his countenance, and as if he wished to
draw our attention to himself. When he came again, I pointed him out to
Fairburn, whose back had been towards him. He looked at him
attentively. The lad, however, did not attempt to speak; and when he
saw that no one was observing him, he put his finger to his lips, the
universal sign all over the world of imposing silence.

"What can he mean?" I asked of Fairburn, when the lad had again
disappeared.

"I think I recollect his features--I must have met him somewhere," he
said. "Oh! now I know. He must be a lad whose life I once saved from a
party of savages on the coast of New Guinea. He belonged to a small
trading vessel from Ceram, or one of the neighbouring islands, which are
accustomed to visit that coast to barter fire-arms, calico, and
ironwork, for slaves, nutmegs, trepang, tortoise-shell, and edible
birds' nests. She had been driven out of her course by a gale, and
found herself on a part of the coast with which no one on board was
acquainted. Before she could make good her retreat, she was perceived
by some of the inhabitants. The inhabitants of New Guinea are called
Papuans. They are negroes, with very ugly features, and are composed of
two races--the hill and the coast Papuans; the latter being very fierce
and barbarous, and keeping the former in subjection. The people of whom
I am now particularly speaking are said to be cannibals. They possess a
number of small vessels, which they send out on piratical excursions to
a very considerable distance from their homes. Their mode of warfare is
rude in the extreme, their weapons consisting only of bows, arrows, and
spears. They are said to devour the prisoners they make during these
excursions. They may do so sometimes but I think it more probable that
they preserve their lives to sell them as slaves. Well, as soon as the
strange prahu was seen, a number of these war-boats put out of a
harbour, the entrance of which was concealed by trees, and, before she
could escape, surrounded her. The Malays fought bravely, but they were
not prepared for war, and after several of their number were killed they
were overpowered. I, at that time, was serving on board a whaler, which
had put into a bay near where this took place. I was away in one of the
hosts, when, rounding a point, I saw what was going forward. The
Papuans, having rifled the vessel, and taken all the people out of her,
set her on fire, and were making