Year: 1878







Other bones and effects recovered in the neigh
borhood. After this the expedition returned home
with not single one Of the party wounded.


REPUTATION REcoNcuIArIoS.


Mr. Brown returned to tho north side the next
week. visiting the towns that had sent In shell money
in payment for their eannibasni, and on the lth OF
May reached Diwawon, where he found the natives
afraid meet him, but they at last. twoof the
chiefs bringing shell money as payment and us an
expression OF friendship Mr.. Brown spoke to them
very kindly. explained our position fully, and made
them well pleased and satisfied Of our good Will 10,
ward them by accepting the diwsra shell money! and
giving them good present in return. We then Went
on to Kerava. where we found great many people
waiting for had sent several times telling them
that we were coming 10 make friends with them asa
Among the crowd OF the chiefs from the
town where Sailasa and the teachers were killed. ne
had sent down diwara and asked TO be forgiven 50
they sent up to him to come down and meet me.
Poor fellow, he spent such an anxious
hour in his life as he did that day. He was sn.-
rounded by Kerayia natives ostensiby his friends.
but he evidently felt that they no protection 70
him. sat down just in front OF him. as wished 10
gain his confidence and to make him feel that we
really forgaye the past At first he evidently wished
that would choose seat little further away from
him. but afterward he got more at ease.
aneerted his present and those Of the other chiefs.
and then. in accordance with their custom, made
them return present ~ token OF good WILL Ithel
and spoke to them all, reviewing our conduct
from the commencement of the mission, and re-
minded them OF our many acts OF Kindness TO them.
then assured them that fully forgave them that
the past should be all forgotten and that would be
good friends again. They assented to all said. ex-
pressed for what done and begged To have
a teacher stationed with them, to which agreed
site for q school house selected the next day
Sunday and service was held there Another mos
ing that they wished pay. they had taken part
in the cannibalism. This was surprise, as these
towns had not been heard OF as implicated in the af
fair They described with horrible particularly tho
part which had fallen to their share


MIR. BROWNS COURSE THE RIGHT ONE?


Had he been military man or even an ordinary
civilian this question would hardly have been asked.
He is. however. missionary, messenger Of the
Gospel Of Peace and must be held the srctest ac
count and liable to the severest judgment Tho
reasons which impelled him to this step have been
given. Reviewing his own action. he says:-''The
effect, certain has been most beneficial, and III
this conviction all the foreign residents here
l am certain that our mission here stands better
we are in a better position to do them good. They
respect more than they did, and, they all
knowledge the justice OF our cause, they bear
i'll WILL Human life is safe here now and will be
for many years to come. This lesson will not
be forgotten by the tribes here They say, 1T was
anlcarthquake. and not fight can locate teachers
in the very towns which suffered the most and they
will be we'll received not because they fear but
because they feel it to be the best thing for hem
We have had several proofs since both from New Ire
land and other places, that other lives would have
been sacrificed il no action had been taken by On
looking back now, some weeks afterward, and con-
sidering quietly and calmly the past events,
honestly believe that the plan adopted the best,
and in fact. the only one which could have saved
the mission and many Of our lives. 1t is true
that many lives have been lost. probably be-
tween fifty and eighty, but the present and
future good OF thousands will far outbalance
that. This has been unprovoked shooting OF
tives was it anything like al attempt to force
way into their country by force OF arms They muir
dered the teachers while friendly with them and
" hilc knowing them to be men of peace. Ours
honorably conducted war in conjunction with the
natives themselves, which was forced upon
our own lives and to prevent recurrence of any
such barbarities.


Wilfred Powell and Greenville A. Wood master and
mate Of the ketch Star of the East; George Turner
botanical collector; William Hicks and IL. Blohm
traders, and Charles L. Young and James Mc(irath
residents. who participated in the expedition, have
given Mr. Brown card expressing the belief that but
for his prompt action in the matter the lives neither
OF traders missionarics would have been safe in
any part Of the groups and approving his course un
reseryedly.


Mr.. McCirath has in addition, testified personally
to the Wesleyan Board OF Missions at sydney to the
effect that the of the murder and cannibalisn
having spread through the island had Immediately
produced an altered and hostile demeanor the part
of the natives toward the mission and particularly
that on the reaching the Duke OF York Island
natives supposed to be friendly appeared the mis-
sion premises making insolent and menacing demands
for property. which had to be complied with; that
chief OF town in New Ireland on hearing the news,
forcibly dragged away the wife teacher stationed
there. and would not give her up till he learned of
the retribution the missionaries and whites had
acted; that Talili attempted to kill the widows and
children Of the murdered teachers and only pre-
vented by some Europeans who there; that he
further sent notice to the towns in New Britain
where teachers resided that he would make upon
them unless they killed their teachers and that he
sent threatening message to Mr. Brown that he in
tended to eat him and had his taro ready. The
Sydney Adr0cGc reviews the in oil of its partic
lars and concludes that Mr.. Browns course the
best that could be taken. adding that his action
unprecedented in the history OF Wesleyan missions
the Pacihc but the circumstances in which
he found himself placed"


ACTION or rHE BOARD OF MISSIONS


The Board Of Missions of the Australian Wcsleyan
Church receiving the news held meeting the
l6tn OF september, at which, after reading Mr..
Browns account OF tho affair and questioning Mr..
McGrath they decided make provision for the wild
and children of the murdered brethren and convey
them to their homes, and expressed their sympathy
with the missionaries who risked their lives by con-
tnuing to reside among barbarous people, and par
ticularly with Mr.. Brown lin the very perplcxing,
painful and dangerous position in which he was
placed" but at the time deeply regretting
'.that no other seemed to him to be open
which would insure the safety of himself and of the
large number OF persons belonging to the mission
patty of whom he was regarded AZ the protector"
The Board desires to give the fullest publicity to all
the facts n the case that all who interested
it may have the best assistance in forming sound
conclusion on the matter