FEEJEE ISLANDS. 



291 



aimirit tlioir bodies with cocoa-nut oil, 



ninl beyond thin peculiarity are said to be clean 



in their persons, though nut particularly so in 



tli.-ir luiliitt. 



Cotton is the principal production, ot!n-r 



and plants being the breadfruit-tree, 

 orange, lemon, banana, plantain, and cocoa-nut 



i lu- sugar-nine, nutmeg, guava, ginger, 

 turmeric, arrow -root, tea-plant, and yams, grow 

 in irreat profusion ; the latter is the favorite 

 edil'le of the natives. The growing of sugar, 



. ami inai/o, is now being attended to, and 

 the results are very promising. To cotton, 

 however, I'Yejoo owes much of the importance 

 to which it is now arriving. It is only a few 

 years since the plant was introduced, the merit 

 of this IK- in.;.' duo to Dr. Brower, the American 

 consul at the time, and Mr. J. B. Smyther- 

 ni an. The planting-season is from September 

 ! >ruary. The seed is sown in rows, and 

 appears above-ground in about three days. 

 In two or three months it expands into a 

 Iiu-h, bearing a beautiful flower of a delicate 

 yellow color. In three months, more the tree 

 has grown to the height of three to five feet ; 

 the blossoms give way to bolls which mature, 

 ripen, and burst, and in a short time are ready 

 for picking. Numerous natives are imported 

 from the New Hebrides, Sandwich Islands, 

 and other groups, the native supply of labor 

 being insufficient. The bulk of the popula- 

 tion (about 120,000) professes Christianity, 

 only the tribe of the interior of Viti Levu still 

 holding out against any advance of Christianity 

 and civilization. It is only thirty-six years ago 

 since the first missionaries, the Revs. W. Cross 

 and Cargill, landed at Lakeba They found 

 the Feejeeans at nearly the lowest depth of 

 degradation blood-thirsty, and addicted to 

 cannibalism and all manner of vice. The in- 

 troduction of Christianity has brought about 

 a great change. Cannibalism has ceased since 

 1854; polygamy is abolished, and the idols all 

 destroyed; divine worship is general, and 

 peace abounds. 



The following are the returns of the "Wes- 

 leyan Church in Feejee and Rotomah for the 

 year 1872: Chapels, 634; other preaching 

 places, 354 ; missionaries (including the return 

 of two to the group), 13 ; English school-mas- 

 ter, 1 ; native assistant missionaries, 52 ; cate- 

 chists, 883 ; day-school teachers, 2,372; Sab- 

 bath-school teachers, 2,620 ; local preachers, 

 814; class-leaders, 2,828; full and accredited 

 native members, 24,413 ; native members on 

 trial, 4,377; Sabbath- schools, 1,121 ; Sabbath 

 scholars, 46,732; day-schools, 1,414; day- 

 scholars, 46,732; catechumens, 1,764; mem- 

 bers died during the year, 412 ; attendants on 

 public worship, 109,250. There has been an 

 increase of members in nearly every circuit 

 in one at the rate of 8 per cent., in another 10 

 per cent., and in a third 52 per cent. The Ro- 

 man Catholics have for some time had a mis- 

 si' >n in the islands, in the hands of French 

 priests, but their influence, and the body itself, 



are small, compared to that of the Wealeyan*. 

 The number of English coun. . t, <1 with the 

 Wesleyan Society at Feejeo is 40. 



During the year 1871, the arrivals at Feejee 

 were : At Levuka, 1 ship, 1 1 steamships, 23 

 barks, 10 brigs, 100 schooners, and 34 cut- 

 ters; in all, 17'.i. At the Eastern group, 82 

 vessels of various kinds; making a total of 211. 

 The aggregate tonnage of the arrivals was 

 80,806 tons; of the departures, 80,693 tons. 

 For the financial year ending September 80, 

 1872, the entrance in the port of Levuka was 

 128 vessels (1 American); tonnage, 22,778. The 

 imports were valued at $27,000, the exports at 

 $868,000. The value of the exports in 1871 

 was as follows : Sea-island cotton, $381,860 ; 

 kidney and short-staple ditto, $19,827; cocoa- 

 nut-oil, $17,820 ; tortoise-shell, $1,150 ; beche- 

 de-mer, $500 ; fungus, $600 ; wool, $750 ; cot- 

 ton-seed, $5,000 ; copra, $5,400 ; candlennts, 

 $400; sundries, '$20,000 making a general 

 total of $452,807. Imports: Drapery, cotton 

 and woolen, $100,585 ; ironmongery and cut- 

 lery, $92,020 ; wines, beer, and spirits, $71,- 

 160; groceries and provisions, $21,045; ship- 

 chandlery, $85,770 ; furniture and timber, $9,- 

 670; tobacco and cigars, $15,685; books and 

 stationery, $2,390 ; drugs and medicines, $2,- 

 470 ; machinery, $34,000 ; crockery and glass- 

 ware $5,065 ; fancy goods, $6,110; horses and 

 cattle, $10,000; sheep, $5,000; total value of 

 imports, $412,920. The estimated revenue for 

 the financial year ending June 80, 1872, was 

 23,598, the expenditure being computed at 

 20,431, leaving a surplus of 3,400. The 

 principal receipts are derived from the sale of 

 land, the estimated returns of which for the 

 year are 18,400. The estimated receipts for 

 the year ending June 30, 1873, were $121,- 

 324; expenditure, $127,020. The postal ser- 

 vice was first organized by the proprietor of 

 the Feejee Times, who established an organi- 

 zation called the Feejee Times Express, which 

 also included an insular-parcels delivery. It 

 subsequently passed into the hands of the 

 Government. There is irregular communica- 

 tion between the various islands, by means of 

 small craft, but arrangements are now in prog- 

 ress for superseding these by the employment 

 of a steamer. There is frequent, though not 

 regular, communication with Melbourne and 

 Sydney, and a monthly service has been ar- 

 ranged between Feejee and Auckland ; sail- 

 ing vessels, too, frequently ply, and the mission- 

 ary-ship John Wesley also affords a means of 

 reaching the islands. The principal town in 

 the Feejee Islands is Levuka, which may be 

 deemed the commercial capital of the group. 

 It is situated on the east coast of the island of 

 Ovalau, and is distant 2,160 miles from Mel- 

 bourne, 1,730 from Sydney, and 1,180 from 

 Auckland. The island itself is of no magni- 

 tude, being but eight miles long by about seven 

 miles in breadth. It lies about 15 miles due 

 east of Viti Levu. The town, consisting of 

 North and South Levuka, is not by any means 



