The Castaways
Page 20
CHAPTER TWENTY.
THE DEADLY UPAS.
"Upas!"
A word sufficient to explain all that had passed. Both Captain Redwoodand his ship-carpenter understood its signification; for what man isthere who has ever sailed through the islands of the India Archipelagowithout having heard of the upas? Indeed, who in any part of the worldhas not either heard or read of this poisonous tree, supposed to carrydeath to every living thing for a wide distance around it, not evensparing shrubs or plants--things of its own kind--but inflicting blightand destruction wherever its envenomed breath may be wafted on thebreeze?
Captain Redwood was a man of too much intelligence, and toowell-informed, to have belief in this fabulous tale of the olden time.Still he knew there was enough truth in it to account for all that hadoccurred--for the vertigo and vomiting, the horrible nausea and utterprostration of strength that had come upon them unconsciously. They hadmade their camp under one of these baneful trees--the true upas(_antiaris toxicaria_); they had kindled a fire beneath it, building itclose to the trunk--in fact, against it; the smoke had ascended amongits leaves; the heat had caused a sudden exudation of the sap; and theenvenomed vapour floating about upon the air had freely found its wayboth into their mouths and nostrils. For hours had this empoisonedatmosphere been their only breath, nearly depriving them of that uponwhich their lives depended.
If still suffering severely from the effects of having inhaled thenoxious vapour, they were now no longer wretched. Their spirits wereeven restored to a degree of cheerfulness, as is always the case withthose who have just escaped from some calamity or danger. They now knewthat in due time they would recover their health and strength. Theglorious tropical sun that had arisen was shining benignantly in theirfaces, and brightening everything around, while the breeze, blowingfresh upon them from a serene sapphire-coloured sea, cooled theirfevered blood. They felt already reviving. The sensations theyexperienced were those of one who, late suffering from sea-sickness,pent up in the state-room of a storm-tossed ship, with all its vileodours around him, has been suddenly transferred to _terra firma_, andlaid upon some solid bank, grassy or moss-grown, with tall trees wavingabove, and the perfume of flowers floating upon the balmy air.
For a long while they sat upon the sands in this pleasant dreamy state,gazing upon the white surf that curled over the coral reefs, gazing uponthe blue water beyond, following the flight of large white-winged birdsthat now and then went plunging down into the sea, to rise up with afish glistening in their beaks, half unconscious of the scene undertheir eyes and the strife continuing before them, but conscious,contented, and even joyous at knowing they still lived, and that thetime had not yet come for them to die.
They no longer blamed the hornbill for what had happened. The cause wasin their own carelessness or imprudence; for Captain Redwood knew theupas-tree, and was well aware of its dangerous properties to thoseventuring into too close proximity. He had seen it in other islands;for it grows not only in Java, with which its name is more familiarlyidentified, but in Bali, Celebes, and Borneo. He had seen it elsewhere,and heard it called by different names, according to the differentlocalities, as _tayim, hippo, upo, antijar_, and _upas_; all signifyingthe same thing--the "tree of poison."
Had he been more careful about the selection of their camping-place, andlooked upon its smooth reddish or tan-coloured bark and closely-setleaves of glossy green, he would have recognised and shunned it. He didnot do so; for who at such a time could have been thinking of such acatastrophe? Under a tree whose shade seemed so inviting, who wouldhave suspected that danger was lurking, much less that death dwelt amongits leaves and branches?
The first had actually arisen, and the last had been very near. But itwas now far away, or at least no longer to be dreaded from the poison ofthe upas. The sickness caused by it would continue for a while, and itmight be some time before their strength or energies would be fullyrestored. But of dying there was no danger, as the poison of the upasdoes not kill, when only inhaled as a vapour; unless the inhalation be along time continued. Its sap taken internally, by the chewing of itsleaves, bark, or root, is certain death, and speedy death. It is one ofthe ingredients used by the Bornean Dyaks for tipping their poisonedspears, and the arrows of their _sumpitans_ or blow-guns. They use itin combination with the _bina_, another deadly poison, extracted fromthe juice of a parasitical plant found everywhere through the forests ofBorneo.
It is singular that the upas-tree should belong to the same naturalorder, the Artocarpaceae, as the bread-fruit; the tree of death thusbeing connected with the tree of life. In some of the Indian islands itis called _Popon-upas_; in Java it is known as the _Antijar_.
Its leaves are shaped like spear-heads; the fruit is a kind of drupe,clothed in fleshy scales.
The juice, when prepared as a poison, is sometimes mixed with blackpepper, and the juice of galanga-root, and of ginger. It is as thick asmolasses, and will keep for a long time if sheltered from the action ofthe air.
The upas does not grow as a gregarious tree, and is nowhere found innumbers. Like the precious treasures of nature--gold, diamonds, andpearls--her poisons, too, happily for man, are sparsely distributed.Even in the climate and soil congenial to it, the _antiaris toxicaria_is rare; but wherever discovered is sure to be frequently visited, if ina district where there are hunters or warriors wishing to empoison andmake more deadly their shafts. A upas-tree in a well-knownneighbourhood is usually disfigured by seams and scars, where incisionshave been made to extract its envenomed juice.
That there were no such marks upon the one where they had made theircamp, was evidence that the neighbourhood was uninhabited. So saidSaloo, and the others were but too glad to accept his interpretation ofthe sign.