280 
POLYNESIAN RESEARCHES. 
his mission^ might be acquired prior to his departure 
from England^ without in any injurious degree diverting 
his attention from other pursuits. I speak from painful 
experience of deficiency of the means for meeting the 
necessities of my own family^ as well as those of the 
people among whom I have resided. I know they still 
exists and therefore express myself more strongly than I 
should otherwise feel warranted to do. 
The introduction of Christianity has been followed by 
a greater alteration in their general circumstances, than 
even the medical treatment of the sick. The change has 
been highly advantageous to the sufferers, who formerly 
experienced the greatest neglect, and often the most 
affecting cruelty. As soon as an individual was affected 
with any disorder, he was considered as under the ban 
of the gods : by some crime, or the influence of some 
enemy, he was supposed to have become obnoxious to 
their anger, of which his malady was the result. 
These ideas relative to the origin of diseases, had a 
powerful tendency to stifle every feeling of sympathy and 
compassion, and to restrain all from the exercise of those 
acts of kindness that are so grateful to the afflicted, and 
afford such alleviation to their sufferings. The attention 
of the relatives and friends was directed to the gods, and 
their greatest efforts were made to appease their anger by 
offerings, and to remove the continuance of its effects by 
prayers and incantations. The simple medicine admini- 
nistered, was considered more as the vehicle or medium 
by which the god would act, than as possessing any 
power itself to arrest the progress of disease. 
If their prayers, offerings, and remedies were found 
unavailing, the gods were considered implacable, and the 
afflicted person was doomed to perish. Some heinous 
