Indigenous Races of the Earth

XGN23N881857 13

viii PREFATORY REMARKS. tor IV., I anticipated no di11icu1ty in supplying him with the "proof­sheets" of our volume quite in time for one-to ·whom tho subjects dcv loped in it arc so familiar-to write the few pages of synopf<is desirable for Hs "Prefatory Remarks." Under this expectation, the "proof-sheets" have been punctually forwarded hence to Mobile by our l ublishcrs; and I took for grant d that, by the J5th February, at fl'trthcst, Dn. NoT't''s second manuscript would have reached me here for tho press. Uniortunatcly, we have all "reckoned without our host." ]'rom the latter part of December until, I may say, this moment, the wintry condition of the roaJs has been such as to <'Ompol my colleague to write me, almost at the last moment, that, having received but few of tho "proof-sheets," auJ these in no connected scriee, he must abanJon tho hope of editing our "Prefatory Remarks." My individual chagdn at this contre-temps is so groat that I will not attempt to ofl:or any substitute for Dn. No~rr's frustrated intentions. At a more propitious time, and through some other vehicle, I hope that my colleague may publish his own commentary upon "Incligc­n~ us Ha os of the ~artb," -which owes far more to his personal sctouec and Jl'Ol~uiAJ~n than appear on its face. In consequence, my part r duces 1tsolf to tho cdttorship of thr c aJditional contribu­tion~,- to three .parcLgrapbs about :bjgyptian ethnography-and to succmct obs rvat1011 c nccrning my own Clw,ptors V. and VI. 1.'Lc gratifying communications now presented alf-ord much scien­tific novelty and food for the reader's rc£1 ctio11s. I append each in its order of l1ato. "NAVY YARD, PmLADEJ.l'IIIA Jan. 20th 1857 "MFJ,'SltS. OTT & GI.IDDON, ' ' • "~oar· ~i.t·s : - Yo~r communication in regard to the hairy race who mha~Ht tho Kurtle Islands, and the red men of FormoAa hns bo 11 r CClVCd. ' "I tal'O pleasure in forwarding you two 'heads' of tho former, as dr·awn .by Mr. A. E. Hartman, the able artist of the United States Survcymg, t?amcr 'J?hn . II.ancock,' and only regret that I am u~1~blo to ftn·m.s~ you WJth s1n:1lar sketches of the latter, our opportu­mtJ? s of cxamJJ:lllO' them havmg been very limited. I take tho fol­lo,~ mg extracts m regard to these slightly known races from a nar­ratlVc of our ruisc which I have now in press:- "TilE RF.D ~lllN OF Til~ lSI.AND OF IIOR~!OBA. . "I will say notl1ing more a~out Formosa for tho proRont. . Wo loft its shores about as wtso us wo were upon our arr1val, aud it wna not unlil our second vi~it that we picked up PREFATORY REllfARKS. ix whnt little inform~tion now exists upon tho files of tho Expedition in regl!.rd to it. U~n leaving K ilung (tho port of tho i ~lt1nd of .Formoso.), for llong-Koug, wo kept along the oo.st coast of tho isl11111l, in tho vaiu ~oarcll for a reported ho.rbor. 'J'horo wns nothing to bo seen but an iron-bound cor~st with range after ro.ngo of lofty mountl!.ins lifting themselves nbovo tho honvy surf th11t broke nlong the on tiro boflch. Ono d••Y we thought we h1>d dis­covered it: wo saw nhead tho smoke of distflnt villt~gcs ri ~i ug b•tck of 11 bight in tho const which looked very much like 1\ hl\rbor; but, upon ttpp•·oaching it, wo found OUl'Sclvos mis­tl\ kon. We, however, lowered 11 boat 1\nd attempted to land, but the surf W!LS b•·cnking so furiou sly tlutt it would hn.vo boon madness to lll\vo entered it. llcsiuos, the bc11Ch was crowded by nr1kod nncl excited 81W11ges, who it was generally reported wore cannibr~ls, and into whoso company wo shouhl consequently 111\ve preferred being thrown with roli ttblc arms in our hands. l'ho two convicts, whom tho onptl!.in had taken in tho boat to interpret in case of bis being 11blo to hLud, boca1110 80 frightouod 1\t the 81\VIIgO l!.pponrallCC Of tbOSO reported man-ontors, th tLt they went on their knees to him, protcstiug, through tho s teward, thnt the islanders hacl eaton mnny of their countrymen, and that if ho went any nca•·er tboy would do tho snmc by him r~nd the boat's crow. finding it impossible to pnss the surf, the bont rotumocl on bor~rd, nud wo squo.rod 1\way for Hong-Kong." * * * * "And now, be­foro 1 turn to my jOIIl'llltl for 11 fow pnges in rcga1·d to ou t· experience while coasting o.round this islaud, lot me enlighten tho rottdor 1\S much as possible in rognrd to it from otllet· SOlHOOB. 'l'ho l~ncycloprodil!. :Uritl\nnicl\ snys,- " • 'J'ho Dutch at an early p01·iod cstl!.blished 11 settlement on tllis isl11nd. "• In 10::!5, tho vicet·oy of the Philippine Isln,nds sent 1\11 expedition ngn,inst Formosn, witlln view of expelling tho Dutch. It was unsuccessful. ... About tho middle of tho sovcntocnth century, it afl'o•·dcd n rotrol\t to twenty or thi ·rty thousflnd Chiueso from tho fury of tho 'l'nrtar conquest .... In 1653, a conspimcy of the Chinese 11gaiust tho Dutch w11s di scovered nml s npJll'ORsod; nnd, soon after tllis, Coxingn, tho governot· of tho n~r~ritimo Cbinosc rn·ovinco of '1'ohichir~ng, appli d for permission to retire to tho islnnd, which WfiS refused hy the Dutch govcmor; on wltich ho fitted out nn expedition, consisting of six hun­dred vo~HCIR, ttnrl mflllc himHolf master of tho towu of FormORI\ 1\nd the tldjl\ccnt oount•·y. 'l'ho D11tch wore th en nlloworl to ombnrk 1\nd lenvo tho island .... Coxinp;11 afterward on­gaged in 11 wnr with tho Chinese 11nd Dutch, in which ho W>IH dof Jdod fl nLl H!Jd n. l3ut they wore uunblo to t;1ko po~scssion of tho islnnd, which wns b•·n,voly defended by t.hc posterity of Coxiuga; 1\nd it WitS not till tho yol\r 1683 th sLt the iHll\nd WitS volun!Ju·ily surren dered by tho rciguing prince to tho Emperor of Cbinn. ... . In 1805, through tho wor~kncss of the Chi nose government, tho Ladt·ono pirates bl!.d acquired possession of a great part of tho southwo~t OOLISt.' "Tho Encyclopoo lin Am ricnnn says,- "' Tho island is ubout two hundred find forty miles in len gth from north to south, 1\nd sixty from onst to west in its bt·oadest part, but grc11tly contructed nt onch extremity. l'hl!.t pm·t of ~he isl1tnd whi ch tho Chinese possess presents extensive find fertile plttins, watcrctl !Jy a grcnt number of rivulets thn,t fflll from tho eaHtorn mountr~ins. Its air is pure >Lml wh olesome, mtd the 01trth produces in abundn,nce corn, rico, 1111tl mos t otl•cr kincl8 of gr1tin. Most of t.ho Jndi11 fruits nro found hero, -such ns ornngoR, bnnnnn,s, pineilpplos, gu11vl\s, coconnuts,-1tnd pl!.rt <>f those of J~mopo, pnrticulnrly poaches, npricots, figs, gl'flpcs, chestnuts, pomcgranntcs, w11tormolons, &c. l'obi\Oco, sug~w, popper, cnmphor, nud cin­n1tmon, aro al~o common. 'l'uo capital of Formosa is 1'niouan,- flll111llO which tho Chi­nose give to tho wholo i81nml.' "In nddition to Lho foregoing oxtl·Mts from stnndarcl nuthori ty, we lmvo a most. ml\rvol­lous account of this isln ntl from tho pen of 1\'fn.uritius Augustus, ount de Uonyowsky, a Polish rofngco from Sibrrinn exile, wbo visited its cast const, in 1700, in n Rmall flt'mcd v A­sol containing about one hundred m n. l'bo ncconnt by thiR nohlotllnn i ~ intcrc~ tinp; in tho extrorno, but unfortnn11t.oly he is guilty of one gross nnd pulpnhlo f,d K(I lHJo<l, which urcc"Ha­rily throws 1\ shade of distrust ou his ontiro Jlltrl'uti,·c. llo sponks 'of nnchol"ing iu scvonll