HERMAN MELVILLE'S ()MOO.

UNLIKE most sequels, Omoo, or "a narrative of Adventures in the South Seas," is equal to its predecessor. There are not so many unusual hardships, and dangerous but necessary gymnastics, as in the hungry wanderings of Melville and his companion Toby among the mountains of Nukuheva nor such elaborate pictures of the daily life and manners of

the unsophisticated Polynesians as were furnished by the residence of the adventurers in the valley of the Typees. Neither is there the same novelty

of subject in Omoo as there was in Typee. Mr. Dana and some imita- tors have painted nautical life and character as seen from the foremast- man's point of view, and many writers have described the inhabitants of the different Polynesian Islands au natured, and in their various aspects of civilization, or as our author would say, their simple and corrupted nature. Still, from circumstances, and the position in which its writer-was placed, Omoo has sufficient freshness ; as it derives interest from his fluent viva- cious style, and a natural aptitude for describing a scene or telling a story. It is probable, however, that neither scene nor itory suffers at his hands from want of embellishment.

The leading subjects of Omoo are threefold,--first, life and Character on board an old ill-found colonial vessel, scantily and badly manned,

where needy or unprincipled speculators risk their own property, and the lives of such people as they can pick up, in a game with the odds it would seem, greatly against them. Secondly, adventures at Tahiti (the

Otabeite of Cook); where the crew carried the vessel into the harbour, distinctly refused to do duty, were taken on board a French frigate, and ironed, under the requisition of Mr. Consul Wilson, the locum towns of the notorious Pritchard, and, though subsequently released from this custody, were put into a prison on shore. Thirdly, the adventures of

Melville and a companion, when they went away by night from a sort of free custody, to take service with a couple of runaway sailors, who had

established a "plantation" on the neighbouring island of Imeeo • with their excursions about this latter place, till Melville finally shipped on board an American whaler.

There is some adventure in the volume, with a good many sketches of life and nature at the Society Islands, as well as a comparison between

the past and present state of the Polynesians' and an estimate of the re-

sults of missionary exertion. The true characteristic of the book, however, is its nautical pictures, and the glimpses it gives of the strange characters that are to be found scattered over the South Seas. The outcasts of all nations would seem to congregate there. The little law any- where, its total absence in some of the islands, the readiness with which

a subsistence may be procured, and the dolce fir ?ideate indulged in a climate where fuel and clothes May both be dispensed with, are all at- tractions to the runaway convict or the broken-down adventurer. The long voyage, hard. living,, and laborious service of the sperm whale- fishery, naturally induce seamen to desert from a harsh captain in an ill- provisioned ship, especially as the number of these whalers gives a man an opportunity, or at least a good chance, of quitting any place after a few months' residence, by engaging for a limited voyage in a vessel short of hands. In such a congregation the straitlacedness of a conventicle or a Quaker's meeting is not to be looked for ; and deeds of ruffianism and brutality must be perpetrated, when such men are excited by liquor, pan.

sion, or opposition. Yet it seems wonderful what a sense of right and wrong obtains among them towards Europeans ; and if they do not ex- tend the same feeling to the natives, it seems owing to ignorance, and the example of their superiors : nor indeed has this catholic morality long pre- vailed even in England, as it does not yet in many nations of Europe. Little ill-treatment of the natives by the sailor or the outcast, however, appears either in Dana or Melville ; and perhaps little takes place, unless in a brawl. Polynesian hospitality satisfies their wants ; the general licentiousness gratifies their passions ; and they lead an easy and uncon- trolled life, removed from all temptation which requires violence or crime to indulge in. Some, however, are more active and enterprising, and either embark in a pursuit or take service with the native powers.

The Julia, which received Melville on his escape from Typee, had seve- ral characters of this class, and he fell in with more. The surgeon of the ship (whalers are compelled to carry one) seems to have been a broken- down adventurer of some ability and reading, whom fortune or faults had driven from society. He quarrelled with the captain before Melville's arrival, and had taken up his berth among the men, with whom he be- came a favourite, from his adaptability, knowledge of life, and convivial powers. As he and Melville were the only persona of any education on board, (the captain excepted,) they naturally became companions, and stuck together through all their subsequent adventures, with a fidelity which may perhaps be explained by the fact that they had no rivalry or opposition, and possessed nothing of any value The crew were a mix- ture of all nations, but with something of character in each. Amongst them was a New Zealander, who, rated harpooner, ranked as a gentleman in the South Sea whaling school. From Melville's account, this man re- quired nothing but the help of a poetaster or novel-grinder to be turned into the hero of a romance. He had all the gloom and mystery of a Byronic hero ; but the unsentimental sailors rather attributed to him cannibal propensities than secret griefs; and though "queer stories" were told of him, they did not smack of the circulating library. Here is one, nar- rated to Melville by a man who had sailed with "Mowree" before. "I give it for what it is worth; premising, however, that from what I know of Bembo, and the foolhardy, dare-devil feats sometimes performed in the sperm. whale fishery, I believe in its substantial truth. a As may be believed, Bembo was a wild one after a fish; indeed, all New Zealanders engaged in this business are; it seems to harmonize sweetly with their blood-thirsty propensities. At sea, the best English they speak is the South Sea man's slogan in lowering away, A dead whale, or a stove boat !' Game to the marrow, these fellows are generally selected for harpooneers; a post in which a nervous timid man would be rather out of his element.

"In darting, the harpooneer, of course, stands erect in the head of the boat, one knee braced against a support. But Bembo disdained this; and was always pul- led up to his fish, balancing himself right on the gunwale.

a But to my story. One morning at daybreak, they brought him up to a large lone whale. He darted his harpoon, and missed; and the fish sounded. After a while, the monster rose again, about a mile off, and they made after him. But he was frightened, or 'gallied,' as they call it; and noon came and the boat was still chasing him. In whaling, as long as the fish is in sight, and no matter what may have been previously undergone, there is no giving up, except when night comes; and nowadays, when whales are so hard to be got, frequently not even then. At last, Bembo's Whale was alongside for the second time. He darted both har- poons; but, as sometimes happens to the best men, by some unaccountable chance, once more missed. Though It is well known that such failures will happen at times, they nevertheless occasion the bitterest disappointment to a boats crew, generally expressed in curses both loud and deep. And no wonder. Let any man pull with might and main for hours and hours together, under a burning sun; and if it do not make him a little peevish, hots no sailor. "The taunts of the seamen may have maddened the Mowree: however it was, no sooner was he brought up again, than, harpoon in hand, he bounded upon the whale's back, and for one dizzy second was seen there. The next, all was foam and fury, and both were out of sight. The men sheered off, flinging overboard the line as fast as they could; while ahead, nothing was seen but a red whirlpool of blood and brine.

"Presently, a dark object swam out; the line began to straighten; then smoked round the loggerhead ; and, quick as thought, the boat sped like an arrow through the water. They were fast,' and the whale was running.

"Where was the Mowree? His brown hand was on the boat's gunwale; and he was hauled aboard in the very midst of the mad bubbles that burst under the bows. "Such a man, or devil, if you will, was Bembo."

During their sojourn on board La Reine Blanche, the crew of the Julia had not much opportunity for observation, as they were in irons below ; but what they had Melville does not miss. As his account is character- istic, and also exhibits the opinion of an American seaman on the French navy, we quote freely from it.

On the second day nothing happened worthy of record. On the third, we were amused by the following scene.

"A man, whom we supposed a boatswain's mate, from the silver whistle hang- ing from his neck, came below, driving before him a couple of blubbering boys, and followed by a whole troop of youngsters in tears. The pair, it seemed, were sent down to be punished by command of an officer: the rest had accompanied them out of sympathy.

"The boatswain's mate went to work without delay, seizing the poor little cul- prits by their loose frocks, and using a ratan without mercy. The other boys wept, clasped their hands, and fell on their knees; but in vain: the boatswain's mate only hit out at them, once in a while making them yell ten times louder than ever.

"In the midst of the tumult, down comes a midshipman, who, with a great air, orders the man on deck, and running in among the boys, sets them to scampering in all directions.

"The whole of this proceeding was regarded with infinite scorn by Navy Bob; who years before, had been captain of the foretop on board a line-of-battle ship. In his estimation, it was a lubberly piece of business throughout: they did things differently in the English navy.

"The retaining of the young culprits, although significant of the imperfect discipline of a French man-of-war, may also be considered as in some measure -characteristic of the nation.

"In an American or English ship, a boy, when flogged, is either lashed to the breech of a gun, or brought right up to the gratings, the same way the men are. But as a general rule, he is never punished beyond his strength. Yon seldom or

never draw a cry from the young rogue: he bites his tongue, and stands up to It like a hero. If practicable, (which is not always the case,) he makes a point of smiling under the operation. And so far from his companions taking any com- passion on him, they always make merry over his misfortunes. Should he turn baby and cry, they are pretty sure to give him afterwards a sly pounding in sem dark corner. "This tough training produces its legitimate results. The boy becomes in time a thoroughbred tar, equally ready to strip and take a dozen on board his own ship, or, cutlass in hand, dash pell-mell on board the enemy's. Whereas the young Frenchman, as all the world knows, makes but an indifferent seaman; ani though for the most part he fights well enough, somehow or other he seldom fights well enough to beat. "How few sea-battles have the French ever won? but more; how few ships have they ever carried by the board—that true criterion of naval courage ? But not a word against French bravery; there is plenty of it, but not of the right sort. A Yankee's, or an Englishman's, is the downright Waterloo 'game.' The French fight better on land; and not being essentially a maritime people, they ought to

stay there. The best of shipwrights, they are no sailors. * * • " In the French navy they have no marines: their men, taking turns at carry- ing the musket, are sailors one moment and soldiers the next; a fellow running aloft in his line-frock today, tomorrow stands sentry at the admiral's cabin-door. This is fatal to anything like proper sailor pride. fo makes man a seaman, he should be put to no other duty: indeed, a thorough tar is unfit for anything else; and what is more, this fact is the best evidence of his being a true sailor. "On board the Reine Blanche they did not have enough to eat; and what they did have was not of the right sort. Instead of letting the sailors file their teeth against the rim of a hard sea-biscuit, they baked their bread daily in pitiful little rolls. Then they had no grog '; as a substitute, they drugged the poor fellows with a thin sour wine—the juice of a few grapes, perhaps, to a pint of the juice of water-facets. Moreover, the sailors asked for meat, and they gave them soup; a rascally substitute, as they well knew."

These extracts will indicate the character of the composition ; which is clear, vivacious, and full of matter. Melville's descriptions not only convey distinctly what he wishes to present, but they abound in sulxir- dinate or incidental pictures respecting the whole of the life described. As in Tom, there are a few free passages, that might as well have been omitted.