Friday, September 24th.—Fine bright morning and a very hot day. Having failed to go to “Tahimamavi” yesterday I resolved to go instead this morning. We had a hot, but a most pleasant row up the coast about three miles, and found the people awaiting our arrival. They had been disappointed that we did not come yesterday, but supposed that the rain was the occasion of our failing in our promise. Such a nice number of bright boys assembled for school, and a great many grown-up people. The boys were divided into two classes, and two of the boys taught them their letters. The older men I undertook to teach myself with the help of Peter. I made a few remarks at first and then told Peter to say a few words. I was quite unprepared for what followed. It is not often I have seen such an effect on a native audience, and his flow of natural eloquence from beginning to end quite held the men enchained. With a great deal of energy, and a vast amount of earnestness, he went into the thick of his subject, and left an impression which I feel sure must, under God, have a good effect. At the end of his remarks he said very modestly, “You may perhaps think it presumptuous in me to stand here in your presence and speak like this, you who are old enough to be my fathers, and so high in rank all of you as to look upon me as a mere nonentity, and indeed I am amazed at my own audacity. But I speak about things of so momentous import that I take the chance of your displeasure, and submit myself to whatever verdict you may choose to return. Were I only concerned about things which belong to our heathen state, I should take the place of a humble listener and you should do the talking, but here all is different, for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth must speak, and that heart and mouth, thank God, are mine.” There was not even an assent of approval, all were so impressed with the message delivered so eloquently by a mere boy. I said at the end, after a long pause, for I did not like to break the spell which seemed to hold them all, “Our son has spoken good words to you which I hope you will not soon forget.” And they all said, “Who can forget them?” I was also much pleased with the way the boys had got on with their reading after so few lessons, and altogether I felt that a “great door and effectual had been opened here,” for which I was most thankful to Almighty God. Now it remains but to put a good teacher there, and I think a wide harvest may by God’s blessing be soon gathered in. We came back with a fair wind in the afternoon, and in the evening again we had torrents of rain. However, we had our full complement at Prayers, and a very nice time afterwards.
Saturday, September 25th.—I had intended to-day to have gone to Walurigi, but it set in to a wet day, and I was obliged to stay at home. However, I had a succession of visitors, and among them some Bushmen from a long way inland. The boys told me some odd stories about them, how ignorant they formerly were and what strange things they did in consequence. When they first came down to the sea they fancied it was hungry, because the surf came rolling in, as they said, “mouth wide open.” They therefore gave it food to eat. Knowing only the taro root, when first getting possession of a yam, they fancied it was firewood and put into the fire. Some many years ago they came down here in quest of a pig, and while waiting in the gamal their eyes caught sight of a tin with the picture of a lobster outside. Thinking this was something very wonderful they stole it, and marched off homewards with it instead of their pig. Arriving at their village home the chief made a great feast for it, and placed it in the midst of the village dancing ground, and went through the various ceremonies as if it were a pig in verity. The ceremonies over, the chief advanced to the tin, and with his foot, squashed up the tin as if he was treading the life of a pig out, with the inevitable result that he almost cut his foot off. Now-a-days of course they are more enlightened, and the men who were here to-day I found very amiable and intelligent. All “salt water” natives despise Bushmen, and they have always stories to tell of them. There is somehow a natural feud existing between them, but the agression I must say, comes generally from the Bushmen. They do, certainly, very unaccountable things, but they are always forgiven, and their conduct explained by saying, “Oh, they are only Bushmen,” or as they say here “(Taute).” A small vessel passed here in the afternoon, and anchored off M. Moussu’s place “Ian̈an̈qa.” In the evening there was the greatest excitement, the boys returning from fishing saw a boat under sail coming down the coast, and the general idea was that it was Mr. Brittain. I was led into the swim, and made active preparations for his reception, but he never turned up, the sail belonged to some other boat.
Heavy rain and strong wind squalls again in the evening.
Sunday, September 26th.—A day which will ever be memorable to me, here at Tavolavola. To-day I Baptized twenty-five people, and it has been indeed a day of great spiritual enjoyment to me. Before I was up in the very early morning, I heard boys in the school house reading their baptismal service over, and all through the day there are some who have never had their books out of their hands. The teachers have done their part most admirably, and I thank God for such earnest children. We had school before breakfast, and a most excellent school too. I went from class to class leaving A. P. Huqe to discourse the older men. The boys, nothing daunted by my presence, kept their instruction going, which was generally very thorough and good. The earnestness of all was quite remarkable. After school and breakfast we had Morning Prayers, a nice hearty service, and after that we started by boat for “Tahimamavi.” Here we found the people awaiting us, and soon we were assembled for school. Charles gave the old men a very good and eloquent address, and three other classes were provided for. On our way home we stopped for a few minutes to learn the news from the schooner at anchor, but they had none except that the French troops were still at Port Sandwich, and did not intend to move at present, and moreover, that the Mail Steamer had a contract to come as far North as that Port. This does not look like clearing out of the group, and the Captain told me they had not the least intention of moving at present. Before long we shall know the fate of these islands, but I sincerely trust they may not fall into the hands of the French. In the afternoon I was most pleased to see the teachers selecting boys and youths, more especially connected with them by ties of kindred, and taking them for a walk and serious talk, as is the custom at Norfolk Island. Everyone was so filled with enthusiasm that the chief himself sent to say he wished to be Baptized, but inasmuch as he has already four or five wives, and contemplates taking more, I could not listen to his petition for a moment. To put away his wives would lower him in rank at once, and in the choice between God and Mammon, he felt the difficulty of putting away any of his women, and I was obliged to leave him with his god Mammon.
In the early evening we decorated the Font, and when the building was lit up at night with lots of candles, it looked quite nice. The service was quite one of the most stirring I have ever taken part in, and the ready responses one by one, of men and women, produced a great effect on every one present. The women, generally like poor frightened, startled creatures, answered out marvellously, with a vigour and earnestness, such as no one was prepared for. The ceremony of Baptizing twenty-five people took some time, but no one seemed fatigued, so interested were they in what was going on. Among the number Baptized were a blind man, and a blind woman, but they, like the rest, were wonderfully self-possessed. Poor Diu, whom I called Kate, after Miss Lodge, who had nursed her so faithfully at Norfolk Island, was perfectly ecstatic in her delight, and seemed endued with special strength, having risen from a bed of sickness on purpose to be present.
I gave a short address afterwards, and was followed by Charles, who spoke well to the subject, and in very good taste considering the number of outsiders present.
We finished with the Nunc Dimittis, a fitting conclusion to a most beautiful service.
Monday, September 27th.—A most beautiful day, and a whole holiday. I told the scholars in the morning that I wished to see only smiling and happy faces all day, and to hear of nothing but joy and gladness because of the occasion of the holiday, viz., to celebrate the spiritual birthday of twenty-five brothers and sisters. Food in large quantities was provided, and we managed to secure two pigs for the feast. I think it was the brightest and happiest day I have ever known here, and our festivities were shared in by a number of neighbours. Contrary to strict custom here, the women and girls of the school prepared the food under the trees on the beach, the boys chopping the wood and doing the heavy work. The scene was a very animated one, and all seemed to be in the very best of tempers. In the evening the ovens were opened, and the distribution of the food was made. Unfortunately I was not very well myself, but that did not interfere very much with the rest. In the cool of the evening the boys played a number of their native games, very pretty and very picturesque, with a pretty song to each. When darkness closed in we had Evensong, and then the happy day was brought to an end.
Tuesday, September 28th.—This morning after our duties here, we started for a long voyage to “Vagebeo,” which means something like “down West.” “Beo” is the word used there for “down,” while ours here is “Hivo.” “Vage” is a particle put before the name of a place with a sense of motion towards the place, thus when we are going to Maewo we are here going “vage Maewo,” or Araga “vage Raga,” or Marino “vage Marino,” and so when we are going to the Beo people we are going “Vage Beo.” We call the people of those parts “Meraibeo.” They, on the other hand, term these parts “Taulu,” “up East,” and when coming here they say they are going “Vageulu,” because our word for “up” here is “Ulu.” We here are to them “Natiulu.”
We had a light, fair wind down, and did the journey in good time. We hauled up our boat at a place called “Duidui,” where a Mr. Wilber, commonly called “Jim” by white traders, and by the natives, “Timi,” lives.