Lexington weekly intelligencer. (Lexington, Mo.) 1871-1887, 1883-10-06
BIT J. T. TRowRsIDos.

Our ship went down, and not bost
OuurOtie the Storm y tntenslty; 4.., .H
Bst alone was lett a0oat
Upon the blue immensity. 4tiL
Ny rAtt and together lsshed, -f.-..
The Wild seas racing under Us; - -
Till land uprose, and breakers dx.heG -,r ,
About us blind and thundsrous.
.-.I -
clupg, " hiie half submerginG ne.
On foamin9 shoals with fearful iorcs
The win,is and waves were urging me-
swoon.d; I woke; my dim eyes glanced
Upon q hideoHs rAbOlelnent ,,..,;..r
With frantic yelis and bsbslsueas.' raohs
Half drowned. they dragged me from the rs
Up the low beach. and seating me
Against skull -enoiroled tree: d 10
Made ghss.iy s,Ens o, eating N M; 10. nsIg
My body over curiousiS; I'd -.
The tattooed braves above me shook
Their battle axes furiously. g. 20
Forth from my sailors pouch. to buy 5>-.'
Ny life Of those {, II sSvaxes, o..
Idrew such slight fleets as I
Had save,i FROM The sea's rAvaEes. ..
With thinble, coins, carved ivory ball.
hattered and invited them;
A rusted jacknlie. most oi all,
Ast0nshed and delighted them. -.--
Then fruits they brought and mats they spread.
With singular celerity;
Net death gained: but g,its instesa' p.
lived with them anu learned their speech,
Icurbed their fierce brutality;
And strong with simple truihs TO reach
Their dim spirituality. -,
The arts OF peace, the love Of right. -yc
tried to teach; economy
OF health; what makes the day and Night
Some notion, OF Astronomy; u
Treatment Of nsighbors ut \ least
More genial ways oftoasting them. 4
To love their fellow-meu. ~ least
A little, Ni2keHt roasting them. -:
No white sail found those lonely bays.
Wide rings OF reefs DEFENDING thxm;
And SO lived my savage days. S--'
With little hopes Of ending them. ...
Three trghiful yearsi Though loved BY some.
IA, praes..iea d.S.i9n otto s,sada. nstsa me. fte
For all my pains. awaited me. 81
Fearful of change ,sand not content -
With toillng and defeating me. -...-.-
My enemies once more were bsnt
On finishing and eating me. r. q!
And 30, not choosing to assist
At their proposed festivities
(Ail the more reason to resist
Their cannibal prOcliviies.)
With scant provisions snatched In haste.
My small canoe encumbering,
Into the dim seas rolling wa.te, 4
While all the isle was slumbering, co..
One midnight when the low late moon
Across the shoals " 40 shimmerinG,
Ipaddled from the still lagoon
And channel darkly glimmering.
Five days adrifti the lndolent
Warm " aves about me welterfng;
The suns were fierce. my iood Was spent.
And was starved anu sweterinK;
When, hol y ship! How strange TO meet
Fair manners amt ur0anityp
How strange my native speech, how sweet
The accents oil humanity ,.r
Thus all my efforts to redeem
that sinister society
Were left behind, nightmare dream
Oi horror and anxiety.
My changeful life WAC iuli and deet;
But long the hope attended me
To SEE that land again. and greet --.
The chiefs who once befrlended me.
So. a. sailed those seas once more. ...,,
When many yexrs bad passed away.
NJ ship dropped anchor Oh The shore
Where IN youth WA. cast away.
Amid the reels we roWed to land.
And. eager as q lover rls
To seek his mistress. to the strand
etrode to make discoveries.
Less changed than my own life appeared
The w0ndrous island sceneryB
Near by the grow Of cncoa reared
Their fans of waving greenrry;.
There the old shaggy, cane-thstched tovn.
And, hablted still sparlpglY,
The natives who came straggling down.
Anu heard my questions staringly.
WIN bl8n8 OIL woe tQelT 8rmo they uuu8
When !. in broken sentences
In their well nigh forgotten tongue,
Inquired Tor old acquaintances.
'Dexdi deatl!' my friendly chiefs, ana the
Who from the isle had driven me.
But y hen spoke my sobriquet-
The name the tribe had given me
Twas strange. the sudden easerness :,
And zeal with which they grated It
S0n-oi.the-Great-Sea-M Mott err YeB!'' ....,
They jIyfully repeated 1t
AeS n thEvn
What thls amazing blundsr meant.
Forthwith followed TO n low
Rude deor In utter wondernent.
Their temple, lined with sacred stones
And heather curiosities:
Dried birds and fishes. reptiles bones.
And other such mnnstrositiee;
Relics and charms strung round the place.
Trophies Of fights and scrimmages;
And propped behind the central space.
The rudest OF carved images.
Which ! myself with shells aud knife
| Had shSped in my captivity
| A task to keep my heart and life
From pun poseless passivity,
The mouth 100 wide, too short the nose
How well r. collected iii
| Now here. grlnning IDOL. those
| Sad wretches bad erected 1t.
| Breeched and bedizened in . style
| Preposlerous and laugh .blel
| gazed. the guardian prIes' the while
| Eying me, fat and adable.
SwArthy and sleek, with unctuous smifk.
Admitting me to see 1t, he
| Called it great magic handiwork.
And image Of their deityi
| 'sOut of the ocean. in his slesp''
| pTwas hard to listen seriously
'He came to US, and in the deep
Vanished again mysteriousiy.
He taught our people" !thus the priests
| Narration Ia translatable)
| ITO discontinue at their leaBts
Some customs he found hstable
"Not to hunt men. although we were.
As now, \ strong and bold people,
Nor beat our women, nor inter
Alive our sick and old people;
To have more clothes and fewer wives,
With houses more commodious:
To speak true words and make our liyes
| In other ways less odious.
"These changes we found polite.
Though backward in assuming Them;
SO now we leave our old and sick
To starve before inhumlng them.
While yet some rich men on the coast
| Practice the old polyRamy,
The poor have one wife, or at most
CoLfine themselves to bigamy.
"And though some warriors Of reaowa
Continue snthropophagous,
IT'S rare that human flesh gees down
The iow-caste mans osophsaus.
Woman We seldom beat while abe
Is faithful and obedIent;
| We only hunt an enemy,
And lie when its expedient,
SOid men remember, still few
| How he appeared and talked with them,
Though not Ill he Was gone they knew
deity had walked with them,