The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1870-10-22
Selected Story.
JkCKY MARIANA.
Or, the True Story OF an American
Boy in New Zealand.
BY r. d. CARTER.



Tn the month of December, 1858, eleven
years ago now, the writer of this was travel
ing in New Zealand, along with three other
friends. Their object was chiefly botanizng
tour through an unvisited part of that far
away country. Everything in that country
las, doubtless many of my young readers have
learnt from their geographies) is Just the re-
verse of ours. 1t is day there when night
here, and summer at Christmas; whilst the
sun is due north every day at noon, and many
other, to us, seeming contradictions to what
we have been used. The people who live
there were formerly wild, savage race of
tattoed cannibas, of a pale-oliVe color, and
marked all over their bodies with strange
lines and figures, deep-blue color, from the |
juice OF native plant called "Korari," which
never washes out or wears of, but is priched |
into the skin with sharp flint stones, and a
very painful operation it must be. All the
chiefs, especially, are marked with it all over
their faces, each tribe having different pat
tern, so that they can tell each other, and
know friends from foes Not thirty years
ago they were all caDnibals cooking and eat
ing the bodies of those they killed, or took
captive in fighting, and they were almost
!wayssfghting with each other then. They
Thought il they ate their enemy, his good quail
tiles or virtues would become theirs. Thus,
II man was known to be very quick of hear
ing his eyes, or ears, or heart, they would OBJ
tain all his powers. Very few ships then
touched their shores, they were SO cruel and
savage; they killed and ate every one they
could, and so all white men tried to avoid the
island. Every now and then, however, some
American whaling ship was forced to go there,
being driven thither either by storms, or want
OF water; and then, if they were seen, they
were sure to be attacked, and often killed; or,
q oY,1 y,,se1 l.
ate at some future feast. Now, what [ am
about to tell really happened as shall relate
1t. had it from the lips of the old man him
self, who is STILL believe, living-an old oray-
headed man-in the place first saw him.
In the course OF our travels we had come
to a beautiful inland bay of pure, clear water,
surrounded by hills and huge rocks, covered
win forest trees all evergreen, never she'd
ding their leaves altogether, and most of them
one mass OF gorgeous blossoms-red, orange
and snowy-white; tall towering ferns pierced
through these, an0 spread their long del
lcate fronds, like huge canopies high ND
&. in the sky. Various colored shehS, and gro
tesque-shaped corals, through whose STONY TO-
liage glided bright hued fish formed the bottom
OF the bay, plainly seen through the clear
blue water. Here and there beautiful val
ley ran up between the hills and in these val
iieys lived the natives, called Maories (Mowrys)
IN Their small, reed-built huts. One of the
most powerful tribes lived in that part OF
new Zealand, called Ngapuhi. and one of
my companions, yonng Englishman both
Delhg thirsty, ventured to 90 in one of the
largest OF these huts, the residence of the
chlef, lie Where Whero, to ask for some wat
er. "A lot OF savage. dogs greeted us, and we
had to stand still until a woman came ont and
called them away.
AS soon as we entered, saw sea ed on a
native-made mat, an old gray headed man,
with cloak OF BIRDS skins over his shoulder:
these skins belong to bird peculiar to New
Zealand, and called by the natives the Kiwi
tApteryX) 1t has no feathers, no tail, and no
wings, but is covered with kind of fine fur,
the color OF mouse, and has a very long bill
IL only comes out and feeds at night. Its cry
is shrill, prolonged whistle. We often heard
them in the forest at night Its skin is much
valued and used only by the chiefs. The skin
CLOAK came down to the old mans knees. and.
except some white heron feathers stuck in his
head he had no other covering He rose up
as we entered the hut, or aohare, and babe us
Welcome IN the Maori language, elena IA
hofua, a rHow you two p" their manner OF
saying "How do you do" II friends or
relatives meet, they also rub their noses to-
gether, instead of shaking hands, And in
passing, toss up their heads, instead of nod
ding as we do. To my establishment. this
man was quite white, instead of an olive COL
or, and felt sure he was not native. He
asked us to sit down on the floor on mats. and
we ana SO, whilst his wife brought us a gourd
OF water and some ripe water-melops. which
we thought delicious, as the day was hot. and
we had walked long distance. After sitting
ana talking some time in their native Ian
guase, which had learned, asked the old
man II he was native and born there, He
10 me ne was not, and then commenced the
IoIowlhs history, which give as nearly as l
can in his words.
am not native born" he began, ssbut
an american. was born, believe in Con-
nectlcut, at place called New London. do
not know how old 1 am now. but suppose
am somewhere about seventy. l CAME here
When boy, on board whaling ship; forget
Its name now, and have long forgotten what
my white name was, but remember nv father
was captain of the ship. was about ten
years old when first came here. The shin
was out OF water, ard we were forced to land
mere IN this bay, to try and get some. We
sent our Doat on shore, seeing no natives
about, and began filling our casks as fast as we
could, tor we knew they would kill and eat MS
II they saw us and caught lis. 1t was very
different then; no missionaries had been here.
and we were all heathens and cannihals. We
mad nearly done filling the casks, when nv
nay father came on shore bringing me with
him, as begged him to do so. lie wanted
to shoot some pigs or birds, as we had no fresh
meat on BOARD. We went into the woods,
and he shot several pigeons and parrots.
suppose the natives heard the report of the
gun,-lndeed, they told me they did after
word-for sound travels long way in this
dry climate Ia fact we had noticed being able
often to hear each other speak, two miles
apart, and they came down to see what if
was. we had three boats on the shore at the |
time, besides my fathers; and there were on
~ Tue carpenter, steward and cook left on
BOARD with two sick men. The first thing that
let us know the natives had come mon ms
was shower of spears from among the trees
Wnich Killed the first mate and six men. The
others ran toward their boats to get their
guns, but the natives Il don't know how
many, but great many got first between
them and the boats, and secured all the wea.
pons. Our men hoped they would not know
now to use the guns, but they did-at least.
the chief did, and he showed the others. Ex
cept my fathers gun and the mems clasp
knives, we were altogether unarmed, and at
their mercy,-a word they neither knew nor
practised. My father and just then hearing
their horrid syells, came out of the forest:
and he tried to talk and quiet them. They
no sooner, however, saw his gun, than they
made Signs he should give it up to them. He |
old not ike this, but was forced to DO it: the
chief came and took it from him, and then
hfted up his right hand, to which he had a |
small stone club fastened, and struck my
father on the head; he fell down dead, and |
TINS was the signal for general massacre of /
all the rest. l ran and hid in a bush.
AS soon as they had done killing the men.
they took the boats and went on board the /
ship, and killed all there; they then strinned /
the ship OF all they could, and came on shore |
again. One of them had two dogs with him,
and they smelt me, for they came and began |
barking at me; but he suddenly changed his |
mind, and motloned me 10 come to him. / |
went up in great fear, but he made me sit |
down near him, and began talking to his men.
OF course l did not know what he said They. |
however, began to dig a large hole in the
ground, or rather trench, as l thought, 10 bury
the dead in; whilst two of them went off
INTO the woods to fetch, as l afterwards found
out, the rest of the tribe AS soon as the hole
was large enough, and sufficiently deep, they
threw IN lot OF sticks and set them on fire,
rubbing or rather rolling Que in hole in an
other to get light. When the fire was nearly
burnt out, they threw lot OF stones in on |
the embers, and left them until nearly red |
hot; then they 10 my horror stripped the
dead bodies, and laid them in order on the
wet mats they had placed on the hot stones
covered them with more wet mats, and then |
a thick covering of soil, so that no steam
could escape. | still thought all this was
done to bury and destroy them the quicker: it
was now night and the men had made a sbe.