"They may really be friendly," he remarked, "and let us behave towards them as if they were; but never let us for a moment be off our guard." When, however, the natives began to spread out their banquet before the very eyes of the famished sailors, and invited them to come down and partake of it, very few could resist the temptation.  One after another went down, till only the doctor and Ben, Jerry and I, with Cousin Silas, remained on the hill.  Even old Surley thought he might as well join the party, but after he had gobbled up a good supply of pork, which some of the sailors gave him, he hurried back to us.  We watched anxiously what would next happen.  In a short time Jerry exclaimed that he thought it was a pity we should not benefit by the feast, and before Cousin Silas could stop him he had run down the hill and was among the savages.  At that moment, what was our horror to see the natives start up, each dealing the white man nearest him a terrific blow on the head.  No second one was needed.  Every one of our late companions lay killed upon the ground.  Jerry started back, and endeavoured to run to us, but a savage caught him by the shoulder, and (how my blood ran cold!)  I thought would brain him on the spot.  Jerry looked up in his face with an imploring glance.  Something he said or did, or the way he looked, seemed to arrest the savage's arm.  Perhaps he may have reminded him of a son he had lost.  He lifted up his club, but this time it was to defend his young prisoner from the attack of another savage.  He then took him by the hand, and led him to a distance from the rest.  Jerry looked back earnestly at us, but he saw that if he attempted to escape from his protector he should probably be killed by one of the others, so he accompanied him without resistance.  The rest of the savages, collecting the dead bodies, fastened ropes to their legs, and dragged them away, with loud shouts and songs of triumph.  To our surprise, they did not molest us.  They saw that we retained the fire-arms, and probably thought that they might take us at an advantage another time without risk to themselves.  We had still a good supply of powder and balls, so, loading all the muskets, we prepared for an attack. Horrified as I had been at the slaughter of our late shipmates, my great anxiety was about Jerry.  I hoped that his life might be safe, but it was a sad fate to be kept in captivity by such treacherous and bloodthirsty savages as these had showed themselves to be.  I asked Mr Brand where he thought we were.  He replied that he had no doubt, from the appearance and conduct of the savages, that we had been wrecked on one of the outlying Fiji Islands.  He told me that the inhabitants, a few years back, had all been the very worst cannibals in the Pacific, but that of late years Protestant missionaries had gone among them, and that in some of the islands, of which there were eighty or ninety inhabited, the whole population had, he understood, become Christians. Still, however, a large number, among whom the light of truth had not been introduced, retained their old habits and customs; and among some of these we had unfortunately fallen.  Of course, also, we could not but be excessively anxious about our own fate.  How could we hope to hold out without food, should the savages attack us?  The night passed away, however, in silence.  Our enemies were evidently abiding their time.