SURPRISED BY SAVAGES.
The wisdom of Rough-and-Ready's plan of action was soon proved. One
night, thunder awoke them from sleep. The thunder that breaks over the
housetops, and the lightning that flashes in at the window-panes of a
populous city, are very different from what are heard and seen in
mountain ranges and great wastes of forests. Nature seems to be toned
down in the city; in the forests and mountains she is grandly
beautiful in repose, terrifically beautiful in travail. The
thunder-peals were so loud and awful, that the women and child lay
clasping each other in speechless fear. Like savage Titans the sound
swept down upon them, and rushed through the forests and over the
mountains and into them in search of echoes. The lightning darted upon
the trees, and ran along the branches, and leaped through the woods
into the bowels of the earth. Every thing that lived in stream and
woodland, in rocky range and dark lagoon, sought shelter from the
storm, of which Sound was but the herald. Presently it came, the swift
rush of waters, like a second deluge, filling the creeks and rivers,
and flooding all the land. Great torrents rushed down the mountainside
into the low land, sweeping all before them. The storm raged the whole
night through, abating slightly when morning dawned. It was well for
the castaways that they had a little food stored by, for they could
not go out in search of any. The second night the women begged the men
to stay with them; so they all occupied the women's gunyah, lying side
by side in the dark, and whispering to each other little words of
comfort. All but Rachel Homebush, who was struck dumb by fear. The
second night's storm was more terrific than the first, and about
midnight so tremendous a peal of thunder broke over them, that they
started up in dread.
"Who screamed?" asked Rough-and Ready. But his voice was not heard;
and swift upon the heels of the thunder another vivid lightning-flash,
instantly followed by a terrific burst of thunder, darted through the
gunyah, and struck them blind for many moments. Then, during a slight
lull, Rough-and-Ready asked again,--
"Who screamed?"
"Not I," said Joshua.
"Nor I," said the sailmaker.
The women did not speak. Joshua's heart beat with a new fear as he
whispered,--
"Minnie! Minnie! speak to me. You are not hurt?"
And tears of thankfulness came into his eyes as Minnie answered in a
trembling voice,--
"No Joshua; I am only frightened. Let me hold your hand."
"Where's the child?" he asked.
"Rachel has her. Rachel! Rachel!"
No voice replied. Thoroughly alarmed, they called to her again and
again, and to the child, but could not rouse them. They were in the
deepest darkness.
Presently Rough-and-Ready said, "Hush! we must wait for the light."
They waited for the light, and by the first faint glimmer they saw
Rachel and the child lying down peacefully, the woman with the child
folded in her arms. Light had come to them before the others!
Rough-and-Ready, who was the first to discover it, turned to his
companions, with the tears streaming down his face and beard.
"Comfort _her_," he said to Joshua, pointing to Minnie.
Joshua put his arm round Minnie and turned her face from where the
woman and child lay.
"Poor Rachel! Poor Little Emma!" he said. "Be brave, Minnie, my dear.
Do not give way, for my sake."
He knew what words to utter to give her strength to bear the shock,
and he made use of his power with a wise compassion.
Her poor white lips trembled as she said to him,--
"Pray for one thing for me, Joshua. Pray that I may not die before I
have made atonement."
"Hush, hush, my dear!" he replied; "there is none to make. It is I who
rather should have to make it, for my hardness to you. Be comforted,
my dear."
The words came from his heart. He would have been unfeeling indeed if
he had not learned to appreciate the beautiful unselfishness of
Minnie's love; her meekness, her faithfulness, her devotion, her
unmurmuring submission, could not fail to have a powerful effect upon
such a nature as his.
The men went into their gunyah, and before night came again had made a
rough coffin of bark. The next morning they dug a grave and stood
round it bareheaded while the rain was falling. They kissed the
child's face and poor Rachel's also before the cover was put on the
rude coffin. Amid deep sobs--the men were not ashamed of their
tears--Joshua read prayers; some vine-creepers were thrown into the
grave; the earth was piled up into a mound: and they went back sadly
to their tent. The loss of some one very near and dear to them could
not have been more severely felt. From that time forth it became a
practice for Joshua to read a chapter out of the Bible every morning
and evening.
The rainy season lasted for three weeks, and during this time they
lived very miserably. Minnie thrived, however--perhaps because Joshua
was tender to her. The hot weather came and they were able to go in
search of food. But Minnie was never left alone. Joshua and she were
waiting one evening for the return of Rough-and-Ready and the
sailmaker, but Rough-and-Ready came back without his companion. He
looked round in some anxiety.
"Hasn't the sailmaker returned?"
"No," said Joshua; "you went out together."
"I know; but I missed him a couple of hours ago, and although I have
searched for him and coo-[=e][=e]d for him everywhere, I haven't been
able to find him."
The sailmaker did not make his appearance. To the surprise of his
companions, Rough-and-Ready, after dark, fired half a dozen shots from
his pistol into the air.
"You look surprised," he said; "well, now" (to Minnie), "can you bear
a shock? Will you promise to be brave if I tell you something?"
She nodded.
"It is only something that I have been expecting. I think that the
sailmaker is with the natives."
"Why do you think so?" asked Joshua.
"For good reasons. I saw some tracks of them when I was hunting for
Tom. Perhaps they have captured him."
"He had his pistols."
"Frightened to use them, perhaps; or perhaps there were a lot of the
Blacks, and he thought it would be foolish and useless. Besides he is
new to them. He's all right, though; they won't hurt him for he's a
plucky fellow. Now, mind. When you first see the natives, and indeed
always after that, show no fear of them. What I am going to say is to
my mind a most foolish thing; but there's the faintest chance in the
world that, making friends with them, you might make your way down
south, from one tribe to another, in a few months, and come upon some
cattle station. But, lord! there's one chance for you, and a hundred
against you."
"Why do you say 'you'?" asked Minnie. "'We,' rather."
"No, my dear," said Rough-and-Ready with a blush. "I have two reasons
for saying you and not we. The first reason is not a reason--it is a
presentiment. I shall die in the bush. The second reason is a plainer
one. It wouldn't be pleasant for me to get into civilized company in
New South Wales."
"Why?"
Rough-and-Ready looked at her with admiration, and said, very
inappropriately, as she thought,--
"Do you know that you have made me a better man?"
"A better man!" she exclaimed. "Why, you are a good man, and a brave
man, too."
"You think so. So let it be," he said, half seriously, half gayly.
"I'm not going to spoil your delusion just yet."
They saw no signs of the savages that night. They did not retire until
late, and Rough-and-Ready went many times short distances in different
directions to look for the natives, but they did not appear. Joshua
took out his accordion and played. Rough-and-Ready listened
thoughtfully, and when Joshua had finished an air, he said,--
"I told you, when we first came ashore here, that there is no surer
way to frighten the blacks than through their superstitious fears.
Your playing to-night, connected with the near presence of the
savages, brings that remark back to me; and I'll tell you why. That
music of yours may possibly be a great power with them. They have
never heard any thing like it. If you don't lose your self-possession
when you get among them--and you must take care not to, for Minnie's
sake; her life may depend upon your courage--you may obtain an
influence over them by means of your accordion. Sound for which they
cannot account has a wonderful effect upon them. Here you have it.
Don't forget what I say. Come, now, I can hear no sign of the black
devils. You take some rest. I'll wake you in a couple of hours."
So they watched in turns during the night.
"What is the best thing to do," asked Joshua the following evening,
"when the savages come?--to make friends with them, or try to frighten
them?"
"There are too few of us to fight," answered Rough-and-Ready. "We
might frighten them for a time, but they would be sure to come back in
larger numbers. Then we haven't too much powder and shot left. No; the
best and wisest course will be to be friendly with them, if possible.
I _have_ heard of white men living with them for many years. I saw an
Englishman myself once who had been with them for five years. He was
glad enough to get away from them; but they treated him kindly, he
said. One man, whom I never saw, lived with them for thirty years. His
name is Buckley, and he is living now."
"Do you know any thing of his story?"
"I'll tell you what little I know. He was a bricklayer in
Cheshire--came from Macclesfield, I've heard. A great big hulking
lazy fellow he was--brick-making was too hard work for him, so he
enlisted as a grenadier. A fine grenadier he must have looked--he was
six feet six inches in his stockings. But grenadiering didn't satisfy
his wants. He was a natural vagabond like myself, and he got into
trouble, and was sentenced to transportation. So he and three or four
hundred other natural and unnatural vagabonds, being deemed fine
material for the purpose, were sent out to form a colony. Buckley and
his mates were put ashore at Port Phillip; but the governor, whose
name was Collins, liked the place as little as the convicts, and he
moved them off to Van Dieman's Land. Then they began to talk of
escaping. They didn't know any thing of the interior of the country;
but they thought, perhaps, that any thing was better than the devil's
life they led as convicts. Buckley got away with two mates, of whom
nothing more was ever heard. About twelve months after he escaped, he
fell in with the natives, and lived with them for more than thirty
years. During the whole of that time he never saw a white man. At
length he heard from the tribe he was living with, that some men with
skins the same color as his had been seen within a few miles of the
native camp. They belonged to a band of explorers headed by a man
named Batman. Buckley went in search of them, and presented himself to
them. You can imagine what a sensation he created; a white giant, who
had forgotten how to speak English, with native weapons hung round his
body, and a kangaroo-skin rug his only clothing. He soon picked up a
bit of English, and was taken to a white settlement, where he was made
a pet and a wonder of. He might have done good service for the white
people with the natives, for they say he has great influence with
them. But my opinion of him is, that he is a lazy, skulking thief, and
that living with the savages, where he hadn't to work for his food,
just suited him. I expect that some part of his influence over them
was produced by his tremendous height and big limbs. However, he is
among the whites again, with a free pardon granted him, I've heard,
and earning his living as he has earned it all his life--by doing
nothing."
During the recital of this story, which Rough-and-Ready declared was
veracious, every word of it, he was busy baking a fresh-water turtle,
which he had caught that day while he was fishing in a lagoon. The
turtle was baked in its shell, and they made a delicious supper off
it. They had arranged to fish for eels that night, and Rough-and-Ready
said,--
"Come along; it's of no use being frightened by thinking of the
natives; we must get accustomed to them. We shall soon see them, and
Tom with them."
They took all their fire-arms. Minnie had two pistols in her belt, and
Joshua and Rough-and-Ready, besides pistols, had guns slung across
their shoulders. Each of them wore a cap made of the beautiful fur of
the sugar-squirrel. They walked through the quiet wood, looking
sharply about them as they went along, but neither heard nor saw any
signs of the natives. When they came to the lagoon, Rough-and-Ready
told them he was going to show them a fine way of catching eels
without trouble. He had his fire-sticks with him, and in half an hour
he had a great fire blazing by the side of the lagoon. Attracted by
the light, the eels came swarming towards them; and in a very short
time they caught as many as they desired. Loaded with their spoil,
they made their way back to their gunyahs; and as they got near them,
they saw a dark figure glide swiftly away from the spot into the bush.
"A native," said Rough-and-Ready. "We must look out to-night."
"Or Scadbolt, or the Lascar, do you think?" suggested Joshua,
supporting Minnie, who was clinging to him in alarm.
"No; a white man couldn't move away with such a cat-like motion. I
fancy I saw his dark skin."
Thereupon Rough-and-Ready, for the purpose of familiarizing Minnie
with the idea of living with the savages, and so lessening her fears,
commenced talking of them, and continued talking for a couple of
hours. By which time Minnie's fears really _were_ lessened.
"What a number of stars have fallen the last few nights remarked
Joshua.
"Ah, you have noticed that!" said Rough-and-Ready. "And if you
observe, they have fallen immediately over this spot, in the direction
of the sea. Well, those shooting-stars may have brought the natives
here; for although some tribes believe that danger lies where stars
fall, or that they indicate the direction of hostile tribes, others
have a kind of belief that a great and good spirit may be seen where
they fall. They believe that there is a new sun every day and a new
moon every night, One tribe throws up the sun at daybreak, and another
tribe catches it at sunset."
Here they were interrupted by cries of fear, and by the running
towards them of some person who fell at their feet trembling and
grovelling. It was the Lascar, who was evidently in a state of
horrible fright. He looked more like a wild beast than a man. What few
clothes he had on were torn and tattered, his nails were long, and his
disordered hair and grovelling fears deprived his features of any
likeness to humanity.
"The savages, the savages," he cried.
He had chosen what he considered the lesser of two evils; his white
foes were preferable to black cannibals. Rough-and-Ready looked down
upon him contemptuously and touched him with his foot.
"The cowardly ruffian!" he said. "I'd sooner trust the Blacks than
such as he. Where's his rascally mate, I wonder--Get up!" he cried,
and administered so smart a kick to the prostrate wretch that he
jumped up on the instant, imploring mercy.
"Be silent, you chattering imp of darkness!" roared Rough-and-Ready;
"be silent, and answer me. You've seen the Blacks, I suppose?"
The Lascar muttered an affirmative.
"Well, what are you frightened at? Why don't you go and make friends
with them? They haven't much the advantage of you in color, and you
are more of a wild beast than they are. Frightened of being eaten, eh?
Faugh! they'd spear you and throw you away; you're not good enough
even for them." The Lascar trembled the more at this; he was a true
coward. "What d'ye think of mutineering now, eh? Answer me, you
copper-colored devil, or I'll make an end of you--where's your mate,
Scadbolt?"
"I don't know; I haven't seen him for days.
"Ah, two of a trade never agree. I thought you'd be cutting each
other's throats. Captain Marvel, here's one of your crew who tried to
raise a mutiny. As if that was not enough, he has murdered his mate."
(It is a fact that Scadbolt was never heard of again, nor was any
thing ever known of his fate.) "Now then, you, as captain of the
'Merry Andrew,' pronounce judgment--death, nothing less--and I'll take
him away and execute it, as truly as I'm a living man!"
There was something so determined in Rough-and-Ready's speech, and
something so threatening in his action, that the Lascar leaped away in
mortal fear. Whereat Rough-and-Ready laughed loud and long, and fired
a shot in the air to frighten the Lascar the more.
In the morning, while they were at breakfast, two savages suddenly
made their appearance, about twenty yards from where they were
sitting. They appeared so suddenly, that they seemed to have started
out of the ground.
"Now, Minnie," said Rough-and-Ready quietly, "don't scream out, and
don't show any alarm. By the look of those fellows they are friendly,
and do not mean to harm us."
Minnie conquered her fears bravely, although her heart was beating
fast, and by the direction of Rough-and-Ready they went on with their
breakfast, to all appearance quite unconcerned, and as if the presence
of the savages was the most natural thing in the world. The two men
who stood gazing at them were naked, with the exception of a girdle of
emeu-feathers round their waists; their color was pale black; they
were tall, with thin limbs and fine chests, and their hair was thick
and curly. They had spears in their hands, about seven feet long, made
from the stem of the tea-tree.
Seeing that they stood quite quiet, Rough-and-Ready held up part of an
eel towards them, and smiled, and nodded his head gently. Whereupon
the two savages looked at each other, said a few words, and
disappeared. Both Joshua and Minnie drew a long breath of relief, for
which Rough-and-Ready was inclined to be cross with them.
"They will be back presently," he said, "in company."
They had not long to wait. In less than half an hour the two who had
first presented themselves returned with nearly a score of others. To
the joy of the castaways, they saw Tom the sailmaker in the rear, and
they nodded and smiled at him. Seeing that the savages, who had been
jabbering among themselves, made signs to the sailmaker; and after the
display of much pantomime, he came towards his mates. They shook hands
with him, and Rough-and-Ready asked him how he was.
"Jolly," he replied. He told them in crisp sentences, all of them in
answer to Rough-and-Ready's questions, that the natives seemed
disposed to be friendly, and that they were not half so bad as they
looked.
Rough-and-Ready, accompanied by Tom, then walked half a dozen yards in
the direction of the savages, and held out his hands to them. Tom
looked at the savages, touched Rough-and-Ready on the breast, and then
himself, with sufficiently expressive pantomime, to denote, "We two
are one." Minnie and Joshua stood in the background, side by side,
with linked arms. The savages, coming a little nearer, pointed to
them, and jabbered unintelligibly, as much as to say, "What do you do
here? Who are you?" Joshua, observing the success of Rough-and-Ready's
pantomime, touched Minnie on the breast, and then himself, conveying
the same meaning, "We two are one."
Here it must be told that Minnie had regained her naturally fair
complexion, and that her hair, also fair, had grown to a great length.
Tall and well-formed, with bare arms beautifully shaped, with pure
complexion; with dreamy eyes, with long hair hanging loosely down, and
with the charm and grace of youth upon her, she stood before them in
her strange dress of civilized cotton and woodland fur; and her
singularly-beautiful appearance had a powerful effect on the savages.
They approached Rough-and-Ready, and felt his clothes, and made
friends with him in their primitive fashion; but they kept some
distance from Joshua and Minnie, regarding, her with looks of
reverence and astonishment. Presently, after much grimacing and
flashing of hands and fingers, Rough-and-Ready came towards Minnie,
and, to her surprise, bowed low before her, and stood in an attitude
of respectful worship. The savages, who were watching him attentively,
saw only his back; but if they had seen the merry twinkle in his eyes,
they would have been as puzzled as Minnie was.
"I've heard say that every woman is an actress," he said, smiling.
"Prove yourself one now, for all our sakes, by not moving, and by
listening to me attentively. Your conduct may decide our fate. I have
told you what significance the natives attach to shooting-stars, and
how they either avoid the direction in which they fall or are impelled
there by some powerful superstition. Fortune has favored us. I don't
understand a single word these savages utter; but I understand from
their actions that they are so amazed at your appearance as to
entertain a belief that you are not quite mortal--that, in fact, you
are a superior spirit. If they can be kept in this belief (supposing
they entertain it), it will be of immense service to us. If you are
brave enough not to show fear, they will almost be certain not to
attempt to harm us."
No better speech could have been spoken to Minnie to inspire her with
confidence and courage. But she turned to Joshua first, and asked,
"Shall I do this?"
"Yes," he answered; "I think it will be well, if you can nerve
yourself to it."
Smiling at the "if" she said softly, "For your sake, Joshua," and
then, with queenly motion, walked towards the savages, conquering her
disgust at their appearance. They awaited her approach; and when she
was within a few steps of them, an old graybeard came forward, and
held out his hands, saying some words expressive of respectful
welcome. Minnie understood as much by his expressive action. She
touched his hands, and waved hers, bidding them welcome, and beckoning
to Joshua, touched him on the breast, and placed her hand upon his
shoulder. Then, smiling placidly upon the dusky group, she walked away
with Joshua, and sat down in the shade of the gunyah. Whatever meaning
her pantomime had conveyed, it evidently excited great interest among
the savages. They conversed earnestly and excitedly, and pointed to
the sky and to the earth, describing, by their motions the action of a
star falling gently to the ground.
"Bravely done," said Rough-and-Ready to Minnie. "Whatever notion they
have in their heads, it is one that will do us no harm. See, they are
moving off, taking the sailmaker with them."
And, indeed, the natives went away in a body, leaving behind them four
of their party, however, who squatted upon the ground, with their eyes
fixed upon the castaways.
"They are left to watch us," said Rough-and-Ready; "but I think we may
make ourselves easy about their being disposed to be friendly."
He and Joshua went about their pursuits as usual; but to keep up the
fiction concerning Minnie with the natives who were watching them,
they would not allow her to work, and treated her with such marks of
deference as could not fail to impress the savages. During the day,
Rough-and-Ready offered food to the savages, who accepted it. To show
their gratitude, two of them went away into the forest, and returned
with a quantity of honey in a reed basket, which they placed at
Minnie's feet, and which she partook of to their evident satisfaction.
"There isn't the slightest mistake," said Rough-and-Ready merrily,
"that the devil isn't half so black as he is painted."
They were left apparently undisturbed for two days, when the natives
returned, with different descriptions of food--sweet roots many of
them, pleasant and good to eat. "They have some plan in their heads,"
said Rough-and-Ready. He was right. Early the next morning the natives
gave them to understand that they were going farther inland, and that
the white people were to accompany them. "Now we shall see something,"
observed Rough-and-Ready as they plunged into the forest. They walked
for three days before they came to the native camp. They made short
stages to accommodate Minnie. During this time, Minnie kept close to
Joshua, as if to protect him; but Rough-and-Ready mixed freely with
the natives, and made some snares for game, which he gave to them, and
with which they were much pleased. When they were within a few miles
of the camp a number of the tribe, chiefly women and children, came
out to meet them. Soon they arrived at the camp, and were surprised at
its picturesqueness. It consisted of about a dozen roomy huts, roofed
and thatched with bark and reeds. At a short distance from the huts
was a large pool, the vegetation around which was singularly
beautiful. Among the strange trees which attracted the notice of the
castaways, the umbrella-tree, with its dark loaves and crimson
flowers, seemed to them the most remarkable. There were also a large
number of great fig-trees, and magnificent palms with feathery leaves.
The air was sweet with the perfume of lily and jasmine and the
golden-flowered thorn. There was one hut which appeared but newly
built; it was prettier than the others, and its sides were decorated
with wild flowers and flowering vines. Towards this the natives led
Minnie, upon whom the women and children looked in awe and wonder.
She, clasping Joshua's hand, entered this hut, and sank upon the bed
of dry leaves, wondering what was next to come. She begged Joshua to
stop with her, for she was frightened of being left alone. So, after
partaking of the food which the natives brought to them, he lay down
near the mouth of the hut, and she at the farther end on her bed of
leaves. Joshua could see the glories of the sunset from where he lay;
and he saw the fire die out of the sky, and saw the stars come out.
But he was tired with his day's walk, and sleep overpowered him,
although he tried to keep awake. Early in the morning they rose, and
walked towards the banks of the pool,--
"To where the weed of green and red
Its floating carpet gayly spread,
Whereon the emerald frog reclined,
Fanned by the fragrance of the wind;
And all was darkened by the shade
The water-weeping branches made--
Save where a paler, tenderer green
Made bright the beauty of the scene.
The birds flashed down, to drink or lave,
With varied note and joyous stave,
And plunging sidelong from the reeds,
That wavered mid the water-weeds.
Plashed in the stream so cool and calm,
O'erhung by many a fern-tree palm;
And bell-bird peels, whose silvery chimes
Found in the rippled water rhymes,
Throughout the perfumed thicket rang,
Whence the tall-headed bulrush sprang."