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From the time of my casual encounter with Karky the artist,
my life was one of absolute wretchedness. Not a day passed but
I was persecuted by the solicitations of some of the natives to
subject myself to the odious operation of tattooing. Their importunities
drove me half wild, for I felt how easily they might
work their will upon me regarding this or anything else which
they took into their heads. Still, however, the behavior of the
islanders towards me was as kind as ever. Fayaway was quite
as engaging; Kory-Kory as devoted: and Mehevi the king just
as gracious and condescending as before. But I had now been
three months in their valley, as nearly as I could estimate; I had
grown familiar with the narrow limits to which my wanderings
had been confined; and I began bitterly to feel the state of captivity
in which I was held. There was no one with whom I
could freely converse; no one to whom I could communicate
my thoughts; no one who could sympathize with my sufferings.
A thousand times I thought how much more endurable would
have been my lot had Toby still been with me. But I was left
alone, and the thought was terrible to me. Still, despite my
griefs, I did all in my power to appear composed and cheerful,
well knowing that by manifesting any uneasiness, or any desire
to escape, I should only frustrate my object.

It was during the period I was in this unhappy frame of
mind that the painful malady under which I had been

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laboring—after having almost completely subsided—began again to
show itself, and with symptoms as violent as ever. This added
calamity nearly unmanned me; the recurrence of the complaint
proved that without powerful remedial applications all hope of
cure was futile; and when I reflected that just beyond the elevations
which bound me in, was the medical relief I needed, and
that, although so near, it was impossible for me to avail myself
of it, the thought was misery.

In this wretched situation, every circumstance which evinced
the savage nature of the beings at whose mercy I was, augmented
the fearful apprehensions that consumed me. An occurrence
which happened about this time affected me most powerfully.

I have already mentioned that from the ridge-pole of Marheyo's
house were suspended a number of packages enveloped in
tappa. Many of these I had often seen in the hands of the
natives, and their contents had been examined in my presence.
But there were three packages hanging very nearly over the
place where I lay, which from their remarkable appearance had
often excited my curiosity. Several times I had asked Kory-Kory
to show me their contents; but my servitor, who in almost
every other particular had acceded to my wishes, always refused
to gratify me in this.

One day, returning unexpectedly from the “Ti,” my arrival
seemed to throw the inmates of the house into the greatest confusion.
They were seated together on the mats, and by the lines
which extended from the roof to the floor I immediately perceived
that the mysterious packages were for some purpose or other
under inspection. The evident alarm the savages betrayed filled
me with forebodings of evil, and with an uncontrollable desire to
penetrate the secret so jealously guarded. Despite the efforts of
Marheyo and Kory-Kory to restrain me, I forced my way into
the midst of the circle, and just caught a glimpse of three human

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heads, which others of the party were hurriedly enveloping in
the coverings from which they had been taken.

One of the three I distinctly saw. It was in a state of perfect
preservation, and from the slight glimpse I had of it, seemed to
have been subjected to some smoking operation which had reduced
it to the dry, hard, and mummy-like appearance it presented.
The two long scalp-locks were twisted up into balls
upon the crown of the head in the same way that the individual
had worn them during life. The sunken cheeks were rendered
yet more ghastly by the rows of glistening teeth which protruded
from between the lips, while the sockets of the eyes—filled with
oval bits of mother-of-pearl shell, with a black spot in the centre—
heightened the hideousness of its aspect.

Two of the three were heads of the islanders; but the third,
to my horror, was that of a white man. Although it had been
quickly removed from my sight, still the glimpse I had of it was
enough to convince me that I could not be mistaken.

Gracious God! what dreadful thoughts entered my mind. In
solving this mystery perhaps I had solved another, and the fate
of my lost companion might be revealed in the shocking spectacle
I had just witnessed. I longed to have torn off the folds of
cloth, and satisfied the awful doubts under which I labored.
But before I had recovered from the consternation into which I
had been thrown, the fatal packages were hoisted aloft and once
more swung over my head. The natives now gathered round me
tumultuously, and labored to convince me that what I had just
seen were the heads of three Happar warriors, who had been slain
in battle. This glaring falsehood added to my alarm, and it was
not until I reflected that I had observed the packages swinging
from their elevation before Toby's disappearance, that I could
at all recover my composure.

But although this horrible apprehension had been dispelled, I
had discovered enough to fill me, in my present state of mind,

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with the most bitter reflections. It was plain that I had seen the
last relic of some unfortunate wretch, who must have been massacred
on the beach by the savages, in one of those perilous trading
adventures which I have before described.

It was not, however, alone the murder of the stranger that
overcame me with gloom. I shuddered at the idea of the subsequent
fate his inanimate body might have met with. Was the
same doom reserved for me? Was I destined to perish like him—
like him, perhaps, to be devoured, and my head to be preserved
as a fearful memento of the event? My imagination ran riot in
these horrid speculations, and I felt certain that the worst possible
evils would befall me. But whatever were my misgivings,
I studiously concealed them from the islanders, as well as the
full extent of the discovery I had made.

Although the assurances which the Typees had often given
me, that they never eat human flesh, had not convinced me that
such was the case, yet, having been so long a time in the valley
without witnessing anything which indicated the existence of the
practice, I began to hope that it was an event of very rare occurrence,
and that I should be spared the horror of witnessing it
during my stay among them: but, alas! these hopes were soon
destroyed.

It is a singular fact, that in all our accounts of cannibal tribes
we have seldom received the testimony of an eye-witness to the
revolting practice. The horrible conclusion has almost always
been derived either from the second-hand evidence of Europeans,
or else from the admissions of the savages themselves, after they
have in some degree become civilized. The Polynesians are
aware of the detestation in which Europeans hold this custom,
and therefore invariably deny its existence, and, with the craft
peculiar to savages, endeavor to conceal every trace of it.

The excessive unwillingness betrayed by the Sandwich Islanders,
even at the present day, to allude to the unhappy fate of

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Cook, has been often remarked. And so well have they succeeded
in covering that event with mystery, that to this very
hour, despite all that has been said and written on the subject,
it still remains doubtful whether they wreaked upon his murdered
body the vengeance they sometimes inflicted upon their
enemies.

At Karakikova, the scene of that tragedy, a strip of ship's
copper nailed against an upright post in the ground used to inform
the traveller that beneath reposed the “remains” of the
great circumnavigator. But I am strongly inclined to believe
not only that the corpse was refused Christian burial, but that
the heart which was brought to Vancouver some time after the
event, and which the Hawiians stoutly maintained was that of
Captain Cook, was no such thing; and that the whole affair was
a piece of imposture which was sought to be palmed off upon the
credulous Englishman.

A few years since there was living on the island of Mowee
(one of the Sandwich group) an old chief, who, actuated by a
morbid desire for notoriety, gave himself out among the foreign
residents of the place as the living tomb of Captain Cook's big
toe!—affirming, that at the cannibal entertainment which ensued
after the lamented Briton's death, that particular portion of his
body had fallen to his share. His indignant countrymen actually
caused him to be prosecuted in the native courts, on a charge
nearly equivalent to what we term defamation of character; but
the old fellow persisting in his assertion, and no invalidating proof
being adduced, the plaintiffs were cast in the suit, and the cannibal
reputation of the defendant fully established. This result
was the making of his fortune; ever afterwards he was in the
habit of giving very profitable audiences to all curious travellers
who were desirous of beholding the man who had eaten the great
navigator's great toe.

About a week after my discovery of the contents of the

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mysterious packages, I happened to be at the Ti, when another war-alarm
was sounded, and the natives rushing to their arms, sallied
out to resist a second incursion of the Happar invaders. The
same scene was again repeated, only that on this occasion I heard
at least fifteen reports of muskets from the mountains during the
time that the skirmish lasted. An hour or two after its termination,
loud pæans chanted through the valley announced the approach
of the victors. I stood with Kory-Kory leaning against
the railing of the pi-pi awaiting their advance, when a tumultuous
crowd of islanders emerged with wild clamors from the neighboring
groves. In the midst of them marched four men, one
preceding the other at regular intervals of eight or ten feet, with
poles of a corresponding length, extending from shoulder to shoulder,
to which were lashed with thongs of bark three long narrow
bundles, carefully wrapped in ample coverings of freshly plucked
palm-leaves, tacked together with slivers of bamboo. Here and
there upon these green winding-sheets might be seen the stains
of blood, while the warriors who carried the frightful burdens
displayed upon their naked limbs similar sanguinary marks.
The shaven head of the foremost had a deep gash upon it, and
the clotted gore which had flowed from the wound remained in
dry patches around it. The savage seemed to be sinking under
the weight he bore. The bright tattooing upon his body was
covered with blood and dust; his inflamed eyes rolled in their
sockets, and his whole appearance denoted extraordinary suffering
and exertion; yet sustained by some powerful impulse, he continued
to advance, while the throng around him with wild cheers
sought to encourage him. The other three men were marked
about the arms and breasts with several slight wounds, which
they somewhat ostentatiously displayed.

These four individuals, having been the most active in the late
encounter, claimed the honor of bearing the bodies of their slain
enemies to the Ti. Such was the conclusion I drew from my

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own observations, and, as far as I could understand, from the explanation
which Kory-Kory gave me.

The royal Mehevi walked by the side of these heroes. He
carried in one hand a musket, from the barrel of which was suspended
a small canvas pouch of powder, and in the other he
grasped a short javelin, which he held before him and regarded
with fierce exultation. This javelin he had wrested from a celebrated
champion of the Happars, who had ignominiously fled,
and was pursued by his foes beyond the summit of the mountain.

When within a short distance of the Ti, the warrior with the
wounded head, who proved to be Narmonee, tottered forward two
or three steps, and fell helplessly to the ground; but not before
another had caught the end of the pole from his shoulder, and
placed it upon his own.

The excited throng of islanders, who surrounded the person of
the king and the dead bodies of the enemy, approached the spot
where I stood, brandishing their rude implements of warfare,
many of which were bruised and broken, and uttering continual
shouts of triumph. When the crowd drew up opposite the Ti,
I set myself to watch their proceedings most attentively; but
scarcely had they halted when my servitor, who had left my
side for an instant, touched my arm, and proposed our returning
to Marheyo's house. To this I objected; but, to my surprise,
Kory-Kory reiterated his request, and with an unusual vehemence
of manner. Still, however, I refused to comply, and was retreating
before him, as in his importunity he pressed upon me,
when I felt a heavy hand laid upon my shoulder, and turning
round, encountered the bulky form of Mow-mow, a one-eyed
chief, who had just detached himself from the crowd below, and
had mounted the rear of the pi-pi upon which we stood. His
cheek had been pierced by the point of a spear, and the wound
imparted a still more frightful expression to his hideously tattooed
face, already deformed by the loss of an eye. The warrior,

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without uttering a syllable, pointed fiercely in the direction of
Marheyo's house, while Kory-Kory, at the same time presenting
his back, desired me to mount.

I declined this offer, but intimated my willingness to withdraw,
and moved slowly along the piazza, wondering what could be the
cause of this unusual treatment. A few minutes' consideration
convinced me that the savages were about to celebrate some
hideous rite in connection with their peculiar customs, and at
which they were determined I should not be present. I descended
from the pi-pi, and attended by Kory-Kory, who on this
occasion did not show his usual commiseration for my lameness,
but seemed only anxious to hurry me on, walked away from the
place. As I passed through the noisy throng, which by this time
completely environed the Ti, I looked with fearful curiosity at
the three packages, which now were deposited upon the ground;
but although I had no doubt as to their contents, still their thick
coverings prevented my actually detecting the form of a human
body.

The next morning, shortly after sunrise, the same thundering
sounds which had awakened me from sleep on the second day of
the Feast of Calabashes, assured me that the savages were on the
eve of celebrating another, and, as I fully believed, a horrible
solemnity.

All the inmates of the house, with the exception of Marheyo,
his son, and Tinor, after assuming their gala dresses, departed in
the direction of the Taboo Groves.

Although I did not anticipate a compliance with my request,
still, with a view of testing the truth of my suspicions, I proposed
to Kory-Kory that, according to our usual custom in the morning,
we should take a stroll to the Ti: he positively refused; and
when I renewed the request, he evinced his determination to
prevent my going there; and, to divert my mind from the subject,
he offered to accompany me to the stream. We accordingly

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went, and bathed. On our coming back to the house, I was surprised
to find that all its inmates had returned, and were lounging
upon the mats as usual, although the drums still sounded
from the groves.

The rest of the day I spent with Kory-Kory and Fayaway,
wandering about a part of the valley situated in an opposite direction
from the Ti, and whenever I so much as looked towards
that building, although it was hidden from view by intervening
trees, and at the distance of more than a mile, my attendant would
exclaim, “taboo, taboo!”

At the various houses where we stopped, I found many of the
inhabitants reclining at their ease, or pursuing some light occupation,
as if nothing unusual were going forward; but amongst
them all I did not perceive a single chief or warrior. When I
asked several of the people why they were not at the “Hoolah
Hoolah” (the feast), they uniformly answered the question in a
manner which implied that it was not intended for them, but for
Mehevi, Narmonee, Mow-Mow, Kolor, Womonoo, Kalow, running
over, in their desire to make me comprehend their meaning, the
names of all the principal chiefs.

Everything, in short, strengthened my suspicions with regard
to the nature of the festival they were now celebrating; and which
amounted almost to a certainty. While in Nukuheva I had frequently
been informed that the whole tribe were never present at
these cannibal banquets, but the chiefs and priests only; and everything
I now observed agreed with the account.

The sound of the drums continued without intermission the
whole day, and falling continually upon my ear, caused me a
sensation of horror which I am unable to describe. On the following
day, hearing none of those noisy indications of revelry, I
concluded that the inhuman feast was terminated; and feeling a
kind of morbid curiosity to discover whether the Ti might furnish
any evidence of what had taken place there, I proposed to

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Kory-Kory to walk there. To this proposition he replied by pointing
with his finger to the newly risen sun, and then up to the zenith,
intimating that our visit must be deferred until noon. Shortly
after that hour we accordingly proceeded to the Taboo Groves,
and as soon as we entered their precincts, I looked fearfully round
in quest of some memorial of the scene which had so lately been
acted there; but everything appeared as usual. On reaching the
Ti, we found Mehevi and a few chiefs reclining on the mats, who
gave me as friendly a reception as ever. No allusions of any
kind were made by them to the recent events; and I refrained,
for obvious reasons, from referring to them myself.

After staying a short time I took my leave. In passing along
the piazza, previously to descending from the pi-pi, I observed a
curiously carved vessel of wood, of considerable size, with a cover
placed over it, of the same material, and which resembled in shape
a small canoe. It was surrounded by a low railing of bamboos,
the top of which was scarcely a foot from the ground. As the
vessel had been placed in its present position since my last visit,
I at once concluded that it must have some connection with the
recent festival; and, prompted by a curiosity I could not repress,
in passing it I raised one end of the cover; at the same moment
the chiefs, perceiving my design, loudly ejaculated, “Taboo!
taboo!” But the slight glimpse sufficed; my eyes fell upon the
disordered members of a human skeleton, the bones still fresh
with moisture, and with particles of flesh clinging to them here
and there!

Kory-Kory, who had been a little in advance of me, attracted
by the exclamations of the chiefs, turned round in time to witness
the expression of horror on my countenance. He now
hurried towards me, pointing at the same time to the canoe, and
exclaiming rapidly, “Puarkee! puarkee!” (Pig, pig). I pretended
to yield to the deception, and repeated the words after him
several times, as though acquiescing in what he said. The other

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savages, either deceived by my conduct or unwilling to manifest
their displeasure at what could not now be remedied, took no
further notice of the occurrence, and I immediately left the Ti.

All that night I lay awake, revolving in my mind the fearful
situation in which I was placed. The last horrid revelation had
now been made, and the full sense of my condition rushed upon
my mind with a force I had never before experienced.

Where, thought I, desponding, is there the slightest prospect
of escape? The only person who seemed to possess the ability to
assist me was the stranger Marnoo; but would he ever return to
the valley? and if he did, should I be permitted to hold any
communication with him? It seemed as if I were cut off from
every source of hope, and that nothing remained but passively to
await whatever fate was in store for me. A thousand times I
endeavored to account for the mysterious conduct of the natives.
For what conceivable purpose did they thus retain me a captive?
What could be their object in treating me with such apparent
kindness, and did it not cover some treacherous scheme? Or, if
they had no other design than to hold me a prisoner, how should I
be able to pass away my days in this narrow valley, deprived
of all intercourse with civilized beings, and for ever separated
from friends and home?

One only hope remained to me. The French could not long
defer a visit to the bay, and if they should permanently locate
any of their troops in the valley, the savages could not for any
length of time conceal my existence from them. But what reason
had I to suppose that I should be spared until such an event
occurred, an event which might be postponed by a hundred
different contingencies?

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