McFarlane and I returned to the shore. We found the children collected
in Gucheng's house, learning to write the letters on slates. There were
very few girls present--indeed, there are not many girls on the island,
so many have been destroyed by their fathers at birth. We strolled about
and visited the large cocoanut plantation belonging to the society. On
our return we found the teacher and a number of natives collected near
the beach. They had just buried a man who had died the night before--so
Christian burial has begun. Formerly, the body would have been hung up
and tapped, to allow the juices to run out, which would have been drunk
by the friends. We returned to the mission house for dinner. I was glad
to find so many boys living with Gucheng. They were bright, happy little
fellows, romping about, enjoying themselves.
We did not get away from Darnley Island till the morning of Wednesday,
the 10th. The navigation between Darnley and Murray Islands is
difficult, arising from various reefs and currents.
Pages:
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34