Imatges de pàgina
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INFLUENCE OF WHALE SHIPS. 355

to the commodore as a naval commander, an honorable and upright man, and an independent and warm friend to the missionaries, and to the Hawaiian nation, which he has ever proved himself, from the time of his first visit to the islands, in 1826, and honest arbitration then between the missionaries and their shamed traducers.

It were happy if a like report could be given of the noted Carysfort, and other English ships of war, and of all the American whale ships that have touched at this port for a few years past. While the influence of some has been salutary, infamous facts might be stated pertaining to others of them, whose visits have been sadly demoralizing and baleful. But we forbear to give them notoriety.* Let the memory of the just be blessed, but the name of the wicked rot.

The so-called reflex influence of missions has been very happily exemplified at this station. The missionary pastor's faithfulness with sea-captains and others who have touched here, and with all foreigners who have come in his way, and whenever and wherever he has had the privilege of preaching the Gospel, and the hospitable, friendly acts of all the families, have not been in vain. Seed cast upon the waters

* Under date of October 16th, 1849, Rev. Mr. Coan thus writes to the American Seamen's Friend Society: "Whale ships are now in, and our streets are all alive with sailors. Hundreds are having liberty on shore, and our town is like a bee-hive. Still all are quiet. No man staggers, no man fights, none are noisy and boisterous. We have nothing here to inflame the blood, nothing to madden the brain. Our verdant landscape, our peaceful streets, our pure cold water, and the absence of those inebriating vials of wrath which consume all good, induce wise commanders to visit this port, in order to refresh and give liberty to their crews."

has been gathered again with rejoicing. I have become acquainted, while at the islands, with three cases of hopeful conversion at Hilo: a whaling-captain, a traveler, and a seaman. Other cases I have heard detailed. Three captains, to our knowledge, labored with on the subject, have pledged themselves not to whale any longer upon the Sabbath.

How many lasting impressions may have been made upon seamen and others by the pungent lessons they have heard, and the tracts and kind words they have received there, and by what they have observed of the power of the Gospel upon natives, we can never tell in time; but in eternity, I doubt not, there will be found a goodly company of foreign souls saved through the instrumentality of truth brought in their way at Hilo. They who have thus sown the seed shall reap the fruit with joy, and sing the harvest-home in another world.

On one occasion, some years ago, when Mr. Coan was absent from his station at the general meeting of missionaries in Honolulu, a whale ship entered the port of Hilo, and the captain, being in want of men, was disposed to enlist some native Hawaiians. It so happened that one man engaged himself who was a member of Mr. Coan's church, one of the rules of which obliges its members to keep the Sabbath day holy, KA LA TABU. He did not think to ask if it was a Sabbath-keeping ship until he had engaged to go the voyage to the Northwest Coast, and just before the evening had come for the vessel to sail.

Then, learning that the ship whaled on the Sabbath, and that he should have to work on the Lord's

MISSIONARY'S WIFE AND WHALE SHIP. 357

day as on other days, he came in his pilikia, perplexity, to Mrs. Coan, to know what he should do.

Mrs. Coan, well knowing her husband's mind and determination in like cases, and that the man, if he went the voyage in such a Sabbath-breaking ship, would be likely to become an abandoned and wretched apostate, nobly took on herself the responsibility of saying that he must by no means go, and that she would be answerable to the captain for the man's breaking his engagement under the circumstances of the case: a thing the honest Hawaiian was wishing, but afraid to do.

Telling him to put himself at rest on that score, she promised him herself to write a palapala, letter, to the whaling captain, respectfully explaining why the man could not go the voyage, and exculpating him from blame.

Just as he was setting sail that evening, and reckoning fully upon his man, the captain received Mrs Coan's note. The pilot was now on board, the anchor tripped, and it was too late to make up his loss. But in great wrath at what he deemed the impertinent interference of a missionary's wife, he resolved to touch off the reef at Honolulu, on his way, and expose the whole affair in the Sandwich Island Gazette, a local newspaper of the baser sort, very much given at that time to opposing and vilifying the missionaries.

General meeting was then in session, and the first news Mr. Coan had of his domestic household and flock at Hilo was in the publication of his wife's letter to the sea-captain, and the outpouring of whole vials of editorial wrath and abuse upon her and him

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