John G. Paton, missionary to the New Hebrides, volume 2 (of 3) : $b An autobiography edited by his brotherPaton, John Gibson
Religion
John G. Paton, missionary to the New Hebrides, volume 2 (of 3) : $b An autobiography edited by his brother
Paton, John Gibson
Missionaries -- Vanuatu -- Biography; Paton, John Gibson, 1824-1907
“One day, before John was quite recovered, Mungaw put a lot of
impudence on his copy for my special benefit. I took no notice—he
looked so wild—but pointed out a mis-spelt word, wrote a fresh line,
and telling him to follow it closely passed quickly on to the next
writer. I told John, when I went in, I was sure he would do some
mischief ere long; and just an evening or two after, we heard him
shouting and scolding from his house in an awful voice. John limped
off, in spite of my entreaties to let them fight it out, and found
Mungaw flourishing an axe over a poor woman, whose husband was from
home and who had been helping Litsi to cook his fish, but had been
unfortunate enough not to divine that on that particular evening he
wanted it wrapped in a different kind of leaf from what was usual.
He had brought the axe within a few inches of her shoulder, when two
or three Natives, attracted to the spot just before John, stayed his
arm and wrenched it from him. He got his musket next, but poor Sibo
and Litsi both ran to our house for protection, while John and the
Natives tried to calm him down. They got his musket from him, and I
saw a Teacher slip it behind a tree in our lawn; but Mungaw was sharp
enough to notice, and got it away again when the affray was over, and
ordered poor Litsi back to her cooking. Sibo went to a distant village
to be out of his way, declaring she was half dead with fright; and I
would very much have liked to get away from the Island altogether!
John’s spirit always rises equal to the emergency, but I get perfectly
faint with terror, and the longer the worse. This was merely a little
prelude, however, to what followed.
“Next morning he had the audacity to appear at one of the dining-room
windows, as the girls were clearing away the breakfast things; and
he demanded the keys from John, as he wanted to sharpen his axe at
the grindstone. John said, ‘No, Mungaw, you’ll learn to put your axe
to a better use first; and I want you to return the two you have of
mine.’ He looked the picture of innocent wonder, and replied, ‘What do
you mean, Missi?’ John replied, ‘I just mean that I want you to give
up your bad conduct.’ ‘My bad conduct! What have I done?’ protested
Mungaw. John said pointedly, ‘Do you not _know_, Mungaw?’ That was all
the provocation he got; but he went off for his musket, muttering,
‘I’ll let you know who you’re talking to.’
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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