A Dalliance On A Primeval Archipelago

The term "savage" is, I understand, often misapplied, and indeed, when I consider the vices, cruelties, and enormities of all kinds that spring up in the tainted atmosphere of a feverish civilization, I am inclined to think that to the extent that the relative wickedness of the parts is concerned, four or five Marquesans sent to the United States for missionaries could be just as useful as an equal number of Americans shipped to the islands in a similar capacity.

I heard it once given as an example of the appalling depravity of a certain pacific tribe that they had no word in their language to express the idea of virtue. The assertion was unfounded but we're not, one could answer them by stating that their language is almost entirely devoid of terms to express the delicious ideas conveyed by our endless catalog of civilized crimes.