The Wonder Island Boys: Conquest of the Savages Part 4

"We will let you know in two suns what our answer is." And he withdrew.

"That means," remarked Ralsea, "that they are waiting for reinforcements."

"So much the better. We will be reinforced much better than they by the time their reinforcements come to hand."

"We must send a runner to the Great White Chief, and tell him to stop the Kurabus from coming to their a.s.sistance," said Ralsea.

"That is a wise suggestion," answered Blakely; and without delay one was selected and made his way to the Brabos' village.

When the Professor received Blakely's note he called in the Brabo chief, Oma, and said: "The forces we sent out are preventing the allies from going to our village, and have sent a runner here to inform us that the Kurabus are about to send more warriors to aid our enemies. Select one hundred warriors and let us go to the Kurabus' village and capture the warriors who are there, and also put the villages in our power. This may make them understand that they have no homes to go to unless they come to us."

This information delighted Oma, and he hurriedly gathered the warriors, and the Professor concluded to accompany them, as he did not want the warriors to commit any excesses against the villages and inhabitants of their former enemies, or exact any reprisals for the past indignities that some of them had suffered from the Kurabus.

A day's march brought them close to the main village, and scouts were sent to the front to ascertain whether the warriors still remaining in the village had gone forward. Before the scouts could return fully fifty warriors emerged from the village, and were taking up the march to join the allies.

The Professor instructed the warriors under his command to divide into three parties, one to remain with him, and the others to go to the right and to the left, so that the Kurabus would thus be entrapped.

The party marched forward unsuspectingly, directly toward the position occupied by the Professor, and he instructed Oma to show himself and inform them that they were surrounded and that resistance would be useless.

Some, more venturesome than others, started to retreat, but the unexpected appearance of the Professor's warriors drove them back, and without firing a shot or loosing an arrow they submitted. When the Professor appeared they were the more surprised. The whole were marched back to the village, and, although the women tried to escape, all were soon rounded up and brought back.

The captured Kurabus warriors were taken to the Brabos' village, and the women informed that they would not be injured, as the white man did not believe in making war.

The Professor at once sent a runner to Blakely and also to John. Two days afterwards the runner appeared at the Cataract with the following message from the Professor:

"We captured the Kurabus' village to-day, and all the warriors left there, as they were about to leave to join the forces now before Blakely. We have taken all of them to the Brabos' village, where they will be held. Make the utmost speed with the weapons. In the meantime, I have sent a force to the north to intercept any reinforcements that the Tuolos may forward."

The message from Blakely was as follows: "We arrested the movement of the allies yesterday, and asked why they were determined to attack us.

They refused to give an answer, and they are, probably, awaiting reinforcements. My forces are between them and the Cataract, and they will give their answer in two days."

All this news was imparted to the people, and the knowledge was received with enthusiasm. It gave the warriors the first glimpse of the value of cooperation, and the benefits of a directing hand in their affairs.

At the Cataract matters were progressing favorably. Reports from Blakely and the Professor a.s.sured them that they would have no difficulty, in a few days, in getting at least thirty of the guns ready. Stut proved himself to be the most apt pupil, and nothing interested him as much as the forge and anvil, and John, noticing this, set him to work on the small anvil to forge out arrow heads.

The arrows used by the natives were uniformly of stone, but the metal ones were perfect, and so arranged that, with the ramie fiber, could be readily attached to the shaft. The most deft workers in the making of the native arrows were selected, and together they made up a large quant.i.ty of arrows, and Stut seemed to be indefatigable in turning out the heads for the workers.

During this period the larder was not forgotten. The hunters brought in every day an immense quant.i.ty of taro, which seemed to be their favorite vegetable.

This is a stemless plant, which has heart-shaped leaves, about a foot long, and the leaves and stalks are prepared by them in the same way that we use spinach and asparagus.

But the tuber, or root, of this vegetable is the most valuable part. It is larger than the common beet, and sometimes grows to a foot or more in length. This was beaten into a pulp by the natives, and made into a bread or pudding.

[Ill.u.s.tration: _Fig. 4. The Taro Plant and Bulb._]

"I like the taro," said George. "It can be used in so many ways, and I want to try it in the different forms as soon as we have an opportunity."

"In the Sandwich Islands, and in many other places it is the vegetable from which the well-known Poi is made," said John.

"Do you know how it is made?" asked George.

"It is beaten up, just as you see them do it here, and then set in the sun to ferment for about three or four days. It is afterwards boiled with fowl, and makes a very pleasant dish, most appetizing and nouris.h.i.+ng. The fermented Poi will last for weeks. It is the same as the well-known kalo of the Pacific Island, the yu-tao of China, the sato imo of j.a.pan, and the oto of Central America. A fine dish is made of it by boiling and then covering the leaves with a dressing of cocoanut oil."

Harry and the other boys had been in consultation for several days concerning the cave, and a day or two before they were ready to start had a talk with John about the treasure there. John listened attentively, and when they had finished, said:

"You are quite right in wanting to take care of the valuables there. You are ent.i.tled to them."

"But they are yours, as much as ours, and we shall not touch them unless it is with the understanding that you shall share with us," responded George.

"I could not consider it for a moment."

"You cannot help yourself," said the boys in chorus. "We have arranged all that matter, and you have nothing to say about it."

"But," protested John. "I do not deserve it."

"Well, do we?" asked Harry.

"But you and the Professor discovered it."

"Before you or Ralph and Tom came we arranged the division, so that the Professor has one-third of it, but we own two-thirds, and that we propose to divide equally among all of us," added Harry.

"Really," said Ralph, "Tom and I are in the same position as John, and we feel it is not right to take a share, but the boys insist on it."

"Well, if you consider that a settlement, I must say that I am going to make good more than my share and the shares of Ralph and Tom."

"We don't want you to make it good," insisted George.

"But you can't help yourself in that. The cave in the Tuolos' country has something in it that will make you wonder as much as the treasure you have here, and it will be fully as interesting to get at and recover as anything you have experienced here."

"When do you think we ought to start for the west?" asked Harry.

"Day after to-morrow will see everything ready. We shall then have all the ammunition sufficient to last us until we can reestablish the plant, and as the new wagon is ready, it should not take us more than a day, with all the help we have, to load and apportion the different loads among the warriors."

"Then why can't we take to-morrow for the expedition to the cave?"

"That will suit admirably," he replied.

On the following morning the boys had the yaks yoked up, and taking with them a number of the copper vessels, and a quant.i.ty of the ramie cloth, drove over to the side of the hill opposite the Cataract house, so as to reach the land entrance of the caverns.

"It is not desirable to have any here know of our visit nor our purpose.

It would not make any material difference, as the treasure there is of no value to them; but our motives will be misunderstood," remarked John.

Under the circ.u.mstances John and the four boys were the only ones in the party.

"We are going to have some pretty tough work this morning. That gold weighs something."

"Wasn't it a good thing you suggested the making the wagon?"

John smiled without saying anything.