Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly vol. 3.djvu/214

204 sea must return. However, the next day a great howling and uproar was heard, the whole island being excited. This, as was soon learned, was caused by the body of Milton being found on the shore of the lagoon, to which it had been drifted in the night, and this brought more fear and dread than if many live men had come. It was awfully unlucky for a dead man to come back to his murderers, and for a whole month the man who set him adrift was obliged to perform rites in the Tahboo house. This seems to indicate the superstitious origin of these horrors.

William Seddon, another sailor, died of disease on the shore, having become very low through privation. One after another, however, the rest were turned adrift alive, never to return, until but three remained. These were one Pelew, a sailor named Knute, and Holden.

Mr. Holden is yet tattooed in South Sea islander fashion over his entire chest and arms. This appears to be as distinct as after it was first done, and resembles the pattern of some sort of shirt or dress, or more probably some native design. Without expert inquiry the suggestion still arises that in the South Seas, where dress was unnecessary for comfort, the only use that occurred to the natives was as an ornament, or mark of distinction, following out, I believe, a suggestion of Carlyle's in Sartor Resartus. For ornament or distinction tattooing on the skin would answer the same purpose as dress. Possibly, too, these patterns were from the dress of castaways or conquerors, whose clothes were worn out, and no new ones were to be had, and the design was preserved on the skin.

But whatever its origin, its intent at the time Mr.