MASSACRE OF WESLEYAN MISSION AGENTS IN NEW BRITAIN.

Samoa Times and South Sea Gazette, Volume 2, Issue 55, 19 October 1878, Page 2

MASSACRE OF WESLEYAN MISSION AGENTS IN NEW BRITAIN.

(From tin- S. M. Herald, Sept. 10.) On Saturday morning we published the molnneholy intelligence, brought by the German barque Johan Cottar, which arrived in Port Jaokson on Friday last from Now Britain, o lout; narrow' island off the eastern const of New Guinea. \\V now give further particulars of the mossacrc. It mav be explain''"! (hat theWesleyan Church in Australia direct* and supports Evangelistic operations in the Friendly Islands, the new colony of Fiji, Samoa, the lone island of Katumah, and the croup of islands of which New Britain ami New Ireland are the largest. The missions in Fiji and the Friendly Islands are the most extensive, the oldest, and tho most successful; those in Samoa and Kotumah have also been prosecuted for a considerable period. The remaining mission is known among its supporters as the New Mission, and comprises tln> Duke of York group, New Britain, and New Ireland. Missionary operations were established in tlvso islands only within the last few years. The Rev. George Brown, who hail passed a lengthy and laborious ministry in Samoa, conceived the idea of setting up the standard of the Cross in the thickly-populated islands situated off the eastern toast of New Guinea, and went through the colonies to rouse the zeal of his co-religion-ists in the direction indicated. He escitod a powerful enthusiasm in favour of his project; and, two or three years ago, he, accompanied by some native teachers chosen from the missions in Fiji and Samoa, sailed for this new And dangerous field of Christian ellbrt. It was fundamental to Mr. Brown's scheme that his agents should, for the most part, hi; natives, recruited from the other \\V«. loyan missions in the Pacific. In this, the precedent of the London Mission Society's successful effort.-, in New Guinea was followed. Since the inauguration of his work, Mr. Brown has visited ■ the colonies once ; and, when ho returned, he took with him his family and an additional hand of native agents. He then hail twenty-six teachers, all of whom were married men. About a year :.!_'•> the disposition of these assistants was :;s follows: On the island of New Britain there were eleven stations, to which thirteen teachers were allotted ; New Ireland had five stations, worked by six teachers . \ thfc other seven teachers were located in stations scattered through the Duke of 1 York group. One great drawback to the working of the mission has been the rarity of communication with Australia. The last information from Mr. Brown was dated in February, ami arrived in Sydney via Hongkong about the end of April. Excepting the occasional visits of the John Wesley, the mission ship, the only means of sending information are the chance visits of traders. The snd news now to hand refers to events whi hj , happened five months ago. The distance from Now Britain to Sydney is not very ', great, and could he traversed by a steam- ', ship in a few days; but the days of steam , communication with the fertile islands off tho eastern coast of New Guinea belong to the far future. The following may he relied upon as a substantially trustworthy account of the massacre: On tho Bth of April, while ■ Mr. Brown was sitting in his studv about 8 p.m., a messenger from NewBritain tapped at the window, and infi/rmed him that several teaclie s • had been murdered by the natives of the interior of 'New Britain. ' Mr. Brown, who was on the very eve of taking his family to that island" with a view to gaining health and strength after a general attack of fever, feared the tidings were true. A short time previously ■ he had visited New Britain, when his teachers, in council assembled, had os- : pressed thoir wish and determination to visit the interior tribes. There wero eight men in this meeting who teld Mr. Brown that they had already made one ' expedition inland, whon the natives rei ceived them courteously, showed them graat kindness, and invited them to repeat the visit. The. desire thov wero anxious to nleet as soon as possible. Mr. Brown encouraged the idea, and, nt ' their request, supplied tho teachers with ' beadH, eve., with which to conciliate tho i inland savages. Mr. Brown also intimated his own intention to cross fh« island somewhat lower down than tho point at which tho teaohors planned to make their attempt. It may bo explained ' that tho centre of the island is a narrow but elovated plateau, much more healthy and fortilo than tho coasts, and therefore mueh more numerously peopled. Hence the purpose of extending tho operations of the miscion to tho inland tribes was n natural and legitimate one. Kuowing that this journey had been contemplated and sanctioned, Mr. Brown had only 100 much reason to talieve that the story of the massacre was true. Coniinii.inoi, oi ,„e evil tiding,, was """'■""l'l' l °" "» n lowing dav. I» April, the teacher from Nodup, New Britain, came over with the Bamaaocoiinl and Mr. Brown at o„e<« went acrow to the island ,„ question. He won found hjmTOll among the V, Hows and orphan' or the murdered men, and had tolSten to bonblc recitals „! what had tabu

place.' Briefly, Dm narrative mw Mlowa •. —The teaoheri determined to divide into two bands and by to cross thaialand at ilitVi-ront'paits. Four of them started from Blanche Bay, and the other four lande the northern siJ.- of the island the point of their departure The Blanche Bay party ascended the range, gained the plateau, visited the people, lodged one night in a town, and, without attempting to pursue their journey to the opposite coast of the island, returned next day to their point of departure. The other four teachers alao reached the plateau in safety interviewed tho natives, and were entertained for the night in one of the towns. And now comes tho treachery and cannibalism. A chief who lived on the lowland (the wretch's name was Talili), hut hud influence iu the interior, sent a message to the town in which the unfortunate teachon were lodged for thenight beseeching the tribe to kill thorn. 'When the doomed men left the village the next morning the people followed, and, calling upon nil whom they met working in the plantations by the way to come and join them in the deed of blood, at length foil upon the unarmed, unsuspicious teachers, and slow them in savage fashion. The bodies were cut up, and the pieces sent here and thereto thodifforonttowns, where they were cooked and eaten with cannibal ceremony and delight. The object of thus distributing the bodies was to implicate a largo number of towns in the massacre —an understood device of savages. One of the victims was, we believe, a native missionary from Fiji, who, during the absence of Mr. Brown already referred to, was the temporary her/l of the mission. Such was the massacre. Mr. Brown found that Talili and his fellow-savages elated with what had been done, had also plotted with wheeled appetites, tiie slaughter of the widows and children of his slain assistants. Indeed) it was impossible to say how far the kindled lire might not spread. lio conceived it, therefore, to be his truest defence at once to make aggression upon the murderers. An expedition was at once organized, ami the result of the reprisals was that at least fifty, possibly more, of the cannibals were killed, and many of the towns and plantations were destroyed. The natives were glad to sue for peace. Of these proceedings we may be able to supplymore detailed information in a few days. The Johan Ciesar brings news from Mr. Drown of two months inter date than the massacre, and it is slid that no further murders had taken place or are anticipate I. The lesson read to the savages was sharp and salutary. It is a curious coincidence that this m\v< arrived in Sydney just as the mission siiip John Wesley was on the eve of departure for the Duke of York group, \ii Fiji and Rotumah. She has been detained in port until the board of missions shall have deliberated on the information just to hand. She has on board the Rev. B.'Danks (a European colleague for Mr. Brown) and wife, and two native missionaries from Tonga, intended as a reinforcement of the New Mission.