Lifu Bible History (3)

**List: Lifu Ministry the Bible ( the Bible ) Lifu... LIFU AND NENGONE. "LIFU and Nengoné are the languages spoken in two of the islands of the Loyalty group--situate to the westward of the New Hebrides, and about forty-five miles east of the large island of New Caledonia, now a French colony.    The Loyalty Islands, three in number, consist of Uea, Lifu, and Mare (or Nengoné), together with some small adjacent islets.   They were comparatively little known until the visit of Captain Erskine, in Her Majesty's ship "Havannah," in 1849.   The inhabitants are of the black, or Polynesian- Negro race, but with a strong infusion of the true Polynesian blood and language.   The population is not numerous, the island being in a great measure barren, and only scantily supplied with fresh water. Numerous trading-vessels from Australia, however, visit them annually, for the sake of the sandal-wood which is so abundant throughout this portion of the vast Polynesian region.    A mission was commenced on the island of Mare in 1854, under the auspices of the London My. Society.   This island is stated to contain not less than 8,000 inhabitants, a third part of whom have since embraced the truths of the Gospel.   The mies., the Revs. S. M. Creagh and J. Jones, devoted themselves assiduously to the task of translating portions of the Scriptures into the native languages of Lifu and Mare (Nengoné), and have printed these, together with the Ten Com- mandments, a hymn-book, and a school-book containing an outline of early Scripture History, at the mission-press established in Mare.   The Gospel of St. Mark, in the Nengoné tongue, with the first five chapters of St. John's Gospel, were among the first fruits of their labours, and were gladly wel- comed by the Mare population, who eagerly engaged in the perusal of the Word of Life.   The Gospel of St. Luke has since passed through the press, the good work having been aided by a supply of paper granted by the British and Foreign Bible Society.   "The language of Nengoné (remarks Mr. Creagh) is by no means easy, as appears to be the case more or less with most of the dialects of Western Polynesia.   A knowledge of the Eastern dialects appears to be no help whatever to the attaining of these, except at first by communicating with the native teachers from the Eastern groups. The pro- nunciation is very much more harsh, consonants are more abundant, and double consonants, nasals and gutturals--unknown in the Eastern dialects--are more or less abundant than in those of the Western; consequently we find the native teachers a long time before they can master the language, and indeed they can never pronounce it, but by long practice they become accustomed to its peculiarities, and the natives to their brogue, and hence they are generally intelligible."--The Bible of Every Land. (1860, Second Edition)   Samuel Bagster   [Info only] LIFU AND NENGONE.--1860   S. Bagster   [Info only: n.d. Luke 1:1-13 unknown.]

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