Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1906-10-05

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landers, pursued and captured and
slaughtered for the cannibal ovens,
which were now never idle. Some
poor creatures who could swim tried
to cross to another little island, TWO
miles away, but were devoured by
sharks.
And so, without arms to defend
their lives, they saw themselves dec
imated week by week, for whenever
the natives came to seize some Of their
number for their ovens they came In
force.
Six or seven months passed. and
then one day the French corvette
Phoque appeared Off the island. She
had been sent by the governor Of New
Caledonia to ascertain IL any Of the
Cinnamon were still on the island, or
| IL all had escaped.
Two only. survived. They were seen
running along the beach to meet the
boats from the corvette, and we're
taken on board half demented-all the
rest had gone into the stomachs Of
cannibals or sharks
At the present time the natives Of
Rossel Island are subjects Of King
J Edward VII and are included in the
government Of the possession of Brit
ish New Guinea, have a resident mis-
sionary and several traders and are
well behaved. They would cast up
their eyes IN pious horror IL any visitor
now suggested that they had once been
addicted to "long pig"
Ten days after passing Rossel Island
we were among the islands Of Dampier
and Vitiza Straits. which separated the
western end Of New Britain from the
east coast of New Guinea. 1t was an
absolutely new ground for recruiting
blackbirds. and our voyage was in
reality but an experiment.
We (the officers and y knew that
the natives were dangerous lot Of
savage cannibals, speaking many dia-
lects, and had hitherto only been In
Communication with an occasional
trading, pearling or sandalwood seek
ing vessel. We had no fear Of being
cut of, however.
We had a fine vessel, with high
freeboard. so that II we were rushed
by canoes the boarders would find some
trouble in clambering on deck; on the
main deck we carried four six pound
ers, which were always kept In good
order. Then our double crew were all
well armed with Sharp carbines and
the latest pattern Of Colt revolvers,
and, above all, the captain had conf
dence in his crew and oficers and they
In him.
/ /, the recruiter, had with me as In
terpreter a very smart native of Ysa-
bel Island, Solomon Group, who. five
years before, had been wrecked on
Rock Island, in Vitiza Straits, had liv-
ed among the cannibal natives for
year and then been rescued by an Aus
trian man -of-war on an exploration
voyage. He said that he could make
himself we'll understood by the natives,
and this found to be correct.
We anchored in a charming little bay
on Rook Island (Baga), and at once
some hundreds of natives came on and
boarded us in the most fearless man
ner. They at once recognized my In
terpreter and danced about him and
yelled their delight at seeing him again.
Every one Of these savages was
armed with half dozen spears, jade
headed club or powerful bow and ar
rows and a wooden shield. They were
much finer type Of savage than the
natives Of New Britain, lighter in col
or, and had not so many repulsive
characteristics. Neither were they alb
solutely nude, each man wearing
gifdle of dracaena leaves, and although
they were betel nut chewers and car
ried their baskets Of areca. nuts and
leaves and powdered lime around their
necks they did not expectorate the dis
gusting scarlet juice all over our decks,
as the New Britain natives would have
done. We noticed that many Of them
had recently inflicted wounds, and
learned from them that few days
/ previously they had had great fight
with the natives of Tupinier Island,
twenty miles to the east, and had been
badly beaten, losing sixty men. But
they proudly added, they had been able
to carry off eleven Of the enemy's dead,
and had only just finished eating them.
The chiefs brother, they said, had
been badly wounded by bullet In the
thigh-the Tupinier natives had rev
muskets-and was suffering great pain
as the doctors could not get 1t out.
Now. here was a chance for me-
something which would perhaps lead
to our getting a number Of these can
nibals to recruit for Samoa. I consid-
cred myself a good amateur surgeon
1 had had plenty Of practice-and at
once volunteered to go on shore, look
at the injured gentleman and see what
I could do.
NV friend Bobaran in New Britain
had cured of an eczemic disorder by
very simple remedy, and he had been
grateful patient. Here was another
chance, and possibly another grateful
patient: and being a gunshot wound
I was rather keen on attending to It,
for the Polynesians and Melanesians
will stand any amount Of cutting about
and never finch. And there are no
coroners in the South Seas to ask silly
questions II the patient dies from
mistake Of the operator.
| Morel, the captain, the interpreter
and myself went on shore. The beach
was crowded with women and chill
dren, as we'll as men-a sure sign that
no treachery was intended-and nearly
all of them tried to embrace my inter-
prefer.
The clamor these cannibals made was
terrific, the children being especially
vociferous. Several of them seized my
hands and literally dragged me along
to the house of the wounded man;
others possessed themselves of Morei
and the interpreter. and in a few min
utes the whole lot Of us tumbled, or
rather fell, into the house.
Then, in an instant there was ST.
lence. The excited women and chill