Wrecked on the Feejees

by William S. Cary

Chapter IV

CUSTOMS OF THE ISLANDERS—THE PLANTING SEASON—A TEMPLE ERECTED TO THE CALOO.

While I resided at Raver we went three months without rain, and the earth became parched and hard as a brick. The inhabitants were exceedingly alarmed at the duration of the drought. Such a time was never known by the oldest people. They expected to lose their crop of tarrow, which is a vegetable that grows only in very wet ground. It is very nutritious, and the natives are exceedingly fond of it. In fact, for months it is their chief article of diet. The chiefs went to the Umbaty a number of times to get him to intercede with their Caloo (God) to send them rain, but the old fellow's power did not reach the clouds. They finally concluded that it must be on account of the massacre of the Oeno's crew that they were so afflicted. I told them I thought quite likely that it was to punish them for killing white men. They said a ship was cast away at one of the islands some years before, and the crew massacred, and that immediately after there was a great sickness among them. They believed that the white man's Caloo was superior to theirs.

One night while at this island we had a severe earthquake. It had been a most beautiful evening, and I had been amusing the chief with stories of my country. Just before bed-time we went into the house, got out some yams and fish to eat and had just got seated when we heard a loud rumbling noise. The chief jumped and ran out of the house and before I could imagine what was the matter, the food was going one way and I another. I started to crawl to the door, fearing the house would be down on me, for by this time I perceived what the matter was, but before I reached the door it was all over. The next morning I asked the natives what was the occasion of the earthquake. They told me there was a monstrous great spirit, who lived on the big island in a very deep cave, whom they called Bookeegodinga. He laid on his back with his knees drawn up, and his least motion shook the earth, and when he rolled over, which was very seldom, it made a great earthquake. None of them had ever seen this giant spirit, but some had seen his cave. They frequently made him presents of mats, tappah and oil, carrying them to the mouth of the cave and leaving the Umbaty to get him to accept them. I presume he knew what became of them.

Shortly after this we visited the island of Cantab. We started in a large double canoe with about a hundred souls on board, and arrived about noon. The natives here showed the greatest respect to our chief, all sitting down on his approach, and remaining seated until he had passed. It is considered by them very disrespectful to stand when a great chief or king passes, or to talk loud on indifferent subjects in his presence, and it is sometimes punished with death. For such misdemeanor the offender must take an arrow or spear in his hand, and approaching the chief in the most humble manner, beg his pardon, and when the latter is satisfied that sufficient penitence has been shown, he grants his forgiveness. Sometimes for very great crimes, in addition to the above ceremony they are required to make liberal presents of whales' teeth. This is in cases of murder or for enticing away another man's wife, which is always visited with the heaviest punishment.

This island had formerly been under its own government. The natives were great warriors, and had never been conquered until the people at Raver got muskets and subjected them, making them tributary to Raver. The Raver natives considered them very valuable subjects. I heard there was a white man residing on the other side of the island and asked my chief for permission to visit him, but he refused saying it was an enemy's town and the Raver people dared not go there. The fact was, however, that he was afraid I should not come back. While here we were supplied by the natives with provisions in the greatest abundance. We remained a few days collecting tribute, and returned home deeply laden with tappah, mats and coconut oil, which was divided among the chiefs according to their rank.

The dialect of these people differed from any I had ever visited, but their manners and customs were the same. Cantab is a small but high island, about ten miles long by four wide. On the western end there is a mountain shaped like a sugar loaf, at the foot of which there are two springs, one hot or very warm, and the other nearly as cold as ice. I bathed in the warm one, and could but just endure the heat. Many of the natives had never beheld a white man before and eyed me with great curiosity, but I was not much troubled with the children, as they were very much afraid of me and if I looked toward them they would scamper off like sheep.

When at Raver, I used to employ myself fishing, shooting and doing little mechanical jobs for the chief. I used to have very fine shooting, there being vast numbers of ducks round the river. The natives were very expert at shooting them with arrows. One day I was in the house casting a lead pipe for the chief, when suddenly he called out "awanker parpalong sarla comy"! (The white man's vessel has come!) I inquired where and how he knew. I learned that a canoe was off near her and started to go on board, but seeing a smoke they were afraid she was going to fire guns, and dared not go, but immediately came ashore and reported. The chief ordered his canoe and we started down the river. When we got to the mouth of the river we found the ship lay about three miles from the reef, with the maintopsail aback, but the water was so shoal that we grounded on the reef, and before we could get over she braced full and stood off. My heart ached to see her go. This was the first ship I had seen for over two years. We returned to the shore and built large fires in hopes she would continue round the island till morning, but when day broke we could see nothing of her. The chief thought she had gone to the island of Cantab and some of our party proposed going there if I would accompany them, which I readily consented to do. We accordingly started in a small canoe, but when we got to the passage through the reef, we found the sea too rough to venture out, so we ran down inside the reef four or five miles to a small village where we procured a large canoe and crossed over to the island of Banger, about five miles distant. By this time it was near night with a strong wind and rough sea, so we concluded to stop there for the night. We secured our canoe and started for the village, which was at the summit of the highest mountain and about three miles from the shore. After a tedious walk over rocky hills and through thickly-wooded valleys we arrived at the village, reported to the chief and were assigned a house calculated for the accommodation of visitors, with which every village is provided.

Through the night the inhabitants were employed cooking pigs and vegetables, which were presented to us with the usual ceremony. The morning brought a severe storm of wind, rain, thunder and lightning. All we could do was to make ourselves comfortable. In the course of the day our chief sent for an old Umbaty who was celebrated for his knowledge of the future, and told him he wanted to know if there was a ship at Cantab or any of the neighboring islands, also when the storm would subside so that we could continue our voyage. The old man sat motionless for a few moments, then got up and left us. Directly he returned bearing in his hands a few green leaves. He sat down in the middle of the house, and rubbed the leaves until the juice began to run. He then held his hand with the juicy leaves straight up over his head and said: "If this juice runs down to my shoulder without dropping off she is there, but if not, she has gone some other cruise." He then squeezed the leaves and the juice ran down to his elbow and dropped off. "Ah!" he said, "she is not there." Other questions he answered the same way.

This island is much like the others, high and well wooded, and very fertile. The inhabitants were not so numerous as on other islands of the same size, owing no doubt to their continual wars. Our chief told me that till within a few years the natives here were very savage and if a canoe landed for shelter in a storm or in distress they would kill all hands and have a cannibal feast.