Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-09-30

| travellers gracious greeting and sent a
young savage whom she called Gideon to
take my small belongings to daintily
furnished room. The eyes of the youngster
were so bright, his movement so agile, that
l made some inquiries which led me,
soon as the storm was over, to 60, see and
photograph the Dobuan death chair. The
Vlvacious kid Gideon kept at my heels and
emitted few sentences OF English. On
the shore OF the sea stood the death chair,
ready for the next victim.
Death Is mysterious to the savage mind
and he feels led to adopt divers devices to
destroy its fateful power. Here the chair
is used 1t is made of the trunks OF small
trees. dashed with thongs OF grass. In 1t
Is placed the dead body, and a section OF
the deceased's favorte bowl. purposely
broken. Is hung on one side OF the back
and a basket of yams the other. The
whole is then let down into a circular hole
in the ground. 1t is customary in the case
of mother to hang around the neck OF
the body the jaw bone OF her late husband,
and to bury her live baby II there is one,
with her.
Recently Mrs. Bromilow saw a commotion
and ran to learn the cause. finding that a
| mother and live baby boy were being bur-
led together. The heroic wife OF the mis-
sonary pushed the savages aside with an
almost superhuman strength, jumped into
the circular grave. tore off the thongs hold
ing the baby to the breast of the corpse,
and amid the most awful maledictions and
bloody threats of the violent cannibals,
made her way toward the mission house.
She fell exhausted just friendly ative
| took the baby boy. whom she had literally
snatched out of the jaws of death. That
rescued child was at my side while photo
| graphed the death chair. His name is
| Gideon.
On my return from the death chair there
| was an earthquake, but we did not go out
| to see Its effects. The island is of vol
| canic formation and is subject to violent
shocks. In the middle of the bit of land
| steam escapes, and there the savages do
| their cooking.
A few years ago when Bromilow and his
heroic wife came the savages. who were
then cannibals. held a council of war
and notified Bromilow he must do one OF
three things-either leave. be killed and
eaten, or become chief. He considered
the first and said: Il cannot leave" The
second presented only the advantage OF a
saving of funeral expenses and he finally
decided on the third choice and became a
great chief He remains such TO this day.
Then he built a church, but nobody would
enter 1t. For long time he wondered why.
At last one of the chiefs told him this
ancient legend:
"A wizard, long time ago got the people
to go into a house, and then called out:
Mind your eyes" So great was the wiz
ards power that they all became birds
without feathers. Again the master ma
| gician called out: Mind your eyesr and
| then they all got feathers. Although birds
| they still had the minds of men. A hum
ming bird found little hole by which he
escaped. Other small birds squeezed
through the hole. which gradually en-
larged, until even the largest bird could
get through when his time came. Having
escaped from the building! the birds scared
around In the air, not knowing what to do.
Then the sorcerer called: Settle in the
trees They did SO, and that is how the
beautiful birds of Dobu origina ted"
Then the chief added: "Chief Bromilow,
that building Of yours looks like the bird
house. and the medicine man says you will
get the people in it, cut off the land on
which it stands, put on rudder and steer
the people off into the great unknown"
Bromilow and his noble wife have con-
verified thousands of the savage population,
and he has not had a vacation for ten
years.
/ met one day the great chief Gaga Mu-
more, who brags that his strong right hand
has killed over fifty powerful men face to
face. He would not deign to attack a man
in the back. He entertained me with two
roast chickens and a leaf full OF yams. All
the while he ate betel nut green peppers
and lime mixed together, which had the i'm
mediate effect Of making his mouth appear
as If full of fresh blood. This was to him
no disadvantage, for it has always been
| his custom to drink out OF a cocoanut shell
| the bloc d Of his victims
He has now, under Bromilow's influence
| given up his cannibal customs and is about
| to become a Christian. He is of large stat
| ure and has, for savage, fine face. But
| l noticed an unpleasant birthstone odor
! about him which led to question his
near conversion. l found l was doing him
an injustice, for 1 discovered that the sui
| phurous odor came out Of the earth.