when meri and wal jessop reached the village the chief explained to his followers how the white men had recognised their friend, and the natives were excited at such an unlooked-for occurrence. a stretcher was quickly made of long poles and matting, and, accompanied by four stalwart natives, wal jessop and meri returned to the sing-sing ground where they had left edgar and captain manton. they carefully carried manton to the village, and wal jessop went out to the schooner to obtain drugs from the medicine chest.
in the course of a few days captain manton was much better, and eager to be gone from the island. the chief and the natives, however, seemed loath to part with him, and edgar thought there might be some trouble in getting him away. to make matters easier they presented meri and most of the natives—men, women, and children—with gifts of beads, cloth, and small ornaments. it amused them to watch the women adorning their persons with bright red and yellow cloths, and they were particularly delighted some with the strings of bright-coloured beads.
edgar noticed the natives, even when going to walk in the plantations, were armed, and meri said they were always at war with one or more of the neighbouring tribes. even the women and children were armed, and it was surprising with what accuracy of aim the smallest lads could shoot their arrows. these natives were all fond of sports, and spent the greater part of their time practising with the various weapons they used.
meri, at edgar’s request, ordered some native sports to take place; and the men, nothing loath, prepared for them in a very short time. wal jessop promised the most successful should have prizes given them, selected from the stock of trade goods on board the schooner.
spear-throwing was first undertaken, and the natives aimed with wonderful skill, far better than the enooma blacks. they hurled their spears with terrific force, and often buried them six inches deep in the trunk of a tree the wood of which was almost as hard as iron. smooth stones were piled up on the beach, and the natives, using slings, whirled them out to sea for such a long distance that the splash made when they fell could hardly be seen. club-swinging they were clever at, and an attack with clubs, warded off by wooden shields, made edgar fearful for the result, so furious and excited did the combatants become.
the boys and girls, all naked, ran races on the clear white sand, and swam out to sea in the most daring manner. one lad, a son of the chief, shot his arrow through meri’s fingers as he spread the back of his hand out wide against a tree. the girls were quite as active as the boys, and ran as fast, and swam as well. these youngsters had very little fear in them, and even a shark near the shore did not frighten them, for the lads would swim out with spears in their hands and attack the monsters.
the canoe-races caused much excitement, and the chief, meri, paddled dexterously—in fact, he was superior to the others in most of the sports.
edgar was much interested in watching the natives build a canoe. a tree was felled, and the branches cut off. then, for a common fishing canoe, the log was hollowed out about fifteen feet long, and a rough canoe was soon formed. the better-built canoes were made of separate planks raised from the keel, and laid on in pieces from twenty-five to fifty feet long. gum of the bread-fruit tree was used instead of pitch, and smeared over to make them water-tight. the inside and outside were smoothed, and when finished the canoe looked a creditable craft.
although edgar enjoyed the experiences he was going through at tana, he was anxious to get away now captain manton had been discovered; but the chief always made some excuse for detaining them, and wal jessop said it would be safer to obtain his permission to leave. captain manton was also in a hurry to depart, and once more get to sea. wal jessop gave meri to understand that it was necessary for them to leave, and the chief said he would consider the matter.
a meeting was held under the banyan tree in the marum, and the three friends looked on, much interested in the proceedings.
wal jessop gathered that there was considerable opposition to captain manton’s departure, and that the chief did not care to resist the will of the natives. when the meeting was over, meri said his people were not willing that captain manton should go with edgar and wal.
to this wal jessop made no reply, but after consulting edgar and captain manton, it was arranged they should make a bolt for it at night, seize one of the canoes, and row back to the schooner.
wal jessop went to the schooner to give instructions for all to be ready for sailing immediately they were on board.
towards evening, when the natives were returning from the plantation, there was a great row amongst them. they came forward shouting, dancing, and gesticulating, and in their midst was a poor wretched native, almost ready to drop with fright. meri’s men had kidnapped this man, who belonged to another tribe, and he knew, poor wretch! the fate in store for him.
‘what will they do with that poor beggar?’ said edgar.
‘eat him probably,’ said wal jessop with a shudder. ‘the natives here are cannibals.’
‘horrible!’ said edgar. ‘can we do nothing to prevent it?’
‘i am afraid not,’ said wal. ‘i will remonstrate with the chief, but it will be all to no purpose. all we can do is to take advantage of their absence when the poor wretch is killed, and make for the schooner.’
‘speak to meri,’ said edgar. ‘we ought to stop it if we can.’
wal jessop went to the chief, who acknowledged it was the custom to kill and eat prisoners of another tribe. wal then tried to buy the wretch off, but the chief was firm. he could not interfere with the custom of the tribe.
that night a large fire was lighted in the marum, and they could see the flames flashing in the darkness.
they shuddered as they thought of what was about to take place; but as they were powerless to interfere they determined to steal away to the schooner.
cautiously they went down to the beach and secured a canoe. captain manton sat in the bow, where there was a seat for the chief, and wal and edgar paddled.
before they were half-way to the schooner the natives saw them, and, uttering loud cries, ran down to the beach. a large canoe was quickly launched, meri took his place in the bow, and the pursuit commenced.
‘they will overhaul us before we reach the schooner,’ said wal. ‘our only plan is to frighten them. we have our rifles. you must send a bullet or two in their direction, edgar. do not harm anyone if you can help it, but strike the canoe somewhere near the chief. it will give him a shock, and may hinder the pursuit.’
the natives were fast nearing them, their canoe skimming along the water with wonderful swiftness. meri stood up in the bow, spear in hand, and signalled them to stop. his dark figure was plainly seen in the moonlight which covered the sea with a soft, silvery glow.
edgar put down his paddle and took up his rifle, which he levelled at the chief.
meri saw him, but did not flinch. he turned to his men and urged them on.
edgar took aim and fired at the bow of the canoe. it was a lucky shot, for just as he fired the bow of the canoe rose slightly, and the bullet splintered the wood under meri’s feet.
this caused the chief to spring backwards, and in so doing he stumbled and fell into the water. the natives at once ceased rowing, and assisted him to get into the canoe.
edgar, as soon as he had fired the shot, put down the rifle and grasped the paddle. they gained on the canoe again, and reached the schooner before the natives. captain manton was assisted into the schooner, and edgar and wal quickly followed, taking good care to throw their rifles to the men on deck.
everything was ready for sailing immediately, but before the schooner could get under way the canoe, full of natives, was alongside.
meri was about to spring on the schooner when edgar levelled his rifle at him, and wal jessop shouted:
‘get back, or we shall fire. we want to leave peaceably. go back to your island. you have had many presents from us.’
the chief said they wanted their white man back, and meant to have him.
‘then you must look out for a row,’ said wal.
the schooner was now under sail, and although there was but little breeze, she made headway. seeing the schooner gliding away, the chief gave some order to his men, who stood up and hurled their spears at those on deck.
‘lie flat down,’ shouted wal, who saw their intention; and they all fell on the deck. the spears whistled harmlessly over them, one or two striking the mast.
‘give me the gun; i’ll give them a dose of shot for that,’ said edgar.
wal jessop handed him a gun, and edgar fired it at the canoe. the shot told, and one or two of the natives were hit, but not severely. this had the desired effect, and, seeing pursuit was both hopeless and dangerous, the chief ordered them to paddle back to the island.
the travellers were all glad to get safely away from tana, and decided to sail direct to sydney, as there was an ample supply of food on board. captain manton seemed to recover every day at sea, and both edgar and wal jessop did all in their power to cheer him and make him forget what he had suffered.
the voyage back to sydney was uneventful, and the little schooner entered the heads sooner than was expected, and cast anchor in watson’s bay.
captain manton, as they neared the heads, had looked long at the fatal rocks where the distant shore went to pieces, and the tears stood in his eyes as he thought of that awful night.
when they were in the smooth waters of the harbour, and snugly at anchor in watson’s bay, his spirits revived at the prospect of meeting his daughter again.
he wondered if she would know him, for he was much altered, and she was a little child when last he saw her on that fatal night.
‘i am sure she will recognise you,’ said edgar; ‘you look much more like your old self now. when we found you at tana you were a different man.’
they landed at the jetty, and walked up to wal jessop’s cottage.
‘we shall give them a surprise,’ said edgar.
‘a pleasant one,’ said wal.
captain manton’s heart beat fast as he walked up the familiar road, and hastened to meet the daughter he had thought he would never see again.
‘perhaps it will be better for me to go on first,’ said wal, ‘and prepare her. the sudden joy may be too much for eva.’
they agreed, and wal walked on. he reached the cottage door, and knocked. his wife opened it, and gave a cry of joy as she saw him. after a hearty embrace, she said anxiously:
‘where is edgar? is he well?’
‘never better,’ said wal. ‘where’s eva?’
eva heard them talking, and came running into the room. she rushed into wal’s outstretched arms, and he kissed her tenderly.
‘edgar has come back,’ said wal, ‘and someone else—someone you love best in all the world.’
‘daddy?’ said eva excitedly.
‘yes,’ said wal, looking from her to his wife; ‘daddy has come back.’
he heard footsteps outside, and said:
‘and here he is, with edgar.’
captain manton came into the room. eva looked at him for a few moments, evidently in doubt.
‘eva, my child, my little one, don’t you know me? come to my arms, my pet; come to daddy again.’
‘it is my daddy!’ said eva, with a joyful cry, as she flew to him. ‘eddy said he would come back. i shall never let him go away again—never, never, never!’
