250 
SCENES IN THE PACIFIC. 
precaution proves of no slight service. For the lawless and 
still bloodthirsty savages, attack them on several successive 
nights with much skill and fury. A few are killed and several 
wounded. At length the land party arrives. A portion of 
these being mounted on horses, which the Indians suppose to 
he the running gear of irresistible monsters topped with the 
trunks and heads of men, so intimidate them that they flee 
and are no more seen by night or by day for some time. At 
length, however, a few re-appear and join the Padres’ forces. 
These protest that they have always been faithful, and have 
consequently suffered much from the insurgents. They 
declare that the rebels have committed some recent 
atrocities upon the crew of a Philippine galleon. They report 
the affair in this wise. The ship arrived there from Ma¬ 
nilla with many of her crew sorely afflicted with scurvy ; and 
as her signals were not answered from the mission, the cap¬ 
tain sent the pinnace ashore with thirteen men to inform the 
Padre of his presence. As the boat neared the beach, the peo¬ 
ple were surprised to see neither any person nor sign of life. 
The greater part of them landed and walked toward the mission, 
but on their way the armed Indians rushed upon them and 
killed every man, or rendered him helpless, on the spot! 
Having murdered these, they hastened to the pinnace and find¬ 
ing those who were left in charge of it no more guarded than 
the other party had been, dispatched them also. They then 
seized the pinnace and broke it up for the old iron, nails, 
spikes, &c. While all this was going on the captain of the 
galleon began to feel some anxiety at the long delay of his 
pinnace, and sent a band of armed marines in the long boat 
to seek her. 
A most unexpected and painful sight met the eyes of 
these seamen 'when they reached the shore. Their pinnace 
was surrounded by a swarm of leaping and furious savages. 
It w r as already reduced to fragments ; and the dead bodies of 
several of their companions lay upon the beach, trodden on 
and mangled by their ruthless murderers. Dreadfully enraged 
