The Appeal. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn. ;) 1889-19??, 1901-01-05
FROM G|ANTS 70 DNARTS
FATE THAT FELL UPON ,rHE
PEAoEABLE RACE DISCOVERED
F. A CENTURY AGO
WORK OF OFFENDED GODS
Easter Island Has Defed the Curl
osity Of Man for Over.
~ .- - - f. 81 ..r.lr..
Century and u
= .-. Half.

One spot, and one only, in this vast ex-
panse of sea and .water on which we i've
has defined the .indomat "a bic spfr
man. This place IS known as Easter
island, Or 1t is generally called The Mys-
z terry of the Pacific Conceive an island
I. only eleven miles long and four broad.
$50 miles from the nearest land 0,it-
cairns) and 2.3oo from here, writes the
Valparaiso, Chile, correspondent of the
Cincinnati Enquirer
This island is called the Mystery of the
Pacific because it lies under a mysterious
bane. Once upon time it was fertile
enough to support in comfort thousands
:. or inhabitants. Then the whitening lanl
OF sterility descended on it's fair plains.
Today its ever-dwindling population OBJ
tains hut the scantiest' sustenance. But
this is not all. The race who not so
many years ago inhabited it have unac-
countably degenerated. -..'
When discovered by Davis some time IN
the last century Rapauni. as it was orig
inally called, was inhabited by race
OF giants, strong, robust and all over SIX
feet tall. The Dutch admiral, Rogge.
mein. who with large feet, while en-
deavoring to make Davis island, disccv-
cred, as he thought, unknown land
This happened on Easter Sunday. April
7, 1922. 49,. d., 49,
MEN WE'RE LARGE.
Believing it to be the very lard he was
IN search Of he christened the spot Easter
island. The admiral agrees that the peo-
pie were. of great size, and, that they
were armed with such powerful teeth as
to he capable of cracking nuts with shells
as thick as peach stones. -5.. -
When the Dutchmen's acquaintanship
with the islanders ripened they were sur
prised to find that for all their size.
strength and swiftness of foot. they were
l1nu vi ncfo nc fol
ingathey preferred relying on the. super
Natural assistance of the deties ranged
round the coast When the Dutchmen
did anything that displeased them the ,
natives would PROSTATE themselves at the
foot of these grim, silent monsters and
offer up prayer. Nothing, of course,
followed.a but as retribution often comes
slowly the worshipers were probably con-
tent to wait for the day of reckoning.
ALL HAVE DISAPPEARED.
Now. although all that has been de-
scribed only happened last century, these
facts are recalled hecausc these people
are concerned in the mystery which
travellers have hitherto failed to pene-
- trate. There were thousands of 4thsse
gigantic people OH Easter island IN the
!ast' century, probably 10000. There is
not one left today. They have not only
disappeared, but their place has been,
ants.
Both Davis and the Dutchman lay spe-
cial stress on the fertility of the soil
they both speak Of fruits. corn fowl,
the admiral especially being so struck
by the abundance and quality "of the
produce that on his return he rec ON
mended the island to the government as
suitable place for emigrants. Tie pc
r1od at which these unhappy people
straYed from the beaten paths of their
ancient religion is lost ir the mi5ts of
antiquity. Suffice it to say that many
many years ago the inhabitants of q cec-
tain islands in the South Pacific became
faithless to their religion, which For I'M
told ages had been the worship OF The
sun.
a BANE FELL ON ITEM "
For some reason probably because Ma
tule aphors Sameness, the SUM- weary Of
perpetually ripening fruit ara benr =,
paradise tor those who love to haslr o,a
feSel III ITS genial warmth surrendered 1ts
rlpen1ng TO the wind, rain and waves
me people grew so frightened and even.
tuaily so dlsgusted at contemplating skies
~ S,, .Iny o:ackness, and listening to the
moving OF the winds and the ro.r ~
tho ocean, that they flew into q NJ esio W
anu reVlllns the sun they had formerly.
SO adored, commenced carvinpio hr,,,
ne" set or gods out of stone. When tra
KING demonstrated they killed him. ono
dark night shortly after an awful voice
rang through the little island - :
Inc Dane was proclaimed: ''Wherever
they went, whatever they did famine ana
rum ana decay were to dog their foot
Steps. TO escape the horrors of so dread
a visitation the islanders took counsel A
year later little expedition put OUT to
sea. The leading boats contained the
ls!an6e1s, the hinder the gods of their new
,,ot,,. y, 1
!ceeded In reaching the islands which
form the subject of this article 1t is
- highly probable that on arriving the isl.
,anders- congratulated themselves on the;,
escape" but, II they did, they acted little
prematurely, for when the adventurous
spirits who century or so ago took to
exploring the world and discovered Easter
island the people we're already in the last
stages of decay. ~ ls.;@s3 sssg
me most interesting feature of this
W0nderful island today are the statues
Al. Al round round the coast there are numerous
platforms IN ruins on which sta tues
numbering PEI g 545 stood. The platforms num-
Der lls. The majority are 20 feet to 80
The Tongariki platform is $40 feet long
Including wings. Before the statues were
thrown down it boosted 15 \.
WORK SUDDENLY STOPPED.
An examination of the work shops stin
in existence makes it clear that for some
denly stopped, there being no fewer than
1856 images in various stages of prepara-
ton. What makes the matter still
stranger is the fact that. although the
people have all disappeared.
A sort of stone chisel was found some
ng highly n
genious drawings of mythical animals
which adorn the walls of the hundred
houses. once the abode of the giants, the
wooden t9hlafS 7yyxyifl oc1xy icc