It was soon our lot to part with another of our companions, Peter Andrews. He was accused by the natives of some trifling offence, and put to death. The savages knocked him down with their clubs, and then despatched him in the most cruel and most shocking manner. I was at this time at a distance from the place where he was killed. My master was absent; and upon my hearing a noise in the direction of the place where the foul business was transacted, and suspecting that all was not right, I started to see what was going on. I was near the beach when I saw a number of the savages coming towards the spot where I stood, dragging along the lifeless and mangled body of our comrade! One of them approached me behind, and knocked me down with his club. The body of Andrews was thrown into the sea, and it seemed to be their determination to destroy the whole of us. I warded off the blows aimed at me as well as I could, and recovering myself, ran towards the hut of my master. He had not yet returned; but, fortunately, an old man, who had previously shown some regard for me, and who was the particular friend of my master, happened at that moment to be passing; and seizing the man who had pursued me, held him fast. I escaped and ran into the hut, and crawled up through an aperture in the floor into the chamber under the roof. I seized an old box and covered up the hole through which I had ascended; but this was not sufficient to detain, for any great length of time, the wretches who were thirsting for my blood. They soon succeeded in displacing the box, and one of them seized me; but just as he was pulling me from my place of refuge, my master returned with several of his friends, and rescued me from the clutches of my enemies. In the mean time Nute and the rest of our companions were at the "_Tahboo_," a place of public resort, where, for the only time, the females rendered our people any assistance. They concealed the men under some mats, and kept them there till the fury of the natives had in a measure subsided. We were next called upon to part with one of the Pelew _chiefs_ who had come with us. He died of absolute starvation, and, according to custom, was committed to the waves in an old canoe. In a short time after this, the Pelew private (who had also come with us) was detected in the crime of taking a few cocoa-nuts without leave; for which offence he had his hands tied behind him, and was put into a canoe and sent adrift; which was their usual method of punishment for offences of different kinds.