R 406 E M A R K S ON' T HE
m a n n e r s received ,in the -moft friendly, generous, and cordial manner:
even the attack made upon Captain Wallis, I cannot fuppofe to
have been concerted, unlefs fome previous >infuk or offence, had
been given, perhaps unknowingly, by o u r ’people, which roufed
their revenge, and as they -were -unacquainted with the effedts of
-ourfire-arms, they thought perhaps, they might venture an attack
upon a.fet o f men, who'had offended or infulted them ; and as
the Britifh people did not then underftand their language, they
poffibly- might have demanded redrefs and fatisfadlion for it, which,
not being complied with, on account o f the difference and ignorance
of the language, they thought themfelves in th e 1 right to
^retaliate-the injury upon them; though this unlucky attempt,
proved fatal to many of their brethren. Wherever we came,
though the inhabitants had not the leaf! idea o f the execution our
.fire arms were capable o f making, .they behaved very friendly
towards us.: nay, after we had killed a man at the Marquefas,
grievoufly wounded one at Eafter-iiland, hooked a third with a
hoat-hook at Tonga-tabu, wounded one at Namocka, another
at Mallicollo, and killed another at Tanna; the feveral inhabitants
behaved in a civil and harmlefs manner to us, though they might
have taken ample revenge, by cutting off our ftragling parties;
.all which, in my opinion, fufficiently eflablifh the friendly dif-
pofition of thefe feveral .nations.
2 We
W e had no. opportunities of feeing their method'of punifhing
criminals, but. we were told that thieves were either hanged or
drowned, with a weight tied to their necks; in' either kind of
punifhment. are no veft-iges- o f cruelty.. In their wars all is over
after the firft onfet,, and it. does not appear that they take any
prifoners'of war,, or i f they do,, that they treat them in an inhuman
or barbarous manner,. W e found not even the yeftiges of making
Haves o f them in the fenfe that Eaftern nations do,, or ftill. lefs
by employing; them to. hard and.toilfome labour, as. we were ufed
to do with thofe whom we fend by thoufands to our. coloniesm
All. that, can be faid.againft their, friendly difpofitions,, is contained
in fome relations we heard o f the devaftations the.peopleof Tearraboo
or the little Peninfula made on O-Pi/rrc, after the battle of the
Ifthmus .:. it was reported that, they burnt houfes and canoes, and
carried .off all their hogs : but even this is in my. opinion, not
fufficient to reprefent them more cruel than the civilized nations of
Europe, who plunder, wafte,. and burn with fomnch eagernefs,.
and fo little concern, that, i f we judge from thence, the aftions;
above-mentioned, feem by no means to brand the inhabitants of
the South Seas with cruelty and barbarifm.. The natives o f Bora-
Bora had conquered O.-Raiedea. and Q-cC.ahat and., fome of their,
chiefs and warriors had occupied the lands o f fuch people as. had.
fled the country, but except in this infiance, , the conquerors had
left
MANNERS