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jackson’s story. 
to the north of New Zealand, and is extremely interesting. 
A man named Jackson, who was out whaling in the Cape 
Packet, related the following story of an adventure which befel 
him at Alatana, one of the new Hebrides. A boat’s crew was 
sent on shore to cut firewood; he was one of the party, but 
having drank too much, he went into the bush, laid down 
amongst the trees, and fell asleep, and so soundly, that when 
his companions called him he did not awake, neither could 
they find him : having called and searched for some time, they 
left and returned to the ship. 
When he awoke, he got up and looked for the boat, but found 
to his dismay that it had gone. He looked about, and saw two 
natives on a small island, only separated from the one he was 
on by a deep narrow channel; he fled and concealed himself. 
Afterwards four men landed from a canoe on his island; they 
sat down with their backs turned to him ; he approached them 
without noise, crawling on his knees ; when he reached them, 
which he did unseen, he stood up. The natives were so much 
alarmed at the sudden apparition of a white man, that they 
fell down flat on the ground, as though they were dead ; 
afterwards they arose, and sung a song to him. Most probably 
this was a karakia, as they would take him for a god, for 
most black tribes think the gods and spirits of ancestors are 
white. 
After some time, they beckoned for him to follow them, 
which he did ; he was led inland about ten miles. As they 
went, they crossed a brook; he was going to drink, when 
they pulled him back, fearing, perhaps, if he did so, that the 
water would be tapu, and they could not afterwards drink 
of it without dying. But one of them offered him some urine 
in a clam shell to drink. (The New Zealand natives think that 
the inhabitants of the Reinga or Hades feed on human excre¬ 
ments and drink urine, and this appears to have a reference 
to a similar idea; they might further suppose, if permitted 
to partake of earthly food, he would not be able to return 
to Purutu, or Paradise, as the Tonga natives report was the 
case with their first ancestors.) After passing through beautiful 
cultivations, bordered with neat fences of reed, and intersected 
