editating on the wonders of
His person and the hopes and glories of His kingdom. Oh, that all my
readers may learn something of this in their own experience of the Lord!
I can wish them nothing more precious. Towards sundown, constrained by
the Invisible One, they withdrew from our Mission House, and left us
once more in peace. They bore away the slain to be cooked, and
distributed amongst the Tribes, and eaten in their feast of
reconciliation; a covenant sealed in blood, and soon, alas, to be buried
in blood again! For many days thereafter we had to take unusual care,
and not unduly expose ourselves to danger; for dark characters were seen
prowling about in the bush near at hand, and we knew that our life was
the prize. We took what care we could, and God the Lord did the rest; or
rather He did all--for His wisdom guided us, and His power baffled them.

CHAPTER XXVI.
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