THE RETURN

Hokitika Guardian, 19 March 1921, Page 4

THE RETURN

AN ACCOUNT OJF THE VOYAGE HOME.

; (By Charles'Parham, of the N.Z.E.F.)

; (Continued.) j ‘'You haven’t told us yet how you I got back,” or “I think I must have ! missed the last instalment'’, thus in , various ways and in divers olaces it has been intimated to mee that it is i ‘‘up to me” to finish the '‘yarn.” j Aider ploughing the summer seas i for a week, the Good Ship Remuera ar--1 rived off the island of Pitcairn. The ; oth. of November had broken 1 right ' and clear, but soon we ran into a rain-squall which prevented us from sighting the island until about- 10 a.m. In fine weather it J is visible forty miles away. At first a shadowy outline loomed dimly through the mist then steaming slowly nearer, we could see liow the surf dashed high against the desolate rock-bound shore. There appended to be no possible landing place along the precipitous coast and no shelter from the great Pacific rollers that broke continually anmgst tlie rocks. j Presently a’couple of boats put off and could be seen battling through the breakers. They pitched so that j one thought they .must surely bo swamped and every now and hen one or other would disappear completely from sight in the hollow of Ibe swel. Then after what seemed an age t would reappear on the crest. Every moment it looked as though they would surely capsize and go to the bottom. Of all the remote and little «ro"'n islands, Kerguelen. Tristan, da Uuubn. South Georgia. Easier Islanl, Pit cairn, the last has, without Uoubl.. the most romantic history of them all. It was her 0 that the remnants <,f the Mutineers of the Bounty settled down finally, after they had east adrift (he r Captain and officers. The vVe-d Indian planters had found it diflb'idt in feed their slaves, so the British G - vernment (acting 'on the advice of Banks the botanist, who is so famed in N.Z. history) sent Capt. Bligh out to the Pacific, for a cargo of young bread fruit trees. He was ordered to sail via. Cape Horn, but failing to beat round, he had to turn and run before the wind to the Cape of Good Hope. Calling then at Van Diemen’s band ml raising to the south of New Zealand, after a voyage of ten months l.e reached Tahiti. Here lie stayed for close on six months collecting the plants required. His men liked the easy life and were reluctant to loav,, the island, when it was time to set off home. Bligh was a fine seaman, but be bad a most violent temper, which doubtless precipitated the trouble. V couple of days after leaving the Groin-, he had a quarrel with his Chief Officer named Christian, who thereupon during the night arranged with the other discontented men to seize him and the other officers. The Mutineers cast them adrift in a small boat with I a cask of water and a few provisions. J After a remarkable voyage of 3000 miles. Bligh sueceed'od in reaching th,. Dutch island of Timor, whence lie finally returned to England. Meae'■■hile, the Mutineers returned to Tahiti, where they trickl'd the natives into giving them a large supply of provisions, pig*--, goats and fowls. „ Then then made an attempt to form a colony on a neighbouring island but were unsuccessful. They, thcrHore returned to Tahiti. Sixteen o! the erevv went, ashore, v.her,. they were later on -rptured by a “frigate rent out from England. Christian, willi r-igbt other i ompciiions. ea.-b "..•Mi a native w.fe; seven native men and three women -n sail in (he 15oiiniy. For many yews nothing was known of their fate. Some twenty years later an Ameri- I can ship accidentally touched at an J island known as Pitcairn's Island, j which was supposed b, be uninhabited. The captain was surprised to find a

when an 'islander in one of tlie boats that had come alongside, hailed him and shouted in good English “Won't you heave us a rope now !■’” They were the descendants of Lite long lost Mutineers of the Bounty. It 'appeared, that Christian. had found among Capt. Bligh’s books an account of an island that had ewlv been discovered. Being both remote * and uninhabited it seined to be an ideal place for them. Arrived there they landed and destroyed their ship. The white men divided Ihe land among themselves and made their native companions work (for them. This went on peaceably for a couple of years when the Tahitians planned to slaughteit their oppressors. The plot being discovered, two of the natives Wer ( , put to death. Soon after, the natives succeeded in killing five ■ f the whites. Then for n time there was peneci From force of circumstances “Prohibition” held wav on the island; but that old say ‘‘where' there’s

a will there’s a way” presently proved a true saving. One o-f tiie sur-

viving mutineers named M’Kov had

been brought up in a Scottish distillery, and well lie lived up to his early training. Trip, to his name no was ‘coy’ enough to experiment until he had succeeded' in extracting a fiery spirit from the root of a kind cl cabbage tree. Prom that time until they both elied, neither he nor his mate Quintal were over sober, Th ( . former lell ofl a cliff and tlie latter went mad and had to lx* killed by the others,

'We did it with an axe,” is the ouri'Us entry in their journal. The two surviving mutineers having lad time for reflection, became very eligious. \ bible and a prayer-book ad been saved from the Bounty, and boy held daily services. The children 'ore taught to read and write, and a >g-book or journal was kept, recording lany a quaint incident, and many a •agic one. The laws they made were apnrontly very satisfactory, though ley were curious. There are laws for >gs and eats, as well as for fowls and Igs. For instance: “If any person ider the. age of ten kills a eat, he she shall receive corporal punishent. If anyone between the ages of and 15 kill a cat, be or she shall pay fine, of 25 dollars, half the fine to b 0 ven to the informer, tho other half to 0 public. All masters of families corded of killing a cat, shall bo fined dollars, half to go to the informer, ) other to the public.

If a fowl be seen trespassing in a garden, the owner of the garden is al-

lowed to shoot it and keep it, while the owner of the fowl is obliged to return the charge of powder and shot expended in killing the fowl. (That is the

law but 1 understand! that the practice is to return the dead bird and drop the claim for ammunition.) If a pig is seen trespassing, no one is allowed to give information, except to the owner of the land, that he may not be baulked in whatever course he may think fit to adopt! (Bad luck for the pig and his owner).

The other laws ar o equally quaint, as for instance: —Any person taking the public anvil and the public sledge hammer from the blacksmith’s shop, is to take it back alter he has done with it, but should it get lost through his neglecting to take it back, he is to get another anvil and sledge hammer, and to pay a. fine of four shillings. The equivalents for money are as follows: One barrel of yams is valued at Bs. One barrel of sweet potatoes at 8s One barrel of Irish potatoes at Pis, Three good bunches of plantains -Is. One day’s labour - s - The chief magistrate is to see that the labour is well performed. There are other regulations quite as wise, and apparently these happy peope can get on quite well without paying parasitical lawyers to untangle the knots they themselves tie. No jail, no pubs, no taxes: AY hat an ’appy ’ome! Tlie Remuera cruised about as dose to the shore as possible; but she could not anchor on account of the depth of the water. The soundings where we lay were said to be 200 fathoms. Ibe island rises from the bed of the ocean like a steep mountain peak some 3000 ft. high, but only a thousand feet of it appears above the water. '1 he steep red cliffs covered with dark green vegetation wore reminiscent of the Devon coast. Each boat was manned by five or six rowers, and skilfully steered by a, man in tlie stern who wielded a long

and heavy sweep. As they drew nearer one could see that they were of local construction, double ended like a whaleboat, but narrower in beam and much longer in proportion. One bad evidently been just completed for the axe marks were plainly visible on her timbers. The lower part of her hull was fashioned lik ( > a “dug-out canoe,” from a single jog, but planks had been added to raise her sides.

Rope ladders had been lowered down the ship’s sides, and soon the islanders were swarming up on to the deck. There , were several women with them and they were no less active than the men , in clambering up the long swaying ladders. They did not come empty handed either, for f was surprised to notice I that they lugged up great “kits” or palm leaf baskets of fruit. It was mostly fruit that they brought, but some had curios such as shells, coral feathers, and models of tlie “Bounty.” (!m< bad a number of mysterious looking round packages, wrapped in what appeared to be some kind of palm , leaf, which aroused my curiosity. Tlr- | islander, who by the way, said his name j was (larder Christian, informed me that they were bananas, but perceiving my incredulity he drew bis sheath knife ami obligingly cut one through to show that it contained dried fruit. They ha shrunk in licit in the drying process, an 1 were so tightly packed together, that while the package was no larger than a good sized fist it prolmbl.v represented a big bunch of fresh bananas. This particular islander became very friendly and told me unite a number of interesting things. His gratitude knew no bounds when T gave him an unconsidered trifle. Putting his basket down on the deck, and opening up the matting cover lie pressed me to take anything I fancied. It was rather pathetic to see how thankful they were for anything they were given. Ohl clothes and other disused articles, such as a ] rag and bone merchant would proliably J turn up bis nose at, were to them of j real value. About a year ago their little schooner went down so they are no longer able to trade with Tahiti. They had a “gramophone” but were unable to use it as they had no needles. I hey said they wanted baking powder, or bi-carbonate of soda, while magazines were always acceptable. Among thi< curios they brought on hoard were the long tail feathers, or streamers ot the ‘Bosun bird.’ Some call this the Tropic bird, but sailors generally name it the “Marlin Spike” on account of its sharp pointed tail, ft was said that these feathers couldn’t be obtained in England for 3 guineas apiece. They are of a crimson colour some 15 to 18 ins. long and barely half an inch in width. Among the other curios were strings »f various seeds, shells, and skeleton leaves, from which all the green, fleshy part bad been stripped, leaving nothing but the interlacing network of veins. These and the shells were painted so skilfully and with such artistic designs that one was inclined to wonder whether they were not “made in Brummagem.” On being questioned, a

native said flint tlie girls and wome painted them in the evenings, and bt

came quite indignant at the idea of their being thought not genuine. The usual tropical fruit was brought

on board—pawpaws, green bananas, oranges and “.Tack fruit” ; there were also lemons with tremendously thick skins. Unfortunately the pineapples were not quite ready to be cut. I elicited the information that while the ordinary vegetables grew well, the Islanders depended largely on other products such ns bread, fruit and yams.

A blast on the steamer’s syren warned the Islanders to p»repare to leave. The lower decks were thronged with passengers who swarmed 'across the hatchways and crowded round the traders. Emigrants from the steerage eager for fruit, jostled good hum on redly with the “elite” from the promenade decks, intent on curio bunting. The natives were anxious to get rid of their remaining stocks, so many good bargains were secured by those who bad been cute enough to wait. The loud reports of a couple of rockets put an end to all this, for there was a rusli to the side, and a scramble to get into the j boats. Several minor accidents enliv- j ened the proceedings—a few baskets ! fell overboard, an oar had had to be rescued, while at least one boat was swamped, and required baling. This last was a matter of small eonseouonee, for the occupants were bare booted, and tlie ladies’ dresses, not to mention the j gents’ suits, were scarcely liable to be

injured by an immersion in tlie briny. The ludicrous thought occurred to me here: How would one of these hardy looking Islanders appear rigged out as a “lady killer” from Bond Street, in stove-pipe hat, Picndilly flogger, and white spats, to say nothing of a pair of tan gloves, patent leather shoes, and a monocle. Wow! What a picture for “bored” eyes. There is no need to comment on their women folk, for no doubt tlie ladies would quickly adopt the latest fashions, and vie with one another in silk stockings, “pneumonia” blouses, atrocity hats, and topping off with real skunk skin furs. They are, however, much more picturesque as they are, and what they lack in dress is more than balanced by their healthy appearance. The natural grace of the women, no less the dignified though alert bearing of the men result from their active and strenuous outdoor life, which no amount of indoor “polite society” could imbue them with. ’

Standing up in their canoes all the Islanders joined in a song ol farewell. Though J could not make out the words it seemed to he a lament, for though the air was weird or at least unusual, it was very mournful, and full oi pathos. They are so cut off fo n the world and are such friendly people that they seem reluctant to say good-bye even to the acquaintances they make in the short time that the steamer stops. What, then must be their feelings when they have to part with one of their ouu number. One of them told me that at least one had fought in the war, while Christian said that his brother had gone to Christchurch and had not been heard of since.

Gradu illy the island dropped below tlie horizon, and as the afternoon was a lino one the rocky summit lemained in sight for more than tine boms after leaving. A magnificent golden sunset which lit up the tranquil blue sea, brought an end to a very pleasant day. Ten days’ steam brought us to windy Wellington, thence home to little old Hokitika, which ’aint such a bad place either!