Chapter VI: Part 6

At 4, A.M., on the 9th of December, we took our departure from the Mulgrave Islands, and stood to the westward. At daylight, we had lost sight of the group, and at 10, A.M., made South Pedder's Island. Having stood a little too far to the southward, we were all day beating up to weather the N.E. point, where, at sun-down, we hove to in the hope that on the following morning we should be able to effect a landing, and get a sight of the great chief, so celebrated amongst the people we had just left. On the 11th of December, having passed all the early part of the day searching in vain for anchorage, we hove to, a little after meridian, opposite to a considerable bay, upon the shore of which was a native village, and large forests of cocoa-nut trees. The captain took Huzzy in the gig, and, followed by another boat, pulled in over a wide coral bank to the village. A few people were attracted to the shore by the appearance of our boats. They immediately conducted the captain to the chief, who was seated on a mat in the open air, in front of his hut. He seemed but little moved at the unexpected appearance of his visitors. He was a very old man, and had a long white beard that came down upon his breast. The natives stood round in respectful silence, as the old chief addressed the captain, whom he soon distinguished as the person of highest rank amongst the strangers. He spoke the same language as the inhabitants of the Mulgraves, and Huzzy was forbidden to let him know that he was understood, but to listen attentively to what he was saying to those around him. For a time his intercourse with the captain was carried on by signs, and Huzzy overheard him say to the natives, standing by, "Don't disturb them yet. Wait until to-morrow, and see what they are going to do. They will look round here to see what they can find, trade a little, and go on board of their vessel, to sleep, and to-morrow they will come again." When the captain told Huzzy to address some questions to the chief in his own language, it seemed to operate as quickly as an electric shock upon the natives, who stared wildly around at him, and at each other, with looks of the utmost astonishment. The chief partially lost his gravity in the sensation it produced, being not less surprised than his subjects. He asked Huzzy, before answering the question put to him, where he had learned to speak the language of Pedder's Island. Huzzy replied, that he had learned it at the Mulgrave Islands, where he had been for two years. The old chief said, that he had been informed of two white men being there, and was then fitting out a fleet of canoes to send after them. He expressed a great deal of disappointment, that we had taken them away, saying, he would have had them brought to his own island, and treated them well. He asked, if Lay was also on board of the vessel. The captain had taken on shore a present for the chief, and a number of trifles, that he thought might be acceptable to the natives. Our people endeavoured to obtain a quantity of cocoa-nuts and bup, of which there was the greatest abundance; but the natives parted with their fruit very reluctantly. When finally the captain addressed the chief, upon the subject of giving or selling us a supply, he said,--No! that his island was thickly inhabited, and produced no more food than was necessary for his people. That, if we were in want of cocoa-nuts and bup, there were other islands, not far to the westward, where there was an abundance, and but few people, and he advised our going there as speedily as possible. Upon being asked, if he had ever seen white men before, he replied,--Yes; that a long time ago there came a large vessel, in which there were white men, who brought their forge on shore, where they remained for several days. This, he said, was the only instance. The young women were all sent away, and concealed in the thickets, or upon a distant part of the island, where they remained during the whole day.

Amongst other presents made by the captain to the high chief, was a battle-axe,--to him an article of the greatest value. He received it, however, with reluctance, expressing his regret, that he had it not in his power to make a suitable return for so valuable a consideration, accompanying his apology with a small present of mats, cocoa-nuts, and a preparation of the ripe bup, that had an agreeable sweet taste. It was after dark when our party left the village, and went to the beach to embark. They had already left the shore a few yards, when some natives came running down, and called for them to return, saying, the chief had another mat for the captain. They landed, when they were told, that the mat was in the village, and that Huzzy must go for it. The captain, not choosing to send for the mat, put off again. In a few moments two or three other messengers came running to the beach, calling for the boat to return. When she had pulled in a few yards from the shore, they said that the chief wanted Huzzy to go up to the village for the mat, and that he did not wish to keep the axe, which he had sent back to the captain, unwilling, as we supposed, to lay himself under so great an obligation as its acceptance implied. The captain refused to take the axe, telling the messenger to say to his chief, that what we had given, we never took back, and, with this, left the shore and returned on board. The tide had risen considerably over the coral bank, and the party found the surf somewhat dangerous in returning, having their boats nearly filled with water.

The dress and general appearance of these people, as well as their language, was the same as that of the natives of the Mulgraves. Their canoes were also the same. We saw only three or four with sails, which were hauled upon the beach. The power of the great chief must, therefore, consist in his dominion over other islands to the northward and westward of him, where there is an almost connected chain for several hundred miles, and from which, when he undertakes an important enterprise, he must, in a great measure, draw his resources. It was probably with the object of collecting forces for the great chief, that Latuano visited so many islands during his exile from his own, and to which he was at last restored by foreign aid.

At eight in the evening, we made sail to the northward and westward, with a fresh breeze from the eastward. The weather was clear, and we stood on under easy sail all night. Early in the morning land was discovered, bearing nearly west, and soon afterwards more land was seen to the north. The last was Ibbitson's Island, and appeared to be separate from that discovered first. It is not improbable, however, that they are connected by coral reefs, that were too distant from us to be observed.

The land was all low, and had the appearance of the Mulgraves and other coral islands. At meridian, we hove to, and put off in two boats. Having passed to leeward of the island, we crossed a drowned reef, that extended as far as the eye could reach to the N.W., when we found ourselves in an inland sea, which was extensive and quite smooth. That part of the island where we landed was about five miles long, and a quarter of a mile wide. Upon the margin of the inland sea, there were a number of huts, but when we landed, not an inhabitant could be seen. The huts had evidently been but recently occupied. The island was covered abundantly with cocoa-nut and bup trees, and a few of the bread-fruit were here and there to be seen. On the shore of the inland sea the water was smooth and unruffled, and the humble but neat dwellings of the natives, scattered about amongst the cocoa forests, presented a scene of quiet and repose, peculiarly soothing to the mind, contrasted with the eternal war of breakers on the ocean side. We had not been long on shore before we found a few old people, who had concealed themselves in the bushes, and, although they were at first afraid of us, they became less timid, and increased in number, when we had presented them with some pieces of iron, and a few old buttons. In return, they gave us mats, fishing-nets, cocoa-nuts, and bup, with the last of which they filled our boat. Their dress and language was the same as at the Mulgraves, and their habitations and canoes were also the same. Amongst all these islands, the natives ascend the cocoa-nut trees, in the way I have described at the Marquesas. Here we saw several very old people, some of whom had lost all their teeth,--a circumstance we had not before remarked in any of these islands. There were also two or three cripples, who were not less remarkable, being the first we had seen. All the females were very old, and, upon inquiring the cause, they replied, that the young men had sent the young women away, for fear they would be given presents. Two or three large sail canoes came from a great distance over the inland sea, and approached us without fear. The natives told us that they had never seen white men before.

The captain landed upon a different island from myself, and the natives, having fled from their habitations as they did upon the island where I landed, he sent a few old people, that were found, commanding all the inhabitants to return to their homes, and, fearing his displeasure, in a few minutes their huts were occupied in the same manner as though the white-faced strangers had not appeared amongst them.

At five, P.M., we returned to the schooner, with our boats laden with fruit, and soon afterwards made sail, shaping our course for the Sandwich Islands. We were favoured with south easterly trades, blowing in fresh gales for a number of days, which rendered our passage materially shorter than it would probably have been otherwise. But what was still less to have been expected than a south-east trade in the northern tropic, was a strong current, that set us at the rate of thirty to forty miles a day, N.E. from the latitude of sixteen to twenty-five north. Part of the time that we experienced this strong current, the wind was blowing a double-reefed top-sail breeze from East and E.N.E., differing only from two to four points with the opposite direction of the current. When we arrived in the latitude of twenty-three degrees north, the trades left us, and the winds became variable. At meridian of December the 24th, we were, by our calculation, thirty miles from an island, said to have been discovered recently by a whaler, and which we made to bear from us E. by N. Our latitude observed was twenty-five degrees fifty-seven minutes, N. Longitude, by chronometer, one hundred and eighty-six degrees twenty-seven minutes, W. We ran off to the eastward all the following day, and at meridian, December 25th, observed, in latitude twenty-six degrees, N.; longitude one hundred and eighty-three degrees twenty minutes W., without having seen the slightest indications of land.

On Christmas day, we gave the crew a dinner of turtle, which were still fat, and very delicious. We had fed them occasionally upon bup and other vegetation, that was found upon the islands.

December the 27th, we came within the vicinity of another new discovery of a whaler, and at meridian, had it bearing, by our calculation, S.E. ten miles. We ran for it until six, P.M., December 28th, when no appearance of land being in sight, we hove about, and stood to the northward, for a newly discovered reef, which, at meridian, bore from us, by calculation N. by E., distant one hundred miles. Latitude observed, twenty-six degrees ten minutes N.; longitude, by chronometer, one hundred and seventy-six degrees fifty-one minutes, W. The reef for which we were now steering was called, by the discoverer, Clark's Reef. It was said to extend sixty miles, in a south-west and north-easterly direction, and we thought it impossible that it should escape our observation, if laid down any where near the given latitude and longitude.

At nine, P.M., December the 30th, we were within twenty-five miles of the centre of the reef, by our calculation, and as it was blowing a gale, and we were scudding before it with an unusually high sea, we hove to for the night. At three, A.M., we again made sail, and ran for the centre of the reef. At meridian, December the 31st, the centre of it was still twenty miles from us, bearing N. E. by N. From meridian to one, P.M., we steered N. by E., and then bore up, and steered east all the rest of the twenty-four hours, without seeing the reef or any indications of it. At meridian, observed, in latitude twenty-six degrees forty-seven minutes, N.; longitude, by chronometer, one hundred and seventy-two degrees eleven minutes, W.

We continued on to the eastward, with the hope of falling in with two islands and a reef, of another whaler's discovery. Our confidence in their given latitude and longitude, however, was quite destroyed by frequent disappointments, and we now looked for their discoveries, as we would have sought for lands, known only in the tradition of the natives of some unfrequented island, with the hope of finding them, but with little expectation of success. It happened with these, as with all the rest of the new discoveries we had looked for. We passed within a few miles of the latitude, and ran down from one to two degrees of longitude, without observing any thing that indicated the vicinity of land.

On the second of January, 1826, we ran off to the southward of east for Ballard's Island. During the middle of the day, the sea, from being very heavy, became comparatively smooth, and continued so for sixty miles, when the heavy swell again set in from the westward, as before.

At three, P.M., on the fourth of January, a rock was reported from the mast-head, eight leagues from us. It proved to be Ballard's Island, as it is called. At eight on the following morning, we passed within two hundred yards of it. It is about two or three hundred yards in circumference, and rises two hundred feet from the sea. On one side it has a considerable inclination, where seals had crawled up, and several were basking in the sun, almost to the very top. Large flocks of birds were perched upon its ragged sides, or wending their flight around it. Not the least sign of vegetation was any where to be seen. Near its base, was a small rock, from ten to twenty feet above the water level. Ballard's Rock rises in three equi-distant peaks, the centre of which is the highest, and all of them, to the very base, are white with bird-lime. A high surf breaks all around it. Our observations placed it in north latitude, twenty-five degrees two minuses; west longitude, one hundred and sixty-seven degrees fifty minutes.

On the evening of January the fifth, the weather became squally, with constant flashes of lightning and distant thunder. From south to west, and N.W., the heavens were obscured with a heavy black cloud, which rose with great rapidity. We furled all sail. When the cloud ascended our zenith, it became perfectly calm, and a roaring was heard in the air for several minutes, like that of wind through the tops of pines, when hail-stones of an unusual size began to fall upon our deck, accompanied with very sharp lightning and heavy thunder. The hail was of short duration, and passed over without a breath of wind.

The nearest of the Sandwich Group was Bird Island, for which we steered, and on the ninth of January, at eight in the morning (having the preceding night been enveloped in fog) it was discovered close to us. We tacked and stood close in with the south-west side, where was a small sand-beach, fifty to a hundred yards long.

The captain, taking the Globe's whale-boat, went in shore to fish, but seeing a few seal upon the sand beach, was induced to land. It soon afterwards became squally and blew with great violence. The surf upon the beach rose with the wind, and, when the captain, after a short examination of the island, attempted to return, he found it impossible to launch his boat through the surf, and was reduced to the necessity of passing the night upon the island. It blew a gale and rained in torrents all night. The captain and his boat's crew took shelter in a cavern upon the sea-shore, where they had not been long by a comfortable fire they had made, when, by the rising of the tide the sea broke in upon them, and they with difficulty escaped to the side of the rocks, and thence upon the sand-beach. The island was high and almost perpendicular, and with the floods that fell and rushed down its steep sides, rocks of a large size were disengaged from their beds, and came tumbling down in every direction, to the great peril of the captain and his boat's crew, sufficiently uncomfortable from the torrents of water that were falling and driving upon the gale. After a little search, they found an asylum in a cave at the side of a mountain, where they passed the night. In the morning, when they ascended the mountain, the schooner was no where to be seen. It was high and steep, and she had beat up within a few miles of the island and passed their line of sight. Their disappointment and chagrin was inexpressible, supposing, from the schooner's not being in sight, she had been driven off, and that it would be a considerable time before she could return, and afford them that relief their situation so much required, being very much fatigued and exhausted from their exposure. At day-light, the weather cleared and the wind moderated. We beat up and hove to off the sand-beach nearly as soon as the boat we had sent with refreshments.

When the captain saw the schooner approaching close in with the island, he made a last effort to launch his boat. They succeeded in getting her into the breakers, but the first heavy roller that broke under them severed the boat amid-ships, and the captain upon one end of her and a man that could not swim on the other, were hove up safely on the beach by the succeeding wave. The rest of the boat's crew were good swimmers, and also landed in safety. Our boat was not far off when this occurred, and anchoring as near as possible to the shore, the men, all but one, swam off to her through the surf. The only way we could devise to get the captain and seaman off, was to float a cork-jacket on shore, at the end of a line, which being put on by the captain and seaman, alternately, and a rope tied round them, they were hauled through the surf without any other injury than swallowing a quantity of salt-water.

Bird's Island is an uninhabited rock, about a league in circumference, and the highest part from five to eight hundred feet above the ocean. Where our boat landed, is the only spot where a landing could be effected, and upon that side alone it has an inclination by which it may be ascended. Every where else it is perpendicular, and at a distance, looks like the work of art. It has a scanty vegetation.

At five, P.M., January the 11th, we made sail for the island of Oahoo, with a fine breeze from the westward and pleasant weather. At daylight, on the following morning, we saw the small island of Onehow, and soon afterwards, the highland of Atooi. During the whole day, we were coming up with and sailing along on the west side of Atooi, moving at the rate of eight and nine miles per hour. Of a clear day, it may be seen at least fifty or sixty miles. We did not approach nearer to it than eight or ten. It had the appearance, at that distance, of beautiful table-land, being every where very regular and of nearly the same altitude. Towards evening, on the 12th of January, we made the island of Oahoo, and should have been at anchor in Onavoora on the following day had we passed between Atooi and Oahoo, but from some mistake about the prevailing winds on the opposite side of Oahoo, we continued on round the north end of it, and did not anchor at Onavoora until the sixteenth. Two or three American merchant vessels were lying there, with which we exchanged salutes. The Dolphin was the first American man-of-war that ever entered a harbour of the Sandwich Islands, and the firing of the guns, and the report widely circulated that an American man-of-war had arrived, brought the inhabitants from far and near to the shore of the harbour to witness the novel sight. Several of our countrymen, who were traders here, and had been expecting us for some time, came on board to offer their congratulations, and invite us on shore to partake of their hospitality. It was highly gratifying to us upon landing, to meet nearly all of our countrymen residing at the Island, who came down, en masse, to the beach, to welcome us on shore, in the most kind and friendly manner. We were a little disappointed, however, when we came to look round and found that none of the missionaries had partaken in the general sentiment. They were also our countrymen, and from the character of benevolence and philanthropy they had assumed to themselves, we had a right to expect they would have been amongst the first to hail us with a welcome to their lonely abode. We expected, indeed, that they would not only have received us as countrymen, but as friends, whose kindness, and sympathy would be highly acceptable to them in their peculiar situation.

From the shore we were escorted to a large frame building called the wooden-house, then occupied by our countryman, Captain Wilds, where a handsome dinner was prepared, to which every luxury was added that could be obtained from the shipping or the shore. We were much surprised on landing, to find a rabble of naked and half-naked natives, amounting to many hundreds, as we had been taught to believe, from the various information we had received, that their condition was much improved, and that they were far advanced in civilization. They were of all ages, and formed a more varied and fantastic group than I had any where seen, even where no degree of civilization had taken place, from an intercourse with white men. Some of them were quite naked; some had their native dress of tappa cloths; some had on cotton shirts, some a pair of old trowsers, and some nothing but an old jacket. Many of them had adorned their heads with wreaths of red and yellow flowers, and some their necks and wrists with necklaces and bracelets of shells. They expressed the greatest pleasure at seeing us, shouting and crowding around, so that we could not get along without pushing them out of the way. In appearance, a comparison of them with the natives of the Marquesas or Mulgrave Islands, would have been greatly to their disadvantage. On the following day, we were again invited to dine at the same place, where we met a second time with our countrymen, and interchanged with them those sentiments of friendship and sympathy that naturally arise on meeting in a strange land, and which are felt by Americans with peculiar force. It appeared to us that they could not sufficiently express their gratification at seeing us at Oahoo, by the most unremitted attention, for they continued to feast and give us parties every day for more than a week, and until our various and pressing duties made it inconvenient for us to partake of them. On the first sabbath after our arrival, I went to the place of worship appointed by the missionaries for the natives. A large building, formerly occupied for this purpose, had been destroyed a short time previous to our arrival, and as they had now no house sufficiently large to contain the whole congregation, the place appointed for worship was an extensive enclosure in the rear of a large frame building, which is occupied as the dwelling of the young king. Within this enclosure, was assembled about a thousand people, as I supposed, seated on the ground. Some of them were dressed in silks, cottons, and calicoes, and others were in their native dress, being quite naked, except about the waist. They were in the open air, without any protection from the sun, which was pouring its vertical rays upon them. Mr. Bingham, the head of the mission, was addressing them in the language of the island, and when he saw me at the outer edge of the circle, very kindly beckoned me to come round where the queen dowager was seated. He was standing there himself. A native was holding an umbrella over his head, and around him were seated all the chief men and women, some in chairs, and some of them on the ground. With one or two exceptions, they were all people of uncommon size. Some of them were quite neatly dressed, but others had displayed a most whimsical and ridiculous fancy. When I came near Cahumanu, who was the favourite wife of the departed and highly distinguished Tamahamaha, she extended her hand to me and bade one of her attendants bring me a chair. The service lasted about an hour, when the assemblage dispersed, and the natives ran away as much pleased as so many children let loose from school. At the close of the service, I promised myself so much politeness on the part of the distinguished personages present, as to receive from some of them an invitation to go into their houses, as I was in the uniform of a foreign officer; but in this I was altogether disappointed. I had the satisfaction of speaking, for a few minutes, with Mr. Bingham, whose attention was soon called from me by the presence of some chief, with whom he wished to exchange a salutation, and after recognizing two or three of the chiefs present whom I had seen before, I was suffered to depart without receiving any further notice.

On Monday, I made a call of ceremony on the high chief Boque, who was one of the attendants of the late king Rio Rio, on his visit to the king of England. He was a man of about thirty years of age, upwards of six feet, and stout in proportion. He had a flat nose and thick lips, but the general expression of his face was that of benevolence and good nature--an expression truly characteristic, according to the testimony of those who have had an opportunity of knowing him well. We found him sitting in a chair at a table, with a desk before him, upon which he was making pot-hooks after a copy, having just commenced learning to write. He got up and shook hands with us, as did also his wife, who was seated on some mats at the other end of the hut. Boque was dressed in a coarse linen shirt and trowsers, having a pair of heavy shoes on his feet, without any stockings. Queen Boque was nearly as large as her husband, and looked a good deal like him. She had on a plain white muslin cap and dress, neither of which were very clean or neatly put on. It was, however, in as good taste as could be expected in so rude a state of society, but I thought it less becoming than would have been her native dress. She invited us to be seated, and made an attempt at politeness, such as she had seen practised in England, having accompanied her husband thither. The hut was an oblong building, about sixty by forty feet. Its simple structure was the same that has been in use in the islands from time immemorial, being poles laid over crotches, upon which the rafters rested, and differing in nothing from the habitations of the poorest people, except that the crotches, poles, and rafters, were longer, and there were more of them. It was thatched from the top all the way to the ground, with a thick covering of grass. The interior was all in one apartment, from the top of the rafters to the hard beaten ground floor. There was nothing ornamental, and no superfluous furniture. A bedstead standing in one corner, with some pieces of white tappa cloth of the island for curtains, whereon was laid a pile of mats for a bed; two or three piles of mats laying along near the centre of the hut, raised one or two feet from the floor, by being piled one above the other, for beds or lounging places; two or three old chairs; a plain table of small dimensions, and a dressing-case with a mirror in it, was all of Boque's furniture, either useful or ornamental. Besides these may be mentioned a few hollow gourds for poye, (a favourite food of the Sandwich Islanders, made from the tarrow,) hanging at the side of the hut.

Leaving Boque's palace, we went with the intention of making a similar call upon the high chief Crimacu, known to strangers who have visited the island, by the name of Billy Pitt. He was the high carnie, or great friend of Tamahamaha, in whose wars he was greatly distinguished for personal prowess, sagacity, and wisdom. When we came to his hut, we found him sleeping in a swinging cot, with several attendants sitting round, one of whom was fanning him. He was in very ill health, having for a long time been afflicted with the dropsy, and we departed without waking him. His hut differed in nothing from that of Boque, except that it was not so large, and had a greater profusion of mats in it. It was standing in one corner of an extensive plain, that was partially enclosed by a wicker fence just at the outskirts of the town of Onaroora, and all around it was growing wild grass and weeds, except where the footsteps of the people, who passed to and from the hut, had trodden them down. It looked but little like the habitation of a man who had been a great warrior, and associated as second in authority with one who had conquered and ruled over thousands of men. One would naturally suppose that in emerging from a savage state, with absolute power, he would have made an attempt, at least, to imitate the style and manners of the white men with whom he was constantly meeting, and always on terms of friendship.

After we had interchanged salutes with the shore, chief Boque came on board on the 17th, to make us a visit of ceremony. He was dressed in a splendid English major-general's uniform, and made a very handsome appearance. He remained and partook of a collation with us, at which several gentlemen were invited to meet him, and in all respects acquitted himself in a more polite and becoming manner than could have been expected from one whose opportunities had been so limited. He drank sparingly of wine, and left us at an early hour, notwithstanding the solicitations of the company for him to remain. A few hours after he had landed, I met him again, and should hardly have recognized him but for his large stature and good-natured face. He had stripped himself of all his finery, and was walking over the plain from his house with nothing on but his marrow, and a piece of tappa cloth of the island thrown loosely over his shoulders. I asked him why he had taken off his uniform, to which he replied, that it was too warm.

Our countrymen, to vary the entertainments they were constantly giving us, and thereby make them the more acceptable, proposed that we should make an excursion to a valley, called by them Pearl River, from the pearl frequently found in a small stream that passes through it. As horses could not be obtained for all, part of the company went by water, whilst the rest, four or five, mounted on horseback. The distance was about fifteen miles. I made one of the land party, and we set off early in the afternoon. There was no road, and in many places not even a footpath. The whole way was over hill and dale, and through swamps. We had to jump fences and ditches made through tarrow-patches, and ascend by narrow paths, difficult and dangerous cliffs. All the afternoon was occupied in this manner, and it was sundown when we arrived at our place of destination. One old native made bold to oppose us in jumping our horses over his fence, and was so obstinate in his refusal to let us pass, that for a time we thought we should have to relinquish our excursion--a reflection not very agreeable, after having advanced more than half way over so wretched a road. Finally, when all other arguments had failed, some one of the party, thinking that the native opposed our trespass upon his premises with no other object than to lay us under contribution, gave him half a dollar, which did more for us than all our threats or persuasion. Instead of opposing, he afterwards pointed out to us the best way. From Onavoora to Pearl River, the country was thinly inhabited. We met with no considerable village or rich valley. Our road lay near the edge of a wide marsh, that intervened between us and the sea, in the opposite direction from which, an undulating country extended three or four miles, when it was interrupted by the high and uninhabited range of mountains that run through the centre of the island from one end to the other. It was Saturday evening, when we arrived at Pearl River, and, according to the doctrine in which the missionaries had instructed the Sandwich islanders, their sabbath had commenced. The hut that we were to occupy belonged to Captain Dana, an American gentleman, to whom we were indebted for many hours of agreeable pastime. Besides the hut, he possessed other property in the valley, which gave him an influence with the chief of it, that enabled him to command whatever it produced. When we arrived, the chief was seated on a mat, near Captain Dana's hut, moody, and, apparently, very stupid. The arrival of so many strangers, in a place where a visiter was scarcely ever seen, produced a lively interest amongst the villagers. All of them seemed to partake of the general excitement, but the chief, though celebrated for his hospitality, was now sunk in the most listless apathy, and apparently scarcely sensible of our presence. When he was told that we wanted supper, and preparation made for our accommodation on the morrow, he replied, that it was the sabbath, and neither then nor on the morrow could fire be made, as it was forbidden by the Almighty. Upon being asked how he knew that it was forbidden by the Almighty, he said, that Mr. Bingham had seen the Almighty, who told him so. This was a great check to our promised enjoyment, and one that we were quite unprepared for, as no prohibition of making fire on Saturday, or any other night, was in existence at Onavoora. We saw but a poor prospect of getting supper or any thing, indeed, until we returned, unless we fasted on Sunday, and that our religious scruples did not call for, if it were not unavoidable. We were unwilling, however, to interfere with the established observances, which had been thought necessary to civilize and improve the condition of the people, and bore our disappointment in silence. After wandering about the village for a while, which was small, and scattered over a sterile ridge, we were relieved from our unpleasant dilemma by a native, we had taken with us as cook and interpreter, who was commonly known upon the island by the name of Joe Banks. He had received some education, and had been a convert to the missionaries, from whom he afterwards seceded. He did not like fasting any more than ourselves, and set about haranguing the chief, to convince him of the error of his opinion, with respect to the making of fire. Joe was not wanting in either talent or volubility; and, to our great satisfaction, we soon found him on good terms with the chief; a fire was made, and soon after a kid and a pig brought up for slaughter. I observed, that the chief's skin was very rough and in scales, resembling somewhat the shell of a small terrapin. Upon inquiring the cause, they told me, it was the effect of the ava-root, of which he was undergoing a course. He had almost finished the course, and his skin was all peeling off. It was the effect of the ava, that made him so stupid, and under its operation he was a most disgusting looking object. The natives of the Sandwich Islands are very much subject to cutaneous irruptions, which are troublesome, and, when of long standing, often dangerous. To eradicate this, and some other offensive diseases, with which they are afflicted, they sometimes go through a course of the ava. It is taken in quantities from a gill to half a pint, of the juice of the green root. It is chewed, and the juice spit into a gourd, if intended for the use of another person than the one who prepares it, and is said, when taken, to deprive the person of muscular power. In a few moments after swallowing the potion, he loses the use of all his limbs. He experiences an agreeable sensation, and is conscious of every thing that transpires, but without the power of speech. He lies in this helpless condition for several hours, when he recovers his strength in a measure, and is left in the condition of a man that has been very much intoxicated. This, to have the desired effect, is repeated daily for about a month; when the disease is cured, the skin all comes off, and a fair and shining one is left in its place. When once it was settled between Joe Banks and the chief of Pearl River Valley, that fire should be made, and our supper cooked, he provided for us in the most sumptuous native style. We had pigs, goats, fish, tarrow, and potatoes, in the greatest profusion. All was cooked after the manner of the natives, and as the same method is practised generally amongst the islanders of the Pacific Ocean, and knowing, from experience, that it is a very good one, I will here describe it. A hole is first dug a foot or two deep, and large, according to the size of the thing to be cooked. A fire is then made in the hole, and, when it is burning well, covered over with stones of a convenient size. When every thing is in readiness, the stones being well heated, they are taken off, and the hole cleared out. A layer of stones is then placed all round the interior, upon which is lain the meat, after being well wrapped up in green leaves. Over this is placed a thick layer of stones, which is covered with grass, or something dry, and then with earth. If vegetables are to be cooked, they are lain on the top of the upper layer of stones. The young tops of the tarrow are usually wrapped up in leaves, and cooked with the meats in the manner above described. It is a very excellent green, and called by the natives lewoca, from which the method of cooking takes its name. Early in the morning after our arrival, we arose, to look upon the wild beauty of the valley, and wander through what, at a distance, appeared to be its meadows and lawns; but, to our great disappointment, in descending from the hills, the green level fields that looked so pleasant at a distance, were all cut up in tarrow patches, flooded over, and intersected in every direction with ditches and embankments. A scene, so uninviting, soon induced us to relinquish our anticipated pleasure, and return.

In the course of our morning's walk we came to the house of an Englishman, who, a few years previous, arrived at the island in a Peruvian man-of-war, the seamen of which had risen upon their officers, and ran away with the vessel. He had taken to himself a native wife, and, to all appearance, had fixed here his abode for life. His hut looked extremely comfortable--not less so, indeed, than that of the chief, and besides other property that he had acquired, he had a fine flock of sheep feeding near his residence. He politely invited us into his house, which we declined, as we were returning late to breakfast.

After breakfast we set off in our boat to visit a small island near the sea shore, where there were a great many rabbits. We passed along several miles of an inlet of the sea, before we came to it. It was half a mile long, level, and overgrown with high weeds. The rabbits were so numerous, that the island was every where perforated with their burrows, and one or more would be found in almost every bunch of high grass that we came to,--so tame, that we could frequently take them up in our hands. We caught more than a dozen of them in this way, in the short time that we remained. Some years previous, an old Spaniard, by the name of Menini, who had settled at Onavoora, put one or more pairs of rabbits upon this small island, and prevailed upon the chiefs to tabboo them. From that time they had not been disturbed.

After returning to our dinner, we all set off on our way back to Onuvoora. To vary the scene, I relinquished my horse and took passage in the boat. We sailed for several miles among marshes and barren islands, upon a salt water inlet, up which a ship of heavy burthen might pass for a considerable distance. The whole way was quite void of interest. When we got to the sea, we had a head wind to row against all the way. A reef extended out from the shore, beyond which we were compelled to go, making the distance so great, that the evening was far advanced before we got to the Dolphin.

Not long after our return from Pearl River, I set out one day with an American gentleman, to ascend a high and steep mountain, that rises back of the village, which the natives, many years ago, fortified with a few heavy pieces of cannon. We crossed the plain, which is a mile or a mile and a half wide, when we came to the base of the mountain. It was seven or eight hundred feet high, and from below, seemed to rise almost perpendicular from the plain. A winding footpath, however, showed us that it had long and frequently been ascended by the natives, and encouraged us to make the attempt. We had often to stop and get breath, but at last accomplished our object, by gaining the summit and entering upon a small plain. Here we found several huts, that were occupied by the families of the men appointed to guard this important post, into which we entered to obtain leave to examine the fortification. The people were very friendly; they not only granted us permission, but hospitably proffered us some excellent melons, which were very refreshing after our laborious ascent. There were only three men in the fort, one of whom, that appeared to have the command, politely waited upon us in our walk round. The guns were mounted on a platform, at the very edge of the precipice that overlooked the harbour and town. They were of thirty-two pound caliber. It must have been a work of inconceivable labour for the natives to get them upon this great eminence. The carriages and all their fixtures were very much decayed, and totally unfit for use. The situation is very commanding, and notwithstanding the distance, the battery would be formidable to an enemy in the harbour. From this eminence, we had an extensive and beautiful prospect, comprehending the valley and harbour, many miles at sea, and along the sea-coast in either direction. The river, that waters the valley, broken in cataracts as it rapidly descended to the sea, showed to its greatest advantage, and the valley, covered with its tarrow patches, corn, and potatoes, presented a landscape resembling finely cultivated fields and waving green meadows. In front, was the thatched village of Onavoora, the huts looking like heaps of dry straw; beyond it, the harbour and shipping; and still farther, at sea, a long range of white foaming breakers. On the extreme right, was the valley of Pearl River, bounded by high and rugged mountains; and to the left, the cocoa-nut groves of Whytete and Diamond Rock, with its adjacent sterile hills, covered with volcanic cinders.

From the top of the hill, we descended in a different direction on our return, with a view of passing through a part of the valley that runs far back from the shore between the mountains, where it appeared to be finely cultivated and well inhabited. We had not gone far from the fort, when we found ourselves near the centre of what had been the crater of a volcano, and which, from its resemblance, has given the eminence the name of the Punch Bowl, by which it is familiarly known amongst foreigners. The crater is about a quarter or half a mile in diameter, and from one to two hundred feet deep. When we descended to the valley, which was not without difficulty, our way was every where interrupted by tarrow patches, their ditches, and embankments. After crossing a small valley, we came to an elevated piece of ground, where the natives who cultivated the tarrow below, had built their habitations, and around them planted groves of Banana. It was a fine morning, and the people of both sexes were industriously engaged in their appropriate occupations. Some of the women were roasting tarrow, and others making it up in poye. The latter operation was interesting to me, as I had never seen it before. When the tarrow is roasted, and the skin taken off, it resembles a potatoe; it is then put into a tray, and with a long, smooth stone, beaten up as fine as possible, occasionally mixing a small quantity of water with it; after it has been beaten in this way, it is worked over a number of times, to get all the lumps out; it then has the appearance of a thick paste or starch. A soon as it foments a little and becomes slightly acid, it is used. When in this state, it will not last long before it becomes very sour, and is then considered so unwholesome, that unless the people are very poor, it is thrown away.

After satisfying our curiosity in seeing the women make poye, we descended the hill where several men were preparing a tarrow patch. It was forty feet square, excavated a little, and an embankment two feet high thrown up all around it, descending with a considerable angle from the top to the base, making it very broad at the bottom. The labourers had advanced thus far, and were beating the area and inner sides of the embankment with broad heavy paddles, going over it a great many times. It appeared very hard and firm when we saw them at work; but still, they told us, that they had to beat it a great deal more. When this is completed, the tops of the tarrow that have been cut off for the purpose, are set in the ground and lightly flooded with water; after it has taken root and began to grow thriftily, more water is let in upon it; the tarrow well grown, will generally be covered with water to the depth of one or two feet. It is about the size of a beet, and takes a year or more to come to its greatest perfection. It has clusters of broad bright green leaves, that in shape and appearance are a good deal like the common pond lilly. It is a very nutricious vegetable, and constitutes the principal means of subsistence of the Sandwich Islanders.

The huts of the natives were very small, and although in the midst of cultivation and fertility, the inhabitants seemed to be wretchedly poor. They did not appear much more civilized than the natives of the Marquesas; their habitations were certainly less comfortable. Returning to the village, we saw a number of people scraping sticks that looked like our elder, and preserving the inner bark. Upon inquiring its use, they told us it was to catch fish with. When eaten by the fish, they come to the top of the water and are taken out by hand. It is said, the fish are not the worse for this.

On our arrival at Oahoo, the Dolphin was out of repair in every respect, and it was indispensably necessary to refit her, before we proceeded further on our return to the coast of Chili or Peru. Whilst the masts were out, and the vessel was undergoing general repairs, the captain received a letter from Captain Edwards, of the ship Loudon, of New-York, stating that he had ran upon a reef, on the Island of Ranai; besides a valuable cargo, he had a large amount of specie and bullion on board. The chief Thunder, (chief of Ranai,) was encouraging the natives of the island to plunder him, and finally, that his life and treasure was in the greatest jeopardy. Although not incumbent upon him as a duty, Captain Percival, with a promptitude highly creditable to himself and the service to which he belonged, chartered a vessel, and with the crew of the Dolphin, and Boque, the Governor of Oahoo, sailed on the same day that he received the letter. He found the situation of Captain Edwards not less critical than he had described it to be. The natives had already plundered him of a part of his cargo, and his own crew was in a state of mutiny. Employing the authority of Chief Boque, and the indefatigable industry of his own crew, Captain Percival caused the stolen goods to be restored, and the cargo and treasure of the Loudon to be safely landed at Oahoo. When all this had been accomplished, Captain Edwards refused to pay the charter of the vessel that was employed for his relief, in consequence of which, a quarrel arose between himself and Captain Percival, that eventuated in consequences injurious and disagreeable to both parties, and after our return home, became a subject of judicial investigation. By this investigation, which was brought on at the instance of Captain Edwards, an opportunity was afforded to Captain Percival and the officers of the Dolphin, to vindicate their characters, which they did, in every instance, to the entire satisfaction of their government and countrymen.