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 Jottings from the Pacific, No. 3. 
 
 TWO CANNIBAL 
 
 ARCHIPELAGOES, 
 
 NHW HEBRIDES AND SOLOMON GROUPS. 
 
 BY EA\MA H. ADAMS, 
 
 Aulliui ul "Fiji and Snmoa," "Ti'inja Islands and Other 
 Gii^nips," " Amoni; liie Nuitlu'in 
 Icebergs," Etc. 
 
 PACI1-"IC PRI'SS ri'BLISIIIxr. CO., 
 
 OAKLAND, CAT,. 
 
 San Francisco, New York ami Lou<lon.
 
 Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1890, by 
 
 Pacific Press Puhlisiiing Company, 
 
 In the Office of tlie Librarian of Cont^ress, at Washington, I). C.
 
 X^KJ< 
 
 A ?l 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. . 
 
 Page. 
 
 Our Brothers in the New Hebrides - - - - 9 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Teacliing, Preaching, and Martyrdom - - - - 25 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 A Brief Run about Fate 39 
 
 " CHAPTER IV. 
 
 Still Sailing— Aneitium, Aniwa, Fotuna - - - - 5S 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Api, Anibryni, Espiritu Santo 71 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 The Great Volcano on Tanna 81 
 
 I CHAPTER VII. 
 
 3 Away to the Solomon Islands 93 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 9 The Island of Guadalcanar 105 
 
 O 
 
 ^ CHAPTER IX. 
 
 ■* Island of New Georgia — The Rubiana Lagoon - - 116 
 CHAPTER X. 
 Bougainville, the Shortlands, and Treasury Island - 126 
 
 f 
 
 " 441040
 
 Vlll CONTENTS. 
 
 m 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 In Bougainville Strait - 138 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 St. Christoval and the Taboo-houses of the Solomon 
 
 Archipelago - 148 
 
 ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 Page. 
 
 Canoe-house - - - - - - * Frontispiece 
 
 Mission Premises --------43 
 
 Mission Chapel -------- 4^ 
 
 A Village under Heatlienisni - - - - - 90 
 
 The Same under Christianity ----- gi
 
 JOTTINGS FROM THE PACIFIC. 
 
 7^0 (?ar)r)ibal /^pcl)ip^la^o^s. 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 OUR BROTHERS IX THE NEW HEBRIDES. 
 
 vOM K two months ago the reader 
 and the author of this Httle vol- 
 ^ lime were studying the won- 
 derful stone images on Easter 
 Island, which lies in what is 
 *J^ known as Humboldt's Cold 
 TjM, Current, twent}'-three huntlred 
 miles west of Chile, South 
 America. From that little pearl in the Pacific to 
 the Solomon Archipelago, which adorns the ocean 
 some five hundred miles east of New Guinea, is a 
 long distance. We propose to make the trip, how- 
 ever, and shall again be glad of x'our compan)'. 
 But having accomplished it, we shall be farther 
 than ever from the California coast. .\s nou are 
 aware, the journey will in\-ol\e several changes of 
 craft. The last change will be made at Gloa Bay, 
 island of Kand.uu, k'iji. 
 
 I'rom k'iji tt) the Solomon Isles our course will 
 
 (9)
 
 lO TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPEI.AGOES. 
 
 be toward the northwest. The route hes directly 
 through the New Hebrides, a group of islands in 
 which, for several reasons, we have been great!}- in- 
 terested. It best meets the object we have in \iew 
 to be set down uponTanna, the southernmost large 
 island of the group except Ancitium. To call 
 there will compel our captain to depart considera- 
 bly from his course, but he delights to be obliging, 
 and we may, therefore, conclude that we shall enter 
 the New Hebrides at Tanna. Our object is not 
 only to see these beautiful islands, but also to learn 
 how their so recently cannibalistic inhabitants live. 
 
 A week's sailing, n)'ing along before the brisk 
 trade wind, will show us Tanna rising grandly out 
 of the sea. While we are speeding on our way, we 
 can take time to gain some general facts pertaining 
 to the group. 
 
 Speaking not xcr)- exactly, the New Hebrides 
 lie between five and six hundred miles west of Fiji. 
 They form a chain of twelve large islands, with some 
 twenty smaller ones scattered about irregularly, as 
 if the hand which dropped them were not x'cry par- 
 ticular just where the little gems might fill. The 
 archi[)eiago extends from southeast to northwest, a 
 distance of o\er six hundred miles, and in remarka- 
 bly regular order as to the larger islands. The best 
 known of the group are Api, Efate, Tanna, Am- 
 br\'m, Santa Cruz, Aneitium, Erromanga, and Es- 
 piritu .Santo. 
 
 The total area of the New Hebrides is about
 
 OUR BROTHERS IM THE NEW HEBRIDES. II 
 
 thirty-five hundred square miles. Nearly three 
 hundred years ago, De Quires, a bold Spanish sailor, 
 discovered Espiritu Santo, the largest, and to-day 
 least known, of the group, and described it as a 
 country "rich in gold, sil\cr, and fragrant trees." 
 In 1777, nearl)' two hundred }-ears after De Quiros, 
 came Captain Cook, who discovered ICfate or Fate, 
 as it is usuall)' written. U[)on this beautiful island 
 he bestowed the ra.sping name of Sandwich, because 
 a man of that name was then lord of the English 
 Board of Admiralty. Efate is the fourth large 
 islantl from the southern end of the Xew Hebrides. 
 The names of other islands, as Santa Cruz, I^spiritu 
 Santo, and perhajjs W'hitsun (Whitsuntide), intlicate 
 that the acKenturous S[)aniar(ls ha\c visited the 
 group since De Quiros' da)'. 
 
 The total poi)ulati(>n of the Xew Hebrides is es- 
 timateil to be nearly two hundred and fift)' thousand. 
 The Spaniards represented the islands as fiirls' 
 teeming with people when discovered by them. The 
 inhabitants arc reported to be now rapidly d}ing off 
 This is but a repetition of the melancholy stor)' 
 which we ha\e heard throughout all Polynesia. 
 Tribal wars, the introduction of new and fatal dis- 
 eases, and the prevailing labor traffic of the Pacific, 
 are the three causes assigned for the large death 
 rate in the New I lebrides. The possession of modern 
 fire-arms may be given as a fourth reason for their 
 thinned ranks. A Snider rifle and a revolver loadetl 
 with six bullets are more effecti\e weapons for de-
 
 12 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 stroying people than are a single bow and a quiver 
 of arrows. 
 
 Fifty )'ears ago the inhabitants of the New Heb- 
 rides were all greedy cannibals, and from that time 
 to the present they have banqueted more or less 
 upon human flesh. However, on some of the isl- 
 ands missionary influence has greatly modified the 
 horrible practice. Still, if all the tales we have 
 heard are true, before the appetite for human flesh 
 will cease, more than one generation of the Heb- 
 rideans must pass away. 
 
 In form of government the New Hebrides are in- 
 dependent, not being a colonial possession of any 
 countiy. Neither are they ruled by a native king, 
 as are the Tongan and Samoan groups. Many of 
 the tribes are governed by their own chieftains, who 
 are either hereditary rulers, or have acquired au- 
 thority by their own prowess. For some years past 
 France and England have been rivals in their ef- 
 forts to obtain supremac)' in this group. France 
 has been anxious to anne.x the islands to her penal 
 colony. New Caledonia, and, through the New Heb- 
 rides Conimercial Conip.un', has put forth great 
 endeavors to secure a business foothold on several 
 of them. She regards this as the most effectixe 
 step toward political control. On these islands the 
 New Hebrides Company has established large 
 houses f )r the manufacture of copra, and thus has 
 developed the only trade with the outside world 
 which the)' now possess. This is confined to the
 
 OUR BROTHERS IX THE NEW HEBRIDES. 1 3 
 
 exportation of copra aiul arrowroot, the manufact- 
 ure of whicli forms the chief pursuit of the people. 
 In exchanije for these articles the natives obtain the 
 tobacco which they so much prize, and the few 
 other simple articles they require. 
 
 England has gained her strength in the islands in 
 quite another way. Nearly half a century ago, 
 English missionaries from Nov^a Scotia began to 
 labor in the group. Step by step they have ac- 
 quired other influence than that of mere religious 
 teachers. While probably not at all aiming at a 
 union of Church and State, or at the exercise of buth 
 civil and religious authority, they have naturally 
 taken a lively interest in whatever concerns the wel- 
 fare of the people — simply wild children of nature 
 — under their charge. Consequently they care 
 much which nation gets the upper hand in the 
 group. Fortunately for their hoj)cs, the mission 
 stations of the Nova Scotians are as numerous as 
 are the copra establishments of the French. Ikit 
 while the latter apjjear lo lea\e the teachers wholly- 
 undisturbed in their work, the missionaries cxteiul 
 no welcome to the Franks, lest the tloing so should 
 invite Romish priests — the Marist Fathers — to the 
 field. 
 
 Meanwhile, vigorous annexation schemes are 
 brewing in both countries, and each is plaxing for 
 the good-will of the nati\es. Not long ago a test 
 of the annexation sentiment was matle on se\-eral 
 of the principal islands, through an emissary sent
 
 14 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 thither lis a representative of an Austrahan news- 
 paper. He was a man of \ery pleasing address, 
 and an accompHshed diplomat. We cannot here 
 enter into the details of his mission. Let it suffice 
 to say that he managed to have the leading chiefs 
 called together at various points, and then explained 
 to them the situation of affairs in the islands, with 
 resj^ect to France and England, and invited them to 
 express their preferences in the case. 
 
 As he hoped, probably, almost to a man they 
 preferred the sovereignty of "Big Lady" — Queen 
 Victoria — to the sway of the polite "Man-a-wce- 
 wee" — the man who says " oui, oui" — meaning the 
 president of the French. As a matter of course, the 
 envoy returned to Australia firmly convinced that a 
 closer union of the New Hebrides with Her Majes- 
 ty's colonial possessions in the South Pacific would 
 be a very good thing for the former. Thus matters 
 now stand, both nations continuing to respect the in- 
 cic[)cndence of the islands. Meanwhile, on several c;f 
 the group, the natives improve opportunities of kill- 
 ing and eating their fellow-men, whether white or 
 colored. 
 
 In structure, the New Hebrides are both vol- 
 canic and coralline. Living volcanoes exist on Api, 
 Tanna, and perhaps other islands of the group. 
 Lieutenant Meade, of the Ro\al Navy, who was at 
 Api in 1861, claims that there are no true barrier 
 reefs in the New Hebrides, all the labor of the busy 
 coral insect beint?; devoted to buildinLf narrow fring-
 
 OUR BROTHERS IX Till-: NKW IIKBRIDES. 1 5 
 
 ing reefs. A distinj^uishing feature of these reefs is 
 their extreme flatness. This indicates that, in the 
 New Hebrides, at least, the httlc toilers build, not 
 upward, as in most portions of the Pacific, but out- 
 ward into the water. This course is supposed to be 
 owing to the shallowness of the water over the 
 foundations upon which they rear their wonderful 
 structures. In the xolume entitled "I'iji and Sa- 
 moa," a chapter is devoted to the work of these 
 curious architects, therefore it need not here be 
 considered. W'e may refer to it incidentalK', as we 
 write of the separate islands. 
 
 "How does Tanna look?" is a question }-ou have 
 asked frequently during our long voyage. Your 
 query may now be answered, for the land which 
 you sec a little to the southwest of us is Tanna. 
 Mark how its mountains lift their heads. The 
 great mass of earth, and stone, and trees seems to 
 rest only upon water, so directl}' does the island 
 rise from the surface of the ocean. The whole isl- 
 and, you observe, seems to be girdled w ith foam. 
 That column of smoke curling upward over a sin- 
 gle cone issues from Tanna's great volcano, 
 Yasur. Were we approaching the island by night, 
 the lurid light of Yasur, reflected against the sky, 
 would, in a sense, render both chart and c<»mpass 
 useless. The vivid glow would tell us where we 
 are. Should this obliging breeze continue, we shall 
 soon learn w hether there is much to admire in the 
 Tannese branch of our race.
 
 l6 TWO CANNIHAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 Happily the sun is still in the east. Notice how 
 it lights up the deep ravines and gorges, how it 
 brings out the wa\ ing palms, liow it re\'eals the 
 wealth of vegetation over the liills and in the val- 
 leys. We are somewhat familiar with the forest gar- 
 niture of the Pacific, yet in Melanesia we shall find 
 some new and strange vines and trees. 
 
 It has been said that Tanna contains scarcely a 
 mile of sandy beach which has not been stained 
 with the blood of \\hite men slain b\' its inhabitants. 
 Man}- of them have been killed solely to be eaten, 
 and a few of them because they became great fa- 
 vorites of the dusk}' natives, who could not bear to 
 see them sail out of their sight forever. All such 
 persons they kindl}- buried, and in due form mourned 
 over them. Let us hope we shall escape the af- 
 fection which can find satisfaction only in taking our 
 lives. Our captain asserts that more white men 
 have lost their lives on Tanna than on any other 
 island of the South Pacific. This is a strong state- 
 ment, which we ha\c no means of verif}ing. 
 
 Mr. Julian Thomas, who, with e\er}' ficulty wide- 
 awake, s[)ent some weeks upon the island in 1885, 
 thus wrote of the savage Tamiese. We gi\e but 
 the substance of his words: Plantations had to be 
 given up, trading and missionary stations had to be 
 abandoned, on account of the ferocity of the peo- 
 ple. Captain McLeod had, at onetime, a plantation 
 near l-51ack Heath. He ^\cll understood the ways 
 of the natives. Being obstinate and courageous,
 
 OUR BROTHERS IN THE NEW HEBRIDES. IJ 
 
 he was not easily frightened, yet the Tannese were 
 too much for him. lioth himself an^ his hands 
 carried rifles as they went to plow, to frighten the 
 natives. Otherwise the latter would have over- 
 powered them by sheer force of numbers. The 
 life finally became too perilous, and he gave it up. 
 In those days the Tannese were di\ided into scores 
 of small tribes. They were jealous, revengeful, 
 lovers of blood, always quarreling, and had less 
 regard for human life than any other people of the 
 South Pacific. I'.ach tribe gave all the others credit 
 for being cannibals. 
 
 But here we are trjing to twist into Port Resolu- 
 tion. It was in the good ship Resolution that Cap- 
 tain Cook cruised over all these seas one hundred 
 and thirteen j'cars ago. You now perceive how 
 this harbor got its name. The captain brought his 
 ship into this port — eas)- of entrance then — and gave 
 the place the name of the vessel in which he made 
 the circuit of the world. 
 
 In 1878 a great earthquake occurred in this re- 
 gion, which was followed by a might)' tidal wave. 
 The shore of Tanna was then uplifted, as were also 
 the rocks on one sitle of the passage leading into 
 this harbor. These were once wholly submerged, 
 but now they stantl from fort\' to fifty feet out of 
 the water. A san<i bar then began to form, and 
 ever)' )'ear the entrance to Port Resolution becomes 
 more difficult. That earthquake is said to ha\c" 
 been caused by an unusu.il cjuietness on the part of 
 2
 
 l8 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 YasLir, which is supposed to act as a vent to fires in 
 tile licart fif the earth. If so, some future shunber- 
 ing of the volcano ma)- close the harbor altogether. 
 
 Port Resolution is very unlike the noble harbor 
 of Vanua-Levu, Fiji, yet it is an attractive anchorage. 
 It is in the form of a half-circle. The ricli vegeta- 
 tion of the island crowds down to the very edge of 
 the water. Beyond this rise the graceful hills. 
 Hut o\er the entire scene spreads the smoke of Va- 
 sur, itself an object of interest to every visitor to 
 the group. As we glide in and come to anchor, 
 canoes dart out from the shore on each side. There 
 are rifles in every one of them. That means that 
 the natives know how to use fire-arms as well as 
 oars, and will use them should occasion arise. The 
 men are naked except a baiul aljout the loins. The 
 paint on their faces adds to their savage aspect. 
 Some of the canoes swept out from the little village 
 just below the mission premises, which appear amid 
 the green trees. " Many of the men," the captain re- 
 marks, "have worked in Fiji and Australia, and are 
 regarded as among the best laborers of the south 
 seas." 
 
 But wh}- does e\ery man come with his rifle 
 loaded? We can think of but two reasons for the 
 ste[). h'irst, the labor-recruiting business, carried ( )n 
 extensively in these seas, is not alwa\'s conducted 
 strictl}' in accordance with the principles of the 
 golden rule. In the estimation of some recruit- 
 ing agents, the lives of these men are of no account
 
 OUR liROTHERS IN THE NEW HEBRIDES. I9 
 
 beyond their mere nionc}- \ aluc. For this reason it 
 has sometimes been necessary for them to defend 
 themselves. Formerly they had not the means to 
 do so. But now, with a rifle in his hand, the Tanna 
 man is protected. Second, these laborers are usually 
 emploxx'd for a term of three years. That lcni:[th of 
 time, under the circumstances, is hardly sufficient 
 to chan<^e their sa\age nature, e\cn if it h.as been 
 spent in Queensland, or in beautiful I'iji, itself now 
 barely emerged from cannibalism. No sooner, 
 therefore, do they return to their native shores than 
 most of them resume their heathen customs and 
 their tribal dislikes. Their old feuds are revived, 
 and again their fire-arms become useful to them. A 
 Snider rifle, therefore, is an article the Tannese la- 
 borer is sure to possess on comi)lcting liis term of 
 service. Moreover, a Tanna man is by nature a 
 fighter. It is a pleasure to him to snuff out human 
 lives. That has been iiis pastime for centuries. 
 
 But we ha\e stra)ed from Port Resolution. A 
 half dozen native villages grace the curving shore. 
 We make our landing in the morning, meeting with 
 no such welcome as upon some islands in the Her- 
 vey group. The men gather about, armed with 
 rifle and cartridge-box, and gaze at us wonderingly. 
 Even young lads have weajions in their hands. The 
 women, who watch us silently, are motlestly clad in 
 skirts of grass, thickly woven, and reaching to the 
 ankles. They are heavy-looking garments, and 
 must impede walking. Those worn by the young
 
 20 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 girls are shorter and more comfortable. Of these 
 people a traveler has written : They impress me as 
 persons whose chests are contracted. Even the 
 youth and boys have a consumptive look. One very 
 decent-looking man, a striking exception to all tlie 
 others, came on board our vessel, desiring to ship 
 to Noumea. Both he and his wife had served 
 in Queensland. The latter was now very ill, and 
 wished to li\e where better food could be obtained. 
 After the excellent fare in the colonies, neither of 
 them could subsist solely on yams and taro. The 
 man was engaged by the captain, at three pounds a 
 month, and a passage for his wife to Noumea. 
 
 The domestic animals in Tanna are the cat, dog, 
 and pig. The natives are not only kind to these 
 creatures, but arc ver)- fond of ihcm. Next to hu- 
 man llcsh, i)ork is the Tanna man's choice of meats. 
 Dog flesh follows, and he has no objection to that 
 of "i)ussi," the ranncsc name for cat. The native 
 women tend pigs as fondly as they do babies. 
 Cats and dogs also are petted and nursed by them. 
 Some time ago the trader who owns this dilapi- 
 dated dwelling which we thought looked so prett)- 
 from the deck of the vessel, j^aid ten cocoanuts for 
 a "pussi." Immediately there ensued a iiot dispute 
 between his four "hantls" as to which should have 
 guardianship over the little (luailruped. To settle 
 the matter "pussi" was deli\eretl to the cook, a 
 woman whose homeliness was fearful, but whose 
 tenderness of heart led her to sleep every night
 
 OL'K UKOTHKKS IN TIIK NKW HEBRIDES. 2 1 
 
 with the furry treasure in her arnis. Afterward 
 each of the four youn<^ men became the owner of a 
 kitten, of the bright qualities of which they were as 
 proud as are mothers of their babies. 
 
 None of these youni; nun were Tanncse, but 
 were from other islands of the group. Their em- 
 phn'cr was an unusually kind master, and they 
 were remarkably faithful laborers. They were 
 working out their first three )ears in a copra- 
 making establishment, and did their work well, 
 willingly, and obligingl)-. They were ne\er over- 
 worked, were plentifully fed on jams and taro, 
 their native diet, and were also supplied with rice, for 
 its strength-giving quality. Moreover, working as 
 they did all d.iy among the cocoanuts, hunger was 
 out of the (piestion, as, also, was thirst, since the 
 thousands of ct)Coanuts broken b\- them furnislud 
 an abundance of delicious drink. It lueil h.irdly 
 be remarked that these young men seldom drank 
 other beverages. It occurs to us that making 
 copra must be moral!)' a much more wholes(»me 
 occupation than brewing beer or distilling uhiskw 
 
 Copra is saitl to be the only article exported 
 from Tanna, except sulphur, which is shi|)peil in 
 limited quantities from the deposits around the 
 volcano. An energetic laborer can jjrepare one 
 ton of copra in a month. Copra manufacture is a 
 profitable cmploNiiunt, if the trader be steady and 
 enterprising. But the life a white man li\es on 
 any of these wikl iskuuls is most unen\iable.
 
 22 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 Fevers are ever on the watch to make him their 
 victim, and the natives are on the alert to do the 
 same thing. A deadly weapon must be his con- 
 stant companion. Sometimes he does not meet a 
 w^hite person for months. Unless he guards him- 
 self ceaselessly, constant trading with his inferiors 
 hardens his nature. His only compensations are 
 the money he makes and the easy life he leads. 
 
 In the little volume on Fiji and Samoa will be 
 found a description of copra, its manufacture, uses, 
 and markets, and we take space here only to say 
 that copra is simply dried cocoanut, and that from 
 copra is manufactured a lubricating oil which is a 
 valuabje article of commerce. The drj-ing of the 
 cocoanut is effected in two ways. The usual 
 mode is to remove the husk, break the nut in 
 halves, throw out the water, and place the halves in 
 the sun to dry. If the weather be favorable, the 
 process is accomplished in three days, but each 
 night the fruit must be placed under shelter. A 
 better method is to dry the nut without breaking, 
 stacking them in sheds erected for the purpose, and 
 upon a staging raised slightly above the ground, 
 to prevent their growing. In three months the 
 milk will be evaporated and the nut will then keep 
 forever, in an\' climate. 
 
 We append an abbreviated sketch, from another 
 pen, of a )-oung Norwegian who, not long ago, set- 
 tled upon Tanna, to trade in copra. We fear tiiat 
 not all t)f his class have been blessed with so excel-
 
 OUR BROTHERS IN THE NEW HEBRIDES 27 
 
 lent an carl)- training. " The young man was twenty- 
 five, perhaps. He had first been a sailor, and then 
 the mate of a Norwegian ship. Four years before he 
 came to Tanna he had been laid up for weeks in a 
 hospital at Sydney, having been injured on board 
 his ship. Thence he drifted to New Caledonia, 
 where he became the mate of a vessel, and en- 
 gaged in the labor traffic of the Western Pacific. 
 Finally he settled upon Tanna. 
 
 " He was a handsome Norwegian, well-bred, and 
 had been carefully nurtured by a Christian mother. 
 One would hardly have expected to find a Bible 
 and a prayer book in the home of a bachelor copra 
 trader, yet here they were, near the cot on which 
 he slept. He often talked of his early home in 
 the valley near Christiania, of the merry winter 
 evenings spent in the country homes, and of the 
 long sleigh rides homeward. The young man was 
 just in his dealings with the natives, and for his 
 soul's sake I hoped he would continue to be so, 
 aiul that the desire for profit woukl not enter his 
 heart, tempting him to pay less for cocoanuts, and 
 thus opening the way for fiery disputes and a bullet 
 through his brain." 
 
 Now it is night. Every detail of the landscape 
 on Tanna is hidden from our view. The hills, 
 vales, and palm groves are toned down to an e\en, 
 dull green. Xow turn your CN^es towartl \'asui. 
 Its curling column of smoke glows like fire, not 
 steadily, but fitfully, like the variable stars in the
 
 24 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 heavens, now blazing brilliantly, and again gleam- 
 ing softly for a while. You hear a muffled explo- 
 sion in its profound depths. A suppressed roar 
 follows. Then into the air leap flames and red-hot 
 stones. The latter usually drop back heavily into 
 the fiery crater. 
 
 The sight is magnificent, and never to be for- 
 gotten. Were we in the direction from which the 
 wind blows, we should perceive a strong odor of 
 sulphur, and not unlikely should be .sprinkled 
 thickly with fine ashes. One has the feeling that 
 here the earth has not cooled off to so f^reat a 
 depth as in our chillier latitude, and not very great 
 would be our surprise should the crust open and 
 let us drop into the fiery abyss from which come 
 the hot stones. We are thankful that a grand 
 safety-valve, like Yasur, exists in the New Heb- 
 rides.
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 TEACHING, PREACHING, AND MARTYRDOM. 
 
 I IK year 1839 witnessed the first attempt to 
 carry the gospel to the New Hebrides. 
 The effort was made by the Rev. John 
 Williams, whom the missionaries of the south seas 
 delight to call the "Apostle of Polynesia." Mr. 
 Williams wished to locate a mission station on the 
 island of Erromanga, the first large island north of 
 Tanna. Its inhabitants were cannibals of the most 
 ferocious type, and had been guilty of the greatest 
 atrocities toward white men. Of these flagrant 
 deeds Mr. Williams was well informed, but he be- 
 lieved that the truth of God had power to change 
 the savage Tannese into men of peace. He had 
 witnessed its effects on lovely Rarotonga. He had 
 seen its triumphs among the gentle Samoans, and 
 these successes had set his heart ablaze with desire 
 to carry that truth to all Polynesia. 
 
 Mr. Williams paid a visit to luigland. Tiiere he 
 published a book entitled " Missionary iMiteq^rises 
 in the South Seas." Great was the sensation cre- 
 ated by the work. An innnense number of copies 
 were sold. Titled people, high ecclesiastics, and 
 the rank and file of the church read it. During 
 
 (25)
 
 26 TWO CANNIKAL AKCIIII'KLAGOES. 
 
 this visit ICnj^dand honored Mr. WilHams a,s a most 
 worthy son. In time he sailed attain for Polynesia, 
 bearini; the contributions, and followed by the 
 prayers, of his many friends. Reaching his former 
 field, lie immediately planned a trip to the New 
 Hebrides, saying. "I cannot content myself within 
 a single coral reef" 
 
 Therefore, accompanied b}- twelve native teach- 
 ers, he sailed for this group in 1839. As the Cam- 
 den — the vessel on which they were passengers — 
 approached the islands, Mr. Williams became very^ 
 solicitous as to whether the natives would recei\e 
 tlicni kindly. The captain first touched at r\)tuna. 
 an island at the southern extremity of the New 
 Hebrides, a mass of rock fifteen miles in circum- 
 ference and towering two thousand feet above the 
 sea. Fotuna appeared to be a healthy spot, and the 
 inhabitants were friendly. They were the descend- 
 ants of a canoeful of people, who, generations be- 
 fore, had drifted in a storm from distant Tonga. 
 The island then seemed to offer no facilties for set- 
 tling his teachers, but it was occupied three years 
 later, as we shall see further on in this narrative. 
 
 It was thought tiiat Tanna i)r<)mised a better 
 field. Therefore, the little party came on north, 
 and soon sailed into Port Resolution. The chief; 
 whom they met, promisetl protection to the Samoan 
 teachers, and three of them were left to begin the 
 great work of making Christ and his mission 
 known to the man-eating Tannese. Mr. Williams
 
 TEACHING, rKEACIIINT,, AM) MAKTVKDOM. 2/ 
 
 then passed on to Mnonian^M. On No\cmbcr 29, 
 1839, he landed at Dillon Ha)-, acconijxiincd by 
 Captain Morc^an, a Mr. Cunniiv^hani, and a j'oung 
 man named Harris, who was thinkin<^ serious!}- of 
 giving his hfe to missionar)- w<iik. 
 
 A number of natives met tiiem at the shore, and 
 appeared to welcome them. Unwisel}', the gentle- 
 men started to accompany them inland. The)' had 
 proceeded but a little distance when, suddenK". their 
 dusky attendants showed unmistakable signs of 
 hostility. Instanth' the strangers sought their 
 boats. The captain and Mr. Cunningham being 
 nearest the shore, reached theirs, but (juickl)- Mr. 
 Harris received a terrific blow, and fell into the little 
 stream they were ascending, and thus ga\e liis life 
 to the cause of missions. Mr. Williams gained the 
 shore, but was laid prostrate by a club before he 
 could enter his boat. The captain and Mr. Cun- 
 ningham pulled for their lives, but saw both the 
 fallen men put to death, and their bodies hurrietlly 
 dragged out of sight. It was supposed they fur- 
 nished a feast for the rapacious natives. I'poii the 
 return of the Camden to .S.imoa, great was the lam- 
 entation over the tieath of Mr. Williams. Through- 
 out the group was heard the thrilling lament. itioii : 
 "Aue Williams! aue tawal" Alas. W'illiamsl alas, 
 our father! 
 
 NotuithslaiKJing. those contlucling the mission 
 at Samoa immediately resolved to repe.it the attempt 
 to carr\' the gospel to the cruel ICrromangans. The
 
 25 . TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 Rev. Mr. Heath offered to raise the fallen standard, 
 provided, should he too perish, another of their 
 number would follow and hold aloft the colors. 
 Six months after Mr. Williams was slain, Mr. Heath 
 landed upon the island with two heroic Samoan 
 teachers, who at once began teaching the New 
 Testament to the fierce natives. A year afterward 
 — 1 84 1 — the English mission ship called at Erro- 
 manga on her way to Britain. On board was the 
 wife of the lamented Williams, returning to her 
 home. The ca})tain found the Samoan teachers 
 alixe, indeed, but they hatl endured sufferings and 
 hardshi[)s almost incredible. The)' were compas- 
 sionately removed from the scene of their harrow- 
 ing trials. 
 
 The grievous <iews of Mr. Williams' tlc.ilh having 
 reached England, the London Missionary Society 
 resolved to attempt to plant a mission station on the 
 spot Avhere he was slain. Two C(^urageous young 
 men, named Nisbct and Tinner, with their equally 
 heroic wives, offered to uiulertake the dangerous 
 work. June, 1842. found them at Port Resolution, 
 where both the chiefs and the connnon people gave 
 them an api)arently liospitaiile reception. Here, 
 through .seven wretched months, the little party did 
 their utmost to conciliate the Tannese, but their 
 perils multiplied daily. Einally, at midnight, they 
 were forced to flee for safety to an open boat, and 
 to put out into this bay which we now overlook. But 
 for some reason the\' were compelled to return to
 
 TEACHING, PREACHING, AND MAKTVKDOM. 29 
 
 the sliore, at the risk of their Hves. Importunately, a 
 trading vessel came into the harbor tiie next day, 
 and on it they took passage for Samoa, not having 
 touched the shore of Krromanga. Thus, for a 
 number of years, ceased all endeavor to erect the 
 standartl of the gospel on either Tanna or Krro- 
 manga 
 
 Ann nail)', however, the Loiuion Missionary So- 
 ciety's ship sailed throUL;!! the New Ilebriiles, 
 watching for an opportunit\- to place teachers upon 
 the islands, and silently exerting a civilizing inllu- 
 ence upon the ferocious natives. At length, eight- 
 een )'ears after the shocking death of Mr. Williams 
 and Mr. Harris, such ajipeared to be the effect of 
 these repeated \'isits of the ship, and of the labors 
 of the devoted Samoan teachers, that it was resoKed 
 to renew the effort made at l''.rromanga. This time 
 a )()ung minister. Rev. (i. X. (lordon, and his wife, 
 from \o\a .Scotia, wen- to bcH-oine- the niart\'rs. 
 They arri\ed at Dillon Ha)-, haromanga, in 1 857, 
 where, sometime before, a sandal-u ootl agenc\- h.id 
 been establislud. Mr. (ioidoii was versed in h.md- 
 icrafts, and experienced in cit\' missic^n work, l^uir 
 jears he and his wife toiled to s«)ften the savage 
 hearts around them. They li\ed amid continual 
 fears and trials, until tlu- 20th of Ma)-. iS^i, when 
 they were put to death b)- the people. There re- 
 mained, howe\er, some enduring fruit of their work, 
 portions of the Scriptures had been translated into 
 the Erromangan tongue, antl the- hearts of a few 
 nati\ es luul been touched b\- the truth
 
 30 TWO CANNIBAT. ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 The mournful tidin<js of their death reaching 
 Nova Scotia, a brother, the Rev. J. D. Gordon, vol- 
 unteered to continue the work on the ground where 
 they had fallen. He entered Dillon Bay in 1864, 
 and labored on the island for eight years, with un- 
 tiring zeal, teaching, translating the Scriptures, and 
 founding new stations. In 1872 he was slain at 
 Portinia Bay, Krromanga. 
 
 Such, briefly, was the melancholy beginning of 
 Christian Missions in the New Hebrides. On no 
 other island of the group have so many tragic 
 scenes been enacted in connection with the mission- 
 aries as upon P>romanga. On other islands num- 
 bers of teachers Ikuc soon succumbed to disease. 
 This is particularly true of Tanna, the home of fatal 
 fevers. But it may be said that, on almost every isl- 
 and, fears, perils, distresses, discouragements, ca- 
 lamities, threatened death, and hasty flights, have 
 signalized the gospel work. 
 
 Yet never has the interest in the field seemed to 
 flag because of these adversities. The Presb}'terian 
 Church of Lower British North America has 
 steadily kept representatives on the long unfruitful 
 ground. Within the last forty years sa}'s Dr. 
 Steel, of Sydney, New South Wales, the church in 
 Nova Scotia has sent ten brethren to the New Heb- 
 rides. The Reformed Presbyterian Church of Scot- 
 land, "a bod}' of only thirty congregations," has 
 furnished some of the brightest names in the list of 
 noble men and women who ha\e here fought man's
 
 TEACHING, PKEACHINr,, AND MAKTVKDoM. 3 1 
 
 greatest cneni)'. Sonic have been obliged to flee 
 from station to station to sa\e their lives. The 
 Presbyterian churches of Australia, Tasmania, and 
 New Zealand ha\e all aided in cultivating the sterile 
 territory. As a pioneer in the discouraging work, 
 we all know how important a [)art was borne b\- the 
 London Missionary Societ\-. 
 
 Fifty years ha\e luu'ried by since the mart\"rdom 
 of John W^illianis. I-'roni that day to the present, 
 almost continual effort has been made to ci\'ili/.e and 
 Christianize these, in most of the islands, still savage 
 people. So freely has monc\' been given that one 
 may almost say that it has been lavished upon the 
 field. Untold health and strength have been .sac- 
 rificed in the long and determined struggle. What 
 is the outcome? 
 
 According to a report recently rendered by Rev. 
 Dr. Steel, there are now, in these thirt)' or less 
 islands, eighteen ordained missionaries, and one 
 hundred and twenty native teachers. Said Dr. 
 Steel: "The islands of Kmai, ICfat^, Nguna, Me- 
 taso, Aniwa, Makuru, Ancitium, and I*>romangaare 
 now almo.st entirely Christian" (?). "Converts" — 
 just what Dr. Steel means by that term we are not 
 positive — " iiave also been gathered from the isl- 
 ands of Kfi, I'cle, Taina Tangoa, and l-'otuna. Re- 
 cently, missionaries have settled upon Malo. Am- 
 brj-m, Mallicollo, and ICspiritu Santo. The Mel- 
 ancsian Mission, under Bishop Selwyn, is at work 
 on Aoba, Maiwo, and Aragha. Thus are almost all
 
 32 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 the New Hebrides Islands occupied. The present 
 outlook is full of encouragement, and it is hoped 
 that all the islands will soon be evangelized." The 
 value of Dr. Steel's statement depends upon the 
 meaning he attaches to the words *' Christian," 
 "converts," and "evangelized." Their proper sig- 
 nification is as follows: A Christian is "one who 
 believes in Christ." A convert is "one who is 
 turned from one opinion to practice another." An 
 evangelized person is "one who is converted to a 
 belief in the gospel." One does not like to doubt, 
 but it is certainly a question if the people on any of 
 these islands, except, possibly, one or two small ones 
 have been improved up to the high idea expressed 
 by any of these terms. Perhaps we can learn how 
 that is. 
 
 Nguna and Fate, with their several small islands 
 adjacent, lie at the center of the New Hebrides. 
 Twenty years ago the Rev. Mr. Milne opened a 
 mission on the former. Of the seven pretty islets 
 lying near these two islands, he ministers to four. 
 
 For years progress in the .spiritual training of 
 the Ngunese was painfully slow. The Pacific " labor 
 traffic," a business of exciting interest in all these 
 islands, long kept his pastorate in great disquietude. 
 Nevertheless, we are told by Dr. Steel that in 1889 
 "Mr. Milne had the whole island of Nguna under 
 Christian instruction; that in 1888 he baptized one 
 hundred and seventy-nine jjersons; that the number 
 of communicants was over three hundred and fifty;
 
 TEACHING, PREACHING, AND MARTYRDOM. 33 
 
 that in August of that >'car, if we arc correct, he bap- 
 tized, on the island of Emai, sixty-four adults and 
 thirteen children — infants, probably — and that his 
 Christian conv^erts made, during the year, five thou- 
 sand pounds of arrowroot as a contribution to the 
 mission fund." Another writer, however, states that 
 Mr. Milne himself claimed that " only about one- 
 third of the inhabitants of his pastorate were even 
 nominally Christian." This was in 1885. 
 
 The island of Fate has also been highly favored 
 with missionary sei"vices since 1864, when a noble 
 Nova Scotian minister settled there, toiled ear- 
 nestly, and died too soon. Other laborers from 
 the .same land promptly stepped in and continued 
 his work. Last year two brcthien — and their 
 wives, we presume — were ministering on Fate and 
 its retinue of islets. Here, then, where the light 
 has so long been shining, we ought to find a radical 
 change in the manners, customs, and aims of the 
 people. But has such a change taken place? 
 Many instances might be cited to prove the con- 
 trary to be true. We note but one or two, and 
 those, perhaps, not the most conclusive that might 
 be given. 
 
 An English woman residing on Isite, in 1886, 
 and who, with her husband, had settled upon the 
 island twelve years before, with a heart full of 
 sympathy for the natives, claimed that she had 
 been compelled to change her opinion of them. 
 She had "found them indolent, untruthful, and un- 
 
 3
 
 34 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 grateful. She had often felt indignant over the 
 lack of appreciation of Mrs. Milne's labors, ex- 
 hibited by the natives, for whom that lady had so 
 faithfully cared." She also stated that not long 
 before "a native had presented a musket at herself 
 to frighten her, in order that he might rob the prem- 
 ises. But she had since been assured that now 
 such deeds would cease, for 'there remained but 
 seven heathen upon the island, over one hundred 
 having been converted during the absence of the 
 resident missionary, in Australia.'" Mr. Julian 
 Thomas, who spent some time on the island in 
 1886, gives a long account of the native teacher 
 whom the absent pastor left in charge of his flock. 
 We epitomize his recital: — 
 
 "Near one of the clearings we met the teacher 
 whom the missionary most trusted. He was an 
 ordinary-looking black fellow, but partially clad, 
 and carried at his side a basket of }'ams and 
 cocoanuts. The man answered readily to the name 
 of Dick. He was a fair reader, it was said, of his 
 native language, and was able in expounding the 
 Scriptures. But so disorderly had been his life 
 during the absence of the minister that his con- 
 gregation evinced their disappro\al of his course 
 by uprooting his yam garden and destroying his 
 household goods." 
 
 Great effort is made by the missionaries through- 
 out the group to bring the natives to a rigid 
 observance of Sunda)-. Of those at the Chris-
 
 TEACIIINC, PKEACIIING, AND MARTYRDOM. 35 
 
 tian village of Fate, it was remarked by a visitor, 
 "You might be dying of thirst, and they would not 
 pick a cocoanut for )'(»u on Sunda}-." A native 
 woman was asked if she could procure a man to 
 guide a party through the forest a little distance. 
 " No man he go on Sunday," was the instant reply. 
 These tokens show clear!)- the trend of the teach- 
 ing on Fate. 
 
 The stranger who sought a guide, said: "We 
 soon struck the beach again. A native was in the 
 act of landing from his canoe, over which a hand- 
 kerchief fluttered as a flag, at the mast-head, and the 
 sail of which was of white calico. He was c\ i- 
 dently a chief He was nearly nude, but wore 
 worked armlets and garters, and an elaborate head- 
 dress. He was armed with a car\ed club and a 
 double-barreled gun. His nostrils, not being large 
 enough to suit his idea of beaut)-, were distended 
 with pebbles. He must have been a thorough 
 heathen, or he would not have lieen out sailing on 
 Sunday. He was affable ami spoke kindly to the 
 benighted stranger, gave us instructions as t(^ the 
 way we should take, and, fniall)-, good-naturedly 
 volunteered to accompany us." 
 
 There are other commandments of the decalogue 
 — even were there a commandment for Sunday- 
 keeping — quite as important to be instilled into the 
 minds of the New Hebridcans. Some of them tend 
 even more di recti)' to good morals. We do not 
 question that all the commandments are taught by
 
 ^6 TWO CANNIRAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 the missionaries, but obedience to some of them 
 seems hardly to have been so rigidly exacted as 
 the observance of Sunday — substituted for the Sab- 
 bath of the fourth commandment. Strict adherence 
 to the prohibitions of some others would have saved 
 not only the yam garden and the household goods 
 of the native pastor, but also great injury to the 
 feelings of his congregation. 
 
 Having noted all these indications, which show 
 the lack of a radical change of character in the 
 people of Fate, the writer abov^e quoted remarks: 
 " The reflection at once arises : Is this the result of 
 years of missionary teaching? What real improve- 
 ment is there in the habits of these people? In 
 what respect are they materially benefited?" 
 
 With us the question is not, Have the Hebri- 
 deans been "materially benefited" by these many 
 years of gospel teaching ? but, 1 lave they been 
 improved to the high degree of being "almost en- 
 tirely Christian," on at least eight of the islands, 
 and of " soon becoming e\angelized throughout 
 the group " ? The above and other similar state- 
 ments render it doubtful. And one doubts the ad- 
 vantage to the cause of Christ of representing the 
 religious condition of the people on any of these 
 South Pacific Islands, or anywhere else in the 
 world, as advanced one step further than it really 
 is. Anyone who has read history knows that, 
 with some signal exceptions, a savMge people is not 
 lifted out of centuries of barbarism and established
 
 TEACHING, PREACHING, AND MARTVRDOM. 37 
 
 ill Christianity within a single generation. Most 
 of the Mission Indians of our Pacific Coast present 
 an illustration of this fact. 
 
 A few years ago the writer, having occasion to 
 study the subject of Indian missions in Southern 
 California, found that, prior to the secularization of 
 the Spanish missions by the Mexican Government, 
 the man)' hundred Indians connected with the mis- 
 sions were considered " evangelized." They had 
 been baptized; they faithful!)- attended the services 
 of the Catholic Church; they were always present 
 at mass and at the confessional, and were \er)' 
 obedient to their spiritual guides. They did not 
 mako copra and arrowroot, but the)' cultivated 
 grapes, and tended flocks and herds. Notwith- 
 standing all this walking according to the church, 
 within fifteen or twenty years after the rich mission 
 pro[)erties were placed in their hands, large num- 
 bers of them luul returned to their wild tribes, ant! 
 to their former mode of life, and the valuable mis- 
 sion properties were hastening to ruin. 
 
 Why? — .Simply because the Indians were inca- 
 pable of .self-support in a civilized state. They had 
 not been thrown upon their own resources, had not 
 been taught to be indepemlent. Their teachers had 
 preferretl to lead them like little children. What 
 to do with the herds, implements, buildings, and 
 lands commilled to tluii- management tlu')- knew 
 not. Moreo\cr. there still remained in man\' a 
 heart a relish for the old wilil life of ante-mission 
 
 441040
 
 38 
 
 TWO CANNIBAL AKCIIIPF.LAGOES. 
 
 days. Accordiiii^f to Mr. Thoma.s, a .state of thin^^.s 
 vcr\- like thi.s exist.s on I\'itc and otlicr islantls ctf 
 the Now Hebrides yroup, e\en now at the .semi- 
 centennial of the introduction of Chri.stian missions. 
 Another reason may be, as one suL^<rests who lias 
 given thought to the subject, that the difficult)' in 
 both California and the New Hebrides is that the 
 gospc/ was not taught, since the gospel and noth- 
 ing else has the power to evangeli/c men.
 
 CIIAPTI'R III. 
 
 A HRIKK RUN ABOUT FATE. 
 
 ,uI3HI^ i.sland of Fatd — we discard "Sandwich," 
 '^^^ the name inflicted upon it b)' Captain Cook 
 ^'K/r P — is a hind of <;reat beaut\'. It is .seventy 
 miles in circumference, and, as we ha\e ahead)' re- 
 marketl, lies at aiiout the center of the archipelaLjo. 
 Its fine landlocked harbor is formed by two tiny 
 islands, which bear the names Deception and Pro- 
 tection, also bestowed by Captain Cook, whose 
 memory will remain forever green in this regiiMi, 
 tiircnigh the multitude of names he gave to its lands 
 and waters. The water close to the entrance of 
 the fort is ver)' deep. Indeed, a disadvantage of 
 llavannah Harbor is its great depth of water, 
 compelling ocean vessels to run close in shore to 
 anchor. 
 
 A few )-ears ago, when the labor traflic was at its 
 ma.ximum in the South Pacific, Havannah Harbor 
 was the rentlezvous for " bujers " from Fiji and 
 Queensland. No other port of the New 1 R'brides 
 displays so much shipping. Men-of-war always 
 j)ut in here when in the \ ii initw Not long since 
 it was a center of much interest to business firms 
 in I'iji and S)'dney. several prosperous trading 
 
 (39)
 
 40 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 establishments being located on its shores. There 
 were then on Fatd cotton plantations and machinery 
 for makinj^ coir — a coarse corda<;e made from the 
 fiber of the cocoanut husk. Near the site of the 
 old gin and engine-house are several acres of ele- 
 vated ground commanding a \ iew of the beautiful 
 bay, of the small islands at its mouth, and of the 
 lofty summits of Mono Island, King off to the 
 north. The situation is \ery charming, and.should 
 a city ever be reared on Fate, this sightly spot 
 would certainly be its location. 
 
 In 1849 Admiral Erskine, father of the present 
 admiral of that name, and commander of the 
 English ship Havannah, sailed into this j)retty liar- 
 bor and gave it the name of his ship. The bay is 
 eight miles long, with an average width of two and 
 a half miles. It is said that the world scarcely 
 contains a more beautiful anchorage. First, a neat 
 sand)'' beach encircles it. h^om that a wide level 
 plain e.Ktends inland, and is co\ered with rich tropi- 
 cal foliage. Among other graceful trees, the long 
 leaves of the banana, and the feathery crown of tiie 
 cocoanut palm, wave conspicuously. One notes also 
 the sturdy banyans, and the superb " ivi " — the 
 splendid Mangaian chestnut. Look now toward 
 the south. The lovely green terraces you see were 
 not formed by the hand of man, but by volcanic 
 agencN'. Each uj)heaval is clearly defined, and is 
 mantled with a rich \egetation. 
 
 But just now the upper end of the ba}- jjresents
 
 A BRIEF RUN ABOUT KATE. 4 1 
 
 a lively spectacle. That licet of tiny white sails re- 
 iniiuls us of animated scenes we ha\c witnessed on 
 that uiiiiw'ilccl inlet of the Pacific, San Francisco 
 Hay. What spirit the}' put into this otherwise quiet 
 anchorage! The little crafts are all canoes, with 
 outriggers and white calico sails, a new material for 
 that puri)ose in the South Pacific. P'ormerly mats 
 of pandanus propelled ICfatese canoes before the 
 wind. But down upon us now conies one of the 
 boats, evidently intending to run the ship untier. 
 Ah, no! the occupant proposes a trade. Cocoanuts 
 and fragrant bananas are his merchandise. Hut the 
 price! there's no conscience in it, and we keep 
 our money. 
 
 Hut what have we in the next boat? There is a 
 face which startles us. It is that of a w hite man, 
 aged, wonderfully tatt(^oetl upon the arms, a genu- 
 ine bOche-de-mer trader. He speaks both French 
 and Knglish, but neither fluently. And surely, 
 pictured over in that style, neither nation would 
 claim him. Omitting his boyhood, and perhaps not 
 all of that, his entire life has been trifled away in 
 this maze of islands. At his side sits a little 
 maiden wearing a gay robe; a kerchief the color of 
 the heavens protects her refined-looking head; her 
 complexion and the cast of her features carry us to 
 far-off India; her straight hair tells us that there is 
 no Papuan blood in her veins. The persons arc 
 father and daughter. The mother, now dead, was 
 a native of the Line Islands, but the child herself 
 was born in Levuka, inland of Uvalau. Fiji.
 
 4^ TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 ArriviiiL^ at the landing, <nir first objective point 
 is the niissit)!! premises. A representative op tlie 
 New Hebrides Company kindly volunteers to con- 
 duct us to the place through the dense but beauti- 
 ful forest. The man's name is Robert Scotch, and, 
 judging from his height and manner, his blood also 
 is Scotch. He came hither from No\-a .Scotia, and 
 has spent fifteen years in these Melanesian groups. 
 When \vc reflect that many of the missionaries in 
 the islands are Nova Scotians, we are not surprisetl 
 to find here their countrymen of other walks in life. 
 
 After a little we enter a well-defined trail, from 
 which we catch hasty views (.f the bright bay gleam- 
 ing beyond the thicket of shrubs and low trees. 
 Now we come out upon the beach. But who is this 
 man? A waistband clothes him ; a sort of coronet 
 graces his head; circlets of beads adorn his arms; 
 in his hand are a bow and a quiver of arrows. He 
 marches along through this noonday heat, not in 
 the least affected b\- it. In this part of the world a 
 thick skull is of some serxice when the sun is at 
 meridian. Suddenly the man takes aim, lets fly a 
 couple of arrows, wades into the water, and picks 
 up his arrows w ith a fish at the point of each. That 
 was fine marksmanship. 
 
 We continue our walk; cocoanut trees, bread-fruit 
 and banana trees, with here and there a yam garden, 
 grace the way. Gay butterflies .sail hither and 
 thither among the green. Scarcely can we put a 
 foot down without stepping upon a crab-hole.
 
 n 
 
 I
 
 A BRIEF RUN ABOUT FATE. 45 
 
 Having crossed several talkati\e little streams, and 
 climbed a fence or two, wc come upon the mission 
 village. Are these structures really the habitations 
 of men and women among whom the gospel has 
 long been preached? Each dwelling is but a roof 
 built up from near the ground. All are dark, low, 
 dirty, destitute of walls or windows, and inferior to 
 any homes we have seen in all our wanderings. In 
 front of each house is a small space carpeted with 
 crushed coral, where the inmates may sit and take 
 the fresh air. Arc the llebrideans so much less 
 capable of improvement than the Kijians, whom we 
 found in homes comfortable and iiniting? Is it be- 
 cause of the soft climate, or because no strong 
 governing power exercises authority on Fate, and 
 each man does as he pleases, that their condition im- 
 proves so slowly? Ourtall guide remarks, concern- 
 ing the resident missionary, now absent in Victoria, 
 " He has done all the good he can ; he has the people 
 well in hand." 
 
 Our mind reverts to the Yakim.i Indian Reserva- 
 tion, Yakima Valie\-. Washington. In iSSo those 
 Indians possessed — as help in the arts of husbandry 
 — plows, harrows, mowers, reapers, and wagon.s. 
 Numbers of them li\ eil in comfortable liomes, fur- 
 nished with stoves, tables, clocks, beds, mirrors, 
 newspapers, the Bible, and much el.sc that is u.scful 
 and pleasant to see. "They were once," to quote 
 the language of the Re\-. J. H. Wilbur, who, at that 
 time, had been for twent\- years their superintendent.
 
 46 TWO CANNIBAL AKCHirELAGOES, 
 
 friend, and adviser, "as low as Indians ever become 
 without goini^ to the bottomless pit." Fortunately, 
 Mr. Wilbur believed as vigorously in the plow for 
 its purpose as in the Bible. In his training of the 
 Yakimas he used both with a will. 
 
 From the nati\c quarters we pass into the mis- 
 sionary inclosurc. The residence is of wood, with 
 an iron roof and a veranda. There are other build- 
 ings for dining-room, for stores, for visitors, and for 
 servants. During the minister's absence, everything 
 receives faithful attention. His return might be 
 sudden, and nothing would be out of order. From 
 the garden, beautiful with flowers, to the airy boat- 
 house, built with more care than any of the native 
 dwellings, the keeping is perfect. Of the two well- 
 made boats under shelter, one is for travel in the 
 harbor, and the other for voyages to neighboring 
 islands of the group, in summer weather. Both arc 
 nicely painted and ready for use. Had the native 
 preacher, to whom we have referred, been as faith- 
 ful as had been those who had charge of the tempo- 
 ral affairs of the premises, we should have been 
 well pleased. 
 
 One could not obser\e the delightful location of 
 the mission, with the pastor's ample residence per- 
 fectly kept, and reflect that he is by no means severed 
 from the outside world; that into this harbor come 
 people and shipping from nearly all land5, and that 
 here every necessary of life is easily obtained, with- 
 out feeling that many a pastor in more civilized
 
 A RKIKI- KL'N ABOUT FATK. 47 
 
 communities occupies a post far less desirable. 1 1 ere, 
 all affairs arc regulated according to his own will. 
 
 Let us now turn our attention to the church. 
 You see this roomy building, with roof of thatch, 
 sides of bamboo, and floor of crushed coral. Take 
 a look at the interior. Timbers laid upon short 
 posts, at each side, form the seats for the congrega- 
 tion. Seated upon these, the hearers are certainly 
 not likely to fall asleep during the services. The 
 windows and doors are wide open. At one end are 
 placed a chair and a small tabic. The structure is 
 little better than a barn, and has an air of neglect. 
 Possibly a more comfortable aiul attracti\c house 
 of worship would have had its influence in uplifting 
 this degraded people. Without doubt that has been 
 the effect of the pretty churches on Mangaia and 
 Rakaanga, of the Ilerv'ey group. 
 
 If, now, we extend our walk some distance, we 
 shall arri\e at a fme plantation bearing the pretty 
 name of Rahnie. The place is a possession of the 
 New Hebrides Compan)-. The soil is a compound 
 of powdered coral antl decayctl vegetation, and will 
 produce almost excrjthing la\ ishly. A feature of 
 the i)lace which fust attracts us is a field planteil 
 with corn, which is expected to yield ninety bushels 
 per acre, and two crops annuallx-. (^nce the lanil 
 is cleared, and the seed planted, the soil, sun, rain, 
 dew, and air unite to produce enormous harvests. 
 
 But at Rahnie the question is not so nuich, 
 What crop will the land produce most bountifully?
 
 4.S TWO CANNir.AL AKCII IPF.LAGOES. 
 
 as, What product will brin^ the most money? 
 And wc find that cocoanuts pay far better than 
 maize. Rahnie exhibits acres of the beautiful trees, 
 and the superintendent is multiplying them rapidly. 
 The great object in view is the manufacture of co- 
 pra. In London this article is worth twenty pounds 
 sterling ($ioo) per ton. 
 
 During our rambles in Fiji we learneci that a 
 cocoanut tree begins to bear seven years from the 
 planting. The superintendent at Rahnie states that 
 the tree will bear fine fruit for the long period of 
 eighty years. When planted in broad fields, it 
 attains a lower height than in the forest, but forms 
 a heavier trunk, and yields a larger harvest of nuts. 
 Sunlight and heat are indispensable to the perfection 
 of the cocoanut, hence, in its natural state, the tree 
 must overtop all others in the forest, if it bear val- 
 uable fruit. The exceeding height, graceful trunk, 
 and beautiful feather)- top of the cocoanut make it 
 the queen of forest growths. 
 
 Rahnie is a magnificent estate. It has an outlook 
 upon the sea of two miles and a half, and stretches 
 from the sea far inland to the mountains. The fin- 
 est banyan tree in the world is .said to be growing 
 at Rahnie. The longer we tarry upon Efate the 
 more charming does it become. The landscapes 
 and waterscapes are fascinating. The peculiar ever- 
 greenness of the island is as pleasant as it is inde- 
 scribable. We see some things which remind us of 
 home. Among them are the swallows, pigeons.
 
 ' 'I"
 
 A BRIEF RUN AROUT FATE. 5 1 
 
 and parrots, which animate the woods. True, on 
 our coast the latter talk and laugh, cry and screech, 
 in cages, but they are in such numbers, and show 
 such intent to stay, that they are entitled to nat- 
 uralization papers. "The swallows homeward fly" 
 is an announcement that can never be made on 
 I*\'ite. They are ahva\'s at home. No dearth of in- 
 sects c\'er dri\cs them to some blissful Gulf of Mex- 
 ico to feed upon creatures that fly, hop, crawl, and 
 wriggle. Do not think of the pigeons of Fate as 
 being our modest, gentle gra}' and white species. 
 They are green, and contribute their mite t<i the 
 ceaseless emerald a.spect of the island. 
 
 Fate is a birthplace for fevers. They originate 
 in its thick jungles, where the exuberant vegetation 
 bars out the sunlight and bars in the moisture. 
 Were there vast herds of cattle daily browsing the 
 crowded trees, and large flocks of sheep grazing 
 upon the dense grass, much of the mi.isma would 
 disappear. A large rural populati<Hi actively en- 
 gaged in agriculture woukl be a blessing to the 
 country in the same direction. The island fevers 
 attack all persons, and attack them repeatedl)'. 
 Happily, they usually afflict the sufferer but a few 
 hours, and the natives make light of them. Hut 
 there are deadly diseases which lie in waiting for the 
 stranger, for children born of white parents, and for 
 the adult native with waning strength. 
 
 Let us now take seat in this canoe and allow 
 these two athletic natives to propel us rapidly
 
 52 'IWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 iK)ilh\vai\l into the picturesque strait which sepa- 
 rates Fate from the little island of Muna, or Nguna, 
 where Mr. Milne resides. Threading this passage, 
 we shall, in due time, be set ashore at Rathmo}',an 
 estate owned and cultivated by the only I'^nglish- 
 num on Fate. An attraction which specially draws 
 us thither is his splendid coffee plantations, em- 
 bracing about one hundred acres. 
 
 This strait is nine miles broad, antl just now calm 
 and lovel)-. But let a strong wind suddenly dash 
 through here, and these oarsmen will pull speedily 
 for the shore. You remember the wonderful coral 
 formations under the waters in the Bay of Apia, 
 Samoa. Take a look now into these depths. Mark 
 the varying shades of the gay coral. Notice the 
 forms into which it is built. There are sprays, 
 and branches, and trunks of trees. They arc of 
 every lovely tint. The tiny polypi have erected a 
 forest in the ilccp. They have laid out gardens, 
 rolled out plateaus, built arched passagc-wa\-s, done 
 their sweet will in everything. Wonderful zo- 
 ophytes! In and out amid all the beauty glide an 
 infinity of creatures in shell, and skin, and scale. 
 You observe that the beach far away looks like a 
 mere rim of white sand. Were you there, you would 
 be reminded of pretty Mangaia and its lofty belt of 
 dead coral, pierced with tunnels, rent into deep 
 chasms, built up into arches, points, and pinnacles. 
 So on that distant beach wind and wave have worked 
 out all sorts of odd fancies.
 
 A BRIEF RUN ABOUT FATE. 53 
 
 But we arc beside the little clock at Rathmoy. 
 The residence .stands three hundred and fifty feet 
 above the .sea, but the ascent is f^ratlual.and affords 
 views of sea and land which make us forget that 
 we are climbing. Having but the morning f )r our 
 trip, after a cordial welcome by the owner, we 
 hasten away to the coffee gardens on the mountain 
 slopes, three miles away. On Fate the coffee 
 shrub thrives best in such situations. The variety 
 growing on this plantation is a nati\e of the New 
 Hebrides, and is one of the finest known. See! 
 these hundred acres are in blossom throughout. 
 SeUlom will one behold a more beautiful sight. 
 The flowers are pure white, very fragrant, and con- 
 trast charmingly with the dark green leaves. They 
 open in dense clusters at the a.xils of the leaves, 
 but quickly wither ami drop off The shapely 
 leaves are about six inches \on\j; by two and a half 
 inches wide. 
 
 hy f )llowing our usual mode — asking questions 
 — we have learned that Arabia l''elix is the (»riginal 
 home of the coffee plant. It was in that land, over 
 three hundretl years ago, that an infusion of the 
 seeds was first used as a beverage. Thence the 
 berry made its way to the city of Constantinople, 
 where it soon won such favor that attractive re- 
 sorts, termed coffee-hou.ses, were opened at various 
 points in the city. These became so popular as 
 greatly to decrease the attendance at the services in 
 the mostjues. This state of things aroused the ire of
 
 54 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES, 
 
 the priests, and forthwith there began a war of ex- 
 termination against the mischievous coffee-houses. 
 Notwithstanding, coffee drinking took firm hold in 
 Constantinople. Thence the custom traveled west- 
 ward o\cr Europe, and in due time crossed the 
 Atlantic. In the New World it made an easy con- 
 quest, and to-day more coffee is consumed l)\' the 
 people of the United States than by any other 
 nation on the globe. 
 
 The fruit of the coffee plant is a fleshy berr)', 
 which contains two seeds, each having one flat side 
 with a tiny groove in the middle. These seeds 
 form the coffee of commerce. The Java and Cey-. 
 Ion varieties are the most valuable. Of these, two 
 hundred million pounds are produced annually. 
 Mocha is another favorite, and is a product of 
 India. It is said that very little true Mocha finds 
 its way into the American ports. Brazilian coffee, 
 however, to the amount of two hundred million 
 pounds annually, is marketed in the United States. 
 
 On Fate, when a man proposes to become a coffee 
 planter, he first sows the seed in a nursery. When 
 the young shrubs ha\e attained several inches in 
 height, he plants them in the permanent fields, 
 some six or eight feet apart. They are .set out with 
 great care, and no little labor is afterward expended 
 in pruning the shrubs and keeping the ground free 
 of weeds. In its natural state the coffee tree attains 
 a height of eighteen or twenty feet; but on a 
 plantation it is rareU' permitted to exceed six feet,
 
 A BRIEF RUN A BOLT FATE. 55 
 
 and oftentimes is kept below that height by sys- 
 tematic " pruning in. " This mode of treatment 
 sends the branches out laterally and vigorously, and 
 gives the tree a bushy appearance. The beautiful 
 shrub begins to bear the second \car. The third 
 year the planter exi>ects a fairh-paying crop. In 
 the prolific soil of I-'ate the coffee harvest is some- 
 thing amazing. When the berry shrivels distinctl)* 
 and takes on a deep red color, its harvest-time has 
 come. 
 
 The term "Seaview" was not given to the ten 
 thousand beautiful acres of which this coffee garden 
 is a part, without good reason. The view from it in 
 all directions is inspiring. At our feet surges the 
 great ocean. Within the range of vision an archi- 
 pelago of islands decks its surface. Right here, 
 almost near enough to lay our hand upon them, lie 
 Pell and lovely Muna. Thirtx- miles awa\-, hut 
 clearl)' seen, is Mataso. Xcar that is the " Monu- 
 ment," its summit five hundred feet above the water. 
 Everlastingly the waves break upon it in leaps, and 
 dashes, and wreaths of foam. Looking northwartl. 
 wc descry thickly-wooded and mountainous Api, 
 with the three peaks of Mai between. Vou see 
 that column of smoke winding upward beyoml 
 Api. It indicates the jiositiiMi of Ambrym, and 
 a.scends from its great volcano. We are due in 
 Havannah Harbor at sunset. So we bid our c<nirt- 
 eous host a iiearty good-by, return hastily to the 
 creek, and immediateK' '^ lil .lu.u- f^in our home-
 
 56 TWO CANNIItAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 ward way oxer the t^lcaiiiin^ sea this little story- 
 comes to our cars: — 
 
 One of the early missionaries on Fatd was 
 Simeona, a native of lovely Aitutaki, of the Hervcy 
 j^roup. He was stationed at the \illa<j^e of Panj^o. 
 The chief of the place was kind to him, supplied 
 him with food, and suffered no one to molest him. 
 One day the chief brou«^ht to Simeona and his 
 wife a little girl to wait upon them. She proved 
 to be an unusually pleasant child. Not long there- 
 after the chief came to call upon Simeona. In the 
 presence of the little maiden he remarked, "When 
 I die, this little girl will die too." 
 
 "How is that?" asked Simeona. 
 
 Said the chieftain: " In this country, when a 
 great man dies, four or five persons must be slain to 
 bear him compan\-. Should no persons be stran- 
 gled at my death, in\' people would say, ' He was no 
 chief To avoid this disgrace, I purchased this 
 child of her mother, some years ago, for a large pig. 
 In the care of ni)' relatixes are four other children, 
 feeding against the time of need." The good 
 Simeona, who was a Christian, resolved that that 
 should never be the fite of the pretty little girl. 
 I le therefore adopted her, ;iAid trained her f »r a use- 
 ful and happy life. 
 
 During Simeona's sojourn on I'ale, the chief of a 
 neighboring village called upon him. "Do you 
 know who I am?" he asked proudly. "No," curtly 
 replied Simeona. " Vou ought to know," rejoined
 
 A BRIEF RUM ABOUT FATE. 5/ 
 
 the visitor, "for I made the sun; I ha\e jxnver to 
 make it cease to shine." " That is false," said the 
 missionary, at the same time baring his arm and 
 adding: " Look at my arm and hand. Can you make 
 an)'thing like them ? " 
 
 The conjurer was silent. Simeona then warmly 
 in\ited Iiim to attend the Christian services, lie 
 did so for a while, but wearied of them, and finall\' 
 lapsed into his old wa)'s. Afterward the maker of 
 the sun fell ill, ami, might)- as he was, could do 
 nothing for his own relief With his Christian be- 
 lief, Simeona had accjuired some knowledge of 
 medicine, and he now jirescribed for the boaster. 
 The man recovered. In gratituile he vowed that 
 he would forsake his fradulent practices upon the 
 people and "become a Christian." Hut the jirofit 
 and importance he had tlerived from trading in the 
 fears of the natives were too great to be exchanged 
 for self-denial ami cross-bearing, and he soon re- 
 sumed the business. But while Simeona was yet 
 on FatiJ, the chief dietl. Calling at his home, the 
 missionary incjuired what caused his death. Point- 
 ing to a round, basaltic bit of st«)ne placeil near the 
 body, a brother of the chief answered, " I le was 
 slain by this god." "How can that be, since your 
 brother made the sun?" asked Sime«>na. The p<ior 
 fellow replied, "All we know is that yon stone 
 was his god, .uid slew hir.i."
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 tium. 
 
 STILL SAILING— AXF.ITIUM, AXIWA, FOTUXA. 
 
 E are to see Api and Ambrym, both north 
 of Fate, before we leave the New Hebrides. 
 But lying in Havannah harbor is a shaky 
 little craft about to make the run to Anei- 
 There is nothing to prevent our taking pas- 
 sage in her, and thus adding to our knowledge of 
 the New Hebrides. 
 
 Aneitium is the southernmost island of the 
 group, and was once, Dr. Steel tells us, "the home 
 of a low, savage, and cannibal people," "but," he 
 continues, "a great change has now taken place 
 among the inhabitants." Let us first acquaint our- 
 selves with the island, and afterward with the history 
 of its evangelization. Aneitium is a volcanic body 
 of land, and ver\' mountainous. Its summits 
 tower heavenward three thousand feet, and in some 
 parts ascend from the very shore. Ridge rises 
 above ridge, cone towers above cone. Between the 
 elevations lie many deep ra\ines, heavily wooded, 
 and sometimes \cvy picturesque. Of land suitable 
 for cultivation there is far less than on Fat^ or on 
 Tanna. A red soil is plentiful, but it is unproduc- 
 tive. The vegetation is said to much resemble that 
 of Norfolk Island. It is not luxuriantly tropical. 
 ( 5S) 
 
 J
 
 ANF.ITIUM. ANIWA. FOTUNA. 59 
 
 Tlie population of Anciliuin is sparse and tic- 
 creases annually. In 1848, when the Rev. John 
 Geddic began iiis career as the first resident mission- 
 ary on the island, the inhabitants numbered three 
 thousand. A census report made out to-day would 
 show about one thousand. The visitor notes the 
 scanty junt^le growths, and liails them as an indi- 
 cation of a healthier climate than that of Fate or of 
 Tanna. And we fiiul the atmosphere reall)- invigo- 
 rating and delightful. Here one can trudge along 
 tlie hot sandy beach at mid-day, and fear no pros- 
 trating effects. 
 
 Our captain kindly sets us ashore at the romantic 
 port of Anelcahaut, the chief mission station on 
 Aneitium, and for thirt}'-five years the headquarters 
 of the New Hebrides mission work. The inviting 
 anchorage is formed partly 1j\- the little isle of In- 
 yung, once thickly peopletl. but now deserteil. -Ap- 
 proaching the place from Tort Patrick, the vojager 
 catches beautiful views of rocky islets here and 
 there, and of the great coral reef near the shore. 
 At one point he sees a cocoanut grove two miles in 
 length. The numerous small fishing grounds which 
 are marked' off by canoes drawn upon the beach 
 denote a rather compact settlement on this part of 
 the island. 
 
 Should we run ashore anywhere along this beau- 
 tiful stretch of coast, we should find the nati\e 
 dwellings more comfortable than those on I'ate. but 
 we shoukl now fiml most of them untenanted. It
 
 6o TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 is the yam-planting season, and the inmates are ab- 
 sent during the day on the plantations. In this 
 neighborhood certainly no one goes hungry, for on 
 every hand appear evidences of prosperity. The 
 taro patches are well cultivated, well-fed pigs are 
 in the sties, and fat fowls strut about. 
 
 Thieving must be a pursuit out of date on Anei- 
 tium, for the doorways of the dwellings are closed 
 only with long mats. The pedestrian, honest or 
 otherwise, may lift the drapery, walk in, take pos- 
 session of anything he wants, and go his way. 
 However, his purloining could do him little good 
 unless he had a taste for such treasures as a hymn 
 book, the New Testament, or portions of " Pil- 
 grim's Progress," all translated into the language of 
 Aneitium. These are about the only portable ar- 
 ticles the abodes contain. It would seem impossi- 
 ble for even an accustomed thief to rob a people so 
 confiding as are these cottagers, who put nothing 
 under lock and key. 
 
 But come back to Anelcahaut. Can the New 
 Hebrides anywhere furnish a lovelier scene? First, 
 we have a charming valley pushing its way up, up, 
 toward the mighty mountains which frame the pict- 
 ure. The most prominent object in the scene is 
 the long, low house of worship, built of stone, cov- 
 ered with stucco, and roofed with grass. Here it 
 has stood for nearly thirty years. A quarry close 
 at hand furnished the stone. But the long timbers 
 came from the distant interior. The building is so
 
 ANEITIUM, AMWA, FOTUNA. 6 1 
 
 spacious that every soul now li\in<^ on Ancitium 
 could worship within it. 
 
 Dr. Geddie was its builder. Great must have 
 been his expectations as to congregations when he 
 planned the structure. Usually, as we know, con- 
 verts from heathenism are made slowly under Prot- 
 estant teaching. The work involves a change of 
 heart, and an utter abandoning of the old life, and 
 such reforms seldom take place in a day. Still, on 
 some of the South Pacific islands the inhabitants 
 have taken rapidly and sincerely to Christian ideas. 
 This may have been the case on Aneitium. We 
 turn to Dr. Steel's report on missions in the New 
 Hebrides, and read, in nearly these words: — 
 
 "The two missionaries" — Dr. Geddie and Mr. In- 
 glis — "occupied different sides of the island, but 
 labored with equal zeal, and in great cordiality. 
 They preached, taught in schools, translated the 
 Scriptures, composed and printed a class book, built 
 premises, and exercised an influence for good over 
 all the island. The young people were all taught 
 to read and write. Congregations were organized, 
 with elders and deacons. Fifty day-schools were 
 established, and over two thousand ptM'sons were 
 admitted by baptism into the church. The whole 
 people were evangelized. It was a marvelous 
 change in a degraded and cannibal people." Cer- 
 tainly it was. With the same rapidit)' were the In- 
 dian tribes of California sprinkled and admitted into 
 the church by the Franciscan Fathers, considerably
 
 62 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 over one hundred years ago. But of the deep sig- 
 nificance of that relation — membership in the church 
 of Christ — few, if any of them, it is said, had the 
 shghtest conception. We quote once more from 
 Mr. JuHan Thomas, greatly abbreviating his account, 
 and omitting his unpolished expressions. Writing 
 of the scene at Anelcahaut, he remarks : — 
 
 ** To the right on the beach was a white house, 
 belonging, I was told, to the Aneitium chief, 
 Lathella. We landed near this, and were met by a 
 smart-looking native who informed us that Lathella 
 was at his house on the other side of the bay, 
 where his wife and family resided. This building 
 was a sort of government residence, a place to 
 show to strangers. Here Outon, a young native, 
 drew my attention to a man walking along the 
 shore in irons. This was a strong evidence of 
 civilization. So I tried to learn what offense he 
 had committed. He had caused the death of a 
 young girl, and had been sentenced to three yams — 
 three years — at hard labor for the crime. The irons 
 did not seem to be a great punishment to the man. 
 He grinned and laughed, without any appearance 
 of shame. He was stout and in good condition. 
 His hard labor consisted merely in plaiting sinet 
 from cocoanut fiber. This article became the 
 property of Lathella, the chief. The jailer ap- 
 peared to have nothing to do but to watch this one 
 prisoner." This fact speaks volumes for the good 
 behavior of the natives.
 
 ANEITIUM, ANIWA, FOTUNA. 63 
 
 "The prison establishment at Anelcahaut was 
 very primitive. The stockade inclosed a small 
 space where the manufacture of sinet went on. 
 Two whipping-posts were the chief ornaments. 
 The jailer showed me, with glee, how offenders 
 acted when he applied the lash. Capital punish- 
 ment had apparently been abandoned, else he 
 probably would have been the executioner also. 
 The calaboose itself was an ordinary native 
 house, a roof without walls, and was lined inside 
 with strong posts. The kennels, which did duty as 
 cells, were made of thick boards. Half the struct- 
 ure was for the accommodation of the keeper. 
 The other half was divided into three compart- 
 ments, with low doors, the bars and locks being 
 outside. The common criminals slept in the cen- 
 tral kennel. On each side was a solitary cell, one 
 for this murderer; the other had lately been oc- 
 cupied by a woman. 
 
 '* The cells were so narrow that the occupants 
 had to creep into them. Three years in irons and 
 a residence in such a place was not a pleasant sen- 
 tence. Irons, whipping-posts, and cells! These 
 showed an advance, indeed, on the part of the 
 victors, from the native punishments of club, fire, 
 and cannibal orgies. The jailer was a good-natured 
 varlet, who laughed at the prisoner, laughed over 
 the gravc-stoneof Lathella's eldest born, and laughed 
 most when he received his gift of tobacco. 
 
 "Meeting Lathella afterwards on the beach, I
 
 64 TWO CANNIBAL AKCIIIPKLAGOES. 
 
 iiitcr\ic\vccl liiin in reference to the four prisoners 
 said to be in tlie community — the one I had seen, 
 and three others at work in the chiefs yam gar- 
 dens. He informed me that when offenses were 
 committed, the culprits were brought to him by the 
 head men of the village. Being the judge, he gaxe 
 them whatever sentence he pleased. For theft and 
 lesser offenses they were flogged. ' The man in 
 irons was a bad man,' he said. ' How do you 
 know,' I asked, 'what punishment to give a man? 
 Have you any rule, so much for theft, so much 
 for murder, etc?' Lathella answered: 'I punish as 
 I like.'" 
 
 These and other matters we might relate show 
 that to-day, with the population of Aneitium two- 
 thirds less than when Dr. Geddie and Mr. Inglis 
 were working so diligently, sinners are still to be 
 found on the beautiful island. That great good has 
 been accomplished in these five and thirt\- }'ears of 
 earnest Christian endeavor, there is no douFjt. 
 Every soul who has toiled, suffered, and died on 
 the forbidcien field deserxes a rich reward; but it 
 adds nothing to the real progress made, to call 
 those "Christian" who are not so. Nati\e life on 
 Aneitium to-day is scarcely ideal. 
 
 Before we retrace our way northward, let us visit 
 the attractive grounds — reservation, it is called — 
 surrounding the residence of Mr. Armand, the 
 principal missionary on Aneitium. Here we find 
 the printing press on which that indefatigable
 
 ANEITIUM, ANIWA, FOTUNA. 65 
 
 worker, Dr. Gcddie, is said to lia\e run off the first 
 sheets of the Bible in Aneitiumese. Mere, also, is 
 the school-house, with its equipment of maps, 
 globes, magic lantern, etc. We learn that twelve 
 pupils attend the school. The instructor is a na- 
 tive of Aneitium. We turn now to the long church 
 of which we have spoken. We find one-third of 
 the original audience-room cut off by a partition 
 and partly occupied by stores. This space is itself 
 subdivided by a mat of enormous dimensions, 
 hanging from one of the great timbers and touch- 
 ing the floor. We learned while in Samoa how 
 great labor is required to make such a mat. 
 
 There still remains a spacious audience-room, 
 however, lighted by nine glass windows, with large 
 panes. These windows open toward magnificent 
 views of sea and land. Matting covers the floor. 
 There are benches around the sides, and a few seats 
 in front of the desk. A square-cushioned pew 
 occupies one corner. We were told that it was 
 " for the minister's family." Back of the reading- 
 desk is a bench cushioned in red. Just above it, 
 fixed in the wall, is a tablet stating, in the language 
 of Aneitium, that " Ion Getti" — John Gediiic — 
 " here labored fi)r twenty-four years;" that "when 
 he landed on Aneitium, in 184.S. there were no 
 Christians, and when he left, in 1872, there were no 
 heathen." 
 
 A feature which ever\ where impresses the stran- 
 ger on these islands, where missions have so long 
 5
 
 66 TWO CANNIBAL AKCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 been established, is the very small number of na- 
 tives who speak English. The missionaries have 
 performed a prodigious amount of labor to trans- 
 late the Bible and other works into the native dia- 
 lects. Many languages are spoken in the group. 
 Dr. Steel calls them a Babel of tongues. Into 
 twelve of them, more or less, the word of God has 
 been translated. The work has been accomplished 
 with an immense outlay of labor and monc}-. It is 
 claimed that no other mission in the South Pacific 
 has so many missionaries, serving in so many lan- 
 guages, on so limited a territory. The New Testa- 
 ment has been translated into Tannese, Efatese, 
 and the language spoken on Erromanga. The 
 entire Bible has been rendered into the tongue of 
 Aneitium. So, also, have the shorter catechism, 
 a hymn book, a part of "Pilgrim's Progress," and 
 a dictionary. All works in l^fatese are e.xpected to 
 answer for the inhabitants of I-'ate, Nguna, and their 
 seven attendant islets. 
 
 Thinking over all these facts, one queries : Would 
 it not have been easier, less expensive in time, labor, 
 and money, and in many respects far better for the 
 natives, particularly for the rising generation, to have 
 taught them the P^nglish language from the begin- 
 ning? One grand result of that course would have 
 been the unification of the tribes now so hostile to 
 one another. It would have saved hundreds of 
 lives, which, during the past thirty-fi\e years, have 
 been extinguished by tribal wars. It would have
 
 ANEITIUM, ANIWA, FOTUNA. 6/ 
 
 brought these people into sympathy and relations 
 with the milHons of our race who speak the En- 
 gHsh tongue. It would have been a great advantage 
 to the thousands of Hebrideans annually employed 
 on English plantations in Fiji, Queensland, and else- 
 where in the Pacific. Their engagements, now 
 made ignorantly, stupidly, at the will and on the 
 terms of the labor trader, could be made intelli- 
 gently, with some slight justice to themselves. 
 Lastly, it would have saved the making of books in 
 languages which must cease to be spoken, as the 
 diminishing tribes become extinct, then their only 
 value will be as curiosities, on the shelves of anti- 
 quarian book collectors. 
 
 In this series of little books we have several 
 times alluded to the work of the Marist Fathers — 
 French Catholic teachers — in these seas. It is 
 said that immediately upon beginning their labors 
 in any group, these men commence teaching the 
 inhabitants the French language. They every- 
 where succeed in the task, and make Frenchmen of 
 their converts. The children, especiall)', are taught 
 French. In this respect cannot the English mis- 
 sionaries learn a valuable lesson of the Marist Fa- 
 thers? Would not the large sums which have 
 been spent in printing the word of God in twelve 
 dialects of the New Hebrides have been better ex- 
 pended in making that word known on the islands 
 of Mallicollo. Espiritu Santo, and others of the 
 group, which Dr. Steel says are barcl)- touched as
 
 68 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 yet? Lastly, niii^dit not the vast amount of mental 
 energy which has been spent by the missionaries in 
 learning the native dialects, have been husbanded 
 for a better purpose? We have been told that Rev. 
 Mr. Armand has acquired three of the Hebridean 
 languages. 
 
 A word now while we are in this part of the 
 group, in reference to the interesting little islands of 
 Aniwa and Fotuna. Aniwa is the only true coral 
 island of the New Hebrides. It is a dainty gem, 
 only ten miles in circuit. Most of the surface is but 
 fifty feet above the sea. Feathery cocoanut trees 
 make the spot beautiful and half feed the people, 
 one hundred and fifty in number. Little Aniwa con- 
 tains the best mission-house in the New Hebrides. 
 Unlike Erromanga, the islands of Aniwa, Fotuna, 
 and Aneitium have for many years been safe places 
 of abode for white men. 
 
 Fotuna is a solitary, flat-topped cone rising 
 abruptly out of the ocean. It is a trifle larger than 
 Aniwa, having a circumference of fifteen miles, and 
 is in the highest degree healthful. The entire pop- 
 ulation — about nine hundred — occupies eight vil- 
 lages. The Rev. Wyatt W. Gill says the natives 
 are evidently of the same origin as those of Aniwa. 
 They have a tradition that, many generations ago, 
 there drifted from Tonga a large canoeful of men, 
 women, and children, which fortunately reached 
 this little islet, and found it uninhabited. Their an- 
 cestors left Tonga under the guardianship of Mai- 
 siki, the protecting divinity of Fotuna and Aniwa
 
 ANEITIUM, ANIWA, FOTUNA. 69 
 
 The dwelling-place of IMaisiki is the blue ocean, 
 but occasionally he walks on shore, disguised as a 
 lovely woman. " His person, during these prome- 
 nades, is wrap[)ed in multiplied fields of fine fish 
 netting. His long hair is entwined with the scarlet 
 flowers of the iiibiscus, the white blossoms of the 
 gardenia, the fragrant flowers of the screw-pine, with 
 the long green leaves of the dracoena." Six other 
 deities, according to Fotuna mythology, are subor- 
 dinate to Maisiki. We rejoice to add that the last 
 of these co»ipiis the evening meal to be properly 
 cooked. 
 
 Forty-seven years ago two native Samoan teach- 
 ers, with their wives and one young girl, undertook 
 to carry the gospel to I^'otuna. Fvery one met 
 death at the hands of the inhal)itants. Ten years 
 later teachers from Aneitium located upon the islet. 
 Then Ru of Aitutaki — of the Hervey grouj) — took 
 up the work, remained among them, conscientiously 
 taught them the gospel, and paved the way for Rev. 
 and Mrs. Copelantl, who, in 1S76, became the resi- 
 dent missionaries. 
 
 The natives of I'^otuna and Aniwa speak a dia- 
 lect of ICastern Polj'uesia, yet, in manners and com- 
 plexion, they scarcely differ from the I'.ipuans, who 
 are their neighbors. The following fact would in- 
 dicate that their dark color is due to their location. 
 Ru stated that "at birth the babies born on these 
 islands are as white as l''nglish children, but they 
 become bl.ick l)y constant exposure to the sun."
 
 yO TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 Many of the men wear their hair long. In Ru's 
 day among them, they were ruled by a majestic, 
 fine-looking chief, whose hair actually swept the 
 ground. He was very proud of it. Ru also tells 
 this story: — 
 
 One Sunday morning he invited several of his 
 neighbors to attend the gospel service. Most of 
 them simply laughed at him. One fellow, however, 
 raised his hatchet, and flourished it playfully over 
 Ru's head. The latter, not quite sure of the man's 
 intention, asked him to stop, and spoke of his folly 
 in resisting the gospel. " Eat your gospel and your 
 Sabbath," replied the man. "I am off to the sea 
 with my fish-hooks, and shall get something more 
 substantial." Away he went, and was soon re- 
 warded with a fine fish. " Ha! this is much better 
 than going to church," exclaimed the angler. The 
 next effort brought a hungry shark to land. But, 
 upon turning around for his hatchet to kill his 
 captive, the shark, in some unaccountable manner, 
 caught the man by the heel. Never did more lusty 
 screams break from the throat of a fisherman. His 
 friends came running to help. Quickly that was 
 a shark which would never more catch men. But 
 there was a big mouthful gone from the fisherman's 
 ankle. He limped slowly home, leaving a trail of 
 blood as he went. Of course Ru, and perhaps his 
 heathen neighbors, attributed the disaster to the 
 man's disregard for Sunday.
 
 >-*- 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 API, AMBRV.M, ESIMRITU SANTO. 
 
 "^^^ . 
 
 uJSipl'I IS i'l sight." The announcement brinrrs 
 
 < c^ki us to the deck. Tust before us high, 
 [j tliickly-wooded hills stand out sharply 
 against the blue sky. The land seems to 
 ascend from the very sea. As we draw nearer, we 
 find that the entire island is a succession of lofty 
 peaks and steep ridges, with fertile valley's inter- 
 vening. The highest point is fifteen hundred feet 
 above sea level. This is Api, the scene of so many 
 bloody tragedies among the natives, so many cruel 
 massacres of white people. "The people are still can- 
 nibals," wrote one when .sailing along Api's shores 
 four years ago. When were they not cannibals? is 
 a question no one can answer. 
 
 Api is but a little territor\-, twenty miles in length 
 and sevent\' miles in circumference. North of it lie 
 Ambr)-m and Mallicolo, and south of it luxuriant 
 Efate. It is fringed b)' a narrow shore platform of 
 coral, at some points one hundred yards wide. The 
 shore reef is remarkable, being extremely flat, with 
 the upper surface dead. It is said that this is be- 
 cause the water above the reef is too shallow for the 
 upward building of the coral. 
 
 The natives of Api are faiiud for their indolence 
 
 (-1 )
 
 72 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 and inhumanity. They have certainly very Httlc 
 incentive to exertion. Their hves are the most 
 primitive possible. A band around the loins forms 
 the only clothing for the men, and a kilt of matting 
 the only dress for the women. The fish in the sea, 
 and a minimum of labor bestowed upon the soil, 
 furnish all the food they require, and they have 
 neither commerce nor manufactures. For their 
 barbarity toward white people doubtless some 
 apology might be made. The labor traffic of the 
 past fifty years is in great degree responsible for 
 it. 
 
 Physically the Apians are inferior to the higher 
 class of Fijians and Samoans. Most of them are 
 crooked, and about five feet in height. Observe 
 these men who have come off to the ship. There is 
 no animation in their faces or gestures as they talk, 
 and all have a heavy, dejected look. They manifest 
 childish affectation when they laugh, concealing their 
 faces in their hands, like coy children; and none of 
 them hiugh aloud. If wc look into the eyes of one 
 of them for a moment, a sickly smile parts his lips. 
 lie is conscious of being looked at. Here is one 
 slightly e.xcited. Like ourselves under such cir- 
 cumstances, he has allowed his voice to mount to 
 a high key. He is human. Instead of saying 
 "no" when offers of trade do not suit, all shrug 
 their shoulders expressively. But now over the 
 side of the ship they go. As they push off, their 
 hands are raised — palm outward — in token of
 
 API, AMBKVM, ESPIRITU SANTO, 73 
 
 good-by. Around the neck of every man is sus- 
 pended a small triangular charm, or ornament. 
 Around their wrists are broad, flat bracelets of tor- 
 toise shell, and in their ears are narrow rings of the 
 same material. The bodies of all are cicatriced, in 
 some instances on the shoulder, in others on the 
 breast, in some cases, on both these parts. Usually 
 the design is a human face. The arrows they carry 
 are all tipped with bone, and are made terribly 
 effective with poison. The)' prize the instruments 
 highly, and part with them reluctantly. 
 
 Nearly every mile of Api, except the spaces 
 cleared for yams and taro, is mantled with the dens- 
 est vegetation. Among the wilderness of growths 
 near the shore we discern the curious screw-pine, 
 and some flourishing fig trees, but inland a few 
 yards the tangle of vegetation becomes so com- 
 pact that we recognize none ot our acquaintances 
 in the Eastern Pacific. We see ferns, however, 
 whose texture is like lace. Api now has si.x white 
 inhabitants, two of whom are the missionary and 
 his wife, whose residence looks delightfully in- 
 viting from this distance. There are three large 
 copra establishments on the ishuul — the propert\' 
 of the New Hebrides Company — which arc super- 
 vised by white men. 
 
 Weighing anchor with a good breeze in our 
 favor, we fly away toward Ambrym, passing the 
 islets of Paana and Lopevi on our right. The lat- 
 ter, with its surface fi\e thou.sand feet above the
 
 74 T^\'0 CANN'II5AL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 sea, is simply a volcano half asleep. At our left is 
 Mallicolo, a charming bit of land with but two of 
 the white race among its smoke-colored population. 
 The shrewd prophets of trade predict that their 
 future headquarters in the south seas will be this 
 Mallicolo. 
 
 A cloud of smoke from its ever-restless volcano 
 winds into the air above Ambrym. The mountain 
 indulges in neither explosions nor eruptions, as 
 does Yasur, on Tanna, yet it is regarded as the 
 most powerful volcano of the group. It has two 
 distinct craters, the largest of which is some eight 
 miles in circuit. The mouth of this crater is 
 thirty-five hundred feet above sea level. At night 
 the glow from its burning interior lights sea and 
 sky for miles around, hke an enormous lamp. On 
 one side of the vast cone stretches a broad level 
 plateau, ten miles in length, formed entirely of lava 
 gravel. 
 
 On the little island of Aurora, in this group, 
 there is an active volcano, from whose crater there 
 leaped forth, in 1871, great tongues of flame and 
 smoke, which were soon followed by a disastrous 
 earthquake. Should Ambrym sometime resolve 
 upon a pyrotechnic display of that sort, the New 
 Hebrides may be shaken to their foundations, and 
 Ambrym itself may be blotted out of the Pacific. 
 
 A beautiful bay indents the extreme northern 
 coast of Ambrym. We run around into it, and 
 cast anchor. Several vessels in the port are flying
 
 API, AMBKVM, ESl'IKITU SANTO. 75 
 
 the French ensign. As at every other anchorage 
 of the group, our ship is soon boarded by a delega- 
 tion of native men in extreme undress, but with 
 tlie hair tlone in a style which would utterly defy 
 the skill of the civilized hair-dresser. On some 
 lieads it is arranged in a circlet of perfectly erect 
 spikes, pointing in all directions, like the thorns on 
 the shell of the sea urchin. Cocoanut oil and some 
 sort of fiber have contributed freely to the effect. 
 ?2very man flourishes ear-rings, but, unlike those of 
 the Api men, they are very diverse in pattern. 
 From the ears of one — e\-idently an aristocrat — de- 
 pend miniature Jew's-harps. Another, bearing a 
 club and wearing a belt of cocoanut fiber about the 
 loins, we take to be chief Each man carries a 
 pipe in his hair, some matches in his whiskers, and 
 a trifle of tobacco thrust between his arm ancj 
 bracelet. 
 
 Will fifty years, we ask ourselves, suffice to civil- 
 ize and Christianize these men? The Ambrym 
 native has a reputation for honesty and general 
 inoffensiveness, but he is a cannibal. Moreover, he 
 is the slave of horrible superstitions. He is wed- 
 ded to demon-worship. He sacrifices young boys 
 to the shark, his maritime deity. Truly, the young 
 Scotch missionary and his wife, now on one of the 
 vessels lying at anchor here, who have come to 
 dwell among this people, will need Ahrahamic 
 faith in God's promises as they labor and wait. 
 
 There is no stand.ird of exchange in the New
 
 76 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 Hebrides, except possibly on Fate, as we have 
 learned by observing the trading at different ports. 
 Demand is the criterion of value for the merchan- 
 dize which the white traders bring. Thus it is not 
 a question of cost, nor of excellence, but of " what 
 is the fashion." On one island the taste may run 
 entirely to red beads. There red beads will be had 
 at any price. On Ambrym you perceive only the 
 white circlets are tolerated. 
 
 We land amid a crowd of men and boys gathered 
 on the beach. The fine clubs in the hands of a few 
 evince their rank, someone remarks. We pass on 
 a k\v steps to meet a company of women, who, as 
 we drew to shore, retreated, in order to scrutinize us 
 from a distance. There are fifteen or twenty in the 
 group. Not one of them possesses a vestige of 
 beauty. All are repulsive looking and prema- 
 turely old. Unmistakably, their lives have been 
 hard. When wc think what might be done to 
 soften the expression of their faces, we wish we 
 were missionaries. This will become the work of 
 gentle Mrs. Murray, now awaiting the completion 
 of her home on the shore, a little beyond us. May 
 she have a long life in which to do it. 
 
 The hair of every woman is cut close, and the 
 head powdered thickly with coral lime — both being 
 sanitary measures. A fringe of pandanus leaves 
 depending from the hips is their only garment. A 
 light rain is falling, chilling their bare shoulders. 
 They shrug them, shiver vigorously, and move off
 
 API, AMBRVM, ESPIRITU SANTO. 7/ 
 
 toward their village of comfortless homes not far 
 away. These are mere low huts with the roof 
 brought almost to the ground, and are entered by 
 crawling on the hands and knees. They are 
 shockingly dirty. Not for a moment can we breathe 
 the air of tiiem. Instantly we are reminded of an 
 apartment we once endeavored to enter, in the 
 infirmary of a thriving county town in Ohio. It 
 was the only Jiomc of a half dozen demented, 
 friendless men. No human being in possession of 
 his senses could have lived in it twenty-four hours. 
 
 The correspondent of an enterprising Australian 
 journal thus writes of Mr. Murray, who is about to 
 become the pastor of these untutored men and 
 women: "The young divine had been recently or- 
 dained at Sydney, upon his arrival from Scotland. 
 He looked a student, like one used to burning the 
 midnight oil. In a civilized community I should 
 have taken him to be a man of sufficient assurance. 
 But on Ambrym, with his cough and frail consti- 
 tution, I was afraid he w^ould be out pf place. The 
 immaculate purity of his shirt-front, with its neat 
 studs, would be thrown away upon the savages. 
 
 "My sympathies were enlisted for the young 
 Scotch lady, his wife, who was burdened with a babe 
 two months old, born at Aneitium. I did not think 
 her husband a man who would be of much service 
 in the house, and with only its roof over their heads, 
 they would have a hard time. Until the return of 
 the Dayspring — the missionary ship at anchor in
 
 78 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 the bay — six months hence, they would be entirely 
 alone, would see no white face except those on trad- 
 ing and labor vessels, and such men they had been 
 influenced to look upon as enemies. The delicate 
 young minister will need the spirit of an evangelist 
 to carry him through the first twelve months." 
 
 The same wTiter thus refers to three brother mis- 
 sionaries of Mr. Murray, one each from Tongoa, 
 Nguna.and Ancitium, who had erected Mr. Murra)''s 
 residence, to the extent of getting the walls up and 
 the roof on. We abridge generously : " The three 
 men were hard at work, assisted by the mate of the 
 Dayspring. They had been thus engaged for a 
 month. One of them was roofing the veranda, in 
 the hot sun, and had a hard time of it. In their 
 working clothes these brethren hardly personated 
 first-class mechanics. You would never have sup- 
 posed that Mr. Milne, who was doing his best to 
 make a lock fit, had translated the gospels of Mat- 
 thew and John direct from the Greek into Ngunese, a 
 language which, if he had not invented, he had per- 
 petuated, for he was the only white man who under- 
 stood it. 
 
 "This was a feat of learning of which a man 
 might well be proud. But there came the question. 
 To what good was all this waste of energy and eru- 
 dition? There are only nine hundred people in his 
 parish — the island of Nguna — who speak that lan- 
 fTuacre. He mi<jht far better have set himself to 
 work to teach them ICnglish. That would have 
 opened the literature of the world to them.
 
 API, AMBRVM, ESPIRITU SANTO. 79 
 
 "I sat on a tool-box, watching them work. Sev- 
 eral native Christians from Ancitium had been 
 brought up to assist in the building, but they were 
 good for nothing, except to do mere tiiflcs. One 
 would have thought that after so man\' \-ears' train- 
 ing by the white race they would have learned some 
 handicraft. But it was not so. 
 
 "The residence was fairly proportioned, with four 
 windows, and a door in front. It was intended to 
 have three rooms. At present there were but two. 
 Back of the house were two other rooms, one for a 
 dining-room, the other for stores. Near at hand 
 was a grass hut, for a native teacher and his wife 
 from Aneitiuni, w ho would be a protection, and of 
 some assistance. There was also a hut for goats, 
 twelve in number, to furnish sweet flesh and fresh 
 milk. Cats, fowls, and turkeys were yet to be landed. 
 The house was unfinished, and I was surprised to 
 learn that the Dayspring was to leave that after- 
 noon. The stores and household goods of the 
 young people were piled up confusedly in qne cor- 
 ner, and I could not help sa\-ing, 'This is pretty 
 rough on the new minister antl his wife.' ' I Ic's got 
 the roof over his head. We've been here long 
 enough,' replied the brother from Aneitium." 
 
 There are now six missionary vessels in the South 
 Pacific, the Dayspring, which devotes her time, at 
 an expense of seventeen hundred pounds sterling 
 per annum, to the Scotch and Nova Scotia missions 
 in the New Hebrides. Her work is to call at all
 
 8o TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 the stations twice a year, to carry mails and supplies, 
 to convey the teachers and preachers to the annual 
 meeting of the Synod, held at Aneitium, and to return 
 them to their homes; the Morning Star, which minis- 
 ters to the wants of the American missionaries 
 throughout the Pacific; the John Williams, which 
 looks after the interests of the London missionary 
 society in the south seas ; the John Wesley, which 
 aids the Wesleyans in the Fijian and Tongan groups ; 
 the Southern Cross, a screw steamer, which serves 
 the Church of England missions in the Banks, Solo- 
 mon, Santa Cruz, and Swallow groups; the Pitcairn, 
 very recently sent into the field by the Seventh-day 
 Adventists,to increase the efficiency of their missions 
 on the island of Pitcairn, in Australia, and in New 
 Zealand; and the Robert W. Logan, which acts as 
 a tender to the Morning Star. 
 
 We pass Espiritu Santo with but a paragraph. 
 The island was discovered, partially explored, and 
 named by the Spaniard, De Quiros, in 1606. He 
 described it as "a land of gold, silver, and precious 
 stones ; " as an earthly paradise, with a climate mild 
 and lovely. He found upon it pigs, fowls, and 
 goats, supposed to have been introduced long years 
 before from the Malay Peninsula. One of its 
 streams he named the River Jordan, a title it still 
 retains. Espiritu Santo is the largest and most 
 northern island of the New Hebrides. Its length is 
 sixty-five miles, its width thirty-five. It is the least 
 known land of this increasingly important group.
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 THK GREAT VOLCANO ON TANNA. 
 
 HE distinguishing feature of the New Heb- 
 rides group is its grand volcanoes. Cap- 
 tain Cook discovered the island of Tanna 
 in 1777. He found the volcano of Yasur — the 
 native name — in a state of remarkable activity. He 
 described it as " giving out a great light and throw- 
 ing up large stones at regular intervals of fi\e or 
 six minutes, with a noise that could be heard forty- 
 miles away." From the visit of the famous navi- 
 gator to this day the huge furnace has kept up its 
 fires. It has its seasons of comparative quiet, and 
 its times of great violence, the latter occurring dur- 
 ing heavy rains. The water then pours into its 
 glowing heart, where it is rapidly converted into 
 steam, and adds immensely to its explosive power, 
 shaking Tanna mightily. 
 
 According to the native fiiith, a mighty demon, 
 steadfastly hostile to mankind, inhabits the red-hot 
 cavern, and utters the appalling roars which come 
 
 from the crater. Someone affirms that when the 
 
 • . . . - 
 
 mountam is m a state of repose for some tmie, 
 
 earthquake shocks occur in New Caledonia, a large 
 
 island under French domination, l\'ing some three 
 
 6 (81)
 
 82 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 hundred miles southwest of Tanna. Since earth- 
 quakes are much more destructive than eruptions 
 from the volcano, the Tannese are very glad to 
 witness its discharges of steam and hot stones. 
 
 Like all volcanoes, Yasur is variable in its action. 
 A glance at its summit, now, discovers a mere haze 
 of steam arising. An hour hence a dense cloud of 
 smoke may be climbing toward the sky. Before 
 night a thick black canopy may conceal its top, 
 while a steady stream of dark dust will flow to sea 
 with the wind. At midnight explosion may suc- 
 ceed explosion, attended by a magnificent display 
 of fire-works, hot lava, and fiery stones, mounting 
 high into the air, only to drop again into the 
 agitated interior. It is said that the explosions ap- 
 pear to be most violent at high tide. This has led 
 to the surmise that through crevices in the mountam 
 and in caves along the shore the sea water finds its 
 way to the crater, is quickly converted into steam, 
 and produces a great commotion. 
 
 Indeed, Yasur is believed to extend under-ground 
 to the sea, since hot springs exist along the shore 
 for a long distance, and from them to the crater 
 lines of hot steam and smoke, freighted with sul- 
 phur, escape through fissures in the scorched 
 ground. Large deposits of this mineral are carried 
 to the leeward of these vents by the wind. In time 
 the overflows of lava from Yasur become extremely 
 fertile. Yams raised upon them are the finest in 
 the Pacific. This accounts in part for the mul-
 
 THE GREAT VOLCANO ON TANNA. S3 
 
 titude of yam gardens in its neighborhood. The 
 people are tempted to plant where the largest har- 
 vest can be reaped. It is a rash step, however, for 
 which Vasur does not always punish lightly. Tlie 
 heavy showers of hot dust from its top often ruin 
 the crops for miles around. It matters not with 
 what care they have been cultivated, or how great 
 is the promise of income, suddenly there is just 
 the right change of wind, and the parching breath 
 of Yasur kills them. Thus the result of months 
 of labor is destroyed. The next year the planters 
 will live on cocoanuts. The Tannese have a strong 
 fear of the demon who dwells in the crater of Yasur. 
 
 Formerly there was some trade in the sulphur 
 emitted by the volcano, which sold at about four 
 dollars per ton. But the earthquake of 1878 de- 
 stroyed the road leading to the mountain, render- 
 ing transportation of the mineral very difficult. 
 The traffic was therefore abandoned. Circum- 
 -stances forbidding us the pleasure of a visit to the 
 crater, we epitomize for the benefit of the reader Mr. 
 Thomas' extremely wordy account of his trip thither 
 in 1 886. 
 
 Our guide, Harry, walked behind. We skirted 
 the bright bay fur some time. On the east side 
 were the boiling springs, under the rocks upheaved 
 by the great earthquake. At high tide these were 
 covered, but at low water they bubbled up vigor- 
 ously. The water was hot enough to burn ni\' 
 hands, to boil yams, or to scald pigs. When the
 
 84 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 tide simply covered them, the temperature was de- 
 lightful. That was the time for the maids and ma- 
 trons to assemble there to bathe and to chatter. 
 
 At the extreme end of the bay we crossed a 
 broad stretch of sandy beach, which in Captain 
 Cook's day formed the bottom of the harbor and 
 held his anchor. The earthquake had converted it 
 into a series of eligible water frontages, but with 
 no guaranteed lease from Yasur. Once it was but 
 a pleasant walk to the summit, which is scarcely 
 seven hundred feet high. But now the road is the 
 worst imaginable, even had we not prolonged the 
 agony by losing our way. For two hours we 
 mounted up through the thicket, along a path just 
 wide enough for one person. The air was very hot 
 and close. Once only after leaving the beach did 
 we obtain a \icw of the sea, or inhale a breath of 
 salt air. 
 
 The soil was light and }'ielding, and made our 
 progress the more fatiguing. We passed many 
 garden patches, but never caught a view of the 
 natives. Where were the villages at which we had 
 been promised escorts ? Where were the green 
 cocoanuts which were to quench my thirst? I verily 
 believe Harry, our leprous guide, led us by out-of- 
 the-way paths, that he himself might have all the 
 reward. Suddenly he stopped, and confessed he 
 had lost the way. A little rough language brought 
 out the fact that he had never before been over the 
 road. I wondered what would be his market value 
 in pigs, should I take his life.
 
 THE GREAT VOLCANO ON TAXNA. 8$ 
 
 On he went, makint,^ a long detour, when, from a 
 cleared space — all sulphur and steam — we dis- 
 covered a few houses on the cliff above. We 
 climbed thither by steps cut in the rocks, and I be- 
 gan to understand why the natives lived in homes 
 so difficult of access. They could be easily de- 
 fended in attacks by other tribes. They were the 
 habitations of the bushmen, and, if possible, were 
 more wretched than the dwellings of the salt-water 
 tribes. In the three villages we passed there was 
 not a soul at home, so we could fully inspect them. 
 Harry explained the conundrum by saying it was 
 the time of yam planting, and that all the men who 
 were not fighting in the war then in progress, were 
 with the women and children at the gardens nearer 
 the salt water. 
 
 Just where we were nothing seemed to grow to 
 maturity. In view of that Harry volunteered: 
 " Bad fellow, Yasur. Make him no good yam, no 
 good nut." A few tall, weedy cocoanuts stood 
 near, but when my rifle brought a green nut to the 
 ground, it smashed utterly, being very soft. We 
 were suffering from thirst. At last Gottfrcy found 
 a nut containing a gill of water. We shared it 
 between us. 
 
 Having gone so far astray in our reckoning, the 
 hills on which we stood were higher than the vol- 
 cano, and we had to l)e guided b\' its contimious 
 roar. 0\\ \ve went, up and dmvn. Hot steam rose 
 under our feet from great fissures in the ground.
 
 86 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHII'ELAGOES. 
 
 In sore need of a guide, Harry shouted until he was 
 hoarse. At last came a faint reply. Coming nearer 
 • now, the voice proved to be that of "a naked little 
 native" — a youngster, who was not particularly 
 frightened, and who at once consented to guide 
 us to the foot of Yasur. He was nicely beha\ed. 
 I could not help thinking his manners were far 
 Superior to those of some white boys who might 
 have been picked up in England or in the Colonies, 
 to escort a party of foreigners of whose language he 
 knew not a word. Yet we call him a heathen. I le 
 was a possible cannibal. 
 
 On now, through more deserted villages, the 
 ground cracking, the steam bursting out freshly and 
 scalding all the vegetation, we passed into a deep 
 dell which Yasur had overlooked. High banyan 
 trees overshadowed us. There were brilliant crotons 
 and rare ferns in perfectit)n. Lizards, mere streaks 
 of shining color, darted across our path. Gorgeous 
 butterflies circled above our heads. In a few 
 moments it was all o\er. Desolation followed. All 
 life was blighted. The bones of a dead pig bleached 
 on a bed of sulphur. The sjiring of water beside 
 the path was poisonous. All nature fought life. 
 Nothing lived thci-e but a lin\' flower, as great a 
 rarit}' in such a si;ot as the little idelwciss growing 
 amid Alpine snows. 
 
 W'c had passed several old craters. The ground 
 beneath our feet became hollow. There was yet a 
 half mile of climbing. The measure of my dis-
 
 THE GREAT VOLCANO ON TAXNA. 8/ 
 
 satisfaction was full. All in all, it was an uninter- 
 esting jaunt. On we stumbled, with the roar of 
 Yasur, more and more threatening, ringing in our 
 ears. Ashes fell all around us. When half-way up 
 the cone, both natives stopped and would go no 
 further. They would not even speak. Harry said, 
 "No good, talk here." Both glanced furtively 
 around as if expecting to see evil spirits spring 
 upon the slope. We left them, and they retreated 
 to a respectful distance. 
 
 At last we were on the sunnuit of Vasur. l^cfore 
 us were the two craters. Ihnulrcds of feet below 
 seethed the molten la\a. liright flames shed a 
 frightful glare on the steam and smoke which filled 
 the cavern. The roar was perpetual, and the 
 explosions were like salvos of artillery. The ground 
 quivered. Away to leeward was a pillar of smoke, 
 a shower of ashes and small stones. I did not go 
 to the edge of the crater and drop a stone in. The 
 ground crumbling beneath our feet showetl us our 
 danger if too foolhardy. The air was fiery; we 
 were covered with burning dust. To breathe 
 seemeil to scorch our lungs. 
 
 I tried to fi>rm some idea of the extent of Vasur, 
 but it was impossible to see to the other side, and 
 impossible to see to the bottom. To try to walk 
 around it would have been highly dangerous. The 
 force overshadowing every other was that of steam. 
 Lumps of red-hot scoria were blown to leeward, 
 but the greater proportion of rocks and stones
 
 88 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 simply fell back into the lava, which then boiled up 
 like molten iron in a blast furnace. 
 
 If the walk to the top of Yasur was not the most 
 inviting, the view from its summit was lovely. The 
 scene suggests that in a far past day the volcano 
 was separated from the mainland. A large lake in 
 the center of the plain below confirms the idea. In 
 times of flood this lake is said to overflow through 
 openings in the volcano, and then the explosions 
 increase. The water of this lake is unfit to drink, 
 and the superstitious natives say it is the abode of 
 great black demons, who eat men. Undoubtedly 
 the objects seen were enormous eels, such as fre- 
 quent the lakes of New Zealand. The lake on 
 Tanna is certainly worth a visit. Upon re-entering 
 the path to the village which was the home of 
 our little guide, we dismissed him with a reward, to 
 appease his parents for his absence from the even- 
 ing meal. I was very much pleased with the lad. 
 
 The homeward walk to Port Resolution will ever 
 remain in my mind as a hideous dream. Nono 
 put us on a track which shortened our course by a 
 mile or two, but ev^en that was far too long. The 
 full moon shone after nightfall, yet the wooded 
 paths were dark and gloomy. Sometimes its bright 
 beams cast weird shadows across the path we 
 stumbled along. The volcano roared and groaned 
 louder than ever. Harry kept close to my side, 
 as if for protection from the evil beings he supposed 
 to be abroad at night. Indeed, in the lonely
 
 THE GREAT VOLCANO ON TANNA. 
 
 89 
 
 thicket, in the strange shadows, in the loud ex- 
 plosions at the volcano, and in the glare which its 
 flames threw athwart the sky, there was enough to 
 impress the native mind. At last we reached Port 
 Resolution, and took a long draught of pure spring 
 water, which was like nectar to our throats, parched 
 by the hot dust of Yasur,
 
 iyr>)V,tin.^^
 
 i
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 AWAY TO THE SOLOMON ISLES. 
 
 .A 
 
 ►HE Solomon Islands form one of the most 
 
 extensive, and in some respects one of the 
 most interesting, groups in the Southwest- 
 ern Pacific. They were among the first discovered 
 in that part of the island world. Yet, owing to a 
 series of peculiar circumstances, they have until 
 quite recently been the least known of the larger 
 groups of the great ocean. For over two hundred 
 years after their discovery all knowledge of them 
 was lost to the world. But we shall consider that 
 point a little later. The connnander of our trim 
 craft remarks that at the rate we are flying along 
 before this .stiff trade wind we shall touch the 
 group to-morrow morning about sunrise. 
 
 This will bring first into view the lofty i.sland of 
 Guadalcanar, with tropical Malaita on our right, 
 and beautiful St. Christoval on our left. Let us, 
 therefore, now gather all the general information 
 possible about the long-lost group. There is the 
 captain trying to make out that strange sail ofT 
 the coast of St. Christoval. The man has never been 
 heard to sa\', " I wish passengers would not annoy 
 me with questions," so we need not hesitate to 
 
 (93)
 
 94 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 take seat beside him and begin our queries. The 
 facts he gives we will arrange according to a plan 
 of our own. 
 
 We learn that the Solomon Archipelago em- 
 braces seven large islands and a multitude of 
 smaller ones. They form two chains, called the 
 Eastern and Western Solomons. Like the New 
 Hebrides, they extend from southeast to north- 
 west, a distance of over six hundred miles. Every 
 large island of the group extends in the same direc- 
 tion. They deck the ocean some four hundred miles 
 northeast of the great island of New Guinea, and 
 lie five hundred miles, perhaps, northwest of the 
 New Hebrides. The islands of Malaita, Isabel, 
 Choiseul, and Bougainville, with their rich attend- 
 ants, form the eastern series, while New Georgia, 
 Guadalcanar, and St. Christoval, with their groups 
 of smaller islands, constitute the western chain. 
 
 The larger islands vary in length from seventy 
 to one hundred miles, and in breadth from twenty 
 to thirty miles. The smaller ones range from tiny 
 coral islets to lands twenty miles in extent. All 
 the larger bodies are mountainous, two of them, 
 Bougainville and Guadalcanar, attaining a height of 
 ten thousand feet. Many of the islands are largely 
 volcanic. Others are formed chiefly of limestone. 
 St, Christoval, over four thousand feet high, is an 
 example of the first class, being formed of highly- 
 crystallized volcanic rock. Several of the volcanoes 
 have been active within recent years. Notably
 
 AWAY TO THE SOLOMON ISLES. 95 
 
 that on the island of Save, now quiescent, has been 
 in eruption within the memory of hving men. 
 When the Peruvian Spaniards, led by Mendana, 
 discovered the Solomons, in i 568, Savo was in a 
 state of great excitement. To-day most of the 
 craters, except that of Mount Bagana, in the interior 
 of Bougainville, appear to be slumbering soundly, 
 
 A few of the islands, particularly Bougainville 
 and New Georgia, are in part modern upheavals, 
 but most of them are supposed to be of great 
 antiquity. On some, especially the principal island 
 of the Shortland cluster, in Bougainville Strait, the 
 volcanic deposit has furnished a soft foundation upon 
 which has been erected line after line of wonderful 
 barrier reef. The remarkable upraised atoll of 
 Santa Anna affords an illustration in point. There 
 is first the submerged volcanic peak. Above that 
 lies the soft deposit, resembling a deep-sea clay, 
 and supposed to have been formed at a depth of 
 fifteen hundred fathoms. Upon these rests the ring 
 of coral limestone, about one hundred and fifty feet 
 in depth. There are other islands whose s/o/>rs 
 only are inc rusted with the skillful work of the 
 coral insect. 
 
 There are few true atolls in the great group, and 
 these are small in size. But fringing and barrier 
 reefs are frequent. Fronting the eastern coasts of 
 New Georgia is a most striking line of barrier reef 
 nearly sixty miles in length and dotted with innu- 
 merable islets. The reef lies from one to three miles
 
 96 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 from shore. Also, off the beautiful island of Isa- 
 bel are extensive reefs of the same class, with a 
 broad, deep-water channel between them and the 
 mainland. Likewise, a similar barrier skirts the 
 southern coast of Choiseul. And the Shortland 
 cluster — named in honor of Lieutenant .Shortland, 
 their discoverer — is entirely surrounded by a vast 
 barrier reef, inside which the frailest shell of a 
 canoe may be used with perfect safety. But out- 
 side, nearer and nearer roll the long ocean swells, 
 lifting their crests higher and higher in the air, 
 until, gracefully arching at the top, they fall in a 
 mass of white foam, and break with a tremendous 
 roar upon the pinnacled coral. 
 
 A remarkable feature of the Solomon group is 
 the deep channels by which the larger islands are 
 separated. St. Christoval, for instance, is cut off 
 from its neighbors, Malaita and Guadalcanar, by 
 a passage whose bottom a line of two hundred 
 fathoms fails to find. According to Lieutenant Old- 
 ham, depths of four hundred fathoms are no rarity 
 in the different straits. Of course, mighty currents 
 sweep through some, if not all, of these profound 
 waters, rendering their navigation extremely dan- 
 gerous. 
 
 The total land area of the archipelago is esti- 
 mated to be fifteen thousand square miles. The 
 islands are covered in large part from shore to sum- 
 mit with tropical vegetation, dense, rank, and beau- 
 tiful. Fig trees, bread-fruit trees, and cocoanut
 
 AWAV TO TUK SOLOMON ISLES. 9/ 
 
 palms grace the forests, the latter fringing the 
 beach also, in the neighborhood of the villages. 
 The mountains of Choiseul fall sheer into the sea. 
 Its northeast portion presents a lofty, heavily-wooded 
 plain. In St. Christoval the forest-clad mountains 
 are separated by deep, fertile valleys. In the north- 
 ern part, noble spurs, starting from the interior, run 
 down to the sea, and terminate in bold headlands 
 eight hundred or a thousand feet high, while in the 
 south they form and shelter the deep-water bays. 
 
 On the small but elevated island of Florida — in 
 Indispensable Strait — there are broad, undulating 
 acres of grass land, beautified with fine groves of 
 trees. Patches of cultivated land surround the \il- 
 lages, and the ample hill-side plantations proclaim 
 the wealth of the soil. South o( picturesque Choi- 
 seul lies the minute, cliff-encircled islet of Simba — 
 the Eddystone of Lieutenant Shortland — contain- 
 ing a crater twelve hundred feet above the sea. On 
 its side are two remarkable boiling springs, one of 
 the many wonders of the group. The little gem is 
 inhabited, and has a safe harbor for shipping. 
 
 The most interesting things about any country 
 are its people, liistory, and fi)rm of govcrnuiciit. In 
 this chai)ter we shall mcrel)' mention the inhabitants 
 of the Solomon Isles, leaving to subsccjuent pages 
 an account of their characteristics and modes of 
 life, while we here notice their mode of govern- 
 ment, and trace their history from the discovery of 
 the archipelago, three hundred and twenty years 
 acfo.
 
 98 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 Omitting the natives on Bellona and Rcnnel Isl- 
 ands, in the southern part of the group, and those 
 of the cluster called Ontong-Java, in the northeast, 
 who are said to be pure Polynesians, the Solomon 
 islanders are a small, sturdy, well-proportioned 
 branch of the Melanesian race. The men average 
 over fi\e feet in height, the women less than five 
 feet. Their dark eyes are hidden away under 
 projecting brows. Their noses are short, cither 
 straight or arched, and always low at the root. The 
 lips are thick ; the chin recedes. Upon the whole, 
 the general expression of the face is pleasant. Their 
 skin varies from a copper hue to a brownish black, 
 with the darker shades predominating. The hair is 
 naturally dark, yet it is often dyed a red or a fawn 
 color. Inclining to be woolly, it usually hangs in a 
 mop of ringlets, or is dressed in a full bushy circlet, 
 which imparts to the wearer a very striking appear- 
 ance. This seems to be a favorite style for both 
 men and women. On the islands in Bougainville 
 Strait, however, are found tribes ha\ing a very 
 dark skin, with black hair, almost straight. The 
 coast tribes are deemed to be especially intelligent. 
 They are of a quick, nervous temperament, but are 
 crafty, thievish, and revengeful, and }-et are very ap- 
 preciative of kindness. As in the New Hebrides, 
 there resides in the mountainous interiors a less 
 gifted race, against which the maritime tribes wage 
 unrelenting warfare. 
 
 In most of the Solomons the system of govern
 
 AWAY TO THE SOLOMON ISLES. 99 
 
 meiit is a hereditary chieftainship, such as prevails 
 in most other archipelagoes of the Pacific. Some 
 of the larger lands are divided among many chiefs, 
 each claiming to be independent of the others. 
 There may be as many rulers, indeed, as there are 
 villages. This is true, also, of some small islands, as 
 Ugi and Santa Anna. Yet occasionally there lives 
 a chief who, in consequence of his wealth, or the 
 number of his warriors, assumes a degree of au- 
 thority over the less-favored chiefs near him. Tiie 
 present sovereign of the Shortland Isles is an ex- 
 ample in point. The map shows this cluster, King 
 at the southeast entrance of Iiougain\ ille Strait. 
 I lis dominion embraces not onl\- the islets of this 
 large channel, but also the adjacent coasts of Bou- 
 gainville and Choiseul Islands, and includes also the 
 island of Bouka, over one hundred miles distant. 
 
 In some instances a small island has become the 
 capital of a large surrf)unding district. The cliff- 
 bound island of Simba, w ith some other territory, 
 is under the s\va\- of a powerful chi(.Tt.iin, u ho, to- 
 gether with "most of his fighting men," dwells on 
 an islet off its southeast coast. He is said to be a 
 man of enterprising character, of remarkabl)' robust 
 l)hysi([ue, and one of the most t\rannical lords of 
 the archipelago. 
 
 On the 19th of November, 1567, Alvaro de Men- 
 dana, commanding a fleet of two ships — the Almi- 
 ranta and the Capitana — sailed out of the port of 
 Callao, Peru, "on a voyage of discovery among the
 
 lOO TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 archipelagoes of the Pacific." Menclana's company, 
 including the officers, servants, soldiers, crew, and 
 four Franciscan friars, numbered one hundred souls. 
 He sailed westerly for eighty-two days, encounter- 
 ing severe rains and heavy fogs. On the 9th of 
 February, 1568, he discovered a large island of the 
 Eastern Solomons, to which he gave the name of 
 Santa Isabel. Camba was the name given to it by 
 the natives. 
 
 Referring to their cautious approach to the har- 
 bor, on account of the dangerous coral reefs, Gal- 
 lego, the chief pilot of the fleet, and the graphic 
 historian of the voyage, wrote : " Committing our- 
 selves to God, I sent a man aloft to the forctop and 
 placed another on the bowsprit, admonishing them 
 to notice where the shoals were white. The sound- 
 ing lead was kept in hand, and, in the event of our 
 having to come about to anchor, we stood by the 
 sheets and bowlines and had the anchor cleared. 
 Juan Enriguez, whom I had sent out to find a har- 
 bor, had not yet reached the shore. As the Capi- 
 tana proceeded, I sounded and got twelve fathoms, 
 with a clear bottom. Still further on it was deeper 
 and clear of rocks. 
 
 " Although it was midday, a star now appeared 
 to us over the entrance of the reef. Taking it as 
 a guide and a good omen, we were cheered, and 
 became more hopeful. As we proceeded, the 
 water deepened little by little, and I informed the 
 eeneral that we were clear of the reefs. I then
 
 AWAY TO THE SOLOMON ISLES. lOI 
 
 signaled the Almiratita to follow us. Aswc nearcd 
 the harbor, which the boat had now entered, En- 
 riguez signaled us that he had found a good an- 
 chorage. Presently we entered, with the star over 
 our bow, and anchored, the Almiranta entering 
 shortly afterward. We named the harbor Port 
 Santa Isabel del Estrella — Saint Isabel of the Star." 
 
 Most happy and grateful were these men, after 
 their long and anxious voyage, to find themselves in 
 a capacious port, where they could land and obtain 
 food and water. We append Gallego's description 
 of the inhabitants of Isabel Island, written three 
 hundred years ago, but just as applicable to its in- 
 habitants to-day: — 
 
 " These people are tawny, and have crisp hair. 
 They go naked, wearing only short aprons of palm 
 leaves. They luue as food plent)- of.fish and snn\c 
 maizes, or roots, which they call benaus. They 
 are, in my opinion, a clean race, and I am certain 
 they eat human flesh." 
 
 The following paragraphs contain the chief pilot's 
 reason for thinking that they ate human flesh: — 
 
 The Spaniards appear to lia\e taken possession 
 of the shore on which they landed, and of the 
 woods adjacent, for the purpose of building a small 
 vessel in which to cruise among the islands, with- 
 out so much as saying to the natives, "With }-our 
 permission.'" Yet the latter seem to have taken 
 this incursion \er\' amicably, for on the 15th of 
 March, while the Spaniards were celebrating mass
 
 I03 T\\0 CANNIBAL AKCII irF.LAGOES, 
 
 on shore, there arrived at the spot where the brig- 
 aiitiiie was building, a fleet of fourteen canoes, com- 
 nianded by the chief of the district. 
 
 Immediately he sent to Mendana, as a present, 
 "a quarter of a boy, including the arm and hand," 
 together with some edible roots, politely requesting 
 him to accept them. In order to impress them 
 with the fact that the Spaniards did not eat human 
 flesh, the officer in command ordered the fragment 
 of the boy to be buried in their presence. There- 
 upon the chief and his people looked confused, 
 hung their heads, and departed to an islet at the 
 entrance of the harbor. The chief, whose name 
 was Meta, resided some fifteen leagues from the port. 
 
 The brigantine completed, the strangers voyaged 
 to and fro among the Solomons, landing upon and 
 taking formal possession of nearly every important 
 island of the group, except Bougainville, from 
 Isabel eastward, giving names to them, and to a 
 multitude of smaller ones. They killed at least one 
 hundred natives, in conflicts which the Spaniards 
 themsehcs sometimes provoked, and aroused on all 
 the islands such a degree of enmity and excitement 
 that the natives effectually concealed their provis- 
 ions, compelling their cruel visitors to begin the 
 return voyage to Peru — August li, 1568 — with 
 insufficient supplies of food and water. 
 
 The strangers spent six months industriously ex- 
 ploring the group, and reached home the last week 
 of June, 1569. Their vo}'age proved to be one of
 
 AWAY TO THE SOLOMON ISLES. IO3 
 
 such danger, privation, and suffering as often to ap- 
 pall the bravest souls among them. They lived 
 through storms such as even the intrepid Gallego 
 had never witnessed in his nearl}- half a century of 
 nautical experience. 
 
 For two hundred years after the Spaniards with- 
 drew from Santa Isabel, all certain knowledge of 
 their rich discovery was hidden from the world. 
 It was even doubted if such a group as the " Isles 
 of Solomon " existed. It is said that Mendana 
 gave this name to the group in the hope that his 
 countrymen, "supposing them to be the islands 
 from which King Solomon obtained his gold for 
 adorning the temple at Jerusalem, might be induced 
 to colonize them." 
 
 In July, 1767, just two centuries after Mendana's 
 visit, the Solomon Islands were rediscovered by 
 the English navigator Carteret, who was, however, 
 ignorant of the fact. He appears to have simply 
 descried several members of the group, without 
 landing upon any one of them. A year later the 
 French voyager Bougain\ille entered this then 
 mysterious portion of the Pacific, made the west 
 coast of lo\cl\' C'hoiscul Island, sailed through the 
 fine strait which now bears his name, coasted the 
 east shore of Bougainville Island, and passed away 
 from the Solomons at the island of Bouka, appar- 
 ently not dreaming that he had fonntl the long-lost 
 archipelago of Mendana. 
 
 About this time the old .stories conccrninLT the
 
 I04 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 extent, wealth, and beauty of the famous isles began 
 to revive with vigor, luring into that quarter of the 
 Pacific navigators sailing under the ensigns of 
 France, Spain, and England. All of them con- 
 tributed to the rediscovery of the group, but none 
 of them were aware of the fact. Finally, near the 
 close of the last century, certain French geogra- 
 phers, studying the subject in their libraries, fully 
 identified the discoveries of Bougainville, M. de 
 Surville, Maurelle, and Shortland, with the cele- 
 brated Isles of Solomon. And to-day, ships from 
 every land visit the archipelago in the interest of 
 trade, travel, scientific exploration, or missionary 
 enterprises.
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 TIIK ISLAND OV GUADALCAXAR. 
 
 E arc lip with the dawn, scarcliing tlie dis- 
 f^^M^ tancc for the massive front of Guadalcanar. 
 ^P^^ The whole eastern sky is I'adiant with )el- 
 low light. Myriads of wavelets on the sea are 
 tipped with gold. Occasionally a swift bird flits 
 through the space before us. Otherwise there is a 
 deep quiet on the great sea. The breeze is soft 
 and rather humid, but very invigorating. One feels 
 as if he could live a hundred years. Forgotten is 
 the discomfort of our pent-uj) berth and of our 
 narrow home on the sea. 
 
 "There!" suddenly exclaims the keen-eyed cap- 
 tain. We know what he means, and turn our glass 
 toward the west. Look now! Is there a finer 
 coast scene in all the Pacific than those bold heatl- 
 lands of Guadalcanar? Huge mountain masses 
 rise directly out of the sea to a height of fi\e and 
 eight thousand feet. Mount Tammas, named by 
 Lieutenant Shortland, is the highest p<Mnt. Most 
 of the lofty peaks are Jiidden by cloutls ready to 
 pour down the rain. Now and then a sharp cone 
 is seen abo\e the mist. "The heaviest raiiifiil in 
 the Solomon group takes place on the eastern and 
 
 ( 105 )
 
 I06 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 southern steeps of Guadalcanar." The march of 
 the vapor-laden trade wind meets with little ob- 
 struction as it drives acro;.s the northern end of 
 St. Christoval, and, arriving from over a vast ex- 
 tent of sea, beats square against these cyclopean 
 walls, and day after day pours upon them a deluge 
 of water. Along all that massive face of sea wall, 
 it is said, there is not a rift in the rock, not a 
 narrow ravine, nor an open valley which serves as a 
 door of escape for the rushing wet air. Terrific, 
 therefore, is the downpour on Guadalcanar's precip- 
 itous sides. The amount is three or four times 
 that deposited on the less-elevated shores. 
 
 It is Gallego who wrote : " The island of Gua- 
 dalcanar is very large. I cannot estimate its size, 
 because it is a great land, and half a year is needed 
 to sail along its shores." Those Spaniards saw 
 many things in their "Isles of Solomon" through 
 spectacles which magnified immensely. Guadal- 
 canar is about eighty miles in length and thirty in 
 width. It is in the southern portion particularly 
 that nature has worked on a gigantic plan; not only 
 are the cliffs and cones steep and lofty, but the sea, 
 which dashes against the rocky mass, is of great 
 depth close to the shore. In this part of the island 
 there are no good anchorages. The northern coast, 
 on the contrary, slopes more gradually to the sea, 
 several small islands near by protecting it from the 
 powerful swells of the ocean. There are numerous 
 .safe roadsteads, to which the entrance is both free 
 and picturesque.
 
 THE ISLAND OF GUADALCANAK. lO/ 
 
 About midway of the northern coast a rich 
 alluvial territory from five to ten miles wide bor- 
 ders the sea for a distance of thirty miles. It is 
 composed of debris from the mountains, brought 
 down by the rivers in times of flood. Also, scat- 
 tered here and there, arc park-like areas, mantled 
 only with a tall, coarse grass. These form a pleas- 
 ant contrast to the luxuriant forests clothing the 
 remainder of the island. 
 
 As one would expect from the great rainfall, the 
 streams of Guadalcanar, though short, are numer- 
 ous, and in the wet season are powerful torrents. 
 Mr. Charles WY^odford gives us this little glimpse 
 of one of them in the dry term: "At my feet winds 
 the Aola River, in alternate phases a clear, calm 
 pool and a brawling rapid. But it soon becomes 
 lost among the trees, and I try in vain to trace its 
 course among the forest-clad valleys." 
 
 The run up Indispensable Strait gave us much 
 pleasure, and very soon after entering the port wc 
 were temporarily housed at the natixe village of 
 Aola, with all our faculties awake t(^ the sights, 
 sounds, and people around us. Some author we 
 have picked up, j^erhaps it is Mr. Woodford, tells 
 us that the longer he lived among the natives of 
 Guadalcanar the more he became conscious of 
 possessing merely a superficial knowledge of them 
 and of their customs. If that be so, we shall proba- 
 learn very little about them during our short so- 
 journ. Mr. Woodfortl spent nine months at this
 
 lo8 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 attractive spot, but his time and interest were ab- 
 sorbed in the phmts, birds, hzards, and snakes of 
 the island. 
 
 But notice the three natives — some of earth's 
 smoke-colored children — who are approaching. 
 The faces of all are tattooed. The skin being very- 
 dark, coloring matter is rarely used to develop the 
 designs, as upon the lighter-hued peoples of the 
 Eastern Pacific. The raised scars produced by the 
 incisions reveal the pattern. The process of tat- 
 tooing, as practiced on Guadalcanar, is not only 
 painful but expensive. Like all artists, the profes- 
 sional tattooer appreciates his acquirements, and 
 does not work simply for yams and taro. This 
 strange sort of embroidering is usually done in 
 childhood, while the skin is delicate, and not every 
 little one's parents or friends can provide the requi- 
 site fee for the adornment. Hence we shall not find 
 all the Guadalcanar j)cople so elaborately cicatriced. 
 The work is a sort of gauge of the family fortune. 
 
 As his instrument in tattooing, the artist uses the 
 sharp claw of the flying fox. One of his merciful 
 conditions before beginning the work is that the 
 child shall not be permitted to sleep for two or three 
 nights prior to his taking him in hand. The child 
 being then prostrated from weariness, the operator 
 begins his task, and ends it at one sitting. The little 
 innocent is now in a state of high nervous excite- 
 ment. His face is terribly inflamed and swollen. 
 If his home be near the sea, a little cavity is made
 
 THE ISLAND OF GUADALCAXAR. lOQ 
 
 for him in the sand, close to the water's edge. 
 Here he Hes on his chest and occasionally dips his 
 face into the coolini^ water. After three or four 
 days of such soothing he finds himself quite re- 
 stored. 
 
 Observe that this man wears a mop-like wig, pow- 
 dered thickly with lime, a sanitary measure, we pre- 
 sume. All carry a small bag over the shoulder, the 
 contents of which are : One or two sticks of tobacco, 
 a clay pipe giving out an intolerable odor, a box of 
 matches, several areca nuts for chewing, a small 
 package of betel-pepper leaves, a pretty bamboo 
 box filled with lime used in chewing the betel, a 
 pair of cockle shells employed as tweezers, a scraper 
 of pearl shell for scraping cocoanuts, and a cocoa- 
 nut spoon for eating a paste or soup compounded 
 of scraped yam, cocoanut, and several other vege- 
 tables. With these possessions on the person, a 
 Guadalcanar man or woman is ready for any fort- 
 une, in storm or calm, in the forest, in the \Mm 
 gardens, anywhere. 
 
 The man's only attire is the bandage about the 
 waist. The women are clad in a deep fringe of fiber 
 resembling hemp, and look suitably dressed for the 
 climate. 
 
 You observed that about eight o'clock this uKirn- 
 ing, after their light breakfast of baked yams, both 
 the men and the women of the village left for the 
 yam gardens, situated in the forest, some four miles 
 from Aola. About three in the afternoon we shall
 
 no TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 find the women returning. They will come in, 
 some staggering under the weight of large baskets 
 of yams, and others under that of huge bundles of 
 fire-wood. During the day the men have probably 
 taken a variety of game — birds, opossums, flying 
 foxes, etc. These will not be brought home, but, 
 having arrived at some suitable place, the captors 
 will build a fire, and there cook and eat them. The 
 weary women, meanwhile, will wend their way 
 homeward to prepare their evening meal. 
 
 The evening repast is taken about six o'clock. 
 It consists of yam, boiled or baked, of taro or sauce, 
 some variety of plantain served in wooden bowls, and 
 a compound of scraped yam, cocoanut, and other 
 ingredients simmered together by means of hot 
 stones. Animal food seems to be plentiful, since 
 game is abundant, and edible fish crowd the sea. 
 The pig is domesticated on the island, but is eaten 
 only on occasions of great ceremony. In America 
 these animals are slain by bleeding them to death. 
 But the Guadalcanar butcher beats them until life 
 is extinct. He adopts this mode in order to retain 
 all the blood. When skinned, if there is a company 
 to be served, the body is simply heated through 
 over a brisk fire, and is then cut up and distributed 
 to those present. Each person then completes the 
 cooking according to his taste. The pig of the 
 Solomon Isles is a flat-sided, round-backed species, 
 rarely exceeding three feet in length. They are 
 found in various colors — black, light gray, and red
 
 THE ISLAND OF GUADALCANAR. I I I 
 
 spotted with black. The young pigs are striped. 
 Mendana found the animal in these isles, therefore 
 it was not introduced by the Spaniards, as so many 
 writers have affirmed. 
 
 The subject of land tenure on the island of 
 Guadalcanar should claim our attention for a 
 moment. The system — if system it may be called 
 — is very peculiar, and very unlike that which pre- 
 vails in Fiji, to which we called attention in the 
 first volume of this series. Every man seems to 
 have a kind of proprietorship in the whole island, 
 and no man holds land as an individual possession. 
 Hence, to the land, as such, he attaches no value. 
 Any man may select for his limited farming opera- 
 tions sufficient territory in the forest, and proceed 
 to clear and fence it. This done, he may plant his 
 yams, taro, or bananas. But when the crops have 
 matured and have been removed, the land immedi- 
 ately lapses to forest. The next season any other 
 man may cultivate the spot. 
 
 Jkit if the first cultivator has planted cocoanut 
 trees, the result is different. The trees become his 
 property, apart from an}' consideration of owner- 
 ship in the soil. At the same time, he would not at 
 all object to another man's occupying the ground 
 with some other crop, so long as it should in nowise 
 damage or impede the growth of his beautiful trees. 
 The trees are his possession so long as he lives, and 
 at his death must be transmitted to his heirs, if he 
 have any. We have not been able to learn if these 
 customs pertain to the entire group.
 
 112 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 It is Mr. Woodford's opinion that cannibalism is 
 not practiced on Guadalcanar, since, during his resi- 
 dence at Aola, where he mingled freely with the 
 natives, he neither saw nor heard of an instance of 
 the barbarism. Nevertheless, it is of frequent occur- 
 rence on all the islands around, on Malaita, St. 
 Christoval, New Georgia, and others. 
 
 A native village on Guadalcanar may contain ten 
 or a dozen houses, each probably thirty feet long by 
 fifteen feet wide, and all constructed of sago thatch. 
 The roof will slope to very near the ground on both 
 sides. All may be built side by side, forming a 
 row fronting the sea. On the space between the 
 dwellings and the water will stand a larger struct- 
 ure, in which are stored the great war-canoe of the 
 village and numerous smaller boats. Entering 
 the village at midday, we should find most of 
 the dwellings tenantless and carefully barricaded. 
 Nearly all the people would be absentat the yam 
 gardens, on the verge of the forest. The open sandy 
 area, or plaza, in front of the line of houses, is daily 
 swept and weeded. 
 
 Aola River flows but a little distance from where 
 we now stand. If we continue our walk through 
 the forest in that direction, we shall soon emerge 
 upon its brink. Crossing it and proceeding a little 
 way, we shall enter a path leading to the crest of a 
 deep wrinkle in the face of Guadalcanar, covered 
 with luxuriant trees and undergrowth. Here some- 
 one's hand has cleared a space of several rods. For
 
 THE ISLAND OF GUADALCANAR. II3 
 
 this we are lieartily grateful, for it affords us an ex- 
 tensive outlook upon the distant interior. Now 
 survey the scene. Had we not oftentimes grown 
 enthusiastic over such pictures in these seas, we 
 should call this marvelously beautiful. We hastily 
 sketch the view for our readers : — 
 
 Here is a foreground of everlasting green, vivid 
 to intensity. But a little distance away ridge follows 
 ridge, valley succeeds valley, until the green fades 
 into delicate blue at the mountain-tops in the souths 
 west. The distance is thirty miles in a direct line. 
 Lofty Mount Lammas, with its precipitous sides, 
 helps to form the noble background of the picture. 
 In the south, ten miles away, Vatupusan looms up 
 to half the height of Lammas, with top as round as 
 a ball. So clear is the atmosphere that we can dis- 
 tinguish the trees on its summit, outlined against the 
 cloudless sky. Quickly a rain-laden cloud, tlriven 
 by the trade wind, appears to halt for a moment on 
 its to[). Soon it moves on, and again the sunlight 
 illumines everything. 
 
 But what is that spot of bright vermilion which 
 contrasts so strikingly with the miles of green ? .\h ! 
 we saw the same thing in the I lervey Isles. It is 
 the curious coral tree in full bloom. A cut and de- 
 scription of the tree appears in the volume entitled 
 "The Tonga Islands and Other Groups." Were 
 we beside it, we should no doubt fuul it aii\e with 
 lories, come to secure the hone\' in the blossoms. 
 Wherever the natives find a coral tree in bloom,
 
 114 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 they spread light nets among- the branches to en- 
 trap these pretty parrots. Often the Httle creatures 
 arrive in companies of five or six. They become 
 entangled in the meshes of the net, and frequently 
 break their necks in their efforts to escape. 
 
 We now portray another scene which may be 
 witnessed on Guadalcanar. The time is about sun- 
 set. Walk with me down to the sea-shore at Aola. 
 In the view over the waters not an object is moving. 
 A sense of the immensity of the ocean oppresses 
 us, and we are thankful for the screech of that un- 
 gainly parrot, hastening home for the night. Now 
 there is a soft fluttering of wings. The swifts are 
 abroad for their supper of flies. As it grows 
 darker, multitudes of dainty insects are on the wing.. 
 Now an army of dragon-flies arrives to banquet 
 upon them. Suddenly a bat comes upon the scene, 
 and as suddenly then the swifts disappear. The day- 
 light wanes rapidly. The darkness is here. Hither 
 and thither now dart horrid bats without number. 
 
 With the exception of these birds and insects, 
 all nature is very still. The trade wind quieted 
 down at five o'clock, and the land breeze is tardy 
 in rising. This is the hour for the luminous bee- 
 tles. Notice how they appear and vanish, "mere 
 points of fire among the trees." Soon the tree 
 frogs will pipe up on every side, and occasionally 
 you will hear the lonely cry of later night birds. 
 After we have retired, if )'ou are attentive, you 
 will hear a great rustling of wings among these
 
 THE ISLAND OF GUADALCAXAR. 
 
 115 
 
 mango trees. The ado will be made by the foxes 
 out on a foraging expedition. And, listening about 
 midnight, you will hear a light scratching all over 
 the floor. Simply conclude, then, that a battalion 
 of hermit crabs are banqueting upon the crumbs 
 scattered by the birds and opossums in their cages, 
 and go to sleep.
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 ISLAND OF NEW GEORGIA— THE RUBIANA 
 LAGOON. 
 
 HUNDRED miles or so to the northwest 
 of Guadalcanar lies a large and interesting 
 island, discovered by the Spaniards in 
 1568, and visited by Lieutenant Shortland in 1788. 
 This island is sometimes called New Georgia. An- 
 other and prettier name for it is Rubiana. To this 
 land we shall now pay a flying visit instead of sail- 
 ing eastward to Malaita, as we had purposed. 
 
 New Georgia is an island about sixty miles long 
 and about half as wide. It extends from southeast 
 to northwest. The entire island is clothed with no- 
 ble forests. Its mountains stand up from three to 
 four thousand feet. As in the case of Guadalcanar, 
 it is the southern portion which rises to a lofty 
 height. The northern part slopes gently from the 
 center to the sea. 
 
 The most remarkable feature of New Georgia is 
 its beautiful lagoon. An extensive coral reef, par- 
 allel with the shore and distant from it some three 
 miles, incloses this lovely lake and its cluster of 
 pretty islets. Upon the latter and upon the shore 
 of the mainland stand the villages of the people. 
 A thick border of cocoanut palms fringes the coast 
 ( 116)
 
 ISLAND OF NEW GEORGIA. 11/ 
 
 of both the mainland and islets. In the extended 
 reef which forms the lagoon i.s an opening some 
 nine hundred feet wide, in which the water aver- 
 ages less than two fathoms in depth. Through this 
 channel vessels must cautiously feel their way, and 
 always with a man at the mast-head, on the look- 
 out for erect coral points under the water. Once 
 within the entrance, we run along three miles, and 
 anchor a half mile out from the village of Sisieta. 
 From the deck we have a fine view of the situa- 
 tion, and we discern several villages among the palm 
 trees. From the shore in front of each village ex- 
 tends a neat jetty, compactly built of coral lime- 
 stone, and coated with grass. The conspicuous 
 canoe-house comes first into view, and then the 
 huts of the natives. In both directions stretch lines 
 of palms. Back of them flourishes the tlense forest. 
 
 On the largest islet stands the \illage of Rubiana, 
 whence the lagoon takes its name. The great har- 
 vest of cocoanuts gathered on the islets and the 
 mainland renders the place an important point com- 
 mercially. Upon three of the islands in the lagoon 
 white traders reside, each having his establishment 
 for storing copra. Altogether the lagoon presents 
 as lovely an inland water scene as we have wit- 
 nes.sed since lea\ing the llervey grou[). We will 
 now go ashore, landing u[)on the nearest jcttw 
 
 Proceeding to the l.uid end of the pier, followed 
 by a companx' of natives, our curiositx' is awakened 
 by a repulsi\e statue or image, set up near the
 
 Il8 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 shore. No woman is suffered to approach the 
 hideous object, so we hurry by, lest our presence 
 shall afflict the thing. The place is evidently a 
 shrine. A bit of roof shelters the image. Around 
 it lie some sacred emblems and a mound of dry 
 skulls. All the people appear to regard it with 
 great veneration. Every village about the lagoon 
 boasts a similar figure-head, protecting deity, or 
 whatever it may be called. We glance around. 
 An air of sweet peacefulness pervades the place. 
 The people seem to be an indolent, free-and-easy 
 class, without a thought of cruelty. But we soon 
 learn that their appearance deceives. Had we 
 occupied our present seat but a few days ago, we 
 should have witnessed the horrible scenes we now 
 describe: — 
 
 Ingava, the chief of these people, was ill — an 
 attack of sullenncss, most likely. His medicine- 
 man told him he had been bewitched; that some- 
 one had buried or hidden something of which he 
 had eaten, and imless the article was produced 
 he would waste away and die. A woman was sus- 
 pected of doing the dreadful deed. To assert her 
 innocence was useless. The wise man declared her 
 to be the cause of Ingava's suffering. Therefore, 
 amid the blows and cries of women who had been 
 her associates, she was hurried to that large tree in 
 the center of the village, where she was drawn up 
 into the air, and left suspended by one arm. At 
 midday she was lowered to the ground, the rope
 
 ISLAND OF i\E\V GEORGIA. I I9 
 
 was placed about the other arm, and she was again 
 drawn up for the remainder of the day. 
 
 At length the woman was released and ordered 
 to produce the concealed article. The poor creat- 
 ure staggered to her feet, and, with her almost use- 
 less hands — both wrists were nearly dislocated — 
 brought forth from the thatch of her hut two sticks 
 of tobacco! undoubtedly her own rightful possession. 
 These were evidence sufficient. A herald ran with 
 the good news to the house where lay the be- 
 witched chief, apparently about to die. Instantly 
 he arose and walked forth, a man perfectly restored! 
 Great credit was of course awarded to the wise 
 man for so successfully discovering the sorceress 
 and effecting the great cure. 
 
 Had the unhappy woman suffered sufficiently for • 
 her crime? — By no means. The ne.xt morning she 
 was again suspended from the tree for some time, 
 and, when taken down, was a sad wreck, being no 
 longer valuable as a laborer. She was therefore sold 
 to the natives of a neighboring island, a great ca- 
 noeful of whom had just arrived, with a cargo of 
 cocoanuts for sale. The price paid for this human 
 being was tiiree ornaments for the neck, wrought 
 out of the shell of the mammoth ci.uii. Her 
 purchasers bore her away. A small island lay in 
 their route. There they landed, cooked, and ate 
 her. About the Rubiana lagoon every prospect 
 pleases, only man is vile. 
 
 We ha\'e alluded to the canoe-houses of these
 
 120 
 
 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 villages. Let us enter the one but a few rods from 
 us. It is a spacious structure, seventy feet long 
 and thirty feet wide. The ridge is thirty feet from 
 
 the ground, and the steep roof is constructed en- 
 tirely of sago thatch. The ends of the building are 
 made of screens manufactured from sago leaves, and 
 it stands with one end to the lagoon. In this end, 
 you observe, are two peculiar, long openings. They 
 are made to allow tJiese two large head-hunting ca- 
 noes, with their high-pointed ends, to be easily car- 
 ried in and out. In racks below the roof are stowed 
 away all sorts of gear. Fishing-nets with stone 
 sinkers and light wood floats, fashioned to imitate 
 ducks, are suspended from the roof on great wooden 
 hooks. 
 
 Along the rafters of one side depend fish-bones,
 
 ISLAND OF NEW GEORGIA. 121 
 
 the heads of turtles, and the jaw-bones of piijs. 
 From the other side eight human heads look down 
 upon us. From the grinning teeth and deep eye 
 sock'ets of some of them the partially-dried flesh is 
 shrinking away. Evidently the canoe-house has 
 sheltered them for a long time. P^ach head has its 
 tragic history. Two of them are but recent addi- 
 tions to the horrible array. The hair of these is 
 straight, and the head is differently shaped from the 
 others. One of them is the head of a woman, and 
 down each side of the face hangs the straight coal- 
 black hair, eighteen inches long. The>' are the 
 heads of two of an Ivistern I'acific race. How came 
 they here? This is their sad story: — 
 
 A year or two ago a large canoe containing six- 
 teen persons drifted in a high wind from Ontong- 
 Java, an isolated group of yiany small islands two 
 hundred miles to the northeast of the Solomons. 
 The wanderers finally made Isabel Island, the 
 nearest point of which is distant from Rubiana 
 over one hundred miles. To that island the head 
 hunters from this lagoon frecjuently sail, with their 
 great canoes, in search of human heads. Of these 
 hapless voyagers several were killed by the head 
 hunters. To two of the slain belonged these jie- 
 culiar heads above us. One or two of the sur- 
 vivors were kindly conve\'ed to their homes by a 
 trader. One is said to be still hiding in the forest 
 on Isabel. 
 
 Now that we hax'c chanced upon the ghastly
 
 122 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 subject of head hunting, and find ourselves among 
 a people by whom it is practiced, let us for a mo- 
 ment glance at the barbarous custom. It prevails 
 over a large part of this princely group, and the 
 chiefs of New Georgia seem to hold the pre- 
 eminence in the atrocious pursuit. From this 
 lagoon they extend their raids to the islands of 
 Isabel, Florida, and Guadalcanar, often making 
 voyages over a hundred miles in length. The 
 heaps of skulls in these villages testify to the suc- 
 cess of their expeditions. Indeed, the employment 
 has become a mania with the Rubiana people. It 
 is a frequent occurrence for several great canoes, 
 each carrying from thirty to forty men, with their 
 spears and rifles piled amidships, to start out on 
 these excursions. The men delight to surprise a 
 village at daylight, on Isabel or on Guadalcanar, with 
 a man stationed, tomahawk in hand, at the door of 
 each house, ready to slay the inmates as they at- 
 tempt to flee for their lives. 
 
 They sometimes also resort to skillful feints and 
 pretenses in making their captures, spending a day 
 or two in friendly trading with the inhabitants of a 
 village, and then, all suspicions being allayed, turn 
 upon them, at a concerted signal, and capture as 
 many as they desire, an entire village perhaps. It 
 is Mr, Woodford who says: "When visiting the 
 north coast of Isabel, near the close of 1888, I found 
 village after village uninhabited, the natives having 
 been killed by head hunters from the Rubiana
 
 ISLAND OF NEW GEORGIA. 1 23 
 
 lagoon." Speaking of head-hunting raids, the 
 Rev. Dr. Codrington remarks: "The inhabitants of 
 Southern Isabel have suffered greatly from attacks 
 made annually by natives from their own distant 
 coast, their object being to obtain heads to honor 
 either a dead or a living chief, or for the inaugu- 
 ration of new canoes. A new war canoe is not 
 invested with due supernatural power until those 
 sailing in it have killed some man, and any lone 
 voyager coming within their ken is forthwith hunted 
 down for the purpose. The completion of any im- 
 portant work demands the sacrifice of a head, and 
 the village canoe-house becomes its depositor}-. 
 
 Frequently these head-hunting forays have no 
 connection with cannibalism, their object being the 
 mere possession of skulls. Nor yet are they always 
 undertaken simply to bring back heads, but to se- 
 cure slaves also. These are either bought or capt- 
 ured. Usually they are very kindly treated, and 
 live in as much freedom as their captors, and 
 even on terms of equality and intimacy with them. 
 But, upon the completion of a large canoe, or an\- 
 other important work, a head will be required in 
 celebrating the event. One of these free slaves will 
 then suddenly be called upon to furnish it. Haj)- 
 pily, the chosen victim will have no intimation of 
 his doom until the blow falls upon him from behind 
 him. 
 
 One native characteristic that impresses the stran- 
 ijer wherever he wanders amon<T these cliarmintr
 
 124 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 islands is the bargain-making talent the natives pos- 
 sess. The tricks of trade which they do not under- 
 stand are not worth knowing. A voyager among 
 them has written: "The native knows how many 
 cocoanuts make ten. Usually it is seven and a half, 
 and I have known it to be as few as six." Aptness 
 for trade is a quality which the father faithfully trans- 
 mits to the son. A mere lad in years is a veteran 
 in commercial transactions, as the following inci- 
 dent shows (we abridge the account) : — 
 
 "While anchored off a little village in one of our 
 trips, a mere child paddled alongside, in a frail 
 mite of a canoe, apparently capable of supporting 
 his weight only. The waters dashed into the craft 
 at every stroke of the oar. At intervals the little 
 navigator deftly kicked the element overboard with 
 his foot — a novel mode of baling, certainly. Roll- 
 ing about in the bottom of the canoe were several 
 moldy yams in full sight. The unsuspecting stran- 
 ger, interested in the infant trader's movements, 
 feels sympathy for his tender years and his apparent 
 anxiety to dispose of his goods, and buys his rusty 
 yams at probably four times their ordinary value. 
 Eagerly the urchin grasps the coveted stick of to- 
 bacco, and thrusts it for safety through a hole in 
 his ear, where, certainly, it is in no danger of getting 
 wet. To the stranger's amazement, the midget then 
 whisks aside a dirty piece of matting, which seems 
 to have been accidentally kicked into one end of 
 the canoe, and discloses more yams, slightly im-
 
 ISLAND OF NEW GKOKGIA. 1 25 
 
 proved in t^uality. Consistently, one could not of- 
 fer less for them than for the others. So another 
 stick of tobacco is transferred to the youngster's 
 ear. 
 
 " Surely now his stock must be exhausted. A 
 mite of a canoe like that could hide nothing more. 
 A dexterous jerk, which nearly upsets the craft, pro- 
 duces a single perfect yam. The chap had been 
 sitting upon it. How it escaped the stranger's no- 
 tice was a puzzle. For this prize the sharp bar- 
 gainer wants nothing less than a pipe. And he is 
 evidently a judge of pipes, for he refuses the first 
 and second kinds shown him. A piala tiiioui — 
 a pipe with a man's head on it — he must have, or 
 he keeps his yam. More than that, the article 
 must have a knob at the bottom, or the stranger 
 makes no trade with hiin." 
 
 In the Solomon Isles the fashion in pipes changes 
 as frequently as does the style of bonnets in Amer- 
 ica. Sometimes the ta.ste runs to very simple 
 ones. Then perfectly plain pipes must be had. 
 But when the trader makes his next trip, there is 
 probably a craze for ornament, and his pipes must 
 show a ship under full sail, or some other attractive 
 object stamped upon them. Now the pipes must 
 be white. On the next occasion, only the red ar- 
 ticle will suit. The same mutation marks the trade 
 in knives. The handles must be bone, wood, or 
 metal, as the mode dictates. So with calico, turkey 
 red, navy blue, and a pretty gray take their turn 
 for favor.
 
 CII AFTER X. 
 
 BOUGAINVILLE, THE SHORTLANDS, AND TREAS- 
 URY ISLAND. 
 
 lOUGAINVILLE ISLAND, the largest, 
 most northern, and western of the Solomon 
 c^^}\^ group, presents its picture of forest, valleys, 
 and mountain heights, a little over one hundred 
 miles northwest of New Georgia. In 1788 it was 
 discovered by the French navigator Bougainville, 
 on his way northward after finding the Louisiade 
 Archipelago, which lies southeast of New Guinea. 
 He first touched the west coast of Choiseul Island, 
 the second of the Solomons as one sails southeast- 
 ward, and gave it its present name. For some dis- 
 tance he found the coast inaccessible. But, reach- 
 ing the harbor now known as Choiseul Bay, he 
 made an attempt to enter. Before his fleet could 
 make the anchorage, night drew on, when the 
 number of the shoals and the irregularity of the 
 currents deterred proceeding. 
 
 While in the bay he was attacked by a multitude 
 of natives in canoes, who issued from a stream 
 emptying into the harbor, which the Frenchman 
 very properly named Warrior River. A second 
 discharge of fire-arms dispersed the party, and Bou- 
 gainville withdrew from Choiseul, passing through 
 ( 126)
 
 BOUGAINVILLE AND OTHER LSLANDS. . 12/ 
 
 the noble strait which now bears his name. After 
 coasting the eastern shore of Bougain\'ille Island, 
 he left the group, unaware that he had visited the 
 Solomon Isles, as we have previously remarked. 
 
 The inhabitants of Bougainville Island are all 
 taller, blacker, and more robust than the people of 
 Isabel and St. Christoval. Those who dwell around 
 the active volcano of Bagana are said to be invet- 
 erate cannibals. There is little doubt that the inte- 
 rior tribes of the island also are very fond of human 
 flesh. Yet these same bushmcn refuse to eat fish. 
 Tattooing is practiced by the coast tribes. The 
 work is done on the face, in shallow grooved lines, 
 which begin at the nose, curve over the cheek-bones, 
 and end just above the eyebrows. 
 
 Bougainville Island is a land almost entirely un- 
 known as yet to both travelers and traders, except, 
 perhaps, the immediate coast bordering Bougainville 
 Strait. So far as we can learn, no effort has been 
 made by an)- of the great missionary societies toward 
 evangelizing its inhabitants. It is a land of beauty 
 and fertility, and capable of great advancement com- 
 mercially. On the contrary, the island groups of 
 Bougainville Strait seem to have long been a center 
 of attraction. The Shortland group, particularly, has 
 received no little attention from I'jiglish scientists. 
 Indeed, to this class of travelers — always studying 
 and alwa)-s writing of what they see — we are 
 indebted for most of our knowledge of the two 
 great Melanesian groups lying east and southeast
 
 128 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 of New Guinea. Let us now spend a few days in 
 the Shortland Islands, getting an idea of the Hfe 
 and character of the people and of their modern 
 history before making the trip to St. Christoval. 
 
 Over one hundred years ago — July, 1788 — 
 Lieutenant Shortland, while convoying a fleet of 
 transports from Port Jackson, Australia, touched 
 the Solomon group, on the south coast of St. 
 Christoval. He skirted the southern shores of the 
 different islands, untilhe arrived at Bougainville 
 Strait, to which he gave his own name, ignorant of 
 the fact that it already bore the name of Bougain- 
 ville. Shortland's name has been attached to the 
 important group of small islands lying at the west- 
 ern entrance of ]^ougainville Strait. Whether he 
 discovered the cluster we cannot learn. Its princi- 
 pal island is Alu. The group is ruled by a power- 
 ful chief, whose influence extends far beyond his 
 own dominion. We are glad to say that for 
 many years he has been the trusted friend of the 
 white man. 
 
 Gorai is a man past middle life, of engaging ad- 
 dress, and slightly shorter than the average native, 
 who is about five feet seven inches in height. His 
 countenance w^ears an honest, good-humored ex- 
 pression, which at once wins favor. He takes 
 pleasure in claiming to be " all the same as white 
 man." He laments the inferior position of his race, 
 and expresses his feeling by saying: "White man, 
 he knows too much. Poor black man, he knows
 
 BOUGAINVILLE AND OTHER ISLANDS. 1 29 
 
 nothing." A number of years ago Gorai ruled 
 over Treasury Island, a lovely gem lying southwest 
 of the Shortlands. Ikit his subjects were hostile 
 to the white man, against whom the chief would 
 not lift a hand. He therefore left Treasury and 
 assumed sway over the Sliortlands. Two elderly 
 .statesmen now form the cabinet of this distinguished 
 friend of the white man. 
 
 Gorai is the unfortunate possessor of a hundred 
 wives. The queen among them in 1889 was Kaika, 
 a sister of Mule, the present lord of -Treasury 
 Island. Mule, in turn, married Bita, a sister of the 
 Shortland magnate. 
 
 The people of Choiseul, Treasur)- Island, Faro 
 Island, and the Shortland group, all speak the 
 .same language, intermarry, send presents to and 
 fro, maintain commercial relations, exchange visits 
 of condolence in times of bereavement, and form a 
 most powerful alliance, all the chiefs being con- 
 nected either by marriage or by ties of blood. 
 
 Some of the above inter-relations were made 
 very apparent in July, 1883, when death removed 
 Kaika from her home on Alu. \Vc greatly abbre- 
 viate an account of the circumstances, given by Dr. 
 H. B. Guppy, surgeon of II. M. S. Lark, then on a 
 surveying expedition among the Solomons. At 
 her death Kaika was about twenty-eight, and a 
 prepossessing woman. Her features were regular, 
 her figure slight but well-proportioned, and her car- 
 riage graceful. Her clean skin and bushy hair, 
 9
 
 130 TWO CANN1I5AL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 dyed a magenta hue by means of red earth, added 
 to the general pleasing effect of her person (!). 
 
 In substance Dr. Guppy says: I first made the 
 acquaintance of Kaika in July, Gorai having asked 
 me to visit her, as she was suffering from some indis- 
 position. While sitting beside Gorai and the queen, 
 as he was pleased to call her, the latter showed mc 
 her little boy, who was nearly blind. I was much 
 impressed with the tenderness displayed by both 
 parents toward their little son. Seated on his 
 mother's lap, he placed his hand in that of his father, 
 when requested to raise his eyes to the light for my 
 inspection. 
 
 Soon after this the work of the ship took us away 
 from Alu for some time. Upon our return we were 
 told Kaika was dying. Landing the next day, to 
 be of service if possible, I was informed she was 
 dead. As I stepped out of my Rob Roy, I received 
 a request from the chief to visit him. I found him 
 seated on the ground in front of his residence, look- 
 ing very dismal. Near by were nine or ten of his 
 wives, all past the prime of life, withered and hag- 
 gish, their heads shaved and faces plastered with 
 lime in token of mourning. They were droning a 
 dismal chant, and reminded me of a group of 
 witches. 
 
 Accompanying Gorai into the house, I found a 
 large gathering of his wives, all with faces coated 
 with lime. Their dead white features peering at us 
 through the gloom of the building, gave to the
 
 BOUGAINVILLK AND OTHER ISLANDS. I3I 
 
 whole scene an uncanny look. Gorai appeared to 
 feel deeply the loss of his wife, and more than once 
 broke down while talking of her. He said the end 
 came as we dropped anchor in the bay the day 
 before. He excused himself for not coming off to 
 the ship in the midst of his grief "Too much cry," 
 he remarked of himself. At my leave-taking he 
 requested me, upon the arrival of the ship at Treas- 
 ury Island, to inform Mule, the Treasury chief, of 
 the death of his sister, and also to ask Bita, his own 
 sister, to come to him. On the way to my canoe I 
 passed several of Gorai's chieftains with their fore- 
 heads and a part of their cheeks coated with lime, 
 an observance, I noticed, which neither the chief 
 nor his sons honored. 
 
 Next morning several men of the village were on 
 the reef procuring fish for the great funeral feast to 
 be held in the afternoon. In the latter part of the 
 day Lieutenant Leeper and myself landed at the 
 grounds, and found ourselves in the midst of a 
 hundred men assembled because of the queen's 
 demise, and all bearing tomahawks. Upon entering 
 Gorai's grounds, which are tabooed to all the men of 
 the village cxce[)t those on his staff, \\ e came upon 
 about eighty W(^nicn performing a funeral dance. 
 Some of them were the waives of the chief, others 
 were the notable women of the adjoining villages. 
 They formed a large circle, in the center of which 
 four posts were erected, each about ten feet high, 
 two painted white, two painted red, all charred on
 
 132 TWO CANNII5AI, AKCmi'ELAGOES. 
 
 one side and rudely carved in imitation of the human 
 head. 
 
 Inclosed in the ring were six women bearing in 
 their hands the little personal possessions of Kaika, 
 such as her basket, cushion, etc. To the slow and 
 measured time of a drum, in the form of a hollow log, 
 beaten by a man outside the circle, the women 
 adapted their movements, which consisted simply 
 in raising the feet by turns and stamping gently 
 upon the ground. Meanwhile the inside group of 
 women danced around the posts, partly hopping, 
 partly skipping, each one regulating her steps to 
 the stroke upon the log, and holding up before her 
 the treasured article she bore. As the central 
 actors skipped most actively, the foremost at each 
 bound sprinkled handfuls of lime over the dancers 
 in the ring. 
 
 The weather being rainy, many of the women — 
 all of whom wore a sulu reaching from the waist 
 to the knees — had covered their shoulders with mats 
 made of pandanus leaves. This ceremony was re- 
 peated on the following day, but with fewer dancers. 
 I was anxious to ascertain what disposition had 
 been made of Kaika's body, but beyond the fact 
 that it had been interred in the ground some dis- 
 tance away, I could learn nothing. It is very 
 probable that it was first burned between the charred 
 posts around which the dance was performed. Upon 
 making inquiries as to the obsequies observed at 
 Kaika's death, I was much impressed with the
 
 BOUGAINVILLE AND OTHER ISLANDS. 1 33 
 
 reluctance of the natives to refer to the e\cnt. 
 They mentioned her name in a low, subdued tone, 
 as if it were wrong to utter it. This mysterious 
 dread of mentioning the name of the dead exists 
 among many races. The Australian native, who 
 refuses to utter them, is an extreme instance of the 
 feeling. 
 
 We may add that three days after the death of 
 Kaika all the men of Alu, except the chief and his 
 sons, cut their hair close to the scalp as a sign of 
 mourning for the little woman. The news of her 
 death being conveyed to the other islands of Bou- 
 gainville Strait, visits of condolence were soon paid 
 to Gorai by the two chiefs of Faro Island, and by 
 parties of the women of Faro who journeyed in person 
 to manifest their sympathy for the afflicted chief of 
 the Shortlands. 
 
 Shortly after the luiglish ship came to anchor in 
 Blanche harbor, Treasury Island, Mule stepped on 
 deck. Dr, Guppy immediately informed him of 
 his sister's demise, and of Gorai's wish that l^ita 
 should visit him at Alu. Tlie ruler f)f Treasury re- 
 ceived the sad news with but slight indications of 
 sorrow. But himself, his sons, and several men of 
 the island, manifested their regard for her by neatl)- 
 trimming their bushy heads, but not by shaving 
 the hair closely, as did the men of Alu. The wi\es 
 of Mule, however, promptK' put the la)'er of lime 
 upon their faces. A nuinbtr of weeks elapsed he- 
 fore Bita could attempt the long canoe \oyage to
 
 134 '^^■'-> CANNIBAL AKCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 her brother's island, it beiiif^ practicable for such 
 craft onl\' in fur weather. 
 
 The mourning ceremonies and burial customs 
 vary not a little on the different islands of the Solo- 
 mon group, and they are as interesting as they are 
 unlike. We are sure our readers will receive with 
 pleasure a few additional facts with reference to 
 them. 
 
 Generally, anioiiL; the islands of Bougainville 
 Strait, the deep .sea is chosen for the last resting- 
 place of all the natives below the rank of chief. 
 One day while a party of Englishmen were making 
 soundings at the entrance to the Alu anchorage, 
 tliere passed out to sea two large canoes, in one of 
 which la}' the remains of a woman who had died 
 the night preceeding. Her relatives were of the 
 company, and were wailing and bemoaning their 
 loss, but bore no i)art in navigating the canoe. 
 The rowing was \er)' peculiar. Each man paused 
 after ever)' stroke, and partiall}- arrestetl the prog- 
 ress of the boat by a backward movement of his 
 oar. 
 
 On Simba Island the bodies of the dead are fre- 
 quently deposited among large masses of rock, 
 tumbled together at the ba.se of Middle Hill, west 
 coast of the island. Also, human bones have been 
 noticed on the reef rising off the anchorage. From 
 the large eastern islands the dead are often buried 
 at sea. On the islands of Ugi and Florida the skulls 
 of the dead are sometimes presen-ed in a cairn
 
 BOUGAINVILLE AND OTHER ISLANDS. I 35 
 
 built on the edf^o of a d'x/./.y sea cliff, upon some 
 lofty point, or on some lonely islet. 
 
 The place of interment for common men, at the 
 village of Sapuna — island of Santa Anna — is an 
 oblong inclosiire, t\vcnt}'-four b)' eighteen feet, sur- 
 rounded by a low wall of broken coral stone. The 
 grave is dug to a depth of five or si.x feet. Long 
 after the burial the skull is exhumed and placed 
 inside a wooden figure some three feet long, made 
 in the form of a shark, which is deposited in the 
 taboo-house. Ikit \\ hen a chief dies, his entire 
 body is immediately inclosed in a shark of ample 
 size, and con\e)-ed to the taboo-house, without the 
 humiliation of being consigned to mother earth. 
 
 Let us return for a moment, before we dismiss this 
 subject, to the home of the Shortland chief, island 
 of Alu. In its \icinit)- may be seen three small in- 
 closures, two of them parallelograms, one of them 
 circular, all fenced b\' a wood paling. On the 
 ground within each are placed cla)' pipes, strings c^f 
 trade beads, betel nuts, long since thoroughl}- 
 dried, and palm-leaf dishes, used by the natives in 
 serving food. A few months ago a woman and a 
 little girl, members of Gorai's household, departed 
 this life. Their bodies were ijurned between four 
 posts, but their ashes were buried within one of 
 the oblong inclosures. The persons had borne, so 
 it was said, the sweet-sounding names of I-auu 
 and Siali. Should one inquire why these articles 
 — with portions of food — were placed on the graves,
 
 136 TWO CANNII5AL AKCII IPF.LAGOES. 
 
 his informant would answer b)- simply pointing 
 toward the sky. On the spot where the body of the 
 lamented Kaika was probably burned, there had 
 been placed a wooden box containing a quantitx' 
 of beads and calico. Thus in every respect had the 
 proper honors been paid to the queen. 
 
 I think it is Doctor Guppy who says that the 
 natives of Treasury Island and of the Shortlands be- 
 lieve in a good spirit who dwells in a pleasant land, 
 whither, after death, go all men who have lived 
 right lives, and that all evil men are conveyed to 
 the crater of Barana, on Bourainville Island, where 
 the evil spirit reigns with his attendants. After all, 
 how far removed are the most enlightened of us 
 from some of these beliefs and customs? Not long 
 after Kaika's death a great feast was made on 
 Treasury Island, to appease the wrath of the 
 "dcvilo," or e\il spirit, to whom her taking off was 
 attributed. Mad we passed through the village 
 just after the hour for the feast, we should have 
 found all the viands untouched, and yet should 
 have been assured that his majesty, the "devilo," 
 had already partaken of the banquet. Notwith- 
 standing, next day a rudely-carved taboo post was 
 set up on the beach, to be used as a target, at which 
 the villagers discharged their arrows and muskets 
 to i)itiuiidatc the jjrince of evil, should he not have 
 been propitiated by the feast. 
 
 We have referred to the prett}- names borne by 
 the two women whose ashes rest in Gorai's small
 
 BOUGAINVILLK AND OTHER ISLANDS. 1 3/ 
 
 cemetery. A nati\'c man could not be induced to 
 utter those names, except in a \er)- subdued tone. 
 Indeed, the nati\e men are ver\' reluctant to pro- 
 nounce the names of women, and whenever the}' 
 do, it is in a low voice, as if it were not the proper 
 thing to mention a woman's name in the presence 
 of others. This hesitancy is especially noticeable 
 when a man of the humbler class is asked the name 
 of a chiefs wife. On se\-eral occasions a <^entleman 
 sojourning temporarily in Bougainville Strait re- 
 ferred to a chiefs wife b)' name. Each time the 
 look of surprise warned him that he had — though 
 most unwittingly — been guilty of a breach of eti- 
 quette.
 
 ciiapti:r XI. 
 
 IN BOUGAIXVII.I.E STRAIT. 
 
 HI'', inhabitants of l^ougainxillc Strait far 
 excel those of the Southern Solomons in 
 '^^ ^ skillful agriculture. There are rca.son.s for 
 this fact. The three powerful chiefs of the strait 
 wield a strong influence. They live and rule on 
 terms of friendship. Consequent!}- their people 
 enjoy greater tranquillity than tho.se of other isl- 
 ands, and have more time for careful husbandr)-. 
 Besides, the fierce head hunters of the Rubiana La- 
 goon rarely if ever make raids in ]^ougainville 
 Strait in quest of heads. There is greater strength, 
 also, in the social unit)' of the people. 
 
 Treasur}' Island exhibits acres upon acres of taro 
 and banana gardens. The depth of soil covering 
 the wide level margin of the island contributes to 
 this result. There are also extensive hill slopes on 
 Treasury, finely cultivated. T^ire and tlie ax are 
 daily bus)- enlarging the ])rescnt clearing. Equal 
 acKancement is exhibited on the Shortlands. On 
 the island of Norgusaia one ma)- traverse vast 
 tracts of taro and banana plantations with groves 
 of sago and betel-nut palms intervening. Occasion- 
 all)' a bread-fruit tree towers over all. In the 
 ( 138)
 
 IN BOUGAINVILLE STRAIT. 1 39 
 
 planting season the nati\'cs of tlic strait spend 
 weeks on their distant plantations in the interior 
 of the islands. Many of the people of Taro Island 
 possess extensive j^ardcns on the small islands ad- 
 jacent, where thc\- labor in companies, at the [proper 
 seasons. 
 
 In Bougainville Strait the )'am is not so great 
 a favorite as in the casttrn south seas, the taro, 
 banana and sweet-potato being the welcome vege- 
 tables. But we find here the valuable sago palm 
 in great numbers. The tree furnishes the natives 
 three important products, the vegetable-ixory nut, 
 the sago, so much u.sed in their diet, and the 
 thatch for the roofs and sides of their houses. The 
 sago palm of I'iji is a different variet)', grows in 
 low, swamp)- lands, antl attains a height of onl\- 
 tiiirty or fort)' feet before maturit)-. But the sago 
 of the S(jlomons is a regal product, running up to 
 si.xty and seventy feet. It craves the hill-sides, and 
 usually shuns moist situations. Its handsome 
 crown waves on the very summit of Treasury Isl- 
 and, one thou.sand feet abo\e the sea- On Faro it 
 has been found two hundred feet higher. This 
 variety thrives also in the mountainous center of St. 
 Christoval. The sago is the king of all the palm 
 trees. 
 
 Here is a compau)- of natives engaged in the 
 preparation of sago. Let us watch the proceedings 
 for a short time. One of the noble trees has just 
 been felled to the ground, and the trunk split to
 
 140 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 obtain the })ith, which the men are now shredding. 
 Notice the long, spathe-Hke base of the branches. 
 Of this spathe a trough is extemporized, and the 
 l)it]i is laid therein. The trough is kept filled with 
 water and elevated at one end, allowing the fluid 
 to flow away at the other — through a kind of 
 strainer made of the strong, fine membrane which 
 binds the leaves of the cocoanut tree to the trunk 
 — into a second trough of the same material. Thus 
 the fiber of the pith is retained, while the sago 
 passes out into the second trough. When this 
 trough is about full of the material, the water is 
 carefully drained off and the remaining moisture is 
 expelled by heat. 
 
 The product then becomes a cylindrical mass 
 from one and a half to two feet in length. It is 
 now nicely wrapped in leaves of the sago tree, 
 and is ready for use. Sago washing is usually 
 conducted on the bank of some stream, for the 
 water facilities it affords. Most unwisely, on ac- 
 count of the sanitary effects, the refuse is allowed 
 to decay on the banks, contaminating the water for 
 a long time, and tainting the atmosphere with the 
 disagreeable acid odor. 
 
 In addition to yams, taro, cocoanuts, plantains, 
 the sweet-potato, sugar-cane and bread-fruit — two 
 varieties, one ripening in August, the other in 
 November — the people of tlie strait grow a large 
 pumpkin, two varieties of tomato, and a vegetable 
 which forms a very good substitute for our cucum-
 
 IN BOUGAINVILM': STK.MT. I4I 
 
 bcr. Tlie cliicf of the Shortlands cultivates, besides, 
 in his vast plantations a species of lime, a variety of 
 mango, and the pawpaw. 
 
 In the strait most of tiie labor on the plantations 
 and gardens is performed by women. Toward 
 evening they may often be seen returning in their 
 canoes from remote " patches " along the shore, or 
 from the small cultivated islands, bringing home a 
 generous supply of taro, bananas, aivl otiicr \'cge- 
 tables. Generally a m;in sits in the stern steering 
 with a padtlle, while the party of eight or ten 
 women, seated in couples, propel the b(x\t briskly 
 with the liglit oars. The powerful chiefs of the 
 strait possess a large number of wives, \vho find 
 employment and subsistence in cultivating the es- 
 tates of their lords. Their j'outh and beauty being 
 treasures of the past, these women are no longer 
 attractions of the household. 
 
 Gorai, the .Shoitl.ind chief, objects to the settling 
 of missionaries on his isl.uuls, on the ground that 
 lie would be recjuired to dismiss nearly all his 
 wives, thereby losing the labor l)\' which his l.imls 
 are tilled and his household is suj^plied with food. 
 He has been heard to remark: "A great chief re- 
 quires a large staff of workers to cultivate his ex- 
 tensive plantations and to bring home the produce." 
 Kach woman has a space of ground assigned her, 
 which she farms, and from which she obtains sub- 
 sistence. 
 
 The voyager in Bougaiinille Strait is often im-
 
 142 TWO CANMiaL AKCll IPELAGOES. 
 
 pressed witli the timidity of the women, as com- 
 pared with those of St. Christoval and of other isles 
 at the southern extremity of the archipelago. The 
 young unmarried women are seldom seen by 
 strangers. A writer relates that one day, while trav- 
 ersing the forest of Faro alone, he came suddenly 
 upon a woman seated on a log beside the path, with 
 a little boy three or four }-ears of age on her lap. 
 The woman instantly fled into the wood, leaving her 
 charge lying directly in the path. Boy-like, the ur- 
 chin broke into a howl that made the forest ring. 
 But the immediate gift of a shining necklace soon 
 subdued his cries. The stranger passed on, and 
 presently had the pleasure of seeing the mother re- 
 turn to her child. Xo restraint appears to be placed 
 upon the movements of women in the islands of 
 Santa Anna, Santa Catalina, and St. Christoval. 
 
 The women of the strait are the mat makers and 
 the pottery workers for their tribes. They manu- 
 facture the shapely cooking pots and the antique- 
 looking water bottles which we see in engravings 
 illustrating the islands of this archipelago. Sup- 
 pose we repair to the residence of Mule, on Treas- 
 ury Island, and observe how the cooking jars so 
 much in vogue hereabouts are manufactured, a 
 number of his wives being skilled in the art. A 
 dozen lively women will welcome us, well pleased 
 to display their talent. I^'or the purpose, a quantity 
 of dark red clay has been brought from the interior 
 of the island. With their hands the women work
 
 IN BOUC.AINVILLE STRAIT. I43 
 
 a small amount of the clay into a plastic lump. A 
 flat, smooth pebble, three or four inches across the 
 face, is then taken in the left hand, and the clay is 
 fashioned upon it into a rude kind of saucer for the 
 bottom of the pot, by a small wooden trowel held 
 in the ricjht hand. 
 
 While one woman is thus occupied, two of her 
 companions are busy flattening strips of the clay 
 an inch in width and varj-ing in length as the vessel 
 increases in size. One of these strips is now laid 
 around the upper edge of the saucer, and the potter 
 welds it in place with her little implement, the peb- 
 ble being retained inside. Thus the vessel is deftly 
 built up, strip by strip. To secure s)'mmetry to 
 the upper portions of the pot, a fillet of grass is 
 tied around it for a guide. An even edge is given 
 to the rim by a fiber of cocoanut husk drawn 
 across it. This done, the neck and interior arc 
 finished off by the fingers, dipped frequently in 
 water. While making, the vessel rests upon a flat 
 cushion of palm leaves. Such a pot, of the ordinary 
 size, is manufactured in al^out foity minutes. When 
 finished it is placed in llio shade for three or four 
 days to stiffen, and afterwards is hardened by fire. 
 The exterior is decorated with (juaint designs in re- 
 lief, but no glaze is used. The figures are maile 
 with the trowel, on one side of which the patterns 
 are incised. It remains to be said that in finish 
 and elegance of design the Treasury Island ware 
 does not compare with the glazed potter)' of I'iji.
 
 144 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 The I^'ijian women employ the same implements — 
 a flat trowel, a small flat round stone, and a ring- 
 like cushion of palm leaves — but do not cut the clay 
 into strips. 
 
 Throughout the Solomon Isles we have observed 
 two very pernicious customs. These are tobacco 
 smoking and betel-nut chewing. They are practiced 
 by both sexes, and at all ages. Even infants seem 
 to have an instatiable desire for smoking. It is Mr. 
 Woodford who writes, in effect: — 
 
 In the villages the traveler will sometimes be fol- 
 lowed by a knot of little urchins five or six years of 
 age, who have slipped down from the backs of their 
 mothers to ask him for tobacco. And I have seen 
 a child in the arms of its mother take the pipe from 
 her lips and puff away in evident enjoyment. Should 
 there be a scarcity of tobacco in any village when 
 the trader arrives with his supply, he may drive fine 
 bargains with the article, and the curiosity seeker 
 may purchase anything he likes with the weed. 
 For a bit of tobacco the size of a penny he may 
 secure articles which have cost the natives days of 
 tedious labor. A few tobacco plants may often be 
 seen growing in the waste ground of the villages. 
 This is particularly true of the towns in Bougain- 
 ville Strait. And always the home-grown article is 
 preferred to the imported. 
 
 But we come to betel chewing, a species of in- 
 temperance scarcely less baneful than that of drink- 
 ing intoxicating liquors. Several marked and dis-
 
 IN BOUGAINVILLE STRAIT. 1 45 
 
 agreeable effects result from the practice. A 
 physician temporarily sojourning in the Solomons 
 resolved to test upon himself the effects of betel 
 chewing. He relates his experience somewhat as 
 follows : I was once tempted to chew and to swallow 
 a betel-nut in order to realize its full effect. Very 
 shortly afterward my head began to feel heavy. I 
 had an inclination to lie down, and my eye-sight 
 became sensibly dimmed. In about twenty min- 
 utes all these effects passed away. On another oc- 
 casion I tried the effect upon my circulation of 
 merely chewing a single betel-nut. Fiv^e minutes 
 afterward I found my pulse increased in force, and 
 from si.xty-two to ninety-two beats per minute in 
 frequenc}'. There was a sensation of fullness in 
 the head and temples, but no perceptible effect on 
 the vision. The pulse retained its frequency about 
 ten minutes, but did not resume its normal rate 
 until over a half hour from the beginning of the 
 experiment. Subsequently, I tried the effect of 
 chewing two betel-nuts. The fust increased the 
 pulse twenty beats per minute, producing restless- 
 ness and fullness of the head. The second nut 
 simply sustained the rapidit)- of the pulse, but my 
 sight was sensibly dimmed. No effect was pro- 
 duced on my power of locomotion. Upon retiring 
 for the night soon after chewing them, I experi- 
 enced, during the first hour, vivid dreams, with 
 rapid change of the scenes and persons appearing 
 in them. 
 \o
 
 146 TWO CANNIIJAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 At my request, several of the crew of the ship 
 tried the effect of chewing a single nut. It affected 
 them much as would a glass of spirit. The betel- 
 nut, I find, possesses far greater stimulating effect 
 than I had suspected. A single nut had much the 
 same effect upon me as would a glass of sherry. 
 I am convinced that the extent of the intoxicating 
 quality of the nut is not generally known. 
 
 Lime and betel-pepper are everywhere accesso- 
 ries to betel chewing. " Betel-pepper imparts to 
 betel-juice the ' bite' of a glass of spirit and water." 
 The natives claim that the pepper sweetens the 
 breath. The piper-betel — betel-pepper — of Bou- 
 gainville Strait is grown on the plantations by be- 
 ing trailed around the trunks of trees and the stems 
 of bananas. The nuts of several other trees grow- 
 ing in the Solomons furnish a very good substitute 
 for the betel-nut, the effects of chewing them being 
 very similar. One of these, the poamdu, is a spe- 
 cial favorite with the women. The juice of the 
 betel-nut dyes the saliva and the mouth a bright 
 red. The same color may be produced by mixing 
 lime with the nut in rain water. 
 
 For carrying the lime used in betel-nut chew- 
 ing, the natives employ a tiny gourd, the stoppers 
 of which are very ingeniously made of narrow 
 bands of sago palm leaf. They are wound in the 
 form of a disc, and are held firmly flat by fine 
 strips of the strong tissue of the sinimi fern. Little 
 implements similar to the Chinese chop-stick are
 
 IN BOUGAINVILLE STRAIT. 
 
 147 
 
 used to convey the lime to the mouth. Frequently, 
 also, the fingers are employed for the purpose, and 
 the betel-nut itself sometimes does that work. On 
 St. Christoval and its neighboring islets the lime is 
 carried in pretty bamboo boxes, with decorations 
 incised upon the outside.
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 ST. CHRISTOVAL AND THE TABOO-HOUSES OF 
 THE SOLOMON ARCHIPELAGO. 
 
 ic^W ^ hav^e the northwest wind in our favor, and, 
 f'^^^ the reader kindly accompanying u.s, we will 
 
 "^^^ pay a brief visit to St. Christoval, lying sev- 
 eral hundred miles to the southeast, and the south- 
 ernmost large island of the archipelago. Here w^e 
 shall be interested in the taboo-houses, of which we 
 have heard so much. St. Christoval was one of the 
 discoveries of Gallego, the chief pilot of Mendana's 
 fleet. Of course he took "formal possession of the 
 country in the name of his majesty the king of 
 Spain," without the consent of the original owners 
 of the soil, and without presenting them an equiv- 
 alent for their possessions; but in those days that 
 was the Spanish way of doing things. 
 
 Gallego describes St. Christoval as one hundred 
 and twenty miles long, twenty-one miles wide, 
 three hundred miles in circuit, partly mountainous 
 and well-peopled. He called the inhabitants In- 
 dians, and said, " They go- naked and eat human 
 flesh." The people of St. Christoval have changed 
 but little since Gallego's day. The native name of 
 ( 148 )
 
 ST. CHRISTOVAL AND THE TABOO-HOUSES. I49 
 
 the island is Paubro; but the Spaniards called it 
 after one of their numerous saints. The beautiful 
 island is divided among many tribes, each having 
 its own chief. For centuries grievous feuds have 
 prevailed among them. A wide difference exists 
 between the people of the coast and of the interior. 
 As in Guadalcanar, the "bush tribes" build their 
 homes on the crests of the hills and of the mountain 
 ridges. This is done for greater case in defending 
 them. The \illage of Lawa, for instance, near the 
 north coast, has an airy outlook fourteen hundred 
 feet above the sea. Treachery and cunning are the 
 indispensable weapons of warfare on St. Christoval, 
 especially in the hands of the chiefs. No hamlet or 
 tribe is sure of its existence for any length of time. 
 The inmates of any home may at any time furnish 
 material for a cannibal feast before night. 
 
 As in Bougainville Strait, there are chiefs who 
 have acquired considerable supremac}', and tluir 
 names have become synonyms for fear and dread. 
 Taki, chief at the village of Wano in 1887, was 
 one of this class. He gloried in the reputation of 
 being both a friend to the white man and the most 
 accomplished head hunter on St. Christoval. Wano, 
 with a population of five hundred, has for some 
 years been the seat of a Melanesian Mission station, 
 super\ised by Bishop Selwyn, of New Zealand. In 
 1887, the resident teacher at Wano was a son of 
 the chief, Taki, and was trained for the position at 
 a school established — if we mistake not — h\' Bishop
 
 150 TWO CANNIBAL AKCHIPKLAGOES. 
 
 Scl\v)'n for normal training on Norfolk Island. 
 The influence of the young man is said to have 
 been not altogether in favor of Christianity. Taki, 
 not a Christian, and, through his iniquities, an ab- 
 solute hindrance to the mission, was yet very prout! 
 of his connection therewith. It must be added 
 that he was always pleased to show civilities to 
 white men. 
 
 Taki has been known to sail leisurely along the 
 coast in his war canoe, patiently waiting in some 
 covered spot until an unwary and hungry man 
 from the hill-tops should come down to the reefs 
 to fish. Then quickly he would become Taki's 
 captixe, and, dead or alive, would be borne in tri- 
 umph to Wano, perhaps to become a slave, perhaps 
 to furnish a head for the taboo-house. 
 
 The inhabitants of St. Christoval are shorter and 
 less vigorous than are those of Bougainville Strait. 
 Yet the people of Santa Catalina, off the southern 
 coast of the island, are said to excel all other races 
 of the archipelago in stature, lightness of color, and 
 general fineness of jih\siquc. They never inter- 
 marry with the tribes around them, but appear to 
 have a friendK'' alliance with a certain community 
 on the coast of Malaita, the great island north of 
 them. 
 
 In the taboo-houses — sacred buildings — of St. 
 Christoval we find structures upon which has 
 been lavished the mechanical skill of the natives. 
 Women are forbidden to enter them. At the vil-
 
 ST. CUKISTOVAL AND THK TABOO-IIOUSES. I5I 
 
 lagc of Sapuna, island of Santa Anna, the .sacred 
 house overlooks the shore. Women are never 
 permitted to cross the beach in front of it. In all 
 the coast villages the chief purpose of tliesc struct- 
 ures is to shelter the great war canoes. Tlic ob- 
 long taboo-house at Sapuna, however, as we have 
 mentioned in a previous chapter, serves as a mau- 
 soleum for the preservation of the skulls of ordinary 
 men who have died, and of the entire bodies of de- 
 ceased chiefs, while within a smaller edifice beside 
 it repose the wooden sharks containing the skulls 
 of departed women. 
 
 The inland sacred houses serve manifold pur- 
 poses. For the Solomon islander generally, the 
 front of the taboo-house in his nati\e village is a 
 common place of resort, i)articularly toward the close 
 of day. There he hears and tells the news of his 
 island world, discusses the l.ist head-hunting raitl, 
 and cultivates his social tastes. It is to this build- 
 ing that all nati\e strangers direct their steps upon 
 entering any village. Mere they state their errand, 
 and receive whatever attention is proper. l^\en 
 white men traversing the islands may avail them- 
 selves of this privilege, and never meet with a re- 
 pulse. v\ll men are free to seek shelter for the 
 night in an)' of these buildings, being sure of lu>s- 
 pitable treatment. It is an l^nglishman who tells 
 us: "On one occasion, when passing a night in an 
 inland tt^wn of St. Christoval. I slept in the taboo- 
 house — the only white man among a dozen natives.
 
 152 TWO CANNinAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 Bloodshed, I l)clic\e, rarely occurs in these build- 
 ings. For that reason they are viewed somewhat 
 in the li:4ht of a sanctuary." 
 
 In all the coast villages of the eastern Solomons 
 the sacred edifices are very similar in size and 
 style. The fact that the structures must be long 
 enough to admit the war canoes accounts for this 
 harmony in their relative proportions. Tiie taboo- 
 house at Wano — north coast of St. Christoval — 
 will serve as a tyjjc for all. In length it is about 
 si.xty feet, in breadth about twenty-five. The very 
 sloping gable roof is supported by five lines of 
 posts, four in each, the central pillars being some 
 fifteen feet in height, while the outer side supports 
 are perhaps four feet high. The three central rows 
 bear the chief burden of upholding the roof. 
 
 The central columns, particularly, are grotesquely 
 carved, and not by the hand of an amateur. The 
 lower part represents the body of a shark, head 
 upward and mouth open ; the upper part is a rude 
 imitation of the human body. In one instance, 
 however, a man is seated on the nose of a shark, 
 with his legs dangling in the creature's mouth. The 
 artist placed a hat on the man's head, and presumed 
 to let the crown help to support the ridge-pole. 
 In another instance, the poor mortal is turned head 
 downward, with his feet braced against the ridge- 
 pole, while his head and breast rest submissively in 
 the mouth of the shark. 
 
 Mutation is written on everything vegetable in
 
 ST. CHRISTOVAL AND THE T A nOO- HOUSES. I 53 
 
 these islands, as elsewhere, and it sometimes happens 
 that a taboo-house passes out of existence. But 
 lontj after it has disappeared, these grim carvings 
 abide in their places, forming a grotesque adorn- 
 ment to the village landscape. Taboo-houses gener- 
 ally, in this part of the Solomons, are open at both 
 ends, with a staging at the front, elevated some four 
 feet from the ground. The "village lounge" would 
 not be an inappropriate term for this platform. 
 
 The little island of Santa Catalina — Orika — as the 
 natives call it, contains one of the most remarkable 
 sacred buildings in the Solomon group. Its dimen- 
 sions are the same as those already given, but at 
 each end large posts are so driven into the ground 
 as to form a circle several feet in diameter. Into this 
 circular space a variety of food is thrown dail)', to 
 satiate the hunger of the " devil-god " who presides 
 over the place. On the ridge-pole, and on most of 
 the supports of the roof, are painted — instead of 
 carved — extravagant representations in outline, of 
 sharks, war canoes, fishing parties, natives in full 
 fighting costume, and the "devil-god" himself, with 
 a body long, lank, and ending in a tail. The cen- 
 tral row of columns is much defaced by chipping, 
 which was done in token of mourning for a chief 
 of Santa Catalina, who was recently removed by 
 death. But the most remarkable feature of the 
 building is that several of the posts are carved into 
 the figures of women. Probably no other taboo-
 
 154 TWO CANNIBAL ARCH I I'ELAGOES. 
 
 house of the archipelago furnishes a similar inno- 
 vation. 
 
 The principal sacred house in the village of Ete- 
 Ete, island of Ugi, is also distinguished for its dec- 
 orations. Sharks, with mouth agape, and human 
 figures holding up the ridge-pole, are abundant. 
 Here red and black bands, straight, wavy, and 
 chevron-shaped, ornament the front of the build- 
 ing. The shark seems to inspire dread in the 
 heart of every native of the Solomon isles. Per- 
 haps this fact has led to its extensive deification 
 in the group. Before undertaking a long canoe 
 journey, offerings of food are always placed on the 
 rocks, to propitiate these fish. There have been 
 instances when a man whom the creature has at- 
 tempted to capture has happily made his escape. 
 But, in these cases, so great has been the fear of 
 displeasing this divinit)' of the sea, that the man's 
 friends have immediateh' thrown him back into the 
 waters, to be devoured. 
 
 The islet of Santa Catalina was described by the 
 Spaniards over three hundred years ago as "a place 
 of many palms, many coral reefs, and well peopled." 
 The appearance of the island has not changed since 
 that day. It is a tiny bit of land, only six miles in 
 circumference. Ui)on their arrival the Spaniards 
 discharged their fire-arms, at the sound of which 
 the natives fled from their \illage. The strangers 
 then landed, and visited the settlement, where they
 
 ST. CHKISTOVAL AND THK TABOO- HOUSES. I 55 
 
 "found sonic liogs and a quantit\- of almonds and 
 plantains." 
 
 Santa Anna is a little pearl, lying at the south- 
 eastern extremity of the Solomons. It is two and 
 a half miles long, and contains two villages, sepa- 
 rated by the breadth of the island. The occupants 
 of the villages intermarry freely, notwithstanding 
 they arc often at war with each other. Santa 
 Anna lies in the pathway of the heaviest rainfall, 
 and, during the prevalence of tiie trade winds, has 
 an average of fifteen rainy days per month. One 
 of the attractions of Santa Anna is a fresh-water 
 lake, called Wailava. Crocodiles have pre-empted 
 its banks, and promptly resent any invasion of their 
 rights by man. The natives bclie\e that any m.m 
 who attempts to fish in the lake does so at his 
 peril. It f>llows that the savage creatures are not 
 regarded with much complacency by the would-be 
 fishers. 
 
 In 18.S2 Mr. Sproul, an American, who was vis- 
 iting the island, shot one of the monsters. There- 
 upon, great was the rejoicing among the people. 
 A present of fi\e j'.uns was sent Mr. Sproul, in ac- 
 knowledgment of his prowess. Some years pre- 
 viously an agctl nati\c had an encounter with a 
 crocodile at Wailava, and narrowly escaped with 
 his life, having one leg broken in the struggle. 
 He was confident that Mr. Si)roul had killeii that 
 identical reptile, and was greatly delighted over the
 
 156 TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 event. The American .skinned his captive, and 
 presented the body to the villagers for a feast. 
 Bones and all were eaten by them with great relish 
 and satisfaction. 
 
 The small island of Ugi, six miles from Santa 
 Anna, and eighteen miles in circumference, com- 
 pletes the number of tiny attendants upon St. Chris- 
 toval. It is a pleasure to write that on Ugi canni- 
 balism, once very prevalent, is reported to be dying 
 out. Yet there remain many harmful superstitions, 
 which only the gospel of Christ can uproot. And 
 this remark is true of every island of the Solomon 
 group. There is not a field in all the south seas in 
 greater need of its cleansing and elevating work. 
 
 The Ugians believe that the souls of the de- 
 parted pass into the flashing fire-flies which flit in 
 and out among the trees at evening. And should 
 one of these insects enter a dwelling, which is never 
 lighted at night, the inmates would instantly pass 
 out. Ill-wishing also is a prevalent and harrowing 
 superstition of the Ugians. Most of them live in 
 constant fear of illness, and of dreaded calamities, 
 with which they may be visited, simply because some 
 enemy has wished that it might be so. Those who 
 practice incantations among them are a sinister set, 
 and arc by no means scrupulous as to the means 
 they employ to excite terror in the person they 
 have resolved to annoy. 
 
 Yam planting and yam harvest in Ugi are regu-
 
 ST. CHRISTOVAL AND THE TABOO-HOUSES. I 5/ 
 
 latcd by the appearance of that beautiful star cluster, 
 the Pleiades, in the constellation Taurus. Indeed, 
 the Pleiades exert great influence throughout the 
 group. On Treasury Island their return at the end 
 of October is always hailed by a joyous feast. The 
 Pleiades and Orion are the only star groups to 
 which names have been given by the people of 
 the Solomon Isles. . Would that the flashing galax- 
 ies of the skies might lead the minds of these 
 iijlanders from the beauties and glories of nature to 
 the deeper, better, greater beauty and glory to be 
 found in nature's God and the religion of our 
 Lord Jesus Christ.
 
 dition- 'i! til.- I 
 main- ' >t hfi- t hii 
 
 The Young People's Liibi^ary 
 
 Is the peiieral title of a imiforin series of elcvatinp, 
 instructive volumes aclaptc<l to luiuds from twelve to 
 tweuty years of age (and even older). This Library 
 covers a wide ranfje of topics and territor>'. beinj; didac- 
 tic, descripti%'e, biographical and historical. While the 
 books inculcate the purest morals and are not anti- 
 christian, they are absolutely non sectarian. 
 
 A brief description of the first six volumes (now 
 ready) will give a better idea of what the books con- 
 tain. 
 
 FIJI Ay D SAMOA. 
 
 Jottings from the Pacific No. i, is a graphic and 
 interesting description of the Fijian and Samoan Is- 
 lands, their geographical position, their government 
 and religion, their social and physical peculiarities, 
 the wonderful productions of these islands, the coral 
 formationsof the Pacific, cannibalism, the curious tra- 
 past and present funeral rites, cylones in Ihecoral seas, and 
 est. 
 
 JACK THE CO\QUEREIi; oi\ Ovet^onnnii: Dmiciihios, 
 
 And other stories. These are not light, trashy, improbable tales, but they present some 
 of the real difficulties which nearly all boys and girls are compelled to encounter, and 
 point out the best way to meet them, so as to make the difficulties aids to higher attain- 
 ments instead oi hindrances. The book will uot only interest but benefit the young. 
 
 SAJONABOLA. 
 
 The life of this great preacher of Florence. The scene of the book is of course that 
 land of romance and song and heroism, Italia, where the Apostle Paul and other wit- 
 nesses of the truth finished the " good fight of faith." The little volume is a graphic 
 sketch of the most prominent events of the preacher's life and experience, the monasti- 
 cism of the fifteenth century, the iniquities thatprevailed, the political influence of Savon- 
 arola, his trial and death. 
 
 THE TONGA ISLANDS AND OTHER C. ROUPS— 
 
 Jottings from the Pacific No. 2. This volume is for the Tonga Islands what "Jottings 
 from the Pacific No. i " is for the Fijian and Samoan Groups. But there is no sameness 
 between the two. The islands, people, customs and products are sufficiently varied to 
 make another volume equal to or exceeding in interest the first. 
 
 LETTERS FROM THE HOLT LAND. 
 
 This book carries us from the newly discovered and explored Pacific to that of the 
 oldest of all lands in story and song— the land of Palestine. It is very instructive, illus. 
 tratiiig many customs and practices, peoples and things, so different from those of our 
 own land. The reading of the book will make much more intelligent and interesting the 
 study and reading of the Word of God. It contains a large number of illustrated chapter 
 headings and full page cuts. 
 
 AMONG THE NORTHERN ICEBERGS 
 
 I.ays before us an entirely different scene. Frc^m the tropic heat of the Coral Islands of 
 the Pacific, from the sunnv landof Ita.y, and the historic and mild little Palestine, we are 
 taken to the northland where King Frost reigns supreme, releasing only for a little time, 
 now and then, his icv grip that he may more securely fasten upon those helpless mariners 
 who wander within his domain. Tlie'book gives most interesting sketches of the Arctic 
 expeditions of England anil our own land in the nineteenth century. The rising genera- 
 tion will appreciate the reading of this account second only to those who read the iiraphic 
 narrations at the times ol their occurrence. It is an interesting and instructive book. 
 
 Bach volume is fiTlly illustrated and contains 160 pages. The set, therefore, has nearly 
 i.ooo pages, and will certainly be a valuable addition to any library and especially to that 
 of a young person. 
 
 The set of 6 books neatly bound in fancy cloth, embossed in jet and gold, and 
 enclosed in a box, SENT POST-PAID, $3.60. 
 
 Address all orders to PACIFIC PRESS PUBLISHING COMPANY, 
 
 Oakland, Cal. 
 Or, 43 Bond Street, N. Y.
 
 Voong People's Mhm^ 
 
 SKRIE^S a"V\^^0 
 
 flll'v Fi'rsi Series of the "Young People's Library" has met 
 with such a favorable reception everywhere that it is with 
 pleasure that we announce the Second Senes which we 
 feel confident will be no less warmly welcomed by the thousands 
 who desire to place in the hands of the young reading which shall 
 be instructive and at the same time entertaining. We can promise a 
 feast of good things to the readers of Series Two of the " Voung 
 People's Library.'' 
 
 The following is a list of the titles of the books in Series Two: 
 
 1. LEFT WITH A TRUST. 
 
 . /// excellent story. 
 
 2. TWO CANNIBAL ARCHIPELAGOES. 
 
 Jottings /'roin the Pacific Xo. j. 
 
 3. JOHN OF WYCLIFFE. 
 
 4. NATIVE LIFE IN INDIA. 
 
 Bv Rkv. Hknry Rice. 
 
 I'ery fitllv and handsomely illustrated. 
 
 5. LIFE OF MARTIN LUTHER. 
 
 6. LIFE ON THE CONGO. 
 
 By Rkv. W. Hoi.man Bkntley. 
 
 Each volume will be fully illustrated, and will contain i6o pages, 
 5x7 inches in size, 
 
 PRICE — 60 Cents per volume or ;^3.6o per set postpaid. 
 
 This series will be complete and ready for delivery July I, 1S91. 
 
 Address, 
 
 PACIFIC PRESS PUBLISHING CO., Oakland, Cai.
 
 JAMIESON, FAUSSETT & BROWN'S 
 
 BIBLE COMMENTARY, 
 
 CRITICAL. PRACTICAL, EXPLANATORY. 
 
 A new edition containing the complete unabridged 
 notes in clear type, on good paper, in four 
 handsome isnio volumes, with copious in- 
 dex, numerous illustrations and maps 
 and a I'ihle 1 )i(-lionary compiled 
 from Dr. \Vm. Smith's 
 standard work. 
 
 Four vols., in neat box, fine cloth, 
 " " " " half bound. 
 
 - $8.00 
 
 - $10.00. 
 
 wwrar* 
 
 This is the only Commentary upon the whole Bi- 
 ble published at a moderate price. It is, therefore, 
 within the reach of the masses, while no Commen- 
 tary jniblished is so highly commended, or so well 
 adapted for the home, tlie teacher, or the preacher. 
 Address, 
 
 PACIFIC PRESS PUBLISHING CO., 
 
 Oakland, Cal. 
 
 Or, 43 Bond Street, N. Y.
 
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