The Coral Island

by R. M. Ballantyne

  CHAPTER NINETEEN.

  SHOEMAKING--THE EVEN TENOR OF OUR WAY SUDDENLY INTERRUPTED--ANUNEXPECTED VISIT AND AN APPALLING BATTLE--WE ALL BECOME WARRIORS, ANDJACK PROVES HIMSELF TO BE A HERO.

  For many months after this we continued to live on our island inuninterrupted harmony and happiness. Sometimes we went out a-fishing inthe lagoon, and sometimes went a-hunting in the woods, or ascended tothe mountain-top by way of variety, although Peterkin always assertedthat we went for the purpose of hailing any ship that might chance toheave in sight. But I am certain that none of us wished to be deliveredfrom our captivity, for we were extremely happy; and Peterkin used tosay that as we were very young, we should not feel the loss of a year ortwo. Peterkin, as I have said before, was thirteen years of age, Jackeighteen, and I fifteen. But Jack was very tall, strong, and manly forhis age, and might easily have been mistaken for twenty.

  The climate was so beautiful that it seemed to be a perpetual summer,and as many of the fruit-trees continued to bear fruit and blossom allthe year round, we never wanted for a plentiful supply of food. Thehogs, too, seemed rather to increase than diminish, although Peterkinwas very frequent in his attacks on them with his spear. If at any timewe failed in finding a drove, we had only to pay a visit to theplum-tree before mentioned, where we always found a large family of themasleep under its branches.

  We employed ourselves very busily during this time in making variousgarments of cocoa-nut cloth, as those with which we had landed werebeginning to be very ragged. Peterkin also succeeded in makingexcellent shoes out of the skin of the old hog in the following manner:He first cut a piece of the hide, of an oblong form, a few inches longerthan his foot. This he soaked in water, and while it was wet he sewedup one end of it so as to form a rough imitation of that part of theheel of a shoe where the seam is. This done, he bored a row of holesall round the edge of the piece of skin, through which a tough line waspassed. Into the sewed-up part of this shoe he thrust his heel; then,drawing the string tight, the edges rose up and overlapped his foot allround. It is true there were a great many ill-looking puckers in theseshoes; but we found them very serviceable notwithstanding, and Jack cameat last to prefer them to his long boots. We also made various otheruseful articles, which added to our comfort, and once or twice spoke ofbuilding us a house; but we had so great an affection for the bower, andwithal found it so serviceable, that we determined not to leave it, norto attempt the building of a house, which in such a climate might turnout to be rather disagreeable than useful.

  We often examined the pistol that we had found in the house on the otherside of the island, and Peterkin wished much that we had powder andshot, as it would render pig-killing much easier; but, after all, we hadbecome so expert in the use of our sling and bow and spear that we wereindependent of more deadly weapons.

  Diving in the Water Garden also continued to afford us as much pleasureas ever, and Peterkin began to be a little more expert in the water fromconstant practice. As for Jack and me, we began to feel as if waterwere our native element, and revelled in it with so much confidence andcomfort that Peterkin said he feared we would turn into fish some dayand swim off and leave him, adding that he had been for a long timeobserving that Jack was becoming more and more like a shark every day.Whereupon Jack remarked that if he (Peterkin) were changed into a fish,he would certainly turn into nothing better or bigger than a shrimp.Poor Peterkin did not envy us our delightful excursions under water--except, indeed, when Jack would dive down to the bottom of the WaterGarden, sit down on a rock, and look up and make faces at him. Peterkindid feel envious then, and often said he would give anything to be ableto do that. I was much amused when Peterkin said this; for if he couldonly have seen his own face when he happened to take a short dive, hewould have seen that Jack's was far surpassed by it--the greatdifference being, however, that Jack made faces on purpose, Peterkincouldn't help it!

  Now, while we were engaged with these occupations and amusements, anevent occurred one day which was as unexpected as it was exceedinglyalarming and very horrible.

  Jack and I were sitting, as we were often wont to do, on the rocks atSpouting Cliff, and Peterkin was wringing the water from his garments,having recently fallen by accident into the sea--a thing he wasconstantly doing--when our attention was suddenly arrested by twoobjects which appeared on the horizon.

  "What are yon, think you?" I said, addressing Jack.

  "I can't imagine," answered he. "I've noticed them for some time, andfancied they were black sea-gulls; but the more I look at them, the moreI feel convinced they are much larger than gulls."

  "They seem to be coming towards us," said I.

  "Hallo! what's wrong?" inquired Peterkin, coming up.

  "Look there," said Jack.

  "Whales!" cried Peterkin, shading his eyes with his hand. "No--eh--canthey be boats, Jack?"

  Our hearts beat with excitement at the very thought of seeing humanfaces again.

  "I think you are about right, Peterkin. But they seem to me to movestrangely for boats," said Jack in a low tone, as if he were talking tohimself.

  I noticed that a shade of anxiety crossed Jack's countenance as he gazedlong and intently at the two objects, which were now nearing us fast.At last he sprang to his feet. "They are canoes, Ralph! whetherwar-canoes or not, I cannot tell; but this I know--that all the nativesof the South Sea Islands are fierce cannibals, and they have littlerespect for strangers. We must hide if they land here, which Iearnestly hope they will not do."

  I was greatly alarmed at Jack's speech; but I confess I thought less ofwhat he said than of the earnest, anxious manner in which he said it,and it was with very uncomfortable feelings that Peterkin and I followedhim quickly into the woods.

  "How unfortunate," said I as we gained the shelter of the bushes, "thatwe have forgotten our arms!"

  "It matters not," said Jack; "here are clubs enough and to spare." Ashe spoke, he laid his hand on a bundle of stout poles of various sizes,which Peterkin's ever-busy hands had formed, during our frequent visitsto the cliff, for no other purpose, apparently, than that of havingsomething to do.

  We each selected a stout club according to our several tastes and laydown behind a rock, whence we could see the canoes approach withoutourselves being seen. At first we made an occasional remark on theirappearance; but after they entered the lagoon and drew near the beach,we ceased to speak, and gazed with intense interest at the scene beforeus.

  We now observed that the foremost canoe was being chased by the other,and that it contained a few women and children as well as men--perhapsforty souls altogether--while the canoe which pursued it contained onlymen. They seemed to be about the same in number, but were better armed,and had the appearance of being a war-party. Both crews were paddlingwith all their might, and it seemed as if the pursuers exertedthemselves to overtake the fugitives ere they could land. In this,however, they failed. The foremost canoe made for the beach closebeneath the rocks behind which we were concealed. Their short paddlesflashed like meteors in the water, and sent up a constant shower ofspray. The foam curled from the prow, and the eyes of the rowersglistened in their black faces as they strained every muscle of theirnaked bodies. Nor did they relax their efforts till the canoe struckthe beach with a violent shock; then, with a shout of defiance, thewhole party sprang, as if by magic, from the canoe to the shore. Threewomen, two of whom carried infants in their arms, rushed into the woods;and the men crowded to the water's edge, with stones in their hands,spears levelled, and clubs brandished, to resist the landing of theirenemies.

  The distance between the two canoes had been about half-a-mile, and atthe great speed they were going, this was soon passed. As the pursuersneared the shore, no sign of fear or hesitation was noticeable. On theycame, like a wild charger--received, but recked not of, a shower ofstones. The canoe struck, and with a yell that seemed to issue from thethroats of incarnate fiends, they leaped into the water and drove theirenemies up the beach.

/>   The battle that immediately ensued was frightful to behold. Most of themen wielded clubs of enormous size and curious shapes, with which theydashed out each other's brains. As they were almost entirely naked, andhad to bound, stoop, leap, and run in their terrible hand-to-handencounters, they looked more like demons than human beings. I felt myheart grow sick at the sight of this bloody battle, and would fain haveturned away; but a species of fascination seemed to hold me down andglue my eyes upon the combatants. I observed that the attacking partywas led by a most extraordinary being, who, from his size andpeculiarity, I concluded was a chief. His hair was frizzed out to anenormous extent, so that it resembled a large turban. It was of alight-yellow hue, which surprised me much, for the man's body was asblack as coal, and I felt convinced that the hair must have been dyed.He was tattooed from head to foot; and his face, besides being tattooed,was besmeared with red paint and streaked with white. Altogether, withhis yellow turban-like hair, his Herculean black frame, his glitteringeyes, and white teeth, he seemed the most terrible monster I everbeheld. He was very active in the fight, and had already killed fourmen.

  Suddenly the yellow-haired chief was attacked by a man quite as strongand large as himself. He flourished a heavy club, something like aneagle's beak at the point. For a second or two these giants eyed eachother warily, moving round and round, as if to catch each other at adisadvantage; but seeing that nothing was to be gained by this caution,and that the loss of time might effectually turn the tide of battleeither way, they apparently made up their minds to attack at the sameinstant, for, with a wild shout and simultaneous spring, they swungtheir heavy clubs, which met with a loud report. Suddenly theyellow-haired savage tripped, his enemy sprang forward, the ponderousclub was swung; but it did not descend, for at that moment the savagewas felled to the ground by a stone from the hand of one who hadwitnessed his chief's danger. This was the turning-point in the battle.The savages who landed first turned and fled towards the bush on seeingthe fall of their chief. But not one escaped; they were all overtakenand felled to the earth. I saw, however, that they were not all killed.Indeed, their enemies, now that they were conquered, seemed anxious totake them alive; and they succeeded in securing fifteen, whom they boundhand and foot with cords, and carrying them up into the woods, laid themdown among the bushes. Here they left them, for what purpose I knewnot, and returned to the scene of the late battle, where the remnant ofthe party were bathing their wounds.

  Out of the forty blacks that composed the attacking party onlytwenty-eight remained alive, two of whom were sent into the bush to huntfor the women and children. Of the other party, as I have said, onlyfifteen survived, and these were lying bound and helpless on the grass.

  Jack and Peterkin and I now looked at each other, and whispered ourfears that the savages might clamber up the rocks to search for freshwater, and so discover our place of concealment; but we were so muchinterested in watching their movements that we agreed to remain where wewere--and indeed we could not easily have risen without exposingourselves to detection. One of the savages now went up to the woods andsoon returned with a bundle of firewood, and we were not a littlesurprised to see him set fire to it by the very same means used by Jackthe time we made our first fire--namely, with the bow and drill. Whenthe fire was kindled, two of the party went again to the woods andreturned with one of the bound men. A dreadful feeling of horror creptover my heart as the thought flashed upon me that they were going toburn their enemies. As they bore him to the fire my feelings almostoverpowered me. I gasped for breath, and seizing my club, endeavouredto spring to my feet; but Jack's powerful arm pinned me to the earth.Next moment one of the savages raised his club and fractured thewretched creature's skull. He must have died instantly; and, strangethough it may seem, I confess to a feeling of relief when the deed wasdone, because I now knew that the poor savage could not be burned alive.Scarcely had his limbs ceased to quiver when the monsters cut slices offlesh from his body, and after roasting them slightly over the fire,devoured them.

  Suddenly there arose a cry from the woods, and in a few seconds the twosavages hastened towards the fire, dragging the three women and theirtwo infants along with them. One of these women was much younger thanher companions, and we were struck with the modesty of her demeanour andthe gentle expression of her face, which, although she had the flattishnose and thick lips of the others, was of a light-brown colour, and weconjectured that she must be of a different race. She and hercompanions wore short petticoats, and a kind of tippet on theirshoulders. Their hair was jet black, but instead of being long, wasshort and curly--though not woolly--somewhat like the hair of a youngboy. While we gazed with interest and some anxiety at these poorcreatures, the big chief advanced to one of the elder females and laidhis hand upon the child. But the mother shrank from him, and claspingthe little one to her bosom, uttered a wail of fear. With a savagelaugh, the chief tore the child from her arms and tossed it into thesea. A low groan burst from Jack's lips as he witnessed this atrociousact and heard the mother's shriek as she fell insensible on the sand.The rippling waves rolled the child on the beach, as if they refused tobe a party in such a foul murder, and we could observe that the littleone still lived.

  The young girl was now brought forward, and the chief addressed her; butalthough we heard his voice and even the words distinctly, of course wecould not understand what he said. The girl made no answer to hisfierce questions, and we saw by the way in which he pointed to the firethat he threatened her life.

  "Peterkin," said Jack in a hoarse whisper, "have you got your knife?"

  "Yes," replied Peterkin, whose face was pale as death.

  "That will do. Listen to me, and do my bidding quick.--Here is thesmall knife, Ralph. Fly, both of you, through the bush, cut the cordsthat bind the prisoners, and set them free! There! quick, ere it be toolate!" Jack sprang up and seized a heavy but short bludgeon, while hisstrong frame trembled with emotion, and large drops rolled down hisforehead.

  At this moment the man who had butchered the savage a few minutes beforeadvanced towards the girl with his heavy club. Jack uttered a yell thatrang like a death-shriek among the rocks. With one bound he leaped overa precipice full fifteen feet high, and before the savages had recoveredfrom their surprise, was in the midst of them, while Peterkin and Idashed through the bushes towards the prisoners. With one blow of hisstaff Jack felled the man with the club; then turning round with a lookof fury he rushed upon the big chief with the yellow hair. Had the blowwhich Jack aimed at his head taken effect, the huge savage would haveneeded no second stroke; but he was agile as a cat, and avoided it byspringing to one side, while at the same time he swung his ponderousclub at the head of his foe. It was now Jack's turn to leap aside; andwell was it for him that the first outburst of his blind fury was over,else he had become an easy prey to his gigantic antagonist. But Jackwas cool now. He darted his blows rapidly and well, and the superiorityof his light weapon was strikingly proved in this combat; for while hecould easily evade the blows of the chief's heavy club, the chief couldnot so easily evade those of his light one. Nevertheless, so quick washe, and so frightfully did he fling about the mighty weapon, thatalthough Jack struck him almost every blow, the strokes had to bedelivered so quickly that they wanted force to be very effectual.

  It was lucky for Jack that the other savages considered the success oftheir chief in this encounter to be so certain that they refrained frominterfering. Had they doubted it, they would have probably ended thematter at once by felling him. But they contented themselves withawaiting the issue.

  The force which the chief expended in wielding his club now began to beapparent. His movements became slower, his breath hissed through hisclenched teeth, and the surprised savages drew nearer in order to renderassistance. Jack observed this movement. He felt that his fate wassealed, and resolved to cast his life upon the next blow. The chief'sclub was again about to descend on his head. He might have evaded iteasily, but instead
of doing so, he suddenly shortened his grasp of hisown club, rushed in under the blow, struck his adversary right betweenthe eyes with all his force, and fell to the earth, crushed beneath thesenseless body of the chief. A dozen clubs flew high in air, ready todescend on the head of Jack; but they hesitated a moment, for themassive body of the chief completely covered him. That moment saved hislife. Ere the savages could tear the chief's body away, seven of theirnumber fell prostrate beneath the clubs of the prisoners whom Peterkinand I had set free, and two others fell under our own hand. We couldnever have accomplished this had not our enemies been so engrossed withthe fight between Jack and their chief that they had failed to observeus until we were upon them. They still outnumbered our party by three;but we were flushed with victory, while they were taken by surprise anddispirited by the fall of their chief. Moreover, they were awestruck bythe sweeping fury of Jack, who seemed to have lost his sensesaltogether, and had no sooner shaken himself free of the chief's bodythan he rushed into the midst of them, and in three blows equalised ournumbers. Peterkin and I flew to the rescue, the savages followed us,and in less than ten minutes the whole of our opponents were knockeddown or made prisoners, bound hand and foot, and extended side by sideupon the seashore.