406 



MASSACRE ISLANDS. 



[1830, 



the novelty of the scene attracted the attention of all the natives, who 

 gazed with amazement on every part of the apparatus. But when 

 the bellows began to play, and the coals to burn, and the sparks of fire 

 to fly from the heated iron, the men and women, as one body, fled in 

 terror from the spot. Henneen was the first man whom we could per- 

 suade to return. We soon convinced him of the unreasonableness of 

 his fears ; and to prove to him the advantages of the forge, the armorer 

 made him a small harpoon, in about five minutes. His joy at this 

 present was excessive ; and another, a little larger, was immediately 

 made for the king, while the other chiefs were presented with some 

 fish-hooks. In short, their friendship seemed to increase towards us 

 in the same proportion as successive novelties arrested their attention. 



The natives had now once more collected around the forge, having 

 dismissed their groundless apprehensions of danger. Among them 

 was an elderly man, belonging to one of the other islands, who laid 

 hold of a piece of flat iron bar, about eighteen inches long, and made 

 off with it without any ceremony. Nero immediately sent men after 

 the delinquent, from whom they took the pilfered article by force. 

 Nothing daunted, however, the old man returned to the forge, and 

 commenced raving against those who pursued him ; and on seeing a 

 favourable opportunity, stole another piece, of about the same size 

 and shape. Four of his companions, also, who had accompanied 

 him back, seized on some of the armorer's tools, with which they 

 made off. The things were soon missed, however, and the thieves 

 were pursued by the islanders, at the instance of Henneen, and shortly 

 overtaken. Their party, by this time, had become quite strong, and a 

 serious conflict ensued, in which several of both parties were severely 

 wounded. 



On seeing this, I thought it my duty to interfere, and endeavour to 

 settle the difficulty, and restore peace between the two parties of natives, 

 before their blood should become so much chafed as to render such a 

 result impossible. The armorer left his forge at the same moment 

 to witness the contest ; and though absent but a very few minutes, 

 he found it on his return stripped of almost every thing portable. All 

 the iron and nearly all the tools had been stolen, and he knew not 

 by whom. He immediately came and acquainted me with the theft, 

 just as I had succeeded, with extreme difficulty, and some hazard, in 

 restoring peace and order among the contending natives. 



Under these circumstances, I immediately applied to Nero and 

 Henneen, made them acquainted with the villanous transaction, and 

 desired that the stolen articles should be instantly restored. To this 

 Nero readily assented ; at the same time flying into a violent rage 

 with his subjects, for the manner in which they had treated me. The 

 greater part of the stolen articles were soon recovered ; and Nero 

 pointed to two canoes which were under sail at some distance, 

 bound to one of the leeward islands, which he said contained the re- 

 mainder of them, and that they should be sent back on the following 

 day. He accordingly despatched another canoe in chase of the cul- 

 prits, and finally succeeded in restoring the remainder of the things 

 according to promise. 



