Kak 
 
 enionos 
 
 W Carlton Dawe
 
 KAKEMONOS
 
 BY THE SAME AUTHOR 
 Uiiiform with this 
 
 Yellow and White. Cr. 8vo. y. 6d. net.
 
 KAK EMON OS 
 
 TALES OF THE 
 
 FAR EAST 
 
 BY W. CARLTON DAWE 
 
 JOHN LANE: THE BODLEY HEAD 
 LONDON AND NEW YORK, 1897
 
 Printed by T. and A. Constable, Printers to Her Majesty
 
 CONTENTS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 ON THE BANKS OF THE MENAM .... I 
 
 HIS JAPANESE WIFE 36 
 
 'PULO CONDORE' 56 
 
 A NIGHT IN CANTON 75 
 
 WHY MRS. WETHERTON WENT HOME . . . IO3 
 
 THE PHANTOM JUNK I20 
 
 THE PASSENGER AFT 139 
 
 CHIEF OFFICER GROVER 181 
 
 SAYONARA 203
 
 ON THE BANKS OF THE 
 MENAM 
 
 The voyage up the Gulf of Siam had been 
 an uneventful one, and we had no sooner cast 
 anchor off the island of Koh-si-chang than I 
 was all impatience to be away sight-seeing at 
 Bangkok. But our ship being too big to go 
 up the Menam, we perforce had to wait for 
 the small steamer which plies between the 
 island and the capital, unless we cared about 
 venturing a voyage in one of the rice-boats. 
 This latter alternative not being to our way 
 of thinking, we decided to await the steamer ; 
 so, the next morning after breakfast, we got 
 out one of the ship's boats and pulled ashore 
 in search of game. In those days there were 
 only a couple of native huts on Koh-si-chang, 
 the half-clothed inhabitants of which rolled 
 out to gaze with wonder upon the white 
 invaders. It is with surprise I hear that the 
 king has since built a summer palace there, 
 A
 
 2 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 and that at certain seasons of the year the 
 desolate little island is astir with the great 
 ones of the land. 
 
 However, at daybreak of the following morn- 
 ing we boarded the little steamer, which had 
 duly arrived during the night, and which lay- 
 to alongside of us for the purpose, and away 
 we went for the capital. Our captain was a 
 long, thin Englishman with a dark, untrimmed 
 beard, who had spent the best twenty years of 
 his life in that enervating region, and who now 
 appeared so attenuated and feeble that you 
 found yourself wondering how he managed to 
 hold together. The only other European on 
 board was the engineer, a sturdy Scot, who 
 dined with us in his greasy singlet and read 
 Goethe in German betweenwhiles. He too had 
 spent the best years of his life loafing about the 
 coast ; but the climate, or his greasy profession, 
 seemed to agree very well with him, for to me 
 he appeared a substantially built man, and he 
 ate heartily of the curious-smelling food which 
 the native cook provided. 
 
 After we had crossed the bar the real interest 
 of the journey began. We passed the Paknam 
 fortifications, which in after years were to fail so
 
 ON THE BANKS OF THE MENAM 3 
 
 lamentably before a third-rate French gun- 
 boat, but which the natives thought effectually 
 secured them against invasion from the sea. 
 Here and there the curious-shaped wats, or 
 temples, towered up out of the thick jungle, while 
 numbers of yellow-robed priests passing up and 
 down the river lent movement and variety to 
 the scene. Here a blue-funnel boat, bound for 
 Singapore, forged slowly past us through the 
 thick water ; there, a little higher up, we met a 
 Scottish Oriental, deep-laden, bound for Hong- 
 Kong. The further up we advanced the busier 
 grew the scene ; and when at length we made 
 fast to a buoy in mid-stream, we appeared 
 to be in the centre of the shipping industry. 
 To be sure, there was no * forest of masts,' but 
 nevertheless there was apparently a consider- 
 able trade done. 
 
 The rest of that day was spent in driving 
 through the city, and after dinner that same 
 evening we went, in company with a fellow from 
 the British consulate, to see the sights of the 
 town. He was a good sort, was well known, and 
 consequently well received ; but of the things 
 we saw, or of the things we did, I have no inten- 
 tion of speaking — that is, with one exception.
 
 4 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 Our peregrinations happened to bring us 
 within the vicinity of the native theatre and the 
 clash of tom-toms. Then our consular friend 
 suddenly started, like one remembering an im- 
 portant thing, and suggested a visit to the 
 native abode of Thespis. Without more ado 
 we agreed, and as we walked along he informed 
 us that the performers were really the slaves 
 of a wealthy nobleman, who allowed them to 
 appear in this public capacity two or three 
 times every year. 
 
 I shouldn't like to be forced to tell what the 
 play was about, having but a hazy recollection 
 of it all. There was a considerable number of 
 large-limbed women who kicked up their heels 
 and displayed their naked shoulders to advan- 
 tage, and there was one triple-crowned contor- 
 tionist, evidently the ' star,' who came in for 
 the lion's share of the applause. It was in its 
 way exceedingly clever, and one should only 
 judge things according to their pretensions. I 
 confess I didn't care much for it myself, though 
 I must also admit that our friend from the 
 consulate seemed to think it a remarkably fine 
 exhibition. 
 
 His official standing had enabled us to get
 
 ON THE BANKS OF THE MENAM 5 
 
 fairly close to the big square which did duty for 
 a stage, while the position I occupied was not 
 many feet from the performers. Indeed, when 
 the corps de ballet filled the scene, one of its most 
 prominent members was very near to me. 
 
 Yes, it all happened very quickly. I first 
 noted her gaudy yellow dress, then her bare arms 
 and shoulders. I thought she looked pale in 
 the artificial light, perhaps a little tired or ill ; 
 but her eyes shone into mine with an intense- 
 ness quite bewildering. She was a grand girl, 
 standing firmly on her feet, and carrying her 
 head as though it were the rarest jewel in the 
 world. Though, under all circumstances, a 
 scrupulously conscientious man, I was not one 
 to turn away when a lady looked at me. I 
 therefore did my best to appease her curiosity. 
 That she was extremely curious there could be 
 little doubt, for whenever she came on the 
 stage her great black eyes sought me out, and 
 when I smiled she smiled, at first in a nervous, 
 hesitating way, as though she feared some one 
 would see her. Indeed, I was afterwards told 
 that the ladies were watched with a vigilance 
 peculiar to the East ; but as I looked upon the 
 eye-making as merely a momentary joke, I did
 
 6 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 not display that discretion which the circum- 
 stances really warranted. 
 
 ' Do you see that woman ? ' I whispered to 
 my consular friend, nodding towards the 
 divinity in old gold. 
 
 ' See her ! ' he laughed. ' Egad, I Ve done 
 nothing but see her lately ! At first I thought 
 she was looking at me, but, by George, it's 
 another dog altogether ! ' 
 
 * What do you think of her, eh ? ' 
 
 ' Oh,' he answered indifferently, and, I 
 thought, a little spitefully, 'you won't notice 
 her teeth in the dark.' 
 
 I laughed. ' She 's got a pair of shoulders, 
 though.' 
 
 ' Most women have.' 
 
 * And an ankle.' 
 
 ' A common failing of the sex.' 
 
 ' Get out ! But no larks, now.' 
 
 ' Restrain your ardour, my dear fellow. Her 
 ankles are as far beyond your reach as though 
 she were in heaven.' 
 
 ' I don't know.' 
 
 'You're not likely to. It's true, all the same. 
 My dear fellow, this woman is one of Prince 
 Krum's beauties. Who the devil is Prince
 
 ON THE BANKS OF THE MENAM 7 
 
 Krum? Only a cousin of the king, and one 
 of the richest men in the country. Guarded ? 
 I should think they are. Spies everywhere. 
 You see that fat old chap with the womanish 
 face? — that one over there, the one with the 
 little red cap. No, don't point. There, he's 
 looking at you now. Well, he 's the guardian 
 of this bevy of beauty. I know him quite 
 well by sight, the beastly old eunuch ! ' 
 
 This piece of information startled me some- 
 what, for I had been watching this old man for 
 a considerable time, wondering why he stared 
 so persistently at me. I turned to the girl and 
 caught her eyes, and, as if my brain transferred 
 its thought to hers, she immediately began to 
 study the pattern of the carpet. I thought I 
 saw a peculiar smile break across the swollen 
 face of the eunuch. I know I felt decidedly 
 foolish and uncomfortable. 
 
 ' Better give it up, old man,' said my consular 
 friend encouragingly, as we emerged from the 
 theatre. * Trust Krum for taking good care of 
 his pet birds.' 
 
 * Damn Krum ! ' 
 
 * With pleasure ; but that won't drag those 
 ankles out of heaven.'
 
 8 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 Then he patted me affably on the back, told 
 me to cheer up, and otherwise endeavoured 
 to console me with a chattering stream of 
 ridicule. I bore it all good-naturedly enough, 
 the incident not having yet attained a serious 
 interest. Moreover, I had noted a tone of pique 
 in his voice, and this rendered me complaisant. 
 He could not forgive the girl for her lamentable 
 lack of taste. 
 
 And yet I was not so sure, should I feel 
 inclined to press the adventure further, that 
 the girl was as far beyond me as he pretended. 
 True, I hadn't the remotest knowledge of her 
 whereabouts, nor had I formed any plan which 
 might enable me to discover her ; and yet I 
 had a half-belief, a sort of intuition, that I 
 should meet her again, if only in heaven. 
 I, however, refrained from acquainting my 
 sceptical friend with this belief. Being 
 utterly devoid of sentiment, he would not have 
 understood me, and there is nothing more 
 trying to exaltation than contemptible com- 
 monplaces. 
 
 We returned to our hotel by boat, and an 
 extremely pleasant journey it was down the 
 moonlit river. My companions chatted away
 
 ON THE BANKS OF THE MENAM 9 
 
 merrily, while now and again our jovial 
 guide tipped us a stave of a popular song. 
 He was a merry dog, and his merriment proved 
 catching. Trying to persuade myself that my 
 pretty little adventure was mercilessly nipped 
 in the bud, I did my best to banish the girl 
 from my thoughts, lit a cigar, and lent a 
 robust voice to the chorus which rolled noisily 
 over the white, soft bosom of the Menam. 
 
 But our friend from the consulate had for- 
 gotten to apprise us of the fact that the city 
 of Bangkok boasts an extremely singular pro- 
 duct known as the * hat-snatcher,' a person who 
 plies his trade in the most open and barefaced 
 manner. What a half-naked coolie could do 
 with European hats when stolen would at first 
 seem something of a problem ; but as there are 
 thousands of pawnshops in the city, mostly 
 owned by Chinese, no doubt he finds a ready 
 market. The Chinaman, on the other hand, is 
 much too clever to buy anything he can't get 
 rid of at a good profit. 
 
 It was the morning after our visit to the 
 theatre, and we arose with the intention of 
 further exploring the city. As I stepped out 
 from the hotel and looked up and down the
 
 lo TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 river, a coolie in a flaring loin-cloth came 
 within my line of vision, but, being only a 
 coolie, his presence occasioned no surprise. 
 Indeed, so little attention did I pay him that 
 I started suddenly when I found him whining 
 at my side. One hand was outstretched in a 
 nervous manner, and between his brown fingers 
 he held a slip of red paper like a Chinese 
 visiting-card. He spoke rapidly, and in a low, 
 earnest tone, but of course I could not under- 
 stand a syllable he uttered. Thinking, how- 
 ever, that he was begging, and wishing to get 
 rid of him, I flung him a small coin and bade 
 him be off; but instead of picking up the 
 money he shook his head, advanced a step 
 nearer me, and began speaking more earnestly 
 than ever. Not knowing what the fellow's 
 object could be, I raised my stick threateningly 
 and drove him back. I was never quite sure 
 whether the look that leapt into his eyes at 
 this action was one of anger or regret ; but 
 of one thing I am sure, and that is that he 
 hung his head dejectedly as I turned away and 
 re-entered the hotel. 
 
 Upon emerging a few minutes later I looked 
 round for him, but he was nowhere to be seen,
 
 ON THE BANKS OF THE MEN AM ii 
 
 and, prompted by curiosity, I walked over to 
 the spot where he had approached me. To my 
 surprise I saw the coin still glittering on the 
 ground, and for some inexplicable reason left it 
 there. 
 
 But out in the road, by the fence of the 
 French consulate, I again saw the same coolie, 
 who salaamed as solemnly as before. I don't 
 know how it happened, but I found myself 
 salaaming in return, and then to my infinite 
 relief the carriage dashed on citywards. 
 
 I thought no more of the matter till my com- 
 panion drew my attention to the fact that the 
 man was following us. Under ordinary circum- 
 stances such an occurrence might be deemed 
 unimportant, as droves of whining beggars 
 invariably follow the European ; but this man 
 I knew to be no beggar. What was he, then ? 
 
 I turned round in my seat so as to get a 
 better look at him, but all these coolies seem 
 so much alike that it requires a trained eye 
 to pick out any peculiarity of gait or feature. 
 He came along easily enough, the sun flash- 
 ing on his bare body. When he saw me 
 looking he stopped dead, salaamed respectfully, 
 and then came on again. I waved indignantly
 
 12 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 for him to go away, but he paid no heed to the 
 protest. 
 
 ' What persistent brutes they are ! ' said my 
 companion. ' That fellow 'II cling to our heels 
 till he gets what he wants.' 
 
 ' Yes.' 
 
 But I did not like to say how strangely the 
 man's presence affected me ; nor, for some absurd 
 reason, did I mention aught concerning my 
 previous interview with him. Who was he? 
 what was he? A spy, a thief, or a possible 
 murderer? I own to being most unaccount- 
 ably puzzled, nor was I without a certain sort 
 of anxiety. And yet I did not think the man 
 was either a thief or a murderer, though he 
 could be following me for no good reason. 
 
 Full of curious conjecture, I threw myself 
 back on the seat and tried hard to listen to 
 the glib remarks of my companion, who was 
 humorously dilating on the many original 
 characteristics of the native at home, though 
 to my way of thinking he cuts a much more 
 comical figure abroad. 
 
 We had by this time entered the well-packed 
 native quarter. Here innumerable streets 
 branched off in all directions. The road was
 
 ON THE BANKS OF THE MENAM 13 
 
 crowded with naked children and half-naked 
 men and women, but with a flourish of his 
 whip and a hoarse shout our driver was in 
 among them, scattering them, clacking like a 
 flock of geese. It was at that moment I felt 
 a sudden lightness in the region of my head, 
 and on putting up my hand I found my hat 
 was gone. 
 
 * Hi ! stop, stop ! ' 
 
 The words were scarcely out of my mouth 
 before we had pulled up with a clatter in the 
 midst of the rabble. Springing to my feet and 
 looking over the back of the trap, I saw, with 
 a feeling akin to nervousness, [that the person 
 who had thus unceremoniously relieved me of 
 my headgear was my friend the coolie. I 
 motioned for him to advance, but instead of 
 doing so he defiantly waved the prize above 
 his head, as though challenging me to come 
 and fetch it. 
 
 * I guessed he was up to no good,' said 
 my companion consolingly. ' The chap 's a 
 thief.' 
 
 It needed no great puzzling of the brain to 
 arrive at that conclusion. If I hadn't been a 
 fool I might have known it long before.
 
 14 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 Our coachman, whom we had heard mutter 
 an occasional word of broken English, here 
 ejaculated, ' Yessir — 'at thief.' 
 
 I sprang from the carriage and made as 
 though I would accept the rogue's challenge, 
 but he no sooner saw me advance than he 
 dashed down one of the numerous alleys with 
 inconceivable speed. 
 
 ' No good,' cried my companion, ' come back. 
 You 'd lose sight of him before you 'd gone a 
 hundred yards.' 
 
 Feeling the truth of this, I reluctantly re- 
 turned, longing with an unchristian ardour to 
 lay my hands upon the heathen's body. 
 
 Pushing my way through the grinning crowd, 
 I managed to make the driver understand that 
 I wished to purchase a new hat. ' Yessir, oh, 
 yessir,' he replied, and waving his whip aloft he 
 screamed shrilly at the people, who, displaying 
 much wisdom, rapidly fell back. As the ex- 
 citable little pony plunged forward I took a 
 last look round, and there at the top of the 
 alley-way stood my friend the coolie swinging 
 my new terai above his head. 
 
 Our friend from the consulate dined with us 
 that night, and during the meal some one
 
 ON THE BANKS OF THE MENAM 15 
 
 incidentally referred to my adventure of the 
 morning. The consul laughed. 
 
 ' Awfully sorry I forgot to tell you,' he said, 
 ' but hat-snatching is a very lucrative profession 
 here in Bangkok. It's odd, though, that the 
 beggar should have waited as he did and 
 almost invite pursuit. It 's usually a snatch 
 and a dash down some alley almost before you 
 have time to catch your breath. I assure you 
 I never heard of anything like it.' 
 
 ' That is the least singular part of the affair,' 
 I answered. Then I told them all how the 
 thief had come to me in the morning, how he 
 had left the coin lying on the ground, and how 
 he had subsequently followed the carriage. 
 
 The man from the consulate opened his eyes. 
 
 ' Singular, indeed,' he said. * I confess I 
 can't quite make it out. By the way, do you 
 carry a revolver ? ' 
 
 ' I have one, though I never carry it.' 
 
 'If I were you I should while I remained in 
 Bangkok.' 
 
 ' You don't mean ' 
 
 ' I don't mean anything, old chap. You '11 
 feel more secure, that 's all.' 
 
 That night I locked my door before going to
 
 i6 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 bed, and in my half-waking moments I had 
 blurred visions of a brown-skinned coolie 
 careering madly along the dusty roads, under 
 a column of many-coloured hats as high as the 
 dome of St. Paul's. 
 
 On entering the room next morning I should 
 not have been at all surprised to find that my 
 rascally friend had called on me, or left a card 
 intimating where I might pick up second- 
 hand hats very cheap. I was quite prepared 
 to believe that the fellow was capable of any 
 impertinence ; and when I found that he had 
 not condescended to call, my disappointment 
 was extreme. He was not even out on the 
 frontage by the river, a state of things which 
 suggested a fly and an immediate setting out 
 in search of him. But, joking apart, the 
 mysterious behaviour of the man had appealed 
 to me in spite of my better reason. There was 
 a sense of suggestion, of incompleteness, about 
 the whole business which prevented me from 
 passing on to other things ; and try as I would 
 I could not banish from my mind the man or 
 his singular behaviour. What that behaviour 
 portended I had not the remotest idea. I had 
 my own doubts as to his wish to inflict bodily
 
 ON THE BANKS OF THE MENAM 17 
 
 harm on me, for, unless the man were mad, 
 how could he wish to injure one against whom 
 he could possibly have no grudge? Never- 
 theless, I took the advice of my friend from the 
 consulate about carrying a revolver. There is 
 much wisdom in a state of readiness. 
 
 That night we attended the magnificent 
 ceremony of the burning of the king's mother. 
 She had died some months previously, and her 
 son, having grown weary of sackcloth and 
 ashes, had given the order for her cremation. 
 Even the death of a queen must not entirely 
 retard the progress of a nation. There were 
 grand doings in the neighbourhood of the 
 crematorium, which had been specially built 
 for the illustrious dead ; and as I and my com- 
 panions wandered in and out amid the throng, 
 which showed up luridly by the fitful glare of 
 the sputtering torches, I suddenly missed them, 
 and for a moment or two stood irresolute 
 looking to right and left. As I did so a native 
 passed swiftly beside me, and so closely that 
 I could almost swear he touched me. He took 
 half a dozen quick steps, and then, swinging 
 round on his heel, came towards me with a 
 soft, swift, gliding movement. Indeed, by the 
 B
 
 i8 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 indifferent light, and dressed in white as he was, 
 he seemed more Hke a spectre than a man. 
 Not yet sure that it was I he sought, and 
 failing to attach anything of importance to 
 his movements, I seemed only half-aware of 
 his proximity before he was upon me. Then 
 like a flash he passed to the right of me and 
 I felt my hat go. 
 
 Springing round with an oath, I savagely 
 grasped my revolver, but was only in time to 
 see a white figure mingle with a group of 
 other white figures. Nothing daunted, I walked 
 on in the direction the thief had taken, and 
 presently seeing a form, which I thought re- 
 sembled his, detach itself from the group, I 
 kept it in sight. Of course I made no pretence 
 of hurrying, not wishing to alarm the fellow, or 
 cause a disturbance ; and yet it was curious 
 how that figure kept its distance from me. 
 Whether I walked slow or fast, attempted a 
 little run or a double, the thing was always 
 before me like my shadow. 
 
 At last it led me to the top of a narrow, 
 dark street, and, seeing me hesitate, it also 
 hesitated. I was strongly tempted to pursue 
 the thing, though my better sense warned me
 
 ON THE BANKS OF THE MENAM 19 
 
 of the folly of so doing. What could I hope to 
 gain by such an adventure? I did not even 
 know that the fellow was the one who had 
 stolen my hat. And yet my temperament was 
 such that I knew nothing but a solving of the 
 mystery would satisfy me. 
 
 But here all doubts as to the identity of the 
 man were set at rest, for seeing me hesitate, 
 and fearing I would give up the pursuit, he 
 boldly advanced to within a few yards of me 
 and waved my hat in my face. I immedi- 
 ately sprang forward, hoping to seize him, but 
 he was off with surprising agility, I after him. 
 But a few yards of such going were enough to 
 convince me of the danger of running in such a 
 place, and at once slackening down I pursued 
 him more leisurely. Apparently unconcerned, 
 he too slackened his speed, and, keeping about 
 a dozen yards ahead, he led me right through 
 the dark, evil-smelling street. 
 
 Quite convinced now that the man was no 
 ordinary thief, I was determined to see the 
 adventure through. Perhaps I had my doubts 
 about the wisdom of such an act, but my 
 curiosity was stronger than my discretion. I 
 had not the remotest idea where, or to what,
 
 20 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 the man was leading me ; but in those days I 
 had plenty of faith in myself, and perhaps not 
 a little in my six-shooter. At any rate, I 
 loosened that weapon and kept it ready to my 
 hand, and left the rest to chance. 
 
 After traversing the aforementioned dirty 
 street, my guide bore round to the left, and 
 presently I thought I recognised on the other 
 side of the road the walls of the barracks ; but, 
 without stopping, the fellow led me to the 
 right and then to the left, up one street and 
 down another, till I abandoned all hope of fix- 
 ing my whereabouts : though, by what I could 
 make out of the surroundings, I seemed to be 
 in a more substantially built part of the town. 
 
 Presently I found myself walking in the 
 shadow of a high wall, my guide still the same 
 distance before me. Something told me that 
 we were approaching our destination, and 
 instinctively my feet slipped less noisily over 
 the ground. Then I saw my guide stop and 
 hold up his hand, and, scarcely knowing what I 
 did, I obeyed the gesture. Yet from where I 
 stood I could see him fumbling about, appar- 
 ently with the wall : then all of a sudden he 
 disappeared.
 
 ON THE BANKS OF THE MENAM 21 
 
 Startled a little, I once more felt for my 
 revolver, the touch of the steel having a re- 
 assuring effect on my agitated nerves. Then 
 after waiting for half a minute or so to see if he 
 would reappear, I advanced to the spot where I 
 had last seen him, and behold, the cause of his 
 vanishing was instantly explained. There was 
 a stout wooden doorway let into the wall, and 
 through this the spectre had passed. 
 
 I stood waiting, wondering, uncertain whether 
 to advance or retreat. Thought upon thought 
 counselling the utmost prudence pleaded with 
 considerable eloquence : but in the hands of 
 men and women prudence is like a piece of 
 elastic, and may be conscientiously stretched to 
 suit the occasion. The wall was grim, the 
 door suspicious. In the open street there 
 might be a chance, but behind that wall what 
 hope was there for one man if mischief were 
 meant him ? And yet I was loth to forgo the 
 adventure at what seemed to be its most critical 
 point. Uncertainty there was in abundance, 
 danger there might be, but I must get to the 
 bottom of the business ; and so, without more 
 ado, I put my hand to the gate and pushed. 
 It moved a little, but on pushing harder it
 
 22 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 opened wide enough to allow me to slip 
 through. This I did without further hesita- 
 tion. 
 
 For a few moments I stood on the steps 
 which led down from the gate, and peered 
 intently into the darkness. That I was in 
 some private grounds, or garden, I easily 
 guessed, though the light that stole through 
 the trees was fitful in the extreme. But 
 presently out of the shadows the white form of 
 my coolie friend appeared, and I immediately 
 descended the steps and drew near. As I 
 advanced the fellow salaamed most humbly, 
 muttering beneath his breath something in an 
 apologetic tone. Then with a still more 
 elaborate bow he handed me my hat, and 
 turning on his heel beckoned me to follow. 
 This I did with alacrity, for I now began to 
 wonder strange things. 
 
 But after going a few yards he stopped 
 suddenly, uttered a low exclamation of annoy- 
 ance, and then retraced his steps, motioning 
 for me to do likewise. Wondering what new 
 turn events had suddenly taken, I slipped my 
 hand in my pocket, felt my revolver, and 
 kept close to his heels. Unnecessary prudence.
 
 ON THE BANKS OF THE MENAM 23 
 
 The fellow had merely forgotten to lock the 
 gate, I came suspiciously close as he did so, 
 but, instead of evincing any concern, he took 
 pains to show me how the thing was done. A 
 heavy beam of wood, slipped through a huge 
 staple in the door, and then into a recess in the 
 wall, composed the mechanism ; and though 
 the ceremony interested me but little, the act 
 of the coolie awoke in me renewed confidence. 
 He grunted with satisfaction as the bar shot 
 into its place, and then turning about motioned 
 as before for me to follow him. 
 
 Down the narrow, smooth path we went, the 
 man in his bare feet gliding noiselessly before 
 me, I slipping along almost as quietly. Above, 
 through the thin trees, I caught an occasional 
 glimmer from the feeble stars, but, there being 
 no moon, the night was very dark. And darker 
 it grew all of a sudden, for without warning 
 I found myself in the deep shadow of a huge 
 mass of masonry. A house, I guessed, though 
 whether it was house or wall I could not tell. 
 Here my guide touched me gently on the arm 
 and murmured something that seemed like 
 a warning. I drew back a step further amid 
 the shrubs that grew alongside the masonry.
 
 24 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 and with eyes and ears alert awaited the next 
 move. 
 
 I saw my friend the coolie flit hither and 
 thither, noiselessly as a ghost ; now he bent 
 this way, now that, and, as far as I could make 
 out, he was listening intently. But if he ex- 
 pected to hear anything he was disappointed, 
 for nothing but the rustling of the leaves over- 
 head, and an occasional moan of the wind, came 
 to relieve the oppressive stillness. Then he 
 came to me, and seizing me by the hand led 
 me a few steps to the right, and then halted 
 before a low door. This he opened noiselessly, 
 and without more ado we entered, the man 
 softly closing the door behind him. 
 
 We were now in complete darkness, and I 
 began to entertain visions of traps, assassina- 
 tions, and sundry other curious and alarming 
 pictures ; but the man still held my hand, and 
 my pride forbade me to show any sign of 
 doubt or fear. My forethought, however, had 
 enabled me to give him my left hand, which 
 allowed me to keep the right within easy 
 reach of my revolver. I had fully made up my 
 mind that if anything untoward happened, my 
 coolie friend should pay for it. Perhaps he
 
 ON THE BANKS OF THE MENAM 25 
 
 paid dearly enough for it in the end, but in 
 quite another way. 
 
 Despite the Hghtness of my tread, my foot- 
 steps rang hollowly as we walked, which pro- 
 claimed the nature of our path ; but presently 
 those hollow sounds died away, and I felt my 
 feet touch some soft carpet or matting. Here 
 my conductor slipped from my side, and fearing 
 some treachery I stepped back several paces 
 till I felt the wall. I admit to the moment or 
 two of suspense which followed, and then I 
 noticed a feeble light to the left of me. It was 
 the coolie who advanced with a small lamp in 
 his hand. 
 
 Signalling me to follow him in silence, he led 
 the way across the room, the outlines of which 
 I could but indistinctly discern, at the further 
 end of which hung a pair of heavy curtains. 
 Parting these he disclosed a narrow staircase 
 which led upward, and then stood aside holding 
 the curtains for me to pass. I looked at him 
 suspiciously, but he only smiled reassuringly 
 and motioned for me to advance. Advance, 
 yes, but where, to what? Again the fellow 
 smiled, and again my instinct told me to trust 
 him, though prudence cautioned me with no
 
 26 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 uncertain voice. And then I almost laughed 
 aloud as I thought. Prudence ! what had I 
 to do with such a quality ? The moment I 
 had given myself into the keeping of this coolie, 
 prudence and I had parted company. Come 
 what might I would see the thing through. 
 
 Up the stairs I went, the man holding the 
 light above his head for me to see, and in a 
 brief space I reached the top. Then the light 
 was withdrawn, but I was no longer in darkness, 
 for away before me, at the end of what appeared 
 to be a long passage, I beheld a feeble glimmer. 
 Towards this I immediately set out, my pulses 
 now going at express speed. The air was warm 
 here, and scented, and seemed to intoxicate 
 me as I drew it in. Over the thick carpet my 
 feet slipped noiselessly, and with a rapidity born 
 of intense excitement I approached the lamp. 
 It was then I saw that the passage apparently 
 ended in a blind wall, but on getting closer I 
 discovered that the supposed wall was a pair 
 of heavy dark curtains which hung rigidly in 
 their place. 
 
 That the lamp was meant as a guide I could 
 not doubt, and yet I stood irresolute before 
 those curtains wondering what the next step
 
 ON THE BANKS OF THE MENAM 27 
 
 would lead to. Then with a conscious throb of 
 irritation I drew the curtains aside, and 
 
 The room was low, dimly lighted, and full of 
 rich perfume, the perfume that had almost made 
 me drunk. Here and there were grim Oriental 
 carvings, the designs of which cut fantastic 
 capers in the strange light, and here and there 
 were quaint Oriental seats, and hangings of 
 curious designs in silver and gold. The light 
 stole through the pink globe of a lamp which 
 hung in the far corner, beneath which I saw a 
 woman reclining amid a heap of rosy cushions. 
 By the way her breast rose and fell I guessed 
 she was asleep, though her manner of waking 
 as I advanced, and her affected cry of alarm 
 when she beheld me, gave me that confidence 
 I might otherwise have lacked. 
 
 I bowed, drawing still nearer to her, muttering 
 an apology for my intrusion, which, of course, 
 she didn't understand, but which made not the 
 slightest difference to me. Training demanded 
 an expression of some sort, and if the lady 
 didn't know what I meant she had not the 
 usual acumen of her sex. 
 
 She rose as I advanced, and I recognised her 
 in a moment. It was the same woman whom
 
 28 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 I had seen dancing in the native theatre. She 
 wore the same yellow dress : great gold bangles 
 spanned her wrists and ankles, those ankles 
 which, after all, were not so far off as heaven. 
 She smiled as she saw I recognised her, and 
 murmured something in a soft, low voice. I 
 answered, and she listened intently while I 
 spoke ; but when I finished she shook her head 
 with a pathetic little smile. Yet under some 
 conditions the eyes speak more eloquently than 
 the tongue, and those conditions were with us 
 at that moment. 
 
 And so for the next three nights my coolie 
 friend met me at the gate and escorted me to 
 the bottom of the stairs as he had done on the 
 occasion of my first visit. But on the fourth 
 night there was no coolie escort awaiting me, 
 though when I pushed the gate I found to my 
 relief that it had been left unlocked. Though 
 evidently called away on some other business, 
 he had arranged everything for my easy en- 
 trance. Knowing the road so well by this time, 
 I soon passed down the garden and entered 
 the house by the little low door. Here I stood 
 for several seconds listening intently ; but no
 
 ON THE BANKS OF THE MENAM 29 
 
 sound of a suspicious nature reaching me, I 
 pursued my way. 
 
 The woman was waiting for me as before ; 
 the coffee in dainty little cups was spread on 
 the richly inlaid table, the sweetmeats piled in 
 dainty dishes beside it. She let an unconscious 
 sigh of relief escape her as she saw me, and I 
 thought she clung to me rather hysterically. 
 Her big eyes shone excitedly, and nothing 
 could assuage the rise and fall of her breast. 
 
 It happened like a flash. There was a sudden 
 swish of the curtains to the right of us, and 
 half a dozen men bounded into the apartment 
 — mercenaries, I did not doubt. As I sprang to 
 my feet and faced them they drew their knives as 
 one man — long, ugly weapons like Malay creeses 
 — and threatened me with instant annihilation. 
 But finding the ferocity of their looks ineffec- 
 tual, one of the men advanced a step, pointed 
 to the woman, and said something. What it 
 was I did not know, but I guessed easily 
 enough. He wanted me to hand her over. 
 The poor thing shrank trembling to my side 
 and turned a pair of imploring eyes into mine. 
 Had I been the most selfish of mortals I could 
 not have resisted that mute appeal. I knew
 
 30 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 enough of the inner life of the East to guess 
 the fate of faithless women ; and recognising 
 my obligations, I shook my head at the men 
 and flung one arm round the quivering shoulders 
 of the woman. 
 
 This act was answered in just the way I 
 expected. It was the signal for an immediate 
 advance on the part of the enemy ; but as they 
 raised their feet for the second step, I brought 
 my pistol to bear full on the leader's face. For 
 a moment he did not seem to recognise the 
 weapon, but when he did he fell back with a 
 cry of rage. The others huddled together in 
 a heap behind him, and seemed to be in deadly 
 terror lest I should let fly. But such was not 
 my intention unless close pressed : then it was 
 a case of save himself who could. 
 
 Seeing the marked effect my revolver had 
 upon them, I resolved to test its moral influence 
 to the full. Acting upon that excellent intent, 
 I moved slowly towards the curtain through 
 which I had entered, still keeping the woman 
 by my side. When close pressed, and in 
 desperate straits, we must, if we would fight 
 our way out, think quickly and act with bold- 
 ness and precision. It was evident that I
 
 ON THE BANKS OF THE MENAM 31 
 
 could not leave the woman to the mercy of 
 those hired ruffians ; it was also evident that I 
 could not expect to remain long in that place 
 without violence of some sort being directed 
 against me. True, I didn't know where I 
 could take her, or what I should do for her if 
 rescued. Indeed, I never thought anything 
 about it. My one fixed idea was to save her 
 from the fury of her persecutors. 
 
 They watched my movements with stealthy 
 glances, my boldness not a little disconcerting 
 them ; but, as I had their captain covered, and 
 as he feared to move, none of the others 
 attempted an advance. On the contrary, three 
 of them retreated slowly till they were right 
 against the curtain which shielded their en- 
 trance, and as I watched I saw them disappear 
 behind it. For a moment, but for a moment 
 only, I congratulated myself Then I knew 
 that another and a worse danger threatened 
 me. The three men whom I thought my pistol 
 had terrified had either gone to alarm the 
 house or to cut off my retreat. This fact the 
 woman seemed to grasp as soon as I. She 
 uttered a quick exclamation and pointed 
 excitedly to the exit.
 
 32 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 Immediately turning my attention to it I 
 began a cautious if quick retreat ; but our 
 assailants, fearful that we should make good 
 our escape before their companions intercepted 
 us, bounded forward as at a given signal. I 
 fired full at the leader, but in the excitement 
 missed my aim, or, at least, did nothing but 
 tear a hole through his ear. With a howl of 
 pain he sprang at me, and, though I brought 
 him to the floor with my second shot, he ran 
 his knife into my thigh as he fell. Then, like 
 a pair of devils, the other two were upon me, 
 and though I fired once, twice, I failed to hit 
 them in any vital part. A knife flashed before 
 my eyes — indeed, it seemed to be almost in 
 my face before I saw it. And yet my hand 
 went up, and the sharp steel rang on the barrel 
 of my revolver, knocking that weapon from my 
 hand. The man immediately closed with me, 
 and then began a fierce struggle to see which 
 should throttle the other. 
 
 Round and round the room we went, sending 
 a table spinning here, a bench there, I moving 
 rapidly with the object of giving the other 
 fellow no opportunity of striking me. He 
 circled round and round me with his weapon
 
 ON THE BANKS OF THE MENAM 33 
 
 ready to stab, I using as best I could his com- 
 panion as a shield. But at length, being pressed 
 close, I stumbled over a low divan, and both I 
 and my opponent went flying to the floor. 
 
 Now began a struggle to see, not which 
 should get uppermost, but which should secure 
 the bottom place ; for like a flash of inspiration 
 came the warning that the underneath position 
 would be the safer. Unfortunately, in falling, 
 I had thought only of getting my opponent 
 beneath me, and this, to my confusion, I 
 succeeded in doing. It was when I wished to 
 reverse this state of things that the struggle 
 came. But it did not last long. With a quick 
 movement the fellow caught me by the arms ; 
 I saw his companion dash forward ; I almost 
 fancied I could feel the knife entering my back. 
 Instead of that there came a sharp, agonising 
 shriek, and the would-be assassin lurched 
 forward on his face some three or four yards 
 away. Surprised, I threw my opponent off" 
 and sprang to my feet, and behold ! the woman 
 was my deliverer. There she stood with the 
 dripping knife in her hand, a look of fearful 
 exultation in her eyes. She saw the look of 
 gratitude in mine, and her wild face brightened. 
 C
 
 34 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 But there was no time for words, nor looks 
 neither. Stooping, I picked up my revolver, 
 and also possessed myself of my would-be 
 assassin's knife. As for the fellow with whom 
 I had wrestled, there was nothing further to 
 fear from him. He was lying insensible, with 
 mouth and eyes open, breathing stertorously. 
 With a quick gesture I called the woman to 
 my side, and together we quitted the chamber. 
 
 Beyond the curtain the passage was in 
 darkness, but the woman seized my hand and 
 hurriedly led me forward. Knowing every 
 inch of the way as she did, I could not have 
 had a better guide. Onward we went over the 
 soft carpet at a rapid pace, down the stairs 
 of which I have already spoken, and so on 
 through the passage in which I recollected 
 that my steps echoed strangely. Then, almost 
 before I was aware we had reached it, she 
 flung open the low door which gave admittance 
 to the house, and, ere I could restrain her, 
 sprang out into the grounds. At the same 
 moment three white forms flitted out from the 
 surrounding shadows, and three cruel knives 
 went stab, stab, stab into her bare breast. 
 With scarcely a moan she fell back in my arms
 
 ON THE BANKS OF THE MENAM 35 
 
 the blood gushing out from the three separate 
 wounds. That the blows were meant for me 
 I did not doubt, and at that moment I almost 
 regretted that the assassins had made a mistake. 
 
 Lifting the poor girl's head in my arms, I 
 tried to staunch the awful flow of blood ; but 
 she was already in the last fearful gasp. Even 
 as I held her head I felt it grow suddenly 
 heavy. 
 
 The assassins, having done their work, fled I 
 know not whither. Without further molestation 
 I reached the gate, passed out, and left the 
 dead girl to the care of the gods.
 
 HIS JAPANESE WIFE 
 
 So-called men of honour are notoriously dis- 
 honourable where women are concerned. As 
 man to man they savour much of self-sufficiency ; 
 as man to woman they wear quite another coat. 
 But in the Far East such things matter little, 
 and the native woman doesn't count. She may 
 have a soul to save, but we doubt it. Heaven 
 knows, her own men think little enough of 
 her : we think less. She may have brothers 
 and sisters, a mother — a husband, perchance. 
 It is really no affair of ours. To those who 
 stay at home in England and sentimentally 
 ponder over the magnificent self-sacrifice of 
 the missionaries, their loyalty, steadfastness, 
 and devotion to a hopeless cause, the life of the 
 ordinary young fellow in the East may come 
 as something of a shock. But trust the ordinary 
 young fellow for knowing what he is about. 
 When he do n't, he makes what the world 
 calls a hideous failure of his life.
 
 HIS JAPANESE WIFE 37 
 
 Cuthbertson was such a failure, and those 
 who knew him are never likely to tread in his 
 steps. Nobility is a transcendent virtue when 
 it doesn't cost you anything : in Cuthbertson's 
 case it was a deplorable vice. The preacher 
 will tell us that we are all brothers : he knows 
 very well that we are nothing of the kind. 
 Custom is a barrier through which the blood 
 of brotherhood may trickle, but which it can 
 never surmount. Nor need we go to the East 
 to find comparisons. 
 
 Cuthbertson was what is commonly called a 
 'good sort' — in the best sense of the term. 
 The man, without being in the least degree 
 priggish, was thoroughly honest ; and if he 
 never indulged in our excesses, he could take 
 his whisky-and-soda with the best of us. A 
 spruce, tidy fellow, with a thoughtful dark face 
 and a pair of exceedingly pathetic eyes. I 
 confess I always had a sneaking regard for 
 him ; and though some of the younger fellows 
 thought he gave himself superior airs, I think 
 I understood him. The difference between us 
 was merely one of balance : of course we knew 
 on whose side the deficiency lay. 
 
 So far he had managed to steer pretty clear
 
 38 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 of the women, which, to our way of thinking, 
 was anything but an agreeable sign. Nor did 
 we forget to let him know it : but he only 
 shook his head and smiled. The pathetic eyes 
 may have looked a shade more pathetic : for 
 the rest, the man was unassailable. 
 
 As a rule he sat at the head of our mess, 
 and I must admit that, undemonstrative as he 
 was, his presence acted beneficially upon us. 
 There were no assumed airs, no little bits of 
 consequence peeping out ; but all the same we 
 knew that Cuthbertson's eyes were upon us, 
 and we guessed that the brain behind was 
 summing us up, and not unfairly. There was 
 at least one man in Yokohama who had the 
 whip-hand of our human frailties. 
 
 Then came the night when he suddenly 
 announced his intention of severing his con- 
 nection with the mess, and very politely 
 requested us to elect another chairman. He 
 was going to move into new quarters, he said, 
 and begged that we would sometimes give 
 him a kindly thought. Of course we drank 
 his health and declared that he was the jolliest 
 of jolly fellows ; and he made a very neat and 
 suitable speech, to which two or three of our
 
 HIS JAPANESE WIFE 39 
 
 members attempted a reply ; but Cuthbert- 
 son's easy effort put their stammering to the 
 blush. 
 
 The next night his chair was empty. Much 
 as we, in a silent way, resented his superiority, 
 I think we missed him a good deal when he 
 left — more, in fact, than any of us would care 
 to admit ; but we elected another chairman 
 in his place, and the world went on spinning 
 just the same. 
 
 In the meantime it leaked out that he had 
 taken a neat little cottage on the Bluff, and 
 that he had a pretty little Jap to keep house 
 for him. Of course we smiled significantly at 
 the latter piece of information, surprised and 
 yet not surprised ; though we protested that 
 he had stolen a most unjustifiable march upon 
 us. And yet I think he went up several de- 
 grees in our estimation. We like other fellows 
 to possess our own manly attributes. 
 
 He bore the subsequent chaff well enough. 
 Sometimes I thought he flushed painfully, at 
 others his curious brown eyes flashed sudden 
 sparks of fire — real resentful fire that almost 
 seemed to scorch. But that was when the 
 remarks ran too freely on the housekeeper.
 
 40 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 After all, it was nobody's business but his 
 own, and a man's housekeeper need not 
 necessarily be old and ugly. Accident may 
 occasionally unearth a fairly presentable one, 
 and when it does, what is man that he should 
 run counter to the gods ? We, however, failed 
 most lamentably in our endeavours to get 
 an introduction. Cuthbertson smiled affably 
 enough at the suggestion, and even went so 
 far as to say that he would see about it ; but 
 we knew that he never entertained the notion 
 for a moment. It was always, * Some day, 
 old chap ' — the day that never comes. 
 
 Perhaps it was scarcely consistent with our 
 exalted notions of honour, but we determined 
 by hook or by crook to get a peep at Cuthbert- 
 son's mysterious housekeeper. We thought, 
 apart from our knowledge of the uses to which 
 housekeepers are put, that there was some- 
 thing underhand in this particular engagement ; 
 but for a long time the secret, if there were 
 one, baffled us. None of us was ever asked 
 to the cottage to dinner, though occasionally 
 a fellow from the office went up to tiffin. But 
 eyes were strained in vain, ears kept vainly on 
 the alert. The housekeeper knew how to send
 
 HIS JAPANESE WIFE 41 
 
 in a good tiffin, and also how to keep herself 
 out of sight. 
 
 But one Sunday afternoon, happening to be 
 in the neighbourhood of the cottage, I thought 
 I would look Cuthbertson up and give him the 
 time of the day. Filled with this friendly 
 intention, I approached the house. His boy 
 met me on the verandah, and in answer to my 
 inquiries informed me that his master had just 
 gone out, but that he was expected back every 
 moment. Would I be condescending enough 
 to enter and wait for him ? 
 
 'Oh no,' I answered; 'never mind. Tell Mr. 
 Cuthbertson I called.' But scarcely had I 
 turned before my mind was changed. Swing- 
 ing round with a suddenness that quite startled 
 the boy, I told him that I had changed my 
 mind, that I would stay till the master returned. 
 The fellow looked at me in his sleepy Oriental 
 way, but without more ado led me into the 
 parlour. 
 
 The fact is, I had suddenly remembered the 
 housekeeper, and I was not without some 
 curiosity respecting her. It was no business 
 of mine to pry into my friend's private affairs ; 
 but if fate threw the housekeeper in my way.
 
 42 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 who was I that I should resist the will of the 
 gods? 
 
 It was a cheerless little room, I thought, 
 though the sun streamed in from the sea, and 
 the plum-blossoms filled the air with sweetness. 
 The furniture was all good, but there was a 
 half-Oriental tone about it which reminded one 
 forcibly of the distance between the East and 
 the West. There were few knick-knacks 
 about ; though here and there some exquisite 
 kakemonos (scroll-paintings) showed up the 
 incongruity of their surroundings. I saw none 
 of the soft touches of the Western woman's 
 hand. All was severely plain, cold, and com- 
 fortless. I could not help contrasting it with 
 the rooms I had once known so well — poor 
 little rooms with furniture none too new, but 
 which the loving hands of mother and sisters 
 had made so warm and homelike. There was 
 nothing of home about this. Signs there were 
 of easy circumstances : neatness was the order 
 of the day ; but not a chair nor a cushion 
 was out of its place. Everything was prim, 
 proper, and horribly clean. 
 
 Several minutes must have passed with me 
 deep in reflection, and yet there was no sign
 
 HIS JAPANESE WIFE 43 
 
 of Cuthbertson, or his housekeeper. Not a 
 sound was heard about the place. The boy, 
 I had no doubt, was lazily dozing somewhere ; 
 the housekeeper, most probably, had gone on 
 a visit to her mother. If Cuthbertson had any 
 one else in the house, I was not aware of it. 
 
 At last, flattering myself that I had shown 
 exemplary patience, I rose, yawned, stretched 
 my limbs, and began to wander round the 
 apartment. True, Cuthbertson was a decent 
 enough sort of fellow, and in a way I was very 
 fond of him, but I was not inclined to waste 
 all the precious moments of my life in the 
 uncertain hope of beholding him. So, feeling 
 somewhat annoyed, I prepared myself a cigar, 
 seized my hat, and was about to sally forth, 
 when I heard the swish, swish of sandals on 
 the soft matting outside. Hastily slipping the 
 cigar in my pocket, I drew back against the 
 door, and presently in walked a little native 
 woman in a white kimono patterned with 
 broad leaves in red. Without appearing to 
 notice me, she toddled straight over to the 
 window, against which she rested, staring 
 dreamily out to sea. 
 
 For a few moments irresolution checked all
 
 44 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 action, and then, with a slight cough, I made 
 my presence known. She uttered a little cry, 
 and confronted me with a look of considerable 
 alarm. The agitation flushing her face made 
 her look very pretty, and I began mentally to 
 congratulate Cuthbertson on the excellence of 
 his taste. Rumour had not belied her. She 
 was an extremely interesting housekeeper. 
 
 But my first endeavour was to quiet her 
 fears, and this I speedily accomplished by 
 keeping my distance and explaining the cause 
 of my visit. At first I thought she looked 
 incredulous, the native woman being ever sus- 
 picious of the European ; but when I explained 
 how the boy had shown me in, she smiled 
 faintly, said Mr. Cuthbertson was expected 
 every moment, and looked as though she very 
 much wished to relieve me of her presence. 
 This utter lack of vanity on her part affected 
 me to a singular degree. Nor was it wholly 
 without a certain influence on my immediate 
 decision. Here was I, at last, face to face 
 with the mysterious housekeeper ; and, know- 
 ing how little in this world is won by delicacy, 
 I was not inclined to flatter that excellent 
 superstition.
 
 HIS JAPANESE WIFE 45 
 
 Undoubtedly Cuthbertson's taste was excel- 
 lent. A finer girl he might have found with 
 little difficulty, a greater beauty ; but as a 
 feminine combination she had not a few good 
 points. Evidently a connoisseur of female 
 beauty, the little he had had to do with women 
 had taught him to look for the best. Indis- 
 criminate admiration of the fair sex is a most 
 commendable quality, but our admiration is 
 for the man who can pick and choose — the 
 man who holds his dignity as a thing of con- 
 siderable value, his affection as an honour not 
 lightly to be bestowed. Cuthbertson had kept 
 himself aloof to some purpose. 
 
 At length I succeeded in quieting her fears, 
 or, at least, in showing her that I had no 
 violent designs on her plump person. I won't 
 go so far as to say that my eyes did not 
 attempt to sound her, shocking as the con- 
 fession may seem ; but the eyes, like all in- 
 flammable matter, are only dangerous when 
 they touch. She, however, appeared capable 
 of entertaining an inconceivable amount of 
 modest eye-play, and after a while began to 
 work her own slanting orbs in quite a coquet- 
 tish manner. At all events, I imagined it as
 
 46 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 such, though, on the other hand, it may have 
 been meant as a display of Oriental diffidence. 
 The foreigner in his sublime self-consciousness 
 is apt to shock the thinking native, and the 
 dazzled eye may even take for encouragement 
 that which was meant for a reproof. 
 
 Actions viewed in certain lights present a 
 disagreeable appearance ; but if we twist about 
 and get round to the other side, it is ten to one 
 we begin to qualify and excuse. The facilities 
 for falling are numerous ; the facilities for 
 rising are few. But there is the mean course. 
 Ah, well, the mean course never yet took any 
 one to heaven. 
 
 I candidly admit my insincerity, leaving 
 those who will take the trouble to think out 
 the position to imagine what they like. I have 
 only to record that when Cuthbertson entered 
 the room he found his housekeeper and me 
 making excellent progress. 
 
 I flush deeply at the recollection, but I 
 flushed deeper as I saw him standing there in 
 the doorway. The woman, who had been but 
 a half-willing accomplice, sprang from my side 
 with a little cry of alarm, and, clutching the 
 back of a chair that stood near, hung her head
 
 HIS JAPANESE WIFE 47 
 
 penitently. I turned to Cuthbertson with a 
 confused look and a half-smiling apology on 
 my lips ; but the smile died from my face 
 and the flippancy from my tongue as I per- 
 ceived the gravity of his countenance. Always 
 stern, he now seemed a very Daniel come to 
 judgment. 
 
 ' Well,' said he with wonderful self-restraint, 
 ' what does all this mean ? ' 
 
 I hadn't courage enough to say outright, so 
 I began to stammer some worthless excuse 
 which, no doubt, he rightly regarded as insolent 
 in the extreme. 
 
 ' I understand,' said he, cutting short my 
 explanation with masterful gravity. ' Such 
 conduct is quite compatible with your notions 
 of honour. Friend and foe are alike equal 
 victims to your honourable scruples.' 
 
 I bowed, though inwardly writhing beneath 
 his censure. I felt that he was still the better 
 man of the two, and the feeling angered 
 me. 
 
 ' Pooh,' I answered indifferently, ' we 're get- 
 ting mighty moral in Japan in these days.' 
 
 'It's not so much a question of morals,' he 
 replied ; ' a subject I should never think of
 
 48 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 broaching with you — as it is one of mere black- 
 guard honour,' 
 
 ' Blackguard honour ? ' 
 
 ' That honour of which blackguards unceas- 
 ingly boast.' 
 
 ' My dear fellow, if you will cage your pretty 
 bird you must expect people to come and peep 
 through the bars,' 
 
 A flush of real anger darkened his serious 
 face, and I saw him press his lips tightly to 
 keep in the hot words that bubbled to his 
 tongue. 
 
 ' Perhaps I had better explain,' he said quietly, 
 his voice seemingly half-choked with emotion, 
 ' That woman is my wife.' 
 
 ' Yes,' I replied, affecting deep contrition. 
 
 * My dear Cuthbertson, I am quite ashamed of 
 myself.' 
 
 I saw him shiver as though my words had 
 fallen on him like a whip. 
 
 * You are mistaken,' he answered quickly. 
 
 * This woman is not my mistress.' 
 
 I saw the truth in his eyes, but it gave me 
 such a shock that I could only gasp out, 
 ' Married ? You have married her ? ' 
 
 ' I have.'
 
 His JAPANESE WIFE 49 
 
 ' Good God ! ' 
 
 ' Why should you say that ? ' 
 
 ' I beg your pardon. It is your own affair. 
 I should like you to believe, though, that I 
 never suspected this.' 
 
 He looked hard at me for a moment or two, 
 and then said, ' Perhaps we were both a trifle 
 hasty. One cannot always avoid a breach of 
 good manners. But, if you don't mind, I should 
 like you to give me an explanation of the look 
 of horror that came into your face just now 
 when you heard of my marriage.' 
 
 ' It was a shock,' I answered feebly. 
 
 'Why should it be?' 
 
 ' Really, Cuthbertson ' 
 
 * I should like to know. If you will pardon 
 me saying so, you are a very tolerable repre- 
 sentative of the world, and I should like to hear 
 the world speak.' 
 
 ' It has a harsh voice sometimes— a cold, 
 hard, brutal voice. Pity it knows not, nor 
 shame, nor truth — except when it censures the 
 fallen.' 
 
 ' And what does it say of me ? ' The man's 
 anxiety stood out at every point, notwithstand- 
 ing his seeming indifference. 
 D
 
 50 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 ' What if it were to say that you had ruined 
 yourself? ' 
 
 ' I should reply that it was merely a matter 
 of opinion.' 
 
 ' But what if it is no matter of opinion ? what 
 if it is a terrible fact ? ' 
 
 He watched me steadily, his whole existence 
 in his eyes. I saw his under-lip quiver in spite 
 of his strenuous endeavours to keep calm. 
 
 ' I think you overstate the case,' he said. 
 * Why should I not have married this woman ? ' 
 
 * Why not, indeed ? All men are brothers.' 
 
 ' I admit the prejudice,' he went on, totally 
 ignoring my remark. ' We may degrade a 
 thousand of these women, but we must not 
 raise one. Raise, good God ! Such is our 
 Western morality here among these simple folks, 
 these folks whom we hope to impress with our 
 great principles. Yet if I disobey this law and 
 do a just deed, I am to be punished for it ? ' 
 
 ' Even unto the third and fourth generation. 
 My dear Cuthbertson, the mere fact of your 
 having kept this marriage secret tells its own 
 tale. Prejudice, truly, nothing but prejudice. 
 But do you know how strong this prejudice 
 can be ? '
 
 HIS JAPANESE WIFE 51 
 
 ' In short, a state of immorality is preferable 
 to one of clean living ? ' 
 
 * Much, under certain conditions — if you wish 
 to retain the favour of the world. It will for- 
 give anything but a mistake.' 
 
 'And I have made a mistake?' 
 
 ' Socially, you have dug your own grave.' 
 
 As he showed me to the door, he said, ' I 
 cannot think you speak with authority. Why 
 should society ban me for doing the right 
 thing?' 
 
 ' Society is never guilty of such a mistake ; 
 the difference is this : the right thing must be 
 that of which society approves. Of course you 
 no longer wish this affair to be kept secret ? ' 
 
 ' No. I am sorry I have kept it secret for 
 so long.' 
 
 We saw little of him after this ; for once the 
 marriage was known, the curse began to work. 
 While he was supposed to have a pretty little 
 Jap keeping house for him, he was a tolerable 
 enough fellow in the eyes of those who couldn't 
 afford such a luxury, and even the women 
 spoke admiringly of that wicked Mr. Cuthbert- 
 son ; but when it became known that that Jap 
 was his wife all the interest in his doings
 
 52 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 evaporated. The fellows called him a fool, 
 with sundry embellishments ; the women rarely 
 breathed his name. He was passed in the 
 street with a curt nod : oftener with averted 
 face. The man who had been guilty of such a 
 fearful mistake was utterly beyond the reach 
 of mercy. Forgiveness might be almost 
 stretched to bursting point, but discretion dared 
 venture no further. The houses that knew him 
 once, knew him no more. The decent fellow 
 had sunk to the wretched outcast. 
 
 As for Cuthbertson, he bravely faced the 
 music for a long time. There was a lot of 
 quiet determination about the man, and, being 
 wroth with the world, he bore its pettiness with 
 a philosophic calm which was highly creditable. 
 Manfully he set his face in the direction in 
 which he believed his duty lay. In business, 
 he was the same thoughtful, courteous man 
 that he had always been : to all appearance 
 he went his way in the same unobtrusive, 
 methodical manner. In his eyes he had done 
 an honourable thing in marrying this native 
 woman ; and if the world could not see his act 
 in the same light, so much the worse for the 
 world. Had he been a swindling bankrupt, a
 
 HIS JAPANESE WIFE 53 
 
 ruthless destroyer of women's lives, false to his 
 friends and his God, he would have found many 
 to make smooth his descent : as he was only 
 a fool who thought that what he was doing 
 would be pleasing in the sight of heaven, he 
 was quietly left to the care of the angels. 
 When that happens to a man, he generally 
 fares badly. 
 
 Cuthbertson was no exception to the rule. 
 Since the day he found his wife in the arms of 
 another, his confidence in her was shaken ; and 
 though he may have had no just cause for 
 suspecting her, his ignorance made his sus- 
 picions none the less acute. Then a son and 
 heir was born to him, a little ugly, pig-eyed 
 Jap which he could scarcely look upon without 
 loathing. The wife's mother brought it to him 
 with pride beaming in her eyes, for the advent 
 of a son is a great event in Oriental families ; 
 but he only waved her away with a curse. The 
 hideous little monkey was no child of his — he 
 would swear it on a thousand bibles ; and weeks 
 passed before he could summon up courage 
 enough even to look at it. When he did he saw 
 the enormity of the crime he had committed. 
 From that time his life began its downward
 
 54 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 course. A dangerous melancholy settled upon 
 him ; he was neglectful of his person, uncertain 
 in business. When he was at home, he wore 
 sandals and an old kimono ; when he went 
 abroad, he looked like a Japanese dressed in 
 badly-fitting European clothes. His eyes, once 
 so serious, grew furtive, wild, excited ; the man 
 who was once so sure of himself now stumbled 
 and hesitated in a most painful manner. Then 
 he got fits of melancholy, and for hours would 
 sit with his head in his hands, moaning to him- 
 self, or gnashing his strong white teeth. Some 
 said drink was the cause of it, but I think it 
 was not all drink. There was a sadness in his 
 eyes that drink could never claim. 
 
 Sometimes, they said, he had his moments 
 of reaction. Then the degradation of his life 
 would assail him with such vehemence that he 
 would spring to his feet and cry pitifully that 
 he was a white man, a white man, and that his 
 place was beside the best white men in the 
 land. While the frenzy lasted he was full of 
 the noblest resolutions. He would retrieve the 
 position he had lost ; he who ruled once should 
 rule again. They should kow-tow to him as in 
 the days gone by.
 
 HIS JAPANESE WIFE 55 
 
 Poor Cuthbertson ! Those days never came. 
 The frenzied resolutions were merely frenzied 
 resolutions. In the midst of one of his noblest 
 fits he saw his little half-breed child crawl in at 
 the door and look steadfastly up at him with 
 its ugly, pig eyes, those eyes which seemed to 
 cry out mockingly, 'No, you are not a white 
 man. You lost all right to that title when you 
 degraded yourself You are my father, and I 
 am only a mongrel.' Then the man in him 
 straightway withered ; the bowed head sank 
 beneath the trembling hands, and the desolate 
 moan went up to the desolate sky, ' O God ! 
 O God ! ' 
 
 Gradually the ostracism became general. He 
 lived as a native, dressed, spoke as one. Only 
 at rare intervals was he seen. Then people 
 told of a man with a bent back and rugged 
 beard and hair who shuffled along in the dark 
 murmuring drunkenly to himself Indeed, most 
 of us had almost forgotten that such a man 
 as Cuthbertson had ever existed, when one 
 morning some sampan men found his dead 
 body floating in the sea, just off the English 
 Hatoba.
 
 'PULO CONDORE' 
 
 Everybody has heard how the Pulo Condore 
 went down in the China Seas with two hundred 
 and thirty souls aboard ; but everybody does 
 not know how it happened. Oh yes, there 
 were full particulars published in all the news- 
 papers, and as a rule your newspaper is fairly 
 accurate ; but in this instance it never guessed 
 the true cause of the catastrophe, or, if it did, 
 it very generously suppressed it. There was 
 plenty of information about typhoons, those 
 windy furies which are almost sure destruction 
 to a certain class of ship ; there were thrilling 
 accounts of the engineers striving heroically to 
 stay the inrush of water to the engine-room, 
 but striving vainly. Then came the vivid 
 description of the helpless rolling in the trough 
 of the sea and the inevitable foundering. Yes, 
 the typhoon is a bad thing to meet, especially 
 if you are deep-laden, or have to depend on 
 
 56
 
 'PULOCONDORE' 57 
 
 canvas ; but on this occasion the typhoon was 
 not primarily responsible for the loss of the 
 Ptilo Condore, though one was raging in the 
 immediate vicinity at the time. She really 
 struck on one of the Linchoten Group of the 
 Loo Choo Islands during the gale. 
 
 How do we know? Well, all those who 
 have not quite forgotten the incident may 
 remember that of the entire passengers and 
 crew only the second mate and two firemen 
 were saved. The latter, of course, would know 
 nothing of the navigation of the ship, but the 
 second mate has been whispering some strange 
 things among his friends ; the rest of the story 
 has been welded link by link. 
 
 The Pulo Coftdore was an iron screw-steamer 
 of some three thousand tons register, and ran 
 under the flag of the well-known ' Pulo Line,' 
 which plies between the Chinese and Japanese 
 ports. No smarter vessel of her class breasted 
 those treacherous seas ; nothing local could 
 beat her in the matter of speed, and even the 
 big mail-boats from Europe had to fire up to 
 show her a clean pair of heels. That she was 
 therefore a favourite on the route might go 
 without saying, her long years of faithful service
 
 58 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 and her house-flag guaranteeing all that the 
 ocean traveller cherishes. As a consequence 
 she rarely left either side without a fair comple- 
 ment of passengers. To this fact may be set 
 down the appalling loss of life. 
 
 Her commander was one Captain Richard 
 Muirley, a name well known on the coast and 
 thoroughly respected. Not loved, perhaps, 
 because Muirley was not a lovable man, being 
 a somewhat gloomy, morose sort of fellow ; 
 but he was a man in whose care the most 
 nervous shipper would trust his most precious 
 freight. It was said that he knew every inch 
 of the China Sea — every island, every sunken 
 rock, every sandbank. And as for typhoons, 
 he had personally encountered more of those 
 monsters than had any other dozen skippers 
 lumped together. A sallow, sullen-faced man 
 into whose yellowy-black complexion the very 
 atmosphere of the East had entered. Stunted 
 somewhat in growth, and thick with good 
 living, he was not an attractive person. Off 
 his ship you might have taken him for a 
 superior artisan : on the bridge, however, he 
 was not quite so contemptible ; and once he 
 looked almost great. But that is to come.
 
 'PULO CONDORE' 59 
 
 As the rules of the company forbade the 
 captain to take his wife with him, Muirley set 
 his better-half up in a pretty little house on 
 the Bluff at Yokohama, and there, every three 
 weeks or so, though occasionally for longer 
 periods, he managed to put in a few days. 
 Then Mrs. Muirley used to go aboard nearly 
 every day to lunch, and merry little afternoon 
 teas were held in the captain's cabin ; but 
 they must have seemed long, lonely weeks to 
 the wife while her husband was steaming 
 south ; and if in the society the settlement 
 afforded she sought relaxation, who could 
 blame her? It was what any young and 
 pretty woman might be expected to do. And 
 Mrs. Muirley was decidedly pretty — as fair as 
 her husband was dark, as slender as he was 
 thick. Indeed, some of the boldest of her 
 admirers even went so far as to draw com- 
 parisons, and wonder : eventually she grew to 
 wonder herself. 
 
 Muirley was not a society man, and his pro- 
 fession debarred him from ever aspiring to be 
 one ; but he could not with reason object to 
 his wife's little social triumphs, though in his 
 heart he may have viewed them with some
 
 6o TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 slight misgiving. Still, they must have been 
 long, dull weeks for her while he was away at 
 sea ; moreover, Yokohama was not a furiously 
 fast place — at least, not in one sense. When 
 he heard the first whispers of her popularity, 
 he was not sure of the throb that sent his 
 pulses forward with a giddy motion, but he 
 afterwards convinced himself that it was one 
 of pleasure. A man is always pleased to 
 possess a fascinating wife. He knows how 
 other men will envy him : he never seems to 
 think of the danger of that envy. 
 
 Of all Mrs. Muirley's friends, male or female, 
 the one her husband liked best was a certain 
 Mr. Poynings, a well-to-do merchant in the 
 settlement ; and, singular as it may seem, 
 Poynings often declared that Muirley was a 
 man entirely after his own heart ; and when- 
 ever the skipper was in port, the merchant 
 invariably strolled round of an evening to 
 smoke a cigar with him and retail the 'latest 
 news. And there was no man who knew more 
 of what was going on in social Yokohama than 
 this same Mr. Poynings. 
 
 But unfortunately there were other retailers 
 of news as well, and in the course of time it
 
 'PULO CONDORE' 6i 
 
 came to the captain's ears that his friend 
 Poynings was rather more of a Lothario than 
 a man with a pretty wife should know, especi- 
 ally when that pretty wife has to be left alone 
 for weeks together. 
 
 It was strange, and of course absurd, but 
 the more Muirley thought of his position the 
 more unsatisfactory he found it. He half 
 admitted to himself that, perhaps, he was 
 hardly the man to charm a woman's heart: 
 no man can wholly admit such a thing. 
 Searching his conscience, he knew that he had 
 been good to her in his own rough way : he 
 did not quite comprehend the singular unat- 
 tractiveness of his style. He always felt their 
 parting keenly, though the knowledge that it 
 was only for a little while tempered its severity. 
 He admitted to the glow of pleasure which the 
 first glance of Fusi-Yama gave him as he came 
 up from the south. It would be folly to say 
 he had not thought of the risk he ran in 
 leaving his young wife so much alone ; but 
 to think ill of one's own folk is the last 
 ignominy of the depraved mind ; and whatever 
 Muirley's faults may have been, he had his 
 share of the sailor's generosity.
 
 62 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 But faith does not necessarily mean blind- 
 ness, and he began to doubt. Not that Poynings 
 was not extremely circumspect ; not that Mrs. 
 Muirley forgot herself for a moment. Indeed, 
 that little lady was the pattern of what a 
 charming wife should be ; but in a moment of 
 sentimentality, after they had pledged each 
 other in sundry whiskies-and-sodas, Poynings, 
 growing confidential, assured Muirley that he 
 thought that worthy mariner was the luckiest 
 dog in the world ; and, upon the mariner 
 pressing for an explanation, the merchant 
 enumerated several blessings of which he was 
 cognisant, among the chief of which was the 
 captain's wife. Then the detective which is 
 in us all here began a further probing and 
 prying ; but try as he would, Muirley could 
 get nothing more out of his friend. When 
 they shook hands that night the merchant 
 knew that his friend had altered. 
 
 Muirley must have thought that his wife 
 needed a change very badly. At any rate he 
 took her down to Hong-Kong with him, 
 having, as a favour, obtained permission from 
 the company. But, singular to relate, when 
 Mr. Poynings knew that Mrs. Muirley was
 
 'PULOCONDORE' 6^ 
 
 going to Hong-Kong, he determined to pay 
 his long-deferred visit to that city ; and on the 
 morning that the Pulo Condore steamed out of 
 Yokohama Bay she had on board the very man 
 her master wished to leave behind. 
 
 The voyage down passed with little of 
 moment. Poynings was, perhaps, somewhat 
 attentive to the captain's wife, but it was the 
 attention of an old friend, and as such could 
 not, or should not, be misconstrued. Muirley 
 may not have liked it, being in the unenviable 
 state of doubting his best friend ; but there 
 was absolutely nothing in the acts of Poynings 
 to which he could reasonably take exception. 
 His wife was, if possible, more charming than 
 ever. 
 
 After a stay of five days in Hong-Kong, the 
 ship pointed her nose northwards once more, 
 having on board, among other passengers, Mrs, 
 Muirley and Mr. Poynings. Up to the last 
 moment the merchant had not thought it 
 possible that he would be able to get his 
 business through in time to enable him to 
 catch the ship, though he confessed that he 
 should strain every nerve to do so. The 
 captain, listening attentively, said nothing;
 
 64 TALES Of the FAR EAST 
 
 but inwardly he prayed that Mr. Poynings 
 might not catch the ship, that Mr. Poynings 
 might never leave Hong-Kong, or that he 
 might never see Japan again. Vain prayer, 
 vain hope ! Even as the Pulo Condore was 
 preparing to slip her buoy, a sampan was seen 
 hurriedly approaching, and, almost at the last 
 moment, Mr. Poynings clambered aboard. 
 
 The rest had better be told in the words 
 of the second officer : 
 
 ' I had seen Mr, Poynings come tumbling 
 aboard, and felt sorry for the captain. Of 
 course we all knew what was going on ; in 
 fact, the whole affair had been a subject of 
 conversation among us during the voyage 
 down. Some twitted the old man with not 
 caring, and spoke of Mr. Poynings' great 
 wealth ; one suggested this and another sug- 
 gested that, but not one of them suggested 
 that it was driving the old man mad. He 
 was quiet, he did not interfere in any way : 
 therefore he was callous. But I could see the 
 change working in him, and I feared the 
 explosion which I knew must come. When 
 it did, it would be the bursting of no ordinary 
 squib.
 
 'PULOCONDORE' 65 
 
 * Always a morose, sullen sort of fellow, his 
 moroseness increased tenfold as we made our 
 way north. He rarely spoke to a soul, and 
 whenever he gave one of us officers an order, 
 it was in a voice like the low growling of a 
 bear. His eyes grew wild and bloodshot, and 
 for hour after hour he glued himself up in 
 the weather corner of the bridge, when for 
 all the use he was he might just as well have 
 been below enjoying a quiet snooze. But that 
 was the strangest thing about him : I don't 
 believe he slept at all during our journey 
 northwards. I know that whenever I was 
 about the decks, I saw him bobbing here and 
 there like an old black cork on a stream, 
 and the chief and the third had the same 
 tale to tell. And all the while his face was 
 growing more haggard, his eyes more fierce 
 and gleaming. He ate little, but drank enor- 
 mous quantities of brandy-and-soda, and 
 smoked incessantly. But the curious thing 
 was that he never appeared to get drunk, 
 never even seemed in a state approaching 
 drunkenness. Though, truth to tell, he spoke 
 so little that it would be hard to say in what 
 state he was, 
 
 E
 
 66 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 ' All the way up the Formosa Channel, the 
 north-east monsoon blew furiously in our 
 teeth, and time after time we had to slow 
 down in the big sea. At this period the old 
 man rarely left the bridge, but with his nose 
 poking over the weather-screen stared steadily 
 ahead. Sometimes I thought he was dream- 
 ing ; but whenever I ventured near him and 
 his eyes met mine, I saw that the dreams 
 he harboured were not of the most pleasant 
 nature. 
 
 ' Of Mrs. Muirley and Poynings I can say 
 little from personal observation, as neither 
 was seen much on deck during the bad 
 weather ; but from what I heard I can gather 
 that the old flirtation was going on in the 
 old way, with, perhaps, a trifle more of reck- 
 lessness, till at last it got so bad that the 
 captain had to speak. It was the first time 
 he had spoken to his wife of this thing which 
 had caused him so many hours of excruciating 
 agony, but she resented it so hotly that some 
 exceedingly bitter words passed between them. 
 
 * That very night the burst-up came. It 
 would, perhaps, be unfair to give any one of 
 the versions which were flying about next
 
 'PULO CONDORE' 67 
 
 morning ; but this much may be stated with 
 safety. The old man, visiting his wife's room 
 in the early hours of the morning, surprised 
 Mr. Poynings there ; and had it not been for 
 the interposition of a couple of passengers 
 from the next cabin, he would assuredly have 
 killed the woman and her lover. 
 
 ' He came up on the bridge just before I 
 was relieved at eight bells, and asked me 
 a lot of long, rambling questions — questions 
 which bore little on my duties as a navigat- 
 ing officer ; and though I was forced to note 
 the oddness of the man, not knowing the cause 
 of that oddness I believed the long-expected 
 had come at last, and that he was really mad. 
 Nor was it till some four hours later that the 
 mate told me the whole story. 
 
 ' All that day he kept the bridge, taking 
 his meals in the chart-room, or rather, I should 
 say, having his meals brought there, for they 
 were taken away again untouched. He did 
 nothing but smoke and drink, smoke and 
 drink. But there was the sickness of death 
 in his pallid face, madness in his unsteady 
 eyes. 
 
 ' At six bells that afternoon we sigfhted the
 
 68 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 Loo Choos, the gale still sweeping furiously 
 down on us from the north-east ; and when I 
 came up on the bridge and found that we 
 were making straight for them, my surprise 
 was great indeed ; for not once during my 
 six voyages with him had Muirley steered 
 any other course than the usual one through 
 the Van Diemen Strait. Still, there was no 
 reason why he should not slip in among the 
 islands if he liked, so I took up my position 
 in the port corner of the bridge and watched. 
 The old man was over on the starboard side. 
 Now and again his voice reached me as he 
 shouted, " port," " starboard," or " steady" ; and 
 when at last we got under the lee of a big 
 island, which for a moment sheltered us from 
 the horrible gale, he turned and beckoned me 
 to him. 
 
 ' As I drew near I saw the mad light gleam- 
 ing in his eyes, and I could not stay the look 
 of concern which rushed to mine. He saw it 
 and began to chuckle hideously. 
 
 ' " This is what they call the Linchoten 
 Group," he said, waving towards the islands ; 
 " a hell of a place for ships. The Golconda 
 went down here — on this point round the
 
 'PULOCONDORE' 69 
 
 corner." He stretched his hand towards a reef 
 which was now opening up about half a mile 
 off, over which the sea dashed and foamed in 
 horrible confusion. " Fifteen hundred people 
 went down in her, they say. God ! what a 
 drowning ! what a drowning ! How many 
 should you think we have aboard of us ? " 
 
 '"Between two hundred and thirty and two 
 hundred and forty," I answered. 
 
 '" Then we can give the Golconda hell ? " 
 
 * " We certainly have a greater responsi- 
 bility." 
 
 ' He laughed brusquely as he turned away. 
 
 * " Did you say ' port,' sir ? " 
 
 'We were now fast approaching the reef on 
 which the Golcojida stranded. I could dis- 
 tinctly see the black, jagged rocks peeping up 
 through the white foam, and we were appar- 
 ently rushing straight upon them. 
 
 ' " No, I didn't," he answered sharply. " Are 
 you navigating this ship, or am I ? " 
 
 ' He laughed maliciously as he turned away 
 from me, while I, feeling rather snubbed, went 
 back to my corner. At all events, it was no 
 fault of mine. If he ran his ship ashore he 
 would have to answer for it.
 
 70 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 ' Nearer and nearer we approached the 
 reef, and yet no sign from the old man. I 
 watched him narrowly, anxiously, and, seeing 
 that destruction was inevitable unless some- 
 thing were immediately done, I, throwing 
 discipline and discretion to the gale, shouted 
 excitedly to the quartermaster, " Port — hard a- 
 port ! " 
 
 ' " No, no! " thundered the captain, " keep her 
 as she is ! " The breakers seemed almost under 
 our bows as he spoke. 
 
 '"But, sir "I began, our danger making 
 
 me reckless of consequences. 
 
 ' " Damn you ! " he howled, shaking his fist 
 in my face, " interfere with me, would you, you 
 son of a " 
 
 ' The words died away on his lips, for at that 
 moment the vessel struck hard on the outer 
 edge of the reef. A look of devilish glee shot 
 over the skipper's murky face. Then, turning 
 to the man at the wheel, he said with a chuckle, 
 " Now, quartermaster, you can port to hell if 
 you like ! " 
 
 ' " My God ! " I cried, seizing him by the 
 shoulder in my excitement, "you have done 
 this purposely ? "
 
 'PULO CONDORE' 71 
 
 ' He laughed a low, mad laugh of triumph as 
 he shook me off, and springing towards the 
 engine telegraph he signalled for the ship to 
 go full speed astern. 
 
 ' Of the confusion that followed I need not 
 stay to tell. As usual, the ship had not boats 
 enough to carry all those aboard. In a few 
 moments we knew the worst. The water was 
 pouring into the vessel fast : she was not ex- 
 pected to float many minutes. Two of the 
 lifeboats were swung out, and after consider- 
 able manoeuvring were set free well laden with 
 passengers ; but the seas were so high that 
 neither of them survived many moments. 
 And all this time the vessel was rapidly sinking 
 by the head. 
 
 * The captain, leaving me in charge of the 
 bridge, scrambled down the ladder and hurried 
 away aft, and presently I saw him approaching, 
 leading his wife by the hand. Mr. Poynings 
 followed in the rear. Skilfully the old man 
 picked his way along the crowded deck, push- 
 ing the clamouring people to right and left of 
 him. 
 
 ' " This way," I heard him say as he dragged 
 his wife up the ladder ; " this is the safest place
 
 72 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 in the ship. You will be quite secure here, 
 quite secure." And he huddled her in behind 
 the screen on the port side, though, as the 
 ship was now rolling broadside on, the screen 
 offered little protection. Poynings followed 
 and took up his position beside her. He was 
 very pale, but beyond that seemed as much at 
 home as if on land. 
 
 '"See, the boats are putting off!" screamed 
 the unhappy woman, her face ghastly with 
 terror, " Why did you bring me here ? " 
 
 ' "Because I want you to see all the fun," roared 
 her husband ; " because I want you to see all 
 that you are going to hell to answer for ! " 
 
 ' The woman hid her face in her hands and 
 began to weep, but an angry look leapt to 
 Poynings' eyes, and he clenched his teeth 
 ominously. 
 
 ' " You are mad, Muirley," he cried. 
 
 ' " Yes, by God," bellowed the captain, " and 
 it's you who've made me." 
 
 ' " I will answer to you when and where you 
 please," shouted the lover, the wind necessi- 
 tating such a manner of speech. " But the last 
 boat is almost ready to put off. Let her go. 
 We two can fight it out."
 
 'PULOCONDORE' 73 
 
 ' For answer the old man whipped a revolver 
 out of his pocket. " If either of you moves, I 
 shoot. Damn you ! " he shouted madly, his face 
 growing black with hate, " do you think I 've 
 done all this for nothing ? No, by God ! We 
 all go to hell together! " And as he stood there 
 flourishing his pistol, he seemed more like a 
 fiend than a man. 
 
 'The wife, burying her white face in her 
 hands, fell on her knees before him ; and there, 
 with the spray dashing over her hair, the ship 
 sinking beneath her, and one and all face to 
 face with death, she prayed piteously for for- 
 giveness, the salt of her eyes mingling with the 
 salt of the ocean. What she said may easily 
 be guessed, though all I could catch was, " Dick, 
 Dick ! " and, " Pardon, pardon ! " 
 
 * He leant forward and seized her roughly by 
 the hand. 
 
 '"Yes, I '11 pardon you!" he shouted, laughing 
 hoarsely ; "let us see if God will !" And with 
 a shriller, fiercer outburst of mad laughter he 
 pointed at the seething sea which was rapidly 
 burying the ship. Then, looking round and 
 seeing me, he beckoned me to him. 
 
 ' " She '11 be under in a minute," he shouted.
 
 74 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 "Run aft, lad, and jump. It's your only 
 chance. You haven't a moment to lose." 
 
 ' I was slow to act upon this advice, for I 
 did not like leaving the woman to perish ; but 
 knowing that the captain would shoot me 
 without compunction if I offered to interfere 
 — and, indeed, interference would now be use- 
 less — I slowly descended the ladder and made 
 my way aft. 
 
 ' A last look I caught of them as I mounted 
 the rail preparatory to flinging myself overboard. 
 Erect in one corner, pale but defiant, stood 
 Poynings, fearing death neither at the hands of 
 God nor man ; the woman still knelt, her face 
 in her hands as though to shut out the view 
 of death ; while the captain, with feet firmly 
 planted and revolver in hand, stood watching 
 them both. Then I leapt into the sea. 
 
 ' When I had time to look about me, the Pulo 
 Condore had disappeared.'
 
 A NIGHT IN CANTON 
 
 From Hong-Kong we took the boat up to 
 Canton, intending to do the sights of that 
 salubrious city. Wills and I had long made 
 up our minds to go and have a ' look see,' and 
 it was mainly owing to a protracted cruise 
 south, on which his ship had gone, that we had 
 been obliged to defer the outing. True, I was 
 not particularly intimate with him, having 
 only met him in a promiscuous sort of way 
 at the Hong-Kong Club ; but as he was a 
 junior lieutenant on board H.M.S. Horrible, 
 he must necessarily be passed, though his 
 ' bounder ' qualities were as conspicuous as a 
 church tower. Not that he was a * bounder,' 
 by any means, or a bad sort of fellow at heart ; 
 but he was a man of great stature and abnor- 
 mal strength, which two qualities, coupled with 
 a diabolical temper, made him a singularly 
 unpleasant person to have any ill dealings with. 
 
 76
 
 'je TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 His bronzed, clean-shaven face looked as though 
 it had been hewn out of brown granite by an 
 amateur modeller ; but there were strength and 
 resolution in its ugly outlines : the heavy, close- 
 pressed brows were such as I should like to see 
 in no enemy of mine. 
 
 We often used to laugh at such a fellow as 
 Wills being only a junior lieutenant, for, if 
 appearance went for anything, no post under 
 that of admiral was big enough for him. Yet we 
 feared greatly that all Wills's bigness lay in his 
 big frame, and that his mind was lamentably 
 out of proportion to his body. But this, while 
 it could hardly have retarded his progress in 
 the service, had no effect upon his geniality 
 while ashore. Indeed, he was in every essential 
 a capital fellow, when he wasn't drunk ; and, 
 personally, I liked the blunt honesty of the 
 man. There was a genuineness about it which, 
 while it might set your fastidious nerves on 
 edge, gave admittance to no doubt. He hated 
 all subterfuge and double-dealing, all shams 
 and pretence. He loathed 'side,' which in 
 itself was quite enough to ruin his chances of 
 promotion. He was one of those idiots who 
 wouldn't wear gloves in winter though the
 
 A NIGHT IN CANTON 'jj 
 
 marrow in his joints froze. I never saw him 
 in a greatcoat. Nobody, I believe, ever saw 
 him in one. He laughed at the idea of a 
 sailor donning oilskins and a sou'-wester : he 
 despised such fopperies and effeminacy. I 
 verily believe that Wills will turn out a great 
 hero one of these days, for he has all the utter 
 disregard of consequences which is generally 
 supposed to belong to the very brave and 
 the very foolish. Death or glory was Wills's 
 motto. 
 
 Well, he went into ecstasies over the first 
 view of the city fragrant. He, with all the 
 sailor-like anxiety to get his feet on dry land, 
 had been pacing restlessly up and down the 
 deck during the whole of the passage up the 
 river ; for, however much your landsman may 
 rave of the ocean, only from a mariner can you 
 get a proper appreciation of the land. 
 
 ' Ah,' he cried, as we drew near, and the city 
 slowly began to unfold itself, * this is something 
 like a place, old man ! None of your cursed 
 conventionality, little god-almighty admirals, 
 or any other social iniquities. Hong-Kong is 
 much too civilised, too damned respectable. 
 Give me a place like this, Hugh, old chap,
 
 78 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 where a man may enjoy himself without let or 
 hindrance.' 
 
 ' Bah ! ' I answered, * you don't know what 
 you 're talking about.' 
 
 ' Don't I ? ' he replied. ' You wait till I get 
 ashore.' 
 
 I looked at him inquiringly, but he only 
 winked roguishly, and then walked abaft the 
 funnel to light his pipe. I waited patiently 
 till he came back, but he never condescended 
 to favour me with any further information. 
 There was, however, a leery look in his eye 
 which did not take my fancy. 
 
 I must confess I was a bit afraid of Wills. 
 It was not the first time, since I had left Hong- 
 Kong, that I had doubted the wisdom of 
 coming with him. Free of the discipline of his 
 ship, he was like a lion loosed from its cage. 
 While things went well, and the beast was 
 unmolested, there was little danger ; but once 
 the tail-twisting began, there would be a heavy 
 score to settle. I knew Wills well enough for 
 that. He was a royal bully, but without an 
 atom of fear. As for consequences — I don't 
 believe his hot blood ever gave cool reason a 
 chance. I had seen him wipe the floor with an
 
 A NIGHT IN CANTON 79 
 
 American skipper in the bar of the Hong-Kong 
 Hotel, and though a dozen of the servants 
 were called in to chuck him out, they did not 
 seem to fancy the business well enough to 
 attempt it. Such a fellow should not have 
 been left rusting on the China station. Where 
 England was giving and taking hard knocks — 
 that is where Wills should have been. 
 
 As soon as we had made fast to the landing- 
 stage, we procured an interpreter and a couple 
 of chairs, each chair having four coolie bearers, 
 and thus royally we set out to do a tour of 
 the city, for there is no other mode of convey- 
 ance, or at least we saw none. 
 
 Of course Wills led the attack. Off he went 
 in his easy-chair, a great pipe in his mouth, his 
 face radiant. This city of fetid smells, of 
 filthy humanity, could not check his irre- 
 pressible good-humour. He was out for a 
 holiday, and he meant to enjoy himself. It 
 was ' Hi, hi ! ' and a punch in the back if the 
 pedestrian didn't get out of his way, or a gentle 
 push on the tender loin with his Penang lawyer. 
 Through countless narrow streets we went, 
 where there was only room for one chair to go 
 at a time : dark, squalid streets into which no
 
 8o TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 ray of sunshine ever came, no breath of pure 
 air : streets literally alive with streams of ugly, 
 dirty Chinamen. 
 
 I think we saw all there was to be seen that 
 day, which, when summed up, did not seem 
 much, the spirit growing weary of the unbroken 
 line of ugliness. But Wills expressed himself 
 as satisfied, as having spent a delightful time, 
 though I knew that in reality he was only 
 living for the night to come so that we might 
 set out to explore the notorious flower-boats. 
 When questioned, he strenuously denied the 
 soft suggestion. He was going to see them, 
 of course ; it was what every fellow did — but 
 as for anything else — pooh, he never cared for 
 Chinese women, ugly little brutes ! Yet he 
 seemed most sadly lacking in restraint, and 
 had it not been for our guide he would have 
 had us there at a most unreasonable hour. 
 
 But at length the darkness crawled in, and 
 in due time we set out on what proved to be a 
 prolonged and surprising adventure. 
 
 I was too unsophisticated to appreciate the 
 peculiar manner in which the gilded youth or 
 the blase old age of Canton enjoys itself ; while 
 even my friend Wills, who dared not utter his
 
 A NIGHT IN CANTON 8i 
 
 disappointment, showed it in the rough edges 
 of his grim face. In the dark, as I stumbled 
 over narrow bridges, it seemed to me that there 
 were endless streets of these boats, the smooth 
 water of the river being the roadway. Many 
 black looks were cast upon us as we crowded 
 in the doorway of these house-boats to gaze in 
 at the people, anxious to discover something of 
 exceptional interest ; but Wills at length pro- 
 claimed the whole business fo be a ghastly 
 fraud, and questioned our guide somewhat 
 sharply as to his reason for bringing us to the 
 wretchedest lot of boats in Canton, The man 
 protested. The boats were the best in the 
 place, the ones all the gentlemen came to see ; 
 but he was afraid the people did not take 
 kindly to foreigners. He would have said 
 'barbarians,' had he dared, for thus uncivilly 
 does the Chinaman speak of the European. 
 
 Wills sputtered contemptuously, and looked 
 as though he would like to damage something 
 or somebody ; but at that moment, perceiving 
 a door partly open to admit a portly Chinaman, 
 he sprang forward, and, before those inside 
 could close the door again, he put forth his 
 foot. His shoulder did the rest. In he slipped, 
 F
 
 82 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 I following at his heels ; for, though I had no 
 wish to force my objectionable presence upon 
 a fastidious people, I had to stand by my com- 
 panion no matter what came of it. 
 
 The portly chow, whom by his red button we 
 at once knew to be a mandarin of the first rank, 
 stood at the bottom of the steps and surveyed 
 us with a look of contemptuous protest ; but 
 Wills, gracefully raising his hat, bade them all 
 a cheery good-evening. To his salutation, how- 
 ever, was returned nothing but angry glances. 
 Pretending not to notice these, he marched to 
 the nearest table, sat down, and then calmly 
 began to fill his pipe. Looking round upon the 
 scowling assembly, he smiled sweetly and cried 
 out to the women, who had ceased strumming 
 their guitars at our entrance : ' Go on with the 
 music, my dears. I haven't got any blasted 
 scruples about melody.' Of course, no one 
 understood a word of what he said ; but his 
 ugly, clever face was sparkling with good-humour 
 and whisky, and even a Chinaman has eyes. 
 
 A curious scene ; an unsafe one too, I felt. 
 Imagine a spacious saloon with a profusion of 
 gaudy gilding and carving ; countless lights 
 twinkling behind many-coloured glasses ; em-
 
 A NIGHT IN CANTON 83 
 
 broidered silk hangings shielding little alcoves ; 
 silk scrolls upon the walls with the wise words 
 of the philosophers written in gold (a quaint 
 conceit) : the tinkling of guitars, the chatter of 
 voices, the close, sickly smell of opium mingled 
 with the disagreeable odour of Chinese cooking. 
 This is the scene we so suddenly entered upon — 
 so suddenly, in fact, that our guide was left on 
 the outside of the door. 
 
 The men who were reclining on the benches 
 drinking tea or playing cards looked up lazily 
 as we entered : the opium-smokers went on 
 with their smoking. For them there was 
 nothing but dreams, and a vagueness infinite. 
 Here and there young girls with white, ghostly 
 faces and vermilion lips flitted, waiting on the 
 gilded youth, who seemed abnormally fond of 
 sweetmeats ; or strummed the gay guitar. All 
 was brightness, gaiety — and smells. 
 
 But as soon as we made our appearance at 
 the heels of the mandarin, and those assembled 
 saw by his looks that we had not come as his 
 guests, an ominous silence followed, a silence 
 most curious and profound. It was as plain 
 as reason could make it that they resented 
 our intrusion. I whispered as much to Wills,
 
 84 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 and suggested a dignified retreat ; but I might 
 as well have whispered to the north-east mon- 
 soon as it roars down the Formosa Channel. 
 Not alone was he by nature a hard, obstinate 
 fellow, never unwilling to fight, but he had 
 reached a certain degree of recklessness for 
 which state a certain fluid might be made mainly- 
 responsible. Under such conditions, I could 
 only wait in fear and trembling, wondering 
 what would come next. 
 
 In the meantime the mandarin had waddled 
 to the far end of the saloon, and there, sur- 
 rounded by the painted women and the blase 
 youth, he began to hold forth in a very excit- 
 able manner. Gesticulations were made in our 
 direction, angry looks were flashed at us, and 
 two or three of the more impetuous of the 
 gilded coterie — flunkies to the last — came over 
 to us, and with extremely threatening gestures 
 began wildly to harangue us. Wills looked up 
 benevolently and smiled approvingly, especially 
 upon one little pale-faced fellow who, quite 
 unnecessarily, had succeeded in working him- 
 self into a violent passion. 
 
 'You're quite right,' said Wills, though he 
 did not understand a syllable of the excited
 
 A NIGHT IN CANTON 85 
 
 spluttering : ' you 're a damned good little chap 
 if you are a chow, and most assuredly deserve 
 a rise in life.' With that he arose, towering 
 over the little Chinaman, but still smiling 
 serenely, and catching the yellow man by his 
 neck, and where the seat of his pantaloons 
 ought to have been, he lifted him on to the 
 table amid the tea-cups. There was a furious 
 kicking of heels, a real smashing of china, and 
 then the little man stood high and dry on the 
 table. Wills immediately bobbed on his knees 
 and made the kowtow. This was too much for 
 the assembly, whose anger immediately gave 
 way to subdued titterings, and in one or two 
 instances to violent laughter. The Chinaman 
 is really a humorous dog despite his bilious 
 complexion, and you will turn him from his 
 evil thoughts in a moment if you can only 
 make him laugh — and keep him laughing. 
 That is the difficulty ; for he is a sly, treacherous 
 brute who unswervingly pursues his end with 
 a quiet stealthiness and enmity unexampled in 
 other races. 
 
 Wills never thought of this, or he might 
 have been more careful. But then, he was 
 never one to think, acting entirely on the im-
 
 86 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 pulse of the moment. Looking about him and 
 seeing the smiling faces, he strode over to 
 where the mandarin stood, and brought his 
 great hand down on that dignitary's shoulder 
 with a ' How do, old buck ? ' 
 
 The portly official seemed to turn yellow 
 and white and green and purple all at once, 
 and had it not been for the assistance of those 
 who stood by he would have collapsed entirely. 
 The looks which he and his friends cast upon 
 the redoubtable Wills were such as to make me 
 wish that we had never entered the place ; but 
 my companion, oblivious of menacing looks, 
 went among the girls, paying them extravagant 
 compliments and chucking them under the chin 
 — a liberty which I am bound to say they 
 seemed to resent, for apparently even these 
 pariahs lose caste through contact with a 
 white man. 
 
 Wills kept calling loudly for tea and beer ; 
 but as neither was forthcoming, he somewhat 
 nonchalantly cleared a little table of half a 
 dozen cups of the former beverage, which cups 
 had duly been laid out for some one else. Re- 
 freshed thus, he seized one of the native guitars, 
 struck some excruciating notes thereon, and
 
 A NIGHT IN CANTON 87 
 
 began to contort his ugly face into a series of 
 most undignified grimaces. Then, lifting up his 
 fog-horn of a voice, he bellowed a famous old 
 sailor chanty, the opening lines of which ran : 
 
 * Sally Brown, I love your daughter, 
 
 Heigh, ho, old and gone ! 
 Love her a darned sight better than I ought 'er — 
 Spend my money on Sally Brown.' 
 
 It was a most moving song, and Wills did 
 full justice to the fine sturdy verse and the 
 monotonous chant ; but how it affected his 
 hearers would be difficult to say. The girls 
 looked scared, the men little better ; while 
 each showed plainly that he thought the big 
 barbarian had gone mad. There was a 
 whispered consultation, and furtive glances 
 were cast towards the door. Then a look of 
 intense uncertainty superseded all, for Wills, 
 following up a glimpse of something he had 
 seen behind a curtain on his left, disappeared 
 in one of the alcoves I have already mentioned. 
 A minute or two of suspense followed, during 
 which I noted the visible darkening of the 
 mandarin's brow, the consternation of the 
 assembly : then there was a sudden rustling of 
 the curtain, followed by the scream of a woman.
 
 88 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 The next moment a Chinese girl, evidently 
 adorned for the sacrifice, bounded into our 
 midst with Wills after her. 
 
 ' Hold your infernal row, you little ass,' he 
 was saying in a coaxing, endearing tone of 
 voice. ' I 'm not going to hurt you, silly cat. 
 Chook, chook, chook ! One would think the 
 hussy had never seen a man before ! Flower- 
 boats are a fraud, Hugh, old chap. Give me 
 respectable England. There, at any rate, girls 
 don't cry out before they 're hurt' 
 
 The girl, in the meantime, her face white 
 with terror, bounded over to the mandarin's 
 side, and, resting her pale cheek on his capa- 
 cious frontage, eyed the terrible Wills with a 
 look of anxious curiosity. 
 
 ' So she belongs to the old buck,' mused that 
 worthy, favouring the official with a meaning 
 look. ' Sly, fat old devil ! I wonder if he 'd 
 explode if I hit him ? ' 
 
 ' For heaven's sake, Wills, mind what you 're 
 doing! The fellow 's a high official.' 
 
 'What if he is? To Satan with him and his 
 high officialism ! That 's the only girl I 've 
 fancied to-night. My dear Hugh, this is de- 
 cidedly hard.'
 
 A NIGHT IN CANTON 89 
 
 He began to look serious : I felt so. 
 
 ' Let us get out of this,' I suggested, being a 
 man of peace. ' The girl 's a poor specimen 
 anyway.' 
 
 ' Humph ! ' said he, as he winked at the 
 damsel and playfully called her a little ass. 
 The mandarin, seeing the wink and the 
 amorous look, scowled visibly. Wills, seeing 
 the scowl, advanced still closer to that dignitary 
 and patted him on the stomach, 
 
 ' Easy, old buck,' he said ; and still continu- 
 ing to stroke the stomach, he added in his best 
 nautical voice, * Belay, there ! Avast heaving ! ' 
 
 One needed to be as reckless as Wills to 
 enjoy the joke thoroughly. To me it seemed 
 a joke of a very grim order : one that might 
 land us in an awkward, not to say dangerous, 
 position. Seeing the mandarin step back, his 
 yellow, puffy face growing dark with anger, I 
 once more implored my companion to desist, 
 to come away ; but the anger, the disdain, 
 which wreathed the Chinaman's countenance 
 but inflamed Wills's resentment, and without 
 more ado he poked his nose threateningly into 
 the mandarin's face. That official, not liking 
 the contact, spat ; and as Wills's ugly face
 
 90 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 happened to be in the hne of fire, it was made 
 receiver-general. He staggered back like one 
 shot, and I shall never forget the ' Pah ! ' of dis- 
 gust that escaped him. Then there was a sudden 
 movement in the crowd : Wills darted forward ; 
 there was a crash, and down went the portly offi- 
 cial dragging his girl and two tables with him. 
 
 A moment or two of wild confusion ensued. 
 There was a hurried righting of chairs and tables, 
 a collecting of broken crockery, a frenzied 
 babble of voices, and then the mandarin, his 
 nose bleeding copiously, was presented to the 
 view. Knowing we were in for it now, I held 
 myself in readiness, for, however much I might 
 have deplored Wills's behaviour, I could do 
 nothing but stand by him in this extremity. 
 
 The mandarin, here sitting up, gasped out 
 half a dozen furious words ; there was a sudden 
 rush for the door, but I, throwing myself before 
 it, held the men in check. 
 
 ' Good boy, Hugh,' said Wills, as calmly as 
 a man might say, ' Well hit ' at cricket. ' Don't 
 let those beggars pass.' 
 
 ' I have no wish to spend the night in a 
 Chinese gaol.' 
 
 Wills turned away with a chuckle, and, ad-
 
 A NIGHT IN CANTON 91 
 
 dressing the prostrate official, said, ' Come, get 
 up, old buck. Fair 's fair, you know. You spat 
 and I thumped, and so we 'd better cry quits.' 
 
 Speaking thus, he advanced as if to help his 
 fallen adversary to his feet. But the movement 
 was evidently misunderstood, and in a flash a 
 dozen ugly knives were bared. Wills sprang 
 back with an oath. 
 
 * So that 's the game ! ' he cried. ' Steady, 
 Hugh, old man : these swine are showing their 
 teeth.' 
 
 I saw it and called to him to join me, think- 
 ing we might open the door quick enough to 
 enable us to make a sudden exit ; but, as if 
 understanding my words, three of the men crept 
 round towards me and placed themselves be- 
 tween me and him. He saw the movement 
 and smiled, but the smile was anything but a 
 prepossessing one. 
 
 The situation had now reached a critical 
 stage. Fortified by the portly presence of the 
 law, as represented in the mandarin, the bullies, 
 sycophants, parasites, or whatever they were, 
 showed a most threatening front, and I began 
 to experience sundry curious qualms. Under 
 existing circumstances we might be murdered
 
 92 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 with impunity. Who would dare speak when 
 the law itself was dumb? I saw the cruel 
 blades, the sullen, ugly faces, and felt none too 
 sure of the end of this night's work. 
 
 Presently Wills spoke to me, his voice as 
 calm and indifferent as of old. Indeed, I had 
 never heard it sound so free, so utterly devoid, 
 of all trace of anxiety. He spoke without 
 turning his head, his eyes riveted on the faces 
 of those before him. By what he said I knew 
 that he had at last begun seriously to consider 
 the situation. 
 
 ' I say, Hughie, old man, what armament 
 have you ? ' 
 
 ' A pair of fists.' 
 
 'And quite enough for any dozen chows. 
 Do you think you can manage the door all 
 right ? ' 
 
 ' I think not.' 
 
 ' There 's no hurry, you know.' 
 
 ' Impossible. They 're only waiting a chance 
 to strike.' 
 
 ' Humph,' he muttered, ' how damned annoy- 
 ing ! ' 
 
 There was an ominous pause for a moment 
 or two, and then, in reply to an exclamation of
 
 A NIGHT IN CANTON 93 
 
 the mandarin's, our assailants began a stealthy 
 advance. By inches they moved — slowly, 
 steadily, and yet with a deadly precision ; hate 
 gleaming in their ugly eyes, their lips pallid 
 with excitement. I looked at Wills and saw a 
 grim smile stealing down the corners of his iron 
 mouth. Then, when I thought our assailants 
 were about to rush us, he stooped suddenly, 
 and the next moment he was brandishing one 
 of the heavy tables above his head. Back fell 
 the Chinamen, their faces showing their fear 
 of this gigantic barbarian. There was no mis- 
 taking the look in Wills's eyes. Advancing 
 meant the scattering of somebody's brains. 
 Chattering with terror, the yellow men crowded 
 round the mandarin, who, however, never took 
 his hateful eyes from Wills's face. The latter 
 addressed me without turning his head. 
 
 * Hughie, old man, come here.' 
 
 Profiting by his example, I whirled my stick 
 above my head and bounded to his side. 
 
 ' These swine mean mischief,' he said, still 
 speaking without looking at me. ' I can see 
 it in that fat devil's face. Just pop into that 
 recess behind and have a look see.' 
 
 ' But you '
 
 94 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 ' I 'm all right. Go, like a good fellow.' 
 There was no disputing with him when he 
 took that tone, so, pulling back the curtain, I 
 slipped into the alcove. It was the same that 
 Wills had entered, the one in which he had 
 surprised the girl who had been the first cause 
 of our present predicament. It was a very 
 small compartment, about the size of an 
 ordinary ship's cabin. On one side was a low 
 bunk, the clothes of which, scattered here and 
 there, showed excessive haste or great untidi- 
 ness. At the further end was a small spiral stair 
 which evidently led to the deck. These things, 
 by the aid of a small lamp which swung above 
 the bunk, I quickly noted, the stair in particular 
 causing a thrill of exultation to sweep through 
 me. I noted, too, that there was a sliding 
 door to the cabin. The situation was not yet 
 hopeless. 
 
 Though this examination takes some time 
 to describe, it was accomplished with incon- 
 ceivable rapidity, and I stealthily peeped out 
 preparatory to entering the saloon once more. 
 As I looked I saw that Wills had retreated 
 some paces, and that the yellow men were 
 dangerously near him. Indeed, he was holding
 
 A NIGHT IN CANTON 95 
 
 the table before him now and using it as a 
 shield. Even as I watched I saw one fellow 
 make a slash at him, and heard the blade ring 
 on the hard wood. 
 
 ' It's all right, Wills,' I said, infusing a con- 
 fidence into my voice which I was far from 
 feeling. ' Back gradually towards me, and 
 when I give the word slip in as quickly as you 
 can.' 
 
 ' Right you are, Hughie, old man,' came the 
 
 cheery response. ' Ah, would you, you ! ' 
 
 and ring, ring came the steel on the iron legs 
 of the table. But even as he spoke, even as 
 he threatened, he did not forget to retreat ; and 
 the yellow men, grasping his intention, set up 
 a furious howling and made a desperate rush 
 at him, but like lightning the table circled 
 through the air and went flying into the fore- 
 most group with a terrible crash. There was 
 a sickening thud, a babel of shrieks and exe- 
 crations, and, taking advantage of the moment- 
 ary confusion, Wills darted in beside me, while 
 I, with equal quickness, slammed-to the sliding 
 door. And none too soon either. The next 
 moment half a dozen knife-points were sticking 
 through the thin panel.
 
 96 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 ' Humph ! ' grunted Wills, ' where are we now, 
 Hughie, old man ? ' 
 
 ' In a devil of a hole,' I growled. 
 
 'In that case, my son, we 'd better get out 
 of it as quickly as we can.' And, even as he 
 spoke, he darted up the spiral stair that led to 
 the deck. 
 
 In the meantime the jabbering went on with- 
 out, the blows upon the frail door increasing in 
 vehemence. Two of the panels were already 
 broken, and through the jagged apertures I could 
 see the hideous black eyes glaring savagely 
 upon me, could note the contortions of the ugly, 
 pallid mouths. The door could not possibly 
 hold for many seconds longer, and then 
 
 I was startled by a crash overhead, and 
 instantly guessed that my worst fears were 
 realised. Our assailants had mounted the deck 
 and had thus cut off our only means of retreat ! 
 But where was Wills, Wills the redoubtable? 
 I turned inquiringly to the stair, and lo, there 
 were his big feet descending ! These were soon 
 followed by the rest of him. His face was 
 flushed, and he seemed to breathe rather ster- 
 torously. He threw a quick glance at the 
 shattered door, and then turned to me.
 
 A NIGHT IN CANTON 97 
 
 ' Up with you, Hughie, old man/ he cried. 
 'They'd locked the blasted hatch, but the 
 way 's clear now.' 
 
 ' After you,' I said. 
 
 ' Don't be a damned fool, Hughie.' 
 
 The horrid faces were peering in upon us : 
 the frail door shook ominously beneath the 
 blows. Without more ado I mounted the 
 stairs, and as I did so I beheld Wills reach up, 
 unhook the lamp, and then dash it through 
 the aperture into the face of the enemy. A 
 still more furious howl was raised, a howl 
 of blinding pain, and with a crash the door 
 fell in. 
 
 Emerging into the cool night air on the deck 
 of the boat, I saw the cause of the crash which 
 I had mistaken for the arrival of our enemies 
 in the rear. Over the staircase, or companion- 
 way, was a sort of hooded hatch, and this Wills 
 had to break away to give us egress. When 
 I saw the way the planks were forced, ripped, 
 and torn as by an explosion, I ceased to 
 wonder at the redness of his face. 
 
 But little time was given me for reflection, for 
 scarcely had I sprung out upon the deck than 
 Wills was beside me. Seizing the broken 
 Q
 
 98 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 hatch he, quick as thought, jammed it into the 
 companion-way, and for a breathing space 
 pursuit was checked. There was a spluttering 
 and a howling below, but no immediate danger. 
 
 'Which way now?' I queried. 
 
 Wills took a quick, comprehensive glance 
 about him, but the darkness baffled him as it 
 had me. Before he could speak, however, a 
 voice shouted out from the darkness, ' To the 
 light, mass'r, to the light.' 
 
 ' The guide!' ejaculated Wills, recognising the 
 voice on the instant. * But where the deuce 
 does the right lead ? ' 
 
 ' Let us find out' 
 
 ' Wise as ever, friend Hughie.' 
 
 We were about to descend, when the main 
 door of the boat opened and out into the light 
 streamed several of our assailants, the mandarin 
 at their head ; the other half was still sweating 
 and cursing in the spiral way. 
 
 ' There 's nothing for it but the roofs,' said 
 Wills. ' Follow me.' 
 
 Luckily the boats almost touched, so that we 
 had no difficulty in leaping from one to the 
 other J the only misfortune was that Wills 
 leapt on to the skylight, and that I, following
 
 A NIGHT IN CANTON 99 
 
 so close upon his heels, deepened the cata- 
 strophe. There was a horrid noise of breaking 
 glass, a series of blood-curdling shrieks from the 
 people beneath, who must have thought that 
 the heavens had suddenly overwhelmed them 
 in their iniquity. I know I had considerable 
 difficulty in preventing myself from falling 
 through, and Wills's cursing assured me that 
 his long legs were hanging about him like a 
 reproach. 
 
 However, after much squeezing and cutting 
 of fingers, we managed to draw ourselves clear, 
 and, looking round, I saw that our original 
 assailants had succeeded in forcing the passage 
 of the companion-way, and were now preparing 
 to renew the pursuit ; added to which this new 
 accident had brought another hornet's nest 
 about our ears. 
 
 ' Onward, old man,' said Wills, ' and be more 
 careful.' 
 
 ' Then perhaps I had better go first ? ' I 
 suggested. 
 
 A short laugh was all the answer he gave. 
 
 So away along the tops of the boats I went 
 with Wills at my heels, and a howling horde of 
 savages not many yards in the rear. It was a
 
 100 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 breakneck journey, and we took it at a break- 
 neck pace : a scramble here, a slip and a fall 
 there, then up and away again, with an almost 
 blind trust in Providence ; while behind us the 
 crowd increased in numbers, and the savage 
 cries of ' The barbarians, the barbarians — kill 
 them, kill them ! ' rose thick upon the air. 
 
 Just then Wills began to pant and stumble, 
 the reason of which I was to know later. Ex- 
 cellent fighter as I knew him to be, he was but 
 a poor man at running away. Seizing him 
 just in time to prevent him falling between two 
 boats, I hurriedly asked him what was the 
 matter. 
 
 ' I 'm about done for,' he gasped. ' You go 
 on and leave me.' 
 
 That was likely. 
 
 ' Try,' I said. ' Better anything than to fall 
 into the hands of these devils.' 
 
 As I spoke I helped him on to the next 
 boat. Here, however, I found to my extreme 
 consternation that the boats came to an end. 
 Looking over the side, I saw the river flowing 
 darkly. Behind, the cries of our pursuers re- 
 sounded with tenfold vehemence. They evi- 
 dently knew how the chase would end.
 
 A NIGHT IN CANTON loi 
 
 ' Humph ! ' said Wills, in the old careless way, 
 *a corner, Hugh, old man. It's not a tea- 
 party, my son ; but we must make What 's 
 
 that?' 
 
 Looking out across the water, I saw a boat 
 rapidly approaching. 
 
 ' A sampan, that 's all.' 
 
 * Then once more follow me.' 
 
 Limping to his feet he dragged himself to 
 the edge of the boat, took a look ahead, then 
 another one behind, and the next moment he 
 was splashing in the water. 
 
 'It's all right,' he yelled. 'Make for the 
 sampan.' 
 
 There was not a moment to lose. Already 
 the pursuers were close upon me. I could see 
 their black forms flitting hither and thither ; 
 could almost fancy I saw the hateful glitter of 
 their eyes. Whatever lay before, there was 
 infinite danger behind. As the foremost ruffian 
 set his foot upon the boat, I sprang. 
 
 When I came to the surface I heard our 
 pursuers' baffled cry of rage ring out harshly on 
 the night, and I felt grateful for the intervening 
 stretch of water. When I reached the sampan 
 I found Wills already aboard. A splash, a
 
 102 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 scramble, and I was by his side, and, seizing 
 an oar apiece, we soon shot out across the 
 dark water. 
 
 How we made the old woman and her two 
 boys understand that we wanted the Hong- 
 Kong boat I never could tell. Perhaps they 
 guessed as much. At any rate, in a very few 
 minutes they brought us alongside, and once 
 aboard I learnt that Wills, during his ascent of 
 the spiral staircase, had been severely stabbed 
 in the leg, which accounted for his inability to 
 keep up with me. 
 
 No, I have not heard of him for a long time, 
 but I don't think he has yet been made an 
 admiral of the fleet.
 
 WHY MRS. WETHERTON 
 WENT HOME 
 
 Captain Wetherton was A.D.C. to the 
 general commanding the forces at Hong- 
 Kong, and was personally convinced that he 
 was an individual of considerable importance. 
 Indeed, he carried himself as though the whole 
 honour and glory of the British Army lay 
 upon his insignificant shoulders ; nor, if one 
 might judge by appearances, did he find the 
 burden an exceedingly heavy one. Though 
 small in stature, he atoned for this physical 
 failing by an exceedingly colossal carriage. 
 To see him swing along the road in his tight 
 coat and tighter trousers was a truly awe- 
 inspiring sight. The coolies kow-towed to him 
 with apprehensive humility ; flew from his 
 path, not daring to use the same footway with 
 him, and made their obeisance from the road. 
 It is true he did occasionally acknowledge the 
 
 103
 
 I04 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 salutation, remembering that greater people 
 had frequently to appear civil ; but it was a 
 bit of a nuisance all the same — the penalty one 
 pays for greatness. It might be doubted that 
 greatness was worth it all. 
 
 Personally, Wetherton was a little dark- 
 haired man, with a dark face, a pair of piercing 
 eyes, a nose with a thick end and no bridge to 
 speak of, and a prodigious black moustache. 
 A formidable little man, to be sure, who, when 
 seated upon a horse, presented a front like that 
 of Mars. People used to say that he ought 
 never to be seen except on horseback. Mounted 
 upon his prancing steed, he was the perfect 
 picture of a furious fire-eater ; on foot he v/as 
 quite an insignificant little being, whom you 
 would think twice before you kicked, for fear of 
 hurting him. Yet he had a devil of a reputa- 
 tion, and had seen some fighting in the hills in 
 India. No stricter disciplinarian drew breath, 
 and while the men thought him a coxcomb 
 they knew he was not to be trifled with ; and 
 when they remembered that he had smelt real 
 powder — a long way off, perhaps — they fre- 
 quently forgave him his idiosyncrasies. 
 
 And yet, when you came to ponder over it.
 
 MRS. WETHERTON WENT HOME 105 
 
 it was astonishing how much of the heroic that 
 Httle body held. There was infinite resolution 
 in the cut of his mouth, determination in his 
 keen eye, while his snub nose completed the 
 dogged, pugnacious look of the whole face. A 
 pocket-martinet, that 's what he was ; a deter- 
 mined fighter every inch of him. One may be 
 a giant without a giant's bulk ; and Welling- 
 ton and Wetherton both began with the same 
 letter and ended with the same syllable. 
 
 Whenever he put in an appearance at the 
 club, we invariably extracted a little quiet 
 amusement from him, for his conversation, if at 
 times somewhat patronising, was almost enter- 
 taining. There was a certain self-consciousness 
 about the little man which lent a delightful 
 flavour to his remarks ; and while listening to 
 him, you felt convinced that here was the man 
 who could set the world in order, here was the 
 man who should be ruling at the Horse Guards 
 and not resting in a God-forsaken hole like 
 China. But what would you ? He could not 
 expect the world to abandon its crooked ways 
 for his especial benefit. Habit had become a 
 second nature, and second natures come to 
 stay. Wetherton, despite his martial yearnings.
 
 io6 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 was philosopher enough to see and understand : 
 but I will not go so far as to say that he never 
 chafed at the bit. We all admitted that he 
 would most probably do something if he ever 
 got the chance, for he possessed in abundance 
 those qualities which, on paper, make a great 
 soldier. Moreover, he possessed that best of 
 all qualities — a profound belief in himself; and 
 the man who believes in himself can always 
 get other men to believe in him. 
 
 Then one day the rumour spread that his 
 wife was coming out to join him, and this lent 
 him a still greater importance. The news sent 
 our sluggish blood beating a throb or two 
 quicker, for we had all seen her portrait — he 
 had half a dozen of them in all shapes and 
 sizes in his diggings — and she had duly passed 
 our critical scrutiny. Of course we envied him 
 more than ever. Brilliant prospects, an un- 
 bounded belief in himself, and a fresh young 
 wife longing to throw herself into his arms. 
 In England a man does not fully appreciate 
 the manifold charms which surround him ; but 
 let him live long among the yellow or black 
 people, and he will go mad at the thought of a 
 bit of cool, white skin.
 
 MRS. WETHERTON WENT HOME 107 
 
 We were filled with a thousand wild conjec- 
 tures. He had led us to believe that she was 
 considered a great beauty in her native town — 
 a renowned south-coast watering-place — and we 
 began to wonder if she had any of the dash and 
 ' go ' of that famous resort. If so, some of us 
 boys might expect a lively time, and Wether- 
 ton would have other than his military duties 
 to look after. 
 
 As for him, the near approach of his wife 
 brightened him up wonderfully. We had 
 long known that the little man was inordin- 
 ately proud of her, but we had no idea he was 
 such a devoted husband. His face flushed and 
 his eyes sparkled as he spoke of her, and we 
 could see that, however much he was bound up 
 in himself, he was none the less bound up in 
 her. It was ' I must drop that sort of thing 
 when my wife comes.' 'My wife always objected 
 to this,' or * My wife always objected to that.' 
 ' I rather fancy she 's a bit prudish, don't you 
 know, and the life you chaps live here '11 give 
 her a devil of a shock.' It was ' my wife this 
 and my wife that,' till we began to wonder 
 what monster of propriety was about to 
 descend in our midst. And yet it was quite
 
 io8 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 pleasant to see little Wetherton cock-a-hoop — 
 not that such a state was unusual with him, 
 but his cock-a-hooping now was of the mag- 
 nificent and enviable order. His martial face 
 relaxed its grimness as he spoke of her, and 
 even his fierce moustache took to itself a soft 
 curve of love. That he was superlatively happy 
 in the prospect of being united to her was 
 indubitable ; and little wonder, if, as he said, 
 she could give points to any woman in the 
 colony. 
 
 He had been with us now for more than a 
 year, and, though we knew he was married, we 
 had little hopes of seeing his wife ; for the 
 woman who can stay away from her husband 
 for so long a period is either very indifferent 
 to his personal attributes, or physically incap- 
 able of undertaking the long journey. The 
 latter, it seems, was the cause in this instance 
 and so accustomed had we grown to the 
 thought that Mrs. Wetherton was a hopeless 
 invalid, that the information that at last she 
 was coming out struck us as a sort of impos- 
 sible rumour. 
 
 But, impossible as we deemed it, it was 
 nevertheless true, though the Yang-tse — the
 
 MRS. WETHERTON WENT HOME 109 
 
 ship she was on — seemed a long time coming. 
 Indeed, the first excitement was already dying 
 out when we heard that the vessel had arrived 
 at Singapore, This wakened us up a little ; 
 but being a slow craft, and having to face 
 a strong north-east monsoon, another week 
 elapsed before the Yang-tse steamed into the 
 harbour of Hong-Kong. 
 
 That night, after dinner, I looked Wetherton 
 up, curiosity playing the deuce with my discre- 
 tion. I found him on the verandah pulling 
 thoughtfully at his moustache and watching 
 the smoke from his cigar pass into the mystical 
 shadows above. A young fellow was with 
 him whom I never remembered to have seen 
 before. As I approached, this individual very 
 politely rose, though Wetherton merely waved 
 his hand by way of greeting 
 
 ' Welcome, my dear fellow,' he cried cheerily, 
 or with a heroic effort at cheeriness. * Glad 
 you came round. Sit down and have a smoke. 
 Boy, another tumbler — quick ! By the way, 
 let me introduce you to Doctor Vine — the 
 doctor of the Yang-tse^ he added, by way of 
 explanation. 
 
 Doctor Vine, a tall, dark young man with
 
 110 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 a long, loose figure and an uncertain smile, 
 favoured me by dropping a long, limp hand 
 into mine and telling me that he was extremely 
 pleased to make my acquaintance, for which 
 I expressed myself as duly grateful, slipping 
 meanwhile into an easy-chair beside Wether- 
 ton. 
 
 ' So the Yang-tse is in at last ? ' I said, as 
 Wetherton took the tumbler from the boy 
 and mixed me a whisky-and-soda. 
 
 ' Yes,' he answered, but doubtfully. 
 
 ' And Mrs. Wetherton has profited by the 
 voyage ? ' 
 
 ' Exceedingly, I should say. I have never 
 seen her look better.' 
 
 I turned inquiringly to the doctor. 
 
 ' Oh, we had a capital passage,' he explained. 
 ' No bad weather worth speaking of till we 
 left Singapore. I think Mrs. Wetherton is 
 an excellent sailor.' 
 
 ' She certainly looks remarkably well/ said 
 her husband enthusiastically. 
 
 ' One of the advantages of making friends 
 with the doctor,' I suggested. 
 
 Wetherton looked meaningly at me, and, 
 immediately conscious of having made a false
 
 MRS. WETHERTON WENT HOME in 
 
 step, I grew confused. His shifty, piercing 
 eyes met mine. I saw his heavy brows con- 
 tract, a rigid look steal down his face. Then 
 he fumbled his cigar into his mouth and 
 began to smoke violently. The doctor quietly 
 sipped his whisky-and-soda and lit a fresh 
 cigarette. I at once led the conversation into 
 another channel, and we were discussing the 
 benefits to be derived from the rainy season 
 in Hong-Kong when Mrs. Wetherton burst 
 upon the scene. 
 
 With reluctance I admit that the first view 
 of her did not fulfil expectations. Wetherton 
 had led us to believe that she was in every 
 essential a model of her sex, whereas her 
 figure was very slight, not to say thin, her 
 hips and chest apparently undeveloped, her 
 face absolutely colourless. At least, so it 
 appeared to me in the uncertain light. Fine 
 teeth she had, to be sure, and fine eyes, if 
 somewhat heavy. Indeed, such heavy eyes 
 seemed to be fixed wrongly in such a little 
 face. But they were expressive, ye gods ! 
 And the light stealing through the loose 
 masses of her pale brown hair lit it with 
 gleams of fire. As she stood there in her
 
 112 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 white dinner-dress I compared her with sprites 
 innumerable, but never once with a woman of 
 flesh and blood. 
 
 The hand she gave to me at parting was 
 firm, if dry and cold, and this latter quality- 
 seemed to strengthen the strange opinion I 
 had formed of her. Somehow I did not envy 
 Wetherton the possession of his icicle, though 
 there was some consolation in knowing that 
 no icicle could stand the climate of Hong- 
 Kong. 
 
 As I was going to walk back to the club, I 
 asked the doctor if his course lay in a similar 
 direction. He started nervously, looked at 
 his watch, and said he feared it was getting 
 rather late. Wetherton continued his strenu- 
 ous puffing, but his wife exclaimed that it 
 was ridiculously early, and begged I would 
 not think of rushing away so soon. She 
 wanted me to tell her more about the place, 
 the people ; what was the thing and what was 
 not the thing, and answer a thousand other 
 inconsequent queries. Of course I declared I 
 was hers to command, but that she really 
 must excuse me to-night, as I had a very 
 important engagement. She pouted prettily,
 
 MRS. WETHERTON WENT HOME 113 
 
 said she believed all the people in Hong-Kong 
 were horrid, and then very graciously allowed 
 me to depart. 
 
 The next morning I met her in the Queen's 
 Road, and stood chatting with her for a minute 
 or two before Lane-Crawford's. The doctor 
 of the Yang-tse was her escort, and in the 
 broad daylight he looked more like a second- 
 rate clerk than ever. Nor did the daylight 
 render her more fascinating. The mystic 
 charm of the evening had flown, and a little 
 pale-faced woman with drab hair stood before 
 me. I went away feeling that Wetherton had 
 been hugging a delusion to his soul, for which 
 that arrant fraud, Distance, was mainly re- 
 sponsible. Who has not gloated over the 
 irregular features of his dear till they become 
 perfect in their classic cut ? Her undeveloped 
 figure takes to itself a delightful contour : 
 even her empty talk has a resounding fulness 
 as of the sea. 
 
 I saw her again that night at a bazaar 
 at the Town Hall. Wetherton was with her 
 this time — that is, he was as near as he could 
 get. The doctor's long figure had blotted 
 him out, and a curious slouch the medico 
 H
 
 114 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 looked in his long tails and black tie. He 
 had evidently been dining with the Wether- 
 tons. 
 
 And thus it was all the time the Yang-tse 
 was in port. Wherever you saw Mrs. Wether- 
 ton you had not far to look to catch a glimpse 
 of the doctor, who seemed to follow her about 
 like a great stupid dog. 
 
 Of course the fellows began to talk. First 
 it was an extremely knowing look, then a 
 smile, then an expression of good-will towards 
 Wetherton. I like such expressions of good- 
 will. They are so consoling. But people will 
 talk in these small places, the curse of such 
 places being that you cannot do a thing 
 without your neighbours knowing it. Wether- 
 ton, however, being perfectly oblivious of their 
 good-will, went unconcernedly on his way, 
 and, if he had any qualms, he managed most 
 skilfully to conceal them. His black mous- 
 tachios still retained their formidable bristle ; 
 in fact, it might almost be said they bristled 
 more than ever. To all outward appearance 
 Mars himself had set the seal upon that face. 
 And yet I thought that the eyes were not as 
 steady as of yore.
 
 MRS. WETHERTON WENT HOME 115 
 
 I met him again some three days after the 
 Yang-tse had sailed for Shanghai, and speedily 
 learnt that the doctor had gone with her. 
 
 ' Shanghai ! ' I echoed quite innocently, for 
 at times the best of us are nothing better 
 than sucking doves. ' I thought she had 
 gone home.' 
 
 And then, before he knew what he was 
 doing, he blurted out, ' I wish to God she had,' 
 
 He saw the surprise in my face, and flushed 
 darkly. Then taking out his handkerchief and 
 mopping his forehead, he bitterly complained 
 of the excessive heat for that time of the year. 
 Poor little chap ! 
 
 Some two weeks later I met Mrs. Wetherton 
 in her chair, and, behold ! there was the long 
 doctor walking by her side ! So the Yang-tse 
 had returned from the north ! I passed on 
 with a bow and the stereotyped smile, but I 
 was not without the belief that there might be 
 serious developments at any moment. The 
 doctor, though stupid, had the tenacity of the 
 mule ; the woman, though frail of body, was 
 not without some force of character. She 
 would be very thin one day, angular and ugly, 
 but she would nevertheless issue the word of
 
 ii6 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 command. Woe betide the underling who dis- 
 obeyed those clean-cut lips ! 
 
 I only called once after the Yang-tse had 
 returned, but the reception I met with was one 
 not calculated to appease my personal vanity. 
 The doctor was there, Wetherton was there ; 
 and while the former seemed exceptionally 
 stupid, the latter appeared like a man who 
 knows not whether to charge or to retreat. 
 Mrs. Wetherton was polite, if distant, but as 
 unsociable as a woman with a headache. 
 Indeed, she only seemed capable of the least 
 utterance after inhaling the inspiration from 
 her smelling-bottle. 
 
 Wetherton saw me to the gate, and at my 
 expression of the fear that his wife was not 
 looking well he launched out into a fierce 
 diatribe against the island. It was not fit for 
 white men to live in, much less delicate white 
 women, and he was a fool ever to have allowed 
 his wife to come out. She couldn't breathe, 
 simply couldn't breathe, in the heavy atmo- 
 sphere, and — here he shook his head gravely — 
 he had no wish to leave her at Happy Valley, 
 pretty as that resting-place was. Though I 
 didn't think such a contingency was possible,
 
 MRS. WETHERTON WENT HOME 117 
 
 I hypocritically told him to cheer up and hope 
 for the best. The climate always affected new 
 comers more or less, but it was marvellous how 
 soon they grew accustomed to it. I knew it 
 would rapidly improve once the Yang-tse left 
 the harbour. 
 
 If I remember rightly, the ship stayed about 
 a week in port on her homeward voyage ; and 
 though I saw neither Mrs. Wetherton nor the 
 doctor during that period, I heard that he 
 was still as attentive as ever, and that Wether- 
 ton was rapidly developing into the worst- 
 tempered man in Hong-Kong, The woman, 
 I could believe, was cool enough. I could 
 imagine her thin, curling lips, her white, placid 
 face, her heavy eyes aglow with determination. 
 Wetherton would find it much easier to rule 
 five thousand able-bodied privates than one 
 such delicate woman. 
 
 The night before he sailed, the doctor dined 
 with the Wethertons at the Hong-Kong Hotel, 
 and I afterwards saw them at the theatre, 
 apparently enjoying the rather stale humours 
 of a local Christy-minstrel show ; but as to 
 what happened after there is considerable 
 doubt. One says one thing, another tells you
 
 ii8 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 a totally different story, and between con- 
 flicting rumours a pretty set of exaggerations 
 was circulated. But it is a fact, and one to 
 which the policeman on the landing-stage will 
 bear witness, that between half-past five and 
 six on the morning that the Yang-tse put to 
 sea, Captain Wetherton, his face livid with 
 excitement, his attire in a shocking state of 
 disorder, arrived and made some breathless 
 inquiries concerning that particular ship. 
 
 'Sampan!' he shouted wildly, 'sampan!' and 
 when the boat came alongside, he stepped 
 aboard, and, waving his hand out across the 
 bay, cried, ' The Yang-tse, quick, quick — the 
 Yang-tse ! ' The sampan man looked up with 
 open mouth and a smile peculiarly Chinese. 
 ' Yang-tse 'ave all-ee same gone, Cap'n.' 
 Wetherton looked round like a man in a 
 dream, and clutched the roof of the sampan 
 for support. 
 
 * Is that so, constable? ' 
 
 * Indeed, sir, yes. The Yang-tse sailed at 
 daybreak.' 
 
 Wetherton groped his way out of the boat, 
 and staggered across the road like a drunken 
 man.
 
 MRS. VVETHERTON WENT HOME 119 
 
 When I met him a week after, I thought he 
 had aged a good ten years. His head was not 
 carried as proudly as of yore : even his tight 
 trousers had lost their spruce, aggressive look. 
 
 'They tell me Mrs. Wetherton has gone 
 home in the Yang-tse}' I inquired. 
 
 ' Yes,' he said, with a bold attempt at easy 
 familiarity ; ' I was always afraid this damned 
 climate would never suit her.'
 
 THE PHANTOM JUNK 
 
 Of course everybody laughed at the idea : 
 everybody naturally would. Let a thing be 
 ever so little beyond the comprehension of the 
 ordinary mortal, and he is sure to jeer at it. 
 The thing is right or wrong according to the 
 way it appeals to him, or as fashion dictates. 
 This thing appealed to his scepticism, and he 
 laughed. He laughed rudely at the simple 
 tale of the sampan men, who swore by the holy 
 ashes of their ancestors that they had seen it; 
 he smiled superciliously at the earnest narra- 
 tives of the white sailors, who, while returning 
 to their ships, had also seen it. Everybody 
 knows the state a white sailor is in after he has 
 spent a few hours ashore. Really, if better 
 evidence were not forthcoming, it would be as 
 well to dismiss the subject at once and for ever. 
 And yet the thing had been seen. Those 
 who had thought it worth their while to inves- 
 
 180
 
 THE PHANTOM JUNK 121 
 
 tigate the matter were convinced that it was 
 no lying talk of the Chinaman, no drunken 
 fancy of the white sailor. After all, those 
 most intimately acquainted with sailors knew 
 quite well that even among that benighted 
 fraternity there were men who could go ashore 
 and enjoy themselves rationally; while even 
 the sailor drunk ashore is a different being 
 from the sailor drunk aboard. Stupid he may 
 be, but he knows his way about a ship, and 
 can tell you which way the wind 's blowing. 
 It was all hearsay, of course. No commission 
 of inquiry had sat upon the matter: there 
 was no unassailable evidence. It was merely 
 a rumour which you might credit or discredit 
 as you thought fit. 
 
 The rumour was this, and it arose among 
 the sampan people who sleep on the boats, 
 and who know everything that goes on in the 
 harbour. They said that on more than one 
 occasion a phantom junk had been seen to 
 steal through the Ly - ee - moon Pass, sail 
 steadily down the Kowloon side, and disappear 
 southwards through the Sulphur Channel. But, 
 as usual, the evidence was contradictory. 
 Some said the phantom scudded along at a
 
 122 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 terrific rate, leaving on the mind an impression 
 of a junk in full sail ; others said that the sails 
 only were luminous, while others again declared 
 that the sails were luminous only at intervals. 
 Out of such a web of contradiction who could 
 be expected to find the right thread ? A 
 Chinese puzzle, indeed, over which the super- 
 cilious sneered, the unbeliever scoffed, and the 
 plodding star-gazer wondered. 
 
 For a long time no one but the sampan 
 people had any cognisance of the fact, if fact it 
 were ; and even many of them were known to 
 be incredulous : for, though absurdly childish 
 in many things, your Chinaman, being a natural 
 liar, is a true sceptic. Yet so many had seen 
 the phantom, or had sworn they had, that to 
 disbelieve altogether in its existence was next 
 to impossible. So the story gathered and 
 grew strong among them ; but being a people 
 apart, it was a long time before the rumour 
 reached the ears of the white population. 
 And then, as we have seen, it only came to 
 be laughed at. 
 
 The officials, naturally, were the last persons 
 to hear of it ; and when they did, the official lip 
 curled like the tongue of an ant-eater, and for
 
 THE PHANTOM JUNK 123 
 
 several months the Phantom Junk was tabooed. 
 No man likes to be thought an idiot, and to 
 mention that spectral craft, except by way of 
 ridicule, was to lay yourself open to consider- 
 able misapprehension. But one night, or, 
 rather, early one morning, while the com- 
 mander of H.M.S. Awful was being conveyed 
 to his ship, he saw, or thought he saw, the 
 spectral junk in the offing on the Kowloon side 
 of the Pass. Of course, it was early in the 
 morning, when the light is uncertain, and he 
 had been at a merry meeting in a 'piecee 
 house allee same belong top-side ' ; but at the 
 same time the word of one of her Majesty's 
 officers is a sacred thing. No one could 
 possibly accuse such a hero of being drunk ; 
 no one would think of hinting that he could 
 possibly see double. Of course the smile was 
 as supercilious as ever, but the commander of 
 the Awful was a man to be taken seriously. 
 
 It was marvellous how he stuck to his story. 
 They might argue and laugh and jeer till they 
 were sick, but he knew perfectly well that he 
 had seen something for which he could not 
 satisfactorily account, and that something was 
 the gleaming white sails of a junk. For a
 
 124 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 moment only they shone out, and, ere he could 
 call the attention of his sampan coolies to the 
 curious phenomenon, the thing had disappeared. 
 He made the men lay on their oars and for 
 a full quarter of an hour stand staring out 
 in the darkness ; but nothing coming of the 
 scrutiny, he went aboard. 
 
 Now, when the Government officials heard 
 that one of her Majesty's officers had actually 
 seen this reprehensible phantom, they immedi- 
 ately began to move in the matter, and, after 
 due deliberation, the police launch was ordered 
 out to intercept the midnight voyager ; but 
 though, every night for a week, it hung around 
 the entrance of the Ly-ee-moon Pass, nor left 
 its post till the phantom-scaring day broke, it 
 never caught sight nor sign of the spectre. 
 
 The officials naturally felt that they had been 
 hoaxed. Of course they knew all along that 
 there was no ghost, but they thought they 
 might lay their hands on the rascals who had 
 been scaring the lives out of the harbour-folk. 
 As for the commander of the A ivful — well, the 
 less said about the state that gentleman was in 
 the better. Responsible men who go about 
 seeing phantom junks ought to be locked up.
 
 THE PHANTOM JUNK 125 
 
 But that worthy sea-dog was not to be 
 laughed down. He stuck gallantly to his story 
 in spite of sneers and jeers. They might say 
 what they liked, but he would take his dying 
 oath that he was perfectly sober on that 
 memorable night, and that, being sober, and 
 in full possession of what little reason God had 
 given him (here he meant to be sarcastic), he 
 had most certainly seen the luminous sails of a 
 junk start, as it were, out of blackness, and 
 almost as suddenly disappear again ; and they 
 could take it or leave it, but it was the truth, 
 nevertheless. 
 
 All this was put down to that magnificent 
 obstinacy of the Briton, who never admits 
 defeat, no matter how severe the drubbing : a 
 consoling sort of idiosyncrasy, if at times a 
 trifle absurd. But there happened to be one 
 man among the officials who possessed a little 
 more imagination than his hidebound brothers, 
 and, in the face of official feeling, he let it be 
 known that he believed implicitly in the state- 
 ment of the commander of the Awful. He 
 had not pursued the usual high official course 
 and let his subordinates bring him a string of 
 nonsensical tales to be swallowed without a
 
 126 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 knowledge of their composition ; but he had 
 gone among the sampan men, carefully sifted 
 their evidence, and eventually came to the con- 
 clusion that, phantom or no phantom, the tale 
 told by the more intelligent of the watermen 
 agreed in every particular with that of the 
 commander of the Aivful. A dozen different 
 stories he heard, all told in a dozen different 
 ways ; but the one which seemed most pre- 
 valent, and which boasted of the greatest 
 number of adherents, was the one that told 
 only of the luminous sails. 
 
 Now, when my friend came to me with his 
 theory well developed, protesting against the 
 supineness and meanness of the Government, 
 who would not allow him to use the official 
 launch, I immediately offered him the loan of 
 mine, an offer at which he instantly jumped. 
 
 ' My dear fellow,' he cried joyfully, ' it 's just 
 what I wanted, only I didn't like to ask. Give 
 me a week, just one little week ; and if by then 
 I haven't solved this mystery, I will admit to 
 being baffled.' 
 
 Though somewhat sceptical myself, his en- 
 thusiasm gradually crept into my blood ; and 
 when, later on, I offered to accompany him in
 
 THE PHANTOM JUNK 127 
 
 his search for the Phantom Junk, he received 
 the offer with every token of pleasure. 
 
 • And when shall it be ? ' I asked. 
 
 ' We will start at eleven o'clock to-night' 
 
 ' Good. I will be ready.' 
 
 ' And, by the way,' he said, coming back and 
 looking me meaningly in the eyes, 'you had 
 better bring your revolver with you, for, unless 
 I am much mistaken, we shall find these 
 phantoms very human.' 
 
 A few minutes after eleven that night we 
 slipped our moorings and stole quietly out 
 towards the Pass, extinguishing our lights as 
 soon as we had cleared the men-of-war. But 
 though we cruised about in the darkness for a 
 good four hours, we never caught the slightest 
 glimpse of the Phantom Junk. The next night 
 misfortune still attended us ; and a like dis- 
 appointment awaited us on our third essay. 
 My friend Kernot began to look anxious, and 
 I began to laugh. Our spectre, though certainly 
 a most perverse creature, would no doubt oblige 
 us before the week ran out. Kernot did not 
 take my pleasantries too good-naturedly. With 
 him it was no laughing matter. He had 
 almost pledged his professional reputation on
 
 128 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 the authenticity of the story, and that reputa- 
 tion was a considerable thing to him. So, 
 though I could not refrain from having an 
 occasional dig at the Phantom Junk, I tried 
 to recollect what it meant to my friend, and 
 curbed my allusions accordingly. 
 
 The sky was overcast and the rain threatened 
 as we set out on our fourth attempt. Away 
 across the water came the wind in savage gusts, 
 a mournful howl seeming to tear itself out 
 of the very bosom of the night. My flesh 
 responded with an uncanny sort of shiver, and 
 involuntarily I buttoned my pilot coat up 
 round my throat. Our usual precautions were 
 observed towards the war-ships, and not till 
 we had them dead astern did we extinguish 
 our lights. Then Kernot and I took up our 
 positions well forward, the engines went slow, 
 and the little launch crept out towards the 
 sea. 
 
 We hugged the northern side of the Pass, 
 thinking that in Kowloon way we might the 
 more readily happen on the stranger ; but, as 
 usual, without success. The wind also began 
 to blow more steadily, and when we turned 
 for the open sea we met its full force. In an
 
 THE PHANTOM JUNK 129 
 
 incredibly short space of time the sea rose, and 
 as we shot along the mouth of the Pass we had 
 a most unpleasant experience. Then began 
 a slow roll back, for we had only to keep her 
 straight ; the tide which came swirling in did 
 the rest. 
 
 As I now began to feel a bit nipped by the 
 cold, I suggested a drop of grog. Pipes were 
 strictly forbidden, and, like true heroes, we duly 
 martyred ourselves ; but grog was not. To 
 my suggestion Kernot replied, ' Ay, ay, sir,' 
 like the tar that he was, and I immediately 
 dived below for some whisky. As I crept back, 
 I made out his figure in the same position, but 
 so absorbed seemed he in his look-out that he 
 did not perceive my approach. 
 
 * Kernot, old man,' I said, ' grog ! ' 
 
 ' H'sch ! ' 
 
 'What's the matter? Can you see any- 
 thing?' 
 
 He did not reply for a moment. Then, 
 taking the flask without looking, he said, ' I 
 thought I saw something on the other side.' 
 
 ' What was it like ? ' 
 
 ' A white shadow passing over the sea.' 
 
 ' Kernot, my dear fellow, you 're dreaming. 
 I
 
 130 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 Here, take a pull. You've got this beastly 
 spectre on the brain.' 
 
 ' Perhaps not quite so bad, old chap,' he 
 laughed, ' though I admit its influence. Yet it 
 was most singular,' he added, as if speaking to 
 himself. 
 
 ' The flash-light of some man-of-war,' I sug- 
 gested. ' You can see the reflection a deuce of 
 a way off".' 
 
 * Yes, I know ; but this was not a bit like a 
 flash-light. It was as though a lump of light 
 
 was sailing Ah, look — there — there ! ' I felt 
 
 his hand tremble as he nervously clutched my 
 arm. 
 
 Away on the other side of the channel, deep, 
 it seemed, in Kowloon Bay, a curious misty 
 light showed up. In a moment our glasses 
 were on it, and we both uttered the same 
 exclamation in the same breath : 
 
 ' The Phantom Junk ! ' 
 
 Yes, there it was, with its phantom sails 
 standing out boldly to the eye, just as the 
 commander of the Awful \\2.^ said. No other 
 part of the ship could be seen, but we took 
 it for granted that there was a phantom hull 
 somewhere. For a clear space of five or six
 
 THE PHANTOM JUNK 131 
 
 seconds the spectre showed up weirdly in the 
 gloom, and then disappeared ; swallowed up, 
 apparently, by the sea or the black night that 
 gave it birth. 
 
 The three men we had brought with us were 
 fortunately fast asleep, but our steersman, who 
 had seen the spectre, set up a horrible mutter- 
 ing and moaning which proclaimed the extent 
 of his terror. Indeed, he even raised some 
 feeble protest when he was given the order to 
 port, which brought Kernot to his side with a 
 bound. There was a momentary scuffle, and 
 then the chow fell in a heap on the deck, 
 where he lay moaning incoherently. With a 
 quick movement of the wheel, Kernot brought 
 the launch round, and, shouting to the engineer 
 to go like hell, we dashed across the channel to 
 the bay. 
 
 Making all due allowance for the pride of 
 ownership, there wasn't a launch in Hong- 
 Kong could beat mine for speed, and in a very 
 few minutes I heard Kernot give the order to 
 go slow. 
 
 * Do you see anything, Tom ? ' he shouted, 
 for I was still keeping a sharp look-out well 
 forward.
 
 132 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 'No.' 
 
 ' Can you make out the land ? ' 
 
 'No.' 
 
 ' Damnation ! ' 
 
 ' Port a bit. I think I hear breakers.' 
 
 ' We can't be as near as that.' 
 
 ' Hist ! What 's that to the leeward ? ' 
 
 I knew by the movement of the boat that he 
 had starboarded again. Indeed, in swinging 
 round, we just escaped crashing into a sampan. 
 For a moment only I saw it, and then it disap- 
 peared in the darkness. 
 
 ' The dinghy of our spectre,' said Kernot. 
 ' We must not lose him.' 
 
 I was not so sure that Kernot was right, 
 though I deemed it highly probable. At all 
 events, if we could speak with the sampan, it 
 might be to our advantage. 
 
 Kernot, who knew every inch of the water 
 thereabouts, here gave the order full speed 
 ahead, and in a moment we were flinging the 
 waves to right and left of us in great style ; 
 but though we circled round and round, and in 
 so doing lost some most valuable time, we saw 
 no more of the spectre's dinghy. 
 
 ' She has given us the slip,' said my com-
 
 THE PHANTOM JUNK 133 
 
 panion ruefully. ' Now we must go in pursuit 
 of the junk.' And without more ado he put 
 the launch about, and back towards the town 
 we tore at top speed. 
 
 ' But, my dear Kernot,' I protested, as I joined 
 him, ' if we can't lay our hands on the dinghy,how 
 the deuce do you expect to collar the junk ? ' 
 
 'Of course,' he replied, 'this junk is no more 
 a phantom than we are. It 's a trick — a clever 
 one, I admit, but still a trick. The reason ? 
 Well, there may be several reasons. I know 
 of one very good one. We shall see if I am 
 right. I only hope we manage to get through 
 the harbour without observation. By the way, 
 what's the time? ' 
 
 ' Ten past one.' 
 
 ' A very safe hour. You know how the 
 story goes? The Phantom Junk enters the 
 harbour at the Ly-ee-moon Pass, creeps along 
 the Kowloon side, and makes her exit through 
 the Sulphur Channel. Well, we must reach 
 the Channel before her.' 
 
 ' She 's got a good start' 
 
 'True, but inside she'll have to hug the 
 shore, and then she will lose the wind. I think 
 we have a chance.'
 
 134 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 The harbour was dotted with the riding- 
 lights of ships, which, acting as beacons, allowed 
 us to pursue our way in safety ; and pretty 
 soon we found ourselves steaming down mid- 
 channel within measurable distance of our goal. 
 Then, bit by bit, as the shipping in shore 
 grew less, we approached the land ; and under 
 the shadow of it we steamed slowly forward. 
 
 Arriving just off Green Island, we stopped, 
 and with our glasses searched the shadows 
 opposite, but there was no sign of junk or 
 any living thing. Then the mind, not being 
 sure of itself, began to ask itself strange 
 questions, and to receive strange responses 
 from the sea. What were we doing out on 
 this absurd adventure? Had we really seen 
 the Phantom Junk, or had our imagination 
 been playing tricks with us ? To all of which 
 the wind gave answer with a hollow, mocking 
 laugh, while the spray flung itself derisively in 
 our faces. 
 
 I know I began to feel a bit weary of the 
 business, and was about to suggest that the 
 Phantom Junk had most unconscionably given 
 us the slip, when, without speaking, Kernot 
 drew my attention to the island. At first I
 
 THE PHANTOM JUNK 135 
 
 saw nothing, but presently a darker shadow 
 crept out from the shadow of the land and 
 pointed down the Channel. My companion 
 put the wheel over, and like a snake we began 
 to glide after the shadow, which, when it 
 encountered the full force of the wind in mid- 
 channel, made such a good running that we 
 had to go at full speed to gain on it. But 
 gain we certainly did, and with the aid of our 
 glasses we presently saw that our shadow was 
 a junk in full sail. Not a gleam of light 
 could be seen on her. Like ourselves she was 
 setting at defiance the port regulations. 
 
 ' There 's your ghost,' said Kernot mockingly, 
 and yet with more excitement in his voice 
 than he would care to admit. 'You'll see 
 she '11 turn round here by the Aberdeen Dock 
 and signal to the people ashore.' 
 
 ' Perhaps you 're right,' I answered, ' but 
 you 're only going on supposition.' 
 
 * Anyway, Tom, send your steersman here, 
 and, like a good fellow, go and rouse up those 
 other three chaps.' 
 
 Having done this, he and I took up our 
 positions in the forward part of the launch, 
 and with glasses riveted upon the junk we
 
 136 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 watched her every movement ; and, sure enough, 
 she took the course Kernot had suggested, 
 sweeping boldly down the little bay. We, 
 however, crept along in the shadow of the 
 land, and, gaining rapidly on her, were well 
 abreast of her before she reached the dock- 
 gates. Then with wonderful suddenness she 
 put about. We stopped also, and a few 
 moments of suspense followed, moments in 
 which I heard distinctly the hard breathing 
 of my companion. Then for a second the 
 luminous white sails shone out : the next, 
 everything was buried in gloom. 
 
 And now, what was to be the next move? 
 I for one was uncertain whether to advance to 
 the attack, or to wait and watch ; though very 
 little reflection convinced me of the wisdom of 
 the latter course. For, after all, what were we 
 to attack? What right had we to raid in- 
 offensive junks on the mere supposition that 
 they were — what? — phantoms? My com- 
 panion was evidently in the same quandary, 
 though neither by word nor movement did he 
 let me into the secret of his thoughts. With 
 glasses glued to his eyes he did nothing but 
 watch the shadow opposite.
 
 THE PHANTOM JUNK 137 
 
 At length, after what seemed an interminable 
 period of waiting, we distinctly, if faintly, heard 
 the swish, swish of the long steering scull of a 
 sampan as it was twisted through the water. 
 I touched Kernot on the arm to let him know 
 that I heard and understood. Every second 
 the swishing sounded nearer. 
 
 'There are two men at the scull,' he whis- 
 pered. ' It is as I supposed.' 
 
 Well, the rest of the story is quickly told. 
 Waiting till the sampan was hidden behind 
 the junk, which we knew would concentrate 
 the attention of the junk's crew to that side 
 of their vessel, we advanced slowly out of the 
 gloom and came up alongside the spectre just 
 in time to catch her spectral crew handing out 
 sundry cases of contraband opium. 
 
 Yes, they showed fight at first ; but when 
 they knew that the redoubtable Kernot was 
 aboard them they succumbed with a perfectly 
 angelic grace. We towed them over to the 
 dock-gates and made ourselves as comfortable 
 as we could till day broke. Then, when we 
 examined our prize, we found that our phantom 
 ship was a very ordinary junk, the sails of 
 which had been smeared over with some
 
 138 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 luminous compound. A couple of ordinary 
 bull's-eye lanterns did the rest. As for the 
 phantom crew, they were subsequently identi- 
 fied by the authorities as gentlemen who had 
 long been ' wanted.'
 
 THE PASSENGER AFT 
 
 We had only one passenger aft for Bangkok, 
 and he was a Siamese who came scrambling 
 aboard at the very moment of our weighing 
 anchor. I was in charge of the gangway at 
 the time, and to my inquiry as to his business 
 he replied in very good English : 
 
 'This ship — Amoy — go Bangkok?' 
 
 * Yes. We are starting now,' 
 
 ' Very good, Oyes, very good,' and he smiled 
 complacently. Then turning to the sampan 
 which still lay alongside, he beckoned to its 
 occupants, and presently half a dozen of his 
 countrymen came tumbling up on deck. 
 
 ' Passengers ? ' I queried. 
 
 ' Oyes, passengers, Oyes ! ' and he continued 
 to smile upon me in the most absurd manner. 
 I scowled, for I knew that oily Eastern smile, 
 and the value one may attach to it. 
 
 ' You 've got your tickets ? ' I asked rather 
 roughly. 
 
 1S9
 
 I40 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 ' Oyes, tickets, Oyes,' and with another 
 charming smile he produced them from an 
 inner pocket of his blouse. 
 
 'Very good,' I said, handing them back to 
 him after examination ; ' you go that way,' and 
 I motioned for him to go aft : ' you chaps 
 forward,' and I pointed the way for his body- 
 guard, who salaamed and grinned, and seemed 
 just as amiable as he was. 
 
 The captain at that moment leant over the 
 end of the bridge and yelled out, ' Are you all 
 clear there aft ? ' 
 
 ' All clear, sir.' 
 
 Then the engines began to throb, the screw 
 ground the water white astern, and we slipped 
 through the shipping with the ease and dignity 
 of a tramp that knows its way. 
 
 The Amoy was only one of a well-known 
 line of coasters. Sometimes our rivals called 
 us the ' dust-carts of the China Seas,' some- 
 times the ' scavengers ' — it all depended on the 
 mood they were in. At any rate, we were the 
 very smallest of small fry. A mail-boat would 
 not have condescended to signal us. 
 
 As our greatest speed only amounted to 
 between eight and nine knots an hour, we had
 
 THE PASSENGER AFT 141 
 
 plenty of time to settle down and get things 
 ship-shape before we reached the mouth of the 
 Menam. Plenty of time, also, to look about 
 and give an eye to our Siamese passenger aft 
 and his six friends forward. I admit I was 
 suspicious of him : of the manner of his coming 
 aboard ; of his secret, strange behaviour when 
 on board — a suspicion which his oily Oriental 
 smile failed to allay. Then, as I tramped the 
 bridge during my watch, I often saw him 
 forward in close confab with his associates ; 
 and, once or twice, when unexpectedly ap- 
 proaching them, I thought they hid something 
 away in their sashes which they did not want 
 me to see. 
 
 That the fellows had come aboard for no 
 good I firmly believed ; and this notwithstand- 
 ing the fact that the captain, in some inexplic- 
 able manner, had almost taken a fancy to the 
 passenger aft. Such an unheard-of thing as 
 the old man chumming in with a native was a 
 fact to be received with a certain amount of 
 incredulity, notwithstanding the assurance of 
 one's own eyes. Mr. Wilkinson may have been 
 only a master mariner in a very humble way, 
 but he had a deep religious belief in the superi-
 
 142 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 ority of the white man. To him all coloured 
 men were niggers, and niggers, like other vermin, 
 were best kept at a distance. He would no 
 more have thought of associating with one 
 than the master of a mail-boat would have 
 thought of associating with him. The world is 
 crammed full of gods of various degrees. 
 
 But there is one thing to which the white 
 man will cringe as readily as his yellow brother 
 — perhaps more readily ; and that is — gold. 
 That, like death, is the true leveller ; perhaps 
 the truer. We soon found out that the passenger 
 aft was rather a person of consequence in his 
 own country, and that the six men who had 
 come aboard with him were his own servants 
 or retainers. At least, such was the story, and 
 such the old man evidently believed ; but I had 
 not yet rid myself of my suspicions, and there- 
 fore accepted the rumours in my own way. It 
 had been my experience to receive some very 
 ugly treatment from natives where I least ex- 
 pected it, and the recollection made me wary. 
 
 Not that I absolutely could convince my- 
 self that Chowfa — for that was the least out- 
 landish part of his outlandish name — was really 
 a bad egg. Only I mistrusted all Orientals on
 
 THE PASSENGER AFT 143 
 
 principle ; and even when he approached me 
 with his winning smile and his affable ' Oyes, 
 good day — good day, Oyes,' I regarded his 
 affability as an insidious yellow wile. And 
 yet at times, despite myself, I could not help 
 wondering if I wronged the man. He had 
 those horrid, soulless, Eastern eyes, which one 
 never seems able to penetrate ; those eyes 
 which have no depth, or, if they have, a depth 
 one sees not into. How could one trust such 
 eyes ? It would be flying in the face of reason, 
 the natural promptings of perception. Yet, to 
 give him his due, he was most affable to me, 
 and seemed continually to put himself out of 
 the way to attract my attention. He was 
 usually the first to greet me when I came on 
 deck ; when my watch was over he generally 
 met me near the companion-way with a 
 pleasant greeting and a good cigar. 
 
 In a way he admired me too — that is, he 
 admired in me a certain vastness of limb which 
 he did not possess. Once he even went so far 
 as to seize my arm, and as I swung him off 
 rather roughly — for I was not fancying any 
 liberties just then — he smiled apologetically and 
 murmured, ' Oyes, plenty fight — plenty fight,
 
 144 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 Oyes,' and something like a glow of excite- 
 ment swept his dull face. I could not quite 
 make him out. A fellow who looks pleased 
 where another fellow would look angry is not 
 to be trusted. 
 
 Though I had only been in the Amoy about 
 six months, I was fortunate enough to find 
 favour in the eyes of the captain, and more 
 than once he had promised to make me his 
 chief as soon as he could get rid of old Shiffles, 
 who then occupied that exalted post. Of 
 course I was deeply grateful, though I did not 
 tell him that I had a different ambition from 
 that of scavenging the China Seas. He meant 
 well, the old man, and I ought to have been 
 grateful. 
 
 The day before we got into Bangkok he 
 came up on the bridge during my watch, and, 
 after a good look round, beckoned for me to 
 approach him. 
 
 ' Seen anything, Wilton ? ' 
 
 'No, sir.' 
 
 ' Um. He took out his pipe and began to 
 fill it. 
 
 'What's she doing?' was his next question, 
 which was one that struck me as being entirely
 
 THE PASSENGER AFT 145 
 
 superfluous. If there was one person alive who 
 could truly judge the rate of speed at which the 
 Amoy travelled, it was her worthy skipper. 
 ' Nearly ten, sir, I should say.' 
 
 * She 's got the tide with her ? ' 
 ' Undoubtedly.' 
 
 ' Um,' said he, and bent to light his pipe. A 
 dozen serious puffs followed, and, the tobacco 
 burning to his liking, he turned once more to 
 me. 
 
 * Ever been in Bangkok ? ' 
 
 * No, sir.' 
 
 * Um ! Queer place, queer doings. Our 
 friend aft is a Siamese.' 
 
 ' So I understand.' 
 
 * A decent sort of chap, too,' said he somewhat 
 emphatically. ' I don't know that I ever took 
 to a nigger before. Just shows you, Wilton, 
 what an absurd thing is prejudice. Now, I '11 
 go bail that you 're not burdened with anything 
 half so ridiculous.' 
 
 ' No doubt I am much like other people.' 
 ' Ah, that 's your dashed modesty,' he laughed. 
 
 The old man was in a rare good -humour. 
 
 ' You 're a very milk-and-water sort of chap, I 
 
 don't think.' 
 
 K
 
 146 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 Of course I blushed at this playful persiflage. 
 The condescension of so great a man would 
 have made any modest person blush. I said I 
 hoped I had done nothing to lessen his good 
 opinion of me. 
 
 * On the contrary, my lad,' he replied ; ' and 
 it 's for that reason that I Ve come up here to 
 have a chat with you now. I understand you 
 and you understand me. It 's a tricky business, 
 though, and my respected chief officer 's an ass. 
 But I can trust you, Wilton,' he added mysteri- 
 ously ; ' you 're as mum as the grave, eh ? ' 
 
 ' I can keep a secret, sir, if that 's what you 
 mean.' 
 
 ' Well, yes, it 's something of that nature. 
 You see, this Siamese chap, Chowfa, as he calls 
 himself, is a bit of a pot in Bangkok ; but by 
 what I can make out he left that city rather 
 hurriedly. No doubt for the good of his 
 health. His version is that he was unfortunate 
 enough to arouse the envy, or jealousy, of 
 some one at court. He hints at a very high 
 personage — king, or king's brother, — you pays 
 your money. Well, this Johnnie, whoever he 
 is, happened to take a fancy to Chowfa's girl, 
 or wife, or something of that sort, and a fancy
 
 THE PASSENGER AFT 147 
 
 with such a personage meant ultimate posses- 
 sion. Chowfa tried to escape with her, but 
 failed, and so the other Johnnie got her. Well, 
 that's nothing. No doubt she liked the change. 
 But poor old Chowfa just escaped with his life. 
 Now he 's coming back to try and carry her off.' 
 
 I confess to being a little taken aback at this 
 story. It was so different from what I had 
 imagined. 
 
 'And what is your opinion of this story, sir ? ' 
 
 ' Well, when I got as far as you have, I 
 thought it was a pack of dashed lies. So do 
 you?' 
 
 I admitted as much. Putting several things 
 together, I could not see the reasonableness 
 of it. 
 
 ' But how does he propose to carry her off? ' 
 I asked. 
 
 The captain withdrew his pipe from his 
 mouth and bent his head nearer mine. 
 
 ' He wants us to help him.' 
 
 'Us? How?' 
 
 ' He offers me a good round sum — five 
 thousand dollars, in fact — if I will receive her 
 on my ship and take her back to Hong- 
 Kong.'
 
 148 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 I laughed. 'It is not often that a good ' 
 action meets with such a goodly recompense.' 
 
 ' Now look here,' he said, ' none of your jeer- 
 ing. You know well enough what I risk.' 
 
 'But, sir, five thousand dollars ! ' 
 
 * Yes,' he muttered reflectively ; * I admit it 's 
 a tidy lump.' 
 
 ' And only for carrying a lady back to Hong- 
 Kong ! I would do it for half the money.' 
 
 ' Dash you, Wilton,' he grumbled, ' I don't 
 want any of your infernal nonsense. You 
 know quite well that he 's not offering me five 
 thousand dollars just to take her back. You 
 see, there 's a bit more in it. The woman 's very 
 strictly guarded, and you know how these 
 Eastern Johnnies can guard a woman.' 
 
 ' I understand. To earn this sum you must 
 first set the woman free ? ' 
 
 The old man smiled approvingly. 
 
 ' Or get some one who will do it for me,' he 
 said. ' The dollars are all right. I 've handled 
 them.' 
 
 Though I was sure I read the meaning of 
 that insidious smile, I answered innocently 
 enough, ' Surely no one would be better fitted 
 for the task than Chowfa himself?'
 
 THE PASSENGER AFT 149 
 
 * That 's the awkward part of it. Chowfa 
 assures me that he is so well known in Bangkok 
 that he dare not set his foot ashore. But he 
 has half a dozen trusty men who know every 
 twist and turning of the city. If they could only 
 get some man of sense and courage to lead 
 
 them ' He stopped short, looking hard 
 
 at me. 
 
 ' You mean, sir ? ' 
 
 ' I mean that there 's a thousand dollars for 
 the man who can bring the girl off safely, and 
 I believe you are that man.' 
 
 I mumbled a modest thanks. It was ex- 
 tremely gratifying to know that I was so 
 greatly esteemed by my commander ; but I 
 had no particular liking for such adventures. 
 
 * And if I don't bring her off safely ? ' 
 
 ' Then you needn't bother about the dollars.' 
 
 * So there 's danger ? ' 
 ' Plenty.' 
 
 I thought his smile implied a reflection on 
 my courage. It was a curious, quizzing, half- 
 impertinent grin ; a grin which said as plainly 
 as it could, ' Now, have you the courage for 
 this, or am I mistaken in you ? ' Being young, 
 I resented the suggestion. In those days I
 
 150 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 had the courage and the daring for anything ; 
 though, as I said before, such adventures did 
 not appeal strongly to my imagination. I 
 daresay I would have screwed up courage 
 enough to get my own girl out of a scrape, but 
 I wasn't going to bother about other fellows'. 
 And yet — here my practical good sense came 
 in — a thousand dollars was not to be sneezed 
 at by the second mate of a Chinese coaster who 
 was in receipt of the magnificent sum of thirty 
 dollars a month. It was a temptation, and I 
 fell. 
 
 ' I thought you wouldn't disappoint me,' said 
 the captain ; ' and, between you and me, Wilton, 
 I guess it '11 be worth more than a thousand 
 dollars to you if it comes off all right. I don't 
 hide the fact that there is an " if" in the matter. 
 The chap who's got the girl is a thundering 
 pot — quite a personage at court, so the pas- 
 senger aft says. It will be no easy matter, and 
 possibly may be a dangerous one. However, 
 you 've got a head on your shoulders, and a 
 pair of big shoulders they are. If one fails 
 you, the other ought to retrieve the loss. 
 Cliowfa and his men will get the lay of the 
 land. You, to avert suspicion, will take charge
 
 THE PASSENGER AFT 151 
 
 of the boat. We shall be here about ten days, 
 but I don't think we shall require your services 
 till the day before we start.' 
 
 The next morning we crossed the bar of the 
 Menam and steamed slowly up to our anchor- 
 age, the passenger aft taking what seemed to 
 me the most ridiculous precautions to avoid 
 recognition. But I suppose he knew his own 
 business. At any rate, it made me respect his 
 rival. His followers appeared as sailors, and 
 the old man gave out that he had taken them 
 on in the place of some who were leaving at 
 Bangkok. This was rather cunning of the 
 captain, as it offered the fellows an excuse 
 for staying aboard, and was to prove of use 
 to me later on. 
 
 The men, however, left the ship as soon as 
 it was dark, attired as ordinary coolies ; but 
 they were all back again at daybreak, and 
 had duly reported to their master, who in turn 
 bore his report to the captain, through whom 
 it reached me. The men, as I guessed, had 
 been spying, and would continue to do so till 
 the time was ripe for a forward movement. 
 
 Chowfa, all this time, clung to the ship like 
 a barnacle, never by any chance showing him-
 
 152 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 self on deck while any strangers were aboard. 
 Sometimes he joined me of an evening on deck 
 after the work was done, and we had a smoke 
 together. Then he would try to tell me in his 
 broken English how deeply grateful he was to 
 me, and with his soft, buttery ways would work 
 so on my feelings that I invariably promised 
 to do all that a bold Briton could to rescue 
 his beloved. Poor chap ! When you come to 
 think of it, it is a bit hard to have your girl 
 carried off in such an arbitrary manner. See- 
 ing the resentment in my eyes, he would give 
 my shoulder an admiring pat, or my arm, which 
 would have made three of his, a loving squeeze, 
 and murmur, * Oyes, plenty fight — plenty fight, 
 Oyes.' He also conveyed to me the desire 
 that, should I come in personal contact with 
 Kha, which was the name of the villain who re- 
 tained Chowfa's treasure, I would summarily 
 flatten him. All of which I faithfully promised. 
 We had been quietly lying at the buoys about 
 a week, when one morning the captain told me 
 to get out one of our after boats, which I had 
 no sooner done than he advanced and informed 
 me that he wished to give his new men a little 
 boat-practice. Indeed, I was not surprised
 
 THE PASSENGER AFT 153 
 
 when, on looking over the stern, I perceived one 
 of Chowfa's men already in the boat. Chowfa 
 himself was on deck, and at a word from him 
 the boat was hauled round to the gangway. 
 Then, as at a given signal, four or five men 
 slipped down into it. It is needless to add 
 that they were Chowfa's men. 
 
 ' This being a ship's boat, and in charge of 
 a ship's officer, it is not likely to be questioned,' 
 said the old man, coming out on the gangway 
 to me ; * but, to save appearances, you might 
 purchase provisions of some sort. For the 
 rest, you may safely leave yourself in the hands 
 of these fellows. They'll show you the road 
 to the bird's cage.' 
 
 I smiled, and descending entered the boat; 
 the men in the bows pushed off, the others got 
 out their oars, and away we went. The stream 
 flowed pretty hard just then, for the flood- 
 water had not yet run off; but my men laid 
 to with a will, plainly showing that they were 
 no novices at the game. So much, at any rate, 
 was satisfactory. If it came to a keen pursuit 
 they were equal to a ding-dong struggle. 
 
 Up the stream we went for about two miles, 
 till the man in the bows pointed out an opening
 
 154 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 on my right, which looked like the entrance to 
 a creek or canal. I immediately turned into 
 it, and presently a landing-stage and several 
 sampans opened up, the occupants of the latter 
 favouring us with but an informal stare as we 
 passed. I brought our boat in against the 
 stage and stepped ashore, the man in the bows 
 following me. 
 
 'Are you coming with me?' I asked. 
 
 ' Yes, mas'r.' 
 
 The other fellows had already dropped down 
 a boat's-length or two. I nodded approval. 
 Then my companion and I set out, he walking 
 a dozen yards or so astern of me, but coming 
 forward to direct me whenever we came to a 
 turning. In this way we steered an intricate 
 course for about half a mile, at the end of 
 which we ran foul of a high stone wall, round 
 the inside of which several fairly large trees 
 grew. Here my companion advanced smiling. 
 
 ' Is this the place ? ' 
 
 ' Yes, mas'r.' 
 
 ' Urn ! ' I looked puzzled, for I could not 
 see how we were to enter through the solid 
 mass of mud and stone. 
 
 The man saw the look in my face, and
 
 THE PASSENGER AFT 155 
 
 pointed up to the tree. I could see nothing 
 there, but presently he undid the sash from his 
 waist, and made a pretence of throwing it 
 over one of the boughs. Catching the gleam 
 of understanding in my eye, he smiled and 
 motioned for me to follow him, which I did 
 round the wall for about two hundred paces. 
 Here he stopped against a low gate, shook it 
 and smiled. His meaning was obvious. He 
 would mount the wall by the aid of the tree, 
 then creep round and open the gate for me to 
 enter. Very fine arrangement, thought I : I 
 only hope it will be as easy as it looks. I then 
 retraced my steps, and succeeded in reaching 
 the boat without the aid of my guide. So far 
 so good. I did not forget to make some 
 purchases on the way back. 
 
 Of course the captain was eager for my re- 
 port, and when he heard all that I had to say 
 he confessed that I had a soft thing on, and 
 that it would be the easiest thousand dollars 
 I had ever earned. I thought likewise of those 
 five thousand dollars, and how much easier 
 their earning would be for him. I, however, 
 expressed much doubt concerning the easiness 
 of my task, more particularly mentioning the
 
 156 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 trouble I would have to find the woman even 
 though I gained admittance to the grounds. 
 
 ' I wondered if you 'd think of that/ he said, 
 'or if you'd go blindly at it in sailor-man 
 fashion. My dear fellow, you '11 be led direct 
 to the lady. The man who acted as guide was 
 once a servant of Kha's, He knows every 
 twist and turning of the blessed house from 
 top to bottom.' 
 
 I felt relieved. Certainly the difficulties 
 seemed chiefly to consist of the vapours of my 
 own imagination. Perhaps the skipper was as 
 near his five thousand dollars as he hoped. 
 
 Every day after this I took the boat up 
 to the same landing-stage, and went ashore, 
 returning with provisions of some sort, till our 
 coming and going evoked no sign of interest 
 from the lethargic sampan people. 
 
 And so gradually the time grew near for the 
 great attempt, and one day, just before break- 
 fast, the captain approached me with a serious 
 face. 
 
 *We shall drop down the stream at five this 
 afternoon,' he said, ' so you must make the 
 attempt to-night. We shall clear the bar 
 before dusk and apparently sail away south.
 
 THE PASSENGER AFT 157 
 
 So we shall ; but in the dark we will feel our 
 way back and lie-to within half a dozen miles 
 of the bar. If your adventure succeeds and 
 you pass the forts safely, give us a flare at 
 your discretion, and we will answer it. We 
 shall wait for you till daybreak.' 
 
 There was nothing more to be said. If day- 
 break did not find me somewhere off the mouth 
 of the Menam, it would probably be because I 
 was at the bottom of that stream. However, 
 I meant to leave as little to chance as possible, 
 so I armed myself with a six-chambered 
 revolver and a dozen extra cartridges, and 
 saw that my men were similarly equipped : 
 indeed, their equipment was more complete 
 than mine, for, in addition to his revolver, each 
 man carried a long sheath-knife not unlike a 
 Malay creese. I also had some provisions 
 stowed away in the after part of the boat, 
 likewise a fair-sized keg of water, thinking it 
 just as well to be prepared for any contingency. 
 I also took a dress similar to that which my 
 men wore, and pigment to darken my skin, 
 though, truth to tell, the sun had done that 
 well enough. 
 
 Shortly after two bells, or five o'clock, I
 
 158 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 intimated to the old man that I was ready, 
 and we walked together towards the gangway, 
 he imploring me to refrain from all rashness, 
 and be sure not to use force unless absolutely 
 necessary. I don't know what he took me for, 
 but I assured him that I hoped with all my heart 
 I should meet with no opposition, and I meant 
 it. For, now that the important moment had 
 come, I experienced some anxiety concerning 
 the business — chiefly, I think, through the ex- 
 treme vagueness of my plans. Imagination 
 and distance had lent a certain glamour to the 
 project ; but now that the eventful hour had 
 really come, reflection added the most unpleas- 
 ing reminder that I was rushing somewhat 
 blindly and foolishly upon the unknown. But 
 it was too late now. If stupidity had its pro- 
 verbial luck, all might be well: if not, we should 
 be in a deuce of a corner. 
 
 Chowfa was by the engine-room skylight, 
 talking seriously to his head man, the fellow 
 who had been my guide ; and as the captain 
 and I approached, the fellow with a low salaam 
 skipped from his master's side and descended 
 the gangway, I following him a few moments 
 later.
 
 THE PASSENGER AFT 159 
 
 ' Take care of yourself, Wilton,' whispered 
 the captain, ' and for God's sake don't hurt 
 any one if you can help it' 
 
 I shook my head. Was it likely? I only 
 hoped that no one would hurt me. 
 
 ' Remember,' he continued, ' we shall hang 
 outside the entrance till daybreak. Good luck 
 to you.' 
 
 'Thank you, sir.' 
 
 I ran down the gangway and pushed off. 
 A last glance at the old packet as my men 
 bent to their oars revealed the red, excited 
 face of the skipper, and the thoughtful yellow 
 face of Chowfa. Forward the mate was cursing 
 lustily among the men, but, looking over the 
 side, he waved his big hairy hand. Somehow 
 I wondered if I should ever see him again. 
 
 The voyage up the stream was accomplished 
 satisfactorily, and the landing duly effected. 
 Then, having to kill time the best way I could, 
 I took my guide with me and rambled through 
 the city, cautioning the men on no account to 
 leave the boat, — a caution which I had good 
 reason to believe they implicitly obeyed ; for, 
 returning after dark, and hailing the boat, I 
 found them at their post. Then I put off into
 
 i6o TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 the stream and donned my native dress, and 
 added the dark pigment to my already dark 
 skin, the result of which left me a tolerable 
 Siamese, albeit my bulk was considerably out 
 of proportion to my assumed nationality. 
 
 Pulling back to the landing-stage, my guide 
 and I quickly stepped ashore, and made off in 
 the darkness, two more of my men following 
 at a discreet distance. The three others were 
 left in charge of the boat with the injunction 
 to be ready at a moment's notice. 
 
 The night was clear, if dark, and not the one 
 I should have chosen for our adventure had 
 choice been given me ; but it would probably 
 be some two or three hours before the moon 
 rose, before which time I hoped to have accom- 
 plished my purpose. 
 
 In the meantime my companion and I walked 
 swittly and silently on, the few people we met 
 taking no more notice of us than if we were 
 what we seemed. Consequently we reached 
 our destination without let or hindrance. Here, 
 crouching beneath the big wall, in the shadow 
 of the trees, we waited till our two followers 
 approached. Then my guide, speaking in a 
 low undertone, sent one to the right and one to
 
 THE PASSENGER AFT i6i 
 
 the left of us, at which piece of precaution I 
 duly nodded approval. The fellow's eyes fairly 
 blazed with excitement. Whether it was with 
 joy at thought of serving the new master, or 
 paying off a grudge against the old, I could 
 not say ; but, knowing something of his story, 
 I may have had my suspicions. 
 
 But meanwhile he was nervously unwinding 
 a rope which he had secreted about his waist, 
 and which I guessed to be some six or seven 
 fathoms long. He grinned and gibbered and 
 carried on rather idiotically during this opera- 
 tion; but, though intensely excited, he evidently 
 had his wits about him, and, by the triumphant 
 flashes he turned on me, those wits were con- 
 juring up a singular series of pictures. 
 
 To the end of the line was attached a little 
 bag of sand weighing about two pounds ; and, 
 as I took this up to examine it, the fellow 
 grinned hideously, pointed up into the tree, 
 and swung his arm. I understood the panto- 
 mime, and duly admired the ingenuity. Nothing 
 had been forgotten, and I was quite willing to 
 credit all the old man had said about the girl 
 having been prepared for our coming. Had she 
 not been, I foresaw no end of complications. 
 L
 
 i62 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 Just then my guide stepped back, and 
 swinging the bag once, twice, three times, he 
 launched it into space. There was a rustling 
 of leaves overhead as the missile forced its way 
 through the foliage ; then, hand over hand, he 
 began to pay out the line till presently the 
 little bag floated on a level with our faces. To 
 seize it, to test the position, was the work of a 
 moment ; but he had neither misjudged his 
 aim nor the strength of the bough. Then, with 
 another frightened, diabolical grin on his ugly 
 face, he seized the line and went up it hand 
 over hand like a monkey. I watched him till 
 he was lost in the foliage, but I knew by the 
 cracking overhead that he had reached his 
 perch safely, and was making his way along 
 the bough. He would, of course, descend on 
 the inside by the trunk of the tree. 
 
 After waiting till I knew he had safely 
 negotiated the aforesaid bough, I hauled on 
 the free end of the line, and pulled it over ; 
 then, coiling it up, carried it with me to the 
 gate, not wishing any chance passer-by to 
 stumble on it unawares. The gate reached, I 
 laid the line beside it, and anxiously awaited 
 further developments.
 
 THE PASSENGER AFT 163 
 
 For a long time — several minutes it seemed 
 to me, though possibly it was not that — no 
 sound came to tell me that my friend on the 
 other side was moving. My anxiety increased 
 by leaps and bounds, and I was just picturing 
 him falling an easy prey to the watchful Kha, 
 when I heard a gentle attempt on the gate. 
 So gentle was it that any one passing, who 
 had no cause for suspicion, would not have 
 noticed it. I scratched gently by way of an 
 answer, but, to my surprise, he did not reply. 
 Indeed, for a full minute no sound whatever 
 came from the other side. Then suddenly 
 some hurried work began, the gate was quickly 
 opened, and I pulled in. 
 
 ' You 've been a devil of a time,' I growled. 
 
 * Oyes, mas'r — plenty care, mas'r.' 
 
 ' Why didn't you open the gate at first ? ' 
 
 He pulled my ear down to him and whis- 
 pered, ' Kha's people watch alongside gate. 
 Expect some one.' 
 
 I could not restrain a sudden gasp. Phew ! 
 It was a close shave. How close I did not tell 
 him, for he was almost fainting as it was. 
 
 Closing the gate noiselessly, he seized me by 
 the hand, and dragged me into an adjacent
 
 i64 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 shrubbery by the wall, where I deposited the 
 coil of rope, and there we stood for a good 
 three minutes anxiously straining our eyes 
 and ears. But, no sound of an unusual nature 
 reaching us, we were forced to the conclusion 
 that the watcher, whoever he was, or for what 
 reason he had been there, had surely betaken 
 himself within doors. 
 
 Motioning for me to follow, my guide, who 
 seemed to know every inch of the ground, 
 skirted the wall for some hundred yards or so, 
 and then bore straight across to the house, 
 seeking the shadow of every shrub and tree 
 that lay in his way. In this manner, and by 
 means of persistent dodging, waiting, and 
 listening, we advanced well up to the house, 
 in the shadow of which we rested a while, to 
 still our nerves, I think, almost as much as to 
 gain our breath. 
 
 A low verandah, over which grew a profusion 
 of rose-scented creeper, seemed to surround the 
 house. By the occasional tinkling of a guitar, 
 and the low laughter of women which now 
 and again came rippling out through the open 
 window, I guessed, and not untruly, that this 
 building was the worthy Kha's seraglio. Here
 
 THE PASSENGER AFT 165 
 
 it was, according to arrangement, that we were 
 to meet the beautiful Pakna, the well-beloved 
 of Chowfa, who was too great a lord to risk his 
 skin for the sake of his adored one. 
 
 My guide, who seemed uncommonly nervous, 
 and who had not yet got over the fright of 
 seeing a man at the gate, evidently wished to 
 find out for certain where the man had gone. 
 Therefore, warning me with uplifted hand to 
 keep still, he started from my side, and dis- 
 appeared as noiselessly as a shadow. 
 
 For a long time I stood there, scarcely daring 
 to breathe ; but as there was no sign of him 
 returning, and as my patience was fast getting 
 exhausted, I decided to do a little exploring 
 on my own account. Full of that intent, I 
 parted the creepers on my left, and was about 
 to step on to the verandah, when from an open 
 window opposite I saw a dark form emerge. 
 Immediately drawing back, I held my breath 
 and watched, but whether the form belonged 
 to a man or a woman I could not say. How- 
 ever, I was soon assured, for, after standing at 
 the window some little time, the figure turned 
 away with a sigh. I remembered all. She 
 had been warned : she was waiting. Her
 
 i66 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 deep sigh denoted intense disappointment. At 
 least, such was the way I read it, and I acted 
 accordingly. 
 
 'Hist!' 
 
 It was low, soft, but clear as a bell, and was 
 done almost involuntarily. I confess to a few 
 extra heart-beats just then. Would my impru- 
 dence ruin me? 
 
 Luck was looking my way for once. She 
 stopped, peered irresolutely forward, and then 
 advanced a step. 
 
 ' Pakna ! ' I whispered, in a tone as sweet as 
 Chowfa himself could use. 
 
 Again she sighed, and this time stretched 
 towards me, muttering something in the native 
 tongue. Guessing that she asked who I was, 
 I replied in the same voice, ' Chowfa.' 
 
 This name made an extraordinary impres- 
 sion upon her, and, hesitating no longer, she 
 advanced to where I was hiding. I immedi- 
 ately parted the creeper and stepped on to 
 the verandah beside her. She retreated with a 
 little cry of alarm. To reassure her I repeated 
 ' Chowfa, Chowfa,' and by sundry gesticula- 
 tions gave her to understand that I had come 
 to convey her to her lord. Luckily, at that
 
 THE PASSENGER AFT 167 
 
 moment my guide advanced, and, seeing us 
 together, he fell on his knees before her and 
 bowed his head in the dust. Then she said 
 something in a soft, low voice, and he arose, 
 still salaaming as he did so. 
 
 ' She understand, mas'r,' he whispered. 
 'Plenty ready — minute.' 
 
 The woman retreated back through the win- 
 dow : we slunk again into the shrubbery and 
 there anxiously awaited her reappearance. 
 
 She seemed an unconscionable time in 
 coming, and I began inwardly to fume. We 
 might easily have been half-way to the boat 
 by now but for her cursed dilatoriness. What 
 the deuce did she want to go back for when I 
 was there and everything ready for her escape? 
 Her few trumpery trinkets, I guessed, which 
 was so like a woman, and which would pro- 
 bably prove her ruin. It is always the same. 
 No matter how near to foundering the ship 
 may be, there is always some madman who 
 stays to dress, some miser who rushes below 
 to seize his little hoard — and goes down with 
 the ship. 
 
 My impatience was gradually giving way to 
 a generous rage, when she again appeared upon
 
 i68 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 the scene. This time she bore a considerable 
 bundle in her hand, proving the truth of my 
 surmise. Feeling extremely ungracious, I 
 again stepped on to the verandah and ex- 
 tended my hand for the bundle, when all of 
 a sudden a heavy footfall sounded on the 
 path not a dozen yards away. With a half- 
 stifled cry of alarm the woman instantly seized 
 my hand and drew me through the window 
 into the house. My guide, whose head only 
 had poked through the creeper, withdrew at 
 once. 
 
 The room was quite dark, but, as she still 
 held my hand and guided me, the darkness 
 was no great inconvenience. She led me 
 swiftly right across the room till I felt a 
 curtain brush against my face — the curtain, I 
 guessed, which partitioned off an inner cham- 
 ber. Here she stopped, and we involuntarily 
 turned together. Looking backward, the open 
 window was distinctly to be seen, and further 
 on, in the dim light, the dark shadow of the 
 creepers. But these are only such things as 
 come to thought afterwards : then we heard 
 only the footsteps, which were now upon the 
 verandah; saw, in imagination, nothing but the
 
 THE PASSENGER AFT 169 
 
 owner thereof. Then, like an apparition, his 
 form suddenly blocked up the entrance. 
 
 I felt her little hand tremble, but pressed it 
 reassuringly, and, terrified as she was, she gave 
 me an answering pressure. 
 
 But in the meantime the man, speaking 
 sharply, like one who is accustomed to com- 
 mand, stepped into the room ; but apparently 
 liking not the darkness, and receiving no 
 answer, he as quickly skipped back to the 
 window, from which position he spoke again 
 in a louder, shriller key. There was a note 
 of excitement, of suspicion, in his voice which 
 I did not like. I feared, his suspicions once 
 aroused, that he would call for help : then 
 good-bye to all hope of a peaceful elopement. 
 There was nothing for it now but to seize the 
 bull by the horns — but how? The woman 
 answered the unspoken question for me, and 
 answered it in my own way. Drawing my 
 face down to hers, she put her mouth to my 
 ear and breathed, ' Kha,' at the same time 
 doubling up my fist, which to her, no doubt, 
 seemed big enough and strong enough to fell 
 an elephant. 
 
 I was not slow to act upon the suggestion.
 
 I70 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 Placing the bundle on the floor, I stole from 
 her side, and almost before he was aware of 
 it I confronted him. When he saw me, a 
 coolie in the women's quarters, his voice took 
 a mighty horrid tone, and he actually raised 
 his hand as though to strike. Now, it has 
 always been a guiding principle of mine to 
 get in, if possible, the first blow, and acting 
 on this principle I let out : his nose came in 
 contact with my knuckles, and over he went. 
 But I had only injured, not stunned him, and 
 as he rolled on the verandah he set up a most 
 horrible howling. Knowing what this meant, 
 and that in a minute or two we should have 
 the whole place about our ears, I stepped 
 back into the room and called, ' Pakna, Pakna!' 
 She was instantly by my side, her hand in 
 mine, and as we passed by the howling Kha 
 she stopped for a second or two to administer 
 sundry savage kicks and hiss out something 
 decidedly unpleasant. I could not help smil- 
 ing, serious as the position was. 
 
 The guide was already half through the 
 shrubbery and brandishing his ugly knife in 
 a way I did not like, especially as I knew he 
 had a personal grudge against Kha. So I
 
 THE PASSENGER AFT 171 
 
 flung Pakna's bundle at him and told him to 
 run and open the gate. 
 
 ' Yes, mas'r,' he cried, but before obeying 
 me he spat disdainfully towards the twisting 
 figure, which continued to make a most in- 
 fernal din. I had a great inclination to send 
 him to sleep, and the rather trying position I 
 was in might have justified the act ; but I 
 merely knelt on his stomach and gagged him 
 with his own silk sash. Even that was too 
 late. His howling had already roused the 
 place. Voices, hurried, excited voices, called 
 to each other from different parts of the 
 building, while here and there lights began 
 to flash. There was not a moment to lose, 
 so I seized Pakna by the hand and hurried 
 with all speed towards the gate. There stood 
 my guide in readiness. As we approached, he 
 opened the gate and we passed out, he follow- 
 ing with a triumphant laugh. 
 
 By this time the shouts within the grounds 
 had reached an alarming pitch, but fortunately 
 we were on the right side of the wall. I gave 
 the word forward, my guide and I with Pakna 
 between us leading the way, my other two 
 men, who joined us immediately we emerged
 
 1/2 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 from the garden, bringing up the rear. Pakna, 
 being but a young woman, was as light of 
 foot as either of us, so that we fairly bounded 
 along the dark streets, never stopping to look 
 round till we had reached the landing-stage. 
 
 Luckily the boat was in readiness. I stepped 
 aboard and helped the woman after me, when 
 she sank upon the seat shivering and crying 
 and scarcely able to breathe ; at which I did 
 not wonder, for I was fairly winded myself 
 Then the guide stepped aboard, followed by 
 the rear-guard : I gave the order to push off, 
 and we shot into the middle of the stream. 
 And apparently none too soon, for, ere we had 
 half cleared the little creek, a white-robed 
 figure bounded on to the landing-stage we had 
 just quitted and began wildly to shout at us. 
 Soon this figure was joined by three or four 
 others, and then a turn in the stream hid them 
 from view. 
 
 I breathed more freely when we had cleared 
 the creek and were fairly on the river, right 
 down the middle of which I steered. The four 
 rowers laid to with a good will, and for a time 
 the banks seemed to skim by us ; but ours 
 was a heavy, clumsy craft, a regular rough-
 
 THE PASSENGER AFT 173 
 
 water boat, and required an amount of pro- 
 pulsion which meant the quick exhaustion of 
 muscular energy. Still I kept them at full 
 pressure for a couple of miles, when of their 
 own accord they took an easy. I kept a good 
 look-out ahead and astern, but fortunately no 
 pursuer hove in view. 
 
 Down past the shipping we flew, past the 
 buoys from which the old Amoy had cast loose 
 that very afternoon, and the free river stretched 
 before us. I now regained my usual com- 
 posure, and, having partaken of a good pull 
 at the whisky-flask, I felt in such an excellent 
 humour that I could have bellowed a chanty 
 for very joy. 
 
 Happily the whisky had not absorbed all my 
 practical common-sense. I was not yet out of 
 the wood : I could not feel the thousand dollars 
 nestling sweetly in my breast-pocket. But, by 
 the Lord, I meant to. I had no doubt now that 
 all pursuit was at an end. The great adventure 
 had been accomplished in the most satisfactory 
 manner, and, feeling quite safe, I lit my pipe. 
 Then I called an easy to the men. We had 
 plenty of time. It would be two or three hours 
 yet before daybreak.
 
 174 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 The woman all this time lay coiled up where 
 she had at first fallen, and now that I had time 
 to pay her a little attention I offered her a 
 biscuit and some water, and told her in the 
 best way I could that she had nothing more 
 to fear. She looked up quite pitifully at me 
 and shook her head. I laughingly shook mine 
 in return, and motioned for her to eat ; but, 
 though she drank the water greedily, she only 
 nibbled the biscuit. I told my guide to speak 
 to her in the native tongue and reassure her ; 
 but he replied that she would not be reassured, 
 as she still feared the vengeance of Kha. Know- 
 ing something of the perverseness of the sex, 
 and how they will be just that which they 
 are bent upon being, I left her to her own 
 reflections and smoked away in silence. 
 
 In the meantime we had been floating quietly 
 down the stream, the men resting on their oars. 
 The moon was now out, and lit up the water 
 ahead and astern to quite a considerable dis- 
 tance, so that, turning round for a last view 
 before ordering the men on again, I caught 
 the shadow of a moving object far astern. A 
 moment or two of anxious scrutiny convinced 
 me that the object was a boat, and that it was
 
 THE PASSENGER AFT 175 
 
 undoubtedly coming down-stream. I gave the 
 order coolly enough for the men to pull, but 
 their quick eyes had discovered the object 
 almost as soon as mine, and they needed no 
 great urging. 
 
 For a while our boat fairly flew, but, travel 
 as we would, we could not shake off the shadow 
 astern ; and, as my men soon tired, the shadow 
 began to gain on us in an alarming manner. 
 Quickly seeing the futility of trying to show a 
 clean pair of heels, and knowing how the effort 
 would exhaust my men for the final tussle, 
 I loosened my revolver, letting them see the 
 action. Then I ordered them to go easy. Pro- 
 fiting by my example, they also felt with one 
 hand for their pistols, while with the other 
 they made a pretence of rowing. The woman, 
 luckily, was as yet unconscious of the prox- 
 imity of the pursuers, for she sat quite still, 
 her head on her breast, her legs doubled up 
 under her. 
 
 Soon the object was near enough for me to 
 see that it was a big sampan with four oars 
 going forward, while two men tugged desper- 
 ately at the long steering-scull astern. Our 
 heavy boat had not a ghost of a chance with
 
 176 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 such a light, shallow thing propelled by half 
 a dozen trained rowers. 
 
 As it came up astern of us hand over hand 
 I hailed it, fearing it was their intention to run 
 us down. 
 
 * Hullo, there ! ' I shouted. ' Look where 
 you 're coming ! ' 
 
 I was answered in the native tongue, my 
 guide translating : 
 
 * What boat is that ? ' 
 
 ' The gig of the steamship Amoy. What are 
 you?' 
 
 For a moment there was no reply. Then 
 the voice said, ' The Amoy left for Hong-Kong 
 at half-past five this afternoon.' 
 
 ' I know. We missed her. She is to wait 
 for us at Koh-si-Chang. Go on, men.' 
 
 Away we went once more, but apparently 
 without satisfying the people in the sam- 
 pan, who immediately started in pursuit. The 
 woman, clasping my knees, looked up im- 
 ploringly into my face. She had heard what 
 passed, and guessed its meaning ; but I assured 
 her that I would never give her up, and, though 
 she did not comprehend a word of English, I 
 am sure she understood me. She kissed my
 
 THE PASSENGER AFT 17; 
 
 hand passionately and sank sobbing at my 
 feet. I patted her head kindly, and covered 
 her with my greatcoat. 
 
 But meanwhile the sampan had come close 
 up astern, and the fellow in the bows hooked 
 us with his boat-hook. With an angry ex- 
 clamation I immediately sprang up and seized 
 it, and, as I did so, a triumphant shout rose 
 from the pursuers. This disconcerted me for 
 the moment, though its meaning came to me 
 like a flash. I had forgotten that I was still 
 in native dress. 
 
 Then the sampan came alongside. They told 
 us they knew who we were, and suggested that 
 we might guess who they were : that they 
 would not molest us if we gave up the woman, 
 but in any case they meant to have her. I 
 answered that I was sorry to disoblige them, 
 but the woman had come into my hands, and 
 I meant to keep her. I also warned them to 
 sheer off lest harm befell them ; for, though I 
 was a man of peace, I could not submit to the 
 indignity of being dictated to by a bunch of 
 niggers. They, however, took no heed of my 
 warning. Therefore, still guided by my prin- 
 ciple of having first shot, I fired at the sampan 
 M
 
 178 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 just on the water-line, and think I must have 
 put a couple of bullets through it. At all 
 events there was a fearful spluttering and 
 shouting, which excitement proving favourable 
 to us, we sheered off and soon put a dozen 
 boat's-lengths between us. But once their sur- 
 prise was over, anger gave them courage, and 
 with wild shouts they came dashing after us. 
 I slipped a couple more cartridges into the 
 empty chambers of my revolver, and then faced 
 them. 
 
 On they came with awful yelling and shout- 
 ing, apparently thinking to intimidate us by 
 their ferocious cries. As they came within 
 four or five boat's-lengths of us, my fear for 
 our safety got the better of my discretion, 
 and I emptied my revolver at them. This was 
 answered by a heavy fire in return, though 
 fortunately too high. I heard the bullets hiss 
 through the air above me. 
 
 Then began a running fight, all my energies 
 being concentrated upon hitting the boat in a 
 serious place. Indeed, the better to take aim 
 at her I exposed myself to some pretty shoot- 
 ing. But then I was not used to war, and, like 
 a fool, thought nothing of cover. Indeed, one
 
 THE PASSENGER AFT 179 
 
 bullet tore the flesh from my shoulder : another 
 laid low my guide, who dropped forward on 
 his knees and held his hands to his side. But 
 the rowers swung on apparently uninjured, and 
 I admired the coolness of the brave fellows. 
 
 But our pursuers, finding they got none the 
 best of the exchanges at long range, now began 
 rapidly to overhaul us, and, guessing their in- 
 tention, I seized a spare oar and awaited the 
 onslaught. My men, watching my movements, 
 loosened their sheath-knives. I saw their eyes 
 gleam. Even the guide, wounded as he was, 
 seized his boat-hook and stood on guard. 
 
 In a moment they were on us. The two 
 boats ground against each other ominously. 
 Then a fearful confusion followed. There was 
 an indiscriminate smashing of oars, a flashing 
 of knives, a babel of voices. The screeching 
 was something horrid. I laid about me with 
 my great oar, and made more than one worthy 
 coolie grunt. The man next to me used his 
 as a spear, and poked the sharp, solid handle 
 at his adversaries. The others used their 
 knives or oars as best they could, and for 
 about three minutes a furious fight ensued. 
 
 Then suddenly a great cry of alarm came
 
 i8o TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 from the sampan. Their boat was surely 
 sinking. In their excitement they had evi- 
 dently not noticed it, but now there could 
 no longer be any doubt. The sampan was 
 going down by the head. They therefore 
 sheered off immediately, and the battle ceased. 
 Whether the sampan sank or not I cannot say, 
 for no sooner were they well clear of us than 
 we pushed forward on our journey. 
 
 My guide was wounded seriously, while all 
 the other men had more or less received hard 
 knocks ; but we did what we had to do, and 
 in the early haze of the following morning the 
 old Amoy picked us up.
 
 CHIEF OFFICER GROVER 
 
 For over two months we had swung idly at 
 anchor in the harbour of Hong-Kong, Busi- 
 ness in the shipping world had been exceed- 
 ingly slack, and when a tramp came in to dis- 
 charge she was never sure when she would go 
 out again. Our last voyage had been from 
 Nagasaki with coal. Accordingly, after get- 
 ting rid of that objectionable stuff, we had 
 plenty of time to clean up. For the rest, our 
 hull made a good anchorage for the barnacles. 
 
 But one day the captain came aboard and sent 
 for the chief officer, and then the news leaked 
 out that we were presently to make a move. 
 We had been chartered to run down to Saigon, 
 load up with rice, and return to Hong-Kong — 
 a voyage, at the longest, of three weeks' dura- 
 tion. I for one should have preferred Bombay 
 or Sydney, but the fiat had gone forth, and 
 Saigon it was to be. 
 
 181
 
 i82 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 The person who had chartered us was one 
 Ah Yeh, a well-known merchant on the island, 
 and, so some said, much better known than 
 respected. But be that as it may, Ah Yeh 
 was a man of considerable wealth and influence, 
 and as such held a responsible position in the 
 commercial world. A man who can meet 
 present liabilities need not fear his antece- 
 dents ; and if Ah Yeh had any black marks 
 against his name, no one cared to remind him of 
 them. Yet some curious tales were set afloat 
 concerning him. It was said that he had origin- 
 ally been a sampan coolie, and that by dint of 
 super-excellence in cunning he had risen to be 
 one of the foremost native merchants of South 
 China. But there is usually a stiff price paid 
 for greatness, and Ah Yeh's case was no ex- 
 ception to the rule. Success brought its atten- 
 dant evils, which Ah Yeh declared were killing 
 him ; and yet he throve and waxed fat. 
 
 On the two or three occasions I had the 
 honour of visiting him at his office, I found 
 him particularly charming. He came out into 
 the shop when he knew I was there, asked me 
 into his inner sanctum, cracked a pint of 
 champagne, and filled my case with cigars.
 
 CHIEF OFFICER GROVER 183 
 
 Speaking in excellent English, and with a 
 
 peculiarly soft and winning accent, he began 
 
 to question me about the ship, displaying a 
 
 great interest in all that pertained to the life 
 
 of a sailor. I can see him now as he put his 
 
 questions, his smooth, yellow, not unhandsome 
 
 face all aglow with intelligence, and a motive 
 
 I could not then fathom ; his little black eyes 
 
 dancing into mine, the long nail on the little 
 
 finger of his left hand with which he lovingly 
 
 scratched the tip of his nose. I remember, 
 
 though thinking little of it then, the stress he 
 
 laid on the dangers of a voyage to Saigon, 
 
 particularly when near the Paracels. He 
 
 had heard of those rocks, of the many vessels 
 
 that had rushed upon them to their doom ; 
 
 and in his innocent, earnest fashion he wanted 
 
 to know if I was very much afraid of them. I 
 
 laughed at the idea, and Ah Yeh laughed too, 
 
 but there was not much spontaneity or mirth 
 
 about it. And then, with the same appearance 
 
 of extreme innocence, he wondered if ships 
 
 were sometimes wrecked on purpose, and what 
 
 remuneration a responsible officer expected for 
 
 the work. I did not answer, and Ah Yeh, 
 
 smiling more insinuatingly than ever, said he
 
 i84 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 should be pleased to hear my views on the 
 subject. Appealed to thus, I spoke somewhat 
 hotly on the matter, and in a very few moments 
 I knew I had a most inattentive listener. 
 Then Ah Yeh rose rather brusquely and told 
 me he would be pleased to see me the next 
 time I was passing that way. One is naturally 
 wiser after the event, though it seems absurd 
 that I should have thought so little about my 
 cross-examination. In the face of what hap- 
 pened, it seems incredible that my perception 
 should have failed so lamentably. 
 
 The day before we sailed, Ah Yeh sent aboard 
 a supercargo and half a dozen clerks, and a 
 villainous-looking batch they were, the super- 
 cargo in particular with his flat cheeks, flat 
 forehead, and flat eyes being a most forbidding 
 blackguard. But ugliness being the common 
 heritage of the Mongol, one soon begins to pass 
 it by without comment. Ah Yeh's yellow batch 
 was, after all, no serious libel on the country. 
 
 Well, early the following morning, away we 
 went, and during the voyage down nothing 
 of an eventful nature befell us. The weather 
 was comfortably cool, the sea smooth, and, 
 though we were no great shakes at speed, we
 
 CHIEF OFFICER GROVER 185 
 
 made fairly good progress, though the barnacles 
 we had accumulated in Hong-Kong impeded 
 us somewhat. 
 
 Very little was seen of the supercargo or his 
 assistants. Occasionally they appeared on 
 deck, but the greater part of the time they 
 spent below gambling and smoking. There 
 was, however, one exception. The supercargo, 
 Wong, was a man of an inquiring turn of 
 mind, and seemed to take considerable interest 
 in affairs aboard. At first he tried to hobnob 
 with me, but when he found that I wouldn't 
 have any truck with him, he sought out the 
 mate, and I watched with some degree of 
 disgust the intimacy between them ripen. To 
 be sure, everything was done secretly, but two 
 or three times I had surprised them drinking 
 together in the mate's cabin, and, by the guilty 
 way my superior officer started, I knew that he 
 was ashamed of himself Nor was it whisky or 
 rum that they drank, nor any such common 
 sailor's tipple, but champagne — good whizzing, 
 fizzing champagne. Of course I knew how the 
 stuff got there — indeed, the triumphant gleam 
 of Wong's flat eyes assured me ; but it was not 
 my place to remonstrate with my chief I
 
 i86 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 might deplore the circumstance, but could do 
 nothing more. 
 
 Our mate was rather a common type of 
 sailor-man, the kind of fellow you would ex- 
 pect to hear had begun life forward, but by 
 dint of perseverance had succeeded in getting 
 his ticket. How he ever got it was always 
 a wonder to me, for he was a singularly faulty 
 navigator and not a particularly clever seaman. 
 His appearance was not prepossessing. In- 
 deed, it rather foolishly made you take a dis- 
 like to the man at first sight. There is, how- 
 ever, nothing romantic about a short, thickset 
 figure, and without doubt Mr. Grover's figure 
 was both short and thickset ; and, though he 
 carried his big head well forward, as though his 
 neck were too weak to bear it, I can vouch for 
 the exceeding stoutness of that neck. A black, 
 untrimmed beard spread itself over his face 
 right up to his eyes, which eyes, and a short, red 
 protuberance which he called his nose, were his 
 only visible features. Not an attractive man, 
 perhaps, and yet such was a very fair out- 
 line of Mr. Daniel Grover, chief officer of the 
 s.s. Malacca. 
 
 He had not been with us for more than five
 
 CHIEF OFFICER GROVER 187 
 
 months ; and though I don't think he ever gave 
 the old man any great cause for satisfaction, he 
 never, as far as I 'm aware, gave him any serious 
 cause for uneasiness. We had picked Mr. 
 Grover up in Singapore, and, though a good 
 man may occasionally be found there, it is not 
 the best of ports to hail from. Good, reliable 
 men, as a rule, are not found stranded in the 
 East ; men of a certain class are to be found in 
 any number. Grover's discharge must have 
 been all right or the old man would never have 
 taken him ; though I have known skippers so 
 hard pressed at times that they were glad 
 enough to take anything they could get. At 
 any rate, Grover joined us at Singapore, and I 
 was not sufficiently in the captain's confidence 
 to know the why or the wherefore. I only 
 know that we wanted a chief mate, and that 
 Mr. Daniel Grover came aboard. Though his 
 appearance was against him, he and I got on 
 very well together — for a few weeks. He 
 seemed a bluff, hearty, good-natured sort of 
 sailor-man with no pretension to class ; and, 
 after all, class is not of the utmost importance 
 to those who go down to the sea in tramps. 
 He appeared to be a decent enough fellow, and
 
 i88 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 that was sufficient. Before we left the Japan 
 ports, I knew Mr. Daniel Grover for quite a 
 different sort of person. 
 
 But in the meantime I have left the ship 
 rapidly approaching Saigon, which port we 
 duly reached, and, when we had loaded, as 
 duly cleared again. True, Grover, during the 
 operation of loading, did not forget to cultivate 
 his intimacy with the supercargo Wong; but 
 nothing of any moment happened till we were 
 clear of the river. Then, when everything was 
 going well above, the captain having set the 
 course and gone below, leaving the third in 
 charge of the bridge, I went to look the chief 
 up, and found him squatting on his bunk, his 
 legs dangling over the side, a pipe in his mouth, 
 and a tumbler of champagne in his hand. The 
 supercargo Wong was squatting on the settee 
 opposite, his legs curled up under him, a 
 tumbler in one hand, a bottle of champagne 
 in the other, and a cheroot stuck between his 
 thick lips, the thin end protruding. 
 
 ' Come in, Emson,' cried the mate cheerily, 
 as soon as he caught sight of me ; ' come in, 
 man, and have a glass of grog. You look as 
 miserable as a flayed bloater, damn me if
 
 CHIEF OFFICER GROVER 189 
 
 you don't ! Here, Wong, you soor, tip up the 
 rum ! ' 
 
 * None, thanks ; not just now,' I said, seeing 
 that my respected chief was already three 
 sheets in the wind, and having no wish to 
 fraternise with the curious Wong. 
 
 ' Rot !' shouted the mate. ' Tip it up, Wong, 
 you soor ! ' 
 
 'Welly good,' said Mr. Wong insinuatingly, 
 making the bubbles dance in the glass as he 
 held it out to me. 'This lum allee same belong 
 first chop. Same as Cap'n dlink when he go 
 see top-side girlee,' and out of his little flat eyes 
 he gave me an intensely knowing look. The 
 mate roared hilariously at the joke, and with 
 his heels beat an excited tatoo on the locker. 
 
 'This Wong's a soor,' he said admiringly, 
 'but he does carry the right stuff and no 
 mistake. Now, Emson, drink up. Here 's a 
 prosperous voyage to the good ship Malacca, 
 and may she never go to the bottom till her 
 insurance will make it worth her while ! ' 
 
 ' I dlink,' said Mr. Wong, * to the good ship 
 Malacca^ And as he emptied his tumbler, he 
 looked at the mate in a way that made me feel 
 quite sick.
 
 190 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 * Now, Emson,' cried that worthy, evidently 
 determined that I should join the carousal, 
 ' you can't with decency refuse to drink such 
 a toast.' 
 
 * I never drink champagne,' I said. 
 'Neither do I,' he grinned, 'especially when 
 
 I can't get it. But what, may I ask, is your 
 especial tipple, Mr. Particular?' 
 
 * It all depends on the occasion,' I replied. 
 
 ' Oh, I see,' he sneered, ' we ain't good enough 
 for you. Wong's a blasted Chink, and I'm 
 a ' 
 
 ' Blasted fool 1 ' 
 
 He sprang off his bunk, his eyes blazing with 
 anger, and, shaking a hairy fist in my face, 
 roared, ' Look here, Mr. — Particular, for two 
 pins I 'd flatten you ! Son of a sea-cook ! ' he 
 growled. ' Bah ! they breed better men than 
 you on a Thames penny-packet.' 
 
 ' And cast them adrift at Singapore,' I said. 
 
 His flushed eyes grew very searching as he 
 looked into my face. 
 
 'What do you mean?' he muttered. 
 
 'Just what you like,' I answered ; 'and when 
 we get to Hong-Kong I '11 trouble you to step 
 across to the Kowloon side and repeat in my
 
 CHIEF OFFICER GROVER 191 
 
 face what you have just now said.' With that 
 I turned and quitted the cabin, a string of 
 infamous oaths following me along the alley- 
 way. 
 
 Nothing of any consequence happened for 
 the next two days. He had always an ugly 
 look for me, and he gave his orders in much 
 the way that a man would speak to a dog ; but 
 his tone of voice was a thing I could not very 
 well resent ; moreover, he was my superior 
 officer, and discipline forbade any questioning 
 on my part. As for the curious Wong, he kept 
 himself out of the way as much as possible, 
 though I knew that he and the mate were still 
 as thick as thieves. 
 
 I being the second officer always took the 
 middle watch, and on the third morning out, a 
 minute or two after eight bells had struck, the 
 mate duly made his appearance to relieve me. 
 I was standing in the starboard corner of the 
 bridge at the time, keeping a good look-out, 
 and thinking of the proximity of the Paracels, 
 when he stepped over to me. As soon as he 
 spoke I knew he had been drinking heavily. 
 His voice vibrated shockingly as he asked me 
 if I had seen anything.
 
 192 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 * No,' I answered, as civilly as I could, ' but 
 we can't be very far off. The captain cautions 
 a good look-out, and says he is to be called 
 immediately anything is seen.' 
 
 I think he resented my tone of imparting 
 information, for he muttered something uncom- 
 pHmentary under his breath and then lurched 
 across to the binnacle. I immediately descended 
 the bridge. 
 
 But, instead of going straight to my cabin, I 
 stood for a minute or two looking hard out 
 across the starboard bow, and thinking in a per- 
 sistent irritating sort of way of the dangerous 
 shoals lying out yonder ; for, try as I would, I 
 could not disconnect them and the man on the 
 bridge. Of course I knew my misgivings were 
 the very height of absurdity, but as I peered 
 out into the darkness I entertained some most 
 distressing thoughts. 
 
 Presently I heard the mate speak to the man 
 at the wheel, his coarse voice easily reaching 
 where I stood : 
 
 ' What 's she steering, quartermaster ? ' 
 
 I could not catch the reply, though I knew 
 quite well what it would be. There was a 
 moment's pause. Then the mate spoke again :
 
 CHIEF OFFICER GROVER 193 
 
 ' Are you quite sure ? ' 
 
 'Quite, sir. That's as Johnson gave it to 
 me.' Johnson was the quartermaster whom 
 this man had relieved. 
 
 I heard the mate mutter something, and then 
 I knew by the direction his voice took that he 
 had gone into the chart-room. 
 
 For a while nothing was heard but the grind, 
 grind of the screw, the splash of the waves as 
 they fell back from the ship's bows. Then 
 presently the mate emerged from the chart- 
 room, and, after taking half a dozen excited 
 turns up and down the bridge, he stopped 
 alongside the binnacle, and I distinctly heard 
 him say, ' Just run down for my pipe, quarter- 
 master. You '11 find it on the shelf above my 
 bunk.' 
 
 ' Yes, sir,' answered the man. There was a 
 shuffling of feet, and I knew that the mate had 
 taken the wheel. 
 
 Beneath the bridge there was a small wheel- 
 house, with an auxiliary steering-wheel which 
 was only to be used if anything happened to 
 the gear above. This house, though now con- 
 verted into a lamp-room by the quartermasters, 
 was, according to custom, kept ready for use 
 N
 
 194 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 in case of necessity. Everything was ready 
 and in its proper order — even to the binnacle 
 lamp being lit. 
 
 Into this house, then, I slipped as soon as 
 I heard the quartermaster clatter down the 
 ladder, and, as if impelled by some intuition, I 
 sprang towards the binnacle and gazed eagerly 
 in at the compass. What my thoughts were 
 may, perhaps, be guessed ; but I was conscious 
 of the wave of relief that passed through me 
 when I saw that we were still on our course. 
 I had evidently misjudged Mr. Chief Officer 
 Grover : had done that honest man a most 
 grievous injury. Well, the best of us may err 
 at times, and, if I had judged Mr. Grover 
 harshly, he had only himself to thank for 
 
 I started, leaving the thought unfinished, 
 my eyes riveted to the face of the compass. 
 One — two — three — four points it swung 
 to the eastward, and then it steadied. I 
 watched it breathlessly to see if it would 
 swing back again. But no. The mate, on his 
 own initiative, had actually altered the course 
 of the vessel four points, and she was now 
 steadied at that! I could scarcely believe 
 my eyes, credit my senses. I looked closer ;
 
 CHIEF OFFICER GROVER 195 
 
 I pinched myself to see if I were dreaming : 
 but no, there was no longer any doubt. The 
 ship's course was altered. Why ? For what ? 
 I trembled as I thought of the answer such a 
 question suggested. Chief Officer Grover had 
 taken upon himself a dreadful responsibility. 
 He had neither orders nor authority for altering 
 the course of the ship. Indeed, such an altera- 
 tion was fraught with incalculable danger. 
 The last thing the captain said to me that night 
 before he turned in was, ' Tell Mr. Grover to 
 keep her on this course, and don't forget to let 
 me know if you see anything.' Indeed, with 
 the Paracels lying so close to the eastward of 
 us, the mate had been guilty of a most repre- 
 hensible act, and I knew there would be a 
 pretty set-out when the old man heard of it in 
 the morning. 
 
 However, it was no affair of mine, and, as I 
 was not anxious to cultivate the reputation of 
 a sneak, I, after waiting till the quartermaster 
 returned, went below. But sleep I could not. 
 Whenever I closed my eyes I thought I saw 
 the ship running over the land at express 
 speed, steered by a gibbering demon who 
 eventually took unto himself the shape of Mr.
 
 196 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 Chief Officer Grover. Once I thought we were 
 sailing upside down, as ships do in a mirage, 
 and that upon the keel, with a glass in his 
 hand and a pipe in his mouth, sat our worthy 
 chief grinning diabolically at me. This was 
 more than mere human flesh could bear. It 
 was bad enough to dream of the ship cutting 
 such extraordinary capers, but it was intolerable 
 to be haunted by the presence of the mate. 
 So, by way of relaxation, I got up and had a 
 squint through the port. 
 
 The day was still a long way off, but it was 
 surely breaking somewhere in the east, and 
 through the early morning mists I felt almost 
 sure that I could hear the low booming of far- 
 off breakers. I listened, listened intently. But 
 what with the grinding of the screw, the thump, 
 thump of the engines, and the noise made by 
 the water as it rushed hissing by, I was sorely 
 confused. Moreover, strung as I was to such 
 a pitch of excitement, I was readily persuaded 
 to doubt my own hearing. And yet, sleep 
 being entirely out of the question, I hurriedly 
 filled a pipe, as a pretence for showing up, and 
 then went on deck in my pyjamas. 
 
 Advancing to the starboard side, I leant on
 
 CHIEF OFFICER GROVER 197 
 
 the rail and tried to pierce the misty distance ; 
 but nothing coming of it, I turned my eyes 
 towards the bridge. A moment or two of 
 intense scrutiny, and then I became conscious 
 of the fact that several forms were flitting 
 about on the port side a little abaft of that 
 structure. I watched anxiously, scarcely 
 knowing why, and then I thought I heard the 
 mate's voice. This was immediately followed 
 by the creaking of tackle. What could this 
 mean ? Scarcely giving myself time to think, I 
 hurried round to the other side, and surprised 
 the curious Wong and his half-dozen clerks 
 straining every muscle to swing out the port 
 lifeboat. The mate was giving his orders in 
 hoarse whispers from his stand on the bridge. 
 
 Almost before they were aware of what had 
 happened, I was in their midst. 
 
 'Hallo, what's this?' I exclaimed. 'Who 
 gave you the orders to launch that boat ? ' 
 
 There was a moment or two of silence, and 
 then the ingenuous Wong stepped forward. 
 
 ' Orders,' he lisped, in his innocent, baby 
 fashion, ' Wong no sabbee orders.' 
 
 ' Who 's that ? ' cried the mate, coming to the 
 bridge ladder and peering down at us.
 
 198 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 * I — Emson.' 
 
 ' Well, what do you want ? ' he growled. 
 
 ' Do you know these fellows are swinging out 
 one of the lifeboats ? ' 
 
 ' What business is that of yours ? ' 
 
 ' I should like to know who gave them the 
 order,' 
 
 * That 's my affair,' he bawled. ' It 's your 
 watch below. What do you want sneaking 
 about the decks ? ' 
 
 ' It 's time to be about when you are getting 
 ready the boats,' I replied. 'When do you 
 expect her to strike ? ' 
 
 * Damn you ! ' he muttered, ' you will insist 
 on crossing me ! Look out — you '11 cross me 
 once too often. Now go below and mind your 
 own business.' 
 
 ' I think I had better first tell the captain 
 that you have altered the ship's course four 
 points to the eastward. He might be in- 
 terested in the movement.' 
 
 I could not see the mate's face, but I ima- 
 gined it by the silence that followed. Then he 
 shambled down the ladder and came to me. 
 
 'What do you mean by that?' he asked 
 under his breath.
 
 CHIEF OFFICER GROVER 199 
 
 ' You know well enough.' 
 
 Continuing to advance, he said, * You 're too 
 clever for me, Mr. Emson. I think we shall 
 have to part company.' 
 
 ' Keep back ! ' I cried, guessing the man's 
 horrible design, and seizing one of the long, 
 heavy rowlocks of the boat ; * if you lay a 
 hand on me I '11 brain you.' 
 
 * Then own that you 're a liar — that you 
 don't know what you 're talking about' 
 
 * I know perfectly well what I 'm talking 
 about' 
 
 * Then there 's only one way with sneaks. 
 Wong, close up.' 
 
 I saw the hideous wretches form a semi-circle 
 round me — my back was to the rail — and in 
 another moment I knew I should see the 
 glimmer of their knives. Then, just as I was 
 on the point of charging, I heard the old man's 
 voice ring out distinct and clear. 
 
 ' Hullo ! what the blazes is the matter here ?' 
 
 The Chinamen instantly fell back ; the mate 
 
 hung his head and muttered incoherently. 
 
 The captain was only one podgy little man, 
 
 but he had the moral influence of twenty. 
 
 * Mr. Grover has ordered out the lifeboat, sir.'
 
 200 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 * Eh ? ' said the old man, in a tone which 
 threw discredit on his hearing. 
 
 I repeated the information. 
 
 ' Lifeboat — ordered out,' mumbled he. Then, 
 seeming to grasp the situation, he turned sharply 
 to the chief officer. ' What does this mean, Mr. 
 Grover ? ' 
 
 ' It means that I ain't going to risk my 
 damned skin for you nor twenty like you,' 
 bawled the mate defiantly. 
 
 ' Mr. Grover, sir,' said the captain, ' by God, 
 sir, I never allow an officer of mine to speak to 
 me like that' 
 
 * Then what do you want to hug the damned 
 land for ? ' yelled the mate, whose desperate 
 position had endowed him with a desperate 
 courage. 
 
 ' Hug the land, sir ? ' repeated the bewildered 
 captain. 
 
 'Yes, sir, hug the land, sir,' said the mate, 
 imitating him. 
 
 ' Go below to your room, sir,' roared the old 
 man. 'You're drunk, sir, drunk.' 
 
 ' As you must have been, I reckon, when you 
 set this ship's course.' 
 
 The captain stood speechless, his stodgy
 
 CHIEF OFFICER GROVER 201 
 
 form quivering with anger. Then he began 
 to splutter, but he hadn't got further than 
 'You infernal scoundrel,' when he stopped 
 short and cocked up his stodgy little ears. A 
 moment only he listened, we all listened, and 
 then the ominous boom, boom of breakers was 
 heard on our starboard bow. The old man 
 sprang forward with a cry, and as he mounted 
 the ladder of the bridge he screamed out : 
 
 ' Starboard, starboard — hard a-starboard ! ' 
 
 ' Hard a-starboard it is, sir,' answered the 
 quartermaster, as he sent the wheel spinning 
 and jammed it down. The nose of the ship 
 slewed round to the west, and apparently not 
 a moment too soon. As the bank of mist on 
 our right suddenly lifted, I saw, not a hundred 
 yards from us, a cluster of low black rocks — 
 and we had been rushing straight upon them ! 
 
 The captain then called for me to join him 
 on the bridge, the mate, nothing daunted, 
 following at my heels. 
 
 ' Come here, Emson,' said the old man, ' I 
 want to speak to you. As for you, Mr. Grover, 
 you will please retire to the chart-room till 
 you 're wanted.' 
 
 ' What for ? ' growled the mate.
 
 202 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 • Damn you, because I tell you ! ' 
 
 The mate slouched off with a very poor 
 grace, and the captain, beckoning me aside, 
 heard all I had to tell. 
 
 Yes, the whole story came out at the trial : 
 how, for the sake of the insurance, Grover had 
 entered into an arrangement with Wong to 
 wreck the ship, for which crime he was to 
 receive two thousand dollars. Ah Yeh, how- 
 ever, who was rightly called the clever one, 
 stoutly denied any knowledge of the affair, 
 and he had so guarded himself that no guilt 
 could be laid to his charge. 
 
 Mr. Chief Officer Grover will not be able to 
 go to sea again for seven years.
 
 SAYONARA 
 
 When Vershiel first saw Hina-San she was 
 romping in the garden of one of the big tea- 
 houses of Kobe, playing, with a child of six 
 or seven, a sort of battledore and shuttlecock. 
 The peal upon peal of laughter which came 
 from behind the big wistaria tree first attracted 
 the man's attention. Wondering what could 
 be the cause of so much merriment, he stole 
 out into the grounds, and, behold, there was 
 Hina-San in her white tabi,her face flushed, her 
 eyes dancing with happiness. A pretty, plump, 
 innocent-looking little thing, entering into the 
 childish game with all the earnestness and 
 energy of a child. For a few moments the 
 man watched unobserved, watched with a cold, 
 critical eye, letting no point of the view escape 
 him. Then, with a smile on his face and a 
 clapping of hands, he advanced into view. 
 The applause was the tribute paid to Hina- 
 
 203
 
 204 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 San's skill and agility, and she smiled pleasantly, 
 thinking it came from one of her companions ; 
 but when she saw the stranger advance, the 
 flush on her face grew deeper, and she hung 
 her head like a child caught doing a naughty 
 thing. 
 
 Vershiel, still continuing to advance, smiled 
 encouragingly at her, and nodded for her to 
 continue her game ; but she only hung her 
 head and began to giggle. 
 
 ' Then if you won't play,' he said, ' will you 
 bring me some tea out here in the garden ? ' 
 
 She nodded, smiling : shuffled her feet into 
 her straw sandals, and toddled off. 
 
 The man walked to a seat beneath the big 
 wistaria, and, resting his face in his hands, 
 watched the white clouds fluttering over the 
 hill-tops. But did he see those clouds, note 
 the sloping outline of the hills ? or did he see 
 anything but a palpitating bit of humanity in 
 a cream kimono ? 
 
 As she stood before him, the little tea-tray 
 in her hands, the warm flush filling her face 
 with sweetness, he found himself half wonder- 
 ing if the scene were real. But not alone was 
 it real — it was a charming reality. He spoke,
 
 SAYONARA 205 
 
 and she answered with a smile. He thought 
 he had never seen such pretty teeth. The 
 mouth too, full and red, met with his entire 
 approval. Indeed, the more he looked the 
 more wonderful he thought it that a native 
 woman should be so attractive, and he found 
 himself thinking strange things about this 
 pretty, odd creature. A inousinee, a tea-girl — 
 an ignorant little thing who played baby games 
 with all the ardour of a baby. And yet a 
 woman. 
 
 Vershiel had not been long in Japan, nor 
 was it expected that he would make a long 
 stay. Business alone had brought him there, 
 and, that business accomplished, he would 
 depart. But, for all he knew to the contrary, 
 he might be detained in Kobe for another six 
 months, and he had been warned to beware of 
 promiscuous loves. 
 
 He was very careful with Hina-San at first, 
 knowing how easily terrified these little crea- 
 tures are ; but in her eyes he was a godlike 
 personage, in whose presence she was scarcely 
 fit to breathe, and, though he remained a god 
 to the last, he was a god to whom she had 
 grown accustomed.
 
 2o6 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 Then came the interview with her parents and 
 considerable haggling over the sum they were 
 willing to take for a loan of their daughter for, 
 say, six months. Hina-San herself felt flattered 
 and honoured : flattered that the white stranger 
 should condescend to look upon one so insig- 
 nificant and unworthy, honoured that he should 
 esteem her so greatly as to get her to come 
 and keep house for him. The white stranger 
 thought — but perhaps we had better not in- 
 quire into his thoughts. He did what every 
 fellow who could afford it did, and, egad ! he 
 was deuced good to her. 
 
 Vershiel's nature was a purely business one, 
 coldly calculating and extremely punctilious. 
 A business arrangement was simply a business 
 arrangement. If he promised to pay so many 
 yen per month for an article, he considered 
 that article his while he fulfilled the contract. 
 There was no other obligation. As for senti- 
 ment — well, everybody knew that sentiment 
 and the native women were as widely separated 
 as the poles. True, he had no fault to find with 
 Hina-San. The Japanese woman seems born 
 for housekeeping, and Vershiel's housekeeper, 
 as a housekeeper, was perfection. When the
 
 SAYONARA 207 
 
 bills for the first month came in, he was so 
 astounded at her success that he straightway- 
 declared a dividend in favour of her and her 
 parents. But here his interest in her ceased. 
 As a companion she was a mere cipher — an 
 interesting one, it is true, but a cipher neverthe- 
 less. He did not seem to think it possible 
 that she might grow foolishly attached to him. 
 He recognised her obligations ; but for any- 
 thing else he hadn't a second thought. 
 
 And yet her poor, ignorant little breast was 
 full of love for him. If he touched her, the 
 blood bounded through her veins with sickening 
 rushes ; if he carelessly flung an arm about her 
 shoulders, every pulse in her body went throb, 
 throb, till it seemed as though it would snap 
 with the tension. Sometimes he kissed her, 
 but not often. He admitted that he never 
 cared for those curious-lidded dark brown eyes. 
 Yet had he looked, looked with the thinking 
 eye, he would have seen devotion inexpressible, 
 love transcending all thought of earth. He 
 saw only the peculiar lids, the ugly slits through 
 which the eyes shone. And she, being but an 
 ignorant, honest girl, was only half-conscious 
 of the great devotion that had come to her.
 
 2o8 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 She knew that for her there was but one god, 
 and that Vershiel was his name. But as the 
 devout would approach God with fear and 
 trembling, so she approached her master ; and 
 if he read not her heart, saw not the love in 
 those eyes, how could she tell him ? 
 
 And so the weeks and the months flew by, 
 Hina-San leading an enchanted life; for he had 
 grown kinder to her of late — perchance for 
 more reasons than one : but whatever his 
 reasons were, his kindness was received as a 
 token of the master's pleasure in his hand- 
 maiden, and she went blithely to and fro. 
 Then the time came when he had to break 
 the news of his intending departure. The six 
 months of their contract had elapsed : he was 
 going away to Yokohama, and she must go 
 back to her people. 
 
 She listened to him like one who hears but 
 does not comprehend. Then her face grew 
 suddenly white, and with a little heartbroken 
 sob she turned away. She could not have told 
 him what she felt, even if she could have 
 formed the words — it would have been taking 
 too great a liberty with her honourable lord. 
 She could only steal away and bury her face
 
 SAYONARA 209 
 
 in her hands : wonder at the strange lump in 
 her throat, the sudden chill that enwrapped 
 her heart : marvel at the awful coldness and 
 emptiness of the world. An hour ago the sun 
 was shining, the world was full of light and 
 loveliness : now the great lamp had gone out, 
 and the winter storms were howling round the 
 desolate dwelling. 
 
 Vershiel thought he could sever the con- 
 nection as easily as he had made it. He gave 
 her lots of money, he heaped presents upon her 
 and her people ; he did all that a generous 
 business man could do, and marvelled much at 
 her apathy. He did not seem to take into 
 account the woman's great love, her unselfish 
 devotion, or the fact that ere long she would 
 be a mother. Not knowing the love, he could 
 not feel the regret : the unselfish devotion 
 would have made him smile. How was he 
 to know that the girl valued the money so 
 little that she never kept a yen of it, but 
 handed it over intact to her parents ? As for 
 the motherhood — that was a trifling inconveni- 
 ence which she and her people would have to 
 see to. Moreover, he doubted the story, or 
 doubted what they would have him believe. 
 O
 
 2IO TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 How could he credit her honesty ? His friends 
 laughed heartily at the mere suggestion. It 
 was always the last card, they said. Every- 
 body had had a similar experience ; but a few 
 yen always smoothed the difficulty. 
 
 And so, despite her tears, entreaties, and the 
 hopeless pathos of her brown eyes, he said 
 sayonara (farewell), and went away, and by 
 emptying his purse in her lap thought he had 
 discharged all obligations. To be sure, there 
 was the half-promise to come back, wrung from 
 him in a moment of weakness to alleviate her 
 distress ; but it was a promise he had no real 
 intention of fulfilling, and as such it sat lightly 
 on his conscience. It mattered nothing that 
 the poor, ignorant girl hugged it madly to her 
 soul, that joy unspeakable darted to her pathetic 
 eyes as she pictured the joyous home-coming : 
 it mattered nothing, this breaking of a native 
 woman's heart. 
 
 She went back to her people, rich, laden with 
 presents, and was petted and made much of 
 while the riches lasted ; but the pettings of 
 home, the love of interested parents, were 
 probably accepted at their proper value. It 
 all helped to make the long, dreary days pass
 
 SAYONARA 211 
 
 till he returned, and to make those days pass 
 was now her only object in life. But day ran 
 to week, and week to month, and yet he came 
 not. Still she bore up bravely, believing in 
 that promise, though her face grew paler and 
 thinner, and the pathos in her eyes more pitiful. 
 * He will come,' she whispered consolingly to 
 herself ; * he will come in time to welcome the 
 little one — our little one. He is great, he is 
 good, and he will not forget his Hina-San, his 
 little Hina-San. Oh, my beloved, come, come ! ' 
 And the little plump brown hands went out 
 entreatingly, and the brown pathetic eyes shone 
 sadly through the blinding tears. 
 
 And so day succeeded day, and at last the 
 little one came ; and when her people saw that 
 it was a white man's child they hated it with 
 a mad, unreasoning hatred, bitterly censuring 
 their daughter for her stupidity. But to her 
 who had loved the father, the wee thing came 
 in time to save her brain from bursting, her 
 heart from breaking. Every drop of white 
 blood that ran in its veins was sacred to her — 
 a sacred link connecting her with the never- 
 to-be-forgotten past. 
 
 But when her money was spent, and one by
 
 212 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 one her trinkets had gone, and she was once 
 more as poor as in the days when Vershiel 
 first saw her, then began the bitter tauntings of 
 her people. And they said, * Cast out the brat 
 of this white man, this thief who leaves you 
 both to perish. Why shouldst thou carry 
 about this living shame, so that all who see 
 may mock at thee and us? A curse on him 
 and all his race ! Nothing but misery have 
 the white men brought to our land.' And 
 they grew wroth with her because she paid no 
 heed to them. But to her the child was dearer, 
 far dearer than life. For every precious drop 
 of white blood that coursed through its tiny 
 veins she would have died a dozen deaths. 
 There was something more than pathos in 
 the brown eyes now. 
 
 But they were cruel days of waiting, and 
 poor Hina-San grew pale and weary, and the 
 child languished in consequence. Then was it 
 her people bade her go forth, she and her 
 shame ; and never again did they see her, or 
 hear the voice of the white shame cry — except 
 in their dreams. 
 
 With her baby on her back she tramped to 
 the tea-house where she had first met Vershiel,
 
 SAYONARA 213 
 
 and, in consequence of good service, she was 
 reinstalled in her old position. But it was no 
 longer the Hina-San of old who came back, not 
 the Hina-San who had romped childishly with 
 the child, not the rosy-faced girl who had brought 
 the tea to the white stranger beneath the big 
 wistaria. A dozen times she went over the scene. 
 There were the seat and the table just as they 
 had been a year ago, there was the big tree a 
 mass of blossom. She shut her eyes and tried 
 to fancy he was sitting there, just as he had sat 
 that day. She brought her white shame and 
 sat him in the seat of his father, and even as 
 she looked her vision grew blurred, and the one 
 word, ' Yokohama,' the word that had haunted 
 her for months past, started to her lips. Yes, 
 she would go to Yokohama ; she had long 
 thought of it : now her mind was made up. It 
 seemed a terrible journey, a fearful under- 
 taking ; but she would go, and, when he heard 
 her story, saw him whom her people called 
 the white shame, he would surely take her 
 back to him as in the old days. 
 
 So, when she had saved enough money to 
 pay her passage to Yokohama, she went down 
 to one of the big steamers, and they stowed
 
 214 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 her away somewhere between-decks, she and 
 her white shame ; and she knew Httle more 
 till they came to tell her that the ship had 
 arrived at Yokohama. 
 
 Yokohama ! She awoke from her long 
 dream, allowed them to lead her up the 
 companion, and down into a small boat. 
 Then they rowed her across the water to the 
 hatoba, and as she walked up the steps, her 
 white shame slung on her back, they told her 
 that she was in Yokohama. 
 
 Yokohama ! She gazed round bewildered. 
 Yokohama at last ! The place he had come 
 to, the place where he lived ! Now all her 
 troubles were over : she had come to Yokohama 
 — to him ! 
 
 For hours she wandered about repeating the 
 name ' Vershiel — Mr. Vershiel,' but all to whom 
 she spoke stared at her with curious insolence, 
 or laughed outright in her face. But one, more 
 kind than the others, who saw the agony in 
 her eyes, told her to go to the European 
 quarter and inquire, and even took the trouble 
 to show her the way. There she learnt that 
 Mr. Vershiel, who belonged to one of the 
 biggest houses in Japan, had long since sailed
 
 SAYONARA 215 
 
 for England. England ! The thought almost 
 staggered her. England, that land beyond 
 the sea, beyond the sun — beyond the world, it 
 seemed. Her voice grew tremulous, her sad 
 eyes full of agony. When had he gone ? Many 
 months ago in the s.s. Hakodate. Hakodate^ 
 ha ! She would remember that name. And 
 when would the Hakodate be back ? They could 
 not say, but probably at the end of the year. 
 
 So away she went, sore at heart and yet 
 clinging to her last fond hope. She procured 
 lodgings, found employment, and then set 
 herself to keep her long vigil. The Hako- 
 date would surely come back one day, and 
 that day she must be there to hear the good 
 news. So every evening, when her work was 
 done, she slung her white shame across her 
 shoulders and walked from the native quarter 
 to the English hatoba, and asked the sampan 
 men if the Hakodate had yet arrived ; and 
 when they said no, she turned about and 
 toddled back murmuring, ' To-morrow, to-mor- 
 row — perhaps he will come to-morrow.' 
 
 But the to-morrows came and went, the 
 weeks ran into months, and yet the ship came 
 not. But one evening, a cold stormy night.
 
 2i6 TALES OF THE FAR EAST 
 
 as she arrived pale and shivering at the hatoba, 
 she saw a boat coming ashore from a big ship 
 which evidently had just arrived ; and one of 
 the sampan men called out to her — for they 
 all knew her and her quest by this time — ' That 
 big ship yonder is the Hakodate' She heard 
 him and trembled, but it was with a joy that 
 almost frightened her. 
 
 As the boat approached the landing-stage 
 she watched it intently, and saw that there 
 were several white men aboard it, but her 
 eyes grew so dim with tears that she could 
 not make out their faces. Eagerly, but vainly, 
 she sought to clear her eyes ; nor till the men 
 had come up the steps and were close upon 
 her did she see that he was not there. Then 
 she stepped forward to one, the one who had 
 given her the information upon her first arrival 
 in Yohohama, and cried out, 'Vershiel — Mr. 
 Vershiel — have he no come ? ' 
 
 The man started ; then, recognising her, 
 said, ' No, my poor woman — Mr. Vershiel is 
 in England.' 
 
 ' But — he — will — come ? ' The slow, broken 
 English was full of hesitation — of hesitation 
 and intense pain.
 
 SAYONARA 217 
 
 ' Mr. Vershiel will never come to Japan 
 again.' 
 
 ' Not come — not come ? ' 
 
 But the man shook his head at the pathetic 
 little figure and marched on. 
 
 Early the next morning some fishermen dis- 
 covered the bodies of a woman and a child float- 
 ing some three miles above the settlement. 
 The child was clasped in the woman's arms. 
 In the bosom of the woman's kimono they 
 found the photograph of a somewhat sinister 
 though decidedly good-looking European. 
 Across the back of the card was written in 
 native characters the one word, ' Sayonara.' 
 
 Printed by T. and A. Constable, Printers to Her Majesty 
 at the Edinburgh University Press 
 
 P
 
 John Lane 
 
 VIGO STREET, LONDON, W. 
 
 THE KEYNOTES SERIES. 
 
 Each volume with Designed Title-page and Cover 
 Crown 8vo. 3s. 6d. net. 
 
 Seventh Edition. 
 
 KEYNOTES. By George Egerton. Crown 8vo, 3s. 6d. 
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 THE DANCING FAUN. By Florence Farr. Crown 
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 A CHILD OF THE AGE. By Francis Adams. Crown 
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 Second Edition. 
 
 THE GREAT GOD PAN and THE INMOST LIGHT. 
 By Arthur Machen. Crown 8vo, 3s. 6d. net. 
 
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 Fifth Edition. 
 DISCORDS. By George Egerton. Crown 8vo, 3s. 6d. 
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 PRINCE ZALESKI. By M. P. Shiel. Crown 8vo, 3s. 6d. 
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 are combined in a new synthesis which stamps a new imaginative impres- 
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 Twenty-second Edition. 
 
 THE WOMAN WHO DID. By Grant Allen. Crown 
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 GREY ROSES. By Henry Harland. Crown 8vo, 3s. 6d. 
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 '"Castles near Spain" as a fantastic love episode is simply inimitable, 
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 AT THE FIRST CORNER, and other Stories. By 
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 ' Mr. Marriott Watson can write, and in these new stories he shows, more 
 manifestly than in any previous work, his capacity for dramatic realisation. 
 "An Ordeal of Three" has not only strength but cha.Tm.'— Daily C/ironicle. 
 
 ' Admirably conceived and brilliantly finished ; the book will be read.' — 
 Saturday Review.
 
 THE KEYNOTES SERIES 
 
 MONOCHROMES. By Ella D'Arcy. Crown 8vo, 3s. 6d. 
 net. 
 
 ' If Miss D'Arcy can maintain this level, her future is secure. She has 
 produced one story which comes near to being a masterpiece.' — Daily 
 Chronicle. 
 
 'The cleverest volume of short stories that the year has given us.' — 
 Mr. Zangwill in the Pall Mall Magazine. 
 
 ' We doubt if any other living woman-writer could have written quite so 
 well.' — Saturday Review. 
 
 ' It is rare indeed to meet, in English, with a number of short stories of 
 such distinction from an English pen.' — Graphic. 
 
 ' She expresses herself with remarkable force and point, whilst her 
 polished refinement of style gives literary value to these clever sketches. 
 "Monochromes" is distinctly clever, and so well written as to give us 
 strong hopes of its author's future.' — Speaker. 
 
 AT THE RELTON ARMS. By Evelyn Sharp. Crown 
 8vo, 3s. 6d. net. 
 
 ' Miss Evelyn Sharp is to be congratulated on having, through the mouth 
 of one of her characters, said one of the wisest words yet spoken on what is 
 rather absurdly called "The Marriage Question" (page 132). It is an in- 
 teresting and well-written storj', with some smart characterisation and quite 
 a sufiBciency of humour.' — Daily Chronicle. 
 
 'A delightful story. The most genuine piece of humour in a book that 
 is nowhere devoid of it, is that scene in the inn parlour where Digby finds 
 himself engaged to two young women within five minutes; while the two 
 brief colloquies of the landlady and her cronies make one suspect that the 
 author could produce an admirable study of village humour.' — Athenaum. 
 
 'A distinctly clever book, of a fresh conventionality.' — Academy. 
 
 'A brilliantly- written tale. . . . Teems with character sketches of ex- 
 traordinary force and delicacy." — Daily Telegraph.
 
 THE KEYNOTES SERIES 
 
 Second Edition. 
 
 THE GIRL FROM THE FARM. By Gertrude Dix. 
 Crown 8vo, 3s. 6d. net. 
 
 ' Miss Dix has a pleasant and graceful style. The dean is well and sym- 
 pathetically portrayed, and some of the scenes between him and Katherine 
 bear the stamp of truth.' — Daily Chronicle. 
 
 'The novel is exceptionally well written, the characters are admirably 
 drawn ; there is a vividness, too, about several of the descriptions and 
 scenes which is a great deal more than mere patient realism.' — Glasgow 
 Herald. 
 
 ' A decidedly clever little book.' — Saturday Review. 
 
 ' The work of a writer with real gifts for fiction, gifts of characterisation 
 and story-telling.' — Star. 
 
 ' The story is cleverly constructed and well written.' — Weekly Scotsman. 
 
 ' A thoroughly wholesome book and very clever. Katherine is a charming 
 character.' — Queen. 
 
 ' A powerful piece of writing. The dean and his daughter are drawn in 
 masterly fashion.' — Whiteliall Review. 
 
 THE MIRROR OF MUSIC. By Stanley V. Makower. 
 Crown 8vo, 3s. 6d. net. 
 
 ' It is a new thing in literature. There is a magnificent breadth, a 
 simple directness, about the conception of this diary, and the leading idea 
 is worked out with a resourceful ingenuity, a piercing insight, and an 
 unerring taste which betray the hand of some one very like a master.'— 
 Wovtan. 
 
 'A remarkably original and noteworthy book.' — Saturday Review. 
 
 ' A fantastic and original book, to which belongs that note of distinction 
 rare in the days of crude and rapid production.' — Daily News. 
 
 ' The volume is a very remarkable one, and will be valued most of all by 
 those who love music in its best and noblest forms.' — IVestem Morning 
 News.
 
 THE KEYNOTES SERIES 
 
 YELLOW AND WHITE. By W. Carlton Dawe. 
 Crown 8vo, 3s. 6d. net. 
 
 ' Stirring and admirably written stories. In " Fan-Tan " a superb word- 
 picture is painted of the Chinese national game, and of the gambling hells 
 in which it is continuously played. The stories abound in dramatic situa- 
 tions and palpitate with dramatic interest.' — Daily Telegraph. 
 
 ' Are well written, and have about them a flavour of the shiny East, 
 which would seem to show that they are the work of "one who knows" 
 what he is talking about.' — Daily Chronicle. 
 
 ' This thoroughly entertaining volume. Rich in local colour, and pre- 
 sented with considerable literary skill in a peculiarly vivid and impressive 
 manner. ' — Observer. 
 
 'Are as idyllic and charming as the heart could desire. Every page 
 gives sign that the book has been put together with fastidious and loving 
 care. Several of the tales are completely effective, and none fall short of 
 an entrancing picturesqueness.' — Woman. 
 
 THE MOUNTAIN LOVERS. By Fiona Macleod. 
 Crown 8vo, 3s. 6d. net. 
 
 ' It is impossible to read her and not to feel that some magic in her touch 
 has made the sun seem brighter, the grass greener, the world more wonder- 
 ful.' — Mr. George Cotterell in The Academy. 
 
 ' We eagerly devour page after page ; we are taken captive by the speed 
 and poetry of the book.' — Literary World. 
 
 ' Primitive instincts and passions, primitive superstitions and faiths, are 
 depicted with a passionate sympathy that acts upon us as an irresistible 
 charm.' — National Observer. 
 
 ' From Nial the Soulless, with his hopeless quest and wild songs and 
 incantations, to sweet Sorcha, who dies of the dream in her eyes, these 
 mountain folk have charm to set one musing. The book ii altogether 
 fascinating." — Saturday Review. 
 
 ' The sadness of Fiona Macleod's " Mountain Lovers" is well redeemed 
 by the art with which the short and simple story is told.'— .S/. James's 
 Gazette.
 
 THE KEYNOTES SERIES 
 
 Third Edition. 
 
 THE WOMAN WHO DIDN'T. By Victoria Crosse. 
 Crown 8vo, 3s. 6d. net. 
 
 'No one who recollects "Theodora" will need to be told with what 
 acute perception the author reveals the hidden springs of human conduct. 
 In her the feminine gift of intuition seems to be developed with almost 
 uncanny strength, and what she sees she has the power of flashing upon 
 her readers with wonderful vividness and felicity of phrase. Readers will 
 find within its pages a strong and subtle study of feminine nature, biting 
 irony, restrained passion, and a style that is both forcible and polished.'^ 
 Speaker, 
 
 ' A striking, well-told story, strong in character drawing, subtle in 
 observation, and fascinating in its hold of the reader.' — Realm. 
 
 ' Is undoubtedly effective. Told with singular force and naturalness, 
 which renders it by no means unworthy of the admirable series in which 
 it is included.' — Whitehall Review. 
 
 ' Is at least a proof that the " Keynotes Series " can touch the soft pedal 
 of resignation as well as the clarion of revolt.' — Sketch. 
 
 THE THREE IMPOSTORS. By Arthur Machen. 
 Crown 8vo, 3s. 6d. net. 
 
 'With this new volume Mr. Machen boldly challenges comparison with 
 Mr. Stevenson's " Dynamiters." We enjoy his humour and marvel at his 
 ingenuity.' — Daily Chronicle. 
 
 ' We confess to having read the volume with entrancing interest. It has 
 power, it has grip, it holds the reader ; and if it leaves him in a decidedly 
 creepy condition, it likewise leaves him asking, like Oliver Twist, for more.' 
 — Whitehall Review. 
 
 ' These different tales are ingeniously strung together, and lead up to a 
 fearful climax. The idea is gracefully and artistically worked out. Those 
 who enjoy a thrill of horror will find much entertainment in these weird and 
 uncanny stories.' — Scotsman. 
 
 ' Remarkably well done and remarkably thrilling. Mr. Machen has 
 constructed a book full of trepidations and unnamed terrors. It is not 
 Stevenson, of course, but it is a prodigiously clever counterfeit.' — Woman.
 
 THE KEYNOTES SERIES 
 
 Second Edition. 
 
 THE BRITISH BARBARIANS. By Grant Allen. 
 Crown 8vo, 3s. net. 
 
 ' Mr. Allen takes occasion to say a good many things that require saying, 
 and suggests a good many reforms that would, if adopted, bring our present 
 legal code more into harmony with modern humanity and the exigencies of 
 its development.' — Saturday Review. 
 
 'A clever, trenchant satire on the petty conventionalities of modern life.' — 
 Vanity Fair. 
 
 ' All will acknowledge the skill and cleverness of the writing. Honest 
 convictions, honestly stated, always merit attention, especially when they 
 are presented in so clever and skilful a dress.' — Western Morning News. 
 
 ' We can warmly recommend it as an eminently readable and distinctly 
 clever piece of woT^i.' —Publishers' Circular. 
 
 'Is not a book to be dismissed lightly. There can be no doubt that 
 Mr. Grant Allen is sincere in what he here expounds, and if for no other 
 reason, "The British Barbarians" at least deserves consideration.' — 
 Academy, 
 
 ' It is a triumph of the advocate's art, so advanced, so honest, and so 
 fearless. ' — Queen. 
 
 NOBODY'S FAULT. By Netta Syrett. Crown 8vo, 
 3s. 6d. net. 
 
 'An extremely careful and clever study . . . a deeply interesting storj'. 
 — Daily Chronicle. 
 
 'The latest volume of the Keynotes Series is one of the pleasantestof the 
 lot. The "modern" ideas of all the characters are the ideas which reason- 
 able people are beginning to hold, and they are propounded not in a 
 scream, but in the level conversational tone* in which reasonable people 
 would speak them.' — Pall Mall Gazette. 
 
 'Yet another success in Mr. Lane's "Keynotes" Series. "Nobody's 
 Fault" is an exceedingly clever novel, and we shall expect to hear of its 
 authoress again. It reads like a transcript from a personal experience. One 
 follows Bridget's career with almost breathless interest.' — Weekly Sun. 
 
 ' Bridget is alive to the finger tips ; a vivid, impulsive creature ; of as 
 many moods as there are hours in the day ; brave, beautiful, outspoken, with 
 something of temperament genius.' — Daily News.
 
 THE KEYNOTES SERIES 
 
 PLATONIC AFFECTIONS. By John Smith. Crown 
 8vo, 3s. 6d. net. 
 
 ' A remarkably powerful and original story.' — Daily Telegraph. 
 
 'The reader will not feel inclined to quarrel with Mr. Smith for the light 
 and breezy way in which he deals with the problem : therein lies much of 
 the charm of " Platonic Affections." ' — Academy. 
 
 'An original and striking story, written in easy and pleasant style. 
 Original, since though there is nothing new in the fact that "platonic" 
 arrangements never stand the test of time, the inevitable denouement 
 of the impossible problem that two deliciously honest people try to solve, 
 is worked out so delicately, and with such subtle understanding of human, 
 especially feminine, nature, that the story is really a fascinating, as well as 
 an interesting study.' — Pall Mall Gazette. 
 
 WHERE THE ATLANTIC MEETS THE LAND. By 
 Caldwell Litsett. Crown 8vo, 3s. 6d. net. 
 
 '"The Unforgiven Sin," a story of woman's dishonour judged in the 
 fierce light of Irish peasant opinion, is an exceedingly strong piece of work, 
 restrained, dignified, and imaginative.' — Sketch. 
 
 ' We shall look with expectant pleasure for so promising a writer's next 
 volume.' — Glasgow Herald. 
 
 ' It is quite a relief to meet with a teller of the short story to whom, 
 within the bounds he has set himself, one is justified in giving almost un- 
 stinted praise. ' — Morning Post. 
 
 IN HOMESPUN. By E. Nesbit. Crown 8vo, 3s. 6d. net. 
 
 'Short as they are . . . they are really literature "In Homespun," and 
 hardly contain a line which does not add to the effect of the tale, which is 
 told with much simple and homely force.' — Spectator. 
 
 'Wherever we turn to in "In Homespun" we discover reasons for 
 applause, and we can safely recommend Mrs. Nesbit's contribution to the 
 "Keynotes Series" as one of the most refreshing.' — Literary World. 
 
 '"A Death -bed Confession" is one of the strongest, sternest stories 
 which have appeared in print for many a year past. " Coals of Fire" is 
 fine enough itself to make the fortune of the book.' — Daily Telegraph.
 
 THE KEYNOTES SERIES 
 
 NETS FOR THE WIND. By Una Taylor. Crown 8vo, 
 3s. 6d. net. 
 
 ' Miss Taylor 5s to be congratulated upon a very remarkable achieve- 
 ment. One thing is certain, that she can write very beautifully and 
 brilliantly. ' — Glasgow Herald. 
 
 ' Full of fascination. The writer is an artist in words and the word 
 painting is always finished like a picture." — Scotsman. 
 
 ' Wild, fantastic, and full of dreamy sadness, are the sketches in this 
 volume.' — Pall Mall Gazette. 
 
 ' Miss Taylor has imagination and also a picturesque and delicately 
 vivid style.' — Daily News. 
 
 IN SCARLET AND GREY : Stories of Soldiers and 
 Others. By Florence Henniker. With 'The Spectre 
 of the Real.' By Florence Henniker and Thomas 
 Hardy. Crown 8vo, 3s. 6d. net. 
 
 ' The work of a keen and sympathetic observer of life endowed with a 
 simple and graphic literary style. They are realistic in the true sense of 
 the word, and are full of a deep though restrained pathos.' — Pall Mall 
 Gazette. 
 
 ' A collection of profoundlj' melancholy stories which nevertheless make 
 extremely agreeable reading.' — Graphic. 
 
 ' Each of these stories can be read with pleasure both for its literary 
 form and on account of its own intrinsic interest as a tale.' — Gentlewoman. 
 
 'Written with quiet pathos, unerring insight, and conspicuous felicity of 
 expression.' — Leeds Mercury. 
 
 ' It is a real delight to read anything so delicately finished and so rich 
 in thoughtful insight as are these stories.' — Speaker, 
 
 DAY BOOKS. By Mabel E. Wotton. Crown 8vo, 
 3s. 6d. net. 
 
 ' The interest is considerable and well sustained.' — Whitehall Review. 
 
 ' Stamp her as a keen analyst of character and motive, and a writer who 
 can be graceful or powerful as the occasion requires.' — Scotsman. 
 
 ' " Morison's Heir" is a really clever study of a shallow and selfish 
 woman. The irony of a delicate situation is skilfully developed.' — Glasgow 
 Herald.
 
 THE KEYNOTES SERIES 
 
 FORTHCOMING VOLUMES. 
 
 STELLA MARIS. By Marie Clothilde Balfour. 
 UGLY IDOL. By Claud Nicholson. 
 SHAPES IN THE FIRE. By M. P. Shiel. 
 KAKEMONOS. By W. Carlton Dawe. 
 GOD'S FAILURES. By J. S. Fletcher.
 
 CATALOCUEs^PUBLICATIONS 
 i^ B E LLE S LETTRE S ai(at,u-tf,r,c,s
 
 1896 
 
 List of Books 
 
 IN 
 
 BELLES LETTRES 
 
 Published by John Lane 
 
 VIGO STREET, LONDON, W. 
 
 Adams (Francis). 
 Essays IN Modernity. Crown 8vo. 
 
 Ss. net. [Shortly. 
 
 A Child ok the Age. [See Key- 
 notes Series.) 
 A. E. 
 Homeward Songs by the Way. 
 Sq. i6mo, wrappers, is. 6d. net. 
 Traits/erred to the present Pub- 
 lisher. [Second Edition. 
 
 Aldrich (T. B.) 
 Later Lyrics. Sm. Fcap. 8vo. 
 2s. 6d. net. 
 Allen (Grant). 
 
 The Lower Slopes : A Volume of 
 Verse. With Title-page and Cover 
 Design by J. Ili.ingworth Kay. 
 Crown 8vo. ss. net. 
 
 The Woman Who Did. {See Key- 
 notes Series.) 
 
 The British Barbarians. [See 
 Keynotes Series.) 
 
 Arcady Library (The). 
 
 A Series of Open- Air Books. Edited 
 
 by J. S. Fletcher. With Cover 
 
 Designs by Patten Wilson. 
 
 Each volume crown Svo. 5s. net. 
 
 I. Round about a Brighton 
 
 Coach Office. ByMAUDE 
 Egerton King. With 
 over 30 Illustrations by 
 Lucy Kemp- Welch. 
 
 II. Life IN Arcadia. ByJ.S. 
 
 Fletcher. Illustrated by 
 Patten Wilson. 
 
 Arcady Library (The) — cont. 
 
 III. Scholar Gipsies. By John 
 
 Buchan. With 7 full-page 
 Etchings by D.Y. Cameron 
 T/te/ollowing is in preparation : 
 
 IV. In the Garden of Peace. 
 
 By Helen Milman. Witli 
 Illustrations by Edmund 
 H. New. 
 
 Beeching (Rev. H. C). 
 
 In A Garden : Poems. With Title- 
 page designed by Roger Fry. 
 Crown 8vo. ss. net. 
 
 St. Augustine at Ostia. Crown 
 Svo, wrappers, is. net. 
 
 Beerbohm (Max). 
 The Works of Max Beerbohm. 
 With a Bibliography by John 
 Lane. Sq. i6mo. 4s. 6d. net. 
 
 Benson (Arthur Christopher) 
 
 Lyrics. Fcap. Svo, buckram. 5s. 
 
 net. 
 Lord Vyet and other Poems. 
 
 Fcap. 8vo. 3s. 6d. net. 
 
 Bodley Head Anthologies 
 
 (The). 
 
 Edited by Robert H. Case. With 
 
 Title-page and Cover Designs by 
 
 Walter West. Each volume 
 
 crown Svo. 5s. net. 
 
 I. English Epithalamies. 
 
 By Robert 11. Case.
 
 THE PUBLICATIONS OF 
 
 Bodley Head Anthologies 
 
 (The) — coiitimied. 
 
 II. MusA PiscATRix. By John 
 
 BuCHAN. With 6 Etchings 
 
 by E. Philip Pimlott. 
 ni. English Elegies. By John 
 
 C Bailey. 
 IV. English Satires. ByCHAS. 
 
 Hill Dick. 
 
 Bridges (Robert). 
 
 Suppressed Chapters and other 
 BooKiSHNESS. Crown 8vo. 3s. 6d. 
 net. [Second Edition. 
 
 Brotherton (Mary). 
 
 Rosemary for Remembrance. 
 With Title-pace and Cover Design 
 by Walter West. Fcap. 8vo. 
 3s. 6d. net. 
 
 Crackanthorpe (Hubert). 
 
 Vignettes. A Miniature Journal 
 of Whim and Sentiment. Fcap. 
 8vo, boards. 2S. 6d. net. 
 
 Crane (Walter). 
 Toy Books. Re-issue, each with 
 new Cover Design and End Papers. 
 This Little Pic's Picture Book, 
 containing : 
 I. This Little Pig. 
 11. The Fairy Ship. 
 
 III. King Luckieboy's Party. 
 The three bound in one volume with 
 
 a decorative cloth cover, end papers, 
 and a newly written and designed 
 preface and title-page. 3s. 6d. net ; 
 separately gd. net each. 
 
 Mother Hubbard's Picture 
 Book, containing: 
 I. Mother Hubbard's. 
 II. The Three Bears. 
 III. The Absurd A. B. C. 
 The three bound in one volume with 
 a decorative cloth cover, end papers, 
 and a newly written and designed 
 preface and title-page. 3s. 6d. net ; 
 separately gd. net each. 
 
 Custance (Olive). 
 
 First Fruits : Poems. Fcap. 8vo. 
 ss. 6d. net. 
 
 Dalmon (C. W.). 
 
 Song Favours. With a Title-page 
 by J. P. Donne. Sq. i6mo. 
 3s. 6d. net. 
 Davidson (John). 
 
 Plays : An Unhistorical Pastoral ; 
 A Romantic Farce ; Bruce, a 
 Chronicle Play ; Smith, a Tragic 
 Farce ; Scaramouch in Naxos, a 
 Pantomime. With a Frontispiece 
 and Cover Design by Aubrey 
 Beardsley. Small 4to. 7s. 6d. 
 net. 
 
 Fleet Street Eclogues. Fcap 
 Svo, buckram. 4s. 6d. net. 
 
 [ Third Edition. 
 
 Fleet Street Eclogues. 2nd 
 Series. Fcap. 8vo, buckram. 
 4s. 6d. net. [Secotid Edition. 
 
 A Random Itinerary and a 
 Ballad. With a Frontispiece and 
 Title-page by Laurence Hous- 
 MAN. Fcap. Svo, Irish Linen. 
 ss. net. 
 
 Ballads AND Songs. With a Title- 
 page and Cover Design by Wal- 
 ter West. Fcap. 8vo, buckram. 
 ss. net. {Fourth Edition. 
 
 New Ballads. Fcap. Svo, buck- 
 ram. 4s. 6d. net. 
 
 De Tabley (Lord) 
 
 Poems, Dramatic and Lyrical. 
 By John Leicester Warren 
 (Lord de Tabley). Illustrations 
 and Cover Design by C. S. 
 Ricketts. Crown Svo. 7s. 6d. 
 net. [ Thi7-d Edition. 
 
 Poems, Dramatic and Lyrical. 
 Second Series, uniform in binding 
 with the former volume. Crown 
 Svo. 5s. net. 
 
 Duer (Caroline, and Alice). 
 
 Poems. Fcap. Svo. 3s. 6d. net. 
 Egerton (George) 
 
 Keynotes. {See Keynotes 
 Series.) 
 
 Discords. (i"f<? Keynotes Series.) 
 
 Young Ofeg's Ditties. A transla- 
 tion from the Swedish of Ola 
 Hansson. With Title-page and 
 Cover Design by Aubrey Beards- 
 ley. Crown Svo. 3s. 6d. net. 
 
 Symphonies. [In preparation.
 
 JOHN LANE 
 
 Eglinton (John). 
 Two Essays on the Remnant. 
 Post Svo, wrappers, is. 6d. net. 
 Transferred to the present Pub- 
 lisher. \Second Edition. 
 
 Eve's Library. 
 
 Each volume, crown Svo. 3s. 6d. 
 net. 
 I. Modern Wo.men. An Eng- 
 lish rendering of Laura 
 Marholm Hansson's 
 
 " Das Buch der Frauen " 
 by Hermione Raaisden. 
 Subjects: Sonia Kovalevsky, 
 George Egerton, Eleanora 
 Duse, Amalie Skram, Marie 
 Bashkirtseff, A. Ch. Edgren 
 Leffler. 
 
 II. The Ascent of Woman. 
 
 By Roy Devereux. 
 
 III. Marriage Questions in 
 
 INIoDERN Fiction. By 
 Elizabeth Rachel Chap- 
 man. 
 
 Fea (Allan). 
 The Flight of the King : a full, 
 true, and particular account of the 
 escape of His Most .Sacred Ma- 
 jesty King Charles IL after the 
 Battle of Worcester, with Twelve 
 Portraits in Photogravure and 
 nearly 100 other Illustrations. 
 Demy Svo. 21s. net. 
 
 Field (Eugene). 
 The Love Affairs of a Biblio- 
 maniac. Post Svo. 3s. 6d. net. 
 
 Fletcher (J. S.). 
 
 The Wonderful Wapentake. 
 
 By "A Son of the Soil." With 
 
 iS full-page Illustrations by J. A. 
 
 Symington. Crown Svo. 5s. 6d. 
 
 net. 
 Life in Arcadia, (See Arcady 
 
 Library.) 
 God's Failures. (See Keynotes 
 
 Series.) 
 Ballads of Revolt. Sq. 32nio. 
 
 2S. 6d. net. 
 
 Ford (James L.). 
 The Literary Shop and Other 
 Tales. Fcap. Svo. 3s. 6d. net. 
 
 Four-and-Sixpenny Novels 
 
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 Cover Design by Patten Wilson. 
 Crown Svo. 4s. 6d. net. 
 
 Galloping Dick. By H. B. Mar- 
 riott Watson. 
 
 The Wood of the Brambles. By 
 Frank Mathew. 
 
 The Sacrifice of Fools. By R. 
 Manifold Craig. 
 
 A Lawyer's Wife. BySirNsviLL 
 Geary, Bart. [Second Edition. 
 
 The folio-wing are in preparation : 
 
 Wr.iGHED IN the Balance. By 
 Harry Lander. 
 
 Glamour. By Meta Orred. 
 
 Patience Sparhawk and her 
 Times. By Gertrude Ather- 
 ton. 
 
 The Wise and the Wayward. 
 By G. S. Street. 
 
 Middle Greyness. By A. J.Daw- 
 son. 
 
 The Martyr's Bible. By George 
 Fifth. 
 
 A Celibate's Wife. By Herbert 
 Flowerdew. 
 
 Max. By Julian Croskey. 
 Fuller (H. B.). 
 
 The Puppet Booth. Twelve Plays. 
 Crown Svo. 4s. 6d. net. 
 
 Gale (Norman). 
 
 Orchard Songs. With Title-page 
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 Also a Special Edition limited in number 
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 Garnett (Richard). 
 
 Poems. With Title-page by J. 
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 5s. net. 
 
 Dante, Petrarch, Camoens, 
 cxxiv Sonnets, rendered in Eng- 
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 Gibson (Charles Dana). 
 
 Pictures: Eighty-Five Large Car- 
 toon.s. Oblong Folio. 15s. net. 
 
 Pictures of People. Eighty-Five 
 Large Cartoons. Oblong folio 
 15s. net. 
 
 [In preparation.
 
 THE PUBLICATIONS OF 
 
 Gosse (Edmund). 
 The Letters of Thomas Lovell 
 Beddoes. Now first edited. Pott 
 8vo. ss. net. 
 Also Q$ copies large paper. 12s. 6d. net. 
 
 Grahame (Kenneth). 
 Pagan Papers. With Title-page 
 by Aubrey Beardsley. Fcap. 
 8vo. 5s. net. 
 
 [Out of Print at present. 
 The Golden Age. With Cover 
 Design by Charles Robinson. 
 Crown 8vo. 3s. 6d. net. 
 
 [Fifth Edition. 
 
 Greene (G. A.). 
 
 Italian Lyrists of To-day. 
 Translations in the original metres 
 from about thirty-five living Italian 
 poets, with bibliographical and 
 biographical notes. Crown Svo. 
 S3, net. 
 Greenwood (Frederick). 
 
 Imagination in Dreams. Crown 
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 Hake (T. Gordon). 
 
 A Selection from his Poems. 
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 The Vale of Arden and Other 
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 Hazlitt (William). 
 
 Liber Amoris; or, The New 
 Pygmalion. Edited, with an 
 Introduction, by Richard Le 
 Gallienne. To which is added 
 an exact transcript of the original 
 MS., Mrs. Hazlitt's Diary in 
 Scotland, and letters never before 
 published. Portrait after Be- 
 wick, and facsimile letters. 400 
 Copies only. 4to, 364 pp., buck- 
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 Heinemann (William). 
 The First Step ; A Dr.imatic 
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 B.\LLADS IN Prose. With a Title- 
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 Green Arras : Poems. With 6 
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 Gods and their Makers. Crown 
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 Irving (Laurence). 
 Godefroi and Yolande : A Play. 
 Sra. 4to. 3s. 6d. net. 
 
 [In preparation. 
 
 James (W. P.) 
 
 Romantic Professions : A Volume 
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 signed by J. Illingworth Kay, 
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 Johnson (Lionel). 
 
 The Art of Thomas Hardy : Six 
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 Wm. Strang, and Bibliography 
 by John Lane. Crown Svo. 
 ss. 6d. net. [Second Edition. 
 Also 150 copies, large paper, with proofs 
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 Johnson (Pauline). 
 
 White Wampum : Poems. With a 
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 Johnstone (C. E.). 
 
 Ballads of Boy and Reak. With 
 a 1 itle-page by F. H. '1'ownsend. 
 Sq. 32ino. 2S. net,
 
 JOHN LANE 
 
 Keynotes Series. 
 
 Each volume with specially-designed 
 Title-page by Aubrey Beards- 
 ley or Patten Wilson. Crown 
 8vo, cloth. 3s. 6d. net. 
 I. Keynotes. By George 
 Egerton. 
 
 \Se-venth Edition. 
 II. The Dancing Faun. By 
 Florence Farr. 
 
 III. Poor Folk. Translated 
 
 from the Russian of F. Dos- 
 toievsky by Lena Milman. 
 With a Preface by George 
 Moore. 
 
 IV. A Child of the Age. By 
 
 Francis Adams. 
 V. The Great God Pan and 
 
 The Inmost Light. By 
 
 Arthur Machen. 
 
 [Second Edition. 
 VI. Discords. By George 
 
 Egerton. 
 
 [Fifth Edition. 
 vii. Prince Zaleski, By M. P. 
 
 Shiel. 
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