ROUND SAVAII.

Samoa Times and South Sea Gazette, Volume 2, Issue 102, 13 September 1879, Page 2

ROUND SAVAII.

TIUOM OIK SI'ECUI, i\ .:.',:i".l.llll.NT.C'.Yllll, No. JN. Ox Tuesday afternoon, theSlOfh .Tidy, dhe Madomi having got in tho balanue of the copra left by tho .Myrtle, Messrs. Cornwall, XclaOD mul myself went on board after wishing farewell to Mrs. Nolson who admirably seconded bar husband's kiml tjlforts to mako imeeomfortable dating mv eight day's stoy there. Wo got under weigh for Kalealupo, at .tlie extrooio 100 .end, about throe in the afternoon, and, .with a .nice lair broozo, hooii ran past .Fatafaga, Jauu bay, Aitala, Vaiwln, Sataua, —the town in which .Mr. Criolitou lives, and which is unfavourably Jtnowu for tho notoriously bad Mnage ,t.liig»xh, the reef,—l'apa, and tnen In (■nleiflupu, .oil' which town we snot) ire] at idtwlewa, The captain, who lit I never l*un on this osast fcefme u.isuly trusted to Mr. Cornwall a* pilot, sod expressed In- opinion l lint tlteae No-enllwl i atttuoragm wwv little better than bcinc

out at sea. A*ae l«ny, which we hai patted that uftt'rnoon. deserves esoivthm passing mention. It is, without excop tion, the largest und most coustetel) sheltered lmy in Samoa. The largest navy in the world coul.l ufaly ride at ; anchor, thoroughly protected from the most severe hurrieane which ever blows i here. There are as much as thirty fathoms of water within a very few yards from the shore; the only fault with i: as a practical place of refuge as it now #aj*» is tbal ibcr* ik only twelve feet of Wilier ou the baa- .at high tide. This, of coarse could be easily remedied. A fow months' dredging is all that is necessary to make this n complete haven for the largest clans of vessels. K is amend this bay also whore snakes are wore numerous than in any other place in the group. They are perfectly harmless and much relished as au article of food by the natives of the adjacent towns, who will sally out in the morning on a capturing expedition, returning aboutsnii-day.with huge .baskets full, which they cook and eat like,eels. This place is noted also for another peculiarity, which is tliat "it is the oilly,rJlace in Samoa where ialosnn be left lundug for any length of time after it is-rjrie•without it rotting. Here it may safeiy.be left iu the ground after ripening,, for a .eouplo of years, They are fortunately -situated "indeed when tiny can store one.of tho most necessary articles of food in.that manner, without having to dig it allup and waste or give away what they cannot .eat during tho season.

Tlie night being lovcHvnndcalin, and the cabin mthw hot, we.nll enjoyed an excellent night's -rest on dock ; and at daylight tfaevork of shipping copra commeiioed. On aocoimt of tho iron-bound coast ami unfavourable character of tho reef passages, Mr. Cornwall's collecting stations for--shipment arc few and far between, entailing a coiisiuVablcamount of work tii»oii Mr. Nelson, •nndervwhose supervision aro all Mr. Cornwall's native agents in this district. I was liappy to meet one of the most intelligent halfcastes in business, Mr. James Bourne, who came on Isiaul to have a.chat with.jne, our stay'being no short r.hat it was not' worth iiny vlinle to go uslr.rc. He finds great difficulty in getting.the natives to work, and lie and his family have Incut open the nuts themselves: otlicrwi.se he would havomo o ipra at nil. il can.ncv.r pity Samuans, when 1 hear them complaining of .being half-starved. Imagine a auiniber.of strong able-bodied young men upending their days in p 1 laying at chifciish games such as"throwing light sticks against the wind,—known amongst themselves as the game of "tagati'a,"— instead of working at their plantations, or Btaking copra. Not one man.iu A''a(palnpo vtvill go to work unless Bonnie agrees to pay SI po»day cash, -or sidn trade. So 1 found it thr ca<e in other towns; the men too idle to work even on their plan! at ions. Bourne wanted to come up to Apia on busiuesu a little while ago. b„t was not able to got a boat's crow. tivocv man he asked demanded twenty dollars for the trip, and :(.o in' supplied with food ! A boat's crew of five men al that|prico would uuiko & journey from Bourne's place to.Apits.ud uaek more expensive .tiuui a cabin passage in a first-class *ckeoiu>r t£*oiu Apia to Auckland:!

In the afternoon we -were really for , another start, and saileihslong ,tlie otxuit past Tuftf'tnfoo, N'oiafu, ;Fuleliuiu,—the end of tho.ltu-o-tune ami■ComilNflluemcnt of the Jtti-o-l'aline districts,-—guivao, where Mr. >C'oiinvall some (time uigojust his cutter flying Cloud, iood nearly Jus own life, Fujrafau, Saniata, a very wr&e and important .town. jPogatuli, Faiaai, Viapnn, Ifogii'aovaii, Sagone, noted n>s tho birthplace of tho murderer of Fox, and then Gagiiumnlao, whercuvo anchored off tlio reef at daylight on Thursday,, .'flat •Tidy. I was not longiin makingitho ecquaintnnce, in the *h}p's boat, of tho passage through tbe*eef. These passa"w were a continual source of anxiety to me, and I was considerably chaffed in consequence. It may be all very well for those who are aooustomed to them, but to n landsman they are lau-Mtbiug but .pleasant. I found our very .comfortably prepared by Mr. Cornwall a •agent who is located .in a capital house, in w'neh there are throe rooms and astoro. I The man in charge is a very intelligent native named Ruagu, who 'has boon for I some veal's in this employ. As to tho | appearance of town '1 can only repeat that it is on a ffftr with Safune and the [ others I visited. During tho whole of this day. Friday and Saturday my friends were busily employed shipping- the copra, so I had plenty uf spare time in whichito prowl about on my own account. I tirst explored the hilly regions at the hack, .following a track fit for .vcr.v (little better than goats, and.the*teepne"sH and ruggeduess of which, iin some places, made mejwaumetthe "hunHs and kn«M H position. After getting up some distance ; the view jT obtained was certainly a very tine one, ihut >I have not to this fay decided in my owu mind whether thoviow did really repay rue for the expenditure of physical labour that was.required in asoemlinj aud descending. Certainly, had I so.ohonon, I could have como down at a far.quickor rute than I did, but I am cwiuood that iu that oa.se the .Samoa Timks would not havo had any p«rtion j of theta loiters. In tho afternoon I pal / ' a visit to my friend Mr. Chwlt* Do 1 \ ere, who resides about a mile aud a half to windward at .Salailua. His ioralling house is a substantial weather-board one ' and contains a large sitting-room and two bod-rooms. A fattened house is used I as a diuiug-room ; the obltm- uut-huiUl-1 bin being a store, oopra house and boot j | •nod. I bad the pleasure nf waking ib.i actjuulutaucg of Mrs. |i. ; Vciv. ■ fatorin.

ion of whose heroin conduct in the water ■ I sent to the B*l*o4 TIMBS of August 23rd. I ntumid to my quarters about lusk. having previonaly accepted an invitation to dine with Sir. Ife Vere on the following day. and stop over night ; an Sfßcantment which I nl course kept, and ; *juwt a very pleasant tinm with my r intelligent and genial heat .hwt before I inn Aiiwn on Saturday the last of the mpratms ienl on hoard, and »s bnsioses ■ was over., the Oaptajll sjrtit that night [ ashore with us, And a very pleasant evening m spent, only excHiied tor enjoyment by the evening's fun at Snfuue before we left Mr. Nelson's house at Safune, when —Iliad forgotten to roaotion —we got up nu inipromptu dance party, at which, amongst others, two very pretty half-caste girls wore .present, (onea sister of £oeOoodenougbL—and both of whom have enjoyed the advantage of an cxcollent education and training at the Convent School at Apia.

Shortly before noon on Sunday 3rd August tl»e Madona got under weigh for Auckland, .and after bidding a hearty good-bye to Captain Huicfce, who had proved himself a capital host on hoard the ship, and a pleasant companion ashore, ihe dipped his flag and sailed away for Auckland, and we made preparations to proceed to Mr. Cornwall's plantation at Lata We sent cur baggage along hy our Tapetnean attendants, and dispatched the cutter to Palauli, there to await uur arrival. We had planned to spend .a couple of days at Lata, and then walk t« Palauli, some thirty miles or more in easy stages, sleeping at Taga the first night, Tufu the second and Palauli on the third night after leaving Lata. However, as will he seen hereafter, our plan was 4Hwet, and our walking tour knocked en the head through the combined causes.uf heavy rain and the stupidity of the natives in charge of the cutter. Euuruthing in readiness we three —Cornwall. Nelson and I—started for Lata, calling f«r a few minutes on Do Vere iu passing. The spot en which Fox was murdered was pointed out-to me and I have tunse been able to obtain a full and truthful account from a white man who wasil iving within a few yards of where thoitragetkv took place,—a narrow strip of land it mining into the hoy, between (! ague mat ae and Salaillia, though lunch nearer the ht'.ter than the [former named town. My informant, Mr. \V. Harris, lived thine fiM' many years, and was well acquainted wiJh both men.

In the year lJS.'ili there lived at Vaotele, the name of the point of land which juts for some little distance into the hay close to Salaium, un Englishman named William Fox iftnfl .his wife, a native woman. He form nil a very close friendship with a young.chief of Sagmu) -four miles from .Salailna—named Sailnsi, and they were scarcely ever separated. Fox intended to go.into the oil .tiVdc.'bnthad not actually commenced to buy. Being rather idly disposed and sometimes in the want of food,,lie ci»y)loved.teaji!nsi.to procure fowls anil other articles of food for hiui witliout .it being necessary to pay ii'or them. Jn other words, Sailnsi being iinilutaly a great .rogue, took a.delight in -supplying his friend's table from the pigsstvws, .hen ■rousts, in.d plantations of 4iis kfallow-conntrymeii without tbeii.ssuHtftion air .knowledge:: no doubt at the same ttinte being :ti frequent and self-invited guest at thei table so supplied. On one -dtvy.in the unonth iff November in itlie same .year HSailu.st called at Kox's on hi* way home. Fox and.his wife wore in a i out-house uised us a. (kitchen, and Sailnsi being in a.hurry turned io go out of .tin; hunse -without watting fur Fox. As he did so his.eyes alighted ■ on a .piece of tobacco which he at mice {picked up and on his way. When lie had •gone, a girl who was in the room at the Lime, told Fox that Sailnsi .had stolen some tobacco. Now, twenty throe years tftgoih' was.a maxim anumgft ithn Suinoans that a chief could net-steal. I f.he appropriated anything tto which ibe rtoofc a I fancy without asking the consent .of the | owner, he was not said to.have stolen it but simply "taken .it," u.d the owner •would he <juite ,proud tbnt he should have hail among->t his worldly goods any article of such vallio as to attract the attention of a dhief. In fact, that man .felt himself honoured, and instead of repiuiug over his loss would proudly tell 'his friends 'that *uch and such a chief .had taken aifancy .to suoh and such an I article. Perhaps it was in carrying out the spirit of this peculiar tenet—which however duos not hold good amongst them lUiw-a-days—that Sailnsi supplied his anil there AMI be no doubt .tliat he hail tho same maxim in view wheuihe appropriated 'the tobacco to his own owe. On the 'following Sunday luotmtng, my informant and another white man known as "Jimmy the fisherman" weut to spend the day with | J'"ox ; and in course of conversation Fox remarked that "Sailnsi allied in the other day and took a piece of tobacco, | .he might have asked for it, but I supmm he was in a hurry and 1 was iack in the kitohen, so it's all right" 'A'k-ts was said jokingly, and a few days oftcxj wards ropeated by Jim to .Vailusi .at j Sageno, also jokingly, in tho presence of j a number of the young nun of tho town. Sailnsi evidently iid not take it in a joke, and replied that if Fox said he had stolen the tobacco Ue weuld kill him. A chief cannot steal I Unity ami almost hourly for fully thaue weoks afterwards the young men were .continually "chaffing" Snilusi, and asking him in a jeering manner, when 'he was going to shoot that white man. Ou morning, nfter being thill Xantalised, he sprung up and titer loading «n American musket proceeded t« Fox's house wi*h another 'young nmn from Sag.itie. Uu entering rW* house ho hi I tlii! i \tml i ■• rural 11

ihu mml sulutatioli of "talofa." ilnivn. Fox and bia wife, and named Kduard l'mcell Wcre '''"••; Sailusi *aid: •' William, 1 ), nv , 'f' down to see about your xaviun .1 «tolo your tolmeeo." Fox de'uh),) ,i"" : ,' hod over chawed Sailusi with s .,!"!■' and repeated what he had jokinrfv ' ■odm davs before, adding that Lfj need not think Jour autre about it was all right. The Conrenatioii' t"l changed, and after a little wti| e | )lrt | ,' nnt.ves iMoioge. As the r,,,, m ' ■ went out In- winked at Sailusi, w i ,'"'■'"' mediately rawed his inuskat tud «„, i" :; Fox. The unfortunato wan «n nu , ; " the air, the hU<«d gushing vn' a .rJ'." from him, he fell on the ilow «nd" instantaneously. In a very tni taimn afterwunis my infunuaut and the eh'" ■of Gagaemalae were at theacene 0 f ~; tragedy, on hearing the particular ', which, from the widow, he despatched Dumber of youug men to capture Sailu ' Tliis they failed to do, as ho hid in t'.' v bush uutil dark, and was comparati<■'!' safe when he reached his own to* Harris and Furcell buried the Unfcrtn' nate victim 011 -the day following ,]'. tragedy which took place ju the \-i.l end of November or the first weel > December, 1.5.">0. (To be continued.)