ALBERT R.

MANN
LIBRARY

New York State Colleges

of
Agriculture and Home Economics

at

Cornell University
 Cornell University Library
DU 760.C18
A year in the New Hebrides, Loyalty Isla

3 1924 013 973 304

 The original of this book is in

the Cornell University Library.

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the United States on the use of the text.

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 A YEAR IN THE

New Hebrides, Loyalty Tslands,

and new caledonia.
MMfi
 A YEAR

THE NEW HEBRIDES,

LOYALTY ISLANDS,
AND

NEW CALEDONIA.
BY P. A._CAMPBELL.

WITH

AN ACCOUNT OF THE EARLY HISTORY OF THE

NEW. HEBRIDES MISSIONS,
BY A. J. CAMPBELL, GEELONQ

A NARRATIVE OF THE VOYAGES OF

THE " DAYSPRING,"
BY D. M'DONALD, D.O-j

AND
AN APPENDIX, CONTAINING A CONTRIBUTION
TO THE PHYTOGRAPHY OF THE
NEW HEBRIDES,
BY BARON VON MUELLER, O.M.G., m"!d., PH.D., F.R.S.

GEELONG
GEORGE MERCER, MALOP STREET.
MELBOURNE
GEORGE ROBERTSON,
 PRINTED BY
&torge Uttrat,PHlop Stmt,
GEELONG.
 <s
^'^t^«
||rEFACE.

It is a hundred years since Cook visited and described

the New Hebrides ; and his account of them has not been
entirely superseded, even to this day.

Captains of the Navy and Christian Missionaries have

given us Sketches of the People, and of their Ways, and of

their Island Homes. But their narratives have been frag-

mentary in their intelligence, and many of them fugitive in

their form.

The present volume cannot claim to be much more than

its predecessors. It is a contribution merely to the physical,

social, and religious history of this interesting and important

group.

It has been prepared, mainly, with the desire of giving the

many friends of the New Hebrides Mission some clear

VI. PREFACE.

notion of the kind of places where their Missionaries are

labouring, and the kind of work which they are trying (with

God's help) to do.

It consists of Four Parts :

I. An account of the beginning of the Presbyterian Mis-

sions in 1848, when the London Missionaries of Samoa in-

troduced Dr. Geddie to Aneityum, —and of the early progress

of the work. The facts related in Chapters III. —VI.

have been gathered from Mr. Murray's interesting volume

on Polynesia.

II. The story of the " Dayspring,'' from its building in

Nova Scotia to its loss on Aneityum. This paper has been

furnished by Dr. McDonald of Melbourne, to whom the

Mission stands a debtor for this final labour, and for many

that have gone before. It is a valuable document, showing

that the Mission Ship —though a costly appliance of an

Island Mission — is, in present circumstances at least, an

indispensable one.

III. A series of Letters from the Islands —written by

a young Voyager, who went there in quest of health. Hav-

ing taken upon myself the responsibility of recommending

their publication, I think it right to say that, whatever may

 PREFACE. Vll.

be their literary qualities, I believe them to be faithful repre-

sentations of what they describe ; and this statement I wish

to be extended to the views of island scenery —which

were taken by him upon the spot with much care, and were

reproduced here under his own eye.

One of these Letters (the XVI.) treats of the Labour

traffic, which has its chief seat of operations in the New

Hebrides. It deals with the very important question of the

Results to the natives of their deportation and three years'

residence on the plantations, and entirely demolishes Mr.

Anthony Trollope's justification of the trade on the ground

of its civilizing and christianizing effects. The writer, it is

true, speaks only of what came under his own ob-

servation; but if corroborative or additional evidence- that

these are the invariable results of the trade is, required,

it can be furnished to any extent. And really this State of

the Case ought to settle the question. Regulation of the

traffic will not avert the cruel wrong —nothing short of its

suppression will.

IV. An Appendix, containing a phytological description

of the Plants collected by Mr. F. Campbell. This paper

 Vlll. PREFACE.

will possess a special interest to the lovers of botanical study;

while Baron Von Mueller's established reputation carries

with it an ample guarantee of the scientific accuracy of his

contribution,

A. J. C.

St. George's Manse, Geelong,

December, f8?j.

"^V^.
 (Ti^ v^ Contents.
;-SL5

i^y^

I.

AN ACCOUNT OF THE EARLY HISTORY OF

THE NEW HEBRIDES MISSIONS.
Page
I. The Ground of Missionary Duty I

II. The Pioneer •

5

III. The Mission Field . 10

IV. The Work • 14

V. The Work Continued • 19

VI. The Fruit 25

VII. Progress of the Work • 32

VIII. Prospects of the Mission 36

II.

THE " DAYSPRING-"

History of the " Dayspring " 41
X. CONTENTS.

III.

A YEAR IN THE NEW HEBRIDES, &c.

LETTER I.

The voyage from Melbourne to Aneityum, and First Impressions of

that Island Page 69

LETTER II.

The New Hebrides —Their Discovery— Aneityum— Its Characteristics

Inhabitants —The Mission Station at Anelcauhat —Rambles along

the Shore and Inland — A Marriage—Native Service . . . . 74

LETTER III.

The Mission — Fotuna—A Day Ashore—Aniwa—The

Station at Aname'
Cocoanut Palm — Tana — Appearance of the Volcano — Port Reso-
lution — Depopulation — Black Beach 87

LETTER IV.

Eramanga — —
Appearance and Characteristics Dillon's Bay Whaling
Its —
Establishment— Efat£— Its Natural Features Pango Bay The — —
Islets of Fili and Mel£, and their Inhabitants Visits paid to —
them 100

LETTER V.

—
Havannah Harbour Trading Establishments —Vessel grazes a Reef
— —
Nguna Two Hills Arrive at Santo Ill

LETTER VI.

History of the Discovery of Santo — Its Appearance — Bartering with the

Natives— The Queen's Birthday — Mau and its People — Visit
Ashore — Return Aneityum
to 117

LETTER VII.

The Mission Conference — Settlement of Mr. Robertson at Dillon's Bay,

Eramanga — Settlement of Mr. McDonald at Havannah Harbour,
Efate —Visit to Ambrim 126
 CONTENTS.

LETTER VIII.
—
The Loyalty Islands Their Nature, Characteristics, and People Marfi —
— —
The Mission Station of Mr. Jones A Ride across the Island
A few Remarks about the Natives and their Houses The Vessel —
Sails again for the New Hebrides 133

LETTER IX.
The Natives of the New Hebrides — Their Personal Appearance
Diversity of Language — Remarks as to their Probable Origin, 141

LETTER X.
Varieties of Life on Aniwa — Corals — Remarks on the Formation of
these Islands 148

LETTER XI.
—
Tana Death of a
Cross over to Bull —The
Breakers — The Forest —The
Tanamen and their Wars —Yam Cultivation—Amusements— Kava
Drinking —Religion 158

LETTER XII.
Residence at Port Resolution —-Ascent of the Volcano— What we Saw
from the Edge of the Crater —Tbe Descent— Something about the
Manners and Customs of this Volcano 172

LETTER XIII.
The Industries on in the New Hebrides Cotton Growing
carried —
— — —
Cobra Arrowroot Whaling What might be done here Mode —
—
of Reaching the Islands, and Outfit The Disadvantages connected
with Residence here 180

LETTER XIV.
The New Hebrides Missions —Attacks on Missions generally— Mission
Work on the Group — Benefits to Science and Commerce rendered
by Missionaries —The Native Teachers 188

LETTER XV.
—
Leave Tana for Aneityum The Hurricane The Wreck A Sale by — —
—
Auction Life of the Shipwrecked Party Ashore The Earth- —
quake 197
 CONTENTS.

LETTER XVI.
The Labour Traffic — The Two Great Evils connected with it —The
Mischief done by the Procurers of Labour —The Bad Effects of
their Residence Abroad upon the Natives —Depopulation of the
Islands 206

LETTER XVII.
Leave Aneityum for New Caledonia in the " Sea Witch," —Appearance
of the Shores of that Island —A Brief Account of its Character-
istics — Life at Noumea —Leave for Sydney 213

IV.

PHYTOGRAPHY OF THE NEW HEBRIDES, &c.

(appendix.)

-G\
 ^xy k^'XcJ\

Illustrations.
V

LITHOGRAPHS.
I. Anelcauhat Harbour, Aneityum Frontispiece.
II. Tana
Port Resolution, 32
III. The "Dayspring" (full sail)
43
IV. Fotuna 89
V. Mau and Pele 124
VI. Dillon's Bay, Eramanga 128
VII. The Crater of the Volcano 1 76
VIII. East Coast of Tana 192
IX. Wreck of the " Dayspring " 198

WOOD CUTS.
I. Dr. Geddie's Monument xvi.

II. Line of March 74

III. Mission House, Aniwa 95
IV. Huts on Fili Island 108
V. Native Drums on Fili Island 1 1

VI. Native Church on Mare, Loyalty Islands 137

VII. Mission House Kwamera, Tana
at 159
VIII. Banyan-Tree and Kava-House on Tana 167
IX. Mont D'Or, New Caledonia 220

MAP OF THE NEW HEBRIDES,

Shewing their relative position with Australia, New Zealand and
>

Fiji 69
AN ACCOUNT OF THE EARLY HISTORY

OF THE

NEW HEBRIDES MISSIONS.

BY

A. J. CAMPBELL,
 fit Hfemoriam.

OttN NEDDIE, fifi

N
*™«EBaw./|--- ~^m , * SON. se

Geelong Cemetery.
 I.

THE GROUND OF MISSIONARY DUTY.

af^S truly as I live, all the earth, shall be filled with the glory
of the Lord."
That is to be the final destiny of this sin-cursed, God-loved
world.
And therefore while other men are looking wistfully into the
gathering Night, and are asking " What is to become of this
poor world ? " let Christian men briefly reply, " This is what is
to become of it : It is to be filled with the glory of the Lord."

And let no strangeness nor darkness of the night no scoffs ;

of ungodly men no declensions of the Church, and no mis-

;

carriages even, in their own missionary efforts abate the abso-

lute confidence with which they repose on that most ancient
and, (looking at the circumstances of its utterance,) most extra-
ordinary of all those Words on which God has caused them to
hope.
In the Desert of Sinai, when His people refused to follow
Him into Canaan, God came down to judge and punish them.
First, He them of the high vocation which they had
stripped
despised ; and then He dfjomed them to perish in the wilder-
ness.
, And now it Seemed as if His great purpose of mercy had
been defeated. His chosen nation, to whose custody He had
entrusted it, had gone, like a gallant ship, to pieces on the rocks
of unbelief. But God's purpose cannot fail.
 Missionary Duty.

On the field of that disaster He raised this ground and pillar of

Hope. Standing amid His weeping people, now awakened to

a sense of their disfranchisement, and degradation and doom, He

uttered those mighty words, by which He detached the Promise
from that wrecked nation, and fixed it to the rock of His own
indestructible existence.
"The world's Hope shall no longer be tied to your life, but to
Mine. It is not — as truly as you live, but as truly as I live. You
may perish, but I remain. And I have sworn by myself that the
whole earth shall be filled with my glory."
Jesus Christ the Glory of God. And that promise
is

of the desert began to blossom when He was planted in Judea,

and it reached its perfection when He ascended up on high that
He might fill all things.

For then the two great hemispheres Heaven and Earth —

so long parted, came together in His hand ; and the power of
both was given Him, that He might rule them both on the
same principles of righteousness and fill them both with His
glory.
No sooner was He clothed with this all-power in Heaven and
Earth than He set in motion the machinery which He had al-

ready prepared. " Go ye, therefore," He said to His disciples,

" and teach all nations. —Go ye into all the world, and preach
the Gospel to every creature."
These were these — still are, the Church's " marching
orders." She has no alternative but to obey them.
And when Christian men and women go forth to encounter
the dangers of missionary enterprise, and to place themselves in
contact with the pollutions of he*thenism, it is not to be con-
cluded that they are actuated by the mere impulses of humanity,
or the love of sacrificing themselves.But the heathen belong
to Christ. He has asked
and obtained them as His inheritance
and possession, and has commanded His disciples to claim
them and christianise them for Him. For His sake, and for
 Missionary Duty.

the ^lory of His name, they will seek their good. Obedience
and Love to Christ, then, are the chief grounds and motives of
missionary duty.
Men who decline the authority of Christ will, of course, act
on a very different principle. The heathen are nothing to them
beyond what they can get from them in the way of pleasure or
trade ;and as their persons are more valuable than their pro-
—
ductions, they will buy and sell them kidnap and kill them
as it suits them to do so.
And if we believed that they were less than men — that they
had no part in man's sin and no share in Christ's salvation, if
they had been exempted from His Possession and excluded
from our Commission, we would not feel that we had any serious
duty toward them. But they are under the empire of Sin and
—
Death, even as we are and by special grant have been in-
cluded in the Kingdom of Christ. Therefore, of whatever
character or condition they may be — lovely or unlovely —
noble race or a very contemptible one —because Christ does
not despise them we dare not ; because He says " Go to all na-

tions," and "Preach the Gospel to every creature," we cannot

rest till we have finished that work given us to do.
And although the faults and shortcomings which are laid at
the door of Christian missionaries were true, and although they
were multiplied a thousandfold, that would not alter our duty,
nor affect our determination to do it by God's help.
But these charges (charges chiefly of indolence and useless-
ness, and hypocritical washing black men white) are not true.
They are not true to any appreciable extent. I feel bound to
speak on this subject. AlH having had long acquaintance with
—
the missionaries of the present generation beginning with John
Williams and Alexander Duff—I must be permitted to offer
them the tribute of a humble but very sincere admiration. They
are among the Church's foremost men. — They are among her
greatest benefactors ; for while they have been advancing the

b2
 Missionary Duty.

—
upon the frontiers, more than most men they have
lines of light
been wakening up and fanning into vigour the flame of Christian
love at Home.
And I am persuaded, dear reader, that when you have read
the following sketch of one of these labourers you will not re-
him among that goodly company of Christian men,
fuse to rank
who have not counted their lives dear to them, that they might
fulfil their Master's high command, and earn the servant's coveted
reward — their Lord's welcome and well-done.

^Vf^r
 ^>^ ^^(r^ r

II.

THE PIONEER.

HE South-Sea Islanders have no history. We found them

in their beautiful homes a hundred years ago ; but whence they"
came or how they got there, they cannot tell us. Since then,
however, there has grown round them a history of a singularly
interesting though sadly chequered kind. Not a national but a
Christian history. For while the nations of Europe and America
have been struggling for empire, or urging on com-
their great
mercial enterprises, there has been going on throughout these
Islands an incessant warfare in the name of the Prince of Peace,
—
and a succession of conquests not always bloodless in their
course, but always beneficent in their consequences.
I say not a national history ; for these Islands of the Pacific,
although grouped together on the bosom of the sea as the stars
are grouped together in the constellations of the skies, can not
be expectedto take any rank among the kingdoms of the world
any more than the counties of England, if separated by fifty or
a hundred miles of ocean, could be expected to coalesce and
keep together as a nation. —
But a Christian history, in which
Christ, theLord of Life, has made a conspicuous display of his
power to destroy the works of the Devil, and to lift up men
from the dunghills of heathenism and set them in the pure and
wholesome light of the kingdom of heaven.
Among the events of that missionary history the following are
not to be forgotten.
1769 :May 1, Captain Cook landed on Tahiti, erected an
observatory, and, amid the solemn silence of the natives, watched
the transit of Venus across the Sun's disc.
 The Pioneer.

1796 : Captain Wilson carried the first band of christian

missionaries, sent out by the London Society, to Tahiti, in the
ship " Duff."
1812 : After sixteen years' seemingly fruitless labour, agd
while the missionaries were absent from the Island —driven
away by war —a few of the natives and when the
met to pray ;

missionaries returned they found the people prepared to abandon

idolatry and embrace Christianity.
1817 : John Williams joined the mission.
1827 : The first missionary ship, the " Messenger of Peace,"
was built by John Williams at Raiatea.
1838 : The first British missionary ship, "The Camden," was
built in England.

1839 : November 19, John Williams paid the first missionary

visit to the New Hebrides, and placed native teachers on Tana.
On the following day he landed at Eramanga, and was murdered.
1848 : May 28, Mr. and Mrs. Geddie landed at Aneityum.

My story opens at the last of these dates, and will narrate the
labours of the last-named missionary. But first I shall say a few
words about his previous career.

John Geddie was born in 1816, in the quaint old town of

Banff on the shores of the Moray Firth. His father followed
the honourable occupation of a goldsmith. He was a much-
respected citizen and a devout christian. He had come to be
much interested in the London Society's South-Sea enterprise,
and was anxious to help on God's work
in the world. Robert
Morrison, China's great missionary, was his apprentice whom —
he released from a profitable indenture that he might equip him-
self for higher service. And when this child was born his
parents gave him up in a silent dedication to God, for such
mission work at home or abroad as He might be pleased to ap-
point for him. Their wishes in that matter were abundantly
gratified.
 The Pioneer. .,
7

Shortly after his birth, his mother's health demanding a change

of climate, the family crossed the Atlantic and settled in Pictou
in Nova Scotia. There, amid the the rich fresh scenes of that
new land, they nursed their boy; and as he grew up they
suffered him to follow the bent which his own mind took Very
early towards the work of the ministry. He was just twenty-one
when he presented himself before the Presbytery, and asked to
be licensed to preach the gospel of the blessed God. Immedi-
ately after receiving license he was settled at Cavendish, in Prince
Edward's Island ; and having contracted marriage with Miss
McDonald of Antigonish, he spent eight busy, useful, happy
years there.

But he was ever turning from that pleasant labour-field to the

thick darkness that covered the earth —out of which there
seemed to come a voice, which he could not mistake, calling
him to enter that darkness and work these. The Church of
—
Scotland was now under Alexander Duff's loud trumpet blasts
—awakening to its long-forgotten evangelistic duty ; while the
people of England were listening with startled and delighted in-
terest to John Williams's reports of what he had seen and heard
in the South Seas. And so it came into the heart of this young
minister —not indeed to offer himself for service in India or in

Tahiti, but (which was unspeakably better) to seek to rouse his

adopted church to engage in mission work. She might be the
least among the thousands in Israel — yet not too little, surely,

to serve Him who has told us that the little children are the

great ones of the kingdom of heaven. —Then why should not

the Church of Nova Scotia send her contingent, however small,

into the field ? He succeeded in his task, and when the question
was raised, " Whom shall we send ? " and " Who will go for
us ? " He replied, " If you count me worthy, send me."

Then he learned for the first time, from his widowed mother,
of his early dedication to God's service —a discovery which
 The Pioneer.

greatly fortified his purpose ; which was strengthened on the

other side by the hearty concurrence in it of his beloved part-

ner. To her, with four little children round her knees, the work
could have slight attraction of romance ; but she would venture
all for Christ. He was worthy for whom they should do this.

While they were waiting for their commission in Halifax, two

of these little children died. If they had been looking for a
sign from Heaven, this dark sorrow might have staggered and
stopped them. Perhaps they did find an interpretation of it
afterwards — " You are going forth among the perils of the deep,
and the perils of the heathen ; entrust these little ones to Me."

The commission which they received was very vague. Under

the guidance of God's good Spirit they were to seek a field of la-

bour somewhere in the South Seas. They wisely betook them-

selves to the missionary brethren in Samoa, and craved advice
as to their future movements.
Their arrival was hailed with joy. There was a field of
labour waiting for them.

Ever since John Williams's death his coadjutors had been

longing to embrace theNew Hebrides within the scope of their
labours. They had frequently revisited them ; they had sought
to win the confidence of the natives, and had succeeded in
planting christian teachers on five of them. The work, how-
ever, had made little effective progress ^ indeed, at the date
of Mr. Geddie's arrival at Samoa it seemed desperate. Only
upon the island of Aneityum was there a gleam of hope. On
the last occasion of the missionaries' visit to that island they
found the teachers sadly disheartened, and anxious to be re-
moved. They were received on board, and sailed round to
Anelcauhat. While lying at anchor there, one of the mission-
deeply sorrowing at the prospect of leaving this fair island
aries,

under the powers of darkness, said to the teacher Simeono,

 T7ie Pioneer.

" What a pity it is to leave this fine place without a teacher,

and let go our hold upon it. What would you think of staying and
giving it another trial ? " He said he would, if another teacher
would stay with him. Another was quickly found. These
two teachers were landed and left behind and thus the door :

was kept open. And by that open door Mr. and Mrs. Geddie
now entered upon their mission work.

T
 UeKd&^&F^J*^
III.

THE MISSION FIELD.

^VNEITYUM with its three thousand souls would have seemed

to Dr. Chalmers a well-defined and manageable parish ; and the

young missionary, if he had an eye for beauty, must have been

captivated with its exceeding loveliness. I shall leave the de-
scription of its physical aspects to my
and ask you to look
son,
at its inhabitants. The may be gauged
condition of a people
on the one side by looking at their Homes ; on the other by
looking at their Temples. In what kind of gods do they be-
lieve ? In what family-order do they live ? Their Worship and
their Home-ways determine their character and social state.

I. The principal Deity of Aneityum was Nugerain. He had

a name above every name. Like God's great name " Jehovah,"
which the Jews refuse to utter, no one dare use his name un-
lesshe belonged to the highest caste. To this god they ascribed
the origin of their island. He went out fishing one day, and
having hooked some very ponderous thing, he hauled it up.
It turned out to be Aneityum. Of their own origin they knew
nothing. They had a vague tradition of the Fall, however.
On account of some act of wickedness, they said that their an-
cestors were doomed to die ; otherwise they would have lived
for ever.

Nugerain was supposed to have a numerous progeny. These

were called Natmases. They filled the earth, the air, and the
sea —each race ruling over its own realm. The sun and moon
were also deified, and worshipped with many honours. Human
 The Mission Field.

sacrifices were sometimes offered to their deities, but not fre-

quently. When animals were offered, the priest first partook of

the flesh, and then the people were allowed to feast upon it.
The people stood greatly in awe of their imaginary gods, and
never engaged in any undertaking without invoking their as-

sistance or propitiating their favour. Among all the multitude

of them there was not one of them whom they believed to
be a purely good being. They were quick-sighted, capricious,
and vindictive beings, exercising a reign of terror over men in
the flesh. Almost more dreaded than their gods, were the
disease-makers —men who arrogatedto themselves the power of
and levied large contributions from the friends
inflicting diseases,

of sick people. When a man fell sick, a conch shell was blown,
which was meant as an appeal to the disease-maker to cease the
burning which was supposed to cause the disease and this was ;

followed by presents more or less costly, according to the vio-

—
lence of the attack. These men with the rain-makers, thunder-
—
makers, fly and mosquito-makers, &c. were the true gods of
Aneityum. For an Idol is nothing in the world ; but these
men were a very terrible Something in Aneityum.

They believed in a future state —a paradise, full of all sensual

delights and a place of punishment. To the latter they con-
;

signed all murderers and all stingy persons. In their code of

—
morals stinginess was the crowning vice generosity the car-
dinal virtue. This virtue was expected to display itself in large
offerings of food at the public feasts. Poor people would starve
themselves for weeks beforehand that they might fatten up the
consecrated pig, and be credited with having presented the
finest.

The oppressive influence of these superstitious beliefs, and

the formidable barrier which they opposed to the entrance of
XJod's Word, will appear in the progress of our story. We turn

now to their Homes.

 The Mission Field.

II. The family order is of God ; and the foundation of it is

the law of marriage, which He ordained " in the beginning,"
—
and which Christ re-enacted, marriage between one man and
one woman. Wherever the integrity of that ordinance is vio-
lated the home loses its glory, and becomes a scene of discord
and a nursery of vice. Aneityum furnished in its heathen
times a pregnant proof of this. Polygamy was practised with-
out limit. A woman, instead of becoming a wife by marriage,
became a servant. Indeed the Aneityumese had no word for
wife— they called a married woman " Naheca,'' which means a
slave. She was treated with less humanity than we treat our
beasts of burden. She had no rights, no rest from toil, no
sweet happiness of home. While her husband was fighting or
feasting, she was doing the work of the house or the plantation.

So darkly and heavily did life press upon her, that not unfre-
quently she flung herself from some beetling cliff into the sea.
Even the death of her husband did not loose the woman from the
law of her husband. When she was married, instead of the wed-
ding ring being put upon her finger, the wedding cord was put
round her neck —which she must always wear ; for when her
husband died — before his body was cold — she would be
strangled with that cord, and sent swiftly after him to serve him
in the other world and be his slave for ever. Alas poor wo-
!

man, who must work as well as weep —who, living or dying,

must be your husband's Slave.
" This practice," says Mr. Murray, " had a strange hold upon
the people. They clung to it with most determined pertinacity.
The strangler was always the woman's own son, if he was old
enough; in some cases it was done by a daughter 1 And it must
be done, else the whole family would incur lasting disgrace."
While the wife was working, her husband was fighting. He
had no other serious occupation, except feasting. When the
fight was over he and his companions sat down to feast —too
often on the dead bodies of their slaughtered enemies.
 The Mission Field. 13

Infanticide and parricide were also practised. The mother

might not forget her sucking child, but it was often wrested
from her —
especially if it was a girl —
and cast out into the bush
oron the sea-beach to die ; and the old man, who should have
been his children's glory, was buried alive by them.

Such were the religious beliefs and social practises of the

Aneityumese before the Dayspring from on high visited them.
Let the reader ask himself what kind of a life these poor people
could have. Could it possibly be a happy life —a gentle life

a noble life ? And yet there are persons among us who would
have stopped Mr. Geddie as he went, Lamp-in-hand, into that
thick darkness, and entreated him not to interfere with these
children of Nature : not to interfere with their religion-—-it
was their religion, and therefore good for them ; not to inter-

fere with their ways —they were their ways, and therefore the
best for them.

Vf^
 ^IsC&P?

IV.

THE WORK.

E have looked at Mr. Geddie's parish — the "cure of souls "

which he got from his Master's hands. What did he propose to
do with them? —To civilize them? — to teach them? —
Butcan these
savages learn ? He meant to solve a far more important ques-
tion — Can these souls live ? He believed that the Gospel is

the power of God unto salvation ; and, relying on that power,

he stepped on shore and began his work at Anelcauhat.

The little frame-house which he brought from Samoa was

soon put up, and alongside of it a House of God. They were
lowly buildings ; but the one was a Christian Home, and the
other a Christian —
Temple dwelling-places of God, in whose
Name he thus took possession of the land. In a few weeks he
was able to speak a few words to the natives in their own
tongue ; and having made a circuit of the island, he planted
down a teacher in each of the four maritime districts.

The peace was soon broken, however. One day he observed

that the chapel was almost deserted, and an angry scowl was
resting on the faces of those present. He found on enquiry
that he had committed three great crimes. In the first place
he had pulled some cocoanuts from his own trees, which having
been tabued for a feast, were sacred. Secondly, he had taken
some coral from the reef and burned it for lime. The Natmas
bf the Sea had smelt it burning, and been made very angry.
Thirdly, —
He was erecting a fence round the chapel, which
would cut off the path by which the Natmases were accustomed
 The Work. 1

to pass from the mountain to the sea. The missionary pleaded

ignorance —gave up cocoanuts, promised take no more
his to
coral, and agreed to leave a path open the perambulations
for
of the Natmases —a very wise mode of procedure, although it

might have been construed into an admission of the reality of

those beings.
Another storm gathered round him a few months afterwards.
A severe hurricane swept round the harbour, devastating the
gardens and levelling the fruit trees. Thua a neighbouring —
chief, a thunder-maker —was supposed to have caused the dis-
aster. War was proclaimed against him, and the hostile tribes
met to fight. Mr. Geddie resolved, if possible, to prevent
bloodshed. was a bold undertaking, but by God's blessing
It
he succeeded; and thus, for the first time, Peace was made
—
on Aneityum made, shall I not say, by the blood of the cross.

Towards the close of that year (1849) Mr. Geddie was

cheered by some faint rays of light shining through the dark-
ness. About forty persons attended the Sabbath service ; fami-
lies were beginning to worship God; a class of enquirers came
weekly for instruction ; and three of the natives had volunteered
to assist him in his journeys.

He had, however, during the whole of that year, a hand-to-

hand fight with the cruel customs of the people- in which —
he was often beaten—-but not always: For example Having :

heard that a married man was dying, he hastened to his

house. He found a number of the wife's relatives there,
waiting to perform the horrid deed as soon as her husband
breathed his last. After expostulating with them he returned
home, leaving two or three friendly natives on watch. - When
the man died the stranglers were going to begin their bloody
work. Waihit —one of the watchers —calling upon his com-
panions to be courageous, said to the heathen, " If you kill

that woman we will kill you." The men were overawed, and
1 The Work.

desisted ; but the woman threatened that if they didn't kill her
she would run to the bush and kill herself. Waihit stationed
himself at the door, and began to talk kindly to her. It was
a talk against time ; for the thought of the people is that if

the wife does not get into the other world nearly as soon
as her husband she will never be able to overtake him
and so half-an-hour's talking put this woman beyond danger.

Another bloodless battle was fought in 1850. The Natmases

were becoming very wrathful at the slights and neglects which
the christianly-disposed natives were putting upon them ; and
so, one Sabbath evening, a messenger arrived to inform Mr.
Geddie that the mission station was to be attacked next day. He
immediately went to Nohoat, the hostile chief, to ascertain the
cause. He was told to give himself no concern he would be —
saved, but some of his people must die. Mr. Geddie told him that
all the Christian party were one, and that if he lifted a weapon

against any of them he would remove to another island. No-

hoat, on whose territory Mr. Geddie resided, felt that this
would be a great loss to him, and agreed, after much talk, to
change the combat from a war of blows to a war of words.
" Then leave your weapons behind." " Our spears we will
leave, but not our clubs." The chief gave him his hand, how-
ever, that he would not fight. On returning to his own people
Mr. Geddie was delighted to find that they had resolved not to
fight —
rather to die. Next day the battle came off during :

two hours Nohoat beat the air with a vehement harangue, be-
wailing the decay of the ancient religion, and accusing the
white man's God of invading their hereditary rights. The
other side kept silence, or uttered only a few soft words. And
so when Nohoat had exhausted his power of speech, the war of
.words came to a sudden end. And thus the reign of Peace
was consolidated. ,

In 185 1 the missionary gained another triumph. A christian

 The Work. 17

woman fell from a cocoanut tree and was killed. Her husband
wished her to have christian burial, and not to be cast into the
sea ; but the relatives came in force, demanding her body.
The christian people were inclined to resist them ; but Mr.
Geddie, having first cased the body in a shroud, placed it be-
fore them, and, in a kindly way, told them that it mattered
nothing to the poor woman where she was buried, and that,
although he hated the practice of throwing their dead into the
sea, if they insisted on having it they might take it. The
heathen party were divided. Their division grew into a quarrel.
" Let him bury it," some cried out. " Is that your decision ? "
he asked. There was no answer. And so the body was borne
to the grave, and in the presence of her heathen relatives prayer
was offered. And thus the first christian burial took place on
Aneityum.
On the 24th April of this year Mr. Geddie wrote :
" Our
prospects are beginning to brighten a little. We have been
sowing in tears, but, we have some reason to hope, not in vain.
Some of the natives are apparently in a thoughtful state, and
I have'had some applications for baptism —a man notorious for
his opposition to Christianity having placed himself under in-
struction. He says he is tired of the old system, and wishes to
learn the truth. He is one of the greatest sacred men in the
district, and has lived by the superstitions of the people."
" Among the number of enquirers," he wrote again, " is Kopaio,
a brother of Nohoat —a thorough savage, notorious for his
wickedness. He is a violent hater of all white men. He has
lately commenced attending our services. When we first came
to the island he regarded us as liars (he says) and used to steal
our property ; but having narrowly watched our conduct, he
was convinced of the truth of our religion and the falseness

of his own."
After Kopaio became a Christian he divulged a story, which
if it startled Mr. Geddie in its recital, filled him with a delightful
1 The Work.

sense of God's fatherly care. For a long time this savage

had sought an opportunity of assassinating the missionary. It

seems a wonder that he did not succeed, as he lived within half-

a-mile of the mission station. It happened, however, that Mr.
Geddie had become aware that his life was in danger, and sel-

dom went beyond his own premises. Disappointed in his

hope of meeting him, Kopaio came several evenings after
dark to his garden, armed with his club, in the hope that Mr.
Geddie would go outside the house. He was a very powerful
man, and one well-directed blow would have done the work.
Mr. Geddie did go out one night, and passed close by the bush
under which Kopaio was concealed. Now the critical moment
—
was come the long-desired opportunity. Kopaio grasped the
club, that he might spring upon his victim and fell him to the
ground. But lo !his hands had forgot their cunning— they
were powerless. A strange sensation came over him, and all

thoughts of injuring the man of God were at an end. Was it

conscience that arrested him or did he hear that voice that

?

has been heard so often through the ages, " Touch not mine
anointed, and domy prophets no harm." However it was, the
good missionary failed not to acknowledge that the Keeper
of Israel had kept him in that dark hour of unconscious
danger.

^Vf^°
 urKfiiSFC&gf^j^

V.

THE WORK CONTINUED.

HE righteous is as bold as a lion. Certainly Mr. Geddie

was, and I suppose that we should all be so if we really believed

that God was taking such care of us as he was evidently taking

of him. Mr. Geddie, I may inform my readers, was not a formid-
able man to look at ; there was nothing lordly in his presence.
And yet he faced the rude savages without fear, and managed
them like children. One morning Nohoat's son told him that
his little brother was dying, and that so soon as he died No-
hoat was going to strangle his mother. Mr. Geddie sought him
out, and taxed him with his wicked intention. But all in vain.

He then cut the matter short by telling him that he was going
to take the child and his mother to his own house, where No-
hoat might come and see them if he liked. He took them.
They were pursued by the chief, but got safely inside the mis-
sion house. Two days afterwards the child died. The poor
father, catching up the lifeless body and pressing it to his bo-

som, rolled on the earth in unutterable grief. Then he turned

to Mr. Geddie and asked, " What has become of my boy ?
where has he gone ? " He—greatly touched with the father's

sorrow —told him that the Jittle one was in the arms of the Good
Shepherd. When Mr. Geddie asked what was' to be done with
the body, " Let it be buried," he said. And the mother there —
was no more talk of strangling her. This incident reveals the
height to which the Power of the Gospel was rising, and how
skilfully the missionary was using it in pulling down the strong-

holds of Satan.
c2
 The Work.

Nohoat,had a brother-in-law — Topoe — next in dignity to

himself. In 1850 he gave a great and the following year
feast,

the chiefs who had been his guests resolved to return the com-
pliment. It occurred to them at the same time that they might
take this opportunity of annihilating the mission. Small and
insignificant as it was, they could not conceal from themselves
the fact that it was daily growing in vigour. If it should over-
spread the land, what would become of their poor Natmases ?

an3 as they were all chief men, and makers of diseases, &c,
what would become of their revenues ? So they determined,
under cover of this feast, to destroy or drive away the mission-
ary. This plot came to Mr. Geddie's ears. He found the
danger to be a very real one. Round the festive board there
would assemble some of the chiefs who had defied his influ-
ence, and who were thirsting for the blood of his little flock.
But the Lord brought the counsel of the heathen to nought.
Topoe, it seems, had intimated his intention of joining the
christian band as soon as this feast was over. He thought he
could not, as a christian, keep a heathen feast. But God helped
him to take a nobler course. He and his followers abandoned
heathenism, and openly joined the christian interest before the
feast. It would have been contrary to savage etiquette, I sup-

At
pose, for the givers of the feast to assassinate their guests.
all do it. And so this storm passed away,
events, they didn't
leaving a clearer sky, and a wider horizon round the rejoicing
inmates of the mission house. A month after, Mr. Geddie
wrote, " We have had many accessions of late." "Nohoat pro-
fesses a great desire for religious instruction. At his own re-
quest I send a native every evening to conduct family-worship."
This was the chief who was going to strangle his dying child's
mother. The house of the murderer is becoming a christian
home.
The heathen were discomfited by T6poe's apostacy but —
not conciliated. They showed their enmity against every
 The Work.

christian native who fell into their hands — spearing, clubbing,

and sometimes killing them ; and inNovember they resolved
to bring the matter to a crisis. On Monday, the 24th day of
that month, a number of the Christian natives started on an
evangelistic tour. Mr. Geddie providentially remained, in-

tending to follow them next day. A little after midnight, Mrs.

Geddie was roused by the sound and smell of fire ; and on
looking up, saw that the roof was in a blaze. She escaped with
her two children, and gave the alarm. With much labour the
fire was got under, before any very extensive damage was done.

Mr. Geddie immediately sent for Nohoat, who burst into tears
when he looked on the smouldering roof. He immediately set
himself to ascertain the guilty parties. He found that the plot
had been and afraid that the attempt might be
fully organised ;

repeated, a guard was set on the premises. Nohoat himself

slept in Mr. Geddie's house every night for two months, that
he might share the danger with him. And thus the Lord made
this last device of the heathen folk of none effect. It rallied

the native christians round them in bonds of strong affection.

" If," said Nohoat to Mr. Geddie, " Lucy and Elizabeth had
been burnt, and my coat (a military one which he kept at the
mission) we would not have listened to words of peace ; there
would have been many persons killed to-day." The children
thus mercifully preserved have consecrated their lives to the
mission work, and are labouring on the Islands with then-
husbands —Mr. Nelson of Tana and Mr. McDonald of Efate.

At the end of this year Mr. Geddie could record many un-
equivocal proofs of progress. The sacred groves were disap-
pearing. The fear of the false gods and their crafty priests was
dying away. And next year opened with the removal from
the island of the most violent opponent of the mission —
white man, who delighted in wickedness. From that hour the
Word of God had free and rapid .course. Some of the disease-
makers came to the mission house and delivered up their ap-
 The Work.

paratus. These were contained in bags, the contents of which

were curious. A little black earth — chewings of a sacred leaf-
—
human hair a shred of calico, &c. When a disease-maker
wished to make a person sick, he procured something that be-
longed to him, and put it with these chewings into a charming-
pot, which he placed on the fire, and prayed to his Natmas to
inflict the disease. And then came the extortionate demand for
release. One can understand with what delight these poor
people would turn from these cruel makers of disease, to the
Great Healer of it, and contrast the mighty compassion of Jesus
with their oppressive greed.
Thus encouraged, Mr. Geddie began to direct his lines

of operation more upon the inland tribes. He found them

wonderfully prepared to listen to the gospel; and in a very
short time he had the pleasure of driving their Natmases into
the region of non-existence. But he was overtaxing his strength.
For the first time he was assailed by an enemy that often re-

turned —a slow fever, like the well-known jungle fever of India,

the violence of which was encouraged by the want of suitable
food. Let those who talk of the luxurious lives of missionaries

read the next sentence. " The most of my nourishment during

my sickness was a bit of toasted musty bread and a few pieces
of hard biscuit, which a poor shipwrecked sailor was kind
enough to send me out of his weekly allowance. May God
repay him."
A few weeks after this illness he had the inexpressible plea-
sure of welcoming the John Williams, with the Rev. J. P.
Sunderland — who tells us, in his account of his
what visit, 'with
joyful surprisehe witnessed the change that had taken place
during these three years. There was now at Anelcauhat a
congregation of one hundred persons; a daily school of eighty; a
christian class of sixty ; and forty who had learned to read.
On the occasion of his visit a christian church was formed, and
thirteen persons partook of the Lord's Supper.
i

It was the first

 The Work. 23

celebration of that ordinance in Western Polynesia, and was a

season of thrilling interest. " Let the friends of missions," he
says, " take courage, and let the God of missions be magni-
fied who has given this pledge of ultimate and complete suc-
cess."
1852 was signalised by another token of God's gracious pur-
pose to bless these. islands. On the 1st July the much-esteemed
Bishop Selwyn arrived in his schooner the Border Maid, bring-
ing with him the Rev. John Inglis and Mrs. Inglis, of the Re-
formed Presbyterian Church of Scotland, who were now to join
Mr. Geddie in his worL They came unexpectedly, and if
they had come down from Heaven they could not have
got a warmer welcome. On the 4th of July, under a brilliant
sky, in the presence of a crowded congregation, Mr. Inglis was
introduced to his charge at Aname, on the opposite side of the
island.
And now the transition from darkness to light proceeded
with an astonishing rapidity ; and incidents were continually
occurring which proved the reality of the change. Here is one :
" 19th September, chapel crowded to excess. Mr. Inglis came
round from his station, bringing with him an influential chief

named lata, formerly a great warrior and notorious cannibal.

In the house God he met another chief— Nimtiwan. They
of
were deadly The last time they met was on the field of
foes.

battle. I wondered how they would act now. And Oh how !

delighted I was to see these two men come out of the house of
God with their arms round each other. I could n'ot help call-
ing the attention of Mr. Inglis to the scene, and saying. '
See
what the Gospel has wrought.'
The next year we learn that the congregation had risen to 350 ;
that there were seventy-five native assistants, who were carry-
ing the truth over the whole face of the island ; and twenty-five
schools, with 1400 persons under instruction, being the half of
the whole population. For their use Mr. Geddie had prepared,
24 The Work.

with infinite labour, a version of the Gospel of Mark, which was

printed in Sydney, and 3000 copies brought to Aneityum in the

John Williams.
And now the little church, having attained stability and
strength, put forth its first missionary effort. Two teachers
Waihit and Josefa —were sent forth to the neighbouring island
of Fotuna, and shortly afterwards two more to Tana.

In 1854 a church was opened at Aname, and the Lord's

Supper was observed with nine native christians. The multi-
tude of hearers who assembled was nearly a thousand. Such a
gathering had never been seen in the island since the world was;
for the people lived in such hatred and fear of each other that
they seldom crossed the narrow boundaries of their own tribes.

The church at Anelcauhat was also rebuilt this year, and made
capable of containing 900 persons. Mr. Hardie, of the London
Missionary Society —who visited Aneityum in October of that
year — tells us that 2000 of the natives had openly re-
nounced heathenism and embraced Christianity; thirty schools
were in operatibn, and everything indicated the most cheering
progress. " The christian party," he writes, " has gained a very
decided ascendancy all over the island ; the ancient cus-
toms are everywhere on the wane. War, cannibalism and
heathen orgies may be now reckoned among the things that
were. The Natmases are everywhere being cast away or
neglected, and for eighteen months no case of strangling has
occurred."

xy|^
 ^l*30 *%&**&bJ*^ J

VI.

THE FRUIT.

ANY persons wonder exceedingly how the missionary who

has enjoyed the high pleasures of refined christian society can
go down among the low-living people of heathen lands, and
bring up his children among them with any cheerfulness and
comfort of life. They can understand a man conducting
an expedition, and heading an assault upon the strong places
of heathenism ; for there is an infinite pleasure in overthrowing
the works of darkness. But should there not be a still
greater pleasure in building up the works of righteousness, and
goodness, and truth ? True, it is much slower work ; and
when it is accomplished, what has been gained ? Mr. Geddie
didn't add to the low stature of the Aneityumese —
nor organise
—
them into a political body nor make fine creatures of their
women. I suppose that he would have told us that' these were
not the things he tried to do. But he tried to put down the
murderous propensities and practices of the people to make —
—
them truthful, honest, chaste with a reverent fear of God
about them, and loving obedience to Christ. He would have
told us, moreover, that it was the delightful consciousness that
God's Spirit was breathing on the dry bones of Aneityum and
making them live, that sustained him and his wife in their long
years' toil and the delightful proofs that were meeting him
;

every day, of the quiet happiness which the kingdom of Heaven

was diffusing over the homes of the people. Every one, who
has helped any poor sunken fellow-creature out of the misery
26 The Fruit.

and mire of sin into the pureness' and calmness of the christian
faith and the christian life, will readily understand this. He
will understand what a joy it must have been to the missionary

when (for example) he liberated the whole people of a district

from the fear of their chief, Yakanua. He was a sacred man,

a great disease-maker, and a voracious cannibal. The first
teachers who were settled in that district found very few children
there. — The explanation was that Yakanua had killed them and
eaten them. The old people, too, lived in great fear for their
lives. He used to lie in wait for his victims, and spring upon
them and murder them. His sacred character shielded him
from all reprisals — so thathe went about among them like a
ravening beast of prey. Towards the close of 1854 he was
carried with the stream into the profession of Christianity—with
what good to himself I do not know but with very decided
;

good to the people of the district, who declared that now they
would be able to sleep in peace. To tame that child-devouring
savage, and let fathers and mothers sleep in peace, was surely a
blessed work and then to set before them that good Saviour,
;

who would give them the everlasting rest, and would suffer them
to bring their children to Him that He might lay His hands
on them and bless them.

Let us take, as further samples of the redeeming power

of the Gospel, the two chiefs of Anelcauhat Waihit and —
Nohoat. The was the ruler of the sea, the other
first

of the land. Waihit was as much dreaded as Yakanua. His

club was always in his hand, and many a poor woman's bones,
were broken by it. He was one of the first earnest listeners
to the gospel, and by-and-bye took his stand beside the mis-
sionary as a christian. The change in his conduct gave very
gratifying proof of the change in his character. He began to
tell his countrymen that he was ashamed of his old evil ways,
and wished them to serve the living and true God. He became
the object of deadly hatred. Many a spear was hurled at him.
 The Fruit. 27

But he met all oppositions with a brave heart, and took meekly
wrongs which he would have visited with death when he was a
heathen. One Sabbath he went
to Ametch, to speak to the
people about God. There had been a severe storm, the blame
of which they put upon him, and drove him away with their
clubs. Next Sunday, however, he insisted on returning when —
the people admiring his boldness, received him kindly. On
another occasion, while going to Ametch, a man who had con-
cealed himself near the path came upon him —armed with a club
— and, in great anger, threatened to kill him. Ten days before,
the tide had overflowed this man's garden, and destroyed his
taro. He believed that Waihit had sent that destructive tide.

He told him that he was no ruler of the sea now — God was.
But the man would not listen to him. " Well," said the chief,
" I will not run away from you. You can kill me if you will
I am not afraid to die." By this time some of the people came
up, on their way to the service, and interfered. This exhibition
of gentleness on the part of this once-fierce chief, I need
scarcely say, gave him mighty power as a preacher of the
gospel, and fitted him for going forth, in 1853, to Fotuna, the

first-fruits of Aneityum unto Christ in the field of evangelistic

work.
Nohoat —the ruler of the land —was perhaps less savage, but
was more crafty, than Waihit. " He welcomed the first missionaries'
visits because he expected temporal good from them ; especially
his heart was set upon getting some pigs from them with long
ears ; and whenever he met them he put his hands to his ears
to remind them of his wish. When Mr. Geddie landed.he pro-
fessedly gave him a welcome but he told his people they might
;

get rid of him by stealing from him. Finding, however, that

the residence of the missionary increased, his importance, he

afterwards extended to him (as we have seen) a very effectual

protection. The turning point in his history seems to have been

the death of his child, when Mr. Geddie saved him from mur-
 28 The Fruit.

dering its mother. From the missionary's own pen we have the
following sketch of him :

" He took the side of Christianity at the time that the mission
was in its greatest trials. His previous hostility had been so
marked, that his sincerity was for some time doubted ; but he
soon gave satisfactory evidence of it,, by giving up many
heathenish customs. All his influence was now exerted in
favour of Christianity. I shall never forget his kindness to my-
self and my family when our lives were threatened. For more
than two months he slept in my house, for our safety, and said
that the heathen must kill him before doing any injury to us.
Indeed, had not this man been raised up to befriend the mis-
it is questionable if it could have risen above the opposi-
sion,
tionaimed against it. After Nohoat embraced Christianity he
became a humble disciple at the feet of Jesus. Though sixty
years of age, he attended school regularly every morning, and
his seat in church was never vacant. It was not to be expected
that a man who had been under the influence of a degrading
heathenism till far advanced in life, would become an intelli-
gent and in all respects a consistent christian. He was naturally
proud, passionate, and deceitful ; but, with all his infirmities, I
believe that he was No man did more for
a good man.
on this island than Nohoat, 'and yet none suffered
Christianity
so much from the change. The class of chiefs to which he
belonged were regarded with religious veneration while they
lived, and were worshipped when they died. But when Christi-
anity divested him of his sacred character he was no longer
dreaded and having been an unpopular man in the days of
;

his heathenism, he lost much of his influence, which he never

recovered. When the mission to Tana was undertaken he ren-
dered valuable aid, as he could speak the Tanese language.
On one of his visits to that island, he had undertaken to con-
ciliate a tribe that were approaching for a fight. It was a danger-
ous embassy ; for the enemy, knowing his powers as a peace-
 The. Fruit. 29

maker — ' if he gets among us we shall have no fight,' they said

fired two or three shots at him before he reached them. He
pressed on, however, and succeeded in stopping the war. He
was on a visit to Tana when he was seized with his last illness,

which carried him off in about three weeks after his return.
The last interview had with him was two days before his
I
death. Mrs. Geddie had several very interesting conversations
with him. He confessed the wickedness of his life, but ex-
pressed a humble hope of salvation, through Jesus Christ.
I have lost in him a sincere and valuable friend."

Alongside this sketch let me place another —of a native girl,

Mary Anne. She was a little princess in rank —a pleasant

child, but very thoughtless. Her parents, afraid of her falling
into the hands of white men, brought her to Mrs. Geddie, en-
treating her to take her into her boarding establishment,
1

which
she did. But she was a restless bird, flying away, and after

a few days returning. " One evening," Mrs. Geddie wrote, " I
called her my bedroom, and had along
and her companion into
conversation with them. them I was sadly grieved to
I told
see them so thoughtless that I had left my home that I might
;

teach them the word of God and that I had just parted with
;

my own child, who was very dear to me (she had gone to school
at Walthamstow) in order that I might remain among them.
I said that I would never regret leaving my home and friends
and parting with my child, if I were to have the happiness of
seeing them seeking the Saviour and that now, as my daughter
;

had left me, they should try as much as possible to fill her
place to me. They both cried very much, and said they
knew what I told them was true, and that they were very bad
and dark-hearted. From this time I could see an evident change
in them both. Dear Mary Anne became quite a changed girl,
and, we have every reason to believe, a decided christian. She
tried in every way me, and to be a daughter to me.
to please
We all -
loved her very much, and never, as far as I remember,
30 The Fruit.

had reason to reprove her." After she left the school she was
married to one of the christian teachers in Mr. Inglis's district,

but kept up a regular correspondence with Mrs. Geddie.

" What would I have been," she used to say, " if you had not
taken care of me ? —
You are my mother and although I love
my you and Mr, Geddie better." Shortly after
parents, I love
her marriage she was seized with a mortal sickness, and was re-
moved to her father's, close to the mission. " In as gentle a

manner as possible I told her that the doctor thought her very
ill, and was very doubtful whether she would recover. I was

surprised to hear her say, with the greatest calmness, that she
did not expect to recover, and that she felt very happy at the
thought of going to her Saviour. Her parents, sisters, husband,
were overwhelmed with grief —
she alone remained composed.
She talked a great deal to her parents and others, urging them
to be zealous in Christ's service. She spoke very earnestly to
her eldest sister, who often quarrelled with her own husband,
telling her how happily she and her husband had lived together.
Taking her husband's hand into hers, and looking affectionately
at him, she said, '
William, I feel very sorry for you ;
great is

my love for you, and I would like to live for your sake —but
my desire to be with Jesus is greater.' A few days after this

she passed away, in the peace and joy of believing. I have

never met with a native who had the same ideas of modesty
and propriety that Mary Anne professed. After she became
decidedly pious, her views appeared quite above those of a
young person brought up in heathenism."

Mary Anne's companion joined her in her faith and love of

Christ. She became the wife of Lathella, the son and successor
of the chief Nohoat. She died in 1861, leaving behind her the
remembrance of a pure and loving life.

Let these slight sketches explain to my readers the substan-

tial joy which rewards the missionary's self-sacrifice. He leaves
 'The Fruit. 31

home, and friends, and other pleasant things of this world but
:

he receives an hundredfold when he sees the dark prisoners of

Satan coming out of the bondage of corruption and the tide
;

of deep warm love to the Lord of Life springing up in their

hearts — —
a love which purines them which makes them tender-
hearted, forbearing and forgiving, and clothes them with those
graces of christian gentleness and humility which render them
amiable and lovable. Let them explain also one of the chief
secrets of the missionary's success. Mrs. Geddie, when she had
lost her own daughter, said to Mary Anne, "You must take her
place ; you must be a daughter to me, and love me and help
me and I will be a mother to you, and will love and help
;

you." This wis not a piece of sentiment. It was a true

outgoing of christian love to that dark child. And it was this
tender love, growing up between Mr. and Mrs. Geddie and
their children in the Lord, that bound them to their .island
home for twenty- two years, and sustained them through that long
isolation. That love of their children and that joy of the Lord
were their strength.

-xyj^
 ^^^^^^(f 3

^
VII.

PROGRESS OF THE WORK.

AM not going to follow Mr. Geddie through the various la-

bours of his between 1854 and 1872. For as the mission

life

spread itself over other islands it embraced the labours of many-

—
workmen concerning whom and their work we shall hope to
have some connected and detailed information when Mr. Inglis

or some other Father of the Mission has leisure to give it. I

shall simply indicate the progress of the work, by continuing
the Missionary Calendar (see § II.) down to the present date.
1852 : Mr. and Mrs. Inglis (Reformed Presbyterian Church
of Scotland) settled at Aname in Aneityum, where by the help
of God they have continued to this day.
1854 : A large majority of the Aneityumese having aban-
doned heathenism, Aneityum is to be regarded henceforth as a
christian land.

1857 : Mr. and Mrs. Gordon (Church of Nova Scotia) settled

on Dillon's Bay, Eramanga.
1858 Mr. and Mrs. Paton and Mr. Copeland (both of
:

Reformed Presbyterian Church of Scotland) and Mr. and Mrs.

Matheson (of Church of Nova Scotia) settled on Tana.
1859 Mr. and Mrs. Johnston (Church of Nova Scotia)
:

settled on Tana. Mrs. Paton and child died.

1 86 1 : Mr. Johnston died.
1862 Tanese mission broken up.
: Mr. Paton visited
Australia,and pleaded the cause of the mission and the mission
ship. Mrs. Matheson died on Aneityum, and Mr. Matheson
on Lifu. Mr. and Mrs. Gordon murdered at Eramanga. First
 o
r-i

u
o
 Progress of the Work. 33

edition of the New Testament translated by Mr. Geddie, printed

in London by the British and Foreign Bible Society, under the
superintendence of Mr. Inglis.

1863 : The Dayspring mission ship arrived in Melbourne,

bringing Mr. and Mrs. Morison, Mr. and Mrs. McCullagh, and
Mr. James Gordon (from the Church of Nova Scotia) ; the first
of whom was settled on Efate, and the last at Portinia Bay,
Eramanga.
1864 and 1865 Mr. and Mrs. Geddie revisited Nova Scotia,
:

and addressed the Presbyterian congregations of the Lower

Provinces and of Canada.
1866 Mr. Geddie returned to the islands with Mr. and Mrs.
:

Cosh, Mr. and Mrs. Neilson (both of Reformed Presbyterian

Church of Scotland) and Mr. and Mrs. McNair (of Free Church
of Scotland) Mr. Cosh was settled at Pango on Efate; Mr.
McNair at Dillon's Bay, Eramanga Mr. Copeland on Fotuna
;

and Mr. Paton on Aniwa. The Queen's university of Canada

conferred the degree of D.L). on Mr. Geddie.
1868 The mission on Tana re-established, under the care
:

of Mr. Neilson.
1869 : Mr. Watt (Reformed Presbyterian Church of Scot-
land) joined Mr. Neilson on Tana. Mr. Morison died in New
Zealand.
1870 : In consequence of Mrs. Cosh'sill-health, Mr. Cosh

resigned. Mr. and Mrs. Milne (Free Church of Scotland)

settled on Nguna, and Mr. and Mrs. Goodwill (Presbyterian
Church of Canada) on Santo. Mr. McNair died.
1872 Mr.
: James Gordon murdered at Eramanga. Mr. and
Mrs. McKenzie (Church of Nova Scotia) settled at Pango on
Efate; Mr. and Mrs. Murray, of the same Church, at Dr.Geddie's
station, Anelcauhat ; Mr. and Mrs. Robertson, (Presbyterian
Church of Canada) at Dillon's Bay, Eramanga ; and Mr. and
Mrs! McDonald (Miss E. Geddie) at Havannah harbour on
Efate. Mr. McDonald is the first missionary trained and com-
34 Progress of the Work.

missioned by the Presbyterian Church of Victoria. Dr. Geddie

died at Geelong, 14th December, aged fifty-six.

1873 : January 6, Dayspring wrecked. Mr. Annand (Pres-

byterian Church of Nova Scotia) arrived at Melbourne en route
for the islands.

During all these years Dr. Geddie, in conjunction with Mr.

Inglis, was engaged in visiting the various islands of the group,
seeking to get into friendly relations with the people, and to open
new doors for teachers and missionaries. On him, too, fell the
main work of translation. Besides the New Testament, the
Psalter, and the books of the Old Testament, many tracts and
books, suitable to his people, were not only translated but
printed on Aneityum. With the view of carrying on the print-
Old Testament under his
ing of the remaining portions of the
own eye in Melbourne, he removed his family to Geelong in
the close of 1869. For reasons of health the removal was
exceedingly desirable. It was hoped, both for him and

that the change to a more bracing climate might

his wife,
restoresome of their wasted vigour. But the rest he so
much needed was denied for each of the three following years
;

he found himself under the necessity of returning to the islands

to assist in the growing work of the mission. Perhaps he over-
rated this necessity. It was one of the heart —the necessity of
a master builder who must see the work he has begun carried
—
on to his mind of a father who longs to see the children whom
he has begotten in the Lord, and to minister to them some
spiritual gift. —
So he went went for the last time, in the
voyage of the Dayspring, 1872. But the messenger of Death
went with him ; and while he was attending the annual
conference of the mission, in the month of June, he received
a paralytic stroke, admonishing him that he must come
 Progress of the Work. 35

home to die. Mr. Neilson, his son-in-law, accompanied him to

Geelong, where for a little while he seemed to gather strength,

and hopes were entertained of his being spared to bless his

family with his gentle presence, and the mission with the ripened
fruits of his experience. But it pleased God to take him to
himself. —
A second stroke falling on a vital part utterly dis- —
abled him. His consciousness remained, but his power of
—
speech was gone. And so he lay like a weary pilgrim at the
gates of Heaven — enjoying the peace of God's beloved
answering the question of his trust in God by a smile —calm and
beautiful. In the early hour of a bright summer morning, in
December, he fell asleep.
" Blessed are the dead that die in the Lord. They rest from
their labours, and works do follow them."
their

The announcement of Dr. Geddie's death was received with

much sorrow in the circle of his friends in Victoria. His warm-
hearted children in Aneityum wept very bitter tears when they
heard that their good father and the records of the
was dead ;

churches of Nova Scotia testify to the reverence and love in

which they held their first missionary. They are making gener-
ous provision for his widow and family ; and the people of the
Presbyterian Church of Victoria, to whose keeping God has
consigned his mortal remains, are preparing to erect a monu-
ment in the cemetery at Geelong —a monument which will

command observation, and will declare to their children the

honour in which they held the unassuming piety and self-denying

zeal of the Founder of the New Hebrides Mission.

^V|^°

r>2
 ^>^ fep^e<^ r

VIII.

PROSPECTS OF THE MISSION.

W HE New Hebrides mission is singular in this respect — that

it is not the mission of any society, or of any one church.
Like Wisdom's seven-pillared house, it is sustained by seven
separate churches : Nova Scotia has three men in the field
Canada, one ; Scotland, three ; Victoria, two ; New Zealand
(north) one ; Otago, one. New South Wales had one, and is

prepared, I presume, to have another. Then the churches of

South and Eastern Australia and Tasmania, although not sup-
porting missionaries, have contributed to the funds of the mis-
sion. The bond of union among these churches, beside their
common faith, is that they are Presbyterians. They represent
the four quarters of the Church of Scotland—the Established,
the United, the Free, and the Reformed. But I can assure my
readers that there is no intention on the part of the missionaries
to quarter the Church of the New Hebrides. I don't know

upon what model exactly they will form it perhaps that of the —
Culdees, which was an island church. They have taken the
first step toward the formation of a body ecclesiastical. They
have asked leave to be allowed to constitute themselves into a
Court, with synodical authority —a request which, I am sure,
the parent churches will see it to be their duty to concede.
The brethren on the spot are the only competent judges of
what the necessities of their work require. They know, too,
where their wisdom and strength lie. They may be well trusted
to do what is right.
 Prospects of the Mission. 37

The establishment of church authority would deliver the mis-

sion from an element of weakness to which it is exposed while

there no government, or seven governments divided from

is

each other by the whole diameter of the earth and instead of ;

endangering, I believe that it would preserve the harmony

which, in an eminent degree, has characterised the past history
of the mission. And that desideratum of self-government being
supplied, there is an obvious advantage in the mixed nature of the
missionary staff. Coming from so many different churches,
they draw after them a vast amount of prayerful interest
and affection. It would be a serious loss if any of the seven
pillars were to be withdrawn.
There seems no reason, however, to fear that they will grow
weary in this work of well-doing, or that the supply of men
will be inadequate. It will be seen from the previous notice of
the progress of this work that half of the present staff have been
settled within the last three years. This indicates a growing
strength, and zeal in the missionary spirit.

And itmay be encouraging to our friends elsewhere to know

that although we in Victoria have as yet contributed only one
Recruit, there are two or three other young men with us who
have expressed their wish to be employed in that service. Our
proximity to the islands, the visits of the Dayspring with the
missionaries, Mr. Paton's tour, and Dr. Geddie's residence
among us, have attracted our young men to the work.Then
the evangelistic duty of the church has been made a prominent
part of the student's training in our Theological Hall, and the
principle laid down, that ministers are not to choose their own work,
but, like good soldiers of Jesus Christ, are to go where He leads
them. The other Australian churches will gradually come into

the position of being able to send their quota of men ; so that

there is good ground for believing that, as new doors open, men
and means will be adequately provided.
I have spoken of the singular construction of this mission.
38 Prospects of the Mission.

Its history is equally singular. During the first five years, as

much work was done been done, apparently, during the
as has
succeeding twenty. There was a brilliant dawn, and a splendid
flush of success at the commencement ; but the day that fol-
lowed has been dark and cloudy. The mission has been tossed
on stormy waters, and been exposed to disaster, and death, and
massacre. And these calamities have been compensated by no
signal victories — we cannot ex-
at least to the eye of man. If
plain this mystery, we can still say, with our Lord, " Even so,
Father for so it hath seemed good in thy sight." At the same
;

time, there have been causes at work —such as the sweeping

visitations of disease, the malign influence of traders and the
cruel acts of the man-stealers —which have kept alive the power
of superstition, and made the islanders dread the white man's
presence. These causes are, we may hope, disappearing. We
may hope that the time to favour these dark places of the earth
is close at hand.
Then we must not forget that that long night of toil has not
been altogether barren. Besides the church of Aniwa the —
whole population of which island are receiving the kind christian
care of our beloved friends, Mr. and Mrs. Paton — in Tana,
Eramanga, Fotuna, and Efate, there are little bands of people
whose hearts the Lord has opened to attend to the gospel mes-
sage,and whose faith, in some cases, has endured sore trial and
triumphed over very formidable obstacles.
And, finally, we ought surely to mark it as a matter of un-
qualified thankfulness toGod, that Aneityum was so early and,
to speak comparatively, so easily won. If Mr. Geddie had met
with the repulses which have driven the missionaries from the
other islands, it is difficult to see how the mission ever could
have had a beginning. But Aneityum gave it a favourable start,

and has ever since afforded shelter and safe retreat to the
teachers and missionaries when they were hunted from their
own stations ; and it still forms the base of those operations
 Prospects of the Mission. 39

which are gradually spreading through the group. Certainly,

itwas by the good hand of God upon him that Mr. Geddie was
led to choose, out of the thousand islands of the South Seas,
that little island of Aneityum, for his home and field of labour.

Of the missionary brethren on the islands, I have just this to

say : Let no man think that they are throwing their lives away.
The authors of the " South-Sea Bubbles "* deplore the abstrac-
tion of such men from the work of evangelising the masses at
home. Let the Earl and the Doctor set themselves to that
work. The Church's duty is to " go to all nations." They ad-
mit, however, that " if these races can be taught to appreciate
the superior beauty of Christianity for its own sake, a nobler
purpose for a man to devote his life to can scarcely be con-
ceived." No one who has read the brief sketches of
Aneityumese Christianity which I have given, can doubt that
that result has been attained there ; and our brethren need no
other vindication of their self-sacrifice, than the assurance that
God's word " shall not return to Him void, but shall accomplish
the thing whereto He sent it " —whatever thing may that be.
But if —
we knew how difficult their work is how depressingly
it settles down upon them at times —
and how languor, fever, and
ague, invade and weaken them, and dry up the sources of joy
and the powers of thought, we would feel that their devotion
calls —not for our pity; they do not want that —but for our warm-
est sympathy, and constant affectionate remembrance in prayer.
That many prayers are offered on their behalf, in the various
churches which they represent, I have no doubt ; but there
ought to be something more definite. There ought to be

* A. book of which the writers ought to be ashamed. Many of their

" Bubbles " show that they have failed to appreciate the superior beauty
—
of christian holiness. They are very profane and very foul, blown out —
of foulest waters. We don't expect heathen people to be pure we ;

don't expect even professedly Christian /people, living at French ports

and much-frequented harbours, to be pure but we do expect English :

noblemen, and English doctors, and English books to be pure. When

will men learn that it is only the pure in heart who can see God!
4° Prospects of the Mission.

some arrangement and agreement, some concerted hour and

day of prayer, which would unite all the people of these widely-
scattered churches at the throne of grace. I venture to make
the suggestion. If the next mission conference will put it in
shape, and issue a proposal in terms of it, I am sure that it

will meet with a general and cordial compliance.

And now, may God be merciful to us, and bless us, and
cause His face to shine upon us ; that His way may be known
upon the earth, and His saving health among all nations.
Then shall the earth yield her increase, and God, even our
own God, shall bless us and all the ends of the earth shall
;

fear Him.
And then shall the great Promise of the Desert receive its

and " the whole earth shall be filled

high fulfilment ;

WITH THE GLORY OF THE LORD."

 THE VOYAGES

OF

THE " D AYS P RING."

D. MACDONALD, D.D.
 HISTORY OF THE MISSION VESSEL,
" DAYSPRING."

OW often does God bring good out of evil ! and how often
does the wrath of man work out the righteousness of God
The interest which has been felt for several years by the Pres-
byterian Churches of Australasia in the New Hebrides mission,
is directly traceable to the suffering and sorrow caused by the
breaking-up of the Tana mission, early in the year 1862. On
no island in the South Seas have greater efforts been made to
establish the Gospel than on Tana and on none with, till very
;

lately, less seeming success. The Tanese are the fiercest people
south of the line. Captain Cook could not land on their
island in 1774, without the protection of a broadside. In 1839
John Williams escaped from the Tanese, to fall, alas next day !

on Eramanga. In 1843 Messrs. Turner and Nesbit, of the

'

—
London Missionary Society- now Drs. Turner and Nesbit, of
—
Samoa attempted to establish a mission on Tana; though,
after a few months' trial, they had to flee with their lives and :

in 1862 our own Mr. Paton had to abandon the field, broken in
heart and health, after three years labour.
1
'
The other, mission-

aries on the group, sympathising with Mr. Paton's afflictions,

—
advised him to take a trip to Australia partly for the benefit
his health, and partly, also, to awaken an interest in the mis-
sion among the colonial churches.
44 History of the " Dayspring."

The mission had hitherto been dependent, for its temporal

support, on far-away poor churches in Scotland and Nova Scotia.
Recently, however, a large population had congregated in the
colonies of Australia strong churches were being formed there
; ;

and wealth was fast accumulating. It was natural and right, in

such circumstances, that Australian christians should be ap-
pealed to for aid to a mission almost at their doors. And so
Mr. Paton came.
The effect of his visit to the colonies was very extraordinary.
Never, before or since, did our congregations enter so heartily
into any one movement, as they did into Mr. Paton's.
Mr. Paton came to Australasia in the middle of 1862, and
presented himself before the General Assembly of the Presby-
terian Church of Victoria in November of that year. The im-
pression which he produced marks an era in the history of our
church. His visit was remarkably well timed. By that date
we had got over the heavier portion of the secular work, result-
ing from the consummation of our union ; and we were
yearning for something better and higher to do. Then, Mr.
Paton had a tale of sorrow to tell ; and he told it well. The
affecting story of the Tana mission — of the death of his wife,

and of the death of his colleague, Mr. Johnston, with his own
almost miraculous escape — filled many a heart at the time, and
is not even yet forgotten. Then again, Mr. Paton did his work
very systematically, and, we are bound to add, with immense
bodily toil. He visited almost every Presbyterian congregation
in New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, and Tasmania
preaching and delivering addresses as he went, and carrying on
his work, with great encouragement indeed, but with great la-
bour. Then again, further, Mr. Paton set before us a definite
project,which took wonderfully, especially with our children
—
and Sabbath schools that was, that the children of Australia
should give to the New Hebrides mission a mission ship, to be
owned and supported by the children themselves.
 History of the " Dayspring.'' 45

The mission already possessed a small schooner, the " John

Knox," which had been built in Glasgow, and had been sent
out to Sydney on the deck of a ship. But the " John Knox "
was a very small thing, of only a few tons' capacity, and could
only sail between the islands in summer weather. What was
wanted now was a real ship, that could go anywhere even to —
—
Sydney or Melbourne -and that should have a real captain and
crew, like the " John Williams," and not like the " John
Knox," which was sailed by a missionary and two or three
blackfellows. '

Mr. Paton's proposal took at once ; and in a very few months

upwards of ^3000 were collected, and remitted to Nova Scotia,
wherewith to build a suitable vessel. The success of the move-
ment may be inferred from the fact, that within a year-and-a-
half of the time when the scheme was broached in Australia,
the " Dayspring ''
was launched in Nova Scotia.
The vessel was built under the auspices of Dr. Bayne, of Pictou,
the then convener of the Nova Scotia Mission Committee; and we
believe that to Dr. first occurred the happy name by
Bayne
which the vessel —
was thereafter known " The Dayspring."
Soon after the keel was laid, the actual superintendence and
care of the structure was given to Captain W. A. Fraser our —
own Captain Fraser, who subsequently commanded the " Day-
spring for eight years, and whom we still remember with much
''

affection and regret.

The "Dayspring " was built at a cost of ^343 2 ; in this,

however, was included all the furnishings, and a double set of
sails. A deck-house was afterwards found to be needed, and
this was put up at Sydney, at a cost of ^344 5s. nd. ; so
that the " Dayspring," as we afterwards knew her, cost
on ^4000.
altogether close
The new mission vessel—a brigantine, that is, rigged as a
brig, with square sailson her foremast ; and as a schooner, with

sails fore and aft on her mainmast — left Halifax in October

46 History of the ''
Dayspring."

1863, having on board the Rev. Mr. and Mrs. Morison, the Rev.
Mr. and Mrs. McCullagh, and the Rev. J. D. Gordon, mission-
aries ; together with Captain and Mrs. Fraser and crew. We
need scarcely add, that her departure from Nova Scotia
awakened much good feeling, and that she was sent away with
many many a prayer. Early in January she was
a blessing and
abreast of the Cape of Good Hope, and it was voted desirable
to call at Capetown. The vessel remained two or three days
there, and the Captain was afterwards always loud in praise of
the kindness which the party experienced at the Cape.
In March, 1864, the "Dayspring" put in her first appearance
in Port Phillip waters, and took our young people all captive.
It was but as yesterday since Mr. Paton moved them to collect
for a ship to take the gospel to the heathen, and here now was
the reality — beautiful and buoyant as a seagull, and having
actual missionaries on board. After being exhibited to the
good people of Melbourne and Geelong, she passed on to
Sydney, where she shipped stores for a long cruise, and whence,
along with our own missionaries, she took the Rev. Mr. and Mrs.
Ella, of the London Missionary Society, to their station on
Uea, one of the Loyalty group.
The arrival of the " Dayspring " at Aneityum was like life

from the dead to the fathers of the mission, and arrangements

were at once made for entering on the proper work of the mis-
sion ship. Her first trip was to the Loyalties, the impression
being then that the "Dayspring" might serve the purposes of both
missions. The authorities of the London Missionary Society,
however, did not take kindly to this suggestion, and the pro-
posal was soon given up.
Captain Fraser got into some trouble at this time with the
French commandant at Lifu. The French officials were then
carrying things with a very high hand on New Caledonia and
the neighbouring islands, against the natives and all Protestant
missionaries : and the mission vessel was ordered away. It was
 History of the " Dayspring/' 47

on this occasion that Captain Fraser performed the feat which

so astonished the French on Lifu, as related by the Rev. S.
Macfarlane in his interesting book called the " Story of the Lifu
Mission." The " Dayspring " had got into a narrow bay, where
she could neither luff nor wear ; and as there was a strong
breeze blowing at the time, the French officers looked on with
ill-concealed delight, expecting every moment to see the vessel
on the rocks, and indulging in the hope of some loot. Captain
Fraser, however, had just left a school of navigation where
ever}' device of escape had to be practised —namely, running
the American blockade ; and, to the astonishment and chagrin
of the onlookers, he trimmed his sails so as to cause his vessel
to move out stem foremost — one of the rarest and most difficult
resources of the master of a sailing ship.
Making for the New Hebrides, Mr. and Mrs. Morison were
settled on Efate, and Mr. Gordon on Eramanga, where his
brother had been massacred a few years before.
Just at this time intelligence came to the New Hebrides to
the effect that the first " John Williams " had been lost on
Danger Island (17th May, 1864) one of the consequences of
;

which must be, that the missionaries on the Loyalty islands

should be left without stores, and, not improbably, without
communications, for a whole year. On consultation, it was re-
solved to send the " Dayspring " again to the Loyalties even —
though at the risk of offending the French, who were the terror
of the missionaries in those days ; the fear being that, after
desolating the Loyalties, they might take the New Hebrides
too.
In January, 1865, the vessel was again in Sydney ; and, after
an overhaul, she visited Hobart Town, Launceston, and Ade-
laide. Mr. Paton was on board' during this intercolonial voy-

age, and his presence added much to the interest felt by the
children of these towns in their own ship. In June she re-
turned to Aneityum, and then made three voyages round the
 u
48 History of the Dayspring."

New Hebrides group, and three to the Loyalties. The feeling

of the French authorities had changed much from last year.
Appeals had been made from London to the French Emperor,
in the interest of the Protestant missions in the South Seas
and Captain Fraser was more cordially welcomed at Lifu this

year than he was the year before.

It was while the Mission Conference was in session on
Aneityum, in 1865, that H.M.S. Curacoa visited the islands,
and that her commander, Sir William Wiseman, shelled one or
two villages inTana and Eramanga, on account of murders of
white men recently committed there.The Tanese were awed
by Sir William's display of power, and to this day they are
under the wholesome fear of another visit of a ship of war.
But there was an outcry at the time against the New
Hebrides missionaries, on account of their supposed approval
of shooting the poor blacks ; and there was a difference of
opinion even within the mission itself on the subject. Some mis-
sionaries go the extreme length of holding that they should
not employ force, even in self-defence ; while others feel

that they are British subjects, and think that, on occasions,

they have a right to appeal to Caesar.
The truth is, however, that the New Hebrides mission-
aries wereno way responsible for Sir William Wiseman's
in
acts, right or wrong. At Sir William's requisition, Captain
Fraser undertook to pilot the " Curacoa " to Tana, and Mr.
Paton undertook to interpret for the natives—just as they
might have been called on in Melbourne to aid the authori-
ties in any judicial inquiry, without being responsible for the
results. It would be ridiculous
to fancy that a British com-
modore, responsible to the Imperial government, should con-
sult missionaries as to his duty or conduct in the dispensa-
tion of justice, on account of the murder of British subjects;
though, for a time, an attempt was made to injure the mis-
sion by an outcry to the effect that the New Hebrides mis-
 History of the " Dayspring." 49

sionaries were seeking to spread the gospel by the aid of

powder and shot !

It was during this year also that Captain Fraser was sent,

for the first time, to Eastern Polynesia, to give such aid

as he could to the missionaries of the London Missionary
Society, while they were without a vessel of their own.
The " Dayspring " spent three months on this Eastern trip,

calling at Samoa, Raratonga, and the Ellice group. The in-

habitants of the Ellice group speak the language of Samoa,

and it is said that the visit of the " Dayspring," with teachers
and books from Samoa, is still noted as a great era in their
history.
In 1866, Captain Fraser made a voyage to the Loyalty
islands and round the New Hebrides group ; and besides, made
three trips to Sydney and back to Aneityum. The first of
these three trips was the usual one, for stores for the mission
but there was a special history connected with the other two.
Dr. Geddie, who had gone with his family to Nova Scotia on
furlough, was expected back to these colonies about the middle
of the year. Other missionaries were expected with him.
Mr. Paton was in Australia, making permanent arrangements
for the support of the " Dayspring." Mr. Copeland was also
similarly engaged, chiefly in New Zealand. And so the " Day-
spring was sent up in June, to bring all these brethren and
their families to the Islands. In August she returned to Aneit-
yum with Messrs. Paton, Copeland, Cosh, and McNair, and
their wives, Dr. and Mrs. Geddie, with Mr. and Mrs. Neilson
following in the new " John Williams."
The second " John Williams " was a splendid vessel of her
size; but she was ill-fated from the first. In coming to at
Aneityum harbour, she grounded on a coral reef, and hung
there for three days. She was so injured that it was judged
necessary to send her back to Sydney for repairs and it was ;

at the same time resolved that the " Dayspring " should convoy
So History of the " Dayspring.

her crippled consort, in case of any emergency by the way.

The " Dayspring " attended the " John Williams " to the Aus-
tralian coast,and yet she was back again on her own field within
five weeks. " John Williams " was lost soon thereafter on
The
Savage island ; the fine vessel herself and every article on board
going down into the deep, though, happily, there was time to
save the lives of the passengers and crew.
The " Dayspring " this year settled Mr. aind Mrs. Copeland
on Fotuna, Mr. and Mrs. Paton on Aniwa, Mr. and Mrs. Cosh
on Efate, and Mr. and Mrs. McNair on Eramanga ; and be-
sides, acted as a very considerable check on kidnapping traders,
whose evil deeds began now to be felt on the New Hebrides
group.
The question of the support of the " Dayspring" was by this

time becoming an anxious question to all the friends of the New

Hebrides mission. Experience proved that the cost of her
maintenance would be considerably higher than was anticipated.
Mr. Paton had made three visits to the colonies, and had
raised large sums, especially in Victoria, through his appeals ;

but it was felt that spasmodic efforts could not be depended

on. No fewer than ten churches were looked to, to provide
for the support of the mission vessel, some of them being small, and
more than oneof whomhad alreadyfailed to furnish their expected
contributions. In these circumstances, it was resolved, at a con-
ference between representatives of the mission (Dr. Geddie and
Mr. Paton) and the Mission Committee of the General As-
sembly of the Presbyterian Church of Victoria, that Mel-
bourne should become the head quarters of the " Dayspring "in
the colonies, on the understanding that the Victorian church, be-
ing the largest and wealthiest church supporting the mission,
should guarantee the maintenance of the vessel— that church
receiving from the other churches a fair proportion of the whole
cost. On this arrangement the " Dayspring '' came to Mel-
bourne in January, 1867 ; and, from that time till the end of her
 History of the " Dayspring." 5

history, therewas henceforth abundance of means found for her

support and her popularity in the leading colony of the
;

Australian group was always unbounded.

Before leaving this year for the Islands, she was taken up to
the Melbourne wharf, to give the public an opportunity of visit-
ing the children's mission vessel. She was boarded by multi-
tudes of young and old. Captain Fraser made himself and his
ship immense and the " Dayspring"
favourites with everybody ;

was sent away, on her outward voyage, with any amount of

presents, and with the good wishes and best blessings of
thousands of the best people of Victoria.

The year 1867 was a dark year on the Islands. The whole
group was swept by more than one epidemic. First, hooping

cough, and then diphtheria, cut off numbers of old people and
children. The heathen, always superstititious and suspicious,
attributed the loss of their children to the missionaries ; and it

was feared, for a time, that a general massacre might ensue.

The missionaries stood, wisely, to their posts ; and in due time
the feeling of hostility passed away. Even this year the "Day-
spring " received a remarkable proof of her popularity from the
natives of Aneityum. Towards the end of the year's work, it
was found that the vessel's foremast was decaying ; and as it
was dangerous to venture go far as Melbourne, with, a weak
mast, the forest of Aneityum was searched for a suitable tree.
One was found at a distance of about two miles from the sea,
and was taken, by sheer force of native labour, to the harbour,
and at length put on board the vessel. The valley in which the
tree grew was among the mountains, and it was a great under-
taking to drag it by main force to such a distance. Captain
Fraser had got many a valued gift on behalf of the " Day-
spring " during his career incommand of the vessel but the ;

one which he boasted chiefly of was the new foremast, presented

to him by the converts of Aneityum. The spar would have cost
,£50 in Melbourne.
e2
52 History of the " Dayspring."

During the year 1868, the " Dayspring" did a large amount
of work among the Islands, but without any noticeable events.
Mr. William Sim, a Christian gentleman belonging to Ballarat,
and deeply interestedin the mission, went with his wife to the
New Hebrides in the vessel, and was able, on his return, to

tell how missionary affairs looked to a business man, from a

colonial point of view. His report was to the effect that he
was profoundly impressed with the degradation of the heathen,
with the self-denial and abundant labours of the missionaries,
and with the power of the gospel over such of the natives as
had come under its influence. We find, by the report for the
year, that the " Dayspring " had been once at New Caledonia,
twice at the Loyalty Islands, five times at Fotuna, seven times
at Tana, nine times at Aniwa, nine times at Eramanga, five

times at Efate, and once at Santo, Ambrym, Tonga, Metas,

Three Hills, Makura, and Nguna. Several of these islands are
hundreds of miles distant from each other, the sea-area of the
group being about 400 miles in length and 200 miles in breadth.
In 1869 it was judged desirable to send the " Dayspring "
to
1
New Zealand. That colony is so far distant from the con-
and so far out of the straight course from
tinent of Australia,
Australia to the New
Hebrides islands, that it had not been
found convenient before to call at any of the ports of New
.Zealand. There were many reasons, however, why that im-
portant colony should be brought within the influence of a visit
from the mission vessel. New Zealand is, in fact, the nearest
point of British territory to the mission field. Several sailing
vessels from Auckland trade amongst the islands. Both the
north and south ends of New Zealand —which, by the way, has
a north and south both politically and —and
ecclesiastically
especially the south end, are Presbyterian provinces. And so
the Presbyterian mission vessel was sent to New Zealand, to
awaken an interest in the Presbyterian mission, the field of
which is within a week's sail of Auckland, one of the chief
 History of the. " Dayspring.''
53

towns of that colony. Advantage was also taken of this visit

to secure an insurance fund for the " Dayspring," and thereby
to relieve the maintenance fund of a large strain on its means.
The revenue had by this time so accumulated be-
in Victoria
yond the outlay, that it was proposed to set apart .£1500 for
an insurance fund, provided as much more could be got in ad-
dition. This project was submitted to the friends of the mis-
sion in New Zealand, and the matter was taken up most en-
thusiastically. Upwards of ^1460 were raised for the fund;
and this amount, with ^250 from Nova Scotia, and the Vic-
torian contribution, made a fund of over ^3000, from the in-
terest of which the " Dayspring " was thereafter statedly insured
in Melbourne offices for ^2000.

The popularity of the " Dayspring " in New Zealand was be-
yond all precedent. The visit to Dunedin was so timed as to
be there when the Synod of Otago was in session ; and the
Synod adjourned over a forenoon to go on board the " Day-
spring." The mission vessel became the rage. A great public
meeting was held in Dr. Burns's church, at which glowing ora-
tions were, delivered on Presbyterianism, missions, the " Day-
spring," and —the insurance fund Steamers with large parties
!

boarded the vessel, as she lay at anchor in the bay ; children,

in multitudes, thronged to see a real mission ship ; and never
was Heber's hymn, " From Greenland's icy mountains," sung
with greater heart than it was on the deck of the "Dayspring,"
—
by the young Scotch colonists of Dun-Edin the Edin-Burgh
of the South:

An amusing incident occurred at Dunedin. At a great open-

air gathering in Vauxhall gardens, the recreation ground of the
city, a few Christian blacks who had come in the " Dayspring"

were put up to sing one of their hymns in their own language,

but set to the dear old Scotch tune of "Auld Lang Syne." The
Dunedin people, not perhaps distinguishing thelanguage in which
54 History 0/ the " Dayspring."

the sung, took up the chorus in their own mother

hymn was
tongue, and gave the well-known refrain in broad Scotch,
with a vigour that astonished the blacks, and did "not by any
means shock the visitors who were present. Scottish feeling is
to be found everywhere, all the world over ; but in Dunedin
it overflows.

The " Dayspring " likewise visited Wellington and Auck-

land, the chief cities of northern New Zealand; and the im-
pression produced in these towns also was most favourable.

As showing work which any vessel like the " Dayspring''

the
is it may be mentioned that this year the
capable of doing,
" Dayspring " visited New Zealand twice, Aneityum eleven
times, Fotuna nine times, Tana twelve times, Eramanga nine
times, Efate seven times, and Santo twice besides calling at the
;

smaller islands of the New Hebrides group, and crossing over

to the Loyalty group, to serve the brethren of the London
Missionary Society stationed on Mare, Uea, and Lifu. A
third " John Williams " had arrived in the South Seas by this
'

time ; but it was found that she had so much arrears of work to
do among the Eastern groups, that once more the services of
the " Dayspring " were put in requisition for the Loyalty mis-
sion. The vessel and her good captain, however, were found
equal to all this work, as appears by a special commendation
given by the missionaries to Captain Fraser, in their annual re-

port for 1869, to the following effect :— " Captain Fraser con-
tinues to perform his varied ship duties in a praiseworthy man-
n'er, takes a deep interest in our mission, and is a universal
favourite among the natives ; and from his obliging, kindly,
and gentlemanly bearing to all connected with the mission, he
proves himself qualified for the responsible and noble work to
which God has called him in the New Hebrides."

On her voyage up to the colonies next year (1870) the "Day-

spring " called at Sydney, where she had some repairs executed J
 History of the " Dayspring.'' 55

and she then came on to Melbourne. It had been previously-

arranged that on this occasion she should go into Geelong har-
bour, with the view of adding to the interest felt in the mission
by the_ residents of the western district of Victoria. In no por-
tion of the colony did Mr. Paton get greater encouragement,
when collecting money for the building of the mission ship,
than in the Western District —pre-eminently the garden of
Victoria ; but that was eight years before, and, meanwhile, a
new generation of children had sprung up, to whom Mr. Paton
and the " Dayspring " were only a tradition. And besides,
Ballarat, which in 1862 was not much more than an encamp-
ment of tents, was in 1870 a city with many churches and mul-
titudes of Sabbath school children. And so the " Dayspring "
was sent to Geelong harbour, or, as it is called, Corio Bay,
the most western point of the great land-locked sheet of water
called Port Phillip.

The following notice, taken from a Melbourne periodical,

gives the impressions of an eye-witness as to the effect of the
visit of the "Dayspring" on Geelong and Ballarat :

Corio Bay, or Geelong harbour, is the inmost point of Port Phillip,

and is The bay is
surely intended by nature for the site of a seaport.
quite land-locked,and any amount of shipping could ride at anchor in-
side of Point Henry. The time was when Geelong thought that its
natural advantages would give it the start even of Melbourne, and make
it the commercial metropolis of Victoria but it requires more than
:

natural advantages to make a great town ; and Melbourne, though

standing on an open bay which is little better than a roadstead, has out-
stripped not only Geelong, but even Sydney, and has really no rival on
the south side of the line. Geelong, however, though not equal to
•

Melbourne, is yet a considerable town and with its safe .harbour, and
;

with railways to Colac and farther west, will be sure to advance. Gee-
long has a population of, say, 20,000 souls, and the town is already get-
ting a character of its own. Without the bustle of Melbourne or Bal-
larat, it is becoming a domestic town, remarkable for the number of
people who are settling there for the education of their families and for
56 History of the " Dayspring."

the enjoyment of society. Such a place is sure to be more open to re-

ligious influences than mere money-making towns, and Geelong is, in
fact, better supplied with churches than any other town in Australia.

On the morning of Friday, the 4th of February, the Presbyterian mis-

sion vessel 'Dayspring' cast anchor in Geelong harbour. The 'Dayspring'
is one of the institutions of the Presbyterian church, and her name is fa-
mous throughout all our congregations and Sabbath schools. The vessel
is supported by other Presbyterian churches as well as ours but Mel- ;

bourne is her head-quarters, and she is well known, by sight or by report,

to all our people.Her visits to the colonies have done very much in
awakening a missionary spirit throughout our borders and it is now felt ;

that, as time will permit, she should visit all the seaports of Australasia.
New Zealand, and this year it
Last year she visited the chief towns of
had been resolved to run her up to Geelong. This was known before
her arrival, and arrangements had been made to have meetings and
services appropriate to the occasion. The local ministers entered very
heartily into the arrangements, and they, together with Dr. Geddie (who
had come from the mission field with the Dayspring,') and the convener '

of the New Hebrides Mission Committee, were able in a few days to

address all the Presbyterian congregations in the town and neighbour-
hood. These services culminated in an afternoon gathering of Sabbath-
school children in the hall of the Mechanics' Institute on Sabbath, the
13th. The assemblage of children was really immense, and their bright
appearance augured well for the future of the church and colony of Vic-
toria. During the same week the Dayspring was taken alongside the
'
'

wharf, and for several days her decks and cabin were crowded with
visitors. Altogether, the missionary impression produced on the town
was very strong, and will, no doubt, also be lasting.
Services like those held in Geelong on the previous week, were con-
ducted in Ballarat and the surrounding country on the week beginning
Sabbath, the 20th. It is well known that Ballarat is the metropolis of
the gold-fields of Victoria, and the town itself is indeed one of the won-
ders of the world. It is so new a place that rats have not found their
way thither yet ; but still it has its 50,000 inhabitants, with no end of
stores, churches, hotels, public buildings,and gold mines. It will be
readily understood how missionary would have an eye to financiers
operations on such a place though, as Ballarat is an inland town, fifty
;

miles from Geelong, the fact that the Dayspring could not be taken up' '

to the diggings, and exhibited at The Corner," or on Lake Wendouree,

'

was a sad damper to our expectations of telling on the mind and pocket
 History of the " Day spring." 57

of the Golden Town. In a happy hour, however, it occurred to the Rev.

Mr. Inglis, of St. John's Church, Ballarat, that as the '
Dayspring
could not be taken to Ballarat, Ballarat, or at least young Ballarat,
might be taken to the Dayspring and to Geelong. The idea at once
'
'

took, and an idea which takes at Ballarat is usually soon put into exe-
cution. Meetings of Sabbath-school teachers were held, letters were
written, deputations were sent, telegrams were despatched, the Railway
Department was applied to, and it was very soon arranged that excur-
sion trains should be sent to Geelong to bring the children of Ballarat
and its neighbourhood to see the '
Dayspring '
and the sea. Some people
may think that so young a town as Ballarat cannot have as many child-
ren as other towns, in proportion to the number of its inhabitants ; but
just the reverse is the case. The immigrants who came to Victoria
in the great rush some sixteen and eighteen years ago, were chiefly
newly-married people, and one can scarcely walk a street in a town now
without treading on children. I can say at any rate for Ballarat that the
Sabbath-school children's meeting, which we held in the Alfred Hall,
was the largest gathering of children I ever addressed, and was, in fact,
the largest religious meeting I ever saw in this country.

An excursion train from Ballarat to Geelong under such auspices and

arrangements was sure to be popular. Many of these children had
never seen the sea the Dayspring had often been described to them,
;
'
'

and was an object of intense interest to them the Sabbath teachers ;

wanted a holiday ; and so when the excursion day came it was found
that the railway was required to convey 3000 people, old and young, to
Geelong and back. It is understood that this is by a long way the
largest multitude that ever left Ballarat at the same time by rail. They
needed three separate trains, but the department was equal to the occa-
sion and in due time Geelong was astonished to see its streets invaded
;

by an immense procession, chiefly of well-dressed youngsters, all mar-

shalled in excellent order, and preceded by a couple of stalwart High-
landers, magnificently arrayed in tartan, and discoursing excellent music
out of the bagpipes ! The '
Dayspring,' of course, was the great attrac-
tion ; but the children were- also taken to the Botanic Gardens, where
within sight of the shipping and the bay, they had several hours of sport
and rare enjoyment. Nor were their juvenile appetites forgotten a, ;

providore had been sent down from Ballarat the day before with lots of
provisions, and the rapid consumption of buns was a sight to see.

By four o'clock in the afternoon the various schools began to

assemble on the railway platform' for their return to Ballarat, and by
 58 History of the "Dayspring."

were despatched, taking back as happy a lot of

five o'clock four trains

children as ever were out for a holiday and it is but due to the Vic-
;

torian Railway Department, as well as to the Presbyterian Sabbath-

school teachers of Ballarat, to add that all these children reached home
without one having gone a-missing, without, so far as I know, one pain-
ful feeling —
God be thanked !

After this rush of popularity, the mission vessel sailed for the
islands, taking with her several missionaries and a great cargo
of stores ; she reached Aneityum on the 5th May. Two mis-
sionaries were settled this year on fresh islands —namely, Mr.
Milne on Nguna, and Mr. Goodwill on Santo. Santo is the
largest island of the group ; and being also the northernmost,
it is the farthest away from civilization and protection. The
deepest interest has therefore been always felt in Mr. Good-
will's Christian venture, in trusting himself and his young wife
among untried savages, hundreds of miles away from even a
brother missionary. But he knew in whom he believed ; and
the shield of God's providence had hitherto protected him
and his.

It is unnecessary to follow the " Dayspring " in her voyages

round the islands this year, as there must be much sameness in

her visits ; though it is not therefore to be inferred that she was
not doing important work.

In the annual report for 1870, it is stated that the. mission vessel
fell inwith several kidnapping vessels from the colonies, which
were found prowling among the islands for victims, and that at
length the victims were turning round to retaliate ; accounts
are given of ships'-boats seized and sailors killed.

Towards the end of 1870, the "Dayspring" called once

more at Auckland, to land Mr. and Mrs. Cosh, and then went
eastward to the Hervey group, for native teachers for the New
Hebrides. The brethren of the several Eastern missions have
always encouraged the best of their christian natives to go to
 History of the " Dayspring. 59

the islands beyond, for evangelising purposes

; and, more than
once, the " Dayspring " took several married couples as far
west as the New Hebrides for christian work —but it may be
added, that the experiment has not been much of a success.
Several influences operated against it. The languages of
Eastern and Western Polynesia are utterly unlike. Although,
strange to say, the language of Eastern Polynesia, from New
Zealand to the Sandwich islands, is virtually one ;
yet from
Figi, westwards, there is a new language — not only in every
group, but also in every island. Then, there is a difference of
race : the long-haired, yellow-coloured, tall Malay race, typified
in the Maori,and inhabiting Eastern Polynesia, is altogether
different from the woolly-haired, black-skinned, thick-set,
almost-negro race found 'in the groups nearer Australia and
New Guinea; And yet again, the damp climate of the western
islands tells fatally on the softer constitution of the eastern race.

Few of the native teachers taken from, the eastern groups have
survived for any number of years, and it is therefore understood
that the practice is to be discontinued. The missionaries on the
New Hebrides group, though yearning for the assistance of the
more advanced native christians of the eastern groups, feel
that they must henceforth depend wholly on native teachers
reared by themselves.
Such had been the success of the visit of the " Dayspring "
to Geelong in 1870, that it was resolved to send her to the
outer western ports of Victoria in 187 1.To the west of Cape
Otway no harbours, strictly so called but there are
there are ;

three bays—Warrnambool, Belfast, and Portland, at each of

which there are considerable townships, with a back-country
well peopled and it was thought advisable that during her
: .

stay in Australia in 187 1, the mission vessel should visit the

places named, andbyherpresen.ee appeal to the children of
these districts on behalf of the mission. It is a curious fact,

that the further west you go in Victoria the more Presbyterian

6o History of the " Dayspring."

you find the population; the explanation being, probably,- that

Scotchmen know where good things are to be found particu- —
larly good land and on this occasion the interest shown in the
:

Presbyterian ship was just what one might have expected in the
circumstances. The visit of the vessel was so timed as to oc-
cur during the holiday season of farmers and squatters ; and
the whole population, young and old, turned out to see the
" Dayspring :" some families coming fifty miles to enjoy the sight.

A romp on the deck was an immense treat, and some brisk

boys never rested till they got up to the masthead. The
farmers were lavish in their gifts of potatoes and other produce
of all kinds ; and the very boatmen of Warrnambool were glad
to ferry the children to the " Dayspring " for nothing.

The " Dayspring " left Portland Bay on the 22nd April, 1871,
and reached Aneityum on the 17th May. The following sum-
mary of her work among the islands for this year is given in
the admirable language of the Rev. Joseph Copeland :

During the season she made several trips among the islands. In
the first she landed stores and mails at all the mission stations, and took

Mr. and Mrs. Goodwill from Aneityum, where they had been during the
summer, to their station on Santo. On her way south she settled in the
vicinity of Efate some of the eastern teachers, brought to the group in
the end of 1870. That done, beginning at Nguna, she took up the mis-
sionaries on her way south for the annual meeting, and landed them at
Aniwa on the 1st July. In the second trip, beginning July nth, she
first of all returned the missionaries to their stations, calling at Tana* -

Fotuna, Aneityum, Loyalty islands (to send away a mail) and Nguna.
After that she visited Havannah harbour, Efate, and Eramanga, and re-
turned to Aniwa August 20th. The following day her third trip began,
in which she took a number of Aniwans to Fotuna, and a number of
Fotunese over to Aniwa, for a friendly visit. Having taken them back
went to Tana, to enable the missionaries
to their respective islands, she
some parts of that island. That done, she took a party of
there to visit
Tanese and some Aneityum teachers across to Aneityum. After a few
days she took them home, and returned to Aneityum September 23rd.
After lying in harbour for repairs, she started on her fourth and last frip,
 History of the " Dayspring." 61

October 25th called at all the islands occupied by missionaries and

;

teachers, and took to the several islands the annual supplies for the
teachers. On her way south she took up the letters and orders of the
missionaries, her passengers, and the arrowroot prepared by the natives
to pay for the printing of the Scriptures. Taking her departure from
Port Resolution, Tana, on the 14th of December, she arrived in Mel-
bourne, January 4th.

We must again mention here what has been often stated in these
reports, viz. :
—that the ' Dayspring' is indispensable to the comfortable
and successful prosecution of the mission work on the group. To some
of the islands she is of far more service than to others. Some of the
missionaries might get along after a sort by means of the occasional visits
of trading vessels but there is no island and no department of the work
;

that would not suffer materially were she withdrawn. On some the work
would have to be abandoned. The last cannot be regarded as her busiest
year, as she did not during the sailing season either visit any of the
Australasian colonies, or the Eastern islands, or New Caledonia. Her
services were not required at the Loyalty islands, and she settled no new
missionary, and visited no new island. Still the summary shows that
she was not idle, always in harbour and always in ballast. From the
colonies she brought down passengers and stores of every description
for fourteen months' use for nine families, say between thirty and forty
persons, with letters, papers, and books, supplies of clothing, barter, and
food for the native teachers and mission-boxes, books, and other requi-
;

sites for the work among the natives. When she had landed her pas-
sengers and cargo her work was not done passengers and cargo,
;

European and native, were going to and fro every month. She brought
the missionaries together for the annual meeting, and when their de-
liberations were over she was ready to take them on board, and return
thence to their stations. She enabled the most of the members of the
mission to have a little change from the monotony of island life to visit
one another for a time, and some to take a trip for the benefit of their
health. She carried the inter-island letters, and took a mail to the
Loyalty islands, whence it could be forwarded to Sydney. She carried
cattle, pigs, goats, and fowls to islands where these were wanted, as also

yams and beans to islands where native food is scarce. She took house-
building materials, workmen to assist the missionary in their erection,
and servants for some of the mission families. For a short time she
afforded shelter to a shipwrecked crew. She settled some native teachers,
took home others after a period of service, and enabled others to take a
62 History of the " Dayspring.''

holiday and visit their relations. She carried a great many natives from
their own islands to and returned them with the hope that
some other,
the gospel would be regarded more favourably by them. And when she
left, at the cjose of the year, she took away the letters and orders of the

missionaries, the contributions of the natives for printing the Scriptures,

and passengers leaving for health or to superintend the press.

What what steamers and coasters are;

ships from other countries are ;

what what cabs and coaches are what

railways, canals, and roads are ; ;

drays and horses are what post-offices, postmen, and telegraphs are
;

in Australia, New Zealand, Great Britain, and Nova Scotia all these —
the 'Dayspring' is to us, the missionaries and teachers in the New
Hebrides. Were all these means of communication to be withdrawn
suddenly, what would you do ? Your respective countries would be
brought to the verge of ruin in a day such a state of things you could
;

not tolerate indignation meetings would be held everywhere. I hope

;

you will never suppose that it matters little to us should you cease to
support theDayspring.' Let all who contributed to the building fund,
'

though many of them have grown to be men and women, remember

their own vessel them train their children to maintain what
still ; let

they initiated ; youth occupying the various Sunday-schools

let all the
interested in the mission, and all who desire the evangelisation of the
heathen, take the vessel into their affectionate support.

On the arrival of the " Dayspring " at Melbourne, early in

1872, the first duty of those in charge was to find a new cap-
tain. Captain Fraser had been in command eight years, and
at length resigned : with an increasing family, without any
settled home, and with health by no means robust, he resolved
to go back to his native country. The following extract from the
minutes of the Mission Conference of 187 1 the last held be- —
fore Captain Fraser left the Islands shows the estimation —
in which he was held by the missionaries :

22. That Messrs. Inglis, Paton, and Copeland be appointed a committee

to confer with Captain Fraser with reference to a continuation of his
services in the ' Dayspring ' for the ensuing year.

23. The committee appointed to confer with Captain Fraser report that
he has stated to them that, owing chiefly to his rising family, and the
 History of the "Dayspring." 63

^expenses connected with their education, he cannot consent to remain in

the '
Dayspring ' after the expiry of his present engagement.

24. That as Captain Fraser has tendered his resignation, this meeting
in the circumstances agrees to accept the same, and to record the obliga-
tions of the mission to Captain Fraser for his Christianand gentlemanly
conduct, and the and care with which he has sailed the Dayspring'
skill '

during the eight years he has been in command of the vessel, and their
best wishes for the usefulness and happiness of himself and his family
and that a suni of two hundred and twenty pounds (^220) be allowed him
as payment for their passage from Melbourne to Halifax.

In addition to the testimony of the missionaries in favour of

Captain Fraser's character and seamanship, we give the follow-
ing brief extracts, showing how he was appreciated in Victoria :

From the Melbourne " Christian Review."

The good captain is anxious at length to retire. He has had charge
of the '
Dayspring ' since she was launched in Nova Scotia in 1863,
and we own that it is not without a pang that we can think of the mis-
sion, vessel and the mission work with Captain Fraser away. The popu-
larity of the Dayspring ' in the colonies is due very much to Captain
'

Fraser, and it is even a question whether the mission vessel would now
be in existence but, under God, for the seamanship and self-denial of
her commander. It is no light task to sail a vessel for so many years-
among the shoals and reefs of Polynesia without shipwreck to have ;

much intercourse with many native tribes and rages without a collision ;

to control a crew without insubordination to convey so many mission

;

families without a complaint and to maintain the missionary character

;

of the Dayspring in so many of the ports of Australasia and this

'
' —
Captain Fraser has done. It will be very hard indeed to get a man to
fill his place.

From the Report of the Mew Hebrides Mission Committee of the General
Assembly of the Presbyterian Church of Victoria.
The committee regret much to learn that the captain of the mission
vessel has resigned his command. Captain Fraser is well known in the
colonies as a gentleman eminently fitted by character and skill for the
position which he has occupied and the usefulness of the Dayspring,'
;
'

both in' the colonies and among

the islands, is due very much, under
God, to Captain Fraser's wisdom and care. The committee feel deeply
that his retirement is a loss to the mission.
64 History of the " Dayspring."

From the Deliverance of the General Assembly.

The General Assembly, learning that Captain Fraser is about to retire

from the command of the vessel, instructs the committee to assure him
of the high estimation in which this church has always held his
character and labours.

Captain Fraser was succeeded by Captain Robert Rae, a

shipmaster wellknown in Hobart Town and Melbourne, who
had been highly recommended to the committee under whose ;

charge the "Dayspring" left Melbourne on the 12th April,

1872, and reached Aneityum harbour on the 1st May. On
that occasion she carried, as passengers —Dr. and Miss Geddie,
Mr. and Mrs. Jnglis, Mr. and Mrs.
Murray, Mr. and Mrs.
McKenzie, Mr. and Mrs. Robertson, Mrs. Neilson and two
children, Rev. D. Macdonald, and Mr. F. A. Campbell of
Geelong.

In consequence of Dr. Geddie's illness, and for other rea-

sons, was determined, at the annual meeting of the brethren,

it

to send the " Dayspring " a second trip to the colonies. She
arrived at Melbourne in October, and left again early in No-
vember, in charge of Captain Jenkins, who had been appointed
in room of Captain Rae, resigned. She was looked for back
in Australia towards the end of January ; but February and
March passed, and still no tidings. By this time great fears for
the safety of the vessel began to be entertained, and at length
a communication from the Rev. Mr. Inglis confirmed the worst
anticipations, and informed us of the total wreck of the " Day-
spring " in Anelcauhat harbour, Aneityum. An account of
the disaster will be found in the accompanying narrative by
another hand.

Thus " The Dayspring," —the Presbyterian mission-vessel in

the South Pacific —which, during her was one of the most
time,
popular and useful of all mission vessels, has passed away, and
her work is only now a matter of history. Her services to mis-
 History of the " Dayspring."
v
65

sions were not less important in Australia than on the mission

field. She had, in fact, two mission fields —one in the New
Hebrides, and another in the colonies ; and I think I am justi-

fied in saying, that her influence for good, in Melbourne and

other colonial seaports, was as important in its place as her
work among the islands fromAneityum to Santo. It is too soon
to say, at present, what should be done for the future but the ;

history of the " Dayspring " shows what can be done and let ;

us hope and pray that Christians in Australia may never

forget what they can do, and should do, for these dark islands
of the sea.
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 A YEAR

AMONG THE

NEW HEBRIDES,

LOYALTY ISLANDS AND NEW CALEDONIA.

BY

F. A. CAMPBELL.
 Nil) 170 ISO

CALEDONIA
s »f I'mes
^""".'JijF.'.'.Wj^ I

•''''WSnls.fyranud

NEW HEBRIDES, FI.H, LOYALTY

ISLANDS & NEW CALEDONIA
MSTRAL1a"&SeW ZEALAND
Hill

F. A, Campbell
 LETTER I.

THE VOYAGE FROM MELBOURNE TO ANEITVUM, AND FIRST

IMPRESSIONS OF THAT ISLAND.

Anelcauhat Aneityum,
May, 1872.

OW strange and how different is the scene before me now,

from that which used to meet my eye, but one short month ago.
Glancing from my open window I see the -tall stately palm
and the luxuriant orange tree, instead of the familiar blue gum
and wattle. I see the graceful savage strolling with an easy
motion along the beach, instead of the well-dressed business
man hurrying to town, or the eager men and women rushing
towards the railway station. No discordant shrieks of impa-
tient steam-engines are here to break the stillness of the morn-
ing. No loud rattle of cars and carriages is heard ; but there
floats towards me on the soft balmy airs of the tropics, the

pleasant murmur of the surf on the outlying reef, and the faint
shouts of the natives as they tumble about in the still waters of
the bay. Everything is quietly beautiful and lazily pleasant.
The sea, the wind, the trees, the natives, all seem infected by

the same dreamy laziness, and I myself feel a strange desire to

throw down my pen, to curl myself up in the shade of some
great tree, and dream.
But it will never do for me to land you in the tropics in

this way, without the preliminary voyage down. So you must

be satisfied, for the present, with this glimpse from my window
70 Letter I.

and return with me to the little brigantine " Dayspring," when,

having passed Port Phillip Heads, she turned her bow towards
the New Hebrides and her stern towards the fair west wind.

was on the morning of Saturday, the 13th of April, that

It
our voyage really began. There were thirteen adult •pas-
—
sengers on board a considerable number for a vessel of
only 120 tons to carry
; the "Dayspring" however having won-
derful cabin accommodation for her size, we all managed to
stow ourselves somewhere without much inconvenience. With
a fresh fair wind, our square-sails alone being set, we ran along
the coast of Victoria as far as Cape Howe. There we left the
land and struck out across the watery waste, with the good wind
following.

The majority of the passengers did not seem properly to

appreciate the glorious breeze which was doing us such good
service, but looked as if they would have infinitely preferred
a dead calm and a smooth sea. I was able fortunately to take
quite a different view of the matter, and used to stagger about
the deck triumphantly, glorying in my newly-discovered sail-

ing powers.

By Wednesday the 17th we had gone 900 miles fully half —

—
way which wasn't at all bad work, Towards evening on that
day two lonely little islands appeared, and helped to break the

monotony of the voyage ; Howe's Island and Ball's Pyramid.

The first is inhabited I believe by a few whalers, while the
latter is but a bare rock, rising abruptly from the sea, to the
height of about 1800 feet.

After bringing us this length in such good style the wind

died away, and then we had the usual amount of calms, light
winds and occasional breezes. Though some days we did not
make much progress, still at the end of each twenty-four hours
there was always something to be added to the number of
 The Voyage to the New Hebrides. yi

/
;

miles accomplished ; thirty-five miles being the poorest day's

work- recorded.
A sea-voyage is always more or less monotonous, as there
is so little and we saw perhaps less
to interest outside the vessel,
than usual of the sights of the sea. air and water were Both
remarkably lifeless. Of the inhabitants of the mighty deep we
saw none except a few flying fish, three sharks and a school of
porpoises ; while few birds honoured us with their notice or
their company. The sharks, as is usually the case, caused
great excitement on board; everyone apparently being filled with
anxiety to have the ugly creatures hauled out of their native
element without delay. We
good deal of haggling,
did, after a
succeed in hooking one, and lugged up on deck. Standing it

round at a safe distance we watched its ungainly flounders and

its subsequent decapitation with great interest, after which we

retired to dinner with feelings of placid satisfaction.

Though there was not much life apparent outside the ves-
sel, there was no lack of it inside. There were men, women
and children in great variety, there were pigs and goats, sheep
and fowls, a young bull calf, a small dirty kitten, and cock-
roaches. We were a most harmonious company with the ex-
ception of the last-named creature. From the beginning to
the end of the voyage there raged unceasing war between man
and cockroach, and on the whole had the
I think that the latter

best of it. 'Tis true that man might annihilate a few by one
stamp of his foot, but then the cockroaches, assembling at night
by the hundred, would retaliate, by biting their adversary's toe-
nails, flying against his face and running into his boots, until
man would give up the fight in despair and the cockroach
reign in triumph.

All vessels frequenting these seas seem infested with these

creatures, and there appears to be no way of getting rid of

them. You may deluge the vessel with water, smoke it with
72 Letter I.

chemicals, strew it with poison, but still they swarm, so " what
can't be cured must be endured."

Though the cockroaches did not diminish in numbers,

there no doubt but that the rest of the live stock did, as 'we
is

approached the end of our journey ; and the sheep-pens and

the hen-coops began to present rather a deserted appearance be-
fore the welcome cry of " Land, ho " resounded through the!

vessel.

It was on Tuesday the 30th that we caught the first glimpse

of Aneityum looming faintly in the distance ; and by next
morning we lay safely anchored in Anelcauhat harbour, after a
very fair passage of nineteen days.

The view from harbour

is truly magnificent.
this It would

require the pen of a Ruskin and the pencil of a Turner to do

justice to it, and unfortunately neither the one nor the other
is in my possession. I did indeed open my sketch-book and

try to transfer the fair scene to my paper, but it was useless.

The outlines perhaps were caught with some degree of ac-
curacy, but where the rich colouring of earth and sky and sea ?
where the delicate shades and brilliant lights ? and where the
enchanted atmosphere of the tropics through which the whole
was viewed ? No to get a true idea of the appearance of a
!

tropical land one must see it for oneself.

You dwellers upon the flat plains of Victoria, picture to

yourselves, if you can, a scene like this.

A magnificent mass of mountains rise from the sea with

a graceful curve. With the exception of a belt comparatively
bare of trees, these mountains are clothed from their base to
theirsummits with a mantle of rich green foliage. Looking
from the sea, this covering
appears upon the distant hilltops
like soft green moss
but as the eye follows the descending
;

sweep of the landscape towards the shore, the surface becomes

 Appearance of Aneityum. 73

more uneven and the outline of trees more distinct, until

finally the eye rests upon the well-defined groves of stately

palms, waving and nodding their heads over the white sand.
Deep valleys and gorges, resting in shadow, throw out the spurs
of the mountains into high relief, causing a beautiful variety.
A bright blue sky overhead, a sparkling many-coloured sea
around, and a clear balmy atmosphere everywhere, set off and
complete the picture. Imagine this, my friends, if you are
able,and you will have some idea of the appearance of
Aneityum, one of the sunny "islands of the South.

xy|^
 The line of March.

LETTER II.

THE NEW HEBRIDES — THEIR DISCOVERY — ANEITYUM — ITS

CHARACTERISTICS THE MISSION STA-
INHABITANTS
TION AT ANELCAUHAT RAMBLES ALONG THE SHORE
AND INLAND —
A MARRIAGE —
NATIVE SERVICE.

Anelcauhat, Aneityum,
May, 1872.
\^y*-^
igHREE men seem to have been concerned in the discovery
of the New Hebrides. First Quiros,who intheyear 1606 stumbled
across the most northerly island of the group, whilst sailing in
search of a great southern continent ;and who, thinking that he
had found the land which he was looking for, gave it the some-
what grandiloquent title of Tierra Austral del Espiritu Santo,
and sailed off without exploring its coasts.
Next Bougainville, who came in the year 1768; but he did
nothing more than discover that the continent of Quiros was
 The Discovery of the New Hebrides. 75

only an island, one of a large and extensive group, to which he

applied the name of The Grand Cyclades.

Lastly came Cook, in the year 1774, who sailed twice

along the entire length of the group, determining the posi-
tions and sizes of the various islands and assigning names
to each, while the whole he re-christened by the name which it

now bears —The New Hebrides. So observing and accurate

was Cook in this work, that it is doubtful if even the smallest
islet escaped his notice, and all were laid down on paper in po-.
sitionand form so exactly, that but little alteration has since
been made upon his original plan. He landed upon the islands
of Malicolo, Eramanga, Tana, and Santo, and has left us a
good deal of information about the natives as he found them
the main-facts of which, in many cases, are true of them still.

He found that the group consisted of about thirty islands,

lying between 15° and 20° S. latitude, and 166 and 171° W.
longitude; that they extended for about 400 miles N.N.W. and
S.S.E. ; and that all of the islands, except the very smallest,
were thickly populated with tribes of savage men, with whom
on several occasions he had quarrels and skirmishes.
The names which he gave to the various islands were in
some cases English, but for the most part derived from
the natives themselves. The northern island he allowed still
to bear the title by its discoverer; and the southern,
applied to it

—the now
to speak of more particularly,
island that I wish he —
called Annatom, a name which he got from the Tanese when
he was on their island.
Annatom — or, as it is now more and more correctly
generally

called, Aneityum —although one of the is by no

smallest,

means one of the least important islands of the group. It was

the first to be settled by European missionaries, and its in-

habitants are now ahead of all the other islanders in point of

civilization ; its harbour has been the resort for many years
76 Letter II.

of Vessels trading in these seas ; and it is the only island whose

coasts have been thoroughly surveyed. It is nearly circular in

form, has few indentations or, bays, and is said to be forty miles

in circumference. were not almost entirely taken up with

If it

mountains it might support a large population ; but as it is, the

only arable lands are in the valleys, and on the narrow flats
which here and there occur between the base of the hills and
the sea coast. These wood-covered hills, nearly 3000 feet high,
do good service however in drawing from the clouds an abundant
supply of fresh water, and this running down the valleys and
gorges, in never-failing streams, irrigates and enriches the lower
lands most effectually. The only bay in which vessels may lie
safely is this one, upon the south-west side of the island, going
by the name of Anelcauhat Harbour, a name it takes /rom the
district lying round it. The bay is formed by a point of the
mainland, two islets, and an outlying reef. It opens to-
wards the west, upon which side it is rather too much ex-
posed for the safety of vessels in harbour ; for, although the
anchorage is tolerably good, such a sea comes rolling in with a
westerly breeze, that, more than once, vessels at anchor have
broken ground and been cast ashore.
It used to. be quite a lively port in the old sandal-wood-
seeking days, there being then two establishments on the harbour
and whaling being carried on as well ; both of which industries
brought vessels frequently into the bay.

—
But these days are over happily so, say the missionaries
and all that can be seen now of these places, are a few build-
ings upon the islet of Inyug, still occupied as a whaling
station.

At the head of the bay, the most attractive object is the na-
tive church —a large building, which, with its white shining walls,
stands out very prominently upon a To the right
gentle slope.
of it other white walls are seen glimmering through the thick
-
 Aneityum. 77

green foliage — the mission store and a native's house

"along the beach; while on the hill above is the house of Lathella,
the chief, and near it that in which the family of Captain Fraser,
late of the " Dayspring," used to reside. The mission house itself

is not visible, being hidden by the intervening trees and shrubs,

but it is situated a little way to the right of the church. {See
Frontispiece!)

The populationof Aneityum is now estimated at T500 just —

half what was thirteen or fourteen years ago. This frightful
it

depopulation is said to be due, mainly, to foreign diseases, such

as measles, hooping-cough, diphtheria, &c, brought to the island

by trading vessels.

These epidemics sweep off the natives by the hundred; in

one case a third of the whole population being cut off in the
space of three months. They have no strength of constitution
to withstand such attacks, and they cannot take the usual
means for the prevention and cure of them.
During the last few years, however, according to the census
taken by the missionaries, there is a turn in the right direction
and probably, could epidemic diseases be kept out of the island,
the extinction of the people, which for some time seemed im-
•
minent, would be warded off.

But must now resume my narrative. Last letter was con-

I

cluded with the announcement of Our arrival in Anelcauhat

harbour, and with a slight description of the character of the
scenery which surrounds it. The anchor was not long down,
before the boats were lowered and we were landed
on the
beach. a delightful sensation it was, to tread the terra
What
motion and confine-
firma again, after those weeks of ceaseless
fresh, and green, and
how beautiful everything appeared
ment ;

to the flat and monotonous

to our eyes, accustomed of late only
surface of the watery waste. sniffed We
the balmy airs, wan-
orange and were
dering leisurely under the palm and the
tree,
 78 Letter II.

happy. Itwas a pleasure to exist, a pleasure even to breathe,

in a land where the winds were such as those ascribed by
Milton to Paradise :

" Now gentle gales,

Fanning their odoriferous wings, dispense
Native perfumes, and whisper whence they stole
Those balmy spoils."

The mission premises, over which we rambled, are both ex-

tensive and pretty. The dwelling-house is substantially built
of stone, and roofed with sugarcane-leaf thatch the substitute —
for slates down here. At the back of it, stand the kitchen,
various storehouses, natives' houses, &c. ; whilst a little way off,
at the side, is the dispensary and a large school-house.

In front, stretching down towards the shore, is the garden.

Around the dwelling grow some very fine orange and lemon
trees, and in an enclosure at the back, bananas and pine-apples

are cultivated. Fortunately for us, a good deal of the fruit was
ripe at the time of our landing, so that we enjoyed quite a
feast. The well loaded branches of the orange trees, although
the fruit was just ripening, suffered severely, and the mangled
remains which lay strewed on the ground beneath bore witness
to the vigour of the attack. From the lofty palm-heads the
natives showered down bottled lemonade upon us, of which re-

freshing temperance drink we partook to a considerable ex-

tent, as it is cool and very pleasant to the taste. From the
bananas we got contributions of their delicious fruit — fair, fat,

and yellow, larger, and finer in taste, by far, than anything I

had met with before. A small piece of cooked taro, which did not
however meet withgeneral approbation, concluded our feast; after
which we climbed to the top of a hill near at hand, had a fine
view of the country towards the mountains, and then went off
to the vessel for the night, well satisfied with our first day
ashore in the tropics.
 Rambles Ashore. 79

For some days the " Dayspring " lay in harbour, landing the
goods of Mr. Murray, the missionary who was to occupy the
station of Dr. Geddie, and this gave me a good opportunity
of exploring the regions round about the harbour, while
the request of Dr. Mueller,Government botanist of
the
Victoria, that I would him some botanical speci-
collect for

mens, supplied me with a definite end in view during these

rambles, and engaged me also in a work which I found in-
creasingly interesting as my collection grew in size.

The second morning after our arrival I went ashore to com-

mence my peregrinations ; but before doing so, picked up
a native to act as guide and general servant He was squatting
under a palm-tree, busily engaged in the ordinary native occu-
pation of doing nothing ; so I made proposals to him (couched
in the orthodox hashed English) to come with me. He under-
stood me, agreed to my terms, took my coat and bag, and fol-
lowed me. A native will never think of going before or along-
side a European, unless specially directed to do so ; naturally
he will fall behind as a mark of respect.

Naublo — was the name of my man Friday was not,

for that —
I afterwards found out, an Aneityumese, but an
Eramangan
and a very ugly Eramangan he was too. A large head and
mouth, woolly hair, square jaws, rather a squat body, and a
very dark skin, were the outward characteristics of my humble
follower but his disposition quite made amends for his some-
;

what uncomely appearance, as he was extremely good-natured,

usual
willing and trustworthy, and, in addition, possessed the
savage virtues of being* easily pleased and innocently happy.

During the first excursion, which was along the beach, I

found much to interest me, in the new forms under which

animal and vegetable life appeared. One curious-looking tree,

about twenty feet high, growing along the

beach just on the
80 Letter II.

linewhere the herbage meets the sand, attracted my attention

in particular. It was a species of the Pandanus or Screw pine,

(See Litho. of Mau and Ptle.) The tree has the appearance of
being supported in mid-air upon a number of stilts : sometimes
it resembles a monstrous animal rearing on legs, or a its hind
giraffe with an enormously long neck. These stilts or props
are in reality the serial roots of the tree, which it sends down
from the stem at regular intervals, whenever it feels in want of
support ; thus being enabled to take up a very strong position upon
spots where the soil is loose and sandy. It throws out bare
straggling branches on all sides, and their extremities are
crowned with tufts of leaves, arranged spirally, and bearing a
great resemblance to pine-apple plants. The fruit is round and
massive, about six inches in diameter, and contains edible
kernels not unlike Jordan almonds in appearance and taste. It

is a curious-looking tree, but a very useful one. The leaves,

plaited, make good bags and mats, which last are generally used
by the missionaries instead of carpets.

The Casuarina or ironbark is another tree that clings to the

neighbourhood of the sea-coast. It is generally found,
' how-
ever, upon eminences a little way above the shore, and exposed
to the full blast of the sea-breeze. There it roots itself firmly
in the ground, and waves its strong arms in the wind, defying
its utmost fury. It bears considerable resemblance to its

relative, the she-oak of Australia ; but is more massive, straggling,

and attains a greater size. Its wood is excessively hard, and is

used by the natives in the manufacture of anything that they

wish to be durable. •

From the beach we made detours occasionally, out upon the

flat rocky reef, to inspect the pools left by the ebbing tide, and
amply did they repay the trouble. Each was a little world
teeming with busy inhabitants —a .beautiful aquarium, stocked
with an infinite variety of subjects. There were little polypes,
 The Holuthuria. 8

in their brightly-coloured cells, or lying hidden in their beds of

soft jelly, drawing from the ocean small particles of lime and
building them up into their coral cities ; there were starfish, moving
their snaky arms restlessly to and fro, and little shellfish, opening
their shells to feed on their invisible food ; there were nimble
crabs running over the rocks and disappearing into dark mys-
terious recesses ; and in the still water there flashed a multitude
of small fish of gorgeous colours — blue, green, or striped with
many shades ; while along the bottom of the pool there lay the
dark, sluggish, and hideous-looking body of the holuthuria,
or beche de mer.

The manners and customs of the last-named animal are so

decidedly peculiar, and it is so much sought after and valued,
that I will devote a few lines specially to it.

The holuthuria has the wonderful power of turning itself in-

side out when in an unhappy frame of mind, and this, ap-
parently, without suffering the slightest inconvenience. Then
if itbe cut into halves, instead of dying, as most creatures
would under such painful circumstances, it developes into two
holuthurias, each half becoming a separate and complete animal.
I got my man to fish out for me the one in the pool, but it
was a lazy specimen; at all events it did not distinguish
any way whatever, but submitted to be hung over
itself in

a tree without opposition.

Repulsive as these creatures are in appearance, they are much

esteemed by the Chinese as an article of food, being boiled by
them into a thick rich soup, which is considered a great delicacy.

^150 per ton is a considerable price to pay for fish ; but all

that John will give, if he only can get his holuthuria broth.
When taken from the sea, they are boiled and dried on the
spot, which process reduces them from say a foot in length to
three or four inches, but renders them quite solid and hard.

There are, I believe, a good many about these islands, but

G
8a Letter II

the principal fishing ground is the north coast of Australia,

where the fishing is mainly carried on by Malays.

After gathering a few specimens of grasses and various small

plants,which grew close to the shore, we turned back. The
tide was out, and the fine flat beach before us presented rather
a curious appearance. It was covered with shells of various
shapes and sizes, but these, instead of lying motionless
as shells usually do, were skimming over the sand in a
most extraordinary manner. Catching one, I found on ex-
amination that the shell was occupied by a hermit crab, and
that it was the nimble legs of these creatures which gave the
shells their wonderful powers of locomotion. These crabs, not
being able to build their own houses, take possession of all the
empty shells lying about the beach —a habit of theirs which has
sometimes disgusted me exceedingly ; for after returning from a
stroll along the beach with a pocket full of shells, I would find
that I had also —what I didn't bargain for, a pocket full of those
vicious little hermits, in a state of lively irritation. I need
hardly say that my pocket was generally emptied much faster
than it was filled.

I had not time, however, to make lengthened observations

of crabs or anything else, as I wished to reach the vessel while
my specimens were in good order for pressing ; so hurrying on,
I reached the boat, and, making an appointment with my man
for the following morning, went off to the vessel.

Next day we turned our steps inland. Winding along a nar-

row pathway, one of the highways of the island, we came, be-
fore we had gone
far, upon several of the natives' little planta-

tions, and
saw also several of their huts nestling amidst the
I
trees. In the plantations, which average about half-an-acre in
size, taro, bananas, and sugarcane are grown ; and the work

which is involved in the cultivation of these plants is by no

 A Ramble Inland. 83

means inconsiderable. First the ground has to be cleared of

trees and scrub, fenced with reeds, the soil to be loosened
with hoes or sharp sticks, and pulverised with the fingers ; the
plants are then put in, and require to be attended to with
diligence and care during their growth.

These clean, neatly-fenced little spots have a very pretty ap-

pearance amongst the surrounding disorder, and give one some
idea of what the place would look like were it extensively culti-
vated and settled upon. The soil, wherever it was turned up,
appeared very rich and black, and the vegetables and fruits

planted in it seemed thriving very luxuriantly.

The huts of the natives are very poor affairs. In the way of
architecture at least, the Aneityumese seem to have made little
or no improvement since the days of heathenism. They still
live, with a few exceptions, in miserable huts consisting

of a framework of wood overlaid with plaited cocoanut or sugar-

cane leaf, and having the appearance of narrow thatched
roofs planted on the ground, for they have no walls ; they are
about six feet high in the centre, and are entered by a hole at
one end. I believe that they find these places healthier than a
house with .walls ; at all events they seem them on the
to prefer

whole, for although the chief at Anelcauhat has put up a

very good specimen of a-plastered house, but very few of the
people seem inclined to follow his example.

Sometimes the path wound through open spaces, covered

; and then
it would
thickly .with long reeds six or eight feet high
lead us under the shade of great trees, and into woods so dense
that we could not see more than a few yards in any direction.
These reeds, which grow so plentifully here in the open spots,
are exceedingly useful ; all the fences aremade of them, the
natives use them for arrows, and they can be woven into a
wickerwork which makes excellent seats and couches.
g2
84 Letter II.

Amongst the trees of the South-Sea Island forest, the bread-

fruit stands pre-eminent. It is both useful and ornamental ; its

fruit is a staple article of food with these natives, and probably

a great encouragement to laziness on their part, as the tree does
not require cultivation. From the stem the natives generally
make their canoes, as the wood is good and easily cut. There
is a great difference between the forests here and those of cold
climates : for here you can get food from almost every second
tree — bread-fruit, chesnuts, almonds, and the like ; so that the
natives can not, I should think, ever suffer absolute starva-
tion.

Thus we marched and observed, until at last we emerged

upon the banks of a beautiful little stream, that came rippling
down in miniature cascades until it opened out into a quiet
deep pool at our feet. It looked exceedingly refreshing

to hot perspiring mortals, and proved so to me, when I

plunged into it. After I had bathed, we sat on the banks
munching sugarcane and admiring the scenery the thick, —
bright foliage near the stream, and the magnificent ferns along
the earthy banks. Then we marched back, and Naublo
brought the remains of the sugarcane, with which spoils, to-
gether with some specimens of ferns, I reached again the deck
of my floating home.
Next day the inhabitants of the district of Anelcauhat
were in a state of great excitement, and well they might,
for a great event was about to happen. Exactly such an
event as this, — viz., the marriage of two white individuals
upon a South-Sea island —has been, I am sure, of very rare
occurrence ; so that it is worthy of notice. At a certain
hour all the rank and fashion of the place assembled at
the church to witness the approaching ceremony, and we
went ashore from the ship suitably rigged up. The Rev.
J. D.
Murray officiated ; and before him stood Miss Geddie (daughter
of Dr. Geddie) and the Rev. D. McDonald— the bride and
 Native Service. 85

bridegroom, who shortly afterwards left the building man and

wife. When the marriage ceremony was over —and it was
simple and short —a select company sat down to an elegant
dejeuner spread in the mission house, to which, as the papers
would say, they did ample justice. When the feast was over, the
company dispersed, and Anelcauhat once again resumed its

wonted appearance of tranquil repose.

The marriage took place on a Saturday, so that next day was

the day of the week, and I had then an opportunity of
first

observing the natives on their Sunday behaviour. There was

morning service in the big church at about half-past nine p'clock,
and to this we went. The service, of course, was conducted
in the Aneityumese language, and was not very interesting to
me ; so I studied the church and the people.

The church is a massive building, with low stone walls and

an immense thatched roof; it is large enough to hold about

800. people, I should think. Great beams extend across from

wall to wall, and upon these rest the principal supports of the
roof; the fastenings seem to be all cord, no nails apparently

having been used. It is quite a wonder of missionary archi-

tecture and native workmanship, and stands a monument of

the ingenuity and industry oi Dr. Geddie, the builder of it.
As for the congregation, there might be 150 altogether. They
were seated mostly on mats spread on the floor the men on —
one side, and the women and children on the other. On full-
dress occasions like this, the men generally wear Crimean shirts
and pants, or shirts and lava lava, that being a sort of calico
kilt hung round the loins ; some of them have waistcoats, and

a few come out in full suits. The fair (?) sex appear in their

most tastefully-decorated grass skirts, a calico shawl or cloak,

a plaited coal-scuttle bonnet —waving a fan gracefully with one

hand and clasping a hymn-book with the other. None of them

ever wear anything on their feet, and but few of the men any-
86 Letter II.

thing on their heads but their own natural covering of woolly

hair.

They seemed attentive as Dr. Geddie spoke to them in their

own language ; but their efforts in the way of music were not
of a very successful character, an instrument being much
wanted.

As we expected to sail next morning, we bade adieu to our

friends on board. Seeking out Naublo, I told
before going
him that I should want him again when we returned, and dis-
missed him with a present that made his ugly face beam
with satisfaction.

Accordingly, early next morning we hauled up anchor, set

sail, and stood out of the harbour.

xy|^-
 -^t**®**"^*^.**^.

LETTER III.

—
THE MISSION STATION AT ANAME FOTUNA A DAY ASHORE —
— —
ANIWA THE COCOA-NUT PALM TANA APPEARANCE OF —
THE VOLCANO —
PORT RESOLUTION DEPOPULATION — —
BLACK BEACH.
Anelcauhat, Aneityum,
June, 1872.

E were now started on a trip which promised to be in-

teresting and very delightful. The vessel was to sail out and
in amongst many islands, touching at some and sighting others/
nearly all of which are famed for their beautiful scenery. The
fair steady trade winds were blowing, and would carry us on-

ward to the north upon a sea wonderfully and pleasantly

calm, and nearly the whole group of islands, one by one,
would pass before us like a lovely panorama. This was what I
was led, to expect, this was what I looked forward to, as we
sailed out of Anelcauhat harbour on the 6th of May ; whether
or not I was disappointed may be gathered from the notes of
the voyage which follow.

-After leaving the harbour, the first place we called at was

Aname", the station of the Rev. John Inglis, situated upon the
opposite side of the island from Anelcauhat. Four hours' sail-

ing brought the white houses and the thin smoky spirals of the
mission premises into sight, and opposite them, in lee of a coral
reef, we dropped anchor. Onlanding we were met by a crowd
88 Letter III.

of natives —neatly-dressed women, and healthy happy-looking

men, who favoured us with a most demonstrative wel-
come.
This station, although it occupies a low and unhealthy situa-
tion, has a very pleasing and romantic appearance. The palms
and the bananas, the white shining houses with their brown
thatched roofs, the fanciful reed fences, the orange trees loaded
with green and yellow fruit, the large mimosas hanging over
the sea, and the dusky forms of the natives — all combine to
make a scene of peacefulness and soft contrast, upon which the
eye rests with much enjoyment.

During the few hours spent here we were kindly entertained

by Mr. and Mrs. Inglis, and were shown over the grounds and
premises. The magnificent orange trees in front of the house
were amongst the most noticeable objects. They are more
than twenty years old, are I should think about twenty feet
high,and each bears several thousand oranges per annum. I
saw here also the largest shell I had ever met with ; it was an
immense bivalve, each side of which was almost large enough
for a bath, being about three feet in diameter. The shell,

minus the fish, was found up in the bed of a stream which

flows past the mission station. They
are found alive, I believe,
on the and are immensely powerful,
east coast of Australia,
being able to snap in two a good stout cable, by closing sud-
denly upon it. I cannot vouch for the truth of this statement,
and I confess to a slight scepticism regarding this creature's
vaunted powers.
Towards evening the flag of recall was hoisted, and we re-

turned to the vessel, which by dark was well off from Aneityum,
on her way towards the island of Fotuna.

The distance between Aneityum and Fotuna is about forty

miles, and, as we had a steady breeze with us, before daylight
we were close to the shore of the latter. I had a fine view of
u
 Fotuna. 89

this extraordinary island as we approached and rounded it,

and had an opportunity also of making a sketch, which will

give a better idea of its appearance than twenty pages of mere
description would.

It is a huge table-topped mountain, fifteen miles in circum-

ference, rising abruptly from the sea to a height of 2000 feet.

Upon its sides, apparently bare and precipitous, a population

of 900 natives exist —a fact that appears to be almost an im-
possibility upon first seeing the place from a distance. On ap-
proaching the island, however, and observing it closely, small

fertile ravines open out, little flats covered with rich vegetation
appear ; while along the beach and in every nook and corner
the lofty head of the palm-tree may be seen. These fertile

spots the natives cultivate with great assiduity, and though

sometimes rather hard put to for food, generally manage to
have plenty.

Upon this island the Rev. Mr. Copeland and family have re-

sided for upwards of six years ; and a very lonely, buried-alive

sort of life it must be, for their only reliable means of com-
munication with the civilized world is the '
Dayspring,' which
visits them but once or twice in the year.

When we rounded the island and hove-to opposite Mr. C.'s

house, we could observe a great commotion on the beach,
natives rushing about and canoes being launched. Several of

these came towards us, paddled swiftly by strong and dexterous

arms, and in one of the foremost was seated the worthy mis-
sionary himself. While Mr. Copeland was receiving news of
the principal events of the .last few months, I went ashore in
the first boat going, and on landing found myself confronted
by a crowd of Fotunese —the first real savages I had ever met
with. They did not impress me very favourably ; for a real
savage, when standing within a few feet of the observer, is not
a pretty object, however picturesque he may appear when
 90 Letter III.

" distance lends enchantment to the view." I had heard that

the iotunese were a fine race of men, much superior naturally
to the natives of Aneityum ; but my untutored eye only caught
the impression of naked bodies, painted heads, cannibalistic
grins, sullen scowls, mixed up with spears, bows, clubs and
muskets. To me they seemed the most hideous set of wretches
imaginable, beside whom the Aneityumese were positively
beautiful. I might be mistaken, probably was ; but these were
my first impressions of the South-Sea Island cannibal. When
I have seen more, and know more of them, I will be better
able to enter into details as to their appearance and customs.

Passing through this crowd of Fotunese, I reached the mis-

sion house, introduced myself to Mrs. Copeland, and enter-
tained her with a budget of news until the rest of the party ar-
rived. During the day we went for a ramble up the hillside,

which was very steep, crossed a small stream rushing furiously

down towards the sea, and reached a point from which we had
a very fine view. I should have liked very much to have gone
to the top of the hill and explored the table, but our time was
too short for such an extensive ramble.

After our return, I went out again alone, botanizing ; and

after wandering about the bush for some time, found myself in
the midst of a —
number of natives men and women who were —
returning from the beach. They crowded round me, holding
small pigs, fowls, vegetables, shells, bags, and other commodi-
ties, which I had no difficulty in understanding they wished me

to purchase. Whether they could not or would not understand

my sandalwood English, I do not know but anyway I had ;

'
considerable difficulty in persuading them that they had come
to the wrong market, and that they had better move on. After
a little time most of them did, and then I bought a few shells
and native bags, giving, in exchange, tobacco. This soon be-
came known, the horde returned, and I was again blockaded
 Leave Fotuna for Aniwa. 91

by a crowd that seemed determined to get my tobacco, at

any price ; one would shove towards me a little bony pig and
point to my bag, another direct my attention to a fowl, another
to a bunch of yams. It began to get tiresome. I set my back
against a tree, and told them that I would give them no more
tobacco, simply because I had none, and explained to them
how foolish it was for them to waste their valuable time in such
a manner. I don't know that they understood my address,
but they did understand what my
bag turned upside down
meant, and so tailed off with disappointed faces. One poor
woman, who had been eagerly pressing on me a meagre
dilapidated chicken, rather excited my compassion ; so I gave
her a piece of turkey red, wherewith to " tie up her bonny
brown hair." It never reached its destination, however ; for
no sooner did she get it than a man (her husband, probably)
stepped forward, snatched it away, and tied it round his own ugly
head. I then went on my way, feeling as much disgusted with
the manners of these people as with their appearance ; and I
wondered if it were possible for any educated man or woman
to live among such beings, without any other society whatever,
and be happy. This question I hoped to be able to answer,
after I had seen more of mission life down here.

After a pleasant and somewhat novel day spent ashore, we

rejoined the vessel, and set sail the same evening for Aniwa,
a small island lying about fifty miles to the north-west of
Fotuna.

When the sun rose next morning we were within a mile or

two of our destination. Aniwa is a coral island the only real —
coral island in the group —
and it presents a decided contrast to
the great massive block we had left the evening before. The
highest part of it is not more than 100 feet above the sea
level ; its length is about six miles, and breadth from two to
three miles.
92 Letter III.

There is no sandy beach round this island, no outlying reef

to break the force of the waves ; so that when the wind blows
strongly, the sea comes rushing upon it as if to overwhelm the
land, and bursts into white foam upon its hard and well-worn
sides. The flat platform of coral rock which does duty as a
beach, rises very abruptly from the sea and stands a few feet
above its there grow cocoanut-palms in splendid
surface;
groves, casuarinas,and a few other trees. Some distance in-
land another rising takes place in the form of a steep cliff,
forty or fifty feet high, beyond which the land lies in gentle un-
dulations, covered with vegetation, wondrously luxuriant, con-
sidering the scantiness and poverty of the soil.

The cocoanut palm (cocos nucifera) is a wonderful and noble

tree, and deserves greater attention at my hands than I have as
yet given it. It appears to be endued with a power almost
creative, it produces such magnificent results from such scanty
material. Upon
spots so bare and dry that all the other trees
shrink from them in disdain, this palm rears its woody column,
and its crested head often waves eighty or a ninety feet above
the ground. From the sand, the air, the light, it draws those
materials that its instinct prompts it to select, and these it la-

bours with and converts, by mysterious processes, into the hard

woody stem, the graceful leaves, the useful nuts —into oil, into
'

sweetened water, into a fibrous matting to protect the nut

and coarse strong cloth to strengthen the leaves.

The manner of its growth is wonderful. Botanists tell us

that the palm is really an annual, — that looking at the tree
we do not see one live whole, but the results of the lifework of
many plants piled one above the other. The new plant shoots
forth, waves in the sun awhile, then droops and dies, and leaves
its hardened body for the next to mount upon. So these palm-
tree builders work, always upward, till they reach their limit
for, like all things earthly, they have a limit to their growth..
 The Cocoanut Palm. 93

The palm-tree has not great far-extending roots like those of

the exogenous tree, nor has it props like the pandanus ; but
its roots are weak and thin, and- were the palm-tree plants to
be too ambitious —to build —
on too long they would make
their edifice top-heavy, and bring it to the ground. But they
do not. They know how much the roots will bear —so much
they build, and then the germ of life ceases to exist : since
they cannot grow upward, they will not grow at all ; for
they cannot live and not grow, fhey cannot grow and not
ascend.
The cocoanut-palm is remarkable for the crookedness of its
stem ; it often leans over bodily at a considerable angle, and
exhibits, besides, a great variety of curves, and even tolerably
sharp angles.
In addition to this crookedness of the stem —supposed to
be the result of the wind and the nature of the tree acting in
opposition ; the former throwing it out of the perpendicular,
the latter striving to attain uprightness —
I have observed that

this palm always emerges from the ground with a curve. This
is particularly noticeable in the young trees, although the old

ones never lose the peculiar appearance that this youthful fancy
of theirs gives to them.- I have never heard any reason as-
signed why the cocoanut-palm should rise with this invariable
curve, but no doubt the shape of the nut has something to do
with it, for the nut when it falls from the tree lies naturally
lengthwise on the ground ; and so the young shoots, which
come out of one of the holes at the end, grow first in a
horizontal direction ; the one then curves upward and forms the
tree, the other downward and forms the roots. This upward
curve that the first one takes is then, probably, what gives
to this species of palm that peculiar form of stem which I have
been speaking of.

drawings of this palm are often very incorrect. They

The '

are frequently portrayed with stems as straight and upright as

94 Letter III.

a factory chimney, or bent in one smooth curve like a Turkish

scimitar, and with leaves arranged round the top like those of
a Norfolk Island pine. One of the best likenesses of the
cocoanut-palm that I recollect having seen, was in a book of
Kingsley's on the West Indies. There the" crooked stems
and the graceful lines of the intercrossing leaves are excel-
lently brought out.

As almost everyone who writes about this tree gives a list of

the uses to which its various parts may be put, I will dismiss
this part of the subject in a few words.

Its wonderful power of producing, and supplying on demand

a cool and pleasant drink, rank it at once as perhaps the most
useful tree in a tropical climate, although as a food supplier it

must give way to the bread-fruit. This drink is found in the

green nuts, and, as I once said before when alluding to it as
"bottled lemonade," is exceedingly pleasant and refreshing.
On Aniwa I do not know how the natives would exist without

it, for there are no springs of fresh water on the island, and it

is the only liquid they drink. The meat of the nut is used as
food for the pigs and fowls, as a flavouring for native puddings,
as a means of keeping naughty little black boys and girls in
good humour, as an article affording to all gentle exercise of

the jaws when not otherwise employed, and lastly, as a stand-

by when other food fails.

The leaves are not the least important part of the tree, for
the natives plait them together and use the result as thatch for
their huts, as mats to lie upon, and as bags for carrying what
they may wish to carry.

But I must now leave the cocoanut-palm tree, and return to

the vessel, which was just coming up to the island when I last
spoke of her.
Our visit to this little island, and to the hospitable mis-
sionary and his wife who reside on it, was very similar to that
 Inhabitants of Aniwa. 95

spoken of in the beginning of this letter. Not very long after

we reached the mission house, the goods and mails were all

landed, and the captain's flag waved impatiently at the mast-

head for our return ; and so we went Before quitting the sub-
ject of Aniwa, however, I must say a few words about its
inhabitants.
Mr. Paton, the missionary, has been on it for about six
years,and has a comfortable house about half-a-mile from the
boat landing, from which he has prepared a road with much la-
bour. I give a sketch of the house, taken from the front,

which will give some idea of the appearance of one of the

New

A
most comfortable mission houses in the Hebrides.

m 1
ilffillli^

lip
THPR

JBifb
The Mission House on Aniwa.
«flS8»&
3ts>

Judging by the appearance of the natives, Mr. Paton has

lived among them to some purpose. They have the same
quiet, friendly, civilized look that the Aneityumese have.
The population is estimated at 240. They speak almost the
same language and are naturally much like the Fotunese.

Had I not been told this, I certainly do not think I would

96 Letter III.

have found it out for myself; for Christianity makes such a

wonderful difference in the appearance of a savage, not only in

clothing him, and washing the paint off him, but in giving to
him an intelligent and pleasing expression of countenance.

I feel that would be unjust were I to give anyone the im-

it

pression, as I am afraid I may have done from what I have

hitherto said, that the Fotunese are in no way improved by the
teachings of Mr. Copeland their missionary ; for even amongst
them I recollect noticing many who evidently were more ad-
vanced than their neighbours ; although the heathen were in
such preponderance, and appeared to me so outrageous, as to
draw my attention principally to them. This by the way.

From Aniwa we sailed for Tana, only sixteen or seventeen

miles distant. While on our way over, we could see from the
deck at one time the five southern islands of the group :

Aniwa behind us, Tana stretching out in front, Eramanga

on one side, and Fotuna and Aneityum on the other. We
had even a more attractive object, however, in the active
volcano of Tana as we approached it. By daytime it cer-
tainly was worthy of notice, but at night it was magnificent.
That day we touched at the mission station of Mr. Watt,
landed his goods, and sailed for Port Resolution, the prin-
cipal harbour of Tana, just as the darkness was coming on.
It was then, as we sailed slowly along the coast, in the
dark still night, that the burning mountain appeared to
greatest advantage. Every five minutes, sometimes oftener,
an eruption would take place. First, a great cloud of crimson
flakes would shoot high into the air, then massy volumes of
smoke would roll up after it, tinged with red ; and then the
roar, like that of artillery or loud thunder, would reach our
ears. Ere had ceased, the red flakes would pause in
this noise

the air, as if undecided whether to go back or fly away alto-

gether 1 then, having agreed amongst themselves to return to
 Tana. 97

the earth, would sink slowly downward, like a fiery snow-storm,

getting less and less brilliant as they fell.

This volcano is a splendid lighthouse ; there is no mistaking

it : the noise of its eruptions is heard distinctly upon Aneityum,
and in some weather the concussion produced will shake the
windows there, though it is fully forty miles away.
Next morning we anchored in Port Resolution. It is a cir-

cular bay, opening out towards the north-east by rather a nar-

row passage, and possesses good anchorage at ten fathoms and
less. The scenery round it is perfectly lovely. I feel that
were I to commence to rave about it I might never stop, so
that it will be wisest not to commence. I will merely

refer all who wish to know the nature of the scenery to the
lithograph of this place, taken from the vessel when just off
the mouth of the harbour. ( See Litho. opposite Page 32.) Tana
is the largest and richest island we had up to that time visited.
It is about thirty miles long and ten miles broad. There are
mountains in the southern and northern parts of the island,
those in the south rising up in lofty wood-covered peaks to a
height of say 3500 feet, while those in the north are not so
high, are rounded on the top, and are comparatively bare of
vegetation.
The population of this island is said to be now 8000. The
natives have the character of being ferocious and warlike,
much broken up into small tribes, which are continually fight-
ing and eating one another.

On this island also, I am told, the natives are dying out.

Depopulation seems to be the rule amongst these islands ;
indeed, I believe it is true, not only of the New Hebrides,
but, more or less, of nearly every group in the South
Pacific.

The causes of this are various. Foreign diseases, as already

spoken of in the case of Aneityum, have done much deadly
98 Letter III.

work, and latterly, the labour traffic has been assisting greatly to
depopulate the New Hebrides. But even before the natives came
in contact with and were affected by Europeans, they were, ac-
cording to their own account, decreasing gradually. Their
naturally vicious habits, frequent wars, and the practice of
infanticide, seem to have been lessening their numbers,
as it was doing upon the islands of Eastern Polynesia, where
Ellis says that the people spoke of themselves as being merely
a remnant of the population that formerly existed.
One thing only can apparently stay this destruction, and that
is Christianity. It has done so in the case of some the Eastern
islands, and it is doing so here. On the island of Aneityum a
census is carefully taken every year, and this is its verdict. It

stands to reason that whatever can put a stop to that which is

causing the extinction of a people, will also stay the extinction.

This Christianity has done on Aneityum and Aniwa ; for there
the vilest of their old customs are done away with, wars are
never heard of, and infanticide is no longer practised.

In this direction, then, Christianity can and does tend to-

wards saving these tribes from extinction ; but what can the
missionary do to prevent plagues being introduced into the
island by trading vessels ? It may be absolutely necessary for
a vessel having disease on board, to touch at some island ; but
then every means should be taken to prevent its spreading on
shore ; and when men who, from carelessness or mere brutal
inhumanity, indirectly destroy the lives of hundreds of human
beings, and cause infinite suffering to many more, they ought
surely to be made aware that the lives of even the most de-
graded of men are not to be sacrificed with impunity.

There are two missionaries upon the island of Tana

Mr. Watt at Kwamera, and Mr. Neilson at Port Resolu-
tion. We spent a very pleasant day ashore with the latter,
wandering about the bay and seeing the lions of the place. The
great roarer, the volcano, was kept for a better occasion, when
 Black Beach. 99

more time could be given to the trip. Next day the vessel left
the harbour en route for Eramanga, via- Black Beach, a roadstead
upon the north side of Tana. This was a very enjoyable sail
the weather was fine, and the scenery sometimes exquisite, as
we glided round in the smooth water within a couple of miles
from the beach.
When about half-way round, a sail was observed in the dis-
tance,and through the glass we made out a topsail schooner
bearing down on us. She quickly came up, heaved-to, and
lowered a boat, which, manned by a strong native crew,
came dashing alongside. The captain and two other white
men came on board. She proved to be the " Lyttona," having
sixty or seventy New Hebrideans on board for Queensland ;

and the captain had come to tell us something about the boat
of the late Mr. Gordon, of whose murder we had heard on ar-
riving at Aneityum. Having received from us the latest news
from civilization, he departed ; the vessels filled their yards,
(a nautical term) and soon were out of sight of one another.
On reaching Black Beach —a beach composed of black
stones, instead of white —a boat went ashore
sand for the pur-

pose of ascertaining whether or not the natives would like to

have a European missionary settled amongst them. A favour-
able report was brought back, several having expressed their
willingnessto receive a missionary, one man in particular
showing considerable anxiety about it. It is a good place for
a mission station, being at the opposite end of the island from
the other two mission settlements, and there being good anchor-
age just in front of it.

That matter being concluded, we stood out from the shore

and steered for the well-known island of Eramanga.

 ^t^«%F%^^
LETTER IV.

ERAMANGA — APPEARANCE AND CHARACTERISTICS—DILLON'S

ITS

BAY— WHALING ESTABLISHMENT — EFATE — NATURAL ITS

FEATURES— PANGO BAY—THE ISLETS OF AND MELE FILI

AND THEIR INHABITANTS—VISITS PAID TO THEM.

Anelcauhat, Aneityum,
yune, 1872.

ORE than a hundred years ago, a British ship hove-to off

one of the islands of Western Polynesia, and, sent a boat
ashore for wood and water. The natives, filled with astonish-
ment at this strange —
and unwonted sight for it was the first
time that they had seen any vessel larger than their own miser-
able canoes — crowded down to the beach, and met the boat's
crew on their landing. They mixed with the strange white
beings at first with fear and caution ; but that .soon wore off, and
then they began to provoke the whites by pulling up the boat
and trying to run off with the oars. A quarrel arose, and the
arrows and spears of the natives began to fly through the air,
till the loud report of the white men's muskets rang in their

ears, and the fall of one or two of their number drove them

into the bush. The boat then went off to the vessel, which
sailed away after firing a heavy gun to frighten the natives still
further.

The vessel was that of Captain Cook, and this was the manner
 Eramanga. 101

in which the natives of Eramanga were first introduced to

civilization and its powers.

The next white visitors to the island were the sandalwood

traders, who, finding Eramanga to be rich in that precious
wood, opened trading stations upon it.

I need say nothing about the general character of this trade,

and of those concerned in it for enough has been already said
;

about the matter to show it in its true light Next to a slave

trade, perhaps no traffic on earth has been so polluted with
human blood, or connected with such fearful atrocities, as this
traffic in the sandalwood.

The crimes and evil actions of the demoralized vagabonds

engaged in collecting the sandalwood, cannot be too strongly
condemned or too greatly abhorred ; for they not only ruth-
lessly sacrificed the lives of many of the natives, but indirectly
they have destroyed many noble and pure-hearted men who
have fallen by the avenging hands of the incensed savages.

The number of white men who have been murdered upon

Eramanga affords, I think, a very good proof that the trade there
has not been conducted on a more just footing than in other
places ; for I firmly believe that if the natives had been fairly

and kindly treated from the beginning, we should have had

little or nothing to complain of them now.

The first victims on Eramanga were John Williams and

his companion Harris, who were murdered soon after their
landing at Dillon's Bay on a visit, in the year 1852. Next
Mr. and Mrs. G. Gordon, a missionary and his wife who had
been residing- at Dillon's Bay for four years, were murdered in
the year 1861. Lastly, Mr. J. D. Gordon—a brother of Mr.

G. N. Gordon —a missionary residing at Portinia Bay, was mur-

dered there in February last. It is a fearful story ; but one

 Letter IV.

can hardly blame the natives, when one knows of the treatment
that they have received at white men's hands, although, even
making every allowance for them, I cannot help fancying that
a good broadside or two occasionally would help to convince
them that white men's lives are not to be sacrificed with im-
punity.

Before taking up the tale again, I must say a few words

about the general characteristics of the island, and its ap
pearance.

In point of size it is about equal to Tana, but is more

massed together in the form of a square. It is not so moun-
tainous as that island, nor so beautiful in appearance. The
southern and eastern were the only sides of it that I saw, and
they had rather a rugged and barren appearance. In the
north, mountains rise to a considerable height, while the centre
of the island is apparently a sort of table-land, intersected by
valleys and ravines. Dillon's Bay is the principal anchorage
that the island possesses ; it cannot be called a harbour, for it is

merely a wide open bay, protected from the prevailing S.E.

winds. Cook's Bay and Portinia Bay are upon the other side ;

but as they are quite exposed to the trade winds, they are use-
less as places of shelter for vessels.

The exact number of inhabitants upon this island is not

known, but from one to two thousand is the usual estimate —
small population for an island of its size. What I have already
said will be sufficient to show that they are not of a very peace-
ful or trustworthy disposition. They have certainly a very bad
name, for they bear the character of being equal to the Tanese,
if not worse, in all that is bad, and of lacking any redeeming
qualities that the latter may possess, such as straightforwardness
and boldness.

On the morning of Sunday, the 12th of May, the vessel

 Land at Dillon's Bay. 103

came to anchor in Dillon's Bay, just opposite to a deep valley,

down which a stream find its way to the sea. Although the
scenery on the coasts on each side is not beautiful, the appear-
ance of this valley is certainly very pretty. The
hills on each
side are high and steep, and in some parts well waaded. Upon
the right, near the top of the , hill, is the spot where Mr, and
Mrs. G. N. Gordon lived, and were killed ; down on the beach,
to the right of the river, just where it joins the sea, John Williams
was killed. The house that was occupied by the last missionary,
Mr. McNair, who died there in 1870, is a few hundred yards up
the stream, on the left-hand side, but not visible from the anchor-
age. A few white houses stand down on the beach, fading out
to sea, and these are occupied as a whaling station. A litho.
of my sketch of this scene is given in one of the letters which
follow : the sketch was taken when the sun was shining down
the valley, lighting up one side with its rays and throwing the
other into deep shadow, which again was transferred as a dark
reflection to the surface of the still water.

On going ashore we found seventy or eighty natives gathered

together in a native building, and one of their number ad-
dressing them. This was the entire Christian party of the
island, assembled for public worship those who had been —
taught by Mr. G. Gordon and Mr. McNair at Dillon's Bay,
and those who had been taught by Mr. J. D. Gordon at
Portinia Bay. They had all come to this side of the island for
safety, as the heathen, when they murdered Mr. Gordon a few

months ago, had threatened to kill them also.

Several of the heathen natives of the Dillon's Bay district

were lounging about the river side as we went up, and more
degraded specimens of humanity I could not imagine to exist.
They were so frightfully repulsive that the Tanese and the
Fotunese, by comparison, went up fifty per cent, in my estima-
tion. But here again I noticed that wonderful difference
104 Letter IV.

between the native in his natural condition and the native as in-
fluenced by Christianity; for those in the church had a brightness
of expression on their faces which seemed to make them totally

different beings, quite irrespective of the clothes they wore

and the paint that they didn't wear.

The building which has been occupied as a mission house

was somewhat out of repair and the garden had all run wild,
for no one has occupied the place since the death of Mr.
McNair two years ago. Round this building we found barri-
cades erected, in case of an attack on the place, which was
threatened by the heathen natives a few months ago. Mr.
Smith, head of the whaling establishment on the other side of
the river, was for some time prepared for an invasion ; but the
Christian party mustering strong at Dillon's Bay, the enemy
were afraid, and kept out of the way.

The Christian natives were naturally very much enraged

against those who had had anything to do with the murder of
Mr. Gordon ; and a young chief, with three others, went right
across the country, through the land of the heathen, for the
purpose of avenging his death ; but being unable to get hold
of the murderer, they shot several of the tribe to which he be-
longed, and returned in safety to their own land. It is a native
way of doing justice, certainly ; but one cannot help admiring
the courage of the young fellows, as well as the spirit which
prompted them to do this.

In the afternoon several of us went for a stroll along the

banks of the river. We passed the graves of Mr. and Mrs.
Gordon and Mr. McNair, which were marked by simple
mounds of stone plastered over with white coral lime. They
are fenced in with reed fences, are situated under some
lofty palms, and altogether have a peaceful and pleasing ap-
pearance.
 The Vessel reaches Efatk. 105

A mile or so up the river we came to a series of short falls

or rapids, to the foot of which the salt water comes at high
tide. The river is navigable for boats up this length, and here
vessels send for water, filling the casks readily from the running
stream. We crossed at this place upon stones, and came
down the other side, enjoying the pretty scenery that this

valley affords.

Next morning we were off again, and on Tuesday cast

anchor in Pango Bay, island of Efate", eighty miles north-west
of Eramanga,
-

Less is known of Efate and its people than of any of the

islands to the south of it. In size it is about the same as
Eramanga and Tana. In appearance it will hold its own with
any of them. It has drawn high praise from many travellers :

One says of it
— " The rainbow tints caused by the setting sun
gave a peculiar beauty to the landscape, and many of the

officers considered that none of the islands we had yet visited

offered so beautiful a scene as that which lay before us."

Another —no less than Captain Cook, its discoverer, says
" The surface whereof appeared very delightful, being agreeably
diversified withwoods and lawns." Efate" is no doubt a beauti-
and its beauty is different from that of the islands we
ful island,

had met with before. There is more flat country on it than on

some of the others, and the mountains do not, as in Aneityum
and Tana, rise up from the sea in one continuous curve, but
appear in lofty ranges in the centre of the island; while be-
tween them and the sea are undulations, covered with lux-
uriant tropical vegetation.

Efate" is rich in harbours and bays —more so than any other

island of the group. There is Pango Bay, the one we anchored

in, having a secure inner harbour
at the head of it ; Havannah
which
Harbour, a fine sheet of water completely land-locked,
then, four or five miles in
lies twenty miles round the coast ;
 io6 Letter IV.

the other direction, is a lagoon which runs a long way into the
land and opens it up for boat communication ; while on the
north, also, there is both good anchorage and shelter for
vessels.

The vessel took up a position at the head of the bay-

just off the little island of Fili, which protects the inner
harbour of that name. Shortly after the anchor was down,
a flotilla of canoes put off from the islet, and in ten minutes
we were surrounded by an armada, manned by crews of
large and loquacious females. They had not the slightest
reverence for the character of the vessel, but banged its

venerable sides with their canoes, so as almost to cause the

old " Dayspring " to reel with astonishment and offended
dignity. They had not the slightest respect for our nerves,
but shrieked and yelled at the top of their voices, as they
scrambled about and tried to get into good places round the
vessel. They were not at all bashful, these Fili women,
but quite the reverse, and were altogether a most decided
contrast to the downcast dejected-looking creatures I had
seen at the southern islands. Some of them were of an
immense size, and all were bright and active. Many had
rathergood features, and I saw one girl in a canoe by
herself that was really pretty.

They had come and

to barter, bringing shells principally,
wanting in return a great variety of opened busi- articles. I
ness with the dusky charmer in the small canoe, and pro-
duced several objects which ought to have taken her savage
fancy; but no, she would only shake her head and shriek
" shooshah," at the top of her voice. Though puzzled, I still
continued my endeavours to tempt her with various objects,
but without success and I was just about to give it up as a
;

bad job, when, holding up by chance a jews-harp, the prob-

lem was solved. The mysterious " shooshah " was nothing
 The Islets of Fili and Mele. 107

but the well-known jews-harp. She immediately grabbed

the Israelitish instrument with a smile of satisfaction, bundled
the shells over to me, and paddled off in triumph. Some
women wanted beads, and only one kind of beads would
their majesties deign to look at ; for these dames have fashions
as well as any others : the small blue beads " were in " at
the time of our visit, and there was a great run on them.
Others again wanted knives; while some, I am very much,
afraid, went off with sundry figs of black tobacco about their
persons, which we will say were for their brothers.

This little island of Fili, and another called Meld, about

three miles from it, are inhabited by two very powerful
tribes. Fili, the larger of the two, is not over a few acres in
size,and both of them are used by the natives merely as
places of residence, their plantations all being on the main
island.

It is a curious fact, that although these two islets are

within a hundred yards of the main island of Efate", and the
natives of them must come into frequent contact with the
EfatSse, that they are inhabited by quite a different people.

They speak a totally different language from that of the

Efatese— nearly pure Malay.] and in form they resemble the
Eastern Polynesians more than any of the New Hebrideans.
There seems little doubt but that -these people have come
in canoes, probably at no very distant date, from some of

the eastern islands, have settled on these islets, and that

since there has been no intermarriage between them and their

neighbours on Efate".

I went on a solitary exploring expedition to the island of

Fili, going ashore in a canoe which two men had brought off,

and engaging these men as guides. Villages are thickly scat-

tered over the place, and appeared very clean and neat. I

sketched one or two of the huts from the inside of the

 io8 Letter IV.

fence which surrounded them, and was rather amused at the

crowd of women and children that gathered round me, and
watched the mysterious doings of the stranger with open
mouths. When it was finished however, I was flattered by the
shout of recognition which they raised, as they pointed to the
drawing and then to the huts, showing that they understood
what it was meant for. As may be seen in the sketch given
below, the huts are somewhat different from those of the
Aneityumese, in that the entrance is by a long hole at the side
instead of at the end. They are larger, too, than those of the
latter people, and altogether have a better appearance.

Huts on Fili Island.

As wandered on again, accompanied by the two natives,

I
I was struck with the appearance of groups of hollowed-out
trunks of trees or posts, fixed in the ground in a circle, a
a space being cleared all round them. They had something
druidical in their appearance,
and quite mystified me. So I
pointed inquiringly towards them,
and in reply my guides
stepped forward and commenced beating them with their
fists,
 A Ramble on Fili Island. 109

and so producing a loudy melancholy sound which varied ac-

cording to the diameter of the post operated on. I noticed
also that upon the largest one of the circle some rude
kind of figure Was generally traced, the nature of which I
could not make out.

These drums, I afterwards found out, were used for the pur-
pose .of assembling the natives for feasts or public meetings,
and also did duty as a band at the native dances, the open
square around them being the ball-room.

A sketch of these drums will be found at the head of

the following letter.

We had a contretemps while returning to the vessel in the

canoe, which might have been more serious than it actually
was. The wind had somewhat since we had gone ashore,
risen
and soon after putting off I saw that the canoe was over-
weighted. The water began quietly to ripple over the sides,
and the further we got out the worse it was, for the wind was off
shore ; so I set one of the natives to bale, while I took his
paddle. But it was of no use, for faster and faster the water
came over ; so the man at the pumps struck work in disgust,
and he and I jumped overboard just as the vessel was preparing
to go down. Fortunately for us, one of the armada was re-
turning from the vessel, and the lady canoists seeing the mis-
hap, paddled vigorously to the rescue. They picked us up,
and, accompaniedby the canoe which the other native had
managed to empty, we reached the vessel ; whereupon I re-
warded my boatmen, and also my gallant rescuers, with some
of that pernicious article generally called trade tobacco.

The other island of Meld I also visited, going with the captain,
who went down in the ship's boat for yams. It is smaller than
Fili, and more populous, so that it is covered with huts, which
form quite a town.
no Letter IV.

I saw more of the men here than on Fili, for it was later
in the day and they were returning from their plantations.
They men, but have the name of being great
are fine strong
rascals. A good many both of the Fili and Mele" men have
been away in Fiji or Queensland, and they are none the better
for that.
We managed to get a good supply of yams at Mele", and very
fine ones too, giving in exchange knives, calico, tobacco, &c,
and returned to the vessel with our load.
After visiting the mission stations lately occupied by Messrs:
—
Cosh and Morrison the first being on a point which forms
one side of Pango Bay, and the latter at Erakor, about
three miles round the coast —
the vessel weighed anchor and
sailed for Havannah Harbour.

xy|^
 SMlTHfc&QN,S&

Nutive Drums, on Fili Island, Efate.

LETTER V.

HAVANNAH HARBOUR TRADING ESTABLISHMENTS^- VESSEL

—
GRAZES A REEF— NGUNA TWO HILLS ARRIVE AT SANTO. —
Anelcauhat, Aiieityum,
June, 1872.

AVANNAH Harbour is the principal port of Efate, indeed

I may say of the New Hebrides. It is named after the vessel
of Captain Erskine, who visited it in the year 1843. It is a
long tortuous sheet of water, the distance from the' entrance to
the head being about seven miles. On one side is the main
island of Efate" ; on the other two small islands, named Decep-
tion and Protection islands which completely enclose it, with
the exception of three channels —
one a boat passage, and the
other two large enough for vessels of any size. The greatest
disadvantage in connection with this harbour is its depth ; for
ii2 Letter IV.

no anchorage can be found anywhere except quite close to the

shores, and the only good spot is at the head of the bay, where
a cable's length off from the beach there is fifteen or sixteen
fathoms of water.

As this harbour is not more than twenty miles from Pango

Bay, the anchor did not hang long after being lifted in the
latter before it was down in the former.

As we entered the harbour there was quite a fleet of canoes

under sail, crossing from Protection Island to the main island
they looked very pretty, and caused some astonishment to the
passengers in the " Dayspring," as no such sight had been seen
during any part of the voyage previously. Here, as on Fili
and Me\6, many of the natives live on the islets, in preference
to".the main land, considering them to be more healthy but as :

they have their plantations on the latter, constant communica-

tion is kept up between the two sides of the harbour ; and
further, as these natives appreciate anything which will save

them labour, they have got calico from the traders and made it
into sails. Hence the fleet which greeted our eyes.

There are several traders' establishments at this place ; the

principal one is just opposite the anchorage, and is under the
management of Mr. S. Hebblewhite. On going ashore, Mr. H.
kindly took me over the premises, which are extensive and bear
an appearance of prosperity. The principal buildings are the
store, dwelling-house, ginning and engine-house, store for
cobra, &c, overseers' and natives' quarters ; while a large
building is in the course of erection, which is to be used as a

machine-house for the manufacture of coir matting, brushes, &c.

from the cocoanut fibre.
*

Then there is a plantation of twenty acres of Sea Island

cotton, which seems thriving well, and a large piece of ground
 Havannah Harbour. 113

is being prepared for planting next season. The manager is

speaking of trying coffee also, of the success of which he

has little doubt.

The business done by this establishment —without doubt the

most important in the group — consists of importing and selling

goods of every description, including grog, to vessels and

traders, growing cotton, and also buying it from other growers ;
ginning and exporting it to Sydney making and buying cobra
; >

and arrowroot, and also dealing occasionally in beche de mer

and candlenut berries. Of all these industries carried on in
the New Hebrides, I shall speak in another letter.

For the purpose of carrying on this business, there is the

manager, two overseers, engineer, and twenty or thirty natives, as

well as the " Defiance," —a schooner of 200 tons, which runs
between Sydney and EfateV — and a ketch for inter-island
work.

We only stayed a day in this harbour ; sufficiently long, how-

ever, for the missionaries to decide that it afforded a good
opening for a mission station, and to fix upon a suitable spot

whereon to place it.

Next we sailed to Nguna, a small island with rather an un-

pronounceable name, only ten miles to the north of Efate".
While going there we had rather a narrow escape from being
lodged on the top of a reef. Not long after we left the har-

bour it began and the captain resolved that instead

to get dark,

of knocking about off Nguna all night, he would come to anchor

somewhere, so ran for a sandy beach in the lee of Deception -
Island. That island is well named ; for we ran on until

the vessel was almost on shore before the man with the lead
could find any bottom. Suddenly he shouted fourteen fathoms,' '

then next heave 'four fathoms,' next came shrilly the cry,
U4 Letter V.

'two-and-a-half fathoms,' We began to get uncomfortable,

as the vessel draws two fathoms. The sails having been
backed, however, she began to move slowly astern, and we
thought that we were all right, when a quiver like an
earthquake shock ran through the vesssl, as her keel grazed
some rock— only grazed, fortunately, so that she swung off
without damage ; and drifting out into ten fathoms water, the
anchor was let go, and we lay comfortably all night.

Next day we reached Nguna, and anchored opposite the

mission house of Mr. Milne. This island is about six miles

long and three or four broad, and is mountainous, the principal,

hill being evidently an extinct volcano. It is prettily wooded
in the valleys, and up the sides of the hills, while the
summits are mostly bare. The population is estimated at
about 800, and they are much like the Efatese in appearance
and manners, and speak a dialect of the same language.

The Rev. P. Milne and his wife have been on the island for
three years, and appear to have gained the respect and good-
will of the natives. He has built a neat little house a short
way up from the beach, which occupies a pleasant and, I be-
lieve, a healthy situation.

As a number of natives met us on our landing,

usual,
amongst whom was an albino woman.
She was a very repulsive-
looking o"bject, being of a spotted dirty-white colour. The
brown skins of the other natives had a far more pleasing
appearance.

After a few hours at Nguna, we set sail again, for Metas

or Two Hills, fourteen miles north of Nguna, for the pur-
pose of landing supplies for a native teacher stationed upon
that island. We quickly ran down to it, and hove-to while
a boat went ashore. As itsname implies, this island is
 Two Hills. 115

composed of two hills, and these are connected by a narrow flat

neck of land, over which the sea breaks during a storm. The
principal hill is pyramidal in form, and is about 1500 feet
high ; it mounts up very abruptly from the sea, and has a very
fine appearance. From the vessel we could observe signs of
cultivation on its steep sides, in the shape of green terraces.
The natives of this island must have feet like flies or spiders,
for it seems to be impossible for ordinarily-constructed men to
travel about on an island that lies at an angle of about 45° off

the horizontal. There are ninety of these crawlers, and they

resemble the Efatese and Ngunese in customs and language.

About a mile from this island is a curious rock, rising perpen-

dicularly from the sea to a height of 400 feet. It is very aptly
named Monument Island, and is densely populated by numerous
tribes of feathered bipeds.

Leaving Two Hills, we spread our sails to the trade winds,

and steered for Santo, the most northerly and the largest island of
the group. As we sailed on we found ourselves surrounded with
islands of every shape and size, eleven being visible at one time.

The whole scene suggested to me the idea of a sunken continent,

now wholly submerged, save the lofty tops of mountain
ranges.

We sighted Api in the distance, an island upon which Dr.

Murray, of " Carl " brig notoriety, resided for some time. It
seemed well wooded, and conical hills of some height were
visible. We next passed the great island of Malicolo, said to
be sixty miles long, and inhabited by fierce and treacherous
people. We could observe fine ranges of mountains running
principally north and south, and covered thickly with timber.

Little is known of this island or of its inhabitants. Cook

visited it, when he came first to the New Hebrides, and he

1 2
n6 Letter V.

discovered a harbour on its eastern side — Port Sandwich, said to

be the finest harbour in the group.

Santo was descried about three o'clock in the afternoon of

the day after leaving Two Hills, and entering Lisburn Bay by
moonlight, we anchored at eight o'clock, opposite the mission
station of Mr. Goodwill.

^y®^
 ^<**0 JK W* 3k>5v. ,

LETTER VI.

HISTORY OF THE DISCOVERY OF SANTO —ITS APPEARANCE

BARTERING WITH THE NATIVES —THE QUEEN'S BIRTHDAY
—MAU AND ITS PEOPLE— VISIT ASHORE— RETURN TO
ANEITYUM.
Anelcauhat, Aneityum,
June, 1872.

^T is no doubt true of the South-Sea Islanders and the South-

Sea Islands, that they have no history ; but I must claim
for the island of Santo the place of an exception to this rule, for it

has a history —a brief one, 'tis true, but still an interesting one
and I am sure that I cannot do better now than briefly run
over the incidents which led to its discovery nearly three
hundred years ago. v

Early in the seventeenth century a Spaniard, Pedro Quiros

by name, coming to the conclusion, after much thought and in-

vestigation, that there lay in the South Pacific a great continent

still unknown, petitioned, the Spanish government most assidu-
ously to fit out for him an expedition, that he might go and
settle this question. After considerable delay his request was
granted, and he was despatched, in December 1605, with three
vessels, six priests, and a large complement of men, on a voyage
of discovery. In April 1606, after touching at several islands

before discovered, he sighted land in a position where nothing

of the kind had been known to exist, and from its apparent
n8 Letter VI.

size and beauty, was led to rejoice in the idea that the great
southern continent lay before him. He named it Tierra Austral
del Espiritu Santo, entered a largebay upon the north of it,
and there anchored. For thirty-six days he lay in that bay,
sending boats ashore and exploring the neighbouring country.
The more he saw of the place, the more he fell in love with it
his excited imagination enhanced the great natural beauties of
the land to such an extent, that he looked upon it as a second
paradise —a land which far exceeded even what his most ex-
travagant expectations pictured the southern continent to be.

A river at the head of the bay he called the Jordan, and

upon its banks he founded a city named the New Jerusalem.
Then, in the words of Torquemada, the historian, " they set sail,
desirous of discovering lands to windward, to found the other
cities in honour of his majesty, as had been done in this bay,

where they founded one named the New Jerusalem, to which

Were named alcaldes, regidores, royal officers and other
ministers of justice."

However, when they got out of the bay they met strong winds,
I presume ; at all events, winds which pre-
the S.E. trades,
vented their sailing southward : so, after being carried far to

leeward, they gave up in despair all attempts to see more of

this wonderful land, and made for Spain. On arriving there,
Quiros gave most glowing accounts of .his new continent. He
says, " Its length is as much as that of all Europe, Asia
Minor, and to the Caspian Sea and Persia, with all the islands
of the Mediterranean and ocean which are within its limits em-
—The people of
braced, including England and Ireland. these
countries are many, colours white, negroes, mulattoes,
their
Indians, and mixed of one and the —They use earthen
other.
pots, have looms and other nets, they work stones, marble/
flutes, drums, and spoons of wood varnished. — The islanders
have their embarkations well wrought, and sufficient to navigate
 Qiirio? account of Santo. 119

from one country to another. —The flesh are many hogs, tame
like ours ; and fowls, capons, country partridges, geese, 1
turtle,

ringdoves, and goats. —

The riches are silver and pearls, which
I saw, and gold, which the other captain saw."

He speaks further of marble quarries, of lovely scenery, of

splendid groves, filled with "thousands of different birds, some
;"
to appearance nightingales, blackbirds, larks, and goldfinches
and winds up thus :
" It appears that all together will make
the country so rich that it be alone able to support itself,
will

and also America, and will aggrandise and enrich Spain in such
a manner as I will show, if I am assisted by others in the

execution."

This what the Americans would call loud writing or

is

Those old navigators disdained to stick at plain prosaic

tall talk.

facts .when speaking of anything that they had done, or any

.

place that they' had discovered ; and in this case Quiros has
decidedly let his imagination have free play. To us who know
the size of the island, and also to a certain extent its capabili-
ties, there is something extremely ludicrous in the deliberate

way in which Quiros, who had

only seen one side of it, asserts
that it is as large as Europe, Asia Minor, the Mediterranean
arid all the islands thereabouts put together, and that it can not
only support itself, but also America, besides enriching

Spain.
—
Poor old Quiros he evidently wished to be a second Her-
nando Cortez, and no doubt he pictured to himself'his going out
to the newly-discovered continent at the head of a
numerous
company—his subjugating the many peoples—his getting pos-

session of all their riches— his living in the New Jerusalem on

the banks of the Jordan, in palaces built from the marble

quarries—and his ruling over that country, living on its many
productions, and enjoying its numerous pleasures. But that

was not to be. He never again saw Santo : he could not

 120 Letter VI.

persuade the king of Spain to send him out again as he desired,

and he died at last in obscurity, without the great wish of his
heart being accomplished.

There is, no doubt, some truth at the bottom of this

rhodomontade of Quiros, when \e. speaks of the things that he
actually saw ; for most of his wild writing is about those things
which he didn't see.

Very likely at the time of his visit the people were more
mixed than they are now, and also their canoes and arts in a
better condition. This would not only be possible, but reason-
able ; for there is little doubt but that the natives of Polynesia
have been and are sinking in the scale of civilization. Also
the live animals, such as pigs, fowls, goats, of which he speaks,
very likely were on the island ; for the two former still exist,
and although I have never heard of goats being originally on
any of the New Hebrides, still this may have been the case on
Santo. The gold and silver I am afraid he has coined from his
own imagination, or, in the case of the former, has been misled
by the appearance of mica, a mineral which does, I believe, exist
on Santo. As for the singing-birds, I fancy they are mythical
altogether ; for the New Hebrides are lamentably deficient in
this respect.

Bougainville, who arrived at the New Hebrides in 1768, dis-

pelled the idea of Santo being a continent ; and Cook sailed
completely round it, went into the bay in which Quiros had
anchored, and there found a stream which he supposed to be the
Jordan of Quiros ; but he found no traces of the New
Jerusalem, which, with its alcaldes, regidores, &c, evidently
never got further than the fertile brain of its projector.

Leaving romance, and coming to fact, we find that Santo is

about eighty miles long by forty miles broad, and is without
doubt a fine island. What of it could be seen from the vessel
 Santo and its Inhabitants. 121
»

was well calculated to excite anyone's imagination, and inclined

one to look rather leniently even upon the exaggerated panegyrics
of Quiros. The mountain ranges are magnificent ; some
of them cannot be far short of 5000 feet high. This island
possesses the beauties of the other islands, only upon a
larger scale. It is exceedingly fertile, so much so that
not a bare spot could be seen anywhere, the very precipices
being covered with masses of thick green creepers, and every-
where the trees and shrubs appeared packed so closely together
as to make one wonder how they could find room to grow.

No accurate estimate can be arrived at as to the_ population,

but it is known to be thickly inhabited. The natives are su-
perior in some respects to their southern neighbours, for they
still have the art of making a rude kind, of pottery, which Quiros
speaks of; their native weapons, too, are of a superior kind,
and their chiefs have considerable power. Some of their spears
are very curiously made, the shaft being of bamboo or some
hardwood, and the points of human bone, neatly adjusted at the

end. On the other islands, the natives make use of a man's

flesh as food; but here they use up his bones as well, for
pointing their spears and arrows. Not because they con-
sider that there is any peculiar virtue in a spear tipped with

human bone, but merely because a man is the largest animal on

the island, and so his bones are best suited for their pur-
pose.
A number of them—men, not bones —came off to the vessel,

bringing spears, clubs, and the canoes which

&c, to barter ;

they came in were certainly not what I would have called

" embarkations well wrought," for they were in no way superior
to those of the other islanders, and not quite fit, I imagine, to
" navigate from one country to another," unless the countries

were remarkably close to each other.

The natives who came off were fat friendly fellows, medium
122 Letter VI.

height, naked, and very dark-skinned. They clambered on to

the deck, -and offered their native commodities for sale.

Bartering with natives is an art which requires some prac-

tice, before one can be proficient enough to avoid being taken
in. They have all sorts of dodges by which to palm off on the
unwary worthless articles. They will bring up shells, shining
and beautiful and wet, barter them and go off, and shortly
the purchaser finds that the shells are miserable weatherbeaten
things, that the savage has picked off the beach and dipped in
the water, so as to make them appear glossy and fresh.

The great matter in trading of this kind is to offer the natives

what they are most particularly in want of at the time. A man
may be in want of fish-hooks, and then one may get from him,
for a pennyworth of hooks, what a shilling's-worth of calico
wouldn't purchase. The exchangeable value, not the intrinsic
value of an article, is the thing to be ascertained in this case.
On different islands, tod, a different class of articles is required.

On Tana, calico is it is good trade

worth next to nothing ; but
on Aneityum, Efate", Aniwa, &c. Tobacco is good trade on
most islands but it is useless on Ambrim, for there they hav'nt
;

learnt to use it. Generally those articles are best which can be
made up into small parcels,- such as beads, fish-hooks, and
tobacco; for it is very often difficult to get anything from them of
the value of a good tomahawk. I had with me calico,
turkey red, hatchets, fish-hooks and lines, knives, and also'
some tobacco for private consumption ; but I found that all

over the group the tobacco was. the most useful as well as the
cheapest article of barter. Gradually I had been accumulating
a collection of varieties, and by this time it was mounting up to
a respectable size. It consisted mainly of native weapons, bags,
baskets, and shells.

The vessel stayed in Lisburne Bay for two days, during which
time the stores of Mr. Goodwill were landed. This missionary,
 The Queen's Birthday. 123

and his wife and family, have suffered severely from fever and
ague, which prevails much on this quarter of the island ; and as
they have none of those comforts that we in a civilized com-
munity enjoy —such as medical attendance, servants' assist-
ance, and friends' society, they are much to be sympathised
with.

Before the vessel left, I took a day in the woods, when I

added twenty bptanical specimens to my collection, and would
probably have got many more, only the damp moist heat
was so overpowering that I was obliged to return before I other-
wise would have done.

Sailing from Santo we commenced the return voyage. Now

we began and some of the'dis-
to feel the force of the trade wind,
advantages of a wind blowing steadily from one direction. It was
very pleasant as long as it went with us, going north, and it would
have been very pleasant to have had it turn round again 'and
blow us back ; it did not seem inclined to do that, we
but as
made up our minds some days of weary beating and tossing
to
about and it was well we did, for we got it. We took four
;

days to reach Nguna again. Touching at that island, we took

Mr. Milne on board, and sailed for Mau, a small island twelve
miles to the eastward. It was the 24th of May, and so the mate

and I resolved that her gracious Majesty should not be forgotten,

even amongst the cannibal islands. Rummaging out our re-
volvers and supplying ourselves with a large quantity of am-
munition, we adjourned to the forecastle, and there fired a
salute in honour of the day, with such vigour that the rest of
the party rushed up in alarm, imagining that we were attacked
by savages. Then in the evening the National Anthem was
performed with great good will by hearty voices, accompanied
and assisted by a shaky accordion. Thus we showed our
loyalty, and, as we did our best under the circumstances, we
separated with the conviction that no man could do more.
 124 Letter VI.

On reaching Mau, we had some difficulty in getting an

anchorage, as there are plenty of reefs about, and the charts
give no information regarding this island. After dodging
about a little, the anchor was at last let go in twenty fathoms
water on a rocky bottom.

Mau is simply a range of mountains about eight miles long,

rising from the plain of the ocean. There are several hundred
inhabitants on it, who speak a dialect of the Efatese language.
They and treacherous people. Not long ago, a
are a fierce
party of them were in a vessel as crew, and rising together
they murdered the white crew, obliged the mate to navigate the
vessel to Mau, and there murdered him also, and broke up the
vessel.

A party of us went ashore and visited a village of these lively

cannibals, to confer with a friendly chief about the sale of some
land for mission purposes, which piece of business was eventu-
ally performed to the satisfaction of both parties. I noticed
that many of them looked at us very suspiciously, and one of them,
—a chief, a great strong fellow, sat apart with his musket, looking
as surly as a bear, and would have nothing to say to us. He
would probably have been much delighted to have got the op-
portunity of making " long pig " of a few of the fattest of the
party; but the opportunity did not occur, for everything went
on smoothly. The boat, after going off to the vessel, returned
again and brought barter for yams. It was very exciting work,

for, as soon as the boat touched the shore, crowds of men and
women came round it with their vegetables, and yelled and
splashed about till they got what they wanted. The crowd gradu-
ally increased, and far along the beach strings of men and women
could be seen coming with yams enough to load the vessel ; but
having got half-a-boat-load, and having had some calif o stolen in
the scrimmage, the second mate, who was in charge, thought it high
time to be off. So away we went, leaving scores of disap-
•-$ .

m^-
 Reach Aneityum. 125

pointed and angry natives standing on the beach with their un-
sold yams.

When we reached the vessel, she was again got under weigh
and proceeded southward. Calling at all the mission sta-
tions, and taking on board the missionaries for the annual

conference to be held on Aneityum, she reached that island on

Sunday, the 2nd of June, having accomplished the voyage
round the group in a little under four weeks.

"Vfv^
 ^^^c^P^j ^
1

LETTER VII.

—
THE MISSION CONFERENCE SETTLEMENT OF MR. ROBERTSON
AT DILLON'S BAY, ERAMANGA —
SETTLEMENT OF MR.
MCDONALD AT HAVANNAH HARBOUR, EFATE VISIT TO —
AMBRIM.

Aniwa,
August, 1872.

O.ON after the vessel arrived in Anelcauhat Harbour, the

missionaries held their annual conference, there being present
Dr. Geddie, Messrs. Inglis, Paton, Neilson, Watt, Milne,
Murray, McDonald, McKenzie, and Robertson. Two — viz.,

Messrs. Copelandand Goodwill —were absent. The sittinglasted

for about a week, during which time the reverend gentlemen
seemed to be very busily employed.

The questions, as to where the new missionaries should be

settled, and as to a change of head quarters for the "Dayspring,"

were perhaps the most important matters discussed. Finally it

was decided that Sydney should be the vessel's port hence-

forward, instead of Melbourne, while the new missionaries were
allocated thus :

Mr. Murray, Anelcauhat, Aneityum.

Mr. McDonald, Havannah Harbour, Efate\
Mr. McKenzie, Erakor and Pango, Efate'.

Mr. Robertson, Dillon's Bay, Eramanga.

 The Work that the Missionaries are doing. 127

Mr. McDonald was the only one sent to open a new station,
all the others going to those which had been occupied be-
fore.

Dr. Geddie was unable to attend the closing meetings of the

session, through a sudden and very severe stroke of paralysis,
which quite disabled him. He recovered a little before the
vessel left on her second tour, but still was very much shaken
and weak.
During this session, too, a communion service was held in
the native church, which was attended by about 300 natives.
I was much struck with their neat appearance and quiet
respectful behaviour during this service and as I compared ;

them with many of the natives on neighbouring islands, was

more than ever convinced that the work which the missionaries
are doing is a real and a permanent one. I had now been
round the group, and had seen something of missionary life and
—
doings not, perhaps, of the real hard work of it, but still
enough to enable me to entertain very decided opinions upon
this subject. What I have just stated is my conviction as re-
gards the work that they are doing ; and as to themselves, I am
also as strongly convinced that the missionaries make a very
great sacrifice when they come to these islands ; that the work
is to them one of toil and great discomfort, not to speak of
danger ; that those who speak
sneeringly of missionaries and
their work, ascribing tothem motives of personal gain, are very
much in the wrong ; and that those persons are influenced, not
by a desire to find out and express the truth, but by a bitter
prejudice against everything Christian and philanthropic.

This is the result of my experience so far, as regards the mis-

sions carried on in the New Hebrides.

Another event occurred whilst the Synod was holding its
meetings, and that was the arrival in the harbour of a vessel
having mails on board from the colonies. Those who are in
128 Letter VII.

the habit of getting daily deliveries of letters and papers can

have no idea of the excitement that the arrival of letters

causes, after the lapse of three or fourmonths without news of

any kind. The most miserable newspaper has an interest
hardly credible, and is read eagerly from beginning to end,
advertisements and all ; and if this be the case with the papers,
I need hardly say how letters are received and welcomed. It

is only by being deprived of certain things for a time that one*

can properly appreciate them ; and on going to places
where mails are not delivered oftener than once in four months,
one will have a very much greater idea of the benefits which
the postal arrangements confer than one ever had before.

After the Synodical meetings were concluded, the " Day-

spring " started on a second trip round the group, the work
portioned out for her being the return of the missionaries
to their islands, the settlement of Messrs. Robertson and
McDonald, visits to Ambrim, Santo, and Mare" in the Loyalty
group, and finally, visits' to each mission station, for mails
before taking her departure to Melbourne.

As this voyage was a good deal the same as the last, I will,

merely notice the exceptional events that occurred in it,

which were the settlement of the new missionaries and the visits

to Ambrim and Mare".

On Tuesday, the 25 th June, we reached Dillon's Bay, and

lay there four days, during which time the old mission house
was made as comfortable as circumstances would permit, and
the Robertsons, with their stores and furniture, landed.

We had an uncomfortable time of it, on board, while lying here;

for soon after we anchored, the wind veered round to the west, and
a nasty sea came rolling into the bay, so that we lay bobbing up and
down on the waves, with the stern of the vessel a hundred yards or so
from the shore, upon which the waves burst with an angry hiss. We
Vfe. *f

erf

p
 At Dillon's Bay. 129

had also the consolation of knowing that if the vessel did

begin to drag her anchors, she would be almost certain to go
ashore, as there was no room to get under weigh.

Smith, the whaler, came into the bay while we were there, in
a small steamer which he had built on Eramanga. He was
well satisfied with her performance, asserting that she could
steam eight knots per hour, and he expected to make her useful
in the next whaling season for towing out the boats and towing
in the whales.

A ketch appeared also, and a boat from her went ashore, in

which was a titled gentleman, well known in these seas, Ross —
Lewin. Hehas a cotton plantation on Tana of a considerable
extent, and has been down amongst these islands for a very
long time now. He does not bear a particularly good character,
his title consisting of the word " notorious " prefixed to his
name. To appearance he is a short, elderly, strongly-built,

quiet-looking man, who has plenty to say and is not at all

troubled with bashfulness.

After getting the Robertsons installed, the vessel made sail

for Efate, called Pango Bay, and then went ashore at

at
Havannah Harbour—literally went ashore, for she lay all night
with her bow on the beach halfway up the harbour. It happened
thus. While going up the harbour, the captain tried to get an
anchorage near the spot destined for the mission station, which
is about half way up from the entrance, and tacking
in, the

vessel ran so close that there was not time to go about or

wear, so she consequently ran aground. Early next morning,
with the hightide, she was got off and went up to her usual

anchorage, none the worse for her mishap.

We stayed in the harbour a fortnight, while Mr. McDonald's

house was being erected and his goods landed. First the land
was bought from the chief; then a party went from the vessel,
130 Letter VII.

with the carpenter at their head, and the ground was cleared of
the heavy timber and scrub with which it was covered. The
frame and boards were brought from Aneityum, and quickly
were no one wielding the hammer and axe to more
rattled up,
purpose than Mr. McDonald himself. Two weeks after we
had arrived in the harbour, Mr. and Mrs. McDonald took
possession of their house. It consisted of two rooms, with a

verandah at front and back, and two native houses behind

one for a kitchen, the other for a store. The house has a nice
situation on a point, and commands a view both up and down
the harbour, and out to sea through the centre channel.
Whether it will prove a healthy locality or not remains to be
seen.

Going from Havannah Harbour, we called at Nguna and

Two Hills, reaching the island of Ambrim on the 18th of July.
Our object in calling at this island was to land upon it six
Ambrim natives who had been working on Tana for a trader,
and who had been left there by him unpaid and unprovided
for. They had been cared for by Mr. Watt, the missionary,
for some time, and were now being returned to their own island
by the mission vessel.

Ambrim is one of the richest and most beautiful islands in

the South Pacific. One gentleman, Mr. Murray, speaking of it,

says that he has " seen many beautiful islands, both in Eastern
and Western Polynesia, but one more lovely than the island
just named he never beheld."

had looked forward to seeing the gem of the New Hebrides,

\
as is sometimes called ; but, unfortunately, the gem would
it

not condescend to show itself. In the middle of the island

there is a lofty hill, over 3000 feet high ; and this hill is a
volcano, in full activity, pouring forth a continuous stream of
smoke and darkening the air all around. It was engaged in
 The Active Volcanoes of the New Hebrides. 131

this pursuit when we arrived off the shores of the island, so

that we found the latter enveloped in a thick smoky curtain,
and almost completely screened from public view. It was ex-
tremely inconsiderate in it to do this ; but as such was the case,
we had only to take it for granted that much fine scenery lay
behind the curtain, and to make out as best we could some
parts not quite hidden.

While speaking of volcanoes, I might mention the fact of our

sighting another active one, while on our way to Ambrim, and
not more than forty or fifty miles from it. It is on a small
island called Lopevi, said to be 5000 feet high. We passed a
long way off, but still we could distinctly observe the smoky
appearance to leeward of the island. It is like a sugar-loaf
rising out of the sea, and at its summit, often above the clouds,
it a stream of black smoke. It must greatly resemble,
puffs out
I fancy, Volcano Island in the Santo Cruz group, to the north
of the New Hebrides, which is thus described by a visitor :

" A magnificent cone in full eruption, rising almost perpendicu-

larly out of the sea, at the height of between 2000 and 3000

feet. —
It was a glorious sight to see the great stones leaping

and bounding down the side of the cone, clearing 300 or 400
feet at a jump, and springing up many yards into the air, finally
plunging into the sea with a roar, and the splash of the foam
and the hiss of the sea combined." Of course we were not
near enough to Lopevi to see anything of this kind ; but it ap-
peared quite steep enough to cause stones to roll from the top
to the bottom of it. It would be rather a fine sight if they do

so, to watch the great stones roll down 5000 feet and then
plunge into the sea. I shouldn't think there were any inhabit-
ants on Lopevi.

This volcano, with the one on Ambrim and the one on Tana,

comprises all the active volcanoes on the group. But to return

to Ambrim.
k2
132 Letter VII

Mr. Watt and I went ashore in the boat. Close to the

beach there was a flat reef, through which there appeared no
opening ; so we had just to bump over it as best we might,
assisted by the waves, which were large enough to wash us
over, but not so large as to render such a feat dangerous. The
Ambrim people have had but communication as yet with
little

whites ; so when we landed they gathered round us with much

curiosity, feeling our arms and shouting with surprise. When
they discovered that their friends had at last returned, their
joy knew no bounds, especially as said friends had some pigs
—
and other trade with them none of which, however, I may re-
mark, had they got from the trader for whom they had worked.
Before we had been long on shore, one of those who had been
on Tana came up to Mr. Watt, and told him, in a low voice,
to get into the boat and go off as quickly as possible. He gave
no reason, but appeared very much in earnest. We did so,
and, bumping over the reef again, rejoined the vessel. One
of the Ambrim men had been killed on Tana, and probably
his friends had come up and were inclined to make a row so ;

the friendly man had been afraid of our getting into trouble,
and thought it best to advise us to retreat and as it takes very ;

little to excite these savages, and as they are never very par-
ticular whom they may kill by way of revenge, perhaps it was as
well for us that we did leave thus abruptly.

The Ambrim natives appeared to me a well-grown, healthy

people, and dark-skinned. They wear their hair cut short, and
have a curious custom of powdering it white, and I cannot say
that it has an unpleasant appearance.

Leaving Ambrim, we sailed for Santo, and thence to the

island of Mare. As this island belongs to a different group,
and is under a different mission, I will give some little informa-
tion about it and the other two islands which comprise the
group, in another letter.
 ^V#^feP^«^
LETTER VIII.

—
THE LOYALTY ISLANDS THEIR NATURE, CHARACTERISTICS,
— —
AND PEOPLE MARE THE MISSION STATION OF MR.
—
JONES A RIDE ACROSS THE ISLAND A FEW REMARKS —
ABOUT THE NATIVES AND THEIR HOUSES THE VESSEL —
SAILS AGAIN FOR THE NEW HEBRIDES.

Aniwa,
August, 1872.

^HE Loyalty Islands lie directly between the New Hebrides

and New Caledonia, being within ninety or a hundred miles of
the former and sixty miles of the latter. The group is com-
posed of the three principal islands, named Mare', Lifou,
and Uea, and a few smaller ones, scattered round them.
Lifou, the central island, is said to be ninety miles in circum-
ference, Mare seventy miles,, and Uea fifty.

They are all upheaved coral islands, similar in formation to

Aniwa in the New Hebrides. Nowhere does any part of them
rise more than 300 feet above the level of the sea. The two
southern islands, Mard and Lifou, have no harbours ; vessels
being obliged to anchor in open bays, which they can do only
when the wind is blowing off shore. Uea, the northernmost
island possesses good shelter for vessels in an extensive lagoon
which is well protected by a surrounding reef.'
134 Letter VIII.

As Mare* was the only island which I visited, I shall speak

of it alone, although, from the great similarity which exists be-

tween the islands of this group, nearly all that is said of one
will apply equally well to the other.

On approaching this island I was struck with the curious re-

semblance which the outlines of the land exhibit to long
ranges of fortifications, and also with the peculiar appearance
which the pines give to the landscape, as they stand clustered
in sombre groups, like giant sentinels guarding the coral forts.

These pines on the New Hebrides, being con-

are not found
fined to the Loyalty Islands and New Caledonia. They bear,
however, a considerable resemblance to the Norfolk Island
pine. Some of the islets near Mare' are thickly covered with
them, and from a distance their appearance is highly suggestive
of marine hedgehogs with bristles erect.

The islands of this group were at one time thickly populated,

but the natives are now greatly diminished in numbers. They
are a strongly-made people, active but not good-looking, the
women especially being the reverse of beautiful. Thirty years
ago they were amongst the worst of heathen tribes; now they are
the most advanced of any natives in Western Polynesia. This
remark applies especially to the inhabitants of Mare'.

For the change that has taken place, there must be a cause.
Shall we ascribe it, some may be disposed to do, to their
as
contact with the traders and ship captains ? or with others,
shall we put it down to the influence of missionary opera-
tions ?

Here is a specimen of what happens too frequently in the

attempt to establish a trade with these natives.

A boat's crew goes ashore from a vessel, for yams : a quarrel

arises, — all the whites are killed and eaten. Another ship
 Intercourse between the Maremen and the Whites. 135

arrives off the island, and the boat's crew from this vessel meet
the same fate. In another case, a chief goes off to a vessel to
trade, quarrels with the captain, is rope's-ended ; and in return,
the whole ship's company are killed and the vessel burnt.
Three natives swim off to a sandalwood vessel, to trade, are
murdered on the deck ; and a cutter arriving off the island not
long after, is taken by the natives, and all hands killed by way
of revenge.

do not wish to justify the conduct of the natives, but if

I
manner in which intercourse has been carried on be-
this is the

tween them and the traders, I would ask if the natives were at
all likely to be improved or civilized by it.

Of the other influence which has been at work, the following

is a brief account.

Many years ago, teachers — natives of Eastern Polynesia

landed on Mare", and worked quietly but assiduously amongst
its inhabitants. About seven years after their landing, many of
the natives began to abandon their heathen practices and make
endeavours to follow the instructions of these teachers.
. A
missionary of the Church of England lands on the island and
found that there was already a congregation of 1000 natives,
anxious for further instruction. After a short but not a fruit-

less residence, this missionary died, and his place was supplied
by two sent by the London Missionary Society ; and from that
time the natives have made both steady and rapid progress,
until, as I said before, they are now entitled to be ranked as
the foremost tribes of Western Polynesia.

On Lifou, teachers were landed at a later date, and they

were longer in making any impression on the natives, who are
now, consequently, behind Mare" in Christian civilization
"

while the people of Uea are still further back. There are now
two missionaries on Mare", one on Lifou, and one on Uea — all

supported by the London Missionary Society.

136 Letter VIII.

The Maremen have a pretty good idea of the value of

money, and in many cases prefer it to any other article of ex-
change. They like to hoard it up, one chief being reputed to
have over ;£ioo stowed away. They are beginning to trade
on their own account, too, on a more extensive scale than the
Western Polynesians usually indulge in, growing cotton and
selling it to white traders. They do more steady hard work
than their neighbours on the New Hebrides, although, in
justice to the latter, it must be said that the climate of the
Loyalties is very much superior to that of the New Hebrides.
It is both cooler and more healthy, owing to the want of
luxuriant vegetation,and so more conducive to hard work.
Yams, sugarcane, banana, bread-fruit, and cocoanuts grow on
the Loyalties ; but as the soil is not rich, they do not attain
very great perfection.

We anchored in Jones's Bay, on the north side of Mare",

on the 25th of July ; and several of us went ashore to visit
Mr. Jones, the missionary stationed there.

When speaking of Aniwa, it may be recollected that I men-

tioned that the island rose up in two stages or steps — first a
shore flat rising and then, a little way inland, a
from the sea,

cliff rising from that. On this island the same thing is observ-
able there is the ground flat, and the upper flat which extends
;

as a low table-land across the island. The lower flat on Mare",

at least on the north side, is open and grassy, here and there
dotted with palm-trees and tall handsome pines, and presents
quite a relief to the eye, sated with the unbroken luxuriance of
the New Hebridean vegetation. Mr. Jones's establishment is
on what I have termed the ground-flat, and lies close to the
foot of the steep white cliff. It is a busy and prosperous-
looking station. Dwellings, and school-houses, and stores, and
sheds, are scattered about in great profusion ; while natives,
pigs, fowls, cattle, horses, and even donkeys, give life to.
 The Native Church on Mar'e. W
the scene. Donkeys in the South-Seas are rather rarities, I
should fancy ; but Mr. Jones has two, and very good-looking
donkeys they are, appearing quite satisfied with their lot on a
mission station in the Loyalties. They will probably have
• easier times of it than many a poor donkey in the old
country.

The great object of attraction in connection with this station

is the church, or the cathedral, as it is sometimes called.

Native Church on Mar6, Loyalty Islands.

It is composed of stone, plastered both on the inside and

outside, the roof being of thatch. It is built in the form of
a T> and a square tower rises up at one end, from the top of
which afine view can be obtained.

At the time of our visit the church was not quite completed,
the pews, platform, and gallery still remaining unfinished.

When finished, it will hold, perhaps,' 800 people, and is cer-

tainly a credit to the missionary and his people who have

138 Letter VIII.

designed and built it. It seems, however, almost a mistake to

build such elaborate places in these parts. Eor nine years the
natives have had it in hand, and as yet have got no good of it,
using in the meantime a miserable little open shed. A less
pretentious building would have been finished long ago, and
probably the natives would have been just as happy and com-
fortable in it, sitting on the ground on mats, as they will be in
pews of the still-unfinished church.

As the vessel was to call at a mission station on the opposite

side of the island, Mr. Jones proposed that I should ride
over there and meet her —a proposal which was gladly
accepted.

A boy on horseback accompanied me as guide, while

my horse back again. We had a
another ran alongside to ride
most enjoyable excursion —now gliding quietly under the over-
hanging trees, now bursting into full galop over smill open
plains, now winding slowly round a difficult point, or rising up
to a slight elevation and gazing back over the gently-undulating
country, timbered in belts and dotted with tapering pines
while all this time the little foot-boy scudded along like a hare,
never lagging behind or seeming a bit the worse. The surface
of the island shows that it has been very roughly used. Some
great power has been af. work below, forcing it up from beneath
the sea ; and this power has left its marks, in the shape of great
rents and deep chasms. These chasms are, in many cases, like
wells, narrow and often very deep —
most dangerous-looking
places ; and sometimes, when the pathway ran between two of
them, I was not sorry when the sure-footed little horse had
passed safely by.

The distance between the two stations is twelve miles, 'which

we performed in about two hours.

Mr. and Mrs. Murray, who occupy the station we arrived at,
 The Marbmen and their Houses. 139

intend shortly to leave for Cape York, on the north of

Australia, for the purpose of superintending a mission to be
established in New Guinea.

The advancing civilization amongst these natives shows itself

in the superior style of dwellings which they put —

up generally
being walled houses, plastered with coral lime, and thatched.
The chief's house on this side of the island is quite a palace
compared with the usual run of Western Polynesian native
abodes. It is a stone house of two stories, with French win-
dows which open out to a verandah and balcony in front.

The interior fittings, such as the staircase, are not quite com-
plete, and several of the rooms are still unfurnished. The
furniture is of plain deal; and upstairs, or rather, up the ladder,
is a great four-posted bed. Whether the chief actually sleeps
in this concern or not, I cannot say ; but I should imagine
that he would find more congenial quarters underneath it than
upon it. The old gentleman himself was from home when we
called; but his son, an intelligent-looking young fellow, did
the honours.

The teachers for whom the vessel had called having been
obtained, we went down toward the boat to go off to the

vessel. While waiting on the beach until these men could tear
themselves away from their friends, I noticed a sight that I had
never seen before, though I had heard of it, namely, natives
swimming in the surf. They would go away outside of a
sunken reef, upon which the waves were rolling and breaking
in fine style ; and then mounting upon the crest of the ad-

vancing wave, would career along on top of it, until hurled

over into the boiling water which covered the reef. It looked
rather dangerous work, but they seemed to enjoy the exciting
sport amazingly, and never to hurt themselves at it. The Mare"-

men are famous swimmers. A story is told of one, that he used to

Lying on his back,
swim out to sea for the purpose of fishing.
140 Letter VIII.

he would bait the line, let it down, and when he caught a fish

sling it round his neck by a string, returning to the shore when

tired. Another man is said to have swum over to a small
-

island four miles from Mare with a

,
club in his hand. They
are fonder of the water than the New Hebrideans, and their
canoes are of a superior kind. saw a very large one lying on
I

the beach. It was a double canoe, having a platform thrown

across, and upon it a small house. It was quite a ship com-

pared with the generality of canoes I had hitherto seen.

The teachers at last appeared, and, accompanied by an im-

mense crowd of friends and relatives, made for the boat. No
sooner had they entered it than the whole company raised and
sustained a howl that almost made my hair stand on end;
while a band of men and women — near relatives, I presume
rushed upon the boat, hung on the necks of the departing
teachers and their wives, emitting howls, and this with extra-
ordinary effect. At last we got the boat torn from their grasp,
and shoved out of their reach ; whereupon the weepers retired
and dried their eyes, and those in the boat, who had been
doing as much as any of them in the business, also dried
their faces, and became lively and contented in a wonderfully
short time.

Leaving Mare" we again made Santo, and landed the teachers

there ; then called at Nguna, and landed Mr. and Mrs. Milne,
who had accompanied the vessel during this trip. Next we
called at Havannah Harbour, found the McDonalds well, and
took on board their mails. Next at Eramanga ; found the
Robertsons also well, and took on board their mails. Next
called at Aniwa, where the " Dayspring " left me with Mr. and
Mrs. Paton, who had kindly invited me to visit them while the
mission ship was making her next voyage to Melbourne.

^¥T
 ^is^ehp^j^
LETTER IX.

THE NATIVES OF THE NEW HEBRIDES THEIR PERSONAL —

—
APPEARANCE DIVERSITY OF LANGUAGE REMARKS AS TO —
THEIR PROBABLE ORIGIN.

Aniwa,
September, 1872.

HAVE said little, as yet, about the inhabitants of the New-

Hebrides, my remarks hitherto having had reference mainly to

the principal events which occurred during the voyages of the
" Dayspring," and the nature and scenery of the islands.

Being now settled for the time on Aniwa, after having seen
and compared the different islanders, I shall endeavour to give
what information I have been able to gather concerning these
natives, — information necessarily somewhat superficial in
character, but still perhaps useful in showing the light in

which these people appear to a casual visitor from the homes

of civilization.

The New Hebrideans are classified in two different ways.

Along with the natives of New Guinea, and of those groups
lying between New Guinea and the New Hebrides, they are
termed Papuan negroes ; while along with all the South Pacific
islanders westward of Fiji (the New Zealanders excepted) they
are termed Melanesians. The first is the ethnographic classi-
fication ; the second is merely an arbitrary one, fixed in order
142 Letter IX.

that these natives may be distinguished from the Polynesians,

who inhabit the islands eastward of Fiji.

Taking the New Hebrideans as a whole, they are a low and

degraded people, inferior to almost every barbaric race that I
have heard of, the aborigines of Australia, perhaps, excepted.
On account of the limited size of their homes, they cannot,
like the latter, be of a nomadic character ; indeed, on account
of their continual inter-tribal wars, it is frequently the case that
a man cannot travel over a mile or two in any direction from
his own village.

They are a cultivating people, raising, without very much hard

work, sufficient yams, taro, and bananas, to supply themselves
with food during that portion of the year when the bread-fruit
is not in season. During those months that they have the
bread-fruit (which requires no cultivation) they become a lazy
people —the warlike amongst them betaking themselves to
lazy fighting, and the rest to lazy doing nothing.

They are a mixed people, composed probably of two in-

gredients —the negro and the Malay ; and on different islands
these ingredients are mixed in such different proportions as to
produce tribes varying exceedingly in form, features, colour,
language and customs. The and Fili natives seem to be
Mele"
nearest to the Malay, and the Framangans to the negro. The
nearer the approach to the Malay, the more do they seem to
improve in outward appearance and in intelligence ; from
which it will be inferred that the Mele and Fili natives are the
finest in the group, and the Eramangans the poorest, which is

my opinion.

While speaking of good looks, it is worthy of notice, that the

men on almost all the islands are much superior to the
women in this respect. If the fact is plain, the cause is equally
 The New Hebridean Men and Women. 143

so. When you see the different modes

of life which they respec-
tively lead, you cease to wonder at the miserable appearance
of the women as compared with the men. The latter, naturally
the stronger, have little hard work and plenty to eat ; while the
former, naturally the weaker, have much hard work, compara-
tively little to eat, and, besides, receive much ill-treatment and
and indignity. The result is, as a matter of course, that the
men are strong, well formed, and consequential; while the
women are bent in form, meagre in person, worn and dejected-
looking.

All the men are polygamists, generally having three or four

wives apiece ; slaves I should rather call them, for they are
do all manner of work for their
treated quite as such, having to
lord and husband, who, when out of temper, beats them
unmercifully, and even kills them, when it suits him to
do so.
In nothing, perhaps, is there a greater difference between a
Christian and a heathen people than in the treatment of
women and when the inhabitants of one of these islands
;

abandon heathenism in favour of Christianity, there is no one

feels the immense benefit the change produces, more than these

poor, down-trodden, much-abused women.

As a natural consequence arising from this intermingling of a

dark with a light-coloured race, the New Hebrideans exhibit a
great many shades, ranging from the copper-coloured tint of
the Fili natives to the dusky hue of the Eramangans; while
their hair varies from light brown to jet black, and is generally
of a woolly nature. Apropos of hair, it is worthy of notice
that the men and women here reverse our fashion, for the
women wear itand the men let it grow long. The latter
short
grow little hair upon their faces, and what they have got, they
are (in imitation of their betters) commencing to cut off,
operating principally on the upper lip. Since this practice was
344 Letter IX.

introduced among them, broken bottles have been in consider-

able demand, for it is with these original razors that the opera-
tion is generally performed.

As a set-off against this process of self-denuding, they exert

themselves to improve their appearance by the use of artificial
ornaments. *

It is curious how deeply the love of ornamenting the person

:seems to be rooted in the human mind. The most polished
and and the rudest and most barbarous tribes,
civilized nations,
are -alike affected by it. Both exercise all the intelligence and
skill which they possess, to make or procure those things which

they consider will improve their representation of the human

form. The first class lavish enormous riches and employ no
end of workmen, in satisfying this craving for ornamentation
while the latter, not having such resources at their com-
mand, make up for it by a bold and unsparing use of what
they have.
The savage has his ear-rings, bracelets, necklaces — if not
«qual in quality to ours, at all events superior in point of quantity.
For he will hang tortoise-shell rings in his ears until the lobe
is lengthened some inches; and he will string shells, beads,
and whale's-teeth round his neck and arms, until the weight
must be quite burdensome. But especially does he delight in
paint ; and he uses
Nothing, in his eyes, beautifies like paint
it with a prodigal hand. With what contempt would he look
upon the lady of civilization, lightly tinting her cheeks and
darkening her eyebrows, as he plastered on thick coats of red,
black, and blue. Sometimes he lays it on in alternate stripes,
or, if he be of an artistic turn, he may put in circles or in a

variety of curves ; but for every-day wear, he generally covers

his face with a coat — one side all black, and the other
red.

It will be observed that I have spoken of the male savage

 Weapons and Canoes. 145

in these comparisons. The reason is simply this, that here

it is the men—not the women — who give themselves up
especially to personal adornment and savage foppery.

From their ornaments let us turn to their weapons. On some

of the islands their native weapons have been laid aside for
arms of a superior kind, just as we have laid aside the smooth-
bore musket. They have learnt that our fire-arms are far more
deadly than even their poisoned spears and arrows and as ;

they are not conservative in any matter in which they think any
alteration will give them an advantage over their fellow-savages,
they have eagerly grasped at the gun and the ammunition
offered to them by the traders. On most of the islands, how-
ever, the native weapons are still in use. They are spears, —
bows and poisoned arrows, clubs, slings, kawas (a long heavy
stone, which is thrown by the natives with much precision) and
hatchets.

Their canoes are, as I think was remarked before, of the

rudest description. Recipe for construction :
—Cut down a tree
having a trunk sufficiently more in diameter;
large, say two feet or

cut off a log the required length; hollow it out; fix to one
side an outrigger, extended by poles six feet or so from the
canoe shape out some paddles five feet long, and make a
;

wooden baler, the shape of a grocer's scoop ; and the canoe is

ready for use. When a tree cannot be obtained of sufficient
diameter to make a large canoe, the natives add a plank on
each side, fastening it by cords. The largest canoe I have seen
in the New Hebrides was thirty feet long ; but there are few of
that size, the commonest length being from fifteen to twenty
feet,which are capable of carrying three or four people. In
these crafts the natives used to pass from one island to another,
sometimes a distance of forty miles ; but these voyages
were always attended with great danger, and nowadays,
when they wish to visit another island, they generally wait
146 Letter IX.

until an opportunity presents itself of getting over by a

vessel.

The live stock belonging to these natives consists of pigs

and fowls. With regard to these two kinds of animals, found
very generally over the Pacific islands, it seems to be the cur-
rent impression that they were originally left upon them by
Cook and other early navigators. This, as far as the New
Hebrides are concerned, is incorrect; for instead of giving
New
1

these animals to the Hebrideans, Cook, when he dis-

covered the islands, found them there, and got presents of them
from the natives. Quiros, too, it may be recollected, states
that he discovered them on Santo nearly 300 years ago. •

They must, then, be indigenous to the islands, or have been

brought by the natives when they originally landed upon them.
To one not versed in such matters, the pigs appear much like our
own, only they are, on the whole, longer in the legs and noses,

and are generally black in colour while the fowls exhibit the
:

long bare legs, the sloping body, and reddish colour, which are
the undoubted characteristics of the Malay breed. Both of
these animals afford good food to the inhabitants, and both of
them are fed on cocoanuts.

One of the most extraordinary things connected with this

people is the number of different languages spoken by them.
There are known to be at least twenty, and these languages are
as distinct from one another as Greek from English —perhaps
more so.

I don't suppose that anywhere on the globe there are so

many languages spoken within such a small radius. On the
island of Tana alone there are no less than six ; and these can-
not properly be called dialects, for the speaker of one is unin-
telligible to the speaker of another. The cause of this extra-
ordinary diversity lies, probably, in the facts — first, that they
have no written language ;. and secondly, that their continual
 Origin of the New Hcbrideafis. 147

wars keep the various tribes very much isolated, and encourage,
if they do not necessitate, the use of different tongues.

It is a well-known fact, that if there be no fixed standard,

a language will quickly alter ; and that if, under these circum-
stances, peoples originally speaking the same language be
separated and kept apart, and opposed to each other in war
and stratagem, their language will, in course of time, be
found to have developed into different dialects ; and will

diverge more and more, until, in the course of a generation,

these become so different as to entitle them to be called
different languages.

I now come to the last point in connection with the

inhabitants of these islands — their probable origin. This
question is rather a difficult one to settle. There seems,
however, little doubt but that they are a people mixed of the
Papuan negro and the Malay of Eastern Polynesia ; for we
find in all of them certain traces of negro blood, and,
at the same time, among many of them we find un-
doubted signs of Malay extraction— the most convincing of
which is their speaking a dialect of the Malay tongue.

The Malay fowls, too, might help to settle the ethnological

problem, if any further evidence were wanted.

From what have observed among them, I am inclined to

I

adopt the opinion expressed by Williams, which was to this

effect —
that the negro races were the original inhabitants of
most of those Pacific islands, but that the Malay, superior in
strength and cunning, came upon them from the shores of
Asia, and have exterminated them from all the islands, ex-
cept the large ones like Australia and New Guinea, or those
groups such as the New Hebrides and Fiji, where they were
comparatively numerous and strong. In these the Malay have

amalgamated with the negro.

. l2
 ^Ar#^W '^^^ 3

LETTER X.

VARIETIES OF LIFE ON ANIWA: —CORALS—REMARKS ON THE

FORMATION OF THESE ISLANDS.

Aniwa,
September, 1872.

OU ask me how the missionary and his wife in the New

Hebrides employ their time ? what is their daily routine of du-
ties ?what do they eat? &c, &c. You say that you can never
get any information on these homely subjects that you read —
the mission reports, but are none the wiser. Now, in trying
to answer you, I find myself placed in a somewhat difficult
position ; for although all the missionaries come here with the
same end in view, each has his own way of carrying it out.
Therefore, unless I were to confine myself to one, I must, to
a certain extent, deal in generalities.

As there are no shops here, and no skilled workmen, the

missionary has necessarily a great deal of manual labour ; and

instead of walking about in a dignified manner, with a black

suit on and a white tie, continually preaching, (as some seem to
believe) he is generally working like a slave, in his shirt sleeves,
at some mechanical work the whole of the forenoon. Perhaps
his dear wife will come to him with an intimation that the safe
wants mending, or the kitchen chimney looking to, or a hole
in the roof needs to be patched. So these things have to be
 Home Life of the Missidnaries. 149

attended to. Then there are houses to be built, fences to be

erected, garden to be
cultivated, and other multifarious duties
which keep him hard at work for part of each day. In the
afternoon he dispenses medicines, walks out to visit some sick
native, or it may be to settle some quarrel between unruly
ones, and take a look, perhaps, at his yam plantations, to see
that no roving pig has broken the fence and got in. Then, in
the evening, there is plenty of writing to be done, there is

preparation of the Sunday's address, and the work of transla-

tion.

All this is independent of the time devoted to religious

services, classes, and printing —which of itself, if much transla-

tion is being done, will keep him hard at work at all spare
times.

Then the missionary's wife. What does she not do? I

might ask. She has all the duties of the wife in general, such
as the nursery, the kitchen,
' and other household work ; and
then, over and above these, she has all the duties of a mission-
ary's wife in particular— such as manufacturing servants \out of
inert native material, taking general charge of the native
women, and forming them into classes and teaching them —
duties as important in their own way as those of the missionary
himself.

In the culinary department, for instance, these ladies show

wonderful skill in the use of the somewhat limited resources

at hand, producing a menu, which seldom fails to tempt the

appetite, often feeble in this hot and enervating climate.

I would apply them the same language that I did to the

to
cocoanut-palm, inasmuch as they seem to be endued with a
power almost creative; for they produce such magnificent re-
sults out of such scanty materials.

Here is what they have to work upon. Pork and fowls,

eggs, fish, yams, taro, sweet potatoe, beans, oranges, lemons;

 i go Letter X.

bananas and pine-apples ; also, tinned meats, flour, jams, &c,

from the colonies. Of course, all these things are not to be
obtained at every station; and although the list looks tolerably
large, there is a great want of variety, especially in fresh meat,
and it must task the lady of the house considerably to vary the
bill of fare.

Here is what they produce. Breakfast : —Ham and

eggs, yams, bread, biscuits, and coffee. Dinner —Soup,
:

fowls, yams, bananas, tea, custard and snow-pudding. Tea :

Bread, biscuits, jam, cake, honey, cheese, and tea. This is

high style of living, however, and cannot be always maintained

for frequently the flour or biscuits go bad, or the supply of na-
tive produce runs short. Through these mishaps, one of the
mission families was, some time ago, almost reduced to
cocoanuts, before the vessel arrived with new stores from
the colonies.

So much for the outer form of mission life ; and as what

I have said in a general way will apply, with considerable ex-
from which this letter is dated,
actness, to this island of Aniwa,
I shall go on to speak of the other kinds of life which are to
—
be found on it that, namely, of the natives, the lower animals,
the insects, and the visitor.

The and the last seem to pass the time very much in
first

the sameway ; and if either party kept a diary, I am afraid it

would run very much like that of Mark Twain's, " Got up, —
washed, and went to bed."

The natives appear to be quiet and good-natured members

of society, but some of them do not seem quite so far removed
from heathenism as to have thrown aside all the badges of it.
I saw several with paint on their faces, and some, when

out of sight of the mission house, seemed to prefer carry-

ing their lava-lava over their shoulder to wearing it round
their waist.
 Zoology of Aniwa. 151

I never saw, however, a more interested and attentive

audience, than these people when gathered to the Sunday
service. Mr. Paton has certainly caught the way of securing
their attention. On one occasion I was rather astonished and
mystified when he produced a new water-tap, and held it up to
view, pointing to it, and evidently speaking about it. I found
out afterwards that it was used to show them what brass was,

the word having occurred in the passage which he was explain-

ing. Illustration seems to be the most effective way of instruct-
ing them. It is the way which they themselves adopt.
They can best understand what is exhibited to the eye as well
as explained to the ear.*

Birds are not numerous on Aniwa. There are two kinds of

pigeons, some shore birds, a kind of thrush, and a small black
bird with red head and hooked bill, whieh sucks the honey
from the cocoanut flowers. Flying foxes, however, abound.
These strange creatures come over from the neighbouring
islands, in flocks, about sundown, for the purpose of feeding
on some favorite plant which grows on this island. They are
not left in peace, however ; for the natives are fond of them as
food, and it is a favorite sport of theirs, on a moonlight night,

to go out shooting flying foxes. They are covered with a soft

brown fur, and measure, from wing to wing, about two
feet.

As for the insects, the most noticeable are the flies and
mosquitoes. They are so troublesome that it is quite im-
possible at some seasons to sleep, unless you are enveloped in
a mosquito-curtain : but then I think you sleep all the better

to have the mosquitos,if you have the curtains it — is so soothing

The readers of James Hamilton's life will remember that he tried this
*
style of teaching— exhibiting the branch of a fig-tree at an evening lecture.
But Abernyte is not Aniwa. A poor woman expostulated with him— " Oh
Maister Hamilton, hoo do you give them fig-leaves when they're hungerm'
for the Bread 0' Life.
 152 Letter X.

and delightful to hear the angry hum of the insects outside,

as they go tearing round, like ravenous wolves seeking entrance
into a sheep-fold. —
But if they do get in well, the sooner you
get up and hunt them to death, the better for your own peace
and comfort.
Besides the insects on shore, Aniwa has its circle of sea
insects —busy little creatures, which have all work and no
play —the coral polypes.

Queer little creatures are these coral polypes. They have

neither head nor legs, but seem to get on very well without
them. In the scientific language of Milne Edwards, they are
" animals organised for a sedentary mode of life, having no
locomotive organs, and being provided with a circle of retractile
tentaculse around the mouth, and a central gastric cavity." In
fact, they are all stomach, with the exception of the " retractile
tentaculae,'' which the little gourmands use for seizing anything
eatable which comes within their reach, and stowing it away in
their " central gastric cavity."

According to the way in which the polypes multiply them-

selves, depends the shape and appearance of those lime-like
structures which we call corals. Some propagate by lateral buds,
i. e., the parent produces several young ones from its sides,
and then the flatmasses of coral are produced ; while
solid
others propagate by vertical buds, and then the upright branch-
ing kinds are produced. Just as the properties which lie hid-
den in the seed influence the form of the whole tree — every
shoot obeying the same fixed laws, —
so do these with which
the founding polype is determine the form of the
invested,
coral edifice. I say founding polype because each coral tree
or mass is the work of one family, all sprung from a single
polype, the originator of the building.

Let us take the branching coral,and look for a moment at

the habits of the little builders and inhabitants of it.
 The Coral Polypes. 153

A polype floats alone on the current of the sea an offshoot —

—
from some long-established city until it rests on some rocky
ledge, which is suitable for the work of coral building. The
spot, to be so qualified, must be within twenty fathoms of the
surface, and must be free from shifting mud or sand. When
settled, the coat of the polype begins to harden. By some
mysterious power, the calcareous particles diffused in the sea-
water are attracted towards it, and quickly enclose the animal
in a coat of lime. Then it produces young polypes, perhaps
two or three, and dies. Its body then decays, but its tomb re-
mains — a centre and foundation-stone for the work of its rapidly

increasing descendants. It is noticeable that these creatures

not only make their own dwellings, but each sends in a contri-
bution of horny substance to strengthen the supporting stem,
so that as the family tree grows upward, the stem grows thicker
and is enabled to bear the increasing weight. Takings a piece
of branching coral, the cells are easily seen, and it will be ob-
served that when one branch is apt to interfere with the growth
of another, the weaker one ceases to advance, and allows the
stronger one to grow onward without interruption, even as

some branches of a tree give way to others, never com-

ing to a maturity which would interfere with the growth of
more prosperous neighbouring branches.

These coral cities are model commonwealths, governed by

God's own laws of political economy. Each individual builds
its —
own house supports itself sends — in a contribution for the

good of the community at large, and propagates new individuals

for the carrying on of the work. There are no quarrels here,
no strifes, nor oppressions. No rich lazy polypes, getting but
not giving ; no poor ones, begging from their neighbours while
they will not work. All do their part, and do it well, and no
doubt die as contentedly as they lived.

When I look at these insignificant little morsels, and then at

154 Letter X.

the great solid structures of coral rock of which this island is

composed, I find it very difficult to believe that these masses

have all been drawn, grain by grain, from the ocean by such a
minute agency. But even this island is a poor specimen of the
magnitude of their works. Tongatabu an island in Eastern —
Polynesia, ioo miles in circumference — is of coral formation,
and owes its existence to the energy of these little creatures.

Of must have been consumed in the

course, countless ages
formation of such an island as that, and countless myriads of
builders must have been employed. But allowing time enough
and workers enough, there is really no limit to what might be
produced in this way.

Mr. Darwin tells us that where coral reefs or islands exist,

there has been or is still a gradual subsidence of the ground on

which they stand. For the coral insects build on a bottom al-
ways within twenty fathoms of the surface ; and as this bottom
gradually subsides, they keep building upwards, keeping on a
level with the surface of the ocean, where they seem best to
thrive. In this way may be explained the great depth of
coral reefs and the high cliffs of coral islands — merely reefs

upheaved, which might seem to contradict the law that no

coral insect can work at a greater depth than twenty fathoms.

As I have said before, Aniwa is an upheaved coral island.

It has been formed, apparently, by two natural processes

first, by the foundation on which it stands gradually subsiding,
until the coral insects built up a mass as high as the cliff is

above the depth to which the coral now extends under the
water; and then, secondly, it has been upheaved. Traces of
this great lifting force are distinctly visible on the island.

This rough section will help me to explain what has been

 Formation of the Islands. 155

said about the formation of these upheaved coral islands :

A being the water level, c the cliff rising from the shore flat,

b the crevices or wells occurring more conspicuously on the

island of Mare\ The shore flat is all waterworn and honey-
combed in a remarkable way, and has evidently been exposed
for a very long. time to the action of the waves; for it is
as hard as granite, and would take no small force to wear it
into the form it now presents.

All the New Hebrides islands are rising gradually, — at least

so say men of science —a consoling thought for the inhabitants;

and, from the casual observations which I was able to make,

I should certainly concur in the statement. Some small islands
near Efate\ and also part of the north-western side of that
island itself, exhibit a certain peculiarity of form, which, I

think, bears out this statement.

This section (on an exaggerated scale) will show what I

mean. It seems to me that, in these cases, the coral insects

have been at work while the land was rising instead of falling ;

for supposing that the dotted line in the section represents the
original form of the island c, with its top just on a level with the
surface of the water, then round it the insects work and bring their
reefs to the level of the land-summit then, however, a rising takes
:

place, and that part now a flat top is elevated above the water,
and another part of the sea-bottom brought into the working
sphere of the polypes. Again they make their reef round it,
until another upheaval takes place. The edges of these steps
marked b on the section, have much the same appearance
as the white cliffs of Aniwa. In this way their peculiar

form may naturally be accounted for, and the fact of the

156 Letter X.

rising of the group confirmed as far as these islands are con-

cerned.

We come now to the third class of formations exhibited by

the islands of the group, — the volcanic. Nearly all the islands
belong to this class, and are evidently of the same formation,
Aniwa being the only purely coral island in the group.

These volcanic islands are surrounded by coral reefs. The

however, are seldom any distance from the shore in
reefs, —
most cases they merely run out from the beach fifty or a hundred
yards, as a flat rocky platform. Sometimes they are not visible
at all. It is very evident to any observer that the coral reefs
have been formed and that the volcanic matter has broken
first,

violently up and flowed over it to a great extent in some cases —

burying it altogether. In the above section, a represents the
water-line, c the original foundation upon which the coral reef d
has been built. Then through c a violent eruption, or many erup-
tions, have taken place ; the matter b being thrown up, and

flowing down, has approached closely to the edge of the reef

on one side, and has biftied it altogether on the other. On
various parts of Aneityum and Tana, there may be seen quite
distinctly, volcanic matter lying on the top of the coral bed,
twistedand liquid-like, appearing as if it had just run down the
mountain side a day or two ago.

The presence of three active volcanoes on the group,

and the traces of many extinct ones, show that there has been
 The Volcanic Islands. 157

some mighty agency at work here ; and perhaps the date at

which many of these beautiful islands sprang from the depths
of their mother earth, to adorn the surface and give homes to
man, is not so far distant as we are apt to imagine.

xy|^
 v
ufir*l*&pc%&* *>™*<t>-

LETTER XI.

CROSS OVER TO TANA — —

DEATH OF A BULL THE BREAKERS
THE FOREST THE TANAMEN AND THEIR WARS YAM
CULTIVATION — —
AMUSEMENTS KAVA DRINKING RELIGION. —
Kwamera, Tana,
October, 1872.

ROM Aniwa I crossed over to Tana, getting a chance by a

trading cutter, and have now been staying for some time at Kwa-
mera, the mission station of Mr. Watt. In observing the manners
—
and customs of the natives walking through the thick tropical
forests and stealing from them specimens for my collection
sketching, bathing, and in other such-like ways the time has
quickly passed. Soon after coming here I was called upon to slay
a bull, the property of Mr. Watt. Unfortunately, both for its
own sake and for that of its owner, this creature had a pre-
dilection for breaking down the frail fences of the natives ;

and as this caused some ill-feeling among them, it was resolved

that the offending animal should be slain. Crowds of Tanese
assembled to witness the execution, although, native like, most
of them kept at a very respectable distance from the scene of
operations. After three shots from my rifle, the bull succumbed,
amid the plaudits of the surrounding crowd. For this exploit
I was honoured with the title of Missi that killed the courimatow,

and got the reputation of being a very good shot Some of them, !

however, after it was over, were rather jealous ; and fancying that
 Mission Station at Kwamera. 159

I had been summoned to the island for the express purpose of

playing the butcher, asked, with rather an aggrieved air, why they
could not have killed the bull.

The mission station is situated very close to the beach,, and

is on the windward side of the island. Being thus open to the
cool trade winds, it is very healthy ; but the situation has these
disadvantages —thatnofiowers canbe grown round the house, and
that the front windows can never be kept clean, on account
of the spray showers which are continually flying up from
the breakers.

Mission Station at Kwamera, Tana.

There is no place like this, I think, for seeing breakers, as

there isnothing to stop them until they roll in upon the rocky
beach. The time at which they appear to greatest advantage
is not during a gale, as might be
imagined, but immediately after it.

During a gale the waves come rushing on, and dash themselves
blindly upon the rocks, in too confused a way to rise into breakers,
160 Letter XI.

but when the fierceness of the storm and the angry lashing
of the waves are over —when there is left nothing but the great
rolling swell —then you see the
will breakers in perfection.
They approach the shore with slow and stately majesty, and
rising like a great wall of glass, they gently bow their crests,
and then fall with a mighty hiss and a roar as of thunder; while the
shattered foam, white as snow, flies up into the air like the
ashes of a volcano. If the breaker strikes the shore obliquely
the effect is very grand, for then it commences to break at one
end, and rolls along the line with regular motion and a steady
continuous roar, like the running fire of a well-trained regiment.
Often on a warm down in the shade and
afternoon I have sat
watched the grandeur of "the green breakers and the wind-
tossed foam," till the slanting rays of the sun warned me to
escape from the miasma of the night air.

From the sea-beach here, the land rises gently to the top of
a lofty mountain, the whole of which is clothed with a thick
unbroken forest of tropical luxuriance. Down from the moun-
tain there flow many little streams of clear cool water, two of
which enter the sea close to the mission house. Many a ram-
ble I have had accompanied by the
into these forests, often
good missionary and his wife, occasionally by a native boy as
guide. Sometimes we would go to visit a native village nest-
ling under the branches of great trees. Sometimes we followed
a winding path up the valley of a stream, with the fern trees
forty feet high overhanging it, and the ground ferns in endless
variety clothing its banks. What lovely little bits of scenery
we saw —
what subjects for an artist what shady nooks for pic-
;

nics —
what noble trees and curious creepers were there
These forests were a source of never-failing interest and enjoy-
ment. Amongst the other trees, a species of banyan grows
an immense tree, with handsome foliage. Under it the natives
make their public square for feasts and dances, and also erect
 Trees on Tana. 161

their kava house ; and near it you always find their villages.
Naturally this tree sends roots down from its branches for
their support ; but the natives cut these off, so that they may
not interfere with the open square beneath. There is another
magnificent tree I have noticed, which supports itself by send-
ing out great buttresses from the side of the stem, of hard
stringy wood.

It is curious how many trees in a tropical country do not

seem satisfied with the support which their legitimate roots give
them, but must have, in addition, all sorts of outside props and
buttresses. I can see no reason for it, unless it be that the
gales here are more violent than in other climates, and so the
trees require extra support.

There are fig-trees here too^ which are, I believe, peculiar to

this island ; their fruit is smaller than that which we have in

Victoria, is round in shape and insipid in taste. The Sago
palm, and a small one called the Stone palm, I have also fre-

quently observed ; but perhaps the handsomest of all the trees

and shrubs are the variegated dracagnas and crotons. Some of
these plants have dark glossy green leaves, spotted with bright
yellow ; others have them streaked with red, while sometimes
they exhibit both these colours.

But enough about the trees ; I suppose you would prefer

hearing something about the people.

The longer that I live amongst them, the more, of course,

I know of their character and ways and I am now beginning ;

to see how unjust it is to class all the natives of one island

under the same category, or to brand all of them with a bad
name for the evil actions of a few. This is very often the case
however, with casual visitors to savage peoples. If they are

badly received, they, making no allowance for circumstances,

form a hasty judgment, and frequently come to wrong con-

M
1 62 Letter XI.

elusions regarding them. •

Cook, when he visited this island,
showed great liberality of sentiment towards the people in his
remarks, whiQh are so sensible and so much to the point, that
I will quote them. ,

"Thus we found these people hospitable, civil and good-

natured, when not prompted to a contrary spirit by jealousy
a conduct I cannot tell how to blame them for, especially wheri
I consider the light in which they must view us. It was im-
possible for them to know our real design ; we enter their ports
without their daring to oppose ; we endeavour to land in their
country as friends, and it is well if this succeeds —we land
nevertheless, and maintain the footing we have got by the
superiority of our firearms. Under such circumstances what
•

opinion can they form of us ? Is it not as reasonable for them

to think that we have come to invade their country, as to pay
them a friendly visit ? These and some acquaintance with us
can only convince them of the latter."

If the intercourse which the natives have had with strangers

had been only with men of the spirit of Captain Cook, I am
very sure that we would have had but little to complain of with
regard to them now.

They are very much like children, and require to be treated

often as you treat children. They are easily offended, but are
easily reconciled, and, if they get attached to anyone, show
much affection.

They are as different in character among themselves as we

are. Many, no doubt, are naturally treacherous and cruel.;
but some again are naturally frank and good-natured. Some
are naturally vicious savages, while others are naturally gentle-
manly savages.

The Tanamen have a great name as warriors — sometimes it

is said that they are the most warlike people in the South
 The Tanamen and their Wars. 163

Pacific. This may be quite true, for it is a fact that they are
much broken up into small tribes, which are continually at war
with each other ; but this in no way implies that there is a very
great amount of hard fighting or of bloodshed. There is a
great security against this in the fact that though a Tanaman has
very little regard for the life of another, he has a very strong

affection for his own, and will not put it in jeopardy unless he
cannot help it. One day the shore tribe here went off to fight
a hostile tribe three or four miles away. In the evening they
appeared again, looking very well pleased with themselves — so
much so as to lead one to believe that they had entirely exter-
minated their foes. On enquiry, however, I found that not a
man had been —
no one had been seen even.
killed in fact,
These noble had gone as close to the village as they
warriors
judged expedient, and there had banged away all day with the
the most determined bravery, and returned at night covered
with glory and perspiration.
Another favourite mode of warfare is to get behind some
well-sheltered rocky point, in range of an enemy's village, and
there to open fire upon any living thing that appears.

Thisplan hasbeen adopted several times against avillageabout

two miles along the beach, by a tribe living beyond it. A na-
tive teacher lives in the village, and finding that it
was
rather uncomfortable to sit in his house when the bullets were

tearing through he has put up a stone wall, and when the

it,

firing commences, he creeps into cover, and lies there in safety

till the ammunition of the attacking party is exhausted.

It is not thus that blood is usually shed. When a man does

by an ambuscade. A party will way-lay the
unfortu-
fall, it is
unsuspectingly
nate native, and shoot him a tergo as he walks
along the path. And when a victim is thus secured, the can-

nibal feast takes place, all the tribes in friendly alliance getting

a share of the horrid meal.

m2
164 Letter XI.

Let us turn now and look at the Tanaman as a man of

peace —
let us see how he spends those months of the year

when, quitting the field of batde, he becomes an agricul-

turalist.
" The gentle island and the genial soil,
The friendly hearts, the feasts without a toil
The courteous manners but from nature caught,
The wealth unhoarded and the love unbought."

So sings Byron, and so many speak of these fair islands and

their people ; but it is only to a limited extent true of the New
Hebrides; and so far as feasts without toil are concerned, in Tana
at least, it is quite incorrect. There the natives do work, and,
during the season for raising yams, work tolerably hard too.

The yam is their principal article of food, and requires care-

ful cultivation. In the first place, the natives clear the ground
with axe and fire ; then fence it in, dig the soil and raise it

in mounds four or five feet high ; theD the yams are planted
a large one generally on the top, and a circle of smaller ones
round the sides of the mound. Having raised and planted a
number of these mounds, they build a very small edifice in the
centre of the plantation, in which they place some food. This
is for the special benefit of Teapolo, the great evil spirit. The
intention is, that he should go quietly into his little house, eat
his dinner, and go and satisfied ; instead of ramp-
off appeased,

ing about at large —spoiling

yams for other and better
the
people, which they fancy he might do, were no special pro-
vision made for him. And this expedient, I am assured, is

eminently successful.

Not long after the yams are planted, the green tender shoots
appear, and then the natives set busily to work making trellis

supports for the yam vine. Sometimes these supports run out
from the mound for twenty yards or so ; and along these the
plant pushes its branches with great rapidity, and twines its
 The Tanamaiis Amusements. 165

tendrils round the reeds very firmly. A yam plantation at this

season, when neatly kept, is a very pretty sight indeed.
Men,
women, and children join in the work, and generally they go
on the principle of working in a body— all going to one man's
plantation and doing it, then he joins them and they go to the
next, and so on.

Fishing with nets along the reef, or with hook and line from
canoes, hut-building and canoe-building, are some of their
other peaceful occupations.

Their peaceful amusements are not very numerous. They

are fond of shooting birds with their muskets ; they seldom
think of killing a domestic fowl otherwise, but rarely succeed
without reducing it which we would hardly think
to a condition
suitable for the table. Sometimes they resort to their old
weapons for amusement — particularly the boys, who have not
got the length of guns. Putting up a mark on the beach, they
practise very vigorously at it with their spears, and bows and
arrows. They must, however, have lost much of their former
cunning in the use of these weapons, or they never had any
for I found that, with a little practice, I was about as good a
marksman as any of them.

Hairdressing is another favourite occupation of the Tana-

men, and one to which they devote a good deal of time. In
common with the natives of some of the neighbouring islands,
they dress their hair in a very peculiar style — in a very trouble-

some would say but they are as proud of it as the

style, I ;

wearer of the most fashionable chignon is of her upper

story. Dividing the hair into several hundred locks, they
wrap each of them round with a native twine, as tightly as you
wrap the handle of a cricket bat, leaving the ends free and
curling. They generally devote Sunday to this hair-culture,
tying up what has become loosened, and following up the hair
as it grows with the wrapping-twine. As " uneasy lies the head
1 66 Letter XI.

which wears a crown," so uneasy lies the Tanaman's head thus

dressed ; for he does not go to sleep upon a pillow, but places
his neck over a round piece of wood which raises it a little bit
—
from the ground not very comfortable, one would think. But
what is comfort to the lovers of fashion ! The general appear-
ance of the Tanaman's head so dressed has a striking resem-
blance to the representations of the ancient Egyptians ; and
though I cannot say that it improves their appearance, it cer-

tainly has the advantage of affording a better protection to the

head from the sun's rays than hair in its ordinary state would
do.
Their chief public amusements are the feast and the
dance. I have not been able to witness either of those cere-
monies, for it is only at certain seasons that they are held, and
the season is now
For a long time before they take
past.
place, preparations are going —
on the women being busily oc-
cupied in making curious dresses and gorgeous ornaments.
After the feast is over, which consists merely of a profusion of
their ordinary food, partaken ofby the men alone the women :

appear, and the dance commences, to the music of wooden

drums and monotonous chants. These balls are kept up
generally all night long some of them are obscene in character,
:

and all of them are attended, more or less, with bad results to
the health of the natives, in consequence of their getting over-
heated and then chilled.

These dances are held in the open squares under the banyan
and at the side of each of these squares there may be
trees,

seen a long-shaped hut standing by itself. This is the Kava-

house, the meeting place for the men of the tribe.

The kava (piper methisticum) is a plant of the pepper family,

and grows extensively upon the southern islands of the group,
*

but nowhere better than in this district. It is five or six feet

high, has articulated stem and branches, and soft large leaves.
 Kava Drinking. 167

From the root and the lower part of the stem, the natives make
that drink, which is so universally consumed in these seas.
Every evening, about sundown, the men assemble at the kava

Public Square on Tana, with Banyan and Kava-house.

houses of their respective villages, each bringing with him a bit

of the precious plant. T,hese bits are sliced U P> and cnewed
by boys who have not reached the stage of kava drinking.
After it is thoroughly chewed, and all the juice contained in the
wood expressed by and from the boys' mouths, the whole is put
into a wooden dish, water added, and finally the liquid is
strained. Each man then dips in his dish, takes his draught,
and either goes away home to sleep off the effects, or lies about

outside the kava-house. This liquor has a soothing stupyfying

effect upon the natives, but does not excite them as ardent
spirits excite us. On the islands of Eastern Polynesia, the
same drink is used ; but in connection with its manufacture
168 Letter XL

there is this difference, that there girls are employed in the masti-

cation of the plant ; while here they not only employ boys, but
they do not allow a woman to come near —no, not even in sight

of the kava-house while they are drinking —evidently consider-

ing the presence of women a profanation of the whole cere-
mony.
After witnessing the process of manufacture, I did not feel at
all inclined to try the result, even although in doing so I would
only have been following the example of recent travellers, who
would be highly indignant, I dare say, if I were to accuse them
of doing anything which may be truly called disgusting. Being
curious, however, to know how it tasted, I got some of the
plant and. chewed it for myself, and, after doing so once, was
never tempted to repeat the experiment. It has a pungent and
very disagreeable taste, and it took me about an hour's hard
work, with cocoanuts and bananas, to get the unpleasant savour
out of my mouth.
The religion of the Tanese seems to consist merely in a host
of superstitious fears. Their gods are all evil, and their re-
ligion consists mainly in endeavours to propitiate them. They
have gods of the sea and of the land, geological and botanical
gods ; but the most dreaded beings of all, perhaps, are their
human gods, viz., the disease-makers. Our medical men devote
themselves to the cure of suffering humanity, but they have prac-
titioners who imagine that they can "breed disease as well, and
both, curiously, are paid with equal readiness by their pa-
tients —the one set that they may cure, and the other that they
may not kill.

These disease-makers go prowling about, picking up nahdk,

i.e.,the refuse of what anyone has been eating; and if the
disease-maker takes this home and burns it, it is firmly believed
that the person whose nahak it is will immediately fall ill, re-
maining so as long as the burning continues, and dying if the
whole be consumed.
 Tanese Customs. 169

To avert this, then, whenever a native falls ill, he sends out

friends, blowing conches and offering presents to the disease-
makers, who, if these are satisfactory, accept them, cease burn-
ing, and the sufferer thereupon recovers.

It is curious what a strong hold this belief has upon the

minds of the natives, and probably it is this very belief which
causes results which happen apparently through the burning of
the nahak ; for if a Tanaman hears that someone is burning his
nahak, the probability is that he will fall ill through sheer
fright and again, if he hears that the disease-maker has stopped
;

burning, he will often speedily recover especially if there is—

nothing wrong with him. When a death does occur, even al-
though presents have been accepted by the, disease-makers, it
does not shake them in their belief, for they think then that the
presents were not sufficient

Their ideas of a future state are very vague. They have

some belief in a happy sort of world to come its happiness —
consisting of plenty to eat and drink, and nothing to do. All

go there, but the stingy. The stingy man is their especial aver-
sion. On Tana, one man has only to ask anything from his
neighbours, and he gets it. Not understanding this custom of
theirs, I was once rather non-plussed*. While sitting in the ver-

andah one day, smoking, a young man came up with an old

musket in his hand, and commenced to praise the appearance
of my pipe. After waiting a short time —probably to see whether

I would not take the hint—he said, " What for you no give me
pipe?" So, byway of turning the tables on him, I said, "And
what you no give me your musket? " Whereupon, to my
for

dismay, he handed it fo me with a cheerful grin ; and I was

obliged to explain that I was only in joke, that I didn't
want
his old blunderbuss, and that I did want my pipe. He left me
in high dudgeon, much offended at my breach of etiquette.

I remember it used to be a favourite subject of discussion at

170 Letter XI.

debating societies, whether the state of savagism or of civiliza-

tion was the happier —
a favourite subject, probably, because it
was one which could not be settled. Diocletian, who both ruled
men and planted cabbages, says that of the two occupations he
preferred the latter; so I dare say the life of a South-Sea
islander, with its freedom from care and responsibility, is hap-

pier than that of many an envied and busy member of a highly-

civilized community. I have little doubt, too, that it is happier
than the life of those who lurk in the background of our great
cities, enduring want and cold, and entirely forgotten by the
majority of their more favoured fellow-countrymen. I have
often thought what a fine thing it would be to pull some thou-
sands of those poor, miserable, starving wretches out of the
back slums of London, and transfer them to some of these fair

islands with their warm airs and, abundant fruits. The thought
came to me very vividly the other day in a dream, with which,
for the sake of variety, I shall close this letter.

I may, possibly, have been thinking of such things before.

I do not recollect ; but at all events I went out one day in a
meditative mood, and sat down to watch the breakers. Lulled
by their pleasant murmurs, I fell asleep.

Then I thought I stood on the shore of a fair island, where

the trees were rich with fruits and the airs with fragrance.
Looking over the wide expanse of water before me, I saw three
great ships, which came sailing towards the island with all their
canvas spread. I saw a crowd of men, women, and children
a ghastly multitude, with thin pale faces, wasted frames, and
tattered garments. But as they gazed on the land before them
every face was lighted up with hope and eager expectation.

Then the busy sailors plied the oars, and the beach was
quickly covered with this strange mass of human beings, who
seeing the fruits hang over them in all their luscious ripeness, and
 A Dream. 171

feeling the airs of the tropics warm them to the very marrow of
their bones, smiled, shouted, and wept, as the humour seized
them. "No more grim, gaunt famine ; for does not the earth
hang out her fruits before us, and there is none to snatch them
from our grasp. No more nights of shivering misery ; for does
not the warm air clothe us better than the softest furs ?
v No
more desolating loneliness in the midst of thousands of our
fellow-creatures ; for have we not the open sea, the earth, its
fruits and flowers, God's own sweet heaven above us, and God
himself to care for us ?" So spake an.aged man, as he stepped
forth from the rest, and leading them up a hill showed them
where and how
to build, and how the land was to be cultivated,
and how disease was to be warded off.
Then I woke. The sun was glinting over the hill behind
me, and the dews were beginning to fall ; and the Tanaman
was winding along to the evening kava ; so I rose and returned
to the mission house.

xy|vp^
 ^v^fe^*^^
LETTER XII.

RESIDENCE AT PORT RESOLUTION —ASCENT OF THE VOLCANO

WHAT WE SAW FROM THE EDGE OF THE CRATER THE —
—
DESCENT SOMETHING ABOUT THE MANNERS AND CUSTOMS
OF THIS VOLCANO.

Port Resolution, Tana,

December, 1872.

FTER a stay of two months at Kwamera, I went round by

boat to visit Mr. and Mrs. Neilson at Port Resolution. The
station here occupies a fine position on the banks overhanging
the bay, and commands a very fine view towards the lofty Mount
Mirren. The general aspect of the country is much the same
as that around Kwamera, only the land is more flat and the

forests are more free of underwood. There are two traders'

establishments here, the occupants of them being engaged
principally in the manufacture of cobra from cocoanuts and the
collection of sulphur. Until lately one of these establishments
was in charge of ayonng man named Dana. He was one of
that unfortunate expedition that left Melbourne some years ago

to settle upon this island. —

Two of them Messrs. Ross and
Bell —were killed by the natives and now Dana, poor fellow,
;

has met his death here too. Going out one Sunday alone, with
his gun, it went off accidentally, inflicting a very bad wound in
the leg. He was conveyed home by natives, and Mr. Neilson
 Start for the Volcano. 173

went down For some days he seemed to be

to attend to him.
in a fair way of recovery, but he took
then, quite unexpectedly,
lockjaw, and shortly afterwards died. It was sad to see a young
man like that dying alone, on a heathen island, far from his
friends and relatives, with no one to care for him except the
kind-hearted missionary, near whose station the accident hap-
pened to occur.
It is a lonelymiserable lifethat which many of these traderslead.
They are continually shooting one another, or shooting them-
selves. Within a few days of the death of young Dana, I heard
of two other mishaps on this island : in one case, a man —said
to be one of the " Carl " brig crew —was accidentally shot by
another with a revolver ; and in the other, a man blew himself
and another up, with gunpowder. They are very careless in
the use of firearms,and I am afraid that, in many cases, gin has
mainly to do with the accidents which occur.

The principal event which occurred during my stay here, was

the visit to the volcano.

The day fixed for the trip arrived, and "proved suitable in

every respect. Breakfast that morning had little attraction for

me, and I looked with some disdain on the provisions which

were getting packed up in a basket for our consumption on the
way. In fact, I was somewhat excited. Was I not going to
gaze down the gullet of a live volcano ? Was I not going to
stand under a shower of red hot lava, with the chance of being
entombed ? Under such circumstances, who could think of
such a sublunary matter as grab. Fortunately, however, for all

parties, the commissariat was not in my charge, and it was duly

looked to.

Mr. Neilson and myself, with several natives, composed the

party ; and we made a start about nine o'clock in the morning.
After walking along a tolerably even path for an hour and a
half, we arrived at a native village, and found the villagers in a
174 Letter XII.

state of excitement. On enquiry was in the

we found that a feast
course of preparation, and that the cause of and the material
it

for it had not long ago arrived from the sea-coast. It was a .

turtle — —
a great fat fellow which was lying on his back in the
middle of the crowd, the very picture of stupid helplessness.
The oven was all ready for him, the stones arranged, and the

banana-leaves laid out ; and just as we came up they were go-

ing to kill Tying him to two stakes, an ugly savage let
hirn.

light into him by means of a sharp bamboo-knife ; but by that

time we were moving off again, and I saw no more of the turtle
or the expectant savages.

A turtle is a great prize amongst the Tanamen—not only his

flesh being much esteemed by them, but the shell is highly

valued ; for from it they make many ornaments for their necks
and ears.

After leaving the village, we walked on for an hour through

thick woods. Although the volcano was concealed by the
foliage overhead, the thundering noise of its eruptions were
growing louder, and made it apparent that we were not very far
from its base. At climbing a considerable ascent, we
last, after

burst through the trees and bushes, and found ourselves on

open ground, with the brown bare cone rising above us.

As we ploughed our way up through the soft and shifting soil,

mostly composed of ashes, the outbursts grew more furious and

deafening than ever. The vegetation was now all left behind,
save a small plant of the lily kind, with a pretty pink flower,
and the indomitable pandanus, the hardiest of the hardy, brav-
ing alike the salt sprays of the ocean and the scorching showers
of the volcano.

On getting to the top, we found that we had not reached the

crater yet, but merely the remains of an extinct one in the shape
of an oval basin.- About a hundred yards further on was the true
 View of the active Crater. 175

crater, and to this we proceeded, walking along the rough sur-

face of the hardened scoria.

Here our native guides saw fithave

to leave us, not caring to
a closer acquaintance with the volcano.So Mr. Neilson and I
approached it alone, and reaching the edge, gazed down into
its open mouth.

In shape, this crater is much like the extinct one which we

had just passed ; but though no eruption took place for a few
minutes after our arrival, there were abundant traces of activity
visible. At the bottom of the large basin, there are three or
four deep chasms, down which we could not see. From these
there issued jets of steam, and gasping gurgling sighs and
stifled snorts, as if legions of demons were fighting and choking
one another in the mysterious depths below. Up the sides of
the crater numerous white jets of sulphurous steam kept rising,
while the ground on which we stood was almost too hot to be
touched with the hand.

About five minutes after we arrived at the edge, an eruption

took place. It was the grandest and most appalling sight I ever

witnessed.

First, from one of the chasms there came a preliminary

growl ; and then, with a roar as if the very earth 'were being
rent in twain, there burst into the air a stream of molten lava,
large red hot stones, and smoke that looked quite solid in its

blackness. Hundreds of feet above our heads the fearful

deluge flew, while I stood trembling in my insignificance,

watching with eager eye the course of the fiery aerolites. I never
felt so small in all my
and never so relieved as
life before,

when, with many a patter and many a bang, the stones and lava
reached the earth again. stuff fell back
Mostly the burning
into the crater again, and was inclined by the wind
all of it

away from us, as of course we were on the windward side

of the crater.
 176 Letter XII.

After several displays of this kind, I became sufficiently com-

posed to seat myself beside my companion, who had been tak-
ing it all very coolly, having often visited the place before
and attempted a sketch. The drawing, though it may give
some idea as to the shape and appearance of the crater, gives
but a very poor impression of an eruption. These outbursts
cannot be depicted, nor indeed can they be properly described
at least by a pen so inexperienced as mine.

The fearful noise —one of the most striking characteristics

in connection with these eruptions —how can it be described on
paper, so as to make you hear it ? From a picture or a descrip-
tion you might, by an effort of the imagination, be able to
realise to some extent the appearance of the volcano and the
nature of its action ; but neither of these methods would have
any effect in making you realise the quantity of noise which it
emits. But inasmuch as I can't draw a noise, and can't describe
a noise, I must be content with stating the fact that we stood
within sixty yards or so of a roar that is distinctly heard on

Aneityum, forty miles away, and then leave you to make the
best of it for yourselves.

These eruptions give the onlooker a very vivid idea of what

force is, when exerted in a violent way, and, if he be in a con-
templative mood, will lead him to think what is the cause of
them.
One theory is, that the interior of this earth is a liquid mass
qf molten matter, arid that the volcanoes are outlets for the
gases generated by this heat. It is a very uncomfortable theory
indeed, and one which should not be encouraged. It is highly

unpleasant to be told that we are living merely upon a thin and

shaky crust, beneath which rages a vast sea of fiery fluid, which
here and there breaks out in the volcanic eruption, or sways
the trembling crust in the earthquake. What guarantee have
we that our part of the crust won't get melted and cave in
(J
 View from the top of the Volcano. 177

some day, to the great inconvenience of ourselves and others

living beside us ? The idea is appalling. It is with a feeling
of relief then that we turn to another theory, which, although
it deals with a force whose deadly powers we frequently see,
stillgives us a good, sound, solid earth to stand upon. Both
earthquakes and volcanoes are in this case ascribed to elec-
tricity. Regular currents of this fluid, says Dr. Thomson, the
promulgator of the electrical theory, are continually running
round this earth, along its stony ribs, which lie below the sur-
face and which act as telegraphic wires.- When the vein of
conducting rocks is not sufficient to carry off the electricity
which has gathered, an earthquake takes place ; when two or
three veins meet, and there is no way for the electricity
to escape, it forces itself upwards in a volcanic eruption. What
the thunderstorm is in the air, the earthquake is in the earth.
That is the way, at least, in which I understand it. It sounds
well, and I hope it may be right. Anything is better than the
shaky-crust theory.

I must, however, return to the two lone beings on the top of

Mount Yasiir? as the natives call ft.

Tired at last of gazing on the volcanic exhibition, we turned,

and there met our view, what I thought was the loveliest scene
I had ever looked upon. Usually on these islands it is of no
use going up hills to get a view, for when you get there you
'
find yourself quite shut in by lofty trees. But here the volcano
had effectually checked the approach of all vegetation, and we
had a clear and uninterrupted view over sea and land. Between
the volcano and the central mountains of the island, there lay
a wide plain. It was green and flat —
an unusual feature in the
landscapes here, and was dotted with groves of palms and
other trees, while embosomed in their midst lay a most lovely
blue lake. At the back magnificent timbered ranges rose from
the plain, riven with many a deep and gloomy gorge, down
178 . Letter XII.

which streams ran to the lake. Spiral columns of blue smoke

curled up here and there across the plain, each indicating the
position of a native village. Then turning slightly round, we
looked over the sea, and there the southern islands of the
group lay —some appearing faintly, others with clear bold out-
lines, against the sky. Over each, like a white and snowy
crown, there floated a pile of cloud ; but otherwise the sky was
clear.

What a contrast, the scene before us and that beside us

Tb,e one so fair and peaceful —the other so black and ter-

rible.

Turning reluctantly from; these scenes — so different, yet each

so worthy of notice —we began to retrace our steps. The
ground everywhere in the vicinity of the volcano was covered
with shining substances like spun glass, very beautiful but very
brittle. Some way down the active cone, there is a great mass
of lava piled up in a curious twisted fashion, apparently having
been forced out at some time from the side of the cone, when it

has been unusually active.

Taking a shorter and rougher route backward, we came first
to a round open^plain, surrounded partly by a steep" cliff and hav-
ing a smooth floor of brown scoria. Then we marched along a
ridge which gradually descended from the volcano to Port
Resolution, passing here and there beds of soft hot clay and
jets of sulphurous steam, and lastly, hot springs which issue
from the ground just on the shores of the bay. Crossing over
in a canoe, we reached the mission house, very tired and as
black as sweeps, from the volcanic dust, but thoroughly satis-

fied with what had been accomplished.

I will conclude this letter with a few remarks about the pe-
culiarities of this volcano. The first is the extraordinary regu-
larity of its eruptions. A hundred years ago, Cook tells us it

was acting exactly as it does now —an eruption taking place

every five or six minutes.
 Customs of the Volcano. 179

Another curious thing about it is, that it is always more active

after heavy rains. The lake which I spoke of our seeing from
the top, extends to the foot of the volcano, and I am told that at
its edge there are some wide crevices, down which water is

continually pouring, but more especially after rains. How this

should stir the volcano up to greater activity than usual, I do
not pretend to be able to say, unless it is by the conversion of
the water into steam. I only relate the fact.
This volcano, though a nuisance in some ways, such as
covering everything with volcanic dust that happens to be to
leeward of it, is still a great benefit in others. From it are ob-

tained quantities of very fine sulphur, which is collected by the

natives and brought to the traders for sale. It also produces
the hot springs before alluded to, some of which are just warm
enough for a pleasant bath, whilst others are hot enough to
boil potatoes or scald pigs ; and then it affords to inquisitive

an opportunity not often granted by these fiery craters

visitors
their very edge, the magnificent spectacle
of
of viewing, from
an eruption.

ym
 ^>^ fep^«^ r

LETTER XIII.

THE INDUSTRIES CARRIED ON IN THE NEW HEBRIDES

COTTON GROWING COBRA —
ARROWROOT WHALING— — —
WHAT MIGHT BE DONE HERE MODE OF REACHING THE —
—
ISLANDS, AND OUTFIT THE DISADVANTAGES CONNECTED
WITH RESIDENCE HERE.

Port Resolution, Tana,

December, 1872.

^LTHOUGH at present the exports from the New Hebrides

are extremely limited, I have not the slightest hesitation in as-
serting that some day these islands will occupy a very important
commercial position in the southern hemisphere; their im-
mense natural resources, and their proximity to Australia
with its rapidly increasing population, put the matter almost
beyond a doubt.
Cotton growing is now the principal industry, and is the
chief export ; although as yet the plantations are new, and
mostly small in size.

It is found that the Sea Island cotton — the very best and
most valuable kind — grows admirably upon many of the
islands, the climate and soil both being suitable. A light sandy
soil is the best, and the sea air seems indispensable. The closer
to the beach the plantation is, the better will be the crop.

The following is the mode in which cotton is grown down

here. When the ground is cleared, the soil is loosened with
 Cotton Growing.

sharp heavy hoes or adzes. In January or February the seed

issown ; and it is so distributed that when the plants have
grown up they will be in rows, having sufficient space between
them to allow the gatherer to pass up and down. The seeds
quickly germinate, and the plant grows rapidly. When it is

about two feet high it is topped, to present it growing out of

reach of the cotton picker, and also to render the plant more
sturdy and the lower branches more vigorous.

In four or five months after sowing the seed, the first crop is

ready for gathering; and the plant bears regularlyuntil November

or thereabouts, during which time the picking goes on. When
the plant has ceased to bear for the season, it is cut down to
the roots, next year's crop coming from the fresh shoots which
spring up. Every three or four years the plants are renewed.
After the cotton has been gathered by natives in baskets, it is

spread out in the sun to dry, and is then taken to the gin
house, where this useful little machine separates the floss from
the seed ; after which the former is put up in bales and ex-
ported, while the latter is culled to get seed for sowing, or is

exported as a material furnishing oil of some value.

A cotton plantation, when the pods are ripe and opening,

has a very pretty appearance. There is something pleasing
about the whole mode of growing and preparing cotton — it is

so clean and so easily managed. There is no washing neces-

sary, as there is in wool ; no greasy matter stains the spotless
whiteness of the glossy cotton balls. There is no shearing,
neither clipping nor cutting the producer in the endeavour to
get the produce, as so often happens to the poor sheep in the
hands of an ignorant shearer ; but quietly the plant opens its
pod and displays its soft treasures, which are easily plucked
out by the nimble fingers of the native pickers.

Now for a few statistics with regard to cotton-growing here,

for the benefit of the commercial man and the curious generally.
1 82 Letter XIII.

I am indebted to Mr Hebblewhite, of Havannah Harbour, for

much of my information upon this point ; and I beg here to
acknowledge that gentleman's kindness in this respect.

One acre of land should yield one ton of rough cotton,

which, when ginned, will give 500 lbs. net.

If 2/. per ft be obtained for it—and this is not a high price for
Sea Island —^50 per acre will equal the gross proceeds.

The expenses consist of wages, supply of food, machinery,

freight, &c. Natives are paid at the rate of £2 to £$ per
annum, besides the sum per head paid to the vessel engaged
in fetching them. Their food consists of native vegetables,
pork, rice, &c, and costs about £2 per man a year. One
man, or one and a-half, is allowed to each acre.

The machinery may be a very expensive item or may not,

that of course depends entirely upon the style of business that

is adopted ; some planters have none at all, sending their cotton

to be ginned elsewhere, or selling it in the rough ; whereas
others, such as Mr. Hebblewhite on Efate", have several gins,

and a steam engine to drive them. A small hand gin that

would turn out 100 B>s. per day costs about £15 to £20.
The freight to the colonies is id. per lb.

A second industry and export is cobra. Some time ago the

traders down here used to manufacture cocoanut oil from the
kernel gf the cocoanut, and export it ; but they have since
found it pay better to send the kernels home as cobra, and let

the British manufacturers express the oil with their more per-
fect machinery.

The process of making cobra is very simple. The nut

is first broken into halves, and laid in the sun until the kernel
is so loose that it can easily be cut out. This is next done,
and the dried kernel having been cut into several pieces, is
bagged and exported. The price paid the natives for the nuts
 Industries in the New Hebrides. 183

varies exceedingly, but 1/8 per hundred will be about the

average. Ten men will turn out about one ton per week ;

and the price obtained is from £,% to^io per ton.

The trade has been for some time on the decline, as the
price obtainable has sunk so low as to render it almost a mat-
ter of impossibility to make any profit out of it, after paying
expenses.

Arrowroot is another export. The manufacture of this

article is however principallyxonfined to the mission stations,
where it is made by the natives for the benefit of the Bible
Society or other kindred institutions. This process is also
simple, and the results are highly satisfactory, inasmuch as this

arrowroot fetches the highest prices ruling.

When the root is obtained, it is grated down, generally upon

common nutmeg graters, and put in a tub of clear water.
After standing some time, the water is poured off and a fresh

quantity poured in. This is repeated until all the poisonous

juices of the plant are carried off, when it is spread out in the
sun to dry. When thoroughly dried, it is ready for use.

Whaling and beche de mer close the list. The latter is

carried on to a very limited extent, but the former with more
vigour. There are three whaling stations on the group one —
at Eramanga and two at Aneityum. I don't think that any of
these fishers are making their fortunes for although whales ;

are not scarce, they seldom get more than two or three apiece
in one season, and these are not worth more than ^250 or

I shall now say a word or two as to what might be done

upon these islands.

Everything which grows in the West Indies, does grow, or

I believe would grow, on the New Hebrides. The latter group
south the former is north of
is nearly in the same latitude as
1 84 Letter XIII.

the equator. Coffee, ginger, tobacco, sugarcane, and nutmegs,

exist at present on various of the islands — some indigenously,
others having been imported ; but none of them are as yet cul-
tivated with a view to export.

I have seen several coffee plants, some very large, and bear-
ing an immense quantity of berries. There is no doubt but
that the plant grows well, although I am not aware whether its

produce is equal in point of quality to that grown in Ceylon

and elsewhere. I see no reason, however, why it should not

be,and believe that, from the great variety of soil and situation
which these islands afford, this valuable article might be grown
on many of them with much success.

Ginger and nutmegs are indigenous plants, and, although

not themselves the articles of commerce, show that their more
valued relatives might be cultivated here.

The tobacco plant is found on several of the islands, and

seems to thrive tolerably. It grows rather rank for making
really a good leaf, but attention might amend this. The natives
dry and smoke it when they can get none of the imported
article ; but they decidedly prefer the latter.

The sugarcane does very well, and is cultivated to a consider-

able extent by the natives as an article of food. The canes
are thick, strong, and very sweet, and bye-and-bye, when men
of capital turn their attention to them, will yield a rich
harvest.

Utilising the fibre of the cocoanut-husk«and banana-stem

is another industry in which much might be/ done. I think
I said before that Mr. Hebblewhite, of Havannah Harbour, is

erecting a building and procuring machinery for making coir

matting, brushes, &c\, from the cocoanut fibre. It is to be

hoped that he may be successful in the enterprise, and thus

develop this new industry in the group. With regard to the
 What might be done in the Neiv Hebrides. 185

banana fibre, I am surprised that nothing has been done with

it. The process is simple, and the result is valuable.

—
The banana stems or rather shoots, for they have no true
—
stems are cut down after the fruit has been gathered. They
serial

are split open, and the centre removed, when both centre and
outside are passed between rollers, which express all the viscid
matter. After being dried, the fibre is ready for exportation.
From one kind of banana the well-known manilla hemp is

made, and also a fine kind of muslin. There is no scarcity of

bananas here ; they grow splendidly on all the islands, are

very easily cultivated, and then their fruit is valuable, inde-

pendently of the fibre.

In addition to these plants already mentioned, I believe that

tea, rice,pepper, cloves, and other spices might be grown here
readily so that, almost in the words of Quiros, it might be
;

said without exaggeration, that these islands will some day be-
come so productive as not only tb support themselves, but to
enrich the Australian coloriies which lie so close to them,
and which will naturally become the chief consumers of their

produce.

In case any of you may feel interested in the account of the

capabilities of the islands, and in my opinions as to their future

prospects, and wish to launch out on the experiment of planting

in the New Hebrides, I must give you some idea of the other
side of the picture, i.e., some of the disadvantages and discom-
forts of residence here.

you are fond of ease and the comforts of a quiet home,

If
you had better stay at home. If you are delicate, or nervous,
or unused to roughing it, you had better stay at
home. If you
have no capital, and no experience, or no partner who has
either, you had better not come here. If you are fond of

society, you had better not come here. For if you do come
1 86 Letter XIII.

down, you will have to work hard, in a hot and enervating

climate where much caution is required to keep off fever and
ague ;
you require capital to start any business with, and you
will be very much the better of some practical experience.
You have no society, save that of the savages unless you hap- —
pen to be near some missionary station, or some planter or
trader's establishment ; but these are few and far between,
while many of the owners are not at all preferable to the
blackfellows.

Supposing, however, that you have decided to come, in spite

of every disadvantage— you have plenty of pluck and some
that
—then proceed Sydney. There get what machinery
capital to
and provisions you want, not the frame and boards of
forgetting
a house — you
for no
will when you
find hotels arrive here.
Next, get a passage, either direct or vid New Caledonia by the
monthly mail steamer, and arrive here in time to commence
cotton planting. The first thing you have to do on landing is

to —
buy your land an easy matter generally, unless you take
a fancy to some of the natives' reserves. A shilling per acre
will generally procure you as much as you want, and leave the

natives none the worse. But then, what about labour ? You
cannot of course work the plantation without assistance, and
you cannot get the natives of the island upon which you are
living to work steadily. You must therefore get natives from
other islands. I don't say anything at present upon the rights
or wrongs of the labour merely
state here what would
traffic. I

be necessary under the circumstances. Having then got your

men, erected your house, and cleared your ground, you can
proceed as your wisdom sees fit with the duties of such industry
as you have ventured on.

The Loyalties rather took my fancy as a place of settlement,

the climate being healthy and pleasant and the ground good for
cotton growing. But then they are under French rule; and they will
 Trading on the Loyalties. 187

not sell, having, apparently, expectations of such large additions

to their criminal population, that the Loyalties may be required
for penal establishments, in addition to New Caledonia. There
are one or two white men engaged in trading with the natives
of the Loyalties, buying up the cotton which they grow. But
I am afraid that it will be a long time before anything of this

kind is done in the New Hebrides, as the natives seem greatly

deficient in anything which savours of energy or enterprise.

xyAvp^
 ^^cr#p(%F !
^5^
LETTER XIV.

THE NEW HEBRIDES MISSIONS — ATTACKS

• ON MISSIONS
GENERALLY —MISSION WORK ON THE GROUP —BENEFITS
TO SCIENCE AND COMMERCE RENDERED BY MISSIONARIES
THE NATIVE TEACHERS.

Port Resolution, Tana,

December, 1872.

N this letter I am going to give you a few of my ideas as to

the missions in the New Hebrides. What follows is not to be
a report of the work done at each station, or a history of what
has been done ; but merely a few observations, in my usual
rambling way, as to the position which these missionaries
hold, the work they do as a body, and the way in which
they do it.

I know that some persons will be apt to look at my state-

ments as prejudiced in favour of the missionaries, from the

circumstances in which I am placed ; but I do not admit that
there is any ground for such a supposition, and I am sure that
what I assert would be confirmed by anyone who has observed
for himself and candidly judged of what is seen.

How is it that the anti-missionary party in this world of ours

is so strong and so bitter ? How is it so difficult to make
 Attacks on Missions. 189

them credit anything favourable to missions, however good the

authority ? They will readily believe any story,however ab-
surd, if it be unfavourable to missions ; and missionaries
themselves are loaded by them with offensive epithets, and the
whole affair is denounced as a concocted business for the
benefit of the churches at home and the lazy fortune-seekers
abroad.

Now these attacks are for the most part so utterly wanting in
sense and manliness, and so transparently false to anyone who
calmly and candidly observes the real working of a mission
body, that they merit nothing but silent contempt. No doubt
some who have visited the actual field of mission labours have
written unfavourably regarding them : but generally they were
but casual visitors, unacquainted with the people or the mis-
sions, and sometimes, in the words of the well-known traveller
and author, ,Charles Darwin, " 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.'' These
words were written of visitors to some island in Eastern Poly-
nesia —Tahiti I believe.

But to come to the New Hebrides. There are eleven mis-

sionaries at present on the group, supported by various Presby-
terian churches and governed by a Synod composed of the
various missionaries, which meets annually. A mission vessel
is by the churches, for the benefit of this mis-
also supported
sion, and number of native teachers. The whole
also a certain
cost of the mission is say, in round numbers, .£5000 per
annum.

Twenty-five years ago there was no missionary on the group.

All the natives were alike —
heathen cannibals of the worst
stamp, having lost all that civility and hospitality that Cook
ascribes to them, through the kind and humane treatment of
190 Letter XIV.

the sandalwood traders and others. First, on Aneityumi,

a missionary and his wife landed in 1848, and they, with
another, have been labouring on that island ever since. And
if we compare the Aneityumese as they are now with the na-
tives of any island not yet touched by the missionary, who
represent the Aneityumese as they used to be, we arrive at a

tolerably correct conclusion as to the results — at least ex-

ternally — of the missionaries' work. The difference is very ap-

parent, even to the most superficial observer. On Aneityum,
they are clothed, they are at peace, have given up all those
heathen abominations —such as cannibalism, strangulation of ;

widows, infanticide, and obscene dances —and they regularly

attend church on Sunday. Life and property are as safe

there, or perhaps more so, than in Great Britain. In fact,

they are now a christian community.

Now, do not misunderstand me. I don't mean to assert
that they are all upright, infallible persons none amongst, — that
them ever do wrong. There are thieves amongst them, and
quarrelsome persons ; and no doubt some who have still a
hankering after old times and old habits. But what I mean to
say is this —that heathenism has taken its departure from that,
island, that the young generation is growing up ignorant of all

those abominable heathen customs once so common, and that

they now deserve the name of a christian population as much as
any of our communities do, where people are brought up every
day for committing all sorts of crimes and offences.
Men often accuse missionaries of colouring their reports, and
sending to their churches exaggerated statements of the
progress of their work. Such accusations do not apply here.
If anything, I find that the missionaries are apt to take rather
a depreciatory view of their own work ; and they are very
'

cautious on all occasions to avoid making things appear better

than they are. Here is what Mr. Copeland, of Fotuna, writes
in one of the reports :
 Missionaries' Exaggeration. 191

"We cannot reasonably expect to see a people anywhere

throw off heathenism in a month or a year. When real, the
embracing of Christianity is not a mechanical process ; it results
from the use of certain means, and
is the outcome of certain in-

ward changes. Before any transformation can take place among

a heathen people, light must be communicated, and a better
way of life be unfolded; before that can be done, a new
language has to be acquired, independent of grammars and
dictionaries; some knowledge must also be gained of the
habits, ideas, —
and prejudices of the natives so very different
from those of Europeans. Divided as his time and energies
will be in the New Hebrides between secular and spiritual du-
ties, a missionary will not communicate' much effective know-
ledge under two years."

And again, speaking of the danger of overstating things above

alluded to, he thus appeals to the friends of the mission :—
" By an inordinate desire for the bright and the pleasing,
don't force us to exaggerate, to send you accounts of converts
that exist very much only on paper — to give cheques which we
shall not [be able one day to meet fully. If we missionaries
have at all a tendency to err in our letters, it is to overstate
matters, and to give accounts of our work a touch of the couletcr
de rose. Our parental eyes are sometimes a little blind to the '

defects of our work and our converts. Take care when you
read our letters. Remember whence they come, and the people
they describe, and that it is perhaps the first flush of a new feel-
ing on the part of the natives we are writing about. Don't add
to our statement. Remember that words and phrases may not
comprehend here all they do with you. Don't make much of
little; don't put constructions on simple and trivial circum-
stances which they will not bear; don't draw a universal con-
clusion from a single premise ; and don't form high anticipations
from mere passing events and outward appearances, but rather
192 Letter XIV.

wait till time shall develop their results and test their values.
More particularly, I would say, when the natives shall embrace
Christianity, don't expect among them a high civilisation. As
a race they are low, physically and intellectually, and are not
•

capable, meantime at least, of a civilisation such as yours and

mine. A certain amount of it they appear to acquire very
rapidly, but the after steps are taken very slowly indeed. Even
were they capable of a high civilization, they do not possess the
materials for it; and the too sudden change would prove,
physically, very injurious to them."

Another accusation made against missionaries is that they

go out, from motives of personal gain, with the idea of enrich-

ing themselves and living comfortable easy lives. If that is

really the case, the New Hebridean missionaries are decidedly

the most irrational set of men I ever came across. The New
Hebrides is the last place any sane man or woman would go to
in search of comfort, and a missionary's is certainly the last

trade any sane man would take up that wanted to make his

fortune. The idea is too absurd to talk seriously about. I have

not the slightest hesitation in saying that every one of them
might occupy a very much better position, pecuniarily, in a
civilised land than they do at present, and that there is nothing
in their present mode of life to counterbalance this —nothing
save the consciousness that they are doing their duty towards
God and their fellow-men.

Not only are the missionaries doing good to the natives ;

they are also benefitting Science. As educated men amongst
new peoples and new forms of animal and vegetable life, their

observations upon these subjects are of great value. I can quite

understand and believe the remark " that the missionaries have
done more to bring to light new languages than all the learned
societies in the world."

Then they are opening up new fields for commerce ; they are
 Mission Work on the group. 193

teaching the natives to want —and when they want they will
work to supply their wants —work, too, on their own islands.
Again, where the missionary has settled and laboured, other
foreignersmay safely follow; and though these men are not
slow to take advantage of the result of the missionary's work,
they but seldom give him the credit that is his due.

This struck me particularly in the case of the author of

" South-Sea Bubbles." When on a quiet and civilised island,
where not the danger exists, he abuses the
slightest ghost of
missionaries right andand bravely wishes that he only could
left,

have been on the island before these obnoxious individuals had

tainted its primeval freedom. Looking at some women in
church, he says, " I gazed sadly on them, thinking what much
better fun I .would have had if I had visited the island fifty
years sooner." He takes very good care, however, not to risk
his precious body upon islands which are still as savage as he
wished that one was, and where he might have enjoyed the fun
of being killed, and cooked, and eaten.

Aneityum being the upon which missionaries first

island
settled, is and is the head-
naturally the farthest advanced,
quarters of the mission in this group. The missionaries upon
the other islands have not been idle however. Aniwa may be
said to rank next to Aneityum. Its population of 240 have
also as a body renounced heathenism, and gradually their
characters are being formed and their principles elevated by
the teachings of their missionary, Mr. Paton. On Tana, the
missionaries' influence is being felt for some distance round the

stations ; but the progress on that island is slower than it other-

wise might have been on account of the large mass of heathen-

ism, the constant wars among the tribes, and the diversity of
language. Along the coast between the two mission stations
—
a distance of fourteen miles teachers are planted, and services
are maintained on Sundays at several places, with good results.
194 Letter XIV.

On several occasions the missionaries have been able to pre-

vent the outbreak of war, and have succeeded in suppressing
many of the vile heathen customs. They are respected and
looked up to by the natives in their neighbourhood ; and if they
are able to remain steadily at the stations they now occupy,
willno doubt accomplish more than ever has been done yet on
Tana. For although this island was one of the first on which
missionaries settled, they were prevented by the fierce hostility
of the natives from remaining long enough thoroughly to ac-
quire the language or get acquainted with the customs of the
people. The two missionaries now on the island have been
longer there than any of their predecessors, and their influence
is now beginning to tell in the manifest improvement of the na-
tives' in the vicinity of the mission stations. On Fotuna, Era-
manga, and Efate", churches have been formed ; while on
Nguna and Santo, the islands last setded, a footing has been
gained.

A missionary cannot, like a clergyman, enter on his proper

duties immediately on arriving at the sphere of operations.
The language has to be learnt, and he has to get acquainted
with the natives and their customs before he can expect them to
benefit by his preaching. This may take a couple of years ;

but during that time he may be quietly paving his way for his
future work may be disarming the suspicions
; he and gaining
the confidence and goodwill of the people. It is not to be
supposed that the savage islanders will be found on the beach,
anxiously waiting to welcome the missionary, or that they feel
in themselves the slightest desire for moral or spiritual improve-
ment. No ; they love their heathen customs, and it is an act
of great self-denial on their part to give them up. For the
most part, at first, they do not wish a missionary to come
among them ; or if they do acquiesce in it, it is merely in the
hope of getting calico and other goods from him by fair means
or foul. When Mr. Neilson went to settle at Port Resolution,
 Mission Work on the group. 195

and the timber for his house was put on shore, the natives
threw it back into the water but as he persisted in landing
;

it, they gave in, and he has been able to reside in safety on

the island ever since.

The missionary's knowledge of medicine —though it may not

in every case be very deep — gives him a hold upon the minds
of his parishioners, and, not unfrequently, he now supersedes
the disease-maker. Gunshot wounds, broken bones, sores, and
fever and ague, come under his treatment. When the natives
observe the good results, they gain confidence in his skill, and
are not, I think, wanting in gratitude.

The progress of the work all over the group is slow certainly,
but I do not think on that account the less sure. There are no
startling accounts of wonderful conversions, or of whole islands

turning from their evil ways in one day —such as we sometimes

hear of taking place in other quarters of the globe. The
tribes here being so small, and the chiefs having so little influ-

ence, such a thing cannot happen. Wholesale conversions

cannot occur. Every man and woman has to be dealt with
separately, and each has be convinced of the truth for him-
to
self and herself. Therefore it must be a work of time ; but
then it ensures that what is done, is done well.

I am convinced that this work is going on steadily, and that

these Christian missionaries are raising populations out of the
fearful state of barbarism in which they have been living, are
presenting to them the simple truths of Christianity, and are
showing them that there is something to live for besides the
mere gratification of the animal passions. They are doing this

by the teachings of the church and and not of the school, less

effectually by the example of consistent Christian lives.

Before dismissing this subject, Imust say a word or two

about that other agency which is at work in this group— a hum-
ble but none the less a useful one, viz., the native teachers.

o2
196 Letter XIV.

It has been found that the natives of other groups of islands

cannot stand the climate of the New Hebrides. Eastern
Island natives have been tried, but many died ; Loyalty-
islanders have been tried, but with the same result. Upon the
advanced natives, then, of the New Hebrides the missionaries
are dependent for teachers, that is to say, upon the Aneityumese
Christians. There are about twenty of these men and their

wives out at work on the various islands. They get ^5 per

annum, and are extremely useful. They act as servants, as-
sistants, and right-hand men to the missionary, or are placed on
separate stations under his superintendence. 'They quickly
pick up the language, and their knowledge of the native
customs generally and native forms of idiom, enables them to
give great assistance to the missionary in the work- of transla-
tion, as well as fits them for effectively addressing men of
kindred natures.

If there is a mission worthy of hearty support, it is that of

the New Hebrides. A good work is being done, but the mis-
sionaries feel sadly crippled by the want of men. Instead of
eleven, they say there ought to be twenty at least. It is to be
hoped that their appeals to the churches in this respect will be
successful, and that many will be found willing to go to these
islands, fully alive to all the difficulties and discomforts of the
work, but resolved on carrying it out under the constraining
power of the love of Christ, and in obedience to his last com-
mand.

^Vf^°
 ^V^fc^Ws^v,
LETTER XV.

LEAVE TANA FOR ANEITYUM —THE HURRICANE —THE WRECK

—A SALE BY AUCTION — LIFE OF THE SHIPWRECKED
PARTY ASHORE —THE EARTHQUAKE.

Anelcauhat, Aneityum,
February, 1873.

N Thursday, the 2nd January, I left Tana for Aneityum, in

the " Dayspring," commencing my homeward voyage. The
vessel having returned from the colonies, had made a trip

round the islands, and was now on her way to Sydney via
Aneityum and Fotuna. On Friday she anchored in Anelcauhat
harbour. After our arrival, Captain Jenkins, who had taken
-

the place of Captain Rae, resigned, went round to Aname with

the second mate and Mrs. Goodwill, who was proceeding to the
colonies on account of her health. On Saturday I went ashore
to spend Sunday and Monday with Mr. and Mrs. Murray, ex-
pecting to sail on Tuesday. Signs of a coming storm began to
—
appear on Saturday afternoon a heavy swell rolling into the
harbour, without any wind to account for it. On Sunday
matters looked still worse. Sharp squalls of rain and wind
came from the N.E., while the glass was steadily sinking. The
first mate, Mr. McArthur, who was in charge of the vessel, did
not allow these portents of bad -weather to pass unheeded, but
took every precaution for the safety of the vessel an addi- :

tional anchor was let go, every inch of cable was paid out,
198 Letter XV.

and the fore-top-gallant mast and 'yard sent down on deck. On

Monday morning we witnessed one of the most fearful hurri-
canes that has ever visited these islands.

At half-past four a.m. I suddenly awoke to find the roof of

the building in which I was sleeping split open, the rain pour-
ing in, and the whole place reeling before the furious blasts of
the gale. The noise was something fearful, as the wind tore,
shrieking, through the trees, breaking the palms like pipe stems,
and carrying along with it showers of cocoanuts, leaves and
bits of thatch. Quickly dressing, I made my way to Mr. Mur-
ray's quarters, and found both he and Mrs. M. up, and their
rooms in a similar condition to mine. For about an hour we
stood sheltering ourselves in the verandah in' lee of the house,
watching in the dim light the great trees blowing before the
storm, or crashing to the ground if too stiff to bend ; watching
the hailstorm of nuts, branches, and leaves, as they whirled
furiously by, listening to the booming and roaring of that
mighty gale, and wishing for day. As it began to get light we
strained our eyes eagerly towards the anchorage of the vessel,
although we hardly hoped to see her again, and we were rather
relieved to make her out at last, although from her position
there was no doubt of her being stranded on the outer reef of
the harbour. Soon we were able, with the aid of a glass, to
make out figures on board, and could observe them cutting
,

down the foremast, which quickly disappeared over the side ;

then the jib-boom went, and next the main topmast, after which a
flag of distress was run up on the mainmast.

Along the beach, a short distance from the mission station,

there lives an Eastern Islander —a whaler — who has several
fine boats and to him I went, to see what could be done.
;

Nothing, — he said
; no crew could pull against such a gale.
For the wind had now veered from the N.N.E. to the N.W.,'and
was blowing from that direction, into the harbour, almost as
'
 Wreck of the " Dayspring." I99

hard as it had blown off the land. So for two hours or there-
abouts, we had just to sit twirling our thumbs and watching the
wreck through the
glass. Another flag of distress went up on
.the forecastle,
and as the wind had again veered— this time to
the west—and was falling somewhat, I made
another excur-
sion to the whaler's. He consented, so, having secured crews,
we started—he in one of his whaleboats, and I in Mr. Murray's
boat. Soon after we left the shore we saw a boat pulling off
from the islet of Inyug, which having a shorter distance
to go than we, and havingno head wind to pull against,
reached her first. Notwithstanding the squalls of wind and
rain, still heavy, and the nasty cross sea, we all. made the
trip toand from the vessel' in safety, taking on shore the native
teachers, who were passengers in her, the mate, crew, ship's
papers, instruments, and some boxes. After this the wind
quickly fell, and during the remainder of the day the boats
were busily employed in taking passengers' luggage, stores, &c-
on shore.

The following extract from a letter of Mr. Inglis to Dr. Steel

of Sydney, will give an idea as to what those on board ex-
perienced at this time.

" About four o'clock on Monday morning the wind blew

with such irresistible violence that both anchors were started,
and the vessel, dragging her chains and anchors, ran out of the
harbour as if she had been a mail steamer going at full speed.

She was all but clear of the harbour, and out to the open sea,
where she would have been safe, when the wind suddenly veer-
ing, or a cross sea coming up, or both, she was struck with

such force on the broadside as, notwithstanding the breadth of

her beam, all but capsized her; a tremendous sea at the same time
bearing her along, pitched her right up on the edge of the reef.

Here she was exposed to the full force of the breakers and ;

had she remained in that situation the probability is thatshe would

 Letter XV.

soon have gone to pieces, and every one on board have perished.
But a second tremendous sea came on, lifted her up, and car-
ried her a considerable way on to the reef — as far, indeed, as
the chains would permit, the anchors being caught by the
coral. As soon as daylight enabled the sailors to see, they cut
down the foremast, fearing lest the working of the mast would
have split up the vessel. When the rain, tnist, and spray
had so far cleared off as that the vessel could be seen
from the mission house, flags of distress were observed flying
and men were noticed perched on the rigging. The ship's boats
were smashed, and the people on board had no means of
escape. But the storm rapidly subsided, and as soon as it was
at all safe to go out to the vessel, Mr. Joseph Underwood, of the
whaling establishment on Inyug, went out with his boat to
render what assistance he could. Manhera, a Tahitian, be_
longing to the other whaling establishment, also went out in
his boat ; and Mr. F. A. Campbell, of Geelong who was a —
passenger in the " Dayspring," but who had gone ashore when
—
the vessel came into harbour went out with Mr. Murray's
boat. All on board —
men, women, and children were got —
safely on shore."

The captain and second mate then appeared on the scene

1
having walked over from Aname in the wind and rain, and
being quite tired out by the time they reached this. The
captain had heard of the wreck, by a messenger despatched by
Mr. Murray in the morning. It was a sad blow to him, poor
man ; and though no fault of his,he must have been greatly
distressed by it, — this being his first trip in charge of the
vessel.

The effects of this hurricane upon the island were very fear-
ful. Everywhere there was to be seen the same picture of
desolation. There seemed to be more trees lying on the ground
than standing upright, and not a green leaf was to be seen.
 Effects of the Hurricane.

The wind had scorched them as a great bush fire would have
done. The garden round the mission house was now a pitiable
• spectacle —strewed with thatch, broken trees, branches, and
fences. But Anelcauhat was on the lee side of the island dur-
-
ing this gale. At Aname things were still worse. For there
the sea came up to help in the general work of destruction
and rolling up far beyond its usual limits, smashed all the
boats, sheds, and fences along the line of beach.

The hurricane reached its height between four and five in

the morning, and during that time nearly all the damage was
done. The barometer fell i'6o inches, i.e., to 28'28 just before
the storm was at its highest, but rose quickly after that. This
hurricane was felt very severely all over the group, also on
New Caledonia, and, I believe, on Fiji. It evidently came
from somewhere about the N.W., and had a circular motion,
in the direction that the hands of a watch move.

For a few days after the wreck everyone was busy, getting
goods from the wreck and storing them ; and boats were busy
plying to and fro with all sorts of cargoes, the whole scene be^
ing quite in the Swiss-family Robinson style. If there was any-
thing that reconciled me to the wreck of the poor old " Day-
spring" and of our hopes of getting speedily to the colonies, it

was the signal triumph over our old enemies the cockroaches.
They were conquered at last. They found a watery grave
every cockroach of them —and will torment the human species
no more.
As the position of the vessel was somewhat precarious,
the captain deemed it prudent to have her reported on by
three carpenters, who pronounced her a total wreck, and ad-
vised her to be sold without delay, in case she might go to
pieces. This was done. A public auction was held in the
large schoolroom, which was quite large enough to hold all the

bidders. I mounted the desk, and starting at £20, ran her up

 Letter XV.

to ,£38, at which price she was knocked down to Mr. Under-

wood, of Inyug.

We now began to realise our position. We were a' ship-

wrecked party — not, upon a heathen island, and for
it is true,
that we were thankful but upon an out-of-the-way place, where
;

we might be cooped up for months, on short rations perhaps.

The beautiful scenery now had not much attraction for me, and
time hung rather heavily on our hands.

The cabin table, and dishes, and the galley-stove, had been
removed into a building at the back of the mission station
and this we used as a dining-hall, other buildings being kindly
put at our disposal, by Mr. Murray, for sleeping apart-
ments.

In order to get up a little excitement to vary the monotony

of our existence, I arranged a day of sports, which oh the
whole came off very successfully. We had all the ship's bunt-
ing hung out from two cocoanut-palms, and we had a fine wide
grassy road as the course. There were running flat races,
walking races, sack races, and jumps, in which both whites
and blacks competed. The blacks were nowhere. The
great feature of the day, however, was a pulling match across
the harbour, distance about one mile, between a white and
black crew. Mr. Underwood acted as coxswain to the black-
fellows, while I coached the whites. In this race we got
unmercifully licked. For some time the boats kept very even,
but the blacks rowed with a quicker stroke, kept it up all the
way, and came in about twenty yards ahead of us. They were,
however, a crack whaling crew, whereas my men* were not
much used to pulling steadily. The day's entertainment con r
eluded with a grand display of fireworks, which included
rockets, blue lights, &c, and rather astonished the natives.
Another evening we had a select drawingroom entertainment
in the schoolroom, consisting of a highly moral magic lantern,
 The Earthquake. 203

with slides, which I was called on to exhibit and explain.

This was a very great success indeed. Another diversion we
had was an earthquake. This was the greatest success of all
though, to tell the truth, we did not wish any more of it after
we had experienced the first dose. It took place about three
weeks after the wreck, at nine o'clock in the evening.
I was

in my room lamp standing on the table. First

alone, with the
there came a. quick tremulous motion accompanied by a strange
noise ; then it changed to a fearful swaying to and fro, and the
lamp fell over and went out. I had time to pick it up and
light it before the motion ceased, from which I should judge

that it lasted fully half a minute. It is a horrible sensation to

have the solid earth swaying under your feet, and the thought
presenting itself to your mind, that it may suddenly make an
enormous gape under you and swallow you up alive.
right

I knew that the place was to remain where I was,

safest

for it was a small wooden house ; but some of the crew

foolish fellows —when they felt it, bolted for the. beach, in-

tending to get into the boat, I suppose. Several walls were

cracked during the shock, and, like the hurricane, it was
much more severe than is usually experienced on these
islands. The- barometer was curiously affected by it, for it fell
suddenly about half an inch as the shock came on, and
rose again just as quickly, immediately after the shock had
passed.
Besides these general diversions, I had various occupations
of my own, such as drawing and writing: The result of the

latter employment, or a portion of it at least, I shall give

in the following letter.

xy|^
 U^^(r^c^^^n)j^>^

LETTER XVI.

—
THE LABOUR TRAFFIC THE TWO GREAT EVILS CONNECTED
WITH IT THE MISCHIEF DONE BY THE PROCURERS OF
—
LABOUR THE BAD EFFECTS OF THEIR RESIDENCE ABROAD
UPON THE NATIVES DEPOPULATION OF THE ISLANDS.

Anelcauhat, Aneityum,
February, 1873.

DO not know that there is any group in the Southern '

Pacific which supplies a greater number of natives for the

plantations of Queensland and Fiji than does the New Hebrides.
The labour vessel is a familiar sight to everyone living here
indeed, it is no rare thing to see several lying in harbour at one
time. I have seen the ships sailing off to the distant planta-
tions with their living freight, and I have seen them sailing back
and discharging the returned labourers upon their native
islands. I have met scores and scores of returned labourers
and I know them well. What follows is the result of my ob-
servations.

I do not go the length of denouncing this traffic as always

and necessarily a slave trade ; I do not look upon every vessel
engaged in it as a prowling slaver, and I do not consider that
its master must be a villain of the deepest dye but I do think :

that this traffic, as it is carried on at present, is an unmixed

 Evils in connection with the Labour traffic. 205

evil. It is productive of evil in two ways : in the first place

it gives rise to those fearful atrocities which occasionally, and
to a certain extent inevitably, are committed upon the natives ;

and in the second place it degrades and ruins nearly all those
natives who are the subjects of it.

Lately a great deal has been said and written —and not too
soon —upon The frightful
this first point. revelations which
from time to time have come before the public have been,
of too serious a nature to escape condemnation, even by those
who formerly were staunch upholders of the traffic. The pub-
lic mind has been thoroughly aroused, both in Great Britain

and the colonies ; an act has been passed constituting kidnap-

ping a felony; and several gunboats have been ordered to
cruise these seas for the purpose of suppressing these out-
rages.

I can hardly believe, however, that these measures, though right

do much permanent good. It appears to be
as far as they go, will
an easy matter for the labour vessels to put on suoh an appear-
ance of innocence when they are boarded, as will satisfy the
inspecting officer —as witness the case of the " Carl," which,
I understand, was boarded and examined, and passed by a
British officer, not long after that frightful massacre took place.
The gunboats will no doubt impose a partial restraint on the
actions of the unprincipled villains who are working such mis-
chief, and save some of the islanders from their horrid cruelty ;

while the representations of the masters of these vessels may

lead to the adoption of more stringent measures, and finally

to the abolition of the traffic, should the regulation of it be

found impossible.

This first matter then having been so warmly taken up, so

well exposed by competent authorities, and in a manner ad-
judicated upon for the present, I shall say nothing upon
it, beyond a remark or two upon the following points :
2o6 Letter XVI.

I. With the exception of those who have been abroad be-

a rule, do not and cannot understand what
fore, .the natives, as

they are going away for, when they leave their islands for three
years' service on a foreign plantation.

I have been led to this* conclusion by the consideration of

the very simple fact that there are no persons who can ex-
plain the terms of a contract to them. For firstly, the natives
of the New Hebrides — as I have stated before — speak at least
twenty different languages. Secondly, in very few cases can
any of them understand two of these languages ; and no white
man—with the exception of the missionaries and other three
men, I believe — can speak any one of them. Thirdly, the na-
tives have no words in their own language to express years,
wages, &c. Fourthly, the few that know any broken English
would find their knowledge of no use to them in this particular
matter. And fifthly, I am quite convinced that, even although

they had a more extended knowledge of the words, they

could not form the slightest conception of what three years'
steady labour under plantation laws meant.

Of what use, under such circumstances, I would like to

know, are Queensland enactments ? Of what use is it to enact

that the natives must comprehend the nature of the transaction
before leaving the island or entering the plantation ? Of what
use is it must be interpreters and agents in
to enact that there
the labour vessels ? Queensland Government were to
If the
make enactments steadily for the next hundred years at the
rate of twenty per diem, do you think that they would produce
one single interpreter capable of speaking the New Hebridean
languages, or enable the poor, stupid, bewildered savage to
comprehend what three years' absence from home means,
when he has never been a couple of miles from his hut all his
life long, or enable him to comprehend what three years' steady

labour means, when his hardest work hitherto has been carry-
 Why do the Natives leave their Islands ? '207

ing his musket or leisurely attending to his yam plantation

leisurely that is compared with the way in which he will have
to attend to his master's work ? The idea is absurd.

II. You may ask then, why do the the natives leave their
own islands?why do they go away if they do not know what
they are going for? The following statement represents
the matter, I believe, with tolerable accuracy. I give it in a

tabulated form for the sake of clearness.

10 per cent, are taken by force.

20 „ are obtained by deceit practised on the natives

by masters of labour vessels or native
agents.

20 „ are obliged to go by chiefs or relatives from

whom they have been bought.

10 „ go because they are defeated in war and driven

off their own lands.

15 „ are returned labourers, who finding their own

plantations destroyed, wives gone, &c, ship
off again in disgust.

5 „ accompany their chiefs when they go or are

taken away.

20 „ go from curiosity, or from a desire to get

muskets and other goods.

From this statement it will be observed that I consider that

about one-half of the labourers are obtained by what
might be termed unfair means. The various ways of ob-

taining them unfairly are — 1st, forcible abduction; 2nd, buying

them fr,om chiefs and relatives ; aud 3rd, deceiving them.
208 Letter XVI.

With regard to the second method, whatever name the re-

cruiters may call it by, there is no doubt but that the natives look
upon it as buying and selling, inasmuch as the chiefs or relatives
receive goods for the natives shipped. The chiefs, 'tis true,

have no great influence over the people ; but when they

are tempted by the masters of labour vessels with goods which
they have a wish for, they have enough of power, at least, to

make it plain to certain natives that they had better ship off
when they are ordered, or it will be the worse for them. This
is the case especially with young lads, who are comparatively
easily managed.

Then as to the deceptions which are practised on the natives,

they are various, and often very successful. A native from one
island will be shipped as agent on board the labour vessel, and
going to a neighbouring island will invite natives to come with
him and visit his friends. Unsuspectingly, they go on board,
and when the vessel has got its complement in this way, she
sails off for the plantations. These practices are, I am
afraid, more common than is generally imagined.

I don't think that more than fifteen per cent, at the very out-
side are influenced by the motive which the upholders of this
traffic declare to be the main one, viz., the desire of acquiring
property. The remainder who are obtained fairly, are first, —
those who go from curiosity to see new places second, those ;

who accompany their chief when he goes thirdly, those who ;

are driven from their homes in war, and take shelter in the. la-
bour vessel and fourthly, those who have been away before,
;

and on their return, finding their property destroyed, and hav-

ing been unsettled in their habits, ship off again for a foreign
plantation.

But now I hasten to the second division of the subject —the

second great evil in connection with this traffic, viz., the" bad
effects which their sojourn in foreign lands has upon the natives.
 Pecuniary Loss sustaitud by Native Labourers. 209

This is a point which has been comparatively little noticed, the

attention of the public having been entirely engrossed by the
more glaring evils connected with the procuring of the natives.,

I question very much, however, whether the former is not as

important as the latter, inasmuch as the latter may possibly be
suppressed by the vigorous execution of the laws in force for
that purpose, while the former would exist, even though the
whole business was carried on in a lawful way.

I believe that the benefits arising from this labour traffic are
entirely confined to the procurers and employers of the labour,
while the labourers themselves lose in every way by the bargain
— -lose pecuniarily, bodily, mentally, spiritually.

Take the case of a native who is treated in a fair and lawful

manner. He receives from £1 to ^5 per annum for his
three years' service, with which, in the shape of various goods,
he returns to his own island. I have before alluded to the pre-
vailing custom among the islanders of giving away everything
anyone asks for. Hence it nearly always happens, that within a few
hours after his arrival he distributes the most of his property to im-
portunate friends, reserving some special articles, such as a musket
and ammunition, for himself. A musket, ammunition, and an
empty box frequently represent the three years' work on the
plantation. Then over and against these acquisitions he has to
place the serious loss he sustains in his own island property
he finds his plantations neglected, his pigs and fowls gone, and
frequently his wives also so that all the property he brought
:

—
with him even if he gave little or nothing away would be —
swallowed up in restoring his plantations, rebuilding his hut,
and buying pigs and fowls.

But if the man who is treated honestly does not reap

pecuniary benefit from his labour — which those acquainted
with the customs of the New Hebrideans know to be the fact

of course those who do not receive proper payment must be

 Letter XVI.

miserable losers by the transaction. They sometimes arrive at

home with literally nothing, save, perhaps, a few shillings-worth

of goods, as the fruit of their three or four, or even five, years'

toil.

Then some of them come back broken down in health,

while some never come back at all, but die on the plantation.
As they are not naturally of a robust constitution, and are un-
accustomed to steady labour, it tells on them severely, however
well they may be treated; while those who are treated as
no better than slaves, cannot be expected to return to their
homes stronger and healthier men than they were when they
left.

But, we are told, this trade improves them mentally — it

elevates them as no other civilising agency has been able to ac-

complish
Mr. Trollope, in his work on Queensland, writes :
—" The
islanders who are brought to Queensland all return, and not a
man of them returns without taking with him lessons of civili-

zation. On the planters' grounds in Queensland they leam

each other's languages, they have to live as white men live,

they have to cook, to sow, dig, to plant, to hoe canes, to clothe

themselves, and to be proud of their clothes —and they learn
that continued work does produce accumulated property.
These lessons they take back to the islands, and then they
send their friends and return themselves, and so they are
gradually being brought within the pale of civilization."

The same author also writes of " the happy Polynesian, who is

allowed to escape from the savage slavery of his island to the

plenty and protected taskwork of a Queensland sugar planta-
tion." Mr. Trollope politely refers to the arguments against
this traffic as " bimcombe j" but if there ever was buncombe,
it is contained in the paragraphs just quoted from his own
writings. It sounds well, no doubt, all that about the natives
taking back the lessons of useful industry to their islands, and
 Accomplishments of returned Labourers.

of their thus being brought gradually within the pale of civiliza-

tion ; but it is as pure a lot of fiction as ever that distinguished
novelist wrote — at least as far as the New Hebrideans are con-
cerned, and they represent a large proportion of the labourers,
as well as fair specimens of all the rest.

The returned labourer is not civilized a bit by his sojourn

abroad — that is my He may wear clothing, and
experience.
may appear and steady when on the plantation, for there
quiet
he cannot help himself. But no one can judge from his ap-
pearance and behaviour there what he will do afterwards, and
no one who was not remarkably shortsighted would think for a
moment of doing so. Let those who write and speak after the
manner of the novelist accompany the natives back to their
island homes, and watch their behaviour there ; then, but not
till and statements be worthy of
then, will their observations
credit. How inexpressibly shocked would the
good Mr.
Trollope be to see his civilized native, his model reclaimed
—
savage who has learnt to plant, and dig, and wear clothes,
and be proud of them, moreover contemptuously fling —
aside the cherished garment, plaster himself with horrid paint,
resume with eager delight the heathen abominations of which
he has so long been deprived, and speedily appear again in his

primitive condition. And yet this is the custom with the re-
turned labourers here.

The only accomplishment I know which they bring back,

and of which they are proud, is the facility of swearing in the
English language. The fact is, that they not only relapse
at once into their old barbarous ways, but I believe that they
are actually worse men after their return —more degraded, if

that be possible, and certainly more vicious —than before.

The plantations are finishing schools of a high order, for they
turn out some of the most accomplished specimens of savage
scoundrelism imaginable — men who have engrafted on their
p2
 Letter XVI.

original depraved nature the vices of civilization, but none of

its virtues.

Some people seem to fancy that those who go to Queensland,

being hedged in with enactments, must be better off than those
who go elsewhere. But I never could see any difference in
them after their return. They are all alike.

The only man knew who derived any real benefit

I ever

from his foreign had been in Fiji ; but that benefit he

service,

owed to the missionaries there, and not to the plantation.

Lastly, the labour traffic is depopulating these islands to a

deplorable extent. Mr. Inglis, of Aneityum, who is well quali-
fied to speak upon the subject, says — "The population of Tana
may be eight thousand. This gives four thousand males of all

ages, or two thousand males above seventeen years of age.

Now, as nearly as can be estimated, there are not fewer
than twelve hundred of these in Queensland, Fiji, New
Caledonia, and elsewhere." This drain of their population
must of course have a most disastrous effect upon the islands,

breaking up society, and reducing the quantity of food raised,

and hastening the extinction of the race. If it goes on much
longer, the whole of the young and able-bodied men will be
carried off, and the islands be left barren and desolate ; whereas
were the people left alone, and brought under the influence of
Christian civilization, these beautiful islands would be open to
the planter, and, in course of time, labourers would be found
on the spot, able and willing to do such light work as the
growth of the cotton and coffee require.

xy|^
 ^^<r^%?«^^
LETTEP stVII.

LEAVE ANEITYUM FOR NEW CALEDONIA

THE " SEA WITCH"IN
— APPEARANCE OF THE SHORES OF THAT ISLAND —
BRIEF ACCOUNT OF ITS CHARACTERISTICS LIFE AT —
—
NOUMEA LEAVE FOR SYDNEY.

Sydney,
March, 1873.

||8j ROM the heading of this letter you will see that I have got
back to the white man's world. The last letter was from Aneit"
yum; and I shall now fill up the gap by telling you what happened
to us on our way from the islands to the colonies.

We were detained more than five weeks on Aneityum, be-

fore any vessel came to our assistance
; but we thought our-
selves fortunate in away as soon as we did. Few
getting
vessels are to be seen amongst the islands during the hurricane
months ; and we- imagined that if any vessels had been in the
vicinity of the group, they must have met the same fate as the
" Dayspring." Nor were we far wrong in our conjectures, for
several other ships were wrecked in that hurricane, *and the
vessel which appeared to help us— though it had been lying in
one of the best-protected harbours which the group affords,
viz., Fili Harbour, Efat6 — narrowly escaped being driven on
shore.
I had gone round to Aname to spend some of the time with
2i4 Letter XVII.

Mr. and Mrs. Inglis, the rest of the party remaining at the
harbour. One morning I was awakened by the cry of " Sail

ho and dressing and rushing out, I observed a

!
" hastily
schooner sailing along the coast as if for Anelcauhat harbour.
A boat was immediately got ready, and on reaching the harbour
I had the pleasure of seeing the vessel lying safely there at anchor.

She proved to be the " Sea Witch," a fore-and-aft schooner of —

eighty tons, from the northern New Hebrides to Fiji, with na-
tives. An arrangement was made with the owner to convey
us and our baggage to New Caledonia for a consideration ; the
natives to be landed on the islet of Inyug, and await the re-

turn of the vessel. The party comprised Mrs. Goodwill and

child, Captain and Mrs. Jenkins and myself, aft ; and the two
mates, crew, and native teachers, for'ard. We sailed on Wed:
nesday, the 12 th of February.
It was about ten months since I first saw the scene
which was now fading from our view. Then it was morn-
ing ; the newly-risen sun was casting a brilliant light upon the
hills, and the walls of the great white church : now it was
evening; and the darkness, as well as the ever-increasing
one neutral grey ; but as long
distance, blended all things into
as we could on the gleaming
see anything, our eyes rested
white hull of the old " Dayspring " as she lay dismasted and
doomed on her rocky bed.,
The two scenes were quite appropriate to the occasions, and
would form studies for an artist. Scene I. The first sight of
the tropics : Bright morning, fine breeze rippling the surface of
the ocean, the lovely island resting on its bosom, with the
vessel careering merrily towards it; passengers all on the
alert, gazing eagerly and joyously on the beautiful and un-
wonted prospect, ever growing more and more distinct.

Scene II. The last sight of the tropics : Dull evening, strong
breeze, island in shadow, vessel plunging sullenly away from it,

and the passengers gazing pensively back at the scene of

 Appearance of New Caledonia. 215

their detention, and at the shattered hull of their old vessel now
disappearing in the distance.

On Friday we reached Mare', and there landed the teachers,

and next morning sighted the great island of New Caledonia.
It appeared as a long range of blue mountains extending far
across the line of vision, getting fainter towards the extremities
until it disappeared on either side. All that day we sailed
towards and when evening came were near enough to make
it,

out the cocoanut palms and pine trees which fringed the coast.
The hills were generally of a reddish hue, and had rather a
barren appearance. Altogether the land had a very different
look from the islands of the New Hebrides, the vegetation be-
ing much less luxuriant. Next morning (Sunday) we were off
Havannah Pass —an entrance through the long line of reef, op-
posite the south end of the island ; and with a man at the
masthead to direct the steersman, we ran through into the still
water of an extensive reef-enclosed lagoon. As we coasted
along the shores, making forNoumea, which lies on the south-east
side of the island, we caught a glimpse of the Isle of Pines away
towards the south, rising dimly on the horizon, like a pale blue
haystack. Several small islands, thickly covered with pines,
dotted the surface of the lagoon, and the varying depths gave
a multitude of colours and shades of colour to the water, from
the lightest green to the deepest blue. The shores of the island
sometimes appeared as gentle grassy slopes, clad with pines
and other timber ; sometimes as great black beetling cliffs, over
which small streams burst in white spray.

" A land of streams ! some, like a downward smoke,

Slow dropping veils of thinnest lawn, did go."

Then we sailed through a narrow passage between the main-

land and a high island ; gliding down its twisted course, under
the force of the current rather than of the wind, which had al-
most died away. Here and there we passed lagoons that ran
ar6 Letter XVII.

far into the land, bearing on their bosoms many fair islets
then, through openings in the sea-front, we would get a glimpse
of the distant ranges of the interior, or, sweeping round some
rocky point, would discover a native village nestling in a se-

cluded bay. It is a lovely place, and only wants the addition

of a few fine villas on the hill-sides, gardens, boats, and people,
to make its beauty perfect. ,By the time we reached the other
end of this pass, it was almost dark, and we saw the twinkling
rays of the lighthouse of Amedee, on the reef opposite
Noumea. It was a pleasant sight, being the first sign of our
return to civilization.Next morning we were at anchor in the
harbour of that town. But before proceeding further with my
narrative, I shall say something of the characteristics and the
population of this fine island of La Nouvelle Caledonia.

New Caledonia is 200 miles long, by twenty or thirty broad.

It is completely encircled by a coral reef, which extends for a

long way to the north, and to the south as far as the Isle of
Pines. It lies at a distance from the shores varying from two
to twelve miles. There are several openings easy of traverse,
and inside the water is deep enough for vessels to cruise, and
shallow enough for them to anchor. The northern stretch of
reef is beautifully dotted with wooded islets.

This island occupies a most important position, since it com-

mands the communication of the Australian colonies with
India, China, and America. It is a sad pity that Britain let it

slip through its hands. It was discovered by Captain Cook

immediately after his discovery of the southern New Hebrides
in 1774. He gives a very good account of the place and its

inhabitants, considering the short time he was there, a few ex-

tracts from which may be interesting. Speaking of the in-
habitants, he says, " They are strong, robust, active, well-made
people ; courteous and friendly, and not in the least addicted
to pilfering — which is more than can be said of any other na-
 Natives of New Caledonia. 21 j

tion in this sea. Their houses, or at least most of tbetn r

are circular, something like a beehive, and full as close and
warm ; the entrance is -by a small door, or long square hole
just big enough to admit a man bent double ; the side wall*
are about four feet and a half high, but the roof is lofty and
peaked to a point at the top, above which is a post or stick of
wood, which is generally ornamented with carving or shells, or
both. Some houses have two floors, one above the other..
Land birds, indeed, are not numerous, but several are new.
One of these is a kind of crow — at least so we called it, though.
it is not half so big, and its feathers are tinged with blue. They
also have some very beautiful turtle-doves, and other small
birds such as I never saw before.'' Speaking of the appearance
of the country, he says, " The plain or fiat land which lies-

along the shore appeared from the hills to a great advantage.

The' winding streams which ran through it, the plantations, the-
little straggling villages, the variety in the woods and the shoals-
on the coasts so variegating the scene,
' that the whole might
afford a picture for romance. —The mountains and other high
placesjare, for the most part, incapable of cultivation, consist-
ing chiefly of rocks, many of which are full of mundicks ; the
little soil which is upon them is scorched and burnt up with the
sun ; it is. nevertheless, coated with coarse grass and other-

plants, and here and there trees and shrubs."

The natives of New Caledonia are superior in some respects:

to those of the New Hebrides. Their huts are better, and

their canoes much larger. They have also the art of making
that pottery, which is found on Santo alone of all the New
Hebrides. They somewhat resemble the Tanamen, only,
I should imagine, have more of the Papuan blood in them.

They cultivate the yam and banana, and sugarcane, for food,
as the New Hebrideans do, and they have pigs and fowls.
The pigs Cook did not find on the island, as he did on the
neighbouring group, and so he left several with them—
 2i8 Letter XVII.

which are the ancestors, I suppose, of the present genera-

tion —those they now have.
This island, together with the Isle of Pines, was taken
possession of by the French in the year 1853, and the Loyalty
Islands were shortly afterwards annexed. Since that time they
have been occupying it as a penal settlement and military sta-

tion, but doing little in the way of colonizing it. I have no

doubt, however, but that itwill eventually become avery important
place. It has all the necessary requisites : a commanding position;
a fine healthy climate \ soil fit for cultivation and for grazing ;
minerals in great variety and abundance ; and splendid har-
bours. At present, cattle breeding and sugar growing are the
chief industries. Sheep don't feed well, as the grass is too
coarse ; but cattle seem to thrive splendidly, and must pay the
breeder handsomely, as there is a great demand for fresh meat

for the supply of the military and penal establishments and men-
of-war.

The French Government are inclined, I believe, to favour

the settlement of colonists of other nations on New Caledonia
giving them land at a nominal rental, with option of purchase
after a certain number of years. There are several young men
on the island now who went from the colonies ; how they are
getting on I am not in a position to say.

The minerals are as yet almost entirely undeveloped. There

is a gold-mine at the northern end of the island, which is said

to be paying well : but besides gold, copper and iron abound,

and are waiting to be extracted from the mother earth.

The harbours which New Caledonia possesses can hardly be

surpassed : there is first the outer encircling reef, and then in-

numerable well-protected bays along the coast inside of it.

The bay upon which Noumea stands is one of the best, having
the shelter of two islands, which lie in front of it.
 Housekeeping in Noumea. 219

But to return to the " Sea Witch " and her passengers. On
the morning of our arrival an English gentleman boarded us,
and introduced himself as Her Brittanic Majesty's vice-consul.
He was very kind and attentive, and by his advice we took
possession of a furnished cottage belonging to a friend of his
at that time in the country. Of course if the hotels had been
suitable for our party, we should have gone to one of them ;
but they had no accommodation fit for a lady so we thank- :

and commenced housekeeping on our

fully entered the cottage,

own account. It was rather a strange experience. After the

island life among the savages, it was a novel thing to be able
to go to a shop and get what you wanted, and it was a novel
thing to pay for it but the novelty was much increased by our
;

being in ,a strange town, amongst a lot of foreigners. Fortu-

nately, most of the shops some of the assistants could
in
speak English, otherwise we should have fared badly indeed,
my French being of the most threadbare description. The
captain and I used occasionally to sally forth, under cover of
darkness, and forage for our supplies, returning loaded with

sundry queer parcels.

Wefound housekeeping in Noumea rather expensive on
the whole, everything being dear, except claret, cigars, and eau
de Cologne so, by way of economy, we endeavoured to live
:

as much as possible on these luxuries — at least I did. The

consul was a friend in need, supplying the place of interpreter
and general entertainer on all occasions, and rendering the
three weeks spent at Noumea much more pleasant than other-

wise they would have been. Several times I went out riding
the town.
with him, to get a look at the surroundings of
are some beautiful spots near the coast, and
fine views
There
from the hills ; one of the prettiest is obtained from the rising

ground back of the town, by

at the looking across an
islet-

behind and
dotted bay towards Mont D'Or and the ranges
lying

to the left of it.

 Letter XVI1.

You have all the shades arid tints requisite for a lovely
picture — distant range, light blue ;Mont D'Or, red, brown, and
yellow ; the foreground green, brown, &c, and the sea and sky-

deep blue. ,

Mont D'Or, New Caledonia.

The roads which run out from Noumea are capital and nu-
merous, all being the work of the convicts. Going out in one
direction we visited the racecourse one day, while on another
occasion we went by another road, eight or ten miles out to an
auberge, and there, sitting under a shady tree, tried the French
drink absinthe. Sickly stuff I thought it, and resolved to taste
it no more. Every here and there along these roads we passed
bands of convicts at work, well guarded by armed sentries — all

of whom, the prisoners as well as soldiers, saluted us with truly

French politeness.

The country has in many places a most striking resemblance

to some parts of Victoria, a tree which grows plentifully in the
bush, being very like the stringy-bark of that colony. The
 Noumea.

vegetation is not at all luxuriant, in fact, upon the hillsides there-

seems almost nothing at all.

Noumea, the capital — in fact, the only town in the island,

has a population of 4000 or 5000 I should think, independently
of the prisoners and military force. The streets are straight,,
one another, and are well made.
laid out at right angles to
The houses are mostly wooden, with an occasional brick one
here and there. There are a few very respectable wholesale
stores, one or two indifferent hotels, a good number of shops,
a printing
office —
which produces a weekly paper, a museum,
government house, one or two other public offices, a R.C. church,
and two immense barracks a little way out of the town ; the
remainder being private dwellings. The town is, as I said be-
fore, situated on a bay, and is at the foot of a steep hill, 300 or
400 feet high, on the top of which is a tower, used as a sema-
phore station. It commands a splendid view across the reef,
and far away out to sea. When a vessel is observed in the
offing, the signal is made and the little pilot-schooner starts off
to pilot her through the reefs. The bay on which the town lies
has generally a very lively appearance. When we were there,
five men-of-war were lying in harbour at one time, besides-
sundry other crafts. Looking from the bay, the barracks at
once attract attention, on account of their size and command-
ing position. There are two buildings one for infantry, the —
other for The convicts live upon an island on the op-
artillery.

posite side of the bay from Noumea ; and as there are several
thousands of them, their quarters form quite a town. Every
morning they cross over, and march through the town in gangs
to work. They make roads, embankments, fortifications,
buildings, &c. There is no want of cheap labour in these

quarters ; in fact, there seems to be a difficulty in employing

them usefully, for I noticed that they have commenced to cut
a road through a great hill —a road to nowhere. As amongst
such a number of men there must naturally be some musicians,
 Letter XVII.

the authorities have provided instruments, and allowed them to

form themselves into a band. This band plays every Thursday
and Sunday afternoons —plays high-class music, and plays it

well too. Some of the convicts employ their leisure ,hours in

carving nautilus and cocoanut shells, producing very pretty re-

sults, and selling them at very moderate prices.

The communists, of whom there are now a large number, are

kept quite separate from the convicts, their quarters being on a
peninsula of the main island. They have there comparatively
comfortable habitations, are not made to work, and have plenty
of food to eat and plenty of time for reflection. Altogether
they are not badly off.

About a fortnight after our arrival in Noumea, we were

obliged to flit. As we were sitting at dinner one day, a gentle-
man appeared with a servant and portmanteau, and proved to
be, as I could see at a glance, the owner of the cottage returned
from the country. He seemed greatly taken aback at the sight
of a company of strangers seated comfortably in his house, for
he had received no notice of our occupation. Of course, we
were in rather a fix too ; but after explaining to him how mat-
ters stood, he very considerately gave us the use of the house
until his lease —
was up this, however, was in two days' time,' so
that we did not receive very much benefit from his kindness.
We commenced then to look about for other quarters,
and
would probably have experienced considerable difficulty, had
not a gentleman come forward and put at our disposal a store
and offices which he had just built, and which were still stand-
ing empty. We occupied these buildings as our sleeping apart-
ments, and went to a hotel for our meals. We now were
obliged to fall in with French customs. Two meals a day
breakfast at ten a.m. and dinner at six p.m. The . latter meal
could be prolonged over most of the evening we felt in-
if

clined ; and, as we had nothing to do, generally we felt so in-

clined. Innumerable little courses of meat, &c, dressed in
 Arrival in Sydney. 223

various fashions, and vin ordinaire, followed by small cups of

thick black coffee, constituted the usual bill of fare.
One day,
as a great treat, we had grapes—not in great bunches,
however,
as we eat them in Victoria, but a few on a plate, previously ex-
tracted from a bottle of brandy in which they had been pre-
served.

Nothing worthy of notice occurred until the sailing of the .

steamer for Sydney, unless I except the fact of my meeting a

historical character in the streets one day.
I refer to the son
of John Adams, of the " Bounty "
mutiny celebrity—the go-
vernor, schoolmaster, and minister of the Pitcaim islanders.
His son is now an elderly man. He had come across from
Norfolk island (where the Pitcairn islanders are now living) to
Noumea, for the purpose of consulting the French doctors re-
garding some failing in the eyesight of his little daughter, whom
he brought over with him.

On March we packed up bag and baggage, and

the 7 th [of
went on board the steamer. My baggage now amounted to
something considerable. In the way of curiosities collected
amongst the islands, I had native weapons, dresses, bags,
baskets, cloth, shells, coral, a collection of dried plants and
ferns, two bottled snakes,* a few carved ornaments from
Noumea, &c.

The day after we boarded the steamer she sailed for Sydney,
the whole of Noumea turning out to say good-bye to friends
and witness our departure. After a very fair passage of six
days, we passed the Heads on Thursday, the 13th.

* One of these snakes was a blue and black banded sea-snake, the Platyurus
Fischeri, lolled by myself on Tana whilst the other was a brown viper, which
;

Professor McCoy states is unknown to him, and is probably altogether a new

species. This last I got from Mr. Hebblewhite, who killed it on Efate. Both
these snakes are poisonous.
824 Letter XVII.

A few days having been very agreeably spent in seeing

the lions of Sydney, the blue mountains and the zig-zag, I

took steamer for Melbourne ; and on the 25th of March,

with no little thankfulness of heart, entered once again its

busy streets, and speedily was lost to view in the crowd.

 CONTRIBUTIONS

TO THE

Ifetoppfc! ^ % $kfo fekite

AND LOYALTY ISLANDS,

FROM

MR. F. A. CAMPBELL'S COLLECTIONS.

BY

Baron Ferd. yon Mueller^

C.M.G., M,D., PH.D., F.R.S.

Quaerite et invenietis."— Evangel Math. Cap. vii., 7;

et Evangel Luc, Cap. xi., 9.
 APPENDIX.

Dirstnarapjrn
OP THE

New Hebrides and Loyalty Islands.

The notes of the following pages arose from various considerations.

The writer wished to place connectedly on record his observations on
a series of plants from some of the Pacific Islands, gathered, in ready
response to his request, by a young friend during the past year.

It seemed likely, also, that the narrative of this itineration, while it

would, be scattered through the mission settlements, might animate

others, to add likewise to our store of phytographic material from these

and other island groups, if a special chapter was devoted to the plants
collected on this occasion. More particularly this might be expected
if it could be shown that, even during the very transitory visitof places
discovered fully a century ago, a search among the constituents of their
rich vegetation had still brought to light a proportionately large share
of plants, either imperfectly understood, or perhaps utterly unknown
before ; and this from a collection necessarily limited. Furthermore,
it appeared manifest that, by promoting a gradual scientific disclosure

of the vegetation of any part of Polynesia, while civilization proceeds

on its glorious path, new natural treasures would also become early
scrutinised, the value of the indigenous resources of many a remote

and lonely spot would be enhanced, and even intellectual enjoyment

be increased in perhaps some distant solitudes.
To these general reasons for appending the subsequent unpreten-
sive Notes to Mr. Campbell's work, one may be added, emanating

from direct wishes of the writer. It is felt that the important works
of the venerable Dr. Asa Gray and of the lamented Dr. Berthold See-
mann, which form already a solid foundation for our knowledge of the
4 PHYTOGRAPHY OF THE

plants of the Polynesian groups, should be extended, not only to the

vegetation of numerous Pacific islands almost totally unexplored, but
also to the plants of many inland recesses, to which heathen barbarism
formerly gave no access, although the littoral skirts of these interior
regions, on numerous islands, were brought long since under the be-
nign influence of Christendom.

Since almost the middle of the last century, naval discoveries have
rendered the world gradually acquainted with the almost endless num-'
ber of isles — many almost of a paradisaic nature —dispersed through
the Pacific ocean ; but it yet remains a startling fact, that of their
vegetation far less has become elucidated than of the flora of many
other wide spaces of the globe, in regions discovered, occupied, or
colonised since a much more recent date.

Vicinity and commerce necessarily must bring most of the Pacific

islands prominently in contact with the Australian colonies, and, as a
sequence, these beautiful groups will be connected also with us most
easily for scientific communion.
Thus, ever since the untimely death of his friend Berthold Seemann,
in the latter part of 1871, the writer has ventured to nourish a hope
that a work on the whole vegetation of Polynesia might most readily
be promoted from a centre of phytographic research, such as, in

Australia, he endeavoured to form.

If, then, the many educated inhabitants located in the various

groups, as well as scientifically inclined travellers, would aid in secur-
ing material of any kind for extended researches in the direction in-
dicated, new sources of delight would arise to the writer, by affording
not merely special information to the Senders, but also by obtaining
gradually, the material for an universal work.

Moreover, the vegetation of the South-Sea islands stands in mani-

fold bearings to that of Australia ; so much so, that even the elucida-
tion of the plants of the Australian continent, which has engaged ex-
tensively the writer's attention during more than a quarter of a cen-
tury, would receive much collateral support from a closer insight into
the whole vegetable empire of Polynesia.

Our unacquaintance with much of the vegetation of the Pacific

islets may be largely traced to the fact, that the generality of the in-
habitants or travellers, even if imbued with any desire to turn easy
 NEW HEBRIDES AND LOYALTY ISLANDS. 5

opportunities to scientific account, become attracted, during any of

their searches for plants, mainly by the gracefulness or lovely
delicacy of the ferns, which Nature, with a prodigious and marvellous
lavishness, has strewed over these islands. Or the Searcher's pre-
dilections and exertions are limited to efforts of obtaining the more
gorgeous forms of plants which present themselves to his view. Thus
a modest herb, though of medicinal virtue —thus a plain-looking grass,

though of nutritive importance —thus a concealed moss, though of

microscopic beauty —or thus a delicate seaweed, though of charming
structural perfection — are left alike unregarded. Need I speak of
blossoms at first sight unshowy, or of fruits perhaps still less attrac-

tive, though the produce of trees both utilitarian and stately ? to say

nothing of the unwieldy flowers and bulky fruits of many a graceful

palmj or of numerous succulents, ever so useful, but less readily
amenable to any preparation for museum or study purposes.

But since Divine wisdom has called forth all these vegetable be-

ings by a godly design, to be subservient to our earthly wants, we

ought to recognise it as a duty, while we wish to enjoy and utilise all

these gifts of providence, to draw them also from thoughtless disregard

and hidden obscurity into the cyclus of rational reflection, into the

precincts of experimental tests, and into the reach of the full light of

natural science.

PITTOSPOREAE.
Pittosporum Campbelli.
Arborescent leaves broadly lanceolate, thickly chartaceous, some-
;

what acuminate, glabrous, like the peduncles verticillate crowded ;

pedicels several or rather numerous, slightly downy ; calyces minute,
almost bell-shaped, only to about one-third of their length cleft into
five rounded teeth ; corolla white, exceeding the calyx several times in
length ; petals narrow, cuneate— oblong, disconnected ; filaments
somewhat dilated, twice as long as the slightly pointed anthers style ;

extremely short ; capsule bivalved, many-seeded valves thick, almost

;

oval, narrowed at the extremities, especially at the summit uneven ;

yet not wrinkled on the outside; seeds dark— or blackish-brown,

turgid, angular, wingless.
Found on Tana, on wooded places. Seen about fifteen feet high.
Leaves 3 to 5 inches long, 1 to i£ inches broad, paler beneath ; veins
and lateral nerves exceedingly thin. Petioles £ to f inch long.
Primary peduncles varying in length from J to ii inches, terminal or
6 PHYTOGRAPHY OF THE

in the axis of the upper leaves. Pedicels 2 to 3 lines long, rather

crowded. Calyces only one line long, glabrous. Petals about 4 lines
long, blunt. Anthers measuring about one line. Pistil smooth.
Ovary very slender. Valves of the capsule about f of an inch long,
sometimes verging into a rhomboid form, but always longer than
broad, and often considerably so ;outside turning blackish, inside
orange-yellow, not viscid. Seeds generally almost ij line long, not
sticky. Funicles almost obliterated.
The flowers are delightfully odorous, like those of most congeners.
The species is dedicate(Pto the young gentleman, who thoughtfully
and kindly provided the material for this essay. It is the first
Pittosporum from the New Hebrides, and bears some alliance to
P. rhytidocarpum (Asa Gray, Botany of Wilkes's Exploring Expedition,
p. 228, tab. 18.) The differences, however, are obvious for ;

P. rhytidocarpum has sessile umbels, free sepals (though not so

shown in the plate,) a downy sessile ovary, a longer style, larger
capsules outside warty or tubercular and deeply wrinkled, and
finally larger and more compressed seeds.

P. glabratum (Lindley, in the Journal of the London Horticultural

Society, vol. 1, p. 230) differs already in its deeply divided slightly
ciliated calyces, connate petals, thinner and broader valves, which are
three in number, also larger seeds. P. ferrugineum (W. T. Aiton,
Hort. Kew, sec. edit., n., 27) is still more widely distinct.
Pittosporum Brakenridgei (Asa Gray, I. c, p. 225, tab. 17) accord-
to Seemann's Feegee-plant numbered 56, presents, like the following,
a short-lobed calyx, but is dissimilar in many other respects.
P. ramiflorum (Zollinger, in Miguel Flor. Ind. Batav., vol. I,
part 11., p. 122) is to be distinguished already in its entirely lateral
inflorescence, smaller and connate petals. This species again is
closely allied to P. Richii (A. Gr., I. c.,) and both have the short-lobed
calyx of P. Campbellii, while the fruit of P. Richii is broader than
long.
P. Timorense (Blume, Mus. Bot. Lugd., 1., 160) is described as
having short and only dentated calyces. The only 'specimens of any
Pittosporum which I possess from Timor (in fruit only) have roundish
capsules, i to | of an inch long, strongly compressed, outside almost
even. None of the described species of Pittosporum from New
Caledonia (Brogniart and Gris, in Annates des Scien. Nat. 1865,
p- 143 —147) is closely allied to Mr. Campbell's plant.

RUTACEAE.
Micromelum pubescens (Blume, Bijdragen, vol. 1, p. 137.)
M. minutum (Seemann's Rep. on Mis. to the Viti Islands,

P- 434-)
Efate. Recently detected, also, in the Samoan group, by the Rev.
S. T. Whitmee, F.L.S., F.G.S., F.R.G.S.
 NEW HEBRIDES AND LOYALTY ISLANDS. y

Murraya exotica (Koenig, in Linn. Mantiss. Alt. Plant.

P- 554'-)
There only four feet high, when in flower. The older and
Santo.
name, Chalcas paniculata (Lin. Mantiss., p. 68 Chalcas
restorable ;

cammuneng, Burmann's Flor. Ind., p. 104) is referable to this plant.

Known also from New Caledonia.
Clausenia crenulata; Murraya crenulata (Oliver, in the
Proceed, of the Linn. Soc. vol. 5, sup. p. 29.)
Tana. A tree attaining a height of thirty feet, and perhaps more.
Leaflets chartaceous, the lower ones sometimes hardly above an inch
in length all often only very faintly crenulate.
; Cymes forming a
dense corymbose terminal panicle. Peduncles and pedicels thinly
downy the latter when flower-bearing about one line long, when
;

fruit-bearing lengthened to three or four lines. Calyces five cleft, —

hardly above half a line high, nearly one line wide its lobes deltoid
;

semi-orbicular. Petals almost oblong, overlapping at the lateral

margins, white, sessile, nearly a quarter of an inch long. Stamens
ten five alternately somewhat shorter
; the longer filaments about
;

two lines long, downward more dilated than the others all nearly ;

subulate. Anthers one-third of a line long, erect, with two parallel

oval cells. Pistil glabrous. Style about one line long, deciduous,
rather thick. Stigma visibly exceeding the width of the style. Berry
—
depressed globular, slightly raised on an extremely short stipes, about
two-thirds of an inch broad, four celled, not rarely perfecting all its
seeds. Pericarp thin. Septa membranous. Seeds smooth, ovate
trigonous. —
Cotyledons plan convex, not folded.
This plant connects the genera Clausena and Murraya, which
eventually might be united, should even no additional members of the
genera hereafter be discovered. Clausenia claims antecedence as be-
ing published in 1768 (Burmann, Flor. Ind., p. 87) whereas Murraya,
;

or, as it was originally written, Murraea, became promulgated in 1771.

But, with still greater justice, Burmann's generic name would have to
give way to that of Calchas, established by Linne in 1767 (both in his
first Mantiss. pag. num. 1261 and in the twelfth edition of the
;

Syst. Nat. vol. 2, p. 293,) Chalcas paniculata being referable to

Murraya exotica.
Mr. Campbell's plant agrees with that from Queensland, at least
as far as foliage and fruit are concerned, the flowers of the East
Australian congener having as yet not been collected. Those of the
Tana plant accord, however, with the short description given by
Oliver of the original species from the Phillippine Islands. The
corymbosely depressed inflorescence separates Clausenia or Chalcas
crenulata already from all other species of that genus known to me.
In the shape of its berries it differs, likewise, from most, if not all, of
its congeners. This is a new plant for Polynesian records.
Euodia hortensis (R. and G. Forster, Charact. Gener.,
p. 14, tab. 7.)
Santo, Efate, and Tana. Flowering already at a height of two
feet. Both the narrow and broad-leaved varieties were collected by
Mr. Campbell.
 PHYTOGRAPHY OF THE

TILIACEAE.
Triumfetta angulata (La Marck, Encyclop. Method.,
in., p. 421.)
Aneityum and Tana. Abundant on clear flats. Height, two to
three feet. Not previously recorded from any of the islands of the
Pacific ocean, nor from Australia. Sepals conspicuously hairy.
Stamens, twelve to sixteen. Fruit-awns sometimes beset with
minute bristles.

Grewia mallococca (Linnd fil. Supplem. Plant, p. 402.)

Santo and Tana, in forests. Height to twenty feet, and per-
haps more. Leaves attaining a length of eight inches. Peduncles
one to three-flowered, solitary or two together. Flower-buds first
globular, soon egg-shaped. Bracts two to three lines long, ovate
lanceolate, very early deciduous. Sepals four to six lines long, white
inside, not distinctly nerved. Petals acute. This species approaches
in many respects to G. orientalis (L., Sp. PL 964) and to G. laevigata
(Vahl, Symbol, 434.) Irrespective of some other differences, its longer
leaves with deeper indentations distinguish it.
It may here passingly be observed, that Trichospermum Richii
(Seemann, in Bonplandia, p. 254) has been found also in the Samoan
group by the Rev. S. T. Whitmee. The leaves of this remarkable tree
attain a length of over six inches.

MALVACEAE.
Sida rhombifolia (Linn£, Sp. Plant, 961.)
Santo. This herb might be utilised for the sake of its beautiful
fibre —
especially as the plant is perennial, and occurs probably in abun-
dance on all the islands of the group, Captain Cook himself (as recorded
by Dr. Seemann) having gathered it already at Tana. The leaves are
more frequently lanceolar than rhombiformed, and on the specimens
transmitted from Santo, they are scarcely paler beneath. The sides of
the fruitlets are distinctly reticular to above the middle.

Hibiscus Abelmoschus (Linne, sp. pi., 980.)

Santo. A
purple-flowered variety, according to Mr. Campbell's
note. In respect to colour, the flowers of this plant seem to be variable
although in no instance this capability of variation among Malvaceae is as
great as in the Hollyhock, while in most species of this extensive order no
play of colours seems to occur.

Hibiscus Rosa Sinensis (Linn£, sp. pi., 977.)

Eramanga. The number , of segments of the surrounding bracteal
involucre varies from six to ten.
 NEW HEBRIDES AND LOYALTY ISLANDS. g

STERCULIACEAE.
Kleihovia hospita (Linne sp.pl., 1365.)
• Aneityum. New for the group. The transmitted flowering and
fruitingspecimens came from a shrub only four or five feet high ; whereas
in age this plant assumes the dimensions of a stately tree. Hasskarl's
description (PL Jav. Rar. 313) is from the tree in its living state.
, The
Rev. S. T. Whitmee found it in 'Samoa.
-

Melochia odorata (Linne , fil. suppl. pi. p. 302.)

Efate originally described from Tana.
; Attains a height of
twenty-five feet, as observed by Mr. Campbell. Bark light-coloured.
Lower leaves orbicular-cordata, measuring about five inches ; uppermost
leaves only one to one and a-half inches long, and lanceolate, all char-
taceous. Petals much longer than the stamens. Anthers broadly ovate,
dorsifixed. Fruitlets separating in age. Seeds not conspicuously winged.
This species occurs also in Dr. Veillard's collection of CaledonianNew
plants.

SAPINDACEAE.
Cardiospermum Halicacabum (Linne", sp.pl. 925.)
Aneityum. Occurs also in the Samoan Islands, according to collec-
tions from the Rev. S. T. Whitmee.

LEGUMINOSAE.
Sophora tomentosa (Linne", sp.pl. 533.)
Efate.
Canavalia obtusifolia (De Candolle,, Prodr. 11., 404.)
Tana, along the sea-shore.

Dolichos Lablab (Linne, sp.pl. 1019.)

Aniwa, on open ground. The white
flowering variety collected.
Brief notes on the uses of this bean are given in the volume of the Ac-
climitisation Society of Victoria for 1872.

Desmodium polycarpum (De Candolle, Prodr. 11., 334.)

Tana, in open places. The upper leaves consist sometimes of a
single leaflet only. Found also in Samoa by the Rev. S. T. Whitmee
and Rev. S. Powell.

Desmodium umbellatum (De Candolle, Prodr. 11., 325.)

Eramanga. Pod sometimes five-seeded, sometimes reduced to a

single article.
Desmodium pendulum.
Tana abundant in the forests.
;
A shrub; according to Mr. Camp-
bell's notes attaining a height of fifteen feet. Racemes pendent, with
white flowers.
This plant, according to an imperfect specimen from the museum of
the Botanic Garden of Calcutta, communicated under the above name
 PHYTOGRAPHY OF THE

and collected by Mr. Tyesmann, seems identical with a species from the
island of Ternate. It differs from D. ormocarpoides (De Candolle,
Prodr. II., 327) so far as the material before me allows me to judge,
already in narrower stipules, short-toothed calyces and long-stalked pods.
The latter, in a half-ripe state, resemble those of D. laburnifolium (De
Candolle, Prodr. II., 337,) but are not sessile, and the articulations are
still deeper. In the simplicity and form of the foliage, the Tana plant
agrees with D. ormocarpoides. The expanded upper petal is beyond its
base almost orbicular. The tenth stamen is free. Ripe fruit is unknown
to me. The racemes attain a length of one foot. The large
leaflets are sparingly beset with short appressed hair ; but this
would not be a positive characteristic of the species, inasmuch as
D. ormocarpoides occurs in Ceylon with leaflets copiously downy be-
neath, including therefore, probably, D. zonatum (Miquel, Flor. Ind.
Bat., 1., 250.)

Tephrosia piscatoria (Pers.Enchir., 11., 329.)

Eramanga and Efate. About two feet high. Flowers white.
Dt. Veillard's plant from New Caledonia, distributed under the above
name, appears to represent a distinct species.

Acacia Farnesiana (Willdenow, sp.pl., 1083.)

Mare, Loyalty Islands,where it grows to the height of twelve feet.
Pinnae sometimes reduced to two pairs. Peduncles not rarely solitary.
Calyces and corolla occasionally six-cleft.

MYRTACEAE.
Eugenia Richii (Asa Gray, in Wilkes's Unit. Stat. Explor.
Exped. Bot., p. 510, pi. 58.)
Tana, where it grows to a height of forty feet. This evidently
stately tree, with large leaves and globular fruits above an inch in size,
.either belongs to the above-indicated species, or must be regarded as
botanically new. It has the characteristic winged-angular branchlets,
and the round or cordate based-leaves of E. Richii, and it may thus be
easily discriminated in comparison with E. Malaccensis, (Linne, sp. pi. 672,)
but the flowers seem somewhat smaller than those delineated by Sprague,
the calyx-tube is more turgid, the calyx-lobes are conspicuously unequal
and for the comparison of the ripe fruits of the Tana species with that
from Fiji and Tonga, no opportunity has as yet been afforded.

Barringtonia racemosa (Blume', in De Cand. Prod.

in., 288.)
Tana, inland in forests. A tree, forty feet high. Petals and stamens
white. Fruit greenish. Kernels, according to Mr. Campbell's note,
eatable. This appears to be the most widely-spread of all congeners, ex-
tending even to East Africa, but in Australia it has as yet only been
found on Rockingham's Bay. The racemes are sometimes fully four feet
•long on trees of the last-mentioned locality. The allied B. Samoensis
(Asa Gray, Bot. Wilk. Explor. Exped., 508) has much smaller flowers,
 NEW HEBRIDES AND LOYALTY ISLANDS. II

with a calyx cup-shaped in bud, but not closed, while the fruit is much
—
larger one-and-a-half to two inches long, and so much impressed around
the pedicel as to form four turgid prominences. In Upola, where it is
frequent, it passes by the name of "Falaga," according to the Rev. S. T.
Whitmee. Barringtonia speciosa (R. & G. Forster, Charact. Gener.,
p. 76, tab. 38) occurs, doubtless, also in the New Hebrides and adjoining
islets, it having been traced to Rockingham's Bay and some other shores
of North Queensland. Some of the other Indian species of Barringtonia
may be looked for in the Pacific archipelagus as well as in tropical Aus-
tralia. The sections Butonica and Stravadium of Barringtonia hold, in
reference to the forms of their calyx, almost the same relation to each
other as Busbeckia to Eucapparis in the genus Capparis.

MELASTOMACEAE.
Melastoma Malabathricum (Linne", sp. pi., 559 ; M. velu-
tinum, Seemann., Flor. Vit, p. 90.)
Aneityum ; there a bush five feet high. Petals white, as in the
variety described as M. Taitense (Z>e Cand. prod. III., 144.)
The allied order of Lythracese, by an oversight, is passed unnoticed
in Dr. Seemann's work, so rich irt original observations. The following
plants of that order are known to exist in the Pacific islands Pemphis : —
acidula (R. &
G. Forster, Charact. Gener., p. 68, tab. 34); Lythrum
maritimum (Humboldt, Bonpl. et Kunth.nov. gen. et spec. Amer.,Vl., 193);
Sonneratia acida (Linne, fil. suppl.pl., 252) ; and to these are probably to
be added, Lythrum' hyssopifolium, Lawsonia alba and several species
of Ammannia. Cupheanthus Neo-Caledonicus (Seemann, Flor. Vit.,
p. 76) requires to be moved from Myrtacese also to Lythracese, as sug-
gested by its author.

EUPHORBIACEAE.
-

CodijEU'm variegatum (Blume Bijdrag., p. 606.) ,

Tana, in the woods, where it attains a height of fifteen feet. The

generic name, established by Rumpt (fferbar. Amboin, IY., 65-66) al-
ready 120 years ago, should be adopted also in horticultural appellations
for this plant, as it is not a Croton in the scientific meaning of that ex-
tensive genus.
-

Euphorbia hirta (Linne Amoen. Academ., ,

in., 114.)
Santo; frequent near the sea-shore. The above specific name is far

preferable to that of E. pilulifera, first given on the same page of the

work quoted. .

Acalypha Fosteriana (J.

Mueller, in De Cand. prodr. xvi.,
pars 11., 870.)
Efate, and other islands of the New Hebrides; abundant in woods.
A shrub up to six feet high. Another species exists in Tana, growing in
woody localities to the height of twenty feet. It requires further examina-
tion from more extensive material.
12 PHYTOGRAPHY OF THE

Carumbium pedicellatum (Miquel, Flor. Ind. Balav.,

vol. i., part ii., page 414.)
Tana, where forms a shrub about five feet high.
it Easily dis-
tinguished from C. populifolium (Reinwardt in Blume's Catalogues, Van
Gervassen, Buitenzorg, p. 105) a plant also extending to some of the
Pacific isles, in having its staminiferous racemes provided with minute
gland -like bracts, which generally occupy the middle of the more elongated
and singly dispersed pedicels, in having the calyces far less conspicuous,
the stamens more numerous, and the basal glands of the leaves arising
from the lower page. Moreover, the fruit is pointed at the base and
apex, though it is not longer than broad. The Rev. S. T. Whitmee has
found the identical species in Samoa, where the large-fruited C. acuminatum
also exists.

URTICACEAE.
Trema cannabina (Loureiro, Flor. Cochinchinens, ed.
Willd., 689.)
Abundant in Tana. A lithogram of
this plant has been issued in my
-work, "The Plants of the Colony of Victoria," plate xc. This bush
has shown itself poisonous to pastoral animals, who in dry seasons will
eat it with avidity, but die (according to Mr. T. Maitland's observations)
a few hours afterwards. The specific name is derived from the textile
bast, which might yet be drawn into extensive use on localities where the
plant spontaneously vegetates. Sent from Samoa by the Rev. S. T.
Whitmee.

Pipturus argenteus (Weddell in Candolle prodr. xvi., 235)

Tana, on hill-sides in woods. The bast-fibre resembles that of the
Ramee, according to experiments in my laboratory. Mr. Campbell
found this plant to attain a height of about twenty-five feet, and the fruit
to be white and watery-succulent.

Boehmeria spicata (Thunberg in the Transact, of the Linn.

Soc. of Lond., 11., 330.)
Santo. Frequent in forestland. A bush about
five feet high. Mr.
Campbell's collection contains a small branchlet without fruits, which
does not admit of specific recognition; but the very variable B. spicata is
recorded as occurring in the New Hebrides. Moreover, it was desirable
that this plant should not be passed altogether on this occasion, especially
as it yields a fibre similar to that of the Rhea or Rhamee. The fibre of
the Santo-Boehmeria would likely become an article of extensive export,
if its value was once recognised by the native inhabitants, and it would
probably be obtainable also as an indigenous product from many of the
adjoining isles. This plant requires still comparison with B. acuminata
(Weddell in De Candolle, prodr. xvi., 209) from New Caledonia. It is
identical with a species from Wagap, in Dr. Veillard's collection, dis-
tributed under number 1226, so far as, in the absence of fruit, it is possi-
ble to judge.
 NEW HEBRIDES AND LOYALTY ISLANDS. 13

UMBELLIFERAE.
Trachymene Austro-Caledonia (Bentham and Hooker,
Gener. Plantar., i, 873 ; Didiscus Austro-Cakdonicus,
Brogniart and Gris, in Anna/, des Sdenc. nature//.,
cinquilme serie, Botanique, torn, in., p. 235.)
New Hebrides. Previously only gathered in New Caledonia and
the isle of pines.

COMPOSITAE.
Vernonia cinerea (Lessing, in Seh/echtendats Linnaea,
p. 291 Chrysocoma purpurea, G. Forster, prodr. p. 54.)
;

Eramanga and" Efate. Not mentioned in Dr. Seemann's work ;

perhaps therefore not extending eastward through the Pacific isles, but
occurring in New Caledonia also, according to Mons. Pancher's and Dr.
Veillard^s collections.

RUBIACEAE.
Hedyotis foetida (Sprengel, Pugi/lus p/antar., 11., 28,
non Dalzell.)
Tana, along the sea-shores. About two feet high. Corolla white.
Not before gathered in the New Hebrides. This plant is very closely
allied to H. racemosa (La Marck, Encyclop. mithoclique, III. 76) which ,

is slaown by Mr. Whitmee to exist also in Samoa, while Mr. Campbell

found it in the island Espiritu Santo. It is now also known to occur in
North Queensland.
Calycosia Milnei (Asa Gray, in the Proceed, of the Americ.
Acad, of Scienc.,.vt.,48.)
Aneityum, in woodlands. Attains a height of six feet. The limb
of the calyces is rather herbaceous than .membraneous, and in a dry state
yellowish ; like the leaves arid corollas also, the calyces are densely beset
with black dots, reminding of those of many primulaceous plants.

Ixora pavetta (Roxburgh, Flor. Ind., 1., 385.)

Efate, abounding in woods near the sea, and attaining a height of
six feet. Not previously recorded from Polynesia.

GOODENIACEAE.
Scaevola Koenigii (Vahl, Symbol, in., 36.)
Aneityum, Tana and Efate abounding on
; the sea-shore.
Native name, Nanatto.

LOGANIACEAE.
Geniostoma rupestre (R. & G. Forster, Charact. gener.,
p. 24, tab. 12.)
Tana: there discovered already in Captain Cook's second expedition.
 14 PHYTOGRAPHY OF THE

On wooded ridges. Height to about fifteen feet. Corolla white. Style

glabrous. Itvaries with leaves rounded at the base, and also with
rounded capsules. The Rev. S. T. Whitmee has sent the same plant
from Samoa.

ACANTHACEAE.
Eranthemum repandum (R. Brown, according to Roemer
and Schultes' Systerna Vegetabilium, I., 175.)

Mare, Loyalty Islands. To the brief definition published in 1786, by

George Forster (Justicia repanda, Flor. Insul. Austral., prodr., page 3)
which appears as yet to be the only record of this species, the Mare-plant
.sufficiently responds. Tana being about 150 geographical miles distant
from Mare, it may very readily be assumed that Forster's original
Tana-species extends also to the Loyalty Islands. Mr. Campbell's plant
forms a bush about three feet high. The leaves are two inches long, or
less, ovate or verging into a rhomboid form, chartaceous, lightly or im-
perfectly repand, not acuminate, but provided with conspicuous petioles.
The number of flowers on the short axillary peduncles is either three or
it is reduced to two, or even occasionally one. The bracteoles at the base
of the short pedicels are only two-thirds line long and cymbeo-
semilanceolar. Segments of the calyx subulate-semilanceolate, hardly
one and a-half lines long. Corolla white, fragrant, its tube nearly or
fully one and a-half inches long, slender, slightly curved; lobes broadly
oval, blunt, one-third to one and a-half inches long. Anthers enclosed
within the summit of the tube. Style with its upper part exserted.
Stigma distinctly two-lobed. Fruit unknown.
This Eranthemum may have a cyclus of forms as wide as that of
E. variabile. The precise relation of two other congeneric plants of Mr.
Campbell's collection to E. repandum remains to be investigated. One
of these from Eramanga has narrower oblong or lanceolar leaves, with
not distinctly repand margin, the tube of the corolla shorter in respect to
the lobes and the anthers exserted. The other Eranthemum alluded to
came from Santo, where it forms a shrub five feet high, with showy white
flowers sprinkled with red. The leaves are almost membraneous, the
lower ones about four inches long, ovate-lanceolate, acuminate, on com-
paratively short petioles, repand at the margin; the upper leaves are al-
most sessile, broadly ovate, gradually narrowed into the pointed apex and
not repand; the lower peduncles are usually only one-flowered, while the
flowers of the summit form a small corymb; the bracteoles are longer and
so also the segments of the calyces; the tube of the corolla is hardly one
inch long. Fruit-capsules of none of these three plants are extant for
comparison, and it may thus on this occasion be passingly remarked, that
on carpologic characteristic in most in most instances the safe limitation
of specified forms of plants can be perfected, when floral characters fail to
effect an exact discrimination. Indeed, the truth of the Bible words,
"A fructibus eorum cognoscetis eos," (Evangelium Matthaei, caput vi., 16)
is also here significant.

Beyond the species recorded by the late Dr. Seemann as Polynesian,

the writer is acquainted with Eranthemum variabile (R. Brown, Prodr.
 NEW HEBRIDES AND LOYALTY ISLANDS. 15

Flor. Nov. Holl., p. 47) from New Caledonia, out of Pancher's collec-
tion; further, with a large leaved densely downy species, producing ter-
minal somewhat racemose flowers from the Society Islands. This hand-
some plant seems to have hitherto remained phytographically unnoticedj
but the material before me is not really sufficient for absolute diagnostic
definition, especially as we are aware that the genus Eranthemum con-
tains numerous closely allied forms, of which several have unduly been
raised already to a specific rank.

Ruellia reptans (G. Forster, Flor. Insul. Austral.,

Prodr., p. 44.)
Santo. This plant was seen by Mr. Campbell to attain a height of
five feet. He noticed the corolla to be whitish. Peduncles not rarely
solitary. Flowers very few in terminal, almost fascicular cymes. Seeds
about fourteen, dark brown, obicular-ovate, smooth, slightly turgid, about
two-thirds line long.

Solanum Milnei (Seemann's Journal of Botany, 1863,

page 210.)
Eramanga. The specimens collected represent a small leaved:
variety.

ASPERIFOLIAE.
-

Cordia Myxa, (Linne , spec, plant, 273.)

Tana, on hills.Height to fifteen feet. Flowers white. Not previ-

ously recorded from the New Hebrides —
thus, like many others of Mr.
Campbell's plants, new from there.

LABIATAE.
-

Ocimum sanctum (Linne , Mantiss., p. 85.)

Santo. Three feet high. Flowers purplish, according to Mr.
Campbell. This is the first record of this and the following plant from
Polynesia.
-
Ocimum Basilicum (Linne , spec, plant. 883.)
Santo and Efate. This species has also been found in Feegee by
Dr. Seemann, but is mentioned in his work as O. gratissimum. Probably
the latter occurs in Feegee also, along with O. Basilicum, like in many
parts of India, and both may have been mixed in Seemann's collection.
A small flowered variety was gathered in Madagascar by Dr. Meller,
according to specimens communicated by Sir Henry Barkly. The limits
of most species of Ocimum have not yet been accurately ascertained.

Coleus scutellaroides (Bentham in Wallich plant. Asiat.

rarior., 11., 16.)
Santo.
l6 PHYTOGRAPHY OF THE

Teucrium inflatum (Swartz, Prodr Flor. Ind. Occid.,

page 88.
Tana, near the sea-shores. Three feet high. Corolla purple.

VERBENACEAE.
Lippia nodiflora (CI. Richard, in Michaux Flor. Boreal
Americ, u., 15.)
Tana. Frequent in swampy places. Mr. Campbell records it two
feet high. Peduncles not rarely opposite, such as may be observed also
in specimens from other parts of the globe.

Vitex trifolia (Linne, fil. suppl. pi., 293.)

Tana and Aneityum. From the latter island with five leaflets,
representing apparently Vitex bicolor (Willdenow, Enumerat. Plant.
Hort. Berolin, p. 606. ) Leaflets sessile or conspicuously stalked.

Premna obtusi folia (R. Brown, Prodr. Flor. Nov.

Holland, 512.)
Aniwa, in woods. Five feet high. Flowers white. Fruit black.
The seemingly identical species occurs in New
Caledonia and Samoa,
according to the collections of Dr. Veillard and the Rev. S. T. Whitmee,
but the distinctions between P. integrifolia (Linne, Mantiss. 252) P.
Taitensis (J. C. Schauer, in De Candolle, Prodr. xi., 638) and P. latifolia
(Roxburgh, Flor. Ind., III., 76) have never yet been set forth with
clearness. Roxburgh designates the flowers of the last mentioned plant
as yellow. The length of the petioles of P. obtusifolia is variable, and
the leaves verge more or less into an oval or orbicular or cordate
form.

MYRSINEAE.
Maesa baeobotrys (Roemer et Schultes, Syst. Vegetab.,
226.)
v.
Tana, on sides of hills. Height up to about fifteen feet. Leaves
charactaceous, verging sometimes into an almost orbicular form.
Bracteoles rhomboid-orbicular. Lobes of the calyx almost deltoid; those
of the corolla about as long as the tube, roundish semiovatc, white.
The opposite leaves of some species of Ardisia on the one hand, and
the almost woody stem of several Lysimachiae on the other hand, oblitrate
still more the physibgnomic differences between Myrsineae and Primu-
laceae.
Mr. Campbell's collection from Tana contains also a branchlet with
flower buds only of a sapotaceous tree, evidently distinct from the like-
wise yet obscure Bassia obovata (G. Forst., Prodr., p. 35) from the same
island. The sap of this tree should be subjected to experiments for
ascertaining whether it could be converted into gutta-percha; it being now
well known that many very different kinds of sapotaceous trees yield this
substance, now So extensively in demand for commerce and manu-
factures.
 NEW HEBRIDES AND LOYALTY ISLANDS. 1

PRIMULACEAE.
Lysimachia decurrens (G. Forster, Flor. Insul. Austral,
prodr. p. 12 ; L. Javanica, Blume, Bijdragen tot de Flora
van Nederlandsch, Indie, p. 736 ; L. multiflora, Wallichin
Candolle prodr. vin., 62, non Klatt, fide Miquel Annal.
Mus. Bot. Lugdun, Batav., iv., 145 ; L. sinica, Miquel
in yourn. de Botan., Ne'erland, 1., no.)

Herbaceous, glabrous leaves scattered, membranous, almost

;

lanceolate, acuminate, narrowed into a conspicuous and decurrent

petiole, mainly towards the margin glandulous racemes terminal,
;

many-flowered bracts subulate-linear, shorter than the pedicels

;
;

flowers small corolla white, little longer than the lanceolate segments
;

of the calyx its lobes twice as long as the tube, blunt, entire, almost
;

oblong stamens disconnected, exserted anthers almost oval, many

; ;

times shorter than the capillary filaments staminodia none

; style
;

rather long, filiform; capsule globose, valveless, slightly excelling the

calyx in length ; seeds smooth, almost tetrahedrous, numerous,
wingless.

In open flats of Tana. A herb, about one foot high, not much
branched. Stems fistulose, prominently angular. Leaves, when fully
developed, from two to three inches long, entire, somewhat paler be-
neath. Racemes attaining a length of eight inches, but occasionally
few-flowered, and then hardly above one inch long. Pedicels thin,
very spreading, at first about two lines, subsequently four lines long,
angular, beset with exceedingly minute glands. Calyces about one
and a- half lines long; the segments broadly or oftener narrowly
lanceolate, at the inner side marked with four streaks. Corolla, chiefly
in its lower part, dotted with minute dark glands its lobes overlapping
;

in bud. Stamens inserted on the base of the lobes of the corolla.

Filaments one and a-half to two lines long, downward beset with
minute black prominent glands. Anthers versatile, about one-fourth
of a line Ipng. Style also glabrous, thinly filiform, slightly thickened
upwards, about two lines long, persistent. Stigma depressed, exceed-
ingly minute. Capsule extensively surrounded by the appressed calyx,
thinly 'cartilagineous or slightly crustaceous, measuring one and a-half
to two lines, breaking at last irregularly, outside opaque, inside very
shining. Placenta thinly and conspicuously stalked, globular, densely
covered with the seeds. The latter dark brown or black, smooth, of
about a quarter line measurement, flat at the vertex, thus forming,
with the placenta, an even globular mass.

From the material, brought by Mr. Campbell, I am now enabled to

bring this plant, which was buried in obscurity for almost a century,
anew into fuller light and therefore I offer now a somewhat extensive
;

description of it. The two Forsters discovered it in Tana during

Cook's second voyage, and the younger Forster gave, in 1786, the
IS PHYTOGRAPHY OF THE

first and hitherto only description of the Tana plant, in the work
above quoted, with the customary briefness of the time. Blume, not
having access to Forsters' plant, was prevented from recognising it,
when he discovered the identical species in Java but I find original
;

specimens from Blume in my collection, precisely agreeing with the

plant from the New Hebrides. Dr. Klatt, in his elaborate and pro-
fusely illustrated monography of the genus Lysimachia, published in
1866 (Abhandtungen cms dem Gebiete der Natur-wissenschaften, Ham-
burg,) passes Lysimachia decurrens, as then almost unknown. My
late friend, Dr. Berthold Seemann, in his highly meritorious work on
the Fiji plants, just completed, and in its concluding portions posthu'-
mous, alludes passingly (Flora Vitiensis, p. 147) to the original plant
of Forster's, which he had the advantage of re-examining in the British
Museum, and identified with it Macgillivray's Lysimachia from the isle
of Pines. I possess L. decurrens also from New Caledonia, where
Mons. Pancher found it in " prairies humides," the specific identity
not having been established before.
Since the issue of Klatt's monography, many new localities have
been additionally recorded for the species then enumerated. On this
occasion it would lead too far to dwell on that particular subject but ;

it may here be observed that the following species have since been
defined :

Lysimachia Cousiniana, Cosson. On the river Zhour, near Collo

in Algeria.

Lysimachia Keiskeana, Miquel, Annal. Mus. Bot., Lugdun,

Batav., in., 120. (L. acroadenia, Maxim. Melang. Biolog.,
vi., 272 ; L. multiflora, Klatt in Hamburg Abhandlungen,
1866, part iv., p. 14, non Wallich,) Japan.

Lysimachia Sikokiana, Miquel, I. c, in., 121. Japan.

Lysimachia inconspicua, Miquel, jfourn. de Botaniq., Neerland.

1., no, South China.

Lysimachia salicifolia, F. von Mueller in Bentham's Flor.

Austral., iv., 269. New England (N. S. Wales) Gipps-
;

land.

Lysimachia Christina, Hance in Trimen's Journal of Botany,

1873, p. 167. North-east China.

Lysimachia samolina, Hance. North-east China.

Lysimachia Hillebrandi, J. Hook, according to Seemann's Flora

Vitiens. p. 147. Sandwich Islands.

Lysimachia pacifica. Lubinia pacifica, Seemann, I. c, p. 147.

Isle of Pines.
 NEW HEBRIDES AND LOYALTY ISLANDS. 19

It might still be added, that L, deltoidea, Wight, Illustrat. of

Indian Bot., n., 137, tab. 144, has been reduced to L. Japonica by Dr.
Thwaites (euumeration of Ceylon Plants, p. 172) further, that L.
;

quadriflora (Sims in Botan. Magaz., tab. 660) by priority should take

precedence of L. longifolia (Pursh Flora of North America, 1., 135,)
although the excellent Dr. Asa Gray still upholds the latter appella-
tion. (See Manual of Botany of the Northern United States, fifth
edition, 1870, p. 316.)

L. decurrens is nearest allied to L. lobelioides (Walli.ch in Roxb.

Flor. Ind., 11., 22) which, according to Himalaian specimens from Dr.
Falconer, differs already in its capsules valved towards the summit.
L. Leschenaultii, (Duby in Candolle prodr. vm., 68,) also from upper
India, of which I have no authentic museum-plants for comparison,
is distinguished, according to the illustrations given by Wight and
Klatt, in more distinctly denticulated leaves, and in a more general
and conspicuous glandular pubesence. It requires closer com-
parison.

ASCLEPIADEAE.
-

Asclepias Curassavica (Linne , System. Veget, 289 ; spec,

plant, 1., 314.)

Aneityum ; frequent now, though originally immigrated from

tropical America.

Hoya australis (R. Brown in the Transactions of the Horti-

cultural Society of London, vu., 28.)

Tana, the original place of discovery of this plant ; Dr. Seemann

having identified it with Asclepias volubilis (G. Forster, prodr. p. 21.)
In Tana it grows on rocks along the sea.

APOCYNEAE.
Cerbera Lactaria (Hamilton in De Candolle, prodr.
viii.. 253.)

Tana, frequent there a tree about twenty feet high.

;
Mr. Camp-
bell'sspecimens are without fruit, and imperfectly in flower, but seem
to belong to the above noted species. He describes the fruits egg-
shaped, green, and abont two inches long. The same species appears
to occur in Queensland and New Caledonia. It differs from C.

Odollam (Gaertner, de fmctibus, 11., 193, tab. 124) in shorter less

acute lobes of the calyx, and in smaller and blunter
lobes of the
in smaller fruits.
corolla, which are almost as broad as long, further
 PHYTOGRAPHY OF THE

Tabernaemontana orientalis (R. Brown, Prodr. Flor.

Nov., Holland, 468.)
Efate, together with Ixora Pavetta. Only the fruit gathered.

CONVOLVULACEAE.
Convolvulus parviflorus (Vahl, Symbol, in., 29.)

Efate. Mr. Campbell notes the flowers as light-yellow. R. & G.

Forster originally found this plant in New Caledonia already during
Captain Cook's second great discovery voyage but it had hitherto
;

not been brought from any part of Polynesia, although it is known to

be amply dispersed over continental and insular India and the more
littoral parts of tropical Australia.

CASUARINEAE.
Casuarina equisetifolia (R. & G. Forster, Charact.
Gen. p. 103, fig. 52.)
Aniwa.

CONIFERAE.
Nageia cupressina (Podocarpus cupressina, R. Brown in
Memoir, du Mus'ee, xin., 75.)
New Hebrides. L'Heritier's genus Podocarpus was first publicly
noticed in 1806, by La Billardiere (Nov. Holl. plant spec. 11., 11) in a
note referring to the South-African Podocarpus elongata, and repub-
lished by Persoon in 1807 (Synops. Plantar., 11., 580,) whereas
Gaertner's genus Nageia was clearly rendered known already in 1788
(De Fructib. et Seminib., i, 191, tab. 40,.)

SCITAMINEAE.
Guillaina Novo-Ebudica.
Flowers solitary in the axil of the thinly chartaceous very obtuse
slightly distant bracts, without any special cylindrical bracteole ; lobes
of the corolla as well as the labellum small and short.
Santo, somewhat inland, in open places of the forests.
The finder noticed only one individual plant, which was six feet
high. Well developed leaves, long lanceolar, one to one and a-half
feet long, about two inches broad, paler beneath clasping portion of
;
.
 NEW HEBRIDES AND LOYALTY ISLANDS. 21

the petiole fissured longitudinally, terminated by a semi-ovate firm

ligula free portion of the petiole very short.
; Spike one and a-half
feet long, proliferous at the base, the offshoots bearing leaves one to
two inches long. Bracts red, not crowded, oblong or oval, somewhat
cuneate, moderately spreading, one to one and a-half inches long, and
a third to a half inch broad, or the lower ones still larger. Calyces
very slender, one-half to two-thirds of an inch long, tubular, with
three short acute teeth, not conspicuously slit downward. Corolla
half exserted ;its tube gradually widening at the summit, its lobes
narrow and acute. Labellum roundish, measuring hardly two lines,
crisp, above bearing two raised lines and some short downs its length;

hardly exceeding that of the limb of the corolla. Filament linear,

channelled, on the surface towards the summit finely silky. Anther
cells contiguous, parallel, about one and a-half line long the apex of
;

the anther protracted into a minute roundish membrane. Style ca-

pillary, glabrous. Stigma small, obconic, truncate. Fruit unknown.

This plant, impressingly beautiful through its long red spikes, is

placed here provisionally into the genus Guillaina, the identification
resting ou the examination of the remnants of a few shrivelled flowers.
Genericly this plant, as well as the original G. purpurata (Veillard,
Notes sur quelques Plantes interessantes de la Nouvelle Calidonie, p. 4)
recedes materially from Globba, in the completely three-celled ovary,
the ovules being attached to the parietal part of the septa. So far as
observations could be instituted on existing material, the New Cale-?
donian typical plant diverges from that of Santo in thicker leaves and
bracts, in longer lobes of the flowers, and especially in the presence of
an accessory tubular bract, which frequently embraces two flowers,
and is sometimes binerved and bilobed, thus indicating a confluence of
two bracteoles. The only specimen of Dr. Veillard's plant, which
could be compared, was presented with numerous other New Cale-
donian plants to the Melbourne Phytographic Museum by Madame
Lenormand, of Vire, Calvados— a lady who for many years has most
generously and enthusiastically promoted the progress of the scientific
knowledge of plants, and especially those of the marine Floras.

Canna Indica (Linnd, spec.pl., i.)

Tana. The variety with red flowers.

ORCHIDEAE.
Spathoglottis pacifica (G. Reichenbach in Seemann's

Flor. Vitiens., p. 300.)

Eramanga. Only a few flowers occur in Mr. Campbell's collec-

Fiji-plant above>
tion these seem not to differ from those of the
;
22 PHYTOGRAPHY OF THE

named. S. plicata (G. Reichenbach, I. t .,) from New Caledonia, ac-

cording to Turpin's delineation (La Billardiere, sert. Nov. Caled., t. 25)
has the labellum saccate at the base. Two other allied plants of the
genus are S. plicata (Blum6, Bijdragen, p. 400) from India, and S.
:

Paulina; (F. Mueller, Fragmenta Phytographiae Australia, vol. 6, p. 95)

from Queensland.

Peristylus Novo-Ebudarum {Habenaria Novo-Ebudarum,

F. V. M.)

Glabrous ; leaves several, lanceolate, membraneous ; spike slender;

bracts semi-lanceolate, acuminate, almost as long as the flowers
sepals very small, lanceolate-oblong, the inner two hardly shorter
labellum nearly as long as the inner sepals, broadly unguiculate, the
upper part rhombiform in outline, with two shallow sinus in front, thus
three-toothed, the teeth blunt, the middle one slightly longer ; spur
globular-ovate, gibbous, attenuated upwards, hardly half as long as the
calyx column extremely short.
;

Aneityum, on hilly and bushy timberland.

The whole plant about one foot high. Tuber narrow, ellipsoid-
cylindrical, measuring ahout one inch in length. Petioles tubular, ex-
cept the summit, the lower ones leafless and blunt ; free part of the
upper ones very short. Lowest leaves only about one inch long all ;

others attaining a length generally from two to four inches, and a width
of one-fourth to three-fourths of an inch ; apex acute. Spike a few
inches long. Bracts three to five lines long. Flowers, according to
the discoverer of the plant, brownish-yellow. Sepals about one and
a-half line long, the upper one almost oval, all bluntish and undivided.
Labellum slightly downy on the surface, only crenated in front, the
lateral teeth or lobes roundish ; cilia or conspicuous appendages none.
Spur less than a line long, blunt at the base, turgid in front. Anther
bluntly bilobed. Pollen masses, consisting of minute granules. Ovary
slender, gradually attenuated to the summit, sessile.

Peristylus Lawii (Wight, Icon. Plantar. Ind Orient., tab. 1695)

from Malabar, shows the nearest affinity. The flowers of the Aneit-
yum plant are still smaller, and the teeth of the labellum are still
shorter and not acute. P. brevilobus (Thwaites, Enumer Plant.
Zeilan., 311) differs already in its short and dense spike, and in the
minuteness of the middle tooth of the labellum. The genus
Habenaria, in its normal type, extends to Samoa, one long-spurred
species having been discovered there by the Rev. S. J. Whitmee.
Dendrobium Tokai exists there also.

Gastrodia OROBANCHOIDES.

Racemes few-flowered, slightly hairy bracts lanceolate, acuminate;

;

pedicels extremely short calyces small, their lobes much shorter than
;
 NEW HEBRIDES AND LOYALTY ISLANDS. 23

the undivided tube ; labellum nearly half exserted, cleft to the middle
into two rhomboid-cuneate in front and outward irregularly denticu-
lated lobes, slightly thickened but not cristate towards the middle;
column exceedingly short ; anther very minutely rostrate, also ter-
minated by two narrow-spathulate transparent appendages, and
furthermore produced on both sides into two linear-subulate laciniae.

Eeamanga ; discovered by the Rev. Hugh Fraser.

Two raceme exstant in Mr. Campbell's collections. Bract below

the raceme empty, about two-thirds of an inch long, tubular towards
the base, like the floral bracts, membraneous. Flowers crowded al-
most into a corymb. Their bracts three to five lines long, one-nerved,
beset with but few hairs. Calyces membraneous, more or less bluntly
or acutely five-toothed, oblique at the broad base, there rounded on
the outer side, and almost gibbous on the inner one, only about three
lines long ;the petaline lobes still more delicately tender than the
sepaline ones the tube not separated into two labia as in the section
;

Leucorchis. Labellum four to five lines long, membranous the ;

sinus between the two lobes forming an acute angle the lower por- ;

tion of the labellum broad-linear, canalicular-bent. Appendages of

the anther less than one line long. Pollen-masses oblique ovate,
granular. Young fruit obovate, somewhat pear-shaped, conspicuously
constricted at the junction of the floral parts. Fruit-pedicels hardly
one line long.
This very remarkable species accords in the size of its flowers
and their paucity with G. verucosa (Blume, Mus. Bot. Lugdun. n., 173)
and G. pallens (Epiphanes pallens, G. Reichenbach, in Seemann's
Flor. Vit., 2g6 Didymoplexis pallens, Griffith in McClelland's
;

Calcutta Journ. of Nat. Hist., 1844, p. 17; Apetalon minutum, Wight,

Icon. Plant. Ind. Orient., v., tab. 1758 ;) while it agrees in the short-
ness of the column, and also in the very abbreviated pedicels, with
G. Cunninghami (J. Hooker, Flor. Nov. Zed., I., 251,) but it differs
not only from these three congeners, but also from all others hitherto
known, namely, G. sesamoides (R. Brown, prodr. 330) G. gracilis,
G. elata, G. Hasseltii (Blume, I. i.) G. silvatica (Leucorchis sylvatica,
Blume, I. c, vol. I., 31) and G.Javanica (Endlicher Genera Plant. ,212)
in the deeply bilobed and partly exserted labellum.

Corymborchis veratrifolia (Blume, Les Orchidks de

Archipel. Indien. et du yapon, p. 125, planch. 32 and 43.)
Santo, in dense forests. Attains a" height of six feet.

LILIACEAE.
Dianella intermedia (Endlicher, Prodr. Flor. Norfolk,
page 28.)
Aneityum and Eramanga. The fibre of all Dianella species is of
24 PHYTOGRAPHY OF THE

remarkable strength. The Pacific plants of this genus require yet a

fuller description from ampler material.

FLAGELLARIEAE.
Joinvillea elegans (Gaudichaud, Voyage autour du Monde
sur la Bonite, Botanique, Atlas, pi. 39, fig. 7, 26.

Aneityum ;very abundant on flat open ground. Mr. Campbell

observes that the plant is up to ten feet high, and very useful to the
natives, it being used for trellises, thatches, fences and other require-
ments. The material before me consists of a flowering panicle, and
another with unripe fruits. I note some discrepancies from the
descriptions given by Jos. Hooker (Kew Miscellany, 1855, p. 200, pi. 6)
The anthers are attached to the filament near their base, and the
latter are not as long as or even longer than the anthers, but so short
as to render the anthers almost sessile. Brogniart and Gris (Annates
des Scienc. Natur., 1864, p. 332) also found the " filets assez courts."
These diversities of structure, in all probability, may be reconciled to
dimorphism or perhaps the stamens become. elongated in advancing
;

age. The sepals are more or less acuminate, and the three inner ones
are sometimes hardly shorter than the rest. In Fiji specimens, re-
corded by Seemenn (Flor. Viti., p. 315) the stigmata are mostly yet
persistent in the ripe fruit, while the berries of the Aneityum plant
are generally deprived of the stigmata already in a young state. When
not all three seeds are ripening, then the berry becomes oblique.
This stately somewhat palm-like plant would probably prove hardy
here, like the allied Flagellaria Indica, and would for scenic effect be
valuable in our gardens.

CYPERACEAE.
Rhynchospora aurea (VaH, Enumer. Plant. 11., 291.)
Aneityum ; also in Samoa. Whitmee.

Scleria margaritifera (Willdenow, Sp. PL, iv., 321.)

Santo, on open flats. Found by Mr. C. H. Walter, during the
Victorian Eclipse Expedition on Fitzroy Island.
The brown disk, divided into three acute deltoid lobes, protrated
downward and encircling the thus hollow base of the fruit, distinguishes
this species from Scleria laevis (Retzius, Observ. Bot., iv., 13) and from
Scleria Sumatrensis (Retzius, Observ., v., ig.)

Fimbristylis communis (Kutith, Enumerat. Plantar.,

11., 234.)
Aneityum, on hill-sides near the coast. Farvensis (Vahl, Enumer.,
 NEW HEBRIDES AND LOYALTY ISLANDS. 25

II, 201) is likely to exist also in the New Hebrides, it having been found
in New Caledonia and the Fiji Islands. It has shorter leaves, and al-
most smooth fruits.

Cyperus distans (Linnd, fil., Suppl. Plant., 103.)

Aneityum. A
variety with larger and less distant florets. In Samoa
also, according to the Rev. S. J. Whitmee.

GRAMINEAE.

Coix Lacryma (Linne, Spec. Plant, 1378.)

Tana, on the sides of streams. The natives use the seeds as beads.

Centotheca lappacea (Desvaux in y^oum. de Botanique

1813, p. 70.)
Aneityum and Tana.

Panicum compositum (Linnd, Spec. Plant, 84.)

SANTO, near the sea-shores; also in Aneityum. Several of the nu-

merous forms of this excedingly variable species occur on these islands.

Panicum sanguinale (Linn6, Spec. Plant, 84.)

Aneityum, near the coast.

Thuarea sarmentosa (Persoon, Synops. Plant., 1., no.)

Aneitvum; frequent on the sandy sea-shores. The spikes sometimes

above an inch long.

Cenchrus anomoplexis (La Billardifere, Sertum Austro-

Caledon., vol. 1., p. 14, tab. 19.)

Santo, on open hill-sides. The specific validity of this grass as dis-

tinct from Cenchrus Australis (R. Brown, Prodr. 196) requires yet to be
further demonstrated. Sprengel (Systema Vegetabilium, Cures posteriores,
page 33) regarded La Billardiere's plant merely as a variety of that of
R. Brown. Its destination seems to rest mainly on larger size, particu-
larly of leaves and flowers. The segments of the inner involucellujn are
more densely bearded than shown in the analytic figure of the plate above
quoted. Comparisons with C. calyculatus (Cavan., Icon., v., 39, t. 463;
C. Fainsis, Steud. glum., I., 419) are needed.
26 PHYTOGRAPHY OF THE

Erianthus Japonicus (Beauvois, Agrostographie, p. 14

Eulalia Japonica, Trinius Acta Societ. Petropolit. 1833,
page 333-)
Aneityum, near the sea-shores. The stalks attain a length of five
feet. Steudel (Synopsis Plantarum glumacearum, I., 412) and Seemann
(Flora Vitiensis, p. 321) describe the leaves as linear-filiform, and
Bentham also (Flora ofHong Kong, p. 420) calls them narrow. This ap-
plies, however, scarcely even to the uppermost leaves, and almost pre-
vents the recognition of this species from description alone; inasmuch as the
lower leaves, not only of specimens from the New Hebrides, but also
from the Fiji Islands and from Whampoa (the latter front Dr. Hance's
collection) are over half an inch or even fully one inch broad. Such,
indeed, are shown likewise in Turpin's plate 18 of La Billardiere's
Sertum Austro- Caledonicum.

Apluda mutica (Linne*, Spec. Plant, i486.)

Aneityum. One of the two lateral peduncles bears not rarely a two-
flowered spikelet, articulated with it, one of its flowers being staminifer-
ous, the other separately pistilliferous; but the latter seems not to perfect
any grain. The ultimate peduncles or pedicels are at the base
laterally dilated, to form a receptacle for the sessile fertile spikelet. The
flowers of the latter are not always advancing to their normal develop-
ment. A. geniculata (Roxburgh, Flor. Ind., I., 327) seems not specific-
ally distinct from A. mutica. This is the first record of Apluda in Poly-
nesia; nor is this'genus found hitherto represented in Australia. As a
whole the grassflora of the South-Sea Islands seems remarkably scanty.
Beside the few gramineae alluded to in Dr. Seemann's work, and those
mentioned in these pages, our museum collections here contain only
Lepturus acutiglumis (Steudel, Glumac, I., 359) from the almost unex-
plored Gilbert's group, procured there by the Rev. S. J. Whitmee;
Setaria glauca (Beauvois, Essai d'une nouvelle Agrostographie, p. 51)
from New Caledonia; Aira sabulorum (La Bill., Serf. Austro-Caled.,
p. 51, tab. 21,) Andropogon cortortus (L., Spec. Plant, 1480) both from
the same island; Andropogon pertusus (Willd., Spec. Plant, IV., 22)
in its efoveolate form from Fiji, where it was gathered by Mr.
Swanston, and two other Andropogons, are allied to A. fragilis (R. Br.,
202) from New Caledonia, the other belongin gto the section Spodi-
opogon, and from the Loyalty Islands.

LYCOPODIACEAE.
Lycopodium cernuum (Linne, Spec. Plant. 1566.)
New Hebrides.

FILICES.

Selaginella Wallichii (Spring, Monograph. Lycopod.,

page 86.)
New Hebrides. Lycopodium phlegmaria (Linne, Spec. Plant,
 NEW HEBRIDES AND LOYALTY ISLANDS. 27

1564) as well as L. squarrosum (G. Forster. Prodr., p. 86) were some

years ago collected in the same group of islands by Mr. H. Richards, of
Sydney, who communicated to the author besides many other ferns from
these islands.The same zealous collector discovered there the Lycopodium
serratum (Thunb., Flot. Japon., p. 341, tab. 38) the most Wely of all
species; it was found also in Honolulu by Dr. Hillebrand, an early contributor
to our museum. Like the last-mentioned species also L. laterale (R.
Brown, Prodr., 165,) noted in 1824 as New Caledonian already by La
Billardiere (Serf. Nov. Caled., p. 10., tab. 15,) remained unrecorded in
Dr. Seemann's work.

Acrostichum repandum (Blume, Flor. Javm, 39,

tab. 14 and 15.)
New Hebrides. F. Campbell, Esq. In the fifth volume of the
Fragmenta Phytographi/z Australia, p. 139, I referred at some length to
the characteristics of this fern from Bishop Patteson's Eramanga collec-
tion.

Schizaea Forsteri (Sprengel, Anleitnng zur Kenntniss der

Gewaechse, in., 175.)
Aneityum. This speciesis often misunderstood and confused with
S. dichotoma (Smith, Act. Turin, 1791, p. 419,) from which it differs in
the more regularly flabellar disposition of the frond-segments, and also
in the proportionately but not always absolutely greater width of the
latter, by which means the aspect of the plant becomes very distinct
when compared with the outline given by the unequal heights of 'the
ramifications of S. dichotoma, the sori of that species not being placed
into an almost equal radius. But a still more important distinction be-
tween these two plants consists in the arrangemeut of the sori, which are
strictly pinnate in S. dichotoma, though the lower ones may occasionally
be bifid or trifid; whereas in S. Fosteri the disposition of the sori is
fascicular,almost in the manner of that of S. digitata, (Swartz, Synopsis
Filicum, p. 150, t. 4,) although their length is very much less. The sori
of S. Fosteri are sometimes reduced to two or three in total number, and
generally less numerous than those of S. dichotoma, which however vary
from eight to about sixty, with a length from one and a-half to five
lines.

Specimens of S. Forsteri have on this occasion been compared from

New Caledonia, Fiji, various islands of the New Hebrides, also from Lify
(Allan Hughan.) Dr. Seemann records it from Tahiti, but of the occur-
rence of this plant anywhere in Australia I am not aware, although
this, as well as S. digitata, may be expected to occur in Queens-
land.

Schizaea bifida (Swartz, Synops. Filic, p. 151) embraces merely such

forms of S. dichotoma, as are reduced from the typical very multifid state
to but few divisions of the frond; and this reduction may even proceed so
far as to render the plant utterly branchless, when it assumes closely the
appearance of the South-African S. pectinata (Sm.. I.e., from which S.
28 PHYTOGRAPHV OF THE

tenella, Enumer Filic, \. i, fig. 7, may not be specifically

Kaulfuss,
dichotoma is found sparingly from the southern extreme of
distinct) S.
Australia through the littoral eastern regions quite to the remotest
northern points of the Australian continent; it occurs also in New Cale-
donia, Fiji, and Samoa, and likewise in Mauritius, according to Lady
Barkly's collections. It may exceptionally be seen fruit-bearing when
hardly two inches high.

Lygodium reticulatum (Schkuhr, Farren Kraeuter,

tab. 139.)
New Hebrides. The fronds membraneous, as in plants of this
species from N. E. Australia.

Angiopteris evecta (Hoffmann in Comment. Soc Reg.

Gxtting, xii., p. 29, tab. 5.)
New Hebrides.

Alsophila lunulata (R. Brown, Prodr. 158.)

New Hebrides. A. decurrens (Hooker, Spec. Filic., 1., 51, and
Cyathea propinqua, Mettenius in Miquel, Annul. Mies. Bot. Lugd.
Batav., 1., 56) occur in a collection of ferns kindly gathered and com-
municated by Captain Fraser, the commander of the mission ship "Day-
spring." Several other tree ferns are known already from these isles,
and others remain likely to be discovered. The characteristics, however,
of the stems, generally very distinctive, are ascertained in but few

Polypodium acrostichoides (G. Forster, Flor. Insul. Austr.

Prodr. p. 81.)
New Hebrides.

Polypodium phymatodes (Linnd, Mantiss. Plant, 306.)

New Hebrides.

Polypodium rigidulum (Swartz, Synops. Filic, p. 34.)

New Hebrides. The magnificent P. conjugatum (Kaulfuss, Das

Wesen der Farn. Kraeuter, p. 104) was found in the group by Capt.

Fraser.

Aspidium exaltatum (Swartz, Synops. Filic, p. 45.)

New Hebrides.
 NEW HEBRIDES AND LOYALTY ISLANDS. 29

Aspidium aculeatum (Swartz in Scnrader's your rial fuer

die Botanik, 1800, 11., 37.)
New Hebrides. This fern, though regarded as almost cosmopolitan
is absent from most parts of Australia, being there restricted, as far as
hitherto ascertained, to the south-eastern and eastern regions.

Asplenium falcatum (La Marck, Encyclopaedic method.,

.
"•, 306.)
New Hebrides. Under the above specific name A. polyodon and
A. cauSatum (G. Forster, Flor. Insul. A-ustr., Prodr. p. 80) are to be
combined.

-
Asplenium Nidus (Linne ,
Spec. Plantar., 1537.)
New Hebrides.

Asplenium Vulcanicum (Blume, Enumerat. Plant, yav.

Filic, 176.)
New Hebrides, from whence this stately fern was not recorded
before.

Pteris longifolia (Linne*, Spec. Plant, p. 1047.)

New Hebrides. F. Campbell. Collected in Eramanga already by
Bishop Patteson, the martyr of Santa Cruz, who, amidst the arduous
duties devolving on his high office, set also an example for zealous and
devoted appreciation of Divine revelation, as afforded us in the works of
nature. So, through the personal exertions of this unfortunate prelate,
we became early acquainted with numerous plants from the islands then
under his Lordship's ecclesiastical care.
The marginal serratures of the pinnse of P. longifolia are at times very
conspicuous; the auricular protrusion of the anterior basal angle measures
occasionally fully a quarter of an inch.

Pteris crenata (Swartz, Synops. Filic,

p. 96 and 290.)
Aneityum, F. Campbell; Eramanga, Bishop Patteson.

Pteris comans (G. Forster, Flor. Insul. Austral., Prodr.

P- 79-)
Eramanga. Collected by Bishop Patteson, Captain Eraser, and
Mr. F. Campbell. The lateral pinnae attain a length of one and a-half
feet; also the upper segments are sometimes lobed.

Pteris quadriaurita (Retzius, Obscrvat, vi., 38.)

New Hebrides.
30 PHYTOGRAPHY OF THE NEW HEBRIDES, ETC.

Pteris aQuilina (Linne, Spec. Plant. 1074.)

New Hebrides.

Vittaria elongata (Swartz, Synops. Filic, 109.)

New Hebrides.

Lindsaea nitens (Blume, Enum. Plant, yav. Filices,

217.)
New Hebrides.

Adiantum caudatum (Linne*, Mantiss. Plant., p. 308.)

New Hebrides. Seemingly not known before from any of the
Polynesian groups.

Adiantum diaphanum (Blume, Enum. Plant, yav.

Filic, 215.
New Hebrides. Many observations, bearing also on the ferns of
Polynesia, are recorded in the writer's "Vegetation of the Chatham
Islands (1864) p. 62-74; an<i m
his '' Fragmenta Phytographia?
Australia;," vol. v. (1866) p. m-142.

Mr. Campbell's collection contains also a few mosses of the genera

Hypnum, Spiridens and Leucobryum, and likewise several algae referable
to the —
following genera : Halimeda, Galaxaura, Turbinaria, and
Sargassum.

Printed by George Mercer, Malop Street West, Qeelong.