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gious meeting, held in Tahiti, will give an idea of the malignity of his character. In the morning the missionaries passed him au grand galop. There are few countries in which horses are of less value than Tahiti; the meeting was an annual one, and all the missionaries would be present, that is, between fourteen and sixteen men. We never knew that the island possessed so many horses. Moerenhout might as well have talked of navigating the sands of Africa in a steam-boat. The object of the meeting was to explain to the natives that since the people of England had expended so much money for their welfare, they should now contribute something for themselves. Moerenhout

tells us the subscriptions did not go on, and the affair of the subscriptions ended as it had commenced, with a prayer (v. i. p. 241). This, according to Moerenhout, was in 1829; unfortunately, we have no records of that year to appeal to; but we know that, on one occasion, his late majesty, George the Fourth, ordered this native contribution to be admitted duty free, which was esteemed equivalent to a donation of four hundred pounds. The following quotation will afford a very good illustration of Moerenhout's character. It has often struck us as a remarkable peculiarity, that no French writer can touch upon the subject of Tahiti without reverting to Cyprus, Cytherea, and the peculiar train of ideas associated with these places. Nor is Moerenhout, or the person he employed to get up his book, deficient in this respect. Every one has heard of the infamous Arreoy society, which formerly existed in the Society islands. What a mind can that man have, who could write as follows?" These songs called to mind those of the ancient Arreoys of Otaiti, during the brilliant festivals which they celebrated in the bye-gone days of their glorious independence" (v. i. p. 96). We shall say no more concerning Moerenhout for the present, except to remark that he has been the fitting associate of the Romish priests, and the bitter calumniator of the Protestant missionaries. Of these calumnies we are certain, after what we have stated, we need only say they are false, and that the counter statements of honourable men, like Captains Gam

bier, Waldegrave, and Fitzroy, and of Mr. Darwin, are of themselves vindication enough.

We shall now proceed to give an account of the French doings in Polynesia, at the same time availing ourselves of such collateral topics as illustrate the character of the Jesuits and the objects of the French king, in affording them such powerful support. There is one circumstance of remarkable meanness in this transaction; we allude to the intrusion of the Romish priests upon a field which had been preoccupied by others for upwards of forty years. The interest attached to Tahiti ever since the brilliant voyages of Cooke, were shared by some pious and benevolent individuals, and by their efforts Protestant missionaries were sent out in 1796. The attempt was made on a great scale, and a ship was sent out to effect establishments on several of the groups, but the Tahitian was the only one which survived. The commander of the vessel, Captain Wilson, who tendered his gratuitous services on the occasion, was in every way a remarkable man, whose previous history possessed all the interest of a romance. The missionaries laboured in vain for fifteen tedious years, often despairing, their exertions unregarded, and the island ruined by vice, and distracted by incessant wars and murders. At last, however, about 1813, their labours met with an abundant recompense; and, in a few years, Christianity prevailed, not only in Tahiti, but also in all the islands of the Georgian and Society groups. may, therefore, briefly state some of the more important changes which have been effected. This we shall do with but few comments; for if, on the one hand, we cannot approve of the bad taste with which friends sometimes speak and write, far less can we approve of the irreligious and bigoted manner in which the subject is discussed, especially by those who know least about it, for bigotry is but another name for wilful ignorance. The changes, or rather benefits, for in this instance the words are synonymous, were of two kinds; in some, every individual in the nation participated, and others were necessarily more limited. We believe every one will agree that the abolition of infanticide, and of human sacrifices, were unmin

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gled good. The abolition of the tabu, which prevented men and women from eating together, removed a powerful obstacle to domestic happiness; and the abolition of idolatry emancipated the mind from much superstition, and every one will rejoice in the downfall of the Arreoy institution. The change was not limited to abandoning what was bad; it also consisted in adopting what is good. Wars ceased, and all acknowledged their sovereign; education was introduced, and many hundreds were taught to read and write, and very many of the Tahitians gave every evidence of sincerity that the most sceptical could desire. One honourable feature of the affair is, that it was free from compulsion, and the effect of argument and entreaty, and a blameless life on the part of the teachers. had no jugglery or lying miracles--no frauds practised on the simplicity of the natives. It is also to be observed that nothing was done to debase the intellect; no rosaries, crucifixes, or images; no attempt made against the national independence, by bringing their consciences under the tutelage of an Italian priest. The Bible was translated and printed, and with that confidence becoming Protestants, placed fearlessly in the hands of all. How different the measures of the Romish polytheism! In Mexico, some years after the conquest, an old priest writes home that he has almost forgotten his native tongue, from his long residence among the Indians, that he had baptized we do not know how many thousands, and ending by a request that they would send him a book called the Bible, for he had none, and could not procure one in the country. Nor was this all; the people were not only improved in morals but in industry, and of course in amount of comforts and enjoyments of life; and had they been left free from foreign interference, their progress would have been in the right direction. We have now, however, to look to another series of events, in a moral point of view, most disastrous to the whole Polynesian race.

For several years past, the French government of Louis Philippe, aided by the Romish priesthood, have been persevering in their endeavours to obtain a political ascendancy in the Pacific; and had this been done in an

open and manly way, our remarks might have been brief; we shall, however, as the matter stands, enter into some detail. We must, in the first place, allude to a law which has existed in Tahiti, and also, we believe, in the Sandwich islands, that no foreigner is allowed to take up his permanent residence, unless he obtain permission from the constituted authorities. The object of this law enacted long before the intrusion of the Romish priests, was to abate a nuisance of a different kind, and to prevent the settlement of runaway convicts or sailors in the islands, to the detriment of all morality, and had no prospective bearing upon the Jesuits. In 1836, two Romish priests attempted to settle in Tahiti, and the manner in which these incendiaries sneaked into the country is quite characteristic. They did not land at the usual anchorage, but on the opposite side of the island. This proceeding being in contravention of a longstanding law of the island, by which no master or commander of a vessel is allowed to land any passenger without a special permission from the queen and governors, the strangers were desired to leave the island; and upon their obstinate refusal, they were conveyed back to their vessel, without the slightest injury to their persons or property. Now, in all this, which we have quoted from the organ of the London Missionary Society, there was certainly nothing that could offend France; it was precisely what the French government would have done, if an English Protestant preacher had landed at Calais without a passport, and commenced teaching the inhabi

tants. Here we must interrupt our narrative for a moment, to offer a well-meant piece of rebuke to the directors of the London Missionary Society. These respected and benevolent persons must be in full possession of all the details of the case, and why do they injure their cause by only dealing in general statements? What we require of them is that they publish a complete and minute statement of every fact bearing upon the case. If Moerenhout sold spirits, why not say so? They surely can give the names of the Romish priests; they can tell if any of them were English or Irish, and many other things which we wish

to know; and they cannot have a better model for such statements than that afforded by the American missionaries in the Sandwich islands. The tenor of this article will be, we trust, accepted as sufficient evidence that nothing but friendship to their cause, and a love of our common Protestantism, has prompted us to request that they should break through this over-fastidious Christian delicacy. In the absence of such official information, we must avail ourselves of the honest and plain-spoken statement of the Rev. Dr. Lang, then residing at Sidney, and consequently in a position where correct information could be obtained. According to the account of this honest man, two French Roman Catholic priests landed clandestinely on the Island of Tahiti, with the view of propagating among the Protestant natives of the island the errors of popery. They had come in a small schooner from Gambier's Island, where a Roman Catholic mission had been established, and after traversing the south-western side of Tahiti, proclaiming that they were the only teachers of the truth, and that the Protestant missionaries were false teachers (in proof of which they alleged the astounding fact of the latter being married), they were received and accommodated in a cottage on the premises of M. J. A. Moerenhout, American consul, a Belgian we believe by birth, and a Roman Catholic by profession. To this individual, and to the two priests whom he took under his protection it was intimated by the Queen of Tahiti, who was apprehensive of disquiet and disturbance from the character and machinations of the priests, that the latter must leave the island by the schooner in which they had arrived; and Moerenhout and the priests having refused obedience, they were furnished with a copy of one of the Tahitian laws, enacted years before, which prohibited the residence of any foreigners in the island without the express permission of the government. The two priests having expressed their determination to sit violently, as they say in Scotland, notwithstanding this communication, and having accordingly locked themselves up in their cottage, a posse of Tahitian constables were sent under the direction of

one of the district judges, who was present to protect the priests from personal violence, to compel them to embark on board the schooner which was ready for sea. Finding the door locked from within, the constables lifted up the rafters of the roof of the house from the wallplate, and springing over the wall, opened the door from within. One of the priests finding resistance no longer practicable, walked down to the canoe that was waiting for him; the other refusing to move, was lifted up as gently as possible by the natives, and placed in the canoe with all their property, and rowed off to the schooner. With respect to Moerenhout, Dr. Lang informs us that he had written most impertinently to the queen, whose authority he pretended to set at nought, on the ground of her being under the influence of Mr. Pritchard, now British consul, who had formerly been a Protestant missionary on the island. As a proof, however, of the manner in which this individual's conduct throughout the whole affair was viewed by the American government, the circumstances of the case were no sooner made known to the President, than Moerenhout was dismissed from his consulate. The next step in this history is a curious one. Moerenhout, while yet American consul, actually sent a remonstrance to the French government; that is, he was guilty of a breach of the most sacred trust, inasmuch as any such memorial should have been forwarded in the first instance to the government of the United States. Of course we do not know its contents; but they would be out of harmony with the character of this individual if they were true. The piety of Louis Philippe, however, was offended, and Captain Du Petit Thouars was dispatched to obtain redress, and the conduct of this officer was sufficiently disgusting. The French captain, instead of treating with the native authorities at once, put himself in connection with the grog dealer, Moerenhout, who was at the same time consul for the United States and secret agent for France. The consequence of this dishonourable conference was, a demand for an apology and for the sum of two thousand dollars as a fine for the conduct of the queen in dismissing the priests.

Unless this was done, the valiant Du Petit Thouars threatened to batter down the town of Matavai, and establish a creature of Moerenhout's as sovereign. What follows is honourable to Englishmen: the unfortunate Tahitians had no money, but the sum was advanced by three British subjects, Mr. Pritchard, the British consul, Dr. Vaughan, and Mr. Bicknell, the son of one of the missionaries. We feel curious to know what became of this and other sums extorted from the Polynesians. Did it go to the French exchequer, or was it absorbed by that money-getting polypus, La Fayette's Utopia, and the best of all possible republics, Louis Philippe ?

Disgrace is progressive, and like virtue, advances gradually to perfection. Du Petit Thouars arrived at Tahiti in August, 1838, and in April, 1839, the French frigate, L'Artemise, Captain La Place, visited the islands. This ship had sustained some damage from striking on a coral reef, and nearly three months were occupied in its repair. During all this time the unsuspecting Tahitians afforded the most generous and unsuspecting aid to the distressed crew. In return for this hospitality Captain La Place threatened to land five hundred men, and abrogate the government unless the law under which priests were excluded was repealed. The hapless Tahitians had no alternative, and of course submitted, and since then Jesuits and runaway convicts may find an asylum in Tahiti. In the meanwhile Moerenhout, now French consul, like an obscene fowl, was busy at the work of demoralization, inundating the unhappy land with floods of brandy. It is astonishing to contemplate the want of tact and common decency on the part of the French and their ecclesiastical impostors. In May, 1842, the French ship of war L'Aube, Captain Dubuset, visited the islands, and the parable of the wolf and the lamb was again exhibited. A short time previously the captain of a French whaler had been guilty of drunkenness and riot, for which, as in any civilized country, he was put in confinement. To punish a drunken rioter touched French honour, and the poor queen was subjected to the humiliation of being compelled to dismiss her police force by the order of Cap

tain Dubuset. Alas, for French chis valry! such things were enough to make the gallant De Foix, if come to life again, ashamed of his country.

We must now come to the climax of these iniquities and the crowning exploit of Du Petit Thouars; and we may venture to assert that the odious combination of obscenity and falsehood, priestcraft and infidelity, is a disgrace to a nation calling itself civilized. But the iniquities of Du Petit Thouars were preceded by an appropriate prelude by the French consul, Moerenhout. This person, some months before the arrival of the French frigate, and apparently in anticipation of that event, and when the queen was absent from the island, endeavoured to prevail upon the chiefs to sign a letter surrendering the sovereignty of Tahiti to Louis Philippe. The deceived chiefs afterwards declared that they were not aware of the consequences of this act, and immediately retracted it on the representation of the other chiefs. The queen herself, in letters to the Queen of England and to the President of the United States, declared that she had been deceived by Moerenhout, and that she had taken no part in an act which went to deprive her of her sovereignty, and that she relied upon the support of these friendly powers. After this

fraud Du Petit Thouars arrived in September 1842; and we have now to record acts which would have cashiered any English officer, and have permanently expelled him from all correct and moral society. For some days after the arrival of our buccaneer all was quiet, and many professions of peace were made on the part of the French. The queen and principal chiefs were then requested to visit the frigate, that the commander might pay his respects to them, and of course it was understood that his visit was of a friendly nature. The poor queen however was in hourly expectation of her confinement, of which Du Petit Thouars appears to have taken unmanly advantage; and it will hereafter be seen that under any circumstances this officer was no fitting society for a modest woman. The mingled cowardice and meanness of what followed requires no comment. In the evening the British and American consuls received an official document

stating the differences that existed between the Tahitian and French governments, which would probably lead to hostilities; and all French, British, and American subjects were therefore warned to take means for securing their persons and property.

Before the queen or her friends could be consulted, or the day appointed had arrived, the French admiral had settled the affair by means of fraud and falsehood, equal to any thing to be found in the memoirs of his countryman Vidocq. A secret meeting was held during the night, at which four chiefs attended, and a document was signed by them resigning the sovereignty of the island to the French king. Next morning, the queen was required to sign this act of abdication within twenty-four hours, or to pay a fine of ten thousand dollars. But a sad experience had taught the islanders the terrific power of France, and had rendered her very name odious among them. The queen declared she would rather die than subscribe to this swindling document; and although in a situation whose delicacy would have called for some forbearance and courtesy on the part of a gentleman, Admiral Du Petit Thouars was inexorable; and as the money could not be procured, she affixed her signature just one hour before the firing was to commence. The following account of this transaction, extracted from a letter from Tahiti, which was published in The Times of March 29, deserves to be quoted :"The French commander sent an emissary to the queen, declaring that if the money was not paid within twentyfour hours, he would bombard the island, and destroy every thing. queen positively declared she would sooner die trusting in God than pay this extortion, and a council of the chiefs was held to decide on the best means of defence. The next morning, however, the French landed their marines, and demanded the immediate ratification of a treaty (if her majesty would not pay the money) placing Otahiti, with the whole of the Society Islands, under the soi-disant protection of France. This the queen, by the force and menaces of French bayonets, was reluctantly compelled to sign, amidst the beating of drums and the cheers of the marines and sailors, as if it was a voluntary act on the part of

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the queen and the chiefs, who were, and are, all opposed to the treaty, and which has been extorted from them by main force."

No honest man can entertain a doubt as to the mode in which Tahiti was brought under the supremacy of France. It was compulsory in the strictest sense of the word; and it is therefore with a feeling of humiliation that we have to refer to Admiral Du Petit Thouars's official account of the transaction. Nothing can better show the opinion of the French admiral respecting his own conduct than that he has been obliged, in order to give a plausible statement of these misdeeds, to fill his official report with falsehoods of the most disgraceful nature. We must quote his own words-" Ensuite des griefs et reclamations des nos nationaux à Otahiti, par la demande d'une indemnité de 10,000 piastres fortes, réparation facile en égard de l'abondance de numeraire dans ce pays." We are informed that in consequence of wrongs complained of by the French subjects residing in Tahiti, the sum of ten thousand dollars was demanded as an easy compensation on account of the abundance of money in the island. The only French residents we have heard of in Tahiti, were Moerenhout and his priests. As to any complaint from that worthy, there is an antecedent probability of its mendacity; but be that as it may, no complaint has ever yet been detailed. As to the admiral's assertion respecting the abundance of money in Tahiti, no man alive knows the falsehood of the statement better than the man who made it. We will only advance the decisive evidence of this deliberately-made accusation. In 1838, this identical Du Petit Thouars visited Tahiti, and demanded a fine of only two thousand dollars. The queen was too poor to pay it, and the sum was advanced on her behalf by three English gentlemen, to avert the calamity of the islands falling into the hands of the French. We shall just quote another example of the veracity of this gentleman. Speaking of the submission of the island to the French, he adds"C'est de plein gré et spontanément qu'on s'offert à nous." That is, it was surrendered willingly and cheerfully. But enough.

As it is perfectly just and proper

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