92 



Customs of the natives. 



SAMOAN GROUP. 



Customs of the natives. 



which are generated in great numbers in their 

 tapas and mats. 



According to old Ton, a native is in a com- 

 fortable condition when he has a good house ; a 

 well-made visiting canoe ; a neat, handy, large, and 

 well-formed woman for a wife; a taro-patch with a 

 good fence; cocoa-nut, and bread-fruit trees, with a 

 reasonable number of pigs. 



The women are now admitted to the same privi- 

 leges as the men. The chiefs have still great power 

 over the people, although the influence of the mis- 

 sionaries has tended greatly to diminish it. Most 

 of the people look back to the days when polygamy 

 existed with regret, and cannot understand why 

 they are restricted to one wife. They say, " Why 

 should God be so unreasonable as to require them 

 to give up all their wives but one for his conve- 

 nience ?" They pay just attention to their religious 

 duties; morning and evening prayers are always 

 said, as is grace before their meals, and with a 

 devotion rarely to be seen among civilized men. 



Their amusements seem to be few; their books 

 are constantly before them, and a great portion of 

 their time is employed over them. Old gray-headed 

 men may be seen poring over the alphabet, and 

 taught by some of the youngest of the family. The 

 employment of the men is to cultivate and weed the 

 taro, and to take care of the fences; they also make 

 sennit for their houses, and canoes for fishing. The 

 women are engaged in making mats, and the boys 

 and girls play, and wait upon their seniors. 



Next to study, fishing is their great employment. 

 This is performed by driving the fish towards the 

 nets in shoal water, where they are easily caught. 

 The cast-net is also used. 



The only amusement we saw, is a game called 

 lafo-tupe, which is played with cocoa-nut shells, 

 and resembles shuffle-board. 



Mr. Murray is an amiable as well as a truly 

 pious man, and the natives have imitated the ex- 

 ample set by him. He studiously avoids any inter- 

 course with them in the way of trade or barter, 

 except so much as is necessary for the provision of 

 his own family, and devotes his whole time to 

 preaching and teaching the Gospel. He is one of 

 the missionaries engaged in translating the Bible, 

 many parts of which are now completed, and ex- 

 tensively used by the natives, many of whom read 

 and write well. 



Their observance of the Sabbath is very strict; 

 and it is impossible to get a native to do any thing 

 whatsoever on that day, but perform his religious 

 duties. They attend church regularly. In Mr. 

 Murray's congregation there are about thirty com- 

 municants, and nearly one thousand attendants on 

 public worship. They come from many of the sur- 

 rounding villages. Mr. Murray has been here 

 about three years, and the native preachers nine 

 or ten; he is well acquainted with the difficulties 

 of his station, but seemed to feel assured that his 

 exertions were about being crowned with success. 

 He represented to me that the natives were very 

 tractable, and desired exceedingly to be taught; 

 that they had much application, seemed to com- 

 prehend many things, and were certainly not sur- 

 passed in intelligence by any of the natives of 

 Polynesia. 



Polygamy, which formerly was practised to a 

 great extent, still exists among those who have not 

 been converted. 



Circumcision is practised among them. 

 They carry their children in the same singular 

 manner on the hip, as in the low archipelago. 

 They are early betrothed, without regard to 

 age, the girl being saa, or tabooed, until of 

 marriageable age. During the intervening time, 

 all kinds of .native property are accumulated, 

 such as mats, &c., for the bridal day. Two days 

 previous to it, the inhabitants of the district are 

 gathered together for feasting and dancing. On 

 the third day, the bride is produced before the 

 assembled multitude, and the ceremony attendant 

 on marriage that was customary among the Jews 

 performed. After the marriage had been consum- 

 mated, the dowry was exhibited, and each article 

 being held up it was proclaimed by whom it was 

 presented ; the multitude, having consumed all the 

 eatables, and exhausted their strength in rioting 

 and debauchery, dispersed. 



I have seldom seen a more devout or attentive 

 collection of people than I observed at times in the 

 church meeting, which was held in the council- 

 house at Pago-pago; the new church was under- 

 going alterations; for on its being completed, it 

 was found it would not accommodate the congre- 

 gation, when they determined to enlarge it. 



Upon the conclusion of a long service, they were 

 observed to divide themselves into three parties; 

 one remaining in the church, and the other two re- 

 pairing to different buildings. The object of this 

 was, that they might listen to instructions from 

 their native teachers explanatory of the sermon, 

 and also receive exhortations to put away all that 

 is unbecoming to the Christian character. The 

 afternoon is employed in further explanations and 

 examinations by the missionaries. The native 

 missionaries have also meetings on Fridays. 



Their mode of singing hymns is peculiar, the 

 whole mass joining in some parts, with all the 

 lungs they could muster. This exercise appeared 

 to afford them great delight. The congregation 

 were mostly dressed in tapas, or clothed in one 

 sort of garment or other; but the person who at- 

 tracted our attention most, was the consort of 

 Pomale. From being the wife of the most influ- 

 ential personage, she had received more presents 

 from us than any other; and she endeavoured, on 

 this occasion, to display on her person the greater 

 part, if not all, that she had thus acquired. These 

 consisted of a red calico gown, four or five petti- 

 coats of different colours, woollen socks, green slip- 

 pers, cap and bonnet, a large plaid blanket shawl, 

 and a pair of polar gloves, the whole surmounted 

 by a flaming red silk umbrella and this with the 

 thermometer at 87 ! It was difficult to keep our 

 eyes off her during the service, and before the end 

 of it all her finery became awry. The other 

 natives also seemed to have the desire of exhibiting 

 their acquisitions, though these consisted frequently 

 of no more than a vest, or a pair of pantaloons, with- 

 out shirt, or occasionally of a long-skirted coat, with- 

 out either of the former garments, so that a small 

 roll of tapa was needed to cover their nether parts. 

 Some unauthorized attempts were made to in- 

 duce the natives to break the missionary laws, by 

 offers of great value in their eyes ; they were told 

 the missionaries would not see them. On under- 

 standing which, they pointed to the heavens, and 

 replied, " There missionary see." This was con- 

 clusive, and a just and severe rebuke. 



