The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1889-01-04
. MURDEROUS NATIVES.
Narrowing Tales of their Diabol-
ical Treachery.
Only Two Out of Nine Escape-Mowing
the Black-Skinned Devils Down
with Shot from a Six-Pounder
sweet Revenge.

In the year that our civil war broke
out l left Honolulu for trading trip
among the islands to the south, but be-
ing more particularly bound for the
Paumotu Islands. which lie to the
southeast, on the Tropic of Capricorn.
There are fifteen or twenty groups of
islands in the South Pacific, and while
the residents of some are civilized and
living like white folks, there are others
inhabited by scoundrelly gangs. There
are about thirty islands, large and
small. in the Paumotu group, and in
1861 there wasn't native among them
who was not thief and a liar when
dealing with white men. think there
were two or three English missionaries
on the larger island at the date men,
3ion, but their influence was limited.
The natives were a sneaking lot, always
playing for some point of advantage
and were rather held in contempt by
the traders. They would cheat, steal
and lie, but no one supposed them
brave enough to attack vessel
Our craft was a fine, new schooner
built on the model of fruiter, and one
of the fastest crafts ever propelled by
wind power She was also easy to ham
die. and carried dry deck through
seas which would have wet frigate
fore and aft. She was commanded by
Captain Walters, a very competent
man, while | had the berth of first mate
Our second was Mr.. Sheppard, and
we had six men before the mast. We
were loaded with articles of traffic, and
our armament consisted of one SIX
FOUNDER on a carriage and a dozen
swords and musketS. The Captain had
made two previous voyages to the is
lands, and he had very poor opinion
OF the courage of the natives.
We had an uneventful voyage to
within one hundred miles of the islands.
when we encountered the brig Frisco.
which had also beer on a trading voy-
age. She showed a signal of distress.
and | was ordered to go aboard in re-
Spouse. Her original crew of ten men
Captain was in need of the services of a
surgeon, having a bad scalp wound
and two cuts on the shoulder. Three
days before, as the brig had completed
her cargo, the native had made a de-
termined effort to capture her. Three of
her crew had been killed, one drowned.
and a fifth carried off prisoner. and
only one man of the five remaining had
escaped being wounded. In repelling
the natives thirty or forty of them had
been slaughtered, and the Captain ad-
vice to Us was to seek some other port.
We could not spare the brig any hands,
but we fixed up the wounded as well as
we could, our Captain went aboard to
hear the particulars of the fight, and
when the vessels separated We held to
our original course.
Il am not to be scared out by his
yarn, Mr.. Winters" he said to me. Il
know those niger natives. and | know
that they haven't the courage of a
sheep. suspect that the crew of the
p brig and the natives went on big
drunk together, and the whisky brought
about a quarrel, in which the sailors
knitted each other"
''But it won't be much trouble to
take proper precautions" I. replied.
sOh, no. You will have full charge
when We set on trading grounds. as l
will have to look after the barter. Take
such precautions as you like, though |
think it will be trouble for nothing"
My bump of caution is decidedly
prominent As sailor l always pre-
ferred to snug down and stow away be-
fore the storm broke. l got up the
outlasses and found them about as
sharp as spades The muskets were
rusty and out of repair, and the caps
and bullets slowed away where had a
long hunt to find them. We were in
sight of the islands before / had the