By Reef and Palm
Page 11
THE METHODICAL MR BURR OF MADURO
One day Ned Burr, a fellow trader, walked slowly up the path to mystation, and with a friendly nod sat down and watched intently as, withnative assistance, I set about salting some pork. Ned lived thirtymiles from my place, on a little island at the entrance to the lagoon.He was a prosperous man, and only drank under the pressure of themonotony caused by the non-arrival of a ship to buy his produce. Hewould then close his store, and, aided by a number of friendly malenatives, start on a case of gin. But never a woman went into Ned'shouse, though many visited the store, where Ned bought their produce,paid for it in trade or cash, and sent them off, after treating them ona strictly business basis.
Now, the Marshall Island women much resented this. Since Ned's wife haddied, ten years previously, the women, backed by the chiefs, had mademost decided, but withal diplomatic, assaults upon his celibacy. Theold men of his village had respectfully and repeatedly reminded himthat his state of singleness was not a direct slight to themselves asleading men alone. If he refused to marry again he surely would notcast such a reflection upon the personal characters of some two orthree hundred young girls as to refuse a few of them the position ofhonorary wives PRO TEM., or until he found one whom he might thinkworthy of higher honours. But the slow-thinking, methodical trader onlyopened a bottle of gin, gave them fair words and a drink all round, andabsolutely declined to open any sort of matrimonial negotiations.
* * * * *
"I'm come to hev some talk with you when you've finished saltin'," hesaid, as he rose and meditatively prodded a junk of meat with hisforefinger.
"Right, old man," I said. "I'll come now," and we went into the bigroom and sat down.
"Air ye game ter come and see me get married?" he asked, looking awaypast me, through the open door, to where the surf thundered and tumbledon the outer reef.
"Ned," I said solemnly, "I know you don't joke, so you must mean it. Ofcourse I will. I'm sure all of us fellows will be delighted to hearyou're going to get some nice little CARAJZ [an unmarried girl] to lightenup that big house of yours over there. Who's the girl, Ned?"
"Le-jennabon."
"Whew!" I said, "why, she's the daughter of the biggest chief on Arhnu.I didn't think any white man could get her, even if he gave her peoplea boat-load of dollars as a wedding-gift."
"Well, no," said Ned, stroking his beard meditatively, "I suppose ISHOULD feel a bit set up; but two years ago her people said that,because I stood to them in the matter of some rifles when they hadtrouble with King Jibberick, I could take her. She was rather youngthen, any way; but I've been over to Arhnu several times, and I've hadspies out, and damn me if I ever could hear a whisper agin' her. I'mtold for sure that her father and uncles would ha' killed any one thatcame after her. So I'm a-goin' to take her and chance it."
"Ned," I said, "you know your own affairs and these people better thanI do. Yet are you really going to pin your faith on a Marshall Islandgirl? You are not like any of us traders. You see, we know what toexpect sometimes, and our morals are a lot worse than those of thenatives. And it doesn't harrow our feelings much if any one of us hasto divorce a wife and get another; it only means a lot of new dressesand some guzzling, drinking, and speechifying, and some bother inteaching the new wife how to make bread. But your wife that died was aManhikian--another kind. They don't breed that sort here in theMarshalls. Think of it twice, Ned, before you marry her."
* * * * *
The girl was a beauty. There are many like her in that far-away clusterof coral atolls. That she was a chief's child it was easy to see; theabject manner in which the commoner natives always behaved themselvesin her presence showed their respect for Le-jennabon. Of course we allgot very jolly. There were half a dozen of us traders there, and wewere, for a wonder, all on friendly terms. Le-jennabon sat on a finemat in the big room, and in a sweetly dignified manner received thewedding-gifts. One of our number, Charlie de Buis, though in a state ofchronic poverty, induced by steadfast adherence to square gin at fivedollars a case, made his offerings--a gold locket covering a woman'sminiature, a heavy gold ring, and a pair of fat, cross-bred Muscovyducks. The bride accepted them with a smile.
"Who is this?" she asked, looking at the portrait--"your white wife?""No," replied the bashful Charles, "another man's. That's why I give itaway, curse her! But the ducks I bred myself on Madurocaron."
* * * * *
A month or two passed. Then, on one Sunday afternoon, about dusk, I sawNed's whale-boat coming over across the lagoon. I met him on the beach.Trouble was in his face, yet his hard, impassive features were suchthat only those who knew him well could discover it. Instead ofentering the house, he silently motioned me to come further along thesand, where we reached an open spot clear of coco palms. Ned sat downand filled his pipe. I waited patiently. The wind had died away, andthe soft swish and swirl of the tide as the ripples lapped the beachwas the only sound that broke upon the silence of the night.
* * * * *
"You were right. But it doesn't matter now ..." He laughed softly. "Aweek ago a canoe-party arrived from Ebon. There were two chiefs. Ofcourse they came to my house to trade. They had plenty of money. Therewere about a hundred natives belonging to them. The younger man waschief of Likieb--a flash buck. The first day he saw Le-jennabon he hada lot too much to say to her. I watched him. Next morning mytoddy-cutter came and told me that the flash young chief from Likiebhad stuck him up and drank my toddy, and had said something about mywife--you know how they talk in parables when they mean mischief. Iwould have shot him for the toddy racket, but I was waitin' for abetter reason.... The old hag who bosses my cook-shed said to me asshe passed, 'Go and listen to a song of cunning over there'--pointingto a clump of bread-fruit trees. I walked over--quietly. Le-jennabonand her girls were sitting down on mats. Outside the fence was a ladsinging this--in a low voice--
"'Marriage hides the tricks of lovers.'
"Le-jennabon and the girls bent their heads and said nothing. Then thedevil's imp commenced again--
"'Marriage hides the tricks of lovers.'
"Some of the girls laughed and whispered to Le-jennabon. She shook herhead, and looked around timorously. Plain enough, wasn't it? Presentlythe boy creeps up to the fence, and drops over a wreath of yellowblossoms. The girls laughed. One of them picked it up, and offered itto Le-jennabon. She waved it away. Then, again, the cub outside sangsoftly--
"'Marriage hides the tricks of lovers,'
"and they all laughed again, and Le-jennabon put the wreath on her head,and I saw the brown hide of the boy disappear among the trees."
* * * * *
I went back to the house. I wanted to make certain she would follow theboy first. After a few minutes some of Le-jennabon's women came to me,and said they were going to the weather side of the island--it's narreracross, as you know--to pick flowers. I said all right, to go, as I wasgoing to do something else, so couldn't come with them. Then I went tothe trade-room and got what I wanted. The old cook-hag showed me theway they had gone, and grinned when she saw what I had slid down insidemy pyjamas. I cut round and got to the place. I had a right good ideawhere it was.
* * * * *
"The girls soon came along the path, and then stopped and talked toLe-jennabon and pointed to a clump of bread-fruit trees standing in anarrow-root patch. She seemed frightened--but went. Half-way through shestopped, and then I saw my beauty raise his head from the ground andmarch over to her. I jest giv' him time ter enjoy a smile, and then Istepped out and toppled him over. Right through his carcase--themSharp's rifle make a hole you could put your fist into.
"The girl dropped too--sheer funk. Old Lebauro, the cook, slid throughthe trees and stood over him, and said, 'U, GUK! He's a fine-made man,'and gave me her knife; and then I collared Le-jennabon, and----"
"For God's sake, Ned, don't tell me you killed her too!"
He shook his head slowly.
"No, I couldn't hurt HER. But I held her with one hand, she feelingd
ead and cold, like a wet deck-swab; then the old cook-woman undid myflash man's long hair, and, twining her skinny old claws in it, pulledit taut, while I sawed at the chap's neck with my right hand. The knifewas heavy and sharp, and I soon got the job through. Then I gave thething to Le-jennabon to carry.
* * * * *
"I made her walk in front of me. Every time she dropped the head Islewed her round and made her lift it up again. And the old cook-deviltrotted astern o' us. When we came close to the town, I says toLe-jennabon:
"'Do you want to live?'
"'Yes,' says she, in a voice like a whisper.
"'Then sing,' says I, 'sing loud--
"'Marriage hides the tricks of lovers,'
And she sang it in a choky kind of quaver.
"There was a great rush o' people ter see the procession. They stood ina line on both sides of the path, and stared and said nothin'.
"Presently we comes to where all the Likieb chief's people wasquartered. They knew the head and ran back for their rifles, but mycrowd in the village was too strong, and, o' course, sided with me, andtook away their guns. Then the crowd gathers round my place, and Imakes Le-jennabon hold up the head and sing again--sing that devil'schant.
"'Listen,' I says to the people, 'listen to my wife singing a lovesong.' Then I takes the thing, wet and bloody, and slings it into themiddle of the Likieb people, and gave Le-jennabon a shove and sent herinside."
* * * * *
I was thinking what would be the best thing to say, and could onlymanage "It's a bad business, Ned."
"Bad! That's where you're wrong," and, rising, Ned brushed the sand offthe legs of his pyjamas. "It's just about the luckiest thing as couldha' happened. Ye see, it's given Le-jennabon a good idea of what mayhappen to her if she ain't mighty correct. An' it's riz me a lot in theesteem of the people generally as a man who hez business principles."