Show ISLAND 1 I CREATION take up the map of the western sphere and about south lati de 17 deg and west longitude dea the reader will find the post on of Otah Ota elte heite so BO celebrated in the bages of the illustrious navigator cook and so remarkable for its tural beauties it is the largest of that at group called the society Is dundei ads which stretch away east r yuth dotting the bosom of the r as with emeralds and coral J tot ot the e space of two thousand miles ollo the track indicated and the ya will fall 11 nearly the e last of this series of enchanting wets and a thousand leagues to the os FA ward of the american conti elat eq A little more than a century 60 its existence was totally un ya auke to the navigators of orope drope and the savages of f the south to sketch first appeared in the first of 0 the mana yi nets and atter after wa toa Works of dr lees vol i 1 ima seas it is an outlying and inconsiderable sid erable island beyond the path of the barbarian canoe paddling in the lower archipelago and out of the great seaway of commerce it appertains to latitudes where nature has scattered her gifts with a lavish hand even amidst the beauties and opulence of the tropics this marvelous region bears away the palm it has an almost ever sunny clime luscious fruits and gorgeous flowers plants rich in bread already prepared for the human hand sun seta Ahat axe are glories unsurpassed like the very gates of heaven while around these emerald isles rolls an azure sea which rivals the vaults of the empyrean it was in 1767 that midshipman pitcairn attached to the swallow captain carteret Car while passing these latitudes first set eyes upon this island which was coed called by his name to him a transitory distinction for he bed shortly after its discovery when young pitcairn first saw the little isle at the un ansual distance of fifteen leagues it appeared a mere point of high spiral rock rising out of the sea though on drawing nearer to its shores it was found to be a perfect island seven miles in circumference and eleven hundred feet high stormy weather at the time hindered hini hinl ered the boats from landing but the discovery was briefly no noted te d in the logbook carteret recorded the event afterwards in the printed narrative of his expedition and the next dro grapher probably added a fresh dot to his map of polynesia the islet was left again to the boll solitude of nature no human voice broke upon the stillness of its palmy groves in the calm cahn sunny weather startling the plumed birds no tread of the swift hunter overtook the tardy tortoise for his prey no boat mans ore splashed the blue waters into silver ripples disturbing the scaly denizens of the coral bays its long seasons of fruitful f ru fitful peace deac e the file rustling of leaves the hum of falling waters and the rolling roiling murmur of the surf breaking upon its strand awoke no joy while the sweeping tempest and the blazing lightning and the fearful hurricane that came anon inspired no feax fear in the breast of man above two decades passed on pregnant with sorrow and with joy to the human inhabitants of other regions but leaving this solitary spot in its virgin beauty and freshness yet in the great web of providence that silent silently lk works to an issue whereof man can have no foresight a new destiny was being woven for this little island a destiny that should fill it with human passion and mortal care with sorrow and hope and yet eventually make the wilderness blossom with the roses of human life n SIN it was on april ath 1789 that the ill fated bounty another vessel which hoisted british colors and commanded by lieutenant william bligh left Ota heite laden wm with 1015 living plants of the breadfruit bread fruit tree with which the government had proposed to enrich our west india ilidia colonies her homeward voyage seemed likely to be prosperous majestically jestic ally the good ship sailed on moving like a living thing across the peaceful waters all on board apparently patently ly subordinated to the strict order and discipline that mark the british navy that calm however was delusive and hid from sight the shouldering ing embers of human passion which awaited only the breath of opportunity to fan them into a devouring flamel flame commander bligh unfortunately was of an unhappy disposition exacting and imperious pe rious he had bad neither the wt nor the grace to mingle human sympathy with rigid discipline and had contrived to destroy that unity of feeling which Is ie the best beat security for the harmonious working of every machinery of government whether in a ship or in the larger vessel of the state there was on board the bounty acting in the capacity of masters matedne ma mate one fletcher christiana young man who came of a respectable family in the north of englan anglani Eng lani 1 endowed with excellent talents ta lente but of a hot and revengeful temper the shouldering ing exasperation in which the comm commander nd kept his crew was first made manifest by overt acts in the person of young christian who gave way to a settled spirit of resentment sent ment and a determination to be revenged on bligh for the slights and insults heaped upon himself and others he conspired with some of the crew to seize the vessel the conspiracy rapidly fomented to a head and at last broke out into open mutiny the night of the of april 1789 was notable even in the latitude of the Marque sas for its wondrous lustre and repose but as if in designed contrast to the calm of nature and while the stars looked down from their azure depths with a mystic brightness revenge and lawlessness were preparing the first act of the coming trag edyl As morning approached mr christian who was the officer of the watch enter edwith three other persons the cabin of the commander and seized him while asleep he was then bound and threatened with instant death should he give the slightest alarm finally an open boat being lowered he was placed in it along with nineteen of the crew who had not participated in the mutiny when he thus became aware of the calamity that had come upon him and ere the boat was cut adrift without map ephemeris or sextant he made a last appeal to christian the reply of that unhappy young man reveals the storm of fiery remorse that had already commenced the work of eternal retribution III am in hell I 1 am in hen captain beighl we need not here pursue the ad ventures of this boats crew long since published in the graphic narrative the cathe mutiny of the bounty f the boat was loaded almost to the waters edge before leaving how ever the men were permitted to collect twine canvas lines sails cordage and a 28 gallon cuk cask of water and also to take a small store of rum artim andrine an and wine dwine with a quadrant and compass they were near the tonga islands fofoa 19 degrees S lat E long when thus abandoned after forty one days of extreme suffering they reached the island of timor 9 degrees S lat degrees E long lying between java and Vic victoria victoriaa torla a distance of nautical miles bligh reached england in 1790 and in 1806 was waa appointed governor of new south wales where uncured by affliction his conduct became so unbearable that the civil and military officers of the colony summarily terminated his government by arresting him III EXILE EMLE the second act of the drama now opens upon us unchecked power and harsh self will have generated their bitter fruit resistance and revenge and these in turn are am working out their issues prom from the deck of the stately ship christian observes the departure of its banished tyrant left with his companions in an open boat to the wild mercies of the winds and waves even he anticipates and almost regrets the tortures they are destined to endure and the perils to which they must be exposed but action is demanded the boat gradually dis 1 appears beyond the line hue of sight and now it is gone A now new life commences of pleasure and licentiousness for all of command and of danger also for Christ christian lan since they must no more be found where Brit annias ubiquitous navy rides the deep if the boat is cut away from the bounty so are they from old england the bounty is nw w speeding back to ofle enchanting shores of Ota Otah heite elte the sensual ease and licentious pleasures of which the aers already taste by anticipation in those times far more so than now seamen not of england merely but of europe and america generally were only missionaries of evil who with the name of christians inoculated the comparatively innocent savages with a more subtle and destructive virus than was known to their paganism but a dilemna presents itself I 1 how shall they account to the natives for their unlooked for return for the absence of the commander and so many of his men the first departure from rectitude generates a second as one crime breeds another 1 A ue lie must be devised to deceive the simpleminded simple minded children of nature it is soon told they had captain cook the islanders old friend and lieutenant bligh who had been with cook in his former expedition had rejoined him with some of their comrades the false hood is credited and for a season the mutineers muti revel in the sensual pleasures of the place pleasure palls however for duty yields the only abiding satisfaction being the bread of life to the moral 1 nature dreal forebodings now arise pictures of that abandoned A crew their countrymen and their companions come before them in the visions of the night the boat is driff drifting ing with its ghastly and famished load too feeble to row and ateer or sinking in the storm beneath the waves if the crew of that frail boat are not lost if some distant haven has indeed been reached then is the story of the mutiny bruited bruised abroad it has become known to english captains it will by and by excite the ind ignar tion of the government whose arms are long and whose navy circles the globe soon io one can tell teh how soon the avenger avenger will be upon their track they consult and flight to is determined on the mutineers muti at least such as dare not brave the risk of staying will seek a more secure retreat leaving then a number of the crew behind them they again set sail taking with them six tw babl tan men and twelve women of the latter nine were wives of the sailors three wives of the Ta bitans whom they carried WAY away with them passion and lust being alike sated the crew began to taste the bitter dregs of disappointment they biad ba sown but will not contentedly reap MAP they blame each other all the mow that each mans conscience himself mutual recriminations ensue fletcher christian grow browtt moody fitful and impatient they thel cruise about at to di cu vert their thoughts into healthier channels christian orders a fort to be erected but the work does no progress once more the anchor heaved and the bounty aspres sp its ite guilty wings takes flight chero no man fursueth purs and no now W a last standing right across their ps p tb are am the peaks of pitcairn whick shall be to them the patmos of ff ia it is examined all things tp avo 4 it out as the isle of refuge its rock bound coast which can be safely of I 1 pro preached ached only in certain states he the weather so dangerous is ie surf its isolation and insignificant insignificance and not least its vast distance froza other land save a few wets islets 00 1 j itself and they hundreds of I 1 am 11 1 away 0 council is held and the die MAI cast A party proceeds to unship their goods and to carry them ashore amongst other things some books are not forgotten mark them lying there in a heap little heeded now but eventually to germinate into glorious life lifland and fruitfulness ful ness the last boat has left the ship p but before leaving a brand has been applied to the fated vessel for good or for ill III their destiny is now irrevocably fixed to that little spot on that rock to the right beneath the waving palm trees the women wrape in their graceful togas babes in arms are watching the proceedings in silent wonder on the rocky strand is christian dark moody and determined around him his desperate and dissolute companions their gaze is fixed upon the burning vessel now enveloped in flames from porthole port hole hoje to topmast what were their thoughts then as the last link that bound them to the civilized world was being severed seve redl the vessel is now consumed to the waters edge the flames have burnt low though huge volumes of opaque smoke like the vapors of a sacrifice rise up toward the holy heavens darkness descends softly over the lovely isle as the sacrifice is completed will it be accepted IV retribution alas alakl the lesson of suffering was not yet complete for repentance had not yet come the mutineers muti had dealt treacherously with the Tah Uh itans as with their own comrades of the bounty they had lured these unsophisticated children of i nature with the view as they now discovered of converting them into these unhappy beings therefore righteously rebelled against their tyrants they even plot their deduction Str action crime ripens to its terrible harv harvest bat suspicion and fear everywhere prevail Christian still haunt od d with the dread of discovery from some aone government vessel sent in purit erects a kind of fort upon an elevated spot from whence to observe any ally ship that might approach the he island the clouds in the tropics often assume distinct shapes and is no wonder that viewed through Z the unsteady telescope of an imagination excited by guilt the very vapours of heaven put on the form odthe of the avenging ship often would the wet mutineers muti fly before such phan tom hapes and hide themselves in berlas governs and solitary places once iced dead a vessel did touch at the ls from irom which as was proved m the remains of a fire on shore a party of men actually landed but the danger in the distance made the mutineers muti blind to a greater one at hand and instantly impending the watching their opportunity took christian and four of his companions at unawares and killed them thus did the violence and wrongfulness wrongful of the whites bring its own punishment in turn to bring destruction upon the natives themselves violence evermore begetting violence between the mutineers muti that remained and the six men a civil warnow war now raged the more astute and better armed whites naturally in the end exterminating their unfortunate antagonists the soil boll of this once peaceful island was now drenched i in human gore the climax of evil however was not yet reached this little colony as if it were a type of mankind was doomed to pass by the lust just of forbidden pleasure through another phase of civilization besides that of war the ghoul of intemperance imprisoned in its dark limbo by the sw seal of the impossible had not yet reveled and rioted over the health the beauty and the sanity of this people amongst the most destructive ti ve inventions of man are undoubtedly the arts of fermentation and distillation whereby the innocent fruits of the earth are transmuted into a fiery fluid which has proved far more fatal than famine war and pestilence combined one of the mutineers muti had learnt this fatal art in the fatherland in an evil hour he sought out a native plant the juice of which as containing saccharine matter was adapted to his purpose the sweet solution was fermented the sugar transmuted into the deadly spirit and this extracted by distillation til intoxication was added to the catalogue of crime already intolerable the cup of iniquity was full two of the men were almost perpetually drunk one of them finally cast himself from a tall cliff in an attack of delirium kremena tremens tr tre emens mena and the second met with a f fate a te equally terrible the other survivors of the crew of the bounty now reduced to two had their lives dally daily jeopardized by the violence of |