MASSACRE IN THE SOUTH SEAS.

Samoa Times and South Sea Gazette, Volume 4, Issue 172, 13 November 1880, Page 3

MASSACRE IN THE SOUTH SEAS.

i J [Amk/n„(i /:'<■«»■',.,; iff.r, O-i.'xr I.] ; Tie- Itov. (ioorge Brown, of Port Iltmj tor. JJuku of York Island, furnishes the j following partiauiars of an attack on tho trading steamer Hippie-, fe, which Captain A. M. Fergnsou and five of his native crow were imit'dero 1 by the natives of Bougainville Island, in tho Solomon, Group, on the Oth September:— " Captain Ferguson port Port Wesley (Mesko) in this group, a! iniduight, July 16, for his regular crtti.su in tl.eSolomons. ' As he intended to call at Metlik (Likiliki) on his way down channel, I availed 1 myself of his kind offer to tow my littlo 'boat as far us the settlement at Motlik (Likiliki) ; so that, I was able to visit Hie I colonists ntid also our mission stations on i I New Ireland, with comparative ease. We ■ arrived at M<-tlik on Ihe Oth. and found! : the "colonists still in grvat distress, mid very anxious to ho removed Captain i M'Luighliu and Captain Ferguson, 1 heliove, made some arrangements for their removal, and as Captain M'Langhliu and I said good-bye (oourold friend,as the Ripple was steaming out, we received again his I assurance to tell the poor fellows on shore; that in three weeks' time he would bo I back again and would take them all to ! Sydney. It was in hajtening back to nihil this promise that lie was! killed. The Hippie arrived off Port Hunter at 1 p.m. on. Thursday last, | lit.h hist., and v.-,.- «\ n- at '.mi. in iovi us expectation of P » ing again ivir . d I: ien I, ; and of receiving our loiters from uome. | As she .steamed into purl we saw her I flag at half-mast, but we thought that I she was probably bringing up some of i be colonists who had died, as we loft one or two very unwell. 1 .sent a note down, but the chief soon came running back crying bitterly, "O.Mr. Brown, Aliek ! Alick !" the name by which he is known here. He would say no more but just sat down and cried. 1 got the mate's note, ami at. once hurried on board. I shall ue-ei- forget that. day. The mate and men could not speak, but just hd inc into the cabin and pointed to the blood-stained sid.es and roof, and to the en's made by the tomahavrks, and then wept together. Then by degrees, we heard the story. The U'ipplo called at a place near Caps de Crros, on (be east .sido of Boiiguvinille Island on her way up here. Captain Ferguson had never been in that place before. On the Bth they bought several bags of beehe-do-mor and shells and found the natives ail friendly and apparently quiet. On the !lth commended trading again early in the morning. At S.yo a.no a large 'fleet of canoes came oil' with beehe-de-mor and shells, and the mate computes that altogether there was about out} natives in and around the ship. .U about S. Hi a.m. j the attack commenced. it is supposed | time Captain Ferguson was in bis cabin looking out on the deck when ho was struck down by a blow across the side of the head. Tho man who struck him must have been biding bv the side of the door, as the blow was "a left-handed one, and the tomahawk in de:.-ending cut. a deep mark on the upper .-.ide of the doorway. Tho steward ' was down the after hold, engaged in handing up some stores by the captain's orders, lie beard the captain call out, " I'm killed I" and immediately received himself a dreadful wound in the neck from a tomahawk. He full back, but recovered, and, with his revolver, shot the two men who wen, . ■ ■■.••lino over I he hatchway, one of whom, it is pretty certain, was the man »n» struck down the captain. The mate, who was on the main hatch, was struck by a tomahawk, fell, and received several severe cuts when down, but his assailant was engaged by one of the native- crew, and he soon recovered coucioiisness and helped in the light. The engineer, Baiu.ir.l Watt (ISamley). first fell; Ihe blood and brains of a poor native lad, who was at the wheel, spattered in bis face, and then'was tired Ihe lirsl, shut, lie was protected by the boat, and so was able to fire until his ammunition was out. lie then went to the Cabin for more, and there found Captain Ferguson quite- dead on the floor, and a native woman, who was a passenger, also dead. Tho natives fought hard, and when driven off the ship's deck still kept up the fight from tlnir canoes, discharging arrows from a eompai atively short distance. This fight, however, whs too unequal to last long, and, as lie- bullets from the rifles began to te||, they g a ve up the attack and pulled awav for tho shore. It was then found that four were killed, viz.. Captain Ferguson, a native woman, and two natives, one of whom was taken away by tho natives. The mate (Mr. ]>avis), the engineer; Mi. \V. Peusu (a passenger), j and live of the crew wers wounded, some jof them very severely Steam was got up, j and ulhalf past ill'a.m. the vessel was j steamed through the passage, and stood away for Duke of York. ' All seem to have done their best to save their lives and the ship. The steward fa Japanese] is praised by nil for his bravery ; though wonded in the most, dreadful manner in \ several piaces, he fought until the ship I wan elear and the natives driven away, when he fainted from loss of blood ; mid ' now the poor fellow wins the respect ami love of im all by his cmn of the poor men who ai'fl fellow-sufferers with him. As soon an I got tho account of the affair we got the wounded men on sltorc, and f tlmn itunt away my boat to Now Britain to inform Mr. Stevens, one of Messrs Cowlishuw Brothers' agents, of the affair. J I also sent a note to Captain lair, H.M.B I Conflict, and he at oucv came oil hoard with Captain llemsheim, and kindly otl'eied us nil the help he could givo lis in attending Uu the wounded tu.-n, or in

any other way. All the poor mou who ; were landed were dreadfully mutilated, and frciil the length of tiuiJ which had elapsed the work of sowing up and dressing the wide-gaping wounds was' made both very difficult and unpleasant. (Ine poor fellow, who had received no less i than eight deep gashes, lingered until toi day (17th), when lie died. Another ..nc cannot possibly recover, I think, unless the leg is amputated, n<; his left leg is almost cut through at the knee. The white man ; William Pense, has both anus broken, and received also some very severe wouuds on the neck. The Japanese steward has, in addition to some smaller ones, a dreadful gash in the neck, which has laid upeu the whole of his neck from near the car to the eolhir-bone. I hope he will recover. The excitement amongst the natives here was very great indeed, and I am very certain that very few mourned more sincerely for Captain Ferguson's death than did Torogood, a chief of thin island. I never saw a native express such feeling. Un entering the oabin ho burst into tears threw himself down on the floor. knocked his head against the side, and fairly howled in his sorrow and anger. He was very anxious then to know how Jar .the place was, and if he and his people eoidd he taken there to tight. Next day he destroyed his plantations, and burnt and destroyed all the clothing and other presents winch had been given him, blackened his face, divided out native money, anil observed every form of mourning according to native custom for ;i very near relative. All tins naiivesj