A MONTH IN FIJI.

Hawke's Bay Weekly Times, Volume 2, Issue 91, 28 September 1868, Page 234

A MONTH IN FIJI.

;• bfthy I3i»ea£ :ilMll|ei>tenilier.); pdtfea“s taikbiaC jdaring a recent- ' ; fthe f - that originally made for the iii- ► { ta/:knqw; ibprnething ,of the capa-’ I-hilities- of these as:a field -for gettlement. : Finding, on my return to tlia,t ; constant applications are nib, rand a wide interest felt r ‘ih' ; thp .snbjecti I have arranged the ‘ notes.as ?carefully as,scanty intervals pf leisure permit.

-.v..;We left. Port Chalmers on the eventing of Saturday, '3oth May, 1868, in ■ the Banshee, a fine little schooner of about 70 tons. Having on board 27 passengers (including two ladies and - two'children) it may be supposed we were somewhat cramped for room, but f to, some extent ; ; this Was counter balanced.by incidents, amusing and otherwise, constantly occurring in our

crowded little world. After a short passage of 14 days we sighted the Island of. Matuka, and had our first distant glimpse of the Coral Islands, about which most of us had read and dreamt in days gone by. Passing Moala, Totoya, and Agau, we were lying becalmed early on the following morning about 20 miles from Ovalau, an; island 30 or 35 miles in circumference. In the afternoon a pleasant breeze sprung up, and entering through . the reef which is there less than a miie from the shore, we dropped anchor • after dusk in the port of Levuka. The view in approachiug the port was charming. The day was bright, and the ocean around us studded with islands fringed and crested with the tall and graceful cocoanut tree, while the mountains of Viti Levu formed a noble background to the picturesque scene. The islands in sight were of widely varying heights and size, but all of them clothed to the summit with the richest tropical vegetation. The town of Levuka is built along a narrnw stri]j of beabh lying at the eastern base of the lofty green hills which form the backbone of Ovalau. It is the only •town of white settlers in the group, and its supremacy as the capital of 'Fiji has not hitherto been disputed. -.tt. /• ~i „__-waey wiu De mamtamed when population is"settled on the large Islands of Yiti Levu, and Vanua Levu with their fine harbors, is a question keenly debated; but there can be no doubt Levuka will possess, for many years at least, the trade of the numerous windward islands of which it is the natural centre. It, also, in a great degree, owes its present position to the uniform sup ; port which tne Chief of Ovalau (Tui Levuka) gave to the whites in olden •times, when his protection involved him, it is said, in imminent risk of collission with Cako Bau and other great chiefs whose feelings towards foreigners were not then of the most friendly description. The white 'population of Levuka is now about 150. Two churches, a literary institution, two .very good ‘ hotels ‘ and three of a less pretentious, character, two steam cotton gins, and powerful machinery in course of erection for-extracting oii from cotton seed, testify to the civilisation and to the enterprise of its people, • •

15th June.—The morning fine, and the view of Levuka, flanked on either side by native villages embowered in groves of cocoanut and bread fruit, very beautiful. Some of the new arrivals were this morning doomed to itbeir first disappointment in Fiji. Having, been,, told by a gentleman less than three years absent from the place, that empty bottles were capital trade, and would exchangb with the natives for any quantity of fruit, they had, in the absence qfxoom elsewhere, stored in bunks all the bottles that pquld<be‘saved on the voyage. When ' tbe canoes came alongside these valuables were unearthed, but found to be in no; demand ;, among the children of nature, who.had -learnt to .appreciate shillings much, but dollars more, and who laughed at F offers of the .most ge- . . aerousLy- jabelled of the empty, treasures: eo.; carefully;. presqi^edi: ; ,:; The patiyes7whb‘ came alongside ~were: a the race. They wear V sulu,” a species of ldl^feyquhdi4he;-waist. ' The; sulu .is * of; colored-vgrass,-and - banana leaf, but of:#'coinbidmkiM of eottqs print

T heymse a fa tli o m for each fsula ; aucf I majrhere. observe that'in Fiji every 'thing is measured and sold by. the fathom instead of the., yard. t The na- i tives are very cleanly and. take par- 1 ticular pains - with their hair, which: is carefully combed and pomatutned with ri' lime wash, ! leaving it, when the dressing is complete, very much in style, color, anddook like a barristers wig. They are a* stout,- athletic racei very intelligent, and = pleasing ;iu appearance, and it is difficult to reconcile their good humored faces and light hearted manner with the frightful cannibalism from which they have just emerged: They are evidently apt to learn, and the contact with civilisation which has in a few years made so great a change in their estimate of the value of empty bottles is no doubt quietly producing a like effect in matters of greater moment to their own interest and to those of the whites settling in increasing numbers among them. Landed after breakfast, and found Otago summer jackets unpleasantly warm in a Fiji winter, while what some of us had supposed to be summer waistcoasts were quite unbearable. Loud but unavailing regrets were expressed on all sides at the delusion under which our portmanteaus had been packed, and a determination to sacrifice appearances for the time, and discard both coat and waistcoat, was afterwards adopted by a large majority. On landing, found Levuka—looking so pretty from the sea —in reality a very confined place, offering little attraction beyond a visit to the native towns and to the water fall, where native boys jump from the rocks some 15 or 20 feet into the poolj below and dive for sixpences very ex-1 pertly and with great success. We were here much embarrassed by the conflicting accounts given of the country by recent arrivals and by settlers who happened to be in town. On this point no two people were agreed : —“ -The Rewa was too wet for Sea Island cotton, and a hot-bed of mosquitos. All the settlers there were anxious to sell out. .No small islands were to be bought now as heretofore. On the big laud the best places were the Nandg and Nandroga Coasts,

Mwvyvuijgutuci's^ , rV iv too dry and no good land to be got upon them. Eye complaints and dy sentery were prevalent here—and natives and low whites troublesome there. This place was sickly because deprived of the sea breeze—and that place had no water.” In short, it. would he impossible to describe the conflicting opinions and advice with which were met. To those who remember how every Province in New Zealand once held the same bad opinion of the climate and capabilities of its neighbours there was but one course open, and that was to see, as soon as possible, for ourselves. "With a last look at the greatest curiosity, in Levu ka—a venerable and highly respect* able pair of stocks, for the pillorying, I presume, of native offenders^—we returned on board, after being kindly offered a couple of seats in his boat by a gentleman engaged in cotton-plant-ing on the Rewa, with whom we decided to. leave next day.

June 16.—Again visited the native towns, prior to starting for the Rewa. At Tonga Town we were suddenly surrounded by natives, armed with axes, knives, clubs, and muskets. This assembly looked warlike, but we soon learnt that their object was to sell -some of their clubs, and that it is their invariable practice to go armed. I beard a curious story to-day respecting Tui Lemka. He had offended against the laws of the Bau dominions, and had been taken by Cako Bau in his canoe, a prisoner,, to Bau. By some it is; asserted that the. capture was. effected treacherously, but I was assured, on the ; best authority, that this was not the case. At Bau, the Tui was to .have been summarily hanged, but was saved, by the urgent appeals of the Rev. Mr Tait, the resident missionary, and his sentence commuted to banishment-in the hills of the Upper Rewa. "... A Mr Hefferr nan, a .planter-there, taking., pity on the forlorn, condition- of x>ne who had for .so many years been so good a friend to the w hites, assisted him. in escapihg .to the Bower Rewa,;: whence h.e was conveyed in. the regular, passenger /boat to Levuka, and was received with great rejoicings • : by Kis £ttdcM r

own heath—Or. 'perhaps; it.would be more correct to say, among own cocoanutsrr—the chief defied Caco Bau, and talked of making open war upon his /Majesty. •• All this occurred only a few weeks before our arrival, and we were informed that Tui Levuka, in bis wrath, had "taken the singular revenge of changing his religion, that e ven in that respect he might not be like Cako Bau. He had therefore become a Catholic, and walked about the beach of Levuka, with a gilt cross on his neck, while his followers were decorated with small medals of Saint Francis d’Assis, which is the outward sign of a Catholic Fiji man. Some said that the step was also taken to spite the Wesleyan missionaries, whom he in some unaccountable manner connected with his capture, although it was by. one of their number he had been saved from an ignominous death; I called on Tui Levuka. Saw an elderly man, clad in pure native costume, with- considerable dignity of manner in his better moments, and left him with great regret at the fondness for gin which made him haunt the public houses of Levuka, and which was evidently lowering the character of one whose face indicated the kindness and good nature that had made him a favorite, both with the whites and his own people. I started from Levuka at 2 p.m., but tide and wind being contrary, were compelled to put back and make a new attempt iat 5. At 7.30 got to a small island (Sautaba), and slept there for the night. Sautaba (pronounced Sowtambaj is only about 200 yards in circumference, with a small clump of trees and bush growing in the centre. There is no water on the island, and : to any one in search of a new sensa- ! tion I would recommend a week’s stay on this or some other lonely islet in ; the midst of the Pacific Ocean. In i the boat I spent a portion of the time : in learning the Fiji alphabet, and as . it will be useful in enabling others to understand the pronounciation of > Fiji names, transcribe it for their ; benefit:—-There is no h, x, or z in Fiji* and the other letters are pronounced like our own, with the exception of a (pronounced ah) : b, fmb) : ’ -* /•■‘V r -“v i'V , (V; q, ( n 99) ;u, fooj. As illustrations I may quote the words, Turaga, . a chief, (pronounced Turahugha); s Yadi, a queen, (Yahndee) ; Cata, to ■ hate (Thahtah); Qai, then, (Eogguy). ; The accent is generally on the penul : timate syllable, and the language as ( a rule, is phonetic, every letter being , pronounced with its Fiji sound. Thus, , Cako Bau is pronounced Thako-mbau. the meaning of the word bein<r “ Founder of Bau.” The diptbong r sounds are, as nearly as possible , ai, (pronounced i) ; au, fowj ei, fee) , ou, (bo). A little attention will soon ; enable the learner to overcome the peculiarities of the written language in this respect, while a vocabulary of useful phrases by the Rev. Mr Moore, , an exposition of the Gospels, and a translation of Bunyan’s Pilgrim’s Progress by the same gentleman, with a dictionary by the late Rev. Mr Hazlewood, can be bought at Levuka, and will be found invaluable to those who desire to be interpreters, and to hold free intercourse with the natives. The Scriptures are, of course, translated, but the diction is not good,, and Mr Moore is engaged on a re-translation into more pure Fiji, which is better understood now than formerly.

17th June.—-Started from Sautaba soon after daylight. Passed Bau at 11a.m., and the island of Tabarua (Tambarua) at 12. Met on the way a splendid double war * canoe, with Ratu Abel, one of Cako Bau’ssons, on board, going on a mission to Tui Gakau (King of the Reefs) to seek assistance in resuming the war with the murderers of poor Baker last year. The canoe, with its huge leg-of-mutton sail; crowded decks, streamers flying, and native drums beating,'bore down on us with great speed, and in : its way looked every inch “ a man of war.” Two smaller canoes, with another of Gako Bau’s sons as an bassador, followed. Near Tabarua the water shoaled, and .being beautifully clear .gave us a view of the reef, with, its brilliant variety of color and form, enlivened tby numbers ;of small fish, -yellow;,f blue, green, and red, darting; ahout jin .-the little,.pools, and among the many-colored coral pinnacles., .Catering the NalseUcr Creek*

and passing through a canal; (cumby the Bail natives, to connect the Nakello with the Rewa River,) we stoppecf at Morrell’s at Had there a yyelLcooked pork, and poultry, with water-melons, boiled maize, and' grenadillas, we were each charged one shilling. Poultry of all kinds appear to thrive well, while pigs promise to be a perfect nuisance. At 4, resumed our journey, and met several mission boats returning from a festival up the rive.. The boats were rowed by natives clothed in white skirts and robes, and were followed by numerous canoes, each with its merry crowd of holiday-makers in charge of a native teacher. The, canoes were laden with contributions to the revenue of the missionary society, as the natives, having no money, contribute liberally in cocoa-nut oil, cotton, and other produce, which is sent by the Society’s vessels to Sydney. . The Rewa, as we entered it from the Nakello, is about 500 yards broad —the current slow, and the banks not much above the general river level. Lower down towards the sea its breadth is much increased, and the delta, fringed with mangrove swamps, is a nest of mosquitoes, gaining for the whole stream an evil reputation, which, higher up, we did not find it deserve. At Spiers, about seven miles only from the mouth of the main stream, we slept with little annoyance from these pests, and on rising in the morning at 5, : found the air pleasantly cool, and the cocoanut oil congealed. The house in which we slept may be taken as a fair 1 specimen of native architecture. Strong wooden uprights support bamboo rafters, attached to a heavy ridgepale, The roof is thatched, the walls are formed of reeds or basket-work, and the whole fastened neatly and effectively by rope made from cocoanut fibre, and by dried native vines, i The beds are on raised dais constructed i of reeds, filled with leav -s ; covered ’ with mats of the finest description. These beds, or “ vatas ” as they are i called, are both cool and comfortable, while square curtains or ** screens ” are suspended from the roof and .pro- ■ tect the sleeper from the annoying attacks ~or”t!re 'mosquito.' 7 “Called at • Nuku Moto, a small island beautifully. , cultivated and containing fine speci- ; mens of cotton and young coffee trees. 1 Thence proceeded up the river, and at 3 p.m. arrived opposite the Mission House lately occupied by the Rev. ■Mr Baker, whose murder by the mountain natives on the Upper Rewa last year, when he attempted to cross the Island, is so well known. For some distance below this, the banks of the river had begun to increase rapidly in height, and the character of. the vegetation became changed. Coeoanut trees grow scantily, and do not bear. They are replaced in the prospect by delicate and graceful tree ferns, which grow to a height of 30 feet, singly, or in groves, along the banks. Banana trees are numerous, and from this point the settlement of cottou and coffee planters on both sides of the .river is, with the exception of a few native towns, continuous for miles. Proceeding up the river, we stopped at the houses of several settlers on the way; and finally, at half-past ten at night, arriving at Mr Payne’s—about 25 miles from the entrance of the Rewa —were received with the frank hospitality characteristic of the Rewa planters generally.