ii
CHAP.
X V .
J.in.
1827.
protégé Krymakoo, in 1817, became sovereign of all the Sandwich
group.
Vancouver was very instrumental in establishing the power of this
chief on a firm basis, hy noticing Tamehameha in a manner which could
not escape the observation of the other chiefs, and by building him a
decked vessel, which gave him a decided superiority of force, and
enabled him to keep them in subjection. In return for these important
benefits, the grateful chief in presence of Vancouver and the Eries of
the group made a formal cession of the islands to the king of Great
Britain, and the natives have ever since considered themselves under
the immediate protection of this country.
In the early stage of our intercourse with these islands, several
acts, such as the death of Cook, the murder of Lieutenant Hergerst,
and the treacherous seizure of an American vessel, rendered merchant
vessels cautious of communicating with savages of apparently so ferocious
a character ; but when it was known that the perpetrators of these
murders were punished by Tamehameha, and when his real character
was made public by the voyages of Vancouver and other navigators,
every vessel employed in the Pacific was desirous of visiting his dominions.
In course of time a regular market was established for the sale
of the productions of the islands ; the natives were instructed to accept
Spanish dollars and European clothing in exchange for their goods ;
and several foreigners, by the king's persuasion, were induced to settle
upon the islands. The native chiefs, in imitation of their sovereign,
began to dress in the European style. A fort was built for the protection
of the principal town, and a number of the natives were instructed
in the use of fire-arms. The harbour of Honoruru soon became crowded
with ships of all nations, and latterly the place has assumed the appearance
of an European colony.
The discovery of sandal wood in the mountains opened a profitable
channel of commerce; and several adventurers, chiefly from the United
States, remained to collect it from the natives. They found a ready
market for it in China ; the goods of that country were brought in return
to the Sandwich Islands, and thus was laid the foundation of a trade,
which still continues. Tamehameha having purchased several vessels
w i t h t h i s p r e c i o u s w o o d , a t t e m p t e d t o c o n d u c t t h i s t r a d e w i t h h i s o w n c h a p .
resources, and sent a schooner bearing his flag to Canton; but, owing to
the forms and impositions practised in China, and other circumstances
which he could not control, the speculation failed, and this advantageous
trade has since been carried on by the Americans.
In all these plans for the benefit of his country, for the introduction
of civilization among his subjects, and for the establishment
of his assumed authority, Tamehameha was greatly indebted to the
advice and assistance of two respectable English seamen, Young and
Davis, whom he persuaded to remain in the islands. Their services
were not unrequited by the great chief, whose generous disposition and
intimate knowledge of human nature induced him to bestow upon them
both rank and fortune, by raising them to the station of chiefs, and
giving them estates. They in return proved grateful to their benefactor,
and conducted themselves so properly that every visiter to the islands
has spoken of them in the highest terms. Davis died in 1808, and
was buried at Woahoo, where the place of his interment is marked by a
humble tombstone; Young still survives, at the advanced age of eighty-
two. Besides these advisers,Tamehameha had a faithful and wise counsellor
in Krymakoo, afterwards better known by the appellation of BillyPitt.
Tamehameha having seen his country emerge from barbarism under
his well-directed efforts, and having conferred upon it other important
benefits, died in May 1819, at the age of sixty-three. His biographer
will do him injustice if he does not rank him, however limited his
sphere, and limited his means, among those great men who, like our
Alfred, and Peter the Great of Russia, have rescued their countries
from barbarism, and who are justly esteemed the benefactors of mankind.
His loss as a governor, and as a father to his people, was universally
felt by his subjects. It is painful to relate that, though his
death occurred so recently, several human victims were sacrificed to
his manes by the priests in the moráis; and, according to the custom
of the islands, some who were warmly attached to him committed
suicide, in order to accompany his corpse to the grave; while great
numbers knocked out their front teeth, and otherwise mutilated and
disfigured themselves.
XV.
Jan.
1827.