In the midst of this the
natives were darting to and fro, in some instances saving their goods,
but in many others seeking to save themselves from the storm of
destruction that whirled around them. But terrific although the tempest
was on land, it was still more tremendous on the mighty ocean. Billows
sprang, as it were, from the great deep, and while their crests were
absolutely scattered into white mist, they fell upon the beach with a
crash that seemed to shake the solid land. But they did not end there.
Each successive wave swept higher and higher on the beach, until the
ocean lashed its angry waters among the trees and bushes, and at
length, in a sheet of white curdled foam, swept into the village and
upset and carried off, or dashed into wreck, whole rows of the native
dwellings! It was a sublime, an awful scene, calculated, in some degree
at least, to impress the mind of beholders with the might and majesty
of God.
We found shelter in a cave that night and all the next day, during
which time the storm raged in fury; but on the night following it
abated somewhat, and in the morning we went to the village to seek for
food, being so famished with hunger that we lost all feeling of danger
and all wish to escape in our desire to satisfy the cravings of nature.
But no sooner had we obtained food than we began to wish that we had
rather endeavoured to make our escape into the mountains.
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