This Strongly Corroborates What Captain Cook Afterwards States, Of Their Really Relishing Such Kind Of Food.

- E.

[9] This distressing subject has, perhaps, already too much engrossed the reader's attention and feelings; and, unfortunately, it must again be brought before him, when we treat of the third voyage of Cook. He might think then, that at present, he ought to be spared farther comment on what is so odious; but neither the apprehension, nor the experience of the unpleasant impressions it produces, is sufficient reason for declining the consideration of the atrocities of which human nature is capable. Self-conceit, indeed, may be mortified at the unavoidable thought of identity of species, which it may seek many imaginary devices to conceal; and feverish sensibility may be wrought up to indignant discontent, at the power which placed it amid such profligacy. But the humble philosopher, on the other hand, will investigate the causes, without ceasing to deplore the effects, and will rejoice in the belief, that there are any means by which mankind may be redeemed from the condemnation which his judgment cannot fail to award. To him, accordingly, the following observations of Mr G. Forster are addressed, as preparatory to the farther consideration of the subject, in which he will afterwards be engaged. "Philosophers, who have only contemplated mankind in their closets, have strenuously maintained, that all the assertions of authors, ancient and modern, of the existence of men-eaters, are not to be credited; and there have not been wanting persons amongst ourselves who were sceptical enough to refuse belief to the concurrent testimonies, in the history of almost all nations, in this particular. But Captain Cook had already, in his former voyage, received strong proof that the practice of eating human flesh existed in New Zealand; and as now we have with our own eyes seen the inhabitants devouring human flesh, all controversy on that point must be at an end. The opinions of authors on the origin of this custom, are infinitely various, and have lately been collected by the very learned canon, Pauw, at Xanten, in his Recherches Philosophiques sur les Americains, vol. i, p. 207. He seems to think that men were first tempted to devour each other from real want of food, and cruel necessity. His sentiments are copied by Dr Hawkesworth, who has disingenuously concealed their author. Many weighty objections, however, may be made against this hypothesis; amongst which the following is one of the greatest. There are very few countries in the world so miserably barren as not to afford their inhabitants sufficient nourishment, and those, in particular, where anthropophagi still exist, do not come under that description. The northern isle of New Zealand, on a coast of near four hundred leagues, contains scarcely one hundred thousand inhabitants, according to the most probable guess which can be made; a number inconsiderable for that vast space of country, even allowing the settlements to be confined only to the sea-shore. The great abundance of fish, and the beginnings of agriculture in the Bay of Plenty, and other parts of the Northern Isle, are more than sufficient to maintain this number, because they have always had enough to supply strangers with what was deemed superfluous.

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