Complex sentence: When we received the news that Rarotonga and the neighbouring islands were placed under your protection, we wept aloud because we were forsaken by you; we were afraid lest we should be adopted by another parent.
Split into simpler sentences: When we received the news that Rarotonga and the neighboring islands were placed under your protection, we wept aloud because we were forsaken by you. We were afraid lest we should be adopted by another parent.