MALOLO, 285 
even by the rest of the group, and had their great crime been suffered 
to go unpunished, would in all probability have become more fearless 
and daring than ever. 
The blow I inflicted not only required to be done promptly and 
effectually, as a punishment for the murder of my officers, but was 
richly deserved for other outrages. It could not have fallen upon any 
place where it would have produced as much effect, in impressing the 
whole group with a full sense of our power and determination to 
punish such aggressions. 
Such has been its effect on the people of Malolo, that they have 
since been found the most civil, harmless, and well-disposed natives of 
the group. 
Notwithstanding that the opinion of all the officers who were present 
and cognizant of all the facts was, that I had not gone far enough in 
the punishment I had inflicted, I found myself charged on my return 
by the administration, as guilty of murder, and of acting on this occa- 
sion in a cruel, merciless, and tyrannical manner. To make out the 
latter charge, it was alleged that I had made the natives actually 
crawl to my feet to beg pardon. The part of the whole affair for 
which IJ take some credit to myself is, that when I judged it had 
become necessary to punish, it was in like manner obligatory on me to 
study how it could be done most effectually ; and from the knowledge 
I had obtained of the customs of the natives, during the time I had 
been engaged in the group, I was enabled to perform this painful 
though necessary duty, in a manner that made it vastly more effectual, 
by requiring of them their own forms of submission, and their own 
modes of acknowledging defeat. 
All the facts of the case are before my countrymen, and they will 
be able to judge whether I should, for my conduct in the punishment 
of this atrocious massacre, have been arraigned on a charge of 
murder, and of acting in a cruel, merciless, and tyrannical manner, 
and this without any previous inquiry into the facts or motives that 
led to my actions, and merely on the report of a few discontented off- 
cers of the squadron, whom the good of the service compelled me to 
send back to the United States. These grave charges were not made 
known to me until two days before the court was convened for my 
trial upon them. 
While I am unable to refrain from stating wherein I consider some 
of the officers blamable, I must mention with high praise the promp- 
titude with which the bodies were saved from ministering to the 
cannibal appetites of the murderers. 
The punishment inflicted on the natives was no doubt severe; but ] 
