| Chapter XVIII |
|
“A white man bathing beside a Tahitian,
is like a plant bleached by the gardener’s art, compared with a dark
green one, growing vigorously in the open hills.” Paul
Harris chose this quote in Chapter 40 - "Resting and Visiting" from
"My Road to Rotary," 1947. The quote Harris and other many
other authors used is from
Chapter 18 of
Darwin's "The Voyage of the Beagle."
Rotary Global History
is grateful for the assistance of the Darwin Correspondence Project at
Cambridge University:
The quote is
from Charles Darwin's The voyage of the Beagle, but has different forms
in different editions. When it was first published in 1839 as Journal of
researches into the geology and natural history of the various countries
visited by HMS Beagle, it read (p. 481) "It has been somewhere remarked,
that it requires little habit to make a darker tint of the skin more
pleasing and natural, even to the eye of an European, than his own
colour. To see a white man bathing by the side of a Tahitian, was like
comparing a plant bleached by the gardener's art, with one growing in
the open fields". By the 11th edition in 1913 the passage has been
altered to something closer to your quote (though retaining "fields"
rather than "hills").
Without going through all the editions, I can't tell you exactly when
the change was made.
Dr Alison
M. Pearn
Darwin Correspondence Project
University Library, Cambridge
CB3 9DR United Kingdom
© Cambridge University Library |
|
Pass through the Low Archipelago—Tahiti—Aspect—Vegetation
on the Mountains—View of Eimeo—Excursion
into the Interior—Profound Ravines—Succession
of Waterfalls—Number of wild useful Plants—Temperance
of the Inhabitants—Their moral state—Parliament
convened—New Zealand—Bay of Islands—Hippahs—Excursion
to Waimate—Missionary Establishment—English
Weeds now run wild—Waiomio—Funeral
of a New Zealand Woman—Sail for Australia |
| |
| OCTOBER
20th.—The survey of the Galapagos Archipelago
being concluded, we steered towards Tahiti and commenced our long
passage of 3200 miles. In the course of a few days we sailed out of the
gloomy and clouded ocean-district which extends during the winter far
from the coast of South America. We then enjoyed bright and clear
weather, while running pleasantly along at the rate of 150 or 160 miles
a day before the steady trade-wind. The temperature in this more central
part of the Pacific is higher than near the American shore. The
thermometer in the poop cabin, by night and day, ranged between 80 and
83°, which feels very pleasant; but with one degree or two higher, the
heat becomes oppressive. We passed through the Low or Dangerous
Archipelago, and saw several of those most curious rings of coral land,
just rising above the water’s edge, which have been called Lagoon
Islands. A long and brilliantly white beach is capped by a margin of
green vegetation; and the strip, looking either way, rapidly narrows
away in the distance, and sinks beneath the horizon. From the mast-head
a wide expanse of smooth water can be seen within the ring. These low
hollow coral islands bear no proportion to the vast ocean out of which
they abruptly rise; and it seems wonderful, that such weak invaders are
not overwhelmed, by the all-powerful and never-tiring waves of that
great sea, miscalled the Pacific. |
1 |
| November 15th.—At daylight,
Tahiti, an island which must for ever remain classical to the voyager in
the South Sea, was in view. At a distance the appearance was not
attractive. The luxuriant vegetation of the lower part could not yet be
seen, and as the clouds rolled past, the wildest and most precipitous
peaks showed themselves towards the centre of the island. As soon as we
anchored in Matavai Bay, we were surrounded by canoes. This was our
Sunday, but the Monday of Tahiti: if the case had been reversed, we
should not have received a single visit; for the injunction not to
launch a canoe on the Sabbath is rigidly obeyed. After dinner, we landed
to enjoy all the delights produced by the first impressions of a new
country, and that country the charming Tahiti. A crowd of men, women,
and children, was collected on the memorable Point Venus, ready to
receive us with laughing, merry faces. They marshalled us towards the
house of Mr. Wilson, the missionary of the district, who met us on the
road, and gave us a very friendly reception. After sitting a very short
time in his house, we separated to walk about, but returned there in the
evening. |
2 |
| The land capable of cultivation, is
scarcely in any part more than a fringe of low alluvial soil,
accumulated round the base of the mountains, and protected from the
waves of the sea by a coral reef, which encircles the entire line of
coast. Within the reef there is an expanse of smooth water, like that of
a lake, where the canoes of the natives can ply with safety and where
ships anchor. The low land which comes down to the beach of coral-sand,
is covered by the most beautiful productions of the intertropical
regions. In the midst of bananas, orange, cocoa-nut, and bread-fruit
trees, spots are cleared where yams, sweet potatoes, and sugar-cane, and
pine-apples are cultivated. Even the brush-wood is an imported
fruit-tree, namely, the guava, which from its abundance has become as
noxious as a weed. In Brazil I have often admired the varied beauty of
the bananas, palms, and orange-trees contrasted together; and here we
also have the bread-fruit, conspicuous from its large, glossy, and
deeply digitated leaf. It is admirable to behold groves of a tree,
sending forth its branches with the vigour of an English oak, loaded
with large and most nutritious fruit. However seldom the usefulness of
an object can account for the pleasure of beholding it, in the case of
these beautiful woods, the knowledge of their high productiveness no
doubt enters largely into the feeling of admiration. The little winding
paths, cool from the surrounding shade, led to the scattered houses; the
owners of which everywhere gave us a cheerful and most hospitable
reception. |
3 |
| I was pleased with nothing so much as
with the inhabitants. There is a mildness in the expression of their
countenances which at once banishes the idea of a savage; and an
intelligence which shows that they are advancing in civilization. The
common people, when working, keep the upper part of their bodies quite
naked; and it is then that the Tahitians are seen to advantage. They are
very tall, broad-shouldered, athletic, and well-proportioned. It has
been remarked, that it requires little habit to make a dark skin more
pleasing and natural to the eye of an European than his own colour.
A
white
man bathing by the side of a Tahitian, was like a plant bleached by
the gardener’s art compared with a fine dark green one growing
vigorously in the open fields. Most of the men are tattooed, and the
ornaments follow the curvature of the body so gracefully, that they have
a very elegant effect. One common pattern, varying in its details, is
somewhat like the crown of a palm-tree. It springs from the central line
of the back, and gracefully curls round both sides. The simile may be a
fanciful one, but I thought the body of a man thus ornamented was like
the trunk of a noble tree embraced by a delicate creeper. |
4 |
| Many of the elder people had their feet
covered with small figures, so placed as to resemble a sock. This
fashion, however, is partly gone by, and has been succeeded by others.
Here, although fashion is far from immutable, every one must abide by
that prevailing in his youth. An old man has thus his age for ever
stamped on his body, and he cannot assume the airs of a young dandy. The
women are tattooed in the same manner as the men, and very commonly on
their fingers. One unbecoming fashion is now almost universal: namely,
shaving the hair from the upper part of the head, in a circular form, so
as to leave only an outer ring. The missionaries have tried to persuade
the people to change this habit; but it is the fashion, and that is a
sufficient answer at Tahiti, as well as at Paris. I was much
disappointed in the personal appearance of the women: they are far
inferior in every respect to the men. The custom of wearing a white or
scarlet flower in the back of the head, or through a small hole in each
ear, is pretty. A crown of woven cocoa-nut leaves is also worn as a
shade for the eyes. The women appear to be in greater want of some
becoming costume even than the men. |
5 |
| Nearly all the natives understand a
little English—that is, they know the names of common things; and by the
aid of this, together with signs, a lame sort of conversation could be
carried on. In returning in the evening to the boat, we stopped to
witness a very pretty scene. Numbers of children were playing on the
beach, and had lighted bonfires which illumined the placid sea and
surrounding trees; others, in circles, were singing Tahitian verses. We
seated ourselves on the sand, and joined their party. The songs were
impromptu, and I believe related to our arrival: one little girl sang a
line, which the rest took up in parts, forming a very pretty chorus. The
whole scene made us unequivocally aware that we were seated on the
shores of an island in the far-famed South Sea. |
6 |
| 17th.—This day is reckoned in
the log-book as Tuesday the 17th, instead of Monday the 16th, owing to
our, so far, successful chase of the sun. Before breakfast the ship was
hemmed in by a flotilla of canoes; and when the natives were allowed to
come on board, I suppose there could not have been less than two
hundred. It was the opinion of every one that it would have been
difficult to have picked out an equal number from any other nation, who
would have given so little trouble. Everybody brought something for
sale: shells were the main articles of trade. The Tahitians now fully
understand the value of money, and prefer it to old clothes or other
articles. The various coins, however, of English and Spanish
denomination puzzle them, and they never seemed to think the small
silver quite secure until changed into dollars. Some of the chiefs have
accumulated considerable sums of money. One chief, not long since,
offered 800 dollars (about 160l. sterling) for a small vessel;
and frequently they purchase whale-boats and horses at the rate of from
50 to 100 dollars. |
7 |
| After breakfast I went on shore, and
ascended the nearest slope to a height of between two and three thousand
feet. The outer mountains are smooth and conical, but steep; and the old
volcanic rocks, of which they are formed, have been cut through by many
profound ravines, diverging from the central broken parts of the island
to the coast. Having crossed the narrow low girt of inhabited and
fertile land, I followed a smooth steep ridge between two of the deep
ravines. The vegetation was singular, consisting almost exclusively of
small dwarf ferns, mingled higher up, with coarse grass; it was not very
dissimilar from that on some of the Welsh hills, and this so close above
the orchard of tropical plants on the coast was very surprising. At the
highest point, which I reached, trees again appeared. Of the three zones
of comparative luxuriance, the lower one owes its moisture, and
therefore fertility, to its flatness; for, being scarcely raised above
the level of the sea, the water from the higher land drains away slowly.
The intermediate zone does not, like the upper one, reach into a damp
and cloudy atmosphere, and therefore remains sterile. The woods in the
upper zone are very pretty, tree-ferns replacing the cocoa-nuts on the
coast. It must not, however, be supposed that these woods at all equal
in splendour the forests of Brazil. The vast numbers of productions,
which characterize a continent, cannot be expected to occur in an
island. |
8 |
| From the highest point which I
attained, there was a good view of the distant island of Eimeo,
dependent on the same sovereign with Tahiti. On the lofty and broken
pinnacles, white massive clouds were piled up, which formed an island in
the blue sky, as Eimeo itself did in the blue ocean. The island, with
the exception of one small gateway, is completely encircled by a reef.
At this distance, a narrow but well-defined brilliantly white line was
alone visible, where the waves first encountered the wall of coral. The
mountains rose abruptly out of the glassy expanse of the lagoon,
included within this narrow white line, outside which the heaving waters
of the ocean were dark-coloured. The view was striking: it may aptly be
compared to a framed engraving, where the frame represents the breakers,
the marginal paper the smooth lagoon, and the drawing the island itself.
When in the evening I descended from the mountain, a man, whom I had
pleased with a trifling gift, met me, bringing with him hot roasted
bananas, a pine-apple, and cocoa-nuts. After walking under a burning
sun, I do not know anything more delicious than the milk of a young
cocoa-nut. Pine-apples are here so abundant that the people eat them in
the same wasteful manner as we might turnips. They are of an excellent
flavor-perhaps even better than those cultivated in England; and this I
believe is the highest compliment which can be paid to any fruit. Before
going on board, Mr. Wilson interpreted for me to the Tahitian who had
paid me so adroit an attention, that I wanted him and another man to
accompany me on a short excursion into the mountains. |
9 |
| 18th.—In the morning I came on
shore early, bringing with me some provisions in a bag, and two blankets
for myself and servant. These were lashed to each end of a long pole,
which was alternately carried by my Tahitian companions on their
shoulders. These men are accustomed thus to carry, for a whole day, as
much as fifty pounds at each end of their poles. I told my guides to
provide themselves with food and clothing; but they said that there was
plenty of food in the mountains, and for clothing, that their skins were
sufficient. Our line of march was the valley of Tia-auru, down which a
river flows into the sea by Point Venus. This is one of the principal
streams in the island, and its source lies at the base of the loftiest
central pinnacles, which rise to a height of about 7000 feet. The whole
island is so mountainous that the only way to penetrate into the
interior is to follow up the valleys. Our road, at first, lay through
woods which bordered each side of the river; and the glimpses of the
lofty central peaks, seen as through an avenue, with here and there a
waving cocoa-nut tree on one side, were extremely picturesque. The
valley soon began to narrow, and the sides to grow lofty and more
precipitous. After having walked between three and four hours, we found
the width of the ravine scarcely exceeded that of the bed of the stream.
On each hand the walls were nearly vertical; yet from the soft nature of
the volcanic strata, trees and a rank vegetation sprung from every
projecting ledge. These precipices must have been some thousand feet
high; and the whole formed a mountain gorge far more magnificent than
anything which I had ever before beheld. Until the midday sun stood
vertically over the ravine, the air felt cool and damp, but now it
became very sultry. Shaded by a ledge of rock, beneath a façade of
columnar lava, we ate our dinner. My guides had already procured a dish
of small fish and fresh-water prawns. They carried with them a small net
stretched on a hoop; and where the water was deep and in eddies, they
dived, and like otters, with their eyes open followed the fish into
holes and corners, and thus caught them. |
10 |
| The Tahitians have the dexterity of
amphibious animals in the water. An anecdote mentioned by Ellis shows
how much they feel at home in this element. When a horse was landing for
Pomarre in 1817, the slings broke, and it fell into the water;
immediately the natives jumped overboard, and by their cries and vain
efforts at assistance almost drowned it. As soon, however, as it reached
the shore, the whole population took to flight, and tried to hide
themselves from the man-carrying pig, as they christened [named] the horse. |
11 |
| A little higher up, the river divided
itself into three little streams. The two northern ones were
impracticable, owing to a succession of waterfalls which descended from
the jagged summit of the highest mountain; the other to all appearance
was equally inaccessible, but we managed to ascend it by a most
extraordinary road. The sides of the valley were here nearly
precipitous; but, as frequently happens with stratified rocks, small
ledges projected, which were thickly covered by wild bananas, lilaceous
plants, and other luxuriant productions of the tropics. The Tahitians,
by climbing amongst these ledges, searching for fruit, had discovered a
track by which the whole precipice could be scaled. The first ascent
from the valley was very dangerous; for it was necessary to pass a
steeply inclined face of naked rock, by the aid of ropes which we
brought with us. How any person discovered that this formidable spot was
the only point where the side of the mountain was practicable, I cannot
imagine. We then cautiously walked along one of the ledges till we came
to one of the three streams. This ledge formed a flat spot, above which
a beautiful cascade, some hundred feet in height, poured down its
waters, and beneath, another high cascade fell into the main stream in
the valley below. From this cool and shady recess we made a circuit to
avoid the overhanging waterfall. As before, we followed little
projecting ledges, the danger being partly concealed by the thickness of
the vegetation. In passing from one of the ledges to another, there was
a vertical wall of rock. One of the Tahitians, a fine active man, placed
the trunk of a tree against this, climbed up it, and then by the aid of
crevices reached the summit. He fixed the ropes to a projecting point,
and lowered them for our dog and luggage, and then we clambered up
ourselves. Beneath the ledge on which the dead tree was placed, the
precipice must have been five or six hundred feet deep; and if the abyss
had not been partly concealed by the overhanging ferns and lilies my
head would have turned giddy, and nothing should have induced me to have
attempted it. We continued to ascend, sometimes along ledges, and
sometimes along knife-edged ridges, having on each hand profound
ravines. In the Cordillera I have seen mountains on a far grander scale,
but for abruptness, nothing at all comparable with this. In the evening
we reached a flat little spot on the banks of the same stream, which we
had continued to follow, and which descends in a chain of waterfalls:
here we bivouacked for the night. On each side of the ravine there were
great beds of the mountain-banana, covered with ripe fruit. Many of
these plants were from twenty to twenty-five feet high, and from three
to four in circumference. By the aid of strips of bark for rope, the
stems of bamboos for rafters, and the large leaf of the banana for a
thatch, the Tahitians in a few minutes built us an excellent house; and
with withered leaves made a soft bed. |
12 |
| They then proceeded to make a fire, and
cook our evening meal. A light was procured, by rubbing a blunt pointed
stick in a groove made in another, as if with intention of deepening it,
until by the friction the dust became ignited. A peculiarly white and
very light wood (the Hibiscus tiliaceus) is alone used for this purpose:
it is the same which serves for poles to carry any burden, and for the
floating out-riggers to their canoes. The fire was produced in a few
seconds: but to a person who does not understand the art, it requires,
as I found, the greatest exertion; but at last, to my great pride, I
succeeded in igniting the dust. The Gaucho in the Pampas uses a
different method: taking an elastic stick about eighteen inches long, he
presses one end on his breast, and the other pointed end into a hole in
a piece of wood, and then rapidly turns the curved part, like a
carpenter’s centre-bit. The Tahitians having made a small fire of
sticks, placed a score of stones, of about the size of cricket-balls, on
the burning wood. In about ten minutes the sticks were consumed, and the
stones hot. They had previously folded up in small parcels of leaves,
pieces of beef, fish, ripe and unripe bananas, and the tops of the wild
arum. These green parcels were laid in a layer between two layers of the
hot stones, and the whole then covered up with earth, so that no smoke
or steam could escape. In about a quarter of an hour, the whole was most
deliciously cooked. The choice green parcels were now laid on a cloth of
banana leaves, and with a cocoa-nut shell we drank the cool water of the
running stream; and thus we enjoyed our rustic meal. |
13 |
| I could not look on the surrounding
plants without admiration. On every side were forests of banana; the
fruit of which, though serving for food in various ways, lay in heaps
decaying on the ground. In front of us there was an extensive brake of
wild sugar-cane; and the stream was shaded by the dark green knotted
stem of the Ava,—so famous in former days for its powerful intoxicating
effects. I chewed a piece, and found that it had an acrid and unpleasant
taste, which would have induced any one at once to have pronounced it
poisonous. Thanks to the missionaries, this plant now thrives only in
these deep ravines, innocuous to every one. Close by I saw the wild
arum, the roots of which, when well baked, are good to eat, and the
young leaves better than spinach. There was the wild yam, and a
liliaceous plant called Ti, which grows in abundance, and has a soft
brown root, in shape and size like a huge log of wood: this served us
for dessert, for it is as sweet as treacle, and with a pleasant taste.
There were, moreover, several other wild fruits, and useful vegetables.
The little stream, besides its cool water, produced eels, and cray-fish.
I did indeed admire this scene, when I compared it with an uncultivated
one in the temperate zones. I felt the force of the remark, that man, at
least savage man, with his reasoning powers only partly developed, is
the child of the tropics. |
14 |
| As the evening drew to a close, I
strolled beneath the gloomy shade of the bananas up the course of the
stream. My walk was soon brought to a close, by coming to a waterfall
between two and three hundred feet high; and again above this there was
another. I mention all these waterfalls in this one brook, to give a
general idea of the inclination of the land. In the little recess where
the water fell, it did not appear that a breath of wind had ever blown.
The thin edges of the great leaves of the banana, damp with spray, were
unbroken, instead of being, as is so generally the case, split into a
thousand shreds. From our position, almost suspended on the mountain
side, there were glimpses into the depths of the neighbouring valleys;
and the lofty points of the central mountains, towering up within sixty
degrees of the zenith, hid half the evening sky. Thus seated, it was a
sublime spectacle to watch the shades of night gradually obscuring the
last and highest pinnacles. |
15 |
| Before we laid ourselves down to sleep,
the elder Tahitian fell on his knees, and with closed eyes repeated a
long prayer in his native tongue. He prayed as a Christian should do,
with fitting reverence, and without the fear of ridicule or any
ostentation of piety. At our meals neither of the men would taste food,
without saying beforehand a short grace. Those travellers who think that
a Tahitian prays only when the eyes of the missionary are fixed on him,
should have slept with us that night on the mountain-side. Before
morning it rained very heavily; but the good thatch of banana-leaves
kept us dry. |
16 |
| November 19th.—At daylight my
friends, after their morning prayer, prepared an excellent breakfast in
the same manner as in the evening. They themselves certainly partook of
it largely; indeed I never saw any men eat near so much. I suppose such
enormously capacious stomachs must be the effect of a large part of
their diet consisting of fruit and vegetables, which contain, in a given
bulk, a comparatively small portion of nutriment. Unwittingly, I was the
means of my companions breaking, as I afterwards learned, one of their
own laws, and resolutions: I took with me a flask of spirits, which they
could not refuse to partake of; but as often as they drank a little,
they put their fingers before their mouths, and uttered the word
“Missionary.” About two years ago, although the use of the ava was
prevented, drunkenness from the introduction of spirits became very
prevalent. The missionaries prevailed on a few good men, who saw that
their country was rapidly going to ruin, to join with them in a
Temperance Society. From good sense or shame, all the chiefs and the
queen were at last persuaded to join. Immediately a law was passed, that
no spirits should be allowed to be introduced into the island, and that
he who sold and he who bought the forbidden article should be punished
by a fine. With remarkable justice, a certain period was allowed for
stock in hand to be sold, before the law came into effect. But when it
did, a general search was made, in which even the houses of the
missionaries were not exempted, and all the ava (as the natives call all
ardent spirits) was poured on the ground. When one reflects on the
effect of intemperance on the aborigines of the two Americas, I think it
will be acknowledged that every well-wisher of Tahiti owes no common
debt of gratitude to the missionaries. As long as the little island of
St. Helena remained under the government of the East India Company
spirits, owing to the great injury they had produced, were not allowed
to be imported; but wine was supplied from the Cape of Good Hope. It is
rather a striking and not very gratifying fact, that in the same year
that spirits were allowed to be sold in Helena, their use was banished
from Tahiti by the free will of the people. |
17 |
| After breakfast we proceeded on our
journey. As my object was merely to see a little of the interior
scenery, we returned by another track, which descended into the main
valley lower down. For some distance we wound, by a most intricate path,
along the side of the mountain which formed the valley. In the less
precipitous parts we passed through extensive groves of the wild banana.
The Tahitians, with their naked, tattooed bodies, their heads ornamented
with flowers, and seen in the dark shade of these groves, would have
formed a fine picture of man inhabiting some primeval land. In our
descent we followed the line of ridges; these were exceedingly narrow,
and for considerable lengths steep as a ladder; but all clothed with
vegetation. The extreme care necessary in poising each step rendered the
walk fatiguing. I did not cease to wonder at these ravines and
precipices: when viewing the country from one of the knife-edged ridges,
the point of support was so small, that the effect was nearly the same
as it must be from a balloon. In this descent we had occasion to use the
ropes only once, at the point where we entered the main valley. We slept
under the same ledge of rock where we had dined the day before: the
night was fine, but from the depth and narrowness of the gorge,
profoundly dark. |
18 |
| Before actually seeing this country, I
found it difficult to understand two facts mentioned by Ellis; namely,
that after the murderous battles of former times, the survivors on the
conquered side retired into the mountains, where a handful of men could
resist a multitude. Certainly half a dozen men, at the spot where the
Tahitian reared the old tree, could easily have repulsed thousands.
Secondly, that after the introduction of Christianity, there were wild
men who lived in the mountains, and whose retreats were unknown to the
more civilizer inhabitants. |
19 |
| November 20th.—In the morning we
started early, and reached Matavai at noon. On the road we met a large
party of noble athletic men, going for wild bananas. I found that the
ship, on account of the difficulty in watering, had moved to the harbour
of Papawa, to which place I immediately walked. This is a very pretty
spot. The cove is surrounded by reefs, and the water as smooth as in a
lake. The cultivated ground, with its beautiful productions,
interspersed with cottages, comes close down to the water’s edge. |
20 |
| From the varying accounts which I had
read before reaching these islands, I was very anxious to form, from my
own observation, a judgment of their moral state,—although such judgment
would necessarily be very imperfect. First impressions at all times very
much depend on one’s previously acquired ideas. My notions were drawn
from Ellis’s “Polynesian Researches”—an admirable and most interesting
work, but naturally looking at everything under a favourable point of
view; from Beechey’s Voyage; and from that of Kotzebue, which is
strongly adverse to the whole missionary system. He who compares these
three accounts will, I think, form a tolerably accurate conception of
the present state of Tahiti. One of my impressions, which I took from
the two last authorities, was decidedly incorrect; viz., that the
Tahitians had become a gloomy race, and lived in fear of the
missionaries. Of the latter feeling I saw no trace, unless, indeed, fear
and respect be confounded under one name. Instead of discontent being a
common feeling, it would be difficult in Europe to pick out of a crowd
half so many merry and happy faces. The prohibition of the flute and
dancing is inveighed against as wrong and foolish;—the more than
presbyterian manner of keeping the sabbath is looked at in a similar
light. On these points I will not pretend to offer any opinion to men
who have resided as many years as I was days on the island. |
21 |
| On the whole, it appears to me that the
morality and religion of the inhabitants are highly creditable. There
are many who attack, even more acrimoniously than Kotzebue, both the
missionaries, their system, and the effects produced by it. Such
reasoners never compare the present state with that of the island only
twenty years ago; nor even with that of Europe at this day; but they
compare it with the high standard of Gospel perfection. They expect the
missionaries to effect that which the Apostles themselves failed to do.
Inasmuch as the condition of the people falls short of this high
standard, blame is attached to the missionary, instead of credit for
that which he has effected. They forget, or will not remember, that
human sacrifices, and the power of an idolatrous priesthood—a system of
profligacy unparalleled in any other part of the world—infanticide a
consequence of that system—bloody wars, where the conquerors spared
neither women nor children—that all these have been abolished; and that
dishonesty, intemperance, and licentiousness have been greatly reduced
by the introduction of Christianity. In a voyager to forget these things
is base ingratitude; for should he chance to be at the point of
shipwreck on some unknown coast, he will most devoutly pray that the
lesson of the missionary may have extended thus far. |
22 |
| In point of morality, the virtue of the
women, it has been often said, is most open to exception. But before
they are blamed too severely, it will be well distinctly to call to mind
the scenes described by Captain Cook and Mr. Banks, in which the
grandmothers and mothers of the present race played a part. Those who
are most severe, should consider how much of the morality of the women
in Europe is owing to the system early impressed by mothers on their
daughters, and how much in each individual case to the precepts of
religion. But it is useless to argue against such reasoners;—I believe
that, disappointed in not finding the field of licentiousness quite so
open as formerly, they will not give credit to a morality which they do
not wish to practise, or to a religion which they undervalue, if not
despise. |
23 |
| Sunday, 22nd.—The harbour of
Papiéte, where the queen resides, may be considered as the capital of
the island: it is also the seat of government, and the chief resort of
shipping. Captain Fitz Roy took a party there this day to hear divine
service, first in the Tahitian language, and afterwards in our own. Mr.
Pritchard, the leading missionary in the island, performed the service.
The chapel consisted of a large airy framework of wood; and it was
filled to excess by tidy, clean people, of all ages and both sexes. I
was rather disappointed in the apparent degree of attention; but I
believe my expectations were raised too high. At all events the
appearance was quite equal to that in a country church in England. The
singing of the hymns was decidedly very pleasing, but the language from
the pulpit, although fluently delivered, did not sound well: a constant
repetition of words, like “tata ta, mata mai,” rendered it monotonous.
After English service, a party returned on foot to Matavai. It was a
pleasant walk, sometimes along the sea-beach and sometimes under the
shade of the many beautiful trees. |
24 |
| About two years ago, a small vessel
under English colours was plundered by some of the inhabitants of the
Low Islands, which were then under the dominion of the Queen of Tahiti.
It was believed that the perpetrators were instigated to this act by
some indiscreet laws issued by her majesty. The British government
demanded compensation; which was acceded to, and the sum of nearly three
thousand dollars was agreed to be paid on the first of last September.
The Commodore at Lima ordered Captain Fitz Roy to inquire concerning
this debt, and to demand satisfaction if it were not paid. Captain Fitz
Roy accordingly requested an interview with the Queen Pomarre, since
famous from the ill-treatment she had received from the French; and a
parliament was held to consider the question, at which all the principal
chiefs of the island and the queen were assembled. I will not attempt to
describe what took place, after the interesting account given by Captain
Fitz Roy. The money, it appeared, had not been paid; perhaps the alleged
reasons were rather equivocal; but otherwise I cannot sufficiently
express our general surprise at the extreme good sense, the reasoning
powers, moderation, candour, and prompt resolution, which were displayed
on all sides. I believe we all left the meeting with a very different
opinion of the Tahitians, from what we entertained when we entered. The
chiefs and people resolved to subscribe and complete the sum which was
wanting; Captain Fitz Roy urged that it was hard that their private
property should be sacrificed for the crimes of distant islanders. They
replied, that they were grateful for his consideration, but that Pomarre
was their Queen, and that they were determined to help her in this her
difficulty. This resolution and its prompt execution, for a book was
opened early the next morning, made a perfect conclusion to this very
remarkable scene of loyalty and good feeling. |
25 |
| After the main discussion was ended,
several of the chiefs took the opportunity of asking Captain Fitz Roy
many intelligent questions on international customs and laws, relating
to the treatment of ships and foreigners. On some points, as soon as the
decision was made, the law was issued verbally on the spot. This
Tahitian parliament lasted for several hours; and when it was over
Captain Fitz Roy invited Queen Pomarre to pay the Beagle a visit. |
26 |
| November 25th.—In the evening
four boats were sent for her majesty; the ship was dressed with flags,
and the yards manned on her coming on board. She was accompanied by most
of the chiefs. The behaviour of all was very proper: they begged for
nothing, and seemed much pleased with Captain Fitz Roy’s presents. The
queen is a large awkward woman, without any beauty, grace or dignity.
She has only one royal attribute: a perfect immovability of expression
under all circumstances, and that rather a sullen one. The rockets were
most admired; and a deep “Oh!” could be heard from the shore, all round
the dark bay, after each explosion. The sailors’ songs were also much
admired; and the queen said she thought that one of the most boisterous
ones certainly could not be a hymn! The royal party did not return on
shore till past midnight. |
27 |
| 26th.—In the evening, with a
gentle land-breeze, a course was steered for New Zealand; and as the sun
set, we had a farewell view of the mountains of Tahiti—the island to
which every voyager has offered up his tribute of admiration. |
28 |
| December 19th.—In the evening we
saw in the distance New Zealand. We may now consider that we have nearly
crossed the Pacific. It is necessary to sail over this great ocean to
comprehend its immensity. Moving quickly onwards for weeks together, we
meet with nothing but the same blue, profoundly deep, ocean. Even within
the archipelagoes, the islands are mere specks, and far distant one from
the other. Accustomed to look at maps drawn on a small scale, where
dots, shading, and names are crowded together, we do not rightly judge
how infinitely small the proportion of dry land is to water of this vast
expanse. The meridian of the Antipodes has likewise been passed; and now
every league, it made us happy to think, was one league nearer to
England. These Antipodes call to one’s mind old recollections of
childish doubt and wonder. Only the other day I looked forward to this
airy barrier as a definite point in our voyage homewards; but now I find
it, and all such resting-places for the imagination, are like shadows,
which a man moving onwards cannot catch. A gale of wind lasting for some
days, has lately given us full leisure to measure the future stages in
our homeward voyage, and to wish most earnestly for its termination. |
29 |
| December 21st.—Early in the
morning we entered the Bay of Islands, and being becalmed for some hours
near the mouth, we did not reach the anchorage till the middle of the
day. The country is hilly, with a smooth outline, and is deeply
intersected by numerous arms of the sea extending from the bay. The
surface appears from a distance as if clothed with coarse pasture, but
this in truth is nothing but fern. On the more distant hills, as well as
in parts of the valleys, there is a good deal of woodland. The general
tint of the landscape is not a bright green; and it resembles the
country a short distance to the south of Concepcion in Chile. In several
parts of the bay, little villages of square tidy-looking houses are
scattered close down to the water’s edge. Three whaling-ships were lying
at anchor, and a canoe every now and then crossed from shore to shore;
with these exceptions, an air of extreme quietness reigned over the
whole district. Only a single canoe came alongside. This, and the aspect
of the whole scene, afforded a remarkable, and not very pleasing
contrast, with our joyful and boisterous welcome at Tahiti. |
30 |
| In the afternoon we went on shore to
one of the larger groups of houses, which yet hardly deserves the title
of a village. Its name is Pahia: it is the residence of the
missionaries; and there are no native residents except servants and
labourers. In the vicinity of the Bay of Islands, the number of
Englishmen, including their families, amounts to between two and three
hundred. All the cottages, many of which are white-washed and look very
neat, are the property of the English. The hovels of the natives are so
diminutive and paltry, that they can scarcely be perceived from a
distance. At Pahia, it was quite pleasing to behold the English flowers
in the gardens before the houses; there were roses of several kinds,
honeysuckle, jasmine, stocks, and whole hedges of sweetbrier. |
31 |
| December 22nd.—In the morning I
went out walking; but I soon found that the country was very
impracticable. All the hills are thickly covered with tall fern,
together with a low bush which grows like a cypress; and very little
ground has been cleared or cultivated. I then tried the sea-beach; but
proceeding towards either hand, my walk was soon stopped by salt-water
creeks and deep brooks. The communication between the inhabitants of the
different parts of the bay, is (as in Chiloe) almost entirely kept up by
boats. I was surprised to find that almost every hill which I ascended,
had been at some former time more or less fortified. The summits were
cut into steps or successive terraces, and frequently they had been
protected by deep trenches. I afterwards observed that the principal
hills inland in like manner showed an artificial outline. These are the
Pas, so frequently mentioned by Captain Cook under the name of “hippah;”
the difference of sound being owing to the prefixed article. |
32 |
| That the Pas had formerly been much
used, was evident from the piles of shells, and the pits in which, as I
was informed, sweet potatoes used to be kept as a reserve. As there was
no water on these hills, the defenders could never have anticipated a
long siege, but only a hurried attack for plunder, against which the
successive terraces would have afforded good protection. The general
introduction of fire-arms has changed the whole system of warfare; and
an exposed situation on the top of a hill is now worse than useless. The
Pas in consequence are, at the present day, always built on a level
piece of ground. They consist of a double stockade of thick and tall
posts, placed in a zigzag line, so that every part can be flanked.
Within the stockade a mound of earth is thrown up, behind which the
defenders can rest in safety, or use their fire-arms over it. On the
level of the ground little archways sometimes pass through this
breastwork, by which means the defenders can crawl out to the stockade
and reconnoitre their enemies. The Rev. W. Williams, who gave me this
account, added, that in one Pas he had noticed spurs or buttresses
projecting on the inner and protected side of the mound of earth. On
asking the chief the use of them, he replied, that if two or three of
his men were shot, their neighbours would not see the bodies, and so be
discouraged. |
33 |
| These Pas are considered by the New
Zealanders as very perfect means of defense: for the attacking force is
never so well disciplined as to rush in a body to the stockade, cut it
down, and effect their entry. When a tribe goes to war, the chief cannot
order one party to go here and another there; but every man fights in
the manner which best pleases himself; and to each separate individual
to approach a stockade defended by fire-arms must appear certain death.
I should think a more warlike race of inhabitants could not be found in
any part of the world than the New Zealanders. Their conduct on first
seeing a ship, as described by Captain Cook, strongly illustrates this:
the act of throwing volleys of stones at so great and novel an object,
and their defiance of “Come on shore and we will kill and eat you all,”
shows uncommon boldness. This warlike spirit is evident in many of their
customs, and even in their smallest actions. If a New Zealander is
struck, although but in joke, the blow must be returned and of this I
saw an instance with one of our officers. |
34 |
| At the present day, from the progress
of civilization, there is much less warfare, except among some of the
southern tribes. I heard a characteristic anecdote of what took place
some time ago in the south. A missionary found a chief and his tribe in
preparation for war;—their muskets clean and bright, and their
ammunition ready. He reasoned long on the inutility of the war, and the
little provocation which had been given for it. The chief was much
shaken in his resolution, and seemed in doubt: but at length it occurred
to him that a barrel of his gunpowder was in a bad state, and that it
would not keep much longer. This was brought forward as an unanswerable
argument for the necessity of immediately declaring war: the idea of
allowing so much good gunpowder to spoil was not to be thought of; and
this settled the point. I was told by the missionaries that in the life
of Shongi, the chief who visited England, the love of war was the one
and lasting spring of every action. The tribe in which he was a
principal chief had at one time been oppressed by another tribe from the
Thames River. A solemn oath was taken by the men that when their boys
should grow up, and they should be powerful enough, they would never
forget or forgive these injuries. To fulfil this oath appears to have
been Shongi’s chief motive for going to England; and when there it was
his sole object. Presents were valued only as they could be converted
into arms; of the arts, those alone interested him which were connected
with the manufacture of arms. When at Sydney, Shongi, by a strange
coincidence, met the hostile chief of the Thames River at the house of
Mr. Marsden: their conduct was civil to each other; but Shongi told him
that when again in New Zealand he would never cease to carry war into
his country. The challenge was accepted; and Shongi on his return
fulfilled the threat to the utmost letter. The tribe on the Thames River
was utterly overthrown, and the chief to whom the challenge had been
given was himself killed. Shongi, although harbouring such deep feelings
of hatred and revenge, is described as having been a good-natured
person. |
35 |
| In the evening I went with Captain Fitz
Roy and Mr. Baker, one of the missionaries, to pay a visit to Kororadika:
we wandered about the village, and saw and conversed with many of the
people, both men, women, and children. Looking at the New Zealander, one
naturally compares him with the Tahitian; both belonging to the same
family of mankind. The comparison, however, tells heavily against the
New Zealander. He may, perhaps be superior in energy, but in every other
respect his character is of a much lower order. One glance at their
respective expressions, brings conviction to the mind that one is a
savage, the other a civilized man. It would be vain to seek in the whole
of New Zealand a person with the face and mien of the old Tahitian chief
Utamme. No doubt the extraordinary manner in which tattooing is here
practised, gives a disagreeable expression to their countenances. The
complicated but symmetrical figures covering the whole face, puzzle and
mislead an unaccustomed eye: it is moreover probable, that the deep
incisions, by destroying the play of the superficial muscles, give an
air of rigid inflexibility. But, besides this, there is a twinkling in
the eye, which cannot indicate anything but cunning and ferocity. Their
figures are tall and bulky; but not comparable in elegance with those of
the working-classes in Tahiti. |
36 |
| But their persons and houses are
filthily dirty and offensive: the idea of washing either their bodies or
their clothes never seems to enter their heads. I saw a chief, who was
wearing a shirt black and matted with filth, and when asked how it came
to be so dirty, he replied, with surprise, “Do not you see it is an old
one?” Some of the men have shirts; but the common dress is one or two
large blankets, generally black with dirt, which are thrown over their
shoulders in a very inconvenient and awkward fashion. A few of the
principal chiefs have decent suits of English clothes; but these are
only worn on great occasions. |
37 |
| December 23rd.—At a place called
Waimate, about fifteen miles from the Bay of Islands, and midway between
the eastern and western coasts, the missionaries have purchased some
land for agricultural purposes. I had been introduced to the Rev. W.
Williams, who, upon my expressing a wish, invited me to pay him a visit
there. Mr. Bushby, the British resident, offered to take me in his boat
by a creek, where I should see a pretty waterfall, and by which means my
walk would be shortened. He likewise procured for me a guide. |
38 |
| Upon asking a neighbouring chief to
recommend a man, the chief himself offered to go; but his ignorance of
the value of money was so complete, that at first he asked how many
pounds I would give him, but afterwards was well contented with two
dollars. When I showed the chief a very small bundle, which I wanted
carried, it became absolutely necessary for him to take a slave. These
feelings of pride are beginning to wear away; but formerly a leading man
would sooner have died, than undergone the indignity of carrying the
smallest burden. My companion was a light active man, dressed in a dirty
blanket, and with his face completely tattooed. He had formerly been a
great warrior. He appeared to be on very cordial terms with Mr. Bushby;
but at various times they had quarrelled violently. Mr. Bushby remarked
that a little quiet irony would frequently silence any one of these
natives in their most blustering moments. This chief has come and
harangued Mr. Bushby in a hectoring manner, saying, “great chief, a
great man, a friend of mine, has come to pay me a visit—you must give
him something good to eat, some fine presents, etc.” Mr. Bushby has
allowed him to finish his discourse, and then has quietly replied by
some answer such as, “What else shall your slave do for you?” The man
would then instantly, with a very comical expression, cease his
braggadocio. |
39 |
| Some time ago, Mr. Bushby suffered a
far more serious attack. A chief and a party of men tried to break into
his house in the middle of the night, and not finding this so easy,
commenced a brisk firing with their muskets. Mr. Bushby was slightly
wounded, but the party was at length driven away. Shortly afterwards it
was discovered who was the aggressor; and a general meeting of the
chiefs was convened to consider the case. It was considered by the New
Zealanders as very atrocious, inasmuch as it was a night attack, and
that Mrs. Bushby was lying ill in the house: this latter circumstance,
much to their honour, being considered in all cases as a protection. The
chiefs agreed to confiscate the land of the aggressor to the King of
England. The whole proceeding, however, in thus trying and punishing a
chief was entirely without precedent. The aggressor, moreover, lost
caste in the estimation of his equals and this was considered by the
British as of more consequence than the confiscation of his land. |
40 |
| As the boat was shoving off, a second
chief stepped into her, who only wanted the amusement of the passage up
and down the creek. I never saw a more horrid and ferocious expression
than this man had. It immediately struck me I had somewhere seen his
likeness: it will be found in Retzch’s outlines to Schiller’s ballad of
Fridolin, where two men are pushing Robert into the burning iron
furnace. It is the man who has his arm on Robert’s breast. Physiognomy
here spoke the truth; this chief had been a notorious murderer, and was
an arrant coward to boot. At the point where the boat landed, Mr. Bushby
accompanied me a few hundred yards on the road: I could not help
admiring the cool impudence of the hoary old villain, whom we left lying
in the boat, when he shouted to Mr. Bushby, “Do not you stay long, I
shall be tired of waiting here.” |
41 |
| We now commenced our walk. The road lay
along a well beaten path, bordered on each side by the tall fern, which
covers the whole country. After travelling some miles, we came to a
little country village, where a few hovels were collected together, and
some patches of ground cultivated with potatoes. The introduction of the
potato has been the most essential benefit to the island; it is now much
more used than any native vegetable. New Zealand is favoured by one
great natural advantage; namely, that the inhabitants can never perish
from famine. The whole country abounds with fern: and the roots of this
plant, if not very palatable, yet contain much nutriment. A native can
always subsist on these, and on the shell-fish, which are abundant on
all parts of the sea-coast. The villages are chiefly conspicuous by the
platforms which are raised on four posts ten or twelve feet above the
ground, and on which the produce of the fields is kept secure from all
accidents. |
42 |
| On coming near one of the huts I was
much amused by seeing in due form the ceremony of rubbing, or, as it
ought to be called, pressing noses. The women, on our first approach,
began uttering something in a most dolorous voice; they then squatted
themselves down and held up their faces; my companion standing over
them, one after another, placed the bridge of his nose at right angles
to theirs, and commenced pressing. This lasted rather longer than a
cordial shake of the hand with us; and as we vary the force of the grasp
of the hand in shaking, so do they in pressing. During the process they
uttered comfortable little grunts, very much in the same manner as two
pigs do, when rubbing against each other. I noticed that the slave would
press noses with any one he met, indifferently either before or after
his master the chief. Although among the savages, the chief has absolute
power of life and death over his slave, yet there is an entire absence
of ceremony between them. Mr. Burchell has remarked the same thing in
Southern Africa, with the rude Bachapins. Where civilization has arrived
at a certain point, complex formalities soon arise between the different
grades of society: thus at Tahiti all were formerly obliged to uncover
themselves as low as the waist in presence of the king. |
43 |
| The ceremony of pressing noses having
been duly completed with all present, we seated ourselves in a circle in
the front of one of the hovels, and rested there half-an-hour. All the
hovels have nearly the same form and dimensions, and all agree in being
filthily dirty. They resemble a cowshed with one end open, but having a
partition a little way within, with a square hole in it, making a small
gloomy chamber. In this the inhabitants keep all their property, and
when the weather is cold they sleep there. They eat, however, and pass
their time in the open part in front. My guides having finished their
pipes, we continued our walk. The path led through the same undulating
country, the whole uniformly clothed as before with fern. On our right
hand we had a serpentine river, the banks of which were fringed with
trees, and here and there on the hill sides there was a clump of wood.
The whole scene, in spite of its green colour, had rather a desolate
aspect. The sight of so much fern impresses the mind with an idea of
sterility: this, however, is not correct; for wherever the fern grows
thick and breast-high, the land by tillage becomes productive. Some of
the residents think that all this extensive open country originally was
covered with forests, and that it has been cleared by fire. It is said,
that by digging in the barest spots, lumps of the kind of resin which
flows from the kauri pine are frequently found. The natives had an
evident motive in clearing the country; for the fern, formerly a staple
article of food, flourishes only in the open cleared tracks. The almost
entire absence of associated grasses, which forms so remarkable a
feature in the vegetation of this island, may perhaps be accounted for
by the land having been aboriginally covered with forest-trees. |
44 |
| The soil is volcanic; in several parts
we passed over shaggy lavas, and craters could clearly be distinguished
on several of the neighbouring hills. Although the scenery is nowhere
beautiful, and only occasionally pretty, I enjoyed my walk. I should
have enjoyed it more, if my companion, the chief, had not possessed
extraordinary conversational powers. I knew only three words: “good,”
“bad,” and “yes:” and with these I answered all his remarks, without of
course having understood one word he said. This, however, was quite
sufficient: I was a good listener, an agreeable person, and he never
ceased talking to me. |
45 |
| At length we reached Waimate. After
having passed over so many miles of an uninhabited useless country, the
sudden appearance of an English farm-house, and its well-dressed fields,
placed there as if by an enchanter’s wand, was exceedingly pleasant. Mr.
Williams not being at home, I received in Mr. Davies’s house a cordial
welcome. After drinking tea with his family party, we took a stroll
about the farm. At Waimate there are three large houses, where the
missionary gentlemen, Messrs. Williams, Davies, and Clarke, reside; and
near them are the huts of the native labourers. On an adjoining slope,
fine crops of barley and wheat were standing in full ear; and in another
part, fields of potatoes and clover. But I cannot attempt to describe
all I saw; there were large gardens, with every fruit and vegetable
which England produces; and many belonging to a warmer clime. I may
instance asparagus, kidney beans, cucumbers, rhubarb, apples, pears,
figs, peaches, apricots, grapes, olives, gooseberries, currants, hops,
gorse for fences, and English oaks; also many kinds of flowers. Around
the farm-yard there were stables, a thrashing-barn with its winnowing
machine, a blacksmith’s forge, and on the ground ploughshares and other
tools: in the middle was that happy mixture of pigs and poultry, lying
comfortably together, as in every English farm-yard. At the distance of
a few hundred yards, where the water of a little rill had been dammed up
into a pool, there was a large and substantial water-mill. |
46 |
| All this is very surprising, when it is
considered that five years ago nothing but the fern flourished here.
Moreover, native workmanship, taught by the missionaries, has effected
this change;—the lesson of the missionary is the enchanter’s wand. The
house had been built, the windows framed, the fields ploughed, and even
the trees grafted, by a New Zealander. At the mill, a New Zealander was
seen powdered white with flower, like his brother miller in England.
When I looked at this whole scene, I thought it admirable. It was not
merely that England was brought vividly before my mind; yet, as the
evening drew to a close, the domestic sounds, the fields of corn, the
distant undulating country with its trees might well have been mistaken
for our fatherland: nor was it the triumphant feeling at seeing what
Englishmen could effect; but rather the high hopes thus inspired for the
future progress of this fine island. |
47 |
| Several young men, redeemed by the
missionaries from slavery, were employed on the farm. They were dressed
in a shirt, jacket, and trousers, and had a respectable appearance.
Judging from one trifling anecdote, I should think they must be honest.
When walking in the fields, a young labourer came up to Mr. Davies, and
gave him a knife and gimlet, saying that he had found them on the road,
and did not know to whom they belonged! These young men and boys
appeared very merry and good-humoured. In the evening I saw a party of
them at cricket: when I thought of the austerity of which the
missionaries have been accused, I was amused by observing one of their
own sons taking an active part in the game. A more decided and pleasing
change was manifested in the young women, who acted as servants within
the houses. Their clean, tidy, and healthy appearance, like that of the
dairy-maids in England, formed a wonderful contrast with the women of
the filthy hovels in Kororadika. The wives of the missionaries tried to
persuade them not to be tattooed; but a famous operator having arrived
from the south, they said, “We really must just have a few lines on our
lips; else when we grow old, our lips will shrivel, and we shall be so
very ugly.” There is not nearly so much tattooing as formerly; but as it
is a badge of distinction between the chief and the slave, it will
probably long be practised. So soon does any train of ideas become
habitual, that the missionaries told me that even in their eyes a plain
face looked mean, and not like that of a New Zealand gentleman. |
48 |
| Late in the evening I went to Mr.
Williams’s house, where I passed the night. I found there a large party
of children, collected together for Christmas Day, and all sitting round
a table at tea. I never saw a nicer or more merry group; and to think
that this was in the centre of the land of cannibalism, murder, and all
atrocious crimes! The cordiality and happiness so plainly pictured in
the faces of the little circle, appeared equally felt by the older
persons of the mission. |
49 |
| December 24th.—In the morning,
prayers were read in the native tongue to the whole family. After
breakfast I rambled about the gardens and farm. This was a market-day,
when the natives of the surrounding hamlets bring their potatoes, Indian
corn, or pigs, to exchange for blankets, tobacco, and sometimes, through
the persuasions of the missionaries, for soap. Mr. Davies’s eldest son,
who manages a farm of his own, is the man of business in the market. The
children of the missionaries, who came while young to the island,
understand the language better than their parents, and can get anything
more readily done by the natives. |
50 |
| A little before noon Messrs. Williams
and Davies walked with me to a part of a neighbouring forest, to show me
the famous kauri pine. I measured one of the noble trees, and found it
thirty-one feet in circumference above the roots. There was another
close by, which I did not see, thirty-three feet; and I heard of one no
less than forty feet. These trees are remarkable for their smooth
cylindrical boles, which run up to a height of sixty, and even ninety
feet, with a nearly equal diameter, and without a single branch. The
crown of branches at the summit is out of all proportion small to the
trunk; and the leaves are likewise small compared with the branches. The
forest was here almost composed of the kauri; and the largest trees,
from the parallelism of their sides, stood up like gigantic columns of
wood. The timber of the kauri is the most valuable production of the
island; moreover, a quantity of resin oozes from the bark, which is sold
at a penny a pound to the Americans, but its use was then unknown. Some
of the New Zealand forest must be impenetrable to an extraordinary
degree. Mr. Matthews informed me that one forest only thirty-four miles
in width, and separating two inhabited districts, had only lately, for
the first time, been crossed. He and another missionary, each with a
party of about fifty men, undertook to open a road; but it cost more
than a fortnight’s labour! In the woods I saw very few birds. With
regard to animals, it is a most remarkable fact, that so large an
island, extending over more than 700 miles in latitude, and in many
parts ninety broad, with varied stations, a fine climate, and land of
all heights, from 14,000 feet downwards, with the exception of a small
rat, did not possess one indigenous animal. The several species of that
gigantic genus of birds, the Deinornis seem here to have replaced
mammiferous quadrupeds, in the same manner as the reptiles still do at
the Galapagos archipelago. It is said that the common Norway rat, in the
short space of two years, annihilated in this northern end of the
island, the New Zealand species. In many places I noticed several sorts
of weeds, which, like the rats, I was forced to own as countrymen. A
leek has overrun whole districts, and will prove very troublesome, but
it was imported as a favour by a French vessel. The common dock is also
widely disseminated, and will, I fear, for ever remain a proof of the
rascality of an Englishman, who sold the seeds for those of the tobacco
plant. |
51 |
| On returning from our pleasant walk to
the house, I dined with Mr. Williams; and then, a horse being lent me, I
returned to the Bay of Islands. I took leave of the missionaries with
thankfulness for their kind welcome, and with feelings of high respect
for their gentlemanlike, useful, and upright characters. I think it
would be difficult to find a body of men better adapted for the high
office which they fulfil. |
52 |
| Christmas Day.—In a few more
days the fourth year of our absence from England will be completed. Our
first Christmas Day was spent at Plymouth; the second at St. Martin’s
Cove, near Cape Horn; the third at Port Desire, in Patagonia; the fourth
at anchor in a wild harbour in the peninsula of Tres Montes; this fifth
here; and the next, I trust in Providence, will be in England. We
attended divine service in the chapel of Pahia; part of the service
being read in English, and part in the native language. Whilst at New
Zealand we did not hear of any recent acts of cannibalism; but Mr.
Stokes found burnt human bones strewed round a fire-place on a small
island near the anchorage; but these remains of a comfortable banquet
might have been lying there for several years. It is probable that the
moral state of the people will rapidly improve. Mr. Bushby mentioned one
pleasing anecdote as a proof of the sincerity of some, at least, of
those who profess Christianity. One of his young men left him, who had
been accustomed to read prayers to the rest of the servants. Some weeks
afterwards, happening to pass late in the evening by an outhouse, he saw
and heard one of his men reading the Bible with difficulty by the light
of the fire, to the others. After this the party knelt and prayed: in
their prayers they mentioned Mr. Bushby and his family, and the
missionaries, each separately in his respective district. |
53 |
| December 26th.—Mr. Bushby
offered to take Mr. Sulivan and myself in his boat some miles up the
river to Cawa-Cawa; and proposed afterwards to walk on to the village of
Waiomio, where there are some curious rocks. Following one of the arms
of the bay, we enjoyed a pleasant row, and passed through pretty
scenery, until we came to a village, beyond which the boat could not
pass. From this place a chief and a party of men volunteered to walk
with us to Waiomio, a distance of four miles. The chief was at this time
rather notorious from having lately hung one of his wives and a slave
for adultery. When one of the missionaries remonstrated with him he
seemed surprised, and said he thought he was exactly following the
English method. Old Shongi, who happened to be in England during the
Queen’s trial, expressed great disapprobation at the whole proceeding:
he said he had five wives, and he would rather cut off all their heads
than be so much troubled about one. Leaving this village, we crossed
over to another, seated on a hill-side at a little distance. The
daughter of a chief, who was still a heathen, had died there five days
before. The hovel in which she had expired had been burnt to the ground:
her body being enclosed between two small canoes, was placed upright on
the ground, and protected by an enclosure bearing wooden images of their
gods, and the whole was painted bright red, so as to be conspicuous from
afar. Her gown was fastened to the coffin, and her hair being cut off
was cast at its foot. The relatives of the family had torn the flesh of
their arms, bodies, and faces, so that they were covered with clotted
blood; and the old women looked most filthy, disgusting objects. On the
following day some of the officers visited this place, and found the
women still howling and cutting themselves. |
54 |
| We continued our walk, and soon reached
Waiomio. Here there are some singular masses of limestone, resembling
ruined castles. These rocks have long served for burial places, and in
consequence are held too sacred to be approached. One of the young men,
however, cried out, “Let us all be brave,” and ran on ahead; but when
within a hundred yards, the whole party thought better of it, and
stopped short. With perfect indifference, however, they allowed us to
examine the whole place. At this village we rested some hours, during
which time there was a long discussion with Mr. Bushby, concerning the
right of sale of certain lands. One old man, who appeared a perfect
genealogist, illustrated the successive possessors by bits of stick
driven into the ground. Before leaving the houses a little basketful of
roasted sweet potatoes was given to each of our party; and we all,
according to the custom, carried them away to eat on the road. I noticed
that among the women employed in cooking, there was a man-slave: it must
be a humiliating thing for a man in this warlike country to be employed
in doing that which is considered as the lowest woman’s work. Slaves are
not allowed to go to war; but this perhaps can hardly be considered as a
hardship. I heard of one poor wretch who, during hostilities, ran away
to the opposite party; being met by two men, he was immediately seized;
but as they could not agree to whom he should belong, each stood over
him with a stone hatchet, and seemed determined that the other at least
should not take him away alive. The poor man, almost dead with fright,
was only saved by the address of a chief’s wife. We afterwards enjoyed a
pleasant walk back to the boat, but did not reach the ship till late in
the evening. |
55 |
| December 30th.—In the afternoon
we stood out of the Bay of Islands, on our course to Sydney. I believe
we were all glad to leave New Zealand. It is not a pleasant place.
Amongst the natives there is absent that charming simplicity which is
found in Tahiti; and the greater part of the English are the very refuse
of society. Neither is the country itself attractive. I look back but to
one bright spot, and that is Waimate, with its Christian inhabitants. |
|
