The morning times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1897, 1895-11-17

Forty-two years in the South Sea Islands
with new pair of lungs and a claim for
500, 600 against the British government
to show for 1t, Is the unique experience of
Mr.. G. Rodney Burt, of No. 10 Third street
northeast. Mr.. Burt returned To this coun-
try year ago. He has just gone into
business with a real estate firm here. He
probably knows more about the islands of
the great Pacific than any other man in
America, II not in the world.
Four years he was in Samoa, where Rob-
1 ert Louis Stevenson died, and thirty-eight
years among the Fiji Islanders. He knows
all the dialects OF the FlJians and is familiar
with all their customs and capabilities.
He is probably the only American who ever
saw a feast on human flesh, and he possesses
the finest collection OF Photographic views
and lantern slides showing scenes and men
OF these far-away people that exists in the
world today.
To very many persons the Fiji Islands are
as misty as the tabled isles Of Atlantis.
where the golden apples grow. Others who
have a little wider range OF geographic
information, remember them as few dots
on the broad bosom OF the white peaceful
Pacific, as shown on the ordinary aliases.
1t takes very fine map of the world to
show them as they really are-nearly equal
in extent to the State of Observation-Disclosures
there are comparatively few Of even the
unusually well-informed who realize that
here is one of the finest residence portions
OF the habitable globe, enjoyed by the finest
race physically that ever existed outside
civilized life, and probably averaging better
than any civilized race in the matter OF
mere bodily perfection.
The kingdom of the FiJians embraces
eighty habitable islands. They lie around
the Goro sea, 5000 miles from every where.
The largest island is seventy miles by
ninety In extent, and the next largest is
twenty-five by l25 miles in extent. These
are broken with ranges of high hills, and
have large rivers. One of the rivers is
navigable for small steamboats, for over
forty miles inland.
Tie climate il hardly exccllcd any where.
The thermometer ranges at the extreme
bet ween GO and 100 degrees. 1t very
rarely reaches either of the excessive figures.
There is always the benignant sea breeze.
Food is abundant, easily procured, and of
the finest quality furnished by nature. 1t
consists OF several varieties Of potatoes,
bread fruit, melons, fowls, pigs, turtles,
such as bon vivants boast OF, and all KINDS
OF sea food.
MI Burt is a native of Jefferson County,
New York, on Lake Ontario, and was
brought up a mariner. He comes of an old
New England family who settled in 1857
upon the farm which lies ON Morris Cove at
New Haven. Conn. where one branch OF
the descent stiIl lives. His father and
brothers were navigatOrs, and he earned
the position of a master mariner.
oil far-ar ~ q hRiOhr
in California. and miners were coming down
from the Sierras with their pockets fun OF
the yellow dust TO fling around the ruffianly
little town of San Francisco, lie sailed IN
n passpnger ship for Samoa. That was In
1852.
After remaining at these islands, long
known as the Navigator Islands, for four
years with some interruption, he became
dissatisfied and set sail in his own boat,
the G. r. Burt for the Fiji kingdom. He
arrived there in the year 1856. He was
fortunate enough to come at time to
receive a welcome from the King of
Ongaloa and was soon high in royal
favor, He was an expert navigator, and
this brought him at once into useful re-
lations with the wild people with whom
he had cast his fortunes.
He also became a valuable public man
by his knowledge of the dialects OF the
tribes.
The peoples are unacquainted with each
others tongu es, because they are so
steadily engaged in warfare that there is
little opportunity to learn the dialects.
He thus continued year after year in his
capacity as public mariner and chief inter-
prefer. year ago he determined TO re-
turn to his native land and took passage
on the British ship Warramoo. She landed
him at Vancouver little before Christmas
Mr.. Burt is a hearty old gentleman and