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eveleth : sandwich islands mission, 1837 |
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It would seem
natural to suppose, that a people thus destitute and degraded, would of
course be melancholy and desponding.
But although
they are frequently borne down with heavy burdens, deprived of many of
the comforts of life, and all the refined enjoyments of cultivated society,
yet they have their sports and amusements - their seasons of recreation
and festivity.
Their amusements
are such as you would expect to find among a race of untutored savages;
those which excite the greatest interest are swimming, racing,
boxing, and dancing.
The first of
these is practised by all - young and old - males and females.
Even ...
Page 60
... children,
at the early age of four or five years, become expert swimmers, acquiring
a courage in dangerous exploits, and a familiarity with the watery element,
truly wonderful.
In their common
excursions all seem equally at home on the ocean; and should their boats
be overturned by the heavy motion of the waves, it is a matter of little
inconvenience to them.
While Capt. Cook's
ships were in the vicinity of the Islands, a mother, with several small
children, in crossing the bay in a canoe, were upset.
The youngest
child, a boy of four years, seeming delighted with the sport, swam about,
playing various tricks in the water, while the mother and older children
were busily engaged in righting their boat.
In the midst of
their recreations the swimmers are sometimes interrupted by the appearance
of a shark; in which case, a signal being given, the natives instantly
flock around the new comer, and with surprising dexterity attack this monster
of the deep, whose daring voracity exceeds that of any other animal.
They sport with
his rage, and will even at length carry him in triumph to the shore.
Sharks, however,
not unfrequently destroy children while playing in the water.
An instance of
this occurred at Lahaina, one of the missionary stations, not long since.
The unhappy sufferer,
a boy fourteen years of age, was devoured in the ...
Page 61
... presence of friends who were endeavouring, though in vain, to rescue him from the dreadful jaws of the fish.
But the pastime
which these people take most delight in, is sporting in the surf, at the
times when the sea is thrown into the greatest commotion by wind or storms,
and rolls in upon the beach in monstrous billows.
The spot selected
for this amusement is generally one where the shore is lined with large
rocks, against which the waves beat with the greatest violence.
The natives,
sometimes to the number of two or three hundred, of every age, sex and
rank, assemble at this place; and taking each a strip of plank, from three
to fourteen feet in length, and one or two feet in breadth, which is made
thinner at the edges than in the middle, they advance with them into the
surf.
If they encounter
a high wave, they dive under it, and as it rolls over them, they rise to
the surface and swim, until meeting another, and another still, which are
in the same way avoided, they at length gain the smooth sea, beyond the
breaking of the surf.
This exploit
is attended with some difficulty and danger, for if the person attempting
it does not succeed in diving under the wave, he is caught by it and forced
back upon the rocks with great violence, at the risk of being much bruised,
or perhaps killed.
Having reached the calm seas, beyond the ...
Page 62
... reef, which
is sometimes a quarter of a mile from the shore, they place themselves
on their narrow boards, having their faces downwards, and their heads raised
considerably above that extremity of the plank which is nearest the land.
Then taking advantage
of one of the highest waves, they are driven towards the beach with astonishing
impetuosity and rapidity.
They are anxious
to gain the harbour without being overtaken by other waves, which follow
on hard behind them, for if they fail of steering their little barks directly
through the narrow spaces between the rocks on the shore, they are obliged
to leave them to be dashed against the rocks, while they make a precipitate
retreat themselves, by diving under the wave that is rushing upon them
with its violence and fury.
They must resort
to the same expedient, if, by mistake, they mount one of the smaller surfs,
which generally breaks before reaching the shore, and drops them into the
gulf below.
These experiments
the natives repeat, during two or, three hours at a time, with incredible
courage and success.
|
History of the Sandwich Islands, with an Account of the American Mission Established There in 1820, with a Supplement Embracing the History of the Wonderful Displays of God's Power in These Islands in 1827-1839. American Sunday-School Union, Philadelphia, 1837. |
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