Adventure, August 3, 1919 — page 147: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

DD 4 ile a. . , Baraka came forward carrying his child’s rattle. , saitliece gee ae “Here, old boy, get a little o’ this in you, said Jackson, opening the bottle and hand- ing it to Baraka, who promptly drank long and deep, coughing and spluttering over the fiery liquor but delighted. Other of the natives edged closer. More bottles were opened. Tobacco was dis- tributed. Fish-hooks were handed around. A new supply of gifts was brought from the boat. The natives were thick about them. “Come to shippy—any time—plenty whiky,” said the generous Willerby as he passed out gifts with both hands. “But no Williams, no Williams boys. No. Bad!” The unutterable “badness” of Williams was conveyed by Willerby’s face and gestures rather than by his words. “That a lie!” said a shmill voice, high- pitched in rage. Jackson and Willerby looked around and saw a beautiful native girl, poised in anger, flashing her dark eyes upon them. tropics. He had seen hundreds, thousands of native girls and been susceptible to the charms of many. But at that moment he thought Uala the most beautiful of any he had ever seen. It was -not true perhaps. Beauty, like other things that have superlatives, is comparative, and the lithe Samoan belle was resplendent among the flat-featured women of the Solomons—blacker of skin than the Poly- nesians and often, even when not in mourn- ing, plastered with lime. “Oh ho!” said Willerby. “Whew!” Jackson commented. “That a lie!’ Uala repeated. ‘Misser Williams good man!” “Full o’ fire!” said Willerby admiringly. He cast about for some present that would be agreeable to feminine vanity, but, _ when he leoked up, Uala was gone. And she had disobeyed Nauma by going within speaking-distance of the Bebe men, but the story she carried to his ears somewha palliated the offense: Bebe men were i Gopassans fool drunk and telling them Williams was bad man; much trouble € m | WILLERBY had been long in the as _ would come sure, and she hoped yaws, , bad dreams and sharks would get every last one of the Gopassans! _ Willerby did not lose sight of his main ‘purpose: to poison the natives with whisky : Sp - ‘ se a x ee SON ieee : a ’ - *, = é 137 and words; also to find out what he could about Williams, where his ship was and anything else of the kind that might be of value. But, familiar with native lore, he did not forget Uala when he added pay to generosity to get Baraka to make him a love-charm. In no place in the world, as among the Solomons, are love or any other charms so effective. Let a native know that a witch- doctor has prepared a “ghost-shooter” against him, and that native will die. Let @ woman see a love-charm, made with devil- devil magic, in the hands of a suitor, and, though she be the wife of a chief, she will yield. What the chief may afterward do to her, to her lover or, if a bold chief, to the wizard, is none of her concern. She would no more think of resisting the charm than of entering a tambu house. It simply is not done, and that is all there is to it. Willerby’s big red face beamed with pleasure as the natives grew drunk and noisy. He began to have hopes that Williams might be killed—scuppered—and toward that end gave broad hints, together with pledges of valuable friendship. He was well pleased with his work and made Baraka well pleased with his attentions. He made sport of the child’s rattle, told him Williams had given him a ‘“woman’s toy” as an insult to the great devil-devil spirits and, truthfully. enough, that it could not possibly affect the sun. No. Willerby promised to give Baraka information concerning the weather from day to day and not to imsult the devil- devil spirits by presents of a “woman’s toy.” And Baraka was to make a love-charm and give it to Uala, telling her that she could not resist the affection of Willerby. It was not usual for the wizard to have the suitor present the charm by proxy, but Willerby thought in this instance it was advisable. He did not care to remain until Baraka was sober enough to dabble with the magic from his gourds. The casks were filled, the full supply of gifts distributed, and Willerby and _ his party returned to the ship. As Willerby came on deck, flushed and pleased, he was met by Lania, who, clear- eyed and fresh, carefully dressed, was alone under the awning, waiting. He forgot all about the dusky Uala. Lania was incom- parable, and she then showed a spirit, a vivacity which Willerby could not see was — — aldo: te bs *,. - OS