"An expedition of thirty-five Americans, including Captain Porter, and five thousand Taeehs and Happars, moved against the incorrigibles. The Typees, armed with slings and spears, met them with such overwhelming numbers and fierce determination, that at the end of the first day they were compelled to fall back to the beach, numbering among their casualties a shattered leg belonging to Lieutenant Downes, caused by a sling-man's stone. That night the valley of the Typees resounded with shouts of victory, and the sonorous reverberations of many beaten drums.
"Porter renewed the attempt the next day, and led his motley army boldly over the rugged hills into the Typee valley, in the midst of great exposure to hostile missiles from concealed foes, and many privations.
"Village after village was destroyed until they came to the principal town, in which were fine buildings, a large public square, temples and gods, huge war-canoes, and other exhibitions of half-savage life. These were all reduced to ashes, and by the broom of desolation that beautiful valley, four miles in width and nine in length, was made a blackened desert. The Typees, utterly ruined and humbled, now submissively paid tribute."
It seems almost cruel to tell so brave a yarn in such few words; but for the fact that there are yet more important adventures of our cruise to be set down, it should not thus be hurried over.
Neither Phil nor I was of the party which Captain Porter himself led over the mountains. I am not prepared to say that we would have gone with the army if permission had been given; we knew what fate awaited those who might be made prisoners, and would have shrunk from thus taking the chances of being the principal dish at a Typee feast.
When our men came back to the beach whipped, at the close of the first day's fight, and we saw Lieutenant Downes brought in by four Happars, looking as if death sat on the litter with him, it began to appear as if Massachusetts Bay was not a desirable naval station.
Nor were Phil and I the only ones among the company who grew faint-hearted when the reverses were made known. The old shellbacks who had previously grumbled because we were to take part in a native war, now came out strong with their predictions of evil; and to have heard them scold and mutter, one would have said that already were we hopelessly overcome.
Next day, when our men set out leading the entire army, we watched until they were lost to view in the distance, firmly believing we would never see them again. During the time we spent anxiously waiting for news from the battle-field, all hands were in the fort or on board the ships, ready to open fire if the Typees should chase our people to the shore of the bay; but at nightfall our anxiety was changed to rejoicing.
A Happar messenger came in with the information that Captain Porter had whipped the Typees thoroughly, and would remain absent from the bay another day in order to destroy the villages belonging to the enemy.
It was my good fortune to have the opportunity of carrying this news to Lieutenant Downes, who lay in his cabin on board the Essex, and to my great surprise I discovered that he had never been in doubt as to the result of the expedition.