Russian Expedition to Japan. 11 



t'liege clubs I have in n^y possession. As soon as a couple 

 of the enemy have fallen, the battle immediately ceases, 

 because something has been obtained to eat. The English- 

 man, Roberts, cautioned us not to place any confidence in 

 these islanders ; to be always on our guard, and, when anv 

 of them offended us, to shoot them immediately : he assured 

 us that this would produce no bad consequences, and that 

 the rest would give themselves no trouble about it. Such 

 are the islanders of the South Seas, so celebrated for their 

 mildness and humanity ! On the most friendly of these 

 islands they are no better; and Cook, after being massa- 

 fred, was publicly eaten by the natives of the Sandwich 

 isles : nothing is clearer, notwithstanding the pains which 

 capt. King and M. Fleurieu have taken to contradict it. It 

 is mere folly to consider the man of nature, as he is called, 

 as better and more benevolent than the man who has been 

 civilized. Fortunately we had no disagreeable disputes with 

 them. They feared us on account of our fire-arms, and 

 considered us as atuat, or gods. None of them were ever 

 struck by our shot, though we sometimes fired muskets or 

 ?ome of our cannon in the uight-time, to friohten those 

 whom we heard swimming around us, and to prevent them 

 from injuring our cable. 



These islanders spend their time properly in a state of 

 indolence, and employ themselves onlv in dancing or or- 

 namenting their persons. When anv of them set about 

 niaking tackle for catching fish, a girdle, or club, the work 

 is speedily completed. On the whole, none of them, pro- 

 perly speaking, have any particular occupation. When we 

 gave any of them work to perform, it was a kind of festival 

 to them. They dragged away for us the wood whieh we 

 had cut down ; but they were most useful to us in filiino- 

 pur water casks. I do not know how other navia-atoi$ 

 couK' convey, without their assistance, large casks throi^gh 

 the violent breakers ; but it required five or six of our sailors 

 to accomplish what one of these natives could do seeuiinirly 

 in sport. When a large wave came and threatciied to dasii 

 the ca^k and man to pieces on the shc^re, the latter dived 

 into the water, forcing down the cask alon^r with him, so 

 that the wave passed over both ; after wlnth the islander 

 swam on quietly as before : on the approach of the next 

 wave he did the same; and before wc could believe it pos- 

 sible he arrived with the cask at our boat. Tb.e piece of 

 iron which he obtained as a reward for this service he 

 showed with a great deal of laughter to his companions 

 standing on the shore, who then burst out into loud laughter 

 1 also* 



