第79章 "HUMPBACKING" AT VAU VAU(3)

But I am in the bush, whimpering over the tones of "Hollingside."As soon as I had pulled myself together a bit, we went on again in the direction of the sound, Presently we came to a large clearing, in the middle of which stood a neat wooden, pandanus-thatched church.There were no doors or windows to it, just a roof supported upon posts, but a wide verandah ran all round, upon the edge of which we seated ourselves; for the place was full--full to suffocation, every soul within miles, I should think, being there.No white men was present, but the service, which was a sort of prayer-meeting, went with a swing and go that was wonderful to see.There was no perfunctory worship here; no one languidly enduring it because it was "the right sort of thing to show up at, you know;" but all were in earnest, terribly in earnest.When they sang, it behoved us to get away to a little distance, for the vigour of the voices, unless mellowed by distance, made the music decidedly harsh.Every one was dressed in European clothing--the women in neat calico gowns; but the men, nearly all of them, in woollen shirts, pilot-coats, and trousers to match, and sea-boots! Whew! it nearly stifled me to look at them.The temperature was about ninety degrees in the shade, with hardly a breath of air stirring, yet those poor people, from some mistaken notion of propriety, were sweating in torrents under that Arctic rig.However they could worship, I do not know! At last the meeting broke up.The men rushed out, tore off their coats, trousers, and shirts, and flung themselves panting upon the grass, mother-naked, except for a chaplet of cocoanut leaves, formed by threading them on a vine-tendril, and hanging round the waist.

Squatting by the side of my "flem," whom I had recognized, Iasked him why ever he outraged all reason by putting on such clothes in this boiling weather.He looked at me pityingly for a moment before he replied, "You go chapella Belitani? No put bes'

close on top?" "Yes," I said; "but in hot weather put on thin clothes; cold weather, put on thick ones." "S'pose no got more?"he said, meaning, I presumed, more than the one suit."Well," Isaid, "more better stop 'way than look like big fool, boil all away, same like duff in pot.You savvy duff?" He smiled a wide comprehensive smile, but looked very solemn again, saying directly, "You no go chapella; you no mishnally.No mishnally [missionary=godly]; very bad.Me no close; no go chapella; vely bad.Evelly tangata, evelly fafine, got close all same papalang [every man and woman has clothes like a white man]; go chapella all day Sunday." That this was no figure of speech I proved fully that day, for I declare that the recess between any of the services never lasted more than an hour.Meanwhile the worshippers did not return to their homes, for in many cases they had journeyed twenty or thirty miles, but lay about in the verdure, refreshing themselves with fruit, principally the delightful green cocoa-nuts, which furnish meat and drink both --cool and refreshing in the extreme, as well as nourishing.

We were all heartily welcome to whatever was going, but there was a general air of restraint, a fear of breaking the Sabbath, which prevented us from trespassing too much upon the hospitality of these devout children of the sun.So we contented ourselves with strolling through the beautiful glades and woods, lying down, whenever we felt weary, under the shade of some spreading orange tree loaded with golden fruit, and eating our fill, or rather eating until the smarting of our lips warned us to desist.Here was a land where, apparently, all people were honest, for we saw a great many houses whose owners were absent, not one of which was closed, although many had a goodly store of such things as a native might be supposed to covet.At last, not being able to rid ourselves of the feeling that we were doing something wrong, the solemn silence and Sundayfied air of the whole region seeming to forbid any levity even in the most innocent manner, we returned on board again, wonderfully impressed with what we had seen, but wondering what would have happened if some of the ruffianly crowds composing the crews of many ships had been let loose upon this fair island.

In the evening we lowered a stage over the bows to the water's edge, and had a swimming-match, the water being perfectly delightful, after the great heat of the day, in its delicious freshness; and so to bunk, well pleased indeed with our first Sunday in Vau Vau.

I have no doubt whatever that some of the gentry who swear at large about the evils of missionaries would have been loud in their disgust at the entire absence of drink and debauchery, and the prevalence of what they would doubtless characterize as adjective hypocrisy on the part of the natives; but no decent man could help rejoicing at the peace, the security, and friendliness manifested on every hand, nor help awarding unstinted praise to whoever had been the means of bringing about so desirable a state of things.I felt that their Sabbatarianism was carried to excess; that they would have been better, not worse, for a little less church, and a little more innocent fun; but ten thousand times better thus than such scenes of lust let loose and abandoned animalism as we witnessed at Honolulu.What pleased me mightily was the absence of the white man with his air of superiority and sleek overlordship.All the worship, all the management of affairs, was entirely in the hands of the natives themselves, and excellently well did they manage everything.