THE 
 
 PEARL DIVERS 
 
 OF RONCADOR REEF 
 
 LOUIS BECKE 
 
 t_««^.
 
 * 
 
 LIBRARY 
 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 RIVERSIDE 
 
 ' ▼ ▼ * ▼ V V ' 
 
 Ex Libris 
 ISAAC FOOT 
 
 - -^ -*-'*' -*- 
 
 A ifc
 
 THE PEARL DIVERS OF 
 RONCADOR REEF
 
 TWO OF THEM WERE CARRYING MISS CHESSON, WHO AT THAT MOMKNT HAD I'REED ONE 
 HAND ANIJ TWISTED IT AMONGST THE ROOTS OF ONE OF THE TOUGH CREEI'ERS.
 
 THE PEARL DIVERS OF 
 RONCADOR REEF 
 
 AND OTHER STORIES 
 
 BY 
 
 LOUIS BECKE 
 
 AUTHOR OF " TOM WALLACE," KTC. 
 
 LONDON 
 JAMES CLARKE & CO., 13 & 14 FLEET STREET 
 
 1908
 
 B 7^P43
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 The Pearl Divers of Ronxador Reef 
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself . 
 
 For the Benefit of Sailors' Kids 
 
 The "Manurua" and the "Marguerite 
 Two " Sharkers " 
 
 A " Blackbirding " Incident 
 
 A Strange Rencontre . 
 
 Crowley and Drake, Limited 
 
 Nerida, the Maid of Suwarrow 
 
 My South Sea Gardens 
 
 A Prospecting Party in North Queensland 
 
 A Quick Vengeance 
 
 " : A Tale of 
 
 PACE 
 
 7 
 
 6l 
 
 139 
 
 159 
 i8i 
 
 195 
 215 
 233 
 
 255 
 267 
 
 277
 
 THE PEARL DIVERS OF 
 RONCADOR REEF
 
 THE PEARL DIVERS OF 
 RONCADOR REEF 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 One bright but exceedingly boisterous afternoon 
 in June three men were seated on the verandah of 
 the " Queen's Hotel," in the newly-founded city of 
 Townsville, situated on the shore of Cleveland Bay, 
 in North Queensland. Eight miles across the bay, 
 and directly facing the scattered line of buildings 
 which stood mostly on the open, wind-swept beach, 
 was Magnetic Island (which Cook discovered and 
 surveyed in the Endeavour), its lofty green hills and 
 snowy white beaches glinting in the bright afternoon 
 sun. For some days past a south-easterly half-gale 
 had been blowing, and the waters of Cleveland Bay 
 were heaving tumultuously under its influence, and 
 every now and then an extra strong and erratic puff 
 would sweep along the sandy, dusty street, which ran 
 parallel with the beach in front of the hotel, and 
 send clouds of dust swirling high in air, and then out 
 to sea. 
 
 The men had finished their luncheon, and had 
 come out on the verandah to smoke, and to avoid 
 the noise and whiskyfied odour of the overcrowded 
 
 9
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 smoking room, for the hotel was crowded with visitors 
 — principally diggers on their way to the rich and 
 recently-discovered gold fields at Charters Towers, 
 and the Cloncurry and Etheridge Rivers, in the far 
 interior of the north-west of the colony. 
 
 The eldest of the three men was apparently about 
 fifty-five years of age, with iron-grey hair and beard, 
 and deep-set keen blue eyes. His face, neck and 
 hands were tanned almost to the hue of old leather 
 by constant exposure to torrid suns in many parts of 
 the world — known and unknown — and his well-set 
 and muscular figure matched the expression of his 
 countenance, in which even the most casual observer 
 could read quiet determination and undaunted 
 courage. This type of man is common enough in 
 new countries, such as North Queensland then was, 
 and Dr. Hector Carew was a good specimen of his 
 class. 
 
 The second man, in point of age, was his junior by 
 at least a score of years, but he, too, was deeply 
 bronzed by the fierce sun of the Austral tropics. 
 His features showed traces of a long illness, and his 
 naturally slight figure was so emaciated that his 
 white duck suit looked three sizes too large for him — 
 he was, in fact, only just beginning to recover from a 
 severe attack of malarial fever, contracted in the 
 jungles of one of the rivers on Cape York Peninsula, 
 where he had been the leader of an unsuccessful and 
 ill-fated party of gold prospectors, which had been 
 attacked by a tribe of coastal blacks, only one other 
 member of the expedition and himself escaping the 
 
 10
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 general massacre. After two months of terrible 
 sufferings, the two survivors managed to reach the 
 coast and make smoke signals to one of the light- 
 ships stationed off a shoal on the Great Barrier Reef. 
 Both were wrecks from fever and starvation ; and a 
 few days after reaching the lightship one died, and 
 Frank Sedley, the one remaining member of a party 
 of nine sturdy, vigorous, and adventurous pioneers, 
 was taken from the lightship by a passing steamer 
 and landed, penniless, at Cleveland Bay, to " take 
 his chance" in the local hospital. 
 
 The third and youngest man of the three who sat 
 together on the verandah had " sailor-man " written 
 upon his face, even if his blue reefer suit — the coat 
 sleeves of which were stripped of their narrow bands 
 of gold lace — had not denoted the fact. He was a 
 clean-shaven, fat and jovial-looking young fellow, 
 with a particularly infectious laugh. 
 
 The three men had met by the merest chance only 
 two weeks previously, but in that time a feeling of 
 friendship had sprung up between them. Perhaps 
 it was because of the fact that each one of them had 
 met with recent ill-fortune, and the relation of their 
 experiences had drawn them together. Carew a year 
 before had been appointed Government medical 
 officer to the local hospital, and within a month 
 found himself the best-hated man in the place. The 
 hospital, he soon discovered, was the home of moral 
 corruption and peculation. All the officials and the 
 nursing staff were in collusion with a number of 
 dishonest tradesmen, who for years past had been 
 
 II
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 plundering the institution in the most shameless and 
 scandalous manner by supplying goods at an out- 
 rageous price and bribing the hospital officials to pass 
 their " faked " accounts as correct. Carew sent in 
 such a strongly-worded and condemnatory report on 
 the state of affairs to the Government that the entire 
 staff were dismissed, and the institution re-organised. 
 Some of the tradesmen and the officials, at the 
 instigation of the angry Carew, were prosecuted 
 criminally and received sentences of imprisonment. 
 Unfortunately, however, in one instance Carew had 
 charged a wine and spirit merchant with supplying 
 the hospital with spirits for the use of patients, which 
 he stigmatised as "poison, adulterated, and unfit to 
 be given to human beings." A libel action was the 
 result, and the wine and spirit merchant, who was 
 a wealthy man and whose brother was a Minister of 
 the Crown, was awarded ^i,ooo damages. Every- 
 one knew that Carew's statements were, in the main, 
 correct, and sympathised with him. A subscription 
 was inaugurated, and the money quickly raised ; 
 Carew refused to accept it and paid the money him- 
 self, although it ruined him, for it left him with only 
 £200 in the world, and he had to resign his appoint- 
 ment. But he had a certain satisfaction — after he 
 had paid the ^1,000 damages — in giving the libelled 
 man a fearful thrashing in the public street. Then 
 he took a house and began a private practice, 
 occasionally visiting the hospital as an operating 
 surgeon when called upon — for although everyone 
 who knew him termed him " Doctor Carew," he 
 
 12
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 really was a surgeon. It was during one of these 
 visits to the hospital that he saw Frank Sedley, who 
 was then a dying man. Carew had had a large 
 experience of malarial fever cases in his many wan- 
 derings in the East Indies, the islands of the north- 
 west Pacific, and Mexico, and he saw at once that 
 the new medical staff of the hospital — three young, 
 newly-arrived English doctors — did not understand 
 the case. They had never dealt with malarial fever. 
 Theoretically they knew all that it was then thought 
 possible to know ; practically they knew nothing, 
 and were killing Sedley by administering him a few 
 grains of quinine dail}-. Carew took the case in 
 hand, and saved the man's life, and, at his own 
 expense, had him brought to the " Queen's Hotel," 
 so that he might exercise a careful watch upon him. 
 And for this Sedley was deeply grateful. 
 
 Just about this time, when Carew had been cast 
 for damages in the libel action brought against him, 
 there had arrived at Cleveland Bay an emigrant ship 
 named the Knight Templar, the crew of which were 
 in a state of mutiny. The vessel, owing to the incom- 
 petence and drunken habits of the captain, had run 
 ashore on one of the islands of the Great Barrier 
 Reef, where she remained hard and fast for several 
 weeks. The passengers, who were mostly of a very 
 low class of people from Liverpool and Glasgow, 
 behaved very badly, broke into the hold and broached 
 the cargo, amongst which was a large quantity of 
 spirits. The ship's doctor and the first mate, Henry 
 Waller — the third and youngest man of the trio now
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 together on the verandah of the " Queen's Hotel " — in 
 trying to re-estabhsh order came into serious colHsion 
 with some of the ruffianly male emigrants, and some 
 of the crew who had practically taken possession of 
 the Knight Templar, and turned her into a pandemo- 
 nium. In the fracas Waller shot a sailor dead, and 
 the doctor wounded another with a revolver bullet. 
 Order was restored at last, and with the captain in 
 delirmm tremens, the crew still mutinous, Waller 
 succeeded in refloating the ship and bringing her to 
 Cleveland Bay, where he was promptly arrested and 
 placed on his trial for murder, at the same quarter 
 sessions at which Hector Carew was tried for libel. 
 He was acquitted, the judge in summing up strongly 
 indicating to the jury that the case was one of "justifi- 
 able homicide," and that Waller by his courageous 
 and determined conduct had probably saved the 
 lives of the four hundred persons on board the Knight 
 Templar. For not only had he, in face of many difficul- 
 ties, refloated the ship, and placed, almost single- 
 handed, the ringleaders of the outbreak in irons, but 
 had navigated her safely to Cleveland Bay. " The 
 law," added the judge, " has placed this man on trial 
 on a charge of murder. I leave it to you, gentlemen of 
 the jury, to define the wide difference between murder 
 and justifiable homicide. The one means death at 
 the gallows, the other means an honourable acquittal. 
 I may tell you that, had I been in the position of the 
 prisoner in the dock when the Knight Templar ran 
 ashore through the incompetence of her captain, I 
 should have acted as he acted — that is, if I had his 
 
 14
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 personal strength, courage and undaunted deter- 
 mination." 
 
 When Waller left the court, a free man, he was 
 met outside by Dr. Carew, who gave him his most 
 sincere congratulations. 
 
 " What are you going to do now, Mr. Waller ? " he 
 asked. " I suppose that as the captain of the Knight 
 Templar has been dismissed, you will be given the 
 command ? " 
 
 Waller shook his head and laughed bitterly. 
 
 " No. I, too, have ' got the run.' You see, my evi- 
 dence at the Marine Board inquiry two months ago 
 showed up the owners in a very bad light. Both the 
 doctor and I said that the ship was ill-found, hardly 
 seaworthy, and quite unfitted to carry emigrants; 
 then, too, we told the Board that the skipper was a 
 notorious drunkard and had previously lost two other 
 ships; also that he was a man suspected by Lloyds' 
 insurance people. The result is as I have said — I 
 have been dismissed." 
 
 " We are comrades in misfortune," remarked 
 Carew, quietly. " Now, will you be my guest for 
 a while ? Although I have a house here in town I 
 do not live there, but stay at the ' Queen's.' Come 
 and camp with me until you decide upon your future 
 movements." 
 
 The seaman's face flushed. "It is very 
 kind of you, but — but you have just lost a 
 thousand pounds, and I should feel that I was 
 sponging upon you. So, whilst I thank you most 
 heartily "' 
 
 15
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 Carew clapped him on the shoulder and laughed 
 in his grave, quiet manner. 
 
 '* Come along, Mr. Waller. We are comrades in 
 misfortune, as I have said, but I am not yet ' stony 
 broke.' And I have a sick friend of mine staying 
 with me, whom I want you to meet. His name is 
 Sedley, and he, like you and me, has been a ' most 
 curst misfortunit person whateffer,' as a Welsh 
 skipper friend of mine used to say." 
 
 And this was how the three men came to be 
 together at the " Queen's Hotel " that afternoon in 
 June. 
 
 CHAPTER n 
 
 " Waller," said Carew, " you and Sedley have 
 heard me speak of that Melanesian servant of mine 
 who looks after my house here. As I told you, I 
 found him knocking about the streets, earning his 
 living by getting occasional work at the public- 
 houses, cleaning stables, etc. He was brought here 
 by a South Sea trading vessel, the master of which 
 got rid of him because the poor fellow was suffering 
 from anchylosis of the left foot bones. I operated, 
 and he is now all right. He can speak only a very 
 little English, but it so happens that I know his 
 language. He is a native of the Ontong Java group 
 of islands in the Solomon Archipelago ; and fifteen 
 years ago I was living there, making an ethno- 
 
 i6
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 graphical collection for the Hamburg Museum. I 
 remained there over eighteen months, and picked up 
 the language rather easily, as it is somewhat similar 
 to that of Sikiana (Stewart's Island), which I know 
 very well." 
 
 " I suppose this poor chap was delighted to have 
 you speak to him in his native tongue ? " said Sedley. 
 
 " Indeed he was. Now I am going to tell you 
 something that I have learned from him that has 
 interested me greatly, and I think it will interest you 
 as well — in fact, the information he has given me is 
 valuable, and may — I believe will — be worth a good 
 deal of money to us." 
 
 *' Suka — that is his name — told me, in reply to 
 my inquiries as to how he got on board the trading 
 schooner which landed him at Townsville, that 
 about two years ago he, with seven of his fellow 
 islanders, was seized by a ' blackbirding ' schooner 
 from Fiji. They were captured when they were in 
 their canoes, fishing, some few miles off the southern- 
 most island of the group, and the schooner at once 
 stood away, steering south — evidently meaning to 
 continue her kidnapping cruise amongst the Solomon 
 group. The skipper, so Suka says, did not treat 
 him and his companions badly, for as soon as the 
 Ontong Java islands were out of sight, he had them 
 brought up on deck, gave them plenty to eat and 
 drink, and also presented them with pipes and 
 tobacco and suits of dungaree clothing. The poor 
 beggars, finding that their islands were out of sight 
 and that there was no chance of escape, resigned 
 
 17 B
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 themselves to their fate — which meant three to six 
 years' labour on a Fiji plantation. 
 
 Early next morning, the schooner was abreast of 
 an atoll which Suka had never before seen, although 
 he knew of its existence by its native name of Palan, 
 as in 3'ears gone by it had afforded a refuge to a party 
 of Ontong Java natives who had, in a number of 
 canoes, been blown away from their own island in a 
 northerly gale. They ran before it from midnight 
 until dawn when the atoll was sighted right ahead. 
 All the canoes succeeded in entering it safely ; and 
 the party remained on the chain of sandy islets for a 
 week or so. The lagoon teemed with fish and turtle, 
 and sea-birds abounded, so they did not suffer from 
 want of food, and eventually they returned to Ontong 
 Java (or Lueneuwa as the natives call it) none the 
 worse for their adventure. The atoll is formed by 
 circular reefs, or rather a series of connected and 
 disconnected reefs. Some of them are only a few 
 feet above water and are covered with drift-wood, 
 with here and there a little scanty herbage of 
 coarse grass and a saline creeper. On one of the 
 reef islets there were a few young cocoanut trees 
 growing — the nuts from which they sprang having 
 drifted from Ontong Java or some other island. 
 
 " Well, as I have said, the blackbirding schooner 
 was abreast of the island early in the morning. Suka 
 and his fellow-islanders were below, together with 
 twenty or thirty other Kanakas — some from one 
 island, some from another. Presently a white sailor 
 came below, and singling out Suka from his com- 
 
 i8
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 panions, motioned to him to go on deck. The poor 
 fellow, who although robust enough in all other 
 respects — you shall see him this afternoon — walked 
 very lamely owing to his anchylosis, made his way 
 on deck, and found the schooner hove-to, with a boat 
 alongside, manned by native sailors and in charge of 
 an officer. 
 
 ** The skipper, a thundering blackguard of whom I 
 had often heard, named Clissold, and whom I recognised 
 at once by Suka's description of his personal appear- 
 ance, then came with the mate and examined Suka's 
 foot. The brutes evidently came to the conclusion 
 that such a lame duck would not bring the usual price 
 of ^80 in Fiji from any planter, and so Suka was 
 ordered down into the boat. After him came two 
 other natives who had also been * cast ' by Clissold 
 as not worth their skins. Where they came^from 
 Suka never learned, as he was not able to converse 
 with them, nor could they converse with each 
 other, being dissimilar in their language. One was 
 almost blind from chronic ophthalmia, the other was 
 suffering from some wasting disease which had 
 reduced him to little better than a skeleton. 
 
 " Clissold, ruffian and blackguard as he was, and 
 is — for he is still somewhere in the South Seas — was 
 not altogether inhuman. He put into the boat as 
 much provisions, biscuit, tinned meats, etc., as there 
 was room for, together with a water butt, fishing lines 
 and hooks, and a plentiful supply of tobacco and 
 pipes, some knives and other articles, and then added 
 half-a-dozen bottles of square-faced gin. No doubt 
 
 19 B 2
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 he thought he was doing * the correct thing ' when he 
 sent these three poor Kanakas to die on this lonely 
 atoll, which I know to be the place on the chart 
 named Roncador or Candelaria Reef. I have often 
 heard the natives of Ekolo talk of it when I was 
 living with them fifteen years ago. 
 
 " Suka and his two ' cast ' companions were landed 
 on Roncador, or Palan as we may call it, and Clissold 
 and the * blackbirder ' Ringdove went on to the 
 Solomons. 
 
 " Within a week, the man who was suffering from 
 ophthalmia suddenly disappeared — Suka believes that 
 he was seized by a shark whilst bathing in the lagoon 
 at night — for one evening he left the little hut of drift- 
 wood which they had built, and never returned. A 
 few weeks later the other man died, and Suka was 
 left alone. 
 
 Long months passed, and then one day a schooner 
 appeared off the atoll, and lowered a boat, the crew 
 of which came on shore to look for turtles' eggs, and 
 discovered Suka. Unable to speak a single word of 
 English, he could not tell his rescuers how he came 
 to be on Palan, of the death of his two companions 
 in misery, and of his long loneliness. 
 
 " But he has told me something that the skipper of 
 that vessel would have very much liked to know, and 
 that is that the bottom of the atoll is one vast bed of 
 black-edge pearl shell. Much of it lies in quite 
 shallow water — so shallow in fact that Suka says that 
 at low tide they can be picked up in half a fathom of 
 water — ^just think of it, you fellows ! Hundreds of 
 
 20
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 tons of pearl-shell ready to be picked up without 
 diving, and Suka says that he does not think any 
 part of the atoll is over fifteen fathoms deep, as even 
 in the centre the water shows green, so I think he is 
 right, and I also agree with him that the deeper the 
 water the better and larger the shell." 
 
 Waller and Sedley were listening with deep interest 
 to Carew's story. 
 
 '*A11 this," he resumed, "Suka told me some time 
 ago, with many other details about Palan — such as 
 the finding of the passage into the atoll, the winds 
 and weather, etc., etc., and I am now pretty well 
 posted up on the subject. Although there are no 
 trees on the islets, Suka says it rained very often at 
 nights — heavy squalls from the south-east, and as he 
 was there in the dry season we shall have no difficulty 
 about water — that is, if we get there." 
 
 ** Get there ! Of course we shall get there," cried 
 Waller excitedly, banging the table with his fist with 
 such force that the coffee cups and saucers were 
 upset in all directions. 
 
 " Keep cool, Fatty," said Sedley with a smile. 
 
 Carew went on : 
 
 ** I did not say anything to you on the matter until 
 this afternoon, for several reasons. One was that I 
 wanted a chart — a general chart of the Solomons, 
 and a detailed one of the Ontong Java group, as the 
 natives call it — and could not get either in Townsville. 
 So I had to send to Brisbane, and this morning I 
 received both. This morning Suka and I had a very 
 interesting hour together over those charts. 
 
 21
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 ** Now, to be perfectly frank with you both, Suka's 
 story has not been conducive to sleep for me. How 
 could I raise money enough to go into the thing — 
 that was my first worry. As you know, I have had 
 to pay that blackguard Wilkins a thousand pounds. 
 This left me something like ;£'220 to go on with, 
 estabhsh a private practice in this new town of dust, 
 drink, devilry, and downright damnation — alliteration 
 does a man good sometimes — and keep up a respect- 
 able appearance. Now, I am not speaking scoffingly 
 when I say that " the Lord tempers the wind to 
 the shorn lamb.' I was not only shorn very close to 
 the skin, but would have had my skin taken off me 
 if I had not been able to have paid the damages 
 awarded to Wilkins ; I should have had to go to gaol 
 until the money was paid. Now, I believe in this — 
 that the man who ' goes straight ' unll come out all 
 right in the end. Had I taken a bribe of ;£'20o from 
 that scoundrel Wilkins I should now be in the 
 ignominious position of knowing that I had lent 
 myself to fraud and was robbing the public. Well, 
 this very morning, by the same mail that brought me 
 the charts from Brisbane, I received a letter from 
 Germany containing a draft for ;^400 — money that I 
 had abandoned all hope of ever getting. Some 
 years ago, when I was collecting for the German 
 museums, I sent home a private duplicate collection 
 on my own account. It was sent to a firm in Berlin 
 for disposal ; the firm became bankrupt, and one of 
 the partners absconded to Argentina. Six months ago 
 he reappeared and all the creditors were paid in full."
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 " What a stroke of good luck ! " remarked Waller. 
 
 " Yes ; but that is not all. I seem to be getting a 
 new coat of wool quite suddenly. This morning 
 Clegg, of Charters Towers, called to see me about 
 going into partnership with him. I declined, but 
 offered to sell him my practice here. The result was 
 that after some haggling over the matter he gave me 
 a cheque for £150, and he comes in to-morrow. So 
 you see I have now nearly £"800. It is not much, 
 but it must be enough for us." 
 
 ** I can raise about a hundred more," said Waller. 
 
 "And I," remarked Sedley bitterly, " cannot raise 
 a shilling, so I must stand out ; unless you will take 
 me on as a ' wages man ' at thirty shillings a week." 
 
 Carew gave him a kindl)' smile. 
 
 " Don't talk rubbish. All you have to do at present 
 is to get rid of that fever. Now come along, both of 
 you. I'll show you the chart, and then you can help 
 me to pack up my traps, so that Dr. Clegg can come 
 in to-morrow. And this evening we shall decide what 
 to do next. We shall have to go either to Brisbane 
 or Sydney and buy or charter a small vessel. Waller, 
 you shall be skipper." 
 
 CHAPTER III 
 
 A SMALL and much weather-worn and battered- 
 about-looking topsail schooner was making her way 
 through Indispensable Straits, which separate the 
 
 23
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 great islands of Malaita and Guadalcanar, in the 
 Solomon Islands Archipelago, She was the Restless, 
 of Sydney, and belonged to Carew and his friends, 
 who at this moment were on the streaming deck — 
 there was a strong breeze, and a heavy, lumpy sea, 
 over which the vessel was thrashing her way, close- 
 hauled and under shortened canvas. She certainly 
 did not belie her name, for she kicked and plunged 
 about, as Waller placidly observed, " like a cat in a 
 fit," and kept shipping a great deal of water. She 
 was old, bluff-bowed, and square-sterned, a bad 
 sailer, and by no means pretty to look at even when 
 at her best, but nevertheless, and in spite of her 
 age, she was staunch and seaworthy. Carew had 
 bought her in Sydney for ^^400, paying half the 
 amount down, and giving a bottomry bond for the 
 remainder. This enabled him to spend a few 
 hundreds upon re-fitting and provisioning the vessel, 
 and three weeks after the purchase she sailed from 
 Sydney for Ontong Java, where Carew intended to 
 hire some natives as divers. In all there were but 
 eight persons on board : Carew and his two friends, 
 three white seamen and a cook, and Suka. Much 
 curiosity had been shown in Sydney shipping circles 
 regarding Carew's purchase, and many inquisitive 
 persons tried to find out her destination, wondering 
 why she was sailing in ballast instead of taking a 
 cargo of trade goods, as was usual with South Sea 
 trading vessels. Carew, however, was not to be 
 drawn, but implied that he thought he could "get a 
 charter down in Fiji or Tonga." 
 
 24
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 Eight bells had just struck, and the wet and 
 soddened cook announced dinner, jocosely informing 
 Carew that the galley was working loose owing to 
 the way in which the schooner was pitching and 
 straining. 
 
 " She give a kick 'arf a hour ago, sir, and chucked 
 every bloomin' saucepan off the range, and I gets a 
 gallon o' pea-soup slung into my face. It was bilin' 
 'ot, too, it was, an' I was just lettin' out a yell o' 
 hagony when over comes a lump of a sea, an' washes 
 the soup outer me eyes, an' me an' the pots an' pans 
 and heverythink helse inter the lee scuppers. So 
 that's w'y there ain't no soup to-day, sir." 
 
 " Never mind, cook. ' It's a poor heart that never 
 rejoices,' you know. Better to get a little good pea 
 soup in your face from a bucking ship than from a 
 bucking sailor man, eh ?" 
 
 The cook grinned. ** I've 'ad that hexperience, 
 sir, in my time, although as I didn't deserve it. I've 
 'ad 'ot coffee slung inter me face when I was in the 
 American Navy, not knowin' as 'ow I'd filled the 
 galley copper wiv salt instead o' fresh water." 
 
 This was Carew's way with men under his command 
 — and he was practically in command of the Restless, 
 Waller being merely sailing master. Whilst he would 
 tolerate no familiarity, he was always good-tempered, 
 genial, and ready to joke, and had never lost by it. 
 At the same time he could be a merciless disciplina- 
 rian — the nurses of the Townsville Hospital had 
 quickly ascertained that fact when he had them 
 "carpeted" before him, told them that they were 
 
 25
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 not to consider themselves as " ornamental young 
 women," but as nurses of a State hospital. " I find," 
 he said in his quiet, caustic manner, " that you young 
 women have been allowed most extraordinary liberties 
 in the way of absenting yourselves from the hospital. 
 You appear to have had no check whatever placed 
 upon your movements. And, also, I regret to learn, 
 you have been in the habit of entertaining male 
 friends of yours to afternoon tea, at the expense of 
 the hospital. Never let such a thing occur again 
 whilst I am in charge. The wards are dirty, the beds 
 and bed linen are in the same state, and would 
 discredit a common London merchant-seaman's 
 boarding-house, and yet I find that there is an enor- 
 mous monthly laundry bill against the hospital. 
 Your own apartments, I notice, are well kept, your 
 bed linen is of the best, and you have provided your- 
 selves with an ice-chest and seltzogenes, the which, I 
 find, have been charged to the hospital. Now, I do 
 not want to be harsh, and accuse you of combined 
 dishonesty, but you certainly have not acted in a 
 decent and becoming manner, and I must put a stop 
 to your vagaries. You, Nurse Jaggers, are the chief 
 offender, and have set a very bad example to the 
 others. Your training in such a great hospital as 
 that of Charing Cross, in London, does not appear 
 to have done you much good. To conclude, I wish 
 you all to understand that I want you to realise that 
 this is an institution supported by both the State and 
 the public. For every £i subscribed by the public 
 the State adds another £1, and I am here to see that 
 
 26
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 the money of the Government and the pubhc is not 
 wasted. I may tell you frankly that I do not approve 
 of women nurses in colonial hospitals, and consider 
 them an expensive and unnecessary nuisance. They 
 do not attend to their appointed work, get absurdly 
 large salaries for their position, and, in my view, are 
 altogether undesirable. Now you may go." 
 
 That, as I have said, was Carew's way. He never 
 minced his words. 
 
 ***** 
 
 The three met sat down to dinner in the stuffy 
 little cabin, Sedley, now strong and robust again, 
 remarking that if the others were as hungry as he 
 was now continually, the Restless would soon run 
 short of provisions. 
 
 " As a matter of fact," said Carew, " I think. 
 Waller, that we might as well keep away for Mboli 
 Harbour on Friday and get some fresh provisions, 
 and whilst there you can attend to your rigging. 
 We shall be all to pieces if this sort of weather 
 keeps up much longer. Forty-two days out from 
 Sydney and not through the Solomons yet ! It is 
 perfectly maddening." 
 
 " Well, we can't help it," remarked the placid 
 Waller, " but you have only to say the word and 
 I'll keep away for Mboli this instant. We certainly 
 are getting ' a doing,' thrashing our way against this 
 head sea and a stiff north-easter. Mboli Point is 
 only thirty miles, and if you decide to run for it 
 you'll see how this old hooker can skip when she is 
 running free." 
 
 ^7
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 " Then keep away, Waller. I have been quite 
 seasick for the past week." 
 
 " So has everyone else, as far as that goes. She 
 does pitch, being so light." And then Waller went 
 on deck and gave the welcome order to keep the 
 vessel away for Florida Island. 
 
 " Now," he observed genially, as he resumed his 
 seat, " stand by for a bit of rolling for a change. 
 I'll give her a little more head sail presently. What 
 sort of a place is this Mboli Harbour ? " 
 
 ** One of the most romantically beautiful spots in 
 all the Western Pacific islands," replied Carew. " I 
 was there long years ago, collecting. Only for that 
 beastly malarial fever it would be a paradise. It is 
 seven years since I was there. I stayed at the house 
 of the one white trader, a very nice fellow named 
 Chesson. He was a well-educated man, and helped 
 me greatly in classifying my collections, ethno- 
 graphical and botanical. He was a widower with 
 two young children, a boy and a girl, of sixteen and 
 fourteen years of age. The poor fellow had a 
 tragedy in his past. He was one of the staff of the 
 Sydney Museum, and, although so young, had 
 achieved much distinction by his writings on the 
 bird life of Australasia — promised to be a second 
 Gould, in fact. One day he let his young wife go 
 out alone for a sail in Sydney harbour. The boat 
 was run down by a steamer and the poor lady 
 drowned. That was bad enough, but the tragedy 
 was accentuated by the upper portion of her body 
 being found in the stomach of a huge shark which 
 
 28
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 was caught on the following day. Of course the 
 newspapers revelled in it, and Chesson nearly went 
 mad. He threw up his appointment, and, with 
 his two infant children, sailed for the South Seas, 
 and began life as a trader. I hope that we shall 
 find him still at MboH." 
 
 Waller, the optimistic, gave his fat, hearty laugh. 
 
 " Of course we shall, Carew ; and jolly glad he 
 will be to see you again." 
 
 Carew shook his head. 
 
 " Men live and die fast in the Western Pacific 
 islands, Waller. You will get to understand by-and- 
 by. Death always stares them in the face' day by 
 day, especially those who are so careless and idiotic 
 as to disregard the natives' customs, traditions and 
 religious beliefs. Not that Chesson was one of that 
 sort. But he was always too adventurous and care- 
 less of his personal safety. He actually crossed the 
 great island of Bougainville alone and unarmed, and 
 lived some months among the cannibal bush tribes, 
 merely for the purpose of discovering the truth of an 
 old story about a white man having been captured 
 by the mountaineers forty years ago, and dying 
 among them." 
 
 A little before sunset the battered, storm-tossed 
 little vessel sailed round a lofty, palm-crowned head- 
 land and entered the deep, placid harbour, the blue 
 waters of which were as smooth and unruffled as 
 those of some small mountain lake. A fleet of 
 canoes put off from the native village. They were 
 manned by the wildest looking savages imaginable, 
 
 29
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 who, however, greeted Carew in the most friendly 
 but vociferous manner. He entered into an earnest 
 conversation with them, and then turned to Sedley 
 and Waller with a very grave look in his eyes. 
 
 " Poor Chesson is gone. He and his son and the 
 three natives who formed the crew of his trading 
 cutter were cut off by the natives of Guadalcanar 
 two months ago. A w^oman alone escaped and 
 brought the news here. She says that Chesson and 
 his son were clubbed in the house of the local chief, 
 and the crew were slaughtered on board, and the 
 cutter looted and then burned. The woman was 
 spared on account of her being connected with the 
 murderers. She managed to make her way back 
 here only a week ago. Poor Miss Chesson is broken- 
 hearted. We must go on shore at once and see her. 
 There is the house, over there, just showing amongst 
 that clump of bread-fruit trees." 
 
 The boat was quickly lowered and manned, and 
 Carew and Sedley went on shore, and walked up to 
 the trader's house. Edith Chesson saw them 
 coming and almost ran to meet them, and some- 
 thing like a sob of joy burst from her when she 
 recognised Carew, who drew her to him as a father 
 would his own child. For some minutes, with her 
 face to his broad bosom, she wept silently, unable to 
 speak, and trembling from head to foot. Then 
 Carew gently led her back to the house, and, as the 
 tropic night fell and the myriad stars shone out, they 
 sat on the verandah, and she told her story to her 
 dead father's old friend. 
 
 30
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 " Poor little woman ! " said Carew, taking her thin 
 little hand in his, and pressing it gently; "you shall 
 be under my care now. And the first thing that I 
 am going to do is to make you well and strong." 
 (She was thin almost to the point of emaciation and 
 her face was as white as marble.) "To-morrow we 
 shall discuss what is to be done. Who is staying 
 with you in the house ? " 
 
 " Only the two women servants. But they are 
 very kind, and so, indeed, are all the natives. And 
 I am not at all afraid of any of them ; but " — and 
 here she hesitated — " I ant afraid of the new trader 
 who lives across the harbour. He is away now on a 
 trading cruise in his cutter. Father never liked 
 him. And I hate him." 
 
 CHAPTER IV 
 
 " Who is he ? " asked Carew, quickly. 
 
 " His name is Clissold, and he came here and 
 opened a trading station three years ago. He was 
 formerly in the Kanaka labour traffic and had a bad — 
 a very bad — reputation." 
 
 " I know the scoundrel quite well, my dear." 
 
 " He came here in his cutter with only one other 
 man who has since died of fever. Clissold bought a 
 piece of land here and built a house, and within 
 a few weeks my father and he quarrelled. The man 
 persisted in visiting us, and father one day bluntly 
 
 31
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 told him that he was not welcome and never would 
 be. Clissold asked why ? Had he not as much 
 right to earn his living on Florida as my father ? 
 he inquired. 
 
 " * Quite,' answered my father, ' but I don't want 
 you here. I will not associate with a man of your 
 character ! ' 
 
 " After that he never came again, and, indeed, he 
 and my father never again spoke to each other, even 
 when they passed on the beach. 
 
 " But when the news of my father's and brother's 
 deaths was brought here by the native woman who 
 escaped, he called to see me, expressed much 
 sympathy for me and asked if he could be of any 
 assistance. Of course, I was quite distracted at 
 the time and cannot remember what I said, except 
 that I thanked him. He came again on the follow- 
 ing day, when I was more collected, and then I began 
 to feel a little bit frightened at his manner. He was 
 not exactly rude, but he made me feel ' shaky.' He 
 said that as he was the only white man on the island 
 it was his duty to see that I came to no harm at the 
 hands of the natives, who would be strongly tempted 
 to kill me and plunder the station of all it contained. 
 This, I knew, was nonsense, for they always liked 
 and respected my father, and poor Harry and I have 
 lived among them nearly all our lives, with the excep- 
 tion of the few years we spent at school in New 
 Zealand. So I told him that I felt quite safe, and 
 would be content to remain as I was and carry 
 on my father's business until a ship came, when I 
 
 32
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 should endeavour to get to Auckland or Sydney. 
 M'buru, the head chief of the district, was in the 
 house at the time, paying me a visit of ' love for my 
 father ' as he termed his condolences, and I was quite 
 glad of the presence of the savage old fellow. He 
 gave me courage and confidence in myself." 
 
 Carew nodded. " M'buru is as decent and respect- 
 able a savage as Clissold is a blackguard." 
 
 "Yes. And he does not like Captain Clissold 
 either. All the time we were talking he kept his eyes 
 fixed steadily on the white man, until at last Clissold 
 angrily asked him to go away, but I made a sign to 
 him not to do so. 
 
 "*Why do you not go away, M'buru, Head of 
 Mboli,' repeated Clissold, speaking in the native 
 dialect. 
 
 " * Because Eta (myself) would speak to me of her 
 father and of her brother — and I am now her father and 
 her brother, and her uncle and her mother, and her 
 foster-mother,' replied the old chief with an ugly 
 scowl. 
 
 " Clissold pretended to be indignant and told me 
 that the old man meant to be rude to me, but I knew 
 exactly what M'buru did mean, and was grateful to 
 him. He meant that he had constituted himself my 
 guardian. He seemed to know that I was afraid 
 
 of Clissold, and his speech had one good effect 
 
 Captain Clissold at once became most suave, and 
 then went off, reiterating his offers of assistance 
 and advice. 
 
 " He came again on the following day and begged 
 
 33 c
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 me to see him on most important business. I asked 
 him to sit down. He had a folded paper in his hand 
 which he asked me to read. I did so. It was an 
 account of the massacre of my father's party (taken, 
 of course, from the native woman who brought the 
 news here), then it went on to say that I was in 
 a position of imminent peril, that I was in hourly 
 danger of being murdered by the treacherous natives, 
 and that he had offered me his assistance and protec- 
 tion, for he was aware of the fact that already the 
 natives were discussing among themselves the parti- 
 tion of my father's trade goods and personal effects. 
 
 " ' I want you to add and sign a brief postscript to 
 that. Miss Chesson,' he said, 'certifying to the truth 
 of my statements. You have declined all my offers 
 of assistance, although I again implore you to recon- 
 sider your decision. Now, I am as certain that these 
 natives intend to murder you as I am certain of 
 sitting in this chair, and I should not like to be held 
 up to public contempt as a man who had failed to do 
 his duty to a young and unprotected white woman 
 living among treacherous savages.' 
 
 " I declined to sign the document, much to his 
 (veiled) anger. Then he began questioning me as to 
 whether my father had made a will. This was too 
 much, and I rose from my seat saying that I did not 
 care to discuss such a matter with a stranger. He 
 made the most earnest protestations, said he had my 
 welfare at heart and that I misjudged him cruelly. 
 And the climax came on the following day," — here she 
 laughed — " he sent me a written offer of marriage." 
 
 34
 
 I 
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 " The old scoundrel ! " growled Carew. 
 
 " I sent a reply by one of M'buru's young men. 
 It was very curt, for I was angry and felt insulted. 
 A few days after this I became ill with fever and was 
 very despondent. M'buru had a litter made for me, 
 and I was taken to a mountain village, where, with 
 the two women, I remained a fortnight until I got 
 stronger. When we returned, M'buru told me that 
 Clissold had called almost every day demanding to 
 see me. The chief would give him no information, 
 and a quarrel ensued. Clissold tried to force his 
 way into the house, and M'buru and his men threw 
 him out and threatened to kill him. 
 
 " The man wrote me two more letters, which 
 I sent back unopened. And then a week ago 
 I saw his cutter leave the harbour, and was 
 thankful to learn that he had gone on a trading 
 trip down the coast, and would be away some 
 weeks." 
 
 Carew pondered deeply for some minutes, then his 
 face lit up. 
 
 ** We must not leave you here, my child, even with 
 M'buru to protect you, and there are matters that 
 prevent my breaking our voyage and taking you to 
 Levuka in Fiji, where you would be among white 
 people; it would occupy too much time." 
 
 Then he told her of the character of the voyage on 
 which the Restless was engaged, and of his anxiety to 
 get to work on the pearl shell at Roncador as quickly 
 as possible — three months before the bad weather 
 season set in. 
 
 35 c 2
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 " What I propose for you, Edith, is this : You 
 must come with us to Leueneuwa and stay there 
 whilst we return to Roncador and set about our 
 pearl-sheUing." 
 
 " Oh yes, gladly, Dr. Carew. I have been there 
 several times with my father and poor Harry, and 
 like the islands and the people very much. I shall be 
 quite happy there, I know." 
 
 Carew nodded, and then asked her to send a 
 messenger to M'buru asking the chief to come to 
 them at once. 
 
 " Now," he went on, addressing the girl and 
 Sedley jointly, "we will fix up things with the old 
 chief right away, and tell him of our intentions. He 
 will lend us every assistance — of that I am certain. 
 First of all, Edith, to-morrow morning we shall take 
 stock of your father's trade goods, and pack them all 
 ready to ship, together with all the casks of cocoanut 
 oil in the sheds, the boats and the other gear. In 
 four days Waller w-ill have the schooner fit for sea 
 again, and off we shall go to Ontong Java. There, 
 Edith, if you hke to begin trading again, you can do 
 so. I expect to be away at Roncador for over three 
 months, but we shall be neighbours — less than a 
 day's sail apart. And I will leave one of our A.B.'s 
 with you, a steady old fellow named Joe Cope. He 
 is a good carpenter as well as a boatbuilder, and you 
 will find him a most useful old man, although a bit 
 garrulous." 
 
 The girl smiled, and a few minutes later, whilst 
 she was giving Carew some details of her father's 
 
 36
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 property, the old chief appeared. He was quite 
 satisfied with what Carew told him, promised his 
 assistance, and also said he would provide the 
 schooner with as much fruit, vegetables, fish and 
 hogs as Carew liked to take. 
 
 Then, bidding their sad young hostess good-night, 
 the three men left — M'buru to his village, and the 
 white men to the Restless. 
 
 The next day was one of great excitement in the 
 native village, for M'buru had given orders for two 
 great feasts to be prepared, one in honour of Carew 
 and Waller, the other as a sort of valedictory banquet 
 to Edith Chesson, who had lived among them so 
 long and knew every man, woman and child in the 
 various villages on the coast, and in the mountains 
 as well. 
 
 Learning from Edith that there were several head of 
 cattle belonging to her father roaming about the open 
 littoral on the north end of the island, Carew sent off 
 Sedley with a party of willing natives to try and 
 shoot at least one of the animals, which were almost 
 wild, being the progeny of stock brought to the 
 islands several years before, when many American 
 whaleships touched there to buy a bullock as a 
 change from the everlasting salt junk. Sedley, armed 
 with a Snider carbine, started off in high spirits, and 
 Carew and Edith began the work of stocktaking and 
 repacking the trade goods. Many articles, at her 
 wish, were set aside as presents for the chief and 
 other natives, and M'buru's eyes glittered with joy 
 when, among other things, she gave him a brand new 
 
 37
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 double-barrelled shot-j^un, fitted with a 38-calibre 
 rifle barrel beneath. It was a weapon that was the 
 talk of the island when Chesson brought a pair of 
 them home with him on his last trip to S3'dney. 
 There was nothing he desired more, and the old 
 fellow went about with it throughout the village, 
 caressing and pressing it to his cheek as the joy of his 
 life and his only child. 
 
 Towards sunset loud yells of triumph resounded 
 along the beach — the hunting party had returned, 
 carrying the carcase of a two-year-old bull which 
 Sedley had shot in a swamp situated some miles 
 from the head of the harbour. This was a welcome 
 addition to the schooner's larder, and Sedley being 
 the "butcher" was up at daylight on the following 
 morning cutting up the carcase with the skill of a 
 practised hand — for most Australian bushmen and 
 diggers learn to do their own butchering. 
 
 Four days later everything was in readiness for the 
 Restless to sail. The native feast had been given, the 
 schooner's decks stacked with yams, taro, hundreds 
 of bunches of bananas, and baskets of other fruit, 
 and, surrounded by a fleet of canoes crowded with 
 vociferous natives bawling out their farewells, the 
 little vessel at noon stood out of the harbour with a 
 brisk, leading breeze, and then headed northward on 
 her course for Lueneuwa. 
 
 38
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 CHAPTER V 
 
 Within the great reef-bound circle of Roncador 
 Atoll the smooth, pale-green waters shone and 
 sparkled under the bright tropic sun ; without, the 
 ever-restless rollers beat and thundered upon the 
 jagged coral barrier, the white, foaming ring of 
 hissing surf rushing in sweeping torrents half way 
 across, till its impulse was spent, then sinking down 
 through a million crevices and bubbling holes to 
 swell the gently heaving lake, under whose bosom 
 lay the treasures of pearl-shell which Carew and his 
 comrades had come to seek. 
 
 Moored in shallow water, and within a hundred 
 yards of the shore in a safe and well -sheltered place, 
 was the Restless, sitting much deeper in the water 
 than she had done three months previously, for in 
 her hold were sixty tons of pearl-shell, and she 
 needed but ten tons more to complete her cargo. 
 And this ten tons was now being sorted, according 
 to size, and packed in cases ready for shipment ; 
 then the schooner would return to Lueneuwa, where 
 Carew would consult with his partners as to their 
 next course. 
 
 Fortune had indeed smiled upon the adventurers. 
 The vessel's former bad luck seemed to have left her 
 the day that Edith Chesson had come on board, for 
 the schooner made a remarkably quick passage to 
 Lueneuwa after leaving Mboli Harbour, and on the 
 
 39
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reet 
 
 morning of the fifth day out, Suka, who was aloft on 
 the look-out, uttered a j^ell of delight. 
 
 " Ke panua, ke panua!" (The land, the land.) 
 At noon the schooner entered the noble lagoon 
 through what is now called the Kaveiko Pass, and 
 almost instantly she was surrounded by a fleet of 
 canoes, the occupants of which, when they recog- 
 nised the long-lost Suka, went into a frantic state of 
 excitement, and, clambering on board, they embraced 
 him as one returned from the dead. To Carew, also, 
 they gave a warm welcome, and when, later on, he 
 told them he wanted twenty men to dive for him, 
 five times that number eagerly volunteered. 
 
 The next few days were passed in completing 
 arrangements with the natives for the building of 
 a house for Edith Chesson. They were delighted to 
 know that she intended to remain with them for 
 some months and carry on the business of a trader. 
 No trading ship had visited the island for two years, 
 and the people had made a considerable quantity of 
 cocoanut oil, which, for want of casks, they had 
 been obliged to store in canoes, hollowed-out tree 
 trunks, and large bamboos. Edith told them that 
 although Dr. Carew had no casks to spare from the 
 schooner, that she would still buy the oil, and pay 
 them half the value for it, and that she would let 
 them keep it until she and Carew sent another vessel 
 for it from Sini (Sydney), when they would receive 
 the other half. For in those days cocoanut oil 
 brought high prices in the marts of the world, and 
 so Carew advised his dead friend's daughter to buy 
 
 40
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 it at once, before some chance trading vessel came 
 along and "snapped it up." So Edith paid out a 
 certain quantity of strong twist tobacco, axes, knives 
 and other articles of barter, and the matter was 
 satisfactorily concluded. 
 
 Within a week, so quickly did the native builders 
 work, the house was built, and Edith, with one of 
 her former women servants, was installed, with old 
 Joe Cope as their companion. The house was a 
 combined dwelling-house and " store," and was built 
 of cane and bamboo, and thatched with the leaf of 
 the pandanus palm. 
 
 Something very like a sob escaped her when the 
 time came for her to say farewell to the three com- 
 rades ; but she struggled against it bravely as she 
 put her hand in each of theirs in turn. 
 
 " You have all been so good to me," she said, with 
 a quaver in her voice, " I cannot tell you ; I should 
 break down and begin to cry if I tried to utter all 
 that is in my heart. . . . But oh, I wish you all — 
 you, dear Dr. Carew, you. Captain Waller, and you, 
 Mr. Sedley — all the best luck in the world, to com- 
 pensate you for your past misfortunes. I trust you 
 will soon load the Reckless with montiara* and come 
 sailing bravely back into this lagoon with everyone 
 on board well and happy. As the time draws near 
 for your return, I shall watch for you once every 
 evening before sunset, from the top of the little head- 
 land on Kaveiko. And " (her voice became almost a 
 whisper) " every night and morning I shall pray to 
 
 • One of the Malayo-Polyuesian names for pearl shell. 
 
 41
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 God to guard and protect you, and bring you back 
 in safety to Lueneuwa — as I know that He will." 
 
 Then, impulsively, she placed a hand on each side 
 of the bearded cheeks of Carew and Sedley, and 
 then on the fat face of the skipper, and kissed them 
 on the lips, as a child would kiss its mother, or 
 someone whom it loved. 
 
 ***** 
 
 In a ramshackle-looking but yet comfortable shed 
 on an islet of coral debris, just abreast oi the Reckless, 
 Carew, Waller, and some of the crew of the schooner 
 were attending to the packing of the last ten tons of 
 pearl shell. Sedley was not with them, for he had 
 met with a serious accident soon after they had 
 established themselves on the atoll, and had to be 
 sent back to Lueneuwa, to be placed under the care 
 of Joe Cope and Edith Chesson. The accident was 
 caused by his over-eagerness to assist Waller and 
 the crew in hauling the schooner closer in to the 
 beach during a sudden squall, which had lashed the 
 usually calm waters of the atoll into a seething 
 turmoil. When the anchor was let go again Sedley 
 stumbled and fell on the flaked out cable just as it 
 flew out. His left foot was caught in the chain and 
 so severely crushed that Carew decided to send him 
 to Lueneuwa, where he would receive better atten- 
 tion, nursing and food than on Roncador. In vain 
 Sedley protested ; Carew was inflexible, so Waller 
 had sailed again for Lueneuwa and left behind the 
 injured man. 
 
 " Well, old man," observed Carew to his com- 
 
 42
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 panion, ' we have done well ; between ^^3,000 and 
 ;^4,ooo worth of shell in three months, and all 
 obtained in shallow water ; and I believe that there 
 are another two hundred tons still in the lagoon." 
 
 " How was it, I wonder, that when the party of 
 Ontong Java natives were blown here they did not 
 discover the shell ? " remarked Waller. 
 
 " I cannot tell, but it may have been that in those 
 days there was but little or no shell here ; it is quite 
 possible that the beds which are now spread over the 
 lagoon may be the result of young oysters, which 
 have been brought here and planted by white men, 
 perhaps fifty years ago, and something may have 
 prevented them ever returning. Then, again, as 
 Suka says, the party of natives who were blown here 
 m.ay have seen plenty of shell, but as there was also 
 abundance in their own lagoon, they did not trouble 
 about returning here to get more. Their canoes, as 
 you know, are very small and frail, and not fitted for 
 such a long voyage. And all the time that I was 
 living on Lueneuwa, although I often heard the 
 people speak of Palan, as Roncador is called, I never 
 heard them say anything about the lagoon containing 
 pearl shell. Suka, of course, who discovered it and 
 told me, had no chance of communicating the fact 
 to his countrymen, for, as I told you, the schooner 
 which rescued him took him to Queensland, where I 
 so fortunately came across him. And now the}- have 
 given me a promise not to mention the fact to any 
 white man or men who may visit them. If it were 
 known in Honolulu, Fiji, or Samoa, half a dozen 
 
 43
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 parties would make a rush for Roncador, and we 
 should have to fight for our share, let alone our right 
 of prior discover}'." 
 
 Then Carew went on to say that he had been 
 seriously considering what would be the best course 
 for them to pursue when leaving the island on the 
 present occasion. Should he place ten or a dozen of 
 the native divers in charge to await the return of the 
 Restless or another and larger vessel from Sydney, 
 or should he destroy all traces of their present 
 occupancy and leave the lagoon to itself. 
 
 " I think, Waller, the latter will be our best course. 
 If we left any natives here they would be sure to 
 attract the attention of any passing vessel, the 
 captain of which would think that they were cast- 
 aways, and come to their assistance ; and if so he 
 could not fail to discover the reason of their presence, 
 and then ' the fat would be in the fire.' Then, also, 
 I doubt if they would consent to stay here without a 
 white man ; they would be afraid of being kidnapped 
 by some ' blackbirder ' and carried off to Honolulu, 
 Fiji or Tahiti. So we shall decide upon the second 
 plan." 
 
 " I think you are right, Carew. Some passing 
 vessel might come poking about here, and seeing the 
 place was inhabited, send a boat on shore, or even 
 come inside the atoll if her skipper discovered the 
 passage. And in such clear water no one could fail 
 to see the pearl shell." 
 
 That night the last of the valuable cargo was on 
 board, and all was in readiness. At daylight all the 
 
 44
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 native divers and Carew went on shore, set fire to 
 the hut, cut down the few half-grown cocoa pahns 
 and burned or buried every possible article, such as 
 empty beef tins, old cordage, water casks, etc., etc., 
 that lay about the islet ; and then the party returned 
 to the schooner, the boat was hoisted up and secured, 
 and the willing crew sprang to the windlass brakes 
 and hove up anchor, the little vessel flapping her 
 canvas and straining at her cable as if eager once more 
 to feel the open sea. Half an hour after she swept 
 through the narrow passage between the reef, and 
 Roncador was left, for another six months, to the 
 bellowing roar of the foaming surf and the wild 
 clamour of myriad seabirds. Well did it deserve its 
 name of " The Snorer," given to it by the pilot 
 Maurelle, who discovered the place in 1791. One 
 night when his ship was *' lying becalmed (he says) 
 we heard a strange and continuous sound coming 
 from a far distance, as of a man snoring heavily. 
 We were five leagues distant." 
 
 The deeply-laden schooner made a quick run to 
 Lueneuwa, and passing through Kaveiko Pass entered 
 the lagoon, and, rounding the palm-clad point, came 
 in sight of a white-painted vessel, flying British 
 colours, anchored off the village. She was surrounded 
 by canoes laden with fruit and vegetables, and proved 
 to be the missionary ship John Hunt of Fiji, making 
 her first call at the lagoon, and had arrived only the 
 previous day. 
 
 Passing on ahead of her, Waller brought to and let 
 go his anchor abreast of Miss Chesson's house, and 
 
 45
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 at the same moment Sedley and Joe Cope were seen 
 running down to their boat, which was launched and 
 awaiting them, and then Edith Chesson appeared in 
 her doorway waving her handkerchief to Carew and 
 Waller. 
 
 Sedley was soon on board and grasping their hands. 
 He looked well, but his face wore an anxious and 
 strained look. 
 
 "All well on shore, Sedley ? " 
 
 " All well, thank God ! But we have had a terrible 
 turn up here last week. Clissold came here and tried 
 to abduct Miss Chesson, and in the fvacds that took 
 place I shot him." 
 
 " No, Captain Waller," interrupted Cope, " it was 
 me as killed him ; and I ain't going to let Mr. Sedley 
 have either the blame or credit for it. I can swear it 
 was my shot that did for him." 
 
 " Come below and tell us all about it," said Carew 
 in his usual quiet manner. " Suka, tell your friends 
 who are now coming alongside in their canoes not to 
 disturb us — I will see them by-and-bye. And let the 
 man in Mr. Sedley's boat go back and tell the white 
 lady that we are all well and will be with her in an 
 hour or so. Now Sedley, my lad, don't look so 
 worried," and he clapped him on the shoulder. 
 " Come below, and we shall hear all about it." 
 
 " Miss Chesson would have come on board with 
 me," said the younger man as they entered the cabin, 
 "but she has visitors from the John Hunt — two ladies 
 — and so could not well get away." 
 " How is she ? " inquired Carew. 
 
 46
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 " Oh, splendid, and looks more beautiful than ever," 
 was Sedley's quick answer. 
 
 Fat-faced Captain Waller looked at Carew and 
 deliberately winked. 
 
 CHAPTER VI 
 
 " First of all, Carew, tell me how you have fared 
 on Roncador," inquired Sedley. 
 
 " Splendidly, my dear fellow, splendidly. Seventy 
 tons of fine black-edge shell on board, worth from 
 £50 to £65 per ton, according to size. And as yet 
 we have only been tickling the place." 
 
 " Good. I am happy to hear it — not for my own 
 sake," he added quickly. 
 
 Carew smiled in his kindly way. 
 
 " Well, you ought to be," he said. 
 
 " Perhaps our friend has discovered a greater 
 treasure here on Lueneuwa," said Waller, with a fat, 
 chuckling laugh, and again he winked — this time at 
 Joe Cope, who returned it in the most barefaced 
 manner — and Sedley's bronzed face flushed a deep 
 red. Carew noticed his embarrassment, and at once 
 came to the rescue. 
 
 " Now, Sedley, go ahead, and tell us what 
 happened, and how that hoary scoundrel got his 
 deserts." 
 
 " Unfortunately his was not the only death. The 
 cruel brute shot poor Siti dead, wounded Malu 
 
 47
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 severely, and also killed a native boy who came to 
 Miss Chesson's assistance. (Siti and j\Ialu were 
 the two old women servants she had brought with 
 her from Mboli. They had been with her father 
 since she was a child, and both were devoted to 
 " Eta.") And besides him, two of his boat's crew were 
 killed. Neither Joe nor I were present at the first of 
 it, and what I tell j^ou now, of that part, we heard 
 from Miss Chesson and some of the natives. Now, 
 I'll start at the beginning. 
 
 "All went on swimmingly after you left me here, 
 Waller. The natives began making more cocoanut oil, 
 and storing it in long bamboos and dug-outs; Joe began 
 building a boat, and that boat was the means of 
 saving Miss Chesson from being carried off. 
 
 " I, of course, on account of my foot, was a lame 
 duck for the first eight weeks, and could do nothing 
 but loaf around, watch Miss Chesson trading with 
 the natives, or look at Joe and his boat-building. 
 But as soon as I was able to walk I helped Joe with 
 the boat, and when she was finished we used to go 
 on trading trips to the various islands in the lagoon, 
 for the natives made a lot of oil. Sometimes we 
 would be away for two or three days. 
 
 " About a fortnight ago the people of Leuneuwa 
 started off in their canoes to go to the island called 
 Ekolo, to pull cocoanuts for oil making. They 
 expected to be away eight or ten days. Nearly 
 everyone went, only a few women and children 
 remaining behind. 
 
 " The day after they left Miss Chesson got a 
 
 48
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 message from the people on Kalan Island, near the 
 west passage, asking her to send the boat there, as 
 they had some oil for us. So off we went, leaving 
 Miss Chesson, the two women, and a native boy in 
 the house. She told us not to hurry back, as she 
 would not be lonely, and said that we ought to take 
 our rifles with us, as the natives said that there were 
 a number of wild pigs on Kalan, which were devas- 
 tating their plantations, and the people would be glad 
 if we would stay there for a few days, and shoot as 
 many as we could. 
 
 *' We got to the island, bought the oil, and then 
 had a day's fine sport, getting eleven pigs, some of 
 which we put in the boat to bring home to salt down. 
 We left about midnight, and on our way called in at 
 Ekolo, and presented the chief with a pig, then went 
 on. There was hardly any wind, and we were still a 
 mile from the house at daylight, when it fell a calm. 
 Just abreast of where we were then the island is very 
 narrow — less than a quarter of a mile — and only a 
 few scattered cocoanut trees on it, and you can see 
 the open sea on the other side. 
 
 " Suddenly, through the trees, we caught sight of 
 a small white-painted schooner. She was hove to — 
 for there was a breeze outside, although it was a calm 
 inside the lagoon — and she was quite close in, so 
 close that we could see her people moving about on 
 deck. 
 
 " We at once took to the oars, and began to pull 
 in to the house, and were only about two hundred 
 yards off when we heard screams, and then gunshots, 
 
 49 D
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reet 
 
 and, standing up, we saw several men dressed in 
 European clothing running in and out of the house ; 
 then there was another shot, and more shouting. 
 
 "We urged the heavily laden boat along till she 
 grounded about fifty yards from the beach, it being 
 low tide. Then, grabbing our rifles and cartridge 
 pouches, we jumped out, waded on shore, and rushed 
 up to the house. Just outside the door we found 
 the woman Malu lying down, her thigh bone smashed 
 by a bullet. 
 
 " * Quick, quick, you go quick and kill him, Klisso. 
 Klisso take away Eta ! ' she cried in her broken 
 English, and she pointed along the track that leads 
 from the house through the cocoanut trees to the 
 outer beach. 
 
 " We tore along the path, and soon caught sight 
 of Clissold and his party of four Manila men. They 
 were just about to descend the steep and rugged 
 track that winds through those big coral boulders to 
 the outer beach. Two of them were carrying Miss 
 Chesson who, at that moment, had freed one hand 
 and arm, and twisted it amongst the protruding roots 
 of one of those tough creepers that grow on the coral 
 boulders, and the men were trying to make her let 
 go. Behind them were two others, carrying Miss 
 Chesson's clothing trunk, and last of all was Chssold. 
 His back was turned to us, and he was coolly watching 
 the two Manila men trying to force Miss Chesson to 
 release her hold of the roots. He had his pistol in 
 his hand, and the moment he heard us behind him 
 he turned and fired at us. 
 
 50
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 ** Both Joe and 1 fired at the same time. He spun 
 round and pitched down the path on top of the men 
 carrying the heavy trunk. They dropped the trunk 
 and ran ; but the other two, who had Miss Chesson, 
 let her go turned and faced us with the heavy old- 
 fashioned Colt's revolvers they carried, and the first 
 shot they fired nearly wiped out poor Joe, for the 
 bullet ploughed along the top of his head. But they 
 both went down at our first fire, and when we came 
 to look at them a little while after we found them 
 both dying. 
 
 " Meanwhile the other two had got away down to 
 the reef to their boat, which at once pushed off for 
 Clissold's schooner. I daresay that Joe and I could 
 have wiped out the whole lot of them with our 
 Sniders ; but we had to attend to Miss Chesson, 
 who had fainted. Her right arm was torn and 
 bleeding from the rough usage she had received. 
 We carried her back to the house, where an awful 
 sight met us. 
 
 " Poor old Siti was lying dead on the floor, 
 with a bullet through her heart. In her clutched 
 left hand was a long tuft of Clissold's white beard, 
 which she had torn out. Quite near her was the 
 poor native boy, who had not only been shot by 
 Clissold, but stabbed over and over again by the 
 Manila men. 
 
 ** The house was in an awful mess. Malu says 
 that after Clissold shot Siti and herself and the boy, he 
 turned everything upside down, breaking open boxes, 
 and searching among the contents. She saw him 
 
 51 l> 2
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reet 
 
 collect a lot offletters and 'papers, which he looked 
 at hurriedly, tied together in a bundle and gave to 
 one of the Manila men. Then he came across 
 Mr. Chesson's two cash boxes, which were, as you 
 know, full of English and American gold and silver. 
 These he put into Miss Chesson's trunk, together 
 with all her loose clothing that was in her bedroom, 
 and then ordered two of the Manila men to carry it 
 down to the boat. I believe that he was delayed in 
 searching for Mr. Chesson's will, which Miss Chesson 
 tells me is in one of the cash boxes." 
 
 Carew bent his head in assent. 
 
 ** Yes. Edith showed it to me. It was made 
 seven years ago, in Levuka, Fiji, Chesson leaving all 
 his money and possessions generally to his son 
 Harry and his daughter Edith. Go on, Sedley." 
 
 "That is pretty nearly all, doctor. Clissold's 
 schooner, after the boat with the two Manila men 
 who escaped came alongside, stood away to the east- 
 ward, two boats towing her so as to get well clear of 
 the island as quickly as possible. No doubt those on 
 board were afraid that the Leueneuwa people would 
 come off in their canoes and capture her, and as there 
 was only a very faint breeze they used their boats to 
 get away as soon as they could. 
 
 " The John H tint arrived here yesterday, and her 
 captain and the missionaries on board told me that 
 Clissold appeared in Levuka about a month ago, 
 bought a schooner and shipped a crew of nine Manila 
 men who had just been released from gaol after 
 serving six months' imprisonment for mutiny on an 
 
 52
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 Indian coolie ship. The captain of the missionary 
 vessel thinks that Clissold must have ascertained 
 from the Florida Island natives that Miss Chesson 
 had come here, and that he had been hanging about 
 the island for some time, as his vessel was sighted 
 by the John Hunt four days previously, between here 
 and Roncador. Now, that is the end of my yarn, as 
 you sailor fellows sa}^ and I want to know if I ought 
 to go to Fiji in the John Hunt and surrender myself 
 to the authorities there for shooting Clissold and his 
 men — for I certainly did kill one of the men even if 
 I did not kill him." 
 
 Carew laughed quietly. 
 
 " Don't worry yourself, my lad. These islands are 
 out of the jurisdiction of the Governor of Fiji, and 
 even if they were not the authorities in Levuka would 
 not trouble you nor Joe Cope over the shooting of a 
 notorious ruffian like x\dam Clissold. All you need 
 do is to send in a report of the affair to Commodore 
 Goodenough, commanding the Australian station, 
 and then, in the course of twelve months or so, a 
 man-of-war will be sent ' to investigate the case,' and 
 the captain of that man-of-war will do his level best 
 not to find you. And if he does find you he will only 
 talk a lot of stereotyped nonsense to you about the 
 * impropriety ' of taking the law into your own hands, 
 tell you not to do it again, and report to the Com- 
 modore that the affair was ' a regrettable incident, 
 characteristic of the lawless conditions prevailing on 
 those islands outside of the jurisdiction of Her 
 Majesty's Government in Fiji, but that Mr. Sedley 
 
 S3
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 and the seaman Joseph Cope appear to me to have 
 acted in quite a justifiable manner, considering the 
 exigencies of the case.' " 
 
 Waller chuckled. 
 
 " That's the regular naval officer kind of gag. 
 So cheer up, Sedley, old man." 
 
 " Now for the shore," said Carew. " Bj' the way, 
 Sedley, do you know where the missionary vessel is 
 bound for, after she leaves here ? " 
 
 " For Levuka direct, and she sails to-morrow. 
 There are two missionaries and their wives, and I 
 think one couple are to remain here. Just now the 
 captain and the two parsons are away at Ekolo to 
 choose a site for the mission house ; and the two 
 ladies are staying with Miss Chesson till the}' return 
 to-night." 
 
 " I shall want to send a letter by that vessel to 
 Fiji," said Carew, as the}' descended into the boat ; 
 ** the commodore's ship is cruising about there, I 
 know, and I will write to him and apply for permis- 
 sion to be allowed to hoist the English flag on 
 Roncador temporarily, until a ship of war comes and 
 confirms our possession in the usual formal manner. 
 And you, Sedley, must also write him a report of the 
 Clissold affair, and Miss Chesson, Cope and the 
 woman Malu must witness it." 
 
 54
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 CHAPTER VII 
 
 The two missionaries and the master of the 
 mission vessel all proved to be very pleasant fellows, 
 and through Carew's influence with the natives a 
 piece of ground was bought from them for a very 
 moderate sum. Some days passed before the John 
 Hunt sailed, and during that time something very 
 important had occurred — of which the reader shall 
 duly learn. 
 
 Once more Carew had to employ his surgical skill 
 on poor Malu, who bore the knife with patient 
 resignation, and without a murmur, being content 
 with Edith holding her hand. 
 
 " Don't believe in administering anaesthetics to a 
 native, Mr. Fife," remarked Carew to one of the 
 missionaries who was assisting in the operation of 
 extracting the bullet from the smashed thigh bone ; 
 " they bear pain in the most marvellous manner, and 
 I have hardly ever known a case of a bullet wound 
 or knife thrust which did not heal with the first 
 intention. Purer blood than our ages-contaminated 
 fluid, you see. Ha ! here we are at last ; here it is. 
 Malu," — and here he spoke to the patient in her own 
 tongue — " thou wilt be a notable woman. This bullet 
 is flattened out to the size of a half-dollar. I will 
 make thee a present of it to wear in the lobe of thy 
 ear as an ornament. Art in pain, my sweet child ? " 
 (She was sixt}' years of age.) " No ? 'Tis well. I hate 
 a whimpering child. Now, Mr. Fife, basin and 
 
 55
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 sponges again, please. Edith, my dear, you have 
 the makings of a good hospital nurse in you. You 
 have done those dry cocoanut spathes exactly as I 
 wanted them done. They make splendid splints, 
 don't they Mr. Fife," and so he chatted on until the 
 operation was finished, and Malu was carried outside 
 on a litter and placed under the shade of a wild 
 mango tree to receive the admiration and congratula- 
 tions of some hundreds of native women, who passed 
 the bullet from hand to hand. 
 
 In the afternoon Carew and Edith went for a walk 
 through the palm-grove and were absent for an hour. 
 
 " Edith and I are going for a quiet walk — to talk 
 business," he said with pretended gravity to Sedley 
 and Waller, who at the time were in the sitting-room 
 with the skipper of the missionary ship, smoking 
 their pipes and spinning yarns. 
 
 " I should be much obliged, Dr. Carew, if you 
 will give me a few minutes before you go," said 
 Sedley, rising. 
 
 " Oh, all right, confound you. Come along into 
 the store and say what you have to say. It is 
 very rude to keep a lady waiting, eh, Captain 
 Braithwaite ? " 
 
 " Disgraceful, doctor — simply disgraceful ! Mr. 
 Sedley ought to be ashamed of himself"; and the 
 skipper, who had ' heard something ' from Mr. 
 Joseph Cope, A.B., dug his elbow into the ribs of 
 his brother master mariner. 
 
 Carew and Sedley went into the store — the 
 entrance to which was from the sitting-room. 
 
 56
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 "I know what it is you want to say to me, my 
 dear boy," said Carew, sitting down on a case of 
 musi^ets, and motioning Sedley to a seat on a coil of 
 Manila rope ; " Edith told me all about it last evening. 
 And I am happy to think that I have been the means 
 of your meeting each other. Now, I am not Edith's 
 legal guardian, but I must become so for the time — 
 I am like a bishop in partihus. My diocese is not 
 defined clearly, but yet clearly enough for me to see 
 that you two young people are lovers and will be 
 very happy. Now you can ' get,' as we say in 
 Australia. When Edith and I come back from our 
 walk, you can show up again. And then we shall 
 have to see Fife about the marriage, which can take 
 place here to-morrow, as the John Hunt, as a matter 
 of fact, is only staying here at my request. Fife 
 knows all about it, for I have told him. Don't sit 
 there gaping at me"; and then Carew, with an 
 aching heart, but with a genial smile — for he had 
 indulged in visions of himself and Edith Chesson — 
 pushed Sedley out of the room, and then went for 
 his walk with her. 
 
 He had steeled himself to the inevitable, and when 
 they returned to the house, Edith Chesson did not 
 know that the quiet, calm-faced Doctor Carew had 
 ever thought of her other than as a child of an old 
 friend. For Carew was a MAN. 
 
 ***** 
 
 In the cabin of the Restless the three comrades 
 were talking, or rather listening to Carew, who was 
 outlining their plans for the future. 
 
 57
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reet 
 
 " You, Waller, will go to Sydney, calling at Ron- 
 cador on the way, and leave me there with a party 
 of thirty native divers. We must run no more risks, 
 and, possession being nine points of the law, the 
 sooner I am back there again the better it will be for 
 us all. Then, when you get to Sydney, pay the rest 
 of the money due on the Restless bottomry bond. 
 Then go to old John Kelly at the Merchants' 
 Exchange, give him this letter, and tell him all about 
 Roncador. He is a man we can trust. He will sell 
 the cargo of pearl shell for you to Dalgetty and 
 Company, and )'0u will have something like ;^4,500 
 in hand. Place it in Kelly's hand, and you and he 
 can look out for and buy another vessel in place of 
 the old Restless. Two thousand pounds will be 
 sufficient for that. Then he will sell the Restless — 
 the poor old tub won't bring more than £300, but it 
 will be £"300 to our joint account. Take ;^5oo for 
 yourself— I'm not paying you any wages as skipper, 
 my 'fat-faced friend' — and put £"500 each to the 
 credit of Sedley and myself at the Commercial Bank. 
 Trust old Daddy Kelly in everything. He is a rich 
 man, as straight as a die, and only keeps on at the 
 Exchange piling up money because he has no other 
 interest in life. I have asked him to come in with us, 
 so you need not be surprised if he offers to put in 
 ;^5,ooo or so. He is a queer old chap. Had over- 
 eaten himself one day, and was taken seriously ill in 
 Aaron's Hotel, and dropped down. I was staying 
 there, and looked after him for a week or so. He 
 asked me, in his gruff manner, how much he had to 
 
 58
 
 The Pearl Divers of Roncador Reef 
 
 pay me. I said ' nothing,' as I was not entitled to 
 practise in New South Wales. He glared at me, and 
 said that I was an honest sort of lunatic, wrote out a 
 cheque for £50, rammed it into me, and would not take 
 it back when I protested. I paid it back again into 
 his bankers, for I was not only not hard up, but could 
 not legall)' take a fee, as I had not registered myself 
 according to the New South Wales law. So we 
 became great friends, and I am sure that when I was 
 cast for that ;£'i,ooo damages in the libel suit at 
 Townsville, that old Daddy Kelly, as he is called, 
 would have sent me the money had I asked him." 
 
 Waller gave his fat chuckle. ** He is one of the 
 good angels that we poor sailor men never meet." 
 
 " Yes," remarked Carew, stolidly ; " the only kind 
 of * angels ' which you unmarried sailor-men meet 
 are not good for you." 
 
 Then he went on : 
 
 " You, Sedley, will remain here, as Edith is quite 
 content. She will have the society of Mrs. Fife, and 
 50U will be as jolly as a covey of sand-boys. Now 
 this long-winded oration of mine is finished " ; and 
 then, turning to Waller, he said, with a smile, " Give 
 the order to dress ship. Captain Waller; the John 
 Hunt will respond with all the bunting she has. 
 Sedley, my lad, get you ashore, and make yourself 
 pretty. Only an hour for you, my boy. I shall give 
 the bride away, and you and I, Waller, lucky dogs 
 that we are, shall both kiss her." 
 
 59
 
 JIM TROLLOPE AND MYSELF
 
 JIM TROLLOPE AND MYSELF 
 
 OR, A LONG TRAMP ON AN AUSTRAL 
 
 SHORE 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 Although the writer of these reminiscences of 
 travel, adventure, and sport cannot in any sense 
 claim to be a traveller of great experience — for his 
 wanderings were nearly all confined to California, the 
 islands of the North and South Pacific, and the coasts 
 of Eastern and Northern Australia — he trusts that 
 his readers will find in his narrative much that will 
 interest and possibly instruct, although he fears that 
 the continual reiteration of the personal " I " will 
 prove annoying. This, however, cannot be well 
 avoided, for on these wanderings and boat voyages 
 he w^as usually solus, and perhaps " I " is preferable 
 to the pedantic " we." 
 
 I may mention here that I am a native of the 
 eastern coast of Australia and, although sent to 
 sea at an early age, I, in company with my brothers, 
 was very familiar with a great part of the seaboard 
 of New South Wales, along which we made long 
 tramps, sometimes remaining away from home for 
 weeks at a time. And when, in later years, I returned 
 at intervals from my cruises among the islands of the 
 
 63
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 North and South Pacific, I frequently had the oppor- 
 tunit}' of revisiting the scenes of my boyhood's days. 
 And although I would be alone on these occasions, 
 I was never in any sense lonely — being excellent 
 company for myself — and my wanderings gave me the 
 utmost enjoyment and happiness. 
 
 Only a few months ago I received a letter from a 
 brother, two years older than myself, who, after an 
 absence from our native district of thirty years, again 
 found himself there to inspect and report upon some 
 newly discovered silver deposits. " We camped," he 
 wrote, " at the junction of the Hastings and Wilson 
 Rivers. The country is marvellously little changed. 
 Settlement has not made much progress — indeed, 
 there are now more abandoned homesteads and 
 selections than there were in the days of our youth. 
 . . . The river was alive with large perch, which bit 
 freely, and game is as plentiful as ever. . . . Although 
 fifteen miles from the sea, we can, when an easterly 
 is blowing, sometimes hear the surf on the bar quite 
 plainly. ... I wish you were here. . . . Come out 
 of your cold English winter, and bask in the glorious 
 Australian sunshine, and loaf under the cedars and 
 blackbutts, and catch perch and river mullet." 
 
 Ah ! I wish it were possible for me so to do, instead 
 of sitting here in my study, looking at the bleak and 
 snow-covered Sussex Downs. 
 
 I have, as stated, made many long and lonely 
 tramps along the seaboard of New South Wales, and 
 that which I am now describing was about the longest 
 of all — not as regards the distance covered, but as to 
 
 64
 
 Jim Trollopc and Myself 
 
 time. There beinj2j no need for me to hurry, I took 
 matters very leisurely, and when I set out had no 
 definite idea of making for any particular place, nor 
 cared whether my tramp occupied me two weeks or 
 two months. I only wanted to enjoy myself in my 
 own fashion, go where I liked, and recover my health, 
 which had suffered from a severe attack of malarial 
 fever, contracted in the islands of the North West 
 Pacific, and I knew that nothing could be better for 
 me than the open air, rough plain food, and plenty 
 of exercise. Most of the coast of New South Wales 
 was familiar to me from childhood, and on this 
 occasion I wanted to revisit the district where so 
 many happy years had been spent. 
 
 The South Sea trading firm by which I was 
 employed gave me four months' leave, and the first 
 week of my arrival in Sydney was spent in making 
 preparations. First of all, the matter of funds had 
 to be considered, and I reckoned that I could get all 
 the outfit I wanted, and pay all my expenses (in 
 case I had sometimes to put up at hotels), for less 
 than ;^20. 
 
 Looking in the shipping advertisements in the 
 Herald, I saw that a timber ketch was to sail for 
 Camden Haven in a few days, and within an hour I 
 had seen her skipper, who engaged to land me at or 
 near Camden Haven, with all my belongings, for the 
 modest sum of two pounds. This included my food 
 as well. And I blush with shame, even after all 
 these years, when I recall the fact that I was on 
 board for eight days, and had an appetite like a 
 
 65 E
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 starving shark. This was owing to the change of 
 climate driving the poison fever out of my veins. 
 However, the worthy mariner did not grumble, for 
 during the trip of 150 miles I caught plenty of fish 
 for the ship's compan}' (five all told), and shot a 
 great number of birds as well at several spots on the 
 coast. Let me enumerate my belongings as they 
 were placed on the deck of the ketch Margaret : — 
 D. B. 16 bore, with ample supply of ammunition ; a 
 Winchester carbine for kangaroo, with 250 cartridges; 
 a hatchet in leather case ; heav)' jack knife ; half a 
 dozen of the best fishing lines that could be bought 
 for money, with ample supplies of hooks, sinkers, 
 etc. ; a small tent and fly (seldom used) ; tin billy can, 
 knife, fork, spoon, etc. ; and a canvas " hold all," fitted 
 so as to carry a week's provisions — salt meat, biscuit 
 or bread, tea, sugar, flour, etc. And then there were 
 other small articles in the way of tools, etc., that every 
 sailor man or bushman always find useful. 
 
 We left Market Street wharf early in the afternoon, 
 and ran down to Sydney Heads within an hour, 
 before a fine breeze, and then we stood away to the 
 northward, running along at about three miles from the 
 land to avoid the strong southerly current. The 
 Margaret was a centre-board vessel, and a fine sailer, 
 and her skipper, who was also owner, was very proud 
 of his craft. He and the mate and most of the hands 
 were Scandinavians — big, stalwart, sober and honest 
 fellows, and fine sailor men. The cook was an 
 eccentric genius, and one of the merriest rogues that 
 ever went to sea. He was either laughing, talking, 
 
 66
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 or singing all day, and much of the night, was a 
 London cockney, and was full of whaling }'arns and 
 reminiscences — having made many cruises in Hobart 
 Town whalers. 
 
 During the night the breeze died away, and at 
 dawn we were becalmed off Barranjoey Point, at the 
 entrance to Broken Bay, a spot noted for its 
 schnapper hshing grounds. Finding that we were 
 in a little over forty fathoms, I abstracted a piece of 
 raw mutton from the galley, and quietly let my line 
 down over the side. In a few minutes I was fast to 
 a powerful fish, and presently a 12-lb. schnapper v/as 
 kicking about on deck. Then the skipper and crew 
 joined in, and we had an extraordinary run of luck. 
 The schnapper (the most beautiful and valued of all 
 the Australian deep-sea fishes) were all, or nearly all, 
 of the same size and weight — 10 lbs. to 13 lbs. For 
 two hours we fished without cessation, then the ketch 
 drifted into eighty fathoms, and we took fewer fish. 
 Getting out the sweeps we brought the vessel back 
 into shallower water, and were again remarkably 
 successful, and by eleven o'clock had taken nearly 
 five hundred of these magnificent fish. Just then a 
 small fishing steamer came in sight from the other 
 side of the point, and came up to us. Her skipper 
 stared in astonishment when he saw our decks 
 covered with our take, and told us that they had not 
 taken a dozen schnapper since dawn. He and his 
 crew at once began to fish quite near us, and then 
 from some cause or another the school of schnapper 
 cleared out, and neither he and his crew, nor we on 
 
 67 E 2
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 the ketch, got another fish. The steamer poked 
 about for half an hour, trying first one place, then 
 another, but caught nothing but small sharks and 
 predatory " leather-jackets." Then the steamer 
 skipper asked us if we would sell him our take. 
 We haggled a bit, but finally (keeping only a dozen 
 for ourseKes), we let him have all the rest at a 
 shilling. This was quite a stroke of good luck, and 
 we were all well satisfied with the order he gave us 
 on his owners for 3^24 — making £j[. for each of us. 
 Then the steamer hurried off to Sydney, and we 
 shortly after were favoured by a light breeze. 
 
 On the following day we found ourselves again 
 becalmed, and drifting in too close to the shore, so 
 at supper we anchored about a mile from the beach 
 to wait for a breeze. There were several other 
 coasting vessels anchored near us, and we were all 
 lying abreast of an extensive series of tidal swamps 
 and lagoons, known as the Myall Lakes, which teem 
 with fish and game in prodigious numbers. These 
 sheets of landlocked water reach from Point Sugar- 
 loaf to Port Stephens — a distance of more than 
 twenty miles. My imagination had been fired by the 
 accounts I had heard of the glorious fishing and 
 shooting to be had in " the Myalls," and so I went on 
 shore to pick up what information I could with a 
 view of spending a week there at some future time. 
 The few settlers (who were not fishermen) were a 
 rough but yet civil lot, and were hospitable enough. 
 They and their wives and children were of the hue of 
 old leather, from constant exposure to the sun, and 
 
 68
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 the quantity of tea that the)- drank — hot and cold — 
 was enormous. I had dinner with only one family — 
 father, mother, two grown up sons and five young 
 children. The repast consisted of a round of corned 
 meat, weighing about 20 lbs., about the same weight 
 of boiled potatoes, nearly as much pumpkin and 
 cabbage, and enough home-made bread for a score 
 of hungry men. Then followed a huge peach pie of 
 the variety of fruit known as '' Yellow Mundays" — 
 and very good it was too. All this was washed down 
 by copious draughts of strong tea, served in pint 
 mugs without milk, but sweetened with dark reddish- 
 coloured " ration " sugar. After the meal was over, 
 the two sons took me around in the vicinity, and gave 
 me much useful information about the shooting and 
 fishing, and promised to lend me all the assistance I 
 wanted if I paid the lakes a visit at some future time. 
 The whole family, in fact, were most kind and 
 hospitable, and I said good-bye to them with some 
 regret. But I had to return, as the little fleet 
 outside the lakes were hoisting sails — a light breeze 
 now rippling the water. 
 
 Our next stop was at the little coast hamlet of 
 Forster, under the lee of Cape Hawkc, where we 
 landed cargo. Here I had some splendid shooting 
 in the scrub — pigeons and gill-birds abounding. The 
 latter, which the settlers call " leather heads" are 
 excellent eating, and were very fat. Finding I had 
 shot more birds than I could carry, I gave half of 
 them to a young woman, whom I met driving 
 some cows. She was on horseback, and riding 
 
 69
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 man-fashion. Thanking me for the birds, she asked 
 me if I would care to have a bucketful of honey (from 
 the native bee). A party of blacks, she said, had 
 brought her husband a great quantity the previous 
 day, and she was too busy to clean and strain it off. 
 I accompanied her to her home — a rough, but clean 
 and comfortable slab house with a bark roof. Here 
 I had the inevitable drink of tea, and a meal of fine, 
 nicely fried whiting, with damper and fresh-made 
 butter. The husband was a saw-mill hand at 
 Forster, and good-naturedly offered to carry the 
 bucket of honeycomb down to the boat — over a 
 mile distant. On our way through the bush the 
 conversation turned on the aboriginals of the district 
 (Cape Hawke), of whom there were less than a 
 hundred left out of a once numerous tribe. They 
 were a quiet, harmless lot of creatures, rapidly dis- 
 appearing from the effects of disease and drink, and 
 my informant spoke very bitterly of the fact of some 
 of the settlers paying these unfortunate creatures for 
 casual labour in vile and poisonous spirits. " Then," 
 he added, '' some black fellow kills his lubra (wife) or 
 another black in a fit of drunken rage, is tried for 
 murder, and duly hanged with all solemnity in Mait- 
 land or Sydney Goal. No punishment is, or can be, 
 meted out to the white scoundrels who sold or gave 
 him the liquor." 
 
 This man, who was a fine type of the Victorian 
 (Australian) bushman, had had a startling experience 
 with the wild blacks of Northern Queensland, when 
 there as a lad of seventeen years of age. He was one 
 
 70
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 of a small party, who were prospecting for cedar 
 country. Early one morning he was left alone at the 
 camp to cook for the rest of his comrades, and was 
 engaged in cutting and sharpening some saplings for 
 tent pegs, when a black fellow's spear struck him on 
 the back as he was kneeling on the ground, tomahawk 
 in one hand, peg in the other. The point of the 
 spear came out on the other side, but the haft broke 
 off a few inches from where the point had entered. 
 Staggering to his feet the lad made a run for the 
 river bank, calling out to his mates. Suddenly he 
 was confronted by a second black fellow, who stood 
 in the path, and threw his spear just as the boy 
 hurled his tomahawk. The spear missed, but the 
 boy's weapon struck the wild man full in the centre 
 of the forehead, and killed him almost instantly. 
 The first assailant escaped into the jungle. 
 
 Bidding farewell to my new acquaintance, I went 
 on board with my honey and birds, and, after supper, 
 turned in early, being tired out. 
 
 When I awoke at daylight, I found the Margaret 
 close hauled under shortened canvas, beating against 
 a stiff " northerly." 
 
 CHAPTER II 
 
 Light winds alternating with calms attended us 
 during the next few days, which, however, I passed 
 pleasantly enough, for we hugged the land closely 
 throughout, and whenever it fell calml always had 
 
 71 •- : 
 
 • k) «r ^ _■
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 my deep sea fishing tackle to fall back upon, and 
 always, or nearly always being on soundings, we 
 never ran short of fish — fish of all sorts and sizes, 
 from the lordly and brilliant-hued king schnapper, to 
 jew fish, white and black rock-cod, and the big deep- 
 sea flathead ; the last is one of the best of all the 
 many Australasian food fishes. 
 
 The Scandinavian captain and crew of the ketch 
 were one of the best lot of men with whom I ever 
 sailed — before or afterwards. Not only were they 
 good sailor men, but cheerful, straightforward, sober 
 and religious, and it was a relief to me to find myself 
 among such quiet fellows after a year and six months 
 in a South Sea Island trader, where hard swearing 
 and coarse language were the general rule from the 
 captain and officers down to the youngest man 
 before the mast. 
 
 We crossed over the bar at Camden Haven towards 
 the close of a beautiful day, as the sinking sun was 
 changing the light and dark greens of the forest-clad 
 ranges beyond the little port into a soft, harmonious 
 mingling of blue and purple. 
 
 There was but one hotel — or rather bush public- 
 house — in the place. I did not care to stay there for 
 the night, wishing to remain quietly on board the 
 ketch, although I sent the heavy portion of my gear 
 on shore to the house of a man I had known since I 
 was a boisterous, dirty-faced urchin in short pants. 
 This man, however, formerly a pilot, but now retired, 
 came on board to see me, and warmly pressed me to 
 stay under his roof at least for one night. I gladly 
 
 72
 
 Jim Trollopc and Myself 
 
 agreed, and we went on shore together. One reason 
 for my not wishing to stay at the public-house 
 was that I was sure many of its frequenters would 
 recognise me, and that my arrival would be the 
 excuse for a noisy night. For in years past my father 
 had been the resident magistrate for the district, and 
 my brothers and myself were all well remembered by 
 the rough timber-getters and bushmen for a hundred 
 miles along the coast, north and south, and inland 
 far up the rivers, where the mighty trees were felled, 
 sawn, and rafted down to the local ports. There 
 had been times when my father, as resident magis- 
 trate, had been compelled to commit the fathers of 
 some of these men — and some of themselves who 
 were now grown up — to trial for cattle stealing, 
 which at one time was rife in the district. And 
 although he was a stern and just man, he was humane 
 in every sense of the word, and many of the rough 
 men were well aware of the fact that the dark-faced, 
 black- bearded man, who, in cold, judicial language, 
 briefly told a cattle-stealer that he " had no other 
 course, according to the laws of the Colony, but to 
 commit him to prison for trial at the next Quarter 
 Sessions," did so, wondering if the prisoner's wife 
 wanted a j^io note. And that ;^io note, or its 
 equivalent, reached the prisoner's wife in due course, 
 surreptitiously, of course, but mainly through my 
 dear mother's planning. 
 
 My host and I sat up late that night, talking and 
 smoking and listening to the pleasant hum of the 
 gently breaking surf upon the bar. Soon after
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 daylight I had a bathe in the surf, and, as I was 
 dressing on the beach, a brown-faced boy, who 
 appeared to be about fourteen years of age, came up to 
 me, and stared at me for a few moments in silence. 
 
 "Well?" I said interrogatively. 
 
 " Heerd you was here, and come to arsk yer if 
 yer would like me to come along with yer campin' 
 out." 
 
 " What is your name ? " 
 
 "Jim Trollope." 
 
 " Never heard the name about here in my time. 
 Do you live here ? " 
 
 " Yes. I works at the sawmills — when I gets 
 work. Mother lives here. She told me that my old 
 man knowed all you chaps when you was kids. He 
 uster to work on Gwalior Cattle Station on the 
 Hastin's River for Major Cockburn." 
 
 A light broke in upon me — I remembered the man 
 at once. 
 
 " Where is he now ? " I asked. 
 
 " Dead this seven year. Mother married ' Socky ' 
 Cole, the punt-man. He fell outer the punt and got 
 drownded two year ago." 
 
 I thought for a few moments. The boy, though 
 unkempt and semi-savage in appearance, had a good 
 open face, and so when he told me that he had had 
 no work for some time, I said that he could come with 
 me at so much per day for as long as I might want 
 him. Then I went to see his mother. She was a 
 hard-faced sun-baked creature, who earned her living 
 by cooking and washing for some of the mill men and 
 
 74
 
 "well?" I SAID, INTERROGATIVELY. " HEKKU YOU WAS HERi:, AMI COME TO 
 
 ARSK YER IK VEK \VOLI.r> LIKE ME TO COME ALONli WITH YHR CAMIIN' OLT.
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 timber-getters who were single. She was very civil, 
 told me that Jim would be " right enough " if I " give 
 him a clout on the 'ead now and then when he don't 
 move hisself smart," and thanked me when I gave her 
 ten shillings on account of Jim's future earnings. The 
 boy, she told me, was over sixteen, and a good bush- 
 man, and knew the coast well, up and down, "for 
 thirty mile or more." 
 
 So, although I was in no way anxious for company, 
 I "took on " young Jim, intending to let him fish, 
 shoot and camp with me as long as I remained in the 
 vicinit}' of his home. And when, an hour later, he 
 came to help me put our traps together, it did me 
 good to see his ej-es light up as he handled my 
 fishing tackle and guns with respect bordering upon 
 reverence. 
 
 " Like those lines, Jim ? " 
 
 " My word ! I never seed anything like 'em afore. 
 Crikey ! They're beauties. An' them big hooks with 
 a curve in the shank, an' eyed an' mounted on brass 
 wire snoodin's. Wot's them for ? They're too big 
 for schnapper, an' most too big even for a six-foot jew 
 fish. Are they for sharkin ' ? " 
 
 " Well, they will do for shark fishing, Jim, for they 
 will hold a sixteen footer ; but I intend to use them 
 for big rock cod in deep water. Many years ago — 
 when I was a youngster like you — I was out 
 with the pilot boat's crew off Tacking Point, and 
 we caught two ; one was 140 lbs., and the other 
 190 lbs. Perhaps I may have a try about here 
 some day." 
 
 75
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 Jim nodded, said he had heard of these big rock- 
 cod, but never seen one of any size. 
 
 Leaving the heavier part of my gear with the old 
 ex-pilot until my return, the boy and I made a start ; 
 our destination was a spot some few miles to the 
 northward, where right on the coast there was a 
 " pocket " of thick scrub between two lines of rather 
 lofty hills. The scrub ran inland for some distance, 
 and then gave place to fairly open country with 
 lagoons, where there was good shooting. On the 
 shores of the little bay, bounded by the hills, and 
 along the beaches there was fine fishing — "green- 
 back" bream, whiting and trevally, and in the scrub, 
 just above high- water, there was a good camping 
 place, and fresh water could always be obtained by 
 digging a few feet. 
 
 Before we left the little township, we went to the 
 general store and bought a few articles which we 
 thought might prove useful. Among these were a 
 couple of tin dishes — one round, the other flat- 
 bottomed. These I thought we might find of service 
 for mixing our flour for making damper, etc. 
 The storekeeper asked me if we were going to do a 
 little prospecting on the "black sand" patches of 
 beach between Camden Haven and Tacking Point. 
 
 " Prospecting for what ? " 
 
 " Gold," he replied, and then to my surprise he 
 told me that until quite recently there had been 
 a number of men — most of them inexperienced — 
 engaged in beach mining for a considerable distance 
 along the coast, north and south. The gold was, 
 
 76
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 however, very fine, and the layers of black sand in 
 which it was found were difficult to work, on account 
 of being full of stones of all sizes. Still, the man 
 said, some few of the men had done fairly well, 
 making from £z to £^ per week over and above 
 their expenses. One party of three experienced 
 beach miners from New Zealand, who worked in 
 a systematic manner, came across an unusually rich 
 patch, and in two months won gold to the value of 
 5^300. Most of the other men, however, after some 
 months' work, gradually dispersed in search of other 
 and more profitable employment, and the industry 
 had now almost come to an end, except in the case 
 of a few isolated parties of men who were still work- 
 ing on the beaches between Point Plomer and the 
 Tweed River, on the Queensland border. 
 
 All this was news to me, and I was much interested, 
 for these deposits, or rather layers of heavy black 
 sand, were very familiar to me ever since my child- 
 hood. After a further chat with the storekeeper, I 
 bade him good morning, and we started, crossing to 
 the north side of the harbour in the punt, and then 
 taking our way along a track that ran sometimes 
 through the scrub and sometimes along a series of 
 low sand dunes just above high-water mark, every 
 now and then coming in sight of the bright blue sea, 
 sparkling and shimmering under the rays of the 
 glorious sun. 
 
 It was a lovely day, and as we tramped along, now 
 in the cool, shady scrub, now on the open sand 
 dunes, and heard the cries of the many birds, the
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 murmuring call of the gently-breaking surf upon the 
 snow-white beach, and the soft rustle of the breeze 
 among the tree tops, my heart rose high to the joy 
 of it all, and I could pay but little attention to my 
 companion's remarks concerning his experiences of 
 wild duck shooting, bird trapping, snakes, etc., 
 although on any other occasion he would have found 
 me an intent listener. 
 
 The scrub on this part of the coast might more 
 properly be called open jungle, and consisted mostly 
 of lofty, mottled-bark wild apple trees, up the trunks 
 of which clambered lianas, some of them as thick as 
 a man's thigh ; here and there, in the more open 
 spots, would be a group of half a dozen cabbage tree 
 or bangalow palms, and underneath was a thick 
 carpet of dead leaves, pleasant to walk upon, and 
 giving forth no sound except one trod on a twig or 
 strip of bark. Every now and then we would disturb 
 a black-coated scrub wallaby, which would bound 
 away with quick leaps and disappear into hiding in 
 deeper and safer recesses beyond. But they need 
 have had no fear, for although my gun was on my 
 shoulder I had no intention of committing useless 
 slaughter, as we had quite enough food in our 
 " swags" to last us for some days, and, besides that, 
 our store would soon be added to when we reached 
 our camping place. 
 
 Two hours' easy walk brought us out upon the top 
 of the beach, where for two miles our way lay along 
 a narrow, winding track, bordered on each side with 
 the low, prickly leaved native white currant bushes, 
 
 78
 
 Jim TroUope and Myself 
 
 all in full bearing. As we passed along, we every 
 now and then stopped to gather handfuls of the 
 delicious berries, which, I may mention, are quite a 
 distinct fruit from the other variety of native currant, 
 which is a most graceful plant, and whose fruit is 
 only used for making jam. 
 
 The tide was falling, and soon after passing through 
 the "currant garden," as Jim called it, we were enabled 
 to take to the beach, and, removing our boots, walk 
 along the hard, wet sand. A light south-easterly 
 breeze was rippling the surface of the ocean, upon 
 whose surface were vast flocks of snowy- white gulls, 
 and nearer to us, perched upon the summits of some 
 isolated and jagged rocks, within gunshot of the 
 beach, were numbers of long-necked, glossy-plumaged 
 divers. Many of them were standing erect, with 
 wings outspread, and heads turned seaward, " a- 
 warmin' their chesteses," as Jimmy remarked. In 
 front of us, as we walked, flocks of tiny sandpipers 
 ran ahead with marvellous speed, only rising in flight 
 when they thought we came too near. 
 
 As the tide ebbed, the surf, gentle as it was, fell 
 also, and soon only the faintest swMsh of wavelets 
 laved the margin of the beach, and in the crystal 
 water we saw schools of whiting and bream swimming 
 to and fro within a few yards of us. Had we cared 
 to have done so, we could have caught dozens of 
 them in a few minutes, for bait was to hand, or I 
 should say, " to foot," for everywhere the variegated 
 shells of thousands of pippies (cockles) were showing 
 in the wet sand, and we felt them under our feet as 
 
 79
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 we walked ; and pippies are about the best possible 
 bait that can be used for the smaller varieties of 
 Australian fish, such as bream, whiting, tarwhine and 
 some species of mullet. But we cared not to stop 
 just then. We were waiting till we reached our 
 camping place, where we knew we should have a 
 glorious afternoon's sport among the noble green- 
 backed, silvery-sided sea bream. 
 
 CHAPTER III 
 
 We made our camp at the head of the tiny bay, 
 near a clump of golden wattle trees, just coming into 
 bloom, but which, despite their perfume and beauty, 
 are trees to be avoided when flowering, for their 
 branches are infested with small, poisonous ticks, 
 which have an unpleasant trick of burrowing through 
 the human skin and setting up local blood poisoning, 
 unless they are pulled out before they penetrate too 
 deeply. 
 
 We had left the tent at Camden Haven, bringing 
 only the fly. This we soon rigged up on some sap- 
 lings, covered the ground with grass, and made the 
 interior ready for sleeping, for sometimes the night 
 dews were very heavy, and our camp was in a fairly 
 open spot. Running through the valley scrub was 
 the course of a tiny rivulet not more than a fathom 
 wide. In the rainy season, and also in the winter 
 months, it was a merry little brawling stream, but at 
 
 80
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 present the bed was almost dry, although water was 
 easily obtained by digging down a few feet ; so Jim 
 and I at once made a small well and fixed up our 
 water supply. Then we got our lines, and went 
 down to the beach to fish. 
 
 Never was there a sweeter spot. Imagine a bay of, 
 say, an acre in extent, the entrance to which, between 
 its walls of smooth, flat-topped rock, was so narrow 
 that a boat to enter it would have to do so with oars 
 apeak. At the mouth the water was deep — six to 
 eight fathoms, but yet so marvellously, gloriously 
 clear that one could see the small stones, seaweed, 
 etc., at the bottom, and watch the fish swimming to 
 and fro. From the entrance to the rapidly-shelving 
 beach of snow-white sand the water shallowed 
 quickly, and only the faintest ripples lapped the 
 margin when the ocean swell, broken by the wall of 
 rock, came gently heaving through the narrow 
 passage. Back from the curving half-moon of beach 
 was a line of low undergrowth of vivid green, and, 
 beyond that, the loftier vine-covered trees of the 
 scrub, and in the far distance the forest-clad spurs 
 and peaks of the coastal range. 
 
 Just as we were about to bait our lines, Jim cried 
 out : 
 
 "Oh, I say, mister, look there," and he pointed 
 to the top of a lofty and almost isolated wild- 
 apple tree standing on one of the spurs near the 
 scrub. 
 
 Two noble fish eagles had just settled on the tree 
 and composed themselves to rest, presenting a 
 
 8i F
 
 Jim TroUope and Myself 
 
 beautiful sight as the}^ stood side by side with their 
 heads turned seaward and their phimage gHstening 
 in the sun. The}' appeared quite obhvious of our 
 presence, though we knew that in reahty they were 
 watching us keenly. 
 
 " Them fellers is the cunningest birds agoin'," 
 remarked Jim with a grin ; " if I was on'y jest to say 
 ' gun ' to you, they would be a mile away in five 
 seconds. But they mean to see if we are going to 
 leave any fish behind us here on the beach." 
 
 We cast our lines out together, and almost before 
 the sinkers had touched the bottom Jim's hook was 
 fast in the jaws of a four pounder sea-bream, and 
 then a sudden tug, and the quick " sizz " of my own 
 line told me that I had hooked a " blue fish." Both 
 of these fishes are game fighters, especially the latter, 
 but we soon had them kicking about on the sand, 
 unhooked them, and then quickly covered them up 
 with aheap of kelp, then in went our lines again, and 
 in twenty minutes we had more fish than we wanted, 
 and ceased useless slaughter, though the incentive 
 to go on was very strong. Our take was six bream, 
 three blue fish, and one "rock" flathead — the latter 
 a delicious flat fish of the gurnard type — ugly to look 
 at, but irreproachable in all other respects. 
 
 Half an hour later we had two bream and two 
 blue fish cooking in a Polynesian-cum-Australian 
 aboriginal fashion. I was chief cook, Jim my pupil. 
 
 First of all we gutted the fish, then washed them 
 in sea water to remove the sand from the scales. 
 Then, without scaling them, we wrapped each, from 
 
 82
 
 Jim Trollopc and Myself 
 
 head to tail, in strips of pliable green bark, and laid 
 them aside until our oven was hot enough. 
 
 That oven was simple enough, yet one of the best 
 in the world for people who lead a rough life, and 
 are content to eat with their fingers if they lack 
 knives and forks (to say nothing of table napkins and 
 liveried flunkies). 
 
 We scooped out a shallow hole in the soft, rich 
 soil of the scrub, made a fire in it of dry drift-wood 
 on top of which we piled clean, water-worn stones 
 from the beach, and let them remain till they were 
 at a white heat and had sunk to the bottom of the 
 oven. Then we laid the fish on the stones, and 
 covered them over as quickly as possible with layers 
 and layers of green leaves ; over the leaves we threw 
 soil until the whole was completely covered, and no 
 smoke issued. 
 
 In half an hour the fish were done. Meanwhile 
 Jim had made our billy of tea, and arranged our tin 
 mugs, ship biscuits, salt, etc., on a sheet of bark 
 outside the fly. 
 
 "Ready, Jim?" 
 
 "Yes, boss." 
 
 " Then come here, and let us open the oven." 
 
 We scraped away the top covering of steaming, 
 hot soil with forked branches of bangalow palm, 
 lifted the leaves, and got to the fish, which in their 
 dark-brown baked bark looked like Eg}'ptian 
 mummies, but smelt — ah, only those who have 
 cooked fish or meat in this manner can understand ! 
 
 We laid the bark-enwrapped beauties on a sheet 
 
 83 ¥ 2
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 of bark, undid their coverings, and then with our 
 sheath knives removed the entire sheath of scales, 
 and — 
 
 " My word, mister, they do smell good," said Jim, 
 as I brought the salt and biscuits, and we squatted 
 down cross-legged to our supper in front of the fly, 
 and just within sight of the beach. 
 
 ***** 
 
 By sunset it was nearly dead low tide, and my 
 companion suggested that we should go out upon 
 the rocks and get a crayfish or two, and cook them 
 that night with the rest of the fish. This would give 
 us two days' supply of cooked food, and as we 
 intended to devote the following day to visiting a big 
 swamp six miles inland, where we knew we should 
 get some good shooting, I fell in with his suggestion. 
 
 Crayfish are easily caught on the Australian coast 
 in the summer months, either by hook and line or by 
 setting a bait for them in the deep pools among the 
 rocks, and then diving for them. Some of them are 
 of great size, and weigh up to twelve pounds, and 
 they are so plentiful in some places that after stormy 
 weather, and when a heavy surf has been beating 
 upon the coast, the beaches will be strewn with 
 hundreds upon hundreds of very small or half-grown 
 ones, which, unable to withstand the force of the 
 waves, have been disabled and washed on shore to 
 become food for the sea-birds and iguanas — the latter 
 coming down to the beaches at night time to feed on 
 them. 
 
 Taking our lines and the half of a fish we started 
 
 84
 
 Jim TroUope and Myself 
 
 off, Jim leading the way to certain holes on the 
 south side of the little bay, with which he was well 
 acquainted. Four years had passed since my last 
 visit to the place, and during that time the south 
 headland of the bay had greatly changed in its 
 appearance owing to a heavy landslip, which had 
 dislodged some thousands of tons of soapstone rock — 
 in fact, the entire sea face of the point had tumbled 
 down, carrying with it some large and ancient and 
 gnarled honeysuckle trees growing on the summit 
 — trees that I had known since I was a child. 
 
 The night was bright with stars, the sea smooth, 
 and the wind had died away as we made our way 
 from the camp, first along the bank at high-water 
 mark, and then down to the beach towards the 
 point. 
 
 Presently my companion called my attention to 
 the hard nature of the sand on which we were walk- 
 ing, and, stopping, stooped down and scraped up a 
 handful which he showed me, remarking upon its 
 weight. 
 
 " It is pretty thick, too," he observed, "and must 
 have been washed up in the big easterly gale last 
 June, because it is so hard set and smooth. We 
 orter try a few dishes of it to-morrer, and see if it is 
 any good." 
 
 "All right, Jim, we will try it before breakfast 
 to-morrow; come along." 
 
 Reaching the "lobster" holes— Australians always 
 call crayfish "lobsters"— we chose a fairly deep pool, 
 the sides of which were draped with long kelp, and 
 
 85
 
 jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 the bottom covered with white sand and small 
 round stones — ^just the place for crayfish. Baiting 
 our lines with a large junk of fish, we lowered them 
 down, and in less than two minutes we saw the long 
 feelers of several crayfish emerging from out the 
 gently-swaying borders of kelp ; then three big fellows 
 swam boldly out and seized the baits. Beneath each 
 baited hook we had fastened several that were 
 unbaited, and, waiting until the b'g crustaceans had 
 begun to feed, we each gave a sudden jerk. Jim's 
 hook held, mine did not, and I again lowered, but in 
 a few moments I was again fast, and we pulled up 
 our prizes and turned them over on their backs, their 
 great plated tails cracking and flapping in indignant 
 surprise at the mean advantage we had taken. 
 
 Two were quite enough, so, winding up our lines 
 and seizing our prizes by their "antlers," as Jim 
 called them, we made our way back towards the 
 camp. 
 
 Half-way there we heard a dog bark, and presently 
 saw the animal coming towards us along the 
 beach. 
 
 " That's Joe Moss's dog," said Jim, " an' Joe can't 
 be fur away when you see his dog." 
 "Who is Joe Moss? " 
 
 " One of the coves that used to be beach-minin' 
 round about Camden Haven. He an' another 
 feller named Dick Tarby are mates, an' neither of 
 'em ain't no good. They does more loafin' than 
 workin' ; but sometimes they gets a job fellin' timber. 
 Then they comes to the pub, and spends it on old 
 
 86
 
 Jim Trollopc and Myself 
 
 Jordan's snake juice. Hallo ! — well, I'm blest ! — there 
 they are, both of 'tm, at the camp." And then the 
 lad added, with quick intelligence: " Don't you say 
 nothin' to 'em about this patch of black sand. Our 
 tracks will be covered up at high tide, an' the charnces 
 are they don't know nothin' about it. But I daresay 
 they have sneaked after us to sec if we are doin' any 
 prospectin'." 
 
 On reaching the camp we found the two men seated 
 on the ground near the tent, smoking. Their swags 
 and some mining tools lay near by. Both bid us 
 "good evening," civilly enough, and asked if we 
 would give them some water to boil their billy, as 
 they were going to camp near us for the night. 
 
 Of course we gave them the water and asked them 
 to have some supper as well. This they ate, and then 
 proceeded to try and "pump" us as to our future 
 movements, evidently not believing that we were 
 camping out for mere pleasure. 
 
 " Have you had a try at any of the black sand 
 patches along the beach yet, mister ? " asked Tarby, 
 addressing himself to me, and looking at our 
 prospecting dishes. 
 
 " No," I replied ; '* are you and your mate having 
 a try at it ? " 
 
 " Yes; if we come across any likely-looking places. 
 I heard, mister, that you knew this part round about 
 here quite well." 
 
 " Pretty well ; but there was no beach mining in my 
 time — even when I was last here four years ago." 
 
 After half an hour's chat we all turned in — the two 
 
 87
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 strangers spreading their blankets a few yards away 
 from the fly. 
 
 As I stretched myself out I said to Jim in a loud voice 
 that we must make an early start if we wanted to get to 
 Green Hills Rocks by eight in the morning. 
 
 Green Hills Rocks were eight miles further along 
 the coast to the north. 
 
 " All right, boss," replied Jim sleepily; " that's the 
 place fur bronzewings. My word ! We orter get a 
 rare lot of 'em now the Cape gooseberries is ripe, and 
 at the back o' Green Hills there's a big patch of burned 
 out country that orter be fair covered with gooseberry 
 and native raspberry bushes by now. 
 
 CHAPTER IV 
 
 Towards midnight there came a sudden change in 
 the weather ; the wind sprang up suddenly from the 
 south-east, and with it came signs of rain, and ere 
 long the surf began to thunder on the beach. 
 
 Jim awakened me. 
 
 " I say, boss, it's goin' ter rain hard as well as blow, 
 an' them two coves will be arskin' to come in under 
 the fly. Now, afore they does, I want to tell you 
 that there will be a rousin' big sea a-rollin' in soon, 
 and even at low tide at daylight that patch o' black 
 sand will be covered up with kelp an' sea grass a 
 washin' up over it. An' so I don't think that these 
 chaps would notice it, anyway, unless they hangs on 
 here fur a day or two." 
 
 88
 
 Jim Trollopc and Myself 
 
 " Right, Jim. But we'll shift from here, anyway, 
 at daylight — rain or no rain — and these fellows won't 
 hang about here if the weather keeps bad. They 
 have no tent, and as far as I can see, not much 
 tucker." Then I went to the front of the fly and 
 called out : " Won't you two chaps come in out of 
 the rain ? " 
 
 They came in quickly enough, for the rain now 
 began to come down in sweeping sheets, and for the 
 next two or three hours we sat up, talking and 
 smoking and listening to the noise of the surf and 
 the crashing of the branches of the trees about us. 
 Fortunately our fly was well secured, and, further- 
 more, was of watertight American twill, so all four of 
 us, and our belongings as well, remained dry. At 
 daylight Jim and I began packing up our traps, then 
 lit a fire with some dry drift-wood, to boil a billy of 
 tea, and told our unwelcome visitors that we were 
 making an early start for Green Hills Rocks. The 
 rain, I observed, had ceased, the wind had dried the 
 fly, and Jim and I were making preparations to be 
 off at once. The two loafers grunted a sullen 
 acquiescence, and said that if I did not mind they 
 would come along with us, although — and here Tarby 
 made some very forcible remarks on the violence of 
 the wind, and the low-down practices of Nature 
 generally to prevent honest people from earning a 
 decent living by hard toil. He certainly was an 
 amusing ruffian in some respects, and, had he been 
 able to divest his language of its luridity, would have 
 been interesting as well. 
 
 89
 
 Jim TroUope and Myself 
 
 Well, all started off soon after sunrise, taking some- 
 times to the beach where it was hard and free of 
 obstructions, such as piles of kelp, etc., and some- 
 times to the narrow track (made by cattle from a 
 station in the vicinity) running along the coast line, 
 over the sand dunes, and through the scrub. 
 
 Two miles from Green Hills Rocks we came across 
 a patch of hard black sand. It was literally a 
 ** pocket " in mining parlance, for it lay between, or 
 rather was encompassed by, a number of jagged, 
 creeper-covered reddish-coloured rocks, and the 
 action of the surf had formed layers of gold-bearing 
 sand some eight to ten inches thick, two yards or so 
 in width, and about fifty or sixty feet in length. 
 Tarby and his mate at once panned off a dish of the 
 sand, using sea-water, and from the two dishes 
 obtained quite half a pennyweight. This was, as he 
 and his mate said, " good enough " for them ; for if 
 the rest of the sand gave a like result, the two men 
 could get about two ounces per week between them, 
 and they estimated that it would take them three or 
 four weeks to work the patch out. 
 
 Moss, who was an undersized, foxy-faced creature, 
 with furtive, shifty eyes, now indicated by his 
 manner that he and his mate no longer desired 
 our company, and that they would be pleased 
 to see us move on. This annoyed us very much, 
 and I observed that, if Jim and I were inclined 
 to work the patch, we had as much right to do so as 
 they had. But, I added, we had come out for 
 other purposes, and he and his mate could eat the 
 
 90
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 sand if they wished. Tarby merely laughed, and 
 said we need not "get our monkeys up." Then 
 Moss had the impertinence to ask me if I would give 
 them a few days' tucker. This request met with an 
 emphatic and pointed refusal, and Tarby growled out 
 to him something about his having " too much 
 bloomin' cheek." And as Tarby had helped to carry 
 our fly part of the way, I relented, and gave them a 
 little tea, sugar, and flour, and half a pound of 
 tobacco, for which Tarby offered to pay me, Moss not 
 even giving me a " thank you." 
 
 Bidding Tarby good-day, but ignoring Moss, Jim 
 and I started off along the beach, and proceeded for 
 a mile or so until we rounded a rocky headland. 
 Here, under a projecting shelf of cliff, which sheltered 
 us from the violence of the wind, we consulted as to 
 our future movements, and decided to strike into the 
 scrub for at least a mile, then head back for our 
 former camp and guard the patch of black sand we 
 had discovered, even if we could not work it for the 
 present. For we had no shovel, nor any timber to 
 make a dolly and cradle, and even if we had we 
 should run the risk of being discovered by someone 
 before we had been many days at work ; and as the 
 Government did not require licences to be taken out 
 by beach miners, any party stronger than ourselves 
 could oust us. 
 
 Then a happy inspiration came to Jim. He pro- 
 posed that as soon as we reached our former camp 
 we should set to work with our dishes, and carry 
 the sand up into the scrub, dump it down in a safe 
 
 91
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 spot on the bank of the little rivulet, where we should 
 be safe from observation, and pan it off dish by dish, 
 and give up the idea of a dolly and cradle altogether. 
 It was an excellent idea, and we acted upon it, for, 
 after a hurried meal, we started off, struck inland, and 
 in three hours were back at the camp. Our first step 
 was to set up our fly in a deep little gully, about five 
 hundred yards from the beach, and within a few yards 
 of the little stream. Then as a spell of rainy weather 
 seemed imminent, we collected a lot of dry wood, 
 covered it up, and made the camp quite comfortable. 
 Hardly had this been done when rain began to fall, 
 and by three in the afternoon it was coming down in 
 a steady torrent ; but, fortunately, the wind had now 
 moderated from a gale to a stiff breeze, and this 
 enabled us to go to the beach and fish for an hour in 
 a sheltered position from under the lee of the soap- 
 stone landslip. We caught all we wanted for a two 
 days' supply, and also picked up a number of young 
 crayfish on the beach; they had been washed on shore 
 during the night, and were quite fresh — some being 
 still alive. 
 
 We had brought one of our tin dishes with us, and 
 on our way back examined the patch of black sand, 
 now thickly covered with kelp, sea-grass, drift-wood, 
 and other debris. Removing some of this, we filled 
 the dish to the brim with the heavy sand, and carried 
 it back to the camp ; and drenched through as we 
 were, we were so excited that we must needs pan it 
 off there and then, using the water from the now 
 rapidly-running rivulet. The result was nearly two 
 
 92
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 pennyweights of fine gold. This was quite satis- 
 factory; in fact, a pennyweight to the dish would have 
 paid us well. 
 
 "Jim," I said, "we must work like niggers to get 
 all that wash-sand away from the beach as quietly 
 and as quickly as possible. And we shall run no 
 risks — we must do it by night. Someone might 
 come along during the day and see us, and then the 
 fat would be in the fire. As for Moss and Tarby, 
 they are safe enough for some weeks, unless, as is 
 quite likely, one of them comes along here on his 
 way to Camden Haven to buy * tucker.' " 
 
 Jim nodded. " Yes, and if he did, and it was low 
 tide, he might get a sight of the patch by just looking 
 down from the track along the top of the beach. And 
 that beast of a half-bred dingo cattle-dog of Moss's 
 would nose out our camp in no time." 
 
 We returned to the fly to change our soddened 
 clothes, get something to eat, and discuss as to what 
 we should do still further to prevent any chance of 
 our being discovered by any passing traveller. Jim, 
 as usual, suggested the most practical thing. This 
 was to remove our camp a further two miles up the 
 gully, in the densest part of the scrub, where the 
 smoke of a fire would not be likely to be noticed, or 
 if noticed, no one would make his way up from the 
 beach to see the cause of it. In the scrub itself 
 there was plenty of game — black wallaby, paddy- 
 melons, and pigeons, and we could also catch plenty 
 of fish in a tidal lagoon known as Cattai Creek, some 
 five miles along the coast, and not far from the spot 
 
 93
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 where Tarby and Moss were then working. At night- 
 fall, however, we would return to our find, and work 
 at the patch of sand until we had removed it all, piled 
 it in a safe place near the little rivulet, and then could 
 pan it off at our leisure. We lost no time in making 
 the change of camp for the third time, and, heavily 
 laden with our gear and the soddened fly, ploughed 
 our way through the steaming rain-soaked scrub till 
 we came to a suitable spot. It was in a deep, heavily 
 timbered gully, and we were glad to find several 
 small, but permanent, waterholes among some rocks 
 at the top of the gully. Clearing away some of the 
 undergrowth, we again set up our fly, boiled a billy of 
 tea, and then I set to work on my mackintosh with 
 my palm and needle, and out of it made two bags to 
 use for carrying the sand, and Jim made two service- 
 able shovels by stripping off pieces of gum-tree bark, 
 and planing them down to the required thinness with 
 a clasp knife. 
 
 We " lazed " away the rest of the afternoon till an 
 hour before sunset, and then made our way to the 
 little bay, and at once tackled the sand. The rain 
 was still falling, but the night was fairly clear, and we 
 toiled away, digging up the wash-sand, filling the 
 bags, and, with light hearts, carried the heavy loads 
 up the steep bank to the place where we intended to 
 wash it off. We worked throughout the night, only 
 ceasing now and then to refresh ourselves with the 
 inevitable drink of hot tea. That night we succeeded 
 in stripping off the greater part of the upper (land- 
 ward) side of the patch, filled in the depression with 
 
 94
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 kelp and other debris, and watched the incoming 
 tide swash it to and fro. At seven in the morning 
 we were back in camp and sound asleep, and when 
 we awoke the sun was pretty high overhead, though 
 obscured by the still falling rain. 
 
 Just as we were talking about our movements for 
 the day, a fine big scrub wallaby came leaping down 
 the side of the gully towards us, quite oblivious of 
 danger, and Jim, seizing my gun, bowled him over 
 stone dead. He was as fat as a pig, and we had his 
 carcase cleaned and hung up under a bough within 
 quarter of an hour. 
 
 As we did not care to remain idle in camp for the 
 rest of the day, we decided to go and see how our 
 two " friends" were faring. So taking the gun, my 
 "hold all," and our fishing lines, we struck through 
 the scrub, and a couple of hours later were talking to 
 Tarby, who was alone. Moss, he told us, had gone 
 off at daylight to the camp of some men who were 
 erecting a lighthouse at Tacking Point, to see if he 
 could buy some meat, flour, tea, etc., from them. 
 
 " How are you doin', Mr. Tarby ? " asked Jim. 
 
 " Pretty well. We ought to get about half an 
 ounce a day, but there is an awful lot o' stones in the 
 sand, which hinders us a lot. Are you camped at 
 Green Hills Rocks ? " 
 
 " No," replied Jim, most truthfully; "we can't do 
 much fishin' in weather like this on the beaches. 
 But we are going to do a couple o' hours' fishin' in 
 Cattai Creek this afternoon." 
 
 Tarby and his mate had no tent, but they had 
 
 95
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 made a rough " breakwind " of some sheets of bark 
 under the lee of a honeysuckle scrub, and Tarby 
 showed us the ten or fifteen pennyweight of gold that 
 they had washed out. After a few minutes' chat we 
 left him, and made our way along the beach to the 
 mouth of Cattai Creek — a place very dear to me 
 from old associations of my boyhood. 
 
 Here we caught a couple of dozen of noble whiting 
 — big fellows of over 2^ lbs., packed them in the 
 " hold all," and started off on our way back. Luck 
 attended us that afternoon, for, as we were passing 
 along a narrow cattle track which led through the 
 scrub above high-water mark, we came across a pile 
 of rusty ironwork, parts of sugar mill machinery, 
 boiler plates, etc., and amongst it were several coils 
 of fencing wire — then quite a novelty in the Australian 
 colonies. 
 
 This collection had been part of the cargo of 
 a Sydney steamer named the Prince of Wales, 
 which, a year previously, on a voyage from Sydney 
 to Brisbane (Queensland) had run ashore near by. 
 Most of her cargo, which was of a general character, 
 had been landed, and, I regret to say, been stolen by 
 the settlers of my native district. 
 
 Jim at once noticed the fencing wire. 
 
 " That's the stuff for us, mister. We can make a 
 good raddle out of it, and get rid of the stones in the 
 wash-dirt afore we pans it off." 
 
 We set to work and unwound about ten fathoms 
 of the rusted wire, broke it off, and went on our way 
 jubilant. 
 
 96
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 All that night we worked again at the golden patch 
 of sand ; and when dawn came, laid ourselves down 
 to sleep with a feeling of intense satisfaction. 
 
 CHAPTER V 
 
 Night after night we stuck to the work of carry- 
 ing up the wash-sand, beginning at dusk and leaving 
 off at dawn. On the tenth day we had finished, and 
 the stuff was ready for washing-off. We had already 
 raddled it free of stones, working at the heap an hour 
 or so every day in the afternoons ; this we could do 
 without fear of being seen by anyone from the beach, 
 as we were hidden by the scrub. Still our tracks 
 might have been observed, and this gave us continual 
 anxiety. So far, however, we had not seen a single per- 
 son except Tarby and Moss. We were many miles 
 from the main bush road, and travellers were few and 
 far between along the actual coast line. Our main 
 object was to finish the carrying up of the last bagful 
 of the precious sand — once that was done we did not 
 mind who saw us or even came and watched us 
 washing-off — possession of the sand was everything. 
 From time to time we had panned off a few trial 
 dishfuls, and in all cases obtained nearly a penny- 
 weight per dish — sometimes over a pennyweight. 
 
 For some days the weather had been beautifully 
 fine, although rather too hot during the greater part 
 of the day. Jim and I had paid a visit to the con- 
 tractors' camp at the new lighthouse and bought a 
 
 97 G
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 few articles from the overseer, such as flour, coarse 
 salt, etc. The latter we wanted for our fish and 
 meat, for the hot weather turned both very rapidly, 
 and it was not convenient for us to go out ever>' day 
 fishing and shooting ; nor did we care to visit the 
 nearest township — twelve miles distant — to make any 
 purchases. For there I was well known, and had 
 many old acquaintances whose hospitality it would be 
 be difficult to avoid without giving offence. 
 
 And Jim and I were perfectly happy. We had all 
 we wanted to eat and drink, we were doing honest 
 work, and there was every prospect of our making 
 quite a respectable sum of money by our toil, which 
 in itself was both interesting and fascinating. Our 
 appetites were marvellous, and our food, though 
 simply cooked, was of a varied character — game 
 (" squatter " and bronzewing pigeons, golden plover, 
 gill birds), fish, rock oysters, and crayfish. The oysters 
 were really delicious, and were so abundant that 
 we could have filled a three-bushel bag with them in 
 an hour ; and as for crayfish, we could catch all we 
 wanted at any time of the day or night. 
 
 I must mention that about a week after we had 
 begun operations I had thought it advisable for Jim 
 to go and see his mother in case she was feeling 
 anxious about him, and, as I was sure she was a 
 discreet woman, I told him that he could let her know 
 what we were doing, and that we should not be 
 finished for another fortnight; also that he and I 
 were " full mates," and would share equally whatever 
 gold we won. 
 
 98
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 I also gave him a note to my old friend the ex-pilot, 
 asking him to send me some few articles I required, 
 among which was my Winchester. He started off 
 early in the morning and was back by sunset, carrying 
 quite a load, amongst other things being an enor- 
 mous loaf of soda bread which his mother had made, 
 several pounds of butter, and a round of fresh beef. 
 That evening we had a special supper, and hardly 
 felt fit for much work. However, we went at it as 
 usual and did fairly well. 
 
 Jim told me that his mother had specially warned 
 him against Tarby and Moss, and advised him to put 
 an end to the latter's half-bred dingo — if he got a 
 chance. If Moss should happen to come to Camden 
 Haven by way of the beach, the dog, she said, was 
 sure to scent the camp, and we might be sorry for it, 
 as Moss was " a thunderin' sneak, and a thief as 
 well." 
 
 At last came the day when we finished carrying up 
 the sand, and were ready to wash-off. First of all, 
 though, we brought the fly back to where we were to 
 work, made the camp comfortable, and turned in 
 early so as to have a good night's rest. 
 
 Soon after daylight we rose to go for a swim in the 
 sea, and just as we were descending the bank, caught 
 sight of a man walking along the beach, and coming 
 towards us. We recognised him at once — it was 
 Moss, accompanied by his dog. We at once planted 
 behind some wild currant bushes and watched him, and 
 presently, to our satisfaction, saw him turn off and go 
 up over the bank. 
 
 99 G 2
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 " He's taking the old cattle track, leadiii' up along 
 the foot of the spurs," observed Jim, "and so won't 
 come within more'n half a mile of us. It is a short 
 cut for him, and saves three miles. But we had 
 better wait a bit to make certain." 
 
 We returned to the camp and waited for an hour, 
 and then feeling sure that all was safe and that Moss 
 was probably quite three miles away from us, were 
 about to go for our bathe, when Jim clutched my 
 arm. 
 
 "Someone or something is comin'," he whispered. 
 *' Yes, it's Moss's dingo. Look, there he is — he's 
 going for the beef bag." 
 
 Our beef was suspended from the branch of a big and 
 shady mimosa tree, about fifty yards from the camp. 
 The meat was in a calico bag to prevent it from being 
 spoilt by the blow-flies, and also to be out of reach of 
 iguanas or native dogs. 
 
 The dog owned by Mr. Moss trotted out from the 
 scrub and made directly for the tree, under which he 
 stopped and eyed the bag for a moment or two. 
 Then he made a noble spring and set his teeth in the 
 meat shaking it savagely to and fro, trying to tear it 
 out of the bag, although he was swaying about in 
 the air. 
 
 I motioned to Jim to hand me the Winchester, 
 which was just inside the fly. 
 
 " Don't miss him," whispered Jim. 
 
 The Winchester cracked, and the animal dropped 
 without a sound, and began rolling about in the sandy 
 soil. Jim rushed up to it, and gave it a blow on the 
 
 100
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 head with a piece of wood, and then lifting it up, 
 dropped it into a thick clump of currant bushes. 
 
 " Dead as a door nail," said my companion, as he 
 hurried back to the fly and sat down beside me. 
 " He must have come acrost our tracks near the old 
 camp, and followed them down. Let us keep quiet 
 awhile, although I don't think we'll see anythink of 
 Moss. An' anyway, if he was within cooey of us, he 
 couldn't have heard that little crack of the rifle — 
 there's too much wind among the trees, as well as the 
 noise of the surf." 
 
 After waiting some time we left the fly, took the 
 defunct animal, and buried it deep in the sand, and 
 then had a glorious bathe in the breakers, in a spot 
 safe from that terror of the Australian coast — the 
 dreaded "grey nurse" shark, which is very partial 
 to cruising about in the surf close in shore, when the 
 water is not too shallow. Jim, I must mention, was 
 a great shark catcher, and also a sworn enemy to 
 snakes, and had had many experiences with both. 
 Some of his adventures I shall relate in the course of 
 this narrative. 
 
 After a hearty breakfast we turned to at the heap 
 of wash-dirt, and worked without cessation till long 
 past noon; then, after the usual billy of tea and some 
 cold beef and Mrs. Trollope's soda bread, we again 
 resumed what was to us a labour of love. The result 
 was about five-and-twenty pennyweights of fine floury 
 gold, beautifully bright, and free from foreign matter. 
 Some of it was so fine that it would adhere to the 
 finger tips even when the skin was not moist. That 
 
 lOI
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 we lost a good deal in the washing-off process was 
 certain — owing to its fineness — and I wished that we 
 had a few pounds' weight of quicksilver to use for 
 amalgamation purposes, and also better appliances 
 for washing-off. Still, the first day's result was most 
 satisfactory to us both, for the gold was of a high 
 quality, and would bring top price. 
 
 Day after day found us at the rapidly diminishing 
 heap of wash-dirt. We began at daylight, and 
 worked until nearly four o'clock. Then we dried the 
 gold we had won by putting it on a tin plate, and 
 holding it over some hot coals, then carefully scraped 
 it out into a tin pepper pot — our gold safe. About 
 an ounce per day was our average, especially if the 
 weather was dry and warm, with no wind. If it 
 rained, or there was much wind, our takings would 
 not amount to more than ten pennyweights (half an 
 ounce). 
 
 So far not a soul had come near us, but, as we were 
 panning off the last twenty dishes of the heap, we had 
 a visitor. 
 
 He was one of the head stockmen employed on a 
 local cattle station some thirty miles along the coast 
 (in the Hastings River district), and when I saw him 
 riding along the hard beach sand I felt sure that he 
 was a man whom I had known well years before, in 
 fact, when we were both lads, and whom I had last 
 seen four years previously, when he was a newly- 
 joined trooper in the New South Wales Mounted 
 Police. The rigid discipline of the force had, how- 
 ever, proved too much for a young fellow of his 
 
 102
 
 Jim TroIIope and Myself 
 
 temperament, and so, after a year's service, he had 
 resigned his smart uniform, with the heavy cavalry 
 sabre, carbine, and other military trappings, and gone 
 back to his mother bed of the bush as a stockman. 
 And Nature had intended Gilbert Ross to be a lover 
 of herself, and of all her beautiful gifts of birds and 
 beasts — and never to be a mere police trooper, with 
 carbine in its becket, and useless, jangling sword 
 banging against his charger's anatom}-. 
 
 And Gilbert Ross was, I have said, an old 
 comrade of my boyhood's days, and as he came 
 trotting along the hard sand of that lonely beach, 
 looking for stray cattle, my heart warmed to him, 
 and running out to the top of the sand bank, I waved 
 my hands and gave a loud " Coo-e-e ! " 
 
 As we grasped each other's hands in silence, I think 
 that all our happy boyhood's memories flashed across 
 our minds, and I daresay that our eyes filled. Then 
 we " bucked up," and talked of all that had happened 
 to both of us since we had last met. He was much 
 interested in our beach mining, came to the camp 
 with us, and helped us pan off the last of the stuff. 
 We estimated that we had in all about fifteen ounces, 
 which would be worth over £56. 
 
 Ross was much impressed. 
 
 "It was a very rich patch," he remarked; " one of 
 the best, I suppose, that was ever found in this part, 
 although I know of a party of four, who were w'orking 
 the beaches near the Bellinger River, getting two 
 ounces a day for over a month. Hang me if I don't 
 sling my billet and have another try at mining 
 
 103
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 again, but not on the beach. I know of some very 
 likely country at the head of the Hastings, and got 
 several good prospects in some of the gullies there." 
 
 " Ross," I said, " let Jim and me join you. To tell 
 you the exact truth, I do not care much if I break my 
 four months' leave, and my employers invest me with 
 the Noble Order of the Sack. I am sick of island 
 trading and supercargoing, and mining has always 
 had a strong fascination for me." 
 
 We talked the matter over thoroughly, and when 
 Ross bade us good-bye it was with the understanding 
 that we were to meet at the town of Kempsey — 
 sevent}' miles distant — that day fortnight. Ross was 
 to give the owner of the station a week's notice, and 
 join us, with three saddle-horses and a pack-horse. 
 At Kempsey we were to take out our miners' rights 
 (los. each), buy stores, etc., and then make our way 
 to the headwaters of the Hastings River, and 
 thoroughly prospect the country of which he had 
 spoken. Ross's worldly wealth amounted to about 
 £70, but then he had half a dozen horses — 
 two of these he would sell, and keep the four best. 
 We estimated that we could buy two extra saddles, 
 and a saddle and bags for ;£"io ; I had my own tent 
 and fly ; the tools, powder and fuse, etc., would run 
 into another £$, and then, of course, there were the 
 provisions. But we hoped to live largely on game. 
 
 That night Jim Trollope and I — as he expressed it 
 — ** gassed like two wimmen." 
 
 104
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 CHAPTER VI 
 
 We broke camp on the following morning, 
 packed our belongings into as small a compass as 
 possible, and left them under some sheets of bark 
 (in case it rained), and started off for Camden Haven, 
 as I wanted to make arrangements for the rest of my 
 gear with my old friend the ex-pilot, see Jim's mother 
 and obtain her consent to his joining Ross and me ; 
 and write some letters for Sj'dney, to go by the over- 
 land mail, via Newcastle. Then I intended to return 
 to our abandoned camp, get our swags and set off for 
 Kempsey by w'ay of Cattai Creek, Lake Innes, and the 
 mail-coach road. I thought it very likely that I 
 should be able to buy a pack-horse at Camden Haven 
 to carry the tent, fly, and such provisions as would 
 last us to Kempsey. 
 
 On reaching Camden Haven, we found Mrs. 
 Trollope busily engaged in washing. Drying her 
 hands, she shook hands with me, gave her son some- 
 thing between a kiss and a bite, and asked me if he 
 had " been goin' straight." 
 
 " Straight as a die, Mrs. Trollope ; works well, and 
 makes a good mate for me. And I want }-ou to let 
 him come with me for perhaps a couple of months 
 longer. We have got over ;;r5o worth of gold, and Jim 
 takes half. I am going to sell it to the Bank of New 
 South Wales at Kempsey, or else send it to the Sydney 
 Mint. Shall I give Jim's share to you or to him ? " 
 
 '* You put it in the bank for him, if you please 
 
 105
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 Perhaps you might let him have two or three pounds 
 for himself to get some new clothes." 
 
 " But how are you off for ready money yourself, 
 Mrs. Trollope ? " 
 
 " I've got £1] odd in the house at this moment. 
 And I don't want nothin' from nobody ; but if I did, 
 I wouldn't mind a-arskin' you for it. For I knowed 
 your mother, and your father too, and you hasn't 
 got your father's hard face and his cold way of 
 speakin' to us folks as is Dissenters." 
 I laughed. 
 
 " My father had a ' hard face,' as you say, Mrs. 
 Trollope ; but I think he had a kind heart, even as a 
 magistrate." 
 
 Mrs. Trollope came over to me, and passed her 
 toil-worn hands through my hair. 
 
 ** Yes, he had a kind heart, and was always ready 
 with his money when poor folks were in trouble ; 
 
 but " 
 
 " But what, Mrs. Trollope ? " 
 " Well, just this — he hadn't your mother's love and 
 pity for them as was distressed and in trouble. He 
 would give his money — an' your mother giv' suthin' 
 more than money. She giv' us love, an' come an' 
 helped us — or leastways she sent her servants to us. 
 Ah ! she was a good woman, and didn't care a 
 blue cuss whether folks was Church of England, or 
 Methodies or Baptisties, or anything. All she wanted 
 was to see people happy. Your father was a man as 
 lots of people had a high respeck for, but I, an' a lot 
 more, never liked him." 
 
 io6
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 "Why, Mrs. Trollope?" 
 
 " ' Cos he was too thick with Canon Ffrench, and 
 if ever there was a man as I hated like pizon it was 
 him — he looked on us dissentin' folks as if we were 
 no better than so many mangy dingoes or bush rats, 
 and took a pleasure in showin' it." 
 
 " He had few friends, I know, Mrs. Trollope. All 
 of our family except my father disliked him intensely ; 
 as a boy I both hated and dreaded him, and my 
 mother, as I daresay you know, made no secret of her 
 dislike to him as a clergyman." 
 
 The woman nodded and dropped the subject, and 
 after a little further chat, I bade her good-bye, went 
 and saw my old ex-pilot friend, and packed up the rest 
 of my belongings. Whilst Jim and I were engaged 
 in doing this, a black fellow named Tobias came along 
 and lent us a hand. He told us that he was one of a 
 party of half a dozen aboriginals who were camped at 
 Lake Innes, and that he had come to Camden Haven 
 to buy tobacco and flour. I offered him a few shillings 
 to help us carry our traps and lead the pack-horse — if I 
 could buy one. He at once agreed, and Jim and I 
 then visited the various settlers in search of an animal, 
 but no one would sell us one. However, one good- 
 natured man offered to lend me one for 30s., if 
 we would promise to send it back by Tobias. This 
 we agreed to do, and shortly after we were under way. 
 
 After picking up the rest of our gear at our last 
 camp, we ended a good day's march by bringing up 
 at the mouth of Cattai Creek, or rather lagoon, 
 where we were to stay for the night. As the sun 
 
 107
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 set the scene was a very beautiful one — the shallow, 
 reed-margined lagoon was shining like a plate of 
 burnished silver, and fish were leaping about all over 
 its surface, whilst on the opposite side to where we 
 fixed our camp, a flock of black swans \vere sailing 
 gracefully about. The entrance to the lagoon, which 
 at some times of the year (during a dry season) is 
 completely closed by a wide sandbank, was now well 
 open, owing to the late rains, and the flood tide was 
 pouring in through the passage at a great rate, 
 bringing with it swarms of fine sea-mullet, and 
 Tobias soon speared a number of them for our 
 supper — every time he threw his slender spear 
 transfixing two or three. 
 
 Our camp was fixed near a clump of golden wattle 
 trees, midway between the ocean beach and the 
 lagoon, and the night was so intensely starlight that 
 Jim and I could not get to sleep till past midnight — 
 tired as we were with our day's march. Our sable 
 companion was in his glory. After eating three large 
 mullet, and a piece of damper large enough to satisfy 
 three white men, he borrowed my gun and went off 
 after opossums. He shot two, roasted them on the 
 coals, and finished one right ofl", leaving the other, as 
 we thought, for his breakfast. But towards daylight, 
 when I awoke, I saw him engaged on the second, and 
 by the way he ate at breakfast, one would have 
 thought that he had eaten nothing for at least a 
 couple of days. 
 
 Making an early start we reached Lake Innes and 
 its long-abandoned and ruined homestead by noon. 
 
 io8
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 Lake Innes and its district had been the property of 
 a retired military man — Major Innes — and the house 
 he had built had once been, in the old colonial days, 
 one of the finest in the colony, or indeed anywhere in 
 Australia. He had been given the land as a Crown 
 grant, and had expended a fortune upon it. The 
 labour of building the great house, clearing the bush, 
 and laying out extensive orchards, vineyards and 
 gardens, had been performed by over a hundred of 
 his "assigned " convict servants, whom he treated in 
 a humane and merciful manner. In the course of a 
 few years "Lake Innes" became one of the most 
 beautiful and valuable estates in the colony, and its 
 wine, fruit and cattle were famous ; and I well 
 remember being told that when Governor Gipps 
 came from Sydney to visit the estate, the major 
 " turned out seventy mounted men (convict servants) 
 to meet him on the road." 
 
 Alas ! the glories of " the Lake " did not last very 
 many years. Financial misfortunes overtook the old 
 Peninsular soldier, and the estate fell into the hands 
 of one of the Sydney banks, which failed to make it 
 pay; the beautiful pictures and the works of art 
 brought from Europe had been sold when their 
 owner came to grief, the great house was left to 
 caretakers, the once fruitful orchards, vineyards and 
 gardens were steadily encroached upon by the ever- 
 growing scrub, the surrounding settlers cut out and 
 stole the painted-glass windows, and carried away the 
 carved doors, and ripped up the polished floors : the 
 deadly black and brown snakes basked in the sun on 
 
 109
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 the wide verandahs, and the opossums and iguanas 
 wandered at night time through the lofty and deserted 
 rooms, that were once filled with gaily dressed men 
 and women, and had echoed to the sound of merry 
 music and dancing. And, in and about through the 
 broken windows and the gaping doorways, there 
 crept insidiously what was to prove the final curse to 
 the whole estate — the slender shoots of the lantana 
 plant. Years before the major had brought out from 
 England two small pot plants of the shrub. He had 
 obtained them when he was serving in Portugal, and 
 was pleased with the gay white and pink flowers, and 
 the clustering berries, ranging in hue from pale green 
 to red, and then to jetty black. He planted them at 
 Lake Innes to form a border. They grew and 
 throve amazingly under the hot Australian sun, and 
 the birds carried the seeds broadcast, not only about 
 the district, but throughout the coastal part of the 
 colony generally, until in time hundreds upon hun- 
 dreds of thousands of acres of land became overrun 
 and rendered valueless by an ineradicable pest, that 
 suffered naught else but itself to grow. And now 
 after fifty years of its evil life it had destroyed the 
 once rich lands of the estate, and overgrown all but 
 a few hundred acres of non-receptive soil and the 
 mighty gum trees, which the old soldier had left 
 unfelled to tower above the surrounding jungle and 
 scrub in lordly contempt of the wretched foreign 
 interloper that had destroyed their lesser brethren of 
 the wild Australian bush. 
 
 The party of blacks to which our friend Tobias 
 
 no
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 belonged were camped a mile or so from the old 
 house, and soon paid us a visit, accompanied by a 
 score of mangy curs. We got rid of them by giving 
 them some tobacco, in return for which they offered 
 us several pounds of wild honey (full of dead bees) 
 tied up in a sheet of bark; this we declined with 
 thanks. 
 
 We made our supper that evening of grilled pigeons, 
 and instead of hot tea drank copiously of deliciously 
 cold water from the long-disused homestead well, 
 which we obtained by lowering a billy can into the 
 water by a fishing-line. 
 
 Just as we were getting ready to start on the 
 following morning, we saw a horseman coming along 
 the track. Both man and horse were dead beat, and 
 we had to assist the former from the saddle. Almost 
 unable to speak, he asked us for water. This we 
 quickly gave him, and then attended to the poor horse, 
 who drank can- after can-ful as quickly as we could 
 fill it. The traveller was a bush missionary, and, 
 after we had given him something to eat and some 
 hot tea, he told us that he had wandered off the main 
 track in search of water ; he failed to find any, and 
 then lost his way. That night he suffered greatly 
 from thirst, and had camped in a lantana thicket 
 only two miles away, quite unaware that he was so 
 near water. He was quite an old man, nearly seventy 
 years of age, and yet as simple as a child, and his 
 worn-out and exhausted appearance filled us with 
 pity. But he had a plucky heart, and made light of 
 his misadventure, observing that he was used to 
 
 III
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 such mishaps, and that it was his own fault — he was 
 such a poor bushman. Yet this old fellow annually 
 travelled some thousands of miles through the 
 loneliest and least settled parts of Queensland and 
 New South Wales, often sleeping out at nights, often 
 hungry, and penniless as well, yet always bright and 
 hopeful, and doing all in his power to minister to the 
 spiritual wants of isolated settlers in the lonely 
 bush. Although I had never seen him before, I had 
 often heard him spoken of, even when I was a child. 
 His shabby garments, and the awful parodies of 
 horses on which the brave old gentleman made his 
 long journeys, were the cause of many a joke, but 
 even the roughest and hardest-swearing bullock driver 
 had a kindly feeling for "poor old Dicky Coll, the 
 parson " — they made fun of him and his woebegone 
 "crock," but respected him, nevertheless, as a good, 
 earnest, and self-sacrificing man. " He's a good 
 sort," was their verdict. 
 
 We delayed our start for several hours in order 
 that Coll might have some rest, as we wanted to put 
 him on the right track for his destination — a little 
 township on the Manning River, to the south of 
 Camden Haven. He travelled with us for ten miles, 
 and before we parted we filled his almost empty 
 saddlebags with provisions — beef, damper, tea and 
 sugar. Although he did not smoke himself— he 
 admitted that he wished he had learned to do so, as 
 he was sure that " it must be a wonderful comfort in 
 the bush " — he gladly took some sticks of twist 
 tobacco, to give to any wandering aboriginals he 
 
 112
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 might meet. " Poor creatures ! " he said ; " they love 
 tobacco, and it does them no harm, like spirits. 
 Good-bye, and God bless and protect you." 
 
 A few days later Gilbert Ross told me a story 
 about this quiet old bush missionary that will illustrate 
 the character and courage of the man. About ten 
 yearspreviouslyColl was travelling in Central Queens- 
 land, when he came across a party of six diggers, en 
 route to a newly-discovered goldfield. It was in the 
 middle of summer, water was scarce everywhere, and 
 when Coll joined them they were pressing forward to 
 reach certain waterholes, where they intended to 
 camp for a few days. On reaching the spot they 
 found the waterholes were dry, and filled with the 
 dead bodies of a number of cattle which had died of 
 thirst. Forty miles further on were other waterholes 
 situated on a sheep station, and so the wearied men 
 and horses started oif again, under the blazing sun, 
 and suffering from the agonies of thirst. It took 
 them four-and-twenty hours to get within sight of the 
 place, and by this time two of the men were delirious. 
 As they drew near they saw that the shepherds' hut 
 was abandoned, and nailed on the door was a written 
 notice. It said that the waterholes (which were 
 enclosed by a three-railed fence) had been poisoned by 
 the owner of the station in order to destroy the native 
 dogs, and warned travellers against drinking from 
 them. Maddened with thirst, the poor men gazed at 
 the beautiful clear water with agonised eyes. To drink 
 it meant death. And the next water was at the head 
 station itself — twenty miles further on, and to get 
 
 113 H
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 there was impossible. The leader of the party drew 
 his revolver, and was about to shoot one of the horses 
 so that they might drink its blood, when Old Coll 
 stayed his hand. 
 
 "Wait," he said; "if that water has been 
 poisoned, how is it that we do not see any dead 
 dingoes or birds about ? I do not believe that it is 
 poisoned." 
 
 " Are you game to try and see ? " asked the leader. 
 *'I am," replied the old man quietly. "I shall 
 take a long drink, and if I die it does not matter. I 
 am an old man, and my work is near to an end. I 
 have no one in this world depending upon me. Most 
 of you are married men with families. It is my 
 belief that Mr. Douglas " (the owner of the sheep 
 station) " has had this notice put up simply to prevent 
 people travelling with cattle or sheep from giving 
 their stock water. He is a hard man." 
 
 He went to the waterholes and drank copiously 
 again and again. And when at the end of ten 
 minutes he seemed none the worse for it, the rest of 
 the party crawled down and drank also. 
 
 Old Coil's surmise was correct. The water had 
 not been poisoned, and the notice had been put up 
 by the selfish owner of the station to prevent his 
 waterholes being depleted by travelling stock. 
 
 IT4
 
 Jim Trollopc and Myself 
 
 CHAPTER VII 
 
 A FEW days later Jim and I reached Kempscy, and 
 put up at a quiet and inexpensive place to await the 
 arrival of Gilbert Ross. The first thing we did was 
 to call at the office of the local stipendiary magis- 
 trate, and take out three " miners' rights " — for Ross, 
 Jim, and myself. The magistrates' clerk was a very 
 supercilious young man, and when I asked for three 
 "miners' rights" I saw at once that he had never 
 before been asked for such permits. Kempsey was not 
 a mining district, and the application for a " miner's 
 right " was something beyond his conception. He 
 was a most elaborately dressed person, with a 
 beautiful curling moustache, and when he told me 
 that it was not "just then convenient" for him to 
 issue " miners' rights," as he could not place his hand 
 on the book containing the forms, I galvanised him 
 into life and civility by a few words. 
 
 *• This is a mining registrar's office. I have 
 come here for three * miners' rights.' If you cannot 
 furnish me with the documents I shall telegraph 
 to the Minister for Mines at Sydney, and report 
 that there is no competent person here to issue 
 them." 
 
 Jimmy Trollope grinned as the glorified young 
 man, with an exceedingly red face, rose from his 
 seat, went to a press and found a new (and unused) 
 book of forms. I showed him how to fill in each one, 
 and then asking him if he had authority to sign as 
 
 115 H 2
 
 Jim TroUope and Myself 
 
 deputy mining registrar. *' He really did not know," 
 he admitted. 
 
 " Oh, well, where is Captain Cromer ? " (the local 
 stipendiary magistrate and mining registrar). " I 
 want these 'miners' rights' without delay. Not at 
 the office to-day ? Then you had best take them to 
 him for his signature, or off goes my telegram to the 
 Minister." 
 
 The young gentleman glared at us both for a 
 moment or two in speechless indignation. We were 
 such a roughly-dressed, travel-stained, dirty-looking 
 pair of ordinary swagmen that he could not conceive 
 how I should address him — a Government official — 
 in such a manner. But the threat about the telegram 
 had its effect. 
 
 " Very well," he said haughtily ; '* I daresay that 
 Captain Cromer will settle your business — or send 
 you about your business — very quickly." 
 
 As luck would have it, at that very moment old 
 Captain Cromer happened to be passing down the 
 dusty street, and Jim caught sight of him. He was 
 an old friend, and a long associated brother magis- 
 trate of my own father, and I had known him from 
 my pinafore days. Hot-tempered, autocratic, and 
 dogmatic, he was at heart a good old fellow. He 
 was only acting temporarily at Kempsey during the 
 leave of the resident magistrate. When I bellowed 
 out to him across the street, he turned, glared 
 savagely at me under his bushy white eyebrows, 
 and at first did not recognise me. When he 
 did, he greeted me most warmly, and asked me 
 
 ii6
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 to lunch — much to the surprise of his dandified 
 clerk. 
 
 " I suppose you have given up the sea, then ? " he 
 asked, as we walked down the street together. 
 
 '* Oh, no, but I have four months' leave, and 
 perhaps may take the liberty of extending it to six, 
 or more " ; then I told him of my plans. 
 
 " Well, I wish you and your mates all good luck. 
 I will let you have the ' rights ' after lunch." 
 
 Going into the local branch of the Bank of New 
 South Wales, I sold the gold outright for cash, and 
 gave Jim his share, which he at once banked, with 
 the exception of a few pounds. Then we visited a 
 saddler's shop, bought saddles, bridles, horse-bells, 
 hobbles, etc. ; then to an ironmonger's, where I 
 bought Jim a very good double-barrelled muzzle- 
 loader, and all the mining tools we wanted ; and 
 when, two days later, Ross arrived with the horses, 
 we were practically ready to start. 
 
 Before leaving the township on the following 
 morning, I wrote to the Sydney firm of South Sea 
 merchants by whom I was employed, and resigned 
 my appointment, but asking them to let me rejoin 
 one of their vessels at the end of six months, if there 
 was a vacancy for me as supercargo or " recruiter" 
 in the labour trade. I was not very anxious as to 
 what their reply would be. If they took umbrage at 
 my throwing up my berth, and refused to take me in 
 again, I knew that I could always start myself as an 
 independent trader in a small way, either in Samoa, 
 the Marshall, or the Caroline Islands. 
 
 117
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 Ross brought with him five horses, two of which 
 we used as packs. One of these was newly broken 
 in, and resented the indignit}' of a pack-saddle. He 
 allowed the saddle and load to be put on his back 
 quietly enough, except that he kept trembling and 
 starting. But the moment Jim took his halter to 
 lead him out of the hotel yard, he gave a squeal, and 
 then a grunt, and bucked most savagely, to the great 
 amusement of a number of the townspeople who were 
 standing by. For ten minutes he tore and plunged 
 about the yards, making furious efforts to rid himself 
 of his pack ; then he lay down and tried to roll. This 
 was too much. Getting him on his feet again, we 
 took off the pack-saddle and load, then Ross saddled 
 the unwilling animal, mounted him, and let him 
 amuse himself by another bout of bucking, till he 
 gave in, exhausted, and then quietly submitted to 
 the pack-saddle. 
 
 We left the town soon after breakfast, and crossing 
 the Macleay River in the horse punt, kept along the 
 left-hand bank (going down) for fifteen miles, where 
 we camped for our midday meal, near a selector's 
 homestead. 
 
 " We are bound to be followed by someone from 
 Kempsey," remarked Ross, as we drank our tea, and 
 ate our beef and damper. " I saw three or four 
 fellows hanging around the hotel yard when we were 
 packing up, and I daresay they are not very far off 
 at this moment. However, we must expect to be 
 followed — a prospecting party always is. But we 
 shall give them a run for their money for a couple of 
 
 ii8
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 days, and then shake them off when wc once get into 
 the ranges at the head of the Hastings. If we can't, 
 we'll tire them out by camping, and keeping them 
 waiting." 
 
 Ross's surmise was correct, for at sunset, just as we 
 were going into camp for the night— thirty miles from 
 Kempsey — we saw four horsemen coming after us 
 along the track. Coming up, they gave us a civil 
 " Good evening," dismounted, and began to talk. 
 They frankly told us that they had thought it worth 
 while to follow us and see " what was on." 
 
 " Right you are," said Ross with a laugh ; " it is a 
 free country. My mates and I are a prospecting 
 party — it is no use our saying we are not. But we 
 haven't fixed on any place as yet. We are just going to 
 potter around between Trial Bay and Crescent Head, 
 and maybe try the country at the headwaters of some 
 of the creeks." 
 
 The men seemed to be satisfied with this statement 
 — which was true enough. They were decent, 
 respectable-looking fellows, but only one of them 
 seemed to have had any experience of gold mining. 
 Two of them had worked at the Inverell tin mines 
 (in the New England district of New South Wales), 
 and these had the idea that we intended to prospect for 
 tin, for there was a good deal of stanniferous country 
 about the Macleay, Bellinger, and Nambucca Rivers. 
 They camped beside us, and we spent a very friendly 
 evening, " yarning " and smoking. They had a pack- 
 horse and tent, and, as far as we could see, about a 
 week's provisions at the outside. No one of them 
 
 119
 
 jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 had a gun, and this meant that they would not be 
 able to remain out long. We, however, each having 
 a gun, and I a rifle as well, could keep ourselves 
 going for an indefinite time, for game was fairly 
 plentiful, and we had a 50-lb. bag of salt as well. 
 Then, too, we had fishing lines— and between game 
 and fish we could be ver>' economical with our supply 
 of salt beef and bacon. 
 
 As we were saddling up at daylight next morning, 
 Ross and I decided that, as our friends evidently 
 meant to stick to us, we should turn off to the south- 
 ward and camp for a couple of days at some swamps 
 between Smoky Cape and the Macleay, where there 
 was good feed for the horses and a fair amount of 
 shooting. These swamps were at the headwaters of 
 a fine, but shallow, creek, which was a tributary of 
 the Maria River, and when we reached there and 
 told our four " not wanted " companions that we 
 intended to spell there for a couple of days, they 
 seemed annoyed and disconcerted. 
 
 " Look here," said Ross, " it is no use you chaps 
 thinking we want to give you the slip. We could 
 not. We mean to spell here for a day or so, and 
 after that I daresay we shall have a look about the 
 head of Deep Creek near the old silver workings. I 
 believe that there is antimony about there — it is just 
 the same sort of country as Corangula Creek, and 
 the Corangula Creek star antimony is bringing £yo a 
 ton now. So I shall have a try." 
 
 Leaving Jim in charge of the camp, Ross and I 
 took our guns and started off for the swamps, and 
 
 120
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 did not return till dusk, when we found that our 
 friends had gone. They had told Jim that they 
 would " look us up " at Deep Creek, and see what 
 luck we were having. The leader had, of course, 
 tried to " pump " Jim in our absence, but that astute 
 young person was quite able to hold his own. 
 
 After two days at the swamps, we crossed over 
 some precipitous country to Deep Creek, where, in 
 the olden days of the colony, considerable silver had 
 been found. (There is another and better-known 
 Deep Creek further north, where heavy deposits of 
 silver were discovered later on.) But the area of 
 silver-bearing country was but small, and it was soon 
 worked out. 
 
 We remained three days at this place, prospecting 
 for antimony ore, and by trenching along some of the 
 spurs came across several small veins or lodes, but 
 not of sufficient importance to induce us to go in for 
 the heavy labour of sinking a shaft. But we deter- 
 mined to go on prospecting, for we were certain that 
 our four former companions were not far off, and that 
 they were keeping a close watch upon us. Ross, 
 however, had his plans. He knew every bit of this 
 part of the country, and although the four men were 
 perhaps all good bushmen, he was certain that they 
 did not know its intricacies as he did, and that we 
 could succeed in getting away from them if we 
 exercised patience. 
 
 On the morning of the fourth day Jim shot a big 
 grey kangaroo, and as we were skinning it after 
 breakfast two of our friends paid us a visit. They 
 
 121
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 told us that they were all camped in a gully two 
 miles away, and had obtained some fairly good silver 
 prospects ; and we saw that they were interested in 
 our antimony ore specimens. We showed them the 
 trenching we had done — to the more convince them 
 that we had actually been working. Before they left, 
 they asked us if we meant to stay in much longer at 
 Deep Creek. No, we replied, we thought not — it did 
 not strike us as being "good enough." They 
 mentioned that they were short of beef and flour, 
 and with a wise judgment Ross gave them a hind 
 quarter of kangaroo, and we "lent" them some 
 flour. 
 
 When they had gone Ross turned to me with a 
 smile. 
 
 " These fellows must think we are asses to lend 
 flour and give them meat. It would have been 
 natural for us to refuse ; but I did it with a purpose. 
 If we had said ' No,' they would of course imagined 
 that we refused because we were anxious to see them 
 compelled to clear out for want of tucker. But look 
 there, my boy, do you see that ? " and he pointed to 
 a bank of dull grey clouds in the south-east. 
 
 "Heavy rain is coming on," he continued, "and 
 before night it will be upon us, with wind as well. 
 It ought to be as dark as pitch, and that will be all 
 the better for us." 
 
 "You mean us to slip away ? " 
 
 " Yes. Let us have everything ready. We must 
 keep the horses near the camp, and as soon as we 
 are satisfied that those fellows are turned in snug 
 
 122
 
 Jim Trollopc and Myself 
 
 under their tent, we'll make a break, cross the 
 creek before it gets too strong with the flood 
 waters, and push up into the ranges for a few miles 
 and wait for daylight. By this time to-morrow 
 we must be forty miles from here — in a bit of 
 country where those jokers cannot find us in a 
 month." 
 
 CHAPTER VIII 
 
 The storm that burst upon us that night was a 
 very heavy one, and the roaring of the gale amongst 
 the lofty tree tops made an appalling clamour and 
 drowned the sound of the torrential downpour of 
 rain. We succeeded in crossing the creek only just 
 in time before its foaming waters rushed down in 
 heavy flood. 
 
 In single file, and leading our horses, we made our 
 way along the sides of a wild and precipitous gully, 
 Ross guiding us with unerring accuracy, though 
 every now and then either one of our party or the 
 horses would come a cropper over a fallen tree or 
 run up against a boulder in the pitchy darkness. 
 For four hours we crawled along drenched to the 
 skin but in good spirits, until we reached a series of 
 basalt caves situated at the head of the gully. Here 
 we "spelled" for an hour or so, and succeeded in 
 lighting a fire and making a billy of tea ; then, after 
 a smoke, started off again, just as the rain began to 
 
 123
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 take off and a few stars peeped out from the black 
 sky as if to encourage us. At the head of the gully 
 we entered upon a plateau of fairly good country, 
 lightly timbered but interspersed with hundreds of 
 wildly fantastic granite boulders, some of them being 
 of an almost human shape and seeming to lean over 
 towards us with threatening and terrifying gestures. 
 
 At last the welcome dawn appeared, and with it the 
 rain ceased and we heard the call of the birds, and 
 soon came the glorious sun, and a strong cool breeze 
 swept down from the misty ranges far beyond 
 and dried our sodden clothing. A short camp for 
 breakfast and again we were on the march, keeping 
 at a steady pace till past noon, when Ross drew rein 
 and pointed to a deep valley that lay at the foot of the 
 plateau which w^e had now crossed. We had done 
 over thirty miles since leaving the camp on Deep 
 Creek. 
 
 '* This is the bit of country of which I told you," 
 he said, as he swung himself sideways on his saddle. 
 "There are half a dozen creeks running into that 
 valley and all of them carry gold — whether much or 
 little we shall soon know. And anyway we shall not 
 be disturbed, for although there are a good many mobs 
 of wild horses and cattle running about here, no one 
 ever tries to get any of them — the country is too 
 rugged to attempt it. Now, after me and take care 
 of the horses going down, for it is mighty stiff and 
 the ground is slippery from the rain. 
 
 It took us another two hours to reach the bottom 
 of the valley, and then Ross brought up at an ideal 
 
 124
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 camping place. It was an open spot about an acre 
 in extent, well grassed and with of plenty of timber 
 all around, and within a few hundred yards of a creek. 
 
 Unsaddling and turning out the horses to revel in 
 the rich, sweet grass, Ross and I set to work on the 
 tent, and Jim went to the creek for water. He had 
 scarcely been away ten minutes when he came tear- 
 ing back at top speed making frantic gestures to us 
 to lie down and keep quiet. 
 
 "Quick," he gasped, "and get your rifles. There's 
 a small mob of cleanskins (wild cattle) feedin' on the 
 bank this side of the creek. There's an old brindle bull 
 and eight or nine cows an' calves, an' if they don't 
 get wind of us we ought to get the chance of a shot 
 at short range." 
 
 Hurriedly taking off our boots and seizing our 
 rifles, Ross and I crawled on our stomachs through 
 the grass to the bank, and soon caught sight of the 
 cattle about a hundred yards away. They were 
 coming directly towards us, feeding as they came> 
 and owing to the strong breeze that was blowing 
 against our faces had no sense of impending danger. 
 The old bull was a magnificent creature with a coat 
 like satin, and all the cows and calves were in 
 splendid condition. 
 
 "Wait a minute or two," whispered my companion; 
 " do you see that red cow with the year-old calf ? 
 She's the best of the lot. I'll take her in the shoul- 
 der, and you must give her another shot the moment 
 she goes down. Let the calf go." 
 
 Suddenly one of our horses neighed near by, and 
 
 125
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 in an instant the old guardian bull was on the alert, 
 sniffing the air, and not a moment too soon Ross's 
 rifle rang out and the cow went down with a thud, 
 and then pitched headlong down the bank into the 
 creek with a heavy splash. The rest of the mob 
 vanished like deer. 
 
 Rushing down to the creek we found the poor 
 cow attempting to swim or rather scramble across 
 to the other side. I was just about to shoot her 
 through the head when Ross stayed me, and, cruel 
 as it seemed, told me to wait till she reached the 
 bank, as we should never be able to get such a heavy 
 beast out of the water. So we followed her across, 
 and then ended her sufferings by a merciful bullet 
 through the back of her head. 
 
 The labour of getting the carcase further up on 
 the bank, skinning it and then hoisting it up to a 
 tree branch ready for cutting up in the morning, 
 when it would be " set " and cool, was a very heavy 
 task, and by sunset we all three were done up, 
 though highly pleased at our good fortune in obtain- 
 ing such a supply of beef. 
 
 At daylight we began work — Jim getting breakfast 
 and Ross and I attending to the butchering, cutting 
 up and drysalting the meat. The rest of the day we 
 spent in making our camp comfortable, and when 
 darkness fell we ate a hearty supper and turned in, 
 tired but happy, and not to be disturbed by the 
 melancholy cry of the mopoke nor even the howling 
 of some dingoes that were gathering round to feed 
 upon the offal and bones of the defunct cow. 
 
 126
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 Before sunrise we were eating our breakfast of 
 grilled steak and damper washed down by copious 
 draughts of tea, and then taking our shovels and 
 prospecting dishes we set out on our first day's pro- 
 specting work. We had named our camp " Clean- 
 skin Creek," and crossing over through the now clear, 
 cold water we followed the left-hand bank right up 
 to the source. 
 
 *' Let us try here first," said Ross, casting his eye 
 around approvingly. " We shall get the colour of 
 gold here at any rate. Of that I am certain." 
 
 CHAPTER IX 
 
 Gilbert Ross was right in his contention, for the 
 very first dish of wash-dirt that we panned off gave 
 us a few " colours " of gold, and the second and third 
 showed still better results. This was encouraging. 
 
 " It is my belief," said Ross, "that there will be 
 some big and rich reefs found in this broken country 
 some day. All these gullies about are full of small 
 * leaders,' some of them showing gold, some not a 
 trace of it. I never had the time to prospect 
 thoroughly, but we shall do so properly this time. 
 This gold comes from these * leaders ' and stringers, 
 and from no great distance either. Now, Jim, my 
 son, bring along the dishes, and we shall try a bit 
 further up. There is only a few inches of water here, 
 
 127
 
 Jim TroUope and Myself 
 
 and it won't take us long to make a bit of a dam to 
 keep it back ; then we can get at the bed of the 
 creek itself and see how that pans out." 
 
 Shovelling away the soil, stones, and vegetable 
 debris from each side of the narrow creek, we made a 
 dam high enough to keep back the running water — 
 which was only about four inches deep — for some 
 hours. Then all three of us set to work with our 
 shovels on the exposed bed of the creek, shovelling 
 out sand, stones, gravel, dead and rotten logs, etc., 
 and piling the whole up on the banks. 
 
 " That'll do for the present," cried Ross, pitching 
 his shovel out upon the bank; "let us try a few dish- 
 fuls before we do any more digging. It is no use for 
 us to break our backs for nothing." 
 
 Jim filled our two dishes, and we carried them to 
 the dam and roughly washed them off. 
 
 Oh, the delight of it ! There, in my dish, were at 
 least five pennyweights of coarse gold, and one piece 
 of about four pennyweights, which was adhering to a 
 fragment of water- worn quartz. 
 
 " Hurrah ! " I cried, " we have struck it at last. 
 Look at this, Gilbert." 
 
 Ross made no answer beyond a nod, and went on 
 washing-off. Then he looked up, with a smile on his 
 bronzed and handsome face. 
 
 "And look at this," he said quietly, holding out his 
 dish to Jim and me to look at. 
 
 Gleaming brightly amidst some fine black and 
 reddish-coloured sand was quite half an ounce of 
 gold — most of it coarse and in fiat water-worn 
 
 128
 
 Jim Trollopc and Myself 
 
 pellets. Jim's nut-brown countenance expanded 
 into a vast smile. 
 
 We held a hurried discussion as to our best course 
 of action, and resolved to take out no more wash-dirt 
 that day, but to begin operations lower down by 
 building a bigger and stronger dam with a " run off" 
 and a race. This, if the rain would only hold off, 
 and the creek not come down in flood, would enable 
 us to work the bottom in a leisurely and systematic 
 manner. The dam we had already made we cut 
 into, and let the accumulated water run off gently 
 on its natural course. Then, after congratulating 
 ourselves on our good luck, we stretched ourselves 
 under a shady tree for a smoke, before resuming 
 operations on the rest of the wash-dirt, now rapidly 
 draining and drying under the hot sun. 
 
 "I think," observed Ross, "that this bit of the 
 creek just here will prove to be the best, for the 
 wash-dirt seems to be pretty thick, and that bar of 
 rock down below there has made a sort of a water 
 pocket here. But where the gold comes from I 
 cannot imagine. So far I can see no sign of an 
 outcrop or ' blow ' of quartz anywhere about on the 
 sides of the gully. Quite possibly there may be 
 dozens of small reefs and leaders criss-crossing every- 
 where, but not showing on the surface — they may all 
 be covered up with the accumulation of vegetable 
 mould of centuries. If so, our only way to And out 
 would be to trench along one or more of the spurs. 
 Then, again, it may be that the reef runs along the 
 bed of the creek itself — or did so once, until it 
 
 129 I
 
 yim Trollope and Myself 
 
 became disintegrated by time. I have known of 
 such a case on the old Calliope diggings in Queens- 
 land. There we were getting gold — coarse, fine, 
 and nuggets running up to ten ounces — from the 
 bed of a creek, and there was not the sign of a reef 
 anywhere within six miles ; nothing but a monstrous 
 ' blow ' of white, hungry quartz, half an acre in 
 extent, and with not a grain of gold in a thousand 
 tons of it. Now, come on, you fellows, and let us 
 finish off. We have a good many hours of daylight 
 left, and can easily finish before sunrise." 
 
 With a right good will we turned to again, and 
 when we finished there was a pretty sight to behold 
 — over forty ounces of beautiful gold, worth ;^i5o. 
 Amongst it were several small nuggets, some of the 
 pure metal itself, others embedded in or attached to 
 fragments of quartz. 
 
 I shall not weary my readers with the technical 
 details of our arduous labours for the next four or 
 five weeks. We toiled as only diggers can toil — 
 especially when they are doing well ; and despite one 
 great and bitter disappointment we were well 
 rewarded, for out of that unknown and unnamed 
 creek we found a hundred and sixty ounces of gold, 
 exclusive of one nugget of five, and one of three and 
 a half ounces. We should have done better still but 
 for a terrific thunderstorm which, during our third 
 week, swept away our dam and put the creek into a 
 roaring torrent within an hour. And, unfortunately, 
 in addition to losing some of our tools, one of our 
 pack-horses was drowned. He was the only one of 
 
 130
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 our animals which ever gave us any trouble by his 
 persistent habit of straying from the camp at night 
 time. On the day of the storm I had short-hobbled 
 him and let him feed along the bank. He evidently 
 must have slipped into the creek and been carried 
 away when the rush of water came. We afterwards 
 found his body caught in the branches of a white 
 cedar tree about four miles down the creek. 
 
 At the end of five weeks, and as the result of some 
 good prospects we had obtained at the head of 
 another creek nine miles distant from Cleanskin 
 Creek, we broke camp at the latter place, and the 
 next day found us at our new quarters. It was a 
 wildly picturesque bit of country, amidst rugged and 
 forbidding granite spurs, mostly bare of timber, 
 though our camp was in primeval forest. The creek 
 was narrow, but in places very deep, and some of the 
 deeper pools abounded in small but excellent fish, 
 very much like grayling. They took the hook freely, 
 especially if baited with a grasshopper or cricket, and 
 we had many hours' excellent sport. We also came 
 across several mobs of wild cattle, but for a long 
 time they were too quick for us, and we had to 
 content ourselves with kangaroos, rock wallabies, 
 pigeons and cockatoos. These latter, when hung for 
 a couple of days, are excellent eating, like the 
 Australian king parrot, and Jim was now proving 
 himself a first-rate cook, though he could never 
 succeed in making a satisfactory damper. This 
 either fell to Gilbert Ross or me. 
 
 At this creek, which we called Mullet Waterholes, 
 
 131 i 2
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 we did not get as much gold as we anticipated, owing 
 to Ross injuring his foot very severely with a pick. 
 Still, at the end of a month we had added forty-two 
 ounces to " the bank," as we called our canvas gold- 
 bag, and were quite satisfied. 
 
 Our flour and sugar were now at a very low ebb, 
 and, if we intended to keep on, must be replenished. 
 It would not do for us to visit Kempsey or any of the 
 larger settlements to buy stores of any kind, as we 
 were afraid of being shadowed as lucky diggers, so 
 Ross proposed that he and Jim should make their 
 way to the coast to the little hamlet of Russell at 
 Smoky Cape (on the shores of Trial Bay), where 
 there was a combined general store and public-house. 
 Here they could obtain all the flour, sugar, etc., we 
 wanted and be back within a week or eight days. 
 Then, after their return, we intended to prospect 
 some of the other creeks in the vicinity of Mullet 
 Waterholes. 
 
 Taking two pack-horses to carry the bags of flour, 
 and riding the two other best horses, Gilbert and 
 Jim set off early one Monday morning, and I was 
 left to myself. They had scarcely ,been out of sight 
 of the camp for five minutes when I heard the well- 
 known report of Ross's rifle. 
 
 Grabbing at my shot gun, which was loaded, I ran 
 as hard as I could up the stony spur to see what was 
 wrong, and in a few seconds more was nearly knocked 
 down by a mob of twenty or so wild cattle which 
 came rushing madly down, making for the jungle on 
 the creek. Then Jim appeared on the crest of the 
 
 132
 
 Jim Trollope and Mysclt 
 
 spur, and bellowed out to me that Ross had shot a 
 fine fat heifer — one of the mob. 
 
 This was a bit of luck, although it meant delaying 
 Ross and Jim for a couple of days to skin, cut up, 
 and salt down the prize. For a prize she was, 
 although she took the last of our coarse salt. 
 
 After my companions left me for the second time, 
 I put in my hrst day at mending boots, sewing 
 clothes, and doing the whole family washing. 
 
 As I was returning from the creek carrying "the 
 family wash," I met a dingo slut and three pups, 
 face to face. They had been feeding on the refuse 
 of the heifer and were so full that they were hardly 
 able to do more than go off at a trot — turning back 
 and showing their teeth at me every now and then. 
 
 CHAPTER X 
 
 During the absence of my " mates," I had much 
 to occupy me, both mentally and physically, and I 
 think that I greatly benefited by being left to 
 commune with myself and Nature in that lonely spot, 
 even for the short space of eight days and nights. 
 I was used to long periods of loneliness, for during 
 my past career in the Pacific Islands I had twice 
 been left very much to myself. Once was when I 
 and a native of Niu6 (Savage Island) spent seven 
 months by ourselves on an uninhabited island in the 
 Equatorial Pacific. The story is a brief one, so I 
 
 133
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 may tell it here in this narrative of my trampings 
 and wanderings in the Australian bush : — 
 
 I was then the supercargo of a South Sea Island 
 trading vessel sailing from Sydney, and during our 
 cruise we called at Uea — commonly known as Wallis 
 Island. It is an isolated spot three hundred miles 
 to the westward of Samoa, and populated by a fine 
 stalwart race of Malayo-Polynesians, who speak a 
 curious patois of the Maori, Samoan and Fijian 
 dialects. The one white trader on the island was a 
 man who had led a most adventurous career in the 
 Pacific, and one evening he told me that he had 
 ** missed many chances of making a fortune," and 
 then asked me if I was prepared to pay him a 
 hundred pounds for a secret that would be worth 
 many thousands of pounds to the firm by which I 
 was employed as supercargo. 
 
 " I am an old man, and, as you know, almost 
 blind, and have a well-deserved reputation as a hard 
 drinking old scallywag. But no one can say that I 
 am not honest." 
 
 '* I know that, Martin," I replied. 
 
 *' Well, if you will give me a hundred pounds I 
 will tell you of an island where there are thousands 
 of tons of guano — guano as good as that of Baker's 
 or Rowland Islands. It is covered up by vegetable 
 mould and sand." 
 
 I knew that the old fellow was "straight," 
 and had no hesitation in giving him £"50 down 
 and a written order on my firm's agents in 
 Samoa for another £50 payable in six months. 
 
 134
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 Then we sailed direct for the guano island. It 
 was one of the Phoenix Group in the Equatorial 
 Pacific, and within half an hour of our arriving 
 there I was satisfied that the old trader's story 
 was quite true and that there was at least 
 ;^ioo,ooo worth of guano on the island. 
 
 I was young, honest and quixotic, and decided to 
 remain on the island, send my ship back to Sydney 
 with the news of this valuable discovery, telling them 
 that I was remaining on the island until they sent a 
 staff of native labourers to ship the guano, for it was 
 quite possible that old Martin, " straight " as he 
 was, might, in his cups, tell someone else what he 
 had told me, and that the island would be taken 
 possession of by other parties. 
 
 So, with one native sailor to keep me company, I 
 remained on the island. My vessel, on her way to 
 Sydney, was dismasted, and it was seven months 
 before we were relieved. During that time we 
 suffered great hardships, for we had landed with only 
 three months' provisions, and for the remaining four 
 lived on sea-birds' eggs, fish, and turtle flesh. And 
 my generous emploj'ers, who netted over £90,000 
 from the guano deposits on the island, rewarded 
 me with the magnificent sum of -^200 as a bonus 
 for my long ^sojourn I They "considered" that 
 my salary of £^^ per month as supercargo was 
 in itself ample compensation for seven months* 
 miser}','' "[as^If'had nothing to do, and no 
 worries nor anxieties." Had I had sufficient sense 
 I should have kept old'Martin's secret to myself, gone 
 
 135
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 to some Sydney merchant, and made many thousands 
 of pounds. 
 
 My second experience of loneliness was on the 
 great island of New Britain, in the Western Pacific, 
 where for two months I lived alone on a tiny island 
 off the coast, " shepherding " some black-edge pearl 
 shell beds which had been casually discovered by 
 some of the native seamen of a schooner on which I 
 was a passenger. At this place, however, I was well 
 content, for I had plenty of food, and during the two 
 months collected two tons of pearl shell, worth 
 £^0 a ton. 
 
 ■jjt Hf 'I* * 'P' 
 
 When Ross and Jim Trollope returned with 
 all the provisions we wanted, they brought with 
 them a letter from a much-loved sister which 
 had been following me about for many months, 
 urging me to visit her at her home in Brisbane, 
 Queensland. 
 
 " Do not go back to those horrible South Sea Islands 
 before seeing me again," she wrote. " I am quite an 
 old woman now — forty years of age — and my husband 
 and five children, who have never seen you, want 
 you to come to us for even a few weeks before you go 
 a-wandering again. I do not know how you are 
 situated as regards money ; but if you want some — 
 and I am sure you do, as you were never careful — go 
 to Francis Adams, at the Commercial Bank in 
 Sydney, and he will give you whatever you want up 
 to two hundred pounds (£200). I have written to 
 him. I do hope that you have some decent clothes. 
 
 136
 
 Jim Trollope and Myself 
 
 I do not want to be unkind, but you are so careless 
 in that way." 
 
 I read this letter to Gilbert Ross. 
 
 " You must go and see your sister," he said. " If 
 you do not go now, you may not have another 
 chance." 
 
 And so I decided to go. 
 
 It was a sorrowful parting for us, and when I rode 
 away, after a hearty hand-grasp with Gilbert Ross 
 and Jim Trollope, I felt that there was a big hole in 
 my Australian heart. 
 
 137
 
 "FOR THE BENEFIT OF SAILORS' 
 
 KIDS"
 
 '' FOR THE BENEFIT OF 
 SAILORS' KIDS" 
 
 Chartered by the naval authorities at Sydney to 
 take a cargo of coal to Cooktown, North Queensland, 
 for the use of one of Her Majesty's ships then engaged 
 on the New Guinea survey, the Island trading vessel, 
 of which Tom Drake was supercargo, sailed one day 
 in November, and fourteen days later passed through 
 the Great Barrier Reef at Trinity Opening, and came 
 into smooth water. After landing a few tons of cargo 
 at the then newly-founded township at Port Douglas, 
 the Ysabe/ proceeded on her way to Cooktown, inside 
 the Great Barrier. That is, tried to proceed, but 
 heavy north-easterly weather set in, raising a tre- 
 mendous sea. For two days her skipper tackled it, 
 bringing to at night, and then gave up till the weather 
 moderated, by anchoring under the lee of a headland 
 not far from Cape Tribulation, and near the mouth of 
 an alligator-infested tidal river. At this time nearly 
 all of the rivers debouching into the Pacific from Cape 
 York down to Rockingham Bay — many hundreds of 
 miles — were almost unknown, except to a few adven- 
 turous parties of cedar-getters, who, at the daily risk 
 of their lives from fever and savage, cannibal blacks, 
 
 141
 
 '' For the Benefit of Sailors' Kids 
 
 »» 
 
 plied their dangerous and laborious vocation in the 
 hot and steamy jungles that clothed the rivers' banks. 
 Great confusion existed as to the names of these 
 rivers, and even the location of their mouths, which 
 were often hidden from seaward view by belts of man- 
 groves. Some of them had half a dozen names, each 
 party of cedar-getters who entered a river giving it 
 a name of their own choosing. With the discovery of 
 the Palmer River goldfields, some hundreds of miles in 
 the interior, and, later on, of those on the Hodgkinson 
 River, came the opening of new ports. Cooktown, 
 at the mouth of the Endeavour River, was the first, 
 then followed Port Douglas, Mourilyan, and others, 
 and the loneliness of the cedar-getters' lives was 
 occasionally broken by the visit of some daring party 
 of diggers journeying along the wild and savage coast, 
 seeking some new and shorter track through the 
 rugged coastal range to the goldfields beyond. Time 
 after time would a party of cedar-getters or diggers 
 enter one of these rivers and be no more heard of, 
 and then, perhaps long months after, a patrol of 
 native police would come across their camp, and find 
 the skeletons or charred bones of the former occupants, 
 who had been surprised and slaughtered by the 
 " myalls " (wild blacks). Then began the task of 
 vengeance. The black police, as savage and ruthless 
 as the " myall " murderers themselves, would, under 
 the leadership of a white officer, follow the trail of 
 the savages until they in turn were surprised and 
 shot down mercilessly, neither age nor sex being 
 spared. 
 
 142
 
 '' For the Benefit of Sailors' Kids " 
 
 On the day following that on which the Ysahel 
 anchored, the heavy rain squalls ceased, though the 
 wind continued to blow a gale, and although she was in 
 smooth water inside the Great Barrier Reef, a terrific 
 sea was running a few miles from the shore. 
 
 Like all South Sea traders, she carried a native 
 crew (her ultimate destination after leaving Cook- 
 town was the islands of the North-West Pacific), and 
 on the cessation of the rain some of them came to 
 Drake and asked him if he would not like to take a 
 boat and go up the river for some shooting, for they 
 had seen vast numbers of duck and geese flying over- 
 head, making their way from the storm-swept coast 
 to more sheltered situations inland. Glad of leaving 
 the ship, the supercargo assented, and one of the 
 boats was at once lowered. The party consisted of 
 four Polynesian sailors, the second mate, and Drake, 
 and they took with them an ample supply of pro- 
 visions — such as tinned beef, biscuits, tea, sugar, etc. 
 — and started off with pleasurable anticipation of a 
 long and good day's sport. Each of the native 
 seamen had a single-barrel muzzle-loader shot gun 
 (their own property), and the second mate and super- 
 cargo, in addition to their breech-loading i2-bores, 
 had each brought a Snider rifle — mainly for the 
 purpose of getting some shots at the alligators, but 
 also in case of blacks being about the river. 
 
 A few minutes' pull brought them to the mouth of 
 the river, which was alive with fish, jumping and 
 splashing about in all directions. After passing the 
 mangroves, they entered the river proper, on the 
 
 143
 
 " For the Benefit of Sailors' Kids " 
 
 mudd}' banks of which many alligators were lying. 
 The reptiles quickly slid into the water at the boat's 
 approach, but one of the very largest gave Finch 
 (second mate) the chance of a side shot, and to the 
 crew's delight the hideous creature turned on its side, 
 opening and snapping its jaws, and lashing its tail to 
 and fro in the soft mud. Another bullet through the 
 neck at a distance of ten yards settled it — the first 
 had taken it under the forearm. 
 
 The sound of the shots had disturbed an immense 
 number of wild-fowl somewhere near, and just as 
 their clamour ceased the men heard two shots in 
 quick succession, and then a " Coo-e-e ! " 
 
 "Cedar-getters," said Drake to Finch; "they must 
 be round the bend of the river." 
 
 After pulling half a mile they rounded the bend, 
 and came across a patrol of native police. They 
 were camped in a cleared space on the right-hand 
 bank, and the officer in charge told Drake that it had 
 formerly been a cedar-getter's camp of five men, who 
 had been killed by the blacks a year previously. He 
 and his black troopers were on patrol, and making 
 their way along the coast to Cooktown. They had 
 slept in the cedar-getters' hut, which, although it had 
 been plundered by the " myalls," had a good roof of 
 bark over it. At the back of it was what had once 
 been a good garden, in which the poor cedar-getters 
 had grown maize, sweet potatoes, pumpkins, and 
 other vegetables, and the officer showed Finch and 
 Drake scores of large yellow pumpkins, full grown, 
 lying amidst wild vines and creepers — the seeds of 
 
 144
 
 " For the Benefit of Sailors' Kids " 
 
 the previous crop had taken root, and yielded as 
 prolilically as if they had been sown by hand, and 
 the vines tended. After an hour's chat and smoke, 
 and several nips of ship's rum, the officer bade his 
 men saddle up, as they had to resume their march. 
 He told Drake and Finch that about a mile down 
 the river they would come to a narrow left-hand 
 branch, by following which for another two miles 
 they would enter some large swamps, where they 
 were certain to find any quantity of geese, duck and 
 teal, with good cover to shoot from. 
 
 "At the same time," he added, "you must look 
 out for niggers. I have come down along this bank 
 from the head of the river, up in the ranges, and we 
 have not seen a sign of a nigger — only some old 
 camping places, so I suppose there arc none about 
 the river just now. Still, one can never tell ; and 
 now that the rains have come, and the swamps and 
 marshes are covered with geese and duck, it is quite 
 possible that some small, wandering mobs of niggers 
 may have come down from the ranges, goose hunting. 
 I would go with you, but it's out of my beat— my 
 instructions were to patrol along this bank — the other 
 side and all the coast southward is in charge of 
 another sub-inspector, who patrols the Cardwell 
 (Rockingham Bay) District. So keep a good look- 
 out ; don't go too far from your boat ; and, quite 
 apart from niggers, there are alligators in some of the 
 swamps and lagoons, especially the deeper ones. 
 Don't try to pick up anything you shoot that falls in 
 water deeper than would reach to your knees. These 
 
 145 K
 
 " For the Benefit of Sailors' Kids " 
 
 swamp alligators are the very devil for collaring a 
 man unawares. Now good-bye, and good luck," and 
 swinging himself into his saddle, the swarthy-faced 
 sub-inspector trotted off, followed by his sooty-faced 
 blue-uniformed Danites, who, with becketted carbines 
 trotted after their officer in single file. 
 
 Before starting, the crew half-filled the whaleboat 
 with huge pumpkins — always a treat for sailors — and 
 then pushed off. As they made their way down the 
 river again to the branch which they were to take, 
 the second mate and the supercargo discussed their 
 police officer acquaintance and some of the startling 
 stories he had told them of the murderous attacks by 
 the blacks upon cedar-getters and isolated parties of 
 diggers, and the terrible reprisalsby the native police. 
 For, about two years previously, some thousands of 
 Chinese had been pouring into the rich alluvial gold- 
 fields of the Far North of Queensland, most of them 
 landing at Cooktown direct from Hongkong. These 
 made for the Palmer River diggings ; others swarmed 
 into the country by way of the ports on the Gulf of 
 Carpentaria, and marched on foot through desert 
 country to the rich alluvial gold fields on the 
 Etheridge, Gilbert, and Cloncurry Rivers, crowding 
 out the white miners, and proving a curse to the 
 country, for they brought no money into it, and 
 every pennyweight of gold they washed out was sent 
 to China. Many hundreds of them perished on the 
 way, and hundreds were speared by the blacks. As 
 soon as a party of these alien diggers had secured a 
 few hundred ounces of gold, some of their num.ber 
 
 146
 
 " For the Benefit of Sailors' Kids " 
 
 would be despatched with it to Cooktown or Nor- 
 manton, to place it in the hands of the Chinese 
 merchants there for shipment to China. Unarmed 
 and cowardly, they often fell an easy prey to the 
 myall blacks, and the gold dust and nuggets they 
 carried were cast aside by the savages as valueless 
 rubbish. 
 
 " But," the officer had added, " it is not always the 
 niggers who murder these gold-carrying Chows — 
 take away the * n ' from niggers, and substitute a 
 * d,' and you'll get at the truth. We, in the police, 
 know a good deal, and I and other officers in the 
 native'^police, could put our hands on half a dozen 
 diggers who have not won an ounce of gold honestly 
 since they came upon the fields — but are now rich 
 men, with big banking accounts — they got their gold 
 by shooting down and then robbing parties of Chinese 
 diggers on their way to the coast. Why, not six 
 months ago one of our patrols came across seven 
 dead Chinamen, all of whom had been shot. I won't 
 mention names, but we know very well who shot 
 them — two well-known ' prospectors,' as they call 
 themselves. Ten days or so after the Chinamen's 
 bodies were found, these two jokers rode into 
 Normanton and sold seven hundred ouncesof gold to 
 the Bank of Australasia there ; said they had struck a 
 rich little alluvial patch on the Einnasleigh River. 
 And they have wiped out other parties of Chows as 
 well ; but of course the niggers get the blame, as they 
 do most of the killing. I once found the remains of 
 three poor devils, who had been speared in their sleep 
 
 147 K 2
 
 <' For the Benefit of Sailors' Kids " 
 
 by the niggers, and my black troopers found about 
 forty ounces of alluvial gold scattered about the 
 place where they had camped — the niggers had taken 
 it out of the dead men's pouches, or whatever it was 
 carried in, and chucked it away." 
 
 " What is done with gold found under such circum- 
 stances ? " Drake had asked. 
 
 "The Curator of Intestate Estates at Brisbane is 
 supposed to get it," the officer said with a dry smile, 
 which Drake and Finch quite understood. The two 
 "prospectors" to whom the officer referred, had, he 
 concluded, not been seen at any of the gold fields for 
 over five months, and it was supposed they had gone 
 south to Sydney or Melbourne. " They were last 
 seen in this part of the country where we are now, 
 and said that they were making for Cairns (Trinity 
 Bay) to get a steamer going south. But they never 
 turned up there. I daresay they were alarmed at 
 the talk going about them, and thought that the 
 Cairns police might want to look into their swags, 
 for just then there was another party of Chinese 
 diggers missing who were known to have a lot of 
 gold in their possession. Most likely these two chaps, 
 who were well mounted, and had spare horses, thought 
 it best to get into New South Wales or Victoria over- 
 land, and went there by the great stock routes, like 
 all ' overlanders.' " 
 
 ^ 4^ * * * 
 
 Turning into the branch of the river, and using 
 Polynesian canoe paddles (with which the boat was 
 provided) instead of oars, on account of its narrowness, 
 
 148
 
 " For the Benefit of Sailors' Kids 
 
 )) 
 
 the boat sped swiftly over the sluggish stream, dis- 
 turbing several mud-cmbcddcd alligators on the 
 banks, and then after a two miles' pull the river 
 suddenly opened out into a series of swamps, or 
 rather tidal lagoons, the margins of which were lined 
 either with tall reeds or low undergrowth. The 
 surface of the water was covered with thousands of 
 water- fowl, ducks, geese, teal, water-hens and pelicans. 
 On the right hand side of the largest swamp the land 
 was fairly high, and free from dense scrub, and 
 thither the boat was headed, towards a clump of 
 wide-spreading trees standing in an open space. 
 Here the party landed to eat their midday meal, 
 under the shady trees, for the day was now un- 
 comfortably hot. Leaving two of the men behind — 
 one to boil water for the tea, and the other, with a 
 Snider rifle, to act as sentry with instructions to fire 
 if he saw any blacks — Drake, Finch, and the rest of 
 the seamen started off along the bank, and in a few 
 minutes the four guns were making havoc among the 
 geese and duck feeding in the reeds. With the first 
 shot they rose in clouds and filled the air with their 
 clamour, only to circle a little distance and then 
 settle down again on the open water. In half an 
 hour each man had as many birds as he could 
 carry, all shot within five hundred yards of the 
 camp. 
 
 " That will do for the present. Finch," cried Drake. 
 ** Let us get to camp, and we'll have another turn at 
 them after dinner." 
 
 Gathering the birds together, they were all walking 
 
 149
 
 *' For the Benefit of Sailors' Kids 
 
 9> 
 
 leisurely back to the camp when they heard the loud 
 report of the sentry's rifle. 
 
 " Run, boys ; run," shouted Drake, dropping his 
 birds ; " the niggers must be about the camp ! " 
 
 A few minutes' hard running brought them in 
 sight of the camp. To their surprise, neither of the 
 two men seemed at all alarmed ; one was attending 
 to the fire, the other coming towards them, carrying 
 his rifle in one hand and a wild goose in the other. 
 
 " What made you fire ? " said Drake, testily. 
 
 "Because, master," replied the man, speaking in 
 his native Samoan, " I was frightened. I have seen 
 two dead men, and I fired my rifle to bring you 
 back. Ah, they are bad to look upon." Then he 
 told his story : — 
 
 As he was keeping watch, he saw a flight of geese 
 pass over the camp, and one, which was wounded, 
 fell into a narrow gully a few hundred yards distant. 
 He ran to pick it up, and was returning with it, when 
 he saw " a lot of things " lying scattered about under 
 a clump of stinging trees. Going closer to examine, 
 he was horrified to see the bodies, or rather skeletons, 
 of two human beings, lying amongst a heap of 
 articles — broken spears, torn clothing, saddles, boots, 
 and battered prospecting dishes — and so fired his 
 rifle to bring the shooting party back. 
 
 Hurrying to the spot, Drake and Finch beheld a 
 gruesome sight — the two almost fleshless skeletons 
 of men, who had evidently been speared and clubbed 
 to death, for a number of broken spears were lying 
 about, and both skulls were literally battered to
 
 '' For the Benefit of Sailors' Kids 
 
 55 
 
 fragments. The men had evidently been camped in 
 a tent near by, for its remains, torn into strips, were 
 scattered about. Two saddles and a pack-saddle, 
 minus the stirrup leathers and straps, had been 
 thrown over the remains, and a little distance away 
 were the skeletons of three horses, which had been 
 speared in their hobbles, for both the hobbles with the 
 hobble-chains were still round the whitened bones of 
 their forelegs. Here, too, were a number of broken 
 spears. All around were the marks of fires on the 
 ground, surrounded by horse bones, showing where 
 the myall blacks had cooked the horseflesh. 
 
 " Poor beggars ! " said Finch, shudderingly, as he 
 gazed at the dreadful spectacle under the glossy- 
 leaved stinging tree ; " we shall have to bury them." 
 
 The two men took a drink of spirits to fortify 
 themselves, and gave one to each of their crew, and 
 then told the latter to cut a forked sapling, and draw 
 out the poor remains of humanity, whilst they dug a 
 grave with boat paddles in the soft soil. 
 
 Quickly, and in silence, the work was begun and 
 completed, and then Drake and Finch asked the 
 men if they had come across any letters or papers 
 of any kind. 
 
 " No," they said, "they had not noticed any." 
 
 " Then look again." 
 
 He and Finch were walking back to the fire, when 
 the latter stooped and picked up a small object 
 from the ground. It was a tiny, square glass phial, 
 covered with silk netting, and filled with a thick 
 yellow liquid. He knew what it was in an instant. 
 
 151
 
 ^' For the Benefit of Sailors' Kids 
 
 5> 
 
 "Chinese essence of peppermint, and rattling good 
 stuff it is, too, for a headache," exclaimed the seaman 
 as he handed it to his companion. " I suppose it 
 must have belonged to one of those poor chaps, and 
 the niggers threw it away. Hullo, there are a couple 
 
 more." 
 
 Drake stopped suddenly. Something had flashed 
 across his mind at the sight of the phial. 
 
 " Finch, do you remember what the police officer 
 told us about the two fellows who made a business of 
 murdering and robbing Chinese diggers. Now " 
 
 A loud " Come back, sirs, quick ! " made them 
 turn. Harry, one of the native seamen, was running 
 to them, evidently much excited. 
 
 " There's a lot of gold lying about on the ground, 
 sir ; some of it is loose, and some is tied up in little 
 bags. Look, sir, here is some," and, opening his 
 hand, he displayed a number of small nuggets, 
 ranging from one to three ounces each. 
 
 Drake was an Australian by birth, and had had 
 experience as a digger. Taking the nuggets from the 
 man, he examined them. 
 
 " Alluvial gold," he said to Finch. Then dropping 
 the nuggets into his pocket, he bade Harry go back 
 to his shipmates and wait. 
 
 " Finch, I believe that those two awful things we 
 have just buried are the two prospectors, and that 
 this gold has been taken from poor wretches of 
 Chinamen whom they have murdered. Now, let us 
 go and see." 
 
 Reaching the spot, where the sailors were still 
 
 152
 
 " For the Benefit of Sailors' Kids " 
 
 searching, by clearing away the grass, dead leaves 
 and twigs, one of them handed the supercargo four 
 small linen bags, each containing about twelve ounces 
 of fine gold ; then a soiled and blood-stained belt made 
 of sisal hemp, which had been cut partly through, 
 but still contamed nearly forty ounces of gold in small 
 nuggets. Other bags were also lying about, cut or 
 torn open, and empty, and the gold that they had 
 contained had been tossed away on all sides. Every 
 now and then the men \Yould find nuggets of varying 
 size, and as the leaves were scraped away, coarse and 
 fine gold showed itself on the black soil. 
 
 The white men held a hurried consultation. It 
 was necessary for them to get out of the river before 
 dark, or the skipper would be alarmed, yet they did 
 not want to leave any of the gold still on the ground. 
 Then an idea came to Drake. 
 
 " Run to the boat, two of you, unbend the main- 
 sail and jib, dip them in the water, and bring them 
 here with the bucket and some more paddles. Hurry 
 up, my lads. Now, Finch, the rest of us must set to 
 work and cover all this place about here with a thin 
 layer of dry leaves and dead grass — no big sticks, 
 mind, as I'm going to set fire to it. Then, as soon 
 as it burns down, we can scrape up the ashes, and 
 about an inch of the top soil with it, turn it into the 
 jib and mainsail, and dump it, load by load, into the 
 boat until we have the last of it. If we are careful 
 we can't lose even any of the fine gold, and when we 
 get to the ship I'll pan off the stuff. 
 
 Ever}onc went to work with a will, and in a short 
 
 153
 
 '' For the Benefit of Sailors' Kids " 
 
 time the ground beneath and around the clump of 
 stinging trees was ablaze. The grass and leaves 
 burned away quickly, and then all hands began 
 vigorously scraping the hot, but not burning, ashes 
 and top soil into heaps, which were put into the 
 wetted sails, and carried to the boat. In two hours 
 the work was completed, and then, after a hurried 
 meal and a half pannikin of grog each, the crew 
 took to the paddles, and sent the deeply-laden 
 boat down the river, Drake and the officer, too 
 excited to talk, paddling with their brown-skinned 
 shipmates. 
 
 Darkness fell as they gained the mouth of the 
 river and saw the bright riding light of the Ysabel in 
 the darkness. As the boat ranged alongside, old 
 McLeod, the skipper, leant over the rail, pipe in 
 mouth. 
 
 " What have you got ? " he asked. 
 
 " Geese, ducks, teal, pumpkins and nuggets of 
 gold," replied the second mate with a curious, 
 hysterical kind of laugh. 
 
 " Ah ! And I suppose the grog jar is empty," said 
 the unbelieving McLeod, with good-natured sarcasm. 
 
 7ff ^F ^ * ■'* 
 
 All the following morning and afternoon, Drake, 
 aided by some of the crew, was busied on the main 
 deck in panning off the wash-dirt, with the result 
 that a further three hundred ounces of gold were 
 obtained. This, with that which had been found 
 previously, brought the total up to five hundred and 
 twenty ounces. Whilst panning off Drake came 
 
 154
 
 '' For the Benefit of Sailors' Kids " 
 
 across several small silver coins of the Hongkong 
 currency, and most damning proof of the guilt of the 
 prospectors, two heavy gold rings set with jade 
 inscribed with Chinese characters. 
 
 That night, after supper, the table was cleared and 
 the gold weighed. It was pure, water-worn alluvial, 
 and of the highest value, without a fragment of 
 quartz adhering to any of the nuggets, and Drake, 
 who was a competent judge, valued it at £3 18s. per 
 ounce. 
 
 Then ensued a discussion. What was to be done 
 with the treasure ? Could they honestly keep it ? 
 Would they be defrauding anyone ? The gold was 
 undoubtedly obtained in the first instance by Chinese, 
 who had been cruelly murdered by the two prospec- 
 tors. Was there the slightest probability of the 
 names of the original owners or their relatives in 
 China ever being ascertained, even if the most 
 strenuous efforts were made ? Such a search could 
 only be made by the Government of Queensland, and 
 the Government of Queensland were very unlikely to 
 do such a thing, even if there was any prospect of 
 success. All these questions were weighed carefully. 
 No one of the four men present wanted to do any- 
 thing that was not right — that is, the captain, Drake, 
 and the second mate did not, but the mate, a long- 
 headed down-east Yankee, was ver}' emphatic in 
 asserting that the finders had every moral and legal 
 right to their discovery. 
 
 " As for the Curator of Intestate Estates, I can tell 
 you this much," remarked McLeod. "Twice I 
 
 155
 
 " For the Benefit of Sailors' Kids " 
 
 have had deaHngswith a Curator of Intestate Estates 
 — once in Melbourne, and once in the West Indies. 
 In the one case a saloon passenger of mine from 
 London committed suicide by jumping overboard, 
 and left ;£'70o behind him. The Curator took charge 
 of the money and effects. Nothing was known of 
 the man except his name. The Curator spent about 
 ;^5 in advertising in the London and Melbourne 
 papers, and then stopped. No one replied. That 
 was sixteen years ago, and he has the money in 
 hand still. The other case was that of a Jamaican 
 nigger steward of mine who died of fever at Manila, 
 and left £iio. The Curator at Jamaica claimed it, 
 and it took the nigger's family, who lived in San 
 Francisco, three years to get the money out of him 
 — less £^0 odd charges." 
 
 His hearers listened attentively. 
 
 *' Now, supposing we handed this gold over to the 
 Curator of Intestate Estates at Brisbane ? What 
 would be the result ? Who but the Treasury would 
 benefit ? Even if they wanted to, and could find 
 the names of the dead Chinamen, they would take 
 ten years to start the inquiry, and in another ten 
 there would be about ten thousand Chinese all 
 claiming to be the nearest relatives. And they 
 wouldn't get a cent — the Government would look out 
 for that. Morally — there's no ' legally ' about it — the 
 finders have the right to this ;£"2,ooo worth of gold. 
 Anyway, that is my opinion. And now look here, 
 you fellows. Here is a chance for you to do some- 
 thing for the Seamen's Orphan Society. The society 
 
 156
 
 " For the Benefit of Sailors' Kids '' 
 
 is in debt, and fifty or a hundred pounds would be a 
 lift for it. If you handed over this gold to the Curator 
 of Intestate Estates, and asked Jiijn to give a hundred 
 quid out of it for the benefit of sailor men's widows 
 and kids, he would only write you ten lines and say 
 he 'would consider the advisability of mentioning 
 the matter to the proper authorities in due course,* 
 and that would be the last of it — the Seamen's 
 Orphan Benevolent Society would never get a cent 
 from the Curator." 
 
 Burt, the mate, rose suddenly and went into his 
 cabin, and returned with a five-shilling piece. 
 
 " Look here ! I'm tired of so much jaw. Let us 
 toss up and see whether you communicate with your 
 durned Kew-rater or not" ; and before anyone could 
 stay him, he spun up the coin. 
 
 " Heads fer the finders, tails fer the Kew-rater." 
 
 The coin rattled on the table, and all the men bent 
 anxiously over it. 
 
 " Heads it is," gasped Finch with a sigh of 
 relief. 
 
 " Heads it is," echoed the skipper. " Now I suggest 
 that three-fourths go to Mr. Drake and you, Finch, 
 and the rest to the men you had with you." 
 
 " Not at all," said Drake ; " do you think that you 
 and Burt stand out ? No — j^i,500 between Finch 
 and me, ;£'400 between you and Burt, and the rest 
 to the men. 
 
 "And I propose that we make up £"200 for the 
 Seamen's Orphans' Society," suggested the second 
 mate. " It will sort of m.ake us feel we are doing
 
 " For the Benefit of Sailors' Kids 
 
 jj 
 
 the square thing — just for the benefit of sailors' 
 kids." 
 
 '' Thet's nice and handsome — and fair all round," 
 observed Mr. Burt, who, with his hand in his pocket, 
 was tenderly caressing the crown piece — which had 
 a queen's head on both sides. 
 
 158
 
 THE "MANURUA" AND THE 
 « MARGUERITE " 
 
 A TALE OF TWO "SHARKERS"
 
 THE "MANURUA." AND THE 
 '' MARGUERITE " 
 
 A TALE OF TWO "SHARKERS" 
 
 When I was about twenty-two years of age, I one 
 day found myself in Honolulu with a little over 
 $1,000 in my possession — the result of a trading 
 voyage to the Marshall and Caroline Islands, in 
 the North Pacific. I had been supercargo of the 
 schooner in which the voyage had been made, and 
 was paid off at San Francisco. In that city — which 
 in those days was aptly described as a place that only 
 wanted a roof over it to make it the most wicked 
 house on earth — I had remained for but a few weeks, 
 and then took passage for Honolulu in the old side- 
 wheeler Moses Taylor. For Honolulu was the centre 
 of all the Polynesian Islands trade and ventures, 
 and I was sure that there not only would I meet 
 many old South Sea Island comrades, but "drop 
 into something good," in which I could invest my 
 small capital of $i,ooo. So thither I went, eager 
 once more to assail the gates of the bright City 
 of Fortune which lies within the beautiful Land of 
 Adventure. I was young and vigorous, and burning 
 
 i6i L
 
 The '^ Manurua " and " Marguerite 
 
 » 
 
 with an unquenchable desire to wander still further 
 among the lovely islands of Polynesia and Micronesia 
 — and thence to the savage lands of New Guinea, 
 New Britain, New Ireland, and the Solomon Group. 
 No scheme was too wild, no quest too mad and 
 dangerous for me — and others like me — to embark 
 upon in those fierce days of excitement, when Hono- 
 lulu was the rendezvous — and, alas ! too often the 
 grave — of all the restless wanderers and adventurers 
 who there met together from the confines of the 
 North and South Pacific — from Singapore and 
 Yokohama in the west, from San Francisco, Panama 
 and Valparaiso in the east, and from Melbourne, 
 Sydney, New Zealand, and turbulent Fiji in the south. 
 Wild, wild days indeed were those, and when men 
 threw down a twenty-dollar gold piece on the bar of 
 the " Fort House Hotel" in Honolulu, they cared not 
 that it bore upon it, metaphorically, if not literally, 
 the stain of blood. For there were cruel things done 
 then in the South Seas — whole communities of 
 natives being ruthlessly carried off to slavery in the 
 cotton plantations of Fiji and the guano deposits of 
 the Chincha Islands on the west coast of South 
 America. 
 
 M^ * W: * * 
 
 One evening I fell into conversation with a bronzed, 
 faced old man of over sixty years of age. His name 
 was Hedriott, and for over a quarter of a century he 
 had been master of sperm whalers, sailing out of New 
 London, Connecticut ; but he had now retired from 
 whaling and settled in Honolulu, where he had built 
 
 162
 
 The '^ Manurua " and '' Marguerite 
 
 5) 
 
 a nice country house. The quiet, aimless life, how- 
 ever, did not suit him — he was a widower and had no 
 famil) — and he told me that he had just bought a 
 small fore-and-aft schooner of ninety tons, and was 
 contemplating making a trading voyage, or going 
 into the shark-catching industry among the low- 
 lying atolls of the North Pacific. I was at once 
 interested, and, to make a long story short, agreed 
 to embark in the latter venture with him, and 
 put in my capital of $i,ooo. Dried sharks' fins 
 and tails were then worth from £60 to £yS 
 per ton in Honolulu and San Francisco. They 
 were exported to China — where they brought a 
 still higher price — by various Chinese firms, and the 
 business was a highly profitable one. 
 
 Early on the following morning we made an 
 arrangement with the principal Chinese firm in 
 Honolulu to sell them all our future cargo at ^^65 
 per ton, and at once began our preparations. 
 These were carried out as secretly as possible, for 
 there were two other vessels then in port, fitting 
 out for a shark-catching cruise, and we did not want 
 to give them an inkling of our destination, which was 
 the uninhabited Arrecifos, or Providence Islands, 
 Atoll, in lat. 9° 45' N., long. 161° 30' E. I was well 
 acquainted with the place, knew that the lagoon 
 swarmed with sharks, and felt sure that Hedriott 
 and I would make an exceedingly good thing out 
 of the cruise. But we were rather nervous about 
 the other vessels, both of which were owned and 
 manned by parties of Greeks and Levantines — for 
 
 163 L 2
 
 The "Manurua" and "Marguerite" 
 
 the principal of the Chinese firm had told us that 
 one of the Greek skippers had been boasting of some 
 new and unvisited atolls to the South-west Pacific 
 which were full of sharks, and that he and his crowd 
 were the only people who knew of them. 
 
 Within three days we were ready for sea. The 
 schooner was named Manurua (Red-bird) and our 
 crew consisted of fourteen Polynesians — Hawaiians, 
 Gilbert Islanders, and other natives — all good, 
 stalwart fellows who had shipped for the cruise on a 
 <qay" — i.e., shares. Hedriott, the mate and I were 
 the only white men. 
 
 One of the Greeks' vessels — a heavily-built brigan- 
 tine of two hundred tons — was lying quite near our 
 schooner, and one morning her skipper and some of 
 his dirty, truculent crew paid us a visit. We 
 received them civilly enough, but knew that their 
 object was to "pump" us. I had purposely spread 
 out a new chart on the cabin table, and when the 
 Greek padrone saw that I had marked off the course 
 between Honolulu and Christmas Island (a spot 
 well-known to shark catchers, and fifteen thousand 
 miles due south of Honolulu) his eyes lit up, and, in 
 his mongrel English, he wished us " gooda-lucka," 
 said he should be afraid to venture so far in his old 
 Margharita, and would have to content himself with 
 his former fishing grounds — French Frigate Shoals, 
 five hundred miles west of Honolulu. Then the 
 greasy, ear-ringed ruffian bade us good-bye — he 
 satisfied that we were bound to Christmas Island, 
 and I that he had lied to me about French Frigate 
 
 164
 
 The " Manurua " and " Marguerite " 
 
 Shoals. One reason that made Hedriott and I 
 suspect that he and his consort were going to 
 Arrecifos was that both vessels were undergoing a 
 rapid but extensive overhaul to fit them for the 
 voyage of 2,600 miles. 
 
 We sailed that evening, and after getting a good 
 ofBng stood away on our true course, W.S.W. 
 Favoured by a strong N.E. trade wind, the little 
 Manurua bounced along in gallant style, and fourteen 
 days later swept into the noble lagoon of Arrecifos, 
 and dropped anchor within a cable's length of one of 
 the seventeen palm-clad islands which encompass 
 this great lake of the North Pacific. 
 
 Work was at once begun by building houses of 
 palm leaf, roofed with thatch, for the ship's com- 
 pany to live in, and within a week we began fishing. 
 Every day we caught from two to three hundred 
 sharks of all sizes, cut off the valuable fins and tails, 
 and suspended them on long lines of cinnet, stretched 
 from one cocoa-palm to another, to dry. The livers 
 of the very large sharks we " tried out " in ordinary 
 whalers' try-pots, and poured the oil off into casks, 
 which were headed up and stowed in the schooner's 
 hold — Hedriott and I being the coopers. It was 
 horrible work, but we went about it merrily, and with 
 good hearts, for every barrel of oil meant £5 to £j, 
 and every ton of dried fins and tails 3^65. And at 
 night we sat around our supper fires, and ate as 
 voraciously as had the sharks we had killed during 
 the day. And then we slept — ah ! how soundly and 
 how sweetly — under the gently-rustling cocoa-palms. 
 
 165
 
 The " Manurua " and " Marguerite 
 
 ?> 
 
 For we were worn out with the toils of the day, and 
 kindly Mother Nature was good to us — to white men 
 and brown alike. 
 
 On the dawn of the tenth day, Hedriott and I 
 were aroused by a loud cry from one of our native 
 seamen. 
 
 ** Big square-rig schooner comin' in ! " 
 
 We recognised her in an instant. It was the 
 Marguerite — the larger of the Greek "sharkers." 
 Her decks were crowded with an unusual number 
 of men. She came through the lagoon very quickly, 
 and, as she passed us. Captain Pasquale Zambra, 
 standing on the after- deck, assailed us with a torrent 
 of the foulest abuse, and his ruffianly crew brandished 
 their knives and threatened to cut our hearts out if 
 we did not lift anchor and clear out of the lagoon 
 within an hour. And, to emphasise their threats, one 
 of them jumped into the lower fore-rigging and fired 
 six shots at us with a revolver, badly wounding one 
 of our native sailors in the knee. Then, with a 
 chorus of foul gibes and curses from the motley 
 swarm of blackguards on her decks, the Margtierite 
 went ahead and brought to and anchored about two 
 hundred yards distant. 
 
 At this moment, all of the ship's company, except 
 two, were on board, for we were engaged in turning 
 in our lower rigging afresh, and the suddenness 
 of this treacherous attack threw us into confusion. 
 But only for a few minutes. 
 
 Almost choking with fury, old Hedriott — generally 
 so calm and quiet — bade me attend to the wounded 
 
 i66
 
 OXK OF THKM JUMTED INTO HUE LOWER FORE-RIGGING ANU I-IRKI) SIX SHOTS AT US 
 
 WITH A REVOLVER.
 
 The '' Manurua " and ^^ Marguerite " 
 
 man, and then his voice came to him, and it sounded 
 like the bellowing of a bull, as, striking his clenched 
 fist on the fife-rail, he thundered out : 
 
 " Men, come aft, and get your arms. Steward, 
 pass up all the Sniders and a box of cartridges. God 
 helping me, men, I shall show these bloody-minded 
 Dago swine that though I am nigh on seventy 
 years of age, Lucas Hedriott is not afraid of a 
 gang of cut-throats." 
 
 All the fighting blood of our semi-savage crew 
 responded to the old man's appeal, and they rushed 
 aft to receive their Sniders, and at the same time I 
 heard the mate call for four hands to man a boat 
 and bring off the two men who were on shore. 
 
 The wounded man was a Gilbert Islander. The 
 pistol bullet had struck him on the knee-cap, 
 fracturing it, then passed round to the back, and 
 lodged just within the skin. Cutting it out, I dressed, 
 and then hurriedly bandaged the fractured bone, and 
 told the man to lie quiet. He rolled his eyes at me, 
 showed his teeth in a savage grin, and was on deck 
 after me in a few minutes with a Snider in his 
 hands. 
 
 Meanwhile the Greeks had lowered a boat and 
 pulled ashore in advance of our own, and, to show 
 that they meant business, assailed our two native 
 sailors with pistol shots, but they, being fleet of foot, 
 ran along the beach towards the rescuing boat, and 
 got on board the Manurua in safety. Then the boat 
 party from the Greek vessel set to work, and in a few 
 minutes all our huts were in flames, the try-pots 
 
 167
 
 The "Manurua" and '' Marguerite" 
 
 overturned or broken, and our colony of pigs, poultry 
 and goats shot down. 
 
 Hedriott and the rest of us on board watched the 
 destruction in silence. Our chief anxiety had been 
 the rescue of our two men, and now that these were 
 on board, we felt that we were masters of the 
 situation. 
 
 For old Hedriott, having originally fitted out the 
 Manurua for a trading voyage among the Western 
 Pacific Archipelagos, where the natives were much 
 addicted to cutting off ill-manned and poorly-armed 
 ships, had done the right thing, and I had supple- 
 mented our little vessel's armament by a smooth-bore, 
 breech-loading swivel gun, which could throw a thirty- 
 eight-ounce iron shot with precision for 800 to 1,000 
 yards. I had bought the weapon in San Francisco 
 from the California Arms Company in Sansome 
 Street, had seen it tried, not only with its solid shot, 
 but with case shot, and had designed selling it at the 
 end of our cruise, with 1,000 rounds of ammunition, 
 to one or another of the native rulers in the Caroline 
 Islands. Our small arms consisted of Snider car- 
 bines (converted from Enfield rifles) and single-shot 
 breech-loading pistols for the crew, and the newly- 
 invented Henry (Winchester) sixteen-shot rifles and 
 Colt's revolvers for Hedriott, the mate and myself. 
 Then in addition to this the old man had brought 
 two whaler's bomb guns, and about fifty of Pearce's 
 bombs. The latter we thought likely we might sell 
 to some chance sperm whaler. 
 
 In less than twenty minutes we had the swivel 
 
 168
 
 The ^'Manurua" and "Marguerite 
 
 )) 
 
 mounted on its tripod, and bolted down on the top- 
 gallant fo'c'scle, from where we could train it in any 
 direction, except directly astern. All these prepara- 
 tions were noticed on board the Marguerite ; her crew 
 were running all over the decks, shouting and 
 gesticulating and clearing the four six-pounder guns 
 which she carried on the main deck — two on each 
 side. Then she hoisted a signal for her boat to 
 return, and at the same time over a dozen of her 
 crew began firing at us with old, smooth-bore Tower 
 muskets ; the heavy, round bullets hitting our little 
 vessel ever}'where, but doing no harm to anyone, 
 although the Manurna had a low freeboard and we 
 were all much exposed. 
 
 Tom Gentry, the mate, was a splendid fellow. He 
 had been a commissioned officer in the Confederate 
 Navy, in the American Civil War, and when Hedriott 
 and I went to the swivel gun to work it, he pushed 
 us aside (with much lurid language) and told us to 
 look after the men and the small-arm fire. Then, 
 sighting the gun, he fired, and we saw the shot smash 
 into one of the Marguerite's quarter boats. And within 
 five minutes he had knocked a hole through another 
 boat which was carried, bottom up, on top of the deck- 
 house, sent two shots clean through the deck-house 
 itself, and then turned his attention to the boat 
 returning from the shore, doing his best to sink her. 
 Meanwhile the fire from our crew had sent all the 
 ruffians who were firing at us under cover — some of 
 them running below — and no further attempt was 
 made to get the six-pounders to bear on us — as a 
 
 1O9
 
 The " Manurua " and " Marguerite " 
 
 matter of fact our quick and unexpected response to 
 the attack had thrown them into the wildest confusion, 
 and we heard Zambra yelHng out a series of orders, 
 and presently the brigantine's head sails were run up, 
 her cable slipped, and she began to forge ahead, so as 
 to get out of range. Zambra himself was at the 
 wheel — crouched down on deck so as to expose 
 himself as little as possible, and the musketry fire 
 ceased. Then Zambra veiled out to his men to sheet 
 home and hoist the topsails, but no one obeyed, for 
 fear of being shot. However, the breeze was strong, 
 and with only her head sails up, the vessel went 
 through the water pretty quickly. 
 
 Gentry had failed to hit the shore boat, which was 
 now alongside the brigantine, under the port bow, 
 where those in her were secure from our fire. Mean- 
 while the swivel banged merrily away, and as the 
 Marguerite presented her square old-fashioned stern 
 to us, we yelled with delight as Gentry sent shot after 
 shot crashing into it. 
 
 Then Hedriott ordered us to cease firing, the 
 Hawaiian colours were run up, and we gave a cheer, 
 aud watched the other vessel. She kept dead before 
 the wind, then brought to about a mile and a half 
 away, and again anchored. 
 
 Breakfast was served as quickly as possible, the 
 arms examined and cleaned, and our vessel then 
 towed close in to the shore, abreast of the 
 burned houses, the destruction of which was a 
 serious loss to us, for among other things destroyed 
 was a new suit of sails, much boat and fish- 
 
 170
 
 The " Manurua " and '^ Marguerite " 
 
 ing gear, all our spare clothing, and a month's 
 provisions. 
 
 As we were talking over the events of the morning 
 Gentry said he was sorry he had missed sinking the 
 one boat remaining to the Greeks, but that he meant 
 to destroy her within twenty-four hours. 
 
 "Those fellows may try and rush the schooner 
 with that boat," he observed, "they outnumber us by 
 four to one, and will, if they can, wipe us out. I 
 believe that something has happened to the smaller 
 vessel, and that Zambra has all of her hands with him 
 on the brigantine." 
 
 This we afterwards learned was correct — the other 
 vessel had suddenly sprung a leak^ and foundered two 
 days after they had sailed from Honolulu — her crew 
 having barely time to get into their boats and be 
 rescued by her consort. 
 
 Towards noon we saw the Marguerite's boat go on 
 shore to a small, well-wooded island (one of a chain 
 of nine, all connected by a reef), and two of our crew 
 were sent to see what was afoot. They made their 
 way through the palm groves and scrubs, then along 
 the reef without being observed, and in a couple of 
 hours returned, and reported that Zambra and about 
 twenty of his people were busy building houses 
 landing stores, and digging a well. 
 
 "That settles it, then," said Hedriott, " they mean 
 to stay here and fish, and we shall have to put up 
 with it." 
 
 " No, we won't," remarked Gentry, quietly. " Big 
 as this lagoon is, it is too small for us if we let that 
 
 171
 
 The " Manurua " and " Marguerite 
 
 9> 
 
 gang stay here." Then he told us what he intended 
 doing that night. 
 
 As the day wore on we saw the brigantine's people 
 take the damaged boats on shore, haul them up on 
 the beach, and begin to repair them. And we also 
 saw that not only was there a look-out man on the 
 topgallant yard of the Margnerite, who could watch 
 all our movements, but that two sentries were posted 
 at that end of the little island nearest to us. 
 
 Tom Gentry had smiled grimly. He had made 
 his plans with precision, and could afford to smile, 
 and at that moment he was busily engaged in making 
 up three heavy charges of four-ounce dynamite 
 cartridges, each charge weighing one pound. These 
 he parcelled up tightly in canvas, inserted very short 
 fuses with the detonators, and then frayed out the 
 ends of the fuses so as to ensure their lighting 
 quickly. 
 
 An hour after darkness fell, he and a Hawaiian 
 sailor, armed only with their pistols, set out along 
 the weather side of the chain of islands. Gentry was 
 certain that they would not be seen by the two 
 sentries, and it was his intention to approach Zambra's 
 party from the farther side, destroy all three boats, 
 and then escape into the thick palm groves, and wait 
 till daylight. 
 
 Looking at his watch just as he was starting, he 
 said, ** It is just seven now. It will take us two 
 hours to work round their camp and get to the boats, 
 so I guess you'll hear something about nine o'clock. 
 Then you can do all the rest. Keep under easy sail, 
 
 172
 
 The " Manurua " and '' Marguerite 
 
 )5 
 
 and if the brigantine tries to get away you can knock 
 the sticks out of her with the swivel. Zambra has got 
 to shift out of this lagoon, but not until we have had 
 a bit of talkee-talkee with him." And so off he and 
 his companion went, the dark night favouring their 
 daring enterprise. 
 
 Hedriott and I fully recognised the value of his 
 plan to destroy the boats. We were but seventeen 
 men opposed to over fifty desperate scoundrels, who 
 would havehadnohesitationin capturing the Manz^rwrt, 
 and slaughtering everyone on board if they could do 
 so by surprise. And their three boats w^ould have 
 enabled them to do this, for our little vessel was, as 
 I have said, of a low free-board, and we could never 
 have beaten off a sudden rush of three boats. 
 
 In those wild days there was no law in the South 
 Seas, except in the older settled groups, and the 
 disappearance of the Manurua and her company 
 would have aroused but little or no interest — such 
 things were common. " Cut off by the natives some- 
 where in the Western Islands," was all that would 
 have been said. 
 
 On board the schooner everything was in readiness 
 for us to slip away at a minute's notice. Our big 
 fore-and-aft mainsail, foresail, and all head sails were 
 quietly hoisted, and our native crew were placidly 
 awaiting the order to slip the unshackled cable. 
 
 It was twenty minutes to nine. Hedriott and I 
 were sitting on the rail, smoking, and trying to see 
 the Marguerite through the darkness, when suddenly 
 there came three thunderous reports in quick 
 
 ^72.
 
 The '' Manurua " and " Marguerite " 
 
 succession, then a dead silence, and then the wild 
 clamour of countless thousands of affrighted sea- 
 birds. 
 
 The shackle pin was knocked out, the schooner 
 canted smartly round, and was soon slipping through 
 the water, and in a quarter of an hour we could see 
 the brigantine. Lights were being carried about on 
 her decks, and we could hear loud shouts proceeding 
 both from her and the shore. Presently a great fire 
 of dried cocoanut leaves blazed up on the beach, and 
 by its light we saw that Zambra's people were making 
 a raft in frantic haste by lashing together dead logs 
 of pandanus (screw pines). At the same time we 
 were observed by those on board the Marguerite, and 
 a perfect Babel ensued. We kept steadily on 
 towards her. 
 
 The raft was carried down by about a dozen men, 
 who, as soon as it was afloat, pushed off, using bits 
 of broken boat planking for paddles. They had but 
 three hundred yards to go to get alongside, and 
 quickly covered the distance and clambered on board. 
 With no lights showing, the Manurua came swiftly 
 on towards the larger vessel. Then, when we were 
 within easy speaking, Hedriott called me to the tiller 
 and gave it to me. 
 
 " Run up close under his stern," he said quietly, then 
 he called out to some of our crew to haul the head 
 sheets to windward, so as to deaden our way. 
 
 Suddenly three men ran aft to the stern rail of the 
 Marguerite. One of them was carrying a lantern ; 
 another had a white cloth of some kind bent on to a
 
 The " Manurua " and '' Marguerite " 
 
 whale whift; the third, who was in his shirt and 
 trousers, hailed us. It was Zambra himself. 
 
 " Whata in the nama God-a you wanta, you gentle- 
 mana ?" he cried. 
 
 ** To talk to }'ou, you dirty, unwashed swine," 
 replied old Hcdriott savagely, "to tell you to keep 
 quiet until daylight. If you attempt so much as to 
 ship your windlass brakes and try to heave up and get 
 away, I'll slaughter the lot of you." 
 
 " I promisa you — I swear to you I do nothing ; I 
 giva in." 
 
 Reiterating his promise to wipe out the lot of them 
 if they disobeyed his warning, Hedriott called out to 
 the men at the head sheets to let draw again ; then 
 the schooner shot ahead, and we continued making 
 short tacks till daylight, feeling very content. 
 
 At dawn we saw Tom Gentry, the Hawaiian sailor, 
 and a stranger on the beach. We sent a boat, and 
 when they came on board found that the third man 
 was one of Zambra's fellows. He was wounded in the 
 head by a Snider bullet, and had begged Gentry to 
 let him come on board with him, swearing on the Cross 
 that he was a respectable Genoese cooper, and had 
 taken no part in the attack upon us. Furthermore, 
 he told us that there were three other men wounded 
 besides himself, that Zambra and his fellow-captain 
 had actually meant to attack us within a few days, as 
 soon as his boats were repaired, for they were certain 
 that we were not to be overpowered by treachery — 
 though the latter plan was strongly favoured by most 
 of the gang. 
 
 175
 
 The " Manurua " and " Marguerite " 
 
 Gentry told us that he and his comrade had no 
 trouble in getting to the three boats. Lighting the 
 fuses, they dropped one into each boat, and then 
 ran for safety behind two cocoanut trees. All of 
 the thirteen Dagoes (there were fifteen, including the 
 sentries) were lying about round fires some little 
 distance from the boats, and the terrific explosions 
 drove them out of their wits with terror. They all, 
 except the wounded Genoese, fled to the beach, and 
 would have tried to have swum off to the brigantine, 
 but they were in deadly fear of the sharks. Well 
 satisfied with his work, Gentry was leaving the scene 
 with his companion when they ran against the 
 Genoese, who implored their assistance. 
 
 After breakfast, we in the schooner sailed in between 
 the Marguerite and the little island, let go anchor in 
 five fathoms, and ran a kedge out astern, so that we 
 could rake the brigantine fore and aft with the swivel 
 if she showed fight again. The Genoese had told us 
 that there was no water left on board but a few 
 gallons, and that their first landing party (after burn- 
 ing our houses) had had to collect young cocoanuts for 
 drinking, and that as yet no water had been obtained 
 from the well that they had dug on the little island, 
 owing to the sandy soil caving in continuously. 
 
 " Good," remarked old Hedriott grimly, when he 
 heard this; " we have them in a tight place, and" 
 (here he used some shocking expressions) " we'll give 
 them a lesson that they won't easily forget." 
 
 Our dinghy was manned. Hedriott and I went on 
 board the Marguerite. We were received at the 
 
 176
 
 The '' Manurua " and " Marguerite " 
 
 gangway by Zambra and his fellow rascal of a skipper. 
 Hate and murder were in their eyes, and in those of 
 their scoundrelly, ruffianly-looking followers, who 
 gathered around them. 
 
 Before either of us could utter a word, Zambra 
 passionately implored us to let him have water — if 
 only for his wounded men. 
 
 Hedriott eyed him up and down in suppressed fury. 
 
 " Your tongues will have to rattle dry against your 
 teeth before you get a mouthful of water from me," 
 he said savagely, and then his eyes blazed as they lit 
 upon the face of one of the brigantine's crew. 
 
 " Ha, Peter Metaxa, you here ! You infernal 
 crawling cut-throat that shipped with me as boat- 
 steerer in the Fontenoy ten years ago," and leaping 
 forward, he struck the man in the mouth with such 
 violence that the fellow — a short, sturdy Greek — was 
 sent flying across the deck and fell in a heap. Then 
 Hedriott turned to Zambra. 
 
 " You want water, you Greek dog ? Well, you 
 may, or you may not, get it. First of all, bring all 
 the small arms you have on board, and lay them 
 down here on your main hatch." 
 
 There came first muttered curses, and then an 
 angry growl of dissent from the crew of the brigantine 
 as they clustered together and handled their knives 
 and old-fashioned muzzle-loading pistols. 
 
 Hedriott eyed them in contemptuous silence for a 
 moment or two, then leisurely mounting on the port 
 bulwarks by the gangway, he asked Zambra if any of 
 his wounded men were below. 
 
 177 M
 
 The '' Manurua " and " Marguerite 
 
 ?? 
 
 " No, none ; all are afta, on decka," was the half- 
 sullen, half-af:^onised reply. 
 
 Hedriott raised his hand twice quickly to watching 
 Tom Gentry on board the Manurua, and the swivel 
 gun banged in response, and a thirty-eight ounce solid 
 shot tore its way through the bows of the brigantine, 
 passed along fore and aft, above the 'tween deck, and 
 lodged in her already battered stern. Then Gentry 
 quickly re-loaded, and trained the gun upon^the group 
 gathered on the main deck. 
 
 "There, my beauties, do you see that?" cried 
 Hedriott fiercely to the terrified, but still scowling, 
 ruffians around us. " Do you see, you treacherous 
 cut-throat Dago dogs, that we have the pull on you ! 
 Now, I'll get to business. Every musket, every 
 pistol, you have is to be laid on that main hatch 
 within ten minutes, and I'll send my longboat for 
 them. I am paying you a good price — a pint of 
 water for each musket and pistol. Don't try and 
 hide any, or you will be the worse for it, for I shall 
 stop the water. And I want to see you run those 
 four six-pounders overboard as well. As soon as you 
 are ready with your arms, I'll send the boat for them, 
 and then measure off the water. That is all." 
 
 They glared at us in impotent rage as we went 
 over the side. We got into the dinghy, pushed off, 
 and before we reached the schooner the four guns 
 were run overboard. 
 
 Within half an hour we had all their small arms on 
 board, and we sent them fifteen gallons of water. 
 
 Utterly unable to either fight or heave up and get 
 
 178
 
 The " Manurua " and " Marguerite " 
 
 away, Zambra and his colleague, a few hours later, 
 asked us to let them come on board and " have a 
 talka." 
 
 This was what we wanted, so the boat was sent. 
 
 Both the scoundrels began to weep when they 
 spoke, and detailed their sorry plight, begging us for 
 more water, and imploring us to let them clear out. 
 
 Hedriott was not a cruel man. We had won, and 
 could now be merciful. So we agreed to let them 
 have a week's water, sufficient to take them to 
 Eniwetok Atoll, where they could get more, and 
 where also they would see thousands of sharks, and 
 not be able to kill any, for they had no boats. 
 
 Eager to get away, they set to work — the dreaded 
 swivel proving an incentive to their exertions — and 
 by four in the afternoon they had their water on 
 board. Then, as the windlass was manned, and sails 
 loosed, Tom Gentry hailed Captain Pasquale Zambra. 
 
 That gentleman stood up on the rail. 
 
 " What you wanta ? " he asked sullenly. 
 
 " Only to tell you this : If I see you, or any one of 
 your mongrels so much as look ugly at anyone on 
 board this ship, I'll send a shot through you. Now 
 you can git." 
 
 In silence the anchor was hove up, and in silence 
 the Marguerite sailed out of Arrecifos lagoon, and 
 left us to ourselves. 
 
 179 M 2
 
 A "BLACKBIRDING" INCIDENT
 
 A ^^BLACKBIRDING" INCIDENT 
 
 In the earlier days of the Kanaka labour trade 
 among the islands of the North and South Pacific, 
 many atrocities were committed by ships sailing 
 luider British, French, Hawaiian, and Peruvian 
 colours ; and in 1866 two armed vessels, manned 
 exclusively by Peruvians, swept down upon the 
 natives of the EUice Group, and carried off nearly 
 four hundred of these poor people to the guano 
 deposits of the Chincha Islands, where, with the 
 exception of a score or so, they all perished miserably 
 within a year of their capture. 
 
 My connection with the Kanaka labour traffic 
 began about the middle of the " seventies," when it 
 was in the first stage of being conducted in a humane 
 manner, though there was then no legislation what- 
 ever concerning it. Any irresponsible person could 
 fit out a " blackbirder " — as labour vessels were then 
 called (and the term has stuck) — and by fair means or 
 foul obtain a cargo of natives from the various islands 
 to labour at a minimum wage on the plantations in 
 Fiji, Tahiti, and Samoa. No questions were asked 
 by the planters as to how these " recruits " were 
 obtained — all they wanted was labour, and they 
 cared not how they obtained it. On the whole, even 
 
 183
 
 A ^^ Blackbirding " Incident 
 
 in its best form, it was a demoralising and degrading 
 traffic. Still, there were many honourable excep- 
 tions, where not onl}' the captains and the officers of 
 the labour vessels obtained their " recruits " in a fair 
 and honest manner, but indentured them for a fixed 
 period to humane and honourable planters. 
 
 The vessel to which I was attached as " recruiter" 
 (labour agent) was a large schooner of two hundred 
 tons, and was employed almost exclusively in obtaining 
 native labourers for a firm I shall call Golding Bros., 
 the proprietors of a great cotton plantation on Tahiti. 
 So far we had made three cruises among the 
 Paumotu Archipelago— successful as far as the 
 number of " recruits " I obtained went — but Messrs. 
 Golding found that these Paumotuan natives were 
 not good workers. They were too closely allied in 
 language and by blood to the local Tahitians — who 
 exercised a bad influence upon them. So the firm 
 decided to despatch me to the Gilbert Islands 
 (Equatorial Pacific), where I was confident of 
 securing at least a hundred of the sturdy, stalwart 
 natives of those islands to engage themselves to 
 work on the great plantation for three years. For 
 I was well acquainted with the people of the Gilbert 
 Islands, and they, on their part, knew and trusted 
 me, for I had taken many hundreds of them to the 
 Hawaiian Islands to work upon the sugar plantations 
 there, and in no instance had there been any case of 
 bloodshed or violence in my " recruiting " transac- 
 tions. This was a fact of which I was somewhat 
 proud, and .which, purely from a practical business 
 
 184
 
 A ^' Blackbirding" Incident 
 
 point of view, led the owners of this plantation to 
 give the vessel of which I was "recruiter" an 
 extended charter. 
 
 Two years previously the king of Biitaritari 
 Islands and the head men of the island of Maiano 
 had assured me that whenever I again visited them 
 as " recruiter " I could rely upon their assisting me 
 to obtain all the labourers I wanted ; and I had borne 
 this in mind. 
 
 I must here mention that on our last cruise in the 
 Paumotu group we had run ashore on a reef, and 
 the schooner had been so badly damaged that as 
 soon as we arrived at Papeite we had to beach her 
 for extensive repairs. Whilst these repairs were being 
 carried out there arrived there from Valparaiso a large 
 German brig, the Kaspar. She belonged to the 
 great German firm whose island trading head- 
 quarters in the South Seas were at Apia, in Samoa, 
 and was commanded by a Captain Georg Baum, a 
 huge, hulking fellow, whom I, and every other 
 Britisher who had met him, disliked intensely as a 
 boastful, arrogant bull}-, who had a strong antipathy 
 to everything English. The Kaspar was both a 
 trading vessel and a labour vessel, and in the latter 
 capacity she had brought many hundreds of natives 
 to work on the cotton plantations of the German 
 trading company in Samoa. Her supercargo and 
 labour " recruiter " was an American — Jim Watkins 
 — a reckless, dare-devil fellow, who, with many 
 good traits in his character, would stick at 
 nothing in the way of getting "recruits" — for 
 
 185
 
 A " Blackbirding " Incident 
 
 every native obtained meant a bonus to him of 
 
 $20. 
 
 One afternoon, whilst the skipper of our schooner 
 and I were spending a quiet hour at the principal 
 hotel in Papeite, Watkins strolled in and joined us. 
 He tried very hard to find out where we were going 
 on our next cruise, but we frankly refused to tell 
 him. He laughed, and dropped the subject. After 
 a short chat with him the skipper and I went on 
 board our vessel, and found there, waiting to see us, 
 the steward of the Kaspar. He was a half-caste 
 Samoan, and an old acquaintance and shipmate of 
 mine, and I was naturally pleased to see him, for Joe 
 King was a good, sterling fellow. But his visit was 
 more than a friendly call — he had come to warn us 
 that we had a traitor on board in the person of our 
 second mate. 
 
 " I understand and can speak German pretty well, 
 as you know," he said to me, "though I never do 
 speak it. Captain Baum always speaks to me in 
 English ; he does not know that I understand any 
 language but that and Samoan. Well, last night, 
 your second mate came on board the Kaspar to see 
 the captain. They had a long talk in the cabin. I 
 heard all, or nearly all, that they said. They spoke 
 in German." 
 
 " Ha ! " exclaimed Mackenzie (the skipper) to me, 
 " did I not tell you that Edwards was a German, 
 though he pretends he is a Swede. Go on, King." 
 
 " Your second mate told Baum everything he knew 
 about this coming cruise of yours to the Gilbert 
 
 i86
 
 A '' Blackbirding " Incident 
 
 Islands, said that you were first going to Butaritari, 
 and then to Maiana, and that the chiefs had promised 
 you, two years ago, to collect all the best men they 
 could find for you, and that the Cyprus would sail as 
 soon as possible after her repairs were completed. 
 
 " I was in my pantry, but the door was ajar, and I 
 heard Captain Baum ask your mate if he wanted to 
 earn $500 easily. The mate said, ' Yes.' 
 
 " * Well,' said Baum, ' I will give you half of it 
 down, and for the other half I will give you an order 
 on myself, payable by our manager in Samoa. You 
 can get the money from him at any time — either 
 when you go there, or by writing for it.' Then he 
 went into his cabin, came out with a bag of money 
 and counted out $250 in gold to your mate, who 
 gave him a receipt. 
 
 " Then Captain Baum told him that he (your mate) 
 was to use all possible means to delay the Cyprus 
 from getting to the Gilberts before the Kaspar. Mr. 
 Watkins, he said, can speak the Gilbert Islands 
 language like a native, and when the Kaspar arrives 
 at Butaritari Watkins will tell the king and his chiefs 
 that you, sir, are ill here in Papeite, and that Mr. 
 Golding and his brother have sent him in your place 
 to get two hundred strong men and women — married 
 and single — to work on their cotton plantation for 
 three years. Then the Kaspar will take them to 
 Samoa instead, to work on the German cotton 
 plantations. 
 
 " Your mate thought a little while, then he said to 
 Baum, ' Make it a thousand dollars — half cash down 
 
 187
 
 A '* Blackbirding " Incident 
 
 — and I shall see that the Cyprus never gets to 
 Butaritari, or any other of the Gilbert Islands. She 
 will bump up against a reef somewhere one night, in 
 my watch, and won't come off again." 
 
 " Without a word Baum gave him another $250, 
 then wrote out an order and read it to Edwards. It 
 was simple enough : ' I promise to pay Hermann Joel 
 the sum of $500 on demand.' 
 
 *' ' Of course, if you don't do your work, that bit of 
 paper will be no good to you,' said Baum. 
 
 " Edwards said he would not fail, and that finished 
 the business. I could not get a chance of coming to 
 tell you all this until now, and I had no possible 
 chance of writing and sending you a letter. And so 
 when I saw your second mate go into the town this 
 afternoon, I slipped away." 
 
 The three of us then discussed the situation, and we 
 arranged a certain plan, and Joe King returned to 
 his ship, after receiving our warm thanks — and some- 
 thing else as well. 
 
 Early on the following morning the German brig 
 sailed, ostensibly in continuation of her voyage to 
 Samoa, and we went on with our repairs, the ship- 
 wrights working day and night, and getting double 
 pay, and in eight days we were clear of Tahiti and 
 spinning along to the north-west. The Kaspar had 
 a long start of us, but we were not concerned, and 
 had reasons for not hurrying. 
 
 Mackenzie and I had taken the chief mate into our 
 confidence and the treacherous Edwards (or rather 
 Joel) little dreamt that he was being] _carefully 
 
 188
 
 A " Blackbirding " Incident 
 
 watched at night time, from the time we had left 
 Papeite. After clearing the Leeward Isles of the 
 Society group, we kept a direct course for the islands 
 of the Tokelau group, and it was here that we felt 
 pretty sure Mr. Edwards would attempt to run the 
 ship ashore, for the islands are low, and situated 
 among a scries of detached reefs. But one morning 
 watch, when he came on deck he received a surprise. 
 The schooner was hove-to off the island of Pukapuka, 
 and as soon as it was daylight, canoes came off to 
 sell fruit, etc. We bought what we wanted, and 
 then when all was ready, Mackenzie called to the 
 second mate. 
 
 ** Do you see that island, Mr. Edwards ? " he 
 asked. 
 
 The man stared. " Why, of course I see it, sir." 
 
 " How would you like to live there for a couple of 
 months or so ? " 
 
 " Shouldn't like it at all." 
 
 " Ah, but you must try and like it, my dear 
 Mr. Edwards ; for you are going on shore in one 
 of these canoes in ten minutes. You'll find it lonely, 
 but healthy, and you can't squander that $500 you 
 got from the German skipper to run this ship ashore. 
 Go below, you treacherous dog of a Dutchman, and 
 get your gear together, and be smart about it." 
 
 Edwards's face blanched, and he tried to speak, 
 when the irate mate struck him a violent blow on 
 the mouth, then dragged him to the companion, and 
 almost threw him below. In ten minutes he and his 
 chest and all his belongings were in a canoe, and the 
 
 189
 
 A " Blackbirding " Incident 
 
 Cyprus filled away again on her course. The bo'sun 
 was called aft, the crew told to remember that he 
 was now second mate and " Mr. Kingston," and a 
 native A.B. took his place as bo'sun. 
 
 A few days later we were at anchor at Makin 
 Island, twenty-five miles distant from the great atoll 
 of Butaritari. And there for three days longer we 
 remained. The Kaspar was inside the big atoll, and 
 Jim Watkins was getting from five to ten " recruits " 
 every day. We knew all that was going on, for every 
 evening the king of Butaritari despatched a native 
 boat to us, telling us the events of that day, and also 
 bringing us a message from our trusty friend, Joe 
 King. On the evening of the third day we received 
 a letter from him : — 
 
 " Everything is working fine. The king and his 
 chiefs think it a rattling good joke, though at first 
 they were inclined to shoot Mr. Watkins and chase 
 the brig out of the lagoon. There are now one 
 hundred and seventy-five recruits on board, and we 
 sail to-morrow an hour after sunrise — a full ship. 
 Watkins has paid the king and chiefs $i,ooo cash, 
 and $750 in trade goods as an advance against the 
 recruits' wages for three years. Over three hundred 
 other natives — men, women and children, are coming 
 on board * to say good-bye to their relatives,' and as 
 soon as the brig is clear of the passage the fun will 
 begin. Baum has not the ghost of an idea that the 
 Cyprm is at Makin. He thinks that she is piled up 
 somewhere in the Tokelau Group." 
 
 190
 
 A " Blackbirding " Incident 
 
 That evening we left Makin, and, under easy sail, 
 stood across to the west side of Butaritari to the 
 main ship passage, anchoring with a kedge under 
 the lee of a small but well wooded island, where we 
 could not be seen from the mainland. We had every- 
 thing in readiness to receive a number of passengers 
 — one hundred and seventy-five to wit ; our boats were 
 lowered, and although we did not anticipate any serious 
 trouble, we kept our arms at hand in case they were 
 wanted. 
 
 At daylight one of our crew climbed a cocoanut tree 
 on the little island and scanned the lagoon. He 
 returned and reported that the Kaspay, surrounded 
 by a swarm of native boats, was heaving up, and with 
 the light morning breeze and a strong ebb, ought to 
 be in the passage in half-an-hour. 
 
 It seemed hours to us before we caught sight of 
 her. With all canvas set she made a fine picture as 
 she raced through the passage, dead before the wind, 
 and a six-knot current roaring and racing with her. 
 Then, once out of the passage, she brought to, so as 
 to let the relatives and friends of the " recruits," that 
 Watkins thought he had so cleverly obtained, get into 
 their boats and go ashore. 
 
 And at the same moment the Cyprus slid out 
 from the screen of the little island and stood over to 
 the brig. 
 
 The instant the swarm of brown-skinned savages 
 who thronged her decks and lower rigging saw us, a 
 wild yell burst from them and an extraordinary scene 
 occurred. A number of them rushed aft, and seized 
 
 191
 
 A " Blackbirding " Incident 
 
 and held Baum, his officers and Watkins ; others ran 
 to the wheel and threw the brig back, and at the 
 same time let go all the braces and tacks and sheets ; 
 the falls of her three boats were cut, and the boats let 
 drop into the water with shouts of triumph. Then 
 as the latter drifted away towards the surf thundering 
 on the reef, every native on board — man, woman and 
 child — leapt overboard, some getting into their own 
 boats, others swimming for the little island, and 
 others — the one hundredand seventy-five " recruits" — 
 making for the Cyprus, whose boats met them, pick- 
 ing up some of the women, but letting the men swim 
 to the schooner. 
 
 The whole affair was over in half-an-hour. Baum 
 and his officers and crew were certainly roughly 
 handled, especially Watkins, but no one of them was 
 seriously injured, and the natives, on the whole, 
 behaved very well, when it is remembered that 
 Baum and Watkins had grossly deceived their 
 '' recruits." The brig's crew (Germans) were terrified 
 out of their wits, but Baum was a good sailor man, 
 and managed to save his ship from going on shore, 
 though for some time she was in fearful confusion. 
 But he lost all three boats, which were smashed to 
 matchwood on the reef. Meanwhile, we on the Cyprus 
 had received all our " recruits." Not a single one was 
 missing — one hundred and seventeen men and fifty- 
 eight women and children. They, although wildly 
 excited at first, quickly calmed down once they found 
 themselves on board, and the women and children at 
 once went to their quarters in the " 'tween decks," 
 
 192
 
 *^A Blackbirdlng " Incident 
 
 where they found an ample supply of food awaiting 
 them. The men we allowed to remain on the main 
 deck — to jeer at and curse, in their vigorous Gilbert 
 Island fashion, the skipper and " recruiter " of the 
 German brig — the two men who would have taken 
 them to the hated German plantations in Samoa 
 instead of to Tahiti. 
 
 Among the first to reach the Cyprus was Joe King, 
 and I had been highly amused at his coolness. When 
 the natives obtained possession of the brig, he 
 appeared on the poop carrying a large bundle tied 
 up in his oilskin coat. This he quietly threw over- 
 board, and then followed it. Nothing in it was 
 wetted — much to his satisfaction. 
 
 The Kaspar presently signalled to us that she 
 wished to speak. She was " in distress," and 
 Captain Baum was standing by the rail as we went 
 about, and passed close under his ship's stern. His 
 bearded face was cut and bleeding, and his clothing 
 hung about him in strips. 
 
 " What do you want ? " asked Mackenzie, curtly. 
 
 "Send me back my steward," he replied hoarsely; 
 " some of my people are injured, and I must have 
 that man back." 
 
 "Then come and get him — if you can," shouted 
 Mackenzie fiercely. " Ah, you scoundrel ! Do you 
 know where my second mate is now ? He is on 
 Pukapuka Island, counting over his money ! We 
 have done ver) well with you, mein Herr Baum — got 
 a nice lot of " recruits " without any trouble, and 
 without spending a cent. And a pretty mess you are 
 
 193 N
 
 A " Blackbirding " Incident 
 
 in ! You can't go back into Butaritari lagoon, for 
 the people swear that they will cut your head off if 
 you ever show up again. Good-bye, my friend." 
 Then he paused and called out an order : 
 
 " Let draw there, for'ard." 
 
 And then, as the Cyprus gathered way on her, we 
 all, white men and brown, gave the cheer of the old 
 Bounty mutineers when they set Bligh adrift. 
 
 ** Hurrah for Tahiti ! " 
 
 194
 
 A STRANGE RENCONTRE
 
 A STRANGE RENCONTRE 
 
 A SEVERE attack of malarial fever contracted in 
 New Britain (North-Western Pacific) compelled me 
 to throw up my employment and return to New 
 South Wales to recover my shattered health. I was 
 given four months' leave, and at the end of that time 
 was to report myself at Sydney, to there join a 
 vessel to be engaged in the Kanaka labour trade as 
 " recruiter " — a position I much preferred, with all its 
 risks and worries, to that of a trader. This was the 
 second occasion on which I had to adopt this course. 
 
 After spending a week in Sydney I took passage 
 in a steamer running to the northern rivers of the 
 colony, where I had relatives and many friends living 
 in the various townships — Grafton, Casino, Kemp- 
 sey, etc. Here I spent two months very pleasantly, 
 wandering about from place to place, meeting with 
 unbounded hospitality, getting splendid fishing and 
 shooting, and recovering my health rapidly. 
 
 At the end of ten weeks I found myself at Kempsey, 
 a thriving country town on the Macleay River, where 
 my youngest sister, who was married to a Govern- 
 ment official, was living. But much as I should have 
 liked to have remained with her for a couple of 
 weeks, my visit had to be cut short, for the place 
 
 197
 
 A Strange Rencontre 
 
 did not agree with me ; it was insufferably hot, and I 
 had recurrent attacks of ague. So I decided to pro- 
 ceed to Port Macquarie on the Hastings River, a 
 dehghtful old town of the early convict days, stay there 
 for a week, and then take the steamer for Sydney. 
 The only way of getting to Port Macquarie from 
 Kempsey was by coach or horseback. Coaches I 
 loathed, and riding through the monotonous bush I 
 disliked almost as much, so I decided to "tramp" it 
 — a distance of seventy miles — along the coast. 
 
 A river drogher took me from Kempsey to the 
 Macleay River Heads, where I landed and began 
 my first day's journey, which for the first ten miles 
 was along a lovely hard beach — the shore of Trial 
 Bay. I was in light marching order and good spirits, 
 for the brisk sea-breeze seemed to put new life into 
 me, and I felt that I could very easily do twenty 
 miles by sunset, and reach my first camping place — 
 a spot ten miles to the south of Smoky Cape — where 
 there was a stream of fresh water and good fishing 
 and shooting. For I was in no hurry, and meant to 
 do my tramp leisurely. I had with me my gun and 
 ammunition, a billy can, tea, sugar and salt, some 
 ship biscuits, my fishing tackle, and a light water- 
 proof overcoat. The weather was fine and warm, 
 and I intended to make a four or five days' journey 
 of it, camping out every night instead of staying at 
 any of the few settlers' homesteads that were in the 
 vicinity of my line of march. The whole of that 
 part of the coast for more than a hundred miles was 
 very familiar to me, for I was born in the district, 
 
 198
 
 A Strange Rencontre 
 
 and knew every mile — I was going to say yard — 
 of it. 
 
 Arriving at my camping place an hour before sun- 
 set, I lit a fire and put the billy can on to boil for 
 tea; then, going to the beach at the mouth of the 
 stream, dug some pippies (cockles) out of the sand, 
 baited my line, and in five minutes had caught two 
 fine whiting for my supper. An hour later I was 
 sound asleep, and did not awake till dawn. 
 
 After a bathe in the stream, and breakfast, I 
 started off again, and, leaving the beach, made a 
 detour inland through the scrub. I wanted to visit 
 an old, abandoned selection, situated on what in 
 years gone by had been the main coastal road 
 between Kempsey and Port Macquarie. The slab- 
 built house had long since fallen to ruin and the 
 fencing been destroyed by a bush fire, but the orchard 
 and vineyard had escaped, and, though now much 
 overgrown with scrub, the orange, lemon, and other 
 fruit trees and the grape vines still bore fruit 
 plentifully, and now was the month (February) when 
 the black "Isabella" grapes especially would be 
 fully ripe. Then, too, quite near the deserted house 
 was a swamp, or rather shallow lake, which afforded 
 fine shooting. The place was very rarely visited, 
 except by a few wandering aborigines, and as five 
 years had passed since I had last seen it, and I liked 
 its solitude and quiet, I determined to spend the day 
 and night there, and enjoy myself — solus. 
 
 Two hours' walking through the bush — first 
 through scrub and then under the silent, lofty gum 
 
 199
 
 A Strange Rencontre 
 
 tree forest — brought me to the lonely house, and 
 throwing down mj^ gun and swag and a brace of 
 Wonga pigeons I had shot on the way, I was soon 
 revelling amidst the grape vines, which were 
 covered with heavy bunches of delicious fruit. Then, 
 after picking some large bunches and a few rough- 
 skinned sweet lemons, I was returning to the house 
 for a short rest before sallying out again with my 
 gun, when I saw something that, as the novelists 
 say, " transfixed " me with astonishment : on the 
 steps of the ruined house was seated a young and 
 well-dressed woman. 
 
 As I raised my hat, she rose, and bade me " good 
 morning" in a very pleasant voice, and then added : 
 
 "May I rest here a little while ? I am very 
 tired." 
 
 " Oh, most certainly," I replied quickly, and with 
 sympathy, for she seemed exhausted with the heat, 
 although it was not yet ten o'clock ; " but will you 
 not come inside out of the sun, and I will try and 
 find you some kind of a seat ? " 
 
 " Thank you, can you give me a drink of water — I 
 am so dreadfully thirsty ? " 
 
 " Not for a little while, I am sorry to say. There 
 is a well here, but it may now be dry. However, if 
 it is not, I can soon get you some cool water. Mean- 
 while, will you have some of these grapes ? They are 
 cool, for I picked them from underneath the vines, 
 where the sun has not touched them." 
 
 She took a bunch of grapes and ate eagerly, and I 
 saw that her sun-tanned hands were trembling. 
 
 200
 
 A Strange Rencontre 
 
 " Will you have to go very far for the water ? " she 
 asked nervously. 
 
 " Oh, no," I replied ; " the well is just at the back, 
 and all I have to do is to lower my billy can down 
 with my fishing-line." 
 
 There was some water in the well, and I soon gave 
 her a drink. Then I asked her if she would like some 
 tea, and also something to eat. 
 
 " It is very kind of you. I am certainly very 
 hungr}'." 
 
 Picking up a pigeon, I was beginning to pluck it, 
 when she eagerly begged me to let her do it. Whilst 
 she was thus engaged I made a fire to grill the 
 birds and make the tea, studiously refraining from 
 asking her any questions, though I was racking my 
 brains, wondering who this extremely handsome, 
 well-dressed young woman could be, and how she 
 came to be in this lonely part of the coast. She was 
 about twenty-two or twenty-three years of age, and 
 was not only handsome — as distinct from " pretty " — 
 but looked and spoke like a lady by birth and 
 education. Her dress was a grey tailor-made 
 costume, and fitted her graceful figure perfectly, and 
 altogether she was what women would call stylish. 
 But what struck me as being peculiar was the way 
 in which her face and hands were tanned by the sun 
 — she looked like a gipsy. 
 
 Presently she asked me a question which astonished 
 me : 
 
 " Where does this road lead ? " 
 
 "To Kempsey — it is the old coast road, and 
 
 201
 
 A Strange Rencontre 
 
 leads into the new one about sixteen miles from 
 here." 
 
 " And how far is Kempsey ? " 
 
 " Another sixteen or seventeen miles after you 
 reach the junction of the old and new roads. 
 
 " Is it a large town ? " 
 
 " Yes, it is the principal town of the district." 
 
 " You will think it very strange of me asking you 
 so many questions, but," and her voice quavered, " I 
 — I am in a very awkward position, and I am sure 
 that — that you will not question me." 
 
 " Most certainly not. But I shall be only too glad 
 to be of any assistance to you." 
 
 " Thank you. Now, will you tell me what to do ? 
 I want to get to this town, Kempsey, as quickly as 
 possible. I have money, and can pay my way along 
 the road. Of course I know I cannot get there to-day." 
 
 " Quite impossible. But at the junction of the 
 roads there is the house of a selector named Whelan, 
 where you can stay for the night. He and his family 
 are very nice, kind people, and will treat you well. 
 I will give you a note to Whelan. He knows me 
 very well, and will drive you into Kempsey. But do 
 not offer him any money. And I will tell him to ask 
 you no questions." 
 
 Dropping the pigeon she was plucking, she pressed 
 her hands to her bosom, and wept silently for a few 
 minutes. Then she dried her eyes vigorously with 
 her handkerchief, and asked me if I knew of a 
 respectable and not too expensive hotel at Kempsey 
 where she could stay. 
 
 202
 
 A Strange Rencontre 
 
 " Yes, ask Pat Whelan to take you to Mrs. Drew's 
 * River Hotel' Mrs. Drew is a motherly old woman, 
 and will make you comfortable. Now, would you 
 like me to accompany you as far as Whclan's 
 place?" 
 
 " Oh, no, no, thank you. I am not afraid. I can 
 easily walk the sixteen miles. I have some biscuits 
 here," and she pointed to a small leather bag beside 
 her, " so shall not want food ; "is there water on the 
 road?" 
 
 I told her that there were many swamps, but that 
 the water would be hot and disagreeable, and 
 suggested she should put some lemons in her bag. 
 Then, the two birds being cooked, and the tea made, 
 I had the pleasure of seeing her make a satisfactory 
 meal. As she ate, I wrote a pencilled note to Whelan 
 on a page of my note-book. 
 
 Then, seeing that she was nervously anxious to 
 resume her journey, I got the lemons and some small, 
 compact bunches of grapes, which she placed in her 
 bag, and then she rose and extended her hand. 
 
 " You have been very good to me ; I shall always 
 remember your kindness with gratitude. May I ask 
 another favour of you ? " 
 
 "Certainly." 
 
 " If you meet anyone — and I think you may — and 
 — and if you are asked if you have seen me, w'ill you 
 say * No.' " 
 
 " Of course — you may depend on me." 
 
 I walked with her through the abandoned orchard, 
 and put her on the road, cautioning her on no 
 
 203
 
 A Strange Rencontre 
 
 account to take any turn-offs, but keep steadily on 
 the wide road, which, though much overgrown with 
 long grass, was wide and plainly defined. Then 
 once more she gave me her hand, and we parted. 
 # # * * * 
 
 Ten days later I was in Sydney, and was at once 
 plunged into work, for the vessel to which I was 
 appointed was sailing immediately — a fortnight 
 earlier than had been intended. I had scarcely time 
 to get my own outfit together, and make a few hurried 
 calls on friends, and on the third day after reaching 
 Sydney we were at sea, bound for Levuka, the then 
 capital of Fiji, where we were to get our "permit" 
 to engage in the Polynesian labour trade. 
 
 But within a few hours after we were clear of 
 Sydney Heads 1 had leisure to open my batch of 
 newspapers, and my attention was at once drawn to 
 a series of articles under the heading of "The 
 Sovereign of the Seas Tragedy," and in ten minutes I 
 knew who it was whom I had met. And the strangest 
 part of it all to me was that a second woman who 
 was involved in the terrible drama was well known 
 to me— Alice Taylor, the daughter of the head-keeper 
 of the lighthouse on Great Barrier Island, on the 
 east coast of New Zealand. Twice when returning 
 to Auckland from cruises in the South Seas our 
 vessel had anchored under the lee of Great Barrier 
 Island, and the skipper and I had spent several 
 evenings with the Taylor family, and I well re- 
 membered a pretty, fair-haired girl, who was then 
 twelve or fourteen years of age — his daughter Alice. 
 
 204
 
 A Strange Rencontre 
 
 The Sovereign of the Seas was a well-known vessel 
 on the east coast of New Zealand. She was a fine, 
 handsome cutter of forty tons or so, was renowned 
 for her speed, and was engaged in the coastal trade 
 between Auckland and the various small ports in the 
 Hauraki Gulf and the east coast. Her complement 
 consisted of four men — captain, mate, and two 
 A.B.'s. 
 
 At the time of the opening of the tragedy, the 
 master and mate were two young men well known 
 in Auckland maritime circles; their names were 
 Caffrey and Penn. Both were excellent seamen and 
 very familiar with the coast of New Zealand, but 
 neither of them could navigate, and although they 
 both had the reputation of being hot-tempered, reck- 
 less and daring, they were trusted by their employers, 
 and no one imagined that either of them could so 
 easily plunge himself into crime. 
 
 The cutter had several times been chartered by the 
 Government to convey stores to the hghthouse on 
 Great Barrier Island, and Caffrey — a passionate and 
 susceptible Irishman — fell violently in love with the 
 light-keeper's daughter. But the girl did not respond 
 to his advances — she was then only nineteen years of 
 age, and her father did not at all approve of him as 
 a suitor, for stories had reached the old man of his 
 wild doings in Auckland. 
 
 Time after time Caffrey pressed the girl vehemently 
 to become his wife, declaring he could not live with- 
 out her. Undaunted by her steady refusals, he one 
 day swore that he would yet make her yield, and this 
 
 205
 
 A Strange Rencontre 
 
 so terrified her that a scene occurred between the 
 young captain and the old hght-keeper, and the 
 former was forbidden ever to set foot in the house 
 again. He left with the significant threat that he 
 would come but once more and not leave unsatisfied. 
 Possibly it was the fear of his returning that induced 
 the girl to accept one of her father's under light- 
 keepers for a husband — a young man who had known 
 her from her infancy, and a few months later they 
 were married. 
 
 Caffrey heard of it, and set his brain to work to 
 devise a plan to obtain possession of the woman he 
 loved by force. But he said nothing to anyone on 
 the subject, except his shipmate Penn. Him he 
 gradually took into his confidence, and Penn, over 
 whom he had a great influence, swore to stand by 
 his comrade. But nearly a year passed before the 
 plan could be attempted, and by this time the young 
 woman was the mother of an infant ; and was happy, 
 and felt secure under the protection of her husband. 
 
 Penn, who was a fine, handsome young man, had 
 the more easily fallen under Caffrey's evil influence 
 through his being deeply attached to a young woman 
 of superior birth and attainments whom he had met 
 casually in Auckland, and taken under his protection. 
 Her surname does not matter— let me simply call 
 her by her Christian name of " Grace." What her 
 past may have been before she met Penn also does 
 not matter. She suffered deeply for the man sh* 
 loved, and, whatever her faults may have been, she 
 was loyal and true to the source of her misery, and 
 
 206
 
 A Strange Rencontre 
 
 refused to betray him or his companion to the arm of 
 the law, when slowly but surely she saw it stretching 
 towards them, while she herself was in safety and 
 unsuspected, and resolved to lead a straight and 
 better life and bury her wretched past by living in 
 obscurity as a domestic servant. But fate willed 
 otherwise, and the poor creature was dragged into 
 the fierce and relentless light of publicity as a 
 "notorious and daring adventuress," and the "accom- 
 plice of two desperate pirates, one of whom was a 
 cruel murderer." 
 
 This was the girl whom I had met at the old 
 abandoned selection only a few days previously. 
 ***** 
 
 Caffrey's was the master mind. Penn and " Grace " 
 were merel}' his pawns ; but still he could not do with- 
 out them, for Penn insisted that wherever he went 
 the girl must come with him — he would not be parted 
 from her, nor she from him. 
 
 The time came when the Sovereign of the Seas had 
 to take a valuable general cargo to Russell, the 
 principal town of the Bay of Islands, on the east 
 coast. Great Barrier Island lay midway between 
 that place and Auckland, and now Caffrey unfolded 
 his plan openly before Penn. 
 
 They were to get rid of the two A.B.'s on board at 
 the island of Kawau, near Auckland, by sending them 
 on shore to buy a sheep from Sir George Grey's 
 estate there. Then, once free of the two seamen, 
 Caffrey would make for Great Barrier Island, seize 
 Taylor's daughter, and then set sail for the west 
 
 207
 
 A Strange Rencontre 
 
 coast of South America, where, he assured Penn, 
 they could sell the vessel and cargo, and live happily 
 ever afterwards without fear of future detection. 
 
 It was a wild, mad idea, either born of Caffrey's 
 ignorance, or else from his resolve to fulfil his threat 
 of carrying off the lighthouse-keeper's daughter at 
 any cost. Anyway, the girl Grace, who believed 
 the tales of her lover and Caffrey that they were 
 the owners of the Sovereign of the Seas, became an 
 innocent accomplice, and entered eagerly into the 
 project. 
 
 Penn rowed the two sailors on shore at Kawau, 
 and told them that he would return for them in a 
 few hours, after they had brought down the sheep. 
 Returning on board, the cutter made sail for Great 
 Barrier Island. 
 
 It was a dark, rainy night, and blowing hard from 
 the east, when the cutter silently anchored under the 
 lee of the island, and Caffrey, accompanied by Grace 
 (who was to wait in the boat) went on shore in the 
 little dinghy. 
 
 Stealing past the lighthouse (where all three 
 keepers were on duty) in the blinding rain, he made 
 his way to the lighthouse-keepers' houses. He knew 
 the particular dwelling in which the young wife lived, 
 and soon discovered her, seated at the fire, nursing 
 her baby. Without a feeling of pity he opened the 
 door, and stood before her. 
 
 Snatching the child from her, he tossed it on a 
 couch, and then seizing the terrified mother by her 
 wrist, he bade her come with him. 
 
 208
 
 A Strange Rencontre 
 
 Scream after scream burst from her as she struggled 
 fiercely with her would-be abductor, but no one 
 heard her cries, owing to the noise of the wind and 
 rain, and in a few moments more he would have 
 carried her off. 
 
 It so happened, however, that at that moment her 
 father came running along through the rain to get a 
 cup of coffee, and saw his daughter struggling madly 
 in the doorway with her persecutor. He sprang upon 
 him, and seized him by the throat, and then Caffrey, 
 releasing his hold of the girl, drew his revolver, and 
 shot the old man through the heart, as the poor 
 mother, frantic with terror, seized her baby, darted 
 out by the back door, and fled for help to the lighthouse. 
 
 Foiled in his purpose, and recognising the futility 
 of pursuit, the murderer ran back to the boat, pushed 
 off, and gained the cutter. The girl Grace did not 
 learn till long after of the tragedy — Caffrey merely 
 telling her that he been " baulked." 
 
 The cutter at once put to sea, and then, for over a 
 week, Caffrey and Penn tried to beat against a heavy 
 easterly gale with the intention of carr}'ing out their 
 South American idea. But it was in vain, and ten 
 days later the Sovereign of the Seas was sighted off the 
 North Cape of New Zealand, and it was supposed 
 that Caffrey was making for the South Sea Islands. 
 
 That was the news that, so far, had been cabled 
 by the New Zealand to the Sydney press ; and some 
 months elapsed before I was able to get further 
 details. 
 
 209
 
 A Strange Rencontre 
 
 For six weeks the cutter was subjected to a 
 harassing experience. The elements seemed to con- 
 spire against her. Gale followed gale, and Caffrey, 
 finding it impossible to reach any of the South Sea 
 Islands, recklessly bore away for the Australian coast, 
 intending to land at some lonely part where he and 
 his companions could separate. But long before this 
 the Australian and Fijian police were on the alert, 
 and a keen watch was being kept. 
 
 Five weeks after the lighthouse tragedy the cutter 
 was off the coast of New South Wales — between the 
 Manning River Heads and Smoky Cape, but the 
 continuous bad weather prevented her finding a 
 refuge on a coast that was quite unknown to either of 
 the men, and so Caffrey kept a long way off the land. 
 
 At last the south-easterly gale moderated, and the 
 cutter was run in under the land during the night, 
 and anchored in deep water in a small space sur- 
 rounded by high rocks, near Crescent Head. From 
 the land she could not be seen, but, to make sure, 
 before she was scuttled, her topmast was struck. Pre- 
 vious to this, however, some provisions, firearms, 
 etc., were taken on shore and hidden in dense scrub, 
 where Grace was left, with a tent made from a sail. 
 Then, after the cutter was sunk, as well as the 
 dinghy, the two men joined her. And for some days 
 they thus remained — not daring to show themselves, 
 for early one morning Penn had seen two mounted 
 troopers trotting along the beach. Both he and 
 Caffrey were well armed, and had agreed never to 
 allow themselves to be taken alive. 
 
 210
 
 A Strange Rencontre 
 
 One night the girl heard the two'men quarreUing, 
 and then learned of the murder of [the old light- 
 keeper. Horrified, she resolved to leave them at the 
 first opportunity. That they had pirated the cutter 
 she had known long before, and imagined it was for 
 that offence alone they so feared capture. 
 
 On the following morning, when Penn was away, 
 looking for fresh water, Caffrey boldly professed his 
 affection for Grace, and said that Pcnn was in the 
 way, and it would be better to put him out of the 
 way by shooting him and burying his body in the 
 scrub. The girl pleaded for time — " to think it 
 over" — and promised the cruel wretch not to betray 
 his designs to her lover. But that night she contrived 
 to let Penn know of his deadly danger; and then 
 they silently stole away from the sleeping Caffrey, 
 and struck deep into the bush, walking till past 
 daylight, when they came to a track — or rather^'a 
 bush road. 
 
 Here the two, after a long conversation, resolved 
 to part, and part they did — Penn going to the south, 
 and the girl to the north. 
 
 Meanwhile, the Mounted Police, aided by black 
 trackers, were scouring the district far and wide. 
 Some wreckage had come on shore on the beaches 
 in the vicinity of Smoky Cape and Crescent Head, 
 and amongst other articles were a number of cases 
 of kerosene oil. And it was known that, among 
 other cargo, the cutter had fifty cases of this article 
 on board. So, slowly but surely, the scattered 
 cordon of police, guided by the searching eyes of the 
 
 211 O 2
 
 A Strange Rencontre 
 
 black tracker troopers, were drawing nearer to the 
 coast, where they knew their quarry lay. 
 
 Long afterwards I received a letter from my sister 
 at Kempsey in which she told me that the girl had 
 reached that town : 
 
 " She (Grace ) arrived at one of the hotels in the 
 
 evening, and on the following morning, hearing that 
 Dr. Casement was in want of a housemaid, went to 
 him and was engaged, as although she said she could 
 show no ' references ' she seemed such a quiet, 
 respectable, and even lady-like girl . . . She was 
 arrested after Penn was taken; but before Caffrey 
 was captured at his ' fort '." 
 
 Abandoned by his companions, Caffrey evidently 
 thought himself betrayed, and he removed all his 
 belongings — provisions, an ample supply of firearms 
 and ammunition, tools, etc., to a still denser scrub 
 some miles distant. Here he set to work, dug out a 
 huge pit, and set the face of it round with a most 
 perfectly constructed chevmix de fvise of sharp-pointed 
 saplings so closely placed together that he, well-armed 
 as he was, could withstand an attack for a considerable 
 time. 
 
 But he had made one fatal mistake. His hiding 
 place was a mile distant from the nearest water, 
 and this led to his capture. A black tracker came 
 across the waterhole from whence the murderer 
 obtained his supply, followed his footsteps to within 
 sight of his lair, and then silently went off and 
 reported to the officer in command of the police. 
 That night a close cordon was drawn around the 
 
 212
 
 A Strange Rencontre 
 
 " fort," but the watchers were not within sight of it. 
 To have attempted to rush the chevunx de frise 
 meant useless bloodshed. 
 
 And so for two days and nights they waited. 
 
 Then, one morning, Caffrey, with a braceof revolvers 
 in his belt, came out carr^-ing an iron kettle for water. 
 And suddenly, as he walked under the gloomy shade 
 of the trees, a barefooted trooper sprang upon his 
 back and bore him to the ground. Then the hand- 
 cuffs clicked, and his liberty — and practically his life 
 — were gone. For within two months he was tried at 
 Wellington, in New Zealand, and went to the gallows 
 — defiant and unrepentant to the last. 
 
 Penn was captured by a young member of the New- 
 South Wales Mounted Police, who, disguised as a 
 " swagman " {i.e., a bushman looking for work and 
 carrying his swag of blanket, etc.), came across his 
 quarry on a punt on the Hastings River, near Port 
 Macquarie. Penn had found employment on the punt 
 on account of his handiness as a " sailor man," and 
 when the pseudo-swagman presented a revolver at 
 his head and told him to hold out his hands for the 
 handcuffs, he quietly yielded. 
 
 What Penn's sentence was I cannot now remember 
 — for all this happened so many years ago that I have 
 to write largely from memory. But it was certainly 
 a very heavy one of penal servitude for a long term 
 of years for being concerned in the piracy of the 
 Sovereign of the Seas. 
 
 What became of the girl Grace I do not know. 
 Many offers of monetary assistance and even of 
 
 213
 
 A Strange Rencontre 
 
 marriage were made to her, both in Sydney and in 
 New Zealand. She declined them all. After the 
 trial of Caffrey and Penn she disappeared, and went 
 — one dreads to think where. The glare and horror 
 of the street may have been her fate. 
 
 214
 
 "CROWLEY AND DRAKE, LIMITED
 
 HE WAS SOON' ABREAST OF THE CAVE; AND THEN STOOD 
 AND GASl'ED WITH OI'EN MOUTH.
 
 "CROWLEY AND DRAKE, 
 LIMITED " 
 
 Drake, ex-supercargo of the island tradinj^ barque 
 Reconnaissance, had been in Sydney for four months 
 "down on his luck" when, early one Saturday 
 morning, a letter that made him feel hopeful was 
 delivered to him. 
 
 It was from a firm of merchants who had recently 
 extended their Australian business to the South Sea 
 Islands, and ran as follows: — " Dear Sir. Our Mr. 
 James Twining will be glad to see you on Saturday, 
 at 2.30 p.m. with regard to your undertaking the 
 general managership of our recently established 
 business at Nukualofa, Tonga Islands. Yours truly, 
 Twining and Whasker." 
 
 Mr. Thomas Drake sat down on his bed, lit his 
 pipe, and meditated. Then he rose, went to the 
 dressing-table, and counted all the money in his 
 purse ; it amounted to ;£'i4 10s. Then he examined 
 the butt of his cheque book, and found that he had a 
 balance of £17 in the bank. 
 
 " Thirty-one ten," he said to himself as he walked 
 to his bedroom window and gazed into sunlit George 
 Street, " and I have my month's bill to pay Mrs. 
 Piper on Monday— that'll be at least ;^i6. Then 
 
 217
 
 " Crowley and Drake, Limited " 
 
 there's Neild to pay, I must pay him — he's a good 
 fellow, and not too flourishing. I can call that £20. 
 That leaves me £^ los. to leeward. If I don't get 
 this berth from Twining and Whasker, I shall have 
 to go to the three-ball shop with my watch and 
 guns." 
 
 Finishing dressing, he went downstairs to the 
 hotel dining-room, ate his breakfast, and then scanned 
 the shipping news in the Herald. 
 
 Presently the landlady, old Mrs. Piper, entered as 
 usual for a chat with her lodger, whom she had 
 known from his boyhood. She was a cheerful, kindly 
 old soul, whose hotel was much resorted to by the 
 skippers, supercargoes, and others concerned in the 
 South Sea Islands trade, and when young Tom Drake 
 returned to Sydney in the Reconnaissance, from a long 
 cruise, ill with fever, and with two broken ribs, 
 sustained by the capsizing of a boat on the reef at 
 Ysabel Island, she nursed and tended him, as Dr. 
 Neild said, like his own mother. He was now quite 
 recovered, and for the past six weeks had been trj-ing 
 for another berth as supercargo in a trading vessel, 
 or as " recruiter " in the Kanaka labour traffic. 
 Then he one day heard that Twining and Whasker's 
 manager at Nukualofa had resigned, and wrote to 
 the firm, asking for an interview. The firm had not 
 a good reputation for liberality to the captains and 
 the traders in their employ, but Drake was tired of 
 inactivity, and, his money being practically finished, 
 he resolved to accept the position — if he could 
 get it. 
 
 218 
 
 I 
 
 \
 
 " Crowley and Drake, Limited 
 
 » 
 
 '• Good morning, Mrs. Piper; how are you ? I say, 
 look here at this note from T. and W.," and he 
 handed her the missive. 
 
 Mrs. Piper read it, and sniffed. 
 
 " They are a mean lot. Keep their office open and 
 
 clerks at work on a Saturday afternoon. Be careful 
 
 of what you do with them, Tom. They are sharks." 
 
 •' So I have heard, mother. But if they get a bite 
 
 out of me, I'll forgive them." 
 
 A little before 2.30 p.m., as Drake was entering 
 the firm's office, he met a man coming out — a man 
 he had not seen for two years— old Captain Crowley, 
 one of the best-known men in the South Seas. His 
 weather-beaten face was flushed with anger, and his 
 short, stubbly beard seemed to bristle with indigna- 
 tion. But the moment he was accosted by the young 
 man the steely grey eyes lit up with pleasure, and he 
 shook his hand warmly. 
 
 " Well, Tom, my lad, how are you ? " he bawled. 
 '* I'm mighty glad to see you again, my boy. I'm 
 just back from the Solomons and New Hebrides with 
 a cargo of copra for these sanctimonious thieves 
 here," and he jerked his thumb in the direction of a 
 door on which was written, " Mr. James Twining: 
 Private Office." 
 
 The staff of busy clerks in the main office looked 
 at one another, and exchanged smiles and winks, for 
 as the door of the private office was open, and both 
 Mr. Twining and Mr. Whasker were within, those 
 gentlemen could not have failed to hear the old 
 skipper's remarks — as he intended they should. 
 
 219
 
 " Crowley and Drake, Limited " 
 
 Drake smiled also — " Will you wait for me, 
 captain ? I don't think I'll be long. I have an 
 appointment with Mr. Twining. As soon as I have 
 seen him, you must come with me to Mrs. Piper's, 
 and we can have a long yarn." 
 
 " Right you are, my lad — I'll wait. My time is 
 my own now. I've just got the ' run,' and have been 
 giving those two bilks in there a bit of my mind. I 
 wouldn't sail another ship for 'em if I had to go to 
 sleep hungry for a month o' Sundays — the sv/abs," 
 and he glared at the clerks individually, and then 
 collectively, as he pulled out and lit a huge cigar. 
 
 Drake tapped at Mr. Twining's door, and a thin 
 rasping voice bade him come in. 
 
 Ten minutes later he, too, came out with a flushed 
 face ; then stopped suddenly, turned back, and gently 
 but quickly pushed the door wide open, and addressed 
 Mr. Twining. 
 
 " Mr. James Twining, I daresay that you heard 
 the remarks made about you and your partner just 
 now by Captain Crowley. He said that you were a 
 pair of sanctimonious thieves. I have known him 
 for ten years, and all his friends and I regard him as 
 an exceedingly truthful man, and a remarkably keen 
 judge of character. Good morning." 
 
 Then he strode to the entrance door, where 
 Crowley was waiting, linked his arm in his, and the 
 two went down the marble steps into the street. 
 
 " What's wrong, Tom, my joker ? You don't look 
 as if you was full up to the chin of lovin'-kindness." 
 
 The supercargo smiled grimly — ** I'll be all right 
 
 220
 
 " Crowley and Drake, Limited " 
 
 presently. I went to sec Twining about taking 
 charge of his Tonga business. He had a two years' 
 agreement already drawn out, and began reading it 
 out to me in a hurried, quacking sort of a mumble. I 
 stopped him, and said I would read it myself. I did. 
 It was a most one-sided affair, whereby I was to bind 
 myself to all sorts of heavy responsibilities, and work 
 like a nigger for the pay of a Chinaman. I tossed it 
 back to him without a word, got up, and walked out. 
 But I went back, and said a few words to him at the 
 door." 
 
 " I heard you, my boy ; I heard you. Nothing 
 like bein' outspoken at the proper time. Now, I've 
 been with 'em for eighteen months — ever since they 
 started trading, and they have done well by me. But 
 I can never get the same crew to ship for a second 
 vo5'age — the poor beggars never got enough food to 
 eat, and what they did get was bad. This morning 
 I went to draw my pay, and made a complaint. 
 Twining snarled at me, and said he was not going to 
 provide luxuries, then he added that he would have 
 to dock my wages by ^^3 a month, as business was 
 bad. This got my monkey up, and I let out at him, 
 and he gave me the sack there and then. And now 
 here I am without a ship again. But, Tom, my boy, 
 I don't care a rap. I've got something up my sleeve 
 that makes me chuckle when I think of it. Now, I'll 
 take you into the secret, and what is more, you shall 
 stand in with me, for you are of the right sort, and I 
 can trust you. And you want a berth, don't you ? " 
 
 " I do. I am broke." 
 
 221
 
 " Crowley and Drake, Limited " 
 
 ** Well, Tom, you'll soon be flush, and, all going 
 well, we'll be back in Sydney by Christmas worth a 
 tidy sum of money. I know where we can honestly 
 put our hands on a cargo of cut sandalwood, 
 worth ;^5,ooo at least. It is stowed neatly in 
 one lump, and has been lying there, I daresay, for 
 more than thirty years. The men who put it there 
 must be dead long ago, or else it wouldn't be there. 
 Now all I want is to charter a vessel for three months, 
 but the trouble is that I haven't enough cash to do 
 it. I did intend to lie low for another six months, 
 and keep in with Twining and Whasker, which would 
 have put another ^^'iSo into my pocket. I've got 
 £"300, and £200 more will be enough. There are 
 plenty of vessels now offering for charter at low rates, 
 and I can get one for ;£"ioo to ^150 a month. You 
 will come with me as mate, and five hands will be 
 enough. I'll give you ^^12 a month, and 10 per cent, 
 of the value of the cargo, landed here in Sydney. Is 
 it a deal ? " 
 
 " There is my hand on it — ' Crowley and Drake, 
 Limited' — very limited." 
 
 " Right. Now, we'll have a drink, and I'll tell you 
 the yarn, but first of all I must tell you that we must 
 lose no time in trying to raise that ;^200, and get 
 away quickly, because, to tell you the truth, I'm just 
 a bit afraid that my mate — who is a crawling sneak, 
 and a spy of Twining's — has seen that sandalwood as 
 well as myself. If he has, he is bound to have told 
 Twining — who is his uncle. Now, Tom, where on 
 earth are we to raise that two hundred quid ? Do 
 
 222
 
 " Crowley and Drake, Limited 
 
 » 
 
 you know of anyone who would lend it to us on our 
 bare word for security, and a promise to pay, say 
 5 per cent, on the value of the sandalwood when 
 sold?" 
 
 Drake thought for a few moments. " Yes ; there is 
 one person, and one only whom I know, who would 
 lend us the money on our I.O.U.'s alone — and that 
 is old Mrs. Piper." 
 
 ** Good. I'll tell her all about our plans presently. 
 Now for my yarn. Six weeks ago I put into a bay on 
 the south side of San Christoval, and anchored off a 
 little island, marked Cone Rocks on the chart. It is 
 pretty high, well wooded, surrounded by a reef, 
 uninhabited, and about two miles from the main- 
 land and six from Makira Bay, the nearest inhabited 
 place on the mainland. Seeing some pigeons flying 
 about the trees, I took my gun, and went on shore, 
 shot some, and then had a look around. The interior 
 is very rocky, full of caves, as dry as a bone, and 
 hard to see on account of the thorny undergrowth 
 growing in front of them. At the end of a rough 
 narrow track I came to the largest one of all. It 
 has a big overhanging ledge, about six feet from the 
 ground, with a narrow entrance, blocked with thick 
 thorny scrub. I broke a passage through and looked 
 inside, but could see nothing, owing to it being so 
 dark. Then I struck a match and went in, and 
 nearly jumped out of my boots with astonishment — 
 the whole cave from ground to roof was packed with 
 sandalwood logs ! I could only see the front face of 
 the pile, which is forty feet long by eight feet high, 
 
 223
 
 " Crowley and Drake, Limited " 
 
 and stowed as closely as you possibly can stow 
 sandalwood. After some trouble, I managed to 
 squeeze myself along for three or four yards between 
 one end of the stack and the side of the cave, and 
 clambered up until my head touched the roof. Then 
 I struck another match, and saw that the wood 
 reached right along to the back. It made my mouth 
 water to look at it, Tom ! There are certainly not 
 less than three hundred tons — maybe four. How it 
 came to be there I can only guess. In the 'forties ' 
 and * fifties ' there were a good many sandalwood 
 ships lost — some cut off by the natives, and some 
 wrecked. Perhaps one was lost on this island, and 
 the crew stowed the wood in this cave for safety, and 
 then took to the boats, went to the mainland, and 
 were all killed and eaten by the natives. As far as I 
 know, the first white man that came to live at Makira 
 was old Jimmy Goff ; that was in 1837 or 1847, and 
 he is living there still, so it must have been put there 
 before he came, or it wouldn't be there now. And it 
 is equally certain that the Makira natives don't know 
 anything about it — I've satisfied myself about that. 
 
 " I went off to the ship again, intending to sail 
 right away, but in the afternoon it fell a dead calm, 
 and continued all night. The next morning it was 
 still calm, and the mate asked me if he could take 
 the dinghy and go fishing near the reef. Of course 
 I said Yes, and he went off with two hands. After 
 he had gone I was annoyed to learn that he had 
 taken his gun, and, sure enough, he landed on the 
 island, and began shooting, leaving the crew to fish. 
 
 224
 
 cc 
 
 Crowley and Drake, Limited " 
 
 At dinner time he came back with a few birds and 
 some fish. I asked him casually if he had had a 
 look round the island, and seen any caves. No, he 
 said, he hadn't noticed any caves — he was too set on 
 his shooting. Now, I can't help being a bit uneasy. 
 All the way up to Sydney he was like a hen on a hot 
 griddle, carrying on all the sail possible when it was 
 his watch on deck, and sulking when I asked him if 
 he wanted to take the sticks out of the ship. Then 
 as soon as we anchored in port, he sent a letter on 
 shore to his uncle by the health officer's boat. I saw 
 the address." 
 
 " It does look suspicious," said Drake, thoughtfully, 
 " and perhaps it may account for old Twining pick- 
 ing a quarrel with you, so as to get rid of you. 
 Anyway, we must lose no time. Let us see Mrs. Piper." 
 
 Mrs. Piper was in her sitting-room, and when the 
 two men told her that they had come to speak to her 
 on important business, she closed the door, and bade 
 them be seated. Then Crowley told his story, and 
 asked her if she would lend them ^200. For answer 
 she went to her desk, took out her cheque book, filled 
 in a cheque, folded and enclosed it in an envelope, and 
 handed it to them. 
 
 " There is the cheque," she said, with a beaming 
 smile, " and although you can't cash it until Monday, 
 it may help you to do business this afternoon, in the 
 way of getting a ship. But I've made it ;£'400. Now 
 get away . . . there, don't say any more, but come 
 back to supper at seven o'clock, and tell me what 
 luck you have had." 
 
 225 P
 
 " Crowley and Drake, Limited " 
 
 At six o'clock they returned to the hotel highly 
 elated, having chartered an old timber brig, the 
 Maria, of 400 tons. She was ready for sea, and 
 her skipper, who was also owner, was to hand her 
 over to them on Monday morning. During Sunday, 
 Crowley picked up a crew of six good men, and by 
 three o'clock on Monday afternoon they had signed 
 articles and were at work on board under Drake, 
 whilst the energetic Crowley was buying stores and 
 provisions, which, by dusk, were on board. Crowley 
 appeared during supper, bringing news of importance 
 — his late command, the brigantine Aurelia, was 
 getting ready for sea, and was taking in ballast. He 
 had met his former second mate, who had told him 
 that Willis (Twining's nephew) had been appointed 
 captain, and that he and his uncle were rushing 
 things to get the Aurelia away as quickly as possible, 
 and that she was leaving in ballast. 
 
 " That settles it, Tom," added Crowley. 
 "Willis has seen that sandalwood. Else why 
 should the firm send an island trading vessel away 
 in ballast ? " 
 
 Working all night, the brig was made ready for sea 
 by the morning, and at ten o'clock Crowley went on 
 shore to clear at the Customs, " in ballast, for Mercury 
 Bay, N. Z." And some hours later, when Captain 
 Willis went there with a similar object, he was 
 surprised to learn that the brig Maria, Peter Crowley, 
 master, had cleared in the morning for Mercury Bay, 
 and had sailed at noon. When he communicated 
 this to Messrs Twining and Whasker, those astute 
 
 226
 
 " Crowley and Drake, Limited " 
 
 gentlemen began to feel uneasy. Was it possible, 
 they asked, that Crowley, too, had seen the hidden 
 sandalwood, and that his clearing for Mercury Bay 
 was only a blind ? Captain Willis emphatically 
 assured them that he was sure he had not. If he 
 had, he asked, why was the old man so mad at being 
 dismissed by the firm ? Was it likely he would 
 want to continue in their employ when there was 
 a shipload of valuable sandalwood to be had for 
 the taking ? If he had seen it he would soon have 
 got someone in Sydney to finance him in chartering 
 a ship. 
 
 "And besides that," Willis went on to say, " I met 
 old Murphy, the owner of the Maria, at the Exchange, 
 and pumped him. He told me that as he wanted a 
 few months' spell on shore, he had put Crowley 
 in charge. So there is nothing to be frightened 
 at." 
 
 ¥(! T^ l|P <fr TP 
 
 The race is not always to the swift, and although 
 Captain Willis in the Aurelia was not racing the 
 Maria, which he naturally imagined (if he thought of 
 her at all) was steering in the very opposite direction 
 to himself, he did his utmost to make a quick passage 
 to San Christoval. But although the Aurelia was a 
 fast vessel, and the Maria a slow one, Willis had not 
 the experience of old Crowley, and made a fatal mis- 
 take — he stood too far to the eastward so as to catch 
 the south-east " trades " off Norfolk Island, and 
 passed east of the New Hebrides ; whereas Crowley, 
 knowing that the rainy season had set in, and that 
 
 227 p 2
 
 '' Crowley and Drake, Limited 
 
 5) 
 
 the south-east "trade" would be very fickle, whilst 
 he could be certain of westerly weather, laid a straight 
 course from Sydney of N.N.E., and reached San 
 Christoval eleven days before the Aurelia. 
 
 Crowley anchored in seven fathoms on the east 
 side of the little island, close in to the shore at a 
 spot w^here access to the cave was much easier than 
 on the west or ocean side, and where also the ship 
 could not be seen except from the mainland. Work 
 was at once begun, and for eight days everyone on 
 board, except the ship's cook, toiled hard from dawn 
 till dark shipping and stowing the sandalwood. 
 Both Drake and Crowley had promised the hands a 
 liberal bonus if the wood was got on board in quick 
 time, and the men worked splendidly. Then, when 
 their labours were completed, they were given two 
 days' spell — with the exception of one man, who kept 
 a look-out on the highest part of the island, and was 
 relieved every four hours. 
 
 On the eleventh day the look-out fired two shots, 
 the signal that a sail was in sight, and Drake at once 
 went on shore, and got two of the grinning crew to 
 carry up a great board painted black, with large 
 white lettering thereon. This was taken to the cave 
 and set up on a pole in front of the now gaping cave. 
 Then, leaving the look-out man, the boat returned 
 to the ship, which at once became ver}'' busy. The 
 cable was hove short, sails hoisted and brailed up 
 and stopped in, and everything made ready to sail at 
 a few minutes' notice. 
 
 Three hours passed, and then the look-out man 
 
 228
 
 " Crowley and Drake, Limited " 
 
 was seen descending to the beach as fast as his legs 
 could carry him. The boat met him. 
 
 "It's the Anrelia, Mr. Drake. She's anchored, 
 and has sent a boat on shore." 
 
 Another two hours passed, and the expectant crew 
 of the Maria stood about the deck eyeing the skipper 
 and Drake as they walked the after-deck in high 
 good humour. 
 
 " He won't come, Tom," observed the skipper, 
 "so we'll heave up and just run past him, and ask 
 him how he feels." Then he faced for'ard, and 
 bawled out : 
 
 *' Man the windlass, lads ; and give us a rousing 
 good chanty to it." 
 
 With a cheer the crew sprang for'ard, and in a few 
 seconds the cheerful click of the windlass pawls were 
 drowned in the roaring chorus of " Homeward 
 Bound." Ten minutes later, with her anchor still 
 underfoot, the old brig lumbered round the point, 
 and the spars of the Aurelia became visible over the 
 tree tops. 
 
 TX* •^ ^V ^P ^^ 
 
 When Captain Willis had hurried gleefully on 
 shore, he took the same way to the cave that he had 
 chanced upon on his former visit. The way was 
 rough, rocky and beset with thorny bushes, which 
 he and his men hacked away with scrub-hooks as 
 they passed along. Hot and perspiring, but jubilant, 
 he was soon abreast of the cave ; and then stood 
 
 229
 
 ^' Crowley and Drake, Limited " 
 
 and gasped with open mouth. A huge signboard 
 faced the cave : 
 
 "TO LET 
 
 THIS DESIRABLE DRY CAVE 
 
 LOW RENT AND NO BATS 
 
 Apply round the corner, to Captain Peter Crowley, 
 on board the brig 'Maria'." 
 
 With a strange feehng of numbness he stared first 
 at the empty cave, then at a broad lane that had 
 been cut through the jungle to the beach, and the 
 rough ground made level. Beyond he saw the sea, 
 and the green forest-clad mountains of San Christo- 
 val. He was too benumbed to curse, and when he 
 heard the faint sound of — 
 
 " Hurrah, my lads, we're homeward bound," 
 
 he put his hands to his forehead, and thought he 
 must be mad or dreaming. 
 
 Staggering and stumbling, his crew led him back 
 to the boat, and pulled on board. He sat down on 
 the skylight shivering like a man with ague. 
 
 " Bring me some brandy, steward ! Quick, or I'll 
 brain you, you mongrel Dago." 
 
 Round the point, under full sail, came the Maria, 
 heading direct for the Aurelia. Then she sheered a 
 little, so as to pass almost within touch. Crowley 
 came to the rail. 
 
 " Good-day, Captain Willis. S'prised to see you 
 here. You look mighty light. Seeking for a cargo, 
 I suppose, eh ? Well, you'll have plenty of time. I 
 
 230
 
 " Crowley and Drake, Limited " 
 
 have had a bit of luck. I've got three hundred and 
 sixty tons of fine sandalwood under hatches — a 
 matter of ;^5,ooo or £6,000. Good-bye. Kind 
 regards to Uncle James." 
 
 Drake pulled him away from the rail, and motioned 
 to the man at the wheel to put the helm up, for Willis 
 had tumbled off the skylight in a fit. 
 
 ** That s enough, captain. We have had our 
 revenge. Don't rub it in too hard." 
 
 231
 
 NERIDA, THE MAID OF SUW ARROW
 
 NERIDA, THE MAID OF 
 SUWARROW 
 
 Nerida was proud of the English blood in her 
 veins. Her father was an Englishman — Captain 
 Harry Rivers — her mother a Portuguese half-caste. 
 The latter I never saw, but I had heard much of her 
 as having been a very beautiful woman. She died in 
 Samoa when Nerida was five years of age, and then 
 for the next thirteen years Rivers wandered about the 
 North and South Pacific from isle to isle, trading and 
 pearl shelling, and with him went Nerida. He was 
 a fairly wealthy man, and in addition to the brig 
 Sidonie, which he sailed himself, he owned another 
 but smaller vessel, a topsail schooner, which, like the 
 Sidonie, was engaged in the South Sea trade. Samoa 
 was his headquarters, and it was at Apia, in Samoa, 
 that I first met him and Nerida. He had just 
 returned from a voyage to the islands of the North- 
 western Pacific, and I had also just arrived in Samoa 
 from New Zealand in the barque Metaris, of which 
 vessel I was supercargo. Rivers and I knew each 
 other very well by confidential correspondence. 
 
 A few days after my arrival at Apia I severed my 
 connection with the Metaris, and was looking for 
 
 235
 
 Nerida, the Maid of Suwarrow 
 
 another berth. Knowing that Captain Rivers was 
 staying at " D'Acosta's Hotel " in the German quarter 
 of Apia, thither I went, and asked to see him, and 
 presently I was shaking hands with him and his 
 daughter, who were having afternoon tea on the 
 hotel balcony. They pressed me to join them, and 
 in a few minutes we were chatting together as if we 
 had known one another for years. 
 
 Nerida Rivers was about eighteen years of age, 
 and was certainly one of the most beautiful girls I 
 had ever seen. What especially struck me was 
 her calm, self-possessed manner, and her steady, 
 resolute eyes, which sought mine in a way that 
 slightly disconcerted me. She noticed this and 
 laughed. 
 
 *' I am very rude, am I not ? I cannot help staring 
 at strangers. But I am sure I shall like you." 
 
 This put me at my ease, and I at once made known 
 to Rivers the object of my visit. 
 
 " I am very glad you have come to see me," he 
 said. " You are just the man I want, and I am sure 
 we shall pull together. Now, what I am telling you 
 is in strict confidence. 
 
 " Three years ago a schooner which had been 
 pearling in the Paumotu group for over a year, left 
 Manga Reva for Singapore with a hundred tons of 
 golden-edged pearl on board, together with pearls 
 worth ;^io,ooo. She sailed from Manga Reva early 
 in May, two years ago, and was never again heard of 
 — it was supposed that she had ' turned turtle ' and 
 foundered, for she was heavily overmasted, and her 
 
 236
 
 Nerida, the Maid of Suwarrow 
 
 skipper was a reckless, dare-devil Belgian who always 
 persisted in carryin;^ a press of canvas. 
 
 " Now, she did not founder at sea. The Belgian 
 took her into Suwarrow Lagoon, 500 miles east 
 from Samoa. The islands of the lagoon are 
 uninhabited, and the Belgian evidently soon found 
 out that the lagoon was full of pearl shell, and he 
 must have meant to set his native crew to work at 
 diving, for trace of their occupation on one of the 
 thirteen islets are still visible. 
 
 " What happened subsequently I do not know, but 
 what I surmise is this : the schooner, which although 
 quite new was leaky, sank at her anchors in 
 sixteen fathoms of water, and every soul on board 
 was drowned. I daresay it occurred in the night, 
 when everyone on board was asleep. And those who 
 tried to swim on shore would never escape the swarms 
 of sharks which infest Suwarrow Lagoon." 
 
 I nodded assent, for I knew Suwarrow Lagoon 
 very well. 
 
 " Well, that schooner is lying there at the bottom 
 of the lagoon, with pearls and pearl shell worth 
 £15,000 to ;^20,ooo. I discovered her in a very 
 simple manner. 
 
 " I put into Suwarrow Lagoon ten months ago to 
 heave down the Sidonie, and in pulling across the 
 lagoon one day, came across her. She is lying on 
 her bilge in clear water on a sandy bottom, and her 
 fore and main hatches and companion are open. 
 One of my native crew dived down into the hold, 
 and saw the pearl shell, which is stowed in sacks of 
 
 237
 
 Nerida, the Maid ol Suwarrow 
 
 coir cinnet ; then he went into the cabin, found the 
 remains of three bodies, and brought me up the cabin 
 clock, on which was an ivory plate bearing the words 
 ' Hirondelle, Nantes.' Then I knew that I had found 
 the missing pearling schooner. 
 
 *' I could do nothing further at the time to recover 
 the shell, as I had only one native who was a good 
 diver. But he was of good service to me in showing 
 me that the bottom of Suwarrow Lagoon is studded 
 with beds of pearl shell worth from ;£'ioo to ;£"i50 a 
 ton. And I am going to work those beds — after I 
 have raised the shell in the schooner's hold, and got 
 the pearls that are somewhere in her cabin." 
 
 I was deeply interested in this recital. 
 
 " Now," resumed Rivers, " this is what I intend to 
 do. You are well acquainted with the Magalogalo 
 (Penrhyn Island) natives, are you not ? " 
 
 " Very well indeed," I said, " and they all know 
 me — from the oldest baldhead down to the little 
 children." 
 
 " Well, my other vessel, the Katafa, will be here 
 in a week or so, from Tonga. By that time I shall 
 be on my way to Suwarrow. I will slip away quietly 
 and will clear at the Consulate for Fiji. No one but 
 Nerida and I will know our destination. If it leaked 
 out, there are half a dozen men here in Apia who 
 would try to get there before me. But I have had to 
 take one man partly into my confidence, as he and 
 his partner are coming with me. They are both 
 expert divers, and I have hired them, and all their 
 diving gear, for two months at ;i^200 a month. All 
 
 238
 
 Nerida, the Maid of Suwarrow 
 
 they know so far is that I have engaged them to try 
 and repair a sunken vessel, so that I can raise her. 
 If I can't raise her, they are to get her cargo out of 
 the hold. Later on I shall perhaps have to tell them 
 about the pearls in the cabin." 
 
 " Who are the men ? " I asked. 
 
 '* Musgrave and Fillis." 
 
 I started — "They are two of the greatest scoundrels 
 in the Pacific ! Good divers they are, certainly ; but 
 do you know that they are strongly believed to have 
 murdered the skipper and crew of a Torres Straits 
 pearling lugger some years ago ? " 
 
 " I do." 
 
 " And they both served a three years' sentence in 
 Queensland for stealing pearls ? " 
 
 '* Yes, I know that, too. But they won't tr}- on 
 any monkey tricks with me — they will be too well 
 watched." 
 
 I said that it was very risky having two such men ; 
 but Rivers pointed out that his crew of eight Polynes- 
 ians were tried and trusty men ; furthermore, that 
 he meant to make both the divers sleep on shore 
 every night ; so I raised no further objections. 
 
 Then Rivers gave me my instructions in detail. As 
 soon as the Katafa arrived I was to board her, armed 
 with his power of attorney, take charge of the vessel, 
 and instruct the skipper to sail with all haste for 
 Penrhyn Island, where I was to engage a party of 
 ten of the best divers procurable, and then make for 
 Suwarrow Lagoon, where I should find Rivers 
 awaiting me. (The natives of Penrhyn Island are 
 
 239
 
 Nerida, the Maid of Suwarrow 
 
 the best divers in the world, and will dive con- 
 tinuously in ten to twelve fathoms of water without 
 diving suits, and the men I was to hire were to work 
 the as yet untouched shell in the lagoon.) 
 
 Three days later the Sidonie sailed. I went on 
 board to bid good-bye to Rivers and his daughter, 
 and saw Musgrave and Fillis lounging about the 
 deck, smoking cigars. Both were big, powerful men, 
 flashily dressed in white ducks with scarlet-and-yellow 
 cummerbunds ; each wore a heavy gold watch chain 
 and much jewellery. On the fore-deck I also noticed 
 two Manila men, who, Rivers said, were Musgrave's 
 and Fillis's pump men. 
 
 With a warm hand-grasp to father and daughter, I 
 
 said good-bye, expressing the hope that they would 
 
 see the Katafa sailing into Suwarrow Lagoon within 
 
 a fortnight. 
 
 ***** 
 
 The Katafa was a smart little vessel, and when, a 
 week after the Sidonie had sailed, we spun out of 
 Apia harbour between the roaring lines of surf upon 
 the reef, I expected to reach Penrhyn Island in fifty 
 or sixty hours. But misfortune dogged us from the 
 start. The first night out, and during the middle 
 watch, when the schooner was making ten knots, we 
 crashed into a huge floating tree, which tore a hole 
 in her bows between wind and water. Only that we 
 were able to " fother " it quickly with a spare top- 
 sail, we should have gone to the bottom in a few 
 minutes, as the water was pouring in at an alarming 
 rate. Then, whilst one watch kept the pumps going, 
 
 240
 
 Nerida, the Maid of Suvvarrow 
 
 the other Hghtcned the vessel forward, and by day- 
 Hght we had the water under control, and the 
 fothering sail kept well in place by sheets of copper 
 nailed up and down on the outside timbers across 
 the hole. Then I bore up for Quiros Island, put the 
 schooner on the reef, and repaired the damage. This 
 took us four days, owing to the tides. Refloating 
 the schooner over the reef, we had not lost sight of 
 the little island when the wind died away, and for a 
 whole week we drifted round and round it. At last 
 a series of light, baffling airs carried us to the N.W., 
 but it took us just twenty days to get into Penrhyn 
 Lagoon. The village seemed strangely quiet vv'hen 
 we dropped anchor, and no canoes or boats came 
 off to us. Hurriedly going on shore, I found that the 
 population had been visited with a severe outbreak 
 of influenza, and numbers of the older natives had 
 died. Only after waiting five weeks did I succeed in 
 inducing seven young men and three young women 
 to come as divers at a very high rate of pay — ^^lo per 
 month and all found. Then three of our crew 
 of six men contracted the complaint badly, and I was 
 obliged to leave them behind, for by this time I was 
 beginning to feel worn out, mentally and physically, 
 and was fretting to join Rivers, who, I knew, was 
 wondering what had happened to the Katafa. 
 
 With some members of my crew suffering from the 
 disease, I left Penrhyn at last, and again we were 
 afflicted by calms and light, baffling airs, and it took 
 us sixteen long, sweltering days before we sighted 
 the low line of palm trees, apparently rising out of 
 
 241 Q
 
 Nerida, the Maid of Suvvarrow 
 
 the placid ocean, that denoted our destination — over 
 eighty days from Samoa ! 
 
 With feverish expectancy I went aloft on the top- 
 sail yard as we entered the south-west passage of 
 Suwarrow Lagoon, and soon saw the Sidonie. She 
 was lying about two cable lengths off the snow-white 
 beach of a little cocoa-palm-clad islet. Her topmasts 
 were struck, and she was housed in with awnings, 
 fore and aft. But a keen feeling of anxiety overpowered 
 me when I saw no signs of anyone being on board, 
 neither were there any signs of human life visible on 
 the encircling islets. A strange, oppressive silence, 
 broken only by the hoarse cries of the wheeling sea- 
 birds, brooded over all, and the smooth surface of the 
 broad lagoon, as it shimmered under the rays of a 
 sinking sun, was unbroken by either a boat or canoe. 
 As we drew nearer to the silent vessel, I noticed that 
 all her boats were gone ; but presently the captain, 
 who had now joined me, pointed to a second islet a 
 mile away, and there we saw a newly-built thatched 
 house, standing amidst a grove of jack-fruit trees. But 
 we could see no one about. 
 
 Greatly agitated at the strange silence, I brought 
 the vessel to, close to the Sidonie, and telling the 
 mate to anchor, the skipper and I had a boat lowered, 
 and were pulled to the brig. Clambering over the 
 rail, we found her deserted. Her decks were covered 
 with coarse cocoanut-leaf matting, evidently to 
 protect them from blistering under the fierce tropic 
 sun ; the hatches were on and secured, and the 
 cabin companion was padlocked from the outside. 
 
 242
 
 Nerida, the Maid of Suwarrow 
 
 '* What in God's name has happened ? " I began, 
 when Cass (the skipper) uttered an exclamation, and 
 silently pointed to a board which was lashed to the 
 brass rods protecting the glass on the port side of the 
 skylight. It was painted white, and on it was an 
 inscription in large letters : 
 
 ** In urgent need of assistance. Make for the 
 house on the second island from the passage. 
 
 "Nerida Rivers." 
 
 For some seconds we stared at it, and then at each 
 other in silence ; then our wits came to us. 
 
 Jumping on the brig's rail, I hailed the mate of 
 the schooner, and told him to clear away and load 
 one of our two three-pounder guns with a blank 
 charge ; then the skipper and I tumbled into our 
 boat, and in a few minutes were on board again. 
 The gun was ready as we stepped on deck. 
 
 " Fire the gun, Mr. Dole," I said to the wondering 
 mate ; " then watch that hut on the islet. If anyone 
 appears, dip our colours and fire the gun again. 
 Then the captain and I dived below for our arms, 
 just as the loud report of the gun thundered out across 
 the lagoon. 
 
 Scarcely had the sound died away, and we were 
 coming on deck again, carrying arms for ourselves 
 and the boat's crew, when the mate gave a loud 
 shout, and came running aft, glasses in hand. 
 
 " Miss Rivers is there, sir. I saw her quite 
 plainly ; she ran out of the house, and then went 
 inside again." 
 
 243 Q 2
 
 Nerida, the Maid of Suwarrow 
 
 " All right. Dip the colours and fire again. I fear 
 that something has happened to Captain Rivers." 
 
 Manned by four sturdy native seamen, the boat 
 was soon dashing across the lagoon, and ten minutes 
 after the second gun was fired, we ran her bows on to 
 the sandy beach and met J^Iiss Rivers half-way up 
 the path. She ran to us with outstretched hands, 
 and for some minutes was unable to speak, for an 
 outburst of sobbing choked her utterance of any 
 words. 
 
 " Thank God, you have come," she said, after she 
 had recovered herself a little. " My father is here, 
 very ill, and, I fear, dying. He was shot in the 
 chest six weeks ago, and since then has had a 
 sunstroke. For the past three days he has been 
 delirious. I will tell you all that has happened 
 by and bye ; but, first, for the love of Heaven, come 
 
 to him." 
 
 We asked her no questions, but quickly followed 
 
 her to the hut. 
 
 Lying on a couch of mats was what looked like the 
 ghost of the once stalwart Harry Rivers. His hair 
 and beard had been cut off, and his bronzed features 
 were sunken and emaciated. As we entered he 
 slightly raised himself, held out his hand, and then 
 sank back with closed eyes, but still holding my hand 
 in his feeble grasp. 
 
 "Thank God, he is conscious again," said Nerida 
 with^a sob of joy, as she knelt beside him and placed 
 her hand gently on his forehead, and as if to confirm 
 her words the sick 'man raised his left hand feebly 
 
 244
 
 Nerida, the Maid of Suwarrow 
 
 and touched her face. And then in a hoarse whisper 
 he said : 
 
 " Nerida . . . water." 
 
 Gently raising him, we placed a cup of weak lime- 
 juice and water to his lips. He drank it eagerly, then 
 tried to speak. 
 
 "Captain Rivers," I said, "your life depends upon 
 your keeping quiet. Do not try to speak." 
 
 A gentle pressure of my hand told me he under- 
 stood, and then his eyes met mine and lit up. 
 
 On a table was the Sidonie's medicine chest, and 
 beside it was a thermometer. In a whisper Nerida 
 told us that she had taken his temperature every 
 hour, and would now take it again. He knew what 
 she was doing, and when at the end of five minutes 
 she removed the glass, it showed two points lower 
 than it had done an hour previously. 
 
 As night fell, a cool breeze stirred the tree tops 
 overhead, and Rivers slept. The turning point was 
 passed, and I knew that with care he would recover. 
 For two hours he slumbered, and his tortured brain 
 rested. When he awoke he was perfectly conscious, 
 his temperature was down to 98, and as Nerida, with 
 streaming eyes, bent down and kissed him, he 
 muttered feebly : 
 
 " I'll pull through, my girl." 
 
 " Yes, father, of course you will now. But you 
 must not talk." 
 
 His lips parted in an attempt to smile as he 
 nodded ; then he beckoned to Cass and me to come 
 near, and gave us his hand again. 
 
 245
 
 Nerida, the Maid of Suwarrow 
 
 " Nerida will tell you," he said. 
 
 Nerida had told us ; and this was her story. 
 
 " Like you in the Kciiafa, we had a trying voyage — 
 light winds and calms alternating, so that it took us 
 fourteen days to get to Suwarrow. We anchored 
 near the sunken Hirondelle, and on the following day 
 my father went on shore with some of our crew and 
 began building two houses — this one where we now 
 are, and another on the next island. The latter was 
 for Musgrave and Fillis to live in ; this one was for 
 my father and myself to occupy whenever we felt 
 inclined to sleep on shore. Musgrave and his com- 
 rade at first very strongly objected to having to sleep 
 on shore, but my father was resolute and told them 
 bluntly that the brig's cabin was too small for seven 
 people — the two divers, two mates, the steward, and 
 he and I. They consented at last, but with an ill 
 grace. 
 
 " Work was soon begun on the Hirondelle. First, 
 Musgrave and Fillis raised all the pearl shell from 
 the hold. This took only ten days, for they worked 
 well, and seemed anxious to get their task over as 
 quickly as possible. When they had finished getting 
 up the last of the shell, and it was safely stowed on 
 board the Stdonie, my father spoke to them about 
 making an attempt to lift the sunken vessel off the 
 bottom, by means of empty casks, and get her into 
 shallow water, where the leak could be found and 
 the schooner raised to the surface and pumped out. 
 They declared it was quite impossible, as the Sidonie 
 
 246
 
 Nerida, the Maid of Suwarrow 
 
 was not large enough for the purpose, and could not 
 stand the strain of even partially lifting the Hirondclle. 
 My father, after some days, satisfied himself that they 
 were right, and abandoned the idea. 
 
 ** I must mention that, unknown to Musgrave and 
 Fillis, he had several times sent one of his native 
 crew — the same man who had previously dived into 
 the cabin and found the human remains — down into 
 the cabin to endeavour to find the box or chest con- 
 taining the pearls. But the man searched in vain ; 
 and finally my father had to take Musgrave into 
 his confidence, and tell him that he knew that there 
 was a box of valuable pearls somewhere in the cabin 
 of the sunken schooner. He did this with great 
 misgivings, for the native diver had told him that the 
 cabin had certainly been visited by the two white 
 divers, for many of its contents were disarranged. 
 
 " Musgrave and Fillis pretended to make a 
 thorough search, and sent up all the sea chests and 
 boxes they found in the cabin. These were all 
 carefully opened, but not a single pearl was found. 
 But the truth was that the villains had discovered 
 the pearls soon after they began operations, had 
 quickly secreted them with the aid of their two 
 Manila men, and had buried them under the ground 
 in their hut. Of course, they naturally surmised that 
 a schooner carrying a cargo of pearl shell would also 
 have pearls on board as well. And I have no doubt 
 but that from that day their dreadful plan of cruel and 
 wholesale murder took possession of their souls. 
 
 " Every day, after work was over, Musgrave, 
 
 247
 
 Nerida, the Maid of Suwarrow 
 
 Fillis and the two evil-faced Manila men went on 
 shore to sleep in their hut, and every night a good 
 watch was kept on board the Sidonie, for my father 
 now greatly mistrusted them. Sometimes my father 
 and I would also sleep here in this house, on account 
 of the cool sea breeze which came from the weather 
 side of the islets. 
 
 " One dull, rainy evening, six weeks ago, my father 
 and I were on shore, to stay the night. Before dark 
 we had seen the boat from the Sidonie, manned by 
 four native sailors, taking Musgrave, Fillis and the 
 two Manila men on shore to sleep as usual. About 
 an hour afterwards, when it was quite dark, I thought 
 I heard the dulled report of firearms — five or six 
 shots — in the direction of Musgrave's house. I told 
 my father ; he said that most likely the men were 
 shooting the flying foxes, which infest the trees on 
 Musgrave's islet. But about midnight, as my father 
 was standing at the door here, he caught a glimpse 
 of the boat going back to the brig. Four men were 
 in her, and all were using native canoe paddles instead 
 of oars, and he clearly recognised the burly figures of 
 Musgrave and Fillis, and the slighter ones of the two 
 Manila men. 
 
 " In an instant his suspicions were aroused, and 
 calling me, he told me to keep awake until he 
 returned. Then, taking his revolver, he hurriedly 
 pushed off in the dinghy, which we always keep afloat 
 near the beach, and followed the boat, little thinking 
 that our four poor native sailors had been treacher- 
 ously shot down in cold blood by Musgrave and his 
 
 248
 
 Nerida, the Maid of Suwarrow 
 
 party, who were then on their way to massacre the 
 rest of the ship's company. 
 
 "The boat reached the brig far in advance of my 
 father, and the horrid work of murder began quickly, 
 for he heard the repeated sounds of Winchester and 
 revolver shots. In their eagerness to surprise the 
 crew, Musgrave and his comrades did not make the 
 boat fast to the brig, and my father saw her being 
 rapidly swept away by the current towards the 
 passage. Rowing as hard as he could, he was within 
 a hundred yards of the brig, when the four murderers 
 gathered on the quarter-deck, and began firing at 
 him. Almost the first shot struck him on the breast 
 bone, glanced aside, and then travelled round to his 
 back. He fell, and then other bullets penetrated the 
 boat's planking, and she began to fill, and he lay 
 unconscious as the dinghy was rapidly swirled out 
 through the passage into the open sea. 
 
 " I had heard the shooting, and, in an agony of 
 suspense, I waited for the dawn. Twice I ran down to 
 the beach with the intention of swimming off to the 
 brig, but it would have been madness for me to attempt 
 it — the sharks would have had me in five minutes." 
 
 She paused, and wept a little at the bare memory 
 of that night. 
 
 " At dawn, with my father's glasses, I looked at 
 the brig. She was lying broadside on, and I could 
 see no boats alongside, or veered astern, and wondered 
 why. The brig, as you know, is moored fore and 
 aft, just alongside the sunken schooner, and the 
 divers' pumps were worked from the brig's deck. 
 
 249
 
 Nerida, the Maid of Suwarrow 
 
 " Presently I saw Musgrave and Fillis come on 
 deck, and each of them, in turn, looked at this house 
 through the ship's glasses. I suppose they were 
 trying to see if I was awake and about. Then I saw 
 the two Manila men join them, and all four appeared 
 to be talking. 
 
 Distracted as I was with the almost certain know- 
 ledge that my poor father was murdered, I had no 
 immediate fear for myself; for there was clearly no 
 boat for his murderers to reach the shore, and then 
 I had not only my own Winchester eleven-shot 
 carbine, but my father's Winchester rifle as well. 
 
 *' Undecided as to what I should do, I continued 
 to watch the brig, unseen by those on board, for I 
 got up in this jack-fruit tree here, and about eight 
 o'clock I saw that they were very busy on deck, and 
 were handling spare timbers and planking. In an 
 instant I knew that they were building a raft. 
 
 I came into the house, and carefully examined the 
 two Winchesters, and then as I was taking a drink 
 of water, I heard a faint cry at the back of the house, 
 and saw my father staggering along between the 
 cocoanut trees. He was naked to the waist, almost 
 exhausted, and maddened with thirst and the pain of 
 his wound. 
 
 " I am very strong. I carried him inside, and after 
 I had given him some water and then some brandy, 
 I dressed his wound in the chest as well as I could; 
 then I cut out the bullet, which had lodged just over 
 the shoulder blade, and during this time he told me 
 what had happened since he left. 
 
 250
 
 Nerida, the Maid of Suwarrow 
 
 " After he recovered consciousness, he found him- 
 self nearly a mile outside the passage. The sea was 
 smooth, and the dinghy was being rapidly carried 
 along the western side of the island, but close in to 
 the reef. After some hours' hard work, and using 
 one of the bottom boards of the dinghy for a paddle, 
 he succeeded in getting on to the reef, just as the 
 tide began to fall. Here he rested for a while, for 
 although he had not lost much blood, he was suffering 
 intense pain. 
 
 " From there he walked along the reef to the 
 nearest island, then crossed the narrow channel to 
 the next, and so on, till he finally reached Musgrave 
 and Fillis's house, which he found deserted and in 
 great disorder, with pools of blood on the matted 
 floor ; and outside the house he discovered the 
 bodies of the four poor native sailors, roughly 
 covered with leaves. They had all been shot 
 through the head or chest. After getting a drink, 
 he started off, keeping out of sight of the brig until 
 he reached me. 
 
 " Half an hour after my father returned I made 
 him lie down and sleep, telling him I would arouse 
 him the instant I thought necessary. Then I took 
 the two Winchesters, placed them by the door, and 
 watched the Sidonie. There was no need for me to 
 use glasses, for it was a fine, bright morning, and I 
 could see everj'thing clearly. 
 
 " The water about the brig was literally alive with 
 sharks — the feast that the cruel murderers had given 
 them in the night, of the bodies of the poor officers 
 
 251
 
 Nerida, the Maid of Suwarrow 
 
 and crew of the brig, had brought them about in 
 swarms, and when the tackle was rigged and the 
 raft hoisted over the side, I saw the two Manila men 
 get on to it with whaling lances, and kill a number. 
 Then Musgrave and Fillis got on to the raft and cast 
 off, and all four began to paddle it towards the shore, 
 using canoe paddles ; and, as they came, the swarms 
 of sharks swam beside them. All four had their arms 
 — Winchesters and revolvers. 
 
 " I went in and looked at my father. He was 
 asleep, and I resolved not to disturb him, for I had 
 no fear. 
 
 ** The raft came steadily on till it was within two 
 hundred yards of this doorway ; then Musgrave stood 
 up and called out : 
 
 " ' Miss Rivers! ' 
 
 " I made no answer, but crouched down behind 
 the door, and again the raft moved nearer. 
 
 " When within fifty yards of the beach, Musgrave 
 again stood up, and as he did so, I fired and shot 
 him through the stomach ; then I quickly shot the 
 three others in succession. Fillis twice fired his 
 pistol at me, and then fell into the water, and 
 I saw the sharks tear him asunder. The noise 
 of the firing awakened my father, and he crawled 
 to the door and watched me empty the two Win- 
 chesters into the bodies of the three men lying 
 on the raft, until they were riddled through and 
 through. 
 
 " The raft drifted on to the beach, and after 
 putting some heavy coral stones on it, I let it lie 
 
 252
 
 Nerida, the Maid of Suwarrow 
 
 there for the flood tide. The sharks waited, and as 
 the water rose, they came in and dragged the dead 
 men off, and devoured them. I shut the door and 
 did not look, but I heard the splashing of the water 
 and knew what it was. 
 
 " My father soon recovered from his wounds, and 
 we went on board the brig. It was a dreadful sight, 
 for the decks were black with dried blood. My 
 father thinks that Musgrave and Fillis drugged the 
 supper coffee, and when they came on board they 
 shot everyone on the brig in their sleep, for the two 
 mates were careful men, and always kept a good 
 watch at night. 
 
 "We searched the hut in which Musgrave and 
 Fillis had lived, and found the pearls ; they were in 
 two chamois-leather bags, and were buried under 
 the earth inside the hut. 
 
 " We brought all our things on shore from the 
 brig, but went off to her every day to wash down 
 decks. Then my father set to work to build a boat, 
 and it was whilst he was doing this that he was 
 smitten with sunstroke about a week ago. . . . 
 But now, thank God, all our troubles and misery 
 are over." 
 
 Two months later, the Sidonie and Katafa sailed 
 in company for Singapore, where we arrived safely. 
 Rivers sold his cargo of pearl shell and the two vessels 
 as well, and I bade farewell to him and "The Maid 
 of Suwarrow," as Cass and I called Nerida. They 
 
 253
 
 Nerida, the Maid of Suwarrow 
 
 went to California to live, and a few years later I 
 heard that Nerida had married an English settler at 
 Los Angeles, in that State. 
 
 Six years after, I again had occasion to visit 
 Suwarrow, and, looking down into the crystal waters 
 of the lagoon, saw the weed-covered hulk of the 
 ill-fated Hirondelle. 
 
 254
 
 MY SOUTH SEA GARDENS
 
 MY SOUTH SEA GARDENS 
 
 It has always been a source of wonder to me that 
 so many English families who, for business or other 
 reasons have to spend many years in tropical climes, 
 so seldom attempt to grow the vegetables they have 
 been accustomed to eat and the absence of which 
 they so frequently deplore. Taking the Pacific 
 Islands for instance, where nearly one-half of the 
 ordinary " common garden " vegetables familiar to 
 English people at home can be grown with ease, it is 
 surprising that most English residents never attempt 
 to cultivate them ; and so make their bitter moan 
 about having to eat the eternal yam, taro or sweet 
 potato. Perhaps my own experiences may be of 
 interest to those of my readers who live under torrid 
 skies and who long to see European vegetables upon 
 their tables in place of the tropical products of 
 which they are so weary. Whilst I achieved nothing 
 extraordinary I was yet very successful with my 
 European vegetable growing, and my example 
 inspired many of my fellow-traders to do likewise, 
 especially in such places as the low-lying Equatorial 
 islands and the sandy islands of Micronesia, where 
 nothing in the way of vegetable food can be obtained 
 except cocoanuts, pandanus fruit, arrowroot, and the 
 
 257 R
 
 My South Sea Gardens 
 
 coarse gigantic taro, known as pnraka, although on 
 some of the Marshall and Caroline Islands the jack- 
 fruit tree flourishes and the sweet fruit can be eaten, 
 either cooked as a vegetable when green, or as 
 dessert when fully ripe. Wherever a grove of jack- 
 fruit trees is to be found, there is always a deep 
 stratum of rich vegetable mould, and this, mixed 
 with sand, rolled cocoanut husks and such other 
 matter, makes excellent garden soil that will grow 
 bananas, maize, melons, cucumbers, pumpkins, 
 onions, etc. Many j^ears ago I was shipwrecked 
 on Peru (Francis Island) one of the Gilbert group, 
 and with some seeds brought from New Zealand the 
 local trader and I produced vegetables that had never 
 before been seen in the Equatorial islands, and our 
 garden became famous. We did not, like a notorious 
 "amazing man " whose adventures were made known 
 to the world a few years ago in a popular magazine, 
 grow a crop of cereals in the carapaces of turtles, 
 mixed with sand and turtles' blood, but we did, on 
 that hot, low-lying sandy island (lat. i° 30' S., long. 
 176° E.) successfully grow beans, onions, radishes, 
 turnips and huge pumpkins and water-melons. Our 
 modus operandi I shall describe later on, first tell- 
 ing of my experiences as a gardener on Niue, more 
 generally known as Savage Island, an isolated spot 
 four hundred miles east of the Tonga group, and 
 annexed by Great Britain a few years ago. The 
 island, although it is only thirty miles or so in cir- 
 cumference, has a population of five thousand natives 
 who speak a bastard Maori-Samoan dialect, and who 
 
 258
 
 My South Sea Gardens 
 
 are known all over the Pacific for their independence, 
 self-assertion, and also for their capabilities as sailor 
 men. Niu6 is what is known geologically as an 
 island of " upheaved coral." Its coast line starts 
 sheer-up from the sea, and the island presents a 
 repellent appearance at first sight, but in reality it is 
 of wondrous fertility, for behind the grim and 
 forbidding cliffs of grey coral, worn into fantastic 
 shapes by the fury of the sea (there is no encom- 
 passing reef) there arc rich groves of cocoa-palms, and 
 the interior, although covered in most part with 
 guava and other scrub and broken up by ragged coral 
 rocks, has a reddish soil of such peculiar richness 
 that almost every tropical fruit or vegetable thrives 
 in it. In some parts Niu6 is heavily timbered, and 
 among its exportable products, in addition to copra, 
 are cotton (Sea Island) fungus and yams. Although 
 there is no running water, the frequent rains keep 
 the island in an ever-verdant condition, and I know 
 of no other in the Pacific which, with such a broken- 
 up and rugged interior, possesses such remarkable 
 fertility. The natives' plantations are among this 
 broken coral, which has to be cleared away to make a 
 space of even a few yards, but the yam crop is 
 enormous, and huge pumpkins may be seen ripening in 
 the sun on the tops of jagged boulders over which the 
 vines have been allowed to climb. Patches of sugar 
 cane abound and orange trees bearing splendid fruit 
 seem to grow out of masses of coral debris, and 
 pawpaws and sour-sop grow together. The guava, 
 introduced from Samoa, has become a pest, although 
 
 259 R 2
 
 My South Sea Gardens 
 
 the fruit is of large size and excellent quality. The 
 natives will not eat it, but the white residents give 
 it to their horses and cattle together with pawpaws. 
 The animals like such food, but it is much too 
 fattening. For this reason, too, the Savage Island 
 pork, which is pawpaw fed, is so sweet and so fat as 
 to be unpleasant to the taste. 
 
 When I arrived at the island to remain for a 
 twelvemonth as the agent of a trading firm, I 
 brought with me a box of garden seeds (flower and 
 vegetable) which I had bought in Sydney. Speak- 
 ing about them to my nearest white neighbour, he 
 laughed and said, '' Why, you can get all the vege- 
 tables and fruit you want : yams, pumpkins, cabbages 
 up to five pounds, and cucumbers a yard long. 
 What more do you want ? " Now, although I had 
 heard of the Nine "tree-cabbages," I had doubts 
 about the yard-long cucumbers, and remarked that if 
 they were in season I would like to see one. And I 
 did see one within a few minutes. It was fully 
 eighteen inches long, proportionately thick and quite 
 straight. The native who brought it said it was not 
 by any means full grown. As for the tree-cabbages, 
 I was shown these on the following day, and confess 
 I was startled. On a stout, leafless and corrugated 
 stalk about five inches in circumference, and six or 
 seven feet high, were growing large oval-shaped 
 cabbages, not one of which was less than four 
 pounds in weight, and on one tree there was one 
 that could not have weighed less than seven pounds. 
 Both the cucumbers and cabbages I found later on 
 
 260
 
 My South Sea Gardens 
 
 were of excellent flavour; not to be surpassed by 
 those grown in a colder or more temperate climate. 
 Who introduced these tree-cabbages to the island the 
 natives did not know, or at least did not remember, 
 but they believed cuttings of the stalks were brought 
 to Niue by a sandalwood ship some time about 1850. 
 As for the cucumbers, they were the result of 
 ordinary seed planted on the island by a trader a 
 few years previously. 
 
 Determined to introduce some new European 
 vegetables on Niu^, I, in a weak moment, distributed 
 about a quarter of the contents of my box of seeds 
 amongst the people of the four principal villages — 
 Avatele, Tamakautoga, Alofe and Hakupu. I was 
 too busy to attempt any gardening myself, and told 
 the natives that although my household was but a 
 small one, I would certainly buy the new vegetables 
 from them occasionally — that is, sufficient for my 
 own use. Of course I meant well, and thought I 
 was benefiting the natives generally as well as the 
 half a dozen white residents. Little did I dream of 
 the trouble I was bringing upon myself through 
 those wretched seeds. They were to prove to be 
 veritable dragons' teeth. In less than ten or at most 
 eleven weeks natives — men, women, and children — 
 came trooping along to my trading station carrying 
 baskets of all manner of half-grown vegetables and 
 insisted upon my buying them. The quantity and 
 variety appalled me. Carrots, turnips, radishes, 
 onions, eschalots, French beans, butter-beans, young 
 broad beans, small immature cobs of maize, bloated 
 
 261
 
 My South Sea Gardens 
 
 gherkins, and parsnips that with scarcely any body 
 had leaves of extraordinary length. It was in vain 
 that I protested I had no possible use for such 
 a quantity of vegetables. I was assailed with 
 reproaches. Had they wasted their time for 
 nothing? They did not want any of these new 
 vegetables ; to them — if I would not buy them — they 
 were only so much pupu kolea (worthless weeds), etc. 
 Day after day the same thing occurred. I was com- 
 pelled to buy ten times the quantity of vegetables 
 that were required and give most of them to my 
 horse and the pigs. At the same time, the cost was 
 almost nothing — for a stick of twist tobacco worth 
 twopence I could get eight pounds to ten pounds of 
 beans, or a couple of huge cabbages. Among the 
 seeds given out were some of a climbing bean known 
 in Austraha as the poor man's bean. One vine will 
 completely cover an ordinary bush bumpy, and the 
 beans are produced in clumps of twenty to thirty. 
 But although those planted on Niue grew splendidly 
 they did not yield a single bean. English potatoes 
 were also a failure ; they ran to vine and the tubers 
 were hardly larger than marbles. Before concluding 
 my remarks on this interesting and solitary island it 
 may interest my readers to know what was our usual 
 breakfast at seven o'clock. Tinned meats we avoided, 
 and, as fish are scarce at Niue, we had to fall back 
 on eggs and grilled chickens, which are cheap ; but 
 fruit constituted most of our breakfast, and we had a 
 fairly large choice — bananas, custard apples, grena- 
 dillas and sour-sop were always in evidence ; and, in 
 
 262
 
 My South Sea Gardens 
 
 season, delicious oranges. Then, of course, tea 
 coffee, or cocoanut milk. 
 
 I left Niue with some regret, for although the 
 natives are a noisy, ill-mannered lot, they have many 
 good qualities and are very hardworking ; but I 
 loathed the island for one thing — its pest of flies. 
 The moment you leave the house, in daylight, a 
 black swarm of flies settles upon you, and although 
 you may succeed in brushing them out of your eyes 
 and ears they alight in a compact mass on your back 
 and there remain. Another curse of Niue is its grass 
 seed. It is impossible to wear tweed lower garments 
 — duck or coarse linen is the only material to which 
 the needle-pointed seeds will not adhere. 
 
 The garden made on Peru Island was similar to 
 one which I made on Providence Island (Ujilong). 
 This island — or rather islands — forms one of the 
 largest atolls in the North Pacific (it is in io° N.) and 
 until 1866 was supposed to be uninhabited, but in 
 that year it was taken possession of by the notorious 
 Captain "Bully" Hayes, who found on it eighteen 
 natives — the survivors of a once large population 
 which had been swept away by some unknown 
 disease (probably small-pox) about twenty )^ears 
 previously. All the many islets are densely covered 
 with cocoanut trees and at the present time Provi- 
 dence Atoll yields a rich revenue in copra to its now 
 German proprietors. All the encircling islands are 
 very low, though here and there are elevated spots, 
 and in addition to the cocoa-palms there are trees of 
 the ficiis, Barringtonia, etc., which are the breeding 
 
 263
 
 My South Sea Gardens 
 
 places of millions of two or three kinds of tern and 
 other sea-birds. The lagoon swarms with fish and 
 sharks. Of the fish none are poisonous, although the 
 atoll is midway between the Marshall and Caroline 
 Islands Archipelagos, where poisonous fish are all 
 too common. Robber crabs of great size were in 
 profusion on all the islets ; they fed principally upon 
 cocoanuts, the drupes of the pandanus fruit, and also 
 on turtle eggs, which they were remarkably smart at 
 discovering by rooting up the sand ; and during my 
 stay on Providence birgits latro afforded my com- 
 panions and myself very many satisfactory meals — for 
 their flesh is delicious. And although the robber- 
 crab will eat foul matter such as rotten fish, or indeed 
 anything, he prefers cocoanut or fruit, and can be 
 kept in captivity for months and fed upon whatever 
 best pleases his gaoler. But a wooden box is no 
 prison to him. With his powerful nippers he can 
 tear a hole through an inch pine plank in a few hours. 
 A tin box — such as a fifty-pound biscuit tin — makes a 
 good prison from which he cannot escape unless 
 he descries a broken corner, or perhaps a nail hole. 
 Then he will tear the tin as easily as if it were paper 
 and make his escape. 
 
 Some years after the notorious "Bully" Hayes 
 had taken possession of Providence Atoll, I was sent 
 there in charge of a party of natives primarily to 
 catch sharks and dry their fins and tails for the China 
 market, and secondly, to make cocoanut oil. And 
 this brings me to the subject of the garden I made. 
 
 The provisions that were given to me and my 
 
 264
 
 My South Sea Gardens 
 
 party of fourteen natives were of the poorest quality 
 — "salt horse," rusty pork, and old and very dry 
 New Zealand tinned meats — in fact, the only decent 
 food was biscuit and flour in fifty-pound air-tight tins. 
 On our way to the atoll I called at the rich and 
 fertile island of Ponape in the Carolines and there 
 took on board some pigs and poultry, some tons of 
 yams, and also a few pineapples, banana shoots, etc. ; 
 and the captain of the American mission ship 
 Morning Star gave me the remainder of a small box 
 of Californian garden seeds. During the voyage I 
 had all the yams (many of them over sixty pounds) 
 washed in fresh water, then dried, and afterwards 
 given a thick coating of coral limewash. At the end 
 of four months those that remained uneaten were as 
 fresh and juicy as if just taken from the ground. 
 
 On one of the islands of the atoll I discovered, to 
 my delight, the site of an old puraka plantation, made 
 perhaps a quarter of a century before, and here I 
 made my garden in a soil composed of decayed coral 
 and vegetable mould formed by leaves and rotted 
 timber. My under-gardeners were the wives of two 
 of my native labourers, and they worked like Trojans. 
 Not only did we first clear the undergrowth and turn 
 over the soil with canoe paddles for spades, but we 
 top-dressed with a foot of rich black mould taken 
 from a densely-wooded islet half a mile away. In 
 three weeks our little garden — about the eighth of an 
 acre — was ready, for after a while the men came to 
 assist. 
 
 Within four months we had grown and eaten 
 
 265
 
 My South Sea Gardens 
 
 beans, onions, peas and many other vegetables ; and 
 pumpkins, squashes, rock melon and cucumbers 
 trailed their vines everywhere and yielded so prolifi- 
 cally that I was swollen up with pride. During one 
 week, from three tomato bushes, the women picked 
 eighty pounds' weight of large fruit, and the small 
 yellow variety, pear-shaped, grew in bunches, literally 
 like grapes. The crabs, however — both the big robber 
 crabs and the smaller hermit crabs, were a great 
 nuisance, and at night time wrought havoc. Then 
 one of my shark-catchers hit upon a happy device. 
 We split open a number of old cocoanuts — leaving 
 the husks on — and spread them out all round the 
 garden. At night all hands would sally forth, each 
 carrying a torch of dried cocoanut leaves, and short 
 lengths of coir cinnet. The big robber crabs were 
 deftly caught and bound and reserved for the pot or 
 ground-oven and the little " hermits " left to feed on 
 the cocoanuts. 
 
 A year after we left the atoll I was told by the 
 master of a trading vessel who called there that the 
 only things he found were a few large pumpkins — 
 the crabs had destroyed nearly every other plant 
 or vine. 
 
 i66
 
 A PROSPECTING PARTY IN NORTH 
 QUEENSLAND
 
 A PROSPECTING PARTY IN 
 xNORTH QUEENSLAND 
 
 A PARTY of three of us were prospecting in the 
 vicinity of Scarr's (or Carr's) Creek, a tributary of 
 the Upper Burdekin River. It was in June, and the 
 nights were very cold, and so we were pleased to 
 come across a well-sheltered little pocket a few 
 hundred yards from the creek, which at this part 
 of its course ran very swiftly between high walls of 
 granite. Timber was abundant, and as we intended 
 to prospect the creek thoroughly up to its head we 
 decided to camp at the pocket for two or three 
 weeks, and put up a bark hut, instead of shivering 
 at night under a tent without a fire. The first day 
 we spent in stripping bark, piling it up, and then 
 weighing it down heavily with logs. During the 
 next few days, whilst my mates were building the 
 hut, I had to scour the country in search of game, 
 for our supply of meat had run out, and although 
 there were plenty of cattle running in the vicinity we 
 did not care to shoot a beast, although we were 
 
 pretty sure that the owner of the cattle, C , of 
 
 Ravenswood Station, would cheerfully have given 
 us pern]ission to do so had we been able to have 
 
 269
 
 A Prospecting Party 
 
 communicated with him. But as his station was 
 forty miles away, and all our horses were in poor 
 condition from overwork, we had to content our- 
 selves with a chance kangaroo, rock wallaby, and 
 such birds as we could shoot, which latter were few 
 and far between. The country was very rough, and 
 although the granite ranges and boulder-covered 
 spurs held plenty of fat rock wallabies, it was heart- 
 breaking work to get within shot. Still, we managed 
 to turn in at nights feeling satisfied with our supper, 
 for we always managed to shoot something, and, 
 fortunately, had plenty of flour, tea, sugar, and 
 tobacco, and were very hopeful we should get on 
 to something good by careful prospecting. 
 
 On the day that we arrived at the pocket I went 
 down the steep bank of the creek to get water, and 
 was highly pleased to see that it contained fish. At 
 the foot of a waterfall there was a deep pool, and in 
 it I saw numbers of fish very like grayling— in fact, 
 some Queenslanders call them grayUng. Hurrying 
 back to the camp with the water, I got out my 
 fishing tackle (last used on the Burdekin for bream), 
 and then arose the question of bait. Taking my gun, 
 I was starting off to look for a bird of some sort 
 when one of my mates told me that a bit of wallaby 
 was as good as anything, and cut me off a piece from 
 the ham of one I had shot the previous day. The 
 flesh was of a very dark red hue and looked right 
 enough, and as I had often caught fish in both the 
 Upper and Lower Burdekin with raw beef I was 
 very hopeful of getting a nice change of diet for our 
 
 270
 
 A Prospecting Party- 
 supper. I was not disappointed, for the fish literally 
 jumped at the bait, and I had a delightful half- 
 hour, catching enough in that time to provide us 
 with breakfast as well as supper. None of my catch 
 were over half-a-pound, many not half that weight, 
 but hungry men are not particular about the size of 
 fish. My mates were pleased enough, and whilst we 
 were enjoying our supper before a blazing fire— for 
 night was coming on — we heard a loud coo-ee from 
 
 down the creek, and presently C , the owner of 
 
 Ravenswood Cattle Station, and two of his stockmen 
 with a black boy, rode up and joined us. They had 
 come to muster cattle in the ranges at the head of 
 the creek, and had come to our "pocket" to camp 
 
 for the night. C told us that we need never 
 
 have hesitated about killing a beast. " It is to my 
 interest to give prospecting parties all the beef they 
 want," he said ; " a payable goldfield about here 
 would suit me very well — the more diggers that come 
 the more cattle I can sell instead of sending them to 
 Charters Towers and Townsville. So when you run 
 short of meat knock over a beast. I won't grumble. 
 I'll round up the first mob we come across to-morrow, 
 and get you one and bring it here for you to kill, as 
 your horses are knocked up." 
 
 The night turned out very cold, and although we 
 were in a sheltered place, the wind was blowing half 
 a gale and so keen that we felt it through our 
 blankets. However, it soon died away, and we were 
 just going comfortably to sleep when a dingo began 
 to howl near us, and was quickly answered by 
 
 271
 
 A Prospecting Party 
 
 another somewhere down the creek. Although there 
 were but two of them, they howled enough for a 
 whole pack, and the detestable creatures kept us 
 awake for the greater part of the night. As there 
 was a cattle camp quite near in a sandal wood scrub, 
 and the cattle were very wild, we did not like to 
 alarm them by firing a shot or two, which would 
 have scared them as well as the dingoes. The latter, 
 
 C told us, were a great nuisance in this part oi 
 
 the run, would not take a poisoned bait, and had an 
 unpleasant trick of biting off the tails of very young 
 calves, especially if the mother was separated with 
 her calf from a mob of cattle. 
 
 At daylight I rose to boil a billy of tea. My feet 
 were icy cold and I saw that there had been a black 
 frost in the night. I also discovered that my string 
 of fish for breakfast were gone. I had hung them up to 
 a low branch not thirty yards from where I had slept. 
 
 C 's black boy told me with a grin that the 
 
 dogs had taken them, and showed me the tracks of 
 three or four through the frosty grass. He had slept 
 like a pig all night, and all the dingoes in Australia 
 would not awaken a blackfellow with a full stomach 
 
 of beef, damper and tea. C laughed at my 
 
 chagrin, and told me that native dogs, when game is 
 scarce, will catch fish if they are hungry and can get 
 nothing else. He had once seen, he told me, two 
 native dogs acting in a very curious manner in a 
 water-hole on the Etheridge River. There had been 
 a rather long drought, and for miles the bed of the 
 river was dry, except for intermittent water-holes. 
 
 272
 
 A Prospecting Party 
 
 These were all full of Rsh, many of which had died 
 owing to the water in the shallower pools becoming 
 too hot for them to exist. Dismounting, he laid 
 himself down on the bank and soon saw that the 
 dogs were catching fish, which they chased on to the 
 edge of the pool, then seized them and carried them 
 up on the sand to devour. They made a full meal ; 
 after which the pair trotted across the river-bed and 
 lay down under a Leichhardt tree to sleep it off. 
 The Etheridge and Gilbert River aboriginals also 
 
 assured C that their own dogs — bred from 
 
 dingoes — were very keen on catching fish, and 
 sometimes were badly wounded in their mouth by 
 the serrated spur or back fin of catfish. 
 
 C and his party went off after breakfast, and 
 
 returned in the afternoon with a small mob of cattle, 
 and my mates, picking out an eighteen-months-old 
 heifer, shot her and set to work, and we soon had 
 the animal skinned, cleaned, and hung up ready for 
 cutting up and salting early on the following 
 morning. We carefully burned the offal, hide, and 
 head on account of the dingoes, and finished up a 
 good day's work by a necessary bathe in the clear, 
 but too cold, water of the creek. We turned in early, 
 tired out, and scarcely had we rolled ourselves in 
 our blankets when a dismal howl made us " say 
 things," and in half an hour all the dingoes in North 
 Queensland seemed to have gathered round the 
 camp to distract us. The noise they made was 
 something diabolical, coming from both sides of the 
 creek and from the ranges. In reality there were 
 
 273 s
 
 A Prospecting Party 
 
 not more than five or six at the outside, but anyone 
 would have imagined that there were droves of them. 
 Not Hking to discharge our guns on account of 
 
 C 's mustering, we could only curse our 
 
 tormentors throughout the night. On the following 
 
 evening, however, knowing that C had finished 
 
 mustering in our vicinity, we hung a leg-bone of 
 the heifer from the branch of a tree on the opposite 
 side of the creek, where we could see it plainly by 
 daylight from our bank, about sixty yards distant. 
 Again we had a harrowing night, but stood it 
 without firing a shot, though one brute came within 
 a few yards of our camp fire, attracted by the smell 
 of the salted meat, but he was off before anyone of 
 us could cover him. However, in the morning we 
 were rewarded. 
 
 Creeping to the bank of the creek at daylight, we 
 looked across and saw three dogs sitting under the 
 leg-bone, which was purposely slung out of reach. 
 We fired together, and the biggest of the three 
 dropped; the other two vanished like a streak of 
 lightning. The one we killed was a male, and had 
 a good coat, a rather unusual thing for a dingo, as 
 the skin is often covered with sores. From that time 
 till we broke up camp we were not often troubled by 
 their howling near us. A gun-shot would quickly 
 silence their infernally dismal howls. 
 
 During July we got a little gold fifteen miles from 
 the head of the creek, but not enough to pay us for 
 our time and labour. However, it was a fine, 
 healthy occupation, and our little bark hut in the 
 
 274
 
 A Prospecting Party 
 
 lonely ranges was a very comfortable home, especially 
 during wet weather and on cold nights. A good 
 many birds came about towards the end of the 
 month, and we twice rode to the Burdekin and had 
 a couple of days among the bream, tilling our pack 
 bags with salted fish, which cured well in the dry air 
 of the ranges. Although Scarr's Creek was full of 
 " grayling," they were too small forsaking, but were 
 delicious eating when fried. During our stay we got 
 enough opossum skins to make a fine eight-foot- 
 square rug. Then early one morning we said good- 
 bye to the pocket, and, mounting our horses, set our 
 faces towards Cleveland Bay, where, with many 
 regrets, we had to part. 
 
 275
 
 A QUICK VENGEANCE
 
 A QUICK VENGEANCE 
 
 Between Cape Flattery and Cape Tribulation on 
 the coast of the far north of Queensland, there is a 
 stretch of desolate beach some thirty miles in length. 
 Above high-water mark the fine, soft sand is densely 
 covered with a green carpet of the beautiful but 
 poisonous vinca plant, the bright pink-and-white 
 flowers of which give forth a strong, sickly odour ; 
 lower down on the beach and on the banks of the 
 sluggish tidal streams which debouch through it to 
 the Pacific, hideous alligators lie basking in the sun ; 
 eastward, across the ten miles of pale green water 
 that intervenes is the curving, foam-capped line of 
 the Great Barrier reef; westward the rugged, wild 
 and fantastic shapes of the coastal range, the haunt 
 of hordes of ferocious cannibal blacks, and the store- 
 house of as yet almost untouched millions of pounds 
 worth of virgin gold. In many a silent gully and 
 under the towering trees of the primeval forest lie the 
 bleaching bones of scores of hardy prospectors, who 
 in their thirst for gold have fallen victims to the 
 treacherous savages who have crept upon them and 
 speared them to death, as they slept or worked at 
 
 279
 
 A Quick Vengeance 
 
 their claims in some unknown creek or rock- 
 encompassed gully. 'Tis a wild and forbidding 
 country indeed. 
 
 One blazingly hot day in the month of January, a 
 small schooner, belonging to the firm by whom I was 
 employed, cast anchor under the north side of frown- 
 ing Cape Tribulation near the southern end of the 
 long beach which I have described. We were bound, 
 with a cargo of stores, for several parties of men 
 engaged in gathering and curing bSche-de-mer on the 
 islands of Torres Straits, and were making the 
 passage inside the Great Barrier reef, and had 
 anchored under the Cape for the purpose of 
 examining the wreck of a coal - laden Swedish 
 barque which had run ashore there some months 
 previously, to see if there was anything about her 
 worth salving. 
 
 A boat was lowered, manned and armed — for the 
 whole coast line was frequented by savage tribes of 
 cannibal blacks, and the captain and I went on shore 
 and inspected the wrecked barque. She was lying 
 on a ledge of reef just under the lee of the Cape ; and 
 we soon found that the blacks had been before us, 
 taken nearly everything of value, and partly burnt 
 the hull. Her copper, however, was valuable, and 
 this we at once set to work to strip. 
 
 Whilst our boat's crew was engaged at this, the 
 captain and I ascended a rocky spur of the Cape and 
 looked at some native waterholes situated in a deep 
 cleft. The waterholes were well known to the few 
 hardy and adventurous diggers and prospectors who 
 
 280
 
 A Quick Vengeance 
 
 were then making their way northwards from the 
 newly-founded town of Townsville, on Cleveland 
 Bay, to the recently discovered rich gold-fields of the 
 Palmer River, and these aboriginal reservoirs made a 
 welcome camping place on that wild and desolate 
 coast. 
 
 As the skipper and I were drinking copiously of 
 the cool, sweet water, we heard the sound of horses' 
 feet, and presently two horsemen appeared, leading 
 a packhorse. They drew up at the waterholes — or 
 rather at the end of the track above them — and 
 giving us a cheerful "Good-day" dismounted, and 
 then joined us. They were diggers — fine, stalwart 
 fellows, with hands and faces tanned the hue of dark 
 leather by Queensland's torrid sun. They were, they 
 told us, making their way to the township of Cardwell 
 to sell their gold (500 ounces) to the Bank of New 
 South Wales there, buy horses and supplies, and 
 then return to a small but rich gold-field they and 
 their party were working on an — as yet — unnamed 
 stream near the Endeavour River. 
 
 After giving their horses a drink and smoking a 
 pipe with us they bade us good-bye, telling us that 
 they intended to press on to some other native wells, 
 five miles distant, where there was good grass for 
 their horses and where they would camp for the 
 night. We walked with them to the top of the spur, 
 which was a plateau about a hundred yards in 
 circumference and crowned by one solitary silvery- 
 leaved iron-bark tree, gnarled and rugged, yet 
 sufficiently lofty to form a striking landmark, 
 
 281
 
 A Quick Vengeance 
 
 looking at it cither from the coast line or from 
 the sea. 
 
 At sunset our boat's crew ceased stripping the 
 copper, and we returned to the ship for supper ; but 
 as it was full moon I decided to bring all hands on 
 shore and work throughout the night, for the copper 
 of that barque meant a considerable sum of money. 
 
 Just as we came alongside we saw two other horse- 
 men trotting along the beach track through the vinca. 
 They turned off at the foot of the spur of the Cape, 
 and ascended to the waterholes. Here they stayed 
 but a short time ; for, whilst we were at supper, some 
 of our crew noticed them riding along the beach on 
 the south side of Cape Tribulation. 
 
 Leaving one man only on board to keep watch, 
 we lowered both boats, and were soon at work again 
 on the copper. The bright moon made it as clear as 
 day, and we toiled at the wreck very merry-heartedly, 
 till within two hours of midnight, when we were 
 disturbed by a loud " Hallo, there ! " 
 
 Seven mounted men had drawn rein on the beach 
 within a hundred yards of the wreck, and presently 
 one of them, the leader, dismounted and came to us. 
 
 " Have you seen any travellers at the waterholes 
 to-day ? " he asked. 
 
 " Yes," I replied, and then I told him in detail of 
 our meeting with the two diggers and also of the 
 two other horsemen we had seen. 
 
 He was a slenderly-built young man, of about five- 
 and-twenty years of age, and regarded me intently 
 for a few seconds before he spoke again. He and 
 
 282
 
 A Quick Vengeance 
 
 his companions all carried revolvers and Snider 
 carbines, and I could see that they had ridden 
 hard. 
 
 " I don't know who you are, mister, and you don't 
 know who I am ; but I can tell you this much — 
 there ain't no law in this part of Queensland. 
 Savee ? " 
 
 I said that I had heard so. 
 
 " Well, those two coves you met are Peter 
 Dempsey and his mate, Frank Todd ; the other two 
 men are Chris Duke and a black fellow called * Moses.' 
 Duke is one of the biggest scoundrels goin' — a sneak 
 gold robber and old gaol-bird — and Moses is an 
 absconded native policeman. They are following 
 Dempsey and Todd to get their gold, and won't stop 
 at murder." 
 
 He paused a moment, then added abruptly, 
 
 '* We got wind that Duke an' the nigger had 
 started out, follerin' Dempsey and Todd, and now 
 we are a-follerin' them," and his white, even teeth 
 gleamed in the moonlight under his dark, heavy 
 moustache in a grim smile. 
 
 Ten minutes later, after they had given their 
 horses a drink, they rode off, taking the hard sand of 
 the beach (it was low tide) in preference to that of 
 the vinca, above high-water mark. 
 
 At two o'clock in the morning, as we were loading 
 the copper into the boats, we saw them returning. 
 In their midst were two men, whose hands were tied 
 behind their backs; and in the clear moonlight I 
 saw that one — a black man — had also his feet tied 
 
 283
 
 A Quick Vengeance 
 
 under the belly of the horse on which he rode. 
 They all, except their leader, ascended the track 
 leading up the spur. He came to us on foot. 
 
 "You chaps had better get into your boats and 
 get away," he said, with a rough politeness. " My 
 mates an' me is goin' to do a hangin', an' it ain't no 
 concern o' 3'ours to be * partly-slep' criminals,' as the 
 lawyers say, so you'd best clear out." 
 
 " What has happened ? " asked the captain of the 
 schooner. 
 
 " Murder, boss, murder — the cruellest murder as 
 you ever heard of. Duke an' the nigger, Moses, 
 shot Dempsey an' Todd in their sleep at the water- 
 holes five miles beyond. We caught 'em red- 
 handed, so to speak, for they were making up a pile of 
 driftwood to burn the poor coves' bodies — thinkin' 
 the murder would be put down to the wild blacks. 
 We rushed 'em, and had 'em tied hand an' foot afore 
 they knew where they were. Now, gents, you'd 
 better clear out. Good-night." 
 
 We obeyed the suggestion with alacrity. Neither 
 the skipper nor myself wanted to be spectators of 
 an act of rough justice that might involve us 
 being called to the Supreme Court at Brisbane as 
 witnesses. 
 
 We pushed off in the boats, and v/hen half-way to 
 the schooner stopped and waited. We did not wait 
 long. 
 
 In the clear moonlight we saw the group of men 
 clustered together under the solitary tree on the 
 bluff. Then they opened out, and two bodies were 
 
 284
 
 A Quick Vengeance 
 
 hanging from a branch. The white murderer and 
 the black had met their doom. 
 
 Standing on the deck of the schooner, we looked 
 at the two pendent figures hanging from the lonely 
 tree, and then watched the seven horsemen riding 
 slowly along the moonlit beach. 
 
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 32 
 
 JAMES CLARKE AND CO.'S 
 
 INDEX OF TITLES 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Abbey Mill, The . . .21 
 
 America in the East . . 6 
 
 Among the Malacrasy . . . y 
 Aii'ient Musical liistninients . 24 
 Animal Gaiiibois . . . 2S 
 
 Animal Playtime . . .28 
 
 Animals in Fun-Land . . 28 
 An:ie KiUigrew ... 
 
 Apocalyptical Writers, The 
 
 M.'ssajres of the . .13 
 
 Apostles, The Messages of the 13 
 Aspe;^ts of the Spiritual . . 11 
 Asquith, The Kight Hon. H. H., 
 
 M.P. . . .10 
 
 At the Gates of the Dawn . 26 
 Atoncm nit and Progress . 19 
 Atonement In Modern Thouijht. 
 
 The . . . .11 
 
 August inian Bevolutlon in 
 
 Theology . . .10 
 
 Aunt Agatha Ann . . 30 
 
 .■Vuthority and the Light Within 19 
 A-.ve of the New Century, The 27 
 
 Baptist Handbook, The . . 18 
 Barrow, Henry, Separatist . 4 
 
 Beads of Tasmer, The . 13, 21 
 Beatitudes and the Contrasts, 
 
 The ' 16 
 
 Between Two Loves . 13, 31 
 
 Bible Definition of Religion, 
 
 Tlie .... 27 
 
 Birthday of Hope, The . .30 
 Black Familiars, The . 6, 20 
 
 Border Shepherdess, A . .13 
 Bow of Orange Kibbon, The 21, 31 
 Britain's Hope . . .24 
 
 Brudeiielle of Brude, The . 21 
 
 Burning Questions . . 24 
 
 Canonbury Holt , . .21 
 
 Challenge, The . . .17 
 
 Character through Inspiration 25 
 Chats with Women on Every- 
 day Subjects . . .23 
 Children's Pa-e, The . , 24 
 Children's Paul, The . . 2') 
 Chri.'it in Everyday Life , 16 
 Christ of the Children, The . 2() 
 Christ or Chaos ? ... 9 
 Christ that is To Be, The . 12 
 Christ, the Church and the 
 
 Child, The , . .16 
 
 Christ, The Private Kclation- 
 
 eliips of ... 7 
 
 Christ Within, The . . 2.') 
 
 Ciirisfs Pathway to the Cross . 22 
 Christian Certitude . . .1:1 
 Christian Life, The . . 2.5, 30 
 Christian Life and Belief , . 16 
 Christian of To-day, The , . 10 
 
 a, 
 
 25, 
 
 Christian World Pulpit, The 
 Christian World Album of Sacred 
 Songs, The - . . . 
 Christianity In Common Speech 
 ChrystabLl . . .13, 
 
 Church and Modern Life, The . 
 Church and the King'loin. The 
 Ch'irch and the Xexi (ienera- 
 
 tion. The 
 Church Questions of Our Time 
 Cinderella 
 
 City of Delight, The 
 Comforts of God, The 
 Common Life, The 
 Concerning Conscience 
 Conquered World, The 
 Conquering Prayer 
 C,iii3tructive Christianity 
 Courage of the Cov\ard, The . 
 Crucible of Experience, The 
 
 Darwin, Charles, and other Eng- 
 lish Thinkers .... 
 Daughter of Fife, A .21, 
 
 Days of Old .... 
 
 Debt of the Danierals, The 
 Divine Satisfaction, The 
 Dutch in the Medway, The 
 
 Earlier Prophets, The Messages 
 of the . . . . 
 
 Earliest Christian Hymn, The 
 
 Early Pupils of the Spirit 
 
 E'ce Vir .... 
 
 Education of a Soul, The 
 
 Emilia's Inheritance 
 
 England's Danger 
 
 Epistle to the Galatlaus, The 
 
 Esther Wynne . .13 
 
 Eternal Religion, The 
 
 Encken and Bergsen . , 
 
 Evangelical Heterodoxy 
 
 Everychild 
 
 Evolution, Life and Religion 
 
 Evolution of Old Tc.^ramen 
 Religion, The 
 
 Exposition, The Art of 
 
 Ezekiel, The Book of 
 
 Faces In the ?Jist . , 
 
 Facets of F.aith . , 
 
 Faith and Form 
 
 Faith and Vcriflcation 
 
 Faith of a Wavfarer, The 
 
 Faith the Beginning, Self-Sur 
 render the Fulfilment, of the 
 Spiritual Life . ' . 25 
 
 Family Prayers for Morning Use 
 
 Father Fabian 
 
 Fifty Years' Reminiscences of a 
 Free Church Musician 
 
 PAQJi 
 8 
 
 25 
 29 
 21 
 10 
 
 24 
 
 19 
 14 
 20 
 
 6 
 26 
 12 
 
 8 
 30 
 17 
 15 
 11 
 22 
 
 7 
 31 
 
 9 
 21 
 28 
 12 
 
 13 
 19 
 20 
 26 
 15 
 21 
 30 
 19 
 21 
 12 
 15 
 10 
 25 
 
 10 
 9 
 3 
 
 6 
 22 
 23 
 
 23 
 
 30 
 12 
 21 
 
 15
 
 CATALOGUE OF BOOKS 
 
 33 
 
 Fighters and Martyrs for the Free 
 
 doni of Faith 
 Fireside Fairy Talcs 
 First Christians, The 
 Flower-o'-tiic-f'Drii . 5 
 
 Flowers from tlie Master's Oardrn 
 Forgotten Sheaf, The 
 Fortune's Favourite 
 Fortunes of Cyril DiMiham, The 
 
 21 
 "Freedom of Faith" Scries, 
 
 The 
 Friend Olivia 
 
 Gamble with Lifi-. A 
 Garrisoned Soul, The 
 Gloria I'atrl 
 Glorious Company of the 
 
 Apostles, The 
 Gocd New Times. The 
 Gospel ol Grace, The 
 Grey and Gold 
 Grey House at Fndlcstone, The 
 Growing Uevelation, The 
 
 Hainpstead, Its historic houses 
 its literary and artistic associa 
 tlons .... 
 
 Harvest Gleanings 
 Health and Home Nursiiiat 
 Health in the Home Life 
 Heart of Jessy Laurie, The 
 Heaven and the Sea . 
 Heavenly Visions 
 Heirs of Errlngton, The 
 Helga Lloyd 
 
 Helps to Health and Beauty 
 His Next of Kin . 13, 
 
 History of the United Stales, A 
 Holidays in Animal Land 
 Holv Christian Empire 
 Holy Spirit, The 
 House ol Bondage, The 
 House of the Secret, The 
 How to Become Like Christ 
 How to Cook 
 How to Read the Bible 
 Husbands and Wives 
 
 Ideals for Girls 
 
 Ideals in Sunday School Teach 
 
 ing 
 Illustrations from Art for Pulpit 
 
 and Platform . 
 Immanence of Christ in Modern 
 
 Life, The 
 Imperishnbk- Word, The 
 Impregnable Faith, An 
 Incarnation of the Lord, The 
 Infoldings and Unfoldings of 
 
 the Divine Genius 
 Inner Mission Leaflets, The 
 Inner Mission Pamphlets, The 
 Inspiration in CommoL Life 
 Interludes In a Time of Change 
 
 P.\GK 
 
 
 28 
 11 
 20 
 26 
 2 4 
 21 
 
 31 
 
 22 
 
 
 12 
 2fl 
 12 
 
 20 
 19 
 
 
 21 
 21 
 
 7 
 
 4 
 1>^ 
 2ii 
 17 
 
 ft 
 
 8 
 
 
 21 
 
 5 
 29 
 21 
 
 4 
 28 
 31 
 20 
 21 
 
 5 
 25 
 25 
 23 
 21 
 
 IS) 
 
 23 
 
 17 
 
 15 
 
 15 
 
 7 
 
 25 
 23 
 19 
 22 
 10 
 
 Invisible Companion, The . 23 
 Inward LIpht, The . .11 
 Lsrai-l's Law Givers, The Mcswufis 
 of i:i 
 
 Jan Vtdder's Wife . .21, 
 Jealousy of God, The 
 Jesus ami His Tea'hing , 
 Jesus and the Seekers , 
 
 Jesus or Christ ? ... 
 
 Je.sus : Seven Questions 
 Jesus, The First Things of 
 Jesus, The Messages of, Accord- 
 ing to the Gospel of John 
 Jesus, The Messages of, According 
 
 to the Gospel of Paul 
 Jesus, The Messages of, Accord- 
 ing to the Synoptists . 
 Joan Carisbrooke 
 Joshua, The Book of 
 Jowctt, J. H., M.A., I).I>. 
 Judge? of Jesus, The 
 Judges, The Book of . 
 
 Kid McGhle ... 5, 
 
 Kingdom of the Lord Jesus, 
 The . .25, 
 
 King George and Queen Mary . 
 Kit Kennedy : Country Boy 5, 
 
 Lady Clarissa .... 
 Last of tiie MacAllisters, The 
 
 13, 
 Later Prophets, The Messages 
 
 of the .... 
 
 Leaves for Quiet Hours 
 Let us Pray .... 
 
 Letters of Christ, Tlie 
 Letters to a Ministerial Son 
 Liberty and Religion 
 Life and Letters of Alexander 
 
 Mackenual, The 
 Life and Teaching of Jesus, 
 
 Notes on the 
 Life and the Ideal 
 Life, Faith, and Prayer of the 
 
 Church .... 
 
 Life in His Name 
 Life of the Soul .... 
 Life's Beginnings . . 16, 
 
 Lifted Veil, A . . . . 
 Living Pleasures 
 Looking Inwards .... 
 Loves of Miss Anne, The 5, 
 
 Lynch, Rev. T. T. : A Memoir 
 Lvrics of the Soul 
 
 31 
 25 
 10 
 Id 
 23 
 10 
 10 
 
 13 
 
 13 
 
 13 
 21 
 
 4 
 22 
 19 
 
 4 
 
 2(1 
 
 30 
 16 
 20 
 
 21 
 
 21 
 
 13 
 17 
 24 
 22 
 16 
 IS 
 
 23 
 11 
 
 26 
 10 
 11 
 22 
 15 
 14 
 14 
 20 
 7 
 17 
 
 Main Points In Chri.stian Belief, 
 
 The 1.-) 
 
 Making of Heaven and Hell, 
 
 The 23 
 
 Manual for Free Chureh Minis- 
 ters. A .... 28 
 Margaret Torringtoii . 21, 31 
 Marprclate Tracts, The . . 8
 
 34 
 
 JAMES CLARKE AND CO.S 
 
 Martlneau'a Study of 
 
 Picture 
 
 Religion 
 25 
 
 Book 
 
 PAOK 
 
 Mcrrv Animal 
 
 The ... . 
 Merry Time'; in Animal Land 
 Messages of Hope 
 Messages of the Bible, The 
 Millicent Kendrick 
 Ministry of the Modern Churth 
 
 The .... 
 Miss Uevereux, Spinster 
 Model Prayer, The 
 Modern Minor Prophi-ts . 
 Modern Theories of Sin 
 More Tasty Dishes 
 Morning and Evening Cries 
 Morning Mist, A 
 Morning, Noon, and Night 
 Mornington Lecture, The 
 Mors Janua Vitaj 
 Mr. Montmorency's Money . 13 
 My Baptism 
 
 My Belief ... 
 
 My Neighbour and God 
 
 New Evangel, The 
 
 New Mrs. Laacelles, The 
 
 New Testament in Modern Speech 
 
 The 
 
 Nineteen Hundred ? 
 Nobly Born . . 
 
 Nonconformist Church Building; 
 No Room in the Inn 
 
 Old Pictures In Modern Frames 
 Old Testament Stories in Modern 
 
 Light 
 Oliver Cromwell . . 
 
 Oliver Westwood 
 Our City of God 
 Our liife Beyond . 
 Our Girls' Cookery 
 Our Protestant Faith . 
 Ourselves and the Universe, 12, 
 Outline Text Lessons for Junior 
 
 Classes 
 Overdale . . . .13 
 
 Passion for Souls, The 
 Paton, J. B., M.A., D.D. 
 Paul and Christina 
 Paul, The Messages 
 Pearl Divers of 
 
 Reef, The 
 Person of Christ 
 
 Thought, The 
 Personality of Jesus, The 
 Peter in the Firelight . 
 Pilot, The 
 
 Poems. By Mme. Guyon 
 Poems of Mackenzie Bell, 
 Poets, The Messages of the 
 Polychrome Bible, The 
 Popular Argument for tli 
 
 of Isaiah, A 
 
 of 
 Roncador 
 
 in Modern 
 
 The 
 
 3 
 Unity 
 
 30 
 
 28 
 23 
 15 
 13 
 21 
 
 15 
 21 
 20 
 15 
 10 
 29 
 18- 
 21 
 29 
 7 
 
 2e 
 
 21 
 20 
 10 
 18 
 
 17 
 21 
 
 13 
 13 
 21 
 19 
 
 22 
 27 
 21 
 12 
 
 26 
 
 27 
 U 
 
 yi 
 
 28 
 21 
 
 22 
 
 8 
 
 lo 
 
 13 
 
 o 
 14 
 15 
 17 
 14 
 17 
 13 
 
 4 
 
 19 
 
 Popular History of the Free 
 Churches, A . . -6, 
 
 Practical Lay-Preaching and 
 Speaking to Men 
 
 Prayer .... 
 
 Preaching to the Times 
 
 Price of Priestcraft, The 
 
 Pride of the Family, The 
 
 Problems and Perplexities . 
 
 Problems of Immanence 
 
 Problems of Living 
 
 Prophetical and Priestly His 
 torians. The Messages of 
 
 Psalmists, The Messages of thi 
 
 Purpose of the Cross, The 
 
 Quickening of Caliban, The 
 Quiet Hints to Growing Preachers 
 in My Study 
 
 Reasonable View of Life, .■V 
 Reasonableness of Jesus, The 
 Reasons Why for Congrega 
 
 tionalists 
 Reasons Why for Free Church 
 
 men .... 
 Reform In Sunday School Teach 
 
 fng .... 
 
 Religion and Experience 
 Religion and Miracle 
 Religion of .Tesus, The 
 Religion : The Quest of the 
 
 Ideal ... 
 
 Religion that will Wear, A 
 Resultant Greek Testament, 
 
 The ... . 
 Rights of Man. The . 
 Rise of Philip Barrett, The . ( 
 Robert Wreford's Daughter 
 Rogers, J. Guinness 
 Rome from the Inside 
 Rosebud Annual, The . 8. 
 
 Ruling Ideas of the Present 
 
 Age 
 
 Sceptre without a Sword, The 
 
 School Hymns . . .14, 
 
 Scourge of God, The 
 
 Sculptors of Life ; 
 
 Secret of Living, The 
 
 Seed of the Kin^idom, The . 
 
 Sermon Illustration, The Art of 
 
 Sharing Ilia Sufferings 
 
 She Loved a Sailor 
 
 Ship's Engines, The 
 
 Short Talks to Boys and Girls . 
 
 Sidelights on Religion 
 
 Simple Coo!;ery 
 
 Simple Things of the Christian 
 
 Life, The 
 Singlehurst Manor . . 13, 
 Sissie . . . .13, 
 
 Sister to Esau. A . . . 
 Small Books on Great Subjects 
 
 25, 
 
 PAOK 
 
 18 
 
 17 
 22 
 12 
 27 
 21 
 16 
 15 
 12 
 
 13 
 r.i 
 19 
 
 13 
 
 14 
 
 22 
 23 
 
 23 
 
 20 
 
 24 
 
 12 
 
 9 
 
 20 
 
 16 
 
 28 
 
 18 
 7 
 19 
 13 
 4 
 27 
 14 
 
 27 
 31 
 21 
 15 
 11 
 25 
 10 
 23 
 13 
 30 
 28 
 11 
 20 
 
 22 
 21 
 21 
 21 
 
 30
 
 CATALOGUE OF BOOKS 
 
 35 
 
 PAQB 
 
 Smith, Julin, the Se-Baptist, 
 
 Tnoniaa Helwys, and the 
 
 First Baptist Chun h in 
 
 En^jland .... 7 
 
 Sofial Salvation ... 8 
 
 Social Worship on Everlasting 
 
 Neressity . . . 25, 30 
 
 Spoken Words of Prayer and Praise 9 
 
 Squire of Sandal Side, The . i:<, 21 
 
 St. Bectha's .21, 31 
 Storehouse for Prea' hors and 
 
 Teachers . .24 
 
 Stories of Old ... 20 
 Story of ConRregationalism in 
 
 Surrey, The . . .10 
 
 Story of Joseph the Dreamer, Tiie 19 
 
 Story of Penelope, The . . 21 
 
 Story of the Kn^lish Baptists, The 11 
 Story of tlie Twelve . . .14 
 
 Studies of the Soul . 1?, 31 
 
 Sunday Afternoon Song Book 27, 31 
 Sunday Morning Talks with Boys 
 
 and Girls . . .18 
 Sundy Memories of Auatrala.sia 24 
 Supreme Argument for Chris- 
 tianity, The . . . 2.') 
 
 Tale of a Telephone, A . .30 
 Talks to Little Folks ... 29 
 Taste of Death and the Life of 
 
 Grace, The . . .25, 30 
 Tasty Dishes . . .29 
 
 Ten Coniniaiidn.ents, The . 19 
 
 Theology and Truth ... 7 
 Thcophilus Trinal, Memorials of 7 
 Things Most Surely Believed . 17 
 Thoriiycroft Hall . . .21 
 
 Thoughts for Life's Jonrncy . 16 
 Through Science to Faith . 6 
 
 Town Romance, A . . 21 
 
 Transfigured Church, The . 9 
 
 Trial and Triumph ... 24 
 
 P.VOE 
 
 True Chri.?t. '1 lie ... 1« 
 
 Types of Chri.-itian Life . . 23 
 
 Unfettered Word, The . 8 
 Ungilded Gold . . 17, 23 
 Unique Clas.s Chart and Register 31 
 Universal Over-Presence, The 16 
 Unknown to Herself . 21 
 Unveiled Glory, The ; or, Side- 
 lights on the Higher Kvolutlon 14 
 Uplifting of Life, The . .14 
 
 Value of the .^porypha, The . 22 
 Value of the Old Testament . 19 
 
 Vida 5 
 
 Violet Vaughan . 13, 21, 31 
 
 Voi>c from China, A . .11 
 
 Voices of To-'lay ; Studies of 
 Representative Modern Preachers 8 
 
 Waiting Life, The; By the Rivers 
 
 of Water . . .14 
 
 Warlelgh's Trust . .21 
 
 Wayfarer at the Cross Roads, The 2Z 
 Way of Life, The . . 25, 30 
 
 Way of Prayer, The . . 22 
 
 Wayside Angels . . .29 
 
 Web of Circumstance, The . 6 
 
 Westminster Sermons . . 9 
 
 What is the Bible ? . . 9 
 
 Who Wrote the Bible ? . .23 
 Why We Believe ... 18 
 
 Winning of Immortality, The 9 
 Wisdom of God and the Word 
 
 of God, The ... 9 
 
 Woman's Patience, A . . 21 
 
 Women and their Saviour , . 26 
 Women and Their Work . . 23 
 Words by the Wayside . . 24 
 Working Woman's Life, A . 9 
 
 Woven of Love and Glory 13, 21 
 
 Young Man's Ideal, A . . .16 
 Young Man's Religion, A , 18 
 
 INDEX OF AUTHORS 
 
 PAOB 
 
 PAGE 
 
 .\bbott, Lyman 7, 
 
 11 
 
 Blake, J. M. 22, 23 
 
 .Vdeney, W. F. 11, 
 
 28 
 
 Blomfield, Elsie . 28 
 
 Aked, C. F. 
 
 11 
 
 Bloundelle-Burton. 
 
 Allin, T. 
 
 16 
 
 J. . . 21 
 
 Andrews, C. C. 
 
 21 
 
 Blue, A. H. . . 22 
 
 Angus, A. H. 
 
 23 
 
 Bonner, Carey . 16 
 
 Antram, C. B. P. . 
 
 26 
 
 Bosworth, E. I. . 16 
 
 Armstrong, R. A. 25, 
 
 30 
 
 Bradford, AinoryH. 11 
 
 Barr, Amelia E. 
 
 
 Brierley, J. 11, 12, 31 
 
 6, 13, 21, 
 
 31 
 
 Briggs, C. A. .7 
 
 Barrett, GS. 
 
 19 
 
 Brown, C. 9, 22, 23 
 
 Barrows, C. H. 
 
 14 
 
 Brown, C. R. . 15 
 
 Becke, Louis 
 
 12 
 
 Burfor'd, W. K. . 29 
 
 Begbie, H. . 
 
 25 
 
 Burgess, W. H. . 7 
 
 Bell, Mackenzie 
 
 17 
 
 Burgin, Isabel . 6 
 
 Bennett, Rev. W. H 
 
 4 
 
 Burns, Rev. J. . 8 
 
 Bolts, C. H. 14, 15, 
 
 16 
 
 Button, E. . 14 
 
 PAGH 
 
 Cadman, S. P. . 7 
 
 Campbell, R. J. . 11 
 Carlile, J. C. : 
 
 11, 28, 29 
 
 Cave, Dr. . . 11 
 
 Caws, Rev. L. W. 14 
 
 Cleal, E. E. . . 10 
 
 Clilford, John 25, 30 
 
 Collins, B. G. . 19 
 
 Cowper, W. . 14 
 
 Crockett, S. R. 5, 20 
 
 Cubitt, James . 19 
 
 Cuff, W. . 24 
 
 Darlow, F. H. 24 
 
 Davidson, Gladys 28 
 
 Dods, Marcus 11, 25 
 
 Elias, F. . 8, lu
 
 36 
 
 JAMES CLARKE AND CO.'S CATALOGUE 
 
 PiQB 
 Ellis, J. . . -Zi 
 
 Evans, H. . .27 
 Farninsjhani, Mari- 
 anne, 9, 13, 17, 
 
 18, 23, 26 
 Farrar, Dean . 11 
 
 Finlayson, T. Camp- 
 bell . . 30 
 Fiske, J. . . 4 
 Forsyth, P. T. 
 
 11, 25, 30, 31 
 Foston, H. . 14, 18 
 Fremantlo, Dean . 11 
 Fiirness, IT. H. . 3 
 Garvie, A. E. . 16 
 Gibbon, J. Morgan 
 
 10, 19 
 Giberne, Agnes . 21 
 Gladden, Washington 
 
 8, in, 11, 23, 24 
 Glover, R. . . 26 
 Godet, Professor , 11 
 Gordon, George A. 9 
 Gould, O. P. . 26 
 
 Greenhough, J. G. 
 
 18, 25 
 Grifflg, W. E. . 6 
 Griffith-Jones, E. 7. 25 
 Grubb, E. . 19, 23 
 Gunn, E. H. M. 14, 31 
 G'.iyon, Madame . 14 
 Hampden-Cook, E. 18 
 Harna-k. Professor 11 
 Harvev-Jellie, W. 9 
 Hanpt, P. . :{ 
 
 Haweis, H. R. . 19 
 Heddle, Ethel F. 21 
 Henson, Canon H. 
 
 H<'ns!ey . 9, 12 
 Hermann, E. . 15 
 Hill, F. A. . .4 
 Hoekini;, S. K. . 12 
 Hodgson, J. M. . 16 
 Horder, W. Garrett 25 
 Home, C. Silvester 
 
 6, 11, 15, 18, 24 
 Horton, R. F. 1(», 
 
 11, 25, 26, 27, 29, 30 
 Houlder, J. A. . 
 Hunter, John . 11 
 " J. B. " of The 
 
 Chrittian World 27 
 J. M. G. . 12 
 
 Jefferson, C. E. . 14 
 Jeffs, H. 
 
 8, 9. 10, 15, 17, 10 
 John, Griffith . 11 
 Jones, J. D. 8, 9, 
 
 17, 20, 22, 23, 26, 30 
 Jowett, J. H. 9, 22, 23 
 Kennedy.H. A. 27, 31 
 Kennedv, John . 19 
 fient, C. F. .13 
 
 PAGR 
 Kenyon. Edith C. 23 
 Kirk, E. B. .7 
 
 KniKht, W. A. 15, 22 
 Lansfeldt, L. . 21 
 
 LaTouche,E. D. 5, 10 
 Layman, A. .26 
 
 Lee, E. . . 5 
 
 Lee, W. T. . 13 
 
 Leggatt, F. Y. . 23 
 Lewis, E. W. . 23 
 
 Llewellvn, D. J. . 24 
 Lyall, David 6, 19 
 Lynch, T. T. .7 
 
 Lynd, William . 24 
 Macfadven, D. 8, 14 
 MaoFadyen, J. E. 22 
 Macfarlane, Charles 12 
 M'Intyre, D. M. . 10 
 Mackennal, A!>'X- 
 
 ander . 25, 30 
 
 Manners, Marv E. 30 
 Man of the World, A 16 
 Marchant, Bessie . 21 
 Marrhant, J. . 8 
 
 Marshall, J. S. . 25 
 Marshall, N.B. 7,16,19 
 Martineau, Jas. 25,30 
 Mason, E. A. . 30 
 
 Mather, Lessels . 29 
 Malheson, George 
 
 15, 16, 17, 24, 27 
 Maver, J. S. . 21 
 Maxwell . 4 
 
 Meade, L. T. . 21 
 Metcalfe, R. D. . 27 
 Mever, F. B. . 2-5 
 Michael, C. J). . 20 
 Miller, Elizabeth . 6 
 Minshall, E. . 15 
 
 Moore, G. F. .4 
 
 Morgan, G. Camp- 
 bell . . 19, 22 
 Morison, F. . 22 
 
 Morten, Honnor . 17 
 Mountain, J. . 20 
 
 Mnnger, T. T. 11, 25 
 Neilson, H. B. . 28 
 Orchard, W. E. 10, 15 
 Palmer, Frederic . 9 
 Paton, J. B. 
 
 14, 19, 23 26 
 Pcake, A. S. . 24 
 
 Pharmaceutical 
 
 Ciiemist, A. . 29 
 Picton, J. Allanson 20 
 Pierce, W. . .3 
 Piggott, W. C. . 15 
 Pov.'icke, F. J. . 4 
 Pringle, A. 22, 23 
 Pulsford, John . 25 
 Rcid, Rev. J. 10, 14 
 Rickett, Sir J. 
 Compton 12, 13, 29 
 
 P.\GE 
 
 Ridd'^tte, J. K. . 31 
 
 Robarts, Rov.F. H. 18 
 
 Roberts, R. . 19 
 
 Rogers, J. Ouinuess 4 
 
 Roose, Rev. J. S. 14 
 
 Russell, F. A. . 22 
 Sabatier, A. .11 
 
 Sanders, F. K. . 13 
 
 Schrenck, E. vcn 10 
 Scottish Presbyte- 
 rian, A . .28 
 
 Shakespeare, J. H. 26 
 
 Shepherd, J. A. . 28 
 
 Shiilito, Edward . 14 
 Sin.lair, H. . .8 
 Sinclair, Archd a- 
 
 con . .id, 30 
 
 Smyth, Xewinan . 6 
 Snell, Bernard J. 
 
 11, 19, 22 
 
 Souper, W. . 15 
 
 Steuart, J. A. 6 
 Stevenson, J. (J. 
 
 15, 17, 19, 20 
 
 Stewart, D. M. 15, 26 
 
 Storrow, A. H. . 14 
 
 Street, J. . . 25 
 
 Stuart, Duncan . 6 
 
 Sutter, Julie . 24 
 
 Swan, r. U. . ! 7 
 Swetenham, L. .17 
 
 Tarbolton, A. C. 19 
 
 Thomas, H. Arnold 25 
 Tipple, S. A. .9 
 
 Toy, Rev. C. If. . 3 
 
 Tymms, T. V. . 7 
 
 Tynan, Katharine 5 
 Tytler, S. . .21 
 Varlcv, H. . .23 
 
 Veitch, R. . 10, 11 
 
 Wain, Louis 28, 30 
 
 Walford, L. B. 6, 20 
 
 Walker, W. L. . 16 
 
 Walmsley, L. S. . 9 
 Warschauer, J. 
 
 9, 10, 15, 17, 23 
 
 Warwick, H. . 16 
 
 Waters", N. MeG. 18 
 
 Watkinson, W. L. 22 
 
 Watson, E. S. 9 
 
 Watson, W. 15, 22 
 
 Weymouth, R. F. 18 
 
 White, W. . . 7 
 WhitoD, J. M. 
 
 10, 12, 20, 28 
 
 Williams, T.R. 22, 25 
 
 Wilson, P. W. . IS 
 
 Winter, A. E. . 20 
 Worboise, Emma 
 
 J. 12, 21, 31 
 Yatea, T. . .15 
 
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