The Cruise of the Mary Rose | Page 7

formed their nests, and dwelt there; and
timber and plants floating about have been cast on shore, and their
vitality not yet destroyed, have taken root; and more coral and shells
have been heaved up and ground fine by the toiling waves to form a
beach; and thus a fit dwelling-place for man has been formed. Nearing
the sandy beach we heave-to for soundings, but finding none, the ship
stands off, while Phineas and I, with Tom Tar and our boat's crew, well
armed, pull in with the intention of landing. This the surf will not let us
do; and as we are lying off on our oars, presently, from out of the
bushes, rush a herd of savages with spears and clubs, which they
flourish furiously, making signs to us to be gone. We pull on, however,
and find an opening in the reef, through which we get close to the
beach. The natives shout and gesticulate more vehemently than ever.

They declare (so Taro interprets) that we come for no good purpose,
and that they want no strangers. Phineas hopes that they may possess
pearls with which to trade, so we row in, he standing up in the bows of
the boat, holding up a looking-glass and a string of glass beads in one
hand, while he keeps his musket ready in the other. He is bold, and
leaping on shore, approaches the natives. At first the savages retire;
then one advances, stops, gazes at the supercargo, and with a loud shout,
flourishing his club, rushes towards him. Phineas, flinging down the
looking-glass and the beads, springs back, firing his musket in the air.
The savage is upon him. In another moment that huge club will have
dashed out his brains. I see his danger. I have no thought but to save
him--no feeling that I am about to slay a fellow-creature. I raise my
musket to my shoulder and fire, taking good aim. The savage falls.
Phineas, shouting to us to give the Indians a volley, is hauled in. The
men obey as the Indians, with terrific howls, rush towards us. Five
more fall, some in the water, which is tinged with their blood, others on
the land. Our passions are up. Golding urges us to load and fire again.
Having thus done, we pull away. Says Golding, "They'll not meddle
another time with strangers who peaceably visit their shores to trade."
We leave ten or twelve poor heathens dead or wounded on their native
strand. My thoughts are sad. The face of that hapless savage as he
turned his eye on me when falling is still in my sight. True, I fired to
save the life of a shipmate. Yet it is an awful thing to shed the blood of
a fellow-being, let it be in warfare or in any other way which men
justify as from stern necessity.
Are such, too, the blessings which we Christian and civilised men
distribute in our course round the globe? The loud laugh of my
companion sounds in my ear. "Come, rouse thee, John Harvey," he says.
"Art down-hearted, lad, because we have not been more successful in
our traffic? Not a good beginning, but the Pacific is wide, and there
will be no lack of customers."
Standing on for three days we sight several islands. On the nearest is a
grove of fine cocoa-nut trees. We require a supply of nuts. Two boats
with crews well armed leave the ship. An opening appears in the
reef--we pull through it and land easily. Our men climb the tall trees

and shake down the nuts in heavy showers. While we are collecting the
nuts, the men in the trees shout that they see a fleet of large canoes
crossing from another island. We deem that it will be prudent to regain
the boats. The Indians, seeing the broken nuts strewing the ground, and
the heap we are carrying away, shriek, and shout, and shake their clubs
and spears, and then furiously rush towards us. Golding, as before, cries
out to the men to fire, but I order them to shove off, that we may escape
without killing any, for which I see no necessity. We have stolen the
savages' provisions, and they have right on their side. The men obey me,
and we strive to get the boat afloat. No time to lose. The Indians draw
their bows, and the arrows fall thick around us; some come on with
stones, and others plunge into the water with clubs and spears to do
battle for their rights. Our lives are in jeopardy, and one of our men is
fearfully wounded. The savages throng around the boat and try to drag
her to the shore. We keep back the savages with the stretchers, and