Specimens of Heathenism.

Alexandra Herald and Central Otago Gazette, Issue 348, 8 January 1903, Page 5

Specimens of Heathenism.

The " Messenger" publishes occasional contributions from the New Hebrides, illustrative of the mission work there, closely identified with the well-known work of the Rev. Dr Paten. The following extracts from the issue of November 14 conveys some idea of the daily life of missionaries to the cannibals of that group : " On Thursday, itinerating day, we divided, as usual, into parties. Lomai and T, with two or three teachers, went to a village far inland. While there we heard it whispered that before sundown two people were to be killed, but at the time I did not attach much importance to the rumor. On the way home we were alarmed to hear several shots, and our anxiety was further increased when, arriving home, we found several of the teachers were still absent* Just after tea as we were sitting down to worship, the door was stealthily pushed open, a black head appeared, and a voice expressed with excitement said: " Oh, missi, me fright! me fright!" Then the whole sad story poured forth—how that, when the teachers had held a service at Willie's place, and were leaving on their way home, they heard a shot, and then another, and on looking round saw a man fall; then another shot, and another man fall. The teachers rushed back to them, but they were dead, both with the books clasped in their hands. The teachers tried to carry them back to the school, but had themselves to run and take shelter behind the trees, owing to the constant firing of the enemy. At last they managed to take them off to the school, and at dusk Willie and the rest of his school buried the bodies. The two men, lepiep and Wiko, had been attending school for a year, " Next morning I left with a band of teachers for the village, and when we were about a mile off we heard shooting, and saw a volume of smoke rise. We felt very anxious as we neared the village. We had thought it was the church being burned by the enemy, but found it was the houses of their two victims. A gully runs between those houses and the church, and from the other side the enemy were shooting over at the church. The teacher Wille and his people were gathered together under a banyan tree a little way off. I persuaded them to go down to Loanea."' Amongst them were two old men, fathers of the dead men—so old that they could not walk. The teachers carried them down. A few days afterwoods I again visited the village, and found the teacher's house had been ransacked, his garden destroyed and his yams cut to pieces. I was told that they had intended to burn the church, but a heathen who was a little friendly towards the worship persuaded them to leave it and Willie's house, but they burned all the other houses and fences." "Though the people had left the village, the heathen were nothing daunted, but followed them down, and on Tuesday, less than a fortnight after their first victim fell, we were horrified to hear that another school boy had been killed and a heathen wounded. Immediately I started off to verify the rumor, and found it only too true. I could not persuade the wounded man to come to Lenakel, so could only dress his wound, which I think is not serious, and leave him .The next day Lomai and I took the two horses and went to interview the enemy, but as there are so many implicated in the fight we could get nothing satisfactory out of them, "On the Sunday before the last shooting it was rumored that one of the women who had come down to Lenakel, refugee from the first shooting case, had been shot. On inquiry we found that one night a heathen who wanted her to become his second wife stole down, waylaid her, and tried to take her away by force. She .did not want to go, but he dragged her into the bush and beat her. She escaped, however, and ran to a distant village. That happened the Monday before,

but we could not acertain where she had gone. Then a week after we heard of her being killed and carried away to a distant village to be eaten. I was determined to go and find out if it were true, so Loinai, Titonga and another teacher accompanied me, and we left at six a. m. on Thursday. When we came to the first heathen village we could get no guides, and the teachers did not know the road ; but we pushed on hoping to find somebody on the way. We came upon one man who took us to the next village. The road was terribly rough, up hill and down dale, and poor Lomai, whose legs were sore from the ride of the day before, had to give in and wait our return. Only Titonga came with me, and, of course, the guide, and we walked and walked till I thought we would never come to the place. To make matters worse it came on to pour, and we were drenched. At last we arrived at the village, and found to our sorrow and horror that the rumor was only too true, and that we were just a day too late to prevent a horrible cannibal feast. I saw the oven, with the leaves still in it, and the stones scarcely cold. The smell was awful. They showed me a young cocoanut they had that morning planted by the side of the oven, so that to future generations it would be pointed out, to prove the truth of the horrible deed. Afterwards I learnt that these same people ate the poor woman's husband not very long ago. I spoke to them and had prayer with them, and soon left very much saddened at the awful 'deed and at the cannibals' shameless indifference. It ■ took us till after five o'clock to get home, I being too worn out to do any(thing but change and lie down. " And now a little about tho work at the station. Teachers' and candidates' classes go on as usual, and Jare very well attended. Nearly all the worshipping people. came and bagged the last crop of maize, and have cleaned the garden and planted another crop, The corn, as you know, goes towards the printing of their books. "We were glad to receive the several splendid mission boxes from friends of the mission, the contents of which we paid to the workers at the removing of the house. "We are kept busy giving out medicine for every real and imaginary ache and pain, There is always a number of the usual native sores to be dressed, and as our stock of old linen is exhausted we should be very grateful for any discarded linen for bandages. There are a few isolated cases of measles; otherwise there is not much sickness. In all our work Lomai is a great help. He is a splendid fellow, and a faithful and untiring worker. " We were very sorry to learn when we came that some of the school people bad gone back to heathenism, but we hope that they will soon return. There have been two or three deaths since we came —one the wife of lau, one of Mr Macmillan's teachers, who belongs to this place. What has occurred here the past two months will give the reader an idea of the awful state of those who live in heathenism. Nothing but God's is able to deliver them from such a state. We pray for the outpouring of His Holy Spirit to enlighten the dark hearts cf these people. " Seeing what success Mr Paton has had, we realise more than ever what a blow it is to him and Mrs Paton to leave their beloved work and people. The people's hearts are very warm towards them, and we ourselves deeply sympathise with them, and hope that even yet they may be able to return to where their hearts are."