Columbus takes a Fancy to Charlie--The Secret of the Limestone
Cliff--A Feast of Cannibals--A White Man with the Blacks--Initiation
of Recruits--Charlie makes a Proposition.
By the language of signs they were given to understand that the rocks
through which they had found their way extended in every direction.
Another low elevation a short distance away resembling a limestone
cliff was noticed, but about this their guide, who had now recovered
his composure, could, or apparently would, not afford them any
information. After a more lengthened examination of the strange
surroundings they returned to their camp in the open space, which
they found deserted by the natives. Columbus, however, showed no
signs of leaving them, and the whites, with due regard to strategic
purposes, pitched their tent and made themselves as comfortable as
circumstances allowed.
"The thing that puzzles me," said Brown, after all arrangements had
been completed, "is--What do these natives live on? Columbus, whom
we have feasted on strange dainties, shows no desire of leaving us;
but the others are all away, evidently in search of grub. There are
no gins visible; perhaps they are away hunting, but I doubt it, for
within a hundred of miles of here there isn't a feed for a bandicoot."
"I don't understand it either," returned Morton, "but we'll stop and
see it out, anyway. Charlie, our friend Columbus has taken quite a
fancy to you; he can't keep his eyes off you."
Charlie looked very uncomfortable at the chaff, and muttered
something about a "nigger's cheek"; but it was quite evident that the
native had transferred all his admiration from Brown to Charlie.
Whilst still talking and discussing the situation a sound like a
distant uproar of voices became apparent, and Columbus commenced to
evince signs of uneasiness. The sound came from the direction of the
limestone cliffs, and grew louder and more distinct as they listened.
All the party naturally rose to their feet, although the native made
energetic signs to them to keep quiet. After a short time the
shouting became stationary, and it was evidently not intended as an
attack upon them, or such loud warning would not have been given.
"Shall we go and see what's up?" said Morton.
"We'll fix the direction, anyway," returned Brown, and they proceeded
to clamber up one of the high boulders by which they were surrounded,
although Columbus evidently protested against the proceeding.
From the top of the boulder they could make out the summit of the
limestone cliffs, and ascertained that the uproar certainly came from
there, and, moreover, that the shrill cries of gins mingled with the
many voices. It was well on towards sundown, and after a short
conference Brown and Morton determined to defer further explorations
until the next day, so they returned to their camp.
Columbus, who seemed much relieved by the proceeding, now made signs
for Charlie to accompany him in the direction they had been just
looking. At the same time he made it plainly apparent that Charlie
was to come alone.
"I'll go, Frank," he said to Morton. "Let me go and have all the
honour and glory."
Morton and Brown both replied in the negative, and Brown intimated to
Columbus that to-morrow Charlie should go, but now it was nearly
night and he wanted a sleep. This seemed to satisfy the blackfellow,
who evidently wanted to get away himself, and presently, as soon as
he thought the attention of the party was not directed towards him,
he disappeared as mysteriously as he had arrived.
"I have not got to the bottom of this little affair yet," said
Morton; "but I think we shall to-night. What do you say to paying a
visit to these cliffs as soon as it is pitch dark--I have the
bearing?"
"The very thing I was going to suggest. Charlie, it strikes me that
our new friend wants to make long pig of you."
"What's that?" asked Charlie.
"Well, a favourite dish amongst some natives who have an acquired
taste for human flesh."
"Do you think he's a cannibal?" said the boy, rather aghast.
"I should be sorry to slander a stranger, but it certainly looks
something like it."
As soon as it was quite dark the party set out on their way to the
cliffs, which they judged to be about a mile distant; it was a
difficult matter shaping a course by the stars amongst the gloom cast
by the surrounding boulders, but an occasional murmur of sound helped
them on, and after scrambling and twisting about they found
themselves near the low cliffs. Here Billy was told to strip and
reconnoitre, and his black figure was lost amongst the rocks almost
before he seemed to have made a step. He was absent nearly half an
hour; then a subdued whistle announced his return, and in a low voice
he communicated to Morton the result of his investigations.
About four or five hundred yards from where they were waiting there
was a cave in the cliff, and the blacks it appears were in there.
Billy had gone close to the entrance, but could see only a light in
the distance, for, according to him, "hole bin go long way".
Under Billy's guidance they soon reached the cave entrance, and found
it to be a kind of tunnel evidently leading to a large cave, for a
red glare of firelight came round an angle, and the sound of many
chattering voices was audible.
"Shall we go on?" said Morton in a whisper.
"No, wait a minute," replied Brown; "it strikes me there's another
entrance to this place; they must have a lot of fire going, but yet
the place is not full of smoke. I can smell the fire, but that's
all. I think there must be an opening in the top; let's send Billy
up to see."
The face of the cliff was easily climbed, being mostly detached rocks
that had fallen down, and very soon Billy came back and reported that
"fire come up alonga top".
One after the other the adventurers ascended, and found themselves on
a rocky plateau full of fissures and holes, through some of which a
bright light was streaming. Approaching this portion carefully on
their hands and knees, they soon found a fissure through which they
could gaze with safety on one of the strangest scenes ever witnessed
in Australia.
The cavern below them was seemingly of some size, and was well
lighted by a number of fires, the smoke from which somewhat annoyed
the unseen spectators. A far larger number of blacks were assembled
than had been visible before, and many of them were armed and
painted, being also marked with the red smear and white triangle.
One large group was composed of some twenty or thirty young men and
women; they were huddled together, apparently much frightened, and
had no marks whatever upon their bodies.
Columbus was soon recognized squatting at one of the fires with some
of the other old men, and, like all but the group of boys and girls,
busily engaged in eating. Morton felt his arm clutched suddenly and
tightly, and Brown hoarsely whispered in his ear:
"It is meat they are eating; but what meat?"
Morton was struck with horror as he listened, and the truth flashed
across his mind. It was a feast of cannibals they were overlooking.
The armed natives had just returned from a foray, and the trembling
group in the corner were prisoners destined to death.
An awful feeling of horror came over the whole party as they realized
their situation and possible fate. In a wilderness of savage rocks,
surrounded by an expanse of desert, almost in the hands of some fifty
or sixty fierce cannibals--no wonder the first impulse of each was to
slip quietly back the way he had come under cover of the night, and
leave the natives to their former obscurity.
Their natural audacity, however, soon returned. At present they were
masters of the situation; with their breech-loaders they could shoot
down a score of the natives, helpless in the cavern below, if so
inclined. But, with all their horror of the scene, affairs did not
seem to justify armed intervention just then.
Contenting themselves with being spectators only, they watched the
doings in the cave, at times having to stifle a cough brought on by a
puff of smoke from the burning wood fires. For a time the repast
below went on with the usual accompaniments of a blacks' camp, but as
it came to an end it was evident that some extraordinary occurrence
was going to take place. Gradually the old men mustered together
around Columbus, and the other blacks proceeded to combine all the
fires into one large one near the wall of the cavern. The added
blaze gave to view a huge figure on the rock; it was the semblance of
a human form, but the head, instead of being represented round, was
grotesquely shaped liked a triangle. At the foot of the painting was
a rock, and while the rank and file of the natives grouped themselves
in a circle around the fire, Columbus and some others retired into
the darkness out of sight of the watchers. The chant of a
_corroboree_ now commenced, and the blacks slowly circled round the
fire for a short time, suddenly ceasing and breaking into a half
ring, with the open part towards the grim figure painted on the wall.
Then Columbus and the others appeared, supporting between them a
striking and venerable figure--an old, old man, with snow-white hair
and beard, bent so double that, as he hobbled along supporting
himself on two short sticks, he appeared like some strange animal
walking on four legs. This decrepit being was carefully helped and
guided to the stone beneath the figure, and seated thereon; then the
others squatted on the ground, the blacks in the half ring remaining
quietly standing.
The old man seated on the block was now full in view of the whites
above, and the brilliant rays of the fire fell directly on him.
Brown and Morton turned to each other with the same smothered
exclamations on their lips:
"By Jove, it's a white man!"
Almost as dark as the savages around, painted like them with a
hideous red smear on the forehead and a white triangle on the breast,
the experienced whites yet felt sure that before them they saw one of
their own race. Apparently the venerable being was either blind or
nearly so, and he kept turning his face restlessly from side to side.
From the half circle of blacks then arose a shout or chant that
sounded like the repetition of "Mur! Fee! Mur! Fee!"
"Hullo! we're amongst countrymen," whispered Brown; "that sounds
awfully like Murphy."
A terrible noise now commenced like a hundred mad gongs let loose.
Four blacks came forward, beating furiously with clubs on what
appeared to be sheets of metal. At the sound the old man on the rock
smiled and leant forward, and, stretching forth his trembling hands,
appeared to say something.
At this Columbus arose, and, followed by the gong-beaters, went over
to the throng of trembling captives. After a short inspection he
selected a young gin and pulled her along by the hand towards the old
man, followed still by the gong-beaters. The poor wretch seemed
stupefied with fear, and when in front of the stone she sank down,
trembling visibly. Columbus drew back, and the gong-beaters, dancing
madly round, made a still more deafening din. Suddenly one of them,
instead of striking his gong, dealt the unfortunate creature a
terrible blow on the head, the other gong-beaters followed his
example, and in an instant the wretched gin lay dead on the ground.
The effect of this scene on the whites above was maddening. Charlie
had his gun to his shoulder, but Morton stopped him in time. The gin
was killed before interference was possible.
"Come away," said Brown; "let's have a confab. I'm sick of watching
those brutes."
They scrambled away a short distance, and after a pause Brown spoke.
"We've got our work cut out, there's no doubt about that. We must
find out all about that white man if possible, and we must release
those poor devils and give these cannibals a lesson."
"In justice to our friend Columbus," said Morton, "let me remark that
'these cannibals' are only following up what they have been taught;
they have no horror of the thing like we have. At the same time, the
man who lifts his hand--or nulla nulla--against a woman is unworthy
the name of a British sailor, &c. &c."
"Are you convinced that that is a white man?" said Charlie.
"Yes," replied Brown; "but who he is is another question. He appears
to be blind, deaf, and imbecile. I suppose we must fall back upon
Leichhardt."
"He's been a big man when younger, and erect," said Morton; "far
bigger than Leichhardt was. However, we'll suppose it to be one of
his party--he looks old enough."
Brown gave vent to a low whistle.
"By jingo, supposing that was 'Murphy' they were shouting. I believe
there was a man of that name in the lost party."
"We shall find out, I hope, soon. Meantime, what next?"
"I know," said Charlie; "let's go back to camp. You promised
Columbus I should go with him to morrow. Well, I'll go and find out
all about it."
Morton put his hand on Charlie's shoulder.
"It's a real plucky bid, my boy, after what we've just seen; but do
you think I could let you go? Why, you'd be cooked and eaten in no
time."
"Hold on!" said Brown; "I'm full of ideas just now; let me think this
one out; there's something in what Charlie says."
"Now, oracle, as soon as you're ready," returned Morton.
"Well, I may be right or wrong, but my notion is that Columbus does
not want to eat Charlie. Why, they've got enough rations for a
month. I think that they keep this old man as a sort of Fetich, and
that Columbus and a few of the knowing old fellows see that he must
soon die. Now they want Charlie to take his place."
Brown paused triumphantly.
"I verily believe you've hit it," said Morton. "You ought always to
live here, considering the amount of intellect you are developing."
At this moment a renewed din once more pealed up from the cave, and
the party crawled back to find out the cause. The gong-beaters,
Columbus, and his privy councillors were parading the captives, and
the spectators shuddered as they looked down upon hideous remains of
the late feast scattered about the sandy floor of the cavern. This
time a fine-looking young man was selected and marched up to the
venerable figure on the stone. The gong-beaters fell back, and
Columbus and his companions proceeded to smear the youth's forehead
with red pigment, and marked the cabalistic white triangle on his
breast. He was then led away to a dark corner out of sight of the
watchers.
Brown muttered a deep oath.
"That's what has been puzzling me," he growled to Morton, "how they
kept their numbers up; of course they recruit from the best-looking
prisoners."
"See! they are going to select another," whispered his friend. "Bet
you two figs of tobacco they choose that tall fellow with his hair
tied in a knot."
"Done! I'll back the nuggety fellow alongside him."
Brown lost, the tall fellow being marched out to receive the marks of
the cannibalistic brotherhood.
Columbus and the others now assisted the old man to hobble away, and
the blacks squatted down by the fire and relit fresh ones about the
ground.
"Get back to camp," said Morton; "the circus is over for to-night."
Scrambling down the cliff, and using every precaution, the party soon
regained their camp, which they found as deserted as they left it.