40 THE WHALE AND 



Footsteps of Christianity. Mission Premises. 



and was first Christianized by native missiona- 

 ries from Tahiti. They were all surrounded 

 by a low paling of posts driven slightly into the 

 ground, merely to keep out hogs ; while cocoa- 

 nut trees and giant bananas were dropping their 

 fruits all around. The whole scene, in every fea- 

 ture, was most pleasingly corroborative of the 

 representations quoted by Harris in " The Great 

 Commission," to show the temporal utility of 

 missionary exertions in the South Seas. " In- 

 stead of their little, contemptible huts along the 

 sea-beach, there will be seen a neat settlement, 

 with a large chapel in the center, capable of con- 

 taining one or two thousand people ; a school- 

 house on the one side, and a chief's or the mis- 

 sionary's house on the other ; and a range of 

 white cottages a mile or two long, peeping at 

 you from under the splendid banana-trees or the 

 bread-fruit groves. So that their comfort is in- 

 creased and their character elevated." 



Soon after reaching this little metropolis of 

 the island, the king had baked pig and delicious 

 kalo placed upon a massive rude table, and plates 

 of English crockery, with knives and forks. A 

 blessing was asked b^ the native teacher, and I 

 was invited to eat. It was, in their view, an im- 



