When the early birds are singing, and the early mists are scattering,
and the early sun is rising to gladden, as with the smile of God, all
things with life in earth and sea and sky--then it is that early-rising
man goes forth to reap the blessings which his lazy fellow-man fails to
appreciate or enjoy.
Among the early risers that morning was our friend Moses. Gifted with
an inquiring mind, the negro had proceeded to gratify his propensities
by making inquiries of a general nature, and thus had acquired, among
other things, the particular information that the river on the banks of
which the village stood was full of fish. Now, Moses was an ardent
angler.
"I lub fishing," he said one day to Nigel when in a confidential mood;
"I can't tell you how much I lub it. Seems to me dat der's nuffin' like
it for proggin' a man!"
When Nigel demanded an explanation of what proggin' meant, Moses said he
wasn't quite sure. He could "understand t'ings easy enough though he
couldn't allers 'splain 'em." On the whole he thought that prog had a
compound meaning--it was a combination of poke and pull "wid a flavour
ob ticklin' about it," and was rather pleasant.
"You see," he continued, "when a leetle fish plays wid your hook, it
progs your intellec' an' tickles up your fancy a leetle. When he grabs
you, dat progs your hopes a good deal. When a big fish do de same, dat
progs you deeper. An' when a real walloper almost pulls you into de
ribber, dat progs your heart up into your t'roat, where it stick till
you land him."
With surroundings and capacities such as we have attempted to describe,
it is no wonder that Moses sat down on the river-bank and enjoyed
himself, in company with a little Malay boy, who lent him his bamboo rod
and volunteered to show him the pools.
But there were no particular pools in that river. It was a succession
of pools, and fish swarmed in all of them. There were at least fifteen
different species which nothing short of an ichthyologist could
enumerate correctly. The line used by Moses was a single fibre of bark
almost as strong as gut; the hook was a white tinned weapon like a small
anchor, supplied by traders, and meant originally for service in the
deep sea. The bait was nothing in particular, but, as the fish were not
particular, that was of no consequence. The reader will not be
surprised, then, when we state that in an hour or so Moses had had his
heart progged considerably and had filled a large bag with superb fish,
with which he returned, perspiring, beaming, and triumphant to
breakfast.
After breakfast the whole party went forth for what Verkimier styled
"zee business of zee day," armed with guns, spears, botanical boxes,
bags, wallets, and butterfly-nets.
In the immediate neighbourhood of the village large clearings in the
forest were planted as coffee gardens, each separated from the other for
the purpose of isolation, for it seems that coffee, like the potato, is
subject to disease. Being covered with scarlet flowers these gardens
had a fine effect on the landscape when seen from the heights behind the
village. Passing through the coffee grounds the party was soon in the
tangled thickets of underwood through which many narrow paths had been
cut.
We do not intend to drag our readers through bog and brake during the
whole of this day's expedition; suffice it to say that the collection of
specimens made, of all kinds, far surpassed the professor's most
sanguine expectations, and, as for the others, those who could more or
less intelligently sympathise did so, while those who could not were
content with the reflected joy of the man of science.
At luncheon--which they partook of on the river-bank, under a
magnificently umbrageous tree--plans for the afternoon were fixed.
"We have kept together long enough, I think," said Van der Kemp. "Those
of us who have guns must shoot something to contribute to the national
feast on our return."
"Vell, let us divide," assented the amiable naturalist. Indeed he was
so happy that he would have assented to anything--except giving up the
hunt. "Von party can go von vay, anoder can go anoder vay. I vill
continue mine business. Zee place is more of a paradise zan zee last.
Ve must remain two or tree veeks."
The hermit glanced at Nigel.
"I fear it is impossible for me to do so," said the latter. "I am
pledged to return to Batavia within a specified time, and from the
nature of the country I perceive it will take all the time at my
disposal to reach that place so as to redeem my pledge."
"Ha! Zat is a peety. Vell, nevair mind. Let us enchoy to-day. Com',
ve must not vaste more of it in zee mere gratification of our animal
natures."
Acting on this broad hint they all rose and scattered in different
groups--the professor going off ahead of his party in his eager haste,
armed only with a butterfly-net.
Now, as the party of natives,--including Baso, who carried the
professor's biggest box, and Grogo, who bore his gun,--did not overtake
their leader, they concluded that he must have joined one of the other
parties, and, as it was impossible to ascertain which of them, they
calmly went hunting on their own account! Thus it came to pass that the
man of science was soon lost in the depths of that primeval forest! But
little cared the enthusiast for that--or, rather, little did he realise
it. With perspiration streaming from every pore--except where the pores
were stopped by mud--he dashed after "bootterflies" with the wisdom of
Solomon and the eagerness of a school-boy, and not until the shades of
evening began to descend did his true position flash upon him. Then,
with all the vigour of a powerful intellect and an enlightened mind, he
took it in at a glance--and came to a sudden halt.
"Vat _shall_ I do?" he asked.
Not even an echo answered, and the animal kingdom was indifferent.
"Lat me see. I have been vandering avay all dis time. Now, I have
not'ing to do but right-about-face and vander back."
Could reasoning be clearer or more conclusive? He acted on it at once,
but, after wandering back a long time, he did not arrive at any place or
object that he had recognised on the outward journey.
Meanwhile, as had been appointed, the rest of the party met a short time
before dark at the rendezvous where they had lunched.
"Where is the professor, Baso?" asked Van der Kemp as he came up.
Baso did not know, and looked at Grogo, who also professed ignorance,
but both said they thought the professor had gone with Nigel.
"I thought he was with _you_," said the latter, looking anxiously at the
hermit.
"He's hoed an' lost his-self!" cried Moses with a look of concern.
Van der Kemp was a man of action. "Not a moment to lose," he said, and
organised the band into several smaller parties, each led by a native
familiar with the jungle.
"Let this be our meeting-place," he said, as they were on the point of
starting off together; "and let those of us who have fire-arms discharge
them occasionally."
Meanwhile, the professor was walking at full speed in what he supposed
to be--and in truth was--"back."
He was not alone, however. In the jungle close beside him a tiger
prowled along with the stealthy, lithe, sneaking activity of a cat. By
that time it was not absolutely dark, but the forest had assumed a very
sombre appearance. Suddenly the tiger made a tremendous bound on to the
track right in front of the man. Whether it had miscalculated the
position of its intended victim or not we cannot say, but it crouched
for another spring. The professor, almost instinctively, crouched also,
and, being a brave man, stared the animal straight in the face without
winking! and so the two crouched there, absolutely motionless and with a
fixed glare, such as we have often seen in a couple of tom-cats who were
mutually afraid to attack each other.
What the tiger thought at that critical and crucial moment we cannot
tell, but the professor's thoughts were swift, varied, tremendous--
almost sublime, and once or twice even ridiculous!
"Vat shall I do? Deaf stares me in zee face! No veapons! only a net,
ant he is _not_ a bootterfly! Science, adieu! Home of my chilthood,
farevell! My moder--Hah! zee fusees!"
Such were a few of the thoughts that burned but found no utterance. The
last thought however led to action. Verkimier, foolish man! was a
smoker. He carried fusees. Slowly, with no more apparent motion than
the hour-hand on the face of a watch, he let his hand glide into his
coat-pocket and took out the box of fusees. The tiger seemed uneasy,
but the bold man never for one instant ceased to glare, and no disturbed
expression or hasty movement gave the tiger the slightest excuse for a
spring. Bringing the box up by painfully slow degrees in front of his
nose the man opened it, took out a fusee, struck it, and revealed the
blue binoculars!
The effect on the tiger was instantaneous and astounding. With a
demi-volt or backward somersault it hurled itself into the jungle whence
it had come with a terrific roar of alarm, and its tail--undoubtedly
though not evidently--between its legs!
Heaving a deep, long-drawn sigh, the professor stood up and wiped his
forehead. Then he listened intently.
"A shote, if mine ears deceive me not!" he said, and listened again.
He was right. Another shot, much nearer, was heard, and he replied with
a shout to which joy as much as strength of lung gave fervour. Hurrying
along the track--not without occasional side-glances at the jungle--the
hero was soon again in the midst of his friends; and it was not until
his eyes refused to remain open any longer that he ceased to entertain
an admiring circle that night with the details of his face-to-face
meeting with a tiger.
But Verkimier's anticipations in regard to that paradise were not to be
realised. The evil passions of a wicked man, with whom he had
personally nothing whatever to do, interfered with his plans. In the
middle of the night a native Malay youth named Babu arrived at the
village and demanded an interview with the chief. That worthy, after
the interview, conducted the youth to the hut where his visitors lived,
and, rousing Van der Kemp without disturbing the others, bade him listen
to what the young man had to say. An expression of great anxiety
overspread the hermit's usually placid countenance while Babu was
speaking.
"It is fate!" he murmured, as if communing with himself--then, after a
pause--"no, there is no such thing as fate. It is, it must be, the will
of God. Go, young man, mention this to no one. I thank you for the
kindness which made you take so long a journey for my sake."
"It is not kindness, it is love that makes me serve you," returned the
lad earnestly. "Every one loves you, Van der Kemp, because that curse
of mankind, _revenge_, has no place in your breast."
"Strange! how little man does know or guess the secret thoughts of his
fellow!" said the hermit with one of his pitiful smiles. "_Revenge_ no
place in me!--but I thank you, boy, for the kind thought as well as the
effort to save me. My life is not worth much to any one. It will not
matter, I think, if my enemy should succeed. Go now, Babu, and God be
with you!"
"He will surely succeed if you do not leave this place at once,"
rejoined the youth, in a tone of decision. "Baderoon is furious at all
times. He is worse than ever just now, because you have thwarted his
plans--so it is said--very often. If he knew that _I_ am now thwarting
them also, he would hunt me to death. I will not leave you till you are
safe beyond his reach."
The hermit looked at the lad with kindly surprise.
"How comes it," he said, "that you are so much interested in me? I
remember seeing you two years ago, but have no recollection of having
done you any service."
"Do you not remember that my mother was ill when you spent a night in
our hut, and my little sister was dying? You nursed her, and tried your
best to save her, and when you could not save her, and she died, you
wept as if the child had been your own. I do not forget that, Van der
Kemp. Sympathy is of more value than service."
"Strangely mistaken again!" murmured the hermit. "Who can know the
workings of the human mind! Self was mixed with my feelings--
profoundly--yet my sympathy with you and your mother was sincere."
"We never doubted that," returned Babu with a touch of surprise in his
tone.
"Well now, what do you propose to do, as you refuse to leave me?" asked
the hermit with some curiosity.
"I will go on with you to the next village. It is a large one. The
chief man there is my uncle, who will aid me, I know, in any way I wish.
I will tell him what I know and have heard of the pirate's intention,
of which I have proof. He will order Baderoon to be arrested on
suspicion when he arrives. Then we will detain him till you are beyond
his reach. That is not unjust."
"True--and I am glad to know by your last words that you are sensitive
about the justice of what you propose to do. Indifference to pure and
simple justice is the great curse of mankind. It is not indeed the
root, but it is the fruit of our sins. The suspicion that detains
Baderoon is more than justified, for I could bring many witnesses to
prove that he has vowed to take my life, and I _know_ him to be a
murderer."
At breakfast-time Van der Kemp announced to his friends his intention of
quitting the village at once, and gave an account of his interview with
the Malay lad during the night. This, of course, reconciled them to
immediate departure,--though, in truth, the professor was the only one
who required to be reconciled.
"It is _very_ misfortunate," he remarked with a sigh, which had
difficulty in escaping through a huge mass of fish and rice. "You see
zee vonderful variety of ornizological specimens I could find here, ant
zee herbareum, not to mention zee magnificent _Amblypodia eumolpus_ ant
ozer bootterflies--ach!--a leetle mor' feesh if you please. Zanks. My
frond, it is a great sacrifice, but I vill go avay viz you, for I could
not joostify myself if I forzook you, ant I cannot ask you to remain
vile your life is in dancher."
"I appreciate your sentiments and sacrifice thoroughly," said the
hermit.
"So does I," said Moses, helping himself to coffee; "but ob course if I
didn't it would be all de same. Pass de venison, Massa Nadgel, an'
don't look as if you was goin' to gib in a'ready. It spoils my
appetite."
"You will have opportunities," continued Van der Kemp, addressing the
professor, "to gather a good many specimens as we go along. Besides, if
you will consent to honour my cave in Krakatoa with a visit, I promise
you a hearty welcome and an interesting field of research. You have no
idea what a variety of species in all the branches of natural history my
little island contains."
Hereupon the hermit proceeded to enter into details of the flora, fauna,
and geology of his island-home, and to expatiate in such glowing
language on its arboreal and herbal wealth and beauty, that the
professor became quite reconciled to immediate departure.
"But how," he asked, "am I to get zere ven ve reach zee sea-coast? for
your canoe holds only t'ree, as you have told me."
"There are plenty of boats to be had. Besides, I can send over my own
boat for you to the mainland. The distance is not great."
"Goot. Zat vill do. I am happay now."
"So," remarked Nigel as he went off with Moses to pack up, "his
`paradise regained' is rather speedily to be changed into paradise
forsaken! `Off wi' the old love and on wi' the new.' `The expulsive
power of a new affection!'"
"Das true, Massa Nadgel," observed Moses, who entertained profound
admiration for anything that sounded like proverbial philosophy. "De
purfesser am an affectionit creeter. 'Pears to me dat he lubs de whole
creation. He kills an' tenderly stuffs 'most eberyt'ing he kin lay
hands on. If he could only lay hold ob Baderoon an' stuff an' stick him
in a moozeum, he'd do good service to my massa an' also to de whole ob
mankind."