The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1881-01-15
Poiynesian, august, 1861


g1lese.-Tbe comparing Maioys; and
remarkable diyegsiIies ofrdee.-A DIS
course deIiUered6 By Ma WALTER MURRAY
GIBSON, on the eUeaing Of the 3Oh July,
/ 1861, in the Fort Street Church, Homo
kUfu, H. L.
speak OF a region with an area equal to
sl the North American States and Terri
tories; an archipelago of six thousand islands;
inhabited and h~abitabIe; among which there
are several. each one equalling in extent
twice the area of all the thousands of islands
that dot the Pacific. This imposing archi-
pelago furnishes 10 ell the most
notable of East India products which are
more important, aud contribute more 10
develop the industry of Europe and America
than all that Is furnished by Chin, japan.
Hindostan, and all other East India regions
put together and yet the land of the Nalays
is very much OF a terra incognita to the most
Of Christsndom even to the generality Of
Intelligent observers and readers. Every
barren and sparseiy peopIed spot of the
Pacific is explored, ransacked and evange-
lized with what nav be termed a singularIy
disproportioned zeal, when we contemplate
the neighboring vast continental islands.
fertile and productive beyond all other lands.
and teeminglylpopuIous which up to this time
have only been visited by Il few civilized
conquerors and traders and they but rarely
have seen the intelligent traveller and
observer and have not now abiding within
their limits a single missionary OF that gospel
that has been so z%ealousty diffused through
out Polynesia.
Il
Portuguese commander, was the first to
the career Of European hlIbuster-
ing in the East. He had heard of the great
Malay city called Malacca Of its numerous
and luxurious population Of its great wealth,
not only in gold and silver, but in immense
stores Of spices, so coveted in his age. There
fore he sought a pretext for a quarrel !; so
easily accomplished by a strong, covetous,
and INSCRIPTIONS party, as illustrated by the
tabled lamb and wolf. But furthermore he
claimed as his warrant the extravagant
Papal Bull OF dominion to Prince Henry.
He attacked the Malay city, continuing a
desperate assault for nine DAYS, and on the
last he fought a terrible battle against, as
Portuguese chroniclers say, one hundred
and twenty thousand Malay warriors. Euro
pean discipline and vast superiority of
weapons, overcame the brave but less skilled
Malays. The city was plundered, and of
the booty, the King Of Portugal's share of
one tenth amounted to eight hundred thous-
and crusadoes And this was the first in
PRODUCTION Of the European TO tie Malay.
Stree then European piracy, both on royal
and private account-by English, French,
Spanish and Dutch, as well as Portuguese
has been prosecuted vigorously, seeking for
the mastery of the Lands of Spices.
d. H.. M.Iov nr,,-.- -ar Sn,nIy
reaping the retribution Of conquest, which
their own invading and conquering ancestry
had eutailed for a little more than a thou
sand years previous, a fierce race of Eastern
Vikings, claiming lineage with royal and
priestly..<sces of Western Asia, invaded
Sumatra. established the :. sacred kingdom"
Of Menang-Kabau, from whence issued
princes, authority, laws, religion, language,
literature throughout Malaysia, yes through
out Oceanica. For of the many States of
Sumatra, chiefly peopled by a variety of
races. black, brown and olive, get we invari-
ably find the princes of the governing Malay
stock. In Borneo, among the stout, brown,
mechanical Dyaks, we find the tall, warrior
Malay enthrOned IN distant New Guinea,
wherever Government has been established
among the black, wooly-headed Papuans, we
find olive skinned princes. who claim descent
from the royal race of M~enangkabau and so
in Celebes its trading people have princes
of the Sumatran stock, born with the instinct
for government and war the same IN Ceram
and Mindanao and passing into Polynesia
we find chiefs of Il nobler make than the
masses, evidently descended from a royal, con-
Guering race, that IN ages past, when more
earth filled up this Pacific. now submerged,
when power and resources were mighty, and
w,,.1,,l unfriF ms anfarnrIStnu oven enuui
10 modern activity, sent forth great fleets OF
proas, manned BY the Vikings OF the East
ern seas. conquered as in Malaysia aboriginal
races, and left princes, and language, aud
customs distinctly traceabl7, IN Tahiti. In
Samoa, and here in Hawaii mel. Yes. and
can point out the indelible impress Of these
Eormans Of Oceanica, on little Easter Island,
famous for 5 gigantic ruins, within striking
distance Of the American coast and there,
too, we trace distinctly by language. CUSTOM.
character, and government, the widely domI-
nant Magi OF Menangkabau, IN heroic
Araucania.
The beauty Of this princely Malay stock
Is SURPRISING. Marsden says, in SIX years
observation, "lhave not seen one deformed.
The mobiles of Malaysia are generally exceed
ing the average stature of Europeans, with
a graceful proportion. They move with
gface and dignity, and say from my own
observation that | found in them a thorough
bred courtliuess-a perfect proprlety OF de-
meanor-an accomplished. gentlemanly tone
at all points-a mastery poise IN intercourse
and witbal, n cordial, assiduous, yet un-
obtrusive, manner toward the stranger,
claiming in any courteous spirit their atten-
ton, which bespoke the cultivated man,
claiming by birth to command and all
deveIopedby a civilization peculiarly their
} own, and not an exotic and ill-6tting culture,
the result of some forcing process of stilted
Western civilization. But of course. as a con-
trast to this general character, there are I'M
fortunately, numerous instances Of excess
es. which evidence i heightened barbarian
association, and, no doubt, intermixture.
This dominant Malay, these wandering,
aggressive. governing Vikings of Austral
Seas. ara associated with, and here and
,lsrs ~1artI1llv blended with, striking diverSi-