CHAPTER II
THE DRUMS
An hour later they were seated in the boat, nibbling biscuits and takingturns to sip at the water in their keg.
'Now that we 've proved that Grinson can just squeeze into the chimney,'said Hoole, 'I guess we had better climb to-morrow and take a lookround. But what then? What do you know about this blamed island,Grinson?'
'Not as much as you could stuff into a pipe, in a manner of speaking,'said Grinson. 'A few years ago I spent a couple of weeks in Moresby andround about--you can bear me out, Ephraim, me lad--and I know no morethan what I picked up there. That's on the south-east: we 're on thenorth, on what's German ground, or was; and by all that's said, theGermans never took much trouble to do more than hoist their flag. They've got a port somewhere, but whether we 're east of it or west of it, Idon't know no more than the dead.'
'So when we climb, we shan't know which way to go,' said Trentham. 'Yetour only chance is to make along the coast till we reach some whitesettlement, unless we could manage to attract attention on some passingship. You don't know what the natives are like hereabout?'
'No, sir. They do say there 's little chaps about two feet high in theforests, but I never seed 'em. The folks on the coast ain't so little,and down Moresby way they 've learnt to behave decent; but I reckon they're pretty wild in other parts, and I know some of 'em are 'orridcannibals, 'cos I was nearly eat myself once. We was lying becalmed offthe Dutch coast, away in the west of this 'ere island, and some of ushad gone ashore for water, and----'
'What's that noise?' exclaimed Hoole, springing up.
A faint purring sound came to their ears.
'It's uncommonly like an aeroplane engine,' said Trentham. 'It would berather fun to be taken off in an aeroplane.'
'Never in life!' said Meek mournfully. 'It 'ud turn my weak head.'
'Your head will be quite safe, Meek,' said Trentham. 'The onlyaeroplane that's likely to be in these latitudes is the one that scoutedfor the German raider. Our poor captain guessed what was coming when hesaw the thing, and three hours afterwards they got us, and he was dead.'
'There it is!' cried Hoole, pointing sea-ward.
They were just able to discern the machine, little more than a speck,flying along from west to east. In a few minutes it had disappeared.
'Flying after other game,' said Trentham. 'You were saying, Grinson?'
'And I got parted from the rest, through chasing a butterfly, which Iwas always a stoodent of nature. I had just nabbed a lovely pink 'unwith gold spots, when a crowd of naked savages surrounded me, theirfaces hidjous with paint, and their spears pointing at me like thespokes of a wheel. Not having my pistol with me, I couldn't shoot 'emall down one after another, so I offered 'em the butterfly, then a brassbutton, and one or two other little things I had about me, which anydecent nigger would 'a been thankful for. But no! Nothing but my gorewould satisfy 'em, or rather my fat, for I was in them days twice thesize I am now. You can bear me out, Ephraim, me lad?'
'I wouldn't be sure 'twas exactly twice, Mr. Grinson, but not farshort--a pound or so under, p'r'aps.'
'I thought my last hour was come, and it came on me sudden that I hadn'tmade my will----'
'There 's a smudge of smoke far out,' cried Hoole. 'If we get on a rockand wave our shirts, somebody 'll see us.'
They looked eagerly out to sea. A steamer, just distinguishable on thehorizon, was proceeding in the same direction as the aeroplane they hadnoticed a few minutes before. Grinson put up his hands to shade his eyesas he gazed.
'If I had a pair of glasses, or that there telescope in the wreck! Ah!I may be wrong, but I believe 'tis that ruffian of a pirate as sunk ourcraft yesterday. Seems to me we 'd better keep our shirts on our backs,sir.'
'I dare say you 're right,' said Hoole. 'For my part I 'd rather try myluck with cannibals than with those Germans again.'
'Which I agree with you, sir,' said Grinson. 'With luck, or I may saygumption, you can escape from cannibals, like I did.'
'Ah, yes. How did you get out of that ring of spears?'
The boatswain took such pleasure in retailing his yarns that the twoyoung men gave him plenty of rope.
'I was fair upset at not having made my will, thinking of how thelawyers would fight over my remains, in a manner of speaking. So I takesout my pocket-book and my fountain pen, and with a steady hand I beginsto write. It shows what comes of a man doing his dooty. Them cannibalswas struck all of a heap when they seed black water oozing out of astick. They lowered the points of their spears, and, instead of being acircle, they formed up three deep behind me, looking over my shoulder.It come into my head they took me for a medicine-man, and the dawn of agreat hope lit up my pearly eyes.'
'Where did you get that, Grinson?' asked Hoole.
'What, sir?'
'That about "pearly eyes" and the rest.'
'Oh, that! It took my fancy in a nice little story called _Lord Lyle'sRevenge_ as a kind lady once give me, and I 've never forgot it. Well,as I was saying, I set to droring a portrait of the ugliest mug among'em--fuzzy hair, nose bones and all--they a-watching me all the timewith bated breath; and when I 'd put in the finishing stroke, blest ifevery man Jack of 'em didn't begin to quarrel about whose photo it was.Never did you hear such a hullabaloo. Fixing of 'em with my eagle eye, Iwaved 'em back like as if I was shooing geese, took a pin from my weskitand stuck the portrait on a tree, and told 'em to fight it out who wasthe ugliest of 'em, 'cos he was the owner. The cannibals made a rush forthe tree, every one of 'em trying to prevent the rest from getting thepicture, and I lit my pipe and walked away as steady as a bobby ondooty. You can bear me out, Ephraim, me lad?'
'Wonderful steady you was, Mr. Grinson, and the bottle of rum empty too.I couldn't have walked so steady. The other chaps said as how you 'dbeen taking a nap, but I never believed 'em.'
'Never go napping on dooty, Ephraim; which I mean to say we 'll have totake watch and watch to-night, gentlemen. What with cannibals and thembig hermit crabs and other vermin, 'twouldn't be safe for us all to haveour peepers shut.'
'Very true, Grinson,' said Trentham. 'The boat's rather exposed: you hadbetter choose a spot on the beach where we can shelter for the night.There are some rocks yonder that look promising. Then we 'll arrangeabout watching.'
Grinson and Meek went off together; the others meanwhile strolled up anddown, discussing plans for the morrow.
'We 're so badly off,' said Trentham. 'You 've luckily got yourrevolver; any spare cartridges?'
'A score or so.'
'I 've only a penknife, worse luck. Grinson has a long knife, and Meek,no doubt, has a knife of some sort; but three knives and a revolverwon't enable us to put up much of a fight if we really do come acrossany cannibals.'
'And I guess that fountain pens and pocket books won't be much good. Wecouldn't patch up the boat?'
'Without tools? Besides, I shouldn't care to risk a voyage. We mayhave a chance of reaching some settlement overland, and I dare say couldpick up some food; but on the sea we might drift for weeks, even if wecould exist on our few biscuits and little water.'
'Well, old man, we 'll get what sleep we can and try the chimney in themorning. The sky promises fair weather, anyway; did you ever see such asplendid sunset?'
They were facing west, and beyond the headland the sun, a gorgeous ballof fire, was casting a blood-red glow on the scarcely rippling sea. Onthe cliffs the leaves of the palms were edged with crimson, andflickered like flames as they were gently stirred by the breeze. Thetwo friends stood side by side, silently watching the magnificentpanorama. Suddenly Hoole caught Trentham by the arm, and pulled him downbehind a rock.
'My sakes!' he exclaimed under his breath. 'D' you see people movingbetween the wreck and the cliff?'
Trentham took off his hat and peered cautiously over the rocks.
'You 're right,' he said. 'It's not easy to make 'em out; t
hey 're inthe shadow of the headland; we 're a good mile away, I fancy. They can'tsee us at present, but we had better warn the others; the sun as itmoves round will strike us presently.'
They returned to the spot which Grinson had selected for their campingplace--a space of clear sand protected on one side by a group of rocksand on the other by a clump of bushes spreading from the base of thecliffs. Meek had already brought up their scanty stores from the boat;Grinson had stripped off his jersey and shirt.
'If you 'll take my advice, gentlemen,' he said, 'you 'll swill thesticky off--you 'll sleep all the better for it. Bathing all in Iwouldn't advise, in case of sharks.'
'Shall we get any sleep, I wonder?' said Trentham. 'There are men onthe beach, Grinson.'
'Men, sir?'
'Cannibals!' murmured Meek.
'We saw figures moving between the wreck and the cliff.'
'Holy poker!' exclaimed the boatswain, rapidly drawing on his shirt.Trentham noticed momentarily the figure of a bird tattooed on his upperleft arm. 'Hope they don't come this way.'
'Why shouldn't we take the bull by the horns and go _their_ way?' saidHoole. 'I 'll tackle 'em, if you like. You don't know but we 'd makefriends of them.'
'Not by no manner of means, sir, I beg you,' said Grinson. 'The NewGuinea savages are the fiercest in creation; Ephraim can bear me out;cunning as the devil, and that treacherous. The tales I could tell! ButI wouldn't freeze your blood, not for the world; all I say is, keep outof their clutches.'
'Where can we hide, if so be they come this way?' faltered Meek.
'There 's nothing to bring them along this bare beach,' said Trentham.'They won't see us if we remain here; I doubt whether they 'll even seethe boat. No doubt they 'll be gone by the morning.'
'Just so,' said Hoole. 'Still, we 've got to meet them some time,probably----'
'Better by daylight, sir,' said Grinson. 'Wild beasts and savages arealways most fearsome at night. I say, lay low.'
'As low as you can,' Meek added.
The glow of sunset faded, and in the deepening shade the figures were nolonger visible. The four men sat in their shelter, talking inundertones, none of them disposed to sleep. For a while only the slowtumbling surf bore a murmurous counterpoint to their voices. All atonce a dull boom struck upon their ears. It was not the explosive boomof a gun, but a deep prolonged note. Soon it was followed by a similarsound, at a slightly higher pitch, and the two notes alternated atregular intervals.
'Drums, by the powers!' ejaculated Grinson. ''Tis a dance, or a feast,or both.'
'A mighty slow dance,' said Hoole. 'I 'd fall asleep between thesteps.'
But even as he spoke the sounds became louder and more rapid, andpresently in the midst of the now continuous booming a voice was heard,chanting in monotone. Into this broke a deeper growling note as frommany voices in unison, and after the song and accompaniment hadcontinued for some time with ever-increasing vigour and volume, theycame to a sudden end in a short series of strident barks, half smotheredby the clamour of the drums.
The four men had risen, and leaning on the rocks, with their facestowards the sounds, had listened to the strange chorus.
'It's extraordinarily thrilling,' said Trentham. 'I 'd never havebelieved that drums could make such music.'
'It trickles down my spine,' Hoole confessed. 'And they 're prettynearly a mile away. What must it be on the spot? Say, if they startagain, shall we creep along and see?'
'I 'm game. Look! They 've lit a fire. There's some ceremony onhand--not a thing to be missed.'
'Which means a feast, sir,' said Grinson. 'If you ask me, I say don'tgo. It 'll turn your blood.'
'Special if 'tis a man they eat,' said Meek.
'You two stay home; Mr. Trentham and I will go,' said Hoole. 'The rocksand scrub will give plenty of cover; besides, the feasters will be busy.We 'll be unseen spectators in the gallery.'
Heedless of the further expostulations of the seamen, Trentham and Hooleset off, and keeping well under the shadow of the cliffs, trampedrapidly towards the growing blaze. As they drew nearer to it, they movedwith greater caution, careful not to come directly within the glow. Thedrums recommenced their slow tapping, and when the white men arrived ata spot where, screened by the bushes, they could see unseen, the dancehad just begun.
The fire was kindled on a clear space between the wreck and thevegetation that clothed the foot of the cliffs. Beyond it, nearer thevessel, about twenty natives were stamping in time with the two drums,placed at one end of the line. They were men of average height, wellbuilt, but rather thin in the legs, wearing fantastic head-dresses, boneor coral necklaces and armlets, and scanty loin-cloths. The watcherswere at once struck by certain differences in the types of feature. Allthe savages were a dull black in colour, except where they had paintedtheir skins white or red, but while the majority had wide bridgelessnoses and frizzy hair, there were some whose noses were arched, andwhose hair, though curled, was neither stiff nor bushy. Every face wasdisfigured by a long skewer of bone passed through the nose.
The dance was disappointing. The men did little more than stamp up anddown, swaying a little now and then, stepping a pace or two forward orbackward, shaking their spears, and emitting a grunt. There was noexcitement, no crescendo of martial fury.
'A very tame performance!' whispered Hoole.
But Trentham was no longer watching the dance. Beyond the dancers, onlyoccasionally visible as they moved, there was something that had fixedhis attention. He could not quite determine what it was, but asuspicion was troubling him. Between the swaying figures thereappeared, now and again, a whitish object partially obscured by bush,and barely within the circle of light from the fire. It was motionless,but the fugitive glimpses that Trentham caught of it made him more andmore uneasy.
'You see that white thing?' he whispered, taking Hoole by the arm.
'Yep! What of it?'
Trentham pressed his arm more closely. The dancers had moved a littlefarther apart, and for the first time the object behind them wascompletely outlined.
'By gum, it's a man!' murmured Hoole.
'And a white man!' added Trentham. 'I was afraid so.'