aroundworldortra00peebiala-1

THE POLYNESIAN RACES. 39
ferocious tribes in Africa, that have not the faintest idea of
God or another state of existence " ; and pompous clergymen
who everlastingly prate about the " polluted and fiendish
heathen^'' of
Oceanica.
THE FEEJEES.
Islands, like individuals, have their reputations. Those
dotting an ocean which covers one-third of the entire surface
of the globe should be more thoroughly surveyed and explored.
The Feejees, constituting quite an archipelago, contain
one hundred and fifty-four islands, seventy of which are inhabited.
They are governed by chiefs. The natives, though
dark-hued, are noble in mien, shrewd, and enterprising.
Missionaries have given them a hard name. Bear in mind
the Feejeean side of the story has neither been heard nor published.
They stoutly deny having been aggressors, yet
admit themselves good at retaliation. A. G. Findlay, F. R.
G. S., says, —
" These islanders have been misrepresented. Late visitors speak very
highly of their honesty, cleanliness, refinement, and virtue."
The men have heavy, bushy head^ of hair, and wear full
beards. When discovered by the navigator Tasman, they
knew nothing of the venereal diseases that accompany Christian
civilization. The taint of syphilis is not yet common
among them. They had, when first visited, no idols. They
believed in transmigration and immortality. They worshiped
in caves and groves. They also had their mediums,
who, when in ecstatic states, foamed at the mouth ; but every
utterance breathed in this rude trance-condition was carefully
noted as the voice of a god.
They build their houses in cocoanut groves.
are umbrella-shaped, and rudely thatched.
Often they
It requires little
or no labor to sustain life. Enterprise is little more than a
dream all through these equatorial regions. The English are
aiming to get full control of the Feejee group for cottongrowing,
and a mihtary basis.