Elmore bulletin. [volume] (Rocky Bar, Idaho) 1889-1906, 1891-09-05
CIUS0E SETTLEMENTS.
ROMANTIC LIFE ON A LITTLE
SOUTH PACIFIC ISLAND.

story Of a Runaway English sai'or-An-
other Little Colony In the kermasiec
Group--Castaways an "a Coral Reef Pit
cairn Island.
/ About four mouths ago. as the English
eark Queens island was passing PalmerstOn
Island, IN the southern Pacific. the captain
4 was surprised a. Scr hoat containing eight
/ persons put or from the shnre II was gen
orally supposed that this little coral island
one OF the least important OF the lIersey
/ group, and about three hundred miles from
its nearest neighbor, WAS uniuhabitod Capt
Reid, however. had accidently approached
near enough to this little sIeck IA the ocean
10 discover another Of those romantic island
settlements which are now aud then unex-
pectedly found IN the bread expanse Of the
| great Pacific
The bronzed and rather scantily clad white
man who clambered up the side OF the bark
said he was William Marston, the chief OF
the little island where he had lived for
twenty-five years. Whom he was young
| man he deserted from the British bark Rifle
| man in Tahiti and made his way Ia small
sailboat nearly 900 miles west to the Her.
| vey group He took native wife and jour-
neyed on TO Palmerston Island, where he
| built him a cabin and started a cucoanut
plantation. A few natives joined him, and
| now his little world contains thirty-tlLree
! human beings, of whom fifteen are his own
children. English is the only language
spoken in this little community, whose island
home is not 80 large as some Dakota farms
Here the subjects Of the runaway English
sailor live ON the happiest terms, getting
along very well without the news and gossip
OF the world, while enjoying, nevertheless,
many Of the good things Of civilization
brought 10 them by small trading vessels. 20
whom they sell the copra prepared from their
cocoanuts
! Within the past few years several islands
have been discovered in the Pacific which, IL
was found, mad long been known by small
| traders, who in the interests OF monopoly
carefully kept their information to them
selves. After the Sydney newspapers an
nounced the discovery of "a fine new island
| not far from New Guinea a sea captain i'm
port produced very good map OF the island
which he had made several years before He
had probably hoped 10 hand down the secret
to his heirs rs an exclusive trading privilege
l In this way Il has happened that Marston's
| little colony has hourished unknown save TO
one or two traders, whose interests have kept
them quiet
Hundreds of the little islands Of the Pacific
are uninhabited, and are very rarely seen by
vessels Who knows but among them Inay
be modern Robinson Crusoes. waiting pa-
tieDtly for a sail, and living in "A fair degree
of comfort upon the bounties of which na-
ture is so lavish in those regionsi We have
recently told the story OF Mr.. Bell and his
little family, who are monarchs Of all they
survey in the Kernadec group, 600 miles
from their nearest neighbors. The passen-
gers and crew Of the bark Henry James, who
were rescued in May last from coral reef
in Polynesia, know what it is TO be cast
aways in the Pacific, hundreds OF miles from
inhabited islands II they had not fortu.
nately saved their small boat they might
have been prisoners for many months ON the
little island Five men in the boat carried
the news of their disaster BOD miles to Sa.
moa, and in less than two months deliver.
ance came. They needed clothing, but were
not otherwise in serious want, for fish and
cocoanuts had amply supplemented the slen-
der food supplies with which they had
reached their place Of refuge.
Among the jubilee presents received by
Queen Victoria were some hats and other
/ manufactures, most skillfully made of straw,
the humble tribute OF the most unique and
famous OF Pacific colonies. In 1890 the Pit
/ cairn islanders may celebrate the centennial
| of the landing Of their mutinous fathers ON
| the little rock where Lady Belcher, their his
torian, says they have become such a com
munity as has been the dream OF poets aud
] the aspiration OF philosophers" IL is not
often the world hears from these happy and
peaceful islanders now numbering liz souls,
| who have perpetuated the remarkable colony
founded ninety y-eisht years ago by English
sailors; but it is refreshing now and then TO
I contemplate their idyllic existence, cut OF as
they are from the busy world, tilling the fer
tile valleys Of their little home only two and
quarter square miles in extent, possessing a
schoolhouse and church, but no jail intelli-
gent, neat and clean, with plenty of books
and fruit and flowers, a simple hearted, de-
vout people, and the only Christian com
munity in the world TINT has no strong
drink, tobacco or money
A traveller ON an English bark which
touched at Pitcairn in February last saws he
saw among the islanders men who in stature
would be "A credit to the Royal Guards. and
women who were fair to see, Though their
garments were not rich and fashionable;
women who are skilled in the arts of house
wifery, in the making Of fancy baskets and
| shell work, and SOME, too, who can play ex
cellently on the little church organ Born
TO this life Of isolation, the Pitcairn Islander
hears with wonder and delight, bat without
envy, Of the world beyond his sen grit home
| When, years ago, Pitcairn became too
crowded, considering its slender resour-.s,
and the people were removed by Great
Britain to Norfolk that island small as it
| Is, bewildered them by its vastness Having
only footpaths in Pitcairn, they thought the
wagon roads Of Norfolk unsightly, and the
echoes aroused by their voices Ia the stone
quarter where convicts had once lived i'm.
pressed them a most disagreeable novelty
A minority decided that they could not lie
happy among these strange surroundings
and they returned 10 Pitcairn 20 live and dia
New York Sun.