The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1921-02-07

to come over if we would
-
/ THE DISAPPEARANCE OF
A NOBLE RACE
The past hundred years has been
sad story in the disappearance OF
the Marquesans from their native
home in the islands of Marquesas
They were a very fair skinned and
beautiful people, very clearly and
sanitary in their habits, living in the
water to a great extent, bathing al
most as constantly as children play
and living almost entirely. on fruits
and fishes. When the islands were
discovered they had everything pro-
vided by nature in such abundance
that they were perhaps the best fed,
| the best nourshed and the best
bathed people on the face of the
| earth. They were merry people,
a happy people and devoted a great
cal of time to exercise and play.
Theirs was perhaps the purest race
on the face of the earth, being I'M
mixed by crossing or blending with
! any other races.
The islands were first discovered
by white men, Spaniards, in 1896
and then for 179 years they were
never seen again by foreign people.
| Captain Cook touched those islands
in LIZA and learned that there we're
100000 of the Marquesans. From
that time on sailors frequently
! OHched at their ports and about the
year 1920 whaling vessel put in at
harbor in the island of Mukahiva
md sent man ashore. who was very
i'll with tuberculosis.
The natives received him in a
| Christian manner, provided him with
| 9Fery comfort they could, nursed him
until he died, inhaled his breath and
others came down with the disease
Their lungs seemed a fertile field for
planting the tuberculosis germs and
the disease ragged among their tribe
killing them off rapidly. There was
10 means of treating it and these
simple people off mere ny themselves
with no idea as to remedies, with
their blood perfectly pure and with
no idea of recovery when death ap-
preached simply went to the grave
rapidly. Their numbers were thin
ned out SO that in the year 1900
there were only 1000 people left out
of the 100000, eighty years before
that. In the year 1920 it was esti-
mated that there were 10000 fight
ing men on the island and now there
are practically none. There are
about 1000, the remnants of whole
aation of 100000 people a century
ago.
But tuberculosis was not the only
enemy Of the -Marquesans, the white
:aen desiring to cultivate their fer
tile soil and not wishing to do the
work themselves, brought Chinese
coolies to the island to operate plan
tations there and along with the
coolies came leprosy. The fine
healthy bodies of the Marquesans
proved a fertile field in which to
plant leprosy and it killed them off
rapidly. About the year 1886 the !
French nation claimed the Marque-
sans and there being no one to dis
put them, extended their sovereignty
over the island, engaged in the
opium trade with the Chinese coolies
who were there and fastened the
habits on them and then for 10000
francs they licensed a French farmer
to produce opium and be it's exclusive
salesman in the island. He fastened
the habit so successfully upon the
Marguesans that it brought about a
deplorable condition, undermining
the strength Of the race. AS IL all |
these injuries were not enough, the
Peruvian slave traders carried of |
thousands of the Marquesans, trans
ferred them to Peru and there sold |
them to work in the mines. The
slave ships passing. back and forth
brought small pox to the island and
that ragged among the natives along
with tuberculosis and leprosy. Added
to all that, were other diseases
brought by the sailors and when the
worked among these
people, the natives regarded the
sickness and plague as a punishment
sent upon them by the Gods Of the
missionaries and they used to bring
out their crippled, deformed and dy-
ing to lay in front of the missionar-
les in reproachment for having
brought such dire punishment upon
the Marquesans.
1t was sad day when the white
men came to the island. They were
an old race; thru all the centuries
they had been happy, healthy and
,ontented. The white men brought
hem every curse instead Of educa-
Ion and training which would have
been great blessing to them and to
he world. The history of the Mar
luesans is practically finished and
he record closed. It is a sad COM
nentary on the Christian nations of
he world that they permitted the
of their races to bring all +,
hese curses and death to the Mar [
Luesans I