Attack on Malo'.o. 



FEEJEE GROUP. 



Submission of the chiefs and 

 people. 



249 



low water, all the men retired, leaving a young 

 native woman standing, with the different articles 

 near her belonging to Lieutenant Underwood and 

 Midshipman Henry. She held a white cock in her 

 arms, which she was desirous of my accepting; but, 

 believing it to be an emblem of peace with this 

 people, (which I found afterwards was the case,) I 

 refused it, but took the other articles. I declined 

 the pacific offering, because I had no idea of 

 making peace with them until it should be sued 

 for after their own fashion. I had obtained a 

 sufficient knowledge of their manners and customs 

 to know that it was usual for them, when defeated, 

 and at the mercy of their enemies, to beg pardon 

 and sue for mercy, before the whole of the attack- 

 ing party, in order that all might be witnesses. I 

 also knew that they never acknowledged them- 

 selves conquered unless this was done, and would 

 construe my failing to require it of them into an 

 admission that I had n.)t succeeded in overcoming 

 them. Many messages were, indeed, delivered to 

 me by this girl from the chiefs, expressive of their 

 sorrow for having attacked and killed our little 

 chiefs; but, in Feejee language, this amounted to 

 nothing ; and I was determined to receive from 

 them a formal acknowledgment of defeat, accord- 

 ing to their own mode, before I made peace with 

 them, however anxious I was to avoid any more 

 bloodshed. I therefore sent the chiefs and people 

 a message that they must come and beg pardon 

 and sue for mercy, before all our warriors, on a hill 

 that I pointed out, on the south end of the island, 

 saying that I should land there in a little while to 

 receive them, and that if they did not come they 

 must be responsible for the consequences. 



At about eight o'clock I went on board the Por- 

 poise, where I had in confinement a chief of Arro 

 and some of his followers, in order that the fears 

 of the people of the island might not induce them 

 to neglect the opportunity of asking for peace, and 

 knowing that this chief would have great influence 

 in bringing about the result I desired. I had an 

 interview with him in the cabin. The first question 

 I put to him startled him not a little : it was, whe- 

 ther he could trust his life in the hands of any of 

 his people that were on board with him ; for it was 

 my intention to send a messenger from among those 

 natives on board to the chiefs and people of the 

 island, and if he did not execute it and return at 

 the appointed time, I should shoot him. His eyes 

 grew very large, he hesitated, and then spoke very 

 quickly. At last he said, " Yes;" but that he 

 would like the two younger boys to be sent, as they 

 were the best and most trustworthy. My object 

 was now fully explained to him ; and after he 

 thoroughly understood the penalty both to himself 

 and the people of the island, he entered warmly 

 into my views, as he perceived that by so doing 

 he would at once regain his own liberty, and save 

 his island from farther devastation. 



The boys, who were respectively about fifteen 

 and seventeen years of age, were then called into 

 the cabin. I took two reeds, and repeated, through 

 the interpreter, the messages, which the chief took 

 gi-eat pains to make them understand. They were 

 to this effect : that the whole of the natives of the 

 island should come to me by the time the sun was 

 overhead, to beg pardon and sue for mercy; and 

 that if they did not do so, they must expect to be 

 exterminated. This being fully understood by the 



boys, they were landed, the chief having previously 

 assured them that his life depended on their good 

 conduct and haste in executing their charge. 



Every thing was now prepared, agreeably to the 

 orders of the night before, and the whole force 

 was landed ; but instead of moving on to make 

 farther devastation and destruction, we ascended 

 the eastern knoll. This is covered with a beautiful 

 copse of casuarina trees, resembling somewhat the 

 pines of our own country. Here we took our 

 station, and remained from about ten in the morn- 

 ing till four o'clock in the afternoon. 



The day was perfectly serene, and the island, 

 which, but a few hours before, had been one of the 

 loveliest spots in creation, was now entirely laid 

 waste, showing the place of the massacre, the 

 ruined town, and the devastated plantations. The 

 eye wandered over the dreary waste to the beau- 

 tiful expanse of waters beyond and around, with 

 the long lines of white sparkling reefs, until it 

 rested, far in the distance, on the small green spot 

 where we had performed the last rites to our mur- 

 dered companions. A gentle breeze, which was 

 blowing through the casuarina trees, gave out the 

 moaning sound that is uttered by the pines of our 

 own country, producing a feeling of depression 

 inseparable from the occasion, and bringing vividly 

 to my thoughts the sad impression which this 

 melancholy and dreadful occurrence would bring 

 upon those who were far away. 



Towards four o'clock, the sound of distant 

 wailings was heard, which gradually drew nearer 

 and nearer. At the same time, the natives were 

 seen passing over the hills towards us, giving an 

 effect to the whole scene which will be long borne 

 in my memory. They at length reached the foot 

 of the hill, but would come no farther, until as- 

 sured that their petition would be received. On 

 receiving this assurance, they wound upward, and 

 in a short time about forty men appeared, crouch- 

 ing on their hands and knees, and occasionally 

 stopping to utter piteous moans and wailings. 

 When within thirty feet of us, they stopped, and 

 an old man, their leader, in the most piteous 

 manner, begged pardon, supplicating forgiveness, 

 and pledging that they would never do the like 

 again to a white man. He said, that they acknow- 

 ledged themselves conquered, and that the island 

 belonged to us ; that they were our slaves, and 

 would do whatever I desired ; that they had lost 

 every thing; that the two great chiefs of the island, 

 and all their best warriors, had been killed, all 

 their provisions destroyed, and their houses burned. 

 They acknowledged a loss of fifty-seven killed. 

 Whether the twenty-five that were opposed to 

 Lieutenant Emmons were included in this number, 

 I know not, but I am rather inclined to believe 

 that they were; for accounts subsequently received, 

 give the same number. They declared that they 

 were now convinced that they never could make 

 war against the white men (Papalangis) ; and that 

 they had brought two of the chief's daughters as a 

 present for the great chief. During the whole 

 time that the old man was speaking, they all 

 remained bent down with their heads to the 

 ground. 



I asked them many questions, and, among others, 

 what had induced them to murder the little chiefs. 

 They acknowledged that the officers had done them 

 no harm, and confessed that they had been killed 



