THE DEFYING OF NAHAK.
SHORTLY thereafter war was again declared, by the Inland people
attacking our Harbor people. It was an old quarrel; and the war was
renewed and continued, long after the cause thereof had passed away.
Going amongst them every day, I did my utmost to stop hostilities,
setting the evils of war before them, and pleading with the leading men
to renounce it. Thereon arose a characteristic incident of Island and
Heathen life. One day I held a Service in the village where morning
after morning their Tribes assembled, and declared that if they would
believe in and follow the Jehovah God, He would deliver them from all
their enemies and lead them into a happy life. There were present three
Sacred Men, Chiefs, of whom the whole population lived in
terror--brothers or cousins, heroes of traditional feats, professors of
sorcery, and claiming the power of life and death, health and sickness,
rain and drought, according to their will. On hearing me, these three
stood up and declared they did not believe in Jehovah, nor did they need
His help; for they had the power to kill my life by Nahak (_i.e._
sorcery or witchcraft), if only they could get possession of any piece
of the fruit or food that I had eaten. This was an essential condition
of their black art; hence the peel of a banana or an orange, and every
broken scrap of food, is gathered up by the Natives, lest it should fall
into the hands of the Sacred Men, and be used for Nahak. This
superstition was the cause of most of the bloodshed and terror upon
Tanna; and being thus challenged, I asked God's help, and determined to
strike a blow against it.
A woman was standing near with a bunch of native fruit in her hand, like
our plums, called quonquore. I asked her to be pleased to give me some;
and she, holding out a bunch, said, "Take freely what you will!"
Calling the attention of all the Assembly to what I was doing, I took
three fruits from the bunch, and taking a bite out of each, I gave them
one after another to the three Sacred Men, and deliberately said in the
hearing of all, "You have seen me eat of this fruit, you have seen me
give the remainder to your Sacred Men; they have said they can kill me
by Nahak, but I challenge them to do it if they can, without arrow or
spear, club or musket; for I deny that they have any power against me,
or against any one, by their Sorcery."
The challenge was accepted; the Natives looked terror-struck at the
position in which I was placed! The ceremony of Nahak was usually
performed in secret,--the Tannese fleeing in dread, as Europeans would
from the touch of the plague; but I lingered and eagerly watched their
ritual. As the three Chiefs arose, and drew near to one of the Sacred
Trees, to begin their ceremonial, the Natives fled in terror, crying,
"Missi, Iawé? Alas, Missi!"
But I held on at my post of observation. Amidst wavings and
incantations, they rolled up the pieces of the fruit from which I had
eaten, in certain leaves of this Sacred Tree, into a shape like a waxen
candle; then they kindled a sacred fire near the root, and continued
their mutterings, gradually burning a little more and a little more of
the candle-shaped things, wheeling them round their heads, blowing upon
them with their breaths, waving them in the air, and glancing wildly at
me as if expecting my sudden destruction. Wondering whether after all
they did not believe their own lie, for they seemed to be in dead
earnest, I, more eager than ever to break the chains of such vile
superstition, urged them again and again, crying, "Be quick! Stir up
your gods to help you! I am not killed yet; I am perfectly well!"
At last they stood up and said, "We must delay till we have called all
our Sacred Men. We will kill Missi before his next Sabbath comes round.
Let all watch, for he will soon die and that without fail."
I replied, "Very good! I challenge all your Priests to unite and kill me
by Sorcery or Nahak. If on Sabbath next I come again to your village in
health, you will all admit that your gods have no power over me, and
that I am protected by the true and living Jehovah God!"
Every day throughout the remainder of that week the Conchs were sounded;
and over that side of the island all their Sacred Men were at work
trying to kill me by their arts. Now and again messengers arrived from
every quarter of the island, inquiring anxiously after my health, and
wondering if I was not feeling sick, and great excitement prevailed
amongst the poor deluded idolaters.
Sabbath dawned upon me peacefully, and I went to that village in more
than my usual health and strength. Large numbers assembled, and when I
appeared they looked at each other in terror, as if it could not really
be I myself still spared and well. Entering into the public ground, I
saluted them to this effect, "My love to you all, my friends! I have
come again to talk to you about the Jehovah God and His Worship."
The three Sacred Men, on being asked, admitted that they had tried to
kill me by Nahak, but had failed; and on being questioned, why they had
failed; they gave the acute and subtle reply, that I also was myself a
Sacred Man, and that my God being the stronger had protected me from
their gods. Addressing the multitude, I answered thus, "Yea, truly; my
Jehovah God is stronger than your gods. He protected me, and helped me;
for He is the only living and true God, the only God that can hear or
answer any prayer from the children of men. Your gods cannot hear
prayer, but my God can and will hear and answer you, if you will give
heart and life to Him, and love and serve Him only. This is my God, and
He is also your friend if you will hear and follow His voice."
Having said this, I sat down on the trunk of a fallen tree, and
addressed them, "Come and sit down all around me, and I will talk to you
about the love and mercy of my God, and teach you how to worship and
please Him."
Two of the Sacred Men then sat down, and all the people gathered round
and seated themselves very quietly. I tried to present to them ideas of
sin, and of salvation through Jesus Christ, as revealed to us in the
Holy Scriptures.
The third Sacred Man, the highest in rank, a man of great stature and
uncommon strength, had meantime gone off for his warrior's spear, and
returned brandishing it in the air and poising it at me. I said to the
people, "Of course he can kill me with his spear, but he undertook to
kill me by Nahak or Sorcery, and promised not to use against me any
weapons of war; and if you let him kill me now, you will kill your
friend, one who lives among you and only tries to do you good, as you
all know so well. I know that if you kill me thus, my God will be angry
and will punish you."
Thereon I seated myself calmly in the midst of the crowd, while he
leaped about in rage, scolding his brothers and all who were present for
listening to me. The other Sacred Men, however, took my side, and, as
many of the people also were friendly to me and stood closely packed
around me, he did not throw his spear. To allay the tumult and obviate
further bloodshed, I offered to leave with my Teachers at once, and, in
doing so, I ardently pled with them to live at peace. Though we got
safely home, that old Sacred Man seemed still to hunger after my blood.
For weeks thereafter, go where I would, he would suddenly appear on the
path behind me, poising in his right hand that same Goliath spear. God
only kept it from being thrown, and I, using every lawful precaution,
had all the same to attend to my work, as if no enemy were there,
leaving all other results in the hands of Jesus. This whole incident
did, doubtless, shake the prejudices of many as to Sorcery; but few even
of converted Natives ever get entirely clear of the dread of Nahak.