sions of gratitude and praise to God for his distinguishing favors both spiritual and temporal, are interspersed throughout their journal. Their religious privileges were means of unspeakable consolation to them in the midst of their pe culiar trials. It appears that they maintained a deep sense of their obli gations, and ardent desires for the welfare of the perishing heathen around them. And it is worthy of remark that their feelings instead of being blunted by the indifference and sottishness of the natives, and the scenes of wickedness and misery which were constantly passing before them, were rendered more acute. In a letter to the Directors at the close of the year, after relating something of the course of divine Providence respecting them, something of their present state, and of the state of the natives, they say "No pen can describe, no tongue can express, no heart can conceive, the keen sensibility of our feelings, when deep reflection occupies our minds, and the wonder working finger of God is traced in his dealings towards us! Oh brethren we beseech you to pray for us, wrestle with the angel of the everlasting covenant, that blessings suitable to our high office may be granted us; that our feet may not slip on the sea of glass on which we stand; that the Gospel may have root on this Isiand."* 1800. The year 1800 commenced with the departure of Mr. Harris in an English ship for Port Jackson, with an expectation of returning in a few months. His departure was followed in a few days by the return of Mr. and Mrs. Henry from Port Jackson, to reunite with their brethren on the island, by whom they were cordially and gratefully received. The Missionaries while witnessing more than common tranquillity among the natives, and enjoying unusual prosperity among themselves, were suddenly subjected to a distressing trial by another of their members. Mr. Broomhall in a written communication to one of his brethren in June, intimated his doubts with respect to the immortality of the human soul and the reality of any divine influence upon it, requesting a solution of some queries on those subjects. His infidelity increased so fast that some decisive steps on the part of the Church were very soon VOL. II. Trans. Miss. Soc. vol. i, p. 104-..164. 3 necessary, and after public and private examination, the brethren suspended him from their communion, until they might use further means to convince him of his error and of his guilt, and also that they might seek the gracious assistance and direction of the great Preserver and Head of the Church. Mr. Broomball relapsed into a state of the grossest stupidity, and neither regretted his apostasy nor felt the slightest inclination to be restored. On the contrary, he added to his deistical sentiments practices equally unchristian, and was therefore excommunicated. He was given up with great reluctance, as he had until within a short time behaved with exemplary decorum, and uniformly manifested zeal and love for the cause in which he was engaged; and also as he was the only Missionary who had any considerable knowledge of physic He remained in a state of deplorable stupidity, treating the Missionaries sometimes with coldness, but generally with politeness and respect, until he left the island in July, 1801. Peace prevailed on the island throughout the year, although preparations were almost constantly making for war, and open hostilities were prevented by a course of singularly gracious events in Divine Providence. The state of the Missionaries as to the enjoyment of their privileges, their progress in the acquisition of the language, and the freedom of their intercourse with the natives, was quite as favorable as at any former period. Their difficulties however, were about as great as ever, although they were different in some respects from those which had generally embarrassed them.f 1801. The events of the early part of 1801 were in general very similar to those which have been noticed in preceding years when the natives were not engaged in war. The missionaries were often affected in view of the unprofitableness of their labors, and as often in view of the Divine goodness in preserving them, supplying their wants, and refreshing their souls with rich communications of his grace. They were also greatly affected in view of the wretchedness which was every where to be seen around them. The miseries of the natives had long been on the Trans. Miss. Soc. vol. i, p. 164--. 212. increase. Multitudes of them were wasting away with diseases which were aggravated, and often rendered fatal by the horrible incantations employed to counteract them. The Missionaries uniformly afforded their medical assistance when the prejudices of the natives did not utterly prevent: but their prescriptions were seldom received, and more seldom attended to. In May they remark thus: "Nothing particular occurring among our neighbors, who continue their idle way of living without thought or care. Our work among them still appears obscure. Many things have been spoken to one and another, and we find that what they have heard is at times the subject of conversation among themselves. How the Father of mercies may be gradually removing the vail from their minds we cannot tell." On the 10th of July the, ship Royal Admiral arrived at Taheite, with nine of the missionaries who had been sent out from London in her; of whom Messrs. Davies, Elder, Hayward, Scott, Tessier, Waters, Wilson, and Youl settled with those on the island; Mr. Read not choosing to stay at Taheite, was conveyed by the ship to the Cape of Good Hope, where he was employed by the South African Missionary Society. Mr. Shelly, one of the Missionaries who were stationed on Tongataboo, having been driven thence to Port Jackson, took a passage in the Royal Admiral for London; but when she arrived at Taheite, he concluded to join his brethren there, which he did in the following January, after revisiting Port Jackson. The arrival of the Missionaries in the Royal Admiral, was a matter of great joy to the few who had remained faithful on the island. They all united and cordially adopted suitable regulations for their conduct. As yet the Missionaries had no reason to think that their labors had been the means even of bringing one Taheitean to feel that he was a sinner: and although more than four years had elapsed since their establishment on the island, they were not sufficiently acquainted with the language to venture to preach publicly, their attainments however, were such as to afford them great encouragement f 180. On the 26th of February 1802, Messrs. Nott and Elder commenced a tour round the island for the purpose of Trans. Miss. Soc. vol. i; p. 213---252 preaching to the natives, which occupied them until the 5th of April. On their way they collected the people as frequently and in as great numbers as possible, and Mr. Nott preached Jesus Christ crucified, to them. They generally gave their attention, and assented to what was told them, which however was probably occasioned in a great degree by the novelty of what they heard and saw. When told that those were evil spirits who demanded, or to whom they made sacrifices of men and hogs they seemed to grant it as a thing very probable. When told that sin could be expiated by nothing less than the death of the Son of God, they seemed to be struck with astonishment. They sometimes asked many questions respecting God and Christ, and the Gospel, after the preaching was through, a principal man at one time said that he felt a desire to pray to Jehovah, and asked if the false gods of his country would not kill him if he did. The Missionaries on their journey witnessed less sickness among the natives, thau they had anticipated from what was apparent in Matavai. They were uniformly treated with kindness, and were particularly gratified on their return by overhearing some young men who had accompanied them, give an intelligent account of what had been preached. Mr. Nott afterward endeavored to make them sensible of their superior advantages and warned them of the consequences of neglecting so great salvation. One of them replied "You sent the Duff last, if you had sent the Gospel by the first ship, our feather Gods* would have been thrown away long ago."t About the last of March a great meeting was held by the inhabitants in the district of Attahooroo, at which after demanding and being refused, Otoo forcibly took from the Attahoorooans a billet of wood which they called their great God. With this outrage a war commenced which threw the island into a state of confusion, occasioned the slaughter of many of the inhabitans as well as the destruction of their property, obstructed the labors of the Missionaries and rendered their situation peculiarly haz ardous. But they trusted in the living God who provided for their safety through the instrumentality of two or three Captains and crews of vessels then unexpectedly at the isle *Small bunches of red fathers. and; and although they were greatly alarmed and distressed, it appears that they suffered no personal injury. The disorders in the island were overruled in some degree to the furtherance of the Gospel, as they brought together some hundreds of persons from different parts of it and from a neighboring island'so that the Missionaries could preach to them, who otherwise might not have heard it for some months, and to the surprise of the missionaries Otoo had desired on two sabbaths to have the word of Jehovah spoken to him. He seemed to have some idea that there was but one God, and made no objection to what was preached. But Pomarre carried his superstitions to the highest excess during the war, sacrificing to his idols great numbers of his subjects and much property. That part of the journal which contained an account of the conclusion of the war, was lost, there are therefore no documents from which to collect particulars, but it appears from subsequent accounts that it was finally terminated in favor of Otoo.* In the course of their journal for this year the Missionaries state that most of the diseases known in England, were to be met with in Taheite; among which a most loathsome one occasioned by the excessive commerce of the women with sailors and natives,† and an intermitting fever, were the *Trans. Mission. Society, vol. 2. p. 109-119 do. p. 122. "The na Even when the missionaries arrived at Tabeite, it was supposed that a fourth part of the whole populatian wss infected by this dreadful malady, which appears to have been imparted to them first by the crews of M. de Bougainville's ships in 1768. and which it seems acquired new virulence when communicated to a new race. tives distinguished it by a name of the same import with rottenness, but of a more extensive signification. They described in the most pathetic terms, the sufferings, which the first victims to its rage endured; and told him, (Capt. Cook in 1769,) that it caused the hair and nails to fall off, and the flesh to rot from the bones; that it spread an universal terror and consternation among the inhabitants, so that the sick were abandoned by their nearest relations, lest the calamity should spread by contagion, and were left alone to perish in such misery as till then had never been known among them." Encyclopedia, article Otaheite. "Among the natives around us." say the missionaries alluding to the ravages of this disorder, "are many objects of compassion, whose bodies are wasting with disease.-Stout men are cut down in a few months," Again: "Many most miserable objects presented themselves with foul and horrid ulcers, carious bones, loss of limbs, and in the last stage of consumption. Many are separated from their families in a shed or out house, nor sufferVOL. II. 3* |