1770 RUNNING AMOC 409 
him from his design; but he repeatedly pushed her on one 
side before he could get at her mother, and when he had 
killed the latter, ran out as usual. These people are generally 
slaves, who indeed are by much the most subject to insults, 
which they cannot revenge. Freemen, however, sometimes 
do it: one of them who did it while I was there was free 
and of some substance. The cause was jealousy of his own 
brother, whom he killed, with two more that attempted to 
oppose him before he was taken. He, however, never came 
out of his house, which he attempted to defend; but so mad 
was he with the effects of the opium, that out of three 
muskets which he tried to use against the officers of justice, 
not one was either loaded or primed. 
The marineu has also these amocs committed to his 
charge. If he takes them alive his reward is great: if he 
kills them that reward is lost; notwithstanding which three 
out of four are killed, so resolute and active is their resistance 
when attacked. They have contrivances like large tongs or 
pincers to catch them, and hold them till disarmed: those 
who are taken are generally wounded severely; for the 
marineu’s assistants, who are all armed with hangers, know 
how to lame the man if once they can get within reach. 
The punishment of this crime is always breaking upon the 
wheel; nor is that ever relaxed, but so strictly adhered to, 
that if an amoc when taken is judged by the physician to 
be in danger from his wounds, he is executed the very next 
day, as near as possible to the place where he committed 
his first murder. 
Among their absurd opinions proceeding from their 
original idolatry, which they still retain to some extent, is 
certainly the custom of consecrating meat, money, etc., to 
the devil, whom they call Satan. This is done, either in 
cases of dangerous sickness, when they by these means try 
to appease the devil, whom they believe to be the cause of 
all sickness, and make him spare the diseased man’s life, or 
in consequence of dreams. If any man is restless and 
dreams much for two or three nights, he immediately con- 
cludes that Satan has taken that method of laying his 
