244 



Murder at Malolo of Lieutenant Under- 

 wood and Midshipman Henry. 



FEEJEE GROUP. 



History of the massacre. 



under Lieutenant Alden, took place just as, after 

 weeks of intense anxiety for the safety of those 

 under my command, exposed in open boats to the 

 perils of the sea, and in small detachments to 

 the insidious attacks of savages, instigated not 

 merely by cupidity, but by the horrible instinct 

 of cannibal appetite, I had myself closed the 

 operations of the survey, and awaited only my 

 junction with the boats to be satisfied that all 

 our perils were at an end. One of the victims 

 was my own near relation, confided to my care 

 by a widowed mother ; I had therefore more 

 than the ordinary degree of sorrow, which the 

 loss of promising and efficient officers must cause 

 in the breast of every commander, to oppress 

 me. 



It was beyond every thing else important, that 

 in the desire of inflicting punishment, I should 

 avoid, as far as possible, the risk of losing other 

 valuable lives. The two chief vessels of my 

 squadron were at a distance, and I knew that the 

 natives of Malolo were not only guarded in their 

 towns by fortifications, impregnable in their own 

 mode of warfare, but were furnished with fire-arms 

 and ammunition. To burn the dwellings of these 

 fastnesses, as I had done at Tye, if an adequate 

 punishment for mere thefts, would have been no 

 sufficient penalty for the present heinous offence, 

 nor would it have served to deter the people of 

 Malolo from similar acts for the future. 



My first duty was to receive the report of the 

 officer in command of the boats, and to make such 

 further inquiry into the circumstances of the trans- 

 action, as should satisfy me that the bloody deed 

 had not been provoked on the part of the victims. 

 The results of this inquiry were as follow. 



On the 22nd July, the first cutter of the Vin- 

 cennes, Lieutenant Alden and Midshipman Henry, 

 and the Leopard, Lieutenant Underwood, left the 

 station at Eld Island, and proceeded along the 

 right side of Waia, for the purpose of fulfilling my 

 orders to survey the small islands lying north of 

 Malolo. This done, they had instructions to join 

 the tender or Porpoise on the western side of that 

 island, and survey such islands as they might fall 

 in with on the way. After passing Waia, the 

 boats anchored for the night under one of the 

 small islands. 



The next day, they were employed in the survey 

 of the small islands, and in the evening anchored 

 in the bay on the east side of Malolo, formed by 

 it and Malolo-lai-lai, or Little Malolo. 



On reaching this place, Lieutenant Alden, being 

 desirous of ascertaining if the Porpoise was at the 

 anchorage on the west side, directed Lieutenant 

 Underwood to land near the south end of Malolo, 

 and to ascend a small eminence to get a view of 

 that anchorage. Lieutenant Alden, it appears, 

 cautioned Lieutenant Underwood to go well armed 

 and to be on his guard with the natives, as on his 

 former visit, about six weeks before, he had been 

 Jed to doubt their friendly disposition, and, in con- 

 sequence, had avoided having any communication 

 with them. He also directed Lieutenant Under- 

 wood to return before sunset. 



Lieutenant Underwood landed and went up the 

 hill with one of his men. After a few minutes, 

 Lieutenant Alden observed some suspicious move- 

 ments among the natives near the point, and, in 

 consequence, hoisted a signal of recall. Lieutenant 



Underwood was soon seen returning to the boat 

 with his man and a native. Before leaving the 

 beach, he had some talk with the natives. 



On joining Lieutenant Alden, he reported that 

 there was no vessel in sight, and mentioned that 

 on his way up the hill, he suddenly came upon a 

 native carrying an armful of clubs, who, the 

 moment he perceived him, threw down his load 

 and attempted flight, but Lieutenant Underwood 

 detained and made him go before them to the 

 boat. When they reached the beach, a party of 

 natives joined, and appeared to him much discon- 

 certed at finding the hid a prisoner, and without 

 arms. 



They passed the night at anchor in this bay, and 

 on the morning of the 24th, discovered the tender 

 at anchor to the eastward. At nine o'clock Lieu- 

 tenant Emmons joined them in the Peacock's first 

 cutter, having passed the night at one of the small 

 sand-islands in the neighbourhood. Lieutenant 

 Emmons found them waiting breakfast for him. 

 They anticipated that he had some more provisions 

 for them, as he had recently parted with the 

 tender, and hoped to procure some yams, pigs, &c., 

 from him, or from the tender herself, which would 

 in all probability reach Malolo during the day. 



When Lieutenant Emmons arrived, several of 

 the natives, some of whom were armed, were on 

 the beach where the boats' crews had cooked their 

 breakfast. 



Many inducements were offered to them for pigs, 

 yams, &c., with very little success, each offering 

 some excuse, and urging the necessity of the boats 

 going to their town for such things. 



Just after they had finished their breakfast, the 

 chief spokesman of the village came, wading out 

 near the boats, and invited them, in the name of 

 the chief, to their town, where he said the chief 

 had secured four large hogs as a present for them. 



It appears that Lieutenant Underwood now 

 volunteered to go to the town for provisions, taking 

 with him John Sac (the New Zealander heretofore 

 mentioned) as interpreter, from Lieutenant Alden's 

 boat. He, in consequence, shoved off, leaving the 

 other boat to follow him as soon as the tide would 

 allow it to cross the reef between the islands. 

 Lieutenant Emmons then pushed his boat for the 

 shore, and landed, with three armed men, on 

 Malolo-lai-lai, in order to obtain some angles from 

 the top of a hill. On his approaching the beach, 

 the natives waded off to his boat, but he ordered 

 them off, and directed the officer with him, Mid- 

 shipman Clark, to keep his boat afloat, and not 

 suffer them to approach her during his absence. 

 This order was strictly attended to, and although 

 a similar attempt was again made, the natives 

 when ordered off retired as before. 



Lieutenant Underwood's boat drew too much 

 water to get across the reef, and grounded, upon 

 which a number of natives collected around her, 

 and joining with the boat's crew, assisted to drag 

 her over the reef. At this time the natives got a 

 knowledge of the feebleness of the armament of 

 Lieutenant Underwood's boat. To my surprise I 

 have since learned that Lieutenant Underwood 

 had left the greater part of the armament with 

 which he had been furnished on board the brig 

 some few days before. Seven rifles had been put 

 on board that vessel, under the idea that it would 

 lighten the boat, and no more than three out of 



