SERMON PREACHED ON THE ISLAND. 297 
husband is the head of the wife, even as 
Christ is the head of the Church : and he 
is the saviour of the body. Therefore as 
the Church is subject unto Christ, so let 
the wives be to their own husbands in every- 
thing. Husbands, love your wives, even as 
Christ also loved the Church, and gave 
himself for it." 
After speaking of the holy influence of 
the Christian religion, in restoring women 
to their proper place in society, he described 
the ignominy with which females are treated, 
not only among the natives of the islands of 
the Southern Pacific, but among the Hindoos, 
and Mohammedans, and the inhabitants of 
other countries, especially in the East, in 
which a false religion, and absurd super- 
stitions prevail. To this evil principle he 
attributed the custom, so long prevalent in 
India, of sacrificing widows at the funerals 
of their husbands, and wickedly destroying 
numbers of female infants. 
"I am sure, my female friends, your 
hearts are ready to sink within you at the 
recital of such horrible atrocities ; but it 
is the truth. Nay, I need only refer you to 
u 
