The Sun.
London, England, 1815-12-20 00:00:00

THE SUN REVIEW.

(No (Xiii.)

" .Yournrl of a Craize made to t4.e Pacific "Ocerm by Captain
I).tvlD Pour.u, in the United States Frigate E.:,Sex, in
the
Years R. 12, IS:3, and pBl4,containing Foescriptio'ns of the.
Cape de Vert! islands, Coastibiglrazil, Patagonia, Chili,
aural Peru, and of the Gallapagos Islands. Also, a full Ae-
<aunt. of the Wwl*irlton Group of Islands; t;se Nfanners,
412ustoras, Dress of the Inhabitants, ecc. &c." Illustrated
uh 14 Engravings. In 2 vtils: Evo. pp .440. rhiladel-
-1533. •

[Continued front our Paper of YecterdaYl

"s On their arrival off Ro oahooga Island, the
ilhati of the EuOisli, and Jefferson of Captain
Porter. a few natives, who came off in a canoe,
incited, them to the Nhotc-nissneing them, by
the most expr6;sivegesticolatioas, that the railiehas,
or women, were entirely nt their service.' Cap;;'
lain
.Porter's prornises to his -ship's company, were
here amply fulfilled. 'There tvcre no scruples on
his part : none, of course, on the 'part of the
crew ; he sees no harm in giving countenance, to
the moral depravity of ignoraht savages--but' we
must here pause, and draw a veil over his proceed',
inns. We cannot pollute our pages with the des-
eription which Captain Porter-gives of hiatraus=
ections with these people. His langnage: and his
ideas are so Bros ; and indelicate, so utterly unfit
for this hemitpliere, that we'tititst'leithe the undi--•
'tided enjoyment .of this part of his book :to his
own coontrynleti. We are at' a hiss to determine
which is must disgusting and offensive--4tiS molt'
semis ribaldry, or his impudent avowal of his
itti-
pr•oper conduct. ' If,' says be, 'there was any
crime, the offence was ours, nor theirs : they act,.
td in compliance with the customs of their au,
cestors ; we departed from those principles of vir-
tue and morality, which are so highly esteemed in
civilization.' It was enough, 'le thinks,_ that
• each costfiued himself to, one object, and she of
the best faintly and rank ;' which, he says, was
as much as the most.` zealous Mebiate could re-
quire—het' more that' enough of r,,Hs profligate,
tlsis pernicioos trash.
" The Island in this group next visited by the
Essex, was Nooaheevah, which in Captain Por-
ter's book is dignified' by the name of Madison.;
the hay is nick-named. Massachusetts, and .a
able group of huts built during their stay, Madi-
sonville. Here, -on their lauding, they met . with
one Maury, a midshipman of the United States
nasT, and an Englishman named Wilson, the lat-
ter of whom had lived amone. the Marquesas
mare: year., and spoke their language with great
fluency. Though of 'a Nation against the very
name fif nMich Captain Porter entertains the most
roottei antipathy, he allows Wilson t 6 have been
an inoffensive, honest, goothivearten fellow,
well disposed to reodet every service in his'Power,
and whose only failing was a great attachment to
rum.' -Captain Porter .soon,discovered, or pre-
tends to have discovered, that the people of. a
neighbouring valley, at the head- of Comptroller's
Ilay,,nantecr the Happabsi Were at ha? with
those among.whom he landed ; though it was ad-
mitted that a friendly intercourse was still kept
Bp between the two tribes. Anxious to shrew his
prowess amino; a people whose Weanoos were
•hartniess when pet in competition with fire-arms,
and still more anxious to procure provisions Vvith-
out paying for them, (for avarice is the ruling
passion of this hukstering Captain,) he caused a
messaue to he sent over the mountains
.4 to tell,
the Hanpirhs he bad corm; With a foree sufficiently.
strong, to drive them front the Island; and it they
'presumed 'to enter into the valley while he re-.
mai hnl th:re,, he 'should scud a body of men to
chastise theta.' With the return 'of the messenger
came the Happahs theniselees within a half-8.7
mile of.' the camp, and sent for,anst.ver, that in
-conseqeenceof his threat'S)they had conic into the
valley' and destroyed - bread-fruit trees, and
yet tiny had not been opposed.; that they'believ-
rd him a :d his people to he cowards, and would
'soon pay them a visit.' flirs threat somewhat
provoked' tier hero=-but it also 'larmed him ;he
landed a great portion of the o,i -'s company ; be
employed the natives Or the Valley to drag a six-
pounder to the too of ;he mountains to oppose
tit progress. With this gun -.vas sent the First
Lieutenant,, Downes, (tlt_e counter-part of him-
self, and the ready agont 'Oran his little artifices,')
an a party of men. The Lieutenant reported on
his return, that on ascending the top of the moun-
tain lie was knocked down with a huge-, stone
which struck him on the belly ; that on recover-
ing, he ordered the enemy to be pursued, who,
however, made a stand at 'a kind of breastwork or
fortress—` scoffed at his men, and exposed their
posteriors to them, and treated them with the ut-
most contempt and derision'.' The Americans,
upon this, rushed forwards towards the barrier,
fired among the crowd, and shot five of them dead;
• one, hi particular, fought till the muzzle of the
piece WAS presented to his forehead, when the top
of his head was entirely blown off.' The scene
of massacre and plunder, the destruction of houses,
utensils, live stock, and bread-fruit trees that fol-
owd, Captain Porter says, was r shocking to see.'
But lie obtained his end, and got large sup-
ply of hogs' for nothing.
" The bodies of the five men who had been
killed in storming the fortress were brought down
to the valley, and taken to the public square
*where thelriestivals are held. Maury and Wilson
Bach both -said, on their arrival, that the natives
-were cannibals,though neither hid ever seen tiled)
in the act of eating homan:flesh ; and it was also
understood from Gattauewa, the Chief, that -they
sometimes cat their enemies ; it was fair, there-
fore to conclude, that the bodies
.in the 'great
square were destined to be eaten, which Wilson
said they would certainly be as soon as they were
advanced to a state of putridity.. Captain. Porter:
was determined to ascertain this fact with his own
eyes, and for this purpose proceeded to the square
--several of the yoang warriors were hastening
Moue towards the same place, armed with their
spears;4t the ends of which were hung plantains,
bread-fruit, or cocoa-nats, intended as offerings
to their Gods ; the sound of their drums was now
heard, and presently the Chatinting of the was-
soup.
" soon discovered five or six hundred of them
assentlalefil About the dead bodies, which were ty-