The Money, It Appeared,
Had Not Been Paid; Perhaps The Alleged Reasons Were Rather
Equivocal; But Otherwise I Cannot Sufficiently Express Our
General Surprise At The Extreme Good Sense, The Reasoning
Powers, Moderation, Candour, And Prompt Resolution, Which
Were Displayed On All Sides.
I believe we all left the meeting
with a very different opinion of the Tahitians, from what we
entertained when we entered.
The chiefs and people resolved
to subscribe and complete the sum which was wanting;
Captain Fitz Roy urged that it was hard that their private
property should be sacrificed for the crimes of distant
islanders. They replied, that they were grateful for his
consideration, but that Pomarre was their Queen, and that they
were determined to help her in this her difficulty. This
resolution and its prompt execution, for a book was opened
early the next morning, made a perfect conclusion to this
very remarkable scene of loyalty and good feeling.
After the main discussion was ended, several of the chiefs
took the opportunity of asking Captain Fitz Roy many intelligent
questions on international customs and laws, relating
to the treatment of ships and foreigners. On some
points, as soon as the decision was made, the law was issued
verbally on the spot. This Tahitian parliament lasted for
several hours; and when it was over Captain Fitz Roy invited
Queen Pomarre to pay the Beagle a visit.
November 25th. - In the evening four boats were sent for
her majesty; the ship was dressed with flags, and the yards
manned on her coming on board. She was accompanied by
most of the chiefs. The behaviour of all was very proper:
they begged for nothing, and seemed much pleased with Captain
Fitz Roy's presents. The queen is a large awkward
woman, without any beauty, grace or dignity. She has only
one royal attribute: a perfect immovability of expression
under all circumstances, and that rather a sullen one. The
rockets were most admired, and a deep "Oh!" could be
heard from the shore, all round the dark bay, after each
explosion. The sailors' songs were also much admired; and
the queen said she thought that one of the most boisterous
ones certainly could not be a hymn! The royal party did
not return on shore till past midnight.
26th. - In the evening, with a gentle land-breeze, a course
was steered for New Zealand; and as the sun set, we had a
farewell view of the mountains of Tahiti - the island to which
every voyager has offered up his tribute of admiration.
December 19th. - In the evening we saw in the distance
New Zealand. We may now consider that we have nearly
crossed the Pacific. It is necessary to sail over this great
ocean to comprehend its immensity. Moving quickly onwards
for weeks together, we meet with nothing but the
same blue, profoundly deep, ocean. Even within the
archipelagoes, the islands are mere specks, and far distant one
from the other. Accustomed to look at maps drawn on a
small scale, where dots, shading, and names are crowded
together, we do not rightly judge how infinitely small the
proportion of dry land is to water of this vast expanse.
The meridian of the Antipodes has likewise been passed; and
now every league, it made us happy to think, was one league
nearer to England.
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