Semi-weekly south Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1883-1889, 1886-11-02
CRUELTY CAST AWAY.

A Poor italian Who Was for Many Years
u Slave Among Canniba's.
The crew OF the bark Rambler, which
returned to London late in May from u
trading trip among the islands of tho
western Pacific, reported having seen in
= crowd of native New Britainers the
unfortunate Italian OF whom sailors
now and then brought t;dings. As far
is known no attempt has ever been
made TO rostore him 10 his native land.
For years he was a solitary captive
among the ficrce natives of Bougain-
vile, one Of the largest islands of the
Solomon group. He was starved. NAL
treated and overworked. His sulIcringJ
made him almost an imbecile. Twenty
years Of life among the worst savages
of the Pacific so changed him that he is
hardly recognizable as man Of Euro
pean origin.
The crew OF the Rambler say he is as
big cannibal as any Polynesian, wears
one long lock of hair in coil on the
top Of his head, is dressed in native
bark cloth, will not visit the vessels
that at rare intervals cast anchor near
the tribe with whom he now lives, and
will not open his lips TO white men. ex.
cept to ask for food.
When Mr.. Romilly was cruising in the
western Pacific, in 1881, he saw tho
man and tried unsucces,fully to talk
with him.. His name. it is said, was
published years ago, but every recent
writer who has mentioned him seems to
have forgotten it. He was a member
of the celebrated expedition which the
Marquis dc Ray sent 10 New Ireland.
This large party of French and Italian
co!onists, deceived by glowing accounts
of the richness and salubrity of the
country, left their homes to settle in the
new EIdorado. They were landed on
the most inhospitable coast of New Ire
land, and the ship sailed away, leaving
them to their fate.
Some of them died of hunger or fever.
Others were lost while making thcr
way to other islands in small boats. A
few were eventually rescued. The last
relic of this melancholy enterprise is the
Italian whose wrctched existence Is still
prolonged. With five comrades he
rowed two hundred miles to Bouga H.
vile, where, as soon as they touched tho
shore, his companions were killed, and
he was reserved for more terrible fate.
He was sold US slave 20 bush tribe in
the interior. Years of captivity so com
pletely changed the man that when he
was offered to Queensland labor ship
for two tomahawks the trade was made
His new owners thought he was n ma
tive, and expected TO make fine proli
by disposing of his services to soml
Queensland planter. They discovered
however, after a few days, that he wa
nothing but an unfortunate Italian. ant
so they showed him ashore on New
Britain as an object of no Commercial
value. There he still lives, a miserable
reminder of the most unfortunate party
of Europeans who ever went to thu
western Pacific.
A number Of white men long held in
captivity among savagcs are known tC
have been greatly weakened in mind by
their cruel experiences. Joseph Forbes,
young English sailor, was prisoner
on the little islands of Timor Laut
northwest of New Guinea, for seventeen
years. When he was rescued, in 1889
he could not talk to his rescuers MOI
even understand a word of English
The knowledge of his mother tongue
however, rapidly came back to him a
he improved in mental health. He died
only a few years ago in Australia An
Y. Sun.