Mrs. Wright and Julien were still where Jack had left them. Both had
been too frightened to move, and now the sight of him, as he hurried
towards them with Estelle's insensible form in his arms, alarmed them.
'Not dead!' cried Mrs. Wright, with a catch in her throat.
'No, thank Heaven! M. Julien, will you run for the doctor, and send him
down to the Hospice at once? Mother, I will get on ahead, and perhaps M.
Julien will come with you as soon as he has spoken to the doctor.'
Julien agreed gladly. He could not have borne to leave them at such a
time, and he felt some relief that he was able to do something to help.
'The doctor is in one of the shows, but I will soon find him,' he said.
'If you will walk on, Madame, I will catch you up in no time.'
Jack was already almost out of sight, watched by a curious crowd. The
incident had made some stir, and various versions of it were circulated
among the throng. To his dismay, Thomas found that his action might have
very serious consequences. His word would go for nothing against Jack's.
The sailor was too well known, and too highly respected, for Thomas to
hope that even a man like Fargis would say a word against him. All the
blame would naturally fall upon Thomas, and his explanations would not
be believed. Things looked blacker still when he discovered that the
police were making inquiries about him.
In dismay he crept out of sight, and remained in hiding till the caravan
began to prepare for departure. Then, after receiving his wages, he
disappeared. When Jack, in the afternoon of the following day, made
inquiries as to his whereabouts, no one could tell anything. The man had
not gone with the caravan, that was the sole piece of information Jack
was able to gather.
Meantime, Estelle's unconsciousness lasted long enough to alarm even the
doctor. He and Goody were doing all in their power, while Jack and
Julien stood close by the sofa with anxious faces, but ready to do
anything which might be possible for them. Oh, how often in that time of
suspense did Goody wish that she had heeded Jack's misgivings, and
refrained from going to the Fête des Loges! It had proved anything but a
joyous festival to them. She doubted whether they had seen the end of
the bad business. Who knew where the man might be who had seized
Estelle, or whether he might not again make efforts to carry her off?
Would the child be safe anywhere in the absence of Jack? Would she, a
weak elderly woman, be a match for such a man while left in sole charge
of the child? Could she ever see Jack go off to sea without fearing what
might happen while he was away, and beyond reach of recall? Such
thoughts tortured her mind as she leant over the little girl, and obeyed
the doctor's directions.
(_Continued on page 234._)
[Illustration: "Jack was upon him."]
[Illustration: "A terrible sight met their view."]
STORIES FROM AFRICA.
X.--THE LAST TIME.
[Illustration]
Early in the September of 1905, a short announcement appeared in the
daily papers under the heading of 'German East Africa,' 'Masasi has been
destroyed.' There had been for some time past disquieting news of
rebellion among the native tribes, and grievous reports of the murder of
white men working in the district. To ninety-nine people out of a
hundred, Masasi was only another outlandish name of an unknown station.
But the hundredth person read the meagre intelligence with a thrill of
dismay, asking himself the question, 'Does history repeat itself, or
have we gone back three and twenty years?'
Nearly thirty years ago, a party of those released slaves, of whom we
spoke in a former story,[3] were brought from Zanzibar and settled at
Masasi, some four hundred miles southward, and a hundred and twenty
miles from the German port of Lindi. The place is situated upon a high
plateau above the river Rovuma, on fertile ground, easy to cultivate,
and with grand mountain peaks towering above it. Here the little
community grew and nourished, people from the neighbouring country came
to be taught, and for six years all went well. Then came a threatening
of trouble. Far away, near the shores of Lake Nyasa, dwelt a tribe known
as the Magwangwara--Zulus, who, says the story, were once defeated in
warfare, and settled there rather than return home to meet death at the
hands of their own countrymen. Tidings of the coming of the Europeans
had reached this fierce race, to whom war was the business of life, and
they had announced their intention of measuring their strength against
the white men. They were marching eastward, and had shaken their spears
towards Masasi.
[Footnote 3: See page 243.]
Mr. Maples, one of the two Englishmen in charge of the station, started
at once, with five of his own men, to meet the invaders, and try to
persuade them to peace. On the afternoon of their second day's journey,
they discovered, to their dismay, that they had missed the enemy, for
they came upon the camping-ground of a large army, and could see their
tracks, marking the _détour_ by which they had escaped meeting the
little embassy. There was nothing for it but to return as quickly as
possible, in the hope of catching them up before they reached Masasi.
All that night they hurried along, making what speed they could in the
darkness; but when, soon after dawn, they reached the outskirts of their
own territory, some four miles from Masasi, a terrible sight met their
view--columns of smoke were rising from the place where their dwellings
had stood. Clearly the village had been attacked, their friends were
dead or captive, and nothing remained but to learn their fate, and in
all probability to share it.
Kneeling, in sight of their burning homes, the little party commended
themselves to God's keeping, and were starting forward again, when
shouts were heard close to them, and they found themselves in the midst
of an armed body of the Magwangwara. Only Mr. Maples' presence of mind,
and the perfect obedience of his followers, saved them from instant
death. At his word of command the little band laid down their guns, and,
though thrown to the ground and threatened by the assegais of their
enemies, made no attempt at resistance, while Mr. Maples, trusting to
the well-known awe of the natives for a white man, remained perfectly
calm, fixing his eyes upon the assailants, and explaining by gestures
that he and his party intended no violence. After a few moments'
consultation, the Magwangwara bade them go into Masasi, but Mr. Maples,
realising that this would probably mean death, or at any rate slavery,
for his followers, without the hope of saving their friends, decided to
strike eastward to Newala, a village some fifty miles away. The chief
there was friendly to the white men, and, if any one had escaped from
Masasi, it was to Newala that they would probably go.
So, once out of sight of the war party, they started upon a terrible
journey through the thick bush, avoiding the beaten track, and every
moment expecting a fresh attack by one of the scattered bands of the
enemy. The heat was overpowering, the party had no food with them, and,
to add to their troubles, Mr. Maples sprained his leg so badly as to
make progress after sunset impossible. By morning, however, he was able
to go forward, and there was another painful day's journey, still
without food, save for a little sour fruit and cassava root, though
water was mercifully plentiful. As they drew nearer to Newala, a
terrible question began to weigh upon them all--what would they find?
Was it possible that Matola, the friendly chief, would be there to
receive them? Was it not more than likely that the village would be
deserted, the inhabitants escaped to the bush, and neither food nor
shelter awaiting the worn-out fugitives? Haunted by these fears they lay
down for another night of hunger and uncertainty, eleven miles from
Newala, and then, on Sunday morning, pressed on once more. Their hearts
sank at finding the huts on the outskirts of the village deserted. Then
came a joyful sight, a native carrying fowls, the universal food in
Central Africa. He was hailed, and the eager question asked, 'Is Matola
here?'
'Yes,' was the ready answer, 'he waited for you. He felt sure some of
you would come, since Masasi has been destroyed.'
A good reply, this, to the accusation that the Central African tribes
are incapable of gratitude or devotion. Matola was a heathen chief, used
all his life to the sudden flights from a stronger foe which are the
custom in this land of raids; but the lives of the white men, who came
to Africa without hope or gain for love of their dark brothers, had
taught him something of a higher law than that of self-preservation. The
best he had was at the service of his exhausted guests, and, with a
tact and consideration not always found even among Europeans, he
insisted on hearing and sifting all the reports brought in by fugitives
before they reached the ears of Mr. Maples, whose sprain kept him for
some days unable to move.
After all, only seven of the Masasi people had been killed in the first
mad onslaught of the Magwangwara. The rest were saved by strict
obedience to the order to make no resistance. For twelve days the
terrible visitors remained in their camp near the village, while Mr.
Maples' colleague, Mr. Porter, exhausted all his bales of cloth, the
current coin between Europeans and Africans, in ransoming those of his
people who had been seized and carried as slaves to the camp. When at
last the war party retreated, they carried with them twenty-nine of the
Masasi people. Mr. Porter, having replenished his store of cloth, set
off after them, and actually remained a month among the Magwangwara,
bargaining for the freedom of the prisoners. Some of the poor creatures
were already dead, some had escaped, or had passed to other owners, but
Mr. Porter succeeded in ransoming the rest. He must have gone with his
life in his hand, since the Magwangwara believed the heart of a white
man to be an invaluable charm, and had announced their intention of
securing one when starting on their raid. But the quiet tact of the
Englishman conquered the savages, and Mr. Porter returned in safety with
his ransomed people, bearing the blunted spear of the Magwangwara in
token of peace.
Such is the story of the first destruction of Masasi twenty-three years
ago. Of the two Englishmen who stood so stoutly by their people through
those anxious days, one sleeps in his grave by Lake Nyasa, drowned in
the waters of which he wrote with such enthusiastic love. The other, Mr.
Porter, was one of the little group of fugitives, who, on a Sunday night
in August, 1905, turned their backs, with sore hearts, upon the
district, for the agitation was against white men only, and, without
them, the natives would be safe from attack.
CRÉBILLON AND THE RAT.
Claude De Crébillon, son of the well-known French poet of that name, and
himself a man of letters of some merit, had been sent to the prison of
St. Vincent on account of his writings. The first night he spent there
he had scarcely fallen asleep when he was roused by feeling something
warm and rough in his bed. He took the thing for a kitten, drove it
away, and went on sleeping. In the morning he was sorry to have
frightened the poor animal, for he was fond of cats, and in the solitude
any companion would have been agreeable. He sought in all corners, but
could not find anything alive. At noon, he was just beginning to eat his
frugal meal, when he perceived an animal sitting on his hind legs and
looking steadfastly at him; he thought at first that it was a very small
monkey, and rose to have a nearer view of it, for the room was none of
the lightest. He held a bit of meat in his hand, and the creature came
to meet him; but what was his surprise when he saw that he had to deal
with a remarkably large and well-fed rat! Now, rats were detested by
him; he could not even bear the sight of them. He would almost have
preferred to see a rattlesnake in his room, and he uttered a cry of
horror on making the discovery.
The visitor disappeared immediately, but in his place came the jailor,
who had been attracted by the exclamation. He laughed at the prisoner,
and told him that his predecessor in the cell had tamed the rat when it
was young, and that the two fellow-lodgers had become so intimate as to
eat continually together. 'I was so interested,' he continued, 'that
when the man obtained his liberty, I tried to win the affections of the
animal, and you shall see how far I have succeeded.' With these words he
seized something on the table and called out, 'Raton! Raton! Come here,
my little friend.' Immediately Raton's head was protruded, and as soon
as he saw his well-known benefactor, he did not hesitate for a moment to
jump upon his hand and to eat what had been offered to him. From this
moment Raton was restored to all his former rights and privileges; and
Crébillon related afterwards to his friends, that he had tried to obtain
the creature from the jailor, and that the latter's refusal had actually
cost him tears at his release from prison.
THE SOLDIER OF ANTIGONUS.
A soldier of Antigonus was once ill with a terrible disease, the pain of
which robbed him of all joy in life. He had ever been foremost in the
fray and the bravest of the brave, for he strove by reckless daring to
dull his pain, thinking that he had nothing to fear and nothing to lose.
Antigonus admired this ardour shown in his service, and at last sent for
a doctor, whose skill found means to cure the man. But as soon as he was
healed, the warrior lived at his ease, and no longer took the lead in
the battle, for he desired to live, he said, now that life was no longer
a burden, but a joy.
The noblest work is often done by the weakest hands--by those whose
courage is redoubled by pain and misfortune.
MY GARDEN.
I have a little Garden
Where many flowers are seen;
Bright lilies bend beside the walks
And daisies in the green.
There pansies grow and tulips,
And many a lovely flower;
They blossom in my Garden,
And give me joy each hour.
I have another Garden
That I must tend with care,
And fill with lovely growing things,
Lest weeds should gather there.
May sweetness, kindness, mercy,
And joy be in each part;
To grace this other Garden,
The Garden of my heart.
THE MUSIC OF THE NATIONS.
X.--THE MARIMBAS OF ZULULAND, GUATEMALA, AND COSTA RICA.
[Illustration]
The Zulus, or more correctly the Amazulus, take the front rank amongst
the native tribes of the African continent. Their code of laws, military
arrangements, and orderly settlements resemble those of civilised
nations at many points.
Their dances are a national feature, and a great company of young
warriors performing a solemn war dance is a most impressive sight. One
of their chief instruments is the 'Marimba' or 'Tyanbilo,' a form of
harmonium. The keys are bars of wood called Intyari, of graduated size.
These are suspended by strings from a light wooden frame, either resting
on the ground, or hung round the neck of the player. Between every two
keys is a wooden bar crossing the centre bar to which the keys are
attached. On each key two shells of the fruit known as the Strychnos
McKenzie, or Kaffir Orange, are placed as resonators, one large and one
small. The use of resonators is to increase and deepen the sound. The
Marimba is played with drum-sticks of rubber, and the tone is good and
powerful.
[Illustration: Zulu Marimba.]
Another form of Marimba is popular amongst the natives of Guatemala, in
Central America. Its construction is much that of a rough table, the top
being formed of twenty-eight wooden bars or keys, from each of which
hangs a hollow piece of wood, varying in size; these take the place of
the resonating shells of the Zulu Marimba. The instrument is usually
about six and a half feet long, by two and a half wide, and the keys are
struck by hammers topped with rubber. Three performers often play
together with great skill. This form of Marimba is also met with amongst
the natives of Costa Rica.
African instruments are as a rule very noisy, their chief use being to
alarm the enemy in war-times. An amusing story is told of Sir Samuel
Baker, the explorer. When quartered for a time near the native town of
Masinda, where dwelt the King of the Unyori, he was startled one
evening, when the air was perfectly still, by the deep tone of a Nogara
or native drum. This, ceasing as suddenly as it had begun, was followed
by a terrific burst of sound, thousands of human voices yelling like
maniacs and endless horns playing their loudest, besides the clashing of
everything that could be persuaded to make a noise. Calling for his
dragoman, or guide, Sir Samuel inquired what all this meant, and was
gravely informed that it was all for his benefit, that he might be
thoroughly frightened and quit the neighbourhood. The leader forthwith
sent an order to the bandmaster of his regiment to assemble his men and
make them play their very loudest, after which the clamour from the town
speedily came to an end.
[Illustration: Guatemalan Marimba.]
A tribe called the Niam Niam make a drum like a wooden horse, which is
beaten on all sides at once, and certainly fulfils the condition of
noise. Many tribes use a rattle, or 'Sanje,' which has the merit of
simplicity, being merely a gourd filled with pebbles. The negroes of the
Soudan play cymbals made of two thin plates of iron, after the plan of
saucepan-lids, with handles of leather, whilst the Ashantees have a love
for the clanging of brass pots, either banged together or struck with
sticks; and some of the Congo tribes use a rude kind of bagpipes.
It must be remembered that the natives have not only human beings and
wild beasts to scare, but believe in and dread a vast army of evil
spirits, who they think must be kept at a distance and prevented by
terrifying noises from exercising their powers.
CURIOUS GRANARIES.
[Illustration]
When the English farmer has cut his ripe corn, he gathers in the
sheaves, and piles them up into neat corn-stacks. After a time he sends
for a thrashing machine, with the help of which he is able quickly to
separate the corn from the straw. The grain is placed in sacks, and
these are put away in a dry barn, until the farmer can sell them to some
miller or maltster, who will take the grain away, and make it into
flour, horse-corn, or malt. The farmer must take care, however, that his
corn does not get wet, for if it does it will turn mouldly and spoil;
and he must also see that the rats and mice do not reach it, for if they
do he is sure to lose some of his precious harvest.
If the English farmer, who has strong-walled and well-roofed barns, must
take watchful care of his corn, the poor savage, who knows no better
dwelling than a wooden or mud hut, can scarcely take sufficient care to
save his little harvest from destruction almost as soon as it is reaped.
He has far more enemies than the English farmer. In a wild, tropical
country, rats, mice, and similar grain-eating animals are much more
numerous, ants and weevils are terribly destructive, and enemies of the
human kind frequently plunder the grain-stores. The tropical rain is
heavy and often almost incessant, and the warm nights help on the growth
of mildew, when once it has begun. In the tropical parts of Africa it is
almost impossible to keep the grain from the harvest for more than a few
months, and the natives save nothing from harvest to harvest, but eat it
all up, rather than let it be consumed by the ants or spoiled by the
rains. And thus, when the harvest fails, they are quickly reduced to
starvation.
[Illustration: A Clay Grain Storehouse.]
It is interesting to see what clever attempts many savages make to save
their little stores of corn from their enemies. The Kaffirs dig deep
holes in their cattle enclosures, and plaster them very carefully with
clay, which sets hard, and forms a good protection against insects. They
leave an opening level with the ground, and when they have filled the
hole with corn, this opening is covered over, and plastered up like the
sides, and thus the grain is secured, as if it were in a sealed jar.
[Illustration: Grain Huts.]
Some tribes of North American Indians used to store their corn, and even
their dried meat and pemmican, in similar underground holes, which the
French backwoodsmen called _caches_. The holes were shaped liked a jug
six or seven feet deep with a narrow mouth at the top, and this mouth
was sealed up when the cache was filled. The corn and meat were packed
round the side with prairie-grass, and, when the cache was properly
sealed, they were quite safe from the effects of the weather.
It is a very common practice in hot countries to raise the corn-stores
high above the ground, out of the way of mice and, to some extent,
insects. In many parts of Africa the corn of the harvests is placed in
closed baskets or wicker-work frames, and hung from the branches of
trees. In some of the hilly districts of India we may see little
grain-huts, the shape of bee-hives, which are raised upon posts. The
natives of the Madi country, near the head of the Albert Nyanza, in
Central Africa, make similar granaries of plastered wicker-work, which
are supported upon four posts and have a thatched roof. The same people
have also another kind of wicker-work granary, which looks like a huge
cigar stuck point-downwards upon the top of a post four feet high. In
reality the post is about twenty feet long, and extends through the
whole length of the cigar-shaped body. About four feet from the ground a
number of long reeds are bound upon the pole, so that they stand out
somewhat like the spokes of a wheel. The ends of these reeds are bent
upwards towards the pole, as if they were the ribs of a half-closed
umbrella turned upside down, and wicker-work is woven in and out of them
so as to form a basket. This is filled with corn, and by means of other
reeds and wands the basket is extended upwards to within a few feet of
the top of the post. When the whole of the basket thus formed is loaded
with grain, a little roof or cap of reeds is made round the top of the
pole, like the cover of an open umbrella held upright, and this roof is
brought down until it meets the basket below, to which it is joined. In
this manner the grain is enclosed in a cigar-shaped basket, which is
raised a few feet from the ground.
The Nubians make little cylindrical grain-vessels of clay, which they
seal up, and place upon the top of tall stones. Many of the tribes of
Southern Africa build up clay store-vessels of various shapes, which
they raise from the ground by means of posts. One tribe, the Golos,
fashions its clay grain-holder in the shape of a drinking-cup. This is
poised upon a central post, and kept in its place by means of wooden
props. A pointed roof, which may be lifted off like a lid, is placed
over it, in order to keep out the rain or any intruder from above.
THE SUGAR MAPLE.
The Sugar Maple belongs to the same family of trees as our common maple
and sycamore. It grows in Canada and the northern parts of the United
States. Most of the maples contain a large amount of juice, which flows
freely when the stem of the tree is cut. In the Sugar Maple this juice
is very abundant, and so sweet that the Indians and settlers obtain
large quantities of sugar from it.
In the month of March, when the sap begins to ascend in the tree, the
sugar-makers build temporary sheds in or near the woods. They first tap
the trees by boring a hole, from one to two inches deep, into the stem
of each maple. A short tube is inserted into the hole, and the sap of
the tree flows through it, and is caught in a pail or trough placed at
the foot of the tree. The amount of sap which each tree yields varies
considerably, but the average is from two to three gallons each day. It
is said that some trees have yielded the enormous amount of twenty
gallons in one day, while sometimes, on the other hand, the quantity is
not more than a pint. The trees, which grow in small clumps, and thus
obtain more light and air, are more profitable as sugar-producers than
those which grow in forests. The maple-sap continues to flow from the
tree for about six weeks.
From time to time the Indians, or settlers, collect the contents of the
various vessels placed against the trees, and empty the juice into large
kettles, which hold from fifteen to twenty gallons each. One man can
usually attend to two or three hundred trees in this way, if they are
not too far apart. The juice in the kettles is boiled over fires until
the sugar begins to form into solid crystals. Sometimes milk, or white
of eggs, is added to the juice, in order to separate the impurities,
which rise to the surface, and are skimmed off with a ladle. The whole
operation is very simple and rough, when compared with the great care
which is given to the manufacture of sugar from the sugar-cane; the
sugar obtained from the maple, though not so pure, is the same in kind
as cane-sugar. The juice from the maple must be boiled within about
twenty-four hours after it has flowed from the tree. If kept longer than
this it begins to ferment, and quickly spoils. A good maple will yield
sufficient sap to make about four pounds of sugar every year.
THE GIANT OF THE TREASURE CAVES.
(_Continued from page 287._)
The colour was coming again into Estelle's white face, and presently
there was a flutter of the eyelids. Then she opened her eyes, and gave a
bewildered glance at the friends collected round her. She closed them
for a moment, as if weary, but only to open them again and smile as she
looked up at the anxious faces.
'Come, this is disgraceful,' said the doctor; 'I did not expect to have
you on my hands again so soon.'
Estelle smiled; then, recollection returning, she glanced round with
terror in her eyes.
'Jack! Oh, where's Jack?'
He came and knelt at her side, and took her hand protectingly in his own
strong fingers.
'I'm here, Missy,' he said, in a voice that brought to her a sense of
security and peace. 'You are all right now, and quite safe.'
'You see, Jack,' continued the little girl, in a pleading tone, 'I did
have something to be afraid of when you were away. You won't be angry if
I can't bear you to go away again, will you?'
'What had you to be afraid of?' asked the doctor, his keen eyes watching
her changing face.
'I did not know then,' replied Estelle, putting her free hand on her
chest; 'but I felt _here_ that there was something I could not
understand, and I did not want Jack to go.'
'What sort of a feeling?' asked the doctor again.
'That something would happen. And you see I was right. Something _did_
happen, and it was only Jack who could have saved me from Thomas.'
'Thomas?' repeated the doctor, in the same quiet tone, while Jack and
his mother only kept silent and motionless with difficulty. Their
excitement was great, for they were on the verge of discovering who
their little foundling was, and sadness had at least as large a share of
their hearts as joy. Did it not mean that they would lose her sunny
presence with them?
'Yes,' Estelle was saying, as she gazed up in surprise at her
questioner, 'Thomas, Aunt Betty's under-gardener. He tried to---- '
Like a flash the truth had broken upon her. She remembered!
With eyes wide open, she stared in awe and amazement at the earnest
faces around her. Mrs. Wright's eyes were brimming over. Julien's were
full of sorrow and trouble. For him, it meant losing her altogether.
Jack only held his little girl's hand more closely, giving no other
sign.
'So it has come at last, Missy,' he said, softly.
'Oh, Jack!' cried Estelle, her face flushing and paling in alarming
alternations, 'I know now! I am Estelle de Bohun, and I live with my
great-aunt, Lady Coke, at the Moat House, because my father, Lord
Lynwood is abroad. Oh, Jack! Oh, Goody!'
And she burst into tears.
Long did Jack and his mother sit up that night, discussing with their
good friend the doctor what it was their duty to do. Julien had gone
home, and was keeping his father and mother up later than usual, while
he related to them the events of the evening. M. le Préfet, as head of
the police in Tout-Petit, ordered that a search should be begun at once
for Lady Coke's late gardener. It was not merely for the sake of
punishing him as he deserved, but that some information might be
gathered from him which could help to restore the little lady to her
family. Julien and his father grew quite excited at the prospect of the
search, in which the boy wished earnestly to share. It was all he could
do to help the little girl to whom he had grown so strangely attached.
Perhaps, in the bottom of his heart, he hoped he might lay claim to some
gratitude for such service as it was in his power to give in the search,
and that he might yet see his little friend again in consequence. He had
never before desired to go to England; it had always been 'perfidious
Albion' to him till he met Estelle, but now his views had changed. He
longed to see her in her own home, to feel that when she left France it
would not mean final separation. He reflected on the chance of his
desires being granted somewhat sadly as he mounted the stairs to go to
bed; the prospect seemed too remote.
Jack's visit to the house of Fargis, to make inquiries about Thomas, was
the result of the consultation he had had with the doctor. Estelle's
memory seemed to have returned, and she had been able to answer all the
questions put to her, except those regarding the locality of the Moat
House. She had driven into Matherton with Lady Coke only once or twice,
and as it had become the custom in the family to call it 'the town,'
Estelle was not sufficiently familiar with the neighbourhood to have
remembered the name. Jack knew the coast, however, and believed he could
find out all about the families living in that part. Should he go alone
first, and return for the child when he had full information? But
Estelle's horror of being left without the security of his presence made
the doctor forbid that course. Should he appeal to the British Consul at
Nantes?
'Why don't you ask Thomas?' put in Estelle, who had just come into the
room as they were talking. 'He knows, for he has been all his life at
the Moat House. His mother has a cottage on the property.'
'Listen,' said the doctor, at last; 'the child is not strong, as this
fainting fit has proved to us. The expense of a long journey is more
than we can meet all at once. So wait a little. By the middle of the
month, or a little later, these winds will have blown themselves out.
Then you can charter Fargis' smack, and cruise round the coast till you
find where this Moat House is. It will be far less costly a way of
setting to work than going to England by the regular route, with inns
and trains into the bargain when you get there, and no certainty as to
where to go.'
If Thomas could not be found, this was certainly the best course to
pursue. Nevertheless, Jack did his best to trace the ex-gardener, aided
by M. le Préfet and his police. Julien would have been one of the
keenest of the searchers, but he was wanted at the Hospice de la
Providence. Both Mrs. Wright and Jack thought it was good for Estelle to
have a companion in her wanderings on the sea-shore. Their minds were
more at rest while Julien was with her, for he was a lad of coolness and
resource, and he was alive to the risk of Thomas turning up when least
expected.
Julien was only too delighted at the trust placed in him, and meant to
fulfil it like a man. Mrs. Wright and Jack--and most of all,
Estelle--should see that their confidence in him was not misplaced. He
thought long and earnestly over what he should do if Thomas did show
himself suddenly on one of their walks. Could he defend Estelle? What
was his strength compared to that of the ex-gardener? Still, if he was
not caught in a cave, he thought defence was just possible. He decided,
however, it was safer not to wander too far from the Hospice de la
Providence.
One evening, about a week after the _fête_, Jack announced that he was
going out trawling that night. It was no longer possible to put off his
work. Mrs. Wright and Estelle looked up at him with eves full of fear;
but, remembering the scene that had taken place when last he had gone,
neither of them said a word. Estelle drooped her head, and tears would
come in spite of her efforts to keep them back. Her heart sank when Jack
appeared in his oilskins, and it was with quivering lips and flushed
face that she said good-bye. He smiled encouragingly while he gave his
mother directions about securing the outer door as soon as he was gone.
'I have made everything fast inside,' he said, 'and I do not think you
need have any fears. I shall be back as early as possible. Now,
good-bye, and keep together. Go to sleep, Missy, and be down on the
beach when the boats come in.'
'I will go with Julien up to the cliff,' said Estelle, holding Jack's
hand very tight in her efforts to keep down her terror at his going.
'All the women will be there to watch for the boats, and I will wave my
handkerchief for you.'
'No,' replied Jack, decidedly, 'I won't have you go so far from Mother
in my absence. It will be better for you both to remain here. Julien
will come and keep you company all day; but I don't expect to be away as
long as that.'
Mrs. Wright followed him to the outer door, fastened it securely, and
returning, locked and barricaded the inner one. She did not fear attack,
but she knew it would give Estelle a greater feeling of safety. Though
her eyes wandered now and again round the vast kitchen, Estelle bore up
bravely. There certainly appeared to be more dark corners than even Mrs.
Wright had ever noticed before. 'But,' murmured the cheery old woman,
determined not to be fanciful, 'what did the corners matter, however
dark they might be, if they were empty?'
(_Continued on page 298._)
[Illustration: "'Good-bye, and keep together!'"]
[Illustration: "She waited in breathless silence, a pistol ready in her
hand."]
THE GIANT OF THE TREASURE CAVES.
(_Continued from page 295._)
Jack was gone. Suddenly Mrs. Wright's heart misgave her. The bookcase!
Had Jack thought of that? Her eyes rested upon it for a second,
fascinated. She dare not let them linger there for fear Estelle should
perceive her doubts. She felt restless, uneasy. She wished she had not
reminded Jack about it, and yet she did not now venture to go and see if
he had taken any precautions.
'What do you say, dearie, to our going to bed early to-night?' she
asked, when the child's chatter about the Moat House and Begbie Hall
came to a natural pause. 'It will be more comfortable in our own room,
and you can talk to me just the same till you fall asleep.'
Estelle, who had been sitting with her head against Goody's knee, as
being a safer place than anywhere else in that great, dark kitchen,
sprang up with joy at the proposal. The bedroom was so much smaller and
nicer, and had no ugly corners.
It did not take long to fold up Mrs. Wright's knitting, and put it into
the huge bag in which it was kept for convenience, nor to chase the
balls of wool and wind them up. Mrs. Wright, meantime, lighted the
candles, her eyes on the bookcase.
Her heart suddenly stood still. The bookcase, which ran on large
casters, covered the entrance to one of the long passages in the Hospice
de la Providence. It was heavy and difficult to move, and yet--was it
possible that it _was_ moving? She paused, match in hand, and gazed with
terrified eyes. The next moment the recollection of the necessity of
keeping the child in ignorance of her danger made her brace up her
nerves, and, throwing the match away calmly, she spoke in her usual
tones.
'Are you ready now, dearie? Come along. You carry my knitting-bag, and
I'll bring the candles and put the lamp out.'
Her movements were, perhaps, a trifle quicker than usual, and her voice
might have had a little quiver in it, but Estelle was too much excited,
and too anxious to get within the shelter of the bedroom, to notice
anything amiss. She whirled up the bag, threw it over her shoulder, as
she had seen the men do with their nets, and danced off. Following her
quickly, Mrs. Wright shut and barricaded the door. More than that. With
Estelle's assistance, she drew the chest of drawers across it. The
window was too high for danger to threaten from that quarter. With a
sigh of relief she sat down, after a glance into one of the drawers.
Jack's pistols were there, safe enough, in case they should be wanted.
She would load them as soon as the child was asleep. She left the two
candles alight.
'Are you not going to bed, too?' asked Estelle, as she opened her sleepy
eyes a few minutes later.
'Not just yet, dearie. It is early for me. But you get to sleep as fast
as you can.'
She remained perfectly still, holding the little girl's hand. In the
deep silence her hearing became acute, but for some time she could not
detect the faintest movement. Hope had begun to spring up. Perhaps,
after all, the bookcase had proved too heavy. Dared she venture to go to
bed? Drawing her hand gently from Estelle's relaxed hold, she rose
softly--then stopped. The dreaded sound! The door-handle was turned
gently!
With noiseless step, Mrs. Wright went to the chest, of drawers, took out
the pistols, and loaded them. If the man at the door had been listening,
he might have heard the faint click as she cocked the triggers.
Silence profound reigned for some seconds, and the loud beating of her
heart made her fear she had missed some sounds. Then came a slight
grating, and the next instant there was a wrench, and the door sprang
backwards. But for the two very long bolts, strengthened by the chest of
drawers, it must have been broken open. The noise made the sleeping
child stir, but happily did not wake her. It was evident that the
intruder, finding the door locked, had had recourse to stronger
measures, and would stop at nothing which would help him to get at the
child. Mrs. Wright knew he was not likely to give up his attempt at the
first failure. She waited in breathless silence, a pistol ready in her
hand.
Again the effort to spring the door open was made, but the bolts held it
fast. Another silence, and then came the sound of cuts being made in the
woodwork, as if to take out the panel. But the wood was thick, and old
age had hardened it. Any attempt to penetrate it would only mean loss of
valuable time.
This second failure depressed Thomas exceedingly. He had had a very hard
week. Only the hope of Jack's absence had kept him near the Hospice de
la Providence. He had managed to get into the disused portion, where
hiding had not been difficult among those gloomy passages and empty
chambers. Getting food had not been a light business. It had
necessitated a long walk every now and again, as soon as the friendly
shadows of night permitted, to a neighbouring village, where he was
unknown. He had been obliged to be very careful of his money, too, as he
had only what had been paid to him by the circus people. It could not
last long, and, what he grudged most of all, his candles and tools had
to come out of it. It was essential to the success of his plans that he
should discover a way into Jack's abode without attracting attention,
and for this he required light.
So cautiously were his discoveries made that even Jack was ignorant of
his presence so near him. Thomas could even hear what was said in the
vast kitchen if the voices of the speakers were at all raised, and by
this means he had learned of Jack's trawling expedition. Had he
discovered the opening before, he might have acted differently. The
discussion over the plans for finding Estelle's home would have made him
aware that he would gain more by helping than by any attempts at
kidnapping. He would have seen that it was wiser to make terms with
Jack, rather than risk the loss of everything by grasping at too much.
But Thomas's mind was naturally slow. He had not heard the discussion,
and the idea of sharing any reward which might be offered for Estelle
with anybody else had not even occurred to him. With any prospect of
success he would have scouted the idea; but, with no food, no money, and
the child so carefully guarded, he had sense enough to perceive that
Jack was better as his friend than as his enemy. Now, however, it was
too late. Jack was out of the way, and capture the child he must. Once
manage that, and he could dictate what terms he pleased.
He made up his mind that Jack could not know where Estelle's home was,
for it was not likely that, since the little girl had not been able to
tell him all this long time, she could tell him now. Her want of memory
gave him time.
He had failed with the door. He must try some other way. Meantime, he
would continue to live at the Hospice de la Providence, and pursue his
nightly investigations of that rocky coast.
On his return the following morning, Jack was alarmed at what his mother
had to tell him. She took care to speak when Estelle was not near, and
they agreed to keep a stricter watch. Jack secured the bookcase against
a second attempt to move it, and then went to M. le Préfet to see what
he advised. The result was that Thomas was hunted from one place of
concealment in the caves to another. No hiding in dark corners would
have saved him, however, had he not remembered a certain broad ledge of
open rock which he had discovered accidentally a few days before. On
this he managed to scramble, and remained there, watching his pursuers
with a great deal of bitterness and wrath.
(_Continued on page 310._)
THE DUKE'S RUSE.
The eccentric Duke of Bridgewater, who owned extensive coal-mines near
Manchester, and spent a large fortune in opening them out, and in
constructing a canal to carry the coal to Manchester and Liverpool, took
great pleasure in watching his men at work. He used to come every
morning to the place where they were boring for coal, and stand looking
on for hours at a time. He was often there when the bell rang at twelve
o'clock, at which hour the men ceased work for their noonday meal and
rest. But the men scarcely liked to give up work while the Duke was
watching them, and they continued on until he went away. As it was not
pleasant to have their dinner-hour deferred day after day in this way,
the men tried to avoid working at the boring which the Duke was
accustomed to visit, and the Duke's engineer, Brindley, had great
difficulty in finding sufficient men for that particular work. Upon
inquiry, he discovered the reason of it, and explained matters to the
Duke, who took care after that to walk away before the bell rang at
noon.
The Duke was a shrewd, observant man, and he did not fail to notice that
his workmen ceased working the moment the bell began to strike at twelve
o'clock, but they were not so prompt in resuming work at one o'clock.
They came leisurely up one by one, some minutes after the clock had
struck. When the Duke inquired the reason of this, the men excused
themselves by saying that while they heard the clock well enough when it
struck twelve, they did not always hear it when it struck only once. The
Duke thereupon had the clock made to strike thirteen at one o'clock, so
that the men could no longer plead this excuse for their dilatoriness.
This clock was still in use not many years ago, and may be even yet
striking its thirteen strokes at one o'clock.
LOOKING UP AND LOOKING DOWN.
The little flower set in the grass,
Where it doth lowly lie,
As one by one the bright hours pass,
Looks upward to the sky.
So must a child's thoughts upward soar,
So must my soul take wings,
And to grow wiser than before
Reach up to lofty things.
The little stars set in the sky,
As night by night they show,
Though shining in their home on high,
Look down to earth below.
So I must stoop to lowly things,
To gentle deeds of love;
E'en though my thoughts soar upon wings,
And climb to Heaven above.
PEEPS INTO NATURE'S NURSERIES.
X.--NURSERY CUSTOMS IN THE FISH-WORLD.
In our last article we drew a contrast between those creatures which
thrust their young upon the world at the earliest possible moment,
taking care only to lay their eggs in a favourable spot, and leaving
them to hatch or be eaten as the case may be, and those which display
the most tender care for their offspring at least until they are able to
fight for themselves. In the first case, thousands of young have to be
brought into the world at one time because of the enormous death-rate
which this helplessness brings about; in the second, comparatively few,
sometimes only one or two, young ones make up the family.
I propose now to tell you more of this fascinating question; to show you
some perfectly amazing instances of the care and love for their young
which some of these little mothers and fathers display, and these
instances shall be taken from what we call the 'cold-blooded' fishes.
Let us begin with one of the commonest and best-known of our fishes, the
stickleback of our ponds and ditches. The male stickleback, as many of
you may know, builds a wonderful nest (see fig. 1), in which, when
finished, he invites his chosen mate to lay her eggs. As soon as these
precious treasures have been entrusted to his care, he makes himself
their sole guardian, forcing currents of fresh water through the nest by
the violent fanning motion of his breast-fins, and driving away all that
come near. Strangely enough, he has to exercise the greatest care to
keep out his mate, who would eat every single egg if she could but get
the chance! Every now and then he holds an inspection, shakes up the
material of the nest, drags out the eggs, and pushes them back into
their places again just to make sure that they are safe, and to keep
them bathed in clear water. But soon the little fish appear, and then
his labours are increased a hundredfold. If they rise more than a
certain height above the bottom of the stream, or stray beyond what he
regards as a safe limit from the nest, they are immediately seized in
his mouth, brought back, and gently puffed or jetted into the nest
again. Day and night his watch is kept, till at last they grow too big
to be controlled, and are allowed to stray whither they will.
[Illustration: FIG. 1 THREE SPINED STICKLEBACK]
Another of our native fishes, found in the Thames among other places,
builds a nest for its young. This is the 'spotted goby' or 'pole-wing.'
Here an old shell is made to do duty for a nursery. The shell is turned
over so that its hollowed portion forms a roof; the mud from below is
scooped away and a tunnel is then made leading away from the chamber so
formed. When all is complete, the mother enters and deposits her eggs,
and leaves her mate to mount guard over the nest till the young are
hatched and make their way out.
In the 'butter-fishes' or 'gunnels' which are found round our coasts,
the eggs are rolled into a ball, and jealously nursed by the parents,
each in turn coiling its body round the mass, and so protecting it from
injury (see fig. 2).
[Illustration: FIG 2 BUTTER FISH]
Many of those crafty 'hooligans' of the sea, the skates, are most
affectionate as parents. One of the giants of the tribe, the great
'devil-fish,' will defend its young with great ferocity. Its capture is
at all times attended with danger, but is especially perilous when it is
accompanying its offspring; at such times it has been known to attack
and upset a boat!
In one of the 'cat-fishes'--the Aspredo (fig. 3)--the mother carries the
eggs about with her, and this is managed in a very remarkable way. Just
at the time she lays her eggs, the skin of the under surface of her
body becomes swollen and spongy, and into this she presses her eggs by
lying on them. Here, snugly sheltered, they remain till hatched! The
curious 'sea-horse' has adopted a yet stranger contrivance, the fins and
certain special folds of the skin of the under sides of the body forming
a pouch, into which the eggs are placed, remaining till hatched. As soon
as this takes place the pouch becomes the nursery of the young ones.
But, strange though it may seem, this pouch is developed by the father
of the family, who does all the nursing!
[Illustration: FIG 3 THE ASPREDO CAT FISH]
Some of the cat-fishes--the Arius, for example--carry the eggs in their
capacious throats till they hatch! How the fish manages to prevent the
escape of his precious burden through his gills, or to prevent himself
from swallowing them, is something of a mystery.
[Illustration: FIG 4 PARADISE FISH]
Finally we come, I think, to the oddest of all these devices to ensure
the safety and well-being of the young. Thus, certain fishes related to
the wonderful Anabas--the perch that climbs trees!--make nests of
bubbles, in which the eggs are placed! The Gorami and the beautiful
little 'paradise-fish' (fig. 4), for example, built floating nurseries
of this kind, the bubble-raft being made by the male. In the case of the
paradise-fish these bubbles are blown so that the enclosed eggs are
raised above the level of the water, where they remain till hatched!
This raft, although it has been seen many times by travellers, is so
frail that it cannot be preserved, and has never yet been drawn by an
artist, so that we can only show the fish that makes it.
W. P. PYCRAFT, F.Z.S., A.L.S.
[Illustration: "Fast asleep!"]
THE POLICEMAN'S JOKE.
It was a bitterly cold night, but Jones, the watchman at the hole which
was being dug in the street at Armstrong Square, knew how to take care
of himself. 'I do not mean to freeze if I can help it!' he remarked to
his friend, the policeman, who was going round the square on his beat.
'Don't make yourself too comfortable, that's all,' said the policeman,
in a warning voice, as he saw Jones settle himself snugly in his rough
shelter with a big coke fire in front of him and a thick sack over his
knees. 'Maybe, if you fall asleep, you will wake up to find that some
rascal has made off with all the spades and pickaxes, and then your job
will be some one else's.'
'No fear!' said Jones, putting some fresh lumps of coal on to the tripod
fire. 'If I should drop off (and I shan't!), I am a very light sleeper;
the least step wakes me, and then my dog will let no one come near the
place. Oh, I am all right, and as warm as toast!
'That's more than I can say!' said the policeman, for he had no warm
shed to protect him from the keen east wind. 'Well, good-night--and
good-night, Jack,' he added, stooping to pat the dog, who was Jones's
close friend and companion.
'Ah, he knows you!' remarked Jones, as the dog rubbed his head against
the policeman's legs; 'but he can be a bit nasty to strangers, Jack
can.'
'I dare say he can,' was the policeman's answer as he went off, and
disappeared into the darkness.
In an hour's time he was round again, and stood awhile at the corner of
the square. The tripod fire was burning as fiercely as ever, and gave
light enough to show Jones--fast asleep! Jack, however, was awake, and
stood there, with bristling hair, ready to guard his master.
'Good old Jack!' said the policeman, as he patted the dog's head, and
Jack yawned, stretched his legs, and lay down again.
'And he calls himself a light sleeper!' said the policeman, looking at
the snoring Jones, who leant back with his arms folded, and his eyes
shut.
'It would be a bit of a joke to make off with his lantern and ropes,'
said the policeman to himself; 'it might teach him not to be so
bumptious about his light sleeping.'
The idea was irresistible, for the policeman was young, and loved a
joke. 'I'll do it!' he said at last, and, as he spoke, he went towards
Jones's shelter. Jack--faithful Jack--looked up suspiciously, but the
policeman said, briskly, 'It's all right, Jack; your master knows
me'--and Jack lay down again, feeling perhaps that a policeman could do
no harm.
The next time the policeman passed the square he roused the
still-sleeping Jones. 'Wake up, Jones,' he said; 'the men will be here
directly, and they must not find you sleeping.'
'I only just closed my eyes,' said Jones, drowsily. He sat up, however,
and the next minute exclaimed loudly: 'Hallo! who has been here?
Thieves! my lantern is gone and the coil of new rope! I'm ruined, I tell
you! I shall never get another night job!'
'Gone?' said the policeman, feigning astonishment. 'Surely not. You are
too light a sleeper for any one to take your things without you knowing
it, you know.'
'I'm ruined!' repeated the wretched Jones.
'Here, I will have a look with my bull's-eye,' said the policeman,
thinking the joke had gone far enough. 'Why, here's the lantern--oh! and
the rope, too--hid under these planks,' he called out, after a minute's
search.
'Found?' said Jones, joyfully. 'I am glad! I will never sleep at my post
again! Don't you let out a word of this, constable,' he said anxiously.
'Not I,' said the policeman, firmly; and he kept his word, for he did
not wish his joke to get to the inspector's ears.
A TURKEY'S COSTLY DIET.
At a dinner given by a wealthy Washington lady, it is said, a turkey,
fattened on pearls valued at over two hundred guineas, was served. Some
little time before, the hostess lost a valuable brooch and a pair of
earrings set with pearls. After a long search, the missing articles were
found in the garden, but the pearls had been plucked out. She was
convinced that a pet turkey was the culprit, and the bird was killed,
but no trace of the gems was found. A chemist, who made an examination,
declared that the pearls had been dissolved almost immediately after
they had been swallowed. To commemorate the loss a dinner was arranged,
and each guest received a photograph of the famous turkey.
THE STORY OF ROCK-SALT.
Salt under ground! It seems a strange thing, at first, to find salt
amongst the rocks, deep down in the earth. What does rock-salt tell us?
It reveals to us a place where once a sea existed; the water has since
flowed away, leaving some salt behind. We know that ordinary salt
exposed to the air soon gets damp, and then becomes quite fluid, but
rock-salt away from air and sun keeps firm for ages. Rock-salt is found
in various layers of the earth's crust. Some of the spaces of
underground water are called 'seas,' but in fact, large as they were,
they often did not resemble the 'seas' we have now, because they were
much shallower. A few were fairly deep, however. Then, again, these
ancient seas were sometimes so salt that no animal could live in them,
and only a few plants. Such seas, in fact, were mostly 'dead,' and this
accounts for the masses of salt deposited along their bottoms. But we
find also signs of rough water in the numerous pebbles of the layer
where the salt is found amongst hard red gravel and brown quartz.
Germany once had a tolerably deep sea, not very salt, and the bottom
surface of it shows coral reefs. There are signs in it of great fishes
armed with strong teeth, enabling them to crush the shell-fish upon
which they fed. These swarmed below the sea in thousands. North England
and the Midlands have the Kemper beds, where the 'seas' were always
shallow, and where we can trace the marks of rain-drop filterings and
sun-cracks. The rock-salt is often in a layer one hundred feet thick. It
is supposed that one part of these seas was separated from another part
by a bar of sand, over which the waves toppled only now and then. In the
cut-off sea, evaporation went on through the ages, and of course a
deposit of salt was formed, while the occasional overflow from outside
replaced the water which had evaporated. But really this is not known
for certain. It is only clear rock-salt contains the minerals we find in
our present sea-water, bromine, iodine, and magnesia.
Generally, this salt is not mixed with fragments of a different
substance, but is in columns of rough crystals. Now and then there is
found a layer of rock-salt, with one of marl and shells under it,
succeeded by rock-salt again, showing that for a time a change had taken
place.
Rock-salt sometimes melts a little under the earth, and if that happens,
the rocks above it sink, and in that way hollows have been formed.
Upon the land near these shallow salt seas lived some singular animals,
unlike those of our earth in the later centuries of its history. There
were remarkable reptiles belonging to the frog or Batrachian family. One
of the species was the size of a small ox, with peculiar complicated
teeth, and feet which left prints on the earth so exactly like the
impressions of the human hand, that geologists gave it a Latin name
meaning 'the beast with the hand.' Another strange creature was a sort
of lizard, with a horny bill, and feet resembling those of the duck; it
had somewhat the appearance of a turtle, it is supposed. Then there were
some warm-blooded animals about the size of a rat, which had pouches in
their cheeks, and preyed upon small insects.
PING-KWE'S DOWNFALL.
It was Ping-Kwe's fondness for a river excursion, combined with the fact
of his possessing a very hasty temper, which led to his downfall. It
happened in this wise.
One day it chanced that he was in a particularly bad frame of mind; he
quarrelled with his wife, he heat his two little yellow-faced bairns,
and after doing all that was possible to promote discord in his
household, he started off on one of his favourite river trips, instead
of going back to his work.
The cool, sweet evening air might perhaps have done something towards
chasing Ping-Kwe's evil humour away, but alas! under the canopy of the
boat, within which he seated himself, he saw two English ladies, the
wife and sister of the British Consul in the district. Now Ping-Kwe
hated the English like poison and he thereupon began a tirade against
all foreigners, making use of as many English words as he could, for the
benefit of the two ladies.
Fortunately, his knowledge of the English language was limited, or Mrs.
Armstrong and Miss Heathcote might have been more alarmed than they
already were at his storm of abuse.
'What do we want with them here?' he snarled in his native tongue,
'turning the place upside down? If I had my will I would throw them all
overboard.'
'Calm yourself, Ping,' said one of his fellow-townsmen, Chang by name,
who was sitting near. 'Take my advice and throw something-else
overboard.'
Here he laid a restraining hand on the ill-tempered Chinaman's shoulder.
'What do you mean?' was the retort.
'Your bad temper; it will be the ruin of you if you don't.'
Alas! this open rebuke only added fuel to the fire, and Ping-Kwe's
fellow-passengers (who were bound for the town of Tsoung, across the
water) at length grew thoroughly tired of his company.
'Who is that fellow?' whispered one of the occupants of the boat to
another.
'Oh! it is Ping-Kwe,' was the reply, as though that answered everything.
'What! the manager of Kong-Yung's stores in the town yonder?'
'Yes.'
'How comes it that he is here, instead of attending to his work?' went
on the questioner.
As there was no satisfactory answer to this query, the stranger, who was
none other than Kong-Yung himself, said no more.
He had but lately come into his property, and so was not yet known to
all his tenants; but in these few minutes he had learnt enough to know
that Ping-Kwe was not the right sort of man to make a good manager.
Ping-Kwe, could he but have known it, would have given a year of his
life rather than show himself thus in his worst colours before his
wealthy employer. It was not the first time he had neglected his
business, but now his sin had found him out.
Perhaps Kong-Yung might have passed over this offence with a caution,
for he was not a hard man, but such a display of ill-temper was
unpardonable, and so it came to pass that early on the following
morning, Ping-Kwe received a curt dismissal from his post.
Nothing he could say or do had any power to alter his employer's
decision, and, before a month had elapsed, the hapless man found himself
utterly without the means of providing for his wife and family.
Strange to say, it was in his adversity that the best part of his nature
came to the fore.
For his wife and children's sake he would have cheerfully starved
himself; but alas! hunger and destitution stared them _all_ in the face.
Days passed on into weeks, and still the hapless Chinaman was workless.
Never would Ping-Kwe or his patient little wife forget the miseries of
one terrible night. Overhead the stars were shining as though breathing
hope to the forlorn family, who were now actually without a roof to
cover them. The children were crying pitifully for food, and Ping-Kwe,
in his despair, began to think that even death itself would be welcome.
And the stinging part of it all was that he had brought his troubles
upon himself, for Kong-Yung had told him frankly the reason of his
dismissal.
It was when matters were at their lowest ebb, that the English ladies,
hearing of Ping-Kwe's sad plight, came to his aid.
With their own hands they tended to the necessities of the destitute
family, and it was owing to their intervention that Ping-Kwe found
employment again under his former master. It was humble work, it is
true, but Ping-Kwe was now a humble man.
With mingled shame and gratitude he accepted the kindly aid of the two
ladies, and from that time forth never more was he heard to say a word
against the English. Their influence by degrees wrought such a change in
Ping-Kwe that his best friends would hardly have known him.
As to his diligence in business, there could be no doubt, and Kong-Yung
never had reason to regret taking him into his service again. A few
months later, he chanced to be once more in the same boat with his
fellow-townsman, Chang.
'What has happened to that temper of yours, Ping-Kwe?' asked Ching, with
a good-natured smile; 'I have not seen it lately.'
'No,' replied Ping-Kwe, 'I don't suppose you have. As a matter of fact I
have taken the advice you gave me some time ago, and have thrown it
overboard.'
[Illustration: "'Throw your bad temper overboard.'"]
[Illustration: "'I say that he is a French spy!'"]
THE TRIALS OF LECKINSKI.
[Illustration]
Leckinski was a young Polish soldier, who was chosen for a very
dangerous mission when he was only eighteen years of age.
At that time Murat held military rule at Madrid. He desired to send
important dispatches to Junot, then at Lisbon; but this was a matter of
great difficulty, for all the roads to Lisbon were in the possession of
Castagnos and his army of Spanish revolutionists. The dreaded guerillas
also infested the way.
Murat, in his perplexity, confided in Baron Strogonoff, the Russian
Ambassador at Madrid. Russia at this time was not the direct ally of
France, but distinctly the friend. Strogonoff--though it was a rash and
illegal act--offered help. He proposed that a Polish lancer, dressed in
the Russian uniform, should be sent with dispatches from _his_ Court to
Admiral Siniavin, then at the port of Lisbon, and that the messenger
should at the same time convey verbal messages from Murat to Junot. It
was improbable, said the Baron, that the insurgent army of Castagnos
would interfere with a messenger of Russia, whose goodwill, to the
extent of neutrality, at least, they were desirous to obtain. But this
opinion, as we shall see, proved a mistaken one.
Murat was delighted with the plan, and Krasinski, the Polish commander,
was immediately applied to for a suitable person. Leckinski volunteered
for the task.
Murat, himself a brave man, thought it right to point out to Leckinski
the perils of his mission.
The young Pole smiled. 'I owe your Imperial Highness a thousand thanks,'
said he, 'for having so greatly honoured me as to entrust me with this
duty. It shall be done to the best of my ability.'
Murat then gave him his secret instructions, and, dressed in the Russian
uniform, and carrying the written dispatches for the Russian admiral,
Leckinski started on his journey.
Just at first all went well, but on the third day Leckinski was
surrounded and captured by a Spanish troop. His captors dragged him
before their commanding officer, who chanced to be Castagnos himself.
Leckinski saw that if he were recognised as an emissary of the French,
his doom would be sealed. He therefore instantly determined to feign
complete ignorance of the French language, and to speak only Russian or
German, languages which he knew thoroughly.
In his determination he was strengthened by the terrible threats which
he heard from the Spaniards around him. He recalled, too, the horrible
fate of General René, who, a few weeks before, while executing a mission
similar to his own, had been cruelly tortured to death. Brave though he
was, Leckinski shrank from such a fate as that.
Castagnos, who had been educated at Sorrize, spoke French well. 'Who
are you?' he asked in that language.
The prisoner made no answer, according to his plan. One of the staff
then interrogated him in German, and his replies were made sometimes in
German, sometimes in Russian. A word of French, or even a French accent,
would have cost Leckinski his life.
An unfortunate incident increased the ferocity of the Spaniards. An
aide-de-camp who felt assured that Leckinski was a French spy, rushed
into the room, dragging with him a man attired in brown cloth, and
wearing the peasant's high conical hat, adorned with a red feather. The
officer, forcing his way through the crowd, placed this man face to face
with Leckinski.
'Look!' he said; 'is this fellow a Russian or a German? _I_ say that he
is a French spy!'
The peasant gazed steadily at the young Pole. 'Yes!' he exclaimed, 'this
is a Frenchman. A few weeks ago I was at Madrid with some cut straw
which had been demanded from our village; and it was this man who
received my portion of forage, and gave me the receipt.'
This identification was correct. Castagnos indeed may have thought so;
but there was a possibility that the peasant was mistaken, and the
Spanish commander was more generous and humane than his followers. He
saw that the youth was not a Russian, but he was by no means sure that
he was a Frenchman--as, in fact, he was not. Leckinski's handsome face
and courageous behaviour told in his favour. Castagnos decided to give
him the benefit of the doubt; but he had hard work to restrain his
savage followers. A hundred threatening voices arose as the General
announced his decision, and the word 'traitor' was even applied to
himself.
'You desire, then,' said Castagnos, 'to risk a quarrel with Russia?'
'No,' answered his officers; 'but let us at least prove the fellow.'
'So be it.'
Leckinski knew enough Spanish to understand this brief conversation,
which put him more than ever on his guard. Out of the chamber he was
led, and thrown into a dungeon. When its door closed upon him he had
been eighteen hours without food. Nearly fainting, he fell on the
wretched bed which occupied a corner of the room. Here he had ample
leisure to contemplate his terrible position. At length, however, being
young and healthy, he fell into a sound sleep.
(_Concluded on page 319._)
THE LADYBIRD AND THE CATERPILLAR.
One bright morning in the spring-time, a green caterpillar, on the bough
of a tree, was gazing at a ladybird and seemed bent upon making her
acquaintance. However, the ladybird disdained the insect, and flew away
among the flowers. Some time after, in the summer, the ladybird was
earnestly admiring a beautiful butterfly which was fluttering about
near her. She even approached the pretty creature and began a
conversation, when the butterfly exclaimed, 'No, no, madam! I do not
value compliments from turncoats. You were ashamed of my appearance when
I was only a caterpillar; but now that I have risen in the world,
doubtless you would be very glad to make my acquaintance.' The butterfly
then spread out its light wings and flew away, leaving the ladybird to
her own reflections.
A HUNDRED YEARS AGO.
True Tales of the Year 1806.
X.--WILLIAM PITT: BORN 1759, DIED 1806.
[Illustration]
On May 28th, 1759, there was born at the pretty little village of Hayes,
in Middlesex, a puny babe, who in after years was to be one of the
greatest statesmen of his time.
The year of his birth was one of many British successes, both by sea and
land; it was the year of the victories of Minden, in Germany, and of
Quebec, in America, and of triumphs both in India and Africa, so that
Horace Walpole in a letter of that time says, 'One is forced to ask
every morning what victory there is, for fear of missing one.'
Pitt was a most precocious child, and was fond of reading stiff books of
history and poetry at an age when other children barely knew their
letters. Even whilst in the nursery he would declare that 'when he was a
man he would speak in the House like his father!'
Lord Chatham, his father (the elder Pitt, as he is often called), was
proud of the intelligent little fellow, and took pains to fit him for a
Parliamentary career by teaching him elocution, and making him recite
every day a passage from Milton or Shakespeare. Lord Chatham seems to
have taken more interest in the education of his five children than was
usual among parents of his day. We are told by Bishop Tomline that 'he
seldom suffered a day to pass without giving instruction of some sort to
his children, and seldom without reading a chapter of the Bible with
them.'
William was so delicate that he was never sent to school, and at one
time it was feared he would not have been reared; but a doctor
prescribed liberal doses of port wine, and this 'pleasant medicine,' we
hear, pleased the child, and he drank a great deal of it daily. Though
at the time it seemed to suit him, yet there is little doubt it planted
the seeds of the disease which was to carry him off before middle age.
At fourteen, William's tutors said that he knew more than most lads at
eighteen and was quite ready for College, so he was sent to Oxford,
where he amazed his tutors by his wisdom and learning. At seventeen he
left the University with the degree of M.A., which was, at that time,
unwisely given to the sons of peers without any examination.
He then studied for the Bar, and attended the Western Circuit, and at
the age of twenty-one he put his foot on the first rung of Parliamentary
fame, by becoming Member for Appleby. His success was almost
instantaneous, and after his third speech, one of the Opposition
remarked to Mr. Fox, who was Pitt's life-long rival, 'Mr. Pitt promises
to be one of the first men in Parliament,' to which remark Fox answered
generously, 'He is so already, sir!'
Pitt's voice was singularly clear and deep-toned, and he had been well
trained as to the use to make of it, but his personal actions were too
vehement, and one wag remarked, 'Mr. Fox, in speaking, saws the air with
his hands, but Mr. Pitt saws with his whole body.'
At twenty-three Pitt became Chancellor of the Exchequer, and in the
following year the young man became Prime Minister, the youngest Prime
Minister who has ever sat in the House of Commons.
His administration was at first highly successful, but his genius was
better fitted for peaceable and domestic government, than for the
warlike policy which circumstances thrust upon him.
When in 1792 the French Revolution broke out and a war with France
seemed inevitable, and when the power of Buonaparte became alarming to
every government, Pitt succeeded in forming a coalition of Austria,
Russia, and England, and felt perfectly confident of opposing a barrier
to the ambition of 'the Corsican.'
But while the Russian troops were slowly coming up from Poland,
Buonaparte swiftly assembled together a huge army, and defeated the
Austrians at Ulm. The news of this defeat came to England in a
roundabout way in a Dutch newspaper. Pitt received it on a Sunday, when
all the public offices were closed. He knew no Dutch himself, and
feverishly anxious to learn what had happened, he be-thought himself of
Lord Malmesbury, who had been our Minister in Holland, and he took the
paper to him to translate.
When Pitt was thus informed of the defeat of our ally, his grief was
unbounded, and though a few days later he heard of the victory of
Trafalgar, yet this was overshadowed later on by the French victory of
Austerlitz, a disappointment which left Pitt a broken man.
His last public speech was at the Lord Mayor's banquet after the battle
of Trafalgar, when the crowd, carried away with the victory, took the
horses out of Pitt's carriage and drew him along in triumph to the
Mansion House.
The Lord Mayor proposed Pitt's health and hailed him as the 'Saviour of
Europe,' but Pitt in his answer made use of the following memorable
words: 'I thank you for the honour you have done me; but England is not
to be saved by a single man. England has saved herself by her exertions,
and will, I trust, save Europe by her example.'
Pitt had now but a few more weeks to live. He died on January 23rd,
1806, the twenty-fifth anniversary of the day when he first took his
seat in Parliament, and his death was undoubtedly hastened by his
distress at the state of affairs between France and England.
[Illustration: "The crowd drew him along in triumph."]
He was awarded a public funeral, and on one of the monuments erected to
his memory it is recorded that 'having for twenty years dispensed the
favours of the Crown, yet he ever lived simply and died poor.'
[Illustration]
A BRAVE LAD.
It was Saturday afternoon when the boys of Wedderburn School went off as
usual to swim their boats on a beautiful lake, only a quarter of a mile
away. Fred Langton had a new boat, a regular beauty, which his
grandfather had sent to him as a birthday present, and it must be
admitted that many admiring eyes were directed to this boat, for it was
a larger and better-constructed one than any of the others, and each boy
was of course, anxious that his own boat should win the race. But
although all the boys admired Fred's boat, and wished that they could
have had one as good, still they felt no grudge towards Fred himself,
for he was a general favourite in the school, being kind-hearted,
unselfish, always willing to lend anything that he had to his
companions, and never known to tell tales, or to do a mean action of any
kind.
'I tell you,' said Bill Cowan to his own particular chum, Joe Morris,
'that boat of Fred's will beat ours all hollow! I wish I had one as
good!'
'Well, suppose it does win,' replied Joe Morris, 'I shall not grudge it
to him, for Fred is no sneak; he is out-and-out the jolliest fellow in
Wedderburn School.'
'So he is,' said Bill Cowan, 'and no mistake about it. Well, here we are
at the lake, and now for some fun.'
On this particular Saturday, however, Fred was destined to distinguish
himself in quite another way, and to win the applause not only of his
companions, but of the people who were walking up and down the border of
the lake, enjoying the sunshine and the refreshing breeze. The little
boats were all in full sail, and the schoolboys were shouting with glee
at the fun, when quite suddenly a fine fox-terrier took it into his head
to pursue the boats and show that he could swim as well as they could.
Poor dog! It was quite true that he could swim; but unfortunately he got
entangled among weeds, and after floundering about for a little and
barking piteously for help, he gradually sank till his body was quite
out of sight, only his head and neck being visible to the schoolboys,
who looked on in horror, not knowing how they could save the poor
animal.
'Oh, I say, I can't stand this!' cried Fred Langton; 'he will be
drowned. I must go in and fetch him out!'
'No, no!' cried Bill Cowan; 'the lake is quite deep just at that place.'
'Yes, I know it's deep,' added Joe Morris, 'and, besides, you can't
swim, Fred; don't be silly. Who cares for a dog being drowned?'
'I do, for one,' cried Fred, and dashing into the water he waded out to
where the poor dog was half-standing, half-lying, among the choking
weeds. Yes, the water was deep; but stretching out his arms he contrived
to catch hold of the poor animal, and he quickly waded back to shore
amid ringing cheers from all the people who had now gathered on the bank
to watch the plucky lad. And whose was the dog? Nobody knew; it seemed,
indeed, to have no owner and no home. But Fred and his companions
carried it back with them to the school, and, after having told their
tale, they begged the head master to keep it for himself; and as Dr.
Williams could not discover anything about the dog's ownership, he _did_
keep it. So Fred's brave deed not only saved the animal's life, but
procured a good home for it as well.
TRUE HAPPINESS.
How small, of all that human hearts endure,
That part which lords or kings can cause or cure;
Still to ourselves, in every place consigned,
Our own felicity we make or find.
These lines were added by Dr. Johnson to Goldsmith's poem, the
_Traveller_, with Goldsmith's consent, and the lesson in them is well
worth remembering.
DREAM-TIME.
The wind against the window blows;
The dustman comes along the street;
The lamps are lit, the darkness grows;
The dreams come in with noiseless feet.
Oh, haste to bed: the dreams await
The children, with their sweetest song.
Don't loiter; you may be too late,
The best of dreams are never long.
THE GIANT OF THE TREASURE CAVES.
(_Continued from page 299._)