The Wonder Island Boys: The Tribesmen Part 20

"I did not want to take human life, and I refrained from this last step, and as the s.h.i.+p was bare of sails and we were in position to control the tiller we pa.s.sed two days and a night, with only a few crackers for food, and almost exhausted from the strain.

"Night was approaching, and with not a star in sight, and in no condition to take any reckonings, we made up our minds that we must somehow fight our way through one more night before giving up. The mainmast was a wreck; the shrouds on the port side having been torn from the gunwale the second day of the storm, and the entire deck was one ma.s.s of debris and wreckage.

"It was a dangerous thing to move along from one part of the deck to the other, as this loose acc.u.mulation of material, at each successive lurch, would be tossed first one way and then the other. This was one thing that kept the villains at bay, but it prevented us as well as themselves from getting any food.

"In desperation I took my revolver, and, at the risk of my life, at every step, forced my way to the pantry and found some food. Before I reached the bridge the roar of the breakers fell upon me, but the darkness was now too intense to enable me to see anything, and I knew that our next great catastrophe would be the rocks.

"I never reached the bridge again, for the vessel struck, and with a terrific grating sound it moved toward land, and then a giant hand seemed to lift it upwardly, and I knew no more. When I awoke, which must have been along noon of the following day, I saw one of the sailors dead, not fifty feet away, and the master of the s.h.i.+p was close beside me, with an indescribable ma.s.s of wreckage all about.

"When I had recovered sufficiently to judge of my surrounding, I went over to the master and to the sailor, and saw that their pockets had been rifled, and I instinctively put my hand to my pockets, to find that everything, my watch, this match box, which was a present from my wife, my knife and everything in my pockets were gone.

"From this I knew that such of my companions as had been saved had gone off, without making any attempt to ascertain whether I was alive or not, and had taken my things besides.

"I had my clothing, which was still wet, but I was glad to be alive.

That seems singular, doesn't it, when I had thrown myself time and again right into the jaws of death! I saw a barren sh.o.r.e, but found plenty to eat as I advanced into the interior. I went to the south and southeast for the first day, and soon saw the first signs of human habitations.

"Then I came across a tribe of savages who were sacrificing some human victims. It dawned on me that it might have been some of my companions, and a spirit of revenge possessed me. But I had no weapons, but relying on my experience in eluding savages, I crawled up to the village, during the height of the orgy, and slew one of the warriors, and took his weapons, as well as his headdress.

"But I was discovered and brought the entire tribe down on me. I avoided them, doubled on my tracks, and ran into another branch of what proved to be the same tribe, as the headdress plainly showed me. I again avoided capture, and in going through the hills discovered a cave, in which I took refuge.

"To my surprise the cave was tenanted by a certain cla.s.s of savages, and I had reason to believe that it was the abode of the medicine men of the tribe, or the Hoodoos, because the warriors avoided it as they would a pestilence. I found some wonderful things in that cave, in which I secluded myself as best I could to avoid detection from those within.

"But I needed food, and one night stole out, only to learn that they had known of my entrance into the cave, and was driven back again, and making my way into the interior, how far I do not know, lay down exhausted, and, on awakening, not knowing which way to go, heard the voices of the savages, and in going in the opposite direction was surprised to see a streak of light ahead.

"Approaching near the entrance, waiting there for hours, and not seeing or hearing them, cautiously crept out, and found that the sun had risen several hours before, but that the opening was to the western side of the hill and I had entered it on the eastern side."

"Won't you tell us, John, how you knew it was to the west, and that it was morning?" The boys looked at George a little queerly, and so did the Professor, and he quickly divined the reason, and continued: "Pardon me, Mr. Varney, but we have been in habit of calling you John so long that I forgot myself."

"You have been calling me John? How did you find out my name?"

"We simply took that as the most convenient name; but please go on and forgive me for interrupting."

"No apology is necessary. I hope you will know me as John only. But you asked me a question. I examined the moss, which in the southern hemisphere grows more abundantly on the south side of the tree; just as in the north it grows only on the north side. As to the sun, if it had been afternoon it would have been to the west of the hill and not to east of it.

"Having emerged from the cave in the vicinity of the last village another flight was necessary, and I turned to the south, reaching a large stream in my wanderings, and, in order to avoid capture, swam it in the night. I still had the bows and a dozen arrows, together with a crude hatchet, which was taken from the warrior.

"The flight was continued to the south, and thus I lived from day to day for over three months, occasionally seeing the various tribes. Then for a period of two months more I was hunted over the entire southern portion of the island, and finally driven into the mountain. Between six and seven months after the s.h.i.+pwreck, in a moment of carelessness, I was taken by a tribe in the south, and held in confinement for over a month, when I was to be offered up as a sacrifice.

"On the day appointed there was a terrible uproar in camp, and I could see that a neighboring tribe had attacked, and escaped, only to be captured by the successful invaders. This was the tribe that Osaga, here, was a member of. Again escaping I secured one of their spears and a bow with some arrows, and fought my first captors with such determination that Osaga's people became my friends and I was given limited liberty, and began to learn the language.

"Before long the two most powerful tribes united and attacked us, and defeated Osaga's people, and I escaped to the mountains. This was fully eleven or twelve months after being cast ash.o.r.e, and on the last day they were in sight I can remember going down a steep precipice. The only recollection of my former self came day before yesterday when I awoke from a refres.h.i.+ng sleep."

CHAPTER XV

CHIEF AND THE POISON PLANT

John was visibly exhausted from the effort he had made, and soon pa.s.sed off into a quiet sleep. During the evening the Professor suggested that they might retire to the shop, so that he would not be disturbed, but John insisted that it was so good to hear their voices again, and would like to have them all present.

Harry and George kept them interested a great portion of the time with stories of their adventures. They told about the bear fight for the possession of the honey; the shooting of the wild animals in South Forest, the making of the flag, the capture of the yaks, the flagpole incident, the fight between the bulls, and the amusing affair connected with the removal of the yaks to their new home.

This latter occurrence is what amused John the most, and suggested that probably if they had adopted some of the hitches which sailors used the yaks could have been controlled more easily. This interested George.

"Won't you please tell us something about the hitches and knots which the sailors make?"

"They have a great many forms, each designed for some particular purpose, and if you get a rope I will try and give you some of the princ.i.p.al ones. Get a piece long enough so that the knots and hitches can be kept for future reference."

[Ill.u.s.tration: _Fig. 16. Slip knot._]

[Ill.u.s.tration: _Fig. 17. Overhand knot._]

[Ill.u.s.tration: _Fig. 18. Flemish Loo._]

[Ill.u.s.tration: _Fig. 19. Fig. 8 knot._]

[Ill.u.s.tration: _Fig. 20. Stevedore knot._]

[Ill.u.s.tration: _Fig. 21. Bowline knot._]

[Ill.u.s.tration: _Fig. 22. Double knot._]

[Ill.u.s.tration: _Fig. 23. Weaver's knot._]

[Ill.u.s.tration: _Fig. 24. Carrick bend._]

[Ill.u.s.tration: _Fig. 25. Reef bend._]

He then proceeded to make the knots, and continued: "The seven knots (Figs. 16 to 22, inclusive) are made at the ends of the rope, as you will notice, and are the forms used to attach the rope to an object. In the next three forms two ropes are attached to each other, and are usually called 'bends' (Figs. 23, 24, 25).

"Then, in addition to that, the sailor has several ways of attaching the rope by a hitch around a standard, or other object. Look at these two forms (Figs. 26, 27). Look at the boat knot, where the hitch is made in the rope itself; and the sheet bend toggle, where the ends of two ropes are attached together to a standard or cleat. And now I am making what are called hitches, and the three forms (Figs. 28, 29, 30) are the best examples."

[Ill.u.s.tration: _Fig. 26. Boat Knot._]

[Ill.u.s.tration: _Fig. 27. Sheet bend and Toggle._]

[Ill.u.s.tration: _Clove Hitch Fig. 28._]

[Ill.u.s.tration: _Half Hitch Fig. 29._]

[Ill.u.s.tration: _Timber Hitch Fig. 30._]

Thus the conversation drifted from one subject to another, covering a variety of interesting topics. George reminded the Professor that he had not yet explained to them what the spectroscope was, and its uses. He laughingly responded:

"That instrument is one of the most wonderful in all the ranges of human discoveries. By its means the elements of substances are determined, and the composition of the heavenly bodies are ascertained."