An account of Elau, a Malayan Papuan child, native of the island of Erromanga, one of the New Hebrides group, southern Pacific Ocean / by George Bennett.

  • George Bennett
Date:
[1883?]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: An account of Elau, a Malayan Papuan child, native of the island of Erromanga, one of the New Hebrides group, southern Pacific Ocean / by George Bennett. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

    1/12
    NOT PUBLISHED. A Malayan Papuan Child, Native of the Island of Erromanga, one of the Neiv Hebrides Group, Southern Pacific Ocean. By GEORGE BENNETT, M.D., F.L.S., A. IST ACCOUNTT O ZEE ELAU, Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, F.Z.S., dc., do. It is a well-known fact that Asiatics and natives of the Polynesian Islands, we may say indeed most natives of tropical climates, on being brought to England become liable after a prolonged residence in its variable climate to tubercular disease of the lungs, brain or intestines. A young native girl, a most interesting child, native of the Island of Erromanga, New Hebrides Group, exemplifies this. Her early history, followed by her fatal illness, may be of interest. This child is classed by Colonel Hamilton Smith (who had frequent opportunities of seeing the child at Plymouth, where they both resid-ed) among a mixed Papuan race, which he designates as Malayan Papuan, and most probably this race extends over nearly the whole of the New Hebrides Group, and not the true characteristic Papuan. The event which caused my obtaining and adopting this child was as follows :— ! It was on the 6th of March, 1830, during a second visit made to Gulantap Bay, Island of Erromanga, that on landing I observed several of the curly-headed children of the aborigines of the island mingled with a gang of natives of the Islands of Tongatabu and Rotuma, left on the island to cut sandal-wood, which was found in that locality in great abundance ; these children, of various ages, were, when I first saw them, comfortably squatting around a fire eating some breadfruit which had just been cooked for them. They appeared so happy and content that no one would have suspected the danger they had so recently escaped. My curiosity was very naturally excited to know how the gang became possessed of these children. The natives of Tongatabu, in reply to my inquiries, gave me the following statement. During our absence they had succeeded in cultivating a friendship with one of the tribes of the aborigines. Soon after the amity had taken place, it. was found that a feud existed between them and another tribe, and a battle between them was imminent, to decide the fate of one party or the other. They made great efforts to induce the Tonga natives to join them in an expedition
    digitised image 1
    digitised image 2
    digitised image 3