Labours of the missionaries. 



First attempt to introduce Christianity. 



THE SAMOANS. 



Printing-press at Upolu. 



107 



nuts and fruits. In spite, however, of the ap- 

 parent liberality with which these were furnished, 

 they do it in expectation of a full return. In pur- 

 suance of this hospitality, it is the custom when a 

 stranger passes through a village without showing 

 an intention to stop, to follow him and offer food. 



The Samoans are usually very inquisitive, and it 

 was amusing to excite their curiosity. Among 

 other things mentioned for the purpose was, that 

 white men often wore false teeth and wigs. The 

 latter practice in particular seemed strange to 

 them, and they called it " thatching the head." A 

 terrestrial globe was also shown to some of them, 

 whereon the position of their islands and their small 

 relative importance was pointed out. This excited 

 great surprise, for until within a few years they 

 had no idea that there was any country except 

 their own. 



If the chiefs are liberal in their tenders of pre- 

 sents to their visitors, they on the other hand do 

 not hesitate to ask for whatever they see. They 

 may, in fact, be styled sturdy beggars. One of the 

 most persevering in his mendicancy, was no less a 

 person than Vavasa, the proud and overbearing 

 chief of Manono. They usually began with begging 

 from the humblest individual, and ended with the 

 highest ; and when they had obtained all they 

 could, would go over the side of the ship ridiculing 

 our folly for giving so much. 



Old Pea, by way of excusing himself when 

 charged with being a great beggar, said he did 

 not keep any thing he got for himself; that it was 

 the Samoan fashion always to ask for every thing 

 he saw. It mattered not if his request was re- 

 fused, he was as content as if he obtained what he 

 desired, but he said he should have blamed himself 

 if he had not asked. 



The beneficial effects of the labours of the mis- 

 sionaries are more evident among the Samoans 

 than at Tahiti. The spread of the Gospel has not 

 been opposed by evil habits of the same inveterate 

 character, and the natives of this group have been 

 more easily reclaimed from their vices than those 

 of the Society Islands. The greatest obstacle to 

 the success of the missionaries has arisen from the 

 presence of a few abandoned white men, who attach 

 themselves to the heathen chiefs. Their opposi- 

 tion, although injurious to the missionary cause, 

 yields little benefit to themselves, for of every 

 thing they acquire, the chief under whose protec- 

 tion they are takes half ; and although no opposi- 

 tion is ever made to their departure from the 

 islands, they are not permitted to take any thing 

 with them. The vices of these men excite the 

 disgust of the more well-disposed of the natives, 

 who often express their astonishment at their igno- 

 rance of sacred subjects, and ask if it be possible 

 that such men can have been brought up in a 

 civilized community. The first attempt to intro- 

 duce Christianity is related to have occurred in the 

 following manner. Some years before the arrival 

 of the missionaries, a vessel was wrecked upon the 

 island of Upolu, and her cargo seized upon by the 

 natives, many of whom, even to the present day, 

 regret that they did not then understand what 

 riches were thus placed at their disposal. Their 

 mode of treating the prize was farcical in the ex- 

 treme : pipes were made out of candlesticks, 

 clothing was thrown away as valueless, and many 

 injured themselves with the fire-arms. The crew 



were well treated, and fed for a long time, although 

 the natives were greatly astonished at the quanti- 

 ties of pigs required for their support, and enter- 

 tained fears lest they should breed a famine in the 

 land. The captain advised his crevv to turn mis- 

 sionaries, and set them the example himself. He 

 met with much success, and succeeded in building 

 several churches, until, upon the arrival of the 

 English missionaries, he was compelled to relin- 

 quish his assumed occupation. It is not probable 

 that even the captain was deeply versed in religious 

 knowledge, and very certain that the crew could 

 not have been; but their success appears to have 

 arisen from the great veneration with which white 

 men were at first regarded by the Samoaus. They 

 looked upon them as a sort of spirit, whom it was 

 impossible to hurt or to kill; and the ships first 

 seen off the coast were considered as heavenly 

 messengers, prognosticating some dreadful cala- 

 mity. The bad conduct of their nautical visitors 

 has destroyed this reverence, and foreigners gene- 

 rally no longer meet the kind welcome they for- 

 merly received; this observation does not apply to 

 the missionaries, who receive all the honour that is 

 due to their good intention, of which the natives are 

 fully aware *. 



The Wesleyan missionaries, and those of the 

 British board, reached these islands about the 

 same time, or the former were perhaps the first 

 to arrive. The influence of the Wesleyan tenets, 

 and the number of their followers, increased rapidly 

 under the superintendence of the Rev. Mr. Turner. 

 Difficulties, however, arose between the two par- 

 ties of missionaries, which were finally adjusted 

 between the two boards in London, and the Wes- 

 leyans abandoned this field for that of the Feejee 

 Group. This arrangement was amicably made, 

 and I heard of only one individual on either side 

 who showed an uncharitable spirit towards his 

 fellow-labourers of the other party. In spite of 

 the removal of the Wesleyans, there is still a large 

 number of the natives who adhere to the tenets and 

 forms taught them by Mr. Turner, and still retain 

 a strong attachment to him. 



The missionaries were from the very first taken 

 under the protection of the most powerful chiefs, 

 and have never received either insult or injury 

 from any of the natives. They have established 

 schools in many of the villages, but have found a 

 difficulty in obtaining native teachers. 



A printing-press has also been established at 

 Upolu, and rapid progress is making in the trans- 

 lation of the Scriptures, of which some portions are 

 already published. Many publications have issued 

 from this press: among them I regretted to observe 

 a small tract containing a violent attack upon the 

 Roman Catholics. The sight of this surprised me, 

 as it contradicted the opinion I had formed, from 

 my intercourse with the missionaries, of their 

 liberality and freedom from intolerance. The sole 

 object of the tract was to prepossess the minds of 

 the natives against the missionaries of the Papal 

 Church, in case they should visit these islands. 

 This struck me as being at variance with the first 

 principles of our religion ; and I could not refrain 

 from expressing an opinion that the tract was cal- 

 culated to do much harm. 



The labours of the English missionaries have 



* All the natives have some knowledge of Captain Cook, 

 derived from their communication with the Friendly Islands. 



