|
SAVED BY AN INFANT.W. H. MacyBallou's Monthly Magazine
|
SAVED BY AN INFANT.W. H. MACY.
We had been carried by light winds and strong currents so far to the westward that we were unable to fetch any of the Hawaiian group, and this, too, at a time when it was of the last importance that we should soon reach a port. We had extended our cruise "on the nor'west" to the latest period of the season; had seen the young ice beginning to form in the polar basin, and had been delayed by impervious fogs among the labyrinthine passages of the Aleutian Chain. That dread disease, the scourge of the early navigators, and though happily of rare occurrence at the present day, still the terror of belated voyagers, sea-scurvy, had made its appearance in our midst, and there was a sinking at the heart of each man on board the Orion, as we became convinced of the alarming fact that we had fallen to leeward of our port. To beat up against the wind and current seemed a hopeless undertaking; there was no alternative but to stand on, cross the equator, and make any land that might be found most convenient after entering southern latitudes. Day after day we crowded sail on the ship, our patients gradually sinking, and new cases being developed, till the effective strength of our crew was much reduced, and the depressing influence upon the spirits of all on board threatened still further reduction. For in no case, perhaps, is the close connection or the mutual dependence of the mental and physical organizations more clearly manifested than in the development of this terrible malady. Cheerfulness, buoyancy of spirits and mental activity stand at the head of the list of anti-scorbutics. As we approached the equinoctial line, the trades hauled in our favor, so that, instead of being compelled to run down among the low islands beyond "the meridian," we were able to stretch to the eastward among those of Mendana's Archipelago. At this time we had no less than ten cases, more or less advanced, one of which we looked upon as hopeless, there being little probability that his system would endure the shock of sudden approach to land, which has a marked effect, either for better or worse, upon scorbutic patients. It infuses new life and vigor into all such as are able to bear the change, while the odor from the soil and its fruits often proves suddenly fatal to those who have lingered, day after day, between life and death. The high, undulating outline of one of the islands of the Washington group gladdened our eyes at sunrise one fine morning, but dead to windward, some twenty-five miles distant. The breeze was moderate and somewhat baffling, affording little prospect of being able to reach it with the ship, for that day at least. Everything was trimmed to do its best, and the helm was anxiously watched to make the most of every slant that might enable us to gain a foot to windward; for time was precious, and the lives of several of our shipmates hanging in the balance. "Mr. Clark," said the captain to me, as we came on deck after breakfast, looking anxiously at the distant island, "do you think you could pull up there with a boat between now and night?" "Yes," I answered; "with a good crew I think we might get there in seven or eight hours." "I don't know," he said; "high land deceives us sometimes, and proves to be much further off than it looks. However, I think I shall have to send one of you. We can't get there with the ship to-day, and perhaps not for two or three days. Some of our men wont stand it long unless we can get relief for them." "I might take one or two of the worst cases with me in the boat," I suggested, " and leave them ashore." "Yes, I think you can," said the old man. "There is no danger as regards the weather to day; it'll be moderate enough, and as you draw up under the lee of the land, you'll find smooth water for pulling. You had better take Jackson with you; it's the only chance for him, and he'll either revive or pass away as soon as he comes in contact with the shore. The two Kanakas, Alpha and Omega, are pretty well reduced; but I guess, between the two, they can pull one oar, and the very thought of getting ashore will brighten them up." My arrangements were soon made, and within half an hour my boat was lowered |
and manned, the poor invalid Jackson, who, indeed, appeared to be already entering the valley of the shadow of death, was laid at my feet in the stern of the boat, and the midship oar "double-banked" by the two Sandwich Islanders, who already showed the beneficial effects of excitement and hope. I had two loaded muskets in the boat, and a small stock of truck or barter, consisting of hoop iron, cotton cloth and tobacco. "Leave the sick men ashore," said the old man, "and bring off some limes, by all means; some yams, too, if it's possible to get them. Stand out to-night as early as you can, and I will have a bonfire going, so that you can see the ship. I hope to be able to work up some miles nearer by that time." We shoved off, followed by the prayers of our anxious shipmates, and, heading directly up in the wind's eye, my crew bent to their work with a long, slow, measured stroke, which was continued steadily until I judged the sun was about at meridian, when we hove up to make our dinner of salt beef and ship-bread. The royals of the Orion were visible on the horizon, and the land presented an aspect of luxuriance and beauty as we approached it, revealing green and fertile valleys, with here and there a cascade sparkling in the noonday sun. The sea had become very smooth, as the wind was broken in its course by the island; the light, rippling motion of the boat was most exhilarating to us, and the odor of tropical fruits was already wafted down to us on the balmy air. Alpha and Omega, especially, seemed to inhale it with delight; but its effect upon the unfortunate sufferer who lay at my feet was much as I had foreseen. I had little hope now that he would even reach the shore alive. After a short rest and a smoke all round the oars were again manned, and, with renewed vigor, we pushed on, soon losing sight of the highest thread of the ship's canvas. Still onward, opening new views of beautiful scenery, and bringing out hills and points in bold relief, till, when within four or five miles of the nearest bluff, the breeze freshened, coming down to us laden heavily with the indescribable mingled perfume of which we had been for some hours slightly sensible. My worst fears for poor Jackson were at once realized. A convulsive shudder passed over his features -- a gasp or two -- and all was over. He was too far gone with the disease to bear the sudden reaction, and the slender thread of life had snapped with the tension. I gently drew the covering over the upturned face at my feet, and a look informed those at the forward oars that the spirit of our shipmate had departed. I determined, if the natives would permit me, to take the body ashore and give it burial in its mother earth. As we had no sail set, our boat was not seen from the shore until within a couple of miles, especially as none was looked for, the ship being far beyond their range of vision even from the high hills. A bay or bend in the coast lay before us, and at the bottom of this bend a village could be seen, the neat thatched huts nestling under the lofty cocoanut palms, and further screened from the sun by the less elevated but more spreading shade of the bread tree. Men, women and children were rallying from all quarters, and crowding down to the beach, making friendly signals to us. It was necessary, however, to use some circumspection about landing, as the apparent friendship of these islanders is not to be depended upon. As they saw that we continued to advance, no canoes were pushed out; but when within fifty yards of the shore, I judged it prudent to drop the boat's anchor, and we were almost instantly surrounded with dusky forms, amphibious as it seemed, and the din and shouting reminded us of an army of lunatics broken loose from Bedlam. I had enough to do to take care of the truck under the stern, which I kept covered with a piece of canvas, while I made known to them who we were and the object of our visit. This was done through the medium of Alpha and Omega as interpreters; for there is sufficient similarity between the dialect of those people and that of the Sandwich Islanders to enable them to communicate with each other, though in a somewhat roundabout manner. They were at first fearful that we had brought with us some infectious disease, from the fact of our having a corpse in the boat, as well as from the swelled legs and puffy gums of the two Hawaiians. But one man appeared among them, who, it seems, had been a season in a whaler, and had seen slight cases of the same malady. He at once set the matter at rest, and, freed from this apprehension, the whole population became clamorous for us to land, promising to bury the man for us, and also to bring us all the fruit and yams we wanted as soon as we landed on the beach. Finding that we hesitated about landing the boat, they seized her by the gunwales, while some weighed the anchor, and the next moment |
we found ourselves high and dry on the shore. We did not apprehend any danger from them, though we were completely in their power. I took the two guns from their hiding-place and handed one of them to my boatsteerer, hut directed him not to use it except as a last resort in self-defence. We had hardly stepped to the shore after the boat grounded, when his gun was clutched by two or three of the savages, who were pressing around him. A struggle followed for the possession of the musket, and at last, Westcott the boatsteerer, determined they should not get possession of it loaded, fired it in the air. I had managed thus far to retain mine, and also to keep my cloth and other articles of traffic out of their clutches, while I made them understand, through my interpreters, that I was ready to trade for fruits as soon as they would bring them down. To this they agreed, and soon the yams, cocoanuts, limes and other refreshments, such as would carry new life to our suffering shipmates, began to arrive, and the trade went on prosperously, the only difficulty being to prevent them from stealing, which I managed to do by keeping them at bay with the gun, while two of my men dealt out the "traffic" under my direction. The chief, to whom I had, of course, made liberal presents, seemed to have exerted his authority to preserve order; and, indeed, I had no reason now to apprehend any difficulty aside from their thieving propensity, which is as natural to them as the breath which they inhale. We had lost one of the guns and the boat's anchor, but it was useless to think of getting them restored, and if I could secure what I wanted and return to tho ship, my cargo would be cheaply purchased with the loss of these two articles. The body of Jackson was lifted out of the boat and carried up the beach by several men, under the direction of the chief, who gave me to understand that he would have it buried, so that I need have no further trouble about it. I had nearly disposed of all my stock in trade, and was congratulating myself that I should be afloat again before dark with the object of my expedition accomplished, when several canoes were seen coming round the point into the bay, and, at the same moment, a large party of men coming down a mountain path into the valley where the village was situated. I became uneasy, and ordered the boat to be pushed off, at the same time giving the remnants of cloth to the chief, to divide as he might think best. But we found ourselves unable to push the boat off with her load, and though some few took hold to assist us, a greater number opposed it, pulling the other way. Loud outcries were heard from the men of the other tribe, now pouring down into the valley and rushing for the beach, while signals were interchanged between them and the men in the canoes, constantly increasing in number by fresh arrivals. It was now observed, also, that the canoes extended their line across the mouth of the bay, with the evident view of cutting off our retreat by sea, and that the men were all armed, and brought no women or children with them. All this boded no good, and I saw nothing for us but to submit to our fate; for what could we gain by attempting resistance against hundreds of armed men? I still held my gun. I might fire it once, perhaps kill one man, but such a movement would at once cost the lives of the whole party. It might at any moment be wrenched away from me by some of the increasing crowd, and perhaps used against me. To remove all danger of this kind, I raised the piece and discharged it in the air, after which I quietly waited the result of the noisy powwow that was being carried on around us. I observed the chiefs of the two tribes conferring together, and soon learned that the newly-arrived one was superior to the man who had proved my friend, the tribe among whom we had landed being tributary to the other and more powerful one. I also learned that a ship, which had left the other bay within an hour or two, had fired upon them, in consequence of some difficulty which arose while trading, and killed one of their principal warriors. She had also forcibly abducted another and taken him to sea. They were now determined, after the manner of savages, to retaliate upon the next white men who fell into their power. My two Kanakas kept me as well informed as they could of the progress of the consultation, but could find nothing at all hopeful or encouraging in it. It appeared that the inferior chief proved himself steadily our friend, so far as his influence went, but was obliged to submit to the will of the other, who was highly exasperated, and disposed to avenge the loss of his two men without mercy. He demanded that I should give up the gun, which I was all ready to do, as it was of no further use to me. The fruit was |
taken out of our boat, and she was carried up in the cocoanut grove near the house of the friendly chief, after which we were all marched off under a powerful escort over the hill. It was dark when we started, and as the mountain path was steep and intricate, and the travelling, though nothing to the chief and his men, was very fatiguing to us seamen, it was quite late in the evening when we found ourselves in the other valley, and were conducted to a house which was to be our prison for the present. My two Hawaiians were offered permission to remain behind if they chose, but seemed to prefer taking their chance with the rest of us. I, however, persuaded them to a compromise, as I wished to have one man left who could communicate with the ship, in case she arrived next day, and the other with us, to serve as an interpreter. No objection being made to this by our captors, Omega went over the mountain with us, while Alpha, whose legs were the more swollen of the two, was left Six of us, therefore, were shut into the bamboo house together, and two men were placed as guards outside. Our feelings may be imagined when we were seated together on our prison floor, knowing that some at least, if not all of us, would be sacrificed to the manes of the two warriors whom the tribe had lost at the hands of our countrymen. The supper of bread-fruit which had been provided for us remained untasted on the ground. Omega informed us, that, from what he had overheard, the chief was determined on killing three men, as it would require three to carry the deceased to the happy land of spirits, the heaven of these people; but he was unable to tell which of us would be chosen, or in what manner the choice would be made. He felt safe himself, however, as it was essential that the victims should be white men. There were only five, then, to choose from, and three of the five must be sacrificed; The rest would probably be held for ransom. We heard no noises outside among the savages but the wailing of two females, who, the interpreter said, were the widows of the two lost men. The guards informed him, that, if we wished to take the air, we were at liberty to go out, one at a time, keeping within certain limits. Of this permission one of my crew soon availed himself, being, as be said, desirous of reconnoitering a little. Some time elapsed and he had not returned; no unusual noise or movement of the guards had been perceived, and the silence which reigned seemed far more terrible to us than the din of angry voices, or the wails of the mourning women, for even this had now ceased. The state of suspense and mystery became insupportable. We peered through the small chinks between the bamboos; the two guards still kept their posts in front of our prison, armed with war-clubs and light spears, but no one else appeared to be stirring, nor could any signs of Tom be discovered. "He spoke of reconnoitering," said I; "but it is hardly possible that he can have slipped by the guard and gone to make discoveries in the village." "He must have fallen asleep outside here," returned Westcott; "but if so, he is on the back side of the house. There are more sentries, I presume, on that side, but there is no chink where we can see anything. I'm not going to stand this any longer. I'm going out myself to see if Tom is near by, and to see what's going on the other side of the house." He passed out at the front door, no opposition being offered by the sentries. He had turned the end of the building, and had proceeded a few paces, for I could hear every footstep, when a stifled cry was heard, accompanied by a scuffling sound, as if he had been seized and gagged. I rushed to the front; but the guard had anticipated me, and the door was barred in my face. I fell back among my companions, and, drawing my jackknife, commenced cutting a hole through the back bamboo wall, determined to know what was going on in the outer world. I was too soon informed, however, for a loud cry of agony went up from the back of the house, freezing the blood in the veins of myself and my two remaining white companions; then followed a dull, heavy thud, as of a crushing blow, and all was quiet I ran to the chink in front; the two sentinels kept their squatting positions, their spears inclined over their shoulders, showing no more interest or emotion than if sculptured in bronze. "Kill two," said Omega, dryly; "only one more." I shuddered at the coolness of the impassible savage. Only one more! Who would that one be? But three whites now remained, and, if we were thus to be butchered in detail, I regretted that we had not used our muskets to some purpose while on the beach, and sold our lives as dearly as possible. We should at least have perished more |
honorably and in the excitement of a battle fray; but to be thus slaughtered in cold blood, one at a time, without a chance of resistance, was too horrible to think of, and I inwardly cursed my mistaken peace policy, which had led to such a result The door remained securely barred, for of course no one wished to be the next to sally forth alone, and the night wore away in silence. With the break of day the crowd began to collect, the clamor of voices again rang around our prison, and at sunrise the door was thrown open, and we were summoned to come forth. We emerged into a scene of beauty such as my eyes had never beheld until now, and even under the circumstances of our situation, I could not but be sensible of it. The building in which we had been imprisoned stood upon a little rise of ground commanding a view of the numerous houses below, which were all deserted for the moment, the whole population having come forth as to a festival. The cocoanut and bread-fruit trees waved their green tufts in the balmy trade wind, and glowed in the morning light, while from the village the ground sloped gently away seaward to the beach of a most beautiful bay, much larger than that where we had entered with the boat But I was not allowed much time to make observations in that direction, for the word was given to march, and we descended. the hill into a low plain beyond, and all took up our course towards a mountain which rose quite abruptly about a mile in advance of us. Men, women and children fell in with the procession; but all was quiet and orderly, the only cries heard being those of the two women, who at times broke forth into lamentations for their departed husbands. Omega pointed them out to me by name as Aipooa, the wife of the slain warrior, a good looking woman of middle age, bleeding freely from deep cuts in her arms and breasts, self-inflicted with the tooth of a shark, a customary mark of mourning among these natives; and Aiuka, a much younger woman, of complexion no darker than that of many American brunettes, and who would have been called handsome anywhere. She was the wife of the young man who had been kidnapped and carried to sea in the ship, and bore in her arms a bright-looking infant. perhaps a year old, who, insensible to his mother's grief, was crowing and laughing in high glee at the spectacle, as if he thought it was arranged for his special benefit A murmur was heard along the crowd who were marching in the rear of our party, and a man came running up along the flank and made a report to the chiefs, who were walking close to us. The head chief or sovereign of the tribe seemed a little disconcerted, but gave the word to push forward at a faster pace. "Ship come," whispered Omega to me. My heart bounded a little at the intelligence, but a moment's thought satisfied me that she could do nothing in time to be of any service to us. The wind was favorable for her to work up to the island, but she would be too late for anything except to avenge us. We pushed on up the valley till we halted in a grove near the base of the steep mountain, where I saw for the first time one of their places of religious ceremony or morais. A platform of large stones, neatly hewn and fitted together with wonderful skill, was raised full eight feet from the ground, and on this were mounted several idols or deities, carved in wood or stone, rudely representing the human form. The faces of these deities were horribly caricatured, the ears of immense size, as also were the eyes, formed of circular pieces of black and white shells, the mouths very wide, and noses flattened nearly to their faces. One figure, of stone, was much larger than the rest, being the embodiment of their chief deity. We halted but a minute here, when the signal was given to move on to the other end of the platform, which was full fifty yards long, where a sight was presented which transfixed us with horror. A canoe, profusely decorated with shell ornaments and streamers of white paper-cloth, was placed with her head towards the mountain, and in the stern, seated erect, with a steering-paddle in his hand, was the body of the slain warrior, in full dress, and ornamented with plumes. At equal distances in the canoe were reared the bodies of my three shipmates, the two who had been killed during the night, and poor Jackson, who had died in the boat. A glance was enough for me, and I averted my gaze from the shocking spectacle; not without having observed, however, that a vacancy was left at the bow for the fourth white man. I had had considerable experience among the islands of the South Seas, but I had never been behind the scenes, and was unprepared for anything so revolting even in savage life. I gave no second look at the canoe, but listened in silence to the explanation which the king now proceeded to give us through the interpreter. |
I gathered from this that when one of the tribe is slain by an enemy, he is put into his canoe to start for the land of the blest, which is supposed to be on the further shore of a broad ocean, and the voyage cannot be made except in a boat manned by men of the tribe to whom he owed his death wound. In the wars between different tribes, where but few men are slain, though many are slightly wounded, a result of their mods of warfare, which consists rather of a series of skirmishes, with alternate advances and retreats, than of anything like a close and general action, they are sometimes many weeks or even months in mustering a crew for their comrade's boat; but they have a method peculiar to themselves of preserving the dead, which, whatever it may be, is quite as effectual as any embalming process known to our own countrymen. In this case before us, the four paddles must be manned by white men before the voyage could begin. Three places were filled already, and it remained for Aipooa, the widow, to choose one of us to be sacrificed to make up the number, as also to designate the manner of his death. This was the undisputed right of the relict in all cases where prisoners might be taken, and there could be no appeal from her choice or decision. As soon as she named one of us, the others were safe from harm, and would be released at the first opportunity. Neither was she allowed to waive her right in a case of this sort, or to shrink from the performance of what was considered a pious conjugal duty. All this was explained to me by Omega, whose opinion I found upon inquiry coincided with my own as to the selection she would probably make. There was no doubt that my doom was sealed, as being the highest in rank among the captives. The faithful Aipooa could pay no higher tribute of respect to the memory of her deceased lord than to send him on his voyage to paradise with a chief at his bow-paddle. The widow had ceased her wailing, and now came forward at the royal command to fulfil a duty, from which, it seemed to me, she would gladly have been excused; for there was nothing vindictive in her appearance, or exulting in the look with which she surveyed us, whose lives lay at her disposal. She merely seemed resolved to discharge her obligation to her husband in the best possible manner, and, as I had expected, without hesitation pointed to myself as her choice, and fell quietly back by the side of the younger woman Aiuka. My two men, now virtually free, were allowed to fall into the crowd as mere spectators of the tragedy, while I was led forth and placed in front of the chief, who again summoned the widow to point out the manner in which I should be slain. She pointed in silence to the war-club, which, had the choice been left to myself, I should have named as being the most speedy and merciful instrument of death in use among these people. The brother of the deceased warrior was then called upon to perform the part of executioner, for which he had come prepared. The glance which I threw at this man, as he stepped forward, assured me that my suffering would be short indeed. His herculean development of limb, and the size of the ponderous club swinging carelessly in his hand, gave evidence that no second blow would be needed to finish me, and this was, perhaps, the only gleam of consolation that could be looked for amid the darkness of surrounding circumstances. The brother took his stand with great deliberation at the proper distance for an effective blow. I had said my adieux to my shipmates, had closed my eyes with a last prayer on my lips; the chief was in the act of raising his hand as a signal for the crushing blow that was impending over my head, when the young woman Aiuka darted between me and the executioner with her infant boy, and pressed him to my breast, with words of entreaty which I could not understand. "Take, take!" said Omega, hurriedly." I seized the infant, instinctively obeying the words of one who understood savage customs better than myself; the young mother fell back to her place, and the avenger, with something that might have been a smothered curse in his language, let his club slide to the ground. No other word was spoken; the whole tribe stood in respectful and dignified silence. I turned to restore the child to the mother, but she bounded back from it, and again my interpreter spoke: "Keep!" said he. "No let go!" A new hope dawned upon me as I began to comprehend the matter. By a singular and beautiful superstition, peculiar, I believe, to this group, the act to which this woman had been moved by pity protects the person under sentence of death, and the higher the rank of the mother, the more sacred the protection. In a word, I was tabooed so long as the boy remained in my hands, nor could any one tear him forcibly from me, except by request |
of the mother. I could go where I listed, bearing the innocent little one as my shield and safeguard. I was not slow to avail myself of my new sanctity as soon as I understood it, and moved off towards the village, hugging the child fondly to my breast, and my looks conveying to the young matron, who kept close at my side, all the gratitude I was capable of expressing. The crowd, without closing up, followed behind, my shipmates keeping a little in the rear. Scouts from the hill were seen running and shouting towards us, doubtless with tidings concerning the ship, and hope again reviving in our hearts spurred us on to greater exertions. I rushed forward, keeping my eye fixed on the hill that separated the two tribes, determined to cling to the infant as long as the mother would permit, or until I should be once more in safety. In passing the house where we had been confined during the night, I nearly ran against my friendly chief, accompanied by my man Alpha, who informed me that the ship was rapidly approaching when he left the brow of the hill, heading well up for the bay, and doubtless would have her boat in soon. At this moment a cry was raised in the opposite direction, and spread like magic among the tribe. We turned and looked towards the weather-point. A large ship, with unmistakable marks of warlike character in the cut of her sails and general trim appearance below and aloft, was heading in for the harbor. As the whole population had evacuated the village at sunrise and gone up the valley, her approach had been, until now, unperceived. I was for a moment undecided what course to take; but as the man-of-war now began hauling in her light canvas, it was evident she meant to communicate with the shore, and I abandoned my intention of crossing the mountain, making for the beach at the best speed of which I was capable. The lithe, active figure of the young mother easily kept at my side, while the tribe halted and hung back in fear of the new-comer. As she luffed into the wind, showing a heavy battery and decks full of men, with the British ensign at her peak, a boat was lowered and sent in, fully manned and armed, striking a panic to the savages, who no longer dared approach the landing, but again retreated up the valley, while, safe from all danger, and devoutly thankful for our deliverance, we waited the arrival of the frigate's boat. As she touched the beach, my good angel Aiuka, her eyes dilating with joy, darted forward into the arms of her lost husband. He had dropped overboard the night before when full twenty miles off the land, had swam all night, and been picked up by the frigate soon after daylight. The boat had been sent to land him, and the distant behaviour of the natives was not understood until explained by us. Our story was soon told; the innocent child was restored to his happy parents, and a few minutes afterwards we were recounting our adventures more at length, on the deck of her majesty's ship Phaeton. The commanding officer did not feel authorized to inflict severe punishment upon the islanders, especially as the outrage had not been committed upon British subjects, but promised to compel the restoration of the boat and her cargo of fruits, as also the stolen articles if possible. All this he accomplished by a display of his force and the persuasive power of one heavy gun fired over the heads of the savages. With sad hearts at the fate of our murdered shipmates we took leave of the island, and shaped a course for Tahiti, where we arrived a few days afterwards, and our invalids were soon restored to strength and sound health. The French admiral stationed there inquired minutely into the circumstances of the tragedy, and declared his intention of taking summary vengeance upon the murderers as soon as he could spare a vessel to detach upon that service. Whether he did so or not I never learned, or whether any other whites fell into the hands of this tribe. But I close my eyes with an involuntary shudder whenever I think of the canoe with its ghastly rowers and its one vacant paddle, of the brawny avenger, and his ponderous weapon elevated above my head, while the tenderest feelings are stirred within me at the thought of my preserver, Aiuka, and I have never clasped even one of my own children in my arms with more fervor or thankfulness than I did the little savage, her son and my protector. |
Source:Macy, William Hussey
Last updated by Tom Tyler, Denver, CO, USA, Dec 2 2021.
|
|
