man skeletons, idols, and weapons, which were discovered there by the mutineers. It has become a clear matter of fact, that the island was inhabited previously to their arrival. Overlooking Bounty Bay is a lofty peak, within 100 yards of which were found on a rock four images, about six feet in height, placed upon a platform, which is called a paipai. One of these was a rude representation of the human figure, to the hips, hewn out of a piece of red lava. Each of the skulls which were dug up had under it a pearl shell, according to the mode of burial adopted in the place at the time, probably some centuries since. It has been suggested with reason, that the ancient occupants were drifted to this placed from the Gambier, or other islands, on a raft. Several specimens of hatchets, and spear-heads of very hard stone, and a large stone bowl, were discovered. The mutineers also met, on the east side of the island, with certain uncouth carvings of the sun, moon, stars, a bird, men, &c., in a cavern situate in the face of a cliff.

There are some inaccuracies in the narrative forwarded by Captain Folger, in his letter of March 1, 1813, respecting his visit to the island. He stated that about six years after the arrival of the nine mutineers, the Tahitians had killed all the Englishmen, except Smith, who was severely wounded; and that on the same night the Tahitian widows had risen and murdered all their countrymen, leaving only Smith, with the widows and children. His account may be corrected by the following statement:

After getting rid of Mr. Bligh, and his crew, the mutineers sailed for Toubouai, an island about 500 miles south of Tahiti, where they intended to land; but the natives refusing to admit them, they proceeded to Tahiti. A second ineffectual attempt at settling having been made on Toubouai, and a refuge having again been found, for a short time, at Tahiti, Christian and eight of his comrades left for Pitcairn, in the Bounty, with certain Tahitians, the rest of the mutineers remaining at Tahiti. It happened that Carte

ret's description of Pitcairn had been on board the Bounty; and this probably determined Christian in his choice.

When the Bounty arrived at Pitcairn's Island, she had on board nine Englishmen, with nine Tahitian women, their wives; six Tahitian men, three of whom had wives; and a little girl-making twentyeight persons who landed. This little girl, then an infant of ten months old, was afterward the wife Charles Christian, and the mother of Mr. G. H. Nobbs's wife. The names of the nine mutineers who reached the island in the Bounty were—

Christian and Young were men of good education. The former was the brother of Edward Christian, Esq., Professor of Law at Cambridge, Chief Justice of Ely, and Edi

tor of Blackstone's Commentaries. Young was a nephew of Sir George Young, Bart. The other mutineers who landed at Pitcairn were chiefly sailors of the ordinary class.

They had not long set foot upon the island when it became a stage for the display of every evil passion. They were "hateful, and hating one another."

Removed from the restraints imposed upon the wicked by the presence of a Christian community, they showed in their conduct the workings of the depraved heart of man. At home, surrounded by friends whose good opinion they esteemed, and under laws that would visit with vengeance the commission of crime, these very men might have lived reputable lives. But God regards the heart, not the conduct, and under the garb of decent behaviour he sees the selfish desires and unholy passions that are concealed from our fellow-men. No sooner are these restraints removed, than we find men breaking all the laws of God and giving a loose rein to their natural desires. This is seen in

men who go from Christian lands to China, Africa, the Islands of the Pacific, and other heathen countries. It shows the truth of those passages in the Bible which declare that all men are estranged from God—that their hearts are vile, and that except they be born again they can never see the kingdom of God. Nothing more clearly and sadly shows what the human heart is when freed from restraint than the history of the nine mutineers who reached Pitcairn's Island.

The first step after their arrival was to divide the whole island into nine equal portions, to the exclusion of those poor people whom they had seduced to accompany them, and some of whom are stated to have been carried off against their inclination. At first they were considered as the friends of the white men, but very soon became their slaves. They assisted in the cultivation of the soil, in building houses, and in fetching wood and water, without murmuring or complaining. Things went on peaceably and prosperously for about two years, when Williams, who had lost