The Sun.
London, England, 1840-04-27 00:00:00

EVENING EDITION.

LITERATURE.

A IV LIALEVG VOYAGE ROUND THE
GLOBE. 2 V, Ls. ,
Benti,y, Lmiyun, 16,40.
The author of these gossiping voluMes. a gentleman
named Bennett, quitted 'England in the October of
1833, in a ship of three h'undred ton's burden, on a
Whaling expedition to the Pacific Ocean. Soon alter
the crew came within sight of Madeira, they noticed
the phenomenon which sailors call a "wind-;ale," and
Which is a broad and perpendicular streak of colours
Placed opposite the sun, and extending from e dark
cloud to the verge of the horizon. "It may be con-
-1 sidered," the author tells us, " a fragment of a rainbow ;"
and was shortly followed by a heavy gale of wind, " ac-
"mpanied by the presence of an ignis firta its on the
summit of each mast head, gleaming with its peculiar
1 Sickly mid supernatural light." On the gradual abate-
ment of the storm the Wowing singular appearances
Were observed on the surface of the water :
" During 'a dark and calm night with transient squalls
of mi., the sea presented an unusually luminous appear-
rree ; while undisturbed, the ocean emitted a flint gleam
em its bosom, and when agitated by the passage of the
ship, flashed forth streams of light which illuminated the
"is, and shone in the wake with great intensity. A net
towing alongside bad the appearance of a ball of fire fol-
'owed by a long and sparkling train ; and large fish, as
they darted through the water, could be traced by the
scintillating lines they left upon its surface. The principal
cause of this phosphorescent appearance was ascertained by
the capture of numerous medusa, of flat and circular form,
!ißht pink colour,, and eight inches in circumference.
when disturbed, this medusa emitted from every part of its
uody a brilliant, greenish light, which shone without inter-
mission as long as the irritating cause continued, but when
that vvis withdrawn, the luminousness gradually subsided.
The luminous power evidently resided in a slimy secretion
Which envelaped the animal, and which was freely commu-
nicated to water, as well as to any solid object."
At Pitcairn's Island, where the voyagers made a
short stay, and which, it may be rememered, is the
spot where the mutineers of the Bounty took refuge,
they found the widow of Christian, the ringleader in
' the mutiny, still living ; and were much pleased with
the attentions they received from her. She is, it
seems, a very old woman, with milk-white hair, but her
mental ..nd bodily powers are yet active. She appeared
to have some knowledge of Captain Cook, and related
many particulars connected with that great discover's
Visits to Tahite, which Mr. Bennett unfortunately has
not thought fit to furnish us with. Speaking generally
of the present inhabitants of Pitcairn's Island, our
author tells us that they are a tall and robust people,
and ahat their features, though they can scarcely 'be
Called handsome, display many Europeao traits. In
disposition they are frank, honest, and hospitable, and
Possess much -pride and susceptibility of feeling. In
conducting the most trivial affairs of life, they are
guided by the Scriptures, which they quote with free-
dom, no matter what be the occasion. •The women
are characterized by a modest demeanor, much good-
-1 humour, grace, and artlessness of manner. They de-
servedly bear great sway in the colony, which now con-
sists of about eighty persons, and are proud of their
English extraction. On quitting Pitcairn's Island, Mr.
Bennett made sail for Raiatea, the largest of the Society
Islands, where he was greatly struck with the simplicity
of the
.inhabitants, who, whenever a foreigner comes
among them, always pay him respect in proportion to
his dimensions, for " they associate a great mind with a
Corresponding altitude of person, and entertain but little
reverence for short men." This is a curious theory of
intellectual greatness, and deserves notice, if only for
its originality. We can imagine the sensation that
0"Coonell would create among the natives of Raiatea,
and the ,srvereigti contempt with which they would look
on the conettieror of Europe, Napoleon ! In addition
to other peeu,!iarities; these unsophisticated islanders,
like our more civilized Englishmen, are much addicted
to the refreshment of " strong waters." They drink,
in fact, like fishes, and over their cups are as fond of a
" skrinimage" as an Irishman :--
" They will refrain long from spirits, or very abruptly
relinquish their use, but when inclined to indulge, nothing
short of the most complete inebriety will satisfy them.
Many amongst them consider that a moderate use of ar-
dent spirits is tantalizing and disagreeable, and will oaten
refuse to partake of any, unless they can obtain enough
to produce-the happiest. effects. During. our. present visit
to Raiat,:a the vice of intoxication was riot so prevalent as
we found 't at a subsequent period ; yet on every fresh
importation el liquor from Borabora, itsyss common to see
the more debanched islanders parading the settlement in
a state or riotous intoxication, linked arm-in-arm for mu-
tual support, and with bottles of spirits slung round their
bodies, and cocoa-nut shells in their bands, occasionally
pausing, to drink, then renewing their route, yelling like
demons, until, incapable of further advance. they expended
their last gleam of re:.‘son in seeking the nearest shed for
11 swinish repose."
Leaving Raiatea and its tqalous anti-tee.totallers, Mr.
Bennett proceedeed to the' Sandwich Islands, of whose
fast increasing civilisation he gives, nu the whole, a favour-
"lle-account. The King, it seems, possesses a very
respectable" naval force, consisting of about ten ships,
each of i more than one hundred tons burden, besides
several small schooners and sloops ; and his subjects
Carry oq a. br:sk traffic with the north-west coast of
America, China, and the Spanish Main. Numerous
'South-seamen, too; annually visiting, the different Sand-
i with Islands, bring a great influx of specie, and actively'
•stimu'ate the agricultural industry of 'the inhabitants.
Shortly after setting sail from these islands, our author
and his fellow-voyagers came in sight of several lat•ge
sperm whales, three of which they succeeded in cap-
turing, but a fourth was exceedingly obstinate, and had
no- notion of being .harpooned without showing fight.
He was what is called " a tough subject," as will ap-
Pear by the subjoined extract :
" This Cachalot, which was a young male, had been
Pierced with two well-planted harpoons ; but instead of
flying from his enemies he rather sought to attack them,
whenever they approached him for the purpose of lancing.
His first effort was to rush against the boat with his head.
Baffled in this, by the crew steering clear of the contact,
he next attempted to crush it with his jaws ; when failing
through the unaccommodating position of his mouth, he
remedied this defect with much sagaci!y in his last and
More successful assault; approaching impetuously from a
distance of about forty yards, he turned upon his back,
raising his lower jaw to grasp the boat from above; a
4ace-wound, however, caused him to close his mouth and
tesurae a natural posture, before he had attained his ob-
ject; but co..tinuing to advance, he struck the boat with
a foice that nearly overturned it, and concluded by again
' turning on his back, and thrusting his lower jaw through
n the planks. The boat filled with water almost imme-
°lately, sunk with its gunwale to the level of the sea, and
was rendered capable of retaining its crew, only by the
expedient of lashing the oars across its sides. The liar-
, Puon-line was cut and the whale made off without doing
further mischief."
. Speaking generally of the effects produced by our
Missionaries on the morals and habits of the South-
Sea Islanders, Mr. Bennett says, " the principal faults
Inid to their char-c are too great an interference in
the political and doinestic affairs of the natives, and too
Keen a participation in commercial transactions. Nor
,ore these charges oltogether groundless." He adds,
However, that they apply rather to individuals than to
'Ol2 collective body, which, we are glad to hear, for the
lltee of ,Missionary is one requiring a combination of
high and rare qualities—indomitable courage, moral as
Well as physical ; perseverance that is rather quickened
than subdued by difficulties ; tact, patience, a conci-
liatory bearing that softens, where it cannot wholly put
down, opposition, and, above all, toleration ; and • if the
South-sea Missionaries do not, as a collective body,
possess all, or at least some, of. these qualifications,
their labours will be in vain, and they will do more
harm than good.' On his 'return home to Eng-
land, our author paid a visit to St. Helena, and, of
course, took the opportunity of .seeing Longwood, and
Napoleon's last resting-place. The house, which is
now in the possession of a farmer, is in a sad state of
dilapidation, and the very room wherein the mighty
conqueror drew his last breath, is devoted to the in
glorious purpose of a lumber-room ! But the favourite'
willows he planted stilt flourish ; the fountain by whose
side he so often sate, absorbed in thought—and what
reflections must his have been !—still keeps fresh and
fragrant the green sward about it ; and his mountain-
:tomb, high raised on the bosom of the Atlantic, still
leads, and will read for ever, a most useful, though
humiliating, lesson to ambition.

NAPIER'S P.NIIVSULAR WAR. Vol. 6.
Boone, London, 1840.

-:-- • -,
Prefixed to this volume are a series of justificatory
'°roments, which Colonel Napier has put forth in reply
t° certain strictures Made upon his history by the Quar-
irrly Review, Colonel Durwood, Sir Walter Scott,
'-',°,d Biresford and Mr. Alison. In these comments
thei gallant author, in our opinion, refutes the charges of
°ls critics in a most satisfactory manner ; and in noticing
those of the Quarterly Reviewer, tells the following
anecdote of the Duke of Wellington :—" When I first
resolved to write this history, I applied verbally to his
Waage to give me papers in aid of my undertaking.
his
answer, in substance, was, that he had arranged all
'ls Own papers with a view to publication himself ; that
he bad not decided in what form they should be given
to the world, or when—probably, not during his life-
time ; but he thought- his plan would be to. write a
Plain, didactic history, to be published after his death ;
that unless he
he was resolved to publish anything
Could tell the whole truth ; but at that time ht, could
not tell the whole truth without wounding the feelings
I olmlny worthy men, aaddingnal so doin, mischief ; adding in
a„
i"lughing way, ' I should' do as :inch mischief as 13o-
' -'lPirte: " `‘,Ve have given this anecdote, because it
exlabits all that discretion, straightforwardness, and con-
tkrate regard for the feelings of others, by which the
Thuke's public conduct has been uniformly' characterised.
~.," present volume, which, we suppose, closes
an
Napier's history,, is penned throughout in
4,r1 eloqueot and impartial manner, and possesses
!,e iadditional recomaiendation of being per!ectly scien-
"fie, without being ..it all encumbered by the pedantries
Or technicalities of science. To shy that it is the be:it
account of the Peninsular war that has yet issued from
the press, is to say littie for it ; it is, beyond all compa-
r'un,
k the finest military history that modern times have
""°- The gallant author—it gives us siocere plea--
~ure to find—does not adopt the vulgar national p;eju-
i dices against Napoleon and his Marshals, but does thew