CAPTAIN LEARY'S SAMOAN EXPERIENCE.

 SOME STIRRING INCIDENTS IN RECENT AMERICAN NAVAL¹ HISTORY.

 

BY FRANKLIN MATTHEWS.

 

CAPTAIN LEARY AT SAMOA.

No man can deny that there are times when war, with all its horrors, is necessary and honorable. One of these times is when war is waged for the rights of common humanity. Some of the most stirring episodes in our history have been associated with this kind of noble effort. Many a time have the decks of our men-of-war been cleared for action in such a cause. Many a time has some one of our naval officers, thousands of miles away from home, with no means of asking for instructions, taken action which meant warfare², with its loss of life and great expenditure³ of money, simply because he knew he was doing what was right, and really was acting⁴ for the civilized⁵ nations of the world. We thundered at the gates of Japan. We have fired on and punished pirates. Only recently we cleared our ships for action in the harbor of Rio de Janeiro. More than fifty years ago one of the bravest men that ever wore the naval uniform of the United States defied the power of Austria in her own waters because she would not give up an American citizen confined on one of her war-ships, and the roar of "Old Ingraham," as he ordered his ship cleared for action when he knew that in a fight he would probably be beaten, was heard around the world.

Most of these "minor⁶ episodes" of our navy have been associated with the misdeeds of half-civilized nations. Occasionally one has had to do with a nation of first rank. One of these was the stand of Ingraham in Austria. I want to tell of another deed which, in my judgment⁷, was as important as that of Ingraham, and which came within a hair's-breadth of involving us, in 1889, in war with Germany, then, as now, a nation of great military prowess. It is a story the full details of which have never been made known, and one that should make American blood tingle⁸ with pride. The story reveals the heroism⁹ of one of our naval officers who has always refused to exalt¹⁰ his part of the work, saying he merely did his duty; he did not hesitate, even if war with Germany should result, to uphold the honor of our flag, and to protect women and children and the sick and infirm in the name of humanity.

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That man was Commander Richard P. Leary of our navy, and the incidents that led up to his action happened at and near the harbor of Apia in the beautiful Samoan Islands. Time and again have I and other writers asked Leary to tell about it, and time and again has he resolutely¹¹ refused, saying that the sense of having done his duty was all the reward he wanted. Consequently I have been forced to go to the public records and to some of the men who were in Samoa at the time to get the details of a long series of acts which resulted one day in an American man-of-war and a German man-of-war lying side by side a short distance outside of Apia Harbor, each cleared for action, and war between our country and Germany depending upon whether the Captain of the German ship should fire upon some native forts on the mainland. Such shots would have gone over the deck of the Adams, which Leary commanded, and he practically, although not literally¹², sent word to the German commander that the first shot on the native forts would be answered by a broadside from American guns. After almost an entire day of intense excitement on board both ships and on the mainland, the German commander yielded—went back into port—and a grave crisis in our history was safely passed—because of the patriotism¹³ and pluck of one of our naval officers who to this day refuses to talk about it.

To understand the story fully¹⁴ we must go into the causes of the trouble. The Samoan, or Navigator Islands, have always been an object of envy by nations which are known as "land-grabbers." The desire of the Germans to secure control of those islands had caused most of the troubles of the Samoans in recent years. It was the old desire for money and property over again. The United States had long recognized the Samoans as a civilized people, and had made a treaty with them. In time Germany and England united with us in a joint¹⁵ treaty with the Samoans for their protection and development. German residents there wanted control of trade, and stirred up a rebellion against the High Chief, or King, Malietoa. They took the side of Tamasese, a pretender to the throne. On a pretext¹⁶ that property belonging to Germans—some pigs and some cocoanuts—had been stolen by Malietoa's men, they declared war against him, and finally made him give himself up to them to save his people from slaughter¹⁷. He was deported¹⁸ to Africa, and later to Germany. The Samoans would not have Tamasese for King, and practically the entire nation rallied around Mataafa, who succeeded Malietoa.

There was now a civil war between the two factions¹⁹. The Americans did not take sides, except to refuse to acknowledge Tamasese as King. The Germans did take sides, notwithstanding the treaty of neutrality. They bombarded villages on this and that excuse; they fired on unarmed natives in boats; they gave aid openly to Tamasese; they assumed an air of possession of the islands. Now it must not be supposed that all this was done with the full approval of the German government, because the Germans in time brought back Malietoa, and since then they have recalled the one man who stirred up most of the trouble. In speaking, therefore, of the matter, let it be understood that we have strict reference to those Germans alone who were in Samoa.

THE GERMAN WAR-SHIP "ADLER."

There was constant friction²⁰ between the Americans and Germans in Apia, and many letters passed between Captain Leary and the Captain of the German war-ship Adler, stationed there at the time. This being a story of Captain Leary's patriotic²¹ acts, we need go no further into the details of Samoan history. One of the first of Leary's notable acts was to send a letter, on September 6, 1888, to the Captain of the Adler. The Adler, on the day before, had gone to the island of Manono to burn the houses and villages of the natives who would not support Tamasese. The war-ship took some of Tamasese's boats in tow, and soon the guns of the war-ship were heard bombarding houses known to have been occupied by defenceless women and children. The Adler came back the next day, and at once Captain Leary sent the German Captain a letter of protest. He recited what he knew of the bombardment and what he had been told, and then he added, with a firmness that does one good to read:

"Such action, especially after the Tamasese party having been represented as a strong government, not needing the armed support of a foreign power, appears to be a violation²² of the principles of international law as well as a violation of the generally recognized laws of humanity. Being the only other representative of a naval power now represented in this harbor, for the sake of humanity I hereby respectfully and solemnly protest in the name of the United States of America and of the civilized world in general against the use of a war-vessel²³ for such service as was yesterday rendered by the German corvette Adler."

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THE UNITED STATES WAR-SHIP "ADAMS."

This was the first open breach²⁴ between the commanders of the two war-ships. Leary based his action simply on the ground of humanity. One of his next conspicuous²⁵ acts was to uphold the honor of the American flag. A body of Tamasese's men were encamped on Mulinuu Point, which the Germans claimed was under the jurisdiction²⁶ of their government because Germans owned property there. Some of these natives saw an American flag floating at the top of a tree not far away. It was placed there by a half-breed who was an American citizen. It floated above his own property. The Tamasese men tore it down and into strips. Then they partly wrecked²⁷ his house and threatened to kill him. Captain Leary soon heard of it, and he sent a letter to the Adler's Captain asking if the natives were under the protection of the German war-ship. He wanted to fix the responsibility for the insult to the American flag, because, as he said, he was "obliged to furnish necessary protection to Americans in jeopardy²⁸."

The German Captain made a non-committal reply, and the next day Leary repeated his request, saying that the question at issue was not one of diplomacy²⁹, but of military policy. He then showed his American spirit in these utterances³⁰:

"Under the shadow of the German fort at Mulinuu atrocities³¹ have been committed on American property, and the lives of the American owners have been threatened and jeopardized³² by armed natives, who appear to be sheltered by the naval force belonging to the vessel under your command. My official obligations do not permit me to negotiate with diplomatic or political representatives of foreign powers, but with military or naval commanders interested in official acts; and as the naval commander charged with the protection of American citizens, I again have the honor respectfully to request to be informed 'whether the armed natives at Mulinuu Point are under the protection of the Imperial Naval Guard belonging to the vessel under your command or are they not under that protection.'"

Leary received an evasive reply to this, and the relations between the two commanders became more strained. Leary did not stop with this. He sent a letter to Tamasese demanding restitution³³. The Germans, who had control of the local post-office, would not forward the letter, and later Leary sent another, in which he said:

"I have the honor to inform your Highness that the articles forcibly taken from the house of Mr. Scanlan by your people have not yet been returned, and that they must be restored to Mr. Scanlan without unnecessary delay, for which purpose I shall wait until sunset, Wednesday the 14th, and if it be not reported to me by that time that my demand has been complied with, I shall be at liberty to take such action as will in future enforce a wholesome³⁴ respect for the American flag and the laws and property under its protection.

"A red flag hoisted³⁵ at the foremast of an American war-vessel simultaneously³⁶ with the discharge of a blank charge will be the signal for you to remove from your fort and vicinity to a place of safety all women, children, sick, and wounded, for which purpose a liberal time will be allowed before resorting to more serious measures."

No second notice was required from Leary. Tamasese restored the property to Mr. Scanlan, including the American flag, which floated secure from insult on his property afterward³⁷.

1 naval   

adj.海军的，军舰的，船的

参考例句：

• He took part in a great naval battle.他参加了一次大海战。
• The harbour is an important naval base.该港是一个重要的海军基地。

2 warfare   

n.战争(状态)；斗争；冲突

参考例句：

• He addressed the audience on the subject of atomic warfare.他向听众演讲有关原子战争的问题。
• Their struggle consists mainly in peasant guerrilla warfare.他们的斗争主要是农民游击战。

3 expenditure   

n.(时间、劳力、金钱等)支出；使用，消耗

参考例句：

• The entry of all expenditure is necessary.有必要把一切开支入账。
• The monthly expenditure of our family is four hundred dollars altogether.我们一家的开销每月共计四百元。

4 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

5 civilized   

a.有教养的，文雅的

参考例句：

• Racism is abhorrent to a civilized society. 文明社会憎恶种族主义。
• rising crime in our so-called civilized societies 在我们所谓文明社会中日益增多的犯罪行为

6 minor   

adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修

参考例句：

• The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
• I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。

7 judgment   

n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见

参考例句：

• The chairman flatters himself on his judgment of people.主席自认为他审视人比别人高明。
• He's a man of excellent judgment.他眼力过人。

8 tingle   

vi.感到刺痛，感到激动；n.刺痛，激动

参考例句：

• The music made my blood tingle.那音乐使我热血沸腾。
• The cold caused a tingle in my fingers.严寒使我的手指有刺痛感。

9 heroism   

n.大无畏精神，英勇

参考例句：

• He received a medal for his heroism.他由于英勇而获得一枚奖章。
• Stories of his heroism resounded through the country.他的英雄故事传遍全国。

10 exalt   

v.赞扬，歌颂，晋升，提升

参考例句：

• She thanked the President to exalt her.她感谢总统提拔她。
• His work exalts all those virtues that we,as Americans,are taught to hold dear.他的作品颂扬了所有那些身为美国人应该珍视的美德。

11 resolutely   

adj.坚决地，果断地

参考例句：

• He resolutely adhered to what he had said at the meeting. 他坚持他在会上所说的话。
• He grumbles at his lot instead of resolutely facing his difficulties. 他不是果敢地去面对困难，而是抱怨自己运气不佳。

12 literally   

adv.照字面意义，逐字地；确实

参考例句：

• He translated the passage literally.他逐字逐句地翻译这段文字。
• Sometimes she would not sit down till she was literally faint.有时候，她不走到真正要昏厥了，决不肯坐下来。

13 patriotism   

n.爱国精神，爱国心，爱国主义

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• They obtained money under the false pretenses of patriotism.他们以虚伪的爱国主义为借口获得金钱。

14 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

15 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

16 pretext   

n.借口，托词

参考例句：

• He used his headache as a pretext for not going to school.他借口头疼而不去上学。
• He didn't attend that meeting under the pretext of sickness.他以生病为借口，没参加那个会议。

17 slaughter   

n.屠杀，屠宰；vt.屠杀，宰杀

参考例句：

• I couldn't stand to watch them slaughter the cattle.我不忍看他们宰牛。
• Wholesale slaughter was carried out in the name of progress.大规模的屠杀在维护进步的名义下进行。

18 deported   

v.将…驱逐出境( deport的过去式和过去分词 )；举止

参考例句：

• They stripped me of my citizenship and deported me. 他们剥夺我的公民资格，将我驱逐出境。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The convicts were deported to a deserted island. 罪犯们被流放到一个荒岛。 来自《简明英汉词典》

19 factions   

组织中的小派别，派系( faction的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The gens also lives on in the "factions." 氏族此外还继续存在于“factions〔“帮”〕中。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源
• rival factions within the administration 政府中的对立派别

20 friction   

n.摩擦，摩擦力

参考例句：

• When Joan returned to work,the friction between them increased.琼回来工作后，他们之间的摩擦加剧了。
• Friction acts on moving bodies and brings them to a stop.摩擦力作用于运动着的物体，并使其停止。

21 patriotic   

adj.爱国的，有爱国心的

参考例句：

• His speech was full of patriotic sentiments.他的演说充满了爱国之情。
• The old man is a patriotic overseas Chinese.这位老人是一位爱国华侨。

22 violation   

n.违反(行为)，违背(行为)，侵犯

参考例句：

• He roared that was a violation of the rules.他大声说，那是违反规则的。
• He was fined 200 dollars for violation of traffic regulation.他因违反交通规则被罚款200美元。

23 vessel   

n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管

参考例句：

• The vessel is fully loaded with cargo for Shanghai.这艘船满载货物驶往上海。
• You should put the water into a vessel.你应该把水装入容器中。

24 breach   

n.违反，不履行；破裂；vt.冲破，攻破

参考例句：

• We won't have any breach of discipline.我们不允许任何破坏纪律的现象。
• He was sued for breach of contract.他因不履行合同而被起诉。

25 conspicuous   

adj.明眼的，惹人注目的；炫耀的，摆阔气的

参考例句：

• It is conspicuous that smoking is harmful to health.很明显，抽烟对健康有害。
• Its colouring makes it highly conspicuous.它的色彩使它非常惹人注目。

26 jurisdiction   

n.司法权，审判权，管辖权，控制权

参考例句：

• It doesn't lie within my jurisdiction to set you free.我无权将你释放。
• Changzhou is under the jurisdiction of Jiangsu Province.常州隶属江苏省。

27 wrecked   

adj.失事的，遇难的

参考例句：

• the hulk of a wrecked ship 遇难轮船的残骸
• the salvage of the wrecked tanker 对失事油轮的打捞

28 jeopardy   

n.危险；危难

参考例句：

• His foolish behaviour may put his whole future in jeopardy.他愚蠢的行为可能毁了他一生的前程。
• It is precisely at this juncture that the boss finds himself in double jeopardy.恰恰在这个关键时刻，上司发现自己处于进退两难的境地。

29 diplomacy   

n.外交；外交手腕，交际手腕

参考例句：

• The talks have now gone into a stage of quiet diplomacy.会谈现在已经进入了“温和外交”阶段。
• This was done through the skill in diplomacy. 这是通过外交手腕才做到的。

30 utterances   

n.发声( utterance的名词复数 )；说话方式；语调；言论

参考例句：

• John Maynard Keynes used somewhat gnomic utterances in his General Theory. 约翰·梅纳德·凯恩斯在其《通论》中用了许多精辟言辞。 来自辞典例句
• Elsewhere, particularly in his more public utterances, Hawthorne speaks very differently. 在别的地方，特别是在比较公开的谈话里，霍桑讲的话则完全不同。 来自辞典例句

31 atrocities   

n.邪恶，暴行( atrocity的名词复数 )；滔天大罪

参考例句：

• They were guilty of the most barbarous and inhuman atrocities. 他们犯有最野蛮、最灭绝人性的残暴罪行。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The enemy's atrocities made one boil with anger. 敌人的暴行令人发指。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

32 jeopardized   

危及，损害( jeopardize的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The soldier jeopardized his life to save his comrade. 这个士兵冒生命的危险救他的同志。
• The occasional failed project or neglected opportunity does not jeopardized overall progress. 偶然失败的项目或失误的机会并没有影响总的进展。

33 restitution   

n.赔偿；恢复原状

参考例句：

• It's only fair that those who do the damage should make restitution.损坏东西的人应负责赔偿，这是再公平不过的了。
• The victims are demanding full restitution.受害人要求全额赔偿。

34 wholesome   

adj.适合；卫生的；有益健康的；显示身心健康的

参考例句：

• In actual fact the things I like doing are mostly wholesome.实际上我喜欢做的事大都是有助于增进身体健康的。
• It is not wholesome to eat without washing your hands.不洗手吃饭是不卫生的。

35 hoisted   

把…吊起，升起( hoist的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He hoisted himself onto a high stool. 他抬身坐上了一张高凳子。
• The sailors hoisted the cargo onto the deck. 水手们把货物吊到甲板上。

36 simultaneously   

adv.同时发生地，同时进行地

参考例句：

• The radar beam can track a number of targets almost simultaneously.雷达波几乎可以同时追着多个目标。
• The Windows allow a computer user to execute multiple programs simultaneously.Windows允许计算机用户同时运行多个程序。

37 afterward   

adv.后来；以后

参考例句：

• Let's go to the theatre first and eat afterward. 让我们先去看戏，然后吃饭。
• Afterward,the boy became a very famous artist.后来，这男孩成为一个很有名的艺术家。