The Kootenai herald. [volume] (Kootenai, Idaho) 1891-1904, 1895-12-28
Most Remarkable in the History
Of Ocean Disaster
THOUGHT THEM IMMORTAL
When lie PIanucd to Capture Their King
tn. 1 inders stabbed Him
as Mortal.

on Sunday, February A. 1879. Cap
tain James Cook, the celebrated Eng
lish navigator. was killed by the natives
of Owhyhee. as it's name was formerly
spelt by Europeans. OF Hawaii, accord
ing to its more recent spelling. one Of
the Sandwich islands. and which gave
it's name to the Hawaiian kingdom, ex-
tending over a rich. beautiful and inter-
esting chain of 10 islands.
Walter Besant. in his interesting BIZ
ography of Cook is of opinion that the
death of the navigator was the most
remarkable in the whole history Of
ocean disaster
King. Samuel. Gilbert and others of
Cooks companions gave their nara
tives of the event, but the true history
of ii was not known till William Ellis.
agent of the London Missionary SOcie-
ty, visited the island in 1923, and con-
versed with natives who had seen the
murder committed. There was, it
seemed, says Spare Moments, legend
among them that LOno, the swine god,
had murdered his wife through jeal-
ousy, and then, having instituted ath-
letic games in her memory, sailed for
foreign land, prophesying: Il will re-
turn in aftertmes on an island bearing
cOcOanut trees swine and dogs
THOUGHT THEM IMMORTAL.
When Cook arrived. not only on a
ship with masts, but also with men in
cooked hats who were smoking tObac-
co, eating the red watermelon and talk
ing things from their pockets, and
10
ands with high trees, to have heads
horned like the moon, to carry fires
burning in their mouths, to eat the raw
flesh of men, and to take out of their
bodies what they required, these simple
savages imagined them immortal be-
! ings, and that the ancient prediction
was at length accomplished
Though Cook knew nothing of the
legend, it seems incredible that when
on the island in the midst of the ma
tives, he did not perceive that they
were paying him divine honors in their
| prostrations, litanies, sacrifices and
kisses, but, at any rate, the priests
caused the people to bring to him offer
| ings of pigs, fruit and cloth, which sup
| piled his crews in the Revolution and
Discovery and he allowed this homage.
This collection became very speedily
! a grievOus tax on the inhabitants.
! Moreover, Cook carried off for fuel the
| fence of the sacred place where he had
| received divine hOnOrs, and also some
idols. On February 4. 1879, he sailed
away; but in a week a gale which
caused the Revolution to spring her
formast. led him to return, and then
occurred quarrels about women, water
and one of the Discovery's cutters,
which was stolen.
HOW COOK DIED.
Cook resolved to carry the king "a
his vessel till the boat was restored.
His design was suspected, and the final
result of it was that one of the chiefs
stabbed him in the back between the
shoulders with one of the iron daggers
which Cook had given to them; anoth-
err with a blow on the head from club
caused him to fall into the sea, and
others kept him under the water a few
minutes, and then hauled him out up
on the rocks and beat his head against
them several times; so that doubtless
he quickly expired. Several lives were
lost on both sids
Though the natives were not canni-
balls, they had done all in their power
to make it impossible for Cook to
avenge himself, and, therefore, only
his head and hands could be recovered,
and these were buried in the ocean
alongside his vessel. THUS ended in
cloriously." writes Besant. land as the
result of an ill-advised attempt at
high-handed justice, the life of the
greatest navigator of any age who had
been born at Marion, in Yorkshire, on
October q, 1928. and after serving in
merchant vessels and the royal navy
till 1868 made those three remarkable
voya ges which terminated by his death
on February II, 1779."
TIC D0or in Her Facc