Chapter XXIII

Continuation of the Meeting at Papiete--Questions--Explanation
--Meeting ends--Pilotage--Mr. Wilson--Queen’s Visit--Fireworks
--School--Intelligence--Letters--Inhabitants--Dress--Conduct
--Abolition of Spirits--Defect in Character--Domestic Scene--Aura
Island--Newton at Bow Island--Pearl Oyster Shells--Divers
--Steering--Queen’s Letter--Collection--Sail from Otaheite
--Whylootacke--Flight of Birds--Navigators--Friendly--Feejee
Islands--English Chief--Precautions--La Pérouse.

Reverting to the meeting at Papiete:--The queen’s secretary next asked to speak, and said that a law had been established in the island, prohibiting the keeping, as well as the use or importation of any kind of spirits. In consequence of that law, the persons appointed to carry it into effect had desired to destroy the contents of various casks and bottles of spirits; but the foreigners who owned the spirits objected, denying the right to interfere with private property. The Otaheitan authorities did not persist, as they were told that the first man-of-war which might arrive would certainly take vengeance upon them if they meddled with private property. He wished to ask whether the Otaheitans ought to have persisted in enforcing their own laws; and what I should have done, had the law been enforced with a British subject, and had he made application to me.

My answer was, “Had the Otaheitans enforced their law, I could in no way have objected. In England a contraband article is seized by the proper officers, and is not treated as private property while forbidden by the law.”

Much satisfaction was evidently caused by this declaration: also, at a former part of the discussions, when a remonstrance was made against Otaheitans paying the Truro debt, the greater part of the assembly seemed to be much pleased.

A respectable old man then stood up, and expressed his gratification at finding that another of King William’s men-of-war had been sent--not to frighten them, or to force them to do as they were told, without considering or inquiring into their own opinions or inclinations, but to make useful enquiries. They feared the noisy guns which those ships carried, and had often expected to see their island taken from them, and themselves driven off, or obliged in their old age to learn new ways of living.

I said, “Rest assured that the ships of Great Britain never will molest Otaheitans so long as they conduct themselves towards British subjects as they wish to be treated by Britons. Great Britain has an extent of territory, far greater than is sufficient for her wishes. Conquest is not her object. Those ships, armed and full of men, which from time to time visit your island, are but a very few out of a great many which are employed in visiting all parts of the world to which British commerce has extended. Their object is to protect and defend the subjects of Great Britain, and also take care that their conduct is proper--not to do harm to, or in any way molest those who treat the British as they themselves would wish to be treated in return.”

I was much struck by the sensation which these opinions caused amongst the elderly and the more respectable part of the assemblage. They seemed surprised, and so truly gratified, that I conclude their ideas of the intentions of foreigners towards them must have been very vague or entirely erroneous.

The business for which we had assembled being over, I requested Mr. Pritchard to remind the queen, that I had a long voyage to perform; and ought to depart from her territories directly she confided to me the promised document, relating to the affair of the Truro; and I then asked the queen and principal chiefs to honour our little vessel by a visit on the following evening, to see a few fireworks: to which they willingly consented: some trifling conversation then passed; and the meeting ended.

Much more was said, during the time, than I have here detailed: my companions were as much astonished as myself at witnessing such order, so much sensible reasoning, and so good a delivery of their ideas! I shall long remember that meeting at Otaheite, and consider it one of the most interesting sights I ever witnessed. To me it was a beautiful miniature view of a nation emerging from heathen ignorance, and modestly setting forth their claims to be considered civilized and Christian.

We afterwards dined with Mr. Pritchard, his family, and the two chiefs, Utaame and Taati. The behaviour of these worthies was extremely good; and it was very gratifying to hear so much said in their favour by those whose long residence on the island had enabled them to form a correct judgment. What we heard and saw showed us that mutual feelings of esteem existed between those respectable and influential old chieftains and the missionary families.

It was quite dark when we left Papiete to return, by many miles among coral reefs, to the Beagle; but our cat-eyed pilot undertook to guide our three boats safely through intricate passages among the reefs, between which I could hardly find my way in broad daylight, even after having passed them several times. The distance to the ship was about four miles; and the night so dark, that the boats were obliged almost to touch each other to ensure safety; yet they arrived on board unhurt, contrary to my expectation; for my eyes could not detect any reason for altering our course every few minutes, neither could those of any other person, except the pilot, James Mitchell. Had he made a mistake of even a few yards, among so many intricate windings, our boats must have suffered (because the coral rocks are very sharp and soon split a plank), though in such smooth and shallow water, a wrong turning could have caused inconvenience only to ourselves, for there was little or no danger of more than a wetting.

The observations at Matavai being completed, I was enabled to leave the place, and invited Hitote and Mr. Henry (who had returned with us) to pay another visit to Papiete in the Beagle, and meet the royal party.

25th. At daylight this morning, while the Beagle’s crew were unmooring and hoisting in the boats, I went to Mr. Wilson’s school-house, then used also as a chapel--the old chapel having been blown down by a violent gale of wind. Divine service (a hymn, a long extempore prayer, and another hymn) was performed. This is the established custom at all the missionary stations at Otaheite on Wednesday mornings: on other mornings one or two hours after daylight are employed in the schools. The congregation was numerous, and very attentive. I noticed that all the principal men of the district, besides Hitote who came from a distant part of the island, were present.

Mr. Wilson’s manner pleased me much; it was the sincere, and naturally impressive manner of a kind-hearted, honest man, earnestly performing a sacred and paramount duty. I went to see the new chapel after the morning-service was ended; but only the floor-timbers and the posts for the roof were then fixed in their places. The natives were irregular in their work, sometimes doing much, at others little, just as they felt disposed. Being a voluntary work, they took their time about it.

Mr. Darwin and I breakfasted with Mr. Wilson at his house: it happened that Mr. and Mrs. Henry were about to make a journey to some distance; that a favourite son was undertaking a new and difficult mission at the Navigator’s Islands, and that we were both about to take leave of the pious teacher of the heathen: and for each he asked a blessing, in an extempore prayer of some length, the result of unaffected, genuine piety. A kinder, or less exceptionable prayer, so far as I could pretend to judge, than that unprepared one by Mr. Wilson, I could not have wished to hear. That it was unprepared I feel certain, because he had not expected us to be present, and the manner in which our prospects were intermingled with those of the others he mentioned, showed that there was no premeditation. There was no affected expression, or unusual tone: it was the sincere devout manner of a pious plain-spoken man.

When under sail we tried to approach the entrance of Papiete Harbour, but baffling winds prevented our anchoring until three in the afternoon; and then, anticipating the royal visit, we tried to make such preparations as our little vessel could accomplish. Dressing the ship with flags, and preparing to man yards, was all we were able to do: salute we could not, on account of the chronometers.

We were told that the queen had walked to Papawa, distant about two miles, to inspect a quantity of fruit, cocoa-nuts, pine-apples, &c. (which she had ordered to be collected as a present to the man-of-war): and, with our glasses, we saw the royal party hastening along the beach, and in the midst of a number of women, children, and men, the queen was observed advancing at a quick walk. Soon afterwards, when it was supposed she had rested and dressed, we sent the boats. The chiefs were already on board. Mr. Pritchard undertook the troublesome offices of interpreter and master of the ceremonies, and by his assistance we saw the whole party collected on the Beagle’s upper deck, while the seamen manned yards, and we all gave the queen three cheers.

A bad dinner, accepted after the four mile walk, in a manner it did not deserve,--was succeeded by a few rockets, blue lights, and false fires,--the only fireworks we possessed. Luckily the rockets were good and gave high satisfaction. Lying in the middle of a bay, whose radius, supposing it semi-circular, may be half-a-mile, our ears were startled by a thrilling outcry of delight echoing around the beach, as each successive rocket rushed into the sky and burst. This outcry from the natives on shore, who were taken by surprise (the night being very dark) showed how much they enjoyed the sight. Our visitors on board, being told what would happen, only repeated ‘maitai,’ ‘maitai,’[1] with earnestness. I much wished then to have had a few good fireworks of a more artificial character. To any one about to visit distant, especially half-civilized or savage nations, let me repeat a piece of advice given to me, but which from inadvertence I neglected to follow: “take a large stock of fireworks.”

Some presents to each of our guests helped to amuse them and keep up their cheerfulness. After tea I proposed hearing a few of the seamen’s songs,--as some of our crew were very good singers,--not at the time thinking of their prejudices against any singing except hymns. Mr. Pritchard had no word to interpret ‘song’ but ‘himene;’ and Rule Britannia, with one or two other grave performances, passed off very well, but, to the perplexing of Mr. Pritchard and surprise of the Otaheitans, a merry comic song was struck up, which obliged Mr. Pritchard to answer the queen’s inquiries plainly, by saying, “No, that was not a hymn,” it was “sea singing.” ‘God save the King’ sounded more gravely, and suited better.

We landed the party almost at their own doors, and if they were half as well pleased as we were, our little preparations had not been a waste of time and trouble. Their behaviour on board was extremely correct: their habits and manners perfectly inoffensive. No doubt they are improving yearly, and the example of the missionary families has an influence over them, exceeding that of very differently disposed people by whom they are too frequently visited.

26th. At daylight this morning some of us visited the school. As I had heard of ‘compulsion’ and other absurdities, I went early to get there before Mr. Pritchard arrived, without having hinted at such an intention.

About the large chapel or church, groups of elderly and old people were sitting by threes and fours in a place, helping each other to read the New Testament. While one read the others listened, and, if able, corrected him. One man not less than fifty years of age, was learning to read, with spectacles. Some came in, others went out, just as they chose, for there was not any one even to watch them till Mr. Pritchard came: and during about an hour after sunrise, every day, those people, both women and men, thus instructed one another, previous to beginning their daily out-of-door labours.

In the school-house I found a number of children, waiting for their teacher, who soon arrived and gave them their tasks. The greater part of them wrote sentences on slates from his dictation, with ease and correctness. One sentence he gave them was, ‘the captain wishes you happiness,’ which they wrote instantly, and some of their own accord added, ‘and we wish happiness to the captain.’ The hand-writing of many, indeed most of the elder girls and boys, was very good: and to verbal questions they replied readily. They seemed to be in good discipline, and yet a merrier or more cheerful looking set of children I never saw. A hymn excellently, or, I ought perhaps to say, prettily sung, ended their attendance.

Returning by way of the church, I saw Hitote, his brother, and other chiefs, engaged in eager discussion. Mr. Pritchard and I went in: “You are just come in time,” said they, “we are disputing about the lightning conductors on board the Beagle, and cannot determine whether they end in the ship’s hold, or whether they go through her bottom, into the water.” Mr. Pritchard explained: a momentary pause ensued--each seemed trying to understand the puzzling subject; when a shrewd old man, hitherto a quiet listener, remarked--“you white men are wonderfully clever, you know and do most things, I wish some of you (passing his hand over his chin in a drolly rueful manner) I wish some of you would tell us how to rid our faces of these troublesome beards!” (He had just been shaved).

The rapidity with which intelligence is communicated among savage, or partially civilised nations, has often been remarked: but I do not remember meeting with an explanation, till Mr. Nott told me it was passed verbally--from one to another--each man calling to his neighbour. No method could be speedier, where a population is numerous; as at Otaheite or New Zealand, when Cook was there.

In the course of the morning I waited upon the queen to inform her that the Beagle was then going out of the port; and that I waited only for her commands, and the letter she had promised: upon which she sent for her secretary and the chiefs; when we left her for a time. Two of the persons who had been on board our vessel the previous evening, sent me letters this morning, which are so peculiar and interesting, in many points of view, that I here insert them.

Translation of a letter from ‘Mare,’ one of the seven supreme judges of Otaheite; written in a round distinct hand, in his own language, and directed to me.

“Tahiti, Nov. 26, 1835.

“To you the officer of King William!

“May the peace of God be with you. This is what I have to say
to you, my dear friend. I praise you with grateful feelings in
my heart for your kindness to me, an insignificant man, in
giving to me a box and some other things besides. I and my wife
will feel grateful to you when we look at these things. This is
another thing with which I feel pleased; your having shown me
the many good things on board your ship; and your men; they have
great excellence, and a good character.

“That you may be saved is the wish of your servant,
“MARE.”

A letter from Paofai, the brother of Hitote, directed to ‘Fitirai,’ is similar.

“Tahiti, Nov. 26, 1835.
“Dear Friend,

“Peace be unto you and your family, in the name of God. These
are my words to you. I feel very much gratified by your great
kindness in giving me a trunk, and several other things. For this
cause I thank you with grateful feelings. My wife and family will
also feel grateful to you. Dear friends may the peace of the
Messiah, who is the King of Peace, be with you. Amen.

“PAOFAI.”[2]

Among the natives of Otaheite let us not overlook the sons and daughters of the earlier missionaries. Those whom we had the pleasure of seeing did credit to the country of their parents; to Otaheite; and to those excellent persons who must have taken such pains with their education. I presume not to speak from what I have seen only, but from the corresponding accounts of others, added to what I witnessed myself.

I will now make a few general remarks, previous to quitting the island. It did not appear to me that the men of Otaheite are separated visibly into two classes, as some accounts had led us to expect. All of the higher class, whom we saw, or about whom we could learn anything, certainly were large, but rather unwieldy: yet among the lower class there were numerous stout tall men, as tall as the chiefs, and more actively made. A few were of a middle size, and a very few, low in stature: but all well-proportioned and muscular; though their muscles are not hard and knotty, like those of a hard-working white man; they are rounded, and smooth. They stride along in an imposing manner, occasionally recalling ideas of the giants of history. Although, generally speaking, they are taller than the Patagonians, they do not, to the eye, appear so large. This ocular deception must arise from the better proportion of the Otaheitans. The native of Patagonia has a large, coarse looking head, with high cheek-bones, and a ‘mane-like’ head of hair: his shoulders are high and square; his chest very wide; while to heighten the effect of these traits, each of which gives one an idea of size, a great rough mantle, made of the woolly skin of the guanaco, thrown loosely round his shoulders, hangs almost to his feet. But the Otaheitan head is singularly well formed; and, if phrenology is not altogether a delusion, few men are more capable of receiving instruction, or doing credit to their teachers, than these islanders, so often described, yet by no means enough known. Their hands, and more especially their feet, have been said to be of the Papua form; but the shape of the latter is owing, it appears to me, to their always going bare-footed: and I observed their hands particularly without being able to distinguish any peculiarity whatever in the form.

The young men frequently wear a wreath of leaves, or flowers, round the head, which, though becoming, has rather a Bacchanalian appearance. Some cut their hair short, others shave the greater part of their head, but solely from caprice: not one could give me any reason beyond that which is implied in “it is the fashion.”

It is seldom that one meets a native entirely naked; I mean naked excepting the girdle which is always worn: generally they have a garment, or a piece of one, obtained from a white man. These remnants, often tattered, and, among the lower classes, always dirty, disfigure them much. Those whom I saw, with only a native girdle, but whose bodies were tattowed in the old fashion, appeared to my eye much less naked than the young men, not tattowed, and only half-clothed. I shall not forget the very unpleasant impression made upon my mind, at first landing, by seeing a number of females, and children, with a few men, half dressed in the scanty, dirty, and tattered scraps of clothing, which they unfortunately prefer to their native dress. A woman, who has around her waist a substantial native garment, which falls as low as the calf of the leg; and over her shoulders, folding in front across the bosom, a mantle, or cloak, of similar material--appears to the eye of a stranger much more decently dressed than the hasty lover of novelty; who seems proud of a dirty cotton gown, tied only at the neck, and fluttering in the wind. Their Sunday dresses, however, are clean and decent, though those of other days are certainly much the contrary. An under-garment alone need be added to the women’s former dress of native manufacture, to make it answer every purpose. Why should not home ingenuity, and domestic industry be encouraged?

The moral conduct and character of these islanders have undergone so much discussion; so various have been the decisions, and so varying are the opinions of voyagers and residents, that I, for one, am satisfied by the conclusion, that the good and the bad are mixed in Otaheite, much as they are in other parts of the world exposed to the contamination of unprincipled people. That the missionaries have done so much, in checking and restraining depravity, is to me matter of serious reflection. But let us also remember, that the testimony of very trustworthy witnesses shews that there, even in earlier days, iniquity did not search after those who sought not her abode![3]

The Beagle’s stay was too short to enable us to form any just conclusions. I witnessed no improprieties, neither did I see any thing that would not have inclined me to suppose (had I read or heard nothing of them), that their habits are, in most ways, better than those of many civilized nations. The missionaries have succeeded in carrying attention to religion, and general morality, to a high pitch: may they continue to succeed, in future years, and become an example to larger, older, and nominally wiser nations.

Is it not a striking fact, that the people of a whole country have solemnly refrained from drinking spirits: does not this act alone entitle them to respect, and high consideration? So sincere are they on this subject, that, a short time since, when they heard that a small vessel, lying in their harbour, had on board a cask of rum, which the master intended to sell to some of the residents, they went off to the vessel, and destroyed the obnoxious liquor.

Upon enforcing their first law on this subject, every part of each house was searched. They were very minute in their scrutiny, but overlooked a bottle of brandy, which Mr. Pritchard had kept in the house for medical purposes. After their search, when leaving him, he called them back and showed the bottle, saying for what purpose it had been kept. Some said, ‘keep it for that purpose;’ others said ‘no, it is ‘ava,’[4] destroy it! let us make no distinction, let us utterly discard the use of so baneful a liquor! have we not other medicines, about whose use there can be no doubt?’ However, the milder party prevailed, and the brandy bottle would have preserved its contents had not Mr. Pritchard poured them on the ground before their eyes.[5]

One horrible defect in the former character of the Otaheitans has hardly been mentioned in the earlier writers. They were unkind, and utterly inattentive to the old and infirm:--they were yet worse: they scrupled not to destroy their aged or sick, yes, even their parents, if disabled by age or by sickness.[6]

Mr. Wilson assured me that in former times, when a person had lingered in sickness, they would carry him to the water-side, under pretence of bathing him, dig a hole, and bury him alive! Thus they ended the life of a young man who had been servant to Mr. Wilson, until he sickened, and, by the natives, was supposed to be dying. Mr. Wilson tried all he could do, in the way of medical assistance, and had hopes of his recovery, when he suddenly disappeared: and not until a long time afterwards could he ascertain the horrid cruelty of which the natives had been guilty!

That they do not even now pay that attention to infirm old age which, in our estimation, is a sacred duty, may be inferred from the following anecdote. Mr. Stokes rambled into a secluded spot near Matavai, where, surrounded by old trees, stood a small and tottering hut. On a filthy worn-out mat, lay a venerable looking old man, hardly covered by a ragged cloth. His only friend, an aged hobbling dog, limped to his side as if hoping that his example would excite some one to show compassion to the old man, his master.

The helpless state of this poor sufferer, whose legs were swollen by elephantiasis to an unwieldy bulk, and his utter destitution, induced Mr. Stokes to make immediate inquiries, and endeavour to get him relieved from some of his misery. It was ascertained that a daughter and son-in-law were usually living with him, but the new ‘manuâ’ had engrossed their attention, and the poor father had been left to the care of his faithful though helpless dog!

At Matavai the memory of the captain of H.M.S. ‘Racoon,’ known as the ‘long captain,’ also as ‘Tapane matapo,’ or ‘Captain blind eye,’ is still cherished. The conduct of both him and the officers of the Racoon, seems to have highly delighted all classes. How pleasant it is to hear a countryman, especially of one’s own cloth, spoken of in such terms of friendship and respect, and how much that pleasure is increased when one reflects, that many years have elapsed since the conduct took place which caused these sensations.

Mr. Stokes passed some nights in Otaheitan cottages. He told me that the natives, both men and women, are extremely fond of their children, and are very kind to them. Not content with nursing and amusing them, they cram them as managers of poultry cause turkeys to be crammed, not exactly with pepper corns, or walnuts,[7] but with bananas and other nutritive food. At each end of the houses he visited there was a small fire, one being for the elder, the other for the younger folks; this was in the evening, at their last meal time.

Bread-fruit, which had been previously roasted, and wild plantains brought from the mountains, were put to the fire to be warmed. Meanwhile cocoa-nuts were opened, their milk was poured into cups, made of empty nutshells, and handed about with the nuts. Each person had a nut and a cup of the milk, or juice.[8] Taro-root roasted was then served, together with the bread-fruit and plantain, on leaves freshly gathered; there was also a piece of brownish yellow wood, like the rotten root of a tree, hanging up in the hut, which the people sometimes eat; it is called Ti.[9] Grace was said (a duty never omitted), and a clean, comfortable meal enjoyed by the whole party. Afterwards the fires were put out, and a queer little wooden pipe passed round. The strongest tobacco is thought the best, and they like to swallow the smoke. Sometimes, instead of tobacco, they use an indigenous herb.

Before sleeping the oldest man said prayers: one of the young men read a short portion of the New Testament, and then a hymn was sung by the whole family. A lamp was kept burning all night. A curious snuff was observed by Mr. Stokes, and from the method of using or taking it, I am inclined to think it an old custom, not imported by the white men. A substance, not unlike rhubarb in its appearance, but of a very pleasant fragrance, was rubbed on a piece of shark’s skin, stretched on wood; and much it appeared to please an old man, who valued this snuff-stick so highly, that he would not part with it.

The Otaheitans are fond of going to sea, and take great interest in seeing new countries. Mr. Henry said there was no difficulty in getting a crew of natives, for boats or small vessels, provided that a promise was made to bring them back to their own island. From four to six yards of ordinary linen, or cotton cloth, with good provisions, was accounted enough remuneration for the zealous services of an able-bodied active man, during one month.

While we stayed at Otaheite we were supplied with excellent beef, and passably good vegetables; the latter however happened to be scarce. Most of the cattle belonged to the missionaries, who were trying to persuade the natives to rear them, and were beginning to succeed, though the people are fonder of their horses, of which there are a good many on the island, but ill kept and little understood.

Mr. Stokes obtained another account of the murder of the master and mate of the Truro, which says: “The master and mate of the Truro had left the northern end of Aura Island, intending to go to Otaheite; the chief of the northern district having treated them very kindly, and told them to avoid the south end of the island, because bad men lived there.

“The wind would not allow them to keep a sufficient offing; and a small canoe, with only two men, approached their boat with the apparent design of offering fruit for sale; but when near the boat they threw spears with such effect, that the white men were both killed.” I place more confidence in the former account.

The seizure of a ship at Bow Island (barque Newton, of Valparaiso, under Chilian colours, though owned by British subjects), has by some persons been supposed to have been excited by Queen Pomare: but the following statement, from Mr. Middleton, who was pilot on board the ship at the time, gives a very different idea.

The master of that vessel (named Clarke) had employed some natives of Bow Island to dive for pearl oyster-shells on his account; he had agreed to pay them a certain quantity of cloth, and to give them so much provision per month. Repeated ill-treatment, and a miserable supply of provisions (at one time only one cocoa-nut each day, without any thing else), induced the natives to think of deserting him; yet they were unwilling to lose the reward of their labours, which had been very severe. One morning he had agreed to the pilot’s earnest request that the natives should have more food, and had ordered a biscuit a-piece for them! Soon after the pilot, who was charged with the care of the natives, had delivered the biscuits, the master came on deck, affected to deny his orders, snatched the biscuits away from each of them, and threw them overboard! Sullen and fierce looks were exchanged; and the pilot warned Mr. Clarke that the natives would attack him, and take the vessel, if he did not alter his harsh conduct: to which he replied, by defying half a hundred of them!

A few words from the pilot, in their own language, appeased their resentment at the moment, and the brooding storm passed over; but in the course of that day, while Middleton was away getting shells, the master beat a chief. This was an unpardonable affront; they took possession of the vessel; bound all the white people; and carried them on shore.

What extraordinary mildness among savages!

When the pilot returned with his cargo of shells, he saw none of the crew; and at first hesitated to approach. But the natives seeing this, hailed him, saying, that they did not intend to hurt any one; that they were his friends; and had touched none of his things. This he found true. His own cabin was shut up--untouched; though every other place in the ship had been ransacked, and the furniture of the hull torn to pieces. They afterwards allowed the pilot to take the vessel to Otaheite, where she was sold by auction for the benefit of those who had insured her.

Obtaining the pearl oyster-shell is well known to be a difficult and dangerous employment: though the divers at the Paamuto Islands seldom go down deeper than four or five fathoms, they remain at the bottom from one to three minutes, sometimes bringing ten shells at one time to the surface; and during four or five hours they continue this extreme labour. After a long dive, blood gushes from the ears and nose; and the poor diver is quite blind during ten or twenty minutes. He may then be seen squatting on the reef, his head between his knees, and his hands spread over his face--a pitiable object: yet for the small monthly pay of ten or twelve yards of calico, or coarse linen, do those hard-working natives endure such straining exertions!

At some of the islands, a good hatchet or axe will purchase as many shells as would fill a small canoe.

In making their voyages from one island to another, the natives steer by the stars, by the direction of the wind, and the flight of birds; but their ideas of distance are extremely vague. Those who have seen a compass used in a boat esteem it highly. Middleton, who had made many voyages among the Low Islands, in whale-boats manned solely by natives, said that they always expressed astonishment at his predicting the time at which they would arrive at their destination. Sometimes they asked if he could see the land in the compass; more than once they exclaimed, “Ah, you white men! you know every thing! What simpletons we are, notwithstanding all our canoes!” The canoe occupies so much time and labour in constructing, and is so essential to their every purpose, that a fine one is to the natives of any of these islands what a three-decker is to us.

The queen’s letter being finished, and sent to me by her messenger, I will give the translation made for me on the spot by Mr. Pritchard.

“Tahiti, November 26, 1835.
“To the Captain of the ship of war:

“This is what I have to say to you, before you leave us,
respecting the debt. We have 2,338 dollars, which we are now
taking to the person who is to receive this property, who is Mr.
Bicknell. We are now collecting the remainder.

“Peace be with you,
“And with your king, William,
“(Signed) POMARE VAHINE.
“(Witnessed by) HITOTE and TAATI.”

Taking leave of the queen was our next engagement. At the door of her house was a table, on which the loyal and kind-hearted natives were depositing their dollars, and fractions of dollars: to enable her to pay the debt. To me it was an affecting and an unpleasing sight,--not the proofs of loyalty and affection--Heaven forbid!--but the reflection that those individuals had in no way done wrong, and that their dollars had been hardly earned and were highly prized. To show how little a metallic currency was then understood, I may mention that many individuals wished to subscribe fractions, who could not afford a whole dollar; but they were prevented, at first, because the collector knew not how to reckon a fraction of a dollar. Mr. Pritchard easily explained this, and then the smaller coins, (rials, and two rial pieces,) were soon numerous upon the table. Frequently, while walking about the island, men had asked me to give them a dollar in exchange for its value in small coin, which, to their surprise, I was always glad to do, when I had dollars with me.

About Pomare was rather a large assemblage of maids of honour, but their postures and appearance, as they sat about upon the floor, were not the most elegant. The contrast between our own neatly dressed, and well-mannered countrywomen, whom we had just left in the house of Mr. Pritchard, was rather striking as compared with these brown and oily Otaheitans: but our visit was not long, and we tried to make it agreeable. Returning by the beach, we talked for some time with Taati, Utaame, and others. Old Ua was there also, to thank me for some trifles sent to him by one of the queen’s maidens, who had attended her when on board the Beagle; and I was glad to hear that the damsel had executed her commission in a most punctual manner.[10]

They expressed great anxiety about the arrival of another man-of-war, with, perhaps, harsher orders: and were very desirous to know when I should arrive in England, and when they would hear from me. I endeavoured to satisfy them on these points, before Mr. Darwin and I wished them farewell (in the most earnest meaning of the word) and, after taking leave of Mr. Pritchard’s family, embarked. Mare and Mr. Pritchard accompanied us to the vessel, then under sail outside the reefs,--wished us a great deal more happiness than most of us will probably enjoy, and returned with Mr. Henry and the pilot in their own boats. We made all sail, and soon lost sight of this beautiful island.

Easterly winds swept us along a smooth sea for many days, after leaving Otaheite.[11] At daylight on the 3d of December we saw Whylootacke (or Wailutaki) a small group of islets encircled by a coral reef, from four to eight miles in diameter. The principal one is 360 feet high, and nearly four miles long. There was a native missionary upon it, educated at Otaheite. On the 11th a few white tern were seen near the ship, (in lat. 28°. S. and long. 180°.) and as she was about 120 miles from any land then known, this notice may help to show within what limits the sight of those birds may be considered to indicate the vicinity of land. I am not at all surprised that the early voyagers should have taken so much notice of the appearance and flight of birds, when out of sight of land; since in my very short experience I have profited much by observing them, and I am thence led to conclude that land, especially small islands or reefs, has often been discovered in consequence of watching particular kinds of birds, and noticing the direction in which they fly, of an evening, about sunset. Short winged birds, such as shags or boobies, seldom go a hundred miles from land, and generally return to their accustomed roosting place at night; and even those with longer wings which fly farther, do not habitually remain on the wing at night, though they are known to do so sometimes, especially if attracted by a ship, on which, doubtless, they would perch if she were to remain motionless, and her crew were to be quiet for a short time. Mistakes may occur in consequence of floating carcases, trunks of trees, wrecks of vessels, or drifting sea-weed, all which attract birds and afford them rest at night; but, generally speaking, if there is land within fifty miles of a vessel, its existence will be indicated, and the direction in which to look will be pointed out by birds. Decided oceanic fowl, such as albatrosses and all the petrel family, sleep upon the surface of their favourite element; therefore the flight of that description of bird can be no guide whatever, except in the breeding season, when they frequent the vicinity of land.

Until I became aware of these facts, the discovery of the almost innumerable islands in the great ocean of Magalhaens, (erroneously, though now probably for ever called Pacific,) caused great perplexity in my mind. That Easter Island, for instance, such a speck in the expanse, and so far from other land, should have been--not only discovered--but repeatedly visited and successively peopled, by different parties of the human family, seemed extraordinary, but now, connecting the numerous accounts related by voyagers of canoes driven hundreds of miles away from their desired place, with these facts respecting birds, much of the mystery seems unravelled.

Every one is well aware that uncivilized man is more attentive to signs of weather, habits of animals, flight of the feathered tribe, and other visible objects, important to his very existence, than his educated brother,--who often diminishes the perceptive faculties of the mind, while he strengthens the power of reflection and combination.

Before arriving at New Zealand I will add a very brief remark or two about the Navigators, the Friendly, and the Feejee Islands. At the first mentioned, where De Langle and Lamanon were massacred, there is now a prosperous mission established by the exertions of the London Missionary Society, and I hear that a large proportion of the islanders are no longer blood-thirsty savages. At the Friendly Isles much opposition had been encountered, chiefly in consequence of former hostilities brought on by a run-away convict, who excited the natives to murder the first missionaries who went there: and the prejudices then caused are scarcely yet removed. Mariner’s account of the Tonga, or Friendly Islands, is considered by English residents at Otaheite, to be a very accurate one,[12] and is full of interesting information. I obtained a few notices of the Feejee group from the owner of a schooner that was lost there; and as they are comparatively little known, my mite may as well be contributed in this place to the general fund.

The whole group of islands called Feejee, or Fidji, by Europeans, but of which the native name is, I believe, Navihi--is of very dangerous navigation: not only on account of coral reefs, scarcely hidden by a few feet of water, but because the natives are ferocious and treacherous cannibals. My informant[13] said, that the master of his schooner[14] (who was long detained a prisoner among them, his life being spared in hopes of obtaining a large ransom), was an unwilling participator in a cannibal feast on some prisoners of war, taken in an attack on a neighbouring island. That they have an idea of the superiority of white men may be inferred from a message sent previous to this battle, saying, “We shall kill and eat you all--we have seven white men to fight for us!” Although many unfortunate seamen have fallen victims to the thoroughly savage Feejee Islanders, a few whites have not only escaped death, but have established themselves in some authority among the natives. A man known by the name of Charles, was more respected than almost any of their own chieftains, on account of his extraordinary valour: and so highly was he considered by all of them, that he was allowed to have a hundred wives.[15]

No small vessel ought to venture near any of the Feejee islands without being armed, and prepared to act defensively. Boarding nettings, if she has them, should be triced up; and no professions, or appearance of friendship, ought ever to put strangers off their guard. In case of an unavoidable rupture, a chief, the highest in rank that can be secured, should, if possible, be made prisoner--by force if fair means fail; and he should be made to understand that his life depended upon the conduct of his countrymen. Of course no right-minded man would act otherwise than to avoid or prevent any hostilities with ignorant savages, so long as he could do so without risking the lives of his own countrymen; but he must remember that, in hand to hand fighting, a band of fierce savages, armed with a variety of weapons, are more than a match for seamen unused, perhaps, to muskets, and equally awkward with pistols or swords: however brave and determined they may be, if dispersed, as usually happens, they are sure to be by far the greatest sufferers. I here allude to those savages who are really warriors. At some islands, and other places, they are comparatively timid, though seldom less treacherous.

Remarking on the criticisms of such as have animadverted on officers who found themselves obliged to take harsh measures in self-defence--La Pérouse, whose humanity and good sense not one individual among the nations who regret his untimely loss, ever questioned, says, “I am, however, a thousand times more angry with the philosophers who extol the savages, than with the savages themselves. The unfortunate Lamanon, whom they massacred, told me the very evening before his death, that the Indians (meaning the natives of the Navigator Islands) were worthier people than ourselves!

“Observing rigidly the orders I have received, I have always treated them with the greatest mildness; but I confess to you, that if I were to undertake another voyage of the same kind, I would demand different orders.

“A navigator, on quitting Europe, ought to consider the savages as enemies, very weak indeed, and whom it would be ungenerous to attack and barbarous to destroy, but whose assaults he has a right to prevent when authorised to do so by well-grounded suspicions.”--Voyage of La Pérouse, vol. iii. p. 413.

When a vessel approaches the Feejee Islands, numberless canoes put off, and soon surround her so closely, that unless the wind is pretty fresh, she is placed in no slight jeopardy. At such a time the principal chief ought to be invited on board; and presents should be given to him, while he is made to understand that it is necessary he should order the canoes to keep off. His commands will be implicitly obeyed; and while he is on board, and well treated, there will be less risk; but he must not be relied on implicitly.

Some of the canoes are very long, from sixty to eighty feet in length: and when two such are fastened together, with a light structure erected upon them, the men who stand on their raised deck are above the level of a small vessel’s bulwark.[16]

At the time that Mr. Clark was a prisoner among them, a musket was considered to be a fair ransom for a white man; and (perhaps fortunately for him) they had then an idea that the flesh of white men was not wholesome.

They have many articles of trade, such as shells, tortoise-shell, coral, spermaceti, whales’ teeth, ‘bicho de mar,’ mats of exquisite workmanship, fruit, and provisions: among the latter are pigs and ‘iguanas.’ Excepting a great alligator, the Feejee men never saw an animal on their island larger than a dog or a pig. The monster just mentioned made its appearance on the island Pau, the largest of the group, some years ago, to the extreme consternation of the natives, who thought it was a sea-god. After destroying nine people, at different times, the ‘enormous lizard,’ as they called it, was caught by a strong noose passed over the bough of a large tree, the other end of the rope being held at a distance by fourteen men, who lay concealed, while a daring old man offered himself as a bait to entice the brute to run into the snare.[17]

Mr. Mariner supposed that this alligator, or crocodile, had made its way from the East Indies; a curious instance of the manner in which occasional migrations take place. On an island in that neighbourhood, called Lotooma, Mariner heard of two enormous bones, not at all like any human bones, nor resembling those of a whale. The natives of the island have a tradition that they belonged to a giant, who was killed in former ages by the united attack of all the population.[18]

On the 16th of December indications of a westerly wind appeared; and for the next three days we were buffeted by a hard gale from south-west to south-east. This was the more annoying on account of the chronometer measurement, because it was accompanied by a sudden change of temperature, which I thought would alter their rates. During the twenty-four hours previous to this southerly gale commencing, we found the current setting northward, about a mile an hour; but after the hardest part of the gale was over, it set to the south-west, at about the same rate.

Both before and during these three days, I was struck by the precise similarity of the clouds, sky, peculiarities of wind, and weather, to what we had been accustomed to meet with off the coast of Patagonia: and I may here remark that, throughout the southern hemisphere, the weather, and the turn or succession of winds, as well as their nature and prognostications, are remarkably uniform.

On the 19th we made the northern hills of New Zealand; but tantalized still by adverse winds, all the next day was spent in beating to windward, and not till the 21st could we succeed in obtaining access to the Bay of Islands.

We were all a good deal disappointed by the view. After Otaheite, the northern part of New Zealand had, to our eyes, a very ordinary appearance.

FOOTNOTES:

[1] Very good--beautiful.

[2] The original letters, in the hand-writing of Mare and Paofai, are in my possession.

[3] Cook says--“Great injustice has been done the women of Otaheite, and the Society Isles. The favours of married women, and also the unmarried of the better sort are as difficult to be obtained here, as in any other country whatever. I must, however, allow, that they are all completely versed in the art of coquetry, and that very few of them fix any bounds to their conversation. It is therefore no wonder that they have obtained the character of libertines.”

In the excellent descriptions of Turnbull, we read:--“Much has been said as to the licentiousness and loose conduct of the women. It is but justice to say, that I saw nothing of this. Their ideas of decency are doubtless very different from ours; they must be judged therefore by a very different standard.”

[4] Or cava, their word for intoxicating liquor of any kind.

[5] I was surprised, when I first arrived at Otaheite, by finding that none of the natives who came on board would touch spirits; and that they would drink but very little wine. Afterwards, however, one chief was noticed who seemed differently disposed.

[6] From enquiries made among the missionaries and natives, I convinced myself of this startling fact.

[7] The very best things for fattening turkeys.

[8] Cocoa-nut milk makes an indelible black stain, and is sometimes used for dyeing.

[9] The root of the Ti plant is sweet, like sugar cane of indifferent quality. Molasses has been made from it.

[10] She was his grand-daughter.

[11] We sailed with the land breeze, which at Otaheite is so regular that a ship might sail round the island (in successive nights) with the wind always a-beam, and off the land!

[12] Among a variety of very curious facts mentioned by Mariner, one may be noticed here, because I shall have to refer to it in a future page. I mean the rat shooting practised by the chiefs as an amusement.

[13] Mr. Green, of Valparaiso.

[14] ‘The Terrible;’ Clark, master.

[15] Only chieftains of note are able to maintain many wives: very few had so large a number as that man: scarcely any had more.

[16] Heaps of stones form not only ballast but ammunition for these formidable canoes. Indeed, among all savage nations, a stone held in the hand, or thrown, perhaps from a sling, is a common, and by no means despicable weapon. These easily collected missiles, and the manner of using them, recal to mind the victory gained by the English fleet over that of France, off Sluys, on the 22d of June 1340; in which “though the battle was fought on the sea, it could scarcely be called maritime; for little depended on the accidents of winds and waves, or on the skill of a commander in availing himself of them. Piles of stones on the deck formed a part of the magazines. The archers of both nations used their crossbows as if they had been on land. They employed grappling irons for boarding, and came to such close quarters as to exhibit a succession of single combats.”--Mackintosh, vol. i. p. 294.

[17] A feat hardly surpassed by Mr. Waterton.--Mariner’s Tonga Islands, vol. i. pp. 268, 269, 270, in Constable’s Miscellany, vol. xiii.

[18] Ibid. vol. i. p. 262.