steer, and allows Golding and Taro to take better aim.\nIt shows us, however, more clearly to the savages.  There is still the\nnarrowest channel to pass.  The savages are making for the point when,\nGolding and Taro firing together, two of their chief men fall.  It is as\nI thought, they had not before noticed who had been struck.  Now they\nstop, and with loud howls lift up the bodies of their chiefs.  Our men\nbend to their oars--we dart through the narrow opening, and though many\nof the savages spring after us, they fail to reach the point in time.\nGolding and Taro continue firing without necessity.  The poor wretches\nhave received punishment enough, and why thus slaughter them when our\nown safety does not sternly require us to kill?  The lights on board our\nship greet our sight, and we pull gladly towards her--Golding still\nuttering his regrets at the loss of his pearl necklace.  We reach the\nship, and stand off for the night, Golding insisting that he will try\nhis luck to-morrow.  The morrow comes, but when we pull in the aspect of\nthe people on shore is so hostile that even Golding acknowledges that we\nare not likely to get pearls from them this visit.  Captain Fuller,\ntherefore, resolves to steer south for the Hervey Islands, according to\norders, although, from the accounts I find in Captain Cook's voyages, I\ndoubt much whether our supercargo will be satisfied with the traffic we\nmay chance to open up with the natives.\n\nThe first island we made is that of Atiu, the same which Captain Cook\ncalls Wateeoo.  It is about seven hundred miles west of Tahiti.  We\npassed not far from the low island known as Hervey Island, which gives\nits name to the whole group.\n\nWe now sail round this island of Atiu, in hopes of finding a\nlanding-place, but none appears--a coral reef surrounds the whole.\nStill our bold supercargo is anxious to land, and so while the ship\nstands off and on, I take him, with Taro as interpreter, towards the\nshore, in the long boat, in which we have a gun mounted.  We pull in as\nclose as we may venture outside the surf.  Numerous natives are on the\nshore.  Taro beckons, and three small canoes are launched.  They paddle\nswiftly through the surf, and come alongside.  Those on the shore stand\nwaving green branches as a sign of amity, so Golding determines to land\nwith Taro.  Away they go, and as I may not quit the boat, I watch them\nanxiously.  They land in safety, and vast numbers of the natives\ninstantly close round them.  I see them borne up by the throng away from\nthe beach, and then lose sight of them.  Two hours pass away, and they\ndo not appear.  I begin to dread that they have been cut off.  I wait\nanother hour.  Just as I am about to return to the ship, the canoes are\nlaunched.  As they approach, to my disappointment I do not see our\nshipmates.  \"The Indians are just thinking that they will knock us on\nthe head,\" I hear one of my men say.  \"It will be our fault if we let\nthem,\" I answer, not feeling, however, altogether satisfied that the man\nwas wrong, yet unwilling to show any fear; \"we'll let them know what we\ncan do if they play us tricks.  Hand me the slow match.\"  There was a\nclump of palm-trees close down to the beach.  I step forward to the gun,\nand have the boat's head put towards the shore.  On come the Indian\ncanoes paddling rapidly through the surf--the men shouting and\nshrieking, and whirling their paddles round their heads.  I am unwilling\nto injure the poor wretches.  I aim instead at the trees.  The white\nsplinters start off on either side from a palm-tree struck by the shot.\nThe effect is like magic, the Indians' threatening shrieks are changed\nto cries of terror, and in hot haste they dash back through the surf\ntowards the shore.  Still we are left in doubt as to the fate of our\nfriends.  It is clear that we cannot land to go to their assistance.\nBut I resolve not to give them up.  We rest on our oars watching the\nbeach.  At length we see a concourse of people coming over a ridge of\nsand which shuts out the view of the interior from us.  Golding and Taro\nappear in the midst of them.  The savages seem to be paying them great\nrespect, and Golding bows with infinite condescension now on one side,\nnow on the other.  Canoes are launched, they step into them, and the\nobedient natives come paddling off to us through the surf.  Golding\nsteps on board and signs to the Indians to return.  \"Now, Harvey, get on\nboard as fast as we can,\" says he.  \"It has been a question in my mind\nall day whether we were to be treated as gods, or to be cooked and\neaten; and even now I don't feel quite comfortable on the subject.  Your\nshot turned the scale in our favour, for notwithstanding all Taro's\nboastings, they had no great opinion of us when they found that we could\nnot bring our big boat through the surf.\"  Taro at length bethought\nhimself of boasting that we could make thunder and lightning, and set\noff a few cartridges he had in his pocket to convince them.  The effect\nwas considerable, but not as great as was hoped for.  There was the\nlightning, but the thunder was wanting.  On the hill-side were some\novens with fire in them heating.  Taro looked at them suspiciously, not\nquite satisfied that he might not before long be put inside one of them.\nTurning about, he saw some warriors walking round and round with huge\nclubs in their hands.  He had no longer any doubt of their intentions.\nGolding saw them also, and became not slightly uncomfortable.  Just then\nour gun was fired.  Many of the natives fell flat on the ground, others\nrushed hither and thither, while some of the braver examined the trees\nwhich had been struck, and reported the effects of the white man's\nthunder and lightning.  Instead of knocking our friends on the head and\neating them as they had purposed, the savages came crouching down before\nthem in the most abject manner, as if they were beings altogether of a\ndifferent nature.  Still, as Golding says, the look of those ovens made\nhim glad to get down to the beach, lest the Indians should again change\ntheir minds about him.\n\nTwo days after this we sight another island.  Again Golding goes on\nshore with Taro, and the captain, and Tony Hinks.\n\nI cannot be surprised if some day Golding is cut off by the savages.  He\nis bold and daring, and far from cautious.  Aitutaki is the name of the\nisland.  Natives come off to us in great numbers singing and shouting.\nThey are tattooed from head to foot.  Never have I seen wilder savages.\nSome of their faces are smeared with ochre, others with charcoal, and\nare frightful to behold.  We keep on our guard, for we know not any\nmoment that they may venture to attack us.  As Taro is on shore we\ncannot understand what they say.  Festing and I allow only a few at a\ntime to come on board.  They attempt to climb up the sides, but we keep\nthem off by striking at their hands with boarding pikes, and pointing to\nthe gangway, showing that they may only enter there, a few at a time.\nStill they persist, when Festing taking up a musket ready at hand, fires\nit over their heads.  They look around for a moment, as if not certain\nwhether they are standing on their heads or their feet, and then leap\nheadlong, some into their canoes and some into the water.  They paddle\nto a distance, but then stopping, look back and threaten us.  Festing\ninsists that the only way to make these countries of any use is to sweep\nthe people off into the sea.  As to civilising them, that, he says, is\nimpossible.  I differ from him.  We wait anxiously as before for the\nreturn of the captain and our other shipmates.  Hour after hour passes\nby.  However great the danger in which they may be placed, we cannot go\nto their assistance.  We begin to fear that they have fallen victims to\nthe savages.\n\n\"You and I, Harvey, will have to take the ship home, I suspect,\"\nobserves Festing; \"I am sorry for the old man especially, as we can do\nnothing to revenge his death.\"\n\n\"That were small consolation,\" I observe; \"nor is that as God wills it.\"\n\nFesting looks astonished.  He would be very angry if he were accused of\nnot being a Christian, and yet, it seems to me, that he encourages\nfeelings and ideas very much opposed to the rules Christ our Master laid\ndown for the government of His disciples.\n\nEvening approaches.  With thankfulness I see the boat putting off from\nthe beach.  We stand in as close as the reef will let us to meet her.\nShe makes for a narrow channel between the breakers.  It is a question\nwhether she will get through.  The spray, as it curls upwards,\ncompletely conceals her.  Or--I look through my glass--has she been\ncapsized by the breakers?  No, she is seen again.  Her crew give way.\nShe is soon alongside.  All have come back safe, though they have been\nin great peril of their lives.\n\nCaptain Fuller has a curious story to tell of the inhabitants of this\nlovely spot.  They are the wildest savages he has ever seen.  More like\nwild beasts than men, yet not so cruel as some of the islanders we have\nmet.  As an example.  It appears from what Taro has learned on shore,\nthat a vessel calling off here but a few days back, landed a number of\nnatives from another island, who, instead of being killed and eaten,\nhave been kindly treated.  The name of the island is Raratonga, but\nwhereabouts it lies Taro could not learn, for the vessel appeared off\nthe coast at early dawn on the east side, and no one saw whence she\ncame.  They are young women, and have a pitiable tale to tell of the\ncruel way in which they were kidnapped by these monsters in human shape.\nProbably to prevent disputes among his crew, the captain landed these\npoor creatures, certainly from no motives of humanity if the account\nTaro gives of them is true.\n\nThe vessel only left the island three days ago, so that we may chance to\nfall in with her.  Both Captain Fuller and the supercargo declare that\nthey will give the master a bit of their mind.  \"Suppose,\" say they, \"we\nhad chanced to call off that island directly after those fellows had\nperpetrated this rascality, not suspecting harm, what would have been\nour fate?  Without doubt we should have been clubbed.\"\n\n\"So we might, indeed!\"  I observe, but I think to myself, what may other\nvoyagers say who follow in our footsteps.  Have we not shot down the\npoor savages, who have been defending their own shores?  Well may the\nislanders be ready to destroy any white men they can get into their\npower.\n\nCaptain Fuller says that he never was in greater danger of losing his\nlife than on this morning.  If one of the party had wavered, the savages\nwould have been encouraged to rush in on them and club them.  He and\nGolding talk of looking for Raratonga in the hopes of trading with the\nnatives, but we can by no means learn in what direction it is to be\nfound.  There is another group we hear of to the south of the Society\nIslands called the Austral Islands, but it would take up too much time\nto visit them, and so we shape a course for the Tonga or Friendly\nIslands.  Rumours have reached us that the people do not quite deserve\nthe character given of them by Captain Cook.\n\nSteeling west, we again sight land.  We stand in, and heave-to off the\ncoast.  It is Savage Island, justly so-called by Captain Cook.  Several\ncanoes, with uncouth, fierce-looking savages, come off to us, with\npainted faces and long hair, even more brutal than those of Aitutaki.\nTaro ascertains from them that another vessel with two masts has just\ncalled there, but gone away,--undoubtedly the brig which carried off the\npoor people from Raratonga, the unknown island.  We may therefore\novertake her.  A calm comes on,--the savages surround the vessel, and\ncontemplate an attack on us, it seems.  The guns are loaded with\nlangrage, and Captain Fuller issues orders to prepare for our defence.\nTheir numbers increase.  Taro warns us that they are about to commence\nan assault on the vessel.  He signs to them that they had better not\nmake the attempt; but by their gestures they show their contempt and\nboldness.  Again with loud shouts they come on, shooting their arrows,\nand hurling darts, and spears, and stones.\n\n\"Depress the guns, and fire,\" cries Captain Fuller.\n\nThe order is obeyed.  In an instant the sea is covered with the forms of\nhuman beings, some swimming from their canoes cut in two, others having\njumped overboard through terror.  The sea is red with the blood of those\nwounded.  The captain orders that the guns be again loaded.  Shrieks,\nand groans, and cries rise from the water.  It is fear, I feel sure,\nprevents the poor wretches moving.  I wish that I might beg the captain\nnot again to fire; but he would not listen.  He is about to lift his\nhand when I see the topsails fill, and the vessel glides out from among\nthe crowd of canoes.\n\n\"Hold,\" cries the captain; \"they have had enough of it.\"\n\nAway we sail, following the setting sun.  \"A pretty day's work,\" I think\nto myself, as I get into my berth.  \"Yet how is it to be avoided?\"\n\nI drop asleep.  I know that I am asleep, and yet I fancy that I am\nlooking over the side of a vessel,--not the _Mary Rose_, though,--and I\nsee the ocean covered with the forms of men, their skins brown, and\nwhite, and black, swimming towards all points of the compass.  They swim\nstrongly and boldly; each on his head wears a crown of gold, and in his\nright hand carries a book,--an open book.  I look again,--it is the\nBible.  They read the book as they swim, and it gives them strength to\npersevere; for sharks rise up to threaten them, and other monsters of\nthe deep.  And now land appears, the very island we have left, and two\nor more swim towards it, and the savage inhabitants come out in their\ncanoes to attack them, and I tremble for their fate; but the swimmers\nhold up their Bibles, and the savages let them pass, and follow slowly.\nSoon the swimmers land, and numbers collect round them and listen\nattentively while they read.  Weapons are cast away,--the countenances\nof the islanders are no longer savage.  They kneel,--they clasp their\nhands--they lift up their eyes towards heaven,--their lips move in\nprayer.  They soon appear well clothed, parents with their children\ndwelling in neat cottages, and lo! a large edifice rises before my eyes:\nit is a house of God.  A bell sounds, and from every side come men,\nwomen, and children all neatly clad; and then the words of a hymn strike\nmy ear.  The music is sweet, but the words are strange.  It grows louder\nand louder, till I hear the cry of \"All hands shorten sail!\"\n\nI spring on deck.  The ship has been struck by a squall; she is almost\non her beam-ends.  It is blowing heavily, the thunder rolls along the\nsky, the lightning flashes vividly.  Not without difficulty the canvas\nis got off her.  Once more she rights, and now away she flies before the\ngale.  The sea rises covered with foam.  Still she flies on.  We prepare\nto heave her to; for thus running on, with coral islands abounding, may\nprove our destruction.  It is a moment of anxiety, for it is questioned\nwhether the canvas will stand.  It requires all hands, and even then our\nstrength is scarce sufficient for the work.  We, under circumstances\nlike these, see the true character of men.  Golding, hitherto so daring\nand boastful, trembles like an aspen leaf.  He believes that the ship is\ngoing down, and dares not look death in the face.  I may write what I\nfeel: \"Whoso putteth his trust in the Lord shall be safe,\" as says\nSolomon, and as his father David had often said in other words before\nhim.  It is this knowledge makes the truly bold and brave seaman at all\ntimes.\n\nThis night is one truly to make a stout heart sink not thus supported.\nAt the main-mast-head appears a ball of fire.  Now it descends,--now it\nruns along the main-yard-arm,--now it appears at the mizen-mast-head,--\nnow there is a ball at each mast-head.  The men declare that it is a\nspirit of evil come to guide us to destruction.  Often while the foaming\nseas are roaring and hissing round us, and the wind is shrieking and\nwhistling through the shrouds, and all is so dark that a hand held up at\narm's length can scarcely be seen, flashes of lightning burst forth\nmaking it light as day, and revealing the pale and affrighted\ncountenances of those standing around.\n\nDay dawns at length.  As I looked to leeward, not half a mile away, I\nsee a vessel.  She is dismasted, labouring heavily.  We are drifting\nslowly down towards her.  Now she rises, now she falls in the trough of\nthe sea, and is hid from view.  She is a brig, as we discover by the\nstumps of her two masts, and we do not doubt the very vessel of which we\nhave lately heard.  A signal of distress is flying from a staff lashed\nto the main-mast; but, with the sea now running, what help can we render\nher hapless crew?\n\nWe watch her anxiously; even Phineas Golding, his thoughts generally\nrunning on dollars, seems to commiserate the fate of those on board,\nespecially when Tony Hinks remarks in his hearing that such may be ours\nere long.  The men are at the pumps, and we can see them working for\ntheir lives; but, by the way she labours, there seems but little chance\nthat they will keep her afloat.  We are gradually dropping down towards\nher; we can distinguish through our glasses the countenances of the\ncrew, their hair streaming in the gale.  What looks of horror, of\nhopeless despair are there!  They know that we cannot help them, though\nso near.  The vessel is sinking lower and lower; the crew desert the\npumps, and hold out their hands imploringly towards us as we drive down\ntowards them.  Their boats have been all washed away: it were madness in\nus to attempt to lower one.  Some with hatchets are cutting away at the\nbulwarks and companion hatch to form rafts, others run shrieking below\nto the spirit-room, or rush bewildered here and there; not one do I see\non bended knees imploring aid from heaven.  The vessel now labours more\nheavily than ever; a huge sea rolls towards her,--she gives a fearful\nplunge.  Many of our people, rough and hardened as they are, utter cries\nof horror.  I pass my hands across my eyes, and look, and look again.\nShe is gone!--not a trace of her remains but a few struggling forms amid\nthe white foam.  One by one they disappear, till one alone remains\nclinging to a plank.  We see him tossed to and fro, looking wildly\ntowards us for help.  Not another human being of those who stood on the\ndeck of the foundered vessel remains alive.  Will this one be saved?  I\nfeel a deep pity for him.  As I watch him, I lift up my heart in prayer\nto God that he may be saved.\n\nThe gale has been decreasing, and the ship lies-to more easily.  We hope\nin a short time to make sail.  The seaman still floats in sight.  At\nlength I believe a boat would live.  I ask Captain Fuller leave to go in\nsearch of the man, and sing out for volunteers.  No lack of them.  We\nmust have drifted some way to leeward of the man; but still, as I took\nthe bearings when I last saw him, I believe that I can find him.  Away\nwe pull; the seas are heavy, but long, and do not break much.  I look\nout in vain for the seaman.\n\n\"He must have gone down before this,\" I hear one of the crew remark.\n\n\"But the plank would be floating still,\" I observe.  \"That man has a\nsoul, whoever he may be.  If we save his body, by God's grace his soul\nmay be saved.\"\n\nThis thought encourages me to persevere.  Often the boat is half full of\nwater, but we bail her out, and pull on.  Already we are at some\ndistance from the ship, when I see a dark, speck rise on the crest of a\nsea and then disappear.  My hopes rise that it is the person of whom we\nare in search.  We hear a faint cry.  He is still alive.  The crew\ncheer, and pull lustily towards him.  The stranger gazes at us eagerly:\nhe if a youth, with long light hair hanging back in the water.  His\nstrength is evidently failing.  I urge on my men.  Even now I fear that\nhe will let go his hold ere we can reach him.  Again he cries out\nimploringly.  A sea striking the boat half fills her with water, and I\nlose sight of the lad.\n\n\"He is gone, he is gone!\" some of the men cry out.  But no; I see his\nhair far down, close under the stern of the boat I plunge in, and\ndiving, grasp it and bring him to the surface.  The boat has forged\nahead.  With difficulty I get him alongside, and we are hauled on board.\nThe young man has still life in him, but cannot speak.  We pull back to\nthe ship, more than once narrowly escaping being swamped.  It is some\ntime before the stranger can speak.  Even then he does not seem willing\nto say much.  He does not mention the name of the brig to which he\nbelonged, nor whether he was serving before the mast or as an officer;\nbut he speaks like a lad of education.  He is, however, so much\nexhausted, that it would be cruel to ask him questions.  Indeed, from a\nremark he made, I suspect that he believes himself to be dying.  I fear\nthat he may be right; but, alas! it is without hope that he looks on\ndeath,--only with dark horror and despair.  I speak to him of One who\ndied to save all sinners who look to Him for salvation and repent; but\nmy words seem to fall unheeded on the young man's car.\n\n\n\nCHAPTER SEVEN.\n\nA LAND OF HORRORS.\n\nThe young man we picked up two days ago is better.  He takes more to me\nthan to any one else, yet he is reserved even to me.  His name is, he\nsays, Joseph Bent, and the brig was the _Wanderer_.  I suspect that he\nis one of those castaways who have fled from the restraints of parents,\nor pastors and masters, and that he has been reaping the fruits of his\nfolly, and found them bitter.  The brig undoubtedly visited the island\nof which we have heard, and her crew were the men who committed those\nblack deeds of which I have spoken, but do not here again describe.\n\nHow soon are they all sent to their dread accounts except this youth!\nGreat is his astonishment when I speak to him of what was done, and of\nthe poor natives so barbarously carried away.\n\n\"The vengeance of a pure and just God quickly finds out the doers of\nsuch deeds,\" I remark.  \"And, Joseph, my friend, where would you now\nhave been had you not been rescued by the hand of mercy from the jaws of\ndeath?\"\n\n\"In torment--in torment!\" he shrieks out; \"in everlasting torments!\nRightly condemned--rightly condemned!\"\n\n\"But, think you not, that the same loving hand which saved your life\nfrom destruction will preserve your far more precious soul from death\neternal if you will but believe in His power and will to save you?  Do\nnot have any doubts on the subject.  The most guilty are entreated to\nrepent and to come to Jesus--the loving Saviour--the Friend of sinners.\"\n\n\"These are strange words you speak, mate,\" said the young man sitting up\nand looking earnestly at me.\n\n\"Not strange, friend,\" say I.  \"Thousands and thousands of times have\nthey been spoken before to the saving of many a perishing soul.  Let\nthem not be spoken to you in vain.\"\n\nThus do I continue for some time, till I see tears starting into the\neyes of the young man.  The knowledge of a Saviour's love softens his\nheart, while his sins still make him afraid.\n\n\"I remember to have heard words like those you have been speaking, mate,\nlong, long ago,\" he observes.  \"I forgot them till now.  They sound\nsweetly to my ears.\"\n\n\"Never forget them again, friend,\" I answered, having now to go on deck\nto keep my watch.\n\nJoseph Bent lives, and is gaining strength, but as he does so he seems\nto be hardening his heart, and avoids religious subjects; yet he speaks\nof the doings of his late shipmates at Raratonga.  What must have been\ntheir feelings when their ship was going down, and the thoughts of their\nlate evil deeds came rushing on their minds.  If people would but\nreflect each morning as they rise, and say to themselves, \"For what I do\nthis day I must most assuredly account before the judgment-seat of the\nAlmighty,\" how many a sin might be avoided; and yet, surely, the love of\nJesus, the dread of grieving our blessed Master, will do more than that.\nWith me love is the constraining power--with some men the fear of\njudgment may have more effect; fear may prevent sin, but love surely\nadvances more the honour and glory of Christ's kingdom.  It is love to\nhis blessed Master which will make a man give up home and country, and\ngo forth to preach the unsearchable riches of Christ to the perishing\nheathen; fear will keep him strictly observant of his religious duties\nat home: fear rules where the law exists; love reigns through the\nliberty of the gospel.  Yes, I am sure, that love, and love alone, will\nmake a man a persevering missionary of the truth.\n\nWe bring up at length on the north shore of Tongatabu, at the same spot\nwhere, many years back, Captain Cook anchored his ships, when he called\nthe island Amsterdam.  It is the largest by far of all the Friendly\nIslands, being some twenty miles long and twelve broad, and it is very\nbeautiful, though not rising anywhere more that sixty feet above the\nlevel of the sea.  Its beauty consists in the great variety of trees and\nshrubs with which it is covered, while few spots on the earth's surface\nare more productive; added to this there is a clearness and brightness\nin the atmosphere which is in itself lovely.  Captain Cook bestowed the\nname of the Friendly Islands on this group, on account of the friendly\nway in which the natives received him.  Captain Fuller says that he has\nheard certain reports which make him doubt as to the friendliness of the\nnatives.  They come off to us in large double canoes, unlike any we have\nbefore seen.  They consist of two canoes secured side by side, though at\nsome distance apart, by a strong platform, which serves as a deck.  In\nthe centre is a house with a flat roof on which the chiefs stand.  The\nsail is triangular, and formed of matting, and long oars are also used,\nworked on either side.  These canoes carry a hundred men or more, and\nmake long voyages, often to Fiji, on the east, and lo! the Navigators\nIslands, on the north.  When sailing forth for war covered with armed\nmen, blowing conch-shells and flourishing their clubs and spears, they\nhave a very formidable appearance.  Many smaller single canoes came off\nto us ringing fruits and fowl of all sorts.  They are a very fine race\nof men, taller than most Englishmen, and well formed and of a light\nhealthy brown colour.  They come on board in great numbers, and laugh,\nand appear to be well disposed.  The Captain's suspicions are soon\nlulled, and so are Golding's.  He wishes to trade with them for\ncocoa-nut oil and other articles.  Several of our men ask leave to go on\nshore, and the captain allows them.\n\nJust as they have gone off, Joseph Bent comes on deck.  He has, he tells\nme, been living on shore here for some time, and knows the people.\nNotwithstanding their pleasant manners and handsome figures and\ncountenances, they are treacherous in the extreme.  He tells that of\nwhich I have not before heard, that missionaries have already been sent\nout to these seas; that some were landed on this very island, of whom\nthree were killed, and the rest driven away.  Some, strange to say, were\nin King George's Islands while we were there, but we heard not of them\nnor they of us.  Indeed, I fear that our captain would have taken but\nlittle interest in the matter, though he might have shown those poor\nbanished ones, as countrymen, some of the courtesies of life.  Thus I\nsee that people may visit a place, and fancy that they know all about\nit, and yet be very ignorant of what is going on within.  Other\nmissionaries have gone, so says Bent, to the Marquesas Islands.  We\nheard nothing of them; indeed, our captain laughs at the notion of such\nsavages being turned into Christians.\n\n\"Who can this Bent really be?\"  I have asked myself more than once.  For\none so young he knows much about these seas, and what has taken place\nhere.  While I have been thinking how good a thing it would be to have\nmissionaries sent out among them, I find that people at home have\nalready done so, though as yet to no purpose, as far as man can see.\nThe people seem everywhere sunk in heathen darkness.  When Bent sees\nthat some of our men are going on shore, he urges that they may be at\nonce recalled; but Captain Fuller says that the supercargo, Taro, and\nTony Hinks, will take care they do not get into mischief.  The\nhalf-naked chiefs, with their clubs in their hands, and many other\npeople are wandering about the deck, examining everything they see, and\nnow and then standing and talking, as if expressing their wonder.  I\nobserve Bent moving quietly among them.  Soon afterwards he comes up to\nme.\n\n\"Mate,\" he says, in an ordinary tone, as if there was nothing the\nmatter, \"These men are plotting to take the ship.  The fellows on shore\nwill all be murdered, and so shall we unless we manage well.  My advice\nis to get the chiefs into the cabin on pretence of giving them a feast,\nand then seize them and hold them as hostages.  Directly that is done,\nrun the after-guns inboard and clear the decks.  It will be better to\nknock away the bulwarks than to be clubbed.\"\n\nThe captain seems unwilling to believe this.\n\n\"I have little to thank you for in saving my life if you do not now take\nmy advice,\" says Bent, earnestly.  \"You, and I, and all on board may be\nnumbered with the dead before many minutes are over.  Look at those\nmen's arms, and at their heavy clubs.  Whose head would stand a single\nblow from one of them?\"\n\nI urge the point with the captain, for I am convinced that Bent is\nright.  He is still irresolute, when we see some more canoes coming off\nfrom the shore.  This decides him.  Fortunately the men's dinner is\nready.  The captain sends for it into the cabin, and the steward covers\nthe table with all other food he has at hand.  We then fix upon four of\nthe leading chiefs whom Bent points out, and by signs invite them to\nfeast below.  They look suspicious, and, we are afraid, will not come.\nBent stands by to hear what they say.  He whispers to me that one of\nthem proposes coming, as it will throw us more off our guard.  Again, by\nsigns, we press them to come below.  When at length they comply, we\nendeavour not to show too much satisfaction.  We treat them with great\ncourtesy seemingly, keeping our eyes, however, constantly fixed on them.\nWe have the steward and two other men concealed with ropes ready to\nspring out and secure them.  The captain, Festing, and Bent, go below,\nwhile I remain in charge of the deck, and Festing hands me up a brace of\npistols and a cutlass, through the companion hatch.  The crew have been\nprepared, and stand ready to run in the after-guns and to slew them\nround the instant the chiefs are secured.  I listen for the signal,\nanxiously watching the proceedings of the savages.  Now I see them\ntalking together; now they handle their clubs, and look towards the\ncabin, as if waiting for the return of their chiefs to begin the work of\ndeath.  They eye our men askance.  It is clear that both parties\nmistrust each other.  The suspense is painful in the extreme.  There is\na sound of struggling, and shouts from the cabin; the savage warriors\npress aft.  Just then the captain cries out that the chiefs are secured.\nI order the guns to be slewed round, and sign to the natives to keep\nback.  They are about to make a rush, when Bent springs on deck, and\nshouts to them in their own language, warning them that if they move our\nwar-fire will burst forth on them, and that their chiefs will be killed.\nThe men, looking grim and fierce, stand match in hand at the guns.\nBent now orders the savages to return to their canoes.  Sulkily, and\nwith many a glance of defiance at us, they stand, unwilling to obey,\ntill Captain Fuller brings on deck, bound, one of their chiefs, holding\na pistol to his ear.  The chief speaks to them, and one by one they go\ndown the ship's side.  Bent now tells them that unless all our\ncompanions return in safety the lives of the chiefs will be taken.  I\nbethink me of writing a note to the supercargo, telling him what has\noccurred, and urging him to return instantly.  I give it to the last\nsavage who leaves the deck, and Bent explains to whom the paper is to be\ndelivered.  We now use all haste to get ready for sailing.  We have for\nthe present escaped a great danger, but we tremble for the fate of our\nshipmates, and we are convinced that fear alone will keep these savages\nin order.  The chiefs, finding that Bent can speak their language,\nendeavour to persuade him to let them go.  \"When our friends return you\nwill be set at liberty,\" is his answer.  It seems at present very\ndoubtful whether they ever will return.  Bent says that these people are\ntreacherous in the extreme, worshippers of devils, offerers up of human\nsacrifices, and cannibals, though not so bad as the people of Fiji, the\nnext islands we are to visit.  The chiefs all this time are kept in\ndurance below.  I have seldom seen four finer men in figure and feature.\nThe children, Bent says, are often quite white, like English children,\nbut as heathens they are born, and as heathens they die, without hope.\n\nA boat is now reported coming off from the shore.  A large canoe\nfollows.  In the boat are fewer men than left the ship.  What has been\nthe fate of the rest?  They come alongside, and we order the big canoe\nto keep off.  The supercargo and Taro make their appearance on deck.\nTheir escape has been most miraculous.  Already had the clubs of the\nnatives begun to play on the heads of their companions, and five had\nfallen.  Golding tells me that he expected every moment to be his last.\nThe man next him had been struck down, and lay writhing on the ground,\nwhen a cry was raised, and the canoes were seen hurrying away from the\nship, the savages refrained from letting drop their uplifted clubs, and\nwatched the approaching canoes.\n\nWhen the messenger with the note arrived there was a long consultation.\nGolding says he never felt so uneasy.  It was handed to Tony Hinks, who,\nunable to read, gave it to Golding.  He assumed a tone of authority, and\nthrough Taro told the savages that if all the survivors were not\nreleased their chiefs would be carried away captives.  They seemed to\nhesitate.  Golding believed that they were balancing in their minds\nwhether they loved their chiefs or the blood of the white strangers\nmost.  At last they decided to let Golding and Taro with three other men\ngo, and to keep Tony Hinks, whom they take to be a chief, as a hostage.\nTony was very unhappy at being left, and tried to escape, but the\nsavages held him fast, and Taro, it seems, who owes him a grudge, would\nnot help him.  Thus we are placed in a difficulty to know how to get\nTony back without first liberating the chiefs.  If it were not for the\nboatswain, the captain says he would hang all four at the yard-arm.  At\nlast it is decided that one alone shall go, and Bent is instructed to\ntell him, that unless the boatswain instantly returns alive and unhurt,\nthe other three shall be hung up.  I put him on board a canoe, which\ncomes out to meet our boat as we pull in.\n\nSome time passes, and at length Tony appears on the beach.  We make\nsignals that he must be brought off in a canoe.  As he steps into the\nboat, stout-hearted fellow as he generally is, he sinks down, overcome\nwith the terror he has been in.  Several of the crew cry out that now we\nhave got him back, we must hang the savages we have in our power in\nrevenge for our shipmates who have been clubbed.  The captain says that\nwe are bound to let one go.  I plead that all should be let go, that on\nthe faith of this Tony was returned to us, and that it is both our duty,\nand wise as a Christian and civilised people, to show clemency to the\nsavages.  With difficulty, however, I prevail, and Bent tells the chiefs\nthat they may order a canoe to come alongside, and may go free.  They\nappear very much astonished, and doubtful whether we are in earnest.  I\nwatch their eyes when they fully understand that they are free to go.\nSavages though they may be, there is human sympathy between us; they are\ngrateful for the way we have treated them; and I feel sure that we\nshould be far safer on shore should we return, than if we had hanged\nthem as proposed.  \"We are well quit of these savages,\" observes\nGolding, as we get free of the reefs, and stand out to sea.\n\nThere is another group to the north of the Tongas called Samoa, or\nNavigators Islands.  The people, Bent tells me, are very like those of\nthe Tonga group.  Of this Tonga group which we are leaving there are\nnumerous islands--the first collection to the north, called the Haabai\ngroup, while further north is that of Vavau--all governed by different\nchiefs, who spend their time in fighting with each other.\n\nWhile I am on deck in charge of the watch that night I see a bright\nlight burst forth to the north-east, rising out of the sea and reaching\nto the sky.  There is a noise at the same time as if there was distant\nthunder.  I fancy at first that some hapless ship has caught fire, and I\nsend below to ask leave of the captain that we may steer towards her to\npick up any of the crew who may have escaped.  The captain bids me come\nand examine the chart, and I see several islands with burning mountains\non them marked down.  The fire we see proceeds undoubtedly from one of\nthem--Koa, perhaps.  The matter is settled by finding our deck covered\nwith fine ashes fallen from the sky.\n\nFour days after leaving Tonga we find ourselves among islands of every\nsize and shape and height, many of them having lofty mountains in their\ncentres, while coral reefs are in all directions.  Never has my eye\nrested on scenes of greater loveliness than these islands present; they\nare apparently fertile in the extreme, green gems dotting the blue\nocean.  If men could be perfectly happy and gentle and contented, loving\neach other and being loved, it would, I should think, be here.  Each\nisland looks like a paradise--the abode of peace and innocence.  We are\nstanding in towards a secure harbour formed by a coral reef, a native\ntown appearing on the beach, with a hill covered with graceful trees\nrising above it, down which a waterfall tumbles and glitters in the\nsunbeams, forming a clear pool, from which we expect to fill our casks.\nI remark on its beauty to Bent.\n\n\"No doubt about that, Mr Harvey,\" he answers.  \"But we have more need\nto be on our guard against the natives here than in any islands of the\nPacific.  A more treacherous, fierce, and determined race of cannibals\nis not to be found.  Of all the islands we see scattered around, and of\nmany score more, the inhabitants of one dare not visit their nearest\nneighbours, for fear of being entrapped and killed and eaten.  Their\ngreat chiefs and warriors boast of the number of people they have killed\nand devoured; and if they have no captives in their hands when they wish\nto make a feast, they will kill some of their own slaves, or will send a\nparty of their warriors to any small island near, to knock as many\npeople on the head as they may require.\"\n\nI fancy that Bent is joking, though it is not a lively subject to joke\nabout.  The captain, however, says that he will be on his guard, and a\nstrong party, well armed, will alone be allowed to go on shore.  Still,\nas we require water and fuel and fresh meat and vegetables, we must put\nin here to obtain them.\n\nWe drop our anchor in a calm bay, with scarce a ripple on the surface of\nthe clear blue waters, while against the outer edge of the coral reef\nthe sea rolls in and breaks in masses of white foam.  There is a town in\nsight, surrounded by a ditch and bank, and bamboo stockades, and full of\ncottages with high-thatched roofs.  Above the town, on the hill, is a\nseparate tall building with an exceedingly high-pitched roof, also\nthatched, the ridge-pole extending out on either side.  It is a temple,\nBent says, where human sacrifices are offered, and many other abominable\nthings done.  The god may be a whale's tooth, or a piece of cloth, or a\nhideous wooden idol.  Soon after we have furled sails, two large double\ncanoes make their appearance inside the reef, running for the town.\nThey have vast mat sails, and on the deck of each are fully a hundred\nblack warriors armed with clubs and spears and bows.  They are painted\nhideously.  Several have huge heads of hair, and all are gesticulating\nviolently, as if recounting their deeds of valour.  They pass close to\nour vessel, but do not seem to heed us much.  We have our guns run out\nand the crew at quarters ready for them.\n\nAs I look through my glass I see in the bows of each some twenty dead\nbodies arranged in rows--men, women, and children.  \"Alas! were these\ntaken in war?\"  I ask.  The canoes reach the beach, and crowds come down\nwith loud shouting and wild leaps, and the canoes are hauled on shore,\nand then the dead bodies are dragged up the hill towards the temple, all\nthe men shouting and shrieking louder than ever.  They appear truly like\na horde of evil spirits let loose on earth.  I accompany the captain and\nsupercargo with Bent, Taro, and a boat's crew, all well armed, on shore.\nTaro explains that we come as friends, and as the people see that we\nare well prepared for war, no opposition is offered.  We enter the house\nof a chief who has just died; his body lies at one end of a long hall\nfull of people.  Among them are some twenty women, most of them young\nand fine-looking persons.  Their hair is adorned with flowers, and their\nbodies are oiled.  Some look dull and indifferent to what is taking\nplace, others are weeping, and others look well pleased.  Taro tells us\nthat they are the wives of the king.  Several men stand near them; ropes\nare cast round their necks, and suddenly, before we have time to rescue\nthem, as we feel inclined to do, five of them are strangled, and fall\ndead corpses on the ground.  Their bodies are quickly carried off, with\nthat of the chief, and all are buried in one common grave.  The new king\nnow appears, and the crowd come to do him honour.  He is a tall, stout\nyoung man--every inch a savage.  We look with horror at what we\nwitness--the bodies are dragged up the hill, and thrust into huge ovens.\nSome of the captives not yet dead are blackened and bound in a sitting\nposture, and thus, horrible to relate, are placed _in the ovens to be\nbaked alive_.\n\nIt is too sickening to write what afterwards follows.  None of us can\nlonger doubt that these people are the most terrible of cannibals.  I\nfeel inclined to charge forward to rescue them, but the captain orders\nus all to stand fast, or we may chance to be treated in the same way\nourselves.\n\nWe now, through Taro, tell the chief that we require water and fruit and\nvegetables and hogs and fowls, and that we will pay for all.  He\nreceives the message somewhat haughtily, and informs us with the air of\nan emperor, that though he is one of the greatest sovereigns on earth,\nand that all men bow down to and fear him, he will grant our request.\nThere he sits, a naked black savage, benighted and ignorant in the\nextreme; and yet such is his opinion of himself.  I cannot help\nthinking, as I look at him, that I have seen civilised men almost as\nwell contented with themselves with as little cause.  We do not find any\nof our men inclined to straggle, after what they have seen.  We hurry\ndown to the beach.  The boat has been left hauled off at some distance,\nunder charge of three men, well armed.  They pull in when they see us,\nand say that they are not a little glad to find us safe, for that many\ncanoes with fierce-looking savages have been paddling round and round\nthem, the cannibals showing their white teeth, and making signs that\nthey would like to eat them.  Whether this is only the fancy of our men\nI cannot say.  Even Golding, when we get on board, looks pale and says\nlittle.  It seems to me as if Satan had truly taken possession of the\npeople of these islands, for Bent tells me that the scenes we have\nwitnessed are only such as occur constantly.\n\nWe keep a watchful look-out all night, ready for action at a moment's\nnotice.  Again we visit the shore, armed as yesterday.  Preparations are\nmaking to build a house for the new chief.  The four uprights for the\ncorners are already placed in large holes dug deep into the earth.  In\neach hole stands a living man bound to the post, with upturned eyes\ngazing at the light of day.  What is our horror to see parties of\nsavages begin to throw in the earth upon them.  It covers their breasts,\ntheir shoulders, and rises up, the hapless wretches still breathing,\ntill the tops of their heads are concealed, and then with eager haste\nthe murderous wretches stamp down the ground over them.  Taro tells us\nthe savages say that the spirits of the dead men will guard the house,\nso that no evil will befall its inmates.  Truly I shall be glad to be\nclear of this land of horrors, yet it is a fruitful land, and one\nproducing a variety of articles for barter.  With cocoa-nut oil alone we\ncould quickly load our vessel, and with the population these islands\npossess, what numberless other tropical productions might they not\nfurnish, if means could be found to civilise the people!\n\n\n\nCHAPTER EIGHT.\n\nIN PERILS VARIOUS.\n\nAgain we go on shore, armed as yesterday.  The men cast uneasy glances\naround, and show no inclination to separate from each other.  We meet\nthe chief, who looks taller and fiercer than ever.  His black hair is\nfrizzled out in the most extraordinary manner, and on the top he wears\ntwisted round it a piece of smoke-coloured native cloth like a turban.\nHe has rings round his arms and legs, and a small piece of cloth round\nhis loins, but otherwise this great king, as he believes himself, is\nentirely naked.  He carries in his hand a richly carved black club--so\nheavy, that to strike with it is to kill.  He receives us in the same\nhaughty manner as before, as if he wished to impress us with his\nimportance.  As he strides along, the people fly on either side, or bow\ndown before him, though he does not in the slightest degree heed them.\nHe is on his way to witness the launching a large new war-canoe, and\nwhich, now decked with streamers, we see at some distance from the\nbeach.  Conch-shells are sounding, and there is much shouting and\ndancing.  As we draw near, a band of prisoners, with downcast looks of\nhorror, are driven along towards the canoe.  Men stand ready with long\nropes to drag her to the water.  Before she is moved, the captives,\nbound hand and foot, are cast down before her; then loud shouts arise--\nthe men haul at the ropes--the canoe moves, and is dragged over the\nbodies of the slaves, crushing them to death.  No one pities them.  This\nnight the cannibal chiefs will feast on their bodies.  Even now the\novens in the great square are heating to cook them.  It strikes me that\nthese people take a pride in showing to us the enormities they dare to\ncommit.\n\nAs later in the day we are passing through the town, we see two people,\na man and woman, wrangling.  The man grows more and more angry.  A young\nchild is near them; it runs to its mother's arms, but the man seizes it,\nand in an instant he has killed the poor little creature, and with a\nfierce gesture thrown the yet panting body on the ground.  He gazes for\na few seconds moodily at the dead child.  The mother does not attempt to\ntouch it; then he orders her to bring a spade.  He digs a hole in the\nfloor; the still warm body is thrust in; the earth is thrown back; both\nstamp it down, and then return to their seats as if nothing had\nhappened.\n\nWe see another day a young man buried alive by his own parents.  Taro\nsays he had grown weary of life, and they did it to please him.  We see\nvery few old people, and we hear that when people get weak and ill from\nage, their children either strangle them or bury them alive.  Bent tells\nme that human sacrifices are often made to their gods, when the priests\nand chiefs feast on the victims.  We see many people with fingers cut\noff, and we hear that they have been devoted as offerings to their\nchiefs who have died, or may only have been ill.  No crime is more\ncommon than that of killing children, especially girls, indeed, it is\nremarkable that these people do not seem at all sensible that they are\ncommitting crimes.  At all events they glory in their shame.\n\nI might note down many more things we see and hear during our stay in\nthis group, but I feel sick at heart as I write and think of all that is\ntold me; and every day, as I tread these blood-stained shores, the very\nair seems polluted, and the shrieks of the wretched victims of their\nfellows cruelty, ring in my ears.  Wars seem never to cease among them.\nOne tribe is always attacking another, and those inhabiting islands\nwithin two or three miles of each other cannot live at peace.  The\ndesire to retaliate is the great cause of all their quarrels.  If a man\nis killed by those of another tribe, his friends are not content till\nthey have killed some of that tribe; then the people of that tribe do\nnot rest till they have avenged the death of their relations; and so it\ngoes on, each murder producing another, till there is not a man among\nall their tribes who does not feel that there are numbers ready to take\nhis life, while he is also on the watch to kill certain people with whom\nhe is at feud.\n\nOf another thing I hear, which, had I not seen so many horrible things\nthey do, I could scarcely credit.  If the people of a small island\noffend a chief, he does not kill them at once, but he takes away all\ntheir canoes, so that they cannot escape.  Then, whenever he wants\nvictims to offer in his temples, or to feast any friendly chief who may\nvisit him unexpectedly, he sends and brings off one or more families, or\nparts of families, from the doomed island.  No one knows who will be\nnext taken, but they live on with the full consciousness of what their\nfate will be.  They see their relatives and friends taken and carried\noff to be baked, and they know that, perhaps, their turn may come next.\nBent was some time among them, protected by one of their chiefs, to whom\nhe made himself useful, yet he says that he never felt sure of his life\nan hour together; and whenever he saw the chief handling his club, he\ncould not help fancying that it might come down on his head.\n\nDreadful as these accounts are, we can speak of little else on board.\n\"It would be as easy to wash a blackamoor white, as to make these men\nChristians,\" observed Phineas, one evening, as we sit in the cabin.\n\"What say you, Mr Bent; would you like to make the attempt?\"\n\nBent casts his eyes on the deck, and does not answer.  Golding looks at\nme.  \"I'll tell you my opinion,\" I reply.  \"If man alone had to\naccomplish the work, I would say, it is impossible.  But man works not\nalone.  God's Holy Spirit is on his side.  We are all by nature vile; we\nhave all gone astray.  All our natural hearts are of stone.  God's grace\ncan alone soften our stony hearts, can alone bring us back to Himself,\nand as He surely is all-powerful, to my mind He can just as easily shed\nHis grace on the hearts of these black heathen cannibals, and soften\nthem, and bring them to love and worship Him, as He can work the same\nchange in any white man; and so I see no reason to doubt that if the\ngospel is put before them some will hear it gladly and accept it.\"\n\nThe captain, as I speak, begins to grow angry.  Golding bursts into a\nfit of laughter.\n\n\"You're talking Greek to me,\" says he.  \"How could these black savages,\nwho have never seen a book in their lives, understand the Bible, even if\nyou gave it them?  It's hard enough for civilised white people to\ncomprehend, eh, Captain Fuller!  You find it a tough job?  I'm sure I\ndo.\"\n\n\"As to that, I don't pretend to much learning in that line--like my\nsecond mate here, but I always leave such matters to the parson.\"\n\nWhat the captain meant I cannot tell.  On looking up, I see Bent's eyes\nfull of tears, and he says nothing.  I do not press the subject now as\nit will only provoke hostility, but I resolve to speak privately to Bent\nwhenever I can.  Yes, I am sure, by God's grace, and through the\ninstrumentality of human ministers and His book, these dark heathens may\nbecome enlightened worshippers of Him.\n\nWe hear that there is a port at the great island of Vanua Levu, where\nsandal-wood is to be procured, and we accordingly forthwith sail there.\n\nTruly it is dangerous work navigating these seas among coral banks in\nevery direction, some just above water, others three, four, and fifteen\nfeet below it.  It is only when the sun is shining and the sea blue that\nwe can distinguish the coral, which gives a green tinge to it, under\nwater.  One of us is always stationed aloft to pilot the ship.  We have\nhitherto escaped.  I pray we may, for if we were to wreck the good ship,\nthese savages would spare the lives of none of us.\n\nOnce more we drop our anchor, and canoes come off to us.  We make known\nthat we have come for sandal-wood, and have axes, and knives, and nails,\nto give in exchange.  The natives seem so ready to trade that Golding is\nquite enamoured of them, but the captain wisely will allow no one to go\non shore.  We keep a careful watch as before.  The natives, however,\nseem very peaceable.  They tell Taro that they wish to trade with us,\nand be our friends, and tempt us to come back again.  The first mate,\nTony Hinks, and others, declare that the captain's regulations are too\nstrict, and that they ought to be allowed to go on shore.\n\nTwo days pass by, and we are almost ready once more to sail.  I am below\ntalking with Bent and the doctor.  Most of the men are forward at their\ndinner, the captain, and the first mate, and the watch only being on\ndeck.  There is a loud sound like a blow given on the deck, then a shout\nand a piercing shriek.  Something is the matter.  We seize cutlasses and\npistols, and any weapons we can lay hands on, and spring on deck.\nUpwards of a dozen savages are collected there with heavy clubs in their\nhands uplifted, and our men are righting desperately with them, but\nalmost overpowered.  The first mate lies dead on the deck near the\ncompanion, and further forward are Tony Hinks and a seaman with their\nheads beaten in.  The supercargo is defending himself with a capstan-bar\nagainst several savages, while the captain stands in one of the quarter\nboats, which has been lowered partly down, pointing a telescope at the\nsavages, who look at it as if they think it some sort of firearm.  Most\nof the cannibals turn upon us, and advance furiously with their heavy\nclubs.  We have, I deem, but little chance of contending with numbers so\noverpowering.  I hand a cutlass and a pistol to the captain, who springs\nout of the boat on deck.  Bent stands wonderfully cool, and levelling\nhis pistols kills two of our assailants almost at the same moment.  The\nrest hesitate; they have not thought of putting on the hatches, and to\nour great relief we see the crew springing up from the forepeak armed\nwith axes, knives, and harpoons.  With loud shouts and threats of\nvengeance they rush at the savages, some of whom they cut down, others\nthey hurl overboard; we from aft join in the onslaught, till the savages\ntake fright, and in another instant our decks are clear.  The guns are\nalways kept loaded--the captain orders them to be depressed and fired at\nthe canoes, towards which our late assailants are swimming.  Many are\nstruck, and several of the canoes are knocked to pieces.  The greater\nnumber of the people swim to the shore with the greatest ease, diving\nwhen they see the guns fired, or the levelling of the muskets.  We make\nsail and stand out of the harbour to the west, intending to bury our\nchief mate and boatswain in deep water, out of sight of these cannibal\nregions.\n\nTruly it makes me sad to think of these two men thus suddenly cut off,\nutterly unprepared to go into the presence of a holy God.  They trusted\nnot to Him who alone could washed them clean.  They were good seamen,\nbut they were nothing else.  The captain comes on deck, as their bodies\nlie near the gangway, lashed in their hammocks, with that of the other\nman killed, and covered up with flags.  We read a portion of the burial\nservice, and commit them to the deep, till \"the sea shall give up her\ndead.\"\n\nThe next island we make, sailing north, is Tutuila, one of the\nNavigators', or Samoan group.  The harbour we enter is Pango Pango.  It\nis the most curious we have seen.  It runs deep into the land, and on\neither side are high precipices, some a thousand feet high, with two or\nthree breaks, by which the waters of the harbour are approached from the\nshore.  The people come off to us with great confidence in their large\ndug-out canoes.  They are a brown race, like those of Tahiti.  They are\nevidently a better disposed people than those we have just left.  We\nhave no fear about going on shore, and meet with civil treatment.  Yet\nthey are great thieves and beggars--the greatest chiefs asking for\nanything to which they take a fancy.  They are also debased idolaters;\nand Taro says they worship fish, and eels, and all sorts of creeping\nthings.  They are also savage and cruel, and constantly fighting among\neach other.  As to their morals, they are undoubtedly superior to the\npeople of Tahiti, yet, from the style of their dances, we cannot argue\nmuch in their favour.\n\nThere is much wild and beautiful scenery in the islands of this group,\nand as far as we are able to judge, the climate is good.  We keep as\nusual on our guard, and from what we hear, not without reason, for\nnumerous articles of dress, and carpenters tools, and iron work, and\nchests, and parts of a vessel, have been seen among the people, which\nleaves no doubt that some unfortunate ship's company have been wrecked\non their shores or put off by them.  Indeed, it is worthy of remark\nthat, with the exception of Tahiti, there is not a single group at which\nwe have touched where we have not had evidence that ships had been\nattacked or wrecked, and a part, if not the whole, of the ship's company\ncut off.  In some, only boats' crews have been destroyed, as was the\nfate of Captain Cook and his companions, but at several of the islands\nseveral ships' crews have been captured, and the greater number of the\npeople killed and eaten.  Indeed, such is the barbarous heathen and\ndebased condition of the countless inhabitants of this island-world of\nthe Pacific, that the navigation of these seas is indeed an undertaking\nof great peril.  No man can tell when he is safe, or at what moment the\ntreacherous islanders may not turn round and destroy him, just as they\ndid Captain Cook, and just as they have treated many other unfortunate\nEnglishmen since his time.  Truly, it may be said, that these islands\nlie in darkness and in the shadow of death.  There is but one means by\nwhich they can be changed--the sending to them the gospel.  Yet my\nbrother seamen and the traders laugh at such a notion, and people at\nhome, who ought to know better, call it fanatical nonsense.  I do not\nwish to set my opinion up against that of others, but there are certain\npoints where a man can feel that he is right and others wrong, and this\nis one of them.  The gospel has power to change the evil heart.  Nothing\nelse can do it.  That never fails if accepted.  God has said it.  Why\nshould we doubt?\n\nWe hear that the people of this place are carrying on war with those of\nanother island.  Some of the chiefs come and invite Captain Fuller to\nhelp them, but he replies, that if they wish to fight, they must fight\namong themselves.  I would rather he had tried to dissuade them not to\nfight at all.  We make sail out of the harbour, and are becalmed not far\noff a fortress on the summit of a high cliff which is to be attacked.\n\nIt is crowded with the whole population of the island.  With our glasses\nwe can see clearly what is taking place.  Soon the canoes from Pango\nPango, and of other tribes, their allies, appear.  The people land, and\nbegin to scale the rock.  Numbers are hurled down and killed, but others\nclimb up.  Higher and higher they get.  They seem determined to conquer.\nI tremble for the fate of the hapless defenders if they succeed.  We\ncan hear their shouts and cries.  Some of the assailants have gone round\non the land side.  We observe the multitude inside rushing here and\nthere.  Those scaling the rock on our side have reached the summit;\nseveral fall, but now the rest break through the stockade, and rush with\ntheir clubs and spears against the shrieking crowd.  The rest of the\ninvaders have succeeded in gaining an entrance on the opposite side.\nThe work of death goes on.  All are indiscriminately slaughtered--men,\nwomen, and children.  The warriors hold together, and fight\ndespairingly.  One by one they fall before the victors' clubs.  A breeze\nsprings up, and we stand clear of the reefs and once more out to sea.\nIn the last glimpse we obtain of the fort the fighting is still going\non, and thus it continues till the scene fades in the distance.\n\n\"Such is the warfare carried on among these savages,\" observes Bent.\n\"Those who are victorious to-day will be attacked by other tribes before\nlong, and in like manner cut to pieces.  In a few years not one of these\nnumberless tribes will remain.  War kills many; but in war, crops are\ndestroyed, and famine ensues, and kills many more; and disease, with no\nsparing hand, destroys numberless others also.  A few years hence, those\nnavigating these seas will find none alive to welcome them.\"\n\nThe carpenters declare the ship in such good condition that the captain\nand supercargo resolve to explore the Loyalty and New Hebrides, and\nother groups in that direction, before seeking our final port.  These\nislands are especially rich in sandal-wood, with which it is resolved we\nshall fill up.  The first land we make is Mare--one of the Loyalty\nIslands--a low coral island, about seventy miles in circumference.  The\ninhabitants are almost black, and a more brutalised savage race we have\nnot yet seen.  There are four tribes constantly at war with each other--\nthe victors always eating their captives.\n\nHence we steer north, and bring up in a fine harbour in the island of\nFate, or Sandwich Island.  It is a large, mountainous, and fertile\nisland, with great beauty of scenery.  The inhabitants are tall,\nfine-looking people, but most debased savages and terrible cannibals.\nHere sandal-wood is to be had in abundance, and very fine, so that\nGolding is highly delighted, and declares that it is the finest country\nhe has yet been in.  More than once, however, our suspicions are aroused\nwith regard to the natives, who are, we think, meditating an attack on\nus on board, or when we go on shore to bring off the wood.  While here I\nwill write down a brief account of some of these numberless islands in\nthe Western Pacific, among which we are cruising.\n\nThe largest is New Guinea, to the north of Australia, the inhabitants of\nwhich resemble the negroes of Africa, but are more barbarous.  Next, to\nthe south-east of it, is New Caledonia, also a very large island, with\nbarbarous inhabitants.  To the south-east is the Isle of Pines, and to\nthe north-east is the Loyalty group, of which Mare is one, and Livu, and\nUea.  North-east again, we come to the considerable islands of Aneiteum,\nTana, Eromanga, and Fate.  North again, we fall in with the Shepherds'\nIslands and the New Hebrides, of which Malicolo and Espiritu Santo are\nthe largest; and then there are the Northern New Hebrides and the Santa\nCruz group, and the Solomon Islands, and New Britain, and New Ireland,\nbetween where we now are and New Guinea.  Then there are the Caroline\ngroup--the isles as thick as the stars in the milky way; and the Ladrone\nIslands, and Gilbert Islands, and many others, too many indeed to write\ndown.  I do not say, however, that the countless inhabitants of these\nislands do not differ from each other in appearance, and manners, and\ncustoms.  Some are almost jet black, and others only of a dark brown,\nbut in one thing they are similar--they are all equally fierce heathen\nsavages, and mostly cannibals.\n\nWe have now a full cargo, and Golding rejoicingly calculates that he\nwill make several hundreds per cent, on the original outlay.  He does\nnot, methinks, reckon the lives of those who have been lost in the\nadventure.  Having laid in a supply of yams, taro, bread-fruit,\ncocoa-nuts, and other roots, fruits, and vegetables, we raise our anchor\nfor the last time we hope till our voyage is over.  The captain and\nGolding can talk of nothing but their plans for the future--how they\nwill return and load the ship with sandal-wood and other valuables.\nWhether the captain is thinking more of his speculations than of our\nreckoning I know not.  He has insisted that we are clear of all danger,\nand we are running on at night under all sail before a fresh breeze,\nwhen the cry of \"breakers ahead\" makes me spring from my berth.  Before\nthe ship can be rounded to she strikes heavily.  Again and again she\nstrikes, and I can hear the coral grinding through the bottom; the masts\ngo by the board, and the ship lies a helpless wreck on the reef.  The\nwind has fallen, and, being sheltered by another part of the reef, we\nhave no fear of her yet going to pieces.  We wait anxiously for day, not\nknowing whether we may not be near one of those cannibal islands from\nwhose inhabitants we may expect little mercy.\n\nAnother day has passed.  We find a sand-bank some eighty yards across,\nclose inside the reef.  On this, having saved one small boat, we are\nlanding our stores, and provisions, and arms.\n\nWe set to work to build a small vessel.  The men labour diligently,\nthough they grumble.  We, the officers, keep watch over the spirit\ncasks.  Our great want is water.  We dig deep, but the little we find is\nbrackish.\n\nThe schooner is finished, and Captain Fuller proposes steering for Port\nJackson, where there is a convict settlement.\n\nThe schooner is launched, but when we search for a passage to take her\nover the reef, none is to be found.  In vain we make the attempt.\nEverywhere we are baffled.  Some of our people almost go mad with\ndespair.  I propose building a large flat-bottomed punt from the deck of\nthe ship, which can pass over the reef.  All agree.\n\nOur punt is almost completed.  We see three objects in the distance,\nwhich prove to be canoes.  We are discovered, for they approach.  They\nare filled with black savages, who keep at a little distance, shouting\nand flourishing their spears.  We make signs of friendship, but they\nstill come on.  We stand to our arms, and as they begin to hurl their\nspears at us, we are compelled to fire; several fall.  With loud howls\nthey paddle off to a distance, watching us.  We have little doubt that\nthey will return.\n\nThe punt is completed and provisioned.  We get her over the reef, and\ntry again to get the schooner across.  In vain.  We abandon her on the\nreef.  It is time to be away, for we see a fleet of canoes approaching\nfrom the north.  We hoist sail.  The sea is smooth, and we glide rapidly\nover it, but on come the canoes still faster.  They may overwhelm us\nwith their numbers.  Much of our powder has got wet.  The men do not\nknow it though.  Happily the savages catch sight of the schooner and our\ntent left on the sand-bank.  Their eagerness to secure the plunder from\nthe wreck overcomes every other consideration, and they dash over the\nreef, and allow us to proceed unmolested.\n\n------------------------------------------------------------------------\n\nWe have been many days at sea; frequent calms and little progress made.\nThe men are becoming discontented, and several are sick.  We have\navoided nearing any land.  Several islands have been seen, but were we\nto touch the shore, our prospect of escape would be small indeed.  Far\nbetter, we agree, to trust to the fickle ocean.  No, strange as it may\nseem, there is not among all these rich and lovely islands one on which\nwe dare set foot.\n\n------------------------------------------------------------------------\n\nSeveral of our men have died; the rest are in a state of\ninsubordination.  We are on a short allowance of water, and we fear that\nour provisions will not hold out.  Our frail punt has been so damaged by\na gale that we can never cease baling.\n\n------------------------------------------------------------------------\n\n[Port Jackson.] When almost despairing that one of our company would\nescape to tell the tale of our disasters, a ship hove in sight, took us\non board, and brought us hither.  Thus ends our voyage, and all the\nbright anticipations of wealth enjoyed so long by Golding and our old\ncaptain--not a log of sandal-wood, not a string of pearls preserved. ...\nBent has told me his history.  He feels his heart warmed with gratitude\nto the Almighty, who by His grace has preserved him from death of body\nand soul, and his whole mind is bent on going home with me forthwith,\nand returning to carry the gospel of salvation to the perishing heathen\nof the wide-spreading islands we have visited.  Surely he could not\ndevote his strength and life to a more glorious purpose.\n\n\n\nCHAPTER NINE.\n\nA NOBLE RESOLVE.\n\nI must ask the reader to return to the scene described in the\nintroductory chapter, where we commenced hearing the extracts from the\nsea journal of old John Harvey.  It will be remembered that at our\nfamily gathering at my father's house my brother John was the reader.\n\n\"Father,\" said my brother John, pausing awhile after he had finished\nreading our uncle's journal, \"God willing, and with your permission, I\nwill go and preach the gospel to the heathen of those Pacific Islands.\"\n\n\"Go, my son,\" said our father, promptly.  \"You shall have my prayers\nthat your preaching may not be in vain.\"\n\n\"What! go off at once, dear John, and leave us all?\" exclaimed several\nof the younger members of the family in chorus.\n\n\"I think not,\" answered John, calmly, with that sweet smile and gentle\nvoice which gained him so many hearts; \"I have much to learn and much to\ndo before I shall be fitted for the office of a missionary.  It is not a\ntask to be undertaken lightly and without consideration.  When a man\ncharges among a host of foes, he must be armed at all points.  A\nmissionary, too, should be like a light shining amid the surrounding\ndarkness; he should be able to show the heathen how to improve their\nmoral and physical, as well as their spiritual condition.  He should be\nfairly versed in the most useful mechanical arts, and possess especially\nsome knowledge of medicine and surgical skill.\"\n\n\"Well, it will take you a good many years before you can do all that,\nand perhaps you will change your mind before the time comes,\" said one\nof the younger ones, who did not, as indeed they could not be expected\nto do, enter into John's thoughts and feelings on the subject.\n\nI may say from that very moment John devoted all the energies of his\nmind and body to preparing himself for the high and holy calling he had\nundertaken.  Long, I know, that night he knelt in prayer for grace, and\nwisdom, and strength to direct, fit, and support him for the work.\nBesides giving much time to his studies at the theological college, he\ngained a considerable knowledge of medicine and surgery, and was to be\nseen now with saw and plane labouring with a carpenter,--at the\nblacksmith's anvil, with hammer in hand, forming a bolt, or hinge, or\naxe,--and now at the gardener's, with hoe or spade, planting or digging,\nor pruning.  Many wondered how his mind could take in so many new\nthings, or his slight frame undergo so much labour.  Few could\ncomprehend the spirit which sustained him.  He grew indeed stronger and\nmore robust than any one would have supposed he would become.\n\nI had since my childhood wished to go to sea, and my father allowed me\nto follow the bent of my inclinations.  I now and then thought that I\nought to go forth as a missionary also; but when I compared myself with\nJohn, and considered his great superiority to me, I gave up the idea,\nwhich I had mentioned to no one, as preposterous.  My first two voyages\nwere to India and China, and when I came back from the second John was\nstill at college.  I remember thinking that he was losing a great deal\nof time in preparation.  He, however, said that he was gaining time.  \"A\nblunt tool can never properly perform the work.  I am getting sharpened,\nthat I may be used to advantage,\" was his remark.\n\nOn my return home from my third voyage, he had gone to the Pacific.\nWhere he was to be stationed was not known.  He had not gone alone, for\nhe had taken a wife to support and solace him.  I had never seen her;\nbut I was told that her heart was bound up with his in the work in which\nhe was engaged.\n\nHaving now become a fair seaman, I determined to seek a berth as a mate.\nAn old shipmate and friend had just got command of a fine ship bound\nround Cape Horn; and though I had had no previous intention of going to\nthe Pacific, I was glad to ship with him as third officer.  My sisters\nhad copied out our uncle's journal for John; they now kindly performed\nthe same task for me.  My ship was the _Golden Crown_ a South-sea\nwhaler, and Mr Richard Buxton was master, belonging to Liverpool.\nThings had changed greatly since the days of my uncle John.  We had a\ndefinite object: no supercargo was required, and every spot we were\nlikely to visit was well known, and mapped down in the charts.  We had\nseveral passengers--two missionaries and their wives, newly married.  I\nthought them inferior to John; but they were good men, humble too, with\ntheir hearts in the work.  We had also another gentleman, a merchant or\nspeculator of some sort.  What he was going to do I could never make\nout.  His heart was in his business, and he seemed to consider it of\ngreater importance than anything else.  This made him look down with\nundisguised contempt on the missionaries and their work, nor could he\ncomprehend their objects.  \"If people want to go to church, let them,\"\nhe more than once remarked: \"but I don't see why you two should be\ngadding about the world to teach savages, who would know nothing about\nchapels, nor wish to build them, if you would let them alone, and stay\nquietly at home and mind a shop, or some other useful business.\"\n\nThe missionaries seldom answered his remarks.  They continued\nperseveringly studying the language of the natives among whom they were\nto labour, and prayed with and expounded the Scriptures to all on board\nwho would join them.  I am writing an account of certain events, and not\na journal, so I must suppose the Horn rounded, Chili visited, and\nRaratonga, where we were to land the missionaries, reached.  This was\nthe island whose very position was unknown when my uncle visited those\nseas, and for long afterwards lay sunk in heathen darkness.  It had now\nbecome the very centre of Christianising influences, whence rays of\nbright light were emanating and reaching the farthest islands of the\nPacific Ocean.\n\nI have seldom seen a more attractive-looking spot than Raratonga\nappeared as we came off it.  In the centre rise mountains four thousand\nfeet above the level of the sea, with lower hills and beautiful valleys\naround them, clothed with every variety of tropical tree and shrub.  At\nthe foot of the hills is a taro swamp, and then a belt of rich country\ncovered with cocoa-nut, bread-fruit, and banana trees; and then a broad\nwhite sandy beach, and a band of blue water; and next a black broad\ncoral reef, like a gigantic wall, against which the swell of the Pacific\ncomes thundering, and rising majestically to the height of twenty feet,\ncurls over and breaks into masses of sparkling foam.  The openings in\nthe reef are few and narrow, so that no ship can anchor near the\ncoral-girt isle.  Canoes, however came off to us with natives on board,\nwell clothed, and gentle in their manners, who welcomed the missionaries\nwith a warmth and affection which must have been very gratifying to\nthem.\n\nI accompanied the captain on shore to obtain supplies.  We took with us\na chest of suitable goods for barter.  An officer met us on the beach,\nthe appointed salesman of the place, and putting out his hand, said,\n\"Blessing on you.\"  He then led us to the market-house, where we found\ncollected a large store of all the chief productions of the island,--\ncocoa-nuts, bananas, potatoes, yams, pumpkins, hops, fowls, eggs, and\nmany other things.  We selected all we required, payment was made, and\nthe salesman engaged four canoes to carry them off at once to the ship.\n\nI was but a short time on shore, but I saw enough to wonder at.\nEverybody was well clothed,--the men in jackets, shirts, waistcoats, and\ntrousers, with straw hats, and many had shoes and socks; the women in\ngowns, shawls or mantles, and bonnets.  There were many stone cottages,\nneatly furnished, and others of a less enduring character.  There was a\nhandsome stone church, and an institution, a substantial stone building,\nfor training native youths for the ministry, surrounded by cottages, the\nresidences of those who were married; while gardens and cultivated\nfields were seen on every side.  Such, I was assured, was the condition\nof the whole island, there being ample church and school accommodation\nfor all the inhabitants, provided entirely by themselves.  I saw also an\nexcellent printing-press, at which several editions of the whole Bible\nhad been printed, as well as commentaries, and numerous other works, and\nissued well bound, almost the whole work being performed by native\nyouths, whose fathers were wild savage cannibals, as indeed were all the\nnatives when first visited by the Reverend J Williams, in 1823, and such\nthey would have remained, had not Christian missionaries arrived among\nthem.\n\nI have fallen in with many seafaring men who have abused the\nmissionaries in no measured terms, and I have read books written by\neducated men who have done the same, and I was not quite decided whether\nthey were right or wrong till I went to the Pacific.  Then I discovered\nwhy those men abused the missionaries.  Where the missionary has\nlaboured faithfully, the natives will not desecrate the sabbath, and\nwill not pander to the gross desires of their civilised visitors.  That\nis the secret of their dislike to the missionaries.\n\nAgain, however, I have met many masters of whalers and numerous officers\nof the Royal Navy who have spoken and written in the highest terms of\nthe missionaries, and acknowledged that the change which has been\nwrought through their instrumentality has been most beneficial to the\ncause of commerce as well as humanity; and that whereas where formerly,\nif a ship was wrecked, the destruction of her crew was almost\ninevitable, now through nearly the whole of Eastern, and a considerable\nportion of Western Polynesia, they would receive succour, and sympathy,\nand kindness.  Still there are many--very many--dark places both in\nEastern and Western Polynesia, and no Christian soldier need sigh, like\nAlexander, that no more worlds remain to be conquered.\n\nDuring our voyage to Raratonga I learned a great deal more about the\nprogress made by the missionaries of the gospel in these seas, which,\nwhile the _Golden Crown_ lies off the island, I will briefly describe.\n\nThe London Missionary Society was established in 1795, and in the\nfollowing year it sent forth, on board the _Duff_, a band of twenty-nine\nmissionaries, who landed at Tahiti, one of the Society Islands, March,\n1797.  Some went on to Tongatabu, the chief of the Friendly Islands, and\ntwo to Christina, one of the Marquesas.  The savage character of the\ninhabitants of the two last-named groups prevented success.  At\nTongatabu three missionaries were murdered, and the rest made their\nescape, as did those at the Marquesas.  At Tahiti they were received at\nfirst in a friendly way by the chiefs and people; but for several years\nvery little real progress was made in instructing the people in the\ntruths of Christianity.  Indeed, at one time all the missionaries, in\ndespair of success, in consequence of the unceasing wars of the natives,\nsailed for New South Wales.  Favourable reports, however, reaching them,\nsome returned, and from that time forward slow but steady progress was\nmade, though it was not till the year 1815 that Christianity was firmly\nestablished, and idolatry almost completely abolished.  The year 1817\nwas memorable on account of the arrival of two of the most distinguished\nmissionaries who have laboured among the isles of the Pacific--the\nReverend J Williams and the Reverend W Ellis.\n\nMr Williams, who combined a wonderful mechanical talent with the most\nardent zeal for the propagation of the gospel, soon after took up his\nabode at the island of Raiatea where by his example he advanced the\nnatives in the arts of civilisation, at the same time that he instructed\nthem in the truths of Christianity.  The natives of the Society Islands\nhaving sincerely accepted Christianity, became anxious to spread the\ngood tidings among their heathen neighbours.  A considerable number\nprepared themselves for the office of teachers.  Some went forth to the\nPaumotu Group, or Low Archipelago, to the east; others to the Austral\nIsles, to the south; and others, among whom was Papehia, accompanied Mr\nWilliams on a voyage to the Hervey group.  His first visit was to\nAitutaki, where some native teachers were left, by whose means the\nnatives became Christians.\n\nAfter paying a second visit to Aitutaki, Mr Williams sailed in search\nof Raratonga, of the position of which even he was uncertain.  He was\naccompanied by Papehia, and by some natives of Raratonga, who had been\ncarried away by a trading vessel from their own island, and cruelly\ndeserted on Aitutaki.  Among them was Tapaeru, the daughter of a chief,\nwho had become impressed with the truth of Christianity.  At length\nRaratonga was discovered, and the native teachers were landed; but had\nit not been for the courage and constancy of Tapaeru, they and their\nwives would have been destroyed on the first night they were on shore.\nSadly disconcerted, they returned next morning on board, and the\nenterprise was about to be abandoned, when the devoted Papehia stepped\nforward and volunteered to return on shore.\n\n\"Whether the natives spare me or kill me, I will land among them,\" he\nexclaimed.  \"Jehovah is my Shepherd--I am in His hand.\"  Clothed in a\nshirt, with a few yards of calico in which he had wrapped some portions\nof the holy Scriptures, the intrepid pioneer landed alone among a host\nof heathen warriors, who stood on the reef with their spears poised\nready to hurl at him.  He had not trusted in vain.  He persevered, and\nsoon a powerful chief, Tinomana, turned to the truth, and burned his\nidols.\n\nAgain Mr Williams came to Raratonga--this time to remain for many\nmonths, to see Christianity established, to erect a large place of\nworship, and to perform one of the most wonderful tasks I have ever\nheard of a man single-handed doing.  It was to build in three months a\nschooner of eighty tons, without one single portion of her being in\nreadiness.  He taught the natives to cut down, and saw, and plane the\nwood; then he erected a bellows and forge for the smith's work, which he\nperformed himself; a lathe to turn the blocks, a rope-making machine,\nand a loom to manufacture the sail-cloth.  All the time he laboured, he\ntaught the wondering natives in the truths of Christianity.  In three\nmonths from the day the keel was laid, this prodigy of a vessel was\nsafely launched, and named \"_The Messenger of Peace_.\"  She proved a\nseaworthy, trusty little vessel, and from island to island, across many\nthousand miles of water, she was the means of conveying numerous\nmissionaries of the gospel of peace to their benighted inhabitants.\n\nFirst, several islands of the Hervey group were visited by her, and then\nshe sailed for Raiatea; whence, after remaining some time, she once more\nsailed with a party of English missionaries and native teachers on a\nlong voyage, calling at the Hervey Islands, then at Savage Island, where\nan unsuccessful attempt was made to land teachers.  Next, she called at\nTongatabu, already occupied by missionaries of the Wesleyan Missionary\nSociety.  Then she steered north for Samoa, known as the Navigators\nIslands.  Here Mr Williams and his companions met with a most cordial\nreception from the chiefs and people, and teachers were soon established\non several of the islands.  The Wesleyans had before sent some\nmissionaries to Samoa, but in a truly Christian spirit, worthy of\nimitation, they agreed to yield the group to the care of the London\nMissionary Society, while they devoted their exclusive attention to the\nFriendly and Fiji groups.  They had made great progress among the\nFriendly Islanders, and the king himself had become a Christian, when it\nwas resolved to attempt the conversion of the Fijians.  Between Tonga\nand Fiji a constant intercourse was kept up, and thus the way seemed\nopened to carry the gospel to the latter group.  There was also no lack\nof interpreters, an important advantage at the first.  The first\nmissionaries to Fiji were established on the island of Lakemba, where,\nin spite of great opposition, they laboured on faithfully and steadily,\nextending their efforts to other islands, till finally the Cross was\ntriumphant even at Mbau, the blood-stained capital of the group, where\nthe cannibal monarch himself, the dreaded Thakombau, became a Christian.\n\nIn the meantime, the inhabitants of the Sandwich Islands had heard of\nthe gospel from English and American ships visiting the group.  No\nsooner did King Rihoriho ascend the throne than he decreed that idolatry\nshould be abandoned, because he had discovered that his idols could not\nbenefit him; but he knew little or nothing of the Christian religion.\nAt that very time, however, the American Board of Missions had sent out\na band of missionaries to them, who on arriving to their joy heard that\nthe idols of Hawaii were overthrown.  They were, I believe, chiefly\nEpiscopalians.\n\nWhile these glorious events were taking place in Eastern Polynesia, the\nChurch Missionary Society had sent forth missionaries among the fierce\ncannibals of New Zealand.  They were joined by several Wesleyans, who\ntogether laboured with so much perseverance and success, that a very\nlarge number of the inhabitants became acquainted with the truths of the\ngospel.  Numerous well-trained native teachers have gone forth from\nTahiti and Raratonga to the surrounding isles, and many of them to the\nLoyalty and New Hebrides groups, and other parts of Western Polynesia.\nFollowing this example, the Bishop of New Zealand has brought natives\nfrom a large number of the islands in Western Polynesia, which he has\nvisited, and having instructed them, at a college he has established\nnear Auckland, is sending them back, to spread among their countrymen\nthe truths they have learned.  Thus Christianity has begun to spread\namong the dark-skinned races of those almost countless islands.  To\ncarry the gospel to them had been one of the energetic Williams's\ndarling schemes; and it was while carrying it out that, landing at\nEromanga, he, with a young missionary, Mr Harris, was barbarously\nmurdered by the savage natives.  Still the Society persevered, and\nmissionaries have been established at several of the islands, and many\nof the natives have become Christians.  Among these islands several\nPresbyterian missionaries have been established, who have laboured\nsteadily and successfully in the Lord's vineyard.  Thus several sections\nof the Protestant Church have been engaged cordially together in\ninstructing the heathen nations of the Pacific in a knowledge of the\ntruth, and in many instances the Holy Spirit has richly blessed their\nefforts.  Still there are many hundred islands the inhabitants of which\nremain in gross darkness, while a large portion of those who have been\nconverted require instruction, support, and the correction of errors.\nMuch is done through native agency, but still the superintendence of\nwell-educated and well-trained English missionaries is required at even\nthe most advanced settlements to act as overseers or superintendents.\n\nHaving now given a very brief account of the progress of Christianity\nsince those midnight hours when my uncle sailed in these seas, I may\ncommence my personal narrative.  It must be understood that I have\nsomewhat anticipated events in the above account.  At the time my\nnarrative commences, Christianity, though advancing, had not made the\ngreat progress it has since done, and many of the islands which are now\nentirely Christian, were then only partially so, heathen practices\nprevailed, and the heathen chiefs had still influence and power.  It is\ndaylight over these regions, but nearer the dawn than noon.  Many a year\nmust pass away before the full blaze of the light of truth will shine\nfrom east to west across the vast Pacific.  I must not forget to mention\nthe impediments which the priests of Rome, chiefly Frenchmen, endeavour\nto throw in the way of the progress of the pure faith in Christ.  To\ngain an influence with the natives they wink at many of their vices,\nthey teach them an idolatrous faith, and try to prejudice them against\nthe Protestants.\n\nHaving performed our contract at Raratonga, landing the missionaries and\ntheir goods, we sailed for our fishing ground in the south, where we\nwere tolerably successful.  Whale catching is very hard work, and at\nlength it became necessary to return north, to obtain fresh provisions\nand to recruit our crew.  Our captain had resolved also to try his\nfortune on the fishing grounds in the neighbourhood of the New Hebrides\nand the other Western Archipelago.\n\n\"A sail on the starboard bow,\" cried the look-out man, from aloft.  I\nwas officer of the watch.  We were far away from land, and meeting with\na strange sail is always a matter of interest in those seas.  I went to\nthe mast-head with my glass, and made out that the sail was that of a\nlarge double canoe.  We kept away for her, not doubting that she had\nbeen driven far out of her course.  Of this the sad spectacle which met\nour eyes as we drew near convinced us.  On her deck were numerous\nsavages--some grouped together in the after part, others lying about in\ndifferent places, or leaning against the mast, and some apart in every\nvariety of attitude.  Many appeared to be dead or in the last stage of\nexistence.  Some few lifted up their hands imploringly towards us.\nOthers shook their spears and clubs, which they held in their\nfast-failing grasp, possibly unconscious of what they were doing--the\nruling passion being, with them as with others, strong in death.  The\nropes of their mat sail had given way, and it no longer urged them on.\nIt was necessary to approach them cautiously, for, though the savages\nhad but little strength left, they might, in their madness, attack us.\nWe lowered two boats, and, with our men well armed, pulled up to them.\nAs we got nearly alongside, some of the people in the after group rose\nfrom their seats, and one endeavoured to drag himself towards us.  He\nwas a young man--a light-coloured Indian--tall and handsome, and, unlike\nmost of the rest, clothed in jacket and trousers.  The others moving,\nshowed us a young girl of the same light hue, reclining on a pile of\nmats.  She was clothed; her head was adorned with a wreath of coral, and\nher arms and ankles with strings of beads.  She struck me at once as\nbeing very beautiful, though, as I saw her nearer, I perceived that her\neye had lost its lustre, and that her face was wan and emaciated.  The\ncanoe was a very large one, capable of carrying a hundred and fifty\npeople, though not more than sixty were on board, and of that number\nnearly half lay dead or dying on the deck.  It was easy to divine what\nhad become of the rest.  The young man made a sign that he would speak,\nand pointing to the girl, he said, in a husky voice, \"Save her, save\nher! she Christian!\" and then sunk exhausted on the deck.\n\n\n\nCHAPTER TEN.\n\nTHE DESTRUCTION OF THE IDOLS.\n\nThe canoe, it was evident, had met with some severe weather, and she\ncould scarcely, we considered, have held together had she encountered\nanother gale.  We lost no time in getting the survivors into the boats.\nThe suspicions of the warriors were soon calmed by the explanations of\nthe young man, and they allowed us without resistance to lift them on\nboard.  The chief's daughter, or young princess, she might have been\ncalled, was less exhausted than many of the strong men.  I lifted her up\nwith care, and placed her on her mats in the stern sheets, and pulled\nback as fast as we could to the ship, that the sufferers might have the\nadvantage of our surgeon's assistance.  Having removed the sinnets,\nmats, and other articles with which she was loaded, we abandoned the\nill-fated canoe, and stood on our course.  I asked the doctor what he\nthought of the state of the Indians.  \"The princess and her attendants\nrequire careful nursing, and so does that young man, but for the rest\nwho are still alive I have no fear,\" he answered.  \"The greater number\ndied for want of water.  They had no lack of food, I suspect.\"  I looked\nin his face, and shuddered at the answer he gave.  Several days passed\nby before the young man who had addressed us in English was again able\nto speak.  He spoke but a few words of English, but enough to let me\nunderstand that his name was John Vihala, that he was related to the\nyoung girl, daughter of the chief or king of one of the islands; that\nher name was Alea; that she had become a Christian; but that her father\nand most of the family remained heathens.  She had been betrothed (as is\nthe custom, at an early age) to a powerful chief of a distant island,\nstill a heathen and a cannibal; and, notwithstanding all her prayers and\nentreaties, her father insisted on her fulfilling the contract.  She, in\ndue state, accompanied by several of her relations and female\nattendants, was placed on board the canoe, which sailed for its\ndestination.  At first the wind was propitious, but a fierce gale arose,\nwhich drove the canoe out of her course for many days before it, till\nthose on board were unable to tell in what direction to steer to regain\ntheir own island.  Another gale sprang up, which drove them still\nfarther away, and then famine began, and sickness, and then water\nfailed, and death followed, and despair took possession of even the\nbravest.  Alea's chief relations died, but she and Vihala were\nwonderfully supported.  While their heathen companions lost all hope,\nthey encouraged them, spoke to them of their own religion, and\nendeavoured to teach the truths of the gospel.\n\nMuch to my satisfaction, Captain Buxton agreed, on hearing their story,\nto take them back to their own island.  I do not mention the name of the\nisland for reasons which will appear.  It took us some days to beat up\nto it.  It was a lovely spot, of volcanic formation, with lofty\nmountains in the centre, and in most parts clothed with the richest\nvegetation.  Alea and her female attendants were by this time able to\ncome on deck.  Her astonishment at seeing her native island was very\ngreat, but her satisfaction was less than I expected.  I asked Vihala\nthe reason of this.  \"She expects to be sent again to her intended\nhusband,\" he answered, in a melancholy tone.  I suspected that Vihala\nloved his young cousin, nor was it surprising that he should do so.\nThey were of the same faith, and pity for the sad condition to which she\nwould be reduced if the wife of a heathen chief, would have made him\nwish to free her.  We anchored the ship in a secure harbour, and at once\nsent Vihala and several natives on shore as a deputation to the chief,\nto inform him of the arrival of his daughter.\n\nAfter some time, they returned with the announcement that the chief\nwould receive us, and that his daughter would be welcome.  We found him\nseated under a wide-spreading tree, on a bundle of mats, in great state,\nwith numerous lesser chiefs and attendants standing on either side of\nhim.  His only clothing was a piece of native cloth wound round his\nbody, and he looked every inch the savage.  We expected Vihala to act as\ninterpreter, but when we approached the chief, a person whom we supposed\nto be a native, though he had a rougher and more savage appearance than\nthe rest, and had on as little clothing as they, advanced a few steps,\nand informed us in undoubted English, or rather Irish, that he had the\nhonour of being the king's prime minister, and that it was his duty to\nperform that office.  His name was Dan Hoolan (a runaway seaman, we\nfound), and he had been fifteen years on the island, and was married and\nsettled with a family.\n\nAfter we had made our statement, poor Alea was allowed to approach her\nfather, which she did in a humble posture, with fear and trembling.  He\nmanifested very little concern at seeing her, and directed her to be\nconducted to her mother's cottage.  I was anxious to know how Alea and\nVihala had become Christians, and asked Dan if he had taught them.  \"No,\nindeed, I have not,\" he answered drawing himself up.  \"I hope that I am\ntoo good a Catholic to teach them the sort of religion they know.  There\nis a sort of old missionary fellow comes over here who has taught them,\nand he has left a native teacher here, who does nothing but abuse me\nbecause I do not make the king here _lotu_, and do not _lotu_ myself, as\nthey call it, and give up my wives, and make myself miserable.\"  From\nthis speech of Dan Hoolan's, I had no difficulty in understanding the\nstate of the case.  The wretched man would not give up his own sins,\nand, therefore, tried to keep the chief in heathen darkness.  It would,\nhowever, be impolitic to quarrel with him, or, rather, wrong, because\nthe so doing would have increased the difficulty of bringing him round.\nI should explain that the term _lotu_ means becoming a nominal\nChristian.\n\n\"But I thought, friend Hoolan, you said that you were a Christian,\" I\nremarked quietly, looking fixedly at him.\n\n\"So I am inwardly, of course, mate,\" he answered, with a wink he could\nnot suppress.  \"That is to say, a right raal Catholic, as my fathers\nwere before me, with nothing of your missionary religion about me; but\njust on the outside, maybe, I'm a heathen, just for convenience sake,\nyou'll understand.\"\n\nI did not press the subject then, but being interested about poor Alea,\nI inquired if he could tell me how her father would treat her.\n\n\"Why, send her on to her husband, of course, mate,\" he answered, with\nthe greatest unconcern; \"it's the right thing to do.\"\n\n\"But the chief to whom she is to be given is a heathen and a cannibal,\nand old enough to be her grandfather,\" I remarked.\n\n\"Maybe, but it's the rule; we don't set much value or women in this part\nof the world,\" observed the prime minister; \"I might have married her\nmyself for that matter, but it would have brought on a war with the old\nchief for whom she is intended, so I did the right thing, do ye see,\nmate, and let it alone.\"\n\nI now turned the subject, and asked what assistance he could give in\nrefitting the ship and supplying fresh provisions.  He was immediately\nin his element, and showed himself in worldly matters a shrewd, clever\nfellow.  Everything now seemed to go on smoothly, and the repairs of the\nship progressed rapidly, while we had no lack of fresh provisions.  We\nsoon discovered that another double canoe was fitting out to carry Alea\nto her intended husband.  My heart bled for the poor girl, and I would\nhave done anything to save her, I thought over all sorts of plans.  They\nwere, however, needless, for the next morning I heard that she had\ndisappeared.  No one knew where she had gone.  At first I feared that\nher father had sent her off secretly; but Hoolan's rage and undisguised\nfears of the consequences which might occur when the old chief\ndiscovered that he had lost his bride, convinced me that such was not\nthe case.  I suspected that Vihala might have had something to do with\nit when I found that he had disappeared about the same time.  We were at\nfirst suspected, but I convinced Hoolan that we had had nothing to do\nwith the matter.\n\nSeveral days passed, and not a clue was gained as to what had become of\nthe young princess.  One evening, when the men had knocked off work, as\nI was sitting under an awning on deck, I saw a large canoe entering the\nharbour.  It struck me that it might contain the old chief come to claim\nhis bride; so, as it was not my watch, I jumped into a boat and went on\nshore to see what would happen.  As the canoe drew near, however, I saw\nthat instead of her deck being crowded with tattooed, naked, and painted\nwarriors, dancing, and shouting, and sounding conch-shells, all the\npeople on board were well clothed, while in the after part stood a\nvenerable-looking man with long white hair escaping from under his\nbroad-brimmed hat, and by his side a young lady, both evidently\nEuropeans.  I at once naturally walked towards the part of the beach\nwhere they would land, and waited for them.  No sooner did the canoe\ntouch the shore than several natives from the crowd rushed forward, and\nlifting the strangers on their shoulders, bore them, with every\ndemonstration of respect, to dry ground.  I at once went forward and\naddressed them in English, and was warmly greeted in return.  The old\nman said he came from a station about fifty miles off.  The young lady\nwas his daughter.  They had come over on a periodical visit to the\nChristian converts of this island, and were much concerned to hear that\nVihala and the young princess had disappeared.\n\n\"They should have abided the storm,\" the old man remarked.  \"I will go\nsee this heathen chief, and try again if by God's grace his heart may be\nsoftened.\"\n\nI undertook to get Pat Hoolan out of the way, as it was evident that all\nhis influence was exerted to prevent his master from becoming a\nChristian.  I had fortunately arranged to transact some business with\nhim about this time; so, leaving the missionary addressing the people\nunder a cocoa-nut tree, I hurried up to the king's village, and without\nmuch difficulty persuaded Hoolan to accompany me on board.  I kept him\nthere as long as I possibly could.  Meanwhile the missionary sought out\nthe chief, and found him willing to listen while he unfolded the story\nof the gospel.  A long time the two conversed; and for the first time\nthe benighted savage heard the message of salvation.  Gradually the\ntruth interested him, and he began to turn a more favourable ear to the\nmissionary's exhortations than he had ever before done.\n\n\"Ah, would that I had Vihala with me,\" he would frequently exclaim to\nthe missionary.  \"When you are gone he would instruct me further in the\nwonderful things I hear.\"  But neither Vihala nor Alea were to be found.\nHe had driven them forth, there could be no doubt, by resolving to\nunite his daughter to a heathen chief; and yet was Vihala free from\nblame in carrying off the young princess?  The heathens said that they\nhad committed suicide, and were drowned, but judging from Vihala's\ngenerally consistent character, I felt sure that that was not the case.\n\nFrom the first I had felt myself drawn very much towards the venerable\nmissionary.  His gentleness, yet firmness of manner, his utter negation\nof self and devotedness to his Master's cause were very remarkable.  His\ntender love for his daughter, too, was very beautiful.  She returned it\nwith the deepest affection and devotion.  Accustomed as I had been to\nthe endearments of a happy, well-ordered home, I was sensibly touched by\nit, and took every opportunity of being in their company.  It may appear\ncurious that three days had passed before I learned the name of the good\nold man.  Everybody called him the missionary, spoke of him as the\nmissionary,--thrice-honoured name!  In the same way he knew me only as\nthe mate.  He had a house assigned to him by the chief, which, by being\npartitioned off into three chambers, was made tolerably habitable.  I\nwas one evening drinking tea there with him and his daughter, when I\nhappened to mention my name.\n\n\"What! are you any relative to that devoted missionary, John Harvey?\" he\nasked.  When I told him that I was his brother, \"Ah, that accounts for\nyour having so friendly a feeling for missionaries,\" he observed.\n\n\"I learned to respect missionaries, and to see the importance of their\nwork, long before my brother became one,\" I answered; and I then told\nhim of my uncle's journal, which I promised to bring on shore to show\nhim.  He was evidently much interested, and made many inquiries about\nit.\n\n\"Does he mention the name of Joseph Bent?\" he asked suddenly.\n\nI remembered well several circumstances connected with that person.\n\n\"I am the very man,\" he exclaimed, grasping my hand.  \"Oh, how much do I\nowe to that excellent man!  He saved my life; but he did far more,--he\nbrought the truth before me,--he showed me my own vileness by nature;\nand thus, by his instrumentality brought by grace to trust in Jesus, has\nmy soul been saved.  Can one man owe a greater debt to another than I\nowe to him?  I had begun to like you for your own sake, and for that of\nJohn Harvey I shall ever regard you as a son.  Your uncle was an example\nof the good a true Christian layman can effect in his ordinary course in\nlife.  Those on board every ship in which he sailed benefited by his\npresence, not so much from what he said as from what he did, from his\npure and bright example; for he was a man of few words under ordinary\ncircumstances, though he could speak on occasion, and well.  Many by his\nmeans were brought to know Jesus, and to serve and love him as their\nLord and Master.  When John Harvey left the sea and went to live on\nshore, he devoted his whole time to doing God's service, and great has\nlong since been his reward.\"\n\nThis was indeed an interesting discovery.  It was gratifying to me to\nhear the fine old man speak thus of my uncle, as I was sure the praise\nwas not undeserved.  As I looked at him, too, I felt how great is the\npower of grace.  I saw before me the drowning youth snatched from the\nvery jaws of death, and of eternal death, too, and allowed to spend a\nlong life in making known to the heathen the inexhaustible riches of\nChrist.  From that day I naturally looked on Mr Bent as an old friend,\nand was more than ever with him.  Indeed, I confess that I was thus\ndrawn into a more intimate acquaintance with his daughter Mary than\nwould have been otherwise the case, and to discover and admire her many\nexcellences.\n\nThe missionary was never idle during his visit to the island, and in a\nweek after his arrival the king declared openly that he could no longer\nwithstand the arguments he brought forward in support of his religion,\nand that he was resolved to lotu.  Hoolan, who had been tipsy for some\ndays, or as he called it, enjoying himself, was very indignant when he\nrecovered and heard this, and hastily going to the king, advised him to\nwait till the arrival of some Roman Catholic priests, who were the\nproper persons to whom to lotu; but the king replied, that the advice of\na man who had been making himself no better than a hog was not worth\nhaving; that he had heard what he was sure was true from the missionary,\nand that therefore he should become of the missionary's religion.  To\nshow his sincerity, he resolved to destroy his gods and burn their\nmoraes, or temples.  His great regret was that his daughter and Vihala\nwere not present to see the work done.  The missionary urged him to lose\nno time.  It was impossible to say what a day might bring forth.  It was\nnot a thing to be done lightly.  The missionary visited the king the\nevening before the ceremony, and many hours were passed in prayer and in\nreading the Scriptures.\n\nThe next morning the king, attended by some of his principal chiefs, and\nall those who had already professed Christianity, assembled at an early\nhour, armed with axes and clubs, and firebrands, and ropes, and\nproceeded to the principal morae, or temple.  The heathens also\nassembled, and stood at a distance trembling, in the expectation that\nsomething dreadful would happen.  As the king approached the morae, some\nof his own followers even drew back, and formed a knot at a distance.\nThey had been taught that their gods were full of revenge and hatred,\ndelighting in doing harm to mortals.  As Mr Bent considered it to be\nmost important that the natives should destroy their idols themselves,\nwe also stood some way off watching proceedings.  The king advanced,\nexclaiming, \"Jehovah is the true God--these are but senseless blocks of\nwood.  See!\"  As he uttered the last word he struck the principal idol a\nblow which brought it to the ground.  He then rushed at another, several\nof his chiefs following his example, and in a few minutes every idol was\noverthrown.  [See Note 1.] All the time it was interesting to watch the\nattitudes and gestures of the heathen, who were evidently under the\nexpectation that fire would come down from heaven, or that the earth\nwould open and destroy their impious chiefs.  Their astonishment was\nproportionably great when nothing of the sort happened, and when the\niconoclasts, fastening ropes round the senseless logs, dragged them\nignominiously forth, while others of the king's followers applied their\ntorches in all directions to the morae, and set it on fire.  While the\nconflagration was at its height several of the idols were thrown into\nit, and speedily consumed; others were dragged down to the sea, where\nblocks of coral were fastened to them, and they were put on board\ncanoes, ready to be carried into deep water and sunk; while the\nremainder we secured, to be sent home as trophies won by the soldiers of\nChrist.  The king and the chiefs dragged them up to us, shouting as they\ndid so, \"The reign of Satan is at an end--the reign of Satan is at an\nend.\"  So far I could agree with them that his kingdom was shaken to the\nfoundation, as it always is where the free gospel is introduced.\n\nJust at this juncture Hoolan, who had remained on board all night, came\non shore.  His astonishment gave way to rage, and walking up to the\nking, he shook his fist in his face, and asked him how he dared lotu to\nthe missionaries, and not wait for the arrival of the Catholic priests\nwhom he expected?  The chief, accustomed to the eccentricities of his\nlate prime minister, answered calmly:\n\n\"Because the reign of Satan is over.  The missionaries told us news\nwhich we know to be good, and we have believed them.  When the priests\nyou speak of come, will they tell us better?\"\n\nHoolan had nothing to say; he soon got calm again, and observed, as he\nturned on his heel, \"Well, I only hope that you'll be after getting on\nas well under your new system as you did under mine, that's all.\"\n\nThe king made no reply.  He steadily progressed in his knowledge of the\nScriptures, and gave very hopeful signs that he was really converted.\nNo men could be more scrupulous as to receiving converts in name as\nreally converted than were all the missionaries I met; and I boldly\ndeclare that very many of the newly converted could give a better reason\nfor the faith that was in them than can, alas! a very large number both\nof young and old with whom I have conversed on the subject in England.\nThere still remained, however, a strong heathen party in the island,\nunder the leadership of a warlike and fierce chief, who was very likely,\nwe feared, to give the king a good deal of trouble.  It was necessary,\nhowever, for Mr Bent to return to his station.  He says that, although\ncalled by the natives a missionary, he was not employed by any society,\nbut felt it a privilege to help on the good work, supporting himself by\ntrading, and supplying necessaries to the ships that touched at the\nisland where he had fixed his residence.  On asking him about some of\nthe places mentioned in old John Harvey's journal, he said he could tell\nme of wonderful works of God which he had either witnessed himself, or\nof which he had heard from those in whose reports he could place the\nfullest confidence.  I need scarcely say how much I felt the idea of\nbeing parted from him and his daughter, and I bethought me that I would\nask permission from the captain to carry them back in our largest boat.\nIt was at once kindly granted, as a much safer mode of conveyance than a\nnative canoe.  I was very happy at being able to pay this last mark of\nattention to those I so much esteemed; and having made every arrangement\nI could think of for their comfort during our short voyage, I received\nthem on board at the earliest dawn, in the hopes that we might reach the\nstation before night fell.  How true is the saying, \"Man proposes, God\ndisposes.\"  Oh that men would therefore throw all their cares on the\nLord, remembering alway that \"He careth for us.\"\n\n------------------------------------------------------------------------\n\nNote 1.  In the early Missionary Reports wonderful narratives are given\nof the speedy destruction of idolatry in many of the islands.  With too\nsanguine hopes, some of the missionaries spoke of these revolutions as\nthe result of religious zeal, and even quoted the prophecy of \"a nation\nbeing born in a day.\"  A few years' experience taught them that in many\ninstances the first profession of Christianity was due to various\ninfluences, and that the people with impetuous impulse followed the\nexample of their chiefs.  Not without prayerful labour and long patience\ndid the missionaries at length obtain precious fruits of spiritual\nconversion from the good seed sown in these regions.  The statement in\nour narrative only expresses what was often true as a historical fact.\nIn \"Brown's History of Missions,\" volume two, will be found some of the\nmore remarkable instances of the sudden overthrow of idolatry.\n\n\n\nCHAPTER ELEVEN.\n\nVIHALA'S NARRATIVE.\n\nThe missionary and his daughter were on the beach attended by a number\nof natives, among whom was the chief, so lately a fierce heathen, now\ndeeply affected at the thought of parting from his friend.  As the boat\ndrew near, they all knelt down and offered up prayers, reminding me\nforcibly of the departure of Paul the apostle from Miletus.  It was a\ndeeply interesting sight.  In the centre was the venerable missionary\nwith his silvery hair, his daughter kneeling by his side, while around\nwere the king and other chiefs and people, with many women and children.\nMy men without my orders lay on their oars till the prayers had ceased.\nWe then pulled in, and my friends embarked, when the natives burst\nforth into a hymn, and as we rowed away from the land, we continued to\nhear it still growing fainter and fainter, till the sound was lost in\nthe increasing distance.  We then set our sails and glided swiftly and\npleasantly over the sparkling waters.  I felt very happy.  I would not\nthink of the separation to take place, and determined to enjoy the\nsociety of my friends to the utmost.  This, perhaps, prevented me from\nobserving as carefully as I might have done the signs of a change in the\nweather.  I believe, however, that Mr Bent, who had more experience as\na seaman in this ocean than I possessed, had perceived but he said\nnothing.  The wind suddenly dropped, then it sprung up again, then once\nmore dropped, and the boat scarcely moved through the water.  At last it\nfell altogether, and the sun's rays struck down with intense violence.\nMy men, however, willingly took to the oars, and we proceeded slowly on\nour course.  Still the island was far away, and I lost all hopes of\nreaching it before dark, though I could not persuade myself that there\nwas any danger to be apprehended.  Mr Bent, however, more than once\ncast a look round the horizon, anxious more on his daughter's account\nthan his own.  We had lowered the sail, for it was useless keeping it\nset.  Suddenly Mr Bent exclaimed, \"Here it comes, round with her head,\nDavid.\"  I looked up, and saw a foam-covered sea rolling towards us.  I\nplaced the boat's head so as to receive it, while the men pulled on\nsteadily as before.  The question was whether they would be able to\ncontinue so doing.  The gale was coming from the west, and should it\nblow with the same fury for any length of time, we might be driven far\naway to the east without falling in with any land where shelter could be\nfound.  I was thankful that my friends were not on board a native canoe.\nIt would have fared much worse with them.  We had the means of finding\nour way, and might beat back when the weather moderated.  Mary behaved\nwith beautiful composure when the sea came seething and hissing up\nalongside us.  \"This is only one of the trials and dangers to which\nmissionaries are exposed,\" she observed.  \"We should bear it patiently\nand trustfully.\"\n\n\"Trustfully!\"  How seldom employed, how still less frequently made a\npractical use of.  That one word described much of her character.\n\nThe gale soon reached its height; the sea, lashed into fury, seemed one\nmass of foam, and broke over us so frequently that every instant I\nexpected the boat to be swamped.  Two men baling could scarcely keep her\nfree.  Our only chance was to run before it, for the strength of the\ncrew no longer availed to keep our small craft's head to wind.  The\ndanger of getting her round was very great; should a sea strike her on\nthe beam, it would have rolled her over helplessly.  I gave exact orders\nwhat was to be done--one man to hoist the foresail, two to pull round\nwith the starboard oars, the rest to spring aft so as to throw the\ngreatest weight into the stern of the boat, thus allowing her head to\ncome round more rapidly.  I waited till a heavy sea had rolled past, and\nthen before we had sunk to the hollow I gave the word.  For the first\ntime Mr Bent and his daughter turned pale.  The boat flew round, and\nseemed to be climbing up the ascent towards the crest which had just\nhissed by, and then on we darted with the small patch of sail we could\nshow to the gale.\n\nOn, on we went, the huge seas rolling up astern of us, and appearing as\nif they would come down and overwhelm us.  During all my nautical career\nI had never been in an open boat exposed to such a gale, though\nfrequently in a big ship, and even then I have felt the helplessness,\nthe nothingness of man.  Still more sensibly now was it brought before\nme--\"He commandeth and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the\nwaves thereof.  They mount up to the heaven, they go down to the depths;\ntheir soul is melted because of trouble.  Then they cry unto the Lord in\ntheir trouble, and He bringeth them out of their distresses.\"  The\nmissionary was repeating those lines, which come so home to the\nChristian sailor's heart; and at his exhortation, we offered up our\nunited supplications for protection in our sore distress.  To the few\nsolemn words which he spoke, the seamen listened earnestly.  They knew\nthat at any moment they might be summoned away.  I felt an unusual\ncalmness.  I may say that I had no fear: I knew the danger, and yet I\nbelieved that we should be preserved.\n\nOn, on we drove, farther and farther to the east, our view now confined\nto the sides of the two seas, in the dark trough between which we\nfloated, seemingly about to be swallowed up, and now lifted on the\nsummit of a foam-crested billow to the tumultuous mountain masses of\nwater which madly leaped and danced one beyond the other till lost in\nthe line where the murky sky sunk over the seething caldron.  We had an\nabundance of provisions on board, but for many hours anxiety prevented\nany one of us from wishing to partake of them, even the rough seamen\nseemed indifferent about the matter.  At length, however, Mr Bent and I\nagreed that Mary ought to take some food, which, after a blessing had\nbeen asked for, she did, the rest of the party following her example.\n\nWe all felt wonderfully refreshed, and hope revived in the hearts of the\nmost desponding.  Still we could scarcely dare to conjecture by what\nmeans we should be saved.  We could not conceal from ourselves that the\ngale might continue to blow for many days, and that we might be driven\nfar away to the east, whence a long time would be occupied in returning,\nor that we might be thrown on one of the numberless coral reefs of those\nseas, or hurled against some rocky shore and be dashed to pieces, while\nwe knew that any moment some cross sea might strike us and send us to\nthe bottom.  I have heard of people's hair turning grey in a single\nnight.  The anxiety I began to feel the moment I allowed myself to dwell\non our too possible fate would quickly have turned my hair grey, and yet\ndirectly I turned my gaze upward, and put my trust in Him who said to\nthe waves, \"Peace, be still,\" all my anxious fears vanished, and hope\ncame back strong as ever.  The missionary all the time maintained the\nmost perfect and beautiful equanimity, not speaking much, but\noccasionally offering a few words of encouragement to his daughter.  She\nlooked up in his face and smiled.\n\n\"I have no fear,\" she said, calmly.  \"We cannot be separated, dear\nfather.  Should the ocean overwhelm us, we shall together begin a joyful\neternity.  You have taught me that our Redeemer liveth.  `I know in whom\nI have believed, and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I\nhave committed unto Him against that day.'\"  This hope gave her courage\nwhen others would have shrieked with fear.\n\nThe gale continued, the boat driven before it.  The night approached.\nDarkness came down on the face of the waters.  Oh, the horrors of that\nnight.  The sea roared and hissed, and we knew that those mountain waves\nwere following us as before, though the sight could scarcely distinguish\nthe vast watery masses which, in the obscurity, seemed doubled in\nheight.  That a delicate girl should exist through the time appeared\nindeed surprising; yet, anxious as I was, I could discover no failing of\nstrength or energy in her.\n\nWhen the sun went down, the missionary had called on us all to join in\nprayer.  At midnight he did so again, thereby comfort and consolation\nbeing brought to the souls, I believe, of all of us.  He then offered to\ntake the helm, to allow me a short sleep, which nature much required.\nThe instant my hand was off the helm, I dropped down and was fast\nasleep, too soundly even to dream.  I was awoke by a cry from the men,\nand starting up, I beheld a sight sufficient to alarm the stoutest\nheart.  Before us in the direction the men were gazing, as we rose to\nthe summit of a sea, appeared in the grey light of morning a long row of\nbreakers unbroken apparently for miles, the sign of a coral reef.  The\nsea, hurled against it, rose to a height so great in a wall of foaming\nwater that it was impossible to see beyond whether there was land or\nnot; indeed that was a matter of indifference I felt, as the boat must\nbe dashed to pieces and overwhelmed the instant it reached those fearful\nbreakers.  These were the thoughts which flew rapidly through my mind as\nwith the first impulse of waking I looked ahead.  My next was to turn\nround, when I saw the venerable missionary standing up on the after seat\ngazing earnestly ahead, while his daughter clung to his legs in her\nanxiety lest he should be thrown overboard with the violent movement of\nthe boat.\n\nI could not help being struck, even at that moment, with the appearance\nof the old man, so calm and collected, and so earnest as he kept his eye\nfixed on some object ahead.  \"Courage, courage, friends!  God will find\nus a way to escape,\" he cried out, at length.  \"An opening appears in\nthe reef; yes, yes, the boat is heading in for it.\"  As he spoke, I\nobserved a dark spot in the wall of foam which an unpractised eye would\nnot have discovered.  As we rushed on towards the breakers, it increased\nin width till I felt assured that it was indeed an opening, and now\nbeyond it appeared the tops of palm, pandanus, and other trees of those\nregions, giving us the assurance that we should find land and a haven\nwhere we might rest secure from the storm.  Still, humanly speaking, our\nperil was fearful.  The greatest skill and judgment were required to\nguide a boat in a direct course across the tumultuous sea on which we\nfloated.  But looking up at the calm countenance of the missionary, as\nhe called me to his side, I had no doubt about the result.  On we flew.\nOn either side appeared those walls of foam; one narrow space alone was\nto be seen where the waves rushed in unbroken by the resistance of the\nreef.  We mounted to the summit of a vast billow--it seemed as if it\nwere about to hurl us on the reef.  In another instant we must be\nstruggling helplessly amid that foaming mass of water I heard a cry of\ndespair from more than one of my men.  But no, the boat's head again\nturned towards the opening, and gliding down the billow we dashed\nthrough it, and saw on either side a comparatively smooth lagoon\nextending between the reef and the shore.  The sheet was immediately\nhauled aft, and we ran along parallel with the beach in search of a\nfavourable place for landing.  We could scarcely judge of the size of\nthe island, but we supposed it to be about three miles in length, and a\nmile or two in width, but Mr Bent did not know its name nor the\ncharacter of its inhabitants.\n\nThe question now arose as to whether they were the treacherous savages\nand cannibals most of the islanders of those seas were till the\nintroduction among them of Christianity, and would attempt our\ndestruction as soon as we landed, or whether they would receive us with\nkindness and hospitality.  As yet we had seen neither houses nor people;\nbut a smooth beach appearing, with a natural quay of rocks, we resolved\nto land.  We stood in towards the shore, and soon found a calm dock,\ninto which we ran the boat and secured her.  With thankful hearts we\nstepped on the dry land, when the missionary exclaimed, \"Let us, dear\nfriends, return thanks to God for the merciful deliverance He has\nvouchsafed us.\"  Following his example, we all knelt in prayer, bursting\nforth at the end in a hymn of thanksgiving.  While we were thus engaged\na sound made me look up, and I saw emerging from among the cocoa-nut\ntrees a band of unclad Indians with long hair and beards, and armed with\nspears, and bows, and clubs.  That they were still savage heathens there\ncould be no doubt.  However, as emerging from the wood they saw us\nkneeling, they stopped, apparently watching us with the greatest\nastonishment.  Not till we rose from our knees did they again advance.\nFlourishing their weapons, however, with frightful gestures, they rushed\ntowards us.  Happily they did not shoot their arrows.  Mr Bent called\nout to them, but so loud were their shrieks and cries that his voice was\nnot heard.  We had a couple of muskets and a fowling piece in the boat;\nbut so completely wetted had they been, that I doubted if they would go\noff, even had there been time to get them.  We waved our handkerchiefs\nand lifted up our hands, to show that we were unarmed, and desired their\nfriendship; but they disregarded all our signs, and came rushing on.\nOur destruction appeared inevitable.\n\n\"It's hard lines to lose our lives by these savages, after escaping all\nthe dangers of the seas,\" exclaimed one of my men near me.\n\n\"Friend, God knows what is best for us,\" said the missionary, calmly.\n\"His will is never really hard, though we may think it so.  Trust in\nHim.\"\n\nMary was clinging to her father's arm, ready to share his fate.  I stood\nby her side, resolved to defend her to the last.  The savages were close\nupon us, when another person appeared from the wood, flying at full\nspeed towards us, shouting at the same time in a loud voice to the\nsavages.  He was fully clothed in native fashion, and at first I thought\nthat he was a chief, till, as he came nearer, I recognised in him our\nmissing friend Vihala, the Christian teacher.  The natives stopped when\nthey became aware of his approach, and, finding that we made no\nresistance, contented themselves with standing around us, till he,\nrushing through them, cast himself down at the feet of the missionary,\nsobbing with joy at again seeing him.  He then turned round to the\nnatives, telling them that we were their greatest friends, and had left\nour homes and come from a far-off land to do them good.  He spoke in a\nmanly, authoritative tone, and greatly to our relief the savages at once\nretired, watching us at a distance.  Mary's first inquiry was for Alea,\nin whom she took a great interest.  \"She is here, and safe,\" answered\nVihala; and he then briefly recounted the way in which they had been\nbrought to the island.\n\nWhen first escaping, their intention had been to visit Mr Bent, and to\nget him to intercede with Alea's father, and to try and conciliate the\nheathen chief to whom she was betrothed: but the small canoe in which\nthey had embarked being driven out of its course, they were unable to\nfind their way back, and finally reached this island.  The weather had\ngreatly moderated before they got near it, or their frail canoe would in\nall probability have been dashed to pieces on the reef.  They found a\npassage similar to that by which we entered, and with fear and\nhesitation approached the beach.  Still they had no choice; their water\nand food was expended, they were suffering from hunger and thirst, and\ntheir limbs were cramped and chilled, and they must land or perish.\nTheir chief hope was that the island was not inhabited; for they knew\ntoo well the savage character of the people of most of the islands\nsurrounding their own to have much hope of escaping without being either\nkilled or made slaves.  They had little doubt that there were\ninhabitants, from the fertile appearance of the country, and as their\ncanoe touched the beach a number of savages darted out of the wood and\nsurrounded them.  They cried out that they had come with no evil intent,\nand that they had some news of great importance to announce to them.\nNotwithstanding this, the savages showed an inclination to maltreat\nthem, and were proceeding to rifle their canoe, when another party\nappeared on the stage.  Vihala at once saw that they were chiefs or\npeople of consideration, and immediately thereupon cried out, and\nentreated that their lives might be spared.  The chiefs, for such they\nwere, came forward, and with some interest asked numerous questions in\ntheir native tongue, and soon there commenced a most affectionate\nrubbing of noses all round, and Vihala discovered with great\nsatisfaction that the chiefs were his own relatives, who had left their\nnative island some years previously, and were supposed to have been\nlost.  Alea, as the daughter of the king, they treated with even more\nconsideration than Vihala.\n\nMost providential was the influence the young people were thereby\nenabled to gain over their savage countrymen; nor did they fail to\nendeavour immediately to exercise it for good.  This was clearly one of\nGod's ways of working, and one which has been more than once employed in\nPolynesia.  They had glorious tidings to give,--to describe the new and\nbeautiful religion brought to them by people from a far-off country, who\nhad left their native land, their homes, and their families for love of\ntheir souls, in obedience to the loving, merciful God whom they served.\nSome listened, rejoicing in the news; others would not understand, and\nmany turned aside altogether.  A small band had, however, been taught by\nthe Spirit to acknowledge Jesus as their Saviour, and they now welcomed\nheartily the missionary who had at first brought the glad news into that\nregion.  Vihala was able to repeat many of the words of truth, which\nwere dropped as seeds in the hearts of the people.  The conduct of Alea,\neven in her living in a different part of the island from Vihala,\nexcited their curiosity and gained their attention.  So admirable an\nexample had they set, and assiduously had they laboured, that many of\nthose who had become Christians were already well instructed in the\nfaith, and could give a reason for the hope that was in them.  Even the\nheathen party appeared to have no enmity towards them; when they heard\nthat we were people of peace, and anxious only to do them good, they\nshowed their friendly disposition by bringing us provisions, and in\npreparing a house for our reception under the direction of Vihala.\n\nAlea was on the other side of the island when we arrived, so that we had\nbeen on shore some time before she appeared.  The meeting between Mary\nand her was very affecting.  She threw herself into Mary's arms, and\nsobbed aloud with joy, exclaiming, \"Oh, my sister, my sister,--my more\nthan sister,--my teacher, my mother, my soul's friend!--and have I found\nyou again?  Do I once more hear that dear voice,--do I once more kiss\nthose sweet lips which have told me such holy truths?  Ah me!  I have\ngone through much pain and terror, and sorrow and suffering of the\nspirit, and I have done very wrong, I fear; but I think that I am\nforgiven, because that I am allowed once more to see you in this\nwonderful way.\"\n\nOften have I since thought of the words uttered by that young\nunsophisticated child of nature, so lately a child of Satan, and the\nremarks made by the venerable missionary to me:--\"`My soul's friend!'\nDo we, with all our learning, and knowledge, and religious privileges,\nthus measure the value of our friends?  How many of our friends are our\nsoul's friends?  Oh, as we value our souls, let us try and find out and\ncling to those which are so.  Do we value most the lips which tell us\nholy truths or those which speak to us pleasant words,--flattering\nwords?  Let us seek, my friend, those only whose lips ever speak to us\nholy truths,--who will tell us of our faults,--who will not flatter with\ntheir tongues.\"\n\nI will not repeat more of his remarks, but I may mention that, like all\nfaithful pastors of the Lord's flock, he never lost an opportunity of\ninculcating the truth, of exhorting of advising.  He knew the value of a\nsoul in his Master's sight.  The chiefs assured us that our boat would\nbe safe; so having unloaded her, we hauled her up on the beach, and left\nher in charge of some natives, with whom it was arranged my men should\nlodge till we were again able to put to sea.  I took one of them with me\nwell armed, as I was myself; for I own that I did not like altogether to\ntrust the missionary and his daughter alone among the savages, the\ngreater number of whom were still heathen in all their notions and\ncustoms.\n\n\n\nCHAPTER TWELVE.\n\nA LOVING WELCOME.\n\nWe now set off with Alea and her friends through the woods to the other\nside of the island.  The natives kept at a respectful distance, the\nchildren peeping at us out of the entrances to their huts or from behind\nthe trees, we being the first white people they had ever seen.  We\nreached at length the shore of a beautiful sandy bay, where in a grove\nof cocoa-nuts we found Vihala busily employed in forming divisions in a\nlarge native hut to suit our requirements.  So assiduously had he and\nhis Christian converts worked, that it was almost ready for our\nreception.  The people began immediately to assemble round us, expecting\nthat the missionary would address them, as Vihala had been accustomed to\ndo, but he told them that we were weary from our long voyage and needed\nrest, as indeed we did.  \"No, no, my friend,\" said Mr Bent, \"do not\nsend the people away till we have bestowed on them some portion of the\nbread of life.\"  On this, greatly fatigued though he was, the missionary\nspoke to them in plain and simple, yet in tender and glowing words, of\nthe great love of God for a perishing world, which caused Him to send\nHis only Son down on earth, that all who believe in Him should not\nperish, but have life everlasting.  Many wept and cried out that they\nwere sinners, and entreated that he would talk to them again of this\nmatter as soon as he was able.\n\nAfter an ample repast, provided by the natives, we retired to rest\nwithout fear, for we felt that we were watched over by One who never\nslumbers nor sleeps.  I do not believe that I ever slept more soundly in\nmy life.\n\nThe next morning the people again assembled to hear the missionary\ndeliver his message, his glad tidings of great joy, and glad tidings\nindeed they were to many of those long-benighted beings.  They had never\ndreamed of a God of love; their only notion of a superior power was one\nwhich inspired them with awe and terror.  I have frequently observed\nthat the unsophisticated minds of savages grasp the simple and glorious\ntruths of the gospel with an avidity and a power of comprehension which\nwould be surprising to those who have been accustomed week after week\nand year after year to set the same truths before those to whom they are\nfamiliar.  As I heard Mr Bent and Vihala addressing the people, whose\nupturned eager earnest countenances I watched, my heart glowed within\nme, and I longed to be able also to spread the same glad tidings among a\nrace so eager to receive them.  Mary Bent was not idle either, for she\nhad collected round her a number of young women and girls, to whom she\nwas telling the same truths in a way calculated to fix them on their\nmemories.\n\nI deeply regretted that we could not remain on the island till some at\nleast had been thoroughly instructed in the doctrines of Christianity,\nbut it was clearly my duty to return as soon as I possibly could to my\nship.  \"Find out what is right and do it, independent of all other\nconsiderations,\" was a maxim in which I had been instructed.  Mr Bent,\nalthough more anxious to remain for some time longer even than I was,\nsaw things in the same light I set to work, therefore, with my crew to\nprepare our boat for sea, so as to commence our return voyage directly\nthe storm should cease and the sea become calm.\n\nA week, however, elapsed before I considered that we might safely\nventure to put to sea.  When the natives heard that we were about to\ntake our departure, they entreated with tears that we would remain some\ntime longer.  Finding that they could not prevail, they then of their\nown accord begged that Vihala might be left with them.  This was a sore\ntrial to him, for Alea had been convinced that it was her duty at once\nto return to her father, and the separation was grievous to both.  Still\nthe path of duty seemed clearly marked out for them.  There was no\nhesitation.  Vihala felt that he could not abandon those who had been so\nlately taught to know the truth, and who so much needed further\ninstruction.  The young people consoled themselves that they might soon\nagain meet to be united for ever.  \"Fear not, dearest,\" said Vihala.\n\"Let us put our trust in God.  We are doing our duty.  He always\nprotects those who do that.\"  Still, though they thus bravely spoke,\nthey were both deeply affected at parting.\n\nA large multitude of the natives accompanied us to the beach, and\nearnest prayers were offered up for our safety.  Mary and her friend\nwere already in the boat, when there was a cry among the crowd, which\nopening in the centre, several men appeared dragging by ropes what\nlooked like logs of wood.  \"Here, take these things,\" they shouted.\n\"These were once our gods--we are ashamed of them; but they will serve\nto show the people of other lands that we are no longer what we were,\ntrusting to blocks of wood and stone, but disciples of the true God, who\nmade the heavens, and the earth, and all things therein.  Take them--\ntake them with you, or cart them into the sea, so that we may never\nbehold them again.\"  The boat was already fully loaded; but we could not\nrefuse this request, so fixing one at the stern, and another at the\nbows, and some smaller idols under the seats, we, thus freighted, pulled\nout through the reef and made sail for the mission station.\n\nThe wind was light, and we could scarcely expect to accomplish the\nvoyage within three days.  As however the boat was large, we were able\nto fit up a small shelter, in which Mary and Alea could sleep with\ntolerable comfort while the weather was fine.  The conversation of Mr\nBent I found of unspeakable advantage.  He and I kept watch and watch,\nthough I insisted on keeping five to his three, not to run the risk of\nfatiguing him overmuch.  I remember, during a midnight watch, feeling\nsome uneasy sensations come over me with occasional shivering, but at\nthe time thought little of it.\n\nThe second morning dawn had just broken, when I saw in the distance an\nobject, which, as we neared it, proved to be a large double canoe.\nWhere she could have come from, and what was the character of the people\non board I could not tell, and this caused me no little anxiety.  Still,\nwithout going much out of our course, it would be difficult to avoid\nthem.  I awoke Mr Bent, and we agreed to sail directly on, taking no\nnotice of them, unless the people showed a friendly disposition.  In a\nshort time we got near enough to ascertain without doubt that she was\ncrowded with heathen warriors, who were indulging themselves in every\nconceivable variety of violent gesticulation.  We had too much reason to\nbelieve that they would attack us.  Our men loaded the firearms, but I\nhoped that we might avoid having to fight for our lives.  Providentially\nthe wind was light.  Under sail the canoe could beat us hollow, but we\ncould pull faster than she could.  I accordingly ordered the oars to be\ngot out, so as to avoid her if necessary.  Suddenly, however, as she got\nclose to us down came her sail, and all the warriors prostrated\nthemselves on the deck, where they remained as we glided by.  Had we\nbeen alone we should have boarded them, but with Mary and Alea on board,\nwe felt it more prudent to avoid them.\n\nThe wind soon again springing up, on we sailed, and as long as we could\ndistinguish the people on the deck, they were seen still lying down as\nthey were when we passed.  The cause of this strange behaviour did not\ntill then strike me, when my eye fell on the hideous idol in our bow,\nand I found many months afterwards that I was right in my conjectures,\nwhen I met with one of the men who had formed the crew of the canoe.  He\nand his companions were among the most ferocious of the cannibals of the\nPacific.  On seeing us they had borne down upon us intending our\ndestruction.  When, however, they saw the two hideous idols stuck up at\neither end of the boat, they were impressed with the idea that some\npowerful gods were on a cruise, or about to visit some new country, and\ncompletely awestruck, they dared not examine us further.  Thus were we\ndelivered from another great danger.  It was not till we were out of\nsight of the war-canoe, that Mary and Alea awaking, we told them of what\nhad occurred.  The Indian girl trembled, as well she might, for there\nwas much reason to suppose that it belonged to the heathen chief to whom\nshe was betrothed, and that had she been discovered she would have been\ncarried away as a prisoner.  Again a feeling of illness came over me,\nfor which I could not account, but I exerted myself and succeeded in\novercoming the sensation.\n\nOur voyage continued prosperous though our progress was slow, and it was\nnot till the morning of the fourth day that we sighted the high land\nabove the missionary station.  As we sailed in through an intricate\npassage, under the guidance of Mr Bent, we saw people collecting on the\nbeach.  He stood up and waved to them with his daughter resting on his\narm.  A minute passed, when it was evident that he was recognised, for\nthere was an immediate hurrying to and fro--numbers rushing down to the\nbeach from all quarters, clapping and stretching out their hands, and\nleaping, and dancing, with other demonstrative gesticulations; and as we\ngot closer we could hear them shouting forth their welcomes, and then a\nsong of gratitude and praise arose from the mouths of the many hundreds\ncollected together.  The reception was truly touching and gratifying.\n\"Oh, how they love my father!\" said Mary.  Those words spoke volumes.  I\ndid not propose allowing myself more than an hour on shore, intending to\nstart immediately for my ship.\n\nScarcely, however, had I walked ten paces than I tottered, and should\nhave fallen had not Mr Bent and some of the natives caught me; and I\nfound myself carried away to his house.  My impression was that I was\ndying, and Mr Bent insisting that he would not allow me to undertake\nthe voyage, I begged that my men would return to the ship.  As the\ncoxswain was a steady fellow, and the wind was fair, I had no anxiety as\nto their finding their way.  The boat, therefore, immediately sailed,\nand I was left alone at the missionary station.  I have ever felt that\nit was providential my illness seized me when it did, for had I\nembarked, I do not believe, humanly speaking, that I should have\nsurvived.  I use the term providential, at the same time that I believe\nnothing happens to us which is not subject to God's providing care.  For\nmany days Mr Bent believed that my life hung by a thread, as the\nexpression is, and it was owing, as far as human means were concerned,\nto his and his daughters watchful care that I recovered, and to his\nknowledge of medicine.\n\nI do not wish to trouble the reader of this narrative with more than is\nseemly of my personal affairs, but I must briefly refer to what proved\nthe happiest event of my life.  After having seen so much of Mary Bent,\nI felt that no pain could be greater than that of having to part from\nher, and I found also to my joy that she had given me her affection.  We\nat once told all to Mr Bent.\n\n\"My only regret, if I have one, David, is, that you are not a\nmissionary,\" was his reply.  \"I had wished Mary to have become the\nhelpmate of one entirely devoted to the glorious service of our Lord and\nMaster.\"\n\n\"But, sir, surely without being set aside exclusively for the work of a\nmissionary, I may labour not without effect in the Lord's vineyard,\" I\nanswered, promptly, for I had often read and often felt how much might\nreally be done by a Christian layman in the cause of Christ.\n\n\"True, true, David, and I pray God that you and many more like you may\nthus labour in whatever course of life you are called,\" answered the\nmissionary.  \"I believe you, indeed I may say that I know you, to be (as\nfar as one man can judge another) a true and sincere Christian, or no\nconsideration would induce me to entrust my child to you.  I do,\nhowever, give her to you with confidence that you will watch over her\nspiritual, as I am assured you will over her temporal welfare.\"\n\nI will not repeat more that Mr Bent said to me on the occasion.  The\nexhortation he then uttered I have repeated often to others.  Husbands\nand wives, do you watch over each other's spiritual welfare?  Are you\neach jealously watchful over every word and action which may lead the\nother into sin?  With whom do you associate?  In what sort of amusements\ndo you indulge?  What sort of places do you prefer to visit?  In these\nmatters your consciences do not accuse you.  Very well.  But do you pray\ntogether, and pray aright?  Do you read the Scriptures together?  Are\nyou constantly pointing out to each other the heavenward way?  Do you\nmore earnestly desire each other's salvation than all the wealth the\nworld can give, than all earthly blessings?  Have you assured yourselves\nthat you will meet together before the great white throne clothed in the\nbright robes of the Lamb?  Surely those alone are truly happy and fitly\nmatched who can answer yes, yes, in a joyful chorus, to such questions.\n\nIt would be profitable if I could repeat many of the remarks made to me\nfrom time to time by Mr Bent.  \"How sad it is that seamen are generally\nso ignorant of their awful responsibilities, and of the immeasurable\namount of good they have it in their power to effect in the Christian\ncause during their visits to foreign lands,\" he one day observed to me.\n\"Ay, alas! and to think of the immeasurable amount of harm they by their\ntoo general conduct produce.  Thousands and thousands of professed\nChristian seamen are found every day in the year at seaports inhabited\nby heathens.  Into what disrepute do they too generally bring\nChristianity, instead of exhibiting its beauty and excellence by the\npropriety and correctness of their lives--I will not say, as I could\nwish, by their purity and holiness.\n\n\"It is impossible to calculate the amount of harm nominally Christian\nseamen have produced among these islands of the Pacific.  There have\nbeen bright exceptions, especially among the British ships of war\nhappily commanded by Christian officers; Sir Everard Home, Captain\nWaldegrave, and others--names that will ever be honoured among the isles\nof the Pacific.  Several masters of whalers and merchantmen also have\ncome here and done credit to the Christian character; but the larger\nnumber, with their crews, have done incalculable mischief to the hapless\nnatives, and when they have found their evil practices opposed by the\nmissionaries of the gospel, they have wreaked their revenge by spreading\non their return home reports intended to injure them, and to prevent the\nspread of Christianity among the isles of the Pacific.  God ever\nprotects those labouring earnestly in His cause; and although these\nreports have done little harm at home, they will have to render up a\ntremendous account for their own doings among the inhabitants of\nPolynesia.  The missionaries and their supporters only desire that those\nat home should read their statements as well as the reports of their\ntraducers, feeling assured that every impartial judge will pronounce a\nverdict in their favour.  The missionaries to the Pacific desire that\ntheir fellow-men should approve their proceedings, not for their own\nsakes (for to their Master they joyfully and confidently commit their\ncause), but that their so glorious cause may not suffer, and may obtain\nthe required support.\"\n\nBut to return to my narrative.\n\n\n\nCHAPTER THIRTEEN.\n\nTHE ROMANCE OF MISSIONS.\n\nI have not described the mission station where I had spent the last few\nweeks.  It was beautifully situated on gently rising ground backed by\nlofty hills wooded to their very summits.  Here and there dark and\nrugged masses of rock might be seen peeping out from amid the trees and\nstreams of sparkling water falling down their sides far away below into\nbasins of foam, and then taking their course in rapid, bubbling rivulets\ntowards the blue sea.  The windows of the house, which were very large\nto admit a free current of air, and were shaded by a deep-roofed\nverandah, looked on one side up towards the hills, and on the other over\nthe boundless ocean.  The interior was a pattern of neatness.  The\nfurniture, though simple, was pretty and well made, with snowy white\ncurtains to the windows and beds, and green blinds to keep out the glare\nof that hot clime.  The verandah ran completely round the house, and a\nthick thatch of leaves formed a roof which effectually prevented the\nsun's rays from penetrating below.  In front was a pretty flower-garden,\nand in the rear a well-stocked kitchen garden, producing in perfection\nall the native vegetables, fruits, and roots, as well as many from\nEurope.  The islanders there saw even their own fruits and roots\nincreased in size, and improved in flavour by careful culture.  Near it\nwas a cool grove of cocoa-nut palm and bread-fruit trees, through which\na fresh current of trade wind was continually blowing.\n\nThe church, although built by the natives of wood--under the direction\nof course of Mr Bent--was a commodious and imposing edifice.  The\nschool-house was also a large and neat building.  In its neighbourhood\nwas a long street of cottages inhabited by natives, constructed after\nthe plan of the teachers' dwellings--some of stone or rather rock coral,\nand others of wood--all having both flower and kitchen gardens, while\nround the settlement were extensive fields where the chief food for the\nsupport of the community was produced.  Of the many missionary stations\nwhich I have visited, all are more or less like the one I have\ndescribed.  The missionaries have thus not only taught the natives of\nthese wide-scattered islands the truths of the gospel, but by\npractically showing them the very great advantages which civilised men\npossess over savages, they have induced them to become industrious, and\nto learn those elementary arts by which alone their civilisation can be\nadvanced and secured.  However, it must be remembered that very few\ncommunities are so favourably placed that they can advance far in\ncivilisation unless they have the means of exchanging the produce of\ntheir labour with that of other people, and on this account Mr Bent was\nvery anxious to obtain another vessel in lieu of one which had been\nlost, so that he might enable the natives under his special charge to\ntrade with other islanders, and might at the same time convey\nmissionaries and teachers wherever they might desire to move.\n\nI offered to assist in building such a craft--a schooner which could be\neasily handled--and afterwards to take command of her should the _Golden\nCrown_ not return for me.  In the event of her appearing, I hoped that\nstill Captain Buxton would give me my discharge; but should he be\nunwilling to comply with my wish I purposed returning out to the island\nas soon as possible, that I might marry Mary Bent, and then commence the\nvery important undertaking I had proposed.\n\nThat no time might be lost, we forthwith drew out the plan of our\nvessel.  I was still unable to move about to assist Mr Bent; he,\nhowever, at once set the natives to work to cut down the necessary\ntrees, and to prepare the timber.  When we remembered how much that\ngreat and good missionary, Williams, had accomplished single-handed, we\nagreed that we ought not to be daunted by any difficulties which might\noccur.  We had already an ample supply of tools, a carpenter's and a\nblacksmith's workshop, and several of the younger natives had become, if\nnot perfectly skilled, at all events very fair artisans; indeed, fully\ncapable of performing all the rougher work, both of wood and iron, which\nwould be required.  Indeed, I may say, that in a great degree they made\nup for their want of skill by their teachableness and anxiety to do\ntheir work in a satisfactory manner.  They understood as clearly as we\ndid the importance of the undertaking, both on account of the worldly\nadvantage it might prove to them, and the benefit of a religious\ncharacter the vessel might convey to others.  The more I saw the work\nprogressing as I lay helpless on my couch, and the more I thought of the\nbenefit, not one alone, but a fleet of such vessels, might prove to the\nPacific isles, the more eagerly I prayed for my recovery, that I might\ntake my share in it.  It was indeed a joyful day when at length I was\nable to go out and join the rest, even although only for a short time,\nin the work.\n\nI had brought my uncle's journal with me that I might lend it to Mr\nBent, as I felt sure that he would be interested in reading it.  \"The\nperusal of that manuscript has caused me tears of joy and thankfulness,\"\nhe observed, as he returned it to me.  \"Wonderful, under God's\nprovidence, are the changes which have been wrought among the\ninhabitants of a large portion of Polynesia since the time of which he\nwrote.  They have indeed truly been called from out of darkness into\nlight; and even those who have not been converted, benefit by the light\nwhich shines among them.  The description he gives of their spiritual\ncondition and of the scenes which were constantly enacted among them is\nindeed most true.  You see what they have become; you see order and\ncivilisation prevailing among those who were considered the most savage\nand debased; places of worship, educated and enlightened ministers,\nwell-regulated schools, a large proportion able to read the word of God\nin their own tongue; but you are not acquainted with the means by which\nthis glorious change has been wrought--with what may be called `the\ntransition state' of Polynesia.  One of the chief reasons why people at\nhome are incredulous as to the present condition of these islands is,\nthat they are ignorant of the events which have occurred, and of the\nnature of the instrumentality which has been employed.  They say that\nman could not have done it, and, therefore, that it cannot have been\ndone.  They are right in saying that man could not have done it, but it\nhas been done by the Holy Spirit of God working by means of human\nagency; weak things have indeed been employed to confound the strong.\"\n\nI was seated with Mr Bent and his daughter at our evening meal--the\nlabours of the day being over--enjoying the cool sea breeze, which\nblowing through the room afforded us that strength and refreshment which\nour frames, exhausted by the heat, greatly required.  I assured him how\nthankful I should be to have the account he offered, confessing that\nexcept with respect to the islands at which we had touched, and where I\ncould judge of the changed state of the people, I was still very\nignorant of the condition of the principal part of the inhabitants of\nPolynesia.  Indeed, I owned, that had I believed the accounts given in\ntwo works we had on board, I should have supposed that the inhabitants\nhad rather suffered than benefited by the advent of missionaries among\nthem, and that from being light-hearted, happy beings, they had become\nmorose, discontented, and inhospitable.  I mentioned Kotzebue's \"Voyage\nround the World,\" in which work the author abuses the missionaries in\nunmeasured terms, and another by a Mr Beale, the surgeon of a South-Sea\nwhaler, who, in a book full of valuable descriptions of whales, and the\nmode of catching them, loses no opportunity of showing his dislike to\nmissionaries, and the principles they have inculcated on their native\nconverts.\n\n\"Yes, indeed,\" said Mr Bent; \"I might mention several other works of a\nsimilar character, which, I believe, have prevented many persons from\nsupporting missions to these seas, or served as an excuse to them for\nnot doing so; but I also have many works written by men of high\nstanding, and thoroughly unprejudiced as witnesses, who do full justice\nto the labours of my missionary brethren, or rather, I would say, to the\nresults which by their instrumentality have been produced.  The Hon.\nCaptain Keppel (now Admiral Yelverton), of HMS _Meander_, who visited\nthese islands in 1850, will, I know, speak in favourable terms.  Captain\nErskine, of HMS _Havannah_, has done so in a very interesting work on\nthe `Islands of the Pacific' Captain Wilkes, of the United States navy,\nin his `Voyages round the World,' speaks most favourably of the result\nof missionary enterprise; and so indeed do many other naval officers of\nboth nations.  I myself must be considered as an impartial witness to\nthe magnitude of the work which has resulted from the labours of the\nagents of the various societies which have sent the gospel of peace to\nthe islands of these seas.  On being rescued from more than death by\nyour uncle I was received back as a returned prodigal by my family, and\nwas enabled to pursue a course of studies which would fit me for the\nwork to which I had resolved to devote myself.  My father, when he\nconsented to my wishes, made the proviso, however, that I should not\nconnect myself with any religious body for the purpose, or act as the\nagent of any missionary society, but that I should go forth by myself,\nrelying on the funds which he would place at my disposal.  While he\nlived he supported me liberally, enabling me to marry and to bring out a\nwife to be the sharer of my toils, and on his death he left me an income\nwhich has been sufficient, with that derived by my own labours, for all\nmy wants.  I have thus been able, by means of the little vessel I spoke\nof, to move about among the islands as I judged best, and often to\nrender assistance to brother ministers of various denominations, whose\nwork had become too great for their strength.  I do not speak of the\nmode of proceeding I adopted, to induce others to follow in the same\ncourse, but simply to explain how it is that you find me unattached to\nany missionary society, and yet acquainted with the transactions of all\nthose labouring in this part of the world.  I propose, my young friend,\nthat you may the more clearly understand the present spiritual condition\nof these Pacific isles, to give you a brief sketch of what I consider\nthe four great prominent events which have taken place connected with\nthem, and almost immediately, I may say, under my own eye--events of\nimportance unspeakable, as marking the signal overthrow of Satan's\npower.  First, the declaration by the king of Tahiti, one of the\nGeorgian Islands, of his conviction of the truth of Christianity, and of\nhis desire to become a servant of the true God, on the 12th June, 1812,\njust fifteen years after the arrival of the missionaries in that group,\nfollowed immediately by the open profession of several natives of\nTahiti.  The second event occurred in November, 1819, when King\nRihoriho, of Hawaii, one of the Sandwich Islands, in one day breaking\nthrough the most revered of heathen customs, set fire to the temples,\nand destroyed the idols, a few months before the arrival of the\nmissionaries, who were then on their way to attempt the conversion of\nhis people.  The third event occurred in 1829.  It was the conversion of\na powerful chief of the Friendly Islands, who afterwards became King\nGeorge of Tonga.  Some time before this, two Tahitian teachers connected\nwith the London Missionary Society, on their way to Fiji had resided\nwith Tubou, chief of Nukualofa.  Under their influence and instruction\nTubou gave up the Tonga gods, destroyed the spirit house, and erected a\nplace for Christian worship, in which he and his people, to the number\nof two hundred and forty, assembled to listen to Divine truth in the\nTahitian language, on the 4th of February, 1827.  He was not, however,\nbaptised till 1830.  A fourth event, which appears still more wonderful\nto those who know the man than any I have before mentioned, was the\nconversion of the fierce and proud cannibal, King Thakombau, of Bau, the\nmost powerful among the chiefs of Fiji, on the 30th April, 1854.  He\nmay, indeed, be considered the king of all Fiji, for all the other\nchiefs are either his vassals, or vassals to those who acknowledge him\nas their chief.  Although a large number of the inhabitants of the\ngroup, of all ranks, had embraced Christianity before the king, yet his\nconversion more especially marked the triumph of the truth in Fiji, and\nproves the power of the gospel to change the heart of a man, however\nbenighted, savage, and bloodthirsty he may have been.\n\n\"To these more prominently important events may be added the\nestablishment of a church at Raratonga, in May, 1833, ten years after\nthe landing of the first native teacher, which went on increasing till\nthe entire population had been brought under Christian instruction.\n\n\"Still more important than the former events was the arrival of Messrs.\nWilliams and Barff at Samoa, with a band of native teachers, in 1830, at\nthe moment when Tamafaigna, a despot, who united the supreme spiritual\nwith great political power, and whose boundless sway presented a most\nformidable barrier to the introduction of the gospel, had just been\nslain, and their cordial reception by Malietoa, a chief of an acute and\ninquiring mind and amiable disposition, who himself, with his sons, and\ntheir wives and children, soon afterwards renounced their superstitions,\nand destroyed the only idol found in Samoa.  The population, when the\nmissionaries landed, amounted to forty thousand, who, though not so\ncruel and bloodthirsty as that of other groups, were still sunk in the\nlowest depths of pagan ignorance and misery.\n\n\"I have watched too the partial establishment of Christianity among the\nnative inhabitants of New Zealand, and its extension thence northward,\nas also from the east among the islands of Western Polynesia--the New\nHebrides, New Caledonia, and the Loyalty and Britannia Islands.  Still\nthe great work is progressing.  New labourers are appearing in the\nfield.  From all directions the heathen are crying out for instruction\nin the wonderful gospel, and more and more labourers are required to\nsupply their urgent wants.  A very remarkable feature in this great work\nis the mode in which it has been accomplished.  The number of educated\nwhite men engaged in it has been comparatively very small.  The most\nunexpected results, the greatest triumphs have been brought about\nthrough native agency.  The natives of the Society Islands and Hervey\ngroup especially, instructed by English missionaries, and inspired by\nthe Holy Spirit, have, with love in their hearts for their perishing\nbrethren and a burning desire for their conversion, gone forth, braving\nall perils, some to the surrounding, others to far distant islands, and\ntheir language being similar, they have at once been able to address\ntheir heathen inhabitants.  Many have died from sickness, others have\nbeen murdered by those they came to help, but the remainder have\npersevered till they have seen the cause of the gospel triumphant.\n\n\"Oh, Mr Harvey, I wish that others were impressed as I am with the\nawful thought that day after day thousands upon thousands of heathen are\nperishing in darkness and sin who might, did their Christian fellow-men\nuse more exertion, have had the glorious gospel preached to them, and\nhave been brought to see the light.  I will illustrate the remarks I\nhave made,\" said Mr Bent, \"by examples as they occur to me, keeping, as\nmuch as my memory will allow, to the sequence of events.\"\n\n------------------------------------------------------------------------\n\nTo the testimonies referred to in the foregoing chapter may be added\nthat given by Dr Seemann, in \"Viti: An Account of a Government Mission\nto the Vitian or Fijian Islands in the years 1860-61.\"  He was sent out\nby the English Government to ascertain the fitness of the group for the\nproduction of cotton.  He was absent only thirteen months from England,\nand had time not only to sow the seed, but to pluck the cotton which it\nproduced.  Speaking of the missionaries to the group, he says: \"It was\nall up-hill work; yet results have been attained to which no\nright-minded man can refuse admiration.  According to the latest\nreturns, the attendance on Christian worship in 1861 was 67,489, and\nthere were 31,566 in the day-schools.  For the supervision of this great\nwork the Society had only eleven European missionaries and two\nschoolmasters, assisted by a large class of native agents who are\nthemselves the fruits of mission toil, and some of whom, once degraded\nand cannibal heathens, are becoming valuable and accredited ministers of\nthe gospel.\"  Dr Seemann is a naturalist, and certainly is not\nprejudiced in favour of the Wesleyans, or of any other religious body.\nHis evidence is therefore of more value.  A description of the condition\nof Fiji as it was is sickening; and yet it is necessary to show the\ndepth of depravity to which human nature can sink, and the glorious\nchange which the gospel can work even in savages such as these.  They\nwere constantly at war with each other, and often fought for no other\npurpose than to procure people for their ovens.  They have been known\neven to bake men alive.  Often a town was attacked, and all the\ninhabitants, sometimes four or five hundred in number, were slaughtered.\nWhen the son of a great chief arrived at manhood, it was the custom to\nendue him with his _toga virilis_ on the summit of a large heap of\nslaughtered enemies; and the whole population of a town was ruthlessly\nmurdered for no other purpose than to form such a heap.\n\nWhen a chief received a visit from a brother chieftain, if he had no\ncaptives ready to kill, he would kill some of his own slaves, or send\nout to catch some men, women, or children from a neighbouring island, or\nfrom among his own people.  Indeed, no man, whatever his rank, was safe;\nand hundreds thus lost their lives every year, that the cannibal\npropensities of the chiefs might be gratified.\n\nInfanticide was common among the chiefs as well as among the lower\norders; and mothers, abandoning all natural affection, considered it no\ncrime to kill their children.  It was an ordinary matter for children to\nbury their aged parents alive; and fathers and mothers have been known\nto bury alive their grown-up sons who might complain of illness, or have\nbecome weary of life, stamping down on their graves with the greatest\nunconcern.\n\nOn the death of a chief his favourite wives were invariably strangled\nwith him.  Numerous slaves also were killed, to form his band of\nattendants to another world; and a great cannibal feast was also held.\nHuman victims were offered to their obscene deities by their priests in\ntheir temples, groves, and high places.  When a house was to be built\nfor a chief, four live slaves were placed in deep holes to support the\ncorner posts, when the earth was filled in on them, that their spirits\nmight watch over the edifice.  When a large canoe was to be launched\nvictims were clubbed, or the canoe was drawn over their living bodies\nlike the car of Juggernaut, crushing them to death.  For the slightest\noffence a chief would club to death one of his wives, or any of his\npeople, and feast afterwards on their bodies.\n\nBut enough has been said to show the character of the people of Fiji.\nThey are, especially the chiefs, tall, handsome men; and though their\nskin is black, they have not the features of negroes.  They are also\nvery intelligent, active and energetic.\n\nDr Seemann says, page 77 of his work, \"Until 1854, Bau, which is the\nname of the metropolis as well as of the ruling state, was opposed to\nthe missionaries, and the ovens in which the bodies of human victims\nwere baked scarcely ever got cold.  Since then, however, a great change\nhas taken place.  The king and all his court have embraced Christianity;\nof the heathen temples, which by their pyramidical form gave such a\npeculiar local colouring to old pictures of the place, only the\nfoundations remain; the sacred groves in the neighbourhood are cut down;\nand in the great square, where formerly cannibal feasts took place, a\nlarge church has been erected.  Not without emotion did I land on this\nblood-stained soil, where probably greater iniquities were perpetrated\nthan ever disgraced any other spot on earth.  It was about eight o'clock\nin the evening; and, instead of the wild noise which greeted former\nvisitors, family prayer was heard from nearly every house.\n\n\"To bring about such a change has indeed required no slight efforts, and\nmany valuable lives had to be sacrificed; for although no missionary in\nFiji has ever met with a violent death, yet the list of those who died\nin the midst of their labours is proportionately great.  The Wesleyans,\nto whose disinterestedness the conversion of these degraded beings is\ndue, have, as a society, expended 75,000 pounds on this object; and if\nthe private donations of friends to individual missionaries and their\nfamilies be added, the sum reaches to the respectable amount of 80,000\npounds.\"\n\nDr Seemann describes a visit to the island of Lakemba, hallowed as the\nspot on which the first Christian mission was established.  Mr\nFletcher, the resident missionary, conducted him and his companions\nthrough a grove of cocoa-nut palms and bread-fruit trees to his house, a\ncommodious building, thatched with leaves, surrounded by a fence and\nbroad-boarded verandah, the front of the house looking into a nice\nlittle flower-garden, the back into the courtyard.\n\nThe ladies gave them a hearty welcome, glad to look once more upon white\nfaces, and to hear accounts from home.  Though the thermometer ranged\nmore than 80 degrees Fahrenheit, the thick thatch kept off the scorching\nrays, and there was a fresh current of trade wind blowing through the\nrooms.  It was pleasing to see everything so scrupulously neat and\nclean; the beds and curtains as white as snow, and everywhere the\ngreatest order prevailed.\n\n\"There are the elements of future civilisation,--models ready for\nimitation,--hallowed homes which no Romish priest can afford,\" observes\nthe Doctor, \"the yard well-stocked with ducks and fowls, pigs and\ngoats,--the gardens replete with flowers, cotton shrubs twelve feet\nhigh, and bearing leaves, flowers, and fruit in all stages of\ndevelopment.  These missionary stations are fulfilling all the objects\nof convents in their best days, and a great deal more; for their inmates\nare teaching a pure and simple faith in Jesus, which those of the\nconvents did not.\"\n\nMr Fletcher showed them over the town, the first spot in Fiji where\nChristianity was triumphant and a printing-press was established, from\nwhich was issued an edition of the whole Bible in the language of the\npeople, and several other works.  There exist, indeed, two versions of\nthe Bible in the language of Fiji.  The church in the town is a\nsubstantial building, capable of holding three hundred people.  There\nare some thirty other churches in the Lakemba district alone.\n\nFrom Lakemba, occupying a week on the voyage, they proceeded to the\nisland of Somosomo, till lately one of the strongholds of idolatry and\ncannibalism.  Golea, the king, was a heathen, but his chief wife,\nEleanor, was a Christian, and they believed a sincere one, judging from\nthe almost frantic manner in which she endeavoured to obtain a Fijian\nBible seen in their possession.  She exhausted every argument to get it,\nand her joy was indescribable when her wishes were acceded to.\n\nDr Seemann writes: \"If the Wesleyan Society had more funds at its\ndisposal, so as to be able to send out a greater number of efficient\nteachers, a very few years would see the whole of Fiji Christianised, as\nall the real difficulties now in the way of the mission have been\nremoved.  On my representing the case in this light, his Majesty the\nKing of Hanover was graciously pleased to subscribe his first gift of\n100 pounds towards so desirable an object, at the same time expressing\nhis admiration for the labours of the individual missionaries I named.\"\n\n\n\nCHAPTER FOURTEEN.\n\nFROM DARKNESS TO DAYLIGHT.\n\n\"My dear young friend,\" said Mr Bent, addressing me, in continuation of\nthe subject on which he had before been speaking, \"we should never\ndespair while God is with us of the success of our labours among the\nheathen.  In my experience I have known numerous instances in which,\nwhen it appeared that profound darkness rested on the land, light has\nburst forth and spread far and wide around.\n\n\"I believe that thirteen years had passed after the _Duff_ had made her\nmost successful voyage to these seas in 1796, and landed a large body of\nmissionaries at Tahiti, before one single acknowledged convert to\nChristianity was made.  Still the diminished band of missionaries\nlaboured on.  They obeyed God's express command to preach the word to\nall creatures, and they knew that His word would not return to Him void.\nGod works through human agency, and it must be confessed that many of\nthese missionaries were not fitted by education for the work they had\nundertaken.  It may be said with justice that therefore they did not\nsucceed.  Still they laboured on, teaching many the principles of\nChristianity although none turned to the truth.\n\n\"Pomare, the king of Tahiti, although he was friendly to the\nmissionaries, for long remained as determined a heathen as any of his\npeople.  At length, however, attacked by his own subjects, he could not\nprotect the missionaries, and the larger number were compelled to retire\nto the island of Huahine, where they hoped to be in safety.  So little\nprogress did they appear to be making even here in their undertaking,\nthat, with one exception, the following year they left Huahine and\nretired to New South Wales, thus bringing the once promising mission to\nthe Society Islands to a termination.  I refer to this time to show you\nhow necessary it is that missionaries should not under any circumstances\ndespair of success.  Nothing could be more hopeless than this mission\nnow seemed.  Pomare, although he befriended the missionaries, remained\nstill seemingly as dark and determined a heathen as at first, and he had\nnow indeed no longer the power of helping them.  He had, however,\nreceived a considerable amount of instruction from them.  He had\nacquired the arts of reading and writing his own language, and had\nlearned the first principles of Christianity.\n\n\"The seed had not, as was supposed, been sown on stony ground, though it\ntook long in growing up.  Adversity caused Pomare to think.  He had been\ntold that Jehovah is a God of purity and holiness, and he began to\nreflect that the life he and his people led must be very distasteful to\nsuch a God, and might be the cause of the sufferings he was enduring.\nThe Holy Spirit seemed to apply the truth, so that he at length\ncomprehended the nature of sin, and especially felt his own great\nsinfulness.  He, therefore, wrote letter after letter, entreating the\nmissionaries to return.  With joy they accepted his invitation.  On\ntheir arrival, the king and several of his people professed their belief\nin the new religion; but a coalition of heathen chiefs being formed\nagainst them, some severe fighting took place.  The heathens were\ndefeated.  Pomare treated them with great leniency, allowing no one to\nbe injured, and even sending the body of a chief killed in battle back\nto his own people to be buried.  So great was the effect of this conduct\nthat the heathen party became anxious to know more of the new faith, and\nin a few months the idols of Tahiti were thrown to the ground.  Although\nPomare and some of his chiefs, as well as the lower orders, had embraced\nChristianity in spirit as well as in name, the mass of the people\nremained, as might have been expected, ignorant of its principles, and\nindulged in habits the very reverse of those it inculcates.  Still the\ntrue faith went on taking root downwards and bearing fruit upwards.  In\n1817 a large number of missionaries arrived from England at Eimeo.\nAmong them came two whose names are known far beyond their spheres of\naction--William Ellis and John Williams.  The following year some of\nthem removed to Huahine, the principal of the Leeward or Society group,\nand soon after John Williams and Mr L Threlkeld, invited by Tapa and\nother chiefs of Raiatea, settled in that island.  Similar invitations\nwere received from the chiefs of other large islands, while native\nteachers were sent to the smaller islands which were also occasionally\nvisited by the missionaries.  Thus in a few years the entire population\nof the Georgian and Society Islands had renounced idolatry, and were in\ngeneral outwardly very strict in their religious observances.  I say\noutwardly, because many of those who attended religious worship and\nrefrained from all work and amusement on the sabbath, still continued in\nthe practice of heathen vices.  Yet I believe that at that very time the\ngreat mass of the people were not more ignorant of Christian truth, nor\nmore vicious, than are too many communities of like size in so-called\nChristian Europe.  We should judge of people who have lately been\nbrought out of a savage state, not by a standard which we should wish\nthem to attain, but by other people who have long been considered\ncivilised Christians; and thus judging of the inhabitants of Tahiti and\nthe neighbouring islands, I am certain that they will not lose by\ncomparison with many of those who have claimed for centuries to be\ncivilised, and whose religion has long been nominally Christian.  I say\nthis with confidence, but after all it is not saying much in their\npraise.  One thing, however, is very clear.  A few years ago they were\nignorant barbarians, savage and debased, not knowing right from wrong.\nNow they abstain from their former cruel and sanguinary practices, they\ngo about clothed and live in neat cottages, and industriously cultivate\nthe ground; they can generally read and write their own language, and\nhave learned many mechanical arts; they understand the principles of\nChristianity, attend Divine worship, and respect the sabbath, while\nundoubtedly some, and perhaps many, have been `created anew in Christ\nJesus unto good works,' and not a few have risked their lives, and laid\nthem down for the gospel's sake.  A large number of the native teachers\nwho have gone forth among the savage tribes of the wide-scattered\nislands of the ocean to carry to them the glad tidings of salvation,\nhave come from Tahiti and other parts of the Georgian and Society\nArchipelago.\n\n\"Great as was the change, after all allowances are made, in the islands\nof which I have been speaking, that produced by the promulgation of the\ntruth in Raratonga was still greater.  You know how John Williams, after\nfounding the church in Huahine, moved to Raiatea, in the Hervey group,\nand thence sailing forth, discovered the then savage Raratonga, where\nthe devoted Papehia landed to commence the work which he was afterwards\nenabled to perfect.  Papehia began his ministrations by telling the\npeople about the power and purity of God, and His love to mankind, and\ncontrasting His attributes with those of their idols.  By teaching both\nold and young portions of Scripture, and the latter to read, they began\nto perceive the follies of heathenism.\n\n\"Thus the old religion was undermined, and a way prepared for the\nintroduction of the new faith.  The priests were the most inveterate\nopponents of Christianity, yet the first person who destroyed his idols\nwas a priest.  Several others followed his example.  Soon another native\nteacher from Tahiti joined Papehia to aid in the work which so rapidly\nprogressed.  The first chief converted was Tinomana.  After a lengthened\nconversation with Papehia, in spite of the expostulations of priests and\npeople, saying, `My heart has taken hold of the word of Jehovah,' he\nordered a servant to set fire to his idol and his temple.  The\nChristians now united, with Tinomana at their head, to live together in\none community, numbering four or five thousand.  Not fifteen months\nafter Papehia landed, they erected a chapel three hundred feet long,\nwith a pulpit at either end, from which each teacher addressed nearly\nfifteen hundred wild, naked savages at once, without inconvenience.\nThis wonderful change had been effected, you must remember, by two\nnative teachers alone, in less than two years and a half from the day of\ntheir landing in Raratonga, and who were themselves born heathens and\ntrained in idolatry in an island nearly seven hundred miles away.\n\n\"Four years after the discovery of the island, John Williams took up his\nabode there with the Reverend C Pitman, they being afterwards joined by\nthe Reverend A Buzacott.  Laws were now formed, and the first Christian\ncommunity divided into two separate villages.  A chapel of a substantial\ncharacter was next planned.  A site was cleared, large trees were cut\ndown, coral lime was burned, the timber was sawn, and in two months from\nthe commencement an edifice an hundred and fifty feet long and fifty-six\nfeet wide, the thatched roof supported on either side by seven iron-wood\npillars twenty-five feet high, was erected.  There were ten doors, three\nat each side and two at each end, and twenty windows, with large\nVenetian blinds.  This chapel was a substantial proof of the zeal of the\nChristian converts; but the heathens were still numerous and powerful,\nand at length, hoping to overthrow the new faith, they attacked the\nsettlement, and burned the chapel and many of the Christians' houses.  A\nfearful storm and flood and a severe epidemic followed, carrying off\nhundreds of the natives.  Though severely tried, the missionaries were\nnot cast down.  The heathen retired, the epidemic ceased, the damage\ncaused by the storm was repaired, and the work of civilisation\nproceeded.\n\n\"It became expedient to form a new village for the immediate followers\nof Tinomana.  A site was fixed on, the land was cleared, and in a few\nmonths the village was completed.  It was nearly a mile and a half in\nlength; a wide and straight road, gravelled with sea-side sand, was made\nfrom one extremity to the other, on either side of which were rows of\nthe tall and beautiful tufted-top `ti' trees.  The houses were built of\nlime and wattle, each about forty feet long, twelve high, twenty wide,\nand divided into three or four rooms.  They stood back some fifty yards\nfrom the road, and were that distance from one another.  About the\ncentre, on one side of the street, was the chapel, and on the other the\nschool-house.  A belt of trees protected the settlement on the sea-side,\nwhile inland rose ranges of picturesque mountains, the intervening space\nbeing occupied by pastures and fields cultivated or in the course of\ncultivation.  I remember the scene well.  It gave me an indescribable\nfeeling of satisfaction when I first saw it, for it proved that a very\ngreat change must have been wrought in the habits of the people, and I\ntrusted that their spiritual condition had likewise been much improved.\nThis was the first on the same plan of many villages which were erected\nas Christianity spread among the people.  At each village, or even where\nthere was a chapel alone, a school-house was erected, where the elements\nof reading, writing, arithmetic, and geography, were taught to adults as\nwell as to children, and only eight years after the landing of Papehia,\ntwo thousand children and one thousand six hundred adults were under\ninstruction.  Although many of the adults could never be taught to read,\nthey learned portions of Scripture, and as they willingly listened to\nthe teachers, the truth gradually spread among the whole population.\n\n\"A printing press was during this year of 1831 introduced into the\nisland, and the first native Raratongan teacher went forth to carry the\nglad tidings of salvation to the people of the Samoan group, then lying\nin darkness.  `Teava' was one of the first converts made by Papehia, and\na devoted imitator of the noble example he set.  He wrote earnestly,\npraying to be allowed to go Samoa, thus expressing himself: `My desire\nis very great to fulfil Christ's command when He said, \"Go ye into all\nthe world.\"  My heart is compassionating the heathen, who know not the\nsalvation which God has provided.  Let me go.  Why this delay?'  He was\nconveyed to Samoa, and gained a position among its then savage people at\nMonono, where he has proved one of the most consistent pioneers to the\nEuropean missionaries, and one of the best native assistants both in the\nschools and in translating the Bible and other works.  A letter he wrote\nto his friends in Raratonga a few years afterwards is worthy of note.\nIn it he says: `When I left you, the good work had not taken much root,\nbut now I hear it has spread over the land.  All the people have\nreceived it.  My friends, be diligent in the use of the means, in\nlearning, in reading, in hearing, in prayer; search the word of God.\nBut I will ask you, Do you expect to be saved by your works?  No; no man\ncan thus be saved.  Salvation is obtained through Jesus.  There are two\nkinds of scaffolding, one of banana stalks and the other of iron-wood:\nthose who trust in their own works are resting on the banana stalks, and\nwill fall; but let our minds be fixed on Jesus alone, and we shall be\nsafe.'  Such are nearly the exact words he used.  They prove the\nsoundness of his knowledge and faith.  The glorious work progressed\nwonderfully in Raratonga.  Churches and schools were built at all the\nsettlements, and several works printed by natives, under the\nsuperintendence of the missionaries, issued from the press.  I was\npresent on the arrival of the _Camden_ from England with an edition of\nfive thousand copies of the New Testament in the language of the people,\nand several missionaries.  Crowds came from morning till night to\npurchase the book, and for many days the missionaries house was more\nlike a bazaar than a private dwelling.\n\n\"One day a messenger at full speed arrived from the old chief Tinomana.\nSeating himself cross-legged on the floor, he asked if a missionary had\narrived for his part of the island.  On one being pointed out to him as\ndestined to labour in his settlement, he sprang up with an expression of\njoy, and hastened back at full speed with the intelligence to his chief.\nThis was at Avarua, where a chapel had been erected worthy of\ndescription.  It was built in a frame, a hundred and forty feet long and\nforty-five feet wide, filled up with wattle and lime plaster, white as\nsnow.  It was well floored, surrounded by a gallery, and had a pulpit\nand desk at one end.  On the day I was there it was filled with sixteen\nhundred natives, mostly clothed in home-made cloth, the greater number\nreally thirsting for religious knowledge.  Next to the chapel stood the\nschool-house filled in the morning with seven hundred children, each\nclass of ten or twelve having its teacher.  Near it was the\nmissionaries' cottage, neat, clean, and commodious; and not far off that\nof the chief, which was large, well-built, and convenient.  It was\nthoroughly furnished with chairs, sofas, tables, and beds, and the\nfloors covered with mats; while on the tables were several books, which\nhe could read with fluency.  Ten years before this he and his people\nwere naked savage cannibals.  Missionary meetings were held in the\nisland to assist in sending the gospel to other lands.  Thus spoke an\naged native at one of them to the young people: `Exalt your voices high\nin praise of God.  He has saved you from the pit of heathenism.  We your\nfathers know the character of that pit; some of us were born there.  The\nplace on which we are now met was once a place of murder; spears and the\nsling and stone were our companions; we ate human flesh, we drank human\nblood.  Let us do what we can to send the word of God to those who _are_\nas once we _were_.'  That year three thousand pounds of arrowroot were\nsubscribed for missionary purposes.\n\n\"More effectually to carry out this object, it was resolved to establish\na missionary college.  A piece of ground was purchased, a number of neat\nstone cottages for the students and a house for resident missionaries,\nand lecture-halls, one of which was for female classes, were erected.\nThe latter were under the charge of the missionary's wife.  Here one\nhundred men and women have been instructed, a considerable proportion of\nwhom were married couples.  Some have been employed on the home\nstations, and others have gone forth to the Western Islands to prepare\nthe way for European teachers.  A boarding-school was also established,\nwhere some forty boys have received instruction.  At the college the\nstudents go through a course of theology, church history, Biblical\nexposition, biography, geography, grammar, and composition of essays and\nsermons.  For three hours in the morning they are employed in the\nworkshop, and in the afternoon in study, in class, or examination.\n\n\"In the Hervey group ten or more stations are well worked by these\nnative teachers; in Samoa four of them have stations; they have\nintroduced the gospel to the Maniiki group; and in Western Polynesia\nthey have successfully preached the truth in the language of the\ninhabitants, and braved, and several have suffered, martyrdom for the\ngospel's sake.  What should you suppose is the total expense of\ninstructing, clothing, feeding, and lodging these most valuable\nmissionaries?  Only five pounds a year; while the entire outlay of their\nproviding for twenty students does not amount to the sum of three pounds\na week, or less than a hundred and fifty pounds per annum.\nComparatively very few of those educated at the college have fallen away\nor proved unworthy of the confidence placed in them.  Of course there,\nas elsewhere, the faith of the missionaries has been tried.  Storms, and\nfloods, and disease have visited the island; evil-disposed persons have\ncome from other lands and endeavoured to introduce drunkenness, and to\nturn the unstable to their own bad courses.  Still I may safely say,\nthat there are not twenty persons in the island, and very few in the\nwhole group, who do not attend Christian worship.\n\n\"A large edition of the whole Bible has been purchased by them; and I\nmay also venture to assert that, in consistency of conduct, in civil and\nsocial propriety, in commercial industry and honesty, and in zeal and\nliberality, they are not behind any other community in the world.  The\ngospel has been introduced and completely established in the Penrhyn\nIslands, or Maniiki group, as they are more properly called, entirely by\nnative teachers from Raratonga.  But I wish to describe to you the\nprogress made by the gospel in Samoa.  Before I do so, however, I will\ngive you a sketch of the way in which some of the missionaries I have\nmet, whose duties require them to be stationary, spend their time.\n\n\"The missionary in some instances attends the early morning adult\nservice, those present having then to go forth to their daily duties in\nthe field or on the water.  In other instances he devotes the hour from\nsix to seven o'clock in dispensing medicine to the sick; from eight to\nnine he is either at the children's general school in the village, or\nattending to private advanced classes at home, or discussing public\nmatters with neighbouring chiefs.  From nine to eleven he lectures in\nthe class-room; thence till noon he is in the workshop, where the\nstudents or the boys at the boarding-school are learning the use of\ncarpenters' tools.  Until dinner time, at one, he is in the\nprinting-office, where the natives have been composing, printing, and\nbinding for several hours.  During the next hour the students dine and\nread.  From two to three the missionary holds private conversation with\nmembers of the church, candidates for church fellowship, or inquirers.\nFour days in the week Bible-classes are held, and at most stations\npublic services take place three days in the week, from five to six.\nThe missionary and his wife generally walk out from six to seven,\nvisiting any who are sick or unable to come to them.  For an hour\nafterwards he is in his study reading, translating, writing sermons, or\nlooking over proof-sheets.  The next half hour is occupied in family\nprayer, and the last in pleasant and instructive conversation with his\nfamily and the natives in his household; and thus closes his day of\nlabour.  The missionary's wife is as busy with the women and girls as is\nher husband with the men and boys, and her influence and example are\ncalculated to produce a lasting effect on the rising generation.  With\nthis succession of occupations the missionaries have found time to write\nand to superintend the printing of numerous works in the language of\nRaratonga,--works which are eagerly sought for and read by all classes\nof the community,--the elder of whom were once naked cannibal savages.\nWhen you write home, mention this with your own experience, and ask\nwhether they do not consider missionaries worthy of support, and the\nresults they have produced an encouragement to perseverance.\n\n\"One remark more.  You have often heard of the fearful decrease in the\npopulation of these islands.  Raratonga has been no exception to the\ngeneral rule, and yet its circumstances are very different from most\nothers.  Its climate is perfectly healthy; no foreigners reside on it;\nand, as it possesses no harbour, the crews of ships can never land on\nits shores, as they merely call off for supplies and proceed immediately\non their voyage.  Before the introduction of Christianity, when the\nislanders had not the slightest intercourse with Europeans,--were,\nindeed, entirely unknown,--the deaths must have been as six or eight to\none in excess of the births.  As Christianity spread, the deaths were as\nfour to one, then as two to one, then but slightly in excess; and now I\nrejoice to say that the births slightly exceed the deaths.  It is easy\nto account for their decrease while they were heathens,--their wars, and\nfamine consequent on it,--disease, produced by immorality, and\ninfanticide destroyed many, and prevented increase.  Christianity at\nonce mitigated these evils, but the effects of many of them still\nexisted, and it has taken years before the population could gain that\nhealth and strength which is the reward in this world of virtuous and\nindustrious lives.\n\n\"I find it stated that a hundred ships touch at the islands of the group\nannually, and receive produce of native labour for manufactured wares,\namounting to not less than three thousand pounds.  We have here a\nnotable example of the way in which civilisation, industry, and commerce\nresult from the establishment of Christianity.  The commanders of many\nof those ships must remember the time when they dared not set foot on\nthese shores, from which they now are sure to obtain the supplies on\nwhich the health of their crews and the success of their voyage so\ngreatly depends, and will, I trust, be ready to bear witness that\nthousands on thousands of the once savages of Polynesia have become\nChristian in name and character, and truly and completely civilised.\"\n\n\n\nCHAPTER FIFTEEN.\n\nPASSING ON THE BLESSING.\n\n\"When describing missionary enterprise, we cannot dwell too much on the\nvalue of native agency, and should therefore endeavour to show the\nimportance of establishing training colleges for native youths,\"\ncontinued Mr Bent, who, once having entered on the subject to which he\nhad devoted his life, showed no desire to drop it.  \"Humanly speaking,\nnot one-third part of the work which has been done could without native\nhelp have been accomplished.  Mangaia is a notable example.  That island\nis about twenty miles in circumference, and contains about three\nthousand inhabitants.  When Williams visited them in 1822 with a few\nnative married missionaries, who went on shore for the purpose of\nremaining, the latter were so barbarously treated by the savage people\nthat they were compelled to return on board the mission ship, thankful\nto escape without loss of life.  Two years afterwards, however, he\nreturned with two zealous Tahitians, Davida and Tiere, who swimming on\nshore through the surf, as did Papehia at Raratonga, with their books\nand clothes in a cloth on their heads, landed among the fierce natives.\nGod had so ordered it that their reception was very different from what\nthey had expected.  An epidemic had attacked the island, carrying off\nchiefs and people, the old and young alike: and believing that it was a\npunishment sent by the white man's God in consequence of the way they\nhad treated the former missionaries, the inhabitants hoped to avert the\nevil by behaving in a more friendly manner to the new comers.  The way\nwas thus providentially prepared for Davida, who laboured on alone for\nfifteen years,--for Tiere was soon afterwards removed by death,--till\nassistance was sent him from Raratonga, itself lying in darkness when he\ncommenced his ministrations.  He received, however, occasional visits\nfrom the missionaries at Tahiti.  Twenty years passed by before the\nReverend William Gill arrived to spend some weeks among them.  He found,\nwith but few exceptions, that the whole population had renounced\nidolatry.  Several large churches and schoolrooms had been built.  In\none school-room from eight hundred to nine hundred children and young\npersons were present, who, after singing and prayer, were led in classes\nto attend public worship.  The church was very large, and really\nhandsome.  The numberless rafters of its roof, coloured with native\npaint, were supported by twelve or fourteen pillars of the finest wood,\ncarved in cathedral style.  It was crowded,--those unable to get in\nlooking through the windows,--not less than two thousand being present.\nStill many at that time were very ignorant with regard to scriptural\nknowledge, though many even of the heathens could read.\n\n\"A few years have passed by, the heathens have one by one turned to the\ntruth, and sound scriptural knowledge is possessed by the population\ngenerally.  A European missionary lives among them.  They have built a\nhandsome stone church with a gallery, capable of seating two thousand\npersons.  There exist two other large stone chapels and three stone\nschool-houses, each about seventy feet long and thirty-five feet wide.\nBut what is far more important, there are one thousand six hundred\nchildren and adults under daily instruction, besides five hundred\nmembers in consistent church communion, leaving but one-third of the\npopulation who, though educated and nominal Christians, must be looked\non as yet not earnest in spiritual matters.  Of the former, some seven\nor more are at the Raratonga training college, and several have gone\nforth as evangelists to the heathen many thousand miles away; while\nthere are more than one hundred native teachers in the schools,\ngratuitously employing themselves in instructing the rising generation.\nThe excess of births over the deaths is very considerable, so that the\npopulation, which at one time was diminishing, is rapidly on the\nincrease.  Davida is dead.  He departed just twenty-five years after he\ncommenced his missionary labours.  `Is it right,' he asked, in a humble\ntone, `for me to say, in the language of Saint Paul, \"I have fought the\ngood fight, I have finished my course\"?  These people were wild beasts\nwhen I came among them; but the sword of the Spirit subdued them.  It\nwas not I, it was God who did it.'  Davida and Papehia, and many other\ndark-skinned sons of these fair isles of the Pacific, themselves born in\ndarkest heathenism, have gained their crowns of glory in the heavens,\nnever to fade away, which the highly educated inhabitants of civilised\nEurope may have cause to envy.\n\n\"People in England are, I hear, astonished at the rapid progress made by\nChristianity in these islands, and assert that either the accounts are\nexaggerated, and that the great mass of the people remain heathens as\nbefore, or that if they have become nominal Christians, it is because\nthey have been compelled by their chiefs to embrace the new faith.  To\nthis last objection I reply, first: You well know how slight is the\ninfluence exercised by the chiefs over the people, and in no island with\nwhich I am acquainted would a chief be able to compel his followers to\nabandon idolatry and embrace Christianity.  In the greater number of\ninstances by far, a considerable proportion of the people have become\nChristians before the chief has given up his idols.  Pomare was still an\nidolater when many of his subjects had been converted.  There were\nnumerous Christians in Samoa before Malietoa became one; and services\nhad been, held in Tongatabu before any of the chief men turned to the\nfaith; and already numerous churches had been established in Fiji before\nThakombau, the most despotic and fierce of the rulers of the isles of\nthe Pacific, bowed his knee in worship to the true God.  People who know\nhow utterly savage and barbarous the natives had become will easily\nunderstand that numbers among them were pining for a purer faith, for\nsome system which would relieve them from the intolerable burdens, from\nthe utter misery under which they groaned.  When Rihoriho overthrew his\nidols and burned his temples he knew nothing of Christianity; but he had\ndiscovered that his idols were no gods, and that the religion of his\nfathers was utterly abominable and foolish.  In many islands, when a\nchief lotued before his subjects, he did so at the risk of being deposed\nby them; and in every direction there are instances of rebellions being\nraised by the heathens against the chiefs who had professed\nChristianity.  For many years the fact, that whole communities of once\ncannibal savages had become civilised Christians was denied; and now\nthat the fact can no longer be denied, certain so-called philosophers in\nEurope are at pains to invent explanations to suit their own theories.\nThe natives might answer them as the blind man restored to sight by\nJesus did the Pharisees of old: `Why, herein is a marvellous thing, that\nye know not from whence He is, and yet He hath opened mine eyes.'  The\nexplanation which should best satisfy Christians is, that God has worked\nwith us.  In His infinite compassion and love He has presented\ninstruments exactly fitted for the work to be accomplished; and though\nHe has thought fit in many instances to exercise the faith and patience\nof His servants, He has at length made the way clear before them.\n\n\"If I desired a particular proof that man has fallen from a high estate,\nand that he came forth pure and bright, and with a mind capable of\nrapidly acquiring knowledge, from the hands of his Maker, I should point\nto these savages, among whom, debased as they are, so many have a\nyearning after a better existence, a consciousness of sin, a desire to\npropitiate an offended deity, a weariness of their degraded condition,\nof the state of anarchy, of the bloodshed and immorality amid which they\nlive.  If these and other facts were known in England, though people\nmight still wonder at the great change which has taken place in these\nislands, they would cease to disbelieve the statements which have been\nmade by missionaries and others on the subject.\n\n\"But I must go on with my account.  I was going to tell you how\nChristianity was introduced into Samoa,--and here the guiding hand of\nGod can especially be traced.\n\n\"When John Williams sailed from Tahiti on his first long voyage in the\n_Messenger of Peace_, after visiting the Hervey group, and many other\nislands, he touched at the Tonga, or Friendly Islands, many of the\ninhabitants of which had already become Christian.  The history of the\ngroup I will give you presently.  At Tonga, a chief of the Navigator\nIslands, called Fanea, was met with, who had been eleven years away from\nhome.  His wife had become a Christian, and he himself was favourable to\nthe new religion.  He offered to accompany Mr Williams, and to\nintroduce him to his brother chiefs.  His account of himself being found\ncorrect, his offer was accepted, and he and his wife embarked.  The\nvoyage was prosperous, and Sapapalii, or Savaii, an island two hundred\nand fifty miles in circumference, was reached.  Fanea now showed how\nespecially fitted he was to assist the missionaries in their task.\nCalling them aside to a private part of the vessel, he requested them to\ndesire the teachers not to commence their labours among their countrymen\nby condemning their canoe races, their dances, and other amusements, to\nwhich they were much attached, lest in the very onset they should\nconceive a dislike to the religion which imposed such restraints.  `Tell\nthem,' said he, `to be diligent in teaching the people, to make them\nwise, and they themselves will put away that which is evil.  Let the\n\"word\" prevail, and get a firm hold upon them, and then we may with\nsafety adopt measures which at first would prove injurious.'  Fanea was\nrelated to Malietoa, one of the principal chiefs of the island, and was\ntherefore, by his influence with his relatives, able to render great\nassistance to the work.  He expressed, however, his fears that a\npowerful and perhaps an insuperable opposition would be offered by a\nstill greater chief, who was besides a sort of pope or high priest, the\nhead of such religious institution as they possessed.  His name was\nTamafaigna.  Fanea asked after him in a trembling voice.  `He is dead,--\nkilled ten days,--clubbed to death, as he deserved,' shouted the people,\nin evident delight, showing that they dreaded more than respected him.\n`The devil is dead,--the devil is dead,' cried Fanea.  `There will now\nbe no opposition to the lotu.'  This was found to be the case.  Had the\nevent occurred a few days before, there would have been time to elect a\nsuccessor.  This man was supposed to have within him the spirit of one\nof the principal war-gods.  The tithes of the two large islands had been\ngiven him, and in pride and profligacy he had become a pest and a\nproverb.  He had, however, his supporters, who took up arms to avenge\nhim, and among them were his relatives Malietoa and his brother\nTamalelangi, who, although they rejoiced at his death, were compelled,\naccording to the custom of the country, to endeavour to punish those who\nhad killed him.  Tamalelangi from the first showed himself a warm friend\nof the missionaries, and, while his brother was engaged in fighting,\nassisted them to land with their effects and stores, and to establish\nthemselves on shore.  Malietoa afterwards proved their warm friend, and\nfour teachers were left with him, and four with Tamalelangi.  Their\npeople showed the teachers the greatest kindness, and, as a mark of it,\neach man who could get hold of a child carried it off to his own\ncottage, killed a pig for its food, and stuffed it to repletion before\nhe carried it back to its anxious parents.  Fanea, too, was unwearied in\nexplaining the advantages of Christianity and the wonderful knowledge\npossessed by the missionaries, which enabled them to communicate their\nthoughts merely by making marks on a bit of paper.  It is possible that\nhe was somewhat influenced by ambitious motives, and the credit the\nintroduction of Christianity would bring to him.  His wife, however,\nappears to have been a sincere believer, and by her example and\nexhortations greatly to have forwarded the cause of truth.  Malietoa,\nwho inherited all Tamafaigna's political influence, exerted it to the\nend of his life in favour of the Christians.  The truth was not, as it\nmight be expected, to be established without opposition; and on one\noccasion a large heathen party approached the dwellings of the teachers,\nresolved on their destruction.  Their friends turned out completely\narmed in native fashion, with clubs, and bows, and slings, and spears,\nfor their defence, not unfrequently expressing in their tone and gesture\nthe untamed ferocity of their nature by their appearance and loud\nshouts, even when kneeling in the attitude of devotion.  Thus the night\nwas spent in expectation every moment of an attack; but when the morning\ncame it was discovered that their foes had disappeared.  The native\nteachers, who could preach as well as instruct in school, made rapid\nprogress.  The people began to eat the fish and other creatures which\nthey had formerly worshipped as gods, and dreaded to injure or even to\ntouch.  Some daringly devoured them, others cautiously put the dreaded\nmorsels in their mouths, while the awestruck spectators waited as did\nthe people of Melita when Saint Paul was bitten by a snake, expecting to\nsee them swell or fall down dead.  From this the natives concluded that\nJehovah was indeed the true God, and were about to cast their war-god\nPopo, a block covered with a piece of matting, into the sea, and had\ntied a stone round it to sink it, when the teachers rescued the image,\nthat they might present him as a trophy of the triumphs of the gospel.\n\n\"The Samoans, though not such gross idolaters, and certainly not so\ninhuman in their practices, as most of the other islanders in the\nPacific, were much degraded both in mind and morals.  They are perhaps\nthe finest people in a physical point of view of any, yet they had more\npharisaical pride and less consciousness of sin; and this, it is\npossible, prevented them from adopting some of those cruel practices\nprevalent among their neighbours.\n\n\"The teachers left by Williams laboured perseveringly.  Still they could\nnot persuade Malietoa to abandon the war.  He went on one occasion to\nUpolu with all his fighting men, and three of the teachers resolved to\nfollow him, hoping thus to influence him the more.  He had allowed his\nson to join them.  On their way they preached the word at several\nvillages through which they passed, and the people heard them gladly.\nMalietoa was unmoved, and they had to return; but their journey had not\nbeen so bootless as they supposed.  Scarcely had they reached home, than\na messenger arrived from the chief of a village they had visited at\nApolulu, begging them to return in haste, as he and his people were\nwaiting to hear from their lips the truths of the gospel.  Three of them\nset out for the settlement, where they were warmly welcomed by the chief\nand a thousand followers.  After the usual salutations, the chief turned\nto the teachers and said, `Have you brought a fish spear?'  Surprised at\nthis strange inquiry, they replied, `No! why do you ask for that?'  `I\nwant it,' he answered, `to spear an eel.  This is my _etu_--I will kill,\ncook, and eat it.  I have resolved to become _lotu_.'  He then added\nthat he would afterwards spear and eat a fowl, as the spirit of his god\nwas supposed to reside in that also.  And these bold designs were no\nsooner formed than executed, though none of his followers supported him,\nnor was it till they saw that no evil results were the consequence, that\nthey ventured to imitate his example.  Numbers then declared that they\nwished to become Christians, and to be instructed in that faith.\nReturning from this expedition, they saw the stronghold of the heathen\nparty in flames.  Malietoa treated the conquered party with great\nleniency, and on one of their battle-fields erected a church to the\nservice of the true God, while Popo, the god of war, was banished for\never.  Many other chapels were built in different directions, and the\nnew faith made great progress, though at that time, probably, many of\nthe converts were very far from enlightened Christians.  While these\nevents were taking place in the larger islands, a large canoe with some\nChristians on board was driven on Tau, the most eastern island of the\ngroup, having embarked at Ravavai, one of the Austral group, two\nthousand miles distant, intending to proceed to some neighbouring\nisland.  Their lives and their health had been providentially preserved,\nand they received a friendly greeting from the natives, to whom they\nimparted a knowledge of the faith they professed.  Several joined them,\nand the little congregation thus formed without a teacher, was looking\nforward to the arrival of a missionary ship, which they had heard would\nbring one, when Williams himself touched at their settlement.  Soon\nafter this three English missionaries visited the group, and one\nremained till the arrival of a considerable number, who came out direct\nfrom England for especial service in Samoa.  The first care of this most\nefficient body of men was to master the language, and when this was done\nthey lost no time in commencing a translation of the Bible.  A\nprinting-press was set up in 1839, and in July of that year printing was\ncommenced in Samoa.  The natives took a deep interest in it, and called\nit the fountain whence the word of God flowed to all Samoa.  The native\nyouths quickly learned to work it, and surrounded by numbers of their\ncountrymen, standing as if riveted to the spot, and gazing with intense\ninterest, now speechless with wonder, now shouting with delight, they\nendeavoured to show with what dexterity they could throw off the sheets.\nNumerous works were printed by them--sermons, catechisms, hymn-books,\nworks on geography, astronomy, arithmetic, Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress,\nand a native magazine.  Upwards of 2,000 pounds was paid by the\npurchasers of the Scriptures and these books.\n\n\"In 1844, the `Samoan Mission Seminary' was commenced.  It was on a far\nlarger scale than that I have described at Raratonga, though conducted\non a very similar plan.  It was for a group, it must be remembered, of\nconsiderable extent, containing not less than 34,000 inhabitants.\nSpecial attention is paid in the institution to the instruction of the\nwives of the students, and so highly are the labours of these female\nteachers prized in the islands, that inferior men are sometimes chosen\non account of the high qualifications of their wives.  I believe that\nnearly a hundred and fifty teachers have gone forth from the\ninstitution, some to labour in Samoa, and others in the Loyalty Islands,\nNew Hebrides and Savage Island--many with their devoted wives having\ndied from the effects of climate or fallen by the murderous hands of the\nsavages to whom they carried the gospel.  A high school is attached to\nthe institution, as well as one for the children of the students.  There\nare, I find, fifty boarding-schools in the group, having 800 scholars;\n210 children's day-schools with 6,000 scholars, and 210 adult sabbath\nand day-schools with 7,000 scholars.  When first Williams landed at\nSamoa, the natives wore no clothing except the most scanty of leaves or\nnative cloth.  Now I find it stated, that apart from all other articles\nof foreign manufacture, the demand for cotton goods alone amounts to\n15,000 pounds per annum, and is every year increasing.  [See Note 1.] I\nmention these facts because they are beyond dispute, and I beg that you\nwill repeat them when you write home, as they may convince some who deny\nthat the Polynesian savage can comprehend the spirit of the gospel, that\nat all events he has made considerable advances in civilisation, and\nthat his connection is worth cultivating.  You and I, and all who take\nthe trouble of observing, know that he is as capable as the most highly\neducated European of understanding the whole scope of the gospel in all\nits beauty and holiness, and accepting it in all its fulness.  We must\nnever forget the saying of our blessed Lord, who knew what was in man,\n`that many are called but few chosen,' and that this is true in Samoa as\nelsewhere.  Of the many thousands who have become nominal Christians, we\nhave every reason to hope that some--I might dare to say many--have\naccepted Christ to their eternal salvation.  And Samoa forms but one\ngroup out of the many thousand isles of this ocean.\n\n\"Let us take a glance at Tonga, at which Williams called, as I told you,\non that first voyage, so peculiarly blessed to Samoa.  You have heard\nhow a body of missionaries so far back as 1797 were landed at Tongatabu,\nfrom the ship _Duffy_ by Captain Wilson.  They were all ultimately\ncompelled to leave the island, very much in consequence of the conduct\nof some white runaway seamen or convicts, who set the natives against\nthem.  Several were ultimately murdered, the rest escaped to New South\nWales with the exception of one, who, sad to say, apostatised, and lived\nas a savage among the savages for some years.  More than twenty years\npassed by, and the savage character of the wrongly named Friendly\nIslanders prevented any further attempt being made to offer them the\ngospel of peace; when God put it into the heart of the Reverend W Laury,\na Wesleyan minister residing in New South Wales, who had been interested\nin the people by a widow of one of the early missionaries, to attempt\ntheir conversion.  He sailed from Sydney in June, 1822, on board the\n_Saint Michael_, a merchant vessel, with his family, accompanied by a\ncarpenter and blacksmith, both pious young men.  He reached Tonga in\nsafety, and remained for upwards of a year, gaining the language of the\npeople, and protected by the chiefs, but without making any converts.\nOn his return to Sydney he left the two young mechanics, and they were\nafterwards joined by the Reverend John Thomas, a young ardent missionary\nfrom England.  They had indeed need of faith and patience.  The chiefs\nwho at first protected them proved themselves fickle and treacherous,\nrobbing them of all they possessed, and it was evident that they valued\ntheir presence among them on account of the property they brought, not\nfor the sake of the religious instruction they would afford.  Just\nbefore Mr Thomas's arrival at Hihifo, on the west side of Tonga, two\nnative teachers from Tahiti, on their way to Fiji, had landed at\nNukualofa on the north coast.  The preaching of these devoted men had\nawakened such a spirit of inquiry, that when Mr Thomas preached at\nHihifo, numbers came over a distance of twelve miles to hear him.\nTubou, the chief of Nukualofa, appeared convinced of the truths of\nChristianity, had a chapel built, and attended service; but tempted by\nhis brother chiefs, who promised to make him king of the whole group if\nhe would adhere to the old faith, he declined for the present to make a\nprofession of Christianity.  The work thus commenced at Nukualofa by the\nLondon Society's Tahitian teachers, was carried on in a spirit of\nbrotherly love by the Reverend N Turner and William Cross and their\ndevoted wives, sent out by the Wesleyan Missionary Society in 1828.\nThey began schools there, which were well attended, while Mr Thomas\nopened one at Hihifo, at which, in spite of the opposition of the chief\nAta, some twenty boys attended.  In two years Mr Thomas could preach\nfluently in the language of the people, and congregations for public\nworship were formed and well attended.  Mr Thomas had gone over to\nNukualofa to preach, when the king Tubou, who had been absent for six\nmonths, attended, with two hundred of his subjects, the chapel which he\nhimself had built, and where he now heard in his own tongue from the\nlips of an English minister the gospel clearly explained.  Other chiefs\nfrom the two groups of islands to the north, Vavau and Haabai, in the\ncourse of the year sent to petition for teachers, or rather, one sent,\nbeing indifferent about the matter; the latter, Tui-Haabai, as he was\ncalled, came to Tonga in person.  Though he earnestly pressed the point,\nthere was no one to send; and so on his return home, finding an English\nsailor who could read and write, though sadly ignorant of the truths of\nreligion, he made him his teacher.  His perseverance and earnestness\nwere to be rewarded.  A sick lad, a step-son of Ata's, was the first\nconvert at Hihifo, but on his death, the chief still more hardening his\nheart, it was agreed by the missionaries that Mr Thomas should remove\nfrom that station to Haabai.  They however first sent one Peter, a\nnative convert, to prepare the way, a plan which has been almost\nuniversally successful.  The missionaries now spent some time together\nat Nukualofa, where the field appeared so promising.  So indeed it\nproved; often so crowded was the chapel, that the missionaries went out\namid the encampments of their visitors on the sea-side, that they might\npreach to them the words of eternal life under the free vault of heaven.\nIt was at this time that King Tubou was baptised with his family and\nnearly thirty men and sixty women of his tribe.  It was indeed a day to\nmake the hearts of the long persevering and faithful missionaries\nrejoice.\"\n\nTo many readers of missionary reports these statements may not be new,\nbut it was pleasant to have such testimony amidst the scenes themselves.\n\n------------------------------------------------------------------------\n\nNote 1.  See Turner's \"Nineteen Years in Polynesia.\"\n\n\"Of an evening,\" says Lieutenant Walpole, RN, writing of Samoa, \"when,\ntaking advantage of intervals of fine weather, we went for a ramble in\nthe delightful woods, the quiet of the grove was often disturbed by a\nruthless savage, who would rush out upon you, not armed with club or\nspear, but with slate and pencil, and thrusting them into your hands,\nmake signs for you to finish his difficult exercise or sum.\"\n\nDr Coulter, surgeon of HMS _Stratford_, has given this testimony: \"The\npower of religion has completely altered the naturally uncontrolled\ncharacter of the natives, and effectually subdued barbarism.  The former\nhistory of these islanders is well known to all readers.  They were\nguilty of every bad and profane act.  Infanticide and human sacrifices,\nin all their horrid shapes, were common occurrences.  Utter abandonment\nand licentiousness prevailed over these islands (the Friendly Islands).\nWhat are they now?  The query may be answered in a few words: They are\nfar more decided Christians than the chief part of their civilised\nvisitors.\"\n\n\n\nCHAPTER SIXTEEN.\n\nHOW THE LIGHT CAME TO FIJI.\n\n\"Tui-Haabai Tuafaahan, or George, the name he assumed when he became a\nChristian, the chief or king of the Haabai Islands, was no ordinary man.\nHe possessed great influence over his people; and in this instance\nthere can be no doubt that, in consequence of his embracing\nChristianity, great numbers of his subjects immediately professed it.\nSo much was this the case, that out of eighteen inhabited islands of\nwhich the group consists, the people of all but two called themselves\nChristians when Mr Thomas arrived in 1830.  Of course they were very\nignorant of religious truths; but at the same time they were aware of\ntheir ignorance, and desired to be taught,--and what more could a\nmissionary pray for?  They consequently made great progress, though the\nwork nearly wore out the missionary.  A second, however, the Reverend\nPeter Turner, joined Mr Thomas the next year.  Their wish at once was\nto extend the sphere of their labours.\n\n\"In April, 1831, King George, now himself well able to expound the\ngospel, with twenty-four sail of canoes, visited Finau, chief of Vavau,\nwho had once sent for instruction to the missionaries at Tonga.  With\nthe king went the faithful missionary Peter, bearing a letter from\nMessrs. Thomas and Turner.  King George, too, endeavoured to convince\nFinau of the truth, and at length he promised to join in worshipping the\nLord on the next sabbath.  This he did accompanied by several chiefs and\nothers; and when Monday came he directed that seven of his principal\nidols should be placed in a row.  He then addressed them: `Listen to my\nwords, that you may be without excuse.  I have brought you here to prove\nyou.'  Commencing with the first, he said, `If you are a god, run away,\nor you shall be burned in the fire which is ready for you.'  The idol\nmade no attempt to escape.  In the same manner he addressed the next,\nand the next, till he came to the last.  As none of them ran, he\ndirected that their temples should be set on fire.  The order was at\nonce obeyed, and some eighteen or more with their idols were consumed.\nGeorge and all his people capable of explaining the truths of\nChristianity, were employed in preaching and speaking night and day\nduring their stay, so eager were the people to be instructed.  All\nordinary occupation was suspended.  The reply to any expostulation was,\n`We can labour when you are gone: let us while you stay learn how to\nworship God.'  Afterwards two native teachers were sent to Vavau, till a\nmissionary could be spared for them.\n\n\"Finau, who had himself once strongly opposed the Christians, now met\nwith opposition from one of his own chiefs, who had been absent at Fiji.\nThis chief threw himself into a strong fort; but it was surprised by\nthe Christians, and the insurgents being brought out, it was burnt to\nthe ground, without one person being killed.  Mr Cross was soon\nafterwards appointed to Vavau, and on his voyage there from Tonga his\ncanoe was wrecked, and his wife was drowned besides twenty other\npersons.\n\n\"It was about this time that the Reverend William Yate, of the Church\nMissionary Society, visited Tonga from New Zealand.  He had heard much\nof the great change among the people, and was disposed to regard part at\nleast as too strange and too good to be true.  He therefore went much\namong the people, observing their domestic habits, and their attention\nto their religious duties, and he assured the missionaries that what he\nsaw exceeded all that he had heard.\n\n\"Christianity was making progress in all the three groups, though in\nTonga a powerful body of heathens, under Ata of Hihifo, still remained,\nwhen Finau, king of Vavau, died, leaving his government to King George\nof Haabai, who thus became sovereign of both groups.  He and his wife\ngave full evidence soon after this that they were Christians not only in\nname, but in spirit and in truth.  They were made class-leaders,\" and\nthe king was appointed a local preacher.  He did not presume on his high\ncivil dignity, but always conducted himself in the house of God with\nbecoming humility.  One who heard him preach his first sermon told me\nthat the great court-house, more than seventy feet long, could not\ncontain the people who thronged to hear their king.  Every chief on the\nisland and all the local preachers were present.  The king led the\nsinging.  He preached with great plainness and simplicity, and in strict\naccordance with the teaching of God's word; dwelling on the humility and\nlove of the Saviour, the cleansing efficacy of His atoning blood, and\nthe obligations under which we are laid to serve and glorify Him.  But a\nfew years before part of this very congregation might have been seen in\nthis same house preparing guns, spears, and clubs, in order to slay\ntheir fellow-men, and waiting to be led forth to battle by the great\nwarrior who was now the royal preacher.  He proved his Christianity in\nanother way.  Hearing that the English had abolished slavery and that it\nis abhorrent to the character of the gospel, he that very day called all\nhis slaves together and forthwith gave them their liberty.  He next\nemployed himself in building a church upwards of a hundred feet long and\nfifty wide, the largest building that had ever been erected in Tonga.\nHe also exhibited his wisdom by framing a code of laws, by which all\nchiefs as well as people were to be equally bound.  They were most\njudicious, and admirably fitted for the wants of the people.  Not one\nprofessed heathen now remained in the two groups governed by King\nGeorge, and the blessings he had received he was anxious to send to\nothers.  A missionary and several native teachers therefore went forth\nand established churches in Samoa, as well as in some small islands\nlying between the two groups.  The missionaries were afterwards removed,\nit having been agreed between the Wesleyan and London Missionary\nSocieties that Samoa should be left entirely under the charge of the\nLondon Missionary Society,--a wise resolve, the object of which does not\nappear to have been very clearly comprehended by the Samoan Christians,\naccustomed to the Wesleyan form, or by King George, who made a voyage to\nSamoa to consult about the matter.  The reason of the arrangement was,\nthat the Wesleyan Society might be able to devote all their means and\nenergies to the promulgation of the gospel in the Fiji Islands, a work\nwhich they forthwith commenced and have carried on with unsurpassed\nvigour and success.  I will describe it to you presently.\n\n\"Josiah Tubou, the king of Tonga proper, or Tongatabu though a\nconsistent Christian, was a man every way inferior to King George in\nenergy and talent, and the heathen chiefs and other ill-disposed persons\nset his power at defiance.  They even went so far as to take up arms, in\nthe hope of deposing him.  In this, however, they were disappointed; for\nKing George, with a large body of warriors, came to his assistance, and\nthey were compelled to take refuge in certain strongly-built forts in\ntheir native districts, where they continued to hold out against his\npower.  The war thus commenced and carried on for some years, proved a\nsad hindrance to religion and the advancement of civilisation.  Two\nRoman Catholic priests were also landed from a French ship of war, and\ntook up their residence with the heathens, whom they undoubtedly\nsupported against their chief.\n\n\"It was while endeavouring to negotiate with the rebels in one of these\nforts that Captain Croker of HMS _Favourite_, who had with him a party\nof his ship's company, was shot at and killed.  Another officer and\nseveral men fell on the occasion, while many were badly wounded.\nSeveral forts were taken or yielded, and the defenders pardoned; but the\nrebels were still holding out in the strongest, that of Bea, where the\nRomish priests resided, when Sir Everard Home, in the _Calliope_,\narrived at Tonga.  Several times the fort had been summoned to\nsurrender, and Sir Everard Home had now the satisfaction of witnessing\nthe way in which it was captured, and the leniency with which the rebels\nwere treated, while he and King George himself were instrumental in\nsaving the property of the Romish priests from destruction.  From that\ntime King George has been employed in consolidating his power, and in\nadvancing the material as well as spiritual interests of his subjects.\n\n\"The success which attended the exertions of the missionaries at Tonga\nencouraged them to commence the work at Fiji, with which extensive group\nTonga has for years been intimately connected, although the inhabitants\nare of a totally different race and character.  I must go back again\nfrom the time of which I have just been speaking to the year 1835.\nUtterly debased and savage as were the people of Fiji at that period,\nthe mission was commenced under peculiarly favourable circumstances.  It\nwas especially supported by King George of Tonga, who was much respected\nby the inhabitants of Lakemba, the spot which had been fixed on as the\nresidence of the missionaries.  Many Tongans also resided there, who\ncould at once be addressed in their own language, which was also\nunderstood by the chief and many of the people of Lakemba.  As many\nFijians were living at Tonga, the missionaries were able likewise to\nprepare and print some books in Fijian.  King George's introduction\ninsured them a favourable reception from the chief of Lakemba, who at\nonce gave them ground for the missionary premises.  House-building is\nshort work in Fiji, and a large body of natives, having prepared posts,\nspars, reeds, etcetera, assembled at the chosen site, and commenced\noperations.  On the third day all the furniture, articles for barter,\nbooks, clothes, doors, windows, and various stores were landed, and\ncarried to the two houses, of which the families took possession that\nevening.  Lakemba is thirty miles in circumference, and contains,\nbesides the king's town, eight other towns and three Tongan settlements.\nMany of the people inhabiting them, on their visits to head-quarters\nsaw the mission premises, and went home to tell of what had excited\ntheir own admiration.  Thus the number of visitors increased, and many\nbecoming dissatisfied with their own gods, and tired with the exactions\nof the priests, came regularly on the sabbath to worship at the chapel.\nAs they had to pass the king's town they were observed, and abused for\npresuming, though common people, to think for themselves in the matter\nof religion, and even daring to forsake their own gods for the new God\nof whom the strangers spoke.  Threats were used, and the Christians\nwould immediately have been persecuted, had not a chief from Tonga, who\nhad come over to protect the Christians from the people of Mbau, himself\nadopted the new faith, letting it be known that he would protect his\nco-religionists.  They did not escape altogether: their houses were\npillaged, and many had to fly for their lives.  They however went to\nother islands, carrying, as did the Christians of old, their religion\nwith them, and were the means of spreading it to other parts of the\ngroup.  Many of the Tongans heard the word gladly, though hitherto known\nfor their evil doings, and returned home changed in heart and manners.\nThe king of Lakemba even pretended that he wished to become a Christian,\nthough his profession was not sincere, as he continued to persecute the\nconverts.  He at last said that he would lotu if some other powerful\nchiefs would do so; and suggested that the missionaries should go to\nMbau and see what change they could effect in the rulers of that\nnotorious cannibal island.  Mr Cross took the king at his word, and\nwith his wife and family embarked for Mbau.  On his arrival there, he\nfound that war had been raging, that two bodies were in the ovens, and\nthat very little attention to his preaching could be expected.  Though\nThakombau, the king's son, promised him his protection and a spot of\nground for a house, he considered it wiser to proceed to Rewa, a town\nabout twelve miles away on the main island, where the chief promised to\nprotect him, and to allow as many of his people to lotu as desired it.\nAt first Mr Cross preached in the open air; but a chief of some rank\nand his wife becoming Christians, they opened their house for worship,\nand a hundred hearers would sometimes assemble there to listen.\n\n\"Off the island of Great Fiji is another small island, that of Viwa.\nThe chief, Namosi, and his nephew, Verani, had captured a French brig\nand destroyed the crew.  The captain, it was proved, had allowed his\nvessel to be used in the native wars, and had even suffered the body of\nan enemy to be cooked and eaten on board.  To punish Namosi, two French\nmen-of-war appeared off the coast, and the crews landing, burned down\nhis town and destroyed his crops.  This misfortune seems so to have\naffected him, that he begged a teacher might be sent to instruct him in\nthe new religion; and to show his sincerity, he built a large chapel,\nwhere many of his people joined him in worshipping God.  Thus were two\ncentres formed in Fiji, where two men single-handed battled with almost\nincredible difficulties, cheered, however, by no inconsiderable\nsuccess,--that is to say, Mr Cargill at Lakemba, and Mr Cross at Rewa.\n\n\"In 1838 three missionaries arrived from England.  One of them was the\ndevoted John Hunt, who at once volunteered to go to the assistance of\nMr Cross, who was already breaking down with his labours at Rewa.  With\nthem also came a printer, a printing-press, and book-binding materials.\nEarly in 1839 Saint Mark's Gospel and a catechism in Fijian were\nprinted,--an important event in the history of a people who three years\nbefore had no written language, and who seemed sunk in the utter depths\nof darkness and moral degradation.  Fiji was indebted for Mr Hunt to\nthe Christian liberality of a lady--Mrs Brackenbury, of Raithbury Hall,\nLincolnshire, who offered to pay all the expenses of his outfit and\npassage, and 50 pounds a year for three years, provided the committee\nwould send another missionary, and thus raise the number to seven.\n\n\"The mission establishment at Rewa drew many visitors, especially the\npeople from Mbau, who came to make inquiries about the lotu.  To this\nplace the printing-press was moved, and it was made the head-quarters of\nthe Fijian mission.  On an island off Vanua Levu, or the Great Land, was\nsituated the town of Somosomo, the chief of which, who had considerable\npower, begged that missionaries might be sent to him.\n\n\"Accordingly Mr Hunt and Mr Lyth, with their families, went there, and\ntook up their quarters in a large house provided by the chief.  He\nshowed clearly, however, that he only required their goods; and not only\nwere the families neglected, but the most horrible cannibal practices\ntook place close to them, encouraged by the chief.  His son was wrecked\non an enemy's shore, when he and his followers were killed and eaten.\nIn consequence a number of women were murdered, in spite of the\nentreaties of the missionaries that their lives might be spared, while\ncaptives were constantly dragged before their windows to be killed and\nbaked.  Ultimately the station was abandoned, and the chief was murdered\nby one of his own sons, who was himself murdered by a brother; and such\nanarchy and confusion reigned, that Somosomo was laid almost desolate.\n\n\"After a time the remaining chiefs and people, brought low by distress,\nturned to the God of the strangers, and great numbers became\nChristians,--showing that the seed had been sown and taken root, though\nwhen the missionaries left the island they were disposed to fear that no\ngood had been effected.\n\n\"The truth spread by a great variety of means.  A chief named Wai, of\nthe far-off island of Ono, tributary to Lakemba, came to that island to\npay his dues.  He there met with Takai, another Fijian chief, who had\nvisited Sydney and Tahiti, and had become a Christian.  With such\nknowledge as he could thus pick up he returned home.  He there taught\nhis people; and so great a thirst for further instruction sprang up\namong them, that a whaler calling at Ono for provisions, they engaged a\npassage in her for two messengers who were to beg the missionaries at\nTonga to send them a teacher.  A long time must have elapsed before one\ncould have reached them; but the Lord knew the desire of their hearts,\nand took His own means for giving them the spiritual food after which\nthey hungered.\n\n\"Early in 1836 a canoe, on board which was Josiah, a converted Tongan,\nwith other Christians, sailed from Lakemba for Tonga, but was driven out\nof her course to Turtle Island, about fifty miles from Ono.  Hearing\nwhen there that the people of Ono were seeking after religious\ninstruction, Josiah hastened there to tell them all he could of the\ngospel.  In a short time forty persons became worshippers of God, and a\nchapel was built to hold a hundred.  In the meantime their two\nmessengers reached Tonga, where they were told that as missionaries were\nnow stationed at Lakemba they must apply there for the help they sought.\nA teacher was found, once a wild youth, who had been converted at\nLakemba.  Here he remained two years preparing for his work, till he had\nan opportunity of going to Ono.  On his arrival he found that one\nhundred and twenty adults had become Christians.  A strong heathen party\nwas, however, formed against them, and they had more than once to fight\nfor their lives.  Even the king of Lakemba threatened to destroy them\nbecause they would not give up a young Christian girl who had in her\ninfancy been betrothed to him.  A gale drove back the king's canoe, and\nsome of those of his followers were lost; so that he was persuaded that\nthe God of the Christians frowned on his design.  The island was visited\nseveral times by English missionaries, and at last one was appointed to\nreside there.\n\n\"All the people have now become Christians, and probably fifty agents\nhave been raised up there to carry the gospel to other parts of Fiji.\nChristianity spread among the islands in the neighbourhood of Lakemba\nsubject to Somosomo.  This was in spite of the belief in a threat of the\nking, that he would kill and eat any of his subjects who should lotu.\nThe king arrived, and hearing of the tale indignantly denied it.  He\nordered, however, that tribute should be paid to him on Sunday.  This\nthe Christians refused to do, but the following day they appeared with\ntheir offerings.  This produced a favourable impression on the king,\nshowing as it did, what was the genuine effect of Christianity when\ncarried out.  No one was punished, though unhappily the king seemed to\nremain as complete a heathen as before till his death.\n\n\"In Lakemba the Christians multiplied, and the whole population of one\ntown, that of Yaudrana, lotued in one day.  They had been ill-treated,\nand two of their number had been killed by the king or his people.\nSuddenly they came to the conclusion that their own gods could no longer\nprotect them, and they resolved to pray to Jehovah the God of the\nChristians.  They accordingly sent to Mr Calvert, the missionary.  The\nchiefs of the town met him to speak on the matter, in the principal\ntemple in the place, and after singing and prayer they bowed down to\nworship God.  The following Sabbath the whole population, by agreement,\nopenly abandoned idolatry.  The king sent to forbid them, but his\nmessage arrived after the ceremony had been performed, and they replied\nthat they would pay him lawful tribute, but would not abandon their new\nfaith.  After this movement of the larger number of his subjects, the\nking himself became a Christian.\n\n\"I can with difficulty recollect the numerous events connected with\nmissionary work as they occurred in the wide extending group of Fiji.\nOf the most important I have not yet spoken.  It is necessary to\nremember the names of three important places: Mbau, though a small\nisland, contains the capital of the powerful chief Thakombau, now called\nthe king of all Fiji.  Twelve miles off, on the mainland, is Rewa; and\non another small island two miles from Mbau, is Viwa, the residence of\nNamosimalua, who had become nominally Christian, or was at all events\nfavourable to the Christians.  Here Mr Cross took up his abode, when\nThakombau refused him admission to Mbau.  Thakombau was the son of\nTanoa, the chief of Mbau.  Mbau had obtained the influence it possessed\nover other parts of Fiji in consequence of its having become the abode\nof Charles Savage, a runaway seaman, a horrible ruffian, a Swede by\nbirth, who managed to obtain a large supply of firearms and ammunition,\nand led her armies for many years against her neighbours of the larger\nislands, compelling them to become tributary to her.  At length, being\ndefeated in Viti Levu, by a party of natives against whom, in\nconjunction with the master of an English trading vessel, the _Hunter_,\nof Calcutta, he was carrying on a war for the sake of procuring a cargo\nof sandal-wood for the ship, he was, together with fourteen of the crew,\nput to death and eaten, his body being treated with every mark of\ndetestation, and his bones converted into sail-needles, and distributed\namong the people as a remembrance of the victory.  Namosimalua was\nlooked upon as the Ulysses of those regions.  He in conjunction with\nother chiefs, weary of the exactions of Tanoa, rebelled against him, and\ncompelled him to fly, also advising that his young son Thakombau, whose\ntalents he had discovered, should be put to death.  This not having been\ndone, he resolved to gain the friendship of Tanoa without committing\nhimself.  He therefore offered to go in pursuit of the king, but\nsecretly sent a messenger to warn him of his danger.  When Thakombau\nrestored his father to his possessions, Tanoa saved Namosi's life,\nthough the former never forgave him his intentions towards him.\n\n\"Among the greatest warriors and fiercest cannibals of Fiji was a nephew\nof Namosi's, called Verani, who was a firm friend of Thakombau's.  At\nRewa a mission had been established, but its chief Ratu Nggara remained\na heathen, and was a powerful rival of Thakombau.  Some time after the\nestablishment of the missions at Viwa, Namosi its chief became a\nChristian; and as visitors from Mbau and other places visited the\nmission-house, the knowledge of the new faith spread in every direction\naround.  The fierce warrior Verani even listened to what the missionary\nhad to say, and hopes were entertained that he too might lotu; but his\nfriend Thakombau urged him to remain firm to the old faith, and to join\nhim as before in his wars.  At first, Verani yielded to evil counsels;\nbut, happily, again and again he visited the missionary, till he\ndeclared his conviction that Christianity was true; and from that day he\nbecame as resolute and bold in promulgating the truth, as he had before\nbeen in supporting the customs of heathenism.  For several years he held\na consistent Christian course of life, and his example had probably an\ninfluence on his friend Thakombau.  His good influence was, however,\nopposed by some of the abandoned white men, resident on neighbouring\nislands, who dreaded, should the king turn Christian, that a stop would\nbe put to their own evil doings.  They even went so far, when they\nthought this possible, as to join the natives in carrying on war against\nhim; and so successful were they that on every side he found his power\ndecreasing.  What force or persuasion could not effect, affliction\naccomplished.  During the time of his greatest distress he received a\nletter from King George of Tonga, urging him to delay no longer, but to\nturn to the God of the Christians.  This letter seems to have decided\nhim.\n\n\"On the 30th April, 1854, at nine o'clock the death-drum was beaten--the\nsignal for assembling in the great `Strangers' House' for the\nworshipping of the true God.  Ten days before, its sound had called\npeople together to a cannibal feast.  Three hundred persons were present\nin the ample lotu dress, before whom stood Thakombau, the chief, with\nhis children and wives.  The missionary, who had so long watched for\nthis event, was deeply moved, and could scarcely proceed with the\nservice.  It was indeed a day to be remembered in the annals of Fiji.\nAfter worship, the people crowded round the missionaries, to ask for\nalphabets, and gathered in groups to learn forthwith to read.  The king,\nafter this, caused the Sabbath to be observed.  His deportment was\nserious, and his own attendance at preaching and prayer-meetings was\nregular.  His little boy, about seven years old, had already learnt to\nread, and he now became the instructor of his parents, who were both so\neager to acquire knowledge, that their young teacher would often fall\nasleep in the midst of his lesson.\n\n\"Among the most implacable enemies of Thakombau was the king of Rewa.\nElijah Verani undertook a mission to that chief, in the hopes of\nbringing about peace, when he and most of his companions were\ntraitorously murdered and eaten.  Not long after this the king of Rewa\nhimself died, and his people sued for peace.\n\n\"Thakombau, the once cannibal and homicide, was not allowed to remain\nquiet.  He had enemies on every side; some of them he conquered in war,\nbut often his life was in danger from his own former associates and\nrelations.  The effect, however, was good, as it made him turn more and\nmore to God for pardon through Jesus Christ and to the consolations of\nreligion.  At length he triumphed, and his enemies were subdued under\nhim.  He had from the first prohibited cannibalism; murder was now\ndeclared to be against the law.  The first two murderers guilty of the\ncrime before the law was promulgated were pardoned, but the next, though\na chief, was tried, and being found guilty of the murder of his wife,\nwas publicly executed by his countrymen at Mbau, the missionary wisely\nabsenting himself at the time.  In the same year three chiefs of rank\nwere publicly married, each to one wife, a step afterwards taken by the\nking himself.  Churches were now built in every direction, and thousands\nof the people of Fiji abandoned their horrible customs, put away their\nidols, and turned to the true God.\"\n\n\n\nCHAPTER SEVENTEEN.\n\nTHE COURAGE OF KAPIOLANI.\n\n\"Although the change in Fiji is very great, much remains to be done.  It\nis not more than we may justly say, that cannibalism and the more\nabominable crimes once common have ceased to exist wherever English\nmissionaries reside, and in most places where native teachers have\ngained a footing.  The kingdom of peace is making daily progress.  The\ngospel has firmly established itself in the heart of Fiji.  Thakombau\nremains firm and consistent in his profession of Christianity, and\nthough certain chiefs rebelled against him, he has dealt as leniently\nwith them as the maintenance of authority and order will allow, and has\nstriven as far as possible to avoid bloodshed.\n\n\"It is satisfactory to see the way Captain Erskine, of HMS _Havannah_,\nspeaks of those who have contributed to bring about this state of\nthings.  I cannot refrain from touching on a circumstance which he\nmentions, redounding as it does so greatly to the honour of the wives of\ntwo of the missionaries, Mrs Lyth and Mrs Calvert.  It occurred while\nold Tanoa was still alive, and of course long before Thakombau became a\nChristian.\n\n\"A powerful tribe had sent a deputation to Mbau with tribute, and it was\nnecessary to provide them with a banquet, a portion of which must,\naccording to custom, be human flesh.  The chief whose business it was to\nprovide for the occasion, not having any enemies, set forth by night and\ncaptured a number of women belonging to a village along the coast, who\nhad come down to pick shell-fish for food.  Immediately Namosimalua, the\nChristian chief, heard of it, he hastened to the missionary station; but\nthe missionaries' wives alone were at home.  These heroic women,\nhowever, resolved to go themselves, and to endeavour at all risks to\nsave the lives of the captives.  Accompanied by the faithful Christian\nchief they embarked in a canoe for Mbau.  Each carried a whale's tooth\ndecorated with ribbons, a necessary offering on preferring a petition to\na chief.  As they landed near old Tanoa's house, the shrieks of two\nwomen then being slaughtered for the day's entertainment chilled their\nblood, but did not daunt their resolution.  Ten had been killed; one had\ndied of her wounds; the life of one girl had been begged by Thakombau's\nprincipal wife, to whom she was delivered as a slave, and three only\nremained.  Regardless of the sanctity of the place, it being tabooed to\nwomen, they forced themselves into old Tanoa's chamber, who demanded,\nwith astonishment at their temerity, what those women did there?  The\nChristian chief, presenting the two whales' teeth, answered that they\ncame to solicit the lives of the remaining prisoners.\n\n\"Tanoa, still full of wonder, took up one of these teeth, and turning to\nan attendant, desired him to carry it immediately to Navindi--the chief\nwho had captured the prisoners--and ask, `If it were good?'\n\n\"A few minutes were passed in anxious suspense.  The messenger returned.\nNavindi's answer was, `It is good.'  The women's cause was gained, and\nold Tanoa thus pronounced his judgment: `Those who are dead, are dead;\nthose who are alive shall live.'  The heroic ladies retired with their\nthree rescued fellow-creatures, and had the satisfaction besides of\ndiscovering that their daring efforts had produced a more than hoped-for\neffect.  A year or two ago, no voice but that of derision would have\nbeen raised towards them, but now returning to their canoe, they were\nfollowed by numbers of their own sex blessing them for their exertions,\nand urging them to persevere.\n\n\"Captain Erskine, who heard this account from the ladies themselves, and\ngives it much as I have done, adds, `If anything could have increased\nour admiration of their heroism, it was the unaffected manner in which\nwhen pressed by us to relate the circumstances of their awful visit,\nthey spoke of it as the simple performance of an ordinary duty.'  He\ncontinues: `I could not fail to admire the tolerant tone of the\nmissionaries when speaking of these enormities.  Accustomed for years to\nwitness scenes such as few believe are to be seen on the face of the\nearth, and to combat the wildest errors step by step, with slow but\nalmost certain success, these good men know well that a constant\nexpression of indignation, such as must naturally arise in the mind of a\nstranger, would not produce the desired effect on the unhappy beings to\nwhose loftiest interests they have with much self-sacrifice devoted\nthemselves.  Navindi, the cannibal chief of the fishermen, whose natural\ndisposition they describe as kindly and confiding, was received quite on\nthe footing of a friend, and Thakombau was also spoken of as a man of\ngreat energy and good intentions, by whose instrumentality much good\nmight yet be effected among his numerous subjects or dependants.  The\nwisdom of their conduct has been proved.  These men have been won over\nto the truth.  When our blessed Lord walked on earth He reproved in\nstrongest language the scribes and Pharisees who knew the law, but not\nthe publicans and sinners who knew it not.  Captain Erskine describes\nthe missionaries as engaged in the translation of the Scriptures and\nother religious works to be completed before a given time--a labour to\nbe carried on in the midst of constant interruptions, to which the\nmembers of this mission and their families are liable at all hours of\nthe day.  Besides being referred to in cases of quarrels and disputes,\nthe care of the sick and the distribution of medicines are duties which\nthey have undertaken, and carry out with unremitting attention.'\n\n\"I wish that people in England knew of the efforts made by the priests\nof Rome to impede the progress of the pure gospel.  Their mode of\nproceeding is very clearly described in a few words by Captain Erskine.\nHe says, `There are two French Roman Catholic missionaries stationed at\nLakemba, but, as at Tongatabu, it is to be feared that their presence\nwill tend rather to retard than advance the improvement of the natives.\nThe practice of this (Roman Catholic) mission, in availing themselves of\nthe pioneer-ship of men of a different sect, for the purpose of\nundermining their exertions, cannot be too severely reprobated.  Being\nvery irregularly furnished with supplies from their own country, these\ntwo are sometimes dependent for the common necessaries of life on the\nWesleyans, for whom they entertain the strongest dislike, and who cannot\nbe expected to treat them otherwise than as mischievous intruders; nor\nare their privations in any way compensated by success in their\nobjects.'  He describes a visit to the fortress of Bea, in Tonga, where\ntwo Roman Catholic priests reside, and which is inhabited partly by\nRoman Catholics and partly by heathens.  `The appearance of the people\nin this fortress was not such as to impress one favourably, compared\nwith the others of their countrymen we had seen.  They were more\nscantily clothed, and apparently less cleanly in their persons and\nhouses, a natural consequence of living in a more confined space; and\nthe absence of that cordiality which we everywhere met with from persons\nconnected with the Protestant missions was very apparent.  I heard also\namong the younger officers of pockets picked and handkerchiefs stolen,\nshowing a more lawless state of life, and a retention of their old\nhabits, which were so obnoxious to their early European visitors.'  The\npriests complained to Captain Erskine of the way the missionaries spoke\nof them, on which he says, `It is perhaps sufficient to remark that,\neven if the Wesleyans were guilty (which I do not believe) of all the\nimproper conduct attributed to them by M Calinon, it has been occasioned\nentirely by the obtrusion of the Society to which he belongs into ground\npreviously occupied by others, who would undoubtedly, had their efforts\nremained unopposed or unassisted, soon have numbered the whole of the\npopulation among their fellow-worshippers.'\n\n\"The priest also wrote to Captain Erskine, repeating his accusations of\nintolerance against the Wesleyans, and expressing his fears that their\nefforts to disparage him would be renewed on their departure, and the\nflight of the pope from Rome, of which they had heard, represented as\nthe downfall of the Catholic Church.\n\n\"The captain says, `I thought it right to answer his letter, as I could\nexonerate the missionaries from any charge of having attempted to\nprejudice us against the Roman Catholic priests, nor did I believe that\nthey would make use of any unfair argument against their faith, founded\non the political position of the pope.'  I must also express my\nconviction that the charge against the Wesleyans made by the priests of\nadopting as proselytes all who offer without examination is quite\nunfounded.  The putting away of all but one wife--no small sacrifice on\nthe part of a people who have practised polygamy for ages--is always\ninsisted on as a first step, and regular attendance on religious worship\nis also expected.  Among the older Christians I saw every evidence of\ntheir having adopted the new faith from conscientious conviction, and\nthe chiefs of the highest distinction are probably better read in the\nNew Testament than any of the English met with among the islands.\n\n\"Captain Erskine also bears testimony to the character of other\nmissionaries.  Describing the work at Samoa, he says: `The first\ncircumstance which must strike a stranger on his arrival, and one which\nwill come hourly under his notice during his stay, is the influence\nwhich all white men, but in particular the missionaries, exercise over\nthe minds of the natives.\n\n\"`No unprejudiced person will fail to see that had this people acquired\ntheir knowledge of a more powerful and civilised race than their own,\neither from the abandoned and reckless characters who still continue to\ninfest most of the islands of the Pacific, or even from a higher class\nengaged in purely mercantile pursuits, they must have fallen into a\nstate of vice and degradation to which their old condition would have\nbeen infinitely superior.  That they have been at least rescued from\nthis state, is entirely owing to the missionaries; and should the few\npoints of asceticism which these worthy men, conscientiously believing\nthem necessary to the eradication of the old superstitions, have\nintroduced among their converts, become softened by time and the absence\nof opposition, it is not easy to imagine a greater moral improvement\nthan will then have taken place among a (once) savage people.\n\n\"`With respect to those gentlemen of the London Mission, whose\nacquaintance I had the satisfaction of making in Samoa, I will venture,\nat the risk of being considered presumptuous, to express my opinion,\nthat in acquirements, general ability, and active energy, they would\nhold no undistinguished place among their Christian brethren at home.\nThe impossibility of accumulating private property, both from the\nregulations of the Society and the circumstances surrounding them, ought\nto convince the most sceptical of their worldly disinterestedness, nor\ncan the greatest scoffers at their exertions deny to them the possession\nof a virtue which every class of Englishman esteems above all others,\nthe highest order of personal courage.'  [See Note.]\n\n\"But I need not quote further from Captain Erskine, nor from other\nunprejudiced writers, to convince you, and through you your friends, of\nwhat has been accomplished through the instrumentality of missionaries.\nYou will have many opportunities of judging for yourself.  There is,\nhowever, another subject to which I would urge you to draw attention,\nthat is, the attempts made by French priests of the Church of Rome to\ncounteract the efforts of the missionaries.  You know what has been done\nat Tahiti.  You hear from Captain Erskine what is doing at Tonga and\nFiji.  The same attempts are being made at Samoa and elsewhere, wherever\nEnglish missionaries have pioneered the way, and there are good\nharbours, but not otherwise.  This almost looks as if their designs are\npolitical as well as religious, and that the object of those who send\nthem is to establish French posts across the Pacific, so that in time of\nwar they may have coaling stations and harbours of refuge in every\ndirection.  As they have by means of these priests a party in each\ngroup, they will never want an excuse for interfering in the affairs of\nthe islands whenever they may have occasion to do so.\n\n\"But I must tell you more of many other islands brought under Christian\ninstruction.  Savage Island offers a notable example of what can be done\nin a short time.  Captain Cook gave it that name, on account of the\nsavage appearance of the inhabitants.  When Williams first visited them\nin 1830, they appeared to be in no way improved.  Several at length were\ninduced to visit Samoa, where at the training college they gained so\nsound a knowledge of Christianity, that in 1846 two of them were well\nfitted to impart it to their long-benighted countrymen.  They narrowly,\nhowever, escaped with their lives, and some time elapsed before they\ncould gain the confidence of those they came to instruct.  When visited\nby the Reverend A Murray in 1852, about two hundred converts had been\nmade, and many others had learned to look at the teachers with\naffection.  Unhappily that very year several of the natives were killed\nby the crew of a man-of-war which had called off the island, because one\nof them had stolen a carpenter's tool, and among them was the chief who\nhad protected the missionaries on first landing.  Still they were\nalready too well instructed to wish to return evil for evil, and with\nsimplicity complained that the punishment was rather severe, especially\nas the innocent suffered, though not altogether undeserved.  From this\ntime forward, under their native teachers, the people made great\nprogress in their knowledge of religious truth, and so rapidly were\nnumbers added to the Church, that in a few years not a heathen remained\non the island.  It was not indeed till quite lately that an English\nmissionary was placed on the island, and he found five large churches\nbuilt, one of which was capable of holding more than a thousand people;\nand many young men were anxious to be trained, that they might carry the\ngospel to other lands.  I might give you a similar account of the way\nChristianity has been introduced into many other islands, and small\ngroups of islands in this part of the Pacific; but I have a very\ndifferent one to give of the western part, or of those islands which\nform what is called Melanesia.  They consist of five groups, and not\nonly do the inhabitants of each group speak different languages, but\nfrequently those of neighbouring islands.\n\n\"We will begin with the large island of New Caledonia, on which the\nFrench have lately formed a convict establishment.  To the south of it\nis the Isle of Pines, and to the east the three islands of Mare, Livu,\nand Uea, forming the Loyalty group.  At Mare and Livu chiefly,\nChristianity has made progress, and Protestant missionaries have for\nsome years been residing on them, while the people of Uea have gladly\nreceived the word; but the Isle of Pines has been stained with the blood\nof several native missionaries; and not only did the savage people\nreject the offer themselves, but they impeded its progress on New\nCaledonia, by threatening all who became Christians, till the French\narrived and put a stop to the promulgation of Protestant truth among the\npeople.  Altogether, the influence of Romanism has been most pernicious\nin these islands.\n\n\"To the north-east of them are the New Hebrides, the most southern of\nwhich is Aneiteum; next Tanna, Eromanga, Fate, Malicolo, Espiritu Santo,\nand many others.  The next group is that of Banks' Island, with Santa\nMaria, and many small isles.  The Santa Cruz group is the fourth in the\nlist; and to the north-west of them the Solomon Isles, consisting of\nmany large islands, make the fifth group.  The London Missionary Society\nhave made every effort to carry the gospel to the inhabitants of the two\nfirst named groups, and in some instances successfully.\n\n\"It was at Eromanga that the devoted missionary John Williams fell, with\nhis young companion Mr Harris, struck down by the club of a chief.\nThis sad murder did not prevent the Society from making further efforts\nto send the gospel to the benighted inhabitants.  Those efforts have\nbeen blessed, and among the converts was the chief who committed the\ndeed, and who gave up to a missionary the very weapon with which the\nfatal blow was struck.  On Aneiteum, English missionaries are located,\nChristian Churches have been established, and, with few exceptions, the\nwhole of the population have in name become Christian.\n\n\"These five groups are now called Melanesia.  They have for some years\npast been regularly visited by the energetic Bishop of New Zealand, who\nhas induced young men from most of them to accompany him in his mission\nvessel to New Zealand, where at the Auckland training college they are\nprepared to carry back the gospel to their savage countrymen.  A\nmissionary bishop has lately been appointed to superintend the work,\nwhich, if carried on in the spirit with which it has been commenced,\nmust with God's blessing prosper.\n\n\"These islands were long noted for the deeds of blood committed on their\nshores, for the number of vessels cut off, and both white and native\nmissionaries murdered, and the natives have been looked on in\nconsequence as of the most fierce and sanguinary character.  That they\ndeserved it in a degree there is no doubt; but at the same time it is\nvery certain that their conduct towards foreigners was caused by the\nunjust, cruel way in which they were treated by the crews of vessels\nwhich came to procure sandal-wood on their shores.  These men shot them\ndown, cheated them, and ill-treated them in every possible way,\nsometimes carrying off chiefs and people from one place to exchange them\nas slaves for sandal-wood in another.  Over and over again natives have\nbeen shot both on board vessels and on shore by the traders.  Such was\nthe cause of the death of the lamented John Williams and young Harris.\nA trading vessel had touched at Eromanga a short time before their\narrival, her crew having shot several natives, among whom was the son of\na chief, who afterwards confessed that it was in retaliation he had\ninstigated his countrymen to the attack, and had himself struck the\nfatal blow.\n\n\"But time will not allow me to give a further description of this\nportion of the Pacific.  I have as yet told you nothing of the Sandwich\nIslands, or, as they are now called, the Hawaiian Islands, with their\ncapital Honolulu, in the isle of Oahu, and their late sovereign, King\nKamehameha the Fourth.  They consist of several large and beautiful\nislands: that of Hawaii (Owhyee), containing two mountains, Mouna Kea\nand Mouna Roa, said to be eighteen thousand feet in height, and by far\nthe most lofty in the whole Pacific.  The inhabitants are a fine and\nhandsome race.  Their religion was one of gross superstition, and so\noverloaded with restrictions, constantly increasing, and curtailing the\nliberty of all classes except the priests, that the chiefs and people at\nlength became utterly weary of it.  Even when visited by Captain\nVancouver in 1793, some of the chiefs requested him to send them\ninstructors in the Christian faith,--a prayer to which little attention\nappears to have been paid.\n\n\"It was not till the year 1820 that the young King Rihoriho, who had\nascended the throne established by his victorious father, no longer\nbelieving in the power of his idols, and weary of the restraints of the\nold religion, at one stroke broke through the hitherto sacred taboo and\nthe entire system of priestcraft.\n\n\"Just before this eventful time it had been put into the hearts of\nChristian men in the United States, who formed the American Board of\nMissions, to send missionaries to the long-known savage murderers of\nCaptain Cook.  A band of devoted men, admirably selected, arrived on the\n30th March, 1820, in sight of Mouna Roa.  They were received in a\nfriendly way by the king and many of the chiefs, and three stations were\nsoon occupied by them and their families.\n\n\"Two years afterwards, Mr Ellis, of the London Missionary Society, was\ninvited to come from Tahiti to aid in the work, which he was happily\nenabled to do.  He came accompanied by some native Tahitian teachers,\nwho were of the greatest assistance to the missionaries.  He remained\nuntil the ill-health of Mrs Ellis compelled him to return to England.\nThe king of the Sandwich Islands and his excellent queen, after they had\nbecome Christians, paid a visit to England, where they soon died from\nthe measles, which they caught on landing.  King Rihoriho, who had\nassumed the title of Kamehameha the Second, was succeeded by his younger\nbrother, the islands being well governed in the mean time by his mother\nand one of his chiefs.\n\n\"The missionary stations were increased in number, many schools were\nestablished, and the natives began to understand the truths of the\ngospel, and to accept its offers, when there came a rude interruption\nfrom an outbreak of heathen chiefs, set on by their priests.  After some\nsevere fighting the rebels were defeated, and the insurrection\ncompletely put down.  Christianity and civilisation once more again made\nprogress; but the missionaries had to contend with opposition not only\nfrom the heathen natives, but from so-called Christian strangers, who\nwere furious at finding that they could no longer indulge in the gross\nlicence in which in former days they had been accustomed to revel.  Not\nonly were they insulted by masters of whalers, but the American\nmissionaries complain that they were ill-treated by the commander of one\nof their own men-of-war, and by all his subordinates.  From such sources\nhave arisen the numerous calumnies current against the missionaries in\nthe South-Sea.\"\n\n[See Note 2.]\n\n\"In about ten years from the landing of the first missionaries one-third\nof the population were under instruction, and there were no less than\nnine hundred native teachers; but even at that time, and much later,\nthere were many heathens, and vice and immorality were very prevalent\namong professing Christians.  Still among all classes there were notable\nexamples of true piety, and ardent zeal for the propagation of the\ntruth.  The excellent queen-mother, Kaahumanu, by her precept and\nexample did much to advance the cause of religion.  I must tell you of\nanother native lady, Kapiolani, the wife of Naike, the public orator of\nthe kingdom, by whose courage and faith one of the most terrible of the\nold superstitions of Hawaii was overthrown.  The old religion was\ncoloured by the awful volcanic phenomena of which these islands are the\ntheatre.  The most fearful of all their deities was Pele, a goddess\nsupposed to reside in the famous volcano of Kilauea.  Here, with her\nattendant spirits, she revelled amid the fiery billows as they dashed\nagainst the sides of the crater.  To the base of this volcano the old\nheathenism, driven from the rest of Hawaii, slowly retreated, though the\npriestesses of Pele several times ventured even into the presence of the\nking, to endeavour by threats of the vengeance of the goddess to induce\nhim to support the faith of his fathers.  These impostors still\nexercised considerable influence over the uneducated masses.\n\n\"Kapiolani, bold in the Christian faith, resolved practically to show\nhow utterly powerless were these supposed fiery gods.  After a journey\nof a hundred miles, as she neared the side of the mountain, a prophetess\nof the supposed goddess met her with warnings and denunciations of\nvengeance.  But undauntedly she persevered, and as she stood on the\nblack edge of the seething caldron she addressed, in words of perfect\nfaith, the anxious bystanders watching for the effects of Pele's wrath:\n`Jehovah is my God: He kindled these fires.  I fear not Pele.  If I\nperish, then you may believe that she exists, and dread her power.  But\nif Jehovah saves me, then you must fear and serve Him.'  As she spoke,\nshe cast with untrembling hand the sacred berries into the burning\ncrater, quietly waiting till the spectators should be convinced that no\nresult was to follow.  Thus she succeeded in breaking through the last\nlingering remnant of the long-dreaded taboo; and while the priests and\npriestesses were compelled to support themselves by honest labour, their\nvotaries abandoned their heathen practices, and in many instances sought\ninstruction in the new faith.\n\n\"The examples I have given will show you the mode in which Christianity\nhas spread over the isles of the Pacific.  But there are still\nnumberless dark spots to which the gospel has not been carried, and in\nall, the Churches still require the support, strengthening, and\ninstruction which in general white men can alone afford.\"\n\n------------------------------------------------------------------------\n\nNote 1.  \"Journal of a Cruise among the Islands of the Pacific,\" by\nCaptain J Elphinstone Erskine, RN, page 100.\n\n------------------------------------------------------------------------\n\nNote 2.  The _Quarterly Review_, 1853, in noticing accounts of voyages\nin the Pacific, after quoting the favourable testimonies of some\nwriters, thus refers to others: \"There is one circumstance which\nproduces a very painful impression: it is the extreme unfairness which\nhas been brought to bear against the missionaries and their proceedings,\neven by reporters whose substantial good intentions we have no right to\ncontrovert.  Surely their work was one which, whatever exception we may\ntake against particular views or interests, ought to have excited the\nsympathies, not only of those who belong to the religious party, as it\nis commonly called, but of all who do not take a perverse pleasure in\ncontemplating human degradation as a kind of moral necessity.  The\nobject of these devoted men was to redeem the natives from no mere\nspeculative unbelief, but from superstitions the most sanguinary and\nlicentious.  Even those who were careless as to the great truths which\nthe Polynesians had to learn, must feel, upon reflection, that merely to\nunteach the brutal and defiling lesson of ages of darkness was to confer\na priceless blessing.  Every prejudice should surely be in favour of the\nmen who have by general confession accomplished the first and apparently\nmost laborious part of this task; instead of which a large class of\nwriters find a species of satisfaction in thinking nothing but evil.\"\n\n\n\nCHAPTER EIGHTEEN.\n\nA HAZARDOUS EXPLOIT.\n\nMr Bent had been waiting for my recovery to restore Alea to her father,\nand to revisit the newly-established Christian community in her native\nisland.  It was important to lose no time in doing this.  Mary Bent\nwould have accompanied us; but as her father proposed being absent only\na short time, and as the inconveniences of voyaging in a native canoe\nwere very great, he wished her to remain at home.  She was, however, not\nalone; for the widow of a missionary resided with her, and shared her\nonerous duties in instructing the native girls, an occupation in which\nboth ladies took the greatest delight.  All the inhabitants of the\nisland now, it must be understood, professed Christianity, and might\njustly be called thoroughly civilised.  Many also were true and sincere\nbelievers; so that these two English ladies, left alone on a small\nisland of the Pacific, felt as secure as they would have done in the\ncentre of civilised England.\n\nAs we drew near her father's island, Alea showed considerable\ntrepidation and anxiety as to the way in which she would be received.\nShe could not persuade herself that one from whom she had fled so short\na time before, and left a fierce, ignorant heathen, would be willing to\nforgive her, and treat her with kindness.  Might he not also, after all,\ncompel her to become the wife of the cannibal chief to whom she had been\nbetrothed?  That was the most dreadful thought.  Mr Bent used every\npossible argument to calm her apprehensions.  Although the poor girl had\nfelt the influence of grace in her own soul, she scarcely as yet\ncomprehended its power to change the heart of men.  I had entertained a\nsincere interest in the fate of the young princess from the day we had\nfound her and her perishing companions on board the canoe.  I was now\nable to exchange a few words with her, and there was one subject on\nwhich she was never tired of dwelling,--the praise of Mary Bent,--in\nwhich I could always join.\n\nBelieving that my future lot would be cast among the people of these\nislands, I had begun seriously to study their language, and I took every\nopportunity of practising myself in speaking it.  We had two native\nteachers on board, who were to be left among the new converts, and all\nday long I was talking to them, so that I found myself making rapid\nprogress in their somewhat difficult language.\n\nWith a fair wind, the missionary flag flying from the mast-head, we\nentered the harbour.  The shore was crowded, and more and more people\ncame rushing down from all quarters.  It was evident that they would not\nreceive us with indifference.  Mr Bent had wished to prepare the king\nfor his daughter's return; but she was recognised before we reached the\nbeach, and several people hurried off to inform her father of her\narrival.  As the vessel's keel touched the strand we saw the people\nseparating on either side, and between them appeared the old chief\nhurrying down towards us.  We instantly landed with Alea, and no sooner\ndid her father reach her than, contrary to all native customs, he folded\nher in his arms, and kissing her brow, burst into tears?--but they were\ntears of joy.\n\n\"Forgive you, daughter!\" he answered to her petition.  \"It is I have to\nbe thankful that I could not succeed in ruining your soul and body as I\nproposed.  What agony should I now be feeling had I cast you into the\npower of the child of Satan, to the destruction of your soul and body\nalike!\"\n\nThese words made Alea truly happy, and still more so when her father\ngave her free permission to become the wife of Vihala.  During their\nfirst interview we stood aside; but now the king came forward, and\ninvited us to come up to his abode.  He had evidently some reason for\nwishing us to come at once.  What was our surprise to see on the summit\nof a hill a building beyond all comparison larger than had ever been\nerected in the island.  The king pointed it out to us with no slight\npride.  It was a church built entirely by the natives, according to the\ndescriptions given them by Vihala, and the assistance of two or three of\nthem who had seen Christian places of worship during their visits to\nother islands, though they were at the time themselves heathen.  Often\nhave I since seen heathens sitting at the porch of a place of worship,\nor standing outside the circle of eager listeners; and I have hoped, not\nwithout reason, that those men were imbibing some portion of the seed\nthus scattered, to bring forth fruit in due time.  This fact alone is\nencouraging; indeed there is every encouragement to persevere in\nmissionary labour throughout the Pacific.  Where, indeed, is it not to\nbe found, if waited for with patience?  The missionary, too, feels that\nhe goes not forth in his own strength,--that a far higher influence is\nat work, and on that he places his confidence of success.\n\nNothing could be more satisfactory than the reception afforded us by the\nchief; but I need not describe the number of hogs and fowls, of\nbread-fruit, of taro, of the sweet potato, and of numerous other\narticles of food which were collected to make a feast in honour of our\narrival.  Mr Bent lost no time in carrying out the object of our visit,\nin addressing the people, and in installing the teachers in their\noffice.  One of our first works was to plan a school-room and houses for\nthe teachers, and to suggest certain alterations in the church to make\nit more suitable for public worship.  It had been arranged that we\nshould return before the next Sabbath; but as it was possible to\ncomplete the building by that day, Mr Bent resolved to remain and open\nit in due form, the natives redoubling their efforts, and working almost\nday and night to effect that object.  I lent a hand, and in sailor\nfashion erected a pulpit, which, as there was no time to carve, I\ncovered with matting and native cloth, which had a novel, though not\nunpleasing, appearance.\n\nI did not before speak of my ship: I scarcely expected to find her here\non my arrival.  Indeed the captain, I understood, thought that all on\nboard the boat had been lost.  He had waited, however, day after day,\ntill losing all patience, he had sailed at length the very day we had\nreached the missionary station.  I was most concerned to hear that my\nboat had not reached the island, though I had a hope that she had fallen\nin with the _Golden Crown_, and been picked up.  If, on the contrary,\nshe had been lost or captured by savages, I felt how grateful I should\nbe for having escaped destruction.  Captain Buxton, fully believing that\nI was lost, had left no message for me, so that I could not tell where\nthe ship had gone, nor what were his intentions.\n\nI must now return to the subject of the church.  The opening was one of\nthe most interesting sights I ever beheld.  It was crowded at an early\nhour with people, old and young, all clothed in native cloth, and with\ntheir hair cut short,--signs that they had lotued, or become Christians;\nwhile numbers were seen approaching from all directions, many of whom,\nbeing unable to obtain seats inside, crowded round the doors and\nwindows.  Mr Bent's address was most fervent, and, though I could\nunderstand but little of it, yet, judging from the way in which the\nattention of every one present was absorbed, it must have been deeply\ninteresting.  Of course but comparatively a small number of those\npresent were really Christians, or understood even the great principles\nof Christianity.  They now required the instruction which man can give,\nand the work of the Holy Spirit to change their hearts.  I may here\nremark, that I have often heard missionaries accused of over eagerness\nto increase the number of their flocks; but I should say that Protestant\nmissionaries are never willing to consider those converted who are not\nreally so, and that no ministers of the gospel are more strict in the\ntests they apply to ascertain the fitness of converts for baptism.  Mr\nBent well knew the character of his congregation, and addressed them\naccordingly; but surely it was glorious progress to have some hundreds\nof persons, not long ago untamed savages, listening attentively to the\ntruths of the gospel.  No work of man could thus have progressed,--no\nmere civilising influence would have produced such an effect.  When the\nmorning service was over, the people assembled on the hill-side and in\nopen spaces in the neighbourhood of the church, and there, while eating\nthe provisions they had brought with them, they eagerly discussed the\nsubject of the discourse they had just heard.  The teachers I observed\nwent about among them, now sitting down with one group, now with\nanother, and were thus able to answer questions, to give information,\nand to correct the erroneous notions which were likely to be\nentertained.  Alea scarcely ever left her father's side, and was\ncontinually engaged in imparting to him the instruction which she had\nreceived from Mr Bent and Mary; and it was interesting to observe the\navidity with which the old man received the truth from the lips of the\nyoung girl.\n\nI heard reports, however, that the heathen party, still numerous, were\nmustering strongly in another part of the island.  It had been\nascertained also that a canoe manned by heathens had left the island\nsome time back, but where they had gone was not known.  These\ncircumstances I thought suspicious, and I feared foreboded evil.  The\nmeeting at the service in the afternoon, of the natives professing\nChristianity, was fully equal to that in the morning, but there were\nfewer heathens.  The service continued with prayer and songs of praise,\nand an address full of instruction and exhortation from Mr Bent.  It\nwas almost concluded, when a heathen chief, an old friend of the king, I\nfound, rushed breathless into the building, announcing that a large\nfleet of double canoes was approaching the island,--that it was that of\nthe cannibal chief to whom Alea was betrothed, coming undoubtedly with\nhostile intent.\n\n\"How far off are the canoes?\" asked the king.\n\n\"Some distance as yet,\" was the answer.\n\n\"Then we will pray for protection from One mighty to save,\" exclaimed\nthe king.  \"We shall now judge which is the most powerful,--Jehovah,\nwhom we have lately learned to worship, or the false gods whom we have\ncast away.\"\n\nNone of the people moved from their places.  The missionary concluded\nhis discourse, and then offered up an earnest prayer for protection from\nall dangers, to which every one present repeated a loud Amen.  They then\nmoved in an orderly manner out of the church, when the greater number\nhurried up the hill, whence they could see the approaching canoes.  Of\nthese there were some fifteen or twenty of different sizes, but most of\nthem large enough to contain a hundred men at least.  They were making\nfor a sandy point some way from the town or settlement, where we\nconcluded the enemy would land.  I could see with my glass the warriors\ndancing, and shaking their spears, and gesticulating violently, in a way\nintended to insult those they had come to attack, and to strike terror\ninto their hearts.  A council of war was now held.  It was believed that\nthe enemy would not attempt to make an attack that night, but would wait\ntill the morning; still it was necessary to be prepared.  The warriors\naccordingly armed themselves, and assembled in strong bodies under their\ndifferent leaders.  It was a difficult position for Mr Bent and me.\nHe, however, at once stated that he could not assist our friends except\nby his advice and prayers, but he told me that I might act as I thought\nfit.  Should I fight, or should I not?  There was a sore conflict within\nme.  My inclinations prompted me to fight, but my new-born principles\ntaught me to pray rather than to fight, where not called on positively\nby duty to do so.  In either case, my example might be of service.  I\nprayed (as all men in a difficulty should pray) to be guided aright.  I\ndecided to remain with the missionary, and use every means to stay the\nfight, or to mitigate its horrors should it take place.\n\n\"I am glad, my son, that you have so resolved,\" remarked Mr Bent, when\nI told him of my determination.  \"Surely the prayers of a believing man\nare of more avail than the strong arm of the bravest of warriors.  It is\na trial of your faith, certainly; but oh, pray that your faith may not\nwaver.\"\n\nWhile I had been consulting with Mr Bent, I found that a herald from\nthe enemy had arrived with a demand that the Princess Alea should be\nforthwith delivered up to his master, and threatening the king and all\nhis adherents with utter destruction if he refused compliance.\n\n\"Tell your chief that once I was in the dark as he is.  Then I thought\nit no sin to give him my daughter; now I have light, and see my\nwickedness and folly.  When he has light, he likewise will see as I do.\nMy daughter cannot be his wife.\"  This bold speech seemed to astonish\nthe herald, who, having repeated his threats, took his departure.\n\nActive preparations were now commenced for the defence of the\nsettlement, and such fortifications as the natives use were thrown up on\nall sides.  Slight as they may appear, they are capable of offering a\nconsiderable resistance, and on one occasion, in the island of\nTongatabu, a brave English naval officer and several of his men lost\ntheir lives in an attack on one of them held by a rebel and heathen\nchief who had set at defiance the authority of King George.\n\nAs evening drew on we could see the enemy on the sand-bank, dancing\nround large fires which they had kindled, the sound of their war-shrieks\nand shouts, and the blowing of their conch-shells reaching us through\nthe calm night air.  Meantime the missionary repaired to the church,\nwhich during the night was visited at intervals by the whole Christian\npopulation.  The king also sat frequently in council with his chiefs.\nOne of the youngest, who had, however, greatly distinguished himself,\narose and proposed leading a band of chosen warriors to attack the enemy\nbefore they commenced their march in the morning.\n\n\"While they are singing and dancing, they will not keep a good watch,\nand thus we may approach them without being discovered.  Jehovah will\naid us.  It is Satan fights for them.  We will prove which is the\nstrongest.\"\n\nAll approved the words of the young chief, and he had no lack of\nvolunteers.  About two hundred men were chosen and well armed; they at\nonce set out on their hazardous exploit.  They had resolved to conquer\nand save their brethren or die, and yet, perhaps, there was not one who\ndid not expect to be victorious.  I had not seen Alea for some time.\nWhile I was with the king, who was surrounded by several of his chiefs,\nshe unexpectedly made her appearance among us.  She was weeping\nbitterly.\n\n\"Father,\" she said, \"I am the cause of all the bloodshed which is about\nto occur.  Let my life be sacrificed rather than that of so many of your\nfriends.  Give me up to the chief.  He can then have no cause to\ncomplain.  I will never be his wife.  I may make my escape or I may die,\nbut the lives of you and your friends will be preserved.\"\n\nOn hearing this noble resolve, the chiefs to a man exclaimed that\nnothing should induce them to abandon the princess.  Prayers from all\nsides were in the mean time offered up for the success of the band of\nwarriors who had gone forth to attack the enemy.  No one, however,\nslackened in their efforts to fortify the town, and all, from the king,\nwhen not engaged in council, down to the slave taken in battle, carried\nbaskets of earth or posts for stockades, during the greater part of the\nnight, to those parts of the fortifications which required\nstrengthening.  As the hours drew on we waited anxiously for the result\nof the expedition.  I could not help feeling how critical was our\nposition.  I was not anxious, however, on my own account, but I could\nnot help reflecting on the sad condition to which Mary would be reduced\nshould her father and I be cut off, as we might too probably be if the\nheathens gained the victory.  Then came the blessed and consoling\nthought that God cares for the orphans, especially of those who serve\nHim; what strength and courage does it give those who rest on His sure\npromises--a comfort which people of the world can never enjoy.\n\nI went the rounds of the fortifications a short time before dawn, and\nfound all the warriors at their posts.  I then rejoined Mr Bent, and\nwas conversing with him, when a loud shout from a distance reached our\nears, followed by a confused sound of shrieks and cries mingled with the\nshouts, which continued without cessation for many minutes.  Scouts were\nsent out to ascertain the cause, but no one returned before day broke.\nThe light then revealed to us the fleet of the enemy shoving off from\nthe land.  Some of the canoes had already got away, others were hoisting\ntheir sails, while a body of the enemy were defending themselves on the\nbeach, hard pressed by our friends.  On seeing this the warriors in the\ntown rushed from their trenches, but before they could reach the scene\nof action not an enemy remained on their strand, with the exception of\nthree or four slain and some thirty or more taken prisoners.  The rest\nsailed away in hot haste, seized with an unusual, if not an\nunaccountable panic.  As their sails had become mere dots on the\nhorizon, the victors entered the town singing, not as before songs of\ntriumph in honour of their idols, but praises to Jehovah, to whom they\nascribed their victory.  Mr Bent and I, with the women and children and\naged men who had not gone forth to the fight, met them, when the king,\nin set form, recounted what had occurred.  The first band had remained\nconcealed till near daylight, when the enemy appeared to be getting\ndrowsy after all their feasting and dancing.  At a signal from their\nleader they dashed forth on the foe, who, totally unprepared for them,\nwere seized with a sudden panic, and the greater number, leaving even\ntheir arms, fled towards their canoes.  The few who were killed had\nrefused to receive quarter, and as many as could be seized were taken\nprisoners.  These latter fully expected to be slaughtered immediately,\nand to be offered up to idols, if not to be eaten.  They had been\nsomewhat surprised in the first instance to see that their friends who\nhad been killed in the fight were decently interred where they fell,\ninstead of being dragged ignominiously by the heels to the town.  They\nonly concluded that this was one of the new customs of the lotu people,\nand had no expectation in consequence of escaping the common doom of\ncaptives.  Several of them were chiefs who had attempted to defend the\nrear while their countrymen were embarking.  They stood with downcast,\nsullen looks, prepared for torture and death.  The king now approached\nthem.  \"Why, O chiefs, did you come to attack my island and my people?\"\nhe asked calmly.  \"We are now among those who wish to live at peace with\nall men, to have enmity towards no one.  Why did you desire to do us\nharm?\"\n\n\"We came against you because our king and master ordered us,\" answered\none of the prisoners, looking up with a fierce scowl of defiance on his\ncountenance.  \"Our object was to carry off your daughter to become our\nking's wife; the rest of you we should have killed and eaten.\"\n\n\"And I, O chiefs, let you go free because my King and Master orders me\nto be merciful, that I may obtain mercy,\" answered the king.  \"You, O\nchiefs and people, are free to return to your own island, but before you\ngo you must learn something of the new religion which we have been\ntaught, that you may go back and speak of it to your people, or wherever\nyou may go.\"\n\nThe astonished captives could scarcely believe their senses, the\ntreatment was so unlike anything those they had known taken in war had\nexperienced.  They consulted together and expressed their willingness to\naccept the offer.  They were completely overcome when the king promised\nthem a large canoe and ample provisions for their return.  The people\nhaving taken some refreshment, assembled at the church, where hearty\nthanksgivings were offered up for the deliverance they had experienced.\nThe captives attended.  I watched their countenances.  They seemed lost\nin amazement.  All the sentiments were so new and strange.  The reign of\nthe Prince of Peace was spoken of.  They soon after came to the\nmissionary desiring that they might be allowed to serve so good a\nMaster.  They never seemed tired of receiving instruction in the new\ndoctrine, and I was struck with its wonderful adaptability to\nunsophisticated man, and its power of satisfying his heart yearnings,\nfrom the avidity with which they seized each point as presented to them.\n\nIt was now time to return to the mission station.  We bade an\naffectionate farewell to Alea, promising to send her intended husband\nback to the island as soon as possible.  The now liberated captives\nagreed to embark on the same day.  Their chief entreaty was that a\nmissionary or a teacher might be sent them to instruct them in the way\nof eternal life, that way which, by a wonderful combination of\ncircumstances, they were now anxious to follow.  Thus the Almighty works\noften, and thus He has thought fit in an especial manner to work\nthroughout the Pacific.\n\nThe difficulty was to obtain a teacher.  Mr Bent had several under\ntraining at the station, and he told the captives that if they would\naccompany us he would endeavour to find one who would return with them\nto their island.  They were delighted with the proposal, and exhibited\nan extraordinary eagerness to set forth.  Their hurry was at the time\nunaccountable, as they were evidently sincere in their expressions.\nAnxious to please them, we accordingly had our canoe launched, taking\nseveral of them on board, the remainder going in the canoe given by the\nking.  The wind being fair, we had a quick run till more than half way\nacross.  Just then, through our glasses, we caught sight of a canoe,\nwhich, on discovering us, as it seemed, paddled off at right angles to\navoid us--her people evidently mistrusting our character.  We instantly\naltered our course to cut her off, and approached her with our\nmissionary flag flying.  No sooner was this discovered than the canoe\nturned again towards us.  She soon drew near, when we recognised the\npeople in her as belonging to the station.  By their gestures and\ncountenances we had too much reason to believe that they brought us evil\ntidings.  \"Haste! haste! haste!\" they exclaimed, leaping on board.  \"A\nheathen fleet has arrived at the island, and the chief threatens to\nattack the station.  Even now he may have begun the onslaught, for his\nfury was great.  Haste! haste! haste!\"\n\n\n\nCHAPTER NINETEEN.\n\nTHE LAUNCH OF THE OLIVE BRANCH.\n\nWe now understood more of the dangers to which the families of\nmissionaries have often been exposed in all parts of the world.  I must\nown that in my fears for Mary Bent's safety, my own faith and fortitude\nwere well nigh giving way.  Mr Bent retained his calmness in a\nwonderful manner.  \"All things are in God's hands,\" he observed.  \"He\nwill guide them as He knows to be best.  We have to go on labouring to\nthe utmost of our power, leaving the rest to Him.\"  I felt that I must\nbe in action, and hauling the canoe on board with the aid of her crew,\nwe got out the paddles and urged our craft ahead somewhat faster than\nthe wind was doing.  Every moment might be of consequence.  As the\ncannibal chief, exasperated at having been deprived of Alea, might\nattempt to carry off Mary, the very thought drove me almost distracted.\nI had had few or no trials in life, and was not prepared for this one.\n\nMr Bent wished to ascertain whether, if required, we could depend on\nthe assistance of our new friends.  They had heard what had occurred,\nand at once volunteered to use every means in their power to prevent\ntheir chief from doing harm, even to turning against him.\n\n\"He will live perhaps to thank us,\" one of them, a young and intelligent\nchief, observed.  \"At all events you have bound us to serve you.\"\n\nAll now seemed to depend on our arriving before the attack had begun.\nWe trusted that if not begun we should be able to prevent it.  Meantime\nall we could do was to offer up constant, earnest prayer for the\nprotection of one so dear to us, and for all those at the settlement.\nThe wind, hitherto blowing a strong breeze, now fell light, and our\nprogress was slower than before.\n\n\"All is for the best, depend on that, my son,\" repeated the missionary\nseveral times, when he observed my look of anxiety.  \"God's loving mercy\nendureth for ever.  Pray against doubt--pray against doubt.  Put on the\narmour of faith.  In that you will find strength to quench all the fiery\ndarts of the evil one.\"\n\nMy venerable friend spoke the truth, and already my fears began to\nsubside, although I could in no way see the mode of deliverance.  I\nexpressed the same to Mr Bent.\n\n\"Nor did we the other day, but God clearly fought for us as He did in\ndays of old for the children of Israel, by putting fear into the hearts\nof their enemies, and so can He now find some means for the protection\nof those who serve Him.\"\n\nOn we glided over the calm blue water.  Now the breeze freshened, and as\nthe surface became rippled over, it sparkled brightly in the sunbeams.\nAs the island came in sight my heart beat quicker and quicker, and with\ndifficulty I could restrain my impatience.  I stood at the bows with my\nglass at my eye directed constantly at the spot where the station was to\nbe found.  As the sun then was, objects close in under the land were not\ndistinctly discernible, but as my glass every now and then swept the\nhorizon on either side, the sails of a fleet of canoes came into view.\nThe instrument almost dropped from my hand.  We were too late.  The\nattack had been made and the victors were sailing away with their\ncaptives.  My first impulse was to give chase, and to attempt their\nrecovery.  I did not consider how powerless we were even should our new\nallies remain faithful.  For some time I could not bring myself to tell\nmy fears to Mr Bent; but it was necessary to alter our course if we\nwere to pursue the enemy.  At length, therefore, it became necessary for\nme to tell him what I had seen.  He took the telescope, and after a\nsevere scrutiny of the horizon in every direction, and especially of the\nisland, he asked, in a more cheerful voice than might have been\nexpected:\n\n\"Can you not assign some other cause for the flight of the foe?  Look\nagain.\"\n\nI did so; and now, the sun having come round a little, I saw close in\nwith the missionary station a large ship at anchor.  She might be the\n_Golden Crown_, come to take me away.  I hoped not.  My heart again\nsunk.  As we drew nearer I saw that she was much larger--a man-of-war.\nThe station was safe.  Otherwise she would have been sailing in pursuit\nof the canoes.  With one voice we burst forth in the native tongue with\nsongs of praise and thanksgiving; and now the canoe seemed to glide more\nswiftly over the glad blue sea.  We entered the harbour, where lay a\nfine English frigate.  As we passed her I hailed and inquired if the\nstation was safe.\n\n\"Yes, yes, all right,\" was the answer.  \"We came in just in time to\nprevent mischief.\"\n\nOur eagerness to reach home prevented us from stopping to make further\ninquiries.  No sooner did our boat's keel touch the strand than we\nleaped on shore.  Even then before leaving the beach the missionary\nknelt down and offered up a few words of thanksgiving for the mercies\nvouchsafed us.  We reached the house.  Mary and her companion did not\ncome out to welcome us.  Voices reached our ears from within.  One I\nthought I recognised.  We looked in.  Mary was doing the honours of the\ntea-table with some other ladies.  There were three naval officers and\ntwo gentlemen in black coats.  One of the latter turned his face.  It\nwas that of my brother John.  I had time to greet him while Mary was\nreceiving her father and introducing her guests.  Then came my turn to\nbe received by her.  I need not describe that.  I was very happy.  The\nwhole scene was so different from what I had but a short time before\nexpected, that I was perfectly bewildered.  I felt deeply grateful that\nMary had escaped all the dangers I apprehended, and which had really\nthreatened her.\n\nThe frigate had appeared off the station just at the very moment that\nthe cannibal chief and his followers were about to land.  She brought up\nwith her guns commanding the approach to the town.  The captain,\nsuspecting mischief, instantly despatched an armed boat to warn the\nchief that he would allow no warlike demonstration to be made in his\npresence, and that if he attempted to land he would blow his canoes to\npieces.  The warning had had at first very little effect, and the chief,\nin defiance, leaping on shore with his followers from the largest canoe,\nleft her deserted.  The officer in charge of the boat immediately fired\nthe gun in the bows right into her, and almost knocked her to pieces.\nThe interpreter then shouted out, \"If the small gun of this little boat\nwill do all this mischief, what would all the great guns of the big ship\ndo?\"\n\nThe argument was irresistible.  The chief, leaping on board another\ncanoe, begged that no more damage might be done, and offered to sail\naway immediately, promising never again to come near the settlement.\nThis he was allowed to do on condition of his returning directly home\nwithout committing further damage on the way, and he was compelled to\nleave two hostages as a guarantee that he would perform his promise.\nAll this was told in a few words, and John now introduced me to his\ndevoted wife; and as I heard of some of the many trials and dangers they\nhad gone through, and how calmly she had endured them, I felt how\nadmirably she was fitted to be the helpmate of a missionary.  The\ncaptain of the frigate was, I discovered, an old family friend--one who,\nconvinced of the importance of missionary labour, was zealous in aiding\nand supporting missionaries of the gospel wherever he met them engaged\nin their Master's work.  He had found John suffering from hard work and\nanxiety, and had persuaded him and his wife to take a trip among several\nof the Polynesian groups, to visit as many of the missionary stations as\ncould be reached, in the hopes that he might return home with renewed\nstrength for his work.  One of the ladies was his wife's sister, who had\ncome out to assist her in her labours--not the only example of\nself-devotion to a glorious and thrice blessed cause.  The other\ngentleman in plain clothes was the chaplain of the ship.  While\nconversing with him an idea occurred to me which I took an early\nopportunity of communicating to John, who highly approved of it, and\nundertook to broach the subject to Mr Bent while I mentioned it to\nMary.  It was one which concerned us both very nearly, for it was a\nproposal to take the opportunity of marrying while a legally authorised\nperson was present to perform the ceremony, with my own brother and our\nnaval friend as witnesses.  Mary had no objections to offer, and we soon\novercame those Mr Bent suggested.\n\nThe benefit of the visit of the ship-of-war to the different missionary\nstations was very great, besides having preserved ours from almost\ncertain destruction.  The admirable discipline of the crew had a great\ninfluence on the minds of the heathen natives, so different from what\nthey had been accustomed to witness on board many whalers; the perfect\norder of everything on board the ship, and the mighty power of her guns,\nawed them still more, and showed them the folly of offending people who\nhad in their possession such instruments of punishment.  I will not say\nthat the appearance of any ship of war would do good.  Unless discipline\nis strict and no licence is allowed, they might do, as some have done, a\ngreat deal of harm.\n\nOne of the worst of this kind, was that of Captain Kotzebue, commanding\na Russian exploring expedition.  Wherever he went he outraged decency by\nthe licence he allowed his crew, and on his return home malignantly\nabused the English missionaries whom he found nobly struggling, against\ninnumerable difficulties, to reclaim the hapless natives from the sin\nand corruption which he had done his utmost to encourage.  Others, from\nignorance or from vicious dispositions, followed his line of abuse,\nthough happily the greater number of their publications have sunk into\ndeserved oblivion, while the glorious result of missionary labour,\nevident to all who will inquire, proclaims the falsehood of their\naccusations.  To the honour of the British navy be it said that by far\nthe greater number of captains who have visited the isles of the Pacific\nhave rendered essential service to the missionary cause while on the\nspot, and have spoken and written heartily in its praise on their return\nhome.\n\nWe had very little time to prepare for the wedding as the frigate could\nnot remain long.  I employed the interval in getting assistance from the\nship's carpenters in building a vessel, and instruction, with the\nnecessary plans for continuing the work after the frigate had gone.  I\nhad some knowledge of the art to begin with, so that I knew exactly what\ninformation I required.  My ambition was to have a fine, serviceable\nlittle vessel, and I had every hope of succeeding.  I was thoroughly up\nto rigging and fitting her.\n\nThe time passed very rapidly, and my wedding-day arrived, and Mary\nbecame my most loving and devoted wife,--a bright example to those among\nwhom our lot was cast.  I have not dwelt on the visit of my brother\nJohn, or the enjoyment and benefit I derived from his society.  Our\nstation was healthy, but the surgeon of the ship recommended his\ncontinuing the voyage, and with reluctance I parted from him, hoping,\nhowever, to visit him when my schooner should be completed.  Once more\nthe missionary station was left in its usual quiet state; but, though\nquiet, no one was idle.  There were schools both for adults as well as\nchildren,--the males, under the superintendence of Mr Bent, with native\nteachers; the women and girls under Mary and her friend.  Classes also\nassembled during most days in the week for religious instruction.  Mr\nBent was also frequently engaged in teaching the young men and boys\nvarious mechanical arts: house-building in its various departments,\nagriculture and gardening, and last, though not least, printing and\nbook-binding.  It is wonderful with what rapidity many acquired the art\nof printing, and many learned to bind books with great neatness and\nstrongly.  I meantime, aided by my wife, was making fail progress in the\nlanguage, so that I was able to talk without difficulty to the men who\nassisted me in building the vessel.  She was at length ready for\nlaunching.  I proposed calling her the _Mary_, but to this my wife would\nnot consent.  We had a discussion on the subject round our tea-table\nduring that pleasantest of all meals in most missionary, indeed in most\nquiet families.  The _Ark_ was proposed, and then the _Olive Branch_.\nThe latter was the name decided on.\n\nIt was made a day of rejoicing and prayer and praise on the occasion of\nlaunching the little _Olive Branch_.  Formerly one, or perhaps several,\nhuman victims would have been offered up to their idols by the then\nbenighted inhabitants.  The vessel herself was decked with flags and\ngarlands, and surrounded by high poles, from which gay-coloured banners\nwere flying.\n\nA feast was prepared also, at which the chief, who came in state,\npresided.  We had limited the quantity of provisions, or else, according\nto custom, far more than could have been consumed would have been\ncollected.  A large bower or tent of boughs and flowers had been erected\nfor the chief and his principal attendants,--a very elegant, though a\nrapidly created structure.  Mary named the vessel as she glided down the\nways, and a hymn of thankfulness, combined with a prayer for the safety\nof all who might ever sail in her, was sung by the children of the\nschool at the same time, the effect being admirable.  I was somewhat\nanxious till I saw the little craft floating safely in the water.\n\nWe had purposely avoided anything savouring of heathenism, such as\nbreaking a bottle of wine on her bows, taken evidently from the Greek\ncustom of pouring out a libation to Neptune; nor would we make a mockery\nof the rite of baptism, by pretending to christen her.  Living among\nheathens, it was our duty to be especially circumspect in all our\nproceedings.  The natives are very acute, and are accustomed to make\nenquiries as to the meaning and origin of everything they see.  How\nunsatisfactory would have been the answer we should have had to give,\nhad we, without consideration or thought, adopted the practice generally\nfollowed in England.\n\nThe missionaries have endeavoured as much as possible to abolish all\nheathen customs, so that the evil-disposed may have no temptation to\nreturn to them.  In this they show wisdom.  Even the sports and pastimes\nof heathenism, though they may by some be considered harmless in\nthemselves, are generally adverse to the spiritual life of a Christian,\nand therefore they have been discouraged.  The missionaries have in\nconsequence been accused of being morose and narrow-minded.  Far, far\ndifferent is their real character.  As a class, they are zealous,\nearnest, devoted men, full of life, activity, and energy,--courageous\nand persevering,--gifted with high and varied attainments, which would\nenable them to shine among civilised communities, but they have joyfully\nabandoned home and country, and, in obedience to their Lord and Master,\nhave gone forth to teach the heathen the unsearchable riches of Christ.\nLet those who may fancy that I overpraise these men, read their memoirs,\nand they will be convinced of the truth of my statements.\n\nThe native carpenters worked admirably.  I had spars, rigging, and a\nsuit of sails ready, supplied me by the frigate, with a compass and such\nnautical instruments as I required, so the _Olive Branch_ was soon ready\nfor sea.  I proposed in my first experimental trip to pay a visit to\nVihala, to leave two more native teachers on the island, and then, on my\nreturn, to see Alea, and to ascertain the progress made by her father\nand fellow-islanders in religion.  Mary begged that she might accompany\nme, and, as her father made no objections, I was too glad of her company\nto refuse.  For several days, however, I first made frequent trips out\nof the harbour, to exercise my native crew, who, although they had never\nbefore been on board a vessel, became efficient hands in a wonderfully\nshort space of time.  The reason of this was that they gave their minds\nthoroughly to their work, and were anxious to learn everything I could\nteach them.\n\nThe _Olive Branch_ was completed to my satisfaction and to that of all\nwho saw her.  I was indeed very proud of her, as chiefly the work of my\nown hands; and yet when I compared the slight difficulties I had had to\novercome with the great ones conquered by Mr Williams at Raratonga,\nwhen building the _Messenger of Peace_, I felt sensibly how little cause\nI had to boast.\n\nAs Mr Bent had promised to relieve Vihala of his charge as soon as\npossible, two teachers had been trained for the purpose, and these we\nnow took on board.  We had with us a number of axes and knives, and\nother articles most prized by the natives, both to pay for provisions or\nwhatever we might require, as also to bestow on Vihala, hoping that, if\nhe were thus richly endowed, the old king would not refuse longer to\ngive him his daughter.\n\nTwo of the men who had come as heathen enemies now remained as friends,\nand earnest searchers after truth.  The remainder, deeply imbued with\nthe spirit of Christianity, had returned to their own island, we hoped\nto pave the way for a missionary among its still heathen and cannibal\ninhabitants.\n\nThus during the few months since I had left my ship I had seen a way\nmade for the entrance of the gospel into these thickly-inhabited\nislands.  Thus it has pleased God to work through human agency among a\nlarge proportion of the isles of the Pacific; nor has He ever failed to\nafford, after a time, superabundant encouragement to His faithful\nlabourers.  Oh that some of the many thousands and thousands of young\nmen and women who read this would consider the noble, the glorious\nnature of missionary work, and esteem it as a high privilege to be\nallowed to employ their energies in the cause!\n\nHow different was our voyage from that which Mary, Mr Bent, and I\nbefore took in the same direction!  But where were our companions?  Were\nwe the only ones alive out of the whole party?  At all events, we had\nample reason to be grateful.  The wind was fair, and our passage\npromised to be as calm and pleasant as we could desire.\n\nOn getting near enough to the island to distinguish objects on shore, we\nsaw a number of people hurrying down to the beach, from among the trees,\nwhile some launched their canoes and paddled off through the opening in\nthe reef towards us.  Their object was to welcome us, and to pilot the\nschooner into their harbour.  They knew that the schooner was a\nmissionary vessel from her flag, but they had not guessed who was on\nboard.  Their delight, when they recognised Mr Bent and Mary, was\nexcessive; and so completely did they forget all about the vessel, that\nhad I not kept a good look-out she would have run right on to the reef.\nOn our enquiring for Vihala, the answer was, \"He is well, and we all\nChristian.\"\n\nThe glorious news we found on landing to be true.  Vihala received us\nwith joy unfeigned, and it was some little time before we could proceed,\nfrom the number of people who crowded round us to express their\nsatisfaction at our arrival.  Great also was ours when, at length moving\non, we saw before us a handsome structure, a church erected entirely by\nthe natives, under Vihala's superintendence, capable of holding seven or\neight hundred persons, and near it a school-house and two neat\nresidences for teachers.\n\n\"Your church is indeed large,\" observed Mr Bent, after expressing his\nadmiration of it to Vihala.\n\n\"Yes,\" was the quiet answer; \"but all desire to hear the word, and why\nshould any be excluded?  The kingdom of heaven is wide enough for all.\"\n\nAlas! that any should so mistake the gospel message as to think\ndifferently, and to act as if all should be thrust out who do not\nconform to certain rules and regulations of man's invention, although\nthey with deep repentance trust in the blood of Christ alone for\nsalvation.  Many a once heathen savage will rise up in the day of\njudgment to condemn those men.  Would that, for their own sakes, they\ncould even now voyage amid the isles of the Pacific, and behold the\nglorious work wrought by the instrumentality of true Christian men of\nvarious branches of the one Church, and I believe that they would be\ncompelled to acknowledge that an unction from on high is of more avail\nin saving souls alive than any mere official and external qualification,\nsuch as the Romish priesthood with its pretended apostolic succession\nclaims.  The means are best judged of by the result, and that can be\nknown of all men.  \"By their works ye shall know them.\"  It was\nremarkable that, except for the few days Mr Bent had preached on the\nislands, none of the inhabitants had heard the truth from a white\nmissionary, and yet the majority of them had cast away their idols, and\nbecome nominal Christians,--while many of them were really converted.\n\nWe had a most delightful time on the island.  The two new teachers we\nbrought somewhat reconciled the people to the loss of Vihala, though\ntheir grief was most unmistakable when they were told that he must leave\nthem for a time at all events.\n\nAgain we were on the ocean, and approaching the island where Vihala\nexpected to meet his promised bride.  He had long been separated from\nher.  He acknowledged that it had been for his good, and he hoped that,\nwith the spiritual benefits he had received while engaged as a teacher,\nthey should the better be able to walk together on their heavenward way,\nand lead others on to the same happy goal.\n\n\n\nCHAPTER TWENTY.\n\nA FEARFUL HURRICANE.\n\nBut a few years ago, before the power of God's word was felt among the\ninhabitants of the fair islands of the Pacific, to the numerous dangers\nusually encountered by mariners, that of being attacked and cut off by\ncannibal savages was to be added throughout its whole extent.  Now,\nthroughout the eastern portion, the greater number of the islands may be\nvisited, not only without fear, but with the certainty of a friendly\nreception.  There are still some,--like the Marquesas and parts of the\nPomautau group, or Low Archipelago,--which still remain in the darkness\nof heathenism; but on the western portion of that mighty ocean, the\nbright spots on which the gospel shines are the exception to the general\nrule, and over the widest parts the spirit of evil reigns supreme.  It\nwas here that true soldier of Christ, the energetic Williams, fell; and\nhere, too, Mr Gordon and his wife and family were lately murdered by\nthe savage inhabitants.\n\nIt was towards a group of islands in the eastern Pacific that the _Olive\nBranch_ was now holding its course.  We had seen Vihala happily united\nto Alea, with the full consent of the old king, and they had devoted\nthemselves for missionary labour wherever they might be required.  This\nwas surprising to many, and to the heathen perfectly incomprehensible.\nIt was as astonishing to them as it would be to people in England, if a\nyoung noble of high rank were to declare his resolution of going forth\nas a missionary of the gospel to these heathen lands.  Yet what\nundertaking more glorious, what work more pleasing to the Lord and\nMaster, whom Christians of all ranks, rich and poor, profess to serve.\nWe had likewise visited the island of the once cannibal chief, who had\nheard of the new religion from his countrymen, had confessed its vast\nsuperiority to his own, cast away his idols, and gladly received the two\nteachers we had brought with us.  All this had been most cheering and\nencouraging.\n\nWe had landed Mr Bent at the station, and now we hoped shortly again to\nmeet my brother John and his wife, and to convey them, and some other\nmissionaries and their wives, to a general meeting to be held shortly at\nthe central station.  We had received on board a variety of stores, and\nbooks, and numerous articles to distribute among the various stations at\nwhich we were to touch.  Indeed, it was highly satisfactory to me to\nfind how useful my little _Olive Branch_ could be made.\n\nHitherto the little vessel had not encountered a single storm.  It was\nlike the rest we might suppose the ocean enjoyed after the subsidence of\nthe waters when the ark rested on Ararat,--not a calm, though; for\ngentle breezes filled our sails, and rippled over the blue surface of\nthe sea with glittering wavelets, laughing joyously in the sunbeams.  A\nlovely island hove in sight, with blue mountains, and rocks, and\nsparkling waterfalls, and green shrubs, and pastures, and graceful\npalm-trees, and yellow sands; and we sailed in through an opening in the\nnever absent reef, and dropped our anchor in a sheltered and beautiful\nharbour, and numbers of canoes surrounded us.  But we had no boarding\nnettings up, no guns loaded, no pistols in our belts, no cutlasses and\npikes ready at hand; for the gospel ruled here.  The canoes were filled\nwith well-clothed, intelligent natives.  Not an oath was heard, not a\nman showed an angry temper, and not one who could not read the word of\nGod, and understood it too, and could give a clear reason for the hope\nthat was in him, and who was not probably, even in secular matters, far\nbetter educated than the larger portion of the watermen of any port in\nEngland, or other long-civilised country in the world.\n\nProvisions of various sorts had been brought in the canoes; but when I\nenquired for John Harvey, and announced that I was his brother, and that\nmy wife was the daughter of Mr Bent, not an approach to payment would\nany one receive.  When we landed they lifted us up in their arms, and\ncarried us thus to the mission house, where our appearance was a\npleasant surprise to our sister-in-law, who had not been made aware of\nour arrival.  My brother was away, but every hour expected back.\n\nI had looked upon Mr Bent's station as a model of neatness; this was\nlarger, and superior in many respects; nor was it inferior in respect to\nspiritual things.  The church, built entirely of stone, was a large and\nhandsome building, and the most conspicuous object from the sea.\nRunning parallel with the shore were two rows, facing each other, of\nneat cottages, many of stone, with verandahs round them, and gardens\nboth in front and in the rear.  Between them was a broad hard road, with\ntwo rows of trees, and a stream of sparkling water led through the\ncentre, fed by a waterfall which came foaming down the side of a rocky\nhill at a little distance inland.  Several streets of equal width had\nbeen commenced at right angles with the main street, and on the same\nplan, and new houses were in course of erection in several directions.\nHere it was evident, indeed, was the commencement of a large town.  The\ncottages were all very fair copies of the mission-house, though on a\nsmaller scale.  Those of some of the chiefs, however, were of good size,\nand were arranged so that they could enjoy all the privacy of domestic\nlife.\n\nAnd why, it may be asked, was this congregation of natives in one place?\nWhat could be the attraction?  My love and admiration of John suggested\nthe answer, and I was right: the power of God's word put forth through\nHis faithful servant.  The inhabitants of this town had been collected\nby concern for their soul's welfare, and the belief that the nearer they\nwere to the preacher the more that welfare would be cared for.  They\ndisplayed a wisdom which is foolishness to the world, and is, alas! too\noften neglected by those at home, by those who profess to be seeking\nafter the food which perisheth not.  I write this, as well as other\ncomparisons I have made, not to find fault with my countrymen at home,\nbut that (should my journal ever be read by any of them) I may excite in\nthem a holy emulation with these so late savage heathens, that they may\nexamine themselves, and ascertain whether they are using all the means\nin their power to attain to holiness of life and conversation, and\nwithout which their spiritual life will too probably languish.\n\nI found my sister-in-law actively engaged from morning till night in her\nhousehold duties, and in affording instruction of every description to\nnative women of all ages.  She declared with perfect sincerity her\nbelief that she was one of the happiest of her sex.  She retained the\nmost perfect health, though her figure was slight and delicate, and she\nhad been most gently and tenderly nurtured.  Not only that, but she had\nbeen what is called highly educated, and was not a stranger to the gay\nand brilliant assemblies of \"civilised\" life.  It was not that she knew\nno other lot, and therefore esteemed her present one the best; but she\nhad weighed it with many others she did know, and found it immeasurably\nsuperior.  She knew from experience that worldly rank hides many a heavy\nor vacant heart where God is not acknowledged, that wealth cannot give\npeace of mind, and that gaiety and dissipation most assuredly quench\nspiritual life.  She had found, too, that even a decent church-attending\nstyle of existence may be unprofitable to the soul, and as certain to\nlead to spiritual death.  My sister-in-law was not entirely alone.\nThere were two other stations on the island, which was large, and the\nmissionaries and their wives enjoyed frequent intercourse, thus\nencouraging and supporting each other.\n\nIndeed, I have as a rule found the stations the most prosperous both\nspiritually and physically where two missionary families have been\nliving together, or where they are near enough to meet frequently.  A\nmissionary's wife has to attend to her household duties, often not\nslightly onerous when she has children requiring instruction.  Then she\nhas the female schools to look after, adult classes to receive at her\nown house, to afford advice to all who ask it, to call on the sick and\nto administer medicine, and to visit often from house to house.  She\nmust correspond with friends at home; she has her private devotions, and\nmust take time for reading and self-examination, or she will find that\nshe can ill perform her other duties.  I do not believe that I have\noverstated the amount of work I have known my sister-in-law and other\nmissionaries' wives perform.  Indeed, my own wife was in the habit of\ngetting through not less daily, for weeks together.\n\nAlthough the greater number of the inhabitants of the island had become\nChristians in name, there was still a large district the powerful chief\nof which remained a stubborn heathen.  He seemed to hate the gospel with\na deadly hatred, and threatened to club any of his subjects who should\nventure to lotu.  Notwithstanding this, several who had heard the truth,\neither directly or through their friends, had secretly escaped to\nChristian villages.  Many of these persons had become really converted,\nand were of course longing to induce their relatives and friends to\nbecome Christians likewise.\n\nSuch was the state of things when the _Olive Branch_ arrived at the\nisland.  A more beautiful picture could scarcely be found than that\npresented by the calm bay on which our little vessel floated, with her\nmission-flag flying,--the glittering sand, the tall cocoa-nut and\nbread-fruit trees, the wild rocks and fantastic-shaped hills, the green\nfields, the foaming waterfalls and shining streams, and the rows of neat\nhabitations, the church and school-houses,--all showing that the gospel\nhad indeed here found an entrance, and made it doubly beautiful in our\nsight.\n\nWe had been some hours on shore when we saw the natives hurrying out of\ntheir cottages and assembling in the chief street, and the cry arose\nthat the missionary was coming.  I was scarcely prepared for the warm\nand affectionate greeting with which they welcomed him.  There was no\nadulation and nothing cringing in their manner; but it was evident that\nthey knew him from experience as a sincere and loving friend.\n\nGreat as was our mutual satisfaction at again meeting, so multifarious\nwere his duties that we had but little time for private conversation.  I\nwas able, however, to ascertain that John's heart was in his work, and\nthat he infinitely preferred being a missionary in the South-Seas to\nholding the highest secular office at home.  The Sabbath came.  It was a\nday of toil to the preachers and teachers, and yet a day of refreshing\nto them as it was to hundreds of others, who collected from all quarters\nto worship the true God, and to hear His word expounded.  Many came with\ntheir wives and little ones, bringing their provisions, to spend the day\nof rest in obtaining spiritual food for their souls' welfare.  The\nservice over, numbers collected round my brother and the native\nteachers, and almost the whole interval between the services was devoted\nto affording advice and consolation to these seekers after life eternal.\n\nBut the faith of the young Christian community in the especial\nprovidence of God was sorely to be tried.  All things were prepared for\nour departure, and we were about going on board the _Olive Branch_, when\nthe somewhat threatening appearance of the weather made me resolve not\nto sail before the following morning.  I was convinced shortly that a\ngale of more or less strength was coming on, and leaving Mary at the\nmission house, I went on board to secure the vessel and make all things\nsnug.  Scarcely had I got out a second anchor and two fresh warps than\ndark clouds were seen rushing across the sky, the wind howled among the\nhills and trees, lightning flashed brightly, and the thunder roared and\nrattled fearfully.  I was in hopes, however, that the vessel would,\nnotwithstanding, ride in safety, when it struck me that the sea outside\nwas roaring louder than usual, and in an instant a huge roller appeared\nrushing with fearful violence into the harbour, while before I could\nlook round I found the vessel lifted up, cables and anchors dragging,\nand warps giving way, and on we drove helplessly towards the shore.  My\ncrew held on to the bulwarks with affrighted looks, for we could expect\nnothing else than that our little vessel would be dashed to pieces, and\nif so, that we ourselves should be swept out of the harbour by the\nreceding wave.  Another dread seized me, that the roller might sweep up\nto the mission house and overwhelm those so dear to me.  This feeling\nmade me forget all fear for my own life, or for those with me.  As I\ngazed landward, I saw the devastation the hurricane was already\ncommitting.  Several cottages were in view.  Now the wind lifted the\nroof of one and bore it in shattered fragments to a distance.  Now the\nwalls of another trembled and fell; tall trees were bending and\nbreaking, or being torn up by the roots and laid prostrate; house after\nhouse was thus destroyed; whole groves of trees, as it seemed to me,\nfell to the ground; darkness appeared to be coming down like a thick\nmantle to add to the horrors of the scene.\n\nOn drove our little vessel; the rocks against which I expected to be\ndashed appeared; these were covered, and over them we were carried by\nthe raging tide, above even the sands, and lifted high up on to a soft\nbank amid brushwood stern first, where she hung while the waters rushed\nback leaving her uninjured on the shore.  We were mercifully preserved\nfrom the sudden death we expected, and were grateful; but yet, though\nnot cast down, knowing all would be for the best, I felt most anxious to\nassure myself of the safety of my dear wife and her companions.\n\nWe had come on shore, as far as I could judge, half a mile or more from\nthe mission house, a distance which it would be not only difficult but\nextremely dangerous to traverse while the storm was raging and tall\ntrees were being hurled about like straws.  One of my crew--a true\nChristian man--volunteered to accompany me.  The _Olive Branch_ had\nalready been made snug aloft, so when I had seen her securely shored up,\ntrusting and believing that no second roller would come to move her, I\nset off, leaving the rest of the people on board to attend to her.  My\ncompanion and I provided ourselves each with a stout pole.  I led the\nway, he to help me should I fall, and I promising to turn back should he\ncry out.\n\nThe noise of the tempest prevented our having anything like conversation\nwith each other, indeed it was only when we shouted at the very top of\nour voices that they could be heard.  The darkness had increased, and as\nI began to move on I felt that the attempt was almost beyond my power;\nstill the incentive was so great that I resolved to persevere.  I prayed\nfor strength and protection.  In my own arm I knew that I could not\ntrust.  There were no stars to guide me, and the flashes of lightning\nsadly confused and dazzled my eyes, so that it was only by keeping as\nnear as possible to the shore that I could hope to keep in the proper\ndirection.  This way was longer, however, and very rough where rocks\ncovered the ground, and I dreaded a return of the roller, when we might\nhave been swept helplessly away.  The dangers to be encountered by\nkeeping inland were equally great.  We might be struck by lightning,\ncrushed by falling trees, or losing our way, fall into some gully or\nchasm.\n\nFeeling the ground before us with our poles, my companion and I began\nour hazardous march, I desired him to keep as close behind me as he\ncould, and to shout frequently to assure me that he was following.  The\ntempest increased in fury, the rain came down in torrents, causing such\nfloods as in some places almost to sweep us off our feet.\n\nWe had made good some five or six hundred yards, when I thought that we\nmight make faster progress on the higher ground, where the water would\nnot be so great an impediment to our progress.  I knew also that we\nshould be able to steer our course more or less directly by feeling the\ndirection the water was flowing, so that we might always regain the sea\nby following down the streams.  Accordingly we attempted gradually to\ngain the higher ground, but as we ascended, we felt the wind blowing\nwith greater force, and were again nearly carried off our legs by it.  I\nhad to exert all the energies of my mind not to become totally\nbewildered.  Over rough rocks we climbed, and fallen trunks of trees,\nand through the beds of streams, down which the fierce waters now rushed\nfoaming and roaring with fearful force, and across swamps and marshes,\ntill at last we reached a grove of tall trees.  We could discover no way\nround it, so I resolved to push through it by a path in which we found\nourselves.  The trees were bending and writhing, and the loud crashes we\nheard told us that every instant some were hurled to the ground.  Now\none fell directly before me, and impeded my progress.  I climbed over\nit, my companion followed, and we continued our course, guided as before\nby the way the rain beat on our heads and the waters flowed past our\nfeet.  Again the thunder rolled loudly and the lightning flashed with\nstartling vividness, casting a horrid glare over the whole scene, now\ndarting amid the lofty boughs, and then snake-like running with loud\nhisses along the ground.  How utterly helpless and insignificant I felt\namid the war of the elements.\n\nStill onward we must advance.  How much farther I could not tell.  My\ncompanion's frequent shout cheered me.  Perhaps trusting to the aid of\nanother made me more careless, for neglecting for an instant to keep my\nstick feeling the ground before me, I stumbled forward, and found myself\nfloundering in a foaming stream.  My cry prevented my companion from\nfalling likewise.  Descending more cautiously he rushed into the flood\nafter me, and seizing me by the jacket just as I was being borne down,\nassisted me to regain my feet, and helped me across, the water being\nscarcely up to our middles.  In another instant I should have been\ncarried helplessly down the stream beyond my depth.  We struggled out, I\nscarcely know how, and pushed on.\n\nAgain, I took the lead.  We were passing through a second grove of\nbread-fruit trees.  Another tall tree fell directly before me.  I\nclimbed over it.  Crash succeeded crash.  I prayed for preservation from\nthe fate which might any moment overtake me.  I began to hope that we\nwere approaching the station.  Still we were not out of the wood.  I was\nworking my way on when it occurred to me that my companion had not sung\nout to me for a longer time than usual.  I called to him.  There was no\nanswer.  Eager as I was to push on, I could not desert him.  I turned\nback.  Again and again I called.  There was no answer.  I reached a\nfallen tree.  Was it the one I had climbed over, or was it one which had\nfallen after I had passed?  I felt along it.  My foot struck against a\nsoft substance.  I stooped down.  There lay a human form--quite still\nthough--the hand I lifted fell powerless.  My companion was dead.  \"One\nshall be taken and the other left.\"  God in His good providence had\nthought fit to spare me.  My companion was trusting wholly in Christ's\nblood.  I could not mourn him as one without hope.\n\nIt was no time to delay.  Once again I was straining all my energies to\nfind and follow the right way.  It appeared to me that far more than\ndouble the time had passed which I had believed would suffice to reach\nthe station.  I almost ran against the gable end of a house the greater\npart of which was in ruins.  I heard a loud moan.  It was repeated.  I\nhunted about till I came on a native crouching down and endeavouring to\nfind shelter under part of the building yet standing.  I asked him if he\nwould guide me to the mission house.  My voice roused him, and he said\nhe would gladly do so.  He sprang to his feet, and led me on by the\nhand.  \"Here it is!\" he exclaimed; but, alas, it was roofless and\ndeserted.\n\n------------------------------------------------------------------------\n\nNote 1.  In the course of this volume the author, it will be observed,\nhas transcribed much from the actual reports of missionaries, and from\nthe journals of naval officers who have visited the South-Seas.  Even in\nthe connecting thread of narrative, and in descriptive scenes such as\nthis of the storm, the writer has stated nothing for which he has not\nample authority in published works.  In a most interesting book, \"Gems\nfrom the Coral Islands,\" by the Reverend William Gill, volume two,\nchapter 9, an account is given of the fearful hurricane of 1846, which\ndevastated the island of Raratonga.  Dr Bourne, son of the Reverend R\nBourne, one of the founders of the Tahitian mission, the friend and\nassociate of Williams, thus writes concerning the illustrations which\naccompany our letterpress, proofs of which he had seen: \"The engravings\nrepresent the tropical aspect of the vegetation with great correctness.\nMany are not aware of the grandeur of the mountain scenery in some of\nthe islands.  Dr Darwin, who was with Captain Fitzroy's expedition,\nsays of Tahiti: `Until I actually visited this island, and tried to\npenetrate its mountain fastnesses, I could never understand the\nstatement made by Ellis, in his \"Polynesian Researches,\" that after the\ngreat battles of former times the defeated party took refuge in the\nmountains, where it was impossible to follow them.'  Mr Darwin then\ndescribes the rugged ravines and forest-clad precipices, wilder than\nanything he had witnessed in the South American Andes or Cordilleras.\"\nRaiatea, Eimeo, and others in the Society group, are composed of vast\nand abrupt mountain ranges, rising almost abruptly from the sea, and\nhaving very little habitable ground, but all covered with the densest\nvegetation.  The most stupendous volcanoes in the world are those of the\nSandwich Islands, compared with which Etna and Vesuvius are mere\nhillocks.\n\n\n\nCHAPTER TWENTY ONE.\n\nTHE RUINED VILLAGE.\n\nFor an instant the horror of finding the house in ruins, and being\nunable to discover my wife and the dear ones with her, almost overcame\nme.  I should have sunk to the ground exhausted, had not the native\nsupported me.\n\n\"Trust in Jehovah, friend,\" he remarked, quietly.  \"He knows what is\nbest for us all: your wife and our good missionary are in His hands.\"\n\n\"How long have you been a Christian?\"  I could not help asking.\n\n\"Two years,\" was the answer.  \"Before that I was a gross idolater and\ncannibal; there was no wickedness I did not do.  But, praised be the\nLord Jesus Christ, I was, through the teaching of the Holy Spirit,\nbrought out of darkness into the light of His glorious truth.\"\n\nI felt rebuked, and grasping my staff once more, braced myself up to\ncontinue my search.  The native accompanied me.\n\n\"They may have escaped to the mountains,\" he observed.  \"We will go\nthere.  I can find the path even in the dark, and there is a cavern not\nfar up, where they may have taken shelter.  Once, when we were devil's\npeople, we dreaded to enter it, thinking it the abode of evil spirits;\nnow that we are God's people, we know that God is everywhere, and have\nno fear.\"\n\nAgain I felt how the remark of this babe in Christ, this late savage\nheathen, would rebuke many of those in our own dear England who, even in\nthis professedly enlightened nineteenth century, yet tremble at the\nthoughts of ghosts, witches, and other similar phantoms of their foolish\nimaginations.\n\nIt appeared to me that the hurricane was subsiding; but still our\nprogress was slow and painful.  It was, however, an advantage having a\nbeaten path, though that in many places was cut up by the water, and in\nothers, trees and roofs of cottages had been blown across it.  I found\nthat we were ascending,--higher and higher up the mountain we got.\nLofty rocks appeared on every side,--the lightning seemed to be more\nvivid,--the crash of the thunder, as it reverberated in rattling peals\namid the cliffs, was even louder than before.  I remembered my\ncompanion's remark, and felt no fear.\n\n\"There is the cavern,\" he said, at length.\n\nI hurried in through a narrow opening, following closely at his heels.\nA light was shining at the farther end: it was from a fire, round which\na number of persons were collected.  On the opposite side, with the\nlight shining full on his countenance, stood my brother John.  A book\nwas in his hand,--the book of books undoubtedly.  His eyes were turned\ntoward heaven: he was praying for the safety of all those exposed to the\nfury of the tempest.  My own name was mentioned.  I advanced, and knelt\ndown by the side of my own Mary.  \"God hears prayer,\" I whispered.  \"He\nhas preserved me.\"\n\nShe soon lay in my arms, weeping tears of joy.  I now learned that no\nsooner had the signs of the coming tempest appeared than several of the\nprincipal natives came to the mission-house, and advised John to remove\nhis family, with his books, and such articles as the water might spoil,\nto a place of safety, offering to assist him.  Of this kindness he\ngladly availed himself; but the journey was not performed without great\ndanger and difficulty, as the tempest broke before they had proceeded\nfar, and the wind and floods impeded their progress.  Mary suffered\nmost, from her anxiety for me.  Now we praised God together joyfully for\nthe preservation he had awarded us.\n\nIt was daylight before we were able again to set forward to return to my\nbrother's now desolate home.  Still we could rejoice, and be thankful\nthat none of those most dear to us had been lost.  We hoped that the\npoor natives might have escaped as well; but we had not descended far\nthrough the lower ground before we found one crushed by a fallen tree,\nand another drowned in a water-hole, into which he had apparently\nstumbled.  The lightning had struck a third whose blackened corpse we\nfound beneath a tall tree stripped of its branches.  These were beyond\nhuman help.\n\n\"Grant that they died in the Lord,\" observed the missionary, as we noted\nthe spots where they lay, that we might send and bury them.\n\nThe numbers wandering houseless and without food most claimed our\nsympathy.  Our worst apprehensions were realised.  In the late neat and\npretty village not a cottage retained its roof, and by far the greater\nnumber lay levelled with the ground, some mere heaps of ruin, while of\nothers not a remnant was to be seen, the whole building having been\ncarried off by the floods or wind.  Of the church only part of the walls\nremained standing; and even the heavier timbers of the roof lay\nscattered about in every direction.  This destruction naturally deeply\naffected the missionary.  \"Still I pray that the faith and trust of the\npeople will not be found wanting under this trial,\" he murmured as we\npassed on.\n\nThe school-houses were much in the same condition; but happily the\nprinting-office, a strong stone building, had escaped any serious\ndamage, as had its valuable contents.  Here not only was printing\ncarried on, but the Bibles and other books were stored, as were the\nmachines for binding, a work performed very neatly by the natives.  This\ncircumstance again raised my brother's spirits: \"While the Book of God\nremains, we have nought to fear.\"\n\nIt was sad to see the natives collecting from all points to which they\nhad fled to escape the flood and storm, as they first caught sight of\ntheir ruined habitations.\n\n\"The village must be rebuilt on Christian principles,\" said my brother\nwith a smile; and going among the people, he called them around him, and\nadvised them to lose no time in collecting food and rebuilding their\nhouses, urging those without young children or unmarried to assist those\nwith families, or the sick and aged, before attending to their own\nwants.  The reply was most satisfactory, and all agreed to follow his\nadvice.\n\nWe now repaired to the mission-house, and, clearing out the rubbish from\nwithin the angle formed by two walls, were soon able to obtain some\nshelter and privacy for the ladies and children.  It was melancholy work\nhunting about for the furniture, crockery, and other articles, among the\nruins.  However, we obtained a sufficient number of things to furnish\nour make-shift abode, though it was long before we could get the bedding\nsufficiently dry to be of any use.  The flour and many other articles of\nfood, were spoilt, or had disappeared; but we raked up sufficient for\nthe present wants of the household; and as we assembled round a table\nonce more together, we returned our grateful thanks to Heaven that we\nwere still preserved to each other.\n\nAmong the ruins a chest of axes, and some saws, and other carpenters'\ntools was found, and these my brother distributed among the chiefs and\nother principal people, that they might the better be able to rebuild\ntheir abodes.  When assembled to receive these valuable gifts, their\nanswer was: \"We accept them with thanks, on one condition,--that we may\nfirst be allowed to rebuild our missionary's abode.\"  They would take no\ndenial; and forthwith forming themselves into gangs, some set to work to\nclear away the ruins, while others went off to cut fresh uprights and\nrafters to replace those that were broken.  It was gratifying, as being\nso purely spontaneous, and showing the high estimation in which they\nheld their missionary for his work's sake.  Thus, aided by zealous\nfriends, the work proceeded rapidly.\n\nI meantime hastened back to my vessel, taking with me some natives to\naid in launching her.  On our way we came unexpectedly on the spot where\nlay the body of my poor companion who had been crushed to death.  We\nburied the remains not far off on the hill-side, while I offered some\nprayers and a short exhortation for the benefit of those present.  As I\nwent over the ground again I was more than ever surprised that I had\nbeen able to accomplish the journey on such a night, and deeply thankful\nthat I had been preserved from the numberless dangers I had encountered.\n\nOn reaching the _Olive Branch_, I found that my mate had been making\nmost judicious preparations for getting her off.  He had formed a strong\ncradle, with rollers under her keel and posts ahead, to which to secure\nsome strong tackles.  By hauling on these tackles he hoped to get her\noff several feet every day.  \"Slow and steady wins the race, you know,\nsir,\" he observed.  His hopes of success were not without foundation.\n\nDay after day we toiled on, aided by the indefatigable natives, who gave\nevery evidence that they were working from pure Christian love.\n\n\"You have brought us the blessings of the gospel,--ought not we, who\nhighly estimate its blessings, labour to enable you in your ship to\ncarry it to others?\" said the chief of the party, when I was one day\nthanking him for the energetic way in which he and his people were\nworking.  Their satisfaction when the _Olive Branch_ at length floated\nsecurely in the harbour was nearly equal to mine.\n\nLittle time as there was to spare before the meeting would take place,\nat which my brother wished to be present, he was anxious to see the\npeople housed before he would leave them.  They meantime were working\nmost heroically, and I was surprised to see the rapid way in which they\nput up their houses, and set to work to replant the fields of taro and\nother roots, which had been destroyed by the flood.\n\nAt length we were ready to continue our voyage.  It had been intended\nthat our wives should accompany us; but as, in consequence of the delay,\nJohn's absence would be shorter than had been expected, it was thought\nbetter that they should remain and restore order to the establishment.\nAs we were about to go the chief men of the island sent to beg that we\nwould receive certain gifts which they had stored up to increase the\nfunds devoted to sending missionaries to the other islands of the\nPacific yet lying in heathen darkness.\n\n\"Had it not been for the storm, they would have been far greater,\" they\nobserved; \"but, though we are feeling a want just now of this world's\ngoods, we are rich in gospel blessings; nor can we make our present\ncondition an excuse for denying those blessed privileges to brethren in\nother lands, for whom our Lord died as well as for us.\"\n\nSurely, I thought, these remarks, were they known at home, would put to\nshame too many who are ready to make any slight decrease of income an\nexcuse for not assisting the cause of the gospel either among the\nignorant around them or in other countries.  Since I went among these so\nlate heathen savages, I have often had to think with grief and shame of\nthe very low standard of Christian excellence considered requisite by\nmany at home who profess, and probably have a wish, to be religious.\nOften and often I have wished that I could paint to them in their true\nand vivid colours the self-denying, laborious lives of the devoted\nmissionaries, and the humble, zealous, faithful, truth-searching\nbehaviour of the converts.\n\nWith a fair wind we sailed, praying that God would protect our dear\nones, and bring us back to them in safety.  We took up several\nmissionaries who were going to the conference, and who had been waiting\nfor the _Olive Branch_, and also some native teachers, who were destined\nto act as pioneers in islands where the light of the gospel had not yet\npenetrated.\n\nWithout any adventure especially worthy of notice we reached the head\nstation, where a considerable number of missionaries were collected\nawaiting our arrival.  All had more or less felt the storm at their\nrespective stations, but few with the violence that we had.  The\ndiscussions which took place at the meeting were most important and\ninteresting, and encouraging to all to persevere in the work; but I must\nnot now report them.  Although only in a certain sense a looker-on, I\nfelt greatly refreshed, and my spiritual life renewed by the\nexhortations delivered and the prayers engaged in.  I had the privilege\nof attending all the meetings.  Several had taken place, when the\nsubject of the new stations to be occupied was brought forward.  John\nwas named to fill one of them.  The inhabitants were looked upon as\namong the fiercest of the savages of the Pacific; the climate was far\nfrom salubrious.  But John did not hesitate a moment; on the contrary,\nhis countenance was radiant with satisfaction.  It was an important\npost, and it was believed that a large accession might be made to the\nkingdom of Christ by the establishment of a mission there.  \"Wherever my\noverseer and brethren consider our holy cause can most be advantaged by\nmy presence, there I am ready to go,\" answered my brother, after the\noffer had been made him.\n\nThe ground had already been broken by native teachers, who had earnestly\npetitioned for an English missionary.  Our passage to my brother's\nstation was somewhat circuitous, as we had to leave several missionaries\nat their posts, to carry stores and books to old stations, and to leave\nnative teachers at new ones.  We had brought with us the missionary who\nwas to succeed John, whom I was directed to carry on to his new station.\n\nWe were received on our return to my brother's home with unmistakable\nsigns of pleasure by the natives, who collected to welcome him.  I\nexpected, however, that when he came to announce to his wife the\nproposed change, that it would be a sad damper to her happiness; but she\nsimply observed: \"Wherever you are called to go, dear husband, it will\nbe my joy to go also.  How much better am I off than the wife of a\nsoldier serving in the army of some earthly monarch.  She may not\naccompany him to the war; if he falls wounded, she may not be near to\ntend him; if he is slain, no reward is of value to him.  Where, too, is\nher assurance that they will be reunited?  Where my husband goes I may\ngo,--if he is ill, I may watch over him,--if spirits and strength fail,\nI may support him.  When death separates us, I know that we shall be\nreunited; and I know, too, that a glorious crown, the prize of his high\ncalling, will assuredly be his, and that that crown I shall share with\nhim, and full draughts of joy unspeakable for ever and ever.\"\n\nThese words were spoken in so low and gentle a voice by my dear\nsister-in-law, that a stranger would scarcely have understood the firm\nfaith and high resolve they indicated.  The packing up occupied but\nlittle time.  John's household goods were few, nor did his library fill\nmany boxes.\n\n\"But you will sell your cattle and poultry?\"  I observed.\n\n\"I do not consider them mine,\" he answered.  \"I look upon them as\nbelonging to the Society, and as necessary to my successor.  A\nmissionary should have as few worldly incumbrances as possible to draw\nhim away from his work.  He should labour solely for the Lord, and to\nthe Lord leave the care of his wife and little ones.  A missionary sent\nout by a Society should feel secure that they would provide for his\nworldly wants while he can work, would support him in his old age, and\ncare at his death for his widow and children.\"\n\nThus with perfect faith my noble brother went forth in the gospel's\nglorious cause to conquer souls for Christ's kingdom.\n\nThe grief of the people among whom he had ministered since his arrival\nin the Pacific, when they heard that he was to leave them, was\nexcessive.  At first they threatened to put a restraint upon him, and\nnot to let him go.\n\n\"Would you then selfishly deprive others of the blessings you enjoy?\" he\nasked.  \"Would you, who know the gospel, keep back the instrument which\nbrought it to you from presenting it to others?  No, no; surely you,\ndear friends, have not thus learned Christ.\"\n\n\"Go, go; our prayers will ever be lifted up for your safety and\nsuccess.\"\n\n\n\nCHAPTER TWENTY TWO.\n\nMARTYRED FOR THE TRUTH.\n\nScarcely a native in the settlement who was not present to bid farewell\nto their beloved missionary, and amid tears and prayers, he embarked on\nboard the _Olive Branch_.  My wife accompanied me, and though the little\nvessel was much crowded, we had a very happy party.\n\nThe weather was fine, and as we had numerous places to touch at, we were\nnot more than twelve days without obtaining fresh provisions.  Formerly,\nwhen the islands of the Pacific were little known, crews starving or\nsuffering from scurvy must often have passed just out of sight of land,\nwhere they might have obtained an ample supply of fresh provisions; but\nnow, very much through the instrumentality of the missionaries of the\ngospel, scarcely an island remains unknown, and entirely through their\ninstrumentality the greater number may now be visited, not only without\nfear, but the voyager is certain to receive a Christian welcome on their\nshores.\n\nAn instance came under my notice where the natives did not only return\ngood for good, but good for evil.  The master and crew of a large\nEnglish ship had grossly misbehaved themselves and ill-treated the\npeople of an island.  Scarcely had they sailed when a gale sprung up,\nand their ship was driven on shore and lost.  The cargo and other\nproperty in the ship was taken possession of by the natives, who\nconsidered that they had a right to it.  On the captain, however,\nclaiming it through the missionary, the chiefs met and decided that it\nshould be given up, which it was forthwith without a word of complaint.\nHere the brown Christian set an example to the white man, virtually a\nheathen.\n\nThe new post to which my brother was appointed was on a lovely island,\nfertile in the extreme, and thickly populated.  Indeed it might have\nbeen said of it, \"that only man was vile.\"  No natives appeared on the\nshore to welcome him, but after a time the teachers came off in their\ncanoe, and gave us accounts which were far from cheering.  Chiefs who\nhad appeared friendly had turned against them, and some had prohibited\ntheir people from listening to the Word of God, or attending school or\nchapel.  I suggested to my brother that under the circumstances it might\nbe wiser not to land.\n\n\"What, because the enemy begins the fight shall the soldier desert his\nstandard?\" he asked, with a look of surprise.  \"No, David, you would not\ncounsel such conduct.\"\n\nI could say nothing.  The teachers were of opinion that he would be\ntreated with indifference rather than actual hostility, at first, by the\ngreat mass of the people, and that his life at all events would be\nperfectly safe.  They mentioned one chief who appeared to be more\nfriendly disposed towards Christianity than the rest, and to him\naccordingly, we at once went to pay our court.  The chief looked like a\nperfect savage, with his hair long and frizzed out, his eyes rolling\nwildly, and with scarcely any clothing on his dusky body.  Still he\nreceived us politely, and not without a certain dignity, and promised if\nthe missionary now remained he would be answerable to me for him, should\nI again visit the island.\n\nThe man was still a heathen, and I felt very unwilling to put any\nconfidence in his promises.  It was too evident to me that he wished for\na missionary for the sake of axes and saws, and other articles he\nexpected to obtain, rather than for any spiritual benefit he hoped to\nderive from his presence.  I had, however, no alternative, than to land\nmy dear brother with his wife and little ones, and household goods.  My\nonly consolation was that I was able with my crew to assist in putting\nup a house for him, many of the parts of which we had brought with us.\n\nThe teachers were good carpenters, and had already, with the aid of some\nnatives whom they had instructed, prepared some stout uprights and beams\nand planks.  Notwithstanding this, the rapidity with which we got up the\nhouse, dug up a garden and fenced it round, caused great astonishment\namong the people.  Before we left, my brother had already begun a\nschool-room, to serve also as a chapel till a larger edifice could be\nerected, while he received inquirers at his own house.  My sister-in-law\nhad also two female classes of adults and children, to whom she imparted\nsuch religious instruction as they would receive, and some of the arts\nof civilised life, while round the station resembled a busy hive, all\nthe natives who had professed Christianity being actively employed as\nsawyers or in some other mechanical work.  His aim at this early stage\nof the mission was to show the natives the advantages the Christians\npossessed over the heathens, and thus to make them look with favour on\nChristianity.  He never failed while they were thus engaged to impart so\nmuch religious instruction as they could receive.  Everything appeared\nnow to be going on favourably.  When I remarked that I now had\nreasonable hopes that he would succeed--\n\n\"Who can doubt it?\" was his answer.  \"If I do not my successor will.\nThe gospel will most assuredly cover the earth as the waters cover the\nsea.  God has said it.\"\n\nOne of the saddest moments of my life was that when I parted from my\ndevoted brother as he stood on the beach while I returned for the last\ntime to my vessel.  Yet I asked myself more than once, Why should I\ngrieve? why should I be anxious?  He is engaged in the noblest cause in\nwhich the energies of a human being can be employed--gaining subjects\nfor the Redeemer's kingdom.\n\nStill I was his brother, and as such I could not contemplate without\nfear the dangers to which he was exposed.  I was now to return direct to\nMr Bent's station, where I proposed refitting the _Olive Branch_ to be\nready for any work she might be called on to perform.  We found that\ngreat progress had been made at the station, both spiritual and\nmaterial.  There were many new converts, and several excellent little\nhouses built, surrounded by neat gardens and fields.  It had not been\ndone without cost, and it was too evident to Mary and me that her\nfather's health and strength were failing.  She spoke to him, and\nsuggested a change of scene.\n\n\"Here I have been planted by the Lord of the vineyard, and here let me,\nif He so wills it, wither and fall, dear one,\" he answered.\n\nIt was too evident to us that his body was withering, but not so his\nspirit--that was expanding more and more, ripening for heaven.  It\nseemed to burn with a deep and unextinguishable love for the conversion\nof all the islanders among whom he had so long laboured--not those of\nhis own group only, but for the inhabitants of all the isles of the\nPacific, \"ay,\" he would finish, as if there had been a shortcoming of\nhis love for the souls of his fellow-men, \"of the whole heathen world.\nMay they all come to know Thee, O Lord, and accept Thy great salvation.\"\nStill his more constant prayers were for his own people.  Gradually he\nsunk--evidently entering into the rest prepared for those who love\nChrist--his joy increased, his end was peace.  Thus has many a\nmissionary died, and who would not change all the world can give to be\nassured of such a death.  Mary felt her father's death severely, but yet\nas one who mourned with assured hope of a joyous resurrection.\n\nMy brother had earnestly petitioned to have another missionary or a\nnative teacher of superior attainments sent him, and while I was\ndebating what course to pursue, I received directions to carry the\nteacher Vihala and his wife to him, and to visit many other stations on\nmy way.  Vihala and Alea were delighted to see us again, but when they\nheard of Mr Bent's death they shed tears of unfeigned sorrow at the\nthought that they should see his face no more.  They both had advanced\ngreatly in Christian knowledge, and Vihala appeared to me equal to the\ntaking entire charge of a station, however large.  He was delighted to\nhear that he was to join my brother, and made all his preparations with\nalacrity.\n\nAs I was preparing to sail, a ship hove in sight.  She was from England\ndirect, and brought letters for me and John.\n\nI opened mine with trembling hands.  All were well at home; but they\ncontained news and of importance too.  A distant relative had died and\nleft a considerable fortune to my father's second son, but in the case\nof his death it was to belong to the next, and so on.  It could only\ndescend to the children of the brother who had possessed it for five\nyears.  Thus John was to be the first possessor.  It at once occurred to\nme, would it prove a snare to him?  Would it induce him to abandon his\nhigh and holy calling?  Would the man of property be unwilling to remain\nthe humble missionary?  Still I thought I knew what John would do.  I\nfelt that I was wronging him by having any doubts on the subject.\n\nThe delay was providential, for a gale sprung up as we were weighing\nanchor, and again dropping it, we remained safely in port till the storm\nhad subsided.  We had several places to call at, and baffling winds\nstill more prolonged our voyage.  At last we anchored in the beautiful\nbay opposite my brother's station.\n\nI looked out anxiously expecting him to come off to us.  I was then\nabout to land with Mary, thinking to take him and his family by\nsurprise, when a canoe appeared with one of the native teachers on\nboard.  His first words were, \"I am the only one left alive.\"  My heart\nsunk within me.\n\nI put Mary again on board and went on shore.  On the way the teacher\ntold me the sad tale.  At first the natives in the district had been\nfriendly, but instigated by the heathen chiefs, they had, after a time,\nrefused provisions or assistance.  Even some who had professed\nChristianity were afraid to come openly to receive instruction.  A\nlittle band was faithful, and many came at night to hear the word of\nGod, and brought food, or the mission family might have been starved.\nStill my brother persevered, and not without effect.  Fresh converts\nwere made.  Children were allowed to come to the girls' school, and when\nit was discovered what useful arts they learned there in addition to\nreading and writing, even some chiefs became desirous of sending their\ndaughters for instruction.  This unexpected progress, made, in spite of\nopposition, by the missionaries, exasperated the heathen chiefs still\nfurther, and a plot was formed to cut off all the Christian teachers.\nTheir safety was, however, watched over by their converts, and all\nattempts defeated.  Treachery was next attempted, and one of the most\nsavage of the heathen chiefs pretended to be desirous of hearing the\ntruth.  He sent to my brother, begging him to come to him.  He was urged\nnot to go.\n\n\"What, and run the risk of allowing a soul to be left in Satan's power\nwhich may be rescued!\" was his answer.  He went, accompanied by a\nteacher and two Christian natives.  They were unarmed.  Day after day\npassed, and no tidings came of them.  At last the bodies of all four\nwere found.  They had been barbarously murdered; but whether or not they\nhad reached the old chiefs residence could not be ascertained.  He sent\na message expressing his regret that the missionary had not come to him.\nMy sister-in-law was supported in a way the Holy Spirit can alone\nsupport a person in distress.  Her longing desire was to meet him in\nheaven, and to prepare their two boys to follow in his footsteps.\n\nNotwithstanding all that had occurred, Vihala undauntedly resolved to\nremain.\n\n\"If I fall, it is in God's cause, and to advance His glory,\" was his\nonly remark.\n\nHaving done all I could, with a heavy heart I quitted the station with\nmy sister-in-law and her children, and returned to head-quarters, where\nI had the satisfaction of presenting the _Olive Branch_ for the service\nof the mission.  I persuaded my sister-in-law to accompany Mary and me\nto England, where I have devoted a certain portion of the fortune of\nwhich I so painfully became possessed to her support and the education\nof her children, and at Mary's urgent request, another, what the world\nwould consider a no inconsiderable portion, to the support of missions.\nWe live in a humble way, but are far more happy than we should be did we\nspend our wealth on ourselves.  Our nephews, too, are amply rewarding\nus, and will, I trust, prove efficient soldiers in that glorious army\nwhich goes forth under the banner of the cross to fight against\nidolatry, ignorance, vice, and all the foes Satan can array against the\ntruth as it is in Christ Jesus.\n\nTHE END.","title":"The Cruise of the Mary Rose; Or, Here and There in the Pacific","tradition":"scripture-revelation","translated_text":null,"word_count":80168}