Upon arrival at the beach the two adventurers were met by a
contingent of frightful-looking savages bearing long spears. As
the procession formed around the two guests of honour and plunged
into the bush, bound for the king's wari, two island maidens
marched behind the two sea-dogs, waving huge palm-leaf fans, the
better to make passage a cool and comfortable one.
"By the gods of war, Gib, my _dear_ boy," said the delighted
Captain Scraggs, "but this is class, eh, Gib?"
"Every time," responded the commodore. "If that chuckle-headed
McGuffey only had the sense to come along he might be enjoyin'
himself, too. You must be dignified, Scraggsy, old salamander.
Remember that you're bigger an' better'n any king, because you're
an American citizen. Be dignified, by all means. These people are
sensitive and peculiar, and that's why we haven't taken any
weapons with us. If they thought we doubted their hospitality
they'd have the court bouncer heave us out of town before you
could say Jack Robinson."
"I'd love to see them giving the bounce to McGuffey," said
Captain Scraggs musingly. Mr. Gibney had a swift mental picture
of such a proceeding and chuckled happily. Had he been permitted
a glance at McGuffey at that moment he might have observed that
worthy sweltering in the heat of the forward hold of the _Maggie
II_, for he was busy getting his guns on deck. From which it will
readily be deduced that B. McGuffey, Esquire, was following the
advice of his paternal ancestor and getting an anchor out to
windward.
One might go on at great length and describe the triumphal entry
of Commodore Gibney and Captain Scraggs into the capitol of
Kandavu; of how the king, an undersized, shrivelled old savage,
stuck his bushy head out the window of his bungalow when he saw
the procession coming; of how a minute later he advanced into the
space in the centre of his wari, where in the olden days the
populace was wont to gather for its cannibal orgies; how he
greeted his distinguished visitors with the most prodigious
rubbing of noses seen in those parts for many a day; of the feast
that followed; of the fowls and pigs that garnished the festive
board, not omitting the keg of Three Star thoughtfully provided
by Mr. Gibney.
Tabu-Tabu acted as interpreter and everything went swimmingly
until Tabu-Tabu, his hospitality doubtless strengthened by
frequent libations of the Elixir of Life, begged Mr. Gibney to
invite the remainder of his crew ashore for the feast. Mr.
Gibney, himself rather illuminated by this time, thought it might
not be a bad idea.
"It's a rotten shame, Scraggsy," he said, "to think of that fool
McGuffey not bein' here to enjoy himself. I'm goin' to send a
note out to him by one of Tabu-Tabu's boys, askin' him once more
to come ashore, or to let the first mate and one or two of the
seamen come if Mac still refuses to be civil."
"Good idea, Gib," said Captain Scraggs, his mouth full of roast
chicken and yams. So Mr. Gibney tore a leaf out of his pocket
memorandum book, scrawled a note to McGuffey, and handed it to
Tabu-Tabu, who at once dispatched a messenger with it to the
_Maggie II_.
Within half an hour the messenger returned. He was wildly excited
and poured a torrent of native gibberish into the attentive ears
of Tabu-Tabu and the king. He pointed several times to the point
of his jaw, rubbed the small of his back, and once he touched his
nose; whereupon Mr. Gibney was aware that the said organ had a
slight list to port, and he so informed Captain Scraggs. Neither
of the gentlemen had the slightest trouble in arriving at the
correct solution of the mystery. The royal messenger had been
incontinently kicked overboard by B. McGuffey, Esquire.
Tabu-Tabu's wild eyes glittered and grew wilder and wilder as the
messenger reported the indignity thus heaped upon him. The king
scowled at Captain Scraggs, and Mr. Gibney was suddenly aware
that goose-flesh was breaking out on the backs of his sturdy
legs. He had a haunting sensation that not only had he crawled
into a hole, but he had pulled the entire aperture in after him.
For the first time he began to fear that he had been too
precipitate, and with the thought it occurred to the gallant
commodore that he would be much safer back on the decks of the
_Maggie II_. Always crafty and imaginative, however, Mr. Gibney
came quickly to the front with an excuse for getting back to the
ship. He stepped quickly toward the little group around the
outraged royal ambassador and inquired the cause of the
disturbance. Quivering with rage, Tabu-Tabu informed him of what
had occurred.
Mr. Gibney's rage, of course, knew no bounds. Nevertheless, he
did not have to simulate his rage, for he was truly furious. When
he could control his emotions, he requested Tabu-Tabu to inform
the king that he, Gibney, accompanied by Captain Scraggs, would
forthwith repair to the schooner and then and there flay the
offending McGuffey within an inch of his life. Suiting the action
to the word, Mr. Gibney called to Captain Scraggs to follow him,
and started for the beach.
As Captain Scraggs arose, a trifle unsteadily, from his seat, a
black hand reached around him from the rear and closed over his
mouth. Now, Captain Scraggs was well versed in the rough-and-tumble
tactics of the San Francisco waterfront; hence, when he felt a long
pair of arms crossing over his neck from the rear, he merely stooped
and whirled his opponent over his head. In that instant his mouth
was free, and clear above the shouting and the tumult rose his
frenzied shriek for help. Mr. Gibney whirled with the speed and
agility of a panther just in time to dodge a blow from a war club.
His fist collided with the jaw of Tabu-Tabu, and down went that
savage as if pole-axed.
[Illustration: "_Captain Scraggs ... broke from the circle of
savages ... and fled for the beach_"]
Pandemonium broke loose at once. Captain Scraggs, after his
single shriek for help, broke from the circle of savages and fled
like a frightened rabbit for the beach. One of the natives hurled
a rock at him. The missile took Scraggs in the back of the head,
and he instantly curled up in a heap.
"Scraggsy's dead," thought the horrified Gibney, and sprang at
the king. In that moment it came to Mr. Gibney to sell out
dearly, and if he could dispose of the king, he felt that
Scraggs's death would be avenged. In an instant the commodore's
great arms had closed around the king, and with the helpless
monarch in his grizzly bear grip Mr. Gibney backed up against the
nearest bungalow. A fringe of spears threatened him in front, but
for the moment he was safe behind, and the king's body protected
him. Whenever one of the savages made a jab at Mr. Gibney, Mr.
Gibney gave the king a boa-constrictor squeeze, and the monarch
howled.
"I'll squeeze him to death," panted Mr. Gibney to Tabu-Tabu when
that individual had managed to pick himself up. "Let me go, or
I'll kill your king."
The answer was an earthenware pot which crashed down on Mr.
Gibney's head from a window in the bungalow behind him. He sagged
forward and fell on his face with the gasping king in his arms.