CHAPTER 20

The chief was as good as his word, and we were soon plentifully

supplied with fresh provisions. We found the tortoises as fine as

we had ever seen, and the ducks surpassed our best species of

wild fowl, being exceedingly tender, juicy, and well-flavoured.

Besides these, the savages brought us, upon our making them

comprehend our wishes, a vast quantity of brown celery and scurvy

grass, with a canoe-load of fresh fish and some dried. The celery

was a treat indeed, and the scurvy grass proved of incalculable

benefit in restoring those of our men who had shown symptoms of

disease. In a very short time we had not a single person on the

sick-list. We had also plenty of other kinds of fresh provisions,

among which may be mentioned a species of shellfish resembling

the mussel in shape, but with the taste of an oyster. Shrimps,

too, and prawns were abundant, and albatross and other birds’

eggs with dark shells. We took in, too, a plentiful stock of the

flesh of the hog which I have mentioned before. Most of the men

found it a palatable food, but I thought it fishy and otherwise

disagreeable. In return for these good things we presented the

natives with blue beads, brass trinkets, nails, knives, and

pieces of red cloth, they being fully delighted in the exchange.

We established a regular market on shore, just under the guns of

the schooner, where our barterings were carried on with every

appearance of good faith, and a degree of order which their

conduct at the village of _Klock-klock_ had not led us to expect

from the savages.

Matters went on thus very amicably for several days, during which

parties of the natives were frequently on board the schooner, and

parties of our men frequently on shore, making long excursions

into the interior, and receiving no molestation whatever. Finding

the ease with which the vessel might be loaded with _biche de

mer_, owing to the friendly disposition of the islanders, and the

readiness with which they would render us assistance in

collecting it, Captain Guy resolved to enter into negotiations

with Too-wit for the erection of suitable houses in which to cure

the article, and for the services of himself and tribe in

gathering as much as possible, while he himself took advantage of

the fine weather to prosecute his voyage to the southward. Upon

mentioning this project to the chief he seemed very willing to

enter into an agreement. A bargain was accordingly struck,

perfectly satisfactory to both parties, by which it was arranged

that, after making the necessary preparations, such as laying off

the proper grounds, erecting a portion of the buildings, and

doing some other work in which the whole of our crew would be

required, the schooner should proceed on her route, leaving three

of her men on the island to superintend the fulfilment of the

project, and instruct the natives in drying the _biche de mer_.

In regard to terms, these were made to depend upon the exertions

of the savages in our absence. They were to receive a stipulated

quantity of blue beads, knives, red cloth, and so forth, for

every certain number of piculs of the _biche de mer_ which should

be ready on our return.

A description of the nature of this important article of

commerce, and the method of preparing it, may prove of some

interest to my readers, and I can find no more suitable place

than this for introducing an account of it. The following

comprehensive notice of the substance is taken from a modern

history of a voyage to the South Seas.

“It is that _mollusca_ from the Indian Seas which is known to

commerce by the French name _bouche de mer_ (a nice morsel from

the sea). If I am not much mistaken, the celebrated Cuvier calls

it _gasteropeda pulmonifera_. It is abundantly gathered in the

coasts of the Pacific islands, and gathered especially for the

Chinese market, where it commands a great price, perhaps as much

as their much-talked-of edible birds’ nests, which are properly

made up of the gelatinous matter picked up by a species of

swallow from the body of these molluscae. They have no shell, no

legs, nor any prominent part, except an _absorbing_ and an

_excretory_, opposite organs; but, by their elastic wings, like

caterpillars or worms, they creep in shallow waters, in which,

when low, they can be seen by a kind of swallow, the sharp bill

of which, inserted in the soft animal, draws a gummy and

filamentous substance, which, by drying, can be wrought into the

solid walls of their nest. Hence the name of _gasteropeda

pulmonifera_.

“This mollusca is oblong, and of different sizes, from three to

eighteen inches in length; and I have seen a few that were not

less than two feet long. They were nearly round, a little

flattish on one side, which lies next to the bottom of the sea;

and they are from one to eight inches thick. They crawl up into

shallow water at particular seasons of the year, probably for the

purpose of gendering, as we often find them in pairs. It is when

the sun has the most power on the water, rendering it tepid, that

they approach the shore; and they often go up into places so

shallow that, on the tide’s receding, they are left dry, exposed

to the beat of the sun. But they do not bring forth their young

in shallow water, as we never see any of their progeny, and

full-grown ones are always observed coming in from deep water.

They feed principally on that class of zoophytes which produce

the coral.

“The _biche de mer_ is generally taken in three or four feet of

water; after which they are brought on shore, and split at one

end with a knife, the incision being one inch or more, according

to the size of the mollusca. Through this opening the entrails

are forced out by pressure, and they are much like those of any

other small tenant of the deep. The article is then washed, and

afterward boiled to a certain degree, which must not be too much

or too little. They are then buried in the ground for four hours,

then boiled again for a short time, after which they are dried,

either by the fire or the sun. Those cured by the sun are worth

the most; but where one picul (133 1/3 lbs.) can be cured that

way, I can cure thirty piculs by the fire. When once properly

cured, they can be kept in a dry place for two or three years

without any risk; but they should be examined once in every few

months, say four times a year, to see if any dampness is likely

to affect them.

“The Chinese, as before stated, consider _biche de mer_ a very

great luxury, believing that it wonderfully strengthens and

nourishes the system, and renews the exhausted system of the

immoderate voluptuary. The first quality commands a high price in

Canton, being worth ninety dollars a picul; the second quality,

seventy-five dollars; the third, fifty dollars; the fourth,

thirty dollars; the fifth, twenty dollars; the sixth, twelve

dollars; the seventh, eight dollars; and the eighth, four

dollars; small cargoes, however, will often bring more in

Manilla, Singapore, and Batavia.”

An agreement having been thus entered into, we proceeded

immediately to land everything necessary for preparing the

buildings and clearing the ground. A large flat space near the

eastern shore of the bay was selected, where there was plenty of

both wood and water, and within a convenient distance of the

principal reefs on which the _biche de mer_ was to be procured.

We now all set to work in good earnest, and soon, to the great

astonishment of the savages, had felled a sufficient number of

trees for our purpose, getting them quickly in order for the

framework of the houses, which in two or three days were so far

under way that we could safely trust the rest of the work to the

three men whom we intended to leave behind. These were John

Carson, Alfred Harris, and ___ Peterson (all natives of London, I

believe), who volunteered their services in this respect.

By the last of the month we had everything in readiness for

departure. We had agreed, however, to pay a formal visit of

leave-taking to the village, and Too-wit insisted so

pertinaciously upon our keeping the promise that we did not think

it advisable to run the risk of offending him by a final refusal.

I believe that not one of us had at this time the slightest

suspicion of the good faith of the savages. They had uniformly

behaved with the greatest decorum, aiding us with alacrity in our

work, offering us their commodities, frequently without price,

and never, in any instance, pilfering a single article, although

the high value they set upon the goods we had with us was evident

by the extravagant demonstrations of joy always manifested upon

our making them a present. The women especially were most

obliging in every respect, and, upon the whole, we should have

been the most suspicious of human beings had we entertained a

single thought of perfidy on the part of a people who treated us

so well. A very short while sufficed to prove that this apparent

kindness of disposition was only the result of a deeply laid plan

for our destruction, and that the islanders for whom we

entertained such inordinate feelings of esteem, were among the

most barbarous, subtle, and bloodthirsty wretches that ever

contaminated the face of the globe.

It was on the first of February that we went on shore for the

purpose of visiting the village. Although, as said before, we

entertained not the slightest suspicion, still no proper

precaution was neglected. Six men were left in the schooner, with

instructions to permit none of the savages to approach the vessel

during our absence, under any pretence whatever, and to remain

constantly on deck. The boarding-nettings were up, the guns

double-shotted with grape and canister, and the swivels loaded

with canisters of musket-balls. She lay, with her anchor apeak,

about a mile from the shore, and no canoe could approach her in

any direction without being distinctly seen and exposed to the

full fire of our swivels immediately.

The six men being left on board, our shore-party consisted of

thirty-two persons in all. We were armed to the teeth, having

with us muskets, pistols, and cutlasses; besides, each had a long

kind of seaman’s knife, somewhat resembling the bowie knife now

so much used throughout our western and southern country. A

hundred of the black skin warriors met us at the landing for the

purpose of accompanying us on our way. We noticed, however, with

some surprise, that they were now entirely without arms; and,

upon questioning Too-wit in relation to this circumstance, he

merely answered that _Mattee non we pa pa si_—meaning that there

was no need of arms where all were brothers. We took this in good

part, and proceeded.

We had passed the spring and rivulet of which I before spoke, and

were now entering upon a narrow gorge leading through the chain

of soapstone hills among which the village was situated. This

gorge was very rocky and uneven, so much so that it was with no

little difficulty we scrambled through it on our first visit to

Klock-klock. The whole length of the ravine might have been a

mile and a half, or probably two miles. It wound in every

possible direction through the hills (having apparently formed,

at some remote period, the bed of a torrent), in no instance

proceeding more than twenty yards without an abrupt turn. The

sides of this dell would have averaged, I am sure, seventy or

eighty feet in perpendicular altitude throughout the whole of

their extent, and in some portions they arose to an astonishing

height, overshadowing the pass so completely that but little of

the light of day could penetrate. The general width was about

forty feet, and occasionally it diminished so as not to allow the

passage of more than five or six persons abreast. In short, there

could be no place in the world better adapted for the

consummation of an ambuscade, and it was no more than natural

that we should look carefully to our arms as we entered upon it.

When I now think of our egregious folly, the chief subject of

astonishment seems to be, that we should have ever ventured,

under any circumstances, so completely into the power of unknown

savages as to permit them to march both before and behind us in

our progress through this ravine. Yet such was the order we

blindly took up, trusting foolishly to the force of our party,

the unarmed condition of Too-wit and his men, the certain

efficacy of our firearms (whose effect was yet a secret to the

natives), and, more than all, to the long-sustained pretension of

friendship kept up by these infamous wretches. Five or six of

them went on before, as if to lead the way, ostentatiously

busying themselves in removing the larger stones and rubbish from

the path. Next came our own party. We walked closely together,

taking care only to prevent separation. Behind followed the main

body of the savages, observing unusual order and decorum.

Dirk Peters, a man named Wilson Allen, and myself were on the

right of our companions, examining, as we went along, the

singular stratification of the precipice which overhung us. A

fissure in the soft rock attracted our attention. It was about

wide enough for one person to enter without squeezing, and

extended back into the hill some eighteen or twenty feet in a

straight course, sloping afterward to the left. The height of the

opening, is far as we could see into it from the main gorge, was

perhaps sixty or seventy feet. There were one or two stunted

shrubs growing from the crevices, bearing a species of filbert

which I felt some curiosity to examine, and pushed in briskly for

that purpose, gathering five or six of the nuts at a grasp, and

then hastily retreating. As I turned, I found that Peters and

Allen had followed me. I desired them to go back, as there was

not room for two persons to pass, saying they should have some of

my nuts. They accordingly turned, and were scrambling back, Allen

being close to the mouth of the fissure, when I was suddenly

aware of a concussion resembling nothing I had ever before

experienced, and which impressed me with a vague conception, if

indeed I then thought of anything, that the whole foundations of

the solid globe were suddenly rent asunder, and that the day of

universal dissolution was at hand.