TYPEE
Herman Melville
Illustrations By Mead Schaeffer
CONTENTS
The sea—Longings for shore—A land-sick ship—Destination of the voyagers
Passage from the cruising ground to the Marquesas—Sleepy times aboard
ship—South Sea scenery—Land ho!—The French squadron discovered at anchor in the
bay of Nukuheva—Strange pilot—Escort of canoes—A flotilla of
cocoa-nuts—Swimming visitors—The Dolly boarded by them—State of affairs
that ensue.
State of affairs aboard the ship—Contents of her larder—Length of South
Seamen’s voyages—Account of a flying whale-man—Determination to leave the
vessel—The bay of Nukuheva—The Typees.
Thoughts previous to attempting an escape—Toby, a fellow-sailor, agrees to
share the adventure—Last night aboard the ship.
A specimen of nautical oratory—Criticisms of the sailors—The starboard watch
are given a holiday—The escape to the mountains.
The other side of the mountain—Disappointment—Inventory of articles brought
from the ship—Division of the stock of bread—Appearance of the interior of the
island—A discovery—A ravine and waterfalls—A sleepless night—Further
discoveries—My illness—A Marquesan landscape.
CHAPTER VII. A WILD-GOOSE CHASE
The important question, Typee or Happar?—A wild-goose chase—My
sufferings—Disheartening situation—A night in the ravine—Morning meal—Happy
idea of Toby—Journey towards the valley.
Perilous passage of the ravine—Descent into the valley.
The head of the valley—Cautious advance—A path—Fruit—Discovery of two of the
natives—Their singular conduct—Approach towards the inhabited parts of the
vale—Sensation produced by our appearance—Reception at the house of one of the
natives.
Midnight reflections—Morning visitors—A warrior in costume—A savage
Æsculapius—Practice of the healing art—Body-servant—A dwelling-house of the
valley described—Portraits of its inmates.
CHAPTER XI. ADVENTURE IN THE DARK
Officiousness of Kory-Kory—His devotion—A bath in the stream—Want of refinement
of the Typee damsels—Stroll with Mehevi—A Typee highway—The Taboo groves—The
hoolah hoolah ground—The Ti—Timeworn savages—Hospitality of Mehevi—Midnight
musings—Adventure in the dark—Distinguished honours paid to the
visitors—Strange procession, and return to the house of Marheyo.
CHAPTER XII. ADVENTURE OF TOBY
Attempt to procure relief from Nukuheva—Perilous adventure of Toby in the
Happar Mountains—Eloquence of Kory-Kory.
A great event happens in the valley—The island telegraph—Something befalls
Toby—Fayaway displays a tender heart—Melancholy reflections—Mysterious conduct
of the islanders—Devotion of Kory-Kory—A rural couch—A luxury—Kory-Kory strikes
a light à la Typee.
CHAPTER XIV. KINDNESS OF THE ISLANDERS
Kindness of Marheyo and the rest of the islanders—A full description of the
bread-fruit tree—Different modes of preparing the fruit.
CHAPTER XV. MELANCHOLY CONDITION
Melancholy condition—Occurrence at the Ti—Anecdote of Marheyo—Shaving the head
of a warrior.
Improvement in health and spirits—Felicity of the Typees—A skirmish in the
mountain with the warriors of Happar.
CHAPTER XVII. A STRANGER ARRIVES
Swimming in company with the girls of the valley—A canoe—Effects of the taboo—A
pleasure excursion on the pond—Beautiful freak of Fayaway—Mantua-making—A
stranger arrives in the valley—His mysterious conduct—Native oratory—The
interview—Its results—Departure of the stranger.
CHAPTER XVIII. BATTLE OF THE POP-GUNS
Reflection after Marnoo’s departure—Battle of the pop-guns—Strange conceit of
Marheyo—Process of making tappa.
History of a day as usually spent in the Typee valley—Dances of the Marquesan
girls.
The spring of Arva Wai—Remarkable monumental remains—Some ideas with regard to
the history of the pi-pis found in the valley.
Preparations for a grand festival in the valley—Strange doings in the Taboo
Groves—Monument of Calabashes—Gala costume of the Typee damsels—Departure for
the festival.
CHAPTER XXII. THE FEAST OF CALABASHES
The Feast of Calabashes.
CHAPTER XXIII. RELIGION OF THE TYPEES
Ideas suggested by the Feast of Calabashes—Effigy of a dead warrior—A singular
superstition—The priest Kolory and the god Moa Artua—Amazing religious
observance—A dilapidated shrine—Kory-Kory and the idol—An inference.
CHAPTER XXIV. BEAUTY OF THE TYPEES
General information gathered at the festival—Personal beauty of the
Typees—Their superiority over the inhabitants of the other islands—Diversity of
complexion—A vegetable cosmetic and ointment—Testimony of voyagers to the
uncommon beauty of the Marquesans—Few evidences of intercourse with civilized
beings—Dilapidated musket—Primitive simplicity of government—Regal dignity of
Mehevi.
King Mehevi—Conduct of Marheyo and Mehevi in certain delicate matters—Peculiar
system of marriage—Number of population—Uniformity—Embalming—Places of
sepulture—Funeral obsequies at Nukuheva—Number of inhabitants in Typee—Location
of the dwellings—Happiness enjoyed in the valley.
CHAPTER XXVI. SOCIAL CONDITIONS
The social condition and general character of the Typees.
CHAPTER XXVII. FISHING PARTIES
Fishing parties—Mode of distributing the fish—Midnight banquet—Timekeeping
tapers—Unceremonious style of eating the fish.
CHAPTER XXVIII. NATURAL HISTORY
Natural history of the valley—Golden lizards—Tameness of the
birds—Mosquitoes—Flies—Dogs—A solitary cat—The climate—The cocoa-nut
tree—Singular modes of climbing it—An agile young chief—Fearlessness of the
children—Too-too and the cocoa-nut tree—The birds of the valley.
A professor of the fine arts—His persecutions—Something about tattooing and
tabooing—Two anecdotes in illustration of the latter—A few thoughts on the
Typee dialect.
Strange custom of the islanders—Their chanting, and the peculiarity of their
voice—Rapture of the king at first hearing a song—A new dignity conferred on
the author—Musical instruments in the valley—Admiration of the savages at
beholding a pugilistic performance—Swimming infant—Beautiful tresses of the
girls—Ointment for the hair.
Apprehensions of evil—Frightful discovery—Some remarks on cannibalism—Second
battle with the Happars—Savage spectacle—Mysterious feast—Subsequent
disclosures.
CHAPTER XXXII. ATTEMPT TO ESCAPE
The stranger again arrives in the valley—Singular interview with him—Attempt to
escape—Failure—Melancholy situation—Sympathy of Marheyo.
The escape
NOTE.—The Author of “Typee” was more than two years in the South Seas, after
escaping from the valley, as recounted in the last chapter. Some time after
returning home the foregoing narrative was published, though it was little
thought at the time that this would be the means of revealing the existence of
Toby, who had long been given up for lost. But so it proved. The story of his
escape supplies a natural sequel to the adventure, and as such it is now added
to the volume. It was related to the Author by Toby himself.