THE RETURN OF THE COLONISTS.
With stones in their hands, muzzles turned in the direction of the wind,
outstretched necks, hair standing on end, and ears pricked up, the apes
tried to realize what Philip himself would have been only too well
pleased to understand.
There could be no question but that a vessel was near, yet there were
many chances that Philip’s first explanation of the reason of the
cannonading was not the true one.
In the cavern it was impossible to say that a tempest might not be
raging, and the ship, having struck a reef, was signaling for assistance.
Or, again, the Malay pirates were perhaps attacking some vessels close
under the lee of the land. In fact, there were very many ways of
explaining the reasons for this discharge of ordnance without attributing
it to the return of the colonists, and Philip’s first flush of joy was
immediately turned to anxiety.
Half an hour passed, during which the besiegers remained like statues,
gazing toward the sea; and then, to Philip’s intense relief and almost
overwhelming happiness, came the sound of human voices.
The apes appeared to be more and more astonished. The greater number
looked frightened, and were already seeking with furtive glances
favorable openings for immediate flight. Goliah alone remained firm; but
it was possible to tell from the expression of his face that he shared
very sensibly in the alarm of his subjects.
Five minutes more passed, and Philip fancied he could hear the tramp of
many feet in the distance, when Goliah gave vent to a shrill, piercing
whistle, and in an instant every one of the besiegers disappeared. Not a
single ape remained in front of the grotto, and only for a few seconds
could Philip see their vanishing tails as they sought refuge in the
thicket.
Now, instead of trying to fill up the tunnel, those in the subterranean
chamber began tearing away at the rocks with feverish energy; and five
minutes later Philip, followed by the two chimpanzees, emerged from the
grotto into one of the broad roads built under his supervision as king,
down which could be seen a large body of men, in the immediate vicinity
of the village.
To run forward at the swiftest possible pace was the most natural thing
for Philip to do, and in a few moments he was standing before Captain
Seaworth, muttering incoherent words expressive of his deep joy, while
the two chimpanzees followed close behind him, looking as if they also
were relieved in mind by the coming of human beings.
The appearance of Philip, covered as he was with the fragments of an
ape’s skin, caused the most profound astonishment among those who had
just landed.
They looked upon him as if believing that he was a veritable wild man,
and not a few gave way at his approach, fearing he might inflict some
injury upon them.
Although Captain Seaworth and several of his officers were well
acquainted with Philip Garland, the animal-trainer, they failed to
recognize in this forlorn-looking specimen of humanity the once
prosperous merchant, and after gazing at him several moments in
undisguised astonishment the captain asked, sternly:
“Who are you?”
“A shipwrecked youth, whose life has been in danger during the past three
months.”
“One would say you were more ape than human,” the captain replied with a
smile.
“And so I have been; but now the time has come when I can assume my
proper place among human beings. This hide is not mine.”
“Which is lucky for you,” one of the officers added, and several laughed
heartily, “otherwise we might think it a deed of charity to finish
skinning you.”
Then Captain Seaworth, looking at the chimpanzees as if he recognized
them, asked:
“How comes it that you have adopted two of my former pets as your
servants?”
“These are animals which I once owned and trained, and afterward sold
to you, captain,” Philip said laughingly; and the gentleman, looking up
quickly, repeated:
“You sold them to me?”
“Yes. I am, or at least I was, Philip Garland, dealer in wild animals,
and sold you these chimpanzees, together with a baboon which I wish had
been killed years ago.”
It is needless to describe the astonishment caused by these words. In
this youth, only partially covered with the tattered skin of an ape,
and with matted and disheveled hair, the officers of the Reynard began
to distinguish some familiar features, and a moment later Philip was
overwhelmed with questions.
To tell his story would require no slight amount of time, and he proposed
that it be delayed until a more fitting moment, for he, in turn, was
eager to learn the reasons of the colonists’ sudden departure; therefore
he said:
“Inasmuch as your leaving the island has caused me no slight amount of
uneasiness and mystification, and can be told more quickly than my story,
suppose you first explain. This evening you shall learn the particulars
of my reign, for during at least half of my stay here I have been king of
the apes.”
“It will require but a few words to clear up what has seemed a mystery
if, as I presume, you have already seen the log-book.”
“I have, and the last page in it contained an account of the pirates’
warning which was found on the beach.”
“Exactly,” the captain replied. “In regard to that, Mr. Clark evidently
overlooked the weapon on the previous day, for before nightfall we saw
the Malay fleet in the offing. It was composed of so many proas that
to give battle would have been the height of foolishness, and in the
least possible time we embarked on the Reynard, slipping her cables and
standing out to sea. It was better to lose our property than run the risk
of losing our lives.
“The people were making preparations for a ball, and no work was being
done on the plantation, therefore it was possible to embark in less
than an hour from the time of the first alarm; but to save any of the
household goods was out of the question. The papers relating to the
settlement of the island I intended to take with me; but in the hurried
departure they, like a great many other things, were forgotten until
it was so late that to return for them would have been the height of
imprudence, and we abandoned everything with the faint hope of recovering
the property on our return.
“A running fight could be made provided we succeeded in preventing the
pirates from boarding us; and with a ten-knot breeze we dashed through
the fleet without receiving any injury. They opened fire as a matter of
course; but those scoundrels do not count upon a fight at long range,
because their weapons are not calculated to do much execution from a
distance.
“We were not idle. Every gun of the six we had on board was trained with
good effect, and before they could crawl out of range we sank three
proas. Two more of the crafts were disabled, and one was so splintered
about the hull that before we were out of sight her crew took to the
boats. It was a lesson which I fancy they will not forget for some time;
and now that we are to have such an increase of numbers, it will be a
very long while before the pirates, either from Sooloo or Magindinao,
dare to pay us a visit.
“We made Batavia in due course of time, took on more colonists, and
arranged for a large number to follow. They will be here in a few days,
and I have returned to complete our work; but I fancy quite as much has
been destroyed by the apes as would have been had the pirates landed,
although I am surprised at seeing these magnificent thoroughfares, which
must have cost no small amount of time and labor.”
“As king of the apes I have been able to do the colony some good,”
Philip replied. “These roads were laid out by my subjects, and as far as
possible I have endeavored to repair the buildings which they destroyed
during the first battle; but of this I shall tell you later.”
Then Captain Seaworth and his officers, eager to hear Philip’s story,
proposed that all go on board the Reynard, where the unfortunate man
could procure suitable garments; and while the colonists were engaged in
ascertaining the amount of damage done the dwellings the little party
went to the coast, the chimpanzees following Philip very closely, as if
only in his presence could they hope for protection from the vengeful
Goliah.
The remainder of that day was spent as far as Captain Seaworth and his
officers were concerned, in listening to Philip’s adventures, and when
night came one can well fancy the happy sense of relief and security
which the animal-trainer experienced on being able to lie down once more
in a bed with no fear of an attack from the apes.
It was decided that the chimpanzees should be allowed to go whithersoever
they pleased; but after the first visit to the ship no amount of
persuasion could induce them to go on shore again. They appeared to
realize that only there were they safe, and having been given quarters in
a shanty which the carpenter built on deck, they were apparently the most
contented of all the ship’s company.
Not until the following day, while the workmen were engaged in restoring
the buildings and otherwise putting the settlement into the same shape
as it had been at the time of their departure, did Philip tell Captain
Seaworth of the discovery he had made in the subterranean chamber. Had he
related this portion of his adventures in public the work of establishing
the plantation would have been speedily abandoned, for once the fever for
gold attacks man all industries languish, and the idea of gaining wealth
from the bed of the under-ground stream would have been more disastrous
to the colony than many visits from the pirates.
Even Captain Seaworth was undecided as to what should be done. He fully
realized the danger attending his enterprise should this discovery be
made known, and after much thought he said to Philip:
“We will let this remain a secret between you and me for the present.
You can at different times convey the gold which has been gathered to my
house, or to the ship, without letting any of the colonists know what
you are doing. Only in the event of our failing to make of this island a
fruitful plantation will we acquaint even my most trusty officers with
this new source of wealth.”