The Forrest City times., 1907-12-13

the island Of Tanna. ia the South P. cific.
 lie had a mission station there. And his native converts were no strapssn to Christmas observance; but they invited large number of their heatS. en friends to come to their Yuletid. feast. These heathens knew po,h ing about Christmas. and were ouite unaware that 1t is supposed to be period of peace on earth and good will toward men"
 Over 1000 natives were gathered for the great feast The crew of | "blackbirding schooner" eager to get kanaka labor by fair means or foul for the Queensland sugar plantations heard of the gathering and dropped anchor on the island on Christmm morning. The captain. however, see ing the number of natives. hesitated to molest them.
 Telling the story, MT Patton said: My first anxiety was the labor schooner, but soon new peril threas ened Some of the heathens had not met since war had ragged between them At first they simply glared at each other. and then old hatreds broke out and hot words were spoken.
 Again and again l started some contest that would scatter the excited groups, but they soon came together again Then l went from group to group and tried to spread better feeling. Our Christmas gathering vas nearly turned into scene of blood shed in our very garden. but forta nately all passed of most happily
 Among the Head Hunters of Formos1
 Through the center of the beauuM island of Formosa there runs. Ike backbone, a great range of foresteia mountains. The original inhaoltanu of Formosa. a wild. savage. ferociou race of men, live upon these noun tains Christmas was first carFis to these people by brave missionary named George Leslie Mackay.
 MacKay had spent several years on the coast and in the interior. oul ns hesitated long before he took ms as in his hand by seeking out the DAT barians of the mountains. to Waoa no white man had ever ventured-
 The favorite pastime of these sas ages was to cut of the heads oi tna1 enemies and decorate their huts N'.l them. They had been indulglne this sport when MacKay drlfteo ia'' one of their villages and spent ohi''S mas day with one of their chiefs.
 The chiefs home consisted oi ol' large room 30 feet long said Macna'. "A fire blazed at either end. iss men. dressed in coarse linen sA. with holes cut for the arms, anu broad belt of braided rattan. in Wh''. was stuck a long, crooked, sharp'ppa'nn. ed knife. stood around one nre' ~nD' the women, with much the same ui's. save that in addition they had n'an, rings of brass around their arms -. limbs, and innumerable ornaments '. their bodies, squatted around '' other fire.
 50, on that Christmas night, ] 'ss sa, there with these rude people - room lighted by the fires and D, "a <, dies made from the heart or lhe :. :, tree. The men smoked their pai.lOss .s pipes. while the women were p1.. threadmaking on curious littie -. chimes of their own; and all, men -, women, were laughing and ta''',s merrily and making great noise' =, was certainly merry Christmas A' strange one to me.
 After a time, with the help oi '. native converts, who had accohpaA.. me on this dangerous trip, sa. some Christmas hymns to these - age mountaineers. who had new seen a white man before; and spN Christmas evening trying to expiala them the old, old story that mas sse s. told so often in so many lands f'-' the first Christmas morning.
 The savages took great pleasure the singing of the Christmas hS uH and MacKay and his friends calHe no harm by their bold expedition.