ti< 
 
 ERS 
 
GIFT OF 
 Professor George A, Rice 
 

o- 
 
 s&ZSt^Lj!^ 
 
ALL-OVER-THE-WORLD LIBRARY 
 
 By OLIVER OPTIC 
 
 Illustrated, Price per Volume $1.25 
 
 FIRST SERIES 
 A MISSING MILLION 
 
 Or THE ADVENTURES OF Louis BBLGRAVB 
 
 A MILLIONAIRE AT SIXTEEN 
 
 Or THE CRUISE OF THE GUARDIAN MOTHBR 
 
 A YOUNG KNIGHT-ERRANT 
 
 Or CRUISING IN THE WEST INDIES 
 
 STRANGE SIGHTS ABROAD 
 
 Or A VOYAGE IN EUROPEAN WATERS 
 
 SECOND SERIES 
 AMERICAN BOYS AFLOAT 
 
 Or CRUISING IN THE ORIENT 
 
 THE YOUNG NAVIGATORS 
 
 Or THB FOREIGN CRUISE OF THE MAUD 
 
 UP AND DOWN THE NILE 
 
 Or YOUNG ADVENTURERS IN AFRICA 
 
 ASIATIC BREEZES 
 
 Or STUDENTS ON THB WING 
 
 THIRD SERIES 
 ACROSS INDIA 
 
 Or LIVE BOYS IN THB FAR EAST 
 
 HALF ROUND THE WORLD 
 
 Or AMONG THE UNCIVILIZED 
 
 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 Or SIGHT-SEEING IN THE TROPICS 
 
 OTHER VOLUMES IN PREPARATION 
 
 ANY VOLUME SOLD SEPARATELY 
 
 LEE AND SHEPARD Publishers Boston 
 
YOUR FIKST SHOT. LOFIR." RAID SCOTT. 
 
 Page 30. 
 
All-Over-the-World Library Third Volume of Third Series 
 
 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 OR 
 
 SIGHT-SEEING IN THE TROPICS 
 
 BY 
 
 OLIVER OPTIC 
 
 AUTHOR OF 
 
 " THE ARMY AND NAVY SERIES " " YOUNG AMERICA ABROAD, FIRST AND SECOND 
 SERIES " " THE BOAT-CLUB STORIES " " THE ONWARD AND UPWARD SERIES " 
 
 " THE GREAT WESTERN SERIES " " THE WOODVILLE STORIES " " THE 
 
 LAKE SHORE SERIES " "THE YACHT-CLUB SERIES*' "THE RIVERDALB 
 
 STORIES" "THE BOAT-BUILDER SERIES" "THE BLUE AND THE GRAY 
 
 AFLOAT" "THE BLUE AND THE GRAY ON LAND" "THE STARRY 
 
 FLAG SERIES " " ALL-OVER-THE-WORLD LIBRARY, FIRST SECOND 
 
 AND THIRD SERIES" COMPRISING "A MISSING MILLION" "A 
 
 MILLIONAIRE AT SIXTEEN" "A YOUNG KNIGHT-ERRANT" 
 
 " STRANGE SIGHTS ABROAD " " AMERICAN BOYS AFLOAT " 
 
 " THE YOUNG NAVIGATORS " " UP AND DOWN THE 
 
 NILE" "ASTATIC BREEZES" "ACROSS INDIA" 
 
 "HALF ROUND THE WORLD" ETC., ETC., ETC. 
 
 BOSTON 
 LEE AND SHEPARD PUBLISHERS 
 
 10 MILK STREET 
 1896 
 
COPYBIGHT, 1896, BY LEE AND SHEPARD 
 
 All Rights Reserved 
 
 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 TYPOGRAPHY BY C. J. PETERS & SON, BOSTON. 
 PRESSWORK BY BERWICK & SMITH. 
 
TO 
 MY APPRECIATIVE AND VALUED FRIEND 
 
 FEEDEEICK D. EUGGLES, ESQ 
 
 RESIDING ON A HISTORIC HILL IN 
 HARDWICK, MASS. 
 
 ts Uolume 
 
 IS RESPECTFULLY AND CORDIALLY 
 DEDICATED. 
 
 M529793 
 
PREFACE 
 
 "FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS" is the third 
 volume of the third series of the " All-Over-the- 
 World Library." When the young millionaire and 
 his three companions of about his own age, with a 
 chosen list of near and dear friends, had made the 
 voyage "Half Round the World," the volume with 
 this title left them all at Sarawak in the island 
 of Borneo. The four young explorers, as they be- 
 came, were permitted to spend three weeks there 
 hunting, fishing, and ascending some of the rivers, 
 while the rest of the party proceeded in the Guard- 
 ian-Mother to Siam. The younger members of 
 the ship's company believed they had seen enough 
 of temples, palaces, and fine gardens in the great 
 cities of the East, and desired to live a wilder life 
 for a brief period. 
 
 They were provided with a steam-launch, pre- 
 pared for long trips ; and they ascended the Sarawak, 
 the Sadong, and the Simujan Rivers, and had all 
 the hunting, fishing, and exploring they desired. 
 They visited the villages of the Sea and Hill Dyaks, 
 and learned what they could of their manners and 
 customs, penetrating the island from the sea to 
 
Vi PREFACE 
 
 the mountains. They studied the flora and the 
 fauna of the forests, and were exceedingly inter- 
 ested in their occupation for about a week, when 
 they came to the conclusion that " too much of a 
 good thing " became wearisome ; and, more from the 
 love of adventure than for any other reason, they 
 decided to proceed to Bangkok, and to make the 
 voyage of nine hundred miles in the Blanchita, as 
 they had named the steam-launch, which voyage 
 was accomplished without accident. 
 
 After the young explorers had looked over the 
 capital of Siam, the Guardian-Mother and her con- 
 sort made the voyage to Saigon, the capital of 
 French Cochin-China, where the visit of the tourists 
 was a general frolic, with "lots of fun," as the 
 young people expressed it ; and then, crossing the 
 China Sea, made the port of Manila, the capital of 
 the Philippine Islands, where they explored the 
 city, and made a trip up the Pasig to the Lake of 
 the Bay. From this city they made the voyage 
 to Hong-Kong, listening to a very long lecture on 
 the way in explanation of the history, manners, and 
 customs, and the peculiarities of the people of China. 
 They were still within the tropics, and devoted them- 
 selves to the business of sight-seeing with the same 
 vigor and interest as before. But most of them 
 had read so much about China, as nearly every 
 American has, that many of the sights soon began 
 to seem like an old story to them. 
 
PREFACE Vll 
 
 Passing out of the Torrid Zone, the two steamers 
 proceeded to the north, obtaining a long view of 
 Formosa, and hearing a lecture about it. Their 
 next port of call was Shang-hai, reached by ascend- 
 ing the Woo-Sung. From this port they made an 
 excursion up the Yang-tse-Chiang, which was an ex- 
 ceedingly interesting trip to them. The ships then 
 made the voyage to Tien-tsin, from which they 
 ascended by river in the steam-launch to a point 
 thirteen miles from Pekin, going from there to the 
 capital by the various modes of conveyance in use 
 in China. They visited the sights of the great city 
 under the guidance of a mandarin, educated at Yale 
 College. Some of the party made the trip to the 
 loop-wall, near Pekin. Returning to Tien-tsin, with 
 the diplomatic mandarin, who had accepted an invi- 
 tation to go to Japan in the Guardian-Mother, they 
 sailed for that interesting country, where the next 
 volume of the series will take them. 
 
 It may be necessary to say that the Guardian- 
 Mother, now eighteen months from New York, and 
 half round the world, reached Tien-tsin May 25, 
 1893 ; and therefore nothing relating to the late war 
 between China and Japan is to be found in this 
 volume. Possibly the four young explorers would 
 have found more sights to see, and more adventures 
 to enjoy, if they had struck either of the belligerent 
 nations during the war ; but the ship sailed for the 
 United States before hostilities were begun. 
 
Vlll PREFACE 
 
 Of course the writer has been compelled to con- 
 sult many volumes in writing this book ; and he takes 
 great pleasure in mentioning among them the very 
 interesting and valuable work of Mr. W. T. Horna- 
 day, the accomplished traveller and scientist, " Two 
 Years in the Jungle." This book contains all that 
 one need know about Borneo, to say nothing of the 
 writer's trip in India among the elephants. His 
 researches in regard to the orang-outang appear to 
 have exhausted the subject ; though I do not believe 
 he has found the " missing link," if he is looking 
 for it. Professor Legge contributed several articles 
 to " Chambers's Encyclopaedia," which contain the 
 most interesting and valuable matter about China to 
 be derived from any work ; for he lived for years in 
 that country, travelled extensively, and learned the 
 language. I am under great obligations to these 
 authors. 
 
 The author is under renewed obligations to his 
 readers, young and old, who have been his constant 
 friends during more than forty years, for the favor 
 with which they have received a whole library of 
 his books, and for the kind words they have spoken 
 to him, both verbally and by letter. 
 
 WILLIAM T. ADAMS. 
 DORCHESTER, MASS. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER I. PAGE 
 
 THE BORNEO HUNTERS AND EXPLORERS 1 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 A VOYAGE UP THE SARAWAK RIVER 10 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 SOMETHING ABOUT BORNEO AND ITS PEOPLE ... 19 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 A SPECULATION IN CROCODILES 29 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 A HUNDRED AND EIGHT FEET OF CROCODILE ... 39 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 THE VOYAGE UP THE SADONG TO SIMUJAN ... 48 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 A SPIRITED BATTLE WITH ORANG-OUTANGS ... 58 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 A PERFORMANCE OF VERY AGILE GIBBONS .... 67 
 
 ix 
 
X CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER IX. PAGE 
 
 A VISIT TO A DYAK LONG-HOUSE 77 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 THE MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE DYAKS ... 87 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 STEAMBOATING THROUGH A GREAT FOREST .... 96 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 A FORMIDABLE OBSTRUCTION REMOVED 106 
 
 CHAPTER XIII. 
 
 THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION .... 115 
 
 CHAPTER XIY. 
 
 DOWN THE SlMUJAN AND UP THE SARAWAK . . . 125 
 
 CHAPTER XY. 
 ON THE VOYAGE TO POINT CAMBODIA 134 
 
 CHAPTER XVI. 
 AN EXCITING RACE IN THE CHINA SEA 143 
 
 CHAPTER XVII. 
 THE END OF THE VOYAGE TO BANGKOK 153 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII. 
 Louis's DOUBLE-DINNER ARGUMENT 163 
 
 CHAPTER XIX. 
 A HASTY GLANCE AT BANGKOK 172 
 
CONTENTS XL 
 
 CHAPTER XX. PAGE 
 
 A VIEW OF COCHIN-CHINA AND SIAM 181 
 
 CHAPTER XXI. 
 ON THE VOYAGE TO SAIGON 191 
 
 CHAPTER XXII. 
 IN THE DOMINIONS OF THE FRENCH 201 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII. 
 A LIVELY EVENING AT THE HOTEL 211 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV. 
 
 TONQUIN AND SIGHTS IN CHOLON 221 
 
 CHAPTER XXV. 
 SEVERAL HILARIOUS FROLICS 231 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI. 
 
 THE VOYAGE ACROSS THE CHINA SEA 241 
 
 i 
 CHAPTER XXVII. 
 
 SOME ACCOUNT OF THE PHILIPPINES 250 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII. 
 THE DESCRIPTION OF AN EARTHQUAKY CITY . . . 260 
 
 CHAPTER XXIX. 
 GOING ON SHORE IN MANILA 270 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 EXCURSIONS ON SHORE AND UP THE PASIG . . 280 
 
Xll CONTENTS 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI PAGE 
 
 HALF A LECTURE ON CHINESE SUBJECTS .... 290 
 
 CHAPTER XXXII. 
 THE CONTINUATION OF THE LECTURE 300 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIII. 
 THE CONCLUSION OF THE LECTURE 310 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIY. 
 SIGHT-SEEING IN HONG-KONG AND CANTON . . . 321 
 
 CHAPTER XXXV. 
 SHANG-HAI AND THE YANG-TSZE-CHIANG .... 332 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVI. 
 THE WALLS AND TEMPLES OF PEKIN . ... 342 
 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 " YOUB FIRST SHOT, Louis," SAID SCOTT . . Frontispiece 
 
 PAGE 
 
 "WHAT HAVE YOU GOT THERE, MR. BELGRAVE?" . 41 
 
 "YOU ARE NEAR ENOUGH, CAPTAIN" 99 
 
 THE BOAT ROSE GRACEFULLY ON THE BILLOWS . . 132 
 
 " BUT WHERE is FELIX?" DEMANDED MRS. BLOSSOM, 161 
 
 SHE MADE A VIGOROUS LEAP INTO THE FORE-SHEETS, 267 
 
 NATIVES PREPARING TOBACCO IN MANILA .... 285 
 
 TEMPLE AND GARDEN IN CHINA . 329 
 
 xiii 
 
FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 CHAPTER I 
 
 THE BORNEO HUNTERS AND EXPLORERS 
 
 THE Guardian-Mother, attended by the Blanche, 
 had conveyed the tourists, in their voyage all over 
 the world, to Sarawak, the capital of a rajahship 
 on the north-western coast of the island of Borneo. 
 The town is situated on both sides of a river of the 
 same name, about eighteen miles from its mouths. 
 
 The steamer on which was the pleasant home of 
 the millionaire at eighteen, who was accompanied by 
 his mother and a considerable party, all of whom 
 have been duly presented to the reader in the for- 
 mer volumes of the series, lay in the middle of the 
 river. The black smoke was . pouring out of her 
 smokestack, and the hissing steam indicated that 
 the vessel was all ready to go down the river to the 
 China Sea. Her anchor had been hove up, and 
 the pilot was in the pilot-house waiting for the com- 
 mander to strike the gong in the engine-room to start 
 the screw. 
 
 Just astern of the Guardian-Mother was a very 
 1 
 
2 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 trim and beautiful steam-launch, fifty feet in length. 
 The most prominent persons on board of her were 
 the quartette of American boys, known on board of 
 the steamer in which they had sailed half round the 
 world as the "Big Four." Of this number Louis 
 Belgrave, the young millionaire, was the most im- 
 portant individual in the estimation of his compan- 
 ions, though happily not in his own. 
 
 Like a great many other young men of eighteen, 
 which was the age of three of them, while the fourth 
 was hardly sixteen, they were fond of adventure, of 
 hunting, fishing, and sporting in general. They had 
 gone over a large portion of Europe, visited the 
 countries on the shores of the Mediterranean, crossed 
 India, and called at some of the ports of Burma, the 
 Malay peninsula, Sumatra, Java, Celebes, and had 
 reached Sarawak in their explorations. 
 
 They had visited many of the great cities of the 
 world, and seen the temples, monuments, palaces, and 
 notable structures of all kinds they contain; but 
 they had become tired of this description of sight- 
 seeing. When the island of Borneo was marked on 
 the map as one of the localities to be visited, the 
 " Big Four " had a meeting in the boudoir, as one of 
 the apartments of the Guardian-Mother was called, 
 and voted that they had had enough of temples, 
 monuments, and great cities for the present. 
 
 They agreed that exploring a part of Borneo, with 
 the incidental hunting, fishing, and study of natural 
 history, would suit them better. Louis Belgrave was 
 
THE BORNEO HUNTERS AND EXPLORERS 3 
 
 appointed a committee of one to petition the com- 
 mander to allow them three weeks in the island for 
 this purpose. Captain Einggold suggested to Louis 
 that it was rather selfish to leave the rest of the 
 party on the steamer, stuck in the mud of the Sara- 
 wak, while they were on the rivers and in the woods 
 enjoying themselves. 
 
 But the representative of the "Big Four" pro- 
 tested that they did not mean anything of the sort. 
 They did not care a straw for the temples and other 
 sights of Siam, Cambodia, and French Cochin-China ; 
 and while they were exploring Borneo and shooting 
 orang-outangs, the Guardian-Mother should proceed 
 to Bangkok and Saigon, and the rest of the tourists 
 could enjoy themselves to the full in seeing the won- 
 ders of Farther India. 
 
 It required a great deal of discussion to induce 
 the commander, and then the mothers of two of the 
 explorers, to assent to this plan ; but the objections 
 were finally overcome by the logic and the eloquence 
 of Louis. The Blanche, the consort of the Guardian- 
 Mother, having on board the owner, known as Gen- 
 eral Noury, his wife and his father-in-law, had 
 nothing to do with this difficult question j but the 
 general had a steam-launch, which he was kind 
 enough to grant for the use of the explorers. 
 
 The third engineer of the ship was to go with the 
 quartette, in charge of the engine ; five of the youn- 
 gest of the seamen were selected to make the venture 
 safer than it might otherwise have been. Achang 
 
4 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 Bakir, a native Bornean, who had been picked up 
 off the Nicobar Islands, after the wreck of the dhow 
 of which he had been in command, was to be the 
 guide and interpreter. 
 
 The youngsters and their assistants had taken 
 their places on board of the " Blanchita," as Louis 
 had christened the craft, and she was to accompany 
 the two large steamers down the river. But the 
 farewells had all been spoken, the hugging and 
 kissing disposed of, and the tears had even been 
 wiped away. The mothers had become in some 
 degree reconciled to the separation of three weeks. 
 
 The Guardian-Mother started her screw, and began 
 to move very slowly down the river, amid the cheers 
 and salutations of the officers, soldiers, and citizens 
 of the town. The Blanche followed her, and both 
 steamers fired salutes in honor of the spectators to 
 their departure. The Blanchita secured a position 
 on the starboard of the Guardian-Mother, and for 
 three hours kept up a communication with their 
 friends by signals and shouts. 
 
 Off the mouth of the Moritabas, one of the outlets 
 of the stream, the steamers stopped their screws, and 
 the " Big Four " went alongside of the Guardian- 
 Mother ; the adieux were repeated, and then the 
 ships laid the course for their destination. Both of 
 the latter kept up an incessant screaming with their 
 steam whistles, and the party on board of them 
 waved their handkerchiefs, to which the " Big Four," 
 assisted by the sailors, responded in like manner, 
 
THE BORNEO HUNTERS AND EXPLORERS 5 
 
 while the engineer gave whistle for whistle in feeble 
 response. 
 
 When the whistles ceased, and the signals could 
 no longer be seen, the Blanchita came about, and 
 headed for the Peak of Santubong on the triangular 
 island formed by the two passes of the Sarawak 
 River. The explorers watched the ships till they 
 could no longer be seen, and then headed up the river. 
 
 " Faix, the bridges betune oursels and civiloization 
 are all broke down!" exclaimed Felix McGavonty, 
 who sometimes used his Milesian dialect in order, 
 as he put it, not to lose his mother's brogue. 
 
 " Not so bad as that, Felix ; for there is considera- 
 ble civilization lying around loose in Borneo," re- 
 plied Louis Belgrave. 
 
 "Not much of it here is found," added Achang 
 Bakir, the Bornean. 
 
 "Is found here," interposed Morris Woolridge, 
 who had been giving the native lessons in English, 
 for he mixed with it the German idiom. 
 
 "Rajah Brooke has civilized the region which he 
 governs, and the Dutch have done the same in por- 
 tions of their territory. Professor Giroud gave us 
 the lecture on Borneo, and we shall have occasion to 
 review some of it," added Louis. " But I think we 
 had better give some attention to the organization of 
 our party for the trip up the Sarawak River." 
 
 "I move, Mr. Chairman, that we have the same 
 organization we had on board of the Maud," inter- 
 posed Felix, dropping his brogue. " That means 
 
6 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 that Mr. Scott shall be captain, and Morris mate, 
 while Louis and myself shall be the deck-hands." 
 
 " Mr. Chairman, I move an amendment to the mo- 
 tion, to the effect that Louis shall be captain, while 
 I serve as deck-hand," said Scott. 
 
 "I hope the amendment will be voted down, and 
 that the original motion will prevail," Louis ob- 
 jected. " Captain Scott, in command of the Maud, 
 on a voyage of two thousand miles, proved himself 
 to be an able and skilful commander, as well as a 
 prudent and successful leader in several difficult sit- 
 uations. He is the right person for the position. 
 Question! Those in favor of the amendment of 
 Mr. Scott will signify it by raising the right hand." 
 
 Scott voted for his own motion, and he was the 
 only one. 
 
 " Contrary minded, by the same sign," continued 
 Louis, raising his right hand, Felix and Morris vot- 
 ing the same. " The amendment is lost. The ques- 
 tion is now on the original motion of Felix. Those 
 in favor of its adoption will signify it." 
 
 Three hands appeared, the motion was carried, 
 and the chairman informed Scott and Morris that 
 they were chosen captain and mate. Scott was out- 
 voted, and he made no further objection. Of the 
 five seamen on board he appointed Pitts cook and 
 steward, in which capacity he had served on board 
 of the Maud. The starboard is the captain's watch ; 
 though the second mate, when there is one, takes his 
 place for duty, and the port is the mate's watch. 
 
THE BORNEO HUNTERS AND EXPLORERS 7 
 
 "I select Clingman for the first of iny watch," 
 continued Scott. " Your choice next, Morris." 
 
 "Wales,' 7 said the mate. 
 
 "Lane for the starboard," added Scott. 
 
 " Hobson's choice," laughed Morris, as he took 
 the last man. " Clinch for the port ; the last, but 
 by no means the least." 
 
 " I fancy the watches will have an easy time of 
 it ; for I suppose we shall not do much running up 
 and down these rivers, and through dark forests, in 
 the night," suggested Louis. 
 
 "If we lie up in the night, I shall divide them 
 both into quarter-watches, and have one man on 
 duty all the time ; for we may be boarded by a huge 
 crocodile or a boa-constrictor if we are not on the 
 lookout. But Achang is a pilot for these rivers. 
 Isn't that so, Captain Bakir?" 
 
 " I have been up and down all the rivers in this 
 part of the island, though I was not shipped as a 
 pilot then," replied Achang, who had been the cap- 
 tain of a dhow, and on board the ship he had been 
 called by his first name or the other with the title. 
 
 " All right ; we shall use you for pilot or inter- 
 preter as occasion may require ; and I suppose you 
 can tell us all we want to know about the country 
 and the people," added the captain. 
 
 Clinch, one of the ablest seamen on board, was 
 steering the launch, and Scott kept the run of the 
 courses; but as long as the craft had three feet of 
 water under her, she was all right. The conversation 
 
8 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 took place in the cabin, as the explorers called the 
 after part of the steamer, though no such apartment 
 had been built there. 
 
 A frame constructed of brass rods, properly 
 braced, extended the entire length of the launch. 
 A stanchion at the bow and another at the stern, 
 with five on each side set in the rail, supported a rod 
 the whole distance around the craft. Another ex- 
 tended from the bow to the stern stanchion, directly 
 over the keel, about six inches higher than those at 
 the sides. Ten rods led from the central down to 
 the side rods, like the rafters of a house. 
 
 Over the whole, of this structure above was ex- 
 tended a single piece of painted canvas, serving as a 
 roof, and keeping out both sun and rain. It was 
 laced very taut to the rods, and had slope enough to 
 make the water run off. On the sides were curtains, 
 which could be hauled down tight. The launch had 
 been used by the rajah on the Ganges, and when 
 closed in the interior was like "a bug in a rug." 
 
 Thus closed in, the standing-room was called the 
 cabin. It was surrounded by wide cushioned seats, 
 which made very good beds at night. Between these 
 divans was a table where the meals of the explorers 
 were to be served. Under the seats were many 
 lockers for all sorts of articles, the bedding, and the 
 arms and ammunition. 
 
 Just forward of the cabin were the engine and 
 boiler, with bunkers on each side for the coal. In 
 the middle of the craft was abundant space. The 
 
THE BORNEO HUNTERS AND EXPLORERS 9 
 
 forward part of the boat was provided with cush- 
 ioned divans, where passengers could sit by day or 
 sleep at night; and this space was appropriated to 
 the sailors. In the centre of it was the wheel. 
 Next to it was the galley, with a stove large enough 
 to cook for a dozen persons, and all needed utensils. 
 
 The ship's company had looked the craft over 
 with great interest, and all of them were well 
 pleased with the arrangements. The launch had 
 been put into the water and fitted up for use the 
 day before. The party from both ships had visited 
 her, and almost wished they were to go to the inte- 
 rior of the country in her. 
 
 The Blanchita continued on her course up the 
 river. Pitts was at work in the galley ; and as soon 
 as the launch was made fast off the "go-down," or 
 business building of the town, dinner was served to 
 the seamen, and later to the denizens of the cabin. 
 The afternoon was spent in examining the place, 
 and in obtaining such supplies as were needed ; for 
 the boat was to sail on her voyage up the river early 
 the next morning. 
 
 With the assistance of Achang, a small sampan, a 
 kind of skiff, was purchased; for the Bornean de- 
 clared that it would be needed in the hunting excur- 
 sions of the party, for much of the country was 
 flooded with water, a foot or two in depth. 
 
10 FOUJJ YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 CHAPTER II 
 
 A VOYAGE UP THE SARAWAK RIVER 
 
 THE young hunters slept on board of the Blan- 
 chita, and they were delighted with their accommo- 
 dations. Sarawak, or Kuching, the native name of 
 the town, is only about one hundred and fifty miles 
 north of the equator, and must therefore be a very 
 warm region, though away from the low land near 
 the sea-coast it is fairly healthy. The party slept 
 with the curtains raised, which left them practically 
 in the open air. 
 
 Achang had given them a hint on board of the 
 ship that mosquitoes were abundant in some localities 
 in Borneo. The Guardian-Mother was provided with 
 the material, and the ladies had made a dozen mos- 
 quito bars for the explorers. They were canopies, 
 terminating in a point at the top, where they were 
 suspended to the cross rods on which the canvas roof 
 was supported. The netting was tucked in under the 
 cushions of the divan, and the sleepers were perfectly 
 protected. 
 
 Captain Scott had carried out his plan in regard 
 to the watches. The cook was exempted from all 
 duty in working the little steamer ; but each of the 
 other seamen was required to keep a half-watch of 
 
A VOYAGE UP THE SARAWAK RIVER 11 
 
 two hours during the first night on board. Clinch 
 was on watch at four in the morning. He called the 
 engineer at this hour, and Felipe proceeded at once 
 to get up steam. It was still dark, for the sun rises 
 and sets at six o'clock on the equator. 
 
 As soon as there was a movement on board, all 
 hands turned out forward. There were no decks to 
 wash down; and, if there had been, the water was 
 hardly fit, in the judgment of the mate, for this pur- 
 pose, for it was murky, and looked as though it was 
 muddy ; but it was not so bad as it appeared, for the 
 dark color was caused by vegetable matter from the 
 jungles and forest, and not from the mud, which 
 remained at the bottom of the stream. 
 
 " The top uv the marnin' to ye's ! " shouted Felix, 
 as he leaped from his bed about five o'clock, for all 
 hands had turned in about eight o'clock in the eve- 
 ning, as the mosquitoes, attracted by the lanterns, 
 began to be very troublesome, and the Milesian 
 could sleep no longer. 
 
 "What's the matter with you, Flix?" demanded 
 the captain. 
 
 " Sure, if ye's mane to git under way afore night, 
 it's toime to turn out," replied Felix. "Don't ye's 
 hear the schtaym sizzlin' in the froy'n pan ? " 
 
 "But it isn't light yet," protested Scott. 
 
 "Bekase the lanthern in the cab'n bloinds your 
 two oyes, and makes the darkness shoine broighter 
 nor the loight," said Felix, as he looked at his 
 watch. "Sure, it's tin minutes afther foive in the 
 
12 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 marnin'. These beds are altogidther too foine, 
 Captain." 
 
 " How's that, Flix ? " asked Scott, as he opened the 
 netting and leaped out of bed. 
 
 " They're too comfor-ta-ble, bad 'cess to 'em, and 
 a b'y cud slape till sundown in 'em till the broke o' 
 noight." 
 
 " Dry up, Flix, or else speak English," called Louis, 
 as he left his bed. " There is no end of 'paddies' 
 along this river, and I'm sure they cannot understand 
 your lingo." 
 
 " Is it paddies in this haythen oisland ? " demanded 
 Felix, suspending the operation of dressing himself, 
 and staring at his fellow deck-hand. "I don't be- 
 lay ve a wurrud of ut ! " 
 
 " Are there no paddies up this river, Achang ? " 
 said Louis, appealing to the Bornean. 
 
 "Plenty of paddies on all the streams about here," 
 replied the native. 
 
 " And they can't oondershtand Kilkenny Greek ! 
 They're moighty quare paddies, thin." 
 
 " They are ; and I am very sure they won't answer 
 you when you speak to them with that brogue," 
 added Louis. 
 
 "We will let that discussion rest till we come to 
 the paddies," interposed the captain, as he completed 
 his toilet, and left the cabin. 
 
 By this time all the party had left their beds and 
 dressed themselves ; for their toilet was not at all 
 elaborate, consisting mainly of a woollen shirt, a pair 
 
A VOYAGE UP THE SARAWAK RIVER 13 
 
 of trousers, and a pair of heavy shoes, without socks. 
 Felipe had steam enough on to move the boat; and 
 the seamen had wiped the moisture from all the 
 wood and brass work, arid had put everything in 
 good order. 
 
 " Are you a pilot for this river, Achang ? " asked 
 Scott, as the party came together in the waist, the 
 space forward of the engine. 
 
 " I am ; but there is not much piloting to be done, 
 for all you have to do is to keep in the middle of the 
 stream/ 7 replied the Bornean. " I went up and down 
 all the rivers of Sarawak in a sampan with an Eng- 
 lish gentleman who was crocodiles, monkeys, mias, 
 snakes, and birds picking up." 
 
 " Wrong ! " exclaimed Morris. " You know better 
 than that, Achang." 
 
 The native repeated the reply, putting the verb 
 where it ought to be. 
 
 "He was a naturalist," added Louis. 
 
 " Yes ; that was what they called him in the 
 town." 
 
 "I think we all know the animals of which you 
 speak, Achang, except one," said Louis. "I never 
 heard of a mias." 
 
 " That is what Borneo people call the orang- 
 outang," replied the native. 
 
 "Orang means a man, and outang a jungle, and 
 the whole of it is a jungle man," Louis explained, 
 for the benefit of his companions ; for he was better 
 read in natural history than any of them, as he had 
 
14 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 read all the books on that subject in the library of 
 the ship. " In Professor Hornaday's book, l Two 
 Years in the Jungle/ which was exceedingly inter- 
 esting to me, he calls this animal the ' orang-utan,' 
 which is only another way of spelling the second 
 word." 
 
 " Excuse me, Louis, but I think we will get under 
 way, and hear your explanations at another time," 
 interposed Captain Scott. 
 
 " I have finished all I had to say." 
 
 " Take the wheel, Achang," continued the captain. 
 
 The sampan was sent ashore to cast off the fasts. 
 The river at the town is over four hundred feet 
 wide, and deep enough in almost any part for the 
 Blanchita. As soon as the lines were hauled in, the 
 captain rang one bell, and Felipe started the engine. 
 The helmsman headed the boat for the middle of the 
 stream, and the captain rang the speed-bell. When 
 hurried, the Blanchita was good for ten knots an 
 hour, but her ordinary speed was eight. 
 
 On the side of the river opposite Kuching, or Sara- 
 wak, was the kampon of the Malays and other na- 
 tives ; and the term means a division or district of 
 a town. Many of the natives of this village had 
 visited the Blanchita, some for trade, some for em- 
 ployment, and some from mere curiosity. None of 
 them were allowed to go on board of the launch ; for, 
 while the Dyaks are remarkably honest people, the 
 Malays and Chinese will steal without any very 
 heavy temptation. 
 
A VOYAGE UP THE SARAWAK KIVEK 15 
 
 Achang headed the boat up the river. For five 
 miles the banks were low, with no signs of cultiva- 
 tion, and bordered with mangroves. At this point 
 the captain called Lane to the wheel, with orders to 
 keep in the middle of the river. The " Big Four " 
 had taken possession of the bow divans, the better 
 to see the shores. They were more elevated, which 
 simply means higher above the water. 
 
 " When shall we come across the paddies, Achang ? " 
 asked Felix ; " for I am very anxious to meet them, 
 and maybe we shall have a Kilkenny fight with 
 them/' 
 
 "No, you won't, for you speak English," replied 
 Louis. 
 
 " The paddies are here on both sides of the river," 
 added Achang. 
 
 " I don't see a man of any sort, not even a Hotten- 
 tot, and I am sure there is not a Paddy in sight." 
 
 " Your education has been neglected, Flix, and you 
 did not read all the books in the ship's library," said 
 Louis. " I only told you the paddies would not an- 
 swer you if you spoke to them with a brogue. You 
 can try them now if you wish." 
 
 " But I don't see a single Paddy to try it on." 
 
 " Here is one on your left." 
 
 " I don't see anything but a field of rice." 
 
 " That's a paddy in this island." 
 
 " A field of rice ! " 
 
 " Achang will tell you that is what they call them 
 in Borneo." 
 
16 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " Bad luck to such Paddies as they are ! But it 
 looks as though there might be some Paddies here, 
 for the houses are very neat and nice, just as you see 
 in old Ireland." 
 
 " Certainly they are ; but I never saw any such in 
 Ireland," added Louis. " You remember the old 
 woman on the road from Killarney to the lakes who 
 told us she lived in the Irish castle, to which she 
 pointed ; and it looked like a pig-sty." 
 
 " Of course it didn't have the bananas and the 
 cocoanut-palms around it." 
 
 " I admit that we saw many fine places in Ireland, 
 and very likely your mother lived in one of them. 
 But, Achang, is there any game in the woods we see 
 beyond the paddies ? " 
 
 " Sometimes there is plenty of it ; at others there 
 is scarcely any. You can get squirrels here and 
 some birds." 
 
 " Any orang-outangs ? " 
 
 " We found none when we came up the river, for 
 this is not the best place for them. If we run up 
 the Sadong and Samujan Rivers, you will find 
 some," replied the Bornean. " I don't think it will 
 pay to go very far up the Sarawak, if it is game you 
 want; but you can see the country. There is quite 
 a village on the right." 
 
 The party were very much interested in examin- 
 ing the houses they saw on the borders of the 
 stream. Like those they had seen in Java and in 
 Sumatra, they were all set up on stilts. A Malay or 
 
A VOYAGE UP THE SARAWAK RIVER 17 
 
 Dyak will not build his home on dry land, as they 
 noticed in coming up the lower part of the river, 
 though there was plenty of elevated ground near. 
 The dwellings were all built on the soft mud. 
 
 The village ten miles up-stream was constructed on 
 the same plan. The houses were placed just out of 
 the reach of the water when it was higher than usual. 
 The material was something like bamboo, as in In- 
 dia, with roofs of kadjang leaves, which abound in 
 the low lands. In front of every one of them was a 
 flat boat sampan ; and one was seen which was 
 large enough to have a roof of the same material as 
 the house. The boats were made fast to a pole set in 
 the mud. 
 
 " There is a bear on the shore ! " shouted Morris, 
 with no little excitement in his manner, as he pointed 
 to the woods on the shore opposite the houses, to 
 which the attention of all the rest of the party had 
 been directed. 
 
 At the same time he seized his repeating rifle, and 
 all the others followed his example. The animal 
 was fully three feet high, and at a second glance it 
 did not look much like a bear. Whatever it was, it 
 took to its heels when the sound of the steamer's 
 screw reached its ear. But Morris fired before the 
 boat started, and the others did the same. 
 
 "That is not a bear, Mr. Morris," interposed 
 Achang, laughing as he spoke. 
 
 " What is it, then ? " demanded Morris. 
 
 "A pig." 
 
18 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " A pig three feet high ! " exclaimed the hunters 
 with one voice. 
 
 " A wild pig/ 7 added the Bornean. 
 
 " Is he good for anything ? " inquired Scott. 
 
 " He is good to eat if you like pork." 
 
 "He dropped in the bushes when we fired. Can't 
 we get him ? " asked Morris. 
 
 Under the direction of the captain the steamer 
 was run up to the shore ; and the bank in this place 
 was high enough to enable the party to land without 
 using the sampan. All hands, including the seamen, 
 rushed in the direction of the spot where the pig 
 had been seen. The game was readily found. The 
 animal was something like a Kentucky hog, often 
 called a "racer," because he is so tall and lank. 
 He was a long-legged specimen ; and Achang said 
 that was because they hunted through swamps and 
 shallow water in search of food, and much use had 
 made their legs long. He added that they were a 
 nuisance because they rooted up the rice, and farm- 
 ers had to fence their fields. 
 
 He was carried on board by the sailors, and Pitts 
 cut out some of the nicer parts of the pig. They 
 had roast pork for dinner, but it was not so good as 
 civilized hogs produce. 
 
SOMETHING ABOUT BORNEO AND ITS PEOPLE 19 
 
 CHAPTER III 
 
 SOMETHING ABOUT BORNEO AND ITS PEOPLE 
 
 " I DON'T think we know much of anything about 
 Borneo/ 7 said Scott, as the Blanchita continued on 
 her course up the Sarawak, after the dinner of roast 
 pork. 
 
 " We all heard the lecture of Professor Giroud on 
 board the ship," replied Louis. / 
 
 " I should like to hear it over again, now that we 
 are on the ground/' added the captain. 
 
 " Sure, we're not on the ground, but on the 
 wather," suggested Felix. 
 
 As the reader did not hear the lecture, or see it 
 in print, it becomps necessary to repeat it for the 
 benefit of "whom it may concern." The professor, 
 after being duly presented to his audience in Con- 
 ference Hall, proceeded as follows : 
 
 " Australia is undoubtedly the largest island in 
 the world, and some geographers class it with the 
 continents ; but Chambers makes Borneo the third 
 in size, while most authorities rate it as the second, 
 making Papua, or New Guinea, the second in extent. 
 Lippincott says Papua disputes with Borneo the 
 claim to the second place among the great islands of 
 the world; and I do not propose to settle the ques- 
 
20 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 tion. Chambers gives the area of Borneo at 284,000 
 square miles, the population in the neighborhood of 
 200,000, and the dimensions as 800 by 700 miles. 
 
 "It has a coast-line of about 3,000 miles, nearly 
 the whole of which is low and marshy land. A 
 large portion of the island is mountainous, as you 
 may see by looking at the map before you ; " and 
 the professor indicated the several ranges with the 
 pointer. " One chain extends nearly the whole 
 length of the island, dividing in the middle of it 
 into two branches, both of which almost reach the 
 sea on the south. Near the centre of the island 
 are two cross ranges, one extending to the east, and 
 the other to the south-west. It would be useless to 
 mention the Malay names of these ranges, for you 
 could not remember them over night. The general 
 idea I have given you is quite enough to retain. 
 
 " The interior of Borneo is but little known ; and 
 when Mr. Gaskette makes another map of the island 
 twenty or thirty years hence, it will probably differ 
 considerably from the one before you. In the ex- 
 treme north is the peak of Kini Balu, the height of 
 which is set down at 13,698 feet, with an interroga- 
 tion point after it. Other mountains are estimated 
 to be from 4,000 to 8,000 feet high. There are no 
 active volcanoes. 
 
 " In the low lands on the coast, it is hot, damp, and 
 unhealthy for those who are not acclimated ; but in 
 the high lands among the mountains, the temperature 
 is moderate, from 81 to 91 at noon, and it is some- 
 
SOMETHING ABOUT BOKNEO AND ITS PEOPLE 21 
 
 times worse than that in New York. From Novem- 
 ber to May, which is the rainy season, violent storms 
 of wind with thunder-showers prevail on the west 
 coast. In hot weather the sea-breezes extend a con- 
 siderable distance inland. Vegetation is remarkably 
 luxuriant, as our young hunters will find in their 
 explorations. The forests produce all the woods of 
 the Indian Archipelago, of which you know the 
 names by this time. Brunei, on the north-west 
 coast, produces the best camphor in Asia, which is 
 about the same as saying in the world." 
 
 " What is camphor, Professor ? " asked Mrs. Bel- 
 grave. " I have used it all my life, but I have not 
 the least idea what it is." 
 
 " Camphor is an oil found in certain plants, mostly 
 from the camphor laurel. This oil is separated from 
 the plant, and then undergoes the process of refining. 
 It is mixed with water, and then boiled in a sort of 
 retort. It makes 1 steam, which is allowed to escape 
 through a small aperture, which is then closed, and 
 the camphor becomes solid in the upper part of the 
 vessel. This is the article which is sent to market. 
 
 " All the spices and fruits of the Torrid Zone are 
 produced in Borneo, with cotton and sugar-cane in 
 certain parts. The animals of the island are about 
 the same as in other parts of the Archipelago. The 
 monkey tribe is the most abundant, including the 
 simia, the gibbon, the orang-outang, found in no 
 other island, except very rarely in Sumatra, where 
 our hunters did not find even one ; tapirs " 
 
22 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 "What are they ? " asked Uncle Moses. 
 
 " They are a sort of cross between an elephant and 
 a hog. They are found all over South American 
 tropical regions and in this part of Asia. The ani- 
 mal is more like a hog than like an elephant, though 
 it has the same kind of a skin as the latter. It is 
 about the size of the average donkey. It has a snout 
 which is prehensile, like the trunk of an elephant, 
 but on a very small scale. 
 
 " What does that mean ? " asked Mrs. Blossom. 
 
 " Capable of taking hold of anything, as the ele- 
 phant does with his proboscis. The tapir is one of 
 the gentler animals, and may be easily tamed ; though 
 it will fight and bite hard when attacked, or harried 
 by dogs. They take to the water readily, though the 
 American swims, while the Asiatic only walk on the 
 bottom. One book I consulted calls the tapir a kind 
 of tiger, to which he bears hardly any resemblance. 
 
 "The other animals are small Malay bears, wild 
 swine, horned cattle, and puny deer. The elephant 
 and rhinoceros are found, few in number, in the 
 north. The birds are the eagle, vulture, argus- 
 pheasant, a singular and beautiful bird, pea- 
 cocks, flamingoes, and swifts." 
 
 " What in the world are swifts ? " inquired Mrs. 
 Woolridge. 
 
 " They are a kind of swallow, of which you may 
 have seen some as we came down from Rangoon. 
 They make the edible birds'-nests which are so great 
 a delicacy among the Chinese when made into soup. 
 
SOMETHING ABOUT BORNEO AND ITS PEOPLE 23 
 
 The rivers, lakes, and swamps swarm with crocodiles, 
 the real man-eaters. Leeches are a nuisance when 
 you bathe in the rivers and ponds, and various kinds 
 of snakes abound. There are plenty of fish in the 
 sea, lakes, and rivers. Diamonds, gold, coal, copper, 
 are mined in the island. 
 
 "All of New England and the Middle States, with 
 Maryland, could be set down in Borneo, still leaving 
 a considerable border of swamp and jungle all around 
 them. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and 
 Ireland could be slapped down upon it like a flap- 
 jack, and there would still be more than space for 
 another United Kingdom, without covering up all the 
 mud of Borneo. We do not see how big it is when 
 we look on the map. 
 
 "The larger portion of the island is included in 
 the Dutch possessions. Banjermassin, of which 
 something was said as we passed the mouth of the 
 Barito Biver, on \yhich it is located, contains 30,000 
 inhabitants, and is the most important in the island. 
 Borneo proper is in the north-west, and is under the 
 government of the Sultan of Brunei. He lost nearly 
 one-half of his territory, taken by the North Borneo 
 Company, and that in the west, which is now Sara- 
 wak, of which I shall have something more to say 
 later. The island of Labuan lies six miles west of 
 the northern portion of Brunei. It was ceded to 
 the English by the sultan, and is principally valu- 
 able as a coaling-station, though it has a considerable 
 trade. 
 
24 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " Sabah is the country of the North Borneo Com- 
 pany. An American obtained the right to this 
 territory in 1865, and transferred it to the present 
 company. It has an area somewhat larger than the 
 State of Maine. No doubt they will develop and 
 improve the country. 
 
 "Sarawak has a territory nearly as large as that 
 of the State of Pennsylvania, and larger than the 
 State of Ohio. Its history is involved in the life 
 of Sir James Brooke, who was originally created the 
 rajah, or governor of the country, by the Sultan of 
 Brunei', and retained the title till his death in 1868. 
 He was born in Benares in 1803, and educated at 
 Norwich, England. In 1819 he entered the East 
 Indian army, and was severely wounded in the Bur- 
 mese war. He returned to England ; and his fur- 
 lough lapsed before he could rejoin his regiment, 
 and with it his appointment. He left the service. 
 He next conceived a plan for putting down piracy 
 in the Indian Archipelago, and of civilizing the sav- 
 age inhabitants of these islands, a grand and noble 
 scheme to be carried out by a single individual on 
 his own responsibility. 
 
 " He bought a small vessel, and made a voyage 
 to China, probably with the intention of improving 
 his finances for the work he had in view. In 1835 
 he inherited $150,000 at the death of his father. 
 After a cruise in the Mediterranean, he sailed in a 
 schooner-yacht from London for Sarawak, where he 
 arrived in 1839. The uncle of the sultan was en- 
 
SOMETHING ABOUT BOKNEO AND ITS PEOPLE 25 
 
 gaged in a war with some tribes of rebels, and 
 Brooke rendered him important assistance. He 
 returned to Kuching with the title of rajah, his 
 predecessor, a native, having been compelled to 
 resign. 
 
 " The new governor immediately went to work 
 very vigorously to establish a better government, 
 introducing free trade, and framing a new code of 
 laws. At this time the atrocious custom of head- 
 hunting prevailed in the island. Enemies killed in 
 battle were decapitated simply for the sake of the 
 head, and the Dyak who obtained the greatest 
 number of them was esteemed the most valiant 
 warrior. 
 
 "A Dyak girl would not accept the addresses of 
 a young man who had not obtained a head, in the 
 earlier time ; and murders were often committed for 
 the sole purpose of obtaining the head of the victim, 
 either to conciliate some dusky maiden, or as a 
 trophy for the head-house, of which there is one 
 in every village. The heads were ' cooked/ as they 
 called it, though the operation was merely drying 
 and cleaning the skull. Rajah Brooke made the 
 penalty of this kind of murder death, without regard 
 to the customs and antecedents of the natives; and 
 he soon abolished head-hunting in his dominion. 
 
 " The sultan, either directly or by ' winking at it/ 
 encouraged piracy ; and the crime was as common as 
 in the vicinity of the Malay states fifty years ago. 
 Sir James Brooke resolutely attacked the pirates, 
 
26 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 and with the means at his command soon vanquished 
 and drove them from the sea and the land. The 
 Dyaks, in spite of their head-hunting propensities, 
 were rather a simple people ; while the Malays of 
 the island were cunning, dishonest, treacherous, and 
 cruel. The simple Dyaks were no match for them, 
 and were cheated and abused in every possible way. 
 There was no such thing as justice in the land. The 
 new rajah corrected all these abuses. 
 
 " Having established his government on the basis 
 of right and justice to all, Brooke went to England 
 in 1847. He was invited to Windsor by the Queen, 
 and created a K. C. B. (Knight Commander of the 
 Bath), a distinguished honor in Great Britain. The 
 next year he was made governor of Labuan. He 
 was charged in the House of Commons with receiv- 
 ing head-money for pirates killed; but the charge 
 was disproved. 
 
 " Brooke continued to hold his position as Rajah of 
 Sarawak while at Labuan ; but in 1857 he was super- 
 seded at the latter, and returned to his government. 
 The Chinese, of whom there are a great many in 
 Borneo, became incensed against him because he pre- 
 vented the smuggling of opium into his territory. A 
 large body of them attacked his house in the night, 
 and destroyed a great amount of his property. 
 
 "But the rajah was not a man to submit quietly 
 to such an outrage. He immediately collected a 
 force of Dyaks and Malays, and attacked the Celes- 
 tials. He razed a fort they had constructed, and 
 
SOMETHING ABOUT BOKNEO AND ITS PEOPLE 27 
 
 thoroughly defeated them in several successive bat- 
 tles. He was very prompt and decided in action, 
 and to see an abuse was to remedy it without un- 
 necessary delay. He established and maintained a 
 model government, and the country prospered greatly 
 under his mild but decisive rule. 
 
 " He found a town with 1,000 inhabitants, and left 
 it with 25,000. He died in 1868, and was succeeded 
 by his nephew, Sir C. T. Brooke, who extended his 
 territory, and ten years ago placed it under the pro- 
 tection of the United Kingdom. This is the history 
 of a noble man and a model colony." 
 
 " But what are Dyaks, Professor ? " inquired Mrs. 
 Belgrave. 
 
 "They are natives of Borneo, though all the peo- 
 ple are not known by this name. They are divided 
 into Hill Dyaks and Sea Dyaks. At the present 
 time they are a high-toned class of savages ; for they 
 do not steal or rob, and they have many social vir- 
 tues which might be copied by the people of enlight- 
 ened nations. Head-hunting and piracy are known 
 among them no more. They are the farmers and 
 producers of the island. There is much that is very 
 interesting about them. They build peculiar houses, 
 some of them occupied by a dozen or more families, 
 though they always live in peace, and do not quarrel 
 with their neighbors. The young women select their 
 own husbands, and a head is no longer necessary to 
 open the way to an engagement. 
 
 "If any of the party wish to learn more of the 
 
28 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 Dyaks, their manners and customs, present and past, 
 you will find a work in two volumes, by the Eev. 
 J. G. Wood, entitled, 'The Uncivilized Races of 
 Men ; ' and you will find that the author often 
 quotes from Kajah Brooke." 
 
A SPECULATION IN CROCODILES 29 
 
 CHAPTER IV 
 
 A SPECULATION IN CROCODILES 
 
 THE Blanchita continued on her course up the 
 river with Clingman at the wheel. There was no 
 table in the fore cabin ; and the dinner of the six 
 men, including the engineer, was served astern after 
 the " Big Four " had taken the meal. Louis at- 
 tended to the engine while Felipe was at his meals 
 and occasionally at other times. A table is not a 
 necessity for the crew of a ship, and one is not used 
 on board a merchant vessel ; but Louis insisted that 
 all hands should fare equally well on board of the 
 little steamer. 
 
 The dinner was , disposed of, and Wales was at the 
 wheel. The men had nothing to do, and a couple of 
 them had assisted Pitts in washing the dishes and 
 putting the after cabin in order. It was an idle 
 time, and the " Big Four " were anxious to have 
 something more exciting than merely sailing along 
 the river, the novelty of which had worn off; and 
 they had not long to wait for it. 
 
 " A crocodile ahead, Captain, on the port bow, 
 sir ! " exclaimed Wales, the wheelman, whose duty 
 required him to keep a sharp lookout for any ob- 
 structions in the stream. 
 
30 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 All of the party had their weapons within reach, 
 including the three seamen who were disengaged ; 
 but the latter were not expected to use the rifles 
 till they were ordered to do so by the captain or 
 any one of the hunters. The occupants of the fore 
 cabin, the principal personages on board, had the 
 exclusive use of the forward part of the boat, though 
 the hands were at liberty to use the seats when they 
 were not required by any of the "Big Four." No 
 order to this effect had been given; but the men, 
 under the influence of the discipline on board of 
 the ship, had involuntarily adopted the system. 
 
 "Slow her down, Wales," said Scott, after he had 
 observed the situation of the saurian. 
 
 The wheelman rang the jingle-bell, and the boat 
 soon came down to half-speed. The five hunters, 
 including Achang, had their rifles ready for use, 
 though they still retained their seats. The reptile 
 was not asleep ; and he appeared to have some 
 notions of his own, for he was not disposed to wait 
 for the coming of the boat. He settled down in the 
 dark water so that he could not be seen, but the 
 surface was disturbed by his movements. 
 
 "Port the helm, Wales," said the captain quietly. 
 " He is going across the river." 
 
 Presently he came to the surface again, and was 
 swimming towards the opposite shore. He kept his 
 head and a small portion of his back next to it above 
 the surface of the water, as the young hunters had 
 seen in Sumatra before. 
 
A SPECULATION IN CROCODILES 31 
 
 "Full speed; give her a spurt, Wales," said the 
 captain. 
 
 The wheelman rang the speed-bell, and then spoke 
 through the tube to the engineer. The boat sud- 
 denly darted ahead under this instruction, and was 
 soon abreast of the reptile, who was not at first 
 disposed to change his tactics. He evidently real- 
 ized that he was pursued, and it seemed to make 
 him angry. 
 
 " The rascal has put his helm to port," said Wales. 
 
 " Look out there, in the waist ! " shouted Scott to 
 the seamen, a couple of whom were seated on the 
 rail, with their legs dangling over the side of the 
 boat. "Never sit in that way, men, unless you 
 want to be carried to the hospital with a leg bitten 
 off." 
 
 "Will they bite, Captain ? " asked Clinch. 
 
 "Bite? They are regular man-eaters on these 
 
 rivers." 
 
 i 
 
 "I used to go in swimming with the alligators on 
 the Alabama River ; but they all kept their distance," 
 added the seaman. 
 
 The two men drew in their legs and moved inboard. 
 Alligators, which are generally considered harmless 
 in the rivers of the Southern States, will bite at any- 
 thing hanging in the water. As Wales had suggested, 
 the crocodile had changed his course, and was now 
 headed directly for the Blanchita. He seemed to 
 have concluded that there was no safety for him in 
 flight, and he had decided to fight. 
 
32 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 "Your first shot, Louis/' said Scott, who had not 
 even taken up his rifle, as if he thought there would 
 be no chance for him after the millionaire had fired. 
 
 Louis waited a minute or more till he could dis- 
 tinctly see the eye of the crocodile, and then he fired. 
 As has so often been said before, he had been thor- 
 oughly trained in a shooting-gallery, and was a dead 
 shot, as he had often proved during the voyage. 
 The bullet had evidently gone to his brain, for the 
 reptile floundered about for an instant, and then 
 moved no more. As Felix put it, he was "very 
 dead," though the word hardly admits of an inten- 
 sifier. 
 
 " What are you going to do with him now ? " asked 
 the Milesian. 
 
 " I don't think we want anything more of him ; 
 but, like a poison snake, he is a nuisance that ought 
 to be abated," replied the captain. "I dare say the 
 rajah will be much obliged to us for making the 
 number of them even one less." 
 
 " How long is he ? " Achang inquired, as he returned 
 his rifle to its resting-place. 
 
 " About ten feet," replied Louis. 
 
 " More than that," the captain thought. " I should 
 say twelve feet." 
 
 " Then he is worth eighteen shillings to you," added 
 the native. 
 
 " What is he good for, Achang ? " asked Morris. 
 
 "He is good for nothing," replied the Bornean. 
 " The crocodile here eats men and women. Some are 
 
A SPECULATION IN CROCODILES 33 
 
 killed every year, and the government pays one and 
 sixpence apiece for the heads." 
 
 " That looks like a war of extermination upon 
 them," said Morris. 
 
 " I don't know what that is ; but they want to kill 
 them all off," replied Achang, who had improved his 
 language so that his tutor seldom had to correct it. 
 
 "That is the same thing. They pay by the foot 
 for crocodiles here." 
 
 "The bigger they are, the more dangerous," sug- 
 gested Louis. "Let us haul him alongside, and see 
 how long he is." 
 
 The boat had stopped her screw before Louis 
 fired ; and the captain directed Wales to lay her 
 alongside the saurian, which was done in a few 
 minutes. Kopes were passed under his head and 
 tail; and with a couple of purchases made fast to 
 the horizontal rods over the rail, close to the stan- 
 chions, the carcass , was hoisted partly out of the 
 water. The measure was taken with a line first, to 
 which Lane, who was a carpenter's assistant, applied 
 his rule, which gave twelve feet and two inches as 
 the length of the crocodile. 
 
 " That makes him worth eighteen shillings," said 
 Achang. 
 
 "About four dollars and a half," added Morris. 
 " We could make something hunting crocodiles. If 
 we could kill ten of them like that fellow it would 
 give us forty-five dollars." 
 
 Louis and Scott laughed heartily at this calcula- 
 
34 FOUR YOUNG EXPLOKEKS 
 
 tion, and thought the idea was derogatory to the 
 character of true sport, though they did not object 
 to turning their victims of this kind into money. 
 
 "Must we carry the carcass of this beast down 
 to Kuching in order to get the reward, Achang ? " 
 asked Morris. 
 
 " The head will be enough ; and they can tell how 
 long he is by the size of it." 
 
 " How shall we saw the head off ? Can you do it, 
 Lane ? " 
 
 "I can do that," interposed the Bornean, as he 
 went to a bundle of implements he had procured in 
 the town and from the natives. 
 
 He drew from it a very heavy sword, from which 
 he took off the covering of dry leaves, and applied 
 his thumb to the edge of the weapon. Then he 
 picked out a straw from some packing, and dropped 
 it off in pieces, as one tries his razor on a hair. It 
 appeared to be as sharp as the shaving-tool, and he 
 was satisfied. All hands watched his movements 
 with deep interest. He secured a position with one 
 foot on the side of the boat, and the other on the 
 back of the crocodile. With two or three blows of 
 his sword, he severed the head from the body, and 
 a seaman secured it with a boathook. 
 
 All hands applauded when the deed was done, as 
 the Bornean washed his keen blade. The operation 
 excited the admiration of all the lookers-on, it was 
 so quickly and skilfully done. Louis wished to ex- 
 amine the weapon, and it was handed to him. It 
 
A SPECULATION IN CROCODILES 35 
 
 was heavy enough to require a strong arm to handle 
 it; and it was sharp enough for a giant's razor, if 
 giants ever shave, for most of them are pictured 
 with full beards. 
 
 "I suppose this is a native's sword," said Louis, 
 as he passed it to the captain. 
 
 "Dyak parong latok ; parong same thing, not so 
 long," Achang explained. 
 
 "I suppose that is what the Dyaks used when 
 they went head-hunting," said Felix. 
 
 "No head-hunting now; used to use it, the Hill 
 Dyaks. Used in battle too ; split head open with it, 
 or cut head off." 
 
 " What other weapons did the fighting men use ? " 
 asked Louis. 
 
 " They carried a shield, and used a spear with 
 the parong latok ; no other weapons. Two kinds of 
 Dyaks, the Sea and the Hill." 
 
 While the native was talking, the seamen, by order 
 of the captain, had hoisted the head of the saurian 
 into the sampan towing astern, placing it on a piece 
 of tarpaulin. The carcass was cast loose, and prob- 
 ably was soon devoured by others of its own kind. 
 
 "We might find some eggs in the crocodile," said 
 Achang, as the body floated past the boat. 
 
 "We don't want the eggs," replied the captain, 
 turning up his nose. 
 
 " Good to eat, Captain. My naturalist used to 
 eat them. Very nice, like turtles' eggs, which Eng- 
 lishmen always put in the soup." 
 
36 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " None in my soup ! " exclaimed Scott, with a wry 
 face, to express his disgust. 
 
 "I suppose they would be all right if we only got 
 used to them," suggested Louis. 
 
 " As the man's horse did when he fed him on shav- 
 ings," sneered Scott. 
 
 " I did not take very kindly to turtles' eggs when 
 we were in the West Indies ; but I got used to them, 
 and then liked them," added Louis. "In Africa the 
 natives eat boa-constrictors, and think they are a 
 choice morsel. Some of our Indians eat clay, and 
 I suppose they like it." 
 
 " Something up in the trees yonder, Captain," 
 said Wales, as the boat approached some higher 
 ground, which was not overflown with water, as 
 most of the shore below had been. 
 
 " Monkeys," added Achang, not at all excited. 
 
 "I don't think I care to shoot monkeys unless it 
 is for the purpose of examining them," said Louis. 
 "They are too small game, and they are harmless 
 creatures." 
 
 " Strange monkeys in here," continued Achang. 
 " Not these," he added when he had obtained a sight 
 of one of them. " These no good." 
 
 All eyes were directed to the tree; and at least a 
 dozen common monkeys were there, such as they 
 had seen in the museums at home. The steamer 
 continued on her course, and a couple of miles far- 
 ther on the forest was inundated. Some of the trees 
 appeared to be inhabited. 
 
A SPECULATION IN CROCODILES 37 
 
 " Plenty of elephant monkeys in here/ 7 said 
 Achang. 
 
 " Elephant monkeys ! " exclaimed Louis. " I never 
 heard of any such animals. Are they called so be- 
 cause they are so large ? " 
 
 " No, sir/' said Achang j " because they have such 
 long noses." 
 
 " There are a dozen monkeys in that tree, and 
 they look very queer/' said Louis, as he elevated 
 his double-barrelled fowling-piece, loaded with large 
 shot, and fired. 
 
 One of them dropped, and another when he dis- 
 charged the second barrel. The boat was run in the 
 direction of the tree till it grounded in the mud. 
 The captain proposed to go for them in the sampan, 
 when Clingman volunteered to wade to the tree for 
 the game, and soon returned with the two victims of 
 the millionaire's unerring aim. They were placed in 
 the waist, and ajl were curious to see them. The 
 rest of the tribe scampered away over the tops of the 
 trees, crying, " honk, honk, kehonk ! " 
 
 " They are proboscis monkeys, and old males at 
 that; for they have very long noses, which is the 
 reason for the name, and why Achang calls them 
 elephant monkeys," said Louis, as he turned the 
 creatures over. " The noses of these two reach 
 down below the chin. They stand about three feet 
 high, but are rather lank, like the tall pigs." 
 
 While the party were examining them, the captain 
 gave the order to back the boat, and then to go 
 
38 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 ahead. She was moored for the night soon after. 
 The next morning, by the advice of Achang, the 
 Blanchita was headed down the river, for the native 
 declared that they would find no different game on 
 the banks of the Sarawak. 
 
A HUNDRED AND EIGHT FEET OF CROCODILE 39 
 
 CHAPTER V 
 
 A HUNDRED AND EIGHT FEET OF CROCODILE 
 
 THE party were stirring as soon as it was daylight ; 
 for in the tropics the early hours are the pleasantest, 
 and they had fallen into the habit of early rising in 
 India. The trees were alive with monkeys of several 
 kinds, though the proboscis tribe seemed to be in the 
 majority. Felix came out of the cabin with his gun 
 in his hand, and began to regard the denizens of 
 the tree-tops with interest. 
 
 " What are you going to do, Flix ? " asked Louis, 
 who was sitting on the rail, busily cutting out a notch 
 in the end of a long piece of board. 
 
 " Don't you se^ there is plenty of game here, my 
 darling ? " demanded Felix, pointing up into the 
 trees. 
 
 " Game ! " exclaimed Louis contemptuously. 
 " Monkeys ! " 
 
 " Didn't you shoot a couple of them yesterday 
 afternoon, Louis ? " 
 
 " I did ; but I wanted them in order to study the 
 creature. Now every fellow knows what a proboscis 
 monkey is, as he did not before except by name. I 
 got my books out, and read him up with the animal 
 before me. I am glad I did ; for the picture of him 
 
40 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 I had seen was nothing like him in his nasal appen- 
 dage, which gives him his name. 7 ' 
 
 What is the reason of that ? " 
 
 " The portrait was taken from a young one, before 
 his nose had attained its full growth. But I don't 
 believe in shooting monkeys for the fun of it. Our 
 party are not inclined to eat them." 
 
 " I'd as soon eat a cat as a monkey," added Felix. 
 
 "Then, don't shoot those long-nosed fellows, for 
 we have all the specimens of them we need," said 
 Louis. 
 
 " What are you going to do with them, my darling ? 
 You can't keep them much longer, and you will have 
 to throw them overboard, for they won't smell sweet 
 by to-morrow." 
 
 " Achang learned something about taxidermy from 
 the naturalist he travelled with, and he has promised 
 to skin and mount one of them for me." 
 
 " But what's that you are making, Louis ? " asked 
 Felix, who had been trying to take the measure of 
 the implement the young Croesus was fashioning. 
 
 Its use was not at all evident. A triangular piece 
 had been sawed out of the end of a strip of board four 
 inches wide, and the rest of it had been cut down and 
 rounded off, and the thing looked more like a pitch- 
 fork than anything else. 
 
 Is it to pitch hay with ? " persisted Felix. 
 
 " No, it is not ; when you see me use it, you will 
 know what it is for. You must wait till that time 
 before you know," replied Louis, who appeared to 
 
WHAT HAVE YOU GOT THERE, Mis. BELGRAVK?" 
 
 Paye 41. 
 
A HUNDRED AND EIGHT FEET OF CROCODILE 41 
 
 have finished the implement just as the other brought 
 his gun to his shoulder." 
 
 " That's the handsomest schnake I iver saw since 
 me modther, long life to her, left ould Ireland before 
 I was bahrn." 
 
 " Don't shoot him, Flix ! " protested Louis vigor- 
 ously. " Where is he ? " 
 
 " Jist forninst the bow of the boat. Sure, Oi'm 
 the schnake-killer of the party, and he's moi game." 
 
 " I don't want him killed yet," replied Louis, as he 
 moved forward from the waist with the forked stick 
 in his hand. " He is handsome, as you say, Flix." 
 
 Creeping very cautiously till he could see over the 
 bow, he discovered the serpent, which was nearly six 
 feet long, working slowly down a dead log towards 
 the water. Springing to his feet on the bow, he 
 struck down with his weapon, directing the fork at 
 the neck of the reptile. The outside of the log was 
 nothing but punk, or the operation would have been 
 a failure. As it was, the two points of the implement 
 sunk into the wood, and the snake was pinned in the 
 opening at the end of the stick. 
 
 " What have you got there, Mr. Belgrave ? " asked 
 Achang, hurrying to the side of the operator. 
 
 u A snake ; do you know him ? " demanded Louis, 
 as the reptile struggled to escape. 
 
 " I saw one like it years ago ; " and he gave a long 
 Dyak name to it which the others did not understand. 
 "Wait a minute or two, and I will bring him on 
 board for you." 
 
42 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " I don't know that we want him on board," added 
 Louis. 
 
 "He is not poison, and he won't hurt you," said 
 the Bornean, as he made a slip-noose at the end of a 
 piece of cord. 
 
 Hanging over the bow, he passed the noose over 
 the head of the snake, and hauled it taut, and then 
 made the end he held fast to the boat. Louis lifted 
 his implement from the neck of the snake, and he 
 squirmed and wriggled as though ho " meant busi- 
 ness." Achang leaped to the shore, and seizing the 
 serpent by the tail, tossed him into the boat. He 
 struck on one of the cushions, and the cord prevented 
 him from going any farther. 
 
 Scott and Morris had just reached the fore cabin at 
 this moment, and they started back as though they 
 had been bitten by the snake. His head, tail, and 
 belly were bright red, with white stripes upon a dark 
 ground along his back and sides. No one but Achang 
 had ever seen such a serpent, even in a museum. His 
 snakeship was disposed to make himself comfortable 
 on the cushion, and the Bornean loosed the cord 
 around his neck. 
 
 " I saw a small snake, not more than two feet long, 
 swimming near the shore of Lake Cobbosseecontee, in 
 Maine, that had nearly all the colors of the rainbow 
 in his skin," said Morris. "I tried to knock him 
 over with my fishing-rod, and catch him; but I 
 failed. I told the people where we boarded about 
 him, but no one had ever seen a snake like him." 
 
A HUNDRED AND EIGHT FEET OF CROCODILE 43 
 
 " There are plenty of such snakes in South Amer- 
 ica, some that are not poisonous, which the native 
 women tame and wear as necklaces," added Louis. 
 
 " Well, what are you going to do with him ? " 
 asked Captain Scott. "I think you had better kill 
 him, and throw him into the river, pretty as he is. 
 He isn't a very desirable fellow to have as a compan- 
 ion on board." 
 
 " What is the use of killing him ? He would only 
 be food for the crocodiles," protested Louis. 
 
 " Do what you like with him, Louis," added the 
 captain. 
 
 " I certainly will not have him killed. If Achang 
 never saw but one of the kind, there cannot be a 
 great many of them in this part of the island. Put 
 him ashore, Achang/ 7 said the humane young gen- 
 tleman. 
 
 The Bornean complied with this request ; and the 
 handsome snake skurried off in the woods, none the 
 worse for his adventure. But the others were not 
 quite satisfied with the policy of the young million- 
 aire. They wanted to shoot whatever they could 
 see in the nature of game, including monkeys, and 
 he was opposed to this destructive action. Of course 
 they could kill whatever they pleased, but the moral 
 influence of the real leader prevailed over them. 
 
 " Steam enough ! " shouted Felipe from the engine. 
 
 "Take the wheel, Clingman, back her out and go 
 ahead," said the captain ; and in a few moments they 
 were steaming down the river. 
 
44 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " I suppose you haven't any tenderness for croco- 
 diles, have you, Louis ? " inquired Scott, with a smile. 
 
 " You seem to believe that I am as chicken-hearted 
 as a girl ; but I believe in killing all harmful ani- 
 mals, including poisonous snakes ; but I do not like 
 to see these innocent monkeys shot down for the fun 
 of it," replied Louis. " You can kill them if you 
 choose, but I will not." 
 
 " The rest of us will not, if you are opposed to it," 
 added Scott. 
 
 "Crocodile on the port hand!" exclaimed Cling- 
 man. " He is swimming across the river, about 
 three boats' lengths from us." 
 
 " Stop her ! " said the captain. 
 
 " I shot the last one, and I will not fire at this 
 one," added Louis, who was not disposed to monopo- 
 lize the fun. 
 
 " All right j then I will be number two, Morris 
 three, Flix four, and Achang five ; and if you are all 
 satisfied, we will fire in this order hereafter," con- 
 tinued Scott, as he took aim at the saurian. 
 
 He missed the eye of the reptile, and the bullet 
 from the rifle glanced off and dropped into the 
 water. 
 
 "How many shots is a fellow to have before he 
 loses his chance?" asked the captain, as he aimed 
 again. 
 
 " I suggest three," said Louis. " Those in favor of 
 three say ay." 
 
 They all voted " ay," and Scott fired twice more. 
 
A HUNDRED AND EIGHT FEET OF CROCODILE 45 
 
 " Your turn, Morris ; " and he appeared to be very 
 much chagrined at his ill luck. " I could hardly see 
 the eye of the varmint." 
 
 Morris fired his three shots with no better success. 
 Felix took a different position from the others, pla- 
 cing himself on the stem. He fired, and the saurian 
 still kept on his course. He did better the second 
 time ; and the reptile floundered for a moment, and 
 then turned over dead. The boat was run up along- 
 side, and Achang was required to bring out his pa- 
 rong latok, with which he decapitated the game at a 
 single blow this time ; but the creature was only nine 
 feet long. 
 
 Pitts called the cabin party to breakfast at this 
 time. The Blanchita went ahead again, and the 
 repeating rifles were left on the cushions. At 
 Louis's suggestion the captain gave the four men off 
 duty permission to use the arms on crocodiles, but 
 not on monkeys. 
 
 Ham and eggs, with hot biscuit and coffee, was the 
 bill of fare ; and the young men had sharpened their 
 appetites in the sports of the morning. Before they 
 were half done they heard the crack of a rifle. They 
 listened for the second shot, but none followed it. 
 
 " Who fired that shot, Pitts ? " asked the captain, 
 as the steward brought in another plate of biscuit. 
 
 " Clinch, sir," replied the man. " He knocked the 
 crocodile over at the first shot, sir." 
 
 "Then he is a better shot than I am," said Scott, 
 laughing. 
 
46 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 "Or any of the rest of us who had their turns," 
 added Felix. " Louis is the only fellow that brings 
 'em down the first time trying." 
 
 " The rest of you would have done better if the 
 sun had not reflected on the water, and shaken your 
 aim," said Louis. 
 
 Before the meal was finished, another shot was 
 heard, followed by two more. When the party went 
 forward they found that the little steamer had gone 
 around a bend so that the forest shaded the surface 
 of the water. Wales had fired the last three times 
 at a crocodile still in sight ; but he declared that he 
 could not hit the side of a barn twenty feet from him, 
 and did not care to fire again. The men went to 
 breakfast, and the cabin party picked up the rifles. 
 It was Achang's turn ; and he missed twice, but killed 
 the game at the third shot. 
 
 " I can see four more of them. We seem to have 
 come to a nest of them, and the family are out for 
 a morning airing," said Louis, as he picked up his 
 rifle, while Felix was filling the other chambers with 
 cartridges. " They have all started to go across the 
 river." 
 
 "That must be the father of the family at the 
 head of the procession," added the captain. " It is 
 your turn now, Louis." 
 
 " Go ahead a little, Pitts," said the next one in 
 turn ; for the cook had taken the wheel while Cling- 
 man went to his morning meal. " I can't see his eye 
 yet." 
 
A HUNDRED AND EIGHT FEET OF CROCODILE 47 
 
 " That will do ; stop her. I can see his eye now, 
 and there is no reflection on the water." 
 
 As soon as the boat lost her headway, Louis fired. 
 The saurian leaped nearly out of the water, and came 
 down wrong side up. There were three dead rep- 
 tiles lying on the water. It was the captain's next 
 shot, and when he placed the yacht in a position to 
 suit him he fired. The crocodile lifted his head out 
 of the water, and did not move again. 
 
 " Bravo, Captain ! " cried Louis. " You did not 
 have a fair chance last time, and you have redeemed 
 yourself." 
 
 " I thought I could shoot better than before, and 
 now I feel better. But there are two more, and your 
 turn, Morris." 
 
 He killed the game with the third shot, and Felix 
 finished the last in sight with the second. Achang 
 had brought out his formidable weapon, and the six 
 dead reptiles were decapitated. The last three killed 
 were each nine feet long, while the one Louis had 
 shot was fourteen. The heads were all put in the 
 sampan, and they made a full load for it. The Blan- 
 chita arrived at Kuching early in the afternoon, and 
 the chief of police measured the heads, and took the 
 figures from Felix. He made one hundred and eight 
 feet of crocodile, which the official approved as cor- 
 rect, and paid not quite forty dollars for the bounty. 
 
48 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 CHAPTER VI 
 
 THE VOYAGE UP THE SADONG TO SIMUJAN 
 
 THE money received for the heads of the crocodiles 
 was in the hands of Felix, who was the clerk of the 
 captain on board the ship, and it was proper to make 
 him purser of the Blanchita. What to do with it 
 was the next question. Louis's advice was asked 
 for, and he promptly suggested that it should be 
 divided into ten parts, and a share given to all but 
 himself ; and this was done. He refused to accept a 
 penny, but all the others received about four dollars 
 apiece. 
 
 The money was all in silver, as it is all over India 
 and the Archipelago for general use. The engineer 
 and the seamen shared with the four hunters ; for the 
 former had done all the work and some of the shoot- 
 ing. The steamer was made fast at the shore, and 
 all hands except Pitts landed for a walk through the 
 town. Their first visit was to a fruit-store kept by 
 a Chinaman ; and most of the shops in the place were 
 in the hands of the Celestials. 
 
 Bananas and oranges were the principal, though 
 there were also nearly all the tropical fruits in sea- 
 son. Many of the party purchased useful articles in 
 other places,. They had learned in Singapore and 
 
VOYAGE UP THE SADONG TO SIMUJAN 49 
 
 Batavia how to deal with Chinese traders, and they 
 seldom gave even more than one-third or one-half of 
 what was demanded. After diligent search Achang 
 found a certain Dyak tool he wanted, a sort of axe, 
 which Lane, the carpenter's assistant, ridiculed with- 
 out mercy. 
 
 The young men visited the English Mission, where 
 they were kindly received, and went to the school. 
 The American missionaries are also active in Borneo, 
 and one of them has made a vocabulary of the Dyak 
 language. 
 
 It was decided to start down the river the next 
 morning on the way to the Sadong and Simujan 
 Rivers, the latter being a branch of the former. In 
 the early morning, as the hands were casting off the 
 fasts, two Malays came alongside in a sampan, and 
 asked to be towed to the Sadong. Achang had some 
 talk with them, and made the request of the captain 
 for them. He learned that they were engaged in the 
 business of catching crocodiles for the reward. 
 
 " They don't shoot crocodiles, and they have no 
 rifles," added Achang. 
 
 " How do they get them then ? " asked Louis. 
 
 "They fish for them." 
 
 " What, with a hook and line ? " demanded Captain 
 Scott. 
 
 "With a line, but have no fish-hook," replied the 
 Bornean. " You must see them catch one." 
 
 " All right," replied the captain ; " we will tow 
 them down the river." 
 
50 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 After the yacht had been moving about an hour, 
 they came to a colony of saurians apparently, for 
 several of them were in sight at once. Achang di- 
 rected the reptile-hunters to catch one of them, and 
 they paddled their sampan towards a large one. The 
 Blanchita kept near enough to enable all hands to 
 witness the operation, which the Bornean described 
 to them as the Malays made their preparations, for 
 they had all their fishing-gear in their boat. 
 
 The line they used was a rattan about forty feet 
 long. At the " business end/' as Scott called it, they 
 attached a float to keep it on the top of the water. 
 The steamer just crawled along on the river in order 
 not to disturb the game, though the reptiles were 
 accustomed to the sight of vessels. 
 
 "Now you see that stick the hunter has in his 
 hand," said Achang, though each of them had one. 
 "'Most a foot long, like a new moon." 
 
 " Crescent-shaped," added Louis. 
 
 " Called an alir in Malay. Made of green wood, 
 very tough, pointed at the ends; they fasten the 
 rattan line to the middle of the stick." 
 
 Some tough green bark, braided together, was then 
 wound around the stick so that the game could not 
 bite it in two. A big fish for bait was then attached 
 to the alir, and carefully fastened to it so that the 
 reptile could not tear it off. 
 
 Thus prepared, the apparatus was thrown over- 
 board, and the sampan paddled away from it to give 
 the game an opportunity to approach it, the Malays 
 
VOYAGE UP THE SADONG TO SIMT7JAN 51 
 
 each paying out his forty feet of line, one on each 
 side of the boat. The spectators watched the result 
 with great interest. As the sampan receded from 
 the saurians, they approached the bait. Crocodiles 
 and alligators do not nibble at their prey, but bolt 
 it as a snake does a frog. 
 
 The bait nearest to the observers on the yacht was 
 soon gobbled up by the hungry crocodile, who ap- 
 peared not to have been to breakfast that morning; 
 and the Malay at the other end of the line gave a 
 sharp jerk to his gear, the effect of which was to 
 draw the pointed crescent " athwart ships," as the 
 sailors would say, or across his stomach ; and the 
 harder it was pulled the more the pointed ends would 
 penetrate the interior of the organ. 
 
 The first Malay had hardly hooked his game before 
 the second had another ready to haul in. Both of 
 the saurians struggled and lashed the dark water into 
 a foam ; but both of the men in the sampan kept the 
 line as taut as they could with all their strength ; and 
 this is the rule in hauling in all gamey fish. 
 
 " Tell them we will go ahead, Achang, and all they 
 need to do is to make fast their rattans to the sam- 
 pan/' said Captain Scott, when he had taken in the 
 situation. 
 
 In reply to the message the Bornean delivered to 
 them, the Malays nodded their heads vigorously, and 
 smiled their assent. 
 
 " Go ahead, down the river, Clinch," added the cap- 
 tain to the helmsman. 
 
52 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " I fancy there will be a lively kick-up on the part 
 of the game," said Louis, as the boat came up to her 
 course. 
 
 " Not much," added Scott. " If we put them 
 through the water at the rate of eight knots an 
 hour, the crocs will not feel much like doing any 
 gambolling. We are not making more than four 
 knots now." 
 
 " They are as lively now as a parched pea in a 
 hot skillet." 
 
 " I will ring the speed-bell now, and see how that 
 will affect them," replied the captain, suiting the 
 action to the word. 
 
 The Blanchita darted ahead at her usual speed. 
 Clingman began to overhaul the painter of the sam- 
 pan, for it did not look strong enough for the present 
 strain. He had scarcely got hold of it before it 
 snapped in the middle, and relieved the strain on 
 the crocodiles. The steamer backed at the order of 
 the captain ; and a strong line was thrown into the 
 sampan, which one of the Malays seized and made 
 fast. 
 
 When the strain upon them was thus removed, 
 the saurians made violent struggles to escape. The 
 yacht then went ahead again, and the speed-bell was 
 rung immediately. The pressure on the game was 
 renewed, and they ceased to struggle. The appa- 
 ratus held fast, for the saurian fishers were expe- 
 rienced in their business, and had done their work 
 well. 
 
VOYAGE UP THE SADONG TO SIMUJAN 53 
 
 At eight o'clock the Blanchita reached the mouth 
 of the river. The crocodiles were not dead, but their 
 stomachs must have been in a terrible condition. To 
 Louis it seemed to be cruel to prolong their suffer- 
 ings ; and he wished Achang to request the Malays 
 to kill them, and Scott agreed with him. The Bor- 
 nean said they could not kill them while they were 
 towing behind, and that, if the lines were slacked, 
 they might get away. 
 
 The captain took the matter in hand, and told 
 Achang what he intended to do, which he commu- 
 nicated to the reptile-hunters. On the starboard 
 hand Scott fixed his gaze on a small tongue of land 
 extending out into the river. Taking the wheel him- 
 self, he run her close to the land some distance above 
 the point, and worked the sampan and its tow close 
 to the shore. The tow-line of the sampan was then 
 lengthened out to a hundred feet or more, and the 
 yacht went ahead again, rounding the point, so 
 that the peninsula lay between the steamer and 
 her tow. 
 
 Then she went ahead again, and the result was 
 that she pulled the sampan upon the point ; and as 
 she was flat-bottomed, there was no difficulty in do- 
 ing so. The Blanchita continued on her course, and 
 the two crocodiles were landed after her. One of 
 the Malays then produced a parong latok ; and even 
 more skilfully than Achang had done the job, he cut 
 off the heads of both reptiles. They were out of 
 misery then, and Louis was satisfied. 
 
54 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 The yacht was then run up to the point, and Lane 
 was sent on shore to measure the reptiles, while the 
 fishermen proceeded to recover the apparatus from 
 the stomachs of the defunct reptiles. The larger 
 crocodile was twelve feet and four inches long, and 
 the other ten feet and seven inches. The voyage 
 was resumed on the sea to the mouth of the Sadong ; 
 and in three hours more she entered the stream, 
 which was a large one, averaging half a mile wide 
 for twenty miles. 
 
 " Bujang ! " called Achang, as instructed by the 
 captain. "Do you want to go any farther?" 
 
 The head man replied in his own language that 
 they wished to go to Simujan, or till they came to 
 plenty of game. The Bornean said Bujang was a 
 great hunter, for he had killed fifty-three crocodiles 
 that year. The yacht, with the sampan still in tow, 
 started up the river, keeping in the middle of it. 
 Just before sunset she reached the junction of the 
 Simujan and Sadong. 
 
 On one side of the branch stream there was a con- 
 siderable Malay village, backed by an abundance of 
 cocoanut palms; and, of course, the houses were 
 built on stilts close to the water. On the other 
 side was the Chinese kampon, or quarter, consisting 
 largely of shops and trading-houses. Louis Belgrave 
 had been presented to the officials at Sarawak as the 
 owner of the Guardian-Mother, and that established 
 him as a person of great distinction. 
 
 After the ship departed on her voyage to Siam, 
 
VOYAGE UP THE SADONG TO SIMUJAN 55 
 
 
 many attentions were bestowed upon him ; and when, 
 
 after the return of the yacht from up the Sarawak, 
 they learned that she was going to the Simujan, one 
 of the officials had given him a letter of introduction 
 to the Chinese half-cast government official, who was 
 the magnate of the place. Figuratively, he took the 
 " Big Four " in his arms, and there was nothing he 
 was not ready to do for them. 
 
 He conducted them to the government house, and 
 insisted that they should live there during their stay 
 at Simujan. It had been erected to receive such offi- 
 cials as might have occasion to remain there at any 
 time. It was well built and comfortable, and each 
 chamber had a veranda in front of it. It was set 
 on posts six feet from the ground, like all the other 
 dwellings near it. It was the police station of the 
 region ; and the two Malays collected eight or nine 
 dollars for their game, which they did not offer to 
 share with the crew of the yacht no Malay would 
 do such a thing. 
 
 The agent's tender of the rooms to the party was 
 accepted, for the members wished to sleep in a four- 
 posted bedstead once more for a change. The chief 
 Malay of the place called upon them, and treated 
 them very handsomely. The Chinese official gave 
 them much information as they were seated on a 
 veranda of the house. 
 
 " You may find the orang-outang up the Simujan ; 
 but I don't know that you want such large game," 
 said he. 
 
56 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 
 ""We have shot tigers in India, and Mr. McGa- 
 
 vonty has shot more cobras than all the rest of us. 
 He has a talent for killing snakes." 
 
 " Show me the snakes, and I will finish them/' 
 added Felix. 
 
 "You will not find many of them in the jungle. 
 There are some water snakes taken occasionally, 
 and people here eat them. They make a very fine 
 curry." 
 
 "I should ask to be excused from partaking of 
 that dish," said Scott. 
 
 " That is all prejudice," said the agent. " Perhaps 
 you would like to go a-fishing in the Sadong and its 
 branches. We have a peculiar way of taking fish 
 here. We use the tuba plant, which the Malays 
 prepare for use. It is a climbing-plant, the root 
 of which has some of the properties of opium. It 
 is reduced to a pulp, mixed with water. I cannot 
 fully explain the process of preparation, in which 
 the Malays are very skilful. At the right time of 
 tide, the fluid is thrown into the stream. The effect 
 is to stupefy and sometimes kill the fish. With dip- 
 nets the fish are picked up, though some of them are 
 so large that they can be secured only with a kind 
 of barbed spear." 
 
 "I don't think I care to fish in that way," said 
 Louis, with some disgust in his expression. " It is 
 very unsportsmanlike, and it looks to me to be a 
 mean way to do it." 
 
 "Just what some Englishmen who were here a 
 
VOYAGE UP THE SADONG TO SIMUJAN 57 
 
 while ago said, and perhaps you are right ; but it is 
 a Malay art, and not English." 
 
 The party slept very comfortably on bedsteads 
 that night, but they were up before the sun the 
 next morning. 
 
58 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 CHAPTER VII 
 
 A SPIRITED BATTLE WITH ORANG-OUTANGS 
 
 THE civilized people of Simujan were not stirring 
 when the party came from their chambers. Felipe 
 had steam up at half-past five, for the captain in- 
 tended to begin the ascent of the river ; but he did 
 not care to leave without bidding adieu to the kindly 
 agent. But they got under way at his order, and 
 ran up the river for a morning airing. The boat 
 had not gone more than a mile when the young 
 men discovered a sampan containing two Malays 
 paddling with all their might for the shore. 
 
 They had no guns, and could not shoot their game, 
 whatever it was ; but each of them had a biliong. 
 This was the implement Achang had bought in Sara- 
 wak. It looked something like a pickaxe with only 
 one arm, the end of which was fashioned like a mor- 
 tising chisel, and was used as an axe. 
 
 The edge of the chisel portion was parallel to the 
 handle; but Achang explained that the Dyaks had 
 another kind of biliong, with the cutting part at 
 right angles with the handle, and this was used as 
 an adze. While Lane, the carpenter, was ridiculing 
 the tool, the Malays on shore moved to a tree in 
 
A SPIRITED BATTLE WITH ORANG-OUTANGS 59 
 
 sight of the steamer, which had stopped her screw 
 close to the sampan. 
 
 " They are going to cut down a tree with the bil- 
 iongs," said Achang. " Sometimes do that to get 
 the game." 
 
 " They couldn't cut down a tree a foot through 
 with those things in a week ! " exclaimed Lane. 
 
 " So quick as you could cut it down," insisted the 
 Bornean stoutly. 
 
 " Dry up, now, and let us see the Malays work 
 with the thing/' interposed the captain. 
 
 " Lane, you shall have a trial with a Dyak or a 
 Malay, and I will give a prize of three dollars to the 
 one that fells the tree first," said Louis. 
 
 " I should like to try that with any Dyak or Ma- 
 lay," replied Lane good-naturedly; and he was a 
 stout Down-Easter, who had been a logger in the 
 woods before he was a carpenter or a seaman. 
 
 " There are two animals in that tree where they 
 are at work," cried Morris, as he pointed to the scene 
 of operations. " One of them is a big one, and the 
 other is a little one/' he added, when he obtained a 
 better view of the game the Malays were trying to 
 obtain. " What are they, Achang ? " 
 
 " Mias ! Mias ! " exclaimed the native, as a move- 
 ment of the boat ahead gave him a full view of the 
 creatures. " One is a big one, and the other is her 
 baby." 
 
 " But what are the Malays doing now ? " asked 
 Louis. 
 
60 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " Make a stage to stand on," replied Achang. 
 
 " What do they want of a stage ? " demanded 
 Lane contemptuously. 
 
 " You will see if you wait," added the captain. 
 
 They were picking up poles where they could find 
 them, and cutting saplings, which they dropped with 
 a single blow of the biliong. In a few minutes they 
 had constructed a rude framework on crotched sticks, 
 driven into the soft ground, with a platform of poles 
 on the top. On this one of the two men mounted 
 with his biliong, with which he began his work with 
 a blow at the tree about four feet above the level of 
 the ground. The other Malay brought from the 
 sampan a couple of spears, a parong latok, and a 
 bundle of ropes and rattans. 
 
 " Do they use the sumpitan in Borneo now, 
 Achang ? " asked Louis. 
 
 " Not Dyaks, Mr. Belgrave ; Kyans use it ; shoot 
 poison arrows ; sure death ; very bad." 
 
 The sumpitan is a kind of blow-gun, like the 
 " bean-blower " formerly used by American boys, 
 which was a tin pipe, or the " pea-shooter," an Eng- 
 lish plaything. It was used, it is said, by the Dyaks 
 in former times; but recent travellers do not men- 
 tion it as used by them. It is about eight feet 
 long, and less than an inch in diameter, made of 
 very hard wood, skilfully and accurately bored, and 
 smoothed inside. 
 
 The parong latok, already described, is a heavy 
 sword. It has a head, sometimes carved as an orna- 
 
A SPIRITED BATTLE WITH ORANG-OUTANGS 61 
 
 ment, so that it cannot slip from the hand. At 
 about one-third of its length from this head, it bends 
 at an abrupt angle of about thirty-five degrees, and 
 it makes a very ugly-looking weapon. 
 
 " I suppose you all know that a mias is an orang- 
 outang," said Louis. " No doubt the weapons car- 
 ried up to the tree are to be used in killing the game 
 when the tree comes down. We could easily bring 
 down both; but we won't fire at them, for I think 
 we are all curious to see how the Malays will manage 
 the affair. The chopper has already made a big cut 
 in the tree, and I doubt if Lane could have done the 
 work any quicker." 
 
 The carpenter did not say anything, but no doubt 
 he was greatly surprised at the rapid progress the 
 native made with the biliong. He had cut the tree 
 more than half-way through the trunk ; and it was 
 evident that he intended it should fall towards the 
 river, for the second Malay was clearing away the 
 ground on that side so that they might have a fair 
 field for the fight that was to ensue. The chopper 
 attacked the other side of the tree, and seemed to 
 deal his blows with even more vigor than before. 
 
 The old orang kept up a constant growling. She 
 had a nest just above the limb where she sat, which 
 was quite green, indicating that it had been recently 
 built. It was composed of the branches of the tree 
 small enough to be easily broken off by the "jungle 
 man." They were simply placed in a heap on the 
 limb, with no particular shaping of the resting-place. 
 
62 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " She makes a new nest when the branches of the 
 old one get dry ; she like a soft bed," said Achang. 
 " But the tree will come down now ; big fight, they 
 kill her." 
 
 He had hardly spoken these words before the tree 
 suddenly toppled over, and fell upon the ground with 
 a heavy crash. The orangs seemed to have no idea 
 of what was going on at the foot of the tree, and 
 they were pitched out. The chopper seized one of 
 the spears, and rushed after the old one. The tree 
 prevented the party on board the yacht from seeing 
 the expected battle ; and with their rifles in their 
 hands, the " Big Four " sprang ashore, and secured a 
 favorable position. The crew followed them, though 
 the engineer remained at his post. 
 
 The first Malay, who had done the chopping, had 
 confronted the orang, and they stood facing each 
 other. Suddenly the animal made a spring towards 
 her enemy, and was received on the point of his 
 spear. The orang was wounded, but this only in- 
 creased her wrath, and she made a furious onslaught 
 upon the man ; but the spear was too much for her, 
 and she was wounded again. 
 
 The orang opened her mouth, and showed a terri- 
 ble double row of teeth flanked by four long tusks. 
 They were enough to intimidate one unaccustomed to 
 the creature's appearance. She made repeated at- 
 tempts to reach her enemy ; but the spear, very 
 adroitly handled, foiled her every time, and gave her 
 a new wound. This sparring, as it were, was kept 
 
A SPIRITED BATTLE WITH ORANG-OUTANGS 68 
 
 up for some time, and the Americans wondered that 
 the Malay did not drive his weapon to the heart of 
 the infuriated animal. Doubtless he would have 
 done so if he could ; but the orang had hands as well 
 as feet, and she grasped the spear every time it punc- 
 tured her skin, and seemed to prevent it from inflict- 
 ing a fatal wound. 
 
 It was a mystery to the observers how the Malay 
 contrived to detach his weapon from the grasp of the 
 orang, though he did so every time. But at last the 
 brute seemed to change her tactics, or she got a bet- 
 ter hold of the spear ; for she suddenly snapped the 
 weapon into two pieces as though it had been a pipe- 
 stem. Deprived of his arm, the Malay ran a few 
 rods. The orang is very clumsy on its feet, and 
 she could not catch him. The man only went a few 
 rods to the place where the parong latok had been 
 placed, and with this weapon he returned to the 
 attack. 
 
 The skirmishing' with this weapon continued for 
 some time longer, and the beast was wounded every 
 time she attempted to get hold of her opponent. In 
 the meantime the other Malay had not been idle. 
 He used no deadly weapons, but substituted for them 
 a long cord he had brought from the sampan. He 
 made a slip-noose in one end of it, and was trying to 
 catch the young one. It might have run away if it 
 had been so disposed, but it seemed to be determined 
 to stay by its mother. 
 
 " He wants you, or needs your skill with the lasso, 
 
64 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 Captain Scott," said Morris, recalling the feats with 
 the lasso of the commander. 
 
 "He is doing very well, and he handles the line 
 well," replied Scott. " Now he has him ! " he ex- 
 claimed, as the Malay passed the cord over the head 
 of the young orang, and hauled it taut around his 
 neck. 
 
 With the line he dragged the orang to a sapling 
 near the fallen tree, and, with other lines he had left 
 there, tied his hands and feet together, and fastened 
 him to the small tree. 
 
 He had hardly secured his victim before a yell 
 from the first hunter startled him, and he ran with 
 his lasso and a spear to his assistance. The old one, 
 badly wounded by the sharp weapon of her enemy, 
 had suddenly dropped upon all fours, and crawled to 
 the man ; seizing him by his legs, she set her villanous 
 teeth into the calf of one of them. It looked as 
 though the human was to be the victim of the brute. 
 
 The Malay, howling with the sharp pain, slashed 
 away with all his might at the hind quarters of the 
 orang ; but she did not relax her grip on his leg. His 
 companion arrived at the scene of the conflict. He 
 dropped his lasso then, and began to use his parong 
 latok. After he saw that blows with the weapon ac- 
 complished nothing, he plunged the blade into the 
 body of the brute several times in quick succession. 
 These stabs ended the battle. The orang rolled over, 
 and then did not move again. 
 
 Both of the human combatants then walked down 
 
A SPIRITED BATTLE WITH ORANG-OUTANGS 65 
 
 to the Blanchita, one of them limping badly. They 
 showed their wounds, and through Achang asked to 
 be " doctored." Pitts had some skill as a leach, and 
 the medicine-chest was in his care. He laid out the 
 patient with the wounded leg, washed the wound, and 
 then applied some sticking-plaster to the lacerated 
 member, after he had restored the parts to their nat- 
 ural position. Then he bandaged the leg quite skil- 
 fully, so as to keep all the parts in place. The hands 
 of the other were covered with sticking-plaster and 
 bandaged. 
 
 With the assistance of the seamen, the carcass of 
 the old orang was dragged down to the river, and put 
 in the sampan of the Malays. The young one was as 
 ugly as sin itself, and tried to get at the men to bite 
 them. Finally Clingman stuffed a piece of rope into 
 his mouth, and tied it around his head so tight that 
 he could not shut his mouth. He was mad, but he 
 could not bite. He was put into the sampan, and 
 made fast there. 
 
 The yacht got under way again, and with the 
 Malay sampan in tow, headed down the river. The 
 tide was running out at a mill-stream pace, for the 
 water in the stream had risen far beyond its usual 
 level. Achang shook his head as he looked at the 
 rapid outward flow of the water; but the steamer 
 went at railroad speed, and the boys enjoyed it 
 hugely. 
 
 " What is the matter, Achang ? " asked the cap- 
 tain, as he observed the uneasy movements of the 
 
66 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 Bornean as the yacht approached the junction with 
 the Sad on g. 
 
 " Have bore soon ; better go no farther,' 7 replied 
 the native. " Upset all boats and sampans." 
 
 Captain Scott ordered the helmsman to go to the 
 shore, and there the painter of the Malay sampan was 
 cast off, and her men got to the land. 
 
 " There it goes up the Sadong ! " cried Achang, as 
 he pointed to the broad stream. 
 
 A wave, estimated to be about ten feet high, frin- 
 ging, curling, and lashed into foam, and roaring in its 
 wrath, rolled up the river. It struck two small sam- 
 pans, upset them, and spilled the men in them into 
 the angry, boiling waters. With less fury it rolled 
 up the Simujan, and Scott rushed to the wheel him- 
 self. He "faced the music," and headed the yacht 
 into the wave. She rose some feet in the air at the 
 bow, and passed over it. She was too far from the 
 banks to be thrown ashore, and no harm was done. 
 
 These bores are not uncommon on the Sadong ; and 
 they were not a new thing to those on board of the 
 Blanchita, for they had seen one in the Hoogly at 
 Calcutta ; but even Scott, who was a bold navigator, 
 would not have cared to be in the river when a wave 
 ten feet high swept on his craft. 
 
A PERFORMANCE OF VERY AGILE GIBBONS 67 
 
 CHAPTER VIII 
 
 A PERFORMANCE OF VERY AGILE GIBBONS 
 
 THE cabin party went on shore and breakfasted 
 with their Chinese friend, who had invited them to 
 the meal the evening before. It was a very pleasant 
 occasion, and it occupied half the forenoon. The 
 host gave them useful information, and listened with 
 interest to their account of the battle with the orang- 
 outangs. When they left the house they found the 
 two Malays who had been their companions in the 
 morning waiting for them. 
 
 One of them presented a tarsier to Scott. It was 
 a very pretty and curious little creature, belonging 
 to the monkey tribe. It had very large eyes, and 
 was certainly very cunning. It appeared to be play- 
 ful, but his new owner got a nip from its teeth 
 which warned him to be careful. The most curious 
 part of the animal was its legs, the hind ones being 
 much the longer. 
 
 Its five slender toes ended in what looked like 
 balls, which proved to be flat, and acted like the foot 
 of a fly, retaining by suction its hold upon the tree 
 where it lived. The spine of its neck was so con- 
 structed that it could describe a circle with its head. 
 Its long hind legs enabled it to leap like a kangaroo. 
 
68 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 The other Malay brought with him a flying dragon, 
 a king of lizards, said to be the reptile from which 
 the fables of the original dragons originated. It has 
 a pair of membranes with the semblance of wings, 
 with which it sustains itself in the air in its leaps 
 from one tree or branch to another, as the flying-fish 
 does in its flights over the water. 
 
 The party took leave with many thanks of the 
 Chinese agent, and promised to visit him on their 
 return from up the river. Louis stated that they 
 wanted to kill one full-sized orang-outang, for the 
 one killed by the Malays was so cut up and chopped 
 in the fight that she was not in condition to be 
 stuffed and kept as a good specimen. 
 
 " You will find them on the Simujan, but hardly 
 anywhere else in the island except in this vicinity, 
 on the Sadong, Batang Lupar, and their branches," 
 replied the agent. " The orangs have been hunted 
 so much, especially by naturalists, that they are be- 
 coming scarce ; and they are likely to become extinct, 
 for the scientists are looking for the ( missing link/ 
 as they call it." 
 
 The speaker laughed as he made the last remark ; 
 and it was evident that he was not a Darwinian, or 
 at least that he had not followed out the theory of 
 evolution. Taking their places in the yacht, the 
 captain gave the order to cast off the fasts, the 
 boat stood up the river, and soon passed the scene 
 of the morning's conflict. 
 
 " Gibbons ! " exclaimed Achang, pointing to a por- 
 
A PERFORMANCE OF VERY AGILE GIBBONS 69 
 
 tion of the forest where the trees were sparsely 
 scattered. 
 
 There were half a dozen of them, and they seemed 
 to be engaged in a frolic. This ape has been de- 
 scribed in a former volume, for it is abundant in 
 Sumatra. Louis wished to observe the movements 
 of the animal, which has very long arms, is wonder- 
 fully agile, and a gymnast of the first order. It 
 could travel all over Borneo where forests exist with- 
 out touching the ground, passing from tree to tree 
 in long leaps. The boat was stopped in the river, in 
 order to permit the party to witness the exhibition 
 which was in process, without the payment of any 
 admission fee. 
 
 Every branch was a trapeze, and no troupe of ar- 
 tists could compare with them in the agility of their 
 movements. Their long arms appeared to be the key 
 to their marvellous feats, for their legs were com- 
 paratively short, and for the size of their bodies the 
 animals possessed immense strength. 
 
 " If some enterprising manager of a theatre de- 
 voting himself to athletic exhibitions could secure 
 the services of the half dozen gibbons which are 
 giving us a free show, he would make his fortune 
 in our country/' said Louis. " Don't try to see them 
 all at once, but watch that fellow on the right." 
 
 The one indicated grasped a horizontal branch 
 with his hands, his arms looking like the ropes of 
 a swing. He was swaying to and fro with great 
 rapidity, apparently trying to see how fast he could 
 
70 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 go, for he put a tremendous amount of vigor into 
 his efforts. In an exhibition hall he would have 
 " brought down the house," and would certainly 
 have received an " encore" 
 
 Suddenly, while he was swinging at a dizzy speed, 
 he let go his hold upon the branch, and seemed to 
 be flying through the air ; but with his fingered feet 
 he seized another branch, not less than forty feet 
 from the first, and, with his long arms extended to 
 the utmost, continued to swing in this inverted posi- 
 tion. The observers were so delighted with this 
 skilful performance that they applauded lustily by 
 clapping their hands. The noise did not disturb the 
 performers, and the actor that had so distinguished 
 himself appeared to put even greater vigor into his 
 movements. 
 
 Possibly he was getting up a momentum ; for he 
 soon released the hold of his feet on the branch, 
 went flying through the air with his long arms ex- 
 tended ahead of him in the direction of another 
 favorable limb of a tree, and grasped it with his 
 hands. After swinging for a moment, he drew him- 
 self up on the branch, and proceeded to walk up to 
 a greater height, using his hands to assist in keeping 
 his equilibrium. This was a fair specimen of the 
 performance of every member of the troupe. 
 
 One of the company appeared to see something on 
 the ground that attracted his attention ; and he made 
 a flying leap to a lower branch, and then dropped 
 himself upon the soil. Looking about him for a 
 
A PERFORMANCE OF VERY AGILE GIBBONS 71 
 
 moment, he apparently discovered a bush with some 
 sort of fruit on it, for he immediately began to walk 
 towards it. As a walkist he was far from being a 
 success, and his awkward movements excited the 
 laughter of the interested spectators. In his present 
 role he would have made an excellent clown in a cir- 
 cus ring. 
 
 His short legs seemed to be incapable of fully 
 supporting his body, and he behaved like an inex- 
 perienced athlete walking on a tight rope without 
 a balancing-pole. His long arms served as this im- 
 plement, and with a bend at the elbows and the 
 hands dropped down, he waddled along very slowly. 
 
 " It's heavy sea for that fellow, and he looks like 
 a landlubber trying to walk the deck in a rough sea," 
 said Captain Scott. " But I fancy the performance 
 is over, and it is time to shoot some of the actors if 
 that is what you intend to do." 
 
 "For one, I don't intend to do anything of the 
 sort," replied Louis, with considerable energy in his 
 tones. " I don't believe in killing for the sake of 
 killing, or for the fun of it. My admiration of the 
 skilful performance we have just witnessed will not 
 allow me to kill the actors or any of them." 
 
 " What did we come to Borneo for, Louis ? " asked 
 the captain. 
 
 " To see the country, and explore some of its rivers." 
 
 " I thought we came here to hunt and fish," added 
 Scott. 
 
 "I did not come here to kill harmless creatures 
 
72 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 for the fun of it. We want a full-grown orang, and 
 I am ready to hunt for him/' replied Louis. " We 
 want him for the purpose of study, and to show to 
 our friends on board of the ship. I don't object to 
 shooting any bird or animal to extend our informa- 
 tion." 
 
 Louis had his double-barrelled fowling-piece in his 
 hand. Suddenly he brought it to his shoulder and 
 fired. All eyes were directed to the shore, and a 
 large bird was seen to drop upon the ground. The 
 captain started the boat, and ran her up to the bank. 
 Clinch leaped ashore, and soon brought the bird on 
 board. Its plumage was highly colored and very 
 beautiful. 
 
 " What do you call that bird, Louis ? " asked 
 Morris. 
 
 " Chambers calls it simply the argus, but the 
 more common name is the argus-pheasant," re- 
 plied Louis. 
 
 " Faix, he's a magnificent crayter ; and what a long 
 tail our cat has got," added Felix, as he spread the 
 bird out on the gunwale. 
 
 The last remark referred to the long tail of the 
 bird, which made the entire length from the bill to 
 the end of it about five feet. Only two of the 
 feathers were thus prolonged, adding about three 
 feet to the dimension. The variety of colors were 
 jet black, deep brown, fawn, white, and a number of 
 secondary hues. The bird, deprived of his feathers, 
 is about the size of an ordinary hen. 
 
A PERFORMANCE OF VERY AGILE GIBBONS 73 
 
 " But you can't see him at his best now that he is 
 dead," continued Louis, who had read up the animal 
 life he expected to find in Borneo. " Like a peacock, 
 though to a less extent, he can spread out his pretty 
 feathers, but not in the same manner ; for they open 
 out in the form of a circle, making a sort of round 
 disk on his back and concealing his head. If you 
 could see the bird alive with his wings spread out 
 you would find every feather had a number of marks 
 that look like eyes, and seventeen have been counted 
 on one of them. Each of these marks consists in 
 part of a jet-black ring, with other different colored 
 rings inside of it, which make the whole figure like 
 an eye. 
 
 " You remember a fellow who was called Argus in 
 mythology, who had a hundred eyes, of which only 
 two were ever asleep at the same time. This bird 
 gets his name from him; though the story is that 
 Mercury killed him, and Venus transferred his eyes 
 to the tail of the peacock." 
 
 " Thanks for the lecture, Louis," said Scott when 
 he had finished his description. " It was certainly a 
 part of our plan in coming to Borneo to study natural 
 history ; and we are doing so instead of shooting all 
 the time." 
 
 Just at this moment Felix, who had wandered 
 from the fore cabin to the waist, discharged his fowl- 
 ing-piece. The Milesian was as good a shot as Louis, 
 for both of them had been trained in the same shoot- 
 ing-gallery in New York. All hands rushed to the 
 
74 FOUR YOUNG EXPLOKEKS 
 
 rail to ascertain what the hunter had brought down. 
 On the bank of the river they discovered a creature 
 about two feet long, lying on its back, and struggling 
 in its death-throes. 
 
 Lane leaped ashore, and soon laid the animal on 
 the gunwale of the boat by the side of the argus. It 
 was a queer-looking creature about the head, and no 
 one on board except Achang had ever seen one like 
 it. For the length of the head, the muzzle was very 
 broad, hardly less than three inches. It was covered 
 with a soft and rather long fur on its body, dark 
 brown in color. 
 
 "What do you call my game, Mr. Naturalist?" 
 demanded Felix, addressing Louis, who was looking 
 the animal over. 
 
 "Cynogale Bennetti" replied the young naturalist 
 very gravely. 
 
 " Faix, that's jist what I thought he was whin Oi 
 foired at him," added Felix. Sin 0, gal ! But 
 what had Ben Netty to do wid it ? Or was Netty 
 the name of the gal ? " 
 
 " I gave you the scientific name because this crea- 
 ture has no plain English name, though the natives 
 here call it the mampalon," added Louis. 
 
 " That's what we call it ; but I forgot the name," 
 said Achang. 
 
 " He is one of the otter family ; and Mr. Hornaday, 
 whose book I hope you will all read when you return 
 to the ship, thought it might be called the otter-cat. 
 I wish we could have taken him alive, for it would 
 
A PERFORMANCE OF VERY AGILE GIBBONS 75 
 
 have made a very nice specimen to set up in the 
 cabin of the Guardian-Mother." 
 
 " I should like to knock over the big orang-outang 
 you want, Louis, my darling,' 7 continued Felix. 
 "There comes a covered sampan up the river," he 
 added, pointing down the stream. 
 
 Many such covered boats are used on the rivers. 
 On a frame of bamboo or other wood was a covering 
 of leaves, each of which is six to seven feet long, and 
 two inches wide. They are sewed together with a 
 thread of rattan, overlaying each other, like tiles or 
 shingles, thus shedding the rain. They were in strips 
 or squares, so that they could be readily removed. 
 The sides were sometimes curtained with the same 
 material. The long leaves are taken from the nipa 
 palm, which grows abundantly in the island, and 
 serves a great many useful purposes. 
 
 The boat waited to see the covered sampan, and 
 later there appeared to be two of them. As they 
 approached, the familiar voice of the Chinese agent 
 was heard hailing the party. It appeared that this 
 gentleman was bound up the river to a Dyak village, 
 a few miles farther up. 
 
 "You had better go with us," said the agent, as 
 his sampan stopped abreast of the steamer. "I 
 spoke to you about a Dyak long-house ; and you will 
 have an opportunity to examine one, and to sleep in 
 it if you are disposed to do so. You will be received 
 very kindly, and have a chance to see the people as 
 well as the houses." 
 
76 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " Thank you, Mr. Eng Quee ; we will certainly go 
 with you," replied Captain Scott, prompted by Louis. 
 " We will heave you a line, and tow you up." 
 
 In a few minutes more the steamer moved up the 
 river with the two sampans in tow. 
 
A VISIT TO A DYAK LONG-HOUSE 77 
 
 CHAPTER IX 
 
 A VISIT TO A DYAK LONG-HOUSE 
 
 As the Blanchita approached her destination many 
 Dyaks appeared on the shores. They were Sea Dyaks 
 in this region ; and the name seems to have come 
 down from a former era in the history of the island, 
 for at the present time they have little or no connec- 
 tion with a sea-faring life, and their sampans are 
 mainly if not entirely used on the rivers. But for- 
 merly they built large war-boats, or bankongs, some 
 of which were seventy feet long. 
 
 These craft did not go to sea. The naval battles 
 were fought on rivers and lakes ; for the boats were 
 not adapted to heavy weather, and could not have 
 lived even in a"moderate gale. They were propelled 
 entirely by oars, single banked, and twenty-four 
 rowers were all that could work. The largest of 
 them had a platform or elevated deck, under which 
 the oarsmen sat, and on which the warriors engaged 
 the enemy. 
 
 Some sort of strategy was used ; for the small boats 
 were sent ahead sometimes to skirmish with the foe, 
 and lure their canoes to a point where the larger 
 craft were concealed, which then came out and fell 
 upon the enemy. If the craft were used for purposes 
 
78 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 of piracy, as they were in the northern part of the 
 island, in attacking foreign vessels, it could only be 
 when the strangers were caught within a short dis- 
 tance of the shores. 
 
 Mr. Eng came on board of the yacht when his sam- 
 pans were taken in tow, and was seated with the 
 cabin party on the forward seats. He spoke English 
 perfectly, and explained everything that needed it as 
 the boat proceeded. The explorers had seen Dyaks 
 enough, but had not before taken the trouble to study 
 them ; for they seemed not to be in touch with the 
 civilization of Sarawak, and were " hewers of wood 
 and drawers of water," and not proper specimens of 
 the race. 
 
 " The men here, Mr. Eng, do not appear to be very 
 powerful physically," said Louis, as they passed sev- 
 eral laborers at work in a paddy. 
 
 "They are not as strong as Englishmen and Amer- 
 icans," replied "the agent, glancing at the seamen in 
 the waist. " The tallest man I have seen among the 
 Sea Dyaks was not more than five and a half feet in 
 height. Five feet three inches is a more common 
 figure, though the average is less than that. They 
 are not men of great strength ; but they are active, of 
 great endurance, and in running they exhibit great 
 speed." 
 
 "These people are not ruined by their tailors' 
 bills," said Scott. 
 
 " They do not need much clothing in this climate ; 
 and a piece of bark-cloth a yard wide is full dress 
 
A VISIT TO A DYAK LONG-HOUSE 79 
 
 here. The chawat, as they call this garment, is about 
 five feet long, and is wound around the waist tightly, 
 and drawn between the legs, one end hanging down 
 in front, and the other behind. They wear a sort of 
 turban on the head ; and some of them have as many 
 as four rings, large and small, hanging from their 
 ears, through which they pass. Some of them use 
 white cotton instead of bark-cloth, like the Hindoos 
 in India." 
 
 The yacht was now approaching the landing-place 
 pointed out by the agent. A crowd of women and 
 children were hurrying to the riverside. They ap- 
 peared to be lighter in complexion than the men. As 
 a rule they were not handsome, though a few of them 
 were rather pretty. The American visitors were not 
 likely to fall in love with any of the young women 
 on the shore. They were all in " full dress," which 
 means simply a petticoat, reaching from the waist to 
 the knees, made of bark-cloth embroidered with va- 
 rious figures. 
 
 A few of the females wore a sort of red jacket and 
 the conical Malay hat; but those are used only on 
 "state occasions.' 7 The single garment was secured 
 at the waist by being drawn into a belt of rattans, col- 
 ored black. Above this was worn a coil of many 
 rings of large brass wire ; and all of them seemed to 
 be provided with this appendage. There was some 
 variety in the use of this ornament ; for some wore it 
 tightly wound around the body, while others had it 
 quite loose. 
 
80 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 In addition to this some of the young girls had a 
 dozen rings of various sizes hanging loosely around 
 their necks, and falling upon the chest, which had no 
 other covering. Their eyes were black, as was also 
 their hair, which was very luxuriant, and generally 
 well cared for, being tied up in a cue behind. 
 
 The village did not consist of a great number of 
 small buildings, but from the landing-place could be 
 seen the end of an immense structure with a forest 
 of palms behind it. The rear of it was not perpen- 
 dicular, but slanted outward, like many of the walls 
 of corn-houses in New England, doubtless to keep the 
 rain from the roof from penetrating. All the party, 
 including the sailors, landed; for Mr. Eng declared 
 that the Dyaks were honest, and even in Sarawak 
 were never known to steal anything, though the 
 Malays and Chinamen were given to pilfering. 
 
 The crowd of men, women, and children gathered 
 on the shore had looked the Blanchita over with the 
 closest attention while the Americans were looking 
 them over. The party landed under the escort of 
 the agent, and took up the line of march for the big 
 house. The entire crowd of Dyaks followed them, 
 though they did not intrude upon them ; on the con- 
 trary, they treated all of the visitors with a respect 
 and deference bordering on homage. 
 
 "That long-house,' as we call it here, is nearly 
 two hundred feet in length," said Mr. Eng. "It is 
 thirty feet wide. Now you can see more of it ; and 
 you notice that it is set upon a multitude of posts, 
 
A VISIT TO A DYAK LONG-HOUSE 81 
 
 like all Malay and Dyak houses. These posts are 
 firmly set in the ground ; and being about six inches 
 in diameter, you can readily see that the house rests 
 on a solid foundation. It is not likely to be blown 
 down in any ordinary gale, though a hurricane might 
 sweep it away. Not a nail, not a wooden pin or peg, 
 is used in the construction of such buildings." 
 
 "Then, I should think any ordinary gale would 
 level them to the ground," suggested Louis. 
 
 " But the Dyaks have a substitute for nails or 
 pins," replied the guide. "All the poles and sticks 
 and boards are tightly bound together with rattans; 
 and I believe they hold together better than if they 
 were nailed." 
 
 " I observed in England and France that the sta- 
 gings used in the erection of buildings were made 
 partly of round poles, tied together with ropes. I 
 talked with a man who told me they were stronger 
 than if put together with nails," said Morris. 
 
 " I think he was right. I can't tell you how the 
 Malays and Dyaks manage the rattan to render it so 
 flexible, but it^seems to me they make better work 
 than ropes. On the back of this house, there is not a 
 single window or other opening," continued Mr. Eng, 
 as the party stood at the end of the structure, near 
 the rear corner. " The disagreeable feature of the 
 building, or rather of the habits of the occupants, is 
 that the space under it, ten feet between the ground 
 and the floor, is a catch-all for all refuse matter, and 
 you notice that an unpleasant odor comes from it." 
 
82 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " Is this the only entrance to it ? " asked Scott, 
 pointing to a door, which was reached by a log notched 
 like a flight of stairs. 
 
 " There is a door at the other end also ; and there 
 may be ways of mounting the platform, or veranda, 
 which forms the front of the building, as climbing a 
 post, or dropping from a tree. Some of the posts, of 
 which you see a multitude under the house, are cut 
 off at the first floor, while many of them reach up to 
 the roof, and support it. We will go in now, if you 
 like ; and, being sailors, I suppose you can climb the 
 log." 
 
 "No doubt of that/' replied Scott, who was the first 
 to ascend. " Are all that crowd coming up ? " 
 
 " Certainly ; they are the occupants of the long- 
 house, and they must be at home in order to do the 
 honors of the occasion/' laughed the guide. 
 
 The villagers followed the party, and immediately 
 manifested their politeness in various ways. The 
 prettiest girl in the crowd spoke to Louis ; though he 
 did not understand a word she said, but replied to her 
 in English, when she was as much at sea as he had 
 been. 
 
 " What does she say, Achang ? " he asked of the 
 Bornean. 
 
 " Tabet, tuan," replied the native. 
 
 " I heard her say that ; but what does it mean ? " 
 
 " It means, ' Good-day, sir/ " answered the Bornean ; 
 and he proceeded to tell her that Louis was the " head 
 man," very rich, and owned a big ship. 
 
A VISIT TO A DYAK LONG-HOUSE 83 
 
 She Inade a very graceful obeisance to him, and 
 then rushed away through a door on the side of the 
 grand hall, as it may well be called. But she returned 
 immediately, bringing a very elaborately worked mat, 
 which she spread on the floor at the feet of the " head 
 man." Then she spread out her hands, and bowed 
 low, saying something which was Greek to him. 
 
 " She invites you to take a seat on the mat," 
 Achang explained. 
 
 As a matter of politeness Louis seated himself, and 
 looked at the maiden who treated him with so much 
 consideration. By this time the other women were 
 bringing mats for the rest of the party, making no 
 distinction between the seamen and the cabin party. 
 The latter followed the example of the young million- 
 aire, and seated themselves. The foremast hands de- 
 clined the proffered courtesy ; and Achang explained 
 to the ladies that only the four young men who were 
 seated were the magnates of the company, while the 
 others were inferior personages, for the Bornean was 
 not strictly democratic in his ideas. 
 
 "We will look at the house now, if you please," 
 said Mr. Eng, after the " Big Four " had been seated a 
 few minutes ; and all of them rose to their feet, bow- 
 ing low to the young ladies who had treated them 
 with so much distinction. 
 
 About forty or fifty of the posts extended from 
 the ground, for the visitors had not time to count 
 them; and most of them had suspended upon them 
 various trophies of the hunt, including the antlers 
 
84 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 of deer, crocodiles' heads, weapons, paddles, and 
 spears. In the middle of the long hall a fire was 
 burning on a foundation of soil, enclosed by a border 
 of wood. In the roof was a sort of scuttle, which 
 was fastened open to admit the air, and to allow 
 some of the smoke to escape, though there was 
 plenty of it remaining in the apartment. 
 
 " What is that overhead, Mr. Eng ? " asked Louis, 
 pointing to a black mass suspended near the fire, 
 though he had a suspicion of its nature. 
 
 " That is a collection of human skulls, relics of the 
 days of head-hunting ; for they are generally kept 
 in a building erected for the purpose, though appro- 
 priated at the present time partly to other uses. 
 There are about twenty of them, which is not a large 
 number for a village like this. Not one of them is 
 less than twenty years old ; for Kajah Brooke put an 
 end to head-hunting long ago, though some of it has 
 been done in spite of his edicts. A lady beckons 
 to you, Mr. Belgrave." 
 
 The pretty girl by comparison stood by his 
 side, pointing to one of the numerous doors at the 
 closed side of the house. Louis followed her, and 
 she conducted him into a room. A portion of the 
 floor was covered with mats on which the occu- 
 pants sleep, with an earth section for a fire. There 
 was no furniture of any kind. The roof of the 
 building was covered with square pieces of palm 
 like those used on the sampans, and these could be 
 raised in each room when necessary for air. 
 
A VISIT TO A DYAK LONG-HOUSE 85 
 
 " This apartment is occupied by one family, or by 
 a married couple, and unmarried men and boys sleep 
 in the attic overhead/ 7 said Mr. Eng. "It has but 
 one door, the one opening into the main hall. This 
 is a house of sixteen doors ; and by this enumeration 
 the size of the village is stated, and this number 
 gauges the taxes to be paid." 
 
 " Citizens cannot dodge their taxes here, then, as 
 some of them do in the United States," said Scott. 
 
 The party walked the entire length of the hall, 
 and then passed out upon the platform, which was 
 not covered, and was used for various purposes, such 
 as drying rice or other articles. The floors were 
 composed of strips of palm, not more than an inch 
 and a half wide, and placed an inch apart. They 
 were lashed to the floor joists, or poles, with rattan. 
 
 " Those doors, which indicate the taxable rate of 
 the village, look as though they were cut out of 
 single planks," said Scott. 
 
 " And so they are," replied the agent. 
 
 "I have seen no saw-mills here, and I suppose 
 they bring the lumber from England or India." 
 
 "Not at all, though some may be obtained in that 
 manner. They are made from the buttress of the 
 tapang-tree, which you must have seen." 
 
 "I have not noticed any such thing, though per- 
 haps none of us could identify it," replied the cap- 
 tain. 
 
 " It is found growing out in triangular form from 
 just above the roots of the tree. In a large one it is 
 
86 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 twelve or fifteen feet long. It makes a natural plank 
 two inches thick, which may be trimmed into any 
 shape with the biliong." 
 
 The party were ready to depart ; and they made all 
 sorts of courteous gestures to their hosts, especially 
 the ladies. The women asked them for tobacco, as 
 Achang interpreted the requests. They had none, 
 but some of the seamen supplied them with all they 
 had about them. 
 
MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE DYAKS 87 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 THE MANNEKS AND CUSTOMS OF THE DYAKS. 
 
 AFTER seeing the sleeping accommodations of the 
 Dyaks, consisting of a mat on a rather uneven floor, 
 the Americans concluded to pass the night on board 
 of the yacht. They invited Mr. Eng to supper on 
 board, and he passed the evening with them in the 
 cabin. 
 
 " You have seen the Dyaks at home now, young 
 gentlemen ; how do you like the looks of them ? " 
 asked the guest, after the meal had been disposed of. 
 
 "I think they are the pleasantest savages I have 
 ever met," replied Louis. 
 
 "I am afraid you did not appreciate the young 
 women who were so attentive to you, Mr. Belgrave," 
 continued the agent. 
 
 "Regarding" them as uncivilized maidens, they are 
 about the best specimens. The expression on their 
 faces was pleasant, a few of them were pretty, 
 though as a whole they were not handsome, and they 
 seemed to be kind-hearted. I could not admire them, 
 though their eyes were as brilliant #s they were 
 black. Their long hair would be the envy of many 
 an English or American belle." 
 
 " The women are very vain of their hair. They 
 
88 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 bestow a great deal of attention upon it," added Mr. 
 Eng. "The fever of the island sometimes deprives 
 them of their hair, as it may in your country, and 
 that is the greatest calamity that can overtake the 
 younger women." 
 
 " I suppose it all right here ; but they disfigure and 
 spoil one of the principal attractions of ladies in en- 
 lightened nations, the teeth, which they blacken by 
 chewing betel." 
 
 " It also makes their lips look as though they had 
 daubed them with blood or red paint ; but they do it 
 here, as in India, to make themselves more beauti- 
 ful. Tastes differ, and the practice makes them ugly 
 to you. The betel-vine grows here, and the leaves 
 are used for chewing. The nut of a certain palm 
 produces the same effect on the teeth." 
 
 " I don't admire the brass rings they wear on 
 their waists and around their necks. If I were old 
 enough to get married, I should not look for a wife 
 among the Dyak girls," said Louis, laughing and 
 shaking his head. 
 
 " The Dyak women are generally well treated ; but 
 they have to work very hard, and much that you 
 would think the men ought to do is done by them. 
 The lords of creation here are inclined to be lazy, 
 while their wives and daughters are engaged in the 
 rice-fields, though their husbands and brothers are 
 driven to labor. 
 
 "But the women are not the abject slaves you 
 sometimes find them in the savage state. They have 
 
MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE DYAKS 89 
 
 their influence, and exercise a degree of control in 
 household matters. The females are fond of fish, 
 and insist that their husbands shall supply them with 
 this diet. On account of the bores which sweep up 
 the rivers, this is often a dangerous occupation, and 
 the men are unable to procure any fish. Instances 
 are known in which the women bar the door of the 
 house against them if they are unsuccessful." 
 
 " I believe the Malays are generally Mohammedans. 
 What is the religion of the Dyaks ? " inquired Louis. 
 
 "It has been said by some travellers that they 
 have no religion of any kind ; but I don't think this 
 is quite true, though it is not far from it," replied 
 Mr. Eng. " Religion is a very indefinite idea among 
 the Dyaks, and they are chary in speaking of what 
 there is of it. Some who have been among them 
 maintain that they believe in a Supreme Being, who 
 has a great many different names among the various 
 tribes. They have almost as many inferior deities 
 as the Hindus. 
 
 " They are _very superstitious ; and there are all 
 sorts of omens, among which there is a particular 
 bird which has obtained the name of the omen bird. 
 His cry on the right of, or behind, a person engaged 
 in any enterprise is an unlucky sign, and he aban- 
 dons his object; while the cry heard on the left is 
 a favorable omen, and the individual is duly encour- 
 aged to go forward. 
 
 " I had a story from a Kyan head man which had 
 come down to him as a tradition. A great head- 
 
90 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 hunting expedition, consisting of a thousand warriors, 
 had set out many years ago. It had not gone far 
 when a little muntjac, which you know is a kind of 
 deer, ran across the path of the warriors. This was 
 a bad omen; and they gave up the enterprise, and 
 returned to their villages. 
 
 "I know of a couple just married who separated 
 because they heard a deer-cry within three days after 
 their union, which was a sign that one of them would 
 die within a year. Even little insects intimidate 
 doughty warriors, or assure them that they are far 
 from danger, by their appearance or their cry." 
 
 "There is not a little of similar superstition in 
 enlightened nations, though there is vastly less of it 
 than formerly," added Louis. 
 
 " I have heard my grandfather say that the ticking 
 of a death-watch used to scare him so that he could 
 not sleep when he was a boy," said Morris. 
 
 " What is a death-watch ? " asked Scott. 
 
 " It is a kind of beetle that conceals itself in the 
 walls of old houses," replied Louis. " The noise it 
 makes is really the call of the bug for his mate, and 
 is the cry of love instead of death, as many ignorant 
 people believe. The breaking of a looking-glass is 
 also a sign of death in the family." 
 
 "Mrs. Blossom wouldn't break a looking-glass for 
 a fortune," added Felix. " She says she broke one 
 nine years before her husband died, and therefore it 
 was a sure sign." 
 
 " But the death must come within a year to make 
 
MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE DYAKS 91 
 
 the sign hold good," replied Louis. "But if en- 
 lightened people have faith in such stuff, it is no 
 wonder that Dyaks believe in omens. I want to ask, 
 Mr. Eng, if these Dyaks are regularly married?" 
 
 " They are, though with very little ceremony, and 
 no vows, oaths, nor promises. In fact, the marriage 
 consists of such rites as the parties please, and often 
 with no rites at all. Sometimes the betrothed are 
 married by exchanging bracelets in public, or by eat- 
 ing a meal of rice together. In some communities 
 the affianced are seated on a couple of bars of iron, 
 and the head man shakes a couple of live chickens 
 over their heads, invoking many blessings upon them, 
 and the birds are afterwards killed and eaten." 
 
 "Do these people drink liqu(?r, or have they any- 
 thing in the shape of intoxicating fluids ? " asked 
 Scott. 
 
 " The national drink of Borneo is tuak, about the 
 vilest tipple that ever was invented. I went to a 
 Dyak feast when I first came to the island, which 
 proved to be nothing but a series of drunken orgies. 
 The principal actors at the feast were a number of 
 pretty girls, such as you saw this afternoon. Their 
 office was to induce the men present to drink this vile 
 liquid till they dropped on the floor of the open plat- 
 form ; and they even poured it down the throats of 
 their victims when no longer able to drink for them- 
 selves." 
 
 " What sort of rum is it ? " inquired Scott. 
 
 " It looks like the milk of the cocoanut, and I sup- 
 
92 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 pose that it is made from that; but I did not taste 
 it," replied the agent. " It is about my bedtime, 
 and I think I will go to my sampan and retire." 
 
 But Captain Scott invited him to sleep on board 
 of the Blanchita ; and he accepted after a little press- 
 ing, evidently believing that the soft cushions of the 
 yacht made a better bed than the mats of the sam- 
 pan. Felipe was instructed to have steam on at day- 
 light, and the anchor watch was to call him in season 
 to do so. Fully protected by their nettings from the 
 mosquitoes, which had troubled them to some extent 
 in the evening, all hands slept like tired boys. 
 
 When the steam from the gauge-cocks hissed as 
 the engineer examined into the condition of the 
 water in the boiler, the sound waked the captain, 
 and he jumped from his bed. This movement roused 
 all the others; and they went out into the waist, 
 following the example of Scott, who wore nothing 
 but his nightdress. 
 
 " I am going to have a swim this fine morning," 
 said he. 
 
 "Look out for crocodiles," Morris interposed. 
 "You know they are man-eaters in these rivers." 
 
 " I haven't seen any of them around here," replied 
 the captain. "But call all hands, Lane; and tell 
 the men to bring out their rifles." 
 
 "I think you are very imprudent to go into the 
 water here," interposed Mr. Eng. "The reptiles 
 are on the watch ; and if you must go in, I warn 
 you to keep near the boat." 
 
MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE DYAKS 93 
 
 But the boys all dived from the gunwale into 
 the river, and swam out a few rods. The men 
 placed themselves on the rail, and kept a sharp 
 look out for saurians, though it was still too dark 
 to enable them to see very distinctly. Scott had 
 reasoned that he could not take his bath after it 
 was fully light, for a crowd of Dyak men and women 
 would be 011 the bank at that time. 
 
 The swimmers had not been in the water more 
 than five minutes when the cry of " Crocodiles ! " 
 came from Achang, who had stationed himself just 
 forward of the engine. Probably he had a keener 
 vision for the reptiles than the Americans ; for the 
 seamen had not yet seen anything that looked like 
 one. He could tell by the appearance of the water 
 that the enemy was approaching, though the dis- 
 turbance of its surface was near the other side of 
 the stream. 
 
 The party in the water turned about, and headed 
 for the boat, swimming with all the vigor they could 
 command. Achang had his rifle in his hand; but 
 even he could not make out the crocodile clearly 
 enough to be sure of his aim. Five minutes more 
 elapsed ; for it required that time for the swimmers 
 to reach the yacht. The seamen assisted the party 
 into the boat, and they rushed with all speed into 
 the cabin ; for a quartet of Dyak maidens had already 
 reached the bank of the river, and were begging the 
 men for more tobacco. 
 
 Achang fired his rifle; but three crocodiles could 
 
94 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 now be seen moving towards the yacht. Their ap- 
 proach was not impeded by the shot, for it was 
 impossible to see the eyes of the reptiles in the 
 semi-darkness. But the cabin party were safe, and 
 it was as useless to fire at them as it would have 
 been at a stone wall. 
 
 "I advise you not to try that experiment again, 
 young gentlemen," said Mr. Eng as the bathing 
 party came out into the waist. 
 
 " I don't think we shall, though we were protected 
 by half a dozen rifles," replied the captain, who had 
 been the leader in the venturesome exploit. 
 
 "If you do try it again, do so in the daylight, 
 when your riflemen can see the eyes of the enemy," 
 added the agent. " I must bid you good-by now, for 
 I have business on shore here. I don't think the 
 crocodiles will come any nearer to you, but be pru- 
 dent. I shall hope to see you at Simujan on your 
 return." 
 
 Mr. Eng shook hands with all the cabin party, and 
 went ashore. The captain gave the order to cast off 
 the fasts, and Lane was ordered to take the wheel. 
 The two sampans had before made fast to the shore ; 
 and as the Blanchita got under way, one of them put 
 off, and paddled towards the crocodiles. The last 
 that was seen of the craft, it had a saurian hooked 
 after the Malay mode of fishing for them. 
 
 After breakfast had been served in the cabin, and 
 the party had gone to their seats forward, the charac- 
 ter of the river began to change, becoming much nar- 
 
MANNERS AND CUSTOMS OF THE DYAKS 95 
 
 rower. They came to another Dyak village, where 
 the jungle was cleared off and paddies were near the 
 stream. It looked as though all the inhabitants had 
 gathered on the bank, male and female. A long- 
 house was to be seen on a knoll, and the wheelman 
 was ordered to take the boat within a couple of rods 
 of the shore. 
 
 " Are you going to make a landing at this village, 
 Captain Scott ? " asked Louis. 
 
 "No; we have seen enough of these people, but 
 we will see what we can as we pass along. They are 
 all beckoning us to go ashore ; but we won't do so, 
 for any more Dyak maidens would be rather monoto- 
 nous." 
 
 " I quite agree with you, Captain, though there is 
 one with a big stick of bamboo in her hand, who 
 looks more graceful and pretty than any we saw in 
 the village we visited,' 7 replied Louis. 
 
 " I wonder what that cane is for," added Scott. 
 
 " That's to contain some kind of liquid ; and she 
 may have fouc feet of tuak in it," answered the mil- 
 lionaire, laughing at the idea of measuring a fluid by 
 Long Measure. " I think the girl comes nearer to 
 being a beauty than any girl I have seen before." 
 
 " She is hooped with brass like all the rest of 
 them," added Scott, as the boat proceeded beyond 
 the group on the shore. 
 
 In another half-hour great trees, with an abundant 
 undergrowth of bushes, extended down to the river, 
 and in places some distance into the water. 
 
96 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 CHAPTER XI 
 
 STEAMBOATING THROUGH A GREAT FOREST 
 
 ALTHOUGH there was a wall of green on each side 
 of the boat, and the river was not more than sixty 
 feet wide, the explorers found that everything close to 
 the earth was under water. If the dense jungle had 
 not prevented, they might have sailed inland, they 
 knew not how many miles. As the stream became 
 narrower the current increased in force. The trees 
 were full of monkeys, and hundreds of them appeared 
 to be in sight all the time. They were of the most 
 common kind to be found in Borneo, and the yacht 
 created no excitement among them. They were so 
 tame that any number of them could have been 
 brought down by the hunters. 
 
 " The water is not so dirty as it has been every- 
 where below," said Captain Scott, as the Blanchita 
 stemmed the current without any difficulty, where 
 paddling a sampan must have been a laborious oc- 
 cupation. " It is tolerably clear along here, and we 
 might take our morning bath very comfortably." 
 
 " We might if a big crocodile did not break his way 
 through the bushes to pay us a visit," replied Louis. 
 
 " After the experience of this morning, I am not 
 disposed to try it again, and I shall take my bath in a 
 
STEAMBOATING THROUGH A GREAT FOREST 97 
 
 wash-bowl with a sponge, though I am very fond of 
 swimming. But, Louis, don't you think we have had 
 about enough of hunting in Borneo ? " 
 
 " Enough ! Why, we have not yet been a week on 
 the island," replied Louis, not a little astonished at 
 the captain's question. " I have enjoyed myself very 
 well so far, and I certainly do not wish to leave till 
 we have killed at least one good-sized orang." 
 
 "It is rather stupid hunting here, for about all 
 the country is under water," added Scott. " There 
 seems to be nothing but monkeys here ; and they are 
 very small game, even if we were disposed to shoot 
 them." 
 
 " But there are some lakes up the river, Mr. Eng 
 told me ; and I think we shall get out of this tangle 
 very soon ; and when we come to higher ground we 
 will go on shore, and try our luck on foot." 
 
 The captain talked as though he had some scheme 
 in his head which he was not yet prepared to unfold 
 to his companions. But what could he do ? Nothing 
 had been said-on board of the ship about coming back 
 to Sarawak for the hunters, and to give up hunting 
 and exploring would be simply to return to Kuching, 
 and idle away the time for the next two weeks. 
 Louis did not like this idea at all ; and yet it seemed 
 to be the alternative which Scott must have in his 
 mind. 
 
 " Mias ! " shouted Achang, when the conversation 
 had proceeded so far. 
 
 " Where is your mias ? " demanded Louis ; for 
 
98 FOCTR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 most of the party had come to calling the orang by 
 his Malay name. 
 
 The Bornean pointed into the forest, the trees of 
 which were growing in the water, though there was 
 an undergrowth of screw-pines, which had been abun- 
 dant all along the river. They were not pines as the 
 explorers understood the word at home. The plant 
 is a bush or small tree with half a dozen or more 
 branches angling upward from the trunk, and twisting 
 a little towards it, from which feature it takes its 
 name. It has long, lanceolated leaves, and therefore 
 is not at all like the American pine. 
 
 " Stop her, Lane ! " called the captain in a tone 
 that "meant business." Back her!" 
 
 The last order was given because there was an 
 opening through the screw-pines which afforded a 
 full view of the taller trees about twenty rods farther 
 from the stream. The captain then took the wheel 
 from Lane, rang the gong to go ahead; and, put- 
 ting the helm hard-a-starboard, the boat came about, 
 headed into the opening. Looking forward, there 
 seemed but very few trees or bushes compared with 
 the* number along the flowing stream. 
 
 " Do you see the mias, Louis ? " asked Scott. 
 
 " I do ; and he is in a very favorable position. He 
 is a big one, and must be a male," replied Louis, who 
 stood at the stem with a repeating-rifle in his hand. 
 
 " Do you see him, Flix ? " 
 
 "I do ; and he has a green nest in the same tree 
 with him." 
 
"Tor ARK XKAR KXOCGH, CAPTAIX." 
 
 Page 99. 
 
STEAMBOATING THROUGH A GREAT FOREST 99 
 
 By this time all the party had taken their rifles. 
 The boat moved very slowly. A seaman sounded 
 the depth with a boathook, and reported eight feet. 
 As she approached the orang, the brute showed 
 his teeth, and uttered several successive growls, as 
 though he understood that danger was near ; but 
 he did not attempt to escape. 
 
 " I wonder can the blackguard swim," said Felix, 
 who had his rifle ready to fire. 
 
 " I have read that he is a poor swimmer," replied 
 Louis. 
 
 " How does he get about here where the water 
 is eight feet deep ? " 
 
 "He is not as agile as the gibbon; but he can 
 make his way from one tree to another in the same 
 manner, and his road is through the trees, and not 
 on the ground." 
 
 "Here I am, and I can't go any farther," said 
 the captain, as he rang to stop her. "I can't get 
 the boat through this clump of bushes." 
 
 " You are near enough, Captain ; let her rest where 
 she is," replied Louis, as he aimed his rifle at the 
 orang, which was sitting on a branch holding on with 
 both hands. 
 
 Louis fired, and the creature fell with a loud 
 splash into the water at the foot of the tree. But 
 he was not dead, and was struggling to escape. He 
 was evidently wounded very badly, and when the 
 hunter saw his opportunity he fired again. The 
 orang had grasped a screw-pine, and he held on, but 
 
100 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 he struggled no more. The captain had ordered the 
 sampan to be brought alongside, and two men were 
 at the paddles. Louis and Felix joined them, and 
 they paddled towards the game. 
 
 "I think he is dead though he still holds on at 
 the bush," said Louis. 
 
 "We shall soon find out," added Clingman, as 
 he threw a slip-noose over his head. " Heave ahead 
 now ! " he continued, as Clinch grasped the line 
 with him, and they pulled together. 
 
 The orang did not make any movement, and it 
 was certain that he was dead. When they had 
 drawn him within a few feet of the sampan, the line 
 was made fast, and the men paddled to the steamer. 
 A purchase was rigged to the top of one of the stan- 
 chions, and the dead animal was hoisted into the 
 sampan. 
 
 "Now, Lane, measure him," said the captain. 
 
 The body was laid out at full length in the bottom 
 of the boat ; and the carpenter took his length on a 
 boathook, which he notched to indicate the height of 
 the animal. He was directed to take several other 
 measurements ; in fact, Louis kept him at work for 
 over an hour, with another hand to assist him in 
 spreading out the limbs. The captain became quite 
 impatient ; for he was less a scientist than the young 
 millionaire, though he had a taste for natural his- 
 tory. 
 
 " Have you finished, Louis ? " asked Scott as the 
 former returned to the yacht. 
 
STEAMBOATING THROUGH A GREAT FOREST 101 
 
 " All done ; but Lane must sum up the results," 
 replied Louis. 
 
 " What good will all those measurements do you ? " 
 demanded the captain rather contemptuously. 
 
 " They will not put any money in my pocket, but I 
 want to know the size of the game I have killed,' 7 
 answered Louis, somewhat nettled by the manner of 
 Scott. " When a man has caught a fish he wants to 
 know what his prize weighs." 
 
 " All right ; but I want to get a little farther into 
 the woods here, and I can get around the bushes 
 ahead of her," replied the captain, who had been 
 studying up a course by which he could go a consid- 
 erable distance farther inland. 
 
 He backed the boat, and then went ahead very 
 slowly, with Clingman feeling of the bottom with the 
 boathook. It was novel sailing through the forest in 
 a steam-launch, and all hands enjoyed it. The screw- 
 pines were rather scattered, and the forest of large 
 trees was quite open. After the boat had gone about 
 half a mile^as the captain judged, Clingman made 
 a report. 
 
 " By the mark, one," said he, as the depth is given 
 with the lead, in fathoms. 
 
 " Six feet ; we are shoaling," added Captain Scott. 
 " Try it again." 
 
 " Five feet," returned the seaman. 
 
 The steamer continued on her course, with Scott at 
 the wheel, for some time longer. The dry land could 
 be seen through the trees at no great distance ahead. 
 
102 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 The boat continued on her course for a quarter of an 
 hour, when Clingman call out a depth which caused 
 the captain to ring the gong to stop her. The last 
 report was three feet, and the keel was evidently 
 grinding through the soft mud. Then he rang to 
 back her ; and when she had increased her depth to 
 four feet, he struck the gong to stop her. 
 
 " Dinner is ready, gentlemen," said Pitts. 
 
 "We must attend to that before we do anything 
 more," added the captain. "Keep a sharp lookout 
 ahead, Clingman." 
 
 The party went into the after cabin, and the nov- 
 elty of dining on board of a steamer in the woods was 
 sufficiently inspiring to add a big interest to the oc- 
 casion. 
 
 " What have you got for dinner, Pitts ? " asked 
 Felix, as he entered the cabin. "Have you got any 
 stewed crocodiles ? " 
 
 "Not a croc, Mr. McGavonty," replied the cook. 
 
 " Any boiled orang-outang ? " 
 
 " Not an orang. The captain bought six dozens of 
 eggs at the village where we stopped yesterday, and 
 I have ham and eggs for dinner, which I hope will 
 suit you/' replied Pitts. 
 
 " The best thing in the world for me. Whisper ! 
 Are they crocodiles' eggs ? " 
 
 " Not a bit of it, sir." 
 
 The principal dish proved to be very satisfactory 
 to the boys, whose appetites had been sharpened by 
 the exercise of the forenoon. The cuisine had been 
 
STEAMBOATING THROUGH A GKEAT FOREST 103 
 
 very good along the rivers, for Pitts had generally 
 been the caterer as well as the cook and steward. 
 Chickens and eggs had been plentiful enough, and at 
 the town he had obtained some fish. There was no 
 fresh beef or mutton. They had a barrel of excellent 
 salt beef from the stores of the ship ; and Pitts made 
 a splendid hash, which suited all hands better than 
 almost anything else. 
 
 While they were at dinner the steward brought in 
 Lane's report of the measurements of the orang Louis 
 had shot. It was given to the Captain at the head 
 of the table ; and he read it off: < Height, 4 feet, 5 
 inches ; arms spread out full length, from end to end 
 of longest fingers, 7 feet, 10 inches; length of arm, 
 3 feet, 3 inches ; length of hand, 10^ inches ; length 
 of foot, V2,\ inches ; round the waist, 4 feet, 2 inches. 
 Four men estimated on the weight, and the average 
 is 185 pounds.' " 
 
 " Big mias," said Achang. 
 
 " Do you think you can skin and stuff him, 
 Achang ? " asked Louis. 
 
 " Know I can ; have done it with naturalist." 
 
 " Then you may go to work on it as soon as you 
 please, and I will give you five dollars for the job," 
 added Louis. " Take your time, and do it well." 
 
 " Where I work ? Sampan no good." 
 
 "I can make a place in the waist," said the cap- 
 tain ; " besides, I want the small boat, for we can see 
 higher land farther in, and I wish to go ashore there ; 
 we may find some shooting." 
 
104 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 The boxes and barrels were moved farther forward 
 and aft, and a workshop made for the Bornean. 
 The sampan was cleaned out when the hands had fin- 
 ished their dinner, and the " Big Four," embarked in 
 it. They did their own paddling, for there was not 
 room enough for any more in the boat without crowd- 
 ing. Each of them carried a rifle. It was but a 
 short distance, and the party were soon on the dry 
 land. 
 
 Louis had hardly put his feet on the shore when 
 he levelled his gun and fired. A moment later Felix 
 followed his example ; and each of them had brought 
 down a deer. They rushed forward to secure their 
 game; and then the other two hunters discharged 
 their rifles, and a couple of wild pigs rolled over 
 on the ground. It was plain that they had struck 
 a spot where hunters seldom came. If there was 
 any more game near, the report of the guns had 
 driven it off. 
 
 " That was pretty well for a five minutes' hunt/' 
 said Louis when he and Felix had dragged the two 
 deer to the water. " I think we had better stay here 
 over night, and hunt on high ground to-morrow." 
 
 "That wouldn't do, Louis, and I should not dare 
 to keep the Blanchita here over night," replied 
 Captain Scott. 
 
 " Why not ? " 
 
 " The water is high and low up here by turns, and 
 I am afraid I should find the yacht on the bottom 
 in the morning," replied Scott. "Then we could 
 
STEAMBOATING THROUGH A GREAT FOREST 105 
 
 not get her out of the woods, and might have to stay 
 here a week or two, waiting for water to float her. 
 No, no; I won't take the risk." 
 
 The game was dragged to the shore, and loaded 
 into the sampan j for the appalling picture the captain 
 had made of low water induced them all to hurry 
 on board of the yacht. 
 
106 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 CHAPTER XII 
 
 A FORMIDABLE OBSTRUCTION REMOVED 
 
 THE deer shot by Felix was a little fellow, though 
 he was full grown, Achang said, when it was taken 
 on board the yacht. The one killed by Louis was 
 much larger. The pigs were in better condition than 
 the one shot before. The men were set at work to 
 skin the deer, and the cook cut out the best parts 
 of the two swine. There was plenty of salt pork in 
 the stores, so that the sides were not needed. 
 
 Achang kept himself very busy in his workshop. 
 He had a difficult job on his hands ; for he had to skin 
 the fingers and toes of the animal, and to keep every 
 part in its original shape. Captain Scott went to 
 the wheel as soon as he came on board, and started 
 the engine. Clingman reported the depth of water the 
 same as when the party went on shore. By back- 
 ing and going ahead a short distance at a time, he 
 got the boat about, and headed her for the river. 
 
 The water was deep enough, and there was no 
 particular difficulty in the navigation, though he was 
 to follow the course he had taken at first. He had 
 carefully observed the shape and location of the trees, 
 and the stream was reached in a short time. Louis 
 declared that it was a great pity they could not re- 
 
A FORMIDABLE OBSTRUCTION REMOVED 107 
 
 main near the high ground, for he had no doubt that 
 plenty of game would have been found. 
 
 " It seems to me that we have got all the game we 
 want," said Scott. "What could we do with a couple 
 more deer and a brace of wild hogs ? " 
 
 " Perhaps you are right ; but the fellows want to 
 hunt, though I think I have had enough of it. I 
 enjoy the sailing up this river, and it will be pleasant 
 to explore the lakes farther up the stream," added 
 Louis. 
 
 " I hope we shall get to some place where we can 
 do some fishing for a change ; besides, I am fish 
 hungry," replied Scott. 
 
 " Most of the fishing here is done with the tuba 
 plant; and I think it is mean to stupefy the fish, 
 and then pick them up on the top of the water. But 
 the river is clearer up this way, and we will drop 
 our lines when we come to a good place." 
 
 " If you want to do any more shooting just now, 
 there is a flock of long-noses" (by which he meant 
 proboscis monkeys), said the captain, as he pointed 
 to them. 
 
 " We have one good specimen of that creature, and 
 I don't want any more at present ; but I would give 
 something to know why they prefer to be in trees 
 which grow out of the water," added Louis. 
 
 " I give it up, for I don't see any reason for it ; 
 but I suppose the long-nose understands the matter 
 himself, and he won't tell us. Here we are at the 
 river." 
 
108 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 The captain rang the speed-bell as the steamer en- 
 tered the stream where it was only thirty feet wide. 
 There was a considerable current, and the screw- 
 pines were densely packed together on both sides. 
 The boat continued on her course for half an hour 
 longer, when she seemed to have come to the end 
 of all things, and the gong rang to stop her. 
 
 " Here we are ! " exclaimed Scott. " And here 
 we are likely to remain, unless we back down stream 
 till we find a place wide enough to turn in." 
 
 The obstruction which closed the passage of the 
 river against the Blanchita was a bridge of dead pines 
 which the current had brought down, and they had 
 caught at the sides till they formed the barrier. It 
 was not more than six feet wide, though it might as 
 well have been a hundred so far as blocking up the 
 river was concerned. 
 
 " I don't like the idea of stopping here, for I want 
 to see the lakes above ; and I hoped we might get 
 some fishing there," said Louis. 
 
 "What the matter is?" called Achang from his 
 workshop. 
 
 He moved to one side so that he could see the 
 obstruction. 
 
 " You can go through that, Captain," he continued, 
 after Morris had corrected his English. "I have 
 come up here before, and we have cut a way through." 
 
 " All right ; we will see what the bridge is made 
 of," said the captain, as he rang to back the boat. 
 
 She backed down the stream about twenty rods, 
 
A FORMIDABLE OBSTRUCTION REMOVED 109 
 
 and then he stopped her. He then ordered Clingman 
 to draw a piece of sailcloth over the stem, to prevent 
 the dead pines from scratching the paint on the bow. 
 As soon as this was done, she went ahead again at 
 full speed, and the captain called to the engineer to 
 give her all the steam he could. She went ahead 
 at a furious rate, and Scott pointed her to what 
 seemed to be the weakest place in the barrier. 
 
 " Now hold on, fellows, or she will tip you over ! " 
 shouted the captain as the boat approached the ob- 
 struction. 
 
 She struck the mass of pines, and drove her bow 
 far into it, but stopped without going through it. 
 The barrier was not solid, and was held together by 
 the entanglement of the bushes as they were driven 
 into the nucleus of the mass by the current. 
 
 "We can't cut through in that way," said Scott, 
 as he looked at the half -sundered bridge. 
 
 "We don't want to take the back track," added 
 Louis. 
 
 " There are more ways than one to skin a mosquito, 
 and we haven't half tried yet," replied the captain. 
 "The thing is softer than I supposed, and yielded 
 when the boat hit it. I could go through, but it 
 would take all the paint off the sides. Get out the 
 anchor, Clingman, and we will see what can be done." 
 
 "I think we shall stick fast enough without an- 
 choring," said Morris with a laugh. 
 
 " Wait a few minutes, my hearty ; for I was not 
 thinking of coming to anchor just now," answered 
 
110 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 Scott, as he went forward to the stem, and mounted 
 the rail. 
 
 The anchor was stowed under the forward seat; 
 and Clingman, after overhauling the cable, passed it 
 up to the captain. It was not very heavy, and with 
 a skilful toss he threw it just over the edge of the 
 barrier on the up-stream side. All wondered what 
 he was going to do, for they saw no way to get 
 through by means of the anchor ; but they were will- 
 ing to believe that the captain knew what he was 
 about, and they said nothing. 
 
 " Now pay out about fifty feet of cable," continued 
 Scott, as he rang the gong to back her. "Haul 
 steady on it till you are sure it is fast in the stuff, 
 Clingman." 
 
 The seaman humored the cable till he was unable 
 to haul the rope home, and then reported the situa- 
 tion. The boat continued to back till the cable was 
 hauled taut, when he stopped her. Then he spoke 
 through the tube to the engineer, and rang the gong. 
 The craft moved again, but very gently, for Scott 
 was afraid the anchor would not hold ; but it did, and 
 speaking through the tube, he gradually increased 
 the speed. The cable swayed and groaned, and it 
 was evident that a heavy strain was upon it. The 
 barrier was shaking and quivering under the pres- 
 sure, and it was plain that something would yield 
 very soon. 
 
 " Hurrah ! " shouted Felix, who was looking over 
 the bow at the bridge of pines ; and the cry was 
 
A FORMIDABLE OBSTRUCTION REMOVED 111 
 
 repeated by the rest of the cabin party, and taken up 
 by the sailors. " Bully for you, Captain Scott ! 
 Upon me wurrud, ye's have skinned the muskitty ! " 
 
 This demonstration was called forth by the rupture 
 of the barrier in two places, so that about one-half of 
 it gave way, and was towed down stream by the 
 steamer. Scott kept the craft moving till he found a 
 place in the green banks of the river to leave the 
 tow, for it was wide enough to obstruct the channel. 
 
 " Clingman and Wales, jump on the raft with the 
 boathooks, and crowd the stuff over to the starboard 
 side," said the captain when he had found the place 
 he wanted. 
 
 He stopped the boat, and then went ahead, to en T 
 able the men to get upon the mass, after they had 
 thrown a couple of boards upon it to stand on. 
 Backing her again, he hugged the starboard side of 
 the stream, and drew the raft abreast of the place, 
 and close to it, where it was to be left. The men on 
 it hooked into the screw-pines, and hauled it into the 
 opening. Pulling vines from the trees, they moored 
 it where it was. As soon as the two men came 
 aboard the boat, the captain went ahead again. 
 
 " You did that job handsomely, Captain Scott," 
 said Louis. "I thought the only way we could 
 get through was by cutting a passage for the boat." 
 
 " That would have taken too long," replied Scott, 
 as he called Clinch to the wheel. " Mind your eye ! 
 for the river is very crooked up here. Look out 
 for the swing as she goes around the bends." 
 
112 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 The boat had not gone a great distance when she 
 came to a considerable expanse of territory which 
 had been swept over by fire. The party did not 
 think that the green bushes would burn; but they 
 had burned so that nothing was left of them but 
 the blackened stems, and there was no room for an 
 argument. 
 
 " When the fire gets started, it scorches and dries 
 the bushes till they will burn," Louis explained. 
 " But what are we coming to now ? " he asked, 
 looking ahead where the country seemed to be level, 
 and covered with a sheet of water, in which the screw- 
 pines were abundant. 
 
 "That must be one of your lakes, Louis," added 
 the captain. 
 
 " If it is mine, I will sell it to you," replied 
 he. 
 
 " I don't want to buy ; but I am not so sure that 
 we can get through as shoal a place as that seems 
 to be, for it is only the spreading out of the river. 
 The greater the expanse, the less the depth. How 
 is that, Achang ? " 
 
 " Plenty water ; float the boat," answered the Bor- 
 nean. " Little Padang Lake. Plenty pandanus." 
 
 " What are pandanuses ? " asked Scott. 
 
 " The plural of the word is pandanaceae ; and they 
 are the same thing as the screw-pines, and sometimes 
 are found thirty feet high. There is one ; and you 
 can see roots starting out of the stem, and heading 
 downward. The leaves are very useful to the na- 
 
A FORMIDABLE OBSTRUCTION REMOVED 113 
 
 tives. We shall get tied in a hard knot if we follow 
 the twists of this stream much farther." 
 
 Presently the boat came to the lake. The captain 
 was considerably exercised about the depth of water ; 
 and as they entered the lake, which was not very 
 different from the overflowed region they had visited 
 that day, he ordered the wheelman to stop her. 
 
 " There must be some sort of a channel through 
 this pond/ 7 said he, looking about him. "There is 
 a bigger lake than this one farther up. There are 
 mountains in sight in the distance, and the water 
 from them must find an outlet to the sea." 
 
 "I have no doubt you are right; and probably 
 there is a channel through this lake, for its water 
 must get to the sea, unless it dries up on the way," 
 added Louis. 
 
 " It will be easier to find this channel near the 
 river than it will when we are half-way across the 
 lake ; " and the captain sent two men with Morris 
 in the sampan to search for it. 
 
 The water was tolerably clear ; and they went to 
 the mouth of- the outlet, sounding all the time with 
 the boathooks. They found the channel at this 
 point, and then followed it up beyond the steamer. 
 Morris shouted that the sampan was in the channel, 
 and the Blanchita moved into it. The searching- 
 party returned to the steamer. Morris was the 
 mate ; and, with the two men who had gone with 
 him, he was directed to keep the run of the deeper 
 water. 
 
114 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 In another half -hour they came to the forest again, 
 though the trees were growing in the shallow lake. 
 Achang was hard at work all the time, taking all the 
 pains with his operation which Louis had required 
 of him ; but his occupation did not prevent him from 
 looking about him, and he soon made a discovery. 
 
 " Mias ! Mias ! " he shouted, pointing to a tall 
 tree a few rods from the boat. " Mias fast asleep ! " 
 
 All the party looked in the direction indicated, 
 and saw the orang. He was lying on his back in 
 the crotch of the tree, holding on with both hands 
 to the branches. He must have been a heavy sleeper 
 or the puffing of the engine would have aroused him. 
 But Louis would not fire at him, as Scott suggested. 
 He had a bigger orang than the one in the tree, and 
 he did not want another. As he would not fire, 
 Felix refused to do so, and the mias was left to 
 finish his nap. 
 
 A little later in the day the boat came to Padang 
 Lake; but they were disappointed when they found 
 it was filled with screw-pines, though they could 
 see open water, in one direction quite a large sheet 
 of it. Following the channel, they reached the open 
 space. The boat had hardly passed the limit of 
 the screw-pines before Clingman shouted, " Fish ! " 
 
 The captain rang the gong, the boat stopped, and 
 fishlines where in demand. The flesh of the orang 
 was used for bait; and in a few minutes Morris 
 hauled up a fish so large that it taxed all his strength 
 and skill to get him into the boat. 
 
THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION 115 
 
 CHAPTEE XIII 
 THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION 
 
 ALL the cabin party had their lines out, but not 
 another fish was caught. The place where they 
 fished seemed to be a hole, and the water was deep 
 and clear. Perhaps Morris's struggle with the big 
 fish had scared the others away, for not another 
 could be seen. The day was done, and it was grow- 
 ing dark. It was decided to anchor where they were, 
 and spend the night there ; and they hoped the fish 
 would be in biting condition the next morning. 
 
 Achang called the fish the gourami, or something 
 like that ; but beyond this nothing was known about 
 him. Louis, who was generally posted, could tell his 
 companions nothing about it. But Pitts had cut it 
 up, and it was fried for supper. The flesh was hard, 
 and the flavor excellent. There was enough of it 
 for all hands, and the supper amounted to a feast. 
 A heavy thunder-shower made the evening very 
 gloomy ; but the canvas roof and curtains of the 
 Blanchita fully protected the party from the rain, 
 which fell in sheets for full two hours. 
 
 The next morning when the party turned out, 
 the weather was as pleasant as they could desire, 
 and the air was cleared and freshened by the shower. 
 
116 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 The first thing they did was to throw over their 
 lines ; for they could see the fish through the clear 
 water of the lake. In about as many minutes they 
 had hooked four fish, though not one of them was 
 so large as the one Morris had caught the evening 
 before. But at that point they ceased to bite, and 
 not another nibble was had. Either the fish did not 
 like the looks of the boat, handsome as she was, 
 which would have been very bad taste on their part, 
 or the struggles of those which had been hauled in 
 frightened them away. Very likely the fish could 
 have explained the reason for their sudden disappear- 
 ance ; but they did not, and it remained a mystery. 
 
 They had an ice-chest on board, and Mr. Eng had 
 replenished it at Simujan. Pitts dressed the fish, 
 and put them in the refrigerator. For breakfast 
 they had fresh pork, and it was much better than 
 that they had had before. They had learned to 
 drink coffee without milk, for it was not often that 
 it could be procured away from the larger towns. 
 
 " I say, fellows, don't you think there can be too 
 much of a good thing ? " asked Captain Scott at the 
 head of the table. 
 
 " Of course there can be too much of a good thing ; 
 for a fellow might eat ice-cream till his throat was 
 frozen," replied Felix. 
 
 "Almost anything becomes a bad thing when you 
 have too much of it," added Louis. " But I think 
 we could have stood about four more of those nice 
 fish. What is the moral of all this, Captain ? " 
 
THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION 117 
 
 "With me the moral is that I have had hunting 
 enough for the present," replied Scott. " I should 
 like a little more variety in our daily life." 
 
 " I don't think I should care to go hunting more 
 than one day in a week, or, at most, two/ 7 replied 
 Louis. " We have had it right along for a week ; 
 and, as you suggest, that's too much of a good 
 thing." 
 
 " But it was you, Louis, who went in for three 
 weeks of it," added the captain. 
 
 " Simply because I thought it would take the 
 Guardian-Mother and the Blanche about that time 
 to visit Siam and French Cochin-China." 
 
 " I suppose if we had made our trip up these rivers 
 in a sampan, we should not have got so far inland in 
 another week," added Morris. 
 
 " I don't think we should have come up here at all 
 if the Blanchita had not been available," said Louis. 
 " But we are close to the mountains now, and I am 
 in favor of a tramp on shore." 
 
 " All right-; and after breakfast we will get under 
 way, for I must attend to the navigation," replied 
 Scott ; " and I suppose Felipe has steam enough by 
 this time." 
 
 They left the table, and Scott went to the wheel. 
 To save time and trouble, the men took their meals 
 in the after cabin, and the engineer had the head of 
 the table. Both Louis and Felix had run the engine 
 of the Maud a portion of the time on her memorable 
 voyage from Funchal to Gibraltar, and the former 
 
118 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 was sent to the engine-room. The boat went ahead ; 
 and after passing through a section of pandanus, they 
 came to an open lake, which they judged to be five 
 miles long. 
 
 The water was shallow, though deep enough for 
 the steamer. The captain opened the binnacle, and 
 headed the Blanchita to the north. It was a very 
 quiet time, and the boat went along at her usual 
 speed. In little less than half an hour she reached 
 the head of the lake; but there was no convenient 
 landing-place for a craft of her draught, and she 
 was anchored at a considerable distance from the 
 shore. Achang and two of the seamen were di- 
 rected to attend the "Big Four," and they were 
 landed in the sampan. 
 
 Each of the cabin party took his fowling-piece, 
 while Achang had a rifle, and each of the sailors 
 carried one, the latter to be used by the young men 
 if they were wanted. They had walked but a short 
 distance before they came to a steep precipice about 
 twenty feet high, at which a notched log had been 
 placed by some former visitors, as they supposed ; 
 but as soon as they had mounted it, they came upon 
 a Dyak long-house, which might have been better 
 called a short-house, for it contained but six doors, 
 and therefore the tax upon the village need not 
 have caused any grumbling. 
 
 The dwelling was not now a novelty, neither were 
 the Dyak men and maidens ; for the latter were not 
 as pretty as several they had seen on the river. 
 
THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PKOPOSITION 119 
 
 They were very hospitable, and invited the party to 
 enter the house, which they did ; but there was little 
 to interest them there. Achang talked with them, 
 and the head man said they caught plenty of fish in 
 the lake, and they snared pigs, deer, monkeys, and 
 other game. He engaged a couple of guides for the 
 mountains. 
 
 The game was plentiful, and the hunters shot sev- 
 eral deer, a pig, and a Malay bear ; but they were not 
 enthusiastic hunters, considering that they had come 
 to Borneo for that purpose. After a four hours' 
 tramp they all thought they had had enough of it. 
 Felix declared that he preferred to hunt cobras and 
 tigers, for all the game seemed to be very tame to 
 him. Seating themselves on the ground, they rested 
 for an hour, and then started on their return to the 
 boat. All the game was given to the Dyak guides, 
 who were very glad to get it. They swung it on a 
 pole, and trotted along with their load as though it 
 had been no burden at all. 
 
 " They dojhat all day," said Achang. " Never get 
 tired." 
 
 " They have load enough to feed the village for a 
 week," added the captain. " I should not care for the 
 fun of feeding them another week, for I find hunting 
 here very tame business." 
 
 "My sintimints also," added Felix. 
 
 After a walk of another hour they reached the 
 Dyak house, and the whole population of the place 
 followed them to the shore. They were filled with 
 
120 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 wonder and admiration at the sight of the Blanchita, 
 and went off to her in their sampans. They were 
 permitted to go on board ; but when Felipe fed the 
 fire in the furnace, and the steam began to hiss, some 
 of them were frightened, and fled to their boats. 
 
 Dinner was all ready when the party went on 
 board; and Achang was instructed to send off the 
 guests, for the boat was to get under way at once. 
 They got into their sampans ; but they remained near 
 the Blanchita, evidently desirous to see her sail. 
 They had not to wait Jong, for the anchor was 
 weighed, and the captain rang the gong. She went 
 off at her usual speed, and the Dyaks expressed their 
 astonishment in various ways. 
 
 "Dinner all ready, gentlemen," said Pitts as soon 
 as the steamer was well under way. 
 
 " What have you for dinner, Pitts ? " asked the 
 captain. 
 
 " Baked fish, Captain, in two pieces ; for he was 
 too long to go into my oven," replied the cook. 
 
 "All right. Take the wheel, Clingman, and make 
 the course due south." 
 
 "Due south, sir," repeated the wheelman. 
 
 The party hastened to the after cabin; for they 
 were hungry after their long tramp, though they had 
 taken a light lunch with them. The fish, " in two 
 pieces," was placed before the captain ; while Pitts 
 stood by his side, ready to pass the plates, and hear 
 any comments the captain might make on the prin- 
 cipal viand. 
 
THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION 121 
 
 The odor from the steaming fish was emphatically 
 agreeable to the hungry hunters, and so was the soft 
 divan to their tired legs. Scott helped the members 
 of the party to liberal portions of the dainty dish, 
 and without pausing for manners they began to 
 partake. When the captain had tasted the fish, he 
 stopped short, and looked at Pitts. Then he reached 
 out his right hand to him. 
 
 " Your hand, Pitts ! " and the cook took it, his face 
 wreathed in smiles. " You have cooked a dish here, 
 Pitts, which is fit for any king on the continent of 
 Europe, to say nothing of Asia." 
 
 The rest of the party applauded vigorously, and 
 every one of them, following the example of the 
 captain, took the cook by the hand, and bestowed 
 additional praise upon him ; and Louis declared that 
 he could not have done better if he had served his 
 time as a cuisinier in the Grand Hotel in Paris. 
 But the most telling tribute to the skill of the cook 
 was in the amount consumed; and the captain ex- 
 pressed a fear that the engineer and five seamen 
 would have to "kiss the cook." 
 
 " It is only a woman cook that gets served in that 
 way, and then not unless she is good looking," re- 
 plied Pitts, laughing. " But you need have no fear, 
 Captain, and the second table will have no occasion 
 to kiss the cook, even it were one of the pretty girls 
 we saw at the long-house below ; for I have another 
 fish in the oven, and it will be done by the time they 
 are ready for it." 
 
122 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " That's right, Pitts ; look out for the men as well 
 as you do for the rest of us/ 7 added the captain. 
 " Now, fellows, I am going to the wheel ; and I want 
 to see all of you in the fore cabin, for I have some- 
 thing to say, and we may have occasion to vote." 
 
 " Vote on what, Captain ? " inquired Felix. 
 
 "There is no motion before the house, Flix; and 
 when morning comes the sun will rise, not before," 
 replied Captain Scott. 
 
 As soon as a plum-pudding had been disposed of, 
 the party hastened to the fore cabin ; for their cu- 
 riosity had been excited by what had been said. The 
 captain took the wheel ; and Louis went to the engine, 
 though he could hear what was said while near 
 enough to the levers to act in case of need. Scott 
 had brought from his berth in the after cabin a blue- 
 colored roll, which all understood was a chart, though 
 of what sea they did not know. 
 
 "Now, fellows, I have come to the conclusion that 
 we are all tired of paddling about the muddy rivers 
 of Borneo," the captain began, after he had scrutin- 
 ized the compass in the binnacle. " I have said so 
 before ; though I have not enlarged on the subject, or 
 spoken half as strongly as I might. The rest of you 
 may not take my view of the situation ; but I do not 
 ask you to do so, and I hope you will all speak out 
 just what you think, as I have done, and shall do 
 stronger than before. We want something that is 
 not quite so tame as shooting pigs and crocodiles at 
 thirty-six cents a foot." 
 
THE CAPTAIN'S ASTOUNDING PROPOSITION 123 
 
 " I am quite of your opinion, Captain," added 
 Morris. "I don't think there is any more fun in 
 shooting orangs, for we are not naturalists nor scien- 
 tists of any sort. If we had brought a naturalist 
 with us, we should have done better. 77 
 
 " I have had enough of it for the present ; but 
 we have two weeks yet before the ship will come to 
 Kuching for us, and what are we to do during that 
 time ? " said Louis, walking a little nearer to the 
 wheel. 
 
 " That is precisely the conundrum I intend to guess 
 on the present occasion, and for which I have called 
 this meeting without consulting Mr. Belgrave," replied 
 Captain Scott, giving the wheel to Morris, with the 
 course, and unfolding the blue roll. " The Guardian- 
 Mother will go to Saigon before she comes back to 
 Sarawak. That is about a two days 7 run for her. 
 From Sarawak, or the mouth of the river, the dis- 
 tance is five hundred sea miles. Now, to flash it on 
 you all at once, I propose to sail in the Blanchita to 
 Point Cambodia, where the ship will pick us up as 
 she comes down the Gulf of Siam. Now I am ready 
 to hear you all groan. 77 
 
 "It looks like a risky voyage in such a craft as 
 this steam-launch, 77 said Louis, when there was a 
 prolonged silence. 
 
 " I wish you all to look over the chart of the 
 China Sea ; this meeting is adjourned to the after 
 cabin at four o 7 clock, and you may do your groan- 
 ing there." 
 
124 FOUR YOUNG FXPLORERS 
 
 The men soon came out of the after cabin, and 
 Pitts was busy removing the dishes and putting 
 everything in order. At the time stated, the party 
 were seated around the table in the after cabin, ready 
 to consider the captain's astounding proposition. 
 
DOWN THE SIMUJAN AND UP THE SAKAWAK 125 
 
 CHAPTEE XIV 
 
 DOWN THE SIMUJAN AND UP THE SARAWAK 
 
 THE proposition of Captain Scott was certainly an 
 astounding one, not unlike the daring of those men 
 who have crossed the Atlantic in a dory or in small 
 sailboats ; and so it struck the other members of the 
 cabin party. Scott was not a reckless navigator ; and 
 his companions had voyaged with him on stormy seas 
 several times in the Maud, though she was a better 
 sea-going craft than the Blanchita. She was decked 
 over her entire length, so that she could be closed as 
 tight as the inside of a barrel, while the steam- 
 launch was an open boat. 
 
 Scott did not regard the venture as an extremely 
 perilous one, though he would not have thought of 
 such a thing as crossing the Atlantic in a craft like 
 the Blanchita, principally because she could not 
 carry coal enough to render the trip a prudent risk. 
 The distance from land to land was about five hun- 
 dred miles, and the little steamer could easily make 
 this distance inside of three days. But the captain 
 must speak for himself. 
 
 "Now, fellows, you can study the chart for your- 
 selves," said he, as he put the point of his pencil on 
 the mouth of the Sarawak Eiver. " If the Blanchita 
 
126 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 were a sailing-craft instead of a steamer, I should 
 not have a moment's hesitation ; for though she is 
 not heavy and clumsy, she is very strongly built. I 
 have looked her over several times, with this trip in 
 my head." 
 
 " But she can be rigged as a sailing-craft, and has 
 a short mast and a sail," interposed Morris. "I 
 talked with the rajah about her, and he told me that 
 he had been out to sea in her. He said he had never 
 had occasion to use the sail, but he carried it in case 
 anything should happen to the engine." 
 
 "That betters the situation very materially," re- 
 plied the captain. " If we have anything to depend 
 upon if the engine should break down or the coal 
 should give out we should be all right." 
 
 " There must be heavy seas out in the China Sea," 
 added Louis, as he looked over the chart. 
 
 " We haven't seen any very heavy seas in any of 
 these waters. The south-west monsoons prevail at 
 this season of the year in these waters. I don't find 
 any decided ocean current laid down on the charts of 
 the southern and western portions of the China Sea. 
 They strike in at the eastward of Java, and flow 
 to the eastward of Borneo, through the Macassar 
 Strait," said Scott, pointing out the direction on the 
 chart. 
 
 " That looks favorable ; and if there is any current 
 to speak of, it runs in the direction of the monsoons, 
 and therefore will not be likely to cause heavy 
 winds." 
 
DOWN THE SIMUJAN AND UP THE SARAWAK 127 
 
 " If I thought the trip was a very dangerous one, I 
 certainly should not propose to make it," added the 
 captain. 
 
 " Fish ! " shouted Clingman at the wheel. 
 
 In spite of their interest in the discussion, all the 
 party rushed forward at this cry. The captain or- 
 dered the wheelman to stop her, though her headway 
 kept her moving for some minutes after the screw 
 ceased to revolve. The men baited the hooks as soon 
 as fish were indicated. The boat had reached the 
 locality where the catch of the day before had been 
 obtained, and all hands were on the lookout. The 
 lines were thrown over, and the fish bit quickly as 
 soon as the steamer was at rest. In half an hour 
 they had taken seven. 
 
 " Keep her moving, Clingman," said Captain Scott, 
 as the party hurried back to the cabin to continue 
 the discussion. 
 
 Pitts dressed the fish, and put them in the ice- 
 chest. Achang had completed the skinning of the 
 orang, and the skin was now drying in the sun. 
 The voyage to Siam or Cambodia looked very much 
 like an adventure, and the young men were deeply 
 interested in it. 
 
 "I don't think we are likely to encounter any 
 very heavy weather in the western part of the China 
 Sea," said Captain Scott, as he put his pencil on 
 the chart again. "We may be overhauled by a 
 typhoon." 
 
 "And what is a typhoon?" asked Felix. "I 
 
128 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 know it is some sort of a storm, and that is all 
 I do know." 
 
 "There are different names for a storm in differ- 
 ent parts of the earth," replied Scott. "What is 
 a hurricane in the West Indies is a cyclone in the 
 northern part of the Indian Ocean, and a typhoon 
 in the China Sea. They are all alike in substance, 
 being revolving storms, in which the wind whirls 
 around in a circle, and at the same time has a 
 forward movement as a whole towards some point 
 of the compass. But there are various signs which 
 indicate the approach of a typhoon or a hurricane; 
 and in these seas the barometer has to be watched 
 constantly." 
 
 " I suppose we should be out of sight of land about 
 all the time on the passage," suggested Morris. 
 
 " Not at all, my lad ; for the first two hundred 
 miles of the course we should not be out of sight 
 of land half of the time, or only for a few hours 
 at a time. Now look at the chart, all of you. 
 Here we are at the mouth of the Sarawak River. 
 About a hundred miles west of that is Cape Datu, 
 the most western point of Borneo. Then for two 
 hundred miles there is a chain of islands extend- 
 ing to the north-west, which is our course. These 
 are the Natuna Islands ; the largest one takes the 
 same name, and is forty miles long. There are 
 several other small islands north of this one, and 
 if the weather came on very bad we could make 
 a lee under one of them." 
 
DOWN THE SIMUJAN AND UP THE SARAWAK 129 
 
 " Channel, sir ! " shouted Clingman. 
 
 "I think you have got an idea of the whole 
 thing, and we have a couple of days to think of 
 it," said the captain, as he rose from his seat. "I 
 will leave the chart here, and you can all study it." 
 
 Scott went forward to the wheel. He had caused 
 a red rag to be tied to the top of a screw-pine 
 while the sampan was looking for a channel through 
 the lake, and Clingman had stopped the boat abreast 
 of it. The captain took the helm himself j and he 
 had carefully observed various marks, and obtained 
 the bearings of the mountain, and other prominent 
 objects which might assist him in taking the steamer 
 through the shallow lake. He started her at once, 
 and rang the speed-bell confidently, as though he 
 had been through the lake a dozen times before. 
 
 It was sunset when the boat entered the narrow 
 river, and they were called to supper. Clinch was 
 placed at the wheel. It was a good moon, and the 
 boat continued on her course till she came to the 
 Dyak village., where they had visited the long-house. 
 She had been seen or heard as she approached; 
 and the whole village was on the shore, including 
 Mr. Eng. 
 
 "We are not going to lie up to-night," said Cap- 
 tain Scott when asked to land. "We are somewhat 
 in a hurry to get back to Kuching, and we shall 
 run down to Simujan this evening." 
 
 "I am going in the morning, Captain," added 
 the agent. 
 
130 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 "I will tow you down, and you can sleep on 
 board if you wish." 
 
 " Thank you ; my men will come down with the 
 sampans to-morrow, and I gladly accept your offer," 
 replied Mr. Eng. " But I must first go over to 
 the pangah" 
 
 "To what? Will it take long?" inquired the 
 captain. 
 
 "The pangah, or head-house of the village. I 
 left my portmanteau there, and must get it." 
 
 " The head-house ! May we go with you ? for 
 we did not stop to look at it when we were here 
 before." 
 
 " Certainly you may go with me ; I will have 
 some torches so that you can see it as well as in the 
 daytime," replied the agent, as he started with the 
 cabin party, attended by four Dyaks who had come 
 to the river with torches. "No head-hunting has 
 been done for many years, as you are aware, and 
 not many heads are on exhibition. In some villages 
 you will find them by the hundred, though the people 
 here were never much given to the barbarous prac- 
 tice. It was not necessary in this part of the island 
 that a young man should get a head before a girl 
 would accept him as her husband. Here it is." 
 
 It was a circular building not far from fifty feet 
 in diameter, with a conical roof. In the centre was 
 a place for a fire, which was perhaps required in 
 cleaning the abominable trophies of war or individual 
 murders. All around the apartment was a sort of 
 
DOWN THE SIMUJAN AND UP THE SARAWAK 131 
 
 divan, or bench, while over it were hung up the 
 skulls, all nicely cleaned in the first instance, but 
 now darkened by the smoke. 
 
 "This is the public building of the village, and 
 the council when it meets has its place here for de- 
 liberation and action," said Mr. Eng, when he had 
 pointed out what was to be seen in the building. 
 
 "Bather a sombre place, I should say, for such a 
 purpose," suggested Louis. 
 
 " When you got used to the skulls you would not 
 mind them any more than you would any other dry 
 bones," laughed the agent. " I slept here last night, 
 and the young men and boys lodge here. If you 
 were to remain over night, young gentlemen, you 
 would be quartered here ; for it is the home of the 
 stranger who visits the village." 
 
 "Then, I should be very thankful that we had a 
 cabin in our steamer," replied Louis. "But there 
 is no accounting for tastes." 
 
 The agent gave his baggage to a Dyak, and the 
 party returned to the boat. A bed in the cabin was 
 prepared for Mr. Eng, who said he was very tired, 
 for he had walked a great distance that day, and he 
 retired at once. The captain took the first watch, 
 with two of the men. It was plain sailing, and in 
 the middle of the night the Blanchita was anchored 
 in the river in front of the kampon. Scott turned 
 in then, with one of the port watch on duty. 
 
 In the morning they could not be induced to ac- 
 cept Mr. Eng's pressing invitation to remain a day 
 
132 FOUR YTJONG EXPLORERS 
 
 or two at Simujan. He promised to take them to 
 the coal and gold mine if they would remain; but 
 all of them were so full of the great project that 
 the invitation was declined. Three of the fish were 
 presented to the agent, who told them something 
 about it, and declared that it was the finest fish on 
 the island. 
 
 A quantity of ice was obtained at the town ; and 
 Pitts carefully packed the rest of the fish, which 
 were still hard and in nice condition. The captain 
 desired to present a couple of them to Eajah Brooke, 
 and some of the others to officers who had been 
 very kind to them, and had assisted them in many 
 ways. In the early morning they bade a grateful 
 adieu to the agent, and departed on the trip to 
 Kuching. 
 
 The tide was going out, and they made a quick 
 passage to the sea. On their arrival there they 
 found a stiff south-west wind blowing, and the bay 
 covered with white-caps. They had not tried the 
 Blanchita in anything like a heavy sea, though the 
 rajah had declared that she was a very able and 
 weatherly sea-boat. Captain Scott was very glad of 
 the opportunity to test her behavior in rough weather. 
 He went to the helm himself as the boat came out of 
 the Sadong. The very first wave that broke on her 
 bow scattered the spray from stem to stern. 
 
 Scott ordered the men to batten down the curtains 
 on the weather side. But the boat rose gracefully 
 on the billows, and did not scoop up any water in 
 
THE BOAT ROSE GRACEFULLY OX THE BILLOWS. 
 
 Page 132. 
 
DOWN THE SIMUJAN AND UP THE SAKAWAK 133 
 
 doing so. Boxes, barrels, and other movable articles 
 were secured, and the captain was delighted with 
 the working of the boat. 
 
 "I don't want any better sea-boat than the Blan- 
 chita," said he with great enthusiasm. " I doubt if 
 we get it any rougher than this on the voyage to 
 Cambodia Point." 
 
 " Unless we run into a typhoon," said Morris, who 
 was observing the conduct of the boat with quite as 
 much interest as his superior officer. 
 
 "We won't run into a typhoon," replied the cap- 
 tain. 
 
 " How can you help yourself ? As sailors we 
 must take things as they come." 
 
 "If navigators have a thousand miles or more of 
 ocean ahead of them, they must face the music. 
 But among these islands, if the weather looks ty- 
 phoony, we can get under a lee, or make a harbor 
 in some bay. But don't try to cross the bridge till 
 we get to it, Morris." 
 
 " Sail, ho ! " shouted Clingman. 
 
 It was a steamer about as far off as she could be 
 made out. The two craft were approaching each 
 other, and the steamer from the west went into the 
 Sarawak ahead of the Blanchita. She was a small 
 vessel, apparently of not more than three hundred 
 tons. It soon became evident that she was not a fast 
 sailer, for the Blanchita held her own with her all 
 the way up the river to Kuching. 
 
134 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 CHAPTER XV 
 
 ON THE VOYAGE TO POINT CAMBODIA 
 
 THE Blanchita moored as usual in front of the 
 town, while the steamer anchored in the river. She 
 proved to be the Delhi, from Calcutta; and it was 
 ascertained when the party went on shore later, that 
 she was to sail for Saigon the next day. The first 
 care of the cabin party was to send the fish to Rajah 
 Brooke and two officers whose acquaintance they had 
 made. 
 
 Pitts overhauled the ice-chest, and found them in 
 excellent condition ; and Achang was appointed to be 
 the bearer of them, with the compliments of the 
 Americans, to the gentlemen who were to receive 
 them. Two native porters were to carry them ; and 
 the party knew that the fish were a rarity in the 
 town, and they were in season for the dinner of that 
 day. 
 
 The four went on shore together just as a party 
 from the Delhi landed with a boat. The captain of 
 the steamer hailed them in the street in front of the 
 government house, and asked if they belonged to the 
 steam-launch which had just come up the river. 
 He was curious to know something more about the 
 explorers, and Captain Scott told him what they had 
 
ON THE VOYAGE TO POINT CAMBODIA 135 
 
 been doing in the island. He was invited on board 
 of the Blanchita, and was much interested in the 
 young men. 
 
 They showed him over the boat; and he was 
 greatly pleased with the craft, and with the excellent 
 accommodations for sleeping, eating, and making the 
 voyagers generally comfortable. They came to the 
 ice-chest, in which two of the choice fish still re- 
 mained; and Scott presented one of them to their 
 guest. 
 
 "We intend to sail for Point Cambodia to-mor- 
 row to rejoin our ship," said the captain of the Blan- 
 chita, after the fish had been sent on board. 
 
 "In this little tub of yours?" asked the com- 
 mander of the Delhi with a smile of incredulity. 
 
 "Is this part of the China Sea subject to violent 
 seas ? " 
 
 "Not at just this season of the year. With the 
 south-west monsoons smart squalls come up some- 
 times, but they are not very bad. I don't think you 
 will find it any rougher than we had it outside the 
 river to-day on your passage to the Point," replied 
 Captain Rayburn, who stated then that he had seen 
 the Guardian-Mother when she was at Calcutta. 
 
 "You are bound to Saigon, I think you said." 
 
 "To Saigon, but a portion of my cargo goes to 
 Kampot. If I found a sailing-vessel here that was 
 going up the Gulf of Siam, I was ordered to reship 
 my freight for Kampot in her ; if not, I was to take 
 it there in the Delhi. I find no such vessel here." 
 
136 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " Then you will make your course direct for Point 
 Cambodia, Captain Kayburn ? " said Scott. 
 
 "Precisely so; and if you can keep up with my 
 steamer, we need not part company on the voyage." 
 
 "I think we can keep up with you," replied the 
 captain of the Blanchita with a smile. 
 
 The party went on shore again, and arrangements 
 were made for taking in a supply of coal early the 
 next morning. Everything on board of the yacht 
 had been stowed very carefully on the passage from 
 Simujan, in order to make all the room possible for 
 coal; but the boat could carry a supply for four 
 days, and Scott was not at all afraid that he should 
 come short of this needed article. Pitts purchased 
 all the provisions and stores needed for the voyage. 
 
 After dinner the four paid their respects to the 
 rajah, and visited the two officers whose acquaintance 
 they had made. They were heartily thanked for the 
 welcome gift of the fish, which the officers declared 
 were a great luxury ; and Governor Brooke said that 
 he should make a trip to the lake where they were 
 caught, in the government steam-yacht. These 
 gentlemen thought the young men were rather ven- 
 turesome to undertake the voyage before them in so 
 small a craft; but the best wishes of all of them 
 went with the party. 
 
 At daylight in the morning the coaling was begun ; 
 the provisions and stores were all looked over, and 
 all deficiencies were supplied. By nine o'clock every- 
 thing was in readiness for sailing. Captain Kayburn 
 
ON THE VOYAGE TO POINT CAMBODIA 137 
 
 sent word that the Delhi would sail at ten o'clock, 
 and afterwards went on board of the Blanchita. 
 
 "You seem to be well supplied with coal," said 
 he, as he looked about him. 
 
 "I think we have a five-days' supply on board," 
 replied Scott. " As I figure it up, we shall make the 
 run to the Point inside of three days." 
 
 " The Delhi's time is sixty-three hours," added her 
 commander. " If your coal should come short, I can 
 help you out ; but I think you won't need it." 
 
 " Thank you, Captain Kayburn ; that kind offer 
 removes the only doubt I have in regard to the voy- 
 age," replied Captain Scott. 
 
 " The Delhi, as you have seen for yourself, is not 
 a fast steamer ; but the only fear I have is that you 
 will not be able to keep up with her," added Captain 
 Eayburn. "I am obliged to sail in the interest of 
 my owners, and I must make the best time I can. 
 The south-west monsoons prevail at this season ; and 
 by carrying sail I may add half a knot, or perhaps 
 a knot, to her speed. I should be sorry to run away 
 from you, buf I must do my duty." 
 
 " Certainly ; that is understood. If you run away 
 from me, I shall still wish you bon voyage. But sup- 
 pose I should run away from you ? " suggested Scott, 
 laughing. 
 
 " You will be quite welcome to do so. The Delhi 
 is an old steamer, and not up to modern-built ones ; 
 but with a breeze I have made nine knots in her." 
 
 " I shall try to keep up with you, for I should be 
 
138 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 very sorry to have to part company with so pleasant 
 a captain as you are." 
 
 " Thank you, Captain Scott ; and if we part com- 
 pany on the voyage, I hope we shall meet again. I 
 am liable to be detained some time in Saigon; for 
 mine is a tramp steamer, and I have to look up a 
 cargo for some port," said Captain Rayburn, as he 
 shook hands with the four, and went into his boat 
 alongside. 
 
 The first thing Scott did was to look up the mast 
 and sail of the Blanchita. It had not been covered 
 up with coal, as he had feared; for Clingman had 
 suspended it inboard under the rail. The sail had 
 been stowed away in the bow of the boat, and it 
 was brought out and overhauled. It was nearly new, 
 and needed no repairs. It was a lug-foresail, with a 
 gaff, but no boom. It was stepped just abaft the 
 galley, and the sail could be set in two or three min- 
 utes when it was required. 
 
 The statement of the captain of the Delhi that he 
 could gain a knot or less in a good breeze had stimu- 
 lated Scott to be ready for such an emergency. The 
 wind would be on the port quarter during the whole 
 voyage, and the sail would certainly add something 
 to the speed of the yacht. In the crowd that col- 
 lected at the government storehouse were the rajah 
 and most of the .officers of the place. The handshak- 
 ing was all done over again, and pleasant wishes 
 were extended to the " Big Four " as the Blanchita 
 cast off her fasts. 
 
ON THE VOYAGE TO POINT CAMBODIA 139 
 
 The Delhi was already under way, and going at 
 full speed down the river. Clingman was at the 
 wheel, and Scott went aft to the engine-room, as it 
 was called, though there was no such room, and the 
 word applied simply to the locality ; and the same 
 was true of the galley. The boat had been delayed 
 a little while the party were making and receiving 
 the parting salutations of their friends, and the 
 Delhi had a lead of nearly half a mile. 
 
 " Give her a spurt, Felipe," said the captain. " I 
 want to know if that craft has the ability to run 
 away from us." 
 
 The engineer threw more coal into the furnace ; and 
 in a few minutes he "let her out," as the captain 
 called it. It was very soon perceived that the yacht 
 was gaining on the old steamer, and Scott became 
 correspondingly happy. She was farther down in 
 the water than usual on account of the extra quantity 
 of coal in her bunkers, and all along her sides, to 
 trim her properly. 
 
 " I don't believe the Delhi will run away from us, 
 Louis," said "the captain as the millionaire joined 
 him, curious to know what he was doing. " She 
 isn't loaded for her best sailing, but she is doing first- 
 rate for her present trim." 
 
 " This is smooth water, Captain ; what will she do 
 when we get out to sea?" asked Louis. 
 
 "We had a chance to try her yesterday in more 
 than half a gale, and she behaved like a lady on a 
 dancing-floor." 
 
140 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " But she was not loaded down with coal then as 
 she is now." 
 
 " The extra weight will not disturb her ; on the 
 contrary, I think it will make her steadier." 
 
 "I talked with the rajah on board, who has used 
 her for over a year, and has made a trip to Rangoon 
 in her. He said she was usually run at eight knots 
 an hour ; but on his return voyage, when he was in 
 a hurry, she made nine knots for twelve hours to- 
 gether," Louis explained. 
 
 "That is all I want of her; but I shall not drive 
 her up to that unless the Delhi is likely to run away 
 from us; and not then till after I have added the 
 sail to our power of locomotion. We are coming 
 up with her now, and probably Captain Kay burn's 
 fears that his steamer may run away from us 
 are beginning to abate," said the captain, rubbing 
 his hands in his delight at the performance of the 
 Blanchita. 
 
 Bather for the occupation it gave him, Scott took 
 the wheel himself, directing Clingman to call the 
 men, and remove the stanchions and connecting-rods 
 on the starboard side of the boat from the galley to 
 the length of the mast aft, so that the sail might not 
 be obstructed when it was set. 
 
 Then, while the Blanchita was still making her 
 nine knots, he ran her alongside the Delhi on the 
 port side, keeping at a safe distance from her. Then 
 he called to Felipe to reduce the speed to eight knots. 
 He had gained nearly half a mile in going half-way 
 
ON THE VOYAGE TO POINT CAMBODIA 141 
 
 down the river to the sea j and this fully satisfied 
 Mm. 
 
 " Bully for you, Captain ! " shouted Captain Kay- 
 burn from the quarter-deck of his steamer. 
 
 " I won't run away from you ! " returned Scott, as 
 the noise of escaping steam when the engineer re- 
 duced the speed must have reached his ears. 
 
 " Wait till we get out to sea ! " called the captain 
 of the Delhi. 
 
 "All right." 
 
 The two craft kept abreast of each other till they 
 had passed the mountain at the mouth of the river. 
 The captain laid the course north-west half-west ; 
 and this was to be the course for half the distance 
 to Point Cambodia, as he remarked to Louis, who was 
 at his side observing the progress of the yacht. 
 
 "How do you spell that word, Captain Scott?" 
 asked Louis. 
 
 " Just as I spelled it when I went to school, and it 
 is so put down on my chart ; but I noticed in Black's 
 " Atlas " that it was spelled Camboja instead of 
 Cambodia," replied Scott. "I am a sailor, and I 
 stick to the chart." 
 
 " I see that Captain Kayburn has laid his course ; 
 how does it agree with yours, Captain ? " inquired 
 Louis, when they were a mile off the mountain. 
 
 " I should say that it was identically the same. I 
 will hail him." 
 
 "North-west half-west," was the answer returned 
 by the captain of the Delhi. 
 
142 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 "I make it the same/' replied Scott. 
 
 The cabin party were summoned to dinner at this 
 time, and Clingman was called to the wheel. 
 
 " What's the bill of fare to-day ? " asked Scott as 
 he took his seat at the table. 
 
 "Baked fish and roast venison," replied Pitts, 
 "with plum-duff." 
 
 "Very good," returned the captain. "We don't 
 get so much breeze off here as we did yesterday, 
 Louis." 
 
 "It does not look at all rough off at sea," added 
 the captain. "But when we get Cape Datu on the 
 beam, we may feel it more." 
 
 The Delhi had not yet set her foresail, for she was 
 schooner-rigged, and there was not wind enough to 
 help her much ; all the rest of the day the two craft 
 kept abreast of each other, as they had in coming 
 down the river. After supper the watches were 
 arranged for the night. The captain, with Clingman 
 and Lane, had the first, or starboard watch, while 
 Morris, the mate, had the port watch, with Wales 
 and Clinch. 
 
 Louis and Felix were appointed second engineers, 
 as the seamen on board relieved them from duty as 
 deck-hands ; and the three in that department were to 
 keep four-hour watches, like the officers and seamen. 
 Achang wanted something to do ; and he was given 
 the berth of second mate, and as such he served in 
 charge of the captain's watch. 
 
AN EXCITING RACE IN THE CHINA SEA 143 
 
 CHAPTER XVI 
 
 AN EXCITING RACE IN THE CHINA SEA 
 
 EVERYTHING worked as smoothly on board of the 
 Blanchita as though she had been in commission for 
 years, for there was not a green hand in the cabin or 
 forecastle. The experience obtained by the " Four " in 
 the Maud had made them proficients in the duties of 
 their present positions. Louis and Felix were not 
 trained engineers or machinists; though they were 
 familiar with the machine, which was of very simple 
 construction. Both of them were competent to run 
 the engine, and had served their watches in the 
 Maud. If there was any trouble, the chief engineer 
 was close at hand. 
 
 From eight to twelve it was the captain's watch. 
 Achang, who- had been the master of a vessel, had 
 been regularly installed as second mate, and was in 
 charge of this watch ; though Scott remained on deck 
 all the time, for he was anxious to observe the move- 
 ments of the Delhi. Clingman and Lane had their 
 two-hour tricks at the wheel, and there was no hard 
 work for anybody. 
 
 The breeze was good, though not heavy from the 
 south-west ; but the Delhi had not yet set a sail. The 
 Blanchita passed Cape Datu at ten in the evening, 
 
144 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 and the second mate made a note of it on the log- 
 slate. Both craft were still making their eight knots, 
 and remained abreast of each other. The wind in- 
 creased slightly in force, but the conditions were 
 about the same all night. At twelve the watch was 
 changed, and Morris came on duty, with Louis in the 
 engine-room. The captain turned in at this time. 
 
 At three in the morning the yacht was off the 
 island of Sirhassen, of which a note was made on 
 the log-slate. Morris had studied the chart enough 
 to enable him to recognize the island, distant as it 
 was, at six bells, or three o'clock in the morning. Of 
 course he could not identify it by its looks, never 
 having seen it before ; but the captain had given him 
 the distances between the islands on the course. Sir- 
 hassen was forty sea miles from Cape Datu, or five 
 hours as the yacht was running ; and when land was 
 reported on the beam, bearing about west, he knew 
 what it was. The chart gave the island as one of 
 considerable size compared with the multitude of 
 small ones in that locality; and this indication af- 
 forded him a further clew to the identification. 
 
 At eight bells, or four o'clock, the morning watch 
 came on duty, with Achang as its officer. Captain 
 Scott did not turn out when the second mate was 
 called, with Felix to take his place at the engine, and 
 it was six o'clock when he made his appearance. 
 Except when there is only one mate, as in small ves- 
 sels, the captain keeps no watch ; but he is liable to 
 be called at any hour of the night in case of a squall 
 
AN EXCITING EACE IN THE CHINA SEA 145 
 
 or other peril. His responsibility may induce him to 
 spend the entire night on deck. 
 
 When he came out of the cabin, his first care 
 was to observe the signs which indicate the coming 
 weather. Then he went to the wheel, and read the 
 entries made on the log-slate. The sea was about 
 the same as it had been when he left the deck. He 
 had looked at the barometer before he left the cabin. 
 There were no signs of bad weather in any direction. 
 
 "What do you think of the weather, Mr. Ac- 
 hang?" he asked of the officer of the deck. 
 
 " It will be fine, Captain," replied the second 
 mate. " I have come all the way from Banjermas- 
 sin to Calcutta with the weather just like this al- 
 ways ; but I think we have more wind when the 
 sun come up." 
 
 "We can stand more than we have now," added 
 Scott. 
 
 " Some of the young gentlemen fear to go to sea 
 in open boat like this yacht ; but the dhows and 
 the proas have not much decks," said the Bornean. 
 
 "Then you think we shall have weather like this 
 all the way to Point Cambodia ? " 
 
 "May blow a little more hard some time." 
 
 The sun was coming up in the east, and in the 
 course of half an hour Achang's prophecy of more 
 wind was realized. It freshened rapidly for a short 
 time; but it did not come in flaws or squalls, and 
 was a steady breeze. A table had been set up in 
 the fore cabin; and at half-past seven, or seven 
 
146 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 bells, which is the usual hour for breakfast at sea, 
 the meal was served to the watch below. 
 
 " Land on the port bow, sir ! " reported Cling- 
 man, who was the lookout man, just before eight 
 bells. 
 
 " That is Subi," said Achang, looking at the paper 
 Morris had given him when the watch was changed. 
 
 "That's right, Mr. Achang," added the captain. 
 "I see the Delhi is setting her foresail, and that 
 means wind enough to add something to her eight 
 knots an hour." 
 
 Lane at the wheel struck eight bells a few minutes 
 later ; and the officer and engineer of the port watch 
 came promptly on deck from the cabin, as did the 
 seamen from the fore cabin. Breakfast had been 
 served at both ends of the yacht to the watch 
 below, so that they were in readiness to come on 
 duty at the striking of the bell. Breakfast was 
 ready for those who came off watch as soon as 
 they were relieved. 
 
 Pitts had his hands more than full in supplying 
 the two tables, but he was assisted by the idlers 
 about the boat. The seamen were served as on 
 board of the Guardian-Mother, where they had a 
 table and a regular meal. On ordinary sea-going 
 vessels the men get their grub " at the galley in 
 tins, or kids, and eat it seated on the deck, or where 
 they choose. 
 
 Captain Scott had graciously ordained, as there 
 was nothing to be done outside of the working of 
 
AN EXCITING RACE IN THE CHINA SEA 147 
 
 the yacht, that " watch and watch" should be the 
 rule 011 board; which means that the hands shall 
 have all their time to themselves when not on watch, 
 though they were to respond when all hands were 
 called. 
 
 "The Delhi means to run away from us, I sup- 
 pose, for she has put on all sail," said Louis as he 
 came on deck when he had finished his breakfast. 
 
 "But I don't believe she will do it," replied the 
 captain. " We have a sail ; but I am waiting to 
 see what she can do under her present conditions, 
 and I have told Felipe to hurry her up a little, 
 just enough to keep up with our consort." 
 
 " She is gaining on us a little," added Louis. 
 
 "I see she is ; but the engineer has thrown an- 
 other shovelful of coal into the furnace, and I wish 
 to see the effect it will produce. He has opened 
 his valve a little, but he has not steam enough 
 yet." 
 
 But it was soon evident to all who understood 
 the matter that the Blanchita was gaining on her 
 consort. It was plain, too, that Captain Eayburn 
 had noticed the fact, for his crew were setting the 
 gaff-topsails on the fore and main masts. Something 
 of the enthusiasm of a race was aroused on board. 
 Felipe had worked up his machine to the nine-knot 
 gauge; and in spite of the added sail on the Delhi, 
 the boat was overhauling her. 
 
 " I think that Captain Kay burn must be recalling 
 his talk to us at Sarawak about running away from 
 
148 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 us," said Louis. "What is he doing now, Captain 
 Scott?" 
 
 "He appears to be hoisting a yard on his fore- 
 mast," replied Scott. 
 
 "What is that for?" 
 
 "If you watch the steamer for a little while 
 longer, you will see him shake out a fore square- 
 sail, and that will be the sharpest move he has 
 made yet. Morris, have the mast stepped, and set 
 the sail," continued the captain. 
 
 Clinch was at the wheel ; and Clingman was called 
 upon to do the work, with the assistance of the 
 other two hands. The great squaresail of the Delhi 
 had been shaken out, and it was drawing for all 
 it was worth. The effect was simply to prevent 
 the Blanchita from passing her, as she would have 
 done in a few minutes more. The enthusiasm of a 
 race was fully developed on board the yacht, among 
 the seamen as well as the cabin party. Clingman 
 and the others had worked very lively, and in a 
 few minutes the sail was set. The captain gave 
 the orders for trimming it; and as soon as the 
 sheet was made fast the yacht heeled over till her 
 rail was nearly down to the water. 
 
 "Our sail is a big one," said Scott, who saw it 
 spread out for the first time ; " and if we desire to 
 run away from the Delhi, I am satisfied that we 
 could do it." 
 
 The boat dashed the spray at her bow, and proved 
 to be very wet in the fore cabin. The captain or- 
 
AN EXCITING KACE IN THE CHINA SEA 149 
 
 dered the curtains to be hauled down to keep the water 
 out, and the forward part of the craft was then as 
 dry as it had been on the river. 
 
 Scott was not quite satisfied with the steering 
 under the altered conditions, and he went to the 
 wheel himself. He was a very skilful boatman in 
 a sailing-craft, as had been fully proved by his bring- 
 ing his yacht, the Seahound, from New York through 
 the Bahama Islands. The seaman was inclined to 
 follow the compass too closely, while Scott regarded 
 the effect of the sail. 
 
 "We are gaining on the Delhi," said Louis, as he 
 seated himself near the captain. 
 
 " Of course we are ; I knew she would do it with 
 the sail in this wind," replied Scott. " The Blanchita 
 is a light craft, and skims over the water like a 
 racer." 
 
 "But it is a little too much sail for her," sug- 
 gested Louis. " She is taking in a bucket of water 
 over her lee rail once in a while." 
 
 "Try the pump, Lane," added the captain. "I 
 don't believe she has shipped more than a teaspoon- 
 ful or two." 
 
 "We are pretty well down in the water," added 
 Louis. 
 
 " Clingman, let off about six inches of the sheet," 
 continued Scott ; and the order was promptly obeyed. 
 "I think you are getting a little nervous, my dear 
 fellow," he added to Louis. 
 
 " Perhaps I am ; I should not like to see the yacht 
 
150 FOUR YOUNG EXPLOREKS 
 
 heel over and take in a couple of hogsheads of water, 
 for she is loaded so heavily with coal that she would 
 go to the bottom." 
 
 " But I should not let her ship such a sea as that. 
 The wind is quite steady, with no heavy flaws, and 
 the boat is under perfect control. I should like it 
 better to sail the Blanchita with less cargo in her, 
 but she is doing splendidly." 
 
 " But a flaw might come, even if we have had none 
 to-day; what could you do in that case?" asked 
 Louis. 
 
 " Clingman, stand by the sheet ! " called the cap- 
 tain. 
 
 The seaman was seated on a box not more than 
 three feet from the cleat at which the sheet was 
 made fast. He took his place within reach of it. 
 
 " Now she heels over again ! " exclaimed Louis, as 
 the water came quite up to the rail, though she took 
 none in. 
 
 " Cast off the sheet, Clingman ! " called the cap- 
 tain ; and the order was obeyed in an instant. 
 
 The boat flew up to an even keel almost as though 
 she had been hoisted up by some giant power. 
 
 " That is how I should keep her from shipping a 
 big sea," said Scott, as he looked at his companion 
 with a smile on his brown face. 
 
 " I give it up, Captain Scott. Of course you know 
 what you are about every time, and I won't say a 
 word again about the boat. But suppose you were 
 not looking when the flaw came ? " 
 
AN EXCITING RACE IN THE CHINA SEA 151 
 
 " It is not necessary to be looking ; for a skipper 
 steers more by the feeling of the boat than by sight. 
 Make fast the sheet, Clingman." 
 
 The Blanchita went ahead again ; and by this time 
 she was abreast of the Delhi, and gaining upon her. 
 Captain Rayburn was on his quarter-deck. 
 
 " Don't run away from me, and I won't run away 
 from you ! " he shouted. 
 
 But he had hardly spoken before a noise like the 
 distant report of a cannon was heard on board of the 
 yacht. 
 
 " He has split his fore squaresail ; and if his game 
 was not up before, it is now," said Captain Scott. 
 " The sail was old and rotten, and I don't believe he 
 would have attempted to carry it except on an occa- 
 sion like the present." 
 
 " He was a little too pronounced when he expressed 
 his fears that the Blanchita would not be able to 
 keep up with him, and I fancy he is sorry he said 
 anything about it by this time," added Louis. 
 
 The split sail could not be repaired at once ; and 
 if it could it was not strong enough to be of any use 
 in the fresh breeze. The crew took it in at once, the 
 yard being lowered to enable them to do so. The 
 captain of the yacht ordered the engineer to reduce 
 his speed to the ordinary rate, though the sail was 
 not furled. Between the steam and the wind the 
 Blanchita ran ahead of the Delhi. The sheet was 
 slacked off as far as it could be without permitting 
 the sail to shake, and the two craft kept well together 
 
152 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 the rest of the day, passing Great Natuna Island at 
 four in the afternoon. 
 
 The captain took the sun at noon, and worked up 
 the position of the boat. The run from the mouth of 
 the Sarawak at that time was two hundred and four 
 sea miles. 
 
 
THE END OF THE VOYAGE TO BANGKOK 153 
 
 CHAPTER XVII 
 
 THE END OF THE VOYAGE TO BANGKOK 
 
 THE routine of daily duty on board of the Blan- 
 chita has been given ; and after the race in the China 
 Sea had proved that she could run away from the 
 Delhi, there was no further excitement on the voyage. 
 On the contrary, it was rather monotonous, and there 
 were no incidents worthy of record. After passing 
 Great Natuna on the afternoon of the second day 
 from the mouth of the Sarawak, no land was seen 
 again till the island of Pulo Obi, about twenty miles 
 south-west of Point Cambodia, was seen on the third 
 day; and the Point on the mainland was passed a 
 little later. 
 
 At noon on this day the two vessels were forty- 
 four miles up the Gulf of Siam. The prophecies 
 of Captain Rayburn and Achang in regard to the 
 weather proved to be correct. The monsoon blew 
 steadily all the way, and the yacht carried her sail. 
 Not even a squall disturbed the serenity of the voy- 
 age, and everything went on as during the first and 
 second days. The " Four " would have been glad to ex- 
 plore the Great Natuna Island, and determine whether 
 or not it was inhabited ; for they could obtain no in- 
 formation in regard to it from any of the books they 
 
154 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 had brought from the ship, and they forgot to inquire 
 about it at Kuching. 
 
 At noon on the third day, in the Gulf, the captain 
 of the Delhi hailed the yacht, and came on board of 
 her. 
 
 " I shall have to bear more to the eastward now, 
 Captain Scott, and we shall soon part company," said 
 the commander of the Delhi. " We had quite a lively 
 race on our second day out, and you beat me hand- 
 somely. I had no idea that your yacht could sail so 
 fast. I was afraid you could not keep up with me ; 
 but I found that you could run away from me, as you 
 suggested before we sailed." 
 
 "I did not know myself what speed the Blan- 
 chita could make, though I was informed that she 
 had gone nine knots for twelve hours together," 
 replied Scott. 
 
 " I am very glad that I met you, and I hope I 
 shall see you again. You have a very agreeable 
 party, and I should think you might enjoy your- 
 selves." 
 
 " I think we are likely to meet again at Saigon. 
 The Guardian-Mother will be there, and I hope you 
 will come on board of her," replied Captain Scott, as 
 they shook hands at parting, and the visitor returned 
 to the Delhi. 
 
 The Blanchita started her screw again; and the 
 captain gave out north-west as the course for the 
 mouth of the Menan River, on which Bangkok is situ- 
 ated. 
 
THE END OF THE VOYAGE TO BANGKOK 155 
 
 "Where do you expect to find the Guardian- 
 Mother, Captain Scott ? " asked Louis. 
 
 " At Bangkok," replied the captain, as he took 
 his memorandum-book from his pocket. " Captain 
 Einggold gave me his time for leaving there, and 
 also of sailing from Saigon." 
 
 " When was he to leave the capital of Siam ? " 
 
 "On the first tide Monday morning. This is 
 Saturday, a little after noon," replied Scott. "We 
 have three hundred and twenty-five miles to make. 
 The monsoon is about as fresh here as it has been 
 all the voyage; and we have used up about half of 
 our coal, so that we are considerably lighter than 
 when we left Kuching, and with the sail we can 
 easily log nine knots an hour. We shall go into 
 the Menan River before sundown to-morrow, and it 
 will take two or three hours to go up to the city. 
 We shall be alongside the ship some time in the 
 evening; and that is just the time I should like to 
 be there." 
 
 "We shalLgive our friends a tremendous surprise," 
 added Louis. 
 
 "That is so; for while your anxious mamma is 
 worrying for fear you have been chewed up by an 
 orang-outang, and Flix's grandma is dreaming that 
 he has been swallowed whole by a big boa-constrictor, 
 we shall drop in on them while they are singing 
 gospel hymns in the music-room." 
 
 "I shall be sorry to disappoint grandma; but if 
 she insists upon dreaming such nonsense, it is not 
 
156 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 my fault," added Felix. "She ought to know by 
 this time that snakes don't swallow me till they get 
 a bullet through their heads." 
 
 "I don't think my mother has been greatly wor- 
 ried about me, for she has learned that I am able to 
 take care of myself," said Louis. 
 
 "But the mothers will hug their boys as soon as 
 they get hold of them." 
 
 "I wish the hugging might be confined to the 
 mothers, for it is perfectly proper for them to do 
 that thing; but when it comes to a grandma who 
 hasn't a drop of Irish blood in her veins, I beg to 
 be excused, and, what is more, I won't stand it," 
 protested Felix, making a very comical face. 
 
 "But you can't help yourself, Flix," laughed the 
 captain. 
 
 " You see if I don't ! " replied the Milesian, shak- 
 ing his head as though his plan to avoid the endear- 
 ing reception had already been formed. 
 
 "We shall see what we shall see," added the 
 captain. " It seems to me that the breeze is stronger 
 here than it was out at sea." 
 
 "There is a hot country to the east of us, and 
 perhaps the wind is hurrying up to fill a partial 
 vacuum there," suggested Louis. 
 
 "You are a philosopher, my darling Louis, and 
 that must be the reason," added Felix. 
 
 The Blanchita seemed to be flying through the 
 water, for her speed had sensibly increased since 
 she came into the Gulf. There were several large 
 
THE END OF THE VOYAGE TO BANGKOK 157 
 
 islands along the coast of Cambodia ; but the course 
 was fifty miles outside of the mainland, which could 
 not be seen. 
 
 " Why do you keep so far from the shore, Captain 
 Scott ? " asked Louis ; for all the party would have 
 been glad to observe the shore. 
 
 " Because we all wish to get to Bangkok to-morrow 
 evening. What is the shortest way between two 
 points, Louis ? " 
 
 "A straight line, of course." 
 
 "That's the reason we keep her so far from the 
 land. A north-west course from a point outside of 
 Obi Island to Cape Liant takes the yacht on the 
 course we are running now." 
 
 "That explains it all," replied Louis. 
 
 The watches were regularly kept, and the captain 
 was satisfied that the Blanchita was making over 
 nine knots an hour. There was no excitement of 
 any kind on board, and the rest of the day was with- 
 out anything worthy of note. The Delhi had gone 
 in behind an island, and in a few hours she was no 
 longer to be seen. And so it was all day Sunday. 
 Cape Liant was passed about one o'clock. A river 
 pilot was taken about five o'clock. He could not 
 speak English, but Achang spoke to him in Malay. 
 
 " Ask him if the Guardian-Mother is in the river, 
 Achang," said the captain. 
 
 The pilot could not make out the name, and the 
 interpreter described the ship so that he understood 
 him at last. The face of the Siamese lighted up 
 
158 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 when he got the idea, and it was seen by the four 
 that the ship was there. Achang informed them 
 that the Guardian-Mother was anchored in the river. 
 
 The river was full of boats, and on many of them 
 houses were built. The people were new to the 
 Americans, though they were not very different to 
 the ordinary observer from the Burmese and other 
 natives they had seen. Before the yacht was half- 
 way up to the city, it was too dark to see anything 
 distinctly, and the party were more interested in the 
 expected surprise of their friends on board the ship 
 than anything else. 
 
 When the yacht was within a short distance of 
 the ship, the pilot pointed her out. The singing 
 in the music-room could be distinctly heard, and 
 everything was working precisely as Scott had said 
 it would. At the gangway the barge of the Blanche 
 was made fast; and it was evident that General 
 Noury and his wife were on board, and perhaps 
 Captain Sharp and his lady. The boat was worked 
 very carefully and noiselessly up to the platform of 
 the gangway, where several sailors were seated. 
 
 " The Blanchita ! " exclaimed Quartermaster Bangs, 
 as he recognized the craft. " Captain Scott ! I will 
 inform the captain that you are alongside." 
 
 " Don't do anything of the kind, Bangs ! " replied 
 Scott. " Don't say a word, and don't make any 
 noise, any of you. We want to drop in on the party 
 without any notice." 
 
 The quartermaster was a very intelligent fellow, 
 
THE END OF THE VOYAGE TO BANGKOK 159 
 
 and lie took in the situation at a glance. The " Big 
 Four" stepped lightly on the platform, and Felix 
 had taken pains to be the last one to mount the 
 gangway. Scott led the way, and halted at the door 
 of the music-room. He waited there till the hymn 
 they were singing was finished, and then threw open 
 the door, and marched in. He took off his cap, and 
 bowed as gracefully as a dancing-master to the 
 assembly. 
 
 Louis and Morris followed him, and imitated the 
 example he had given them ; but Felix had dis- 
 appeared, and they did not know what had become 
 of him. The musical party seemed to be so utterly 
 confounded at the sudden and unexpected appear- 
 ance of the hunters from Borneo that they seemed 
 to be struck dumb with amazement. 
 
 " Louis, my son ! " Mrs. Belgrave screamed as she 
 rushed upon her boy, and folded him in her arms, 
 kissing him as though he had come back to her from 
 a tomb or a grave beneath the ocean. 
 
 " Morris ! " cried Mrs. Woolridge, as she imitated 
 the example of Mrs. Belgrave. 
 
 " My brother ! " exclaimed Miss Blanche, as she 
 divided the neck and arms of the returned hunter 
 with her mother. 
 
 "This is somewhat unexpected, Captain Scott," 
 said Captain Einggold, as he came forward, and took 
 the hand of the captain of the Blanchita, who alone 
 of the trio was not in the arms of a mother. 
 
 " I should say that it might be, Captain," replied 
 
160 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 Scott as coolly as though the meeting was nothing 
 unusual. 
 
 " But how under the sun did you get here, Scott ? " 
 demanded the commander, scrutinizing the expres- 
 sion of the third officer, which was his rank on 
 board of the ship, to ascertain if there were any 
 signs of a calamity there. 
 
 "We came by water, Captain," answered the young 
 officer, with a cheerful smile, which indicated any- 
 thing but a disaster. 
 
 " Of course you did, inasmuch as there is no other 
 way to get here. In what steamer did you come ? 
 for I believe there is no regular line from Sarawak 
 to Bangkok," added Captain Einggold. 
 
 "We came by the steamer Blanchita." 
 
 " I don't understand it at all," said the commander 
 with a perplexed look on his face. "Do you mean 
 that you made the voyage in the steam-yacht, Mr. 
 Scott?" and there was a decided expression of in- 
 credulity on his face. 
 
 "That is exactly what I mean to assert; and if 
 you have any doubts about the truth of what I say, 
 I appeal to Louis and Morris to substantiate my 
 assertion. 
 
 "If you really say so, I do not doubt the truth 
 of what you declare. It looks like a foolhardy 
 risk, but boys will be boys. I will not detain you 
 now; for others wish to welcome you back, and I 
 know they are all glad to see you, unexpected as 
 your return is." 
 
'BUT WHERE IS FELIX?" DEMANDED MRS. BLOSSOM. 
 
 Page 161. 
 
THE END OF THE VOYAGE TO BANGKOK 161 
 
 As soon as his mother released him from the 
 bondage of her loving arms, Louis hastened to Miss 
 Blanche, and she grasped his hand as he approached. 
 No loving expressions passed between them, but 
 what they might have said that could be classed 
 under this head was seen on their telltale faces. 
 
 " But where is Felix ? " demanded Mrs. Blossom, 
 who had been looking for him since Scott came into 
 the room. "Where is he, Mr. Scott?" 
 
 "I am sorry to say that he was swallowed by a 
 big boa-constrictor one hundred and sixty feet long, 
 and twelve feet in circumference," replied the cap- 
 tain of the Blanchita, as seriously as though there 
 had been such a monster snake in existence. 
 
 The poor lady was impervious to a joke ; she 
 screamed once, and then dropped in a sitting posture 
 on a divan. Nearly all the rest of the party laughed 
 heartily. At this point the head of Felix dropped 
 down a foot through the skylight over the centre 
 of the room. He had made his way to the upper 
 deck, and stationed himself where he could see and 
 hear all that passed in the apartment. 
 
 " Good-mahrnin' to ye's all this foine avenin' ! " he 
 shouted. " Don't ye's make a row, Aunty. The 
 schnake was a bit troubled wid indigestion of the 
 brain, and, f aix ! I was too much for him ! Loike 
 the sodjers surrounded by the inimy, Oi cut me way 
 out, and here Oi am." 
 
 " I don't believe you were swallowed by a snake," 
 protested Mrs. Blossom. 
 
162 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 "Don't you believe that Jonah swallowed the 
 whale, Aunty?" demanded Felix. 
 
 " Of course I believe that because it is in the Bible. 
 If you had told me that you had swallowed the 
 snake, I might have believed that," added the good 
 lady. 
 
 At this point General Noury came forward, and 
 grasped the hand of Scott, passing from him to Louis 
 and Morris, and then doing the same with Felix, who 
 had dropped down from his perch at the skylight. 
 As soon as Mrs. Blossom saw him on the floor, she 
 rushed towards him with outspread arms; but the 
 Milesian warded off the assault, and took her right 
 hand. 
 
 " Don't hug me, Aunty, for the snake swallowed 
 me clothes and all, and you may get some of the 
 poison on you," said he. 
 
 For some time longer there was a general hand- 
 shaking, and Louis was kissed by the Princess Zu- 
 leima. 
 
163 
 
 CHAPTER XVIII 
 
 AFTER the welcome of the Bornean hunters had 
 spent itself in kissing and handshaking, the question 
 came up as to why the "Big Four" had abandoned 
 their explorations after one week in the island in- 
 stead of three, the time arranged for them to remain 
 there ; and they had fixed the time themselves. 
 
 " I thought three weeks was a rather long time for 
 you to be in the island," said Captain Einggold after 
 the question had been opened for discussion. 
 
 " We fixed the time before we knew anything 
 about the island, 7 ' replied Louis. "But I want to 
 say, in order to counteract the impression which ap- 
 pears to prevail in this company, that our trip was 
 not a failure ; for we had a fine time, and enjoyed our 
 trips on the rivers." 
 
 " If you had a good time, why did you cut it short 
 by two-thirds of the period allotted to the excur- 
 sions ? " asked Uncle Moses. 
 
 "We went up the Sarawak, the Sadong, and the 
 Simujan, up the last to the mountains, passing through 
 Lake Padang, and we have shot an orang-outang, and 
 might have killed more of them, to say nothing of 
 other game," replied Louis, whom Scott had requested 
 
164 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 to do the talking. "We visited three Dyak villages, 
 sailed the Blanchita through a forest, and killed a 
 good many crocodiles." 
 
 " You seem to have had sport enough," added 
 Uncle Moses. "Why did you give it up in the 
 cream of the thing ? " 
 
 " I believe you like a good dinner, Uncle Moses ; 
 such a dinner as you always have on board of the 
 Guardian-Mother," continued Louis, who was evi- 
 dently pluming himself to make a point. 
 
 " I do like a good dinner, and enjoy one very 
 much," replied the worthy trustee of the young mil- 
 lionaire. " But I doubt if I am any more devoted to 
 such a banquet as we get every day than my beloved 
 friend, Brother Adipose Tissue, and all the rest of 
 the voyagers all over the world." 
 
 " I plead guilty to the charge of Brother Avoirdu- 
 pois ; and I acknowledge myself to be a worshipper 
 at the shrine of Mr. Melancthon Sage, and I invoke 
 a blessing upon the head of Monsieur Odervie, the 
 chief cook. Our life on the ocean wave is a constant 
 promotive of the appetite. If the proof of the pud- 
 ding is not in the eating of the bag, it is in the eating 
 of the dinners ; and I think we pay an abundant trib- 
 ute to the talent of Mr. Sage, the prince of stewards, 
 in the quantity of the well-cooked food he causes to 
 be placed before us." 
 
 "We get through dinner about seven o'clock. I 
 see that the accomplished chief steward is stand- 
 ing at the door," continued Louis. "Now, Mr. Sage, 
 
LOUIS'S DOUBLE-DINNER ARGUMENT 165 
 
 would it be possible and convenient for you to have 
 another dinner on the table, say at eight o'clock, an 
 hour after the first feast had been finished ? " 
 
 " Quite possible, and even convenient ; the only per- 
 sons to complain of such an arrangement would be 
 the cooks and stewards," replied Mr. Sage. 
 
 " Captain Ringgold, might I so far presume upon 
 any influence I may have with you as the owner of 
 the Guardian-Mother to request you to order a second 
 dinner to be served at eight in the evening, begin- 
 ning, say, with to-morrow evening ? " asked the 
 young millionaire, looking as serious as though he 
 was about to preach a sermon, though the party 
 were generally laughing. 
 
 "As I have always told you, I take my orders 
 from the owner; and if you desire such a dinner, 
 I shall certainly give Mr. Sage an order to that 
 effect," replied the commander. 
 
 " But who is to eat the dinner after it is provided, 
 an hour after the passengers have gorged themselves 
 at the table ? " demanded Dr. Hawkes. " Is this a 
 conspiracy to make more work for the surgeon ? " 
 
 " No^at all," protested Louis. "It is to give the 
 gentlemen who question so closely an opportunity to 
 have an abundance of a good thing." 
 
 "But we could not eat the dinner," said Uncle 
 Moses. "We are not hogs." 
 
 " Oh, you are not ! " chuckled the owner 
 
 " But what has all this to do with hunting and 
 exploring in Borneo ? " inquired Mr. Woolridge. 
 
166 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 "Well, sir, after we had taken a full dinner in 
 Borneo, Uncle Moses and the commander ask us 
 why we did not eat another dinner immediately on 
 the top of it, as I observe that they are not disposed 
 to do on board of the ship," returned Louis. 
 
 Some of the party had penetrated to the conclusion 
 of Louis's argument, but most of them did not see 
 the point of his illustration till he made his last 
 remark; then Mr. Woolridge began to clap his hands, 
 and the whole company applauded vigorously. 
 
 " I suppose the interpretation of the whole matter 
 is, that the hunters in Borneo were gorged with hunt- 
 ing," said Captain Ringgold ; " and that when they 
 stipulated for three weeks of the sport, they overdid 
 the matter." 
 
 " That was precisely the situation, Mr. Commander ; 
 and if you had been with us on the waters of Padang 
 Lake, you could not have defined it better," replied 
 Louis. 
 
 "But it'is almost incredible that a quartet of such 
 Nimrods should have become disgusted with their 
 favorite sport in a single week," added Captain 
 Einggold. 
 
 " We are not hogs, as Uncle Moses gently sug- 
 gested, and we could not eat a second dinner on top 
 of the first so soon. If we had gone to Borneo a 
 second time, after a reasonable interval, I am confi- 
 dent we should have enjoyed a second week of hunt- 
 ing, even along the muddy rivers and inundated 
 jungles," Louis explained. 
 
LOUIS'S DOUBLE-DINNER ARGUMENT 167 
 
 "In other words, you bit off a bigger mouthful 
 than you could swallow," said the commander with 
 a hearty laugh ; for he had predicted that three weeks 
 of hunting at one time was too much. " But we under- 
 stand the situation now up to the time of the depar- 
 ture of the Nimrods from their happy hunting-ground. 
 It was a rather daring enterprise to make a voyage of 
 nine hundred miles in an open boat; and I should 
 like to ask who was the originator of the idea." 
 
 " If there is any blame for this trip, we were all 
 in the same boat, and we share the responsibility," 
 answered Louis. " Captain Achang Bakir was with 
 us ; and he has sailed in all the seas of the Archi- 
 pelago in an open boat, and we had his advice. 
 Then we sailed all the way to the entrance of the 
 Gulf of Siam in company with the steamer Delhi, 
 whose captain agreed to stand by us, and to supply 
 us with coal if we came short." 
 
 "That puts a new face on the matter." 
 
 " It was in the head waters of the Simujan that 
 the plan was discussed, and Captain Scott was the 
 originator of the idea," continued Louis. " I was in 
 favor of it first because it would save the Guardian- 
 Mother the voyage from Saigon back to Kuching, 
 about a thousand miles." 
 
 " Where is Kuching ? " asked Dr. Hawkes. 
 
 "It is the native name for Sarawak." 
 
 "I am heartily glad you have come to us, Louis, 
 for the reason you have given," added the com- 
 mander. 
 
168 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " How did the steam-yacht work, Mr. Belgrave ? " 
 asked the rajah. 
 
 " Exceedingly well, sir ; nothing could have done 
 any better; but Mr. Scott can answer you better 
 than I can, sir." 
 
 The third officer of the ship, late captain of the 
 Blanchita, described the working of the yacht, and 
 gave her liberal praise. He related in what manner 
 she had beaten the Delhi in the race, and that he had 
 carried sail all the way nearly from the start. He 
 gave the party the routine of the boat, how they had 
 taken their meals, and how they had slept on board. 
 
 "But I think it is time for us to return to the 
 Blanche," interposed Captain Sharp, as the clock 
 struck eleven. 
 
 " I must make an announcement before you go," 
 said Captain Kinggold. " We shall not be able to 
 sail for Saigon to-morrow morning, as arranged be- 
 fore. We have to clean the Blanchita in the morn- 
 ing, and she has to be put on the upper deck of the 
 Blanche. As the Nimrods have come to Bangkok, I 
 wish to give them a day on shore to see the temples, 
 and call on the king if they are so disposed. We 
 will sail on Tuesday morning on the early tide." 
 
 " But we have not had any account of the adven- 
 tures of the Nimrods in Borneo," suggested Uncle 
 Moses. 
 
 " We shall do so at eight o'clock in the morning ; 
 and you will all assemble for the purpose at that 
 time. The lecture on Siam and Cambodia has been 
 
LOUIS'S DOUBLE-DINNER ARGUMENT 169 
 
 postponed till all hands could hear it ; and if General 
 Noury is ready, that shall follow the adventures," 
 replied the captain. 
 
 " I will be here at the time stated, for we all desire 
 to know what the Nimrods have been doing," replied 
 the general, as the party from the Blanche retired 
 from the music-room. 
 
 The rest of the company went to their staterooms, 
 while the commander gave his orders for the work 
 of the morning. All hands were called at daylight ; 
 and the young adventurers shook hands with the offi- 
 cers they found on deck, and spoke a pleasant word 
 to the seamen on duty. The latter were hoisting the 
 coal, provisions, and stores of the Blanchita on board 
 of the ship ; and by breakfast-time the yacht was as 
 clean as a Dutch chamber. 
 
 At the appointed time the company, including the 
 party from the Blanche, were seated in the arm- 
 chairs of Conference Hall ; and Louis went through 
 his narrative of the adventures of the Nimrods in 
 Borneo. D-iiring the morning, Achang had placed 
 the stuffed orang-outang on a shelf the carpenter had 
 erected at the head of the platform, with the probos- 
 cis monkey on one side, and the argus-pheasant on 
 the other. The Bornean had had some experience as 
 a taxidermist, and Dr. Hawkes declared that he had 
 done his work well. 
 
 Louis explained these specimens, and gave the 
 measurements of the orang. The proboscis monkey 
 and the bird were also described. When he said he 
 
170 FOUK YOUNG EXPLOREKS 
 
 had not been disposed to shoot monkeys and other 
 harmless animals for the fun of it, the audience ap- 
 plauded. He had killed a specimen of several ani- 
 mals, and several pigs, deer, and one bear, most of 
 the latter for food. The cook had packed the last of 
 the fish in the ice, so that it had kept well, and it 
 had been served for breakfast that morning. Every- 
 body had praised it. The surgeon called it the gou- 
 rami, and said that some successful attempts had 
 been made to introduce the fish in American waters. 
 
 The audience laughed heartily when Louis related 
 in what manner they had killed and sold one hundred 
 and eight feet of crocodile for about forty dollars. 
 He told what he had learned about the Dyaks, and de- 
 scribed the long-house they had visited, and the head- 
 house, and gave the story in full of Rajah Brooke, 
 and their visits to his nephew and successor, the pres- 
 ent rajah. He might have gone on with his narra- 
 tive till lunch-time if he had not known that General 
 Noury was waiting for him to finish his account. 
 
 " Did you see the Dyak women, Louis ? " asked 
 his mother. 
 
 " Plenty of them. The older ones reminded me of 
 the French women ; for when they begin to grow old, 
 they wrinkle and dry up. The morality of the Dyaks 
 is much higher in tone, even among the laboring- 
 classes, men and women, than in civilized countries. 
 They are all honest ; and they steal nothing, even in 
 Kuching, though the Malays and Chinamen do it for 
 them." 
 
LOUIS'S DOUBLE-DINNER ARGUMENT 171 
 
 " Were the young women pretty, Mr. Belgrave ? " 
 inquired Mrs. Woolridge. 
 
 " To a Dyak gentleman I suppose they are ; but I 
 was not fascinated with them, though I saw some on 
 the Simujan who were not bad looking. The pretti- 
 est one I saw was at a village near the mountains. 
 But the general is waiting for me to finish, and I 
 must answer no more questions at present," replied 
 the speaker, as he bowed, and hastened from the ros- 
 trum. 
 
 Then it was found that Mr. Gaskette had not hung 
 up the map of Cochin China, for Achang and the car- 
 penter had taken up the space before appropriated to 
 it. Mr. Stevens, the carpenter, suggested a way to 
 get over the difficulty; but it would take him half 
 an hour to put up a frame in front of the orang. 
 
 " I shall not be able to get half through Cochin 
 China before lunch-time," said General Noury, con- 
 sulting his watch. 
 
 " I am afraid your audience will be scatterbrained, 
 General, there is so much going on about the decks. 
 Perhaps we had better postpone the lecture till after 
 we have sailed to-morrow morning, especially as the 
 Nimrods will be on shore this afternoon," suggested 
 the commander. 
 
 " I approve the suggestion; let it be adopted." 
 
 The Blanche party lunched on board, and spent the 
 afternoon there. 
 
172 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 CHAPTER XIX 
 
 A HASTY GLANCE AT BANGKOK 
 
 WHILE the carpenter and the second officer were 
 busy making a place for the large map of Cochin 
 China, the returned hunters from Borneo were invited 
 to the cabin of the commander. They were pleased 
 with the change of scene from the mud and water 
 of their week in Borneo ; though they felt that they 
 would like to go there for another week not more 
 than that at another time. 
 
 " After lunch you will visit the city of Bangkok, 
 and spend the afternoon there ; for you ought to see 
 the place, as you are here," said Captain Einggold. 
 " It is a large city." 
 
 " How large is it, Captain ? " asked Louis. 
 
 " That is more than anybody in Siam, or anywhere 
 else, can tell you. In these Oriental countries, when 
 they count the people, they do not include the females 
 in the enumeration, so that we get but half an idea 
 of the whole number. Chambers puts it at 300,000 ; 
 the <Year Book' does not give it at all; Bradshaw 
 puts it down at 500,000 ; Lippincott the same. 
 Probably the larger number is the nearer correct, 
 and the authorities quoted are issued the present 
 year." 
 
A HASTY GLANCE AT BANGKOK 173 
 
 " I see no end of Chinamen flitting about the river," 
 said Scott. 
 
 "They compose about one-half of the population of 
 the city ; and most of the trade of the place is in their 
 hands, as you have found it to be, though to a less 
 degree, in other cities you have visited in the East. 
 The Celestials are taxed three dollars when they 
 come into Siam, and pay the same amount every three 
 years. But there is the lunch-bell. If you have 
 no objection, Professor Giroud will go on shore with 
 you." 
 
 " I should be delighted to have his company," re- 
 plied Louis ; and the others said the same thing. 
 
 The conversation at the table related more to Bor- 
 neo than to anything else, and the Nimrods had all 
 the questions they could answer put to them; and 
 some of the ladies wished they had remained there a 
 few days. 
 
 " If I had supposed the Nimrods would stay there 
 only a week, I should have been quite willing to re- 
 main at Sarawak that time," added the commander. 
 
 "We fixed the time at three weeks because we 
 thought it would take you all of that time to see 
 Siam and Cambodia, and get back to Sarawak," re- 
 plied Scott. 
 
 " I think it would have been delightful to sail on 
 those rivers, and see the uncivilized people of the 
 island," added Mrs. Belgrave. " But I suppose we 
 should have been in the way of the hunters." 
 
 " Not at all, madam," answered Scott. " We had 
 
174 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 a sampan, in which we could have done our hunting, 
 while you were examining the long-houses and the 
 head-houses. I don't know but that we should have 
 wished to remain the whole three weeks if the ladies 
 had been with us." 
 
 " Gallant Captain Scott ! " exclaimed the lady. 
 
 "We did not go up the Kajang Eiver as we in- 
 tended, and we should have done that if you had been 
 with us. I am very sure the Dyak ladies would have 
 been delighted to see you, more than you would have 
 been to see them," replied Scott. 
 
 "The steam-yacht must have been very delight- 
 ful on the rivers and lakes ; but the crocodiles, the 
 snakes, and the savage orang-outangs would not 
 have been pleasant to us." 
 
 " But with eleven Winchester repeating-rifles ready 
 for use, you would have had nothing to fear." 
 
 Captain Einggold rose from the table; and this 
 terminated the conversation, and the party went 
 on deck. 
 
 "Captain Einggold said you had offered to go 
 on shore with us, Professor Giroud," said Louis, as 
 he joined the instructor. "We shall be delighted 
 with your company." 
 
 " Thank you, Mr. Belgrave. I have been on shore 
 every day, with or without the party, and have 
 learned something about Bangkok. I may be of 
 service to you," replied the professor. 
 
 "I am sure you will," said Scott. 
 
 The first cutter was in the water when they 
 
A HASTY GLANCE AT BANGKOK 175 
 
 reached the gangway, with the crew in their places. 
 They went on board, and the bowman shoved off. 
 Stoody, the coxswain, gave the orders, and the boat 
 was immediately under way. She was steered to- 
 wards the shore till she came abreast of the various 
 craft moored there, and then headed up the river. 
 
 "Where are you going, Stoody?" asked Scott. 
 
 " Captain Kinggold told me to take the party 
 up the river, to show them the boats and houses," 
 replied the coxswain. 
 
 "That is a good idea, Mr. Scott," added the pro- 
 fessor. 
 
 " The houses here are all afloat," said Morris. 
 "They are three or four deep." 
 
 "Everybody is not allowed to build his house 
 on shore ; for that is a royal privilege, doled out to 
 a few of the highest nobility," said the professor. 
 "I suppose there is not room enough in the crty 
 for much besides the palaces and the temples, but 
 beyond its limits we shall find plenty of land- 
 houses." 
 
 "But I should think these floating houses would 
 be smashed to pieces in a heavy blow; and I see 
 there are plenty of steamers and tugboats in the 
 river, which might bump against them," Morris 
 objected. 
 
 "You see that the middle of the river is kept 
 open, though it is very crooked; and these things 
 regulate themselves." 
 
 "These houses are no better than card-boxes. 
 
176 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 They seem to be built of bamboos, with wicker- 
 work and plants. Each of them has a veranda 
 in front, which is a nice place to sit and read, 
 with a kind of ell at each end. I think I should 
 like to live in one of them for a week or two," 
 continued Morris. 
 
 "You would not like it," said Achang, who had 
 come with them to act as interpreter. 
 
 "This is a walled town, with six miles of forti- 
 fications around it." 
 
 "A little less than two miles across it; and we 
 shall not have to take any very long walks, for I 
 have read that carriages are seldom seen except 
 among the palaces, and probably belong to the 
 nobility," said Louis; "but we are good for six 
 miles this afternoon." 
 
 "The river is the great thoroughfare for busi- 
 ness and for pleasure. It is covered with boats 
 of all sorts and kinds. The walls of the city are 
 from fifteen to thirty feet high, and twelve feet 
 thick ; but I suppose the heavy guns of modern 
 times could knock them down in a very short 
 time," added the professor. 
 
 "What is that opening into the river?" asked 
 Felix, who had kept his tongue very quiet so far. 
 
 "That is a canal," replied Achang, as the pro- 
 fessor did not reply. " I have been here three 
 times, and once I went up that canal. There are 
 only a few good streets in the city, and inside 
 business is carried on by the canals." 
 
A HASTY GLANCE AT BANGKOK 177 
 
 " As Paris is to France, and Paris is France, so 
 Bangkok is Siam; and that is the reason why the 
 commander goes no farther. Now we have come 
 to the wall, and you can see the outside town." 
 
 " The houses here are all on stilts, as in Sumatra 
 and Borneo," observed Scott. "Some of them are 
 built over the water." 
 
 " It is said here that the city suffered terribly 
 from the ravages of cholera ; and when the king 
 found out that the disease was caused by the bad 
 drainage of the houses, he ordered his people to 
 build on the river, where the drainage would dis- 
 pose of itself," said Professor Giroud. " This story 
 was told me by a Frenchman here, but I cannot 
 vouch for the truth of the statement." 
 
 " Can you tell me, Achang, why they build their 
 houses on piles in this country ? " asked Morris. 
 
 " Because they have waterations here." 
 
 " Have what ? " demanded the questioner, while 
 all the party laughed except the Bornean. " I never 
 heard of watexations before." 
 
 " When the water rise up high," Achang explained. 
 
 " Inundations, you mean." 
 
 " Yes ; thunderations," added Achang. 
 
 " Inundations ! " roared the Bornean's preceptor. 
 
 "That's what I say; and that's the first reason. 
 The second is that there are many snakes" 
 
 " Then, it's the place for me ! " exclaimed Felix. 
 
 " Many snakes and wild beasts ; the stilts help to 
 keep them out of the house." 
 
178 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " But most snakes can climb trees," Scott objected. 
 
 " Fixed so that snake can't get off the post into 
 house," the Bornean explained. 
 
 " The little corn-houses in New England and other 
 places are protected in the same way from rats. 
 Four posts are set up for it to rest on, with a flat 
 stone, or sometimes a large tin pan turned upside 
 down, placed on the post. When the building is 
 erected with the corners on the large, flat stone or 
 the pans, rats or other rodents cannot get over these 
 obstructions, and the corn is safe from them," con- 
 tinued Louis, illustrating his subject with a pencil for 
 the post, and his hand for the stone or the pan. 
 
 Scott, who was an officer of the ship, ordered 
 Stoody to take the party to the landing nearest to 
 the Temple of Wat Chang, as the professor re- 
 quested. 
 
 "The religion of Siam, like that of Burma, is 
 Buddhist, in whose honor most of the temples whose 
 spires you can see are erected," said the professor, as 
 he pointed to several of them. 
 
 " We don't care to see them in detail, even if we 
 had the time," suggested Louis. " I know they are 
 magnificent pieces of architecture, and wonderful to 
 behold ; but we have had about enough of that sort 
 of thing." 
 
 The party landed, and walked to the temple. It 
 looked like an exaggerated bell, the spire being the 
 handle, and the lower portion looking like an enor- 
 mous flight of circular stairs for the roof. It was 
 
A HASTY GLANCE AT BANGKOK 179 
 
 over two hundred feet high. Attached to it in the 
 rear was a structure with a pitched roof. They 
 bought photographs of it at the stand of a native 
 who spoke a little French. At this point Achang pro- 
 cured a guide who spoke French, and he conducted 
 them to the Temple of the Sleeping Idol. 
 
 " It is not much of a temple compared with the 
 one we have just visited," said the professor. " We 
 must go into it." 
 
 They entered, conducted by the guide. The build- 
 ing looked like three pitched-roof structures set 
 together, the middle one into the largest at the 
 bottom, and the smallest into the middle one. It 
 contains an enormous figure of Buddha, one hundred 
 and sixty feet long, which about fills the interior of 
 the temple. It is constructed of brick, plastered and 
 then gilded, so that it looks like a golden statue in 
 a reclining posture. The feet are sixteen feet long, 
 and the arms six feet in diameter. 
 
 The party looked in at another temple, which con- 
 tains a brass^ statue of Buddha fifty feet high, with 
 other smaller statues, and a variety of objects that 
 were unintelligible to the visitors. Various other tem- 
 ples were examined hastily on the way to the royal 
 palace, but they were only a repetition of what they 
 had often seen before. 
 
 The palace was a magnificent building, or series 
 of buildings, for a half-civilized country. The tour- 
 ists were permitted to enter at the gate, though the 
 guide was excluded. They saw a squad of the royal 
 
180 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 guards who were drilling on the pavement, and they 
 regarded them with great interest. They wore a 
 Zouave uniform, though with a short frock-coat but- 
 toned to the chin, with round caps in cylindrical form, 
 and visors. They were armed with muskets, and 
 commanded by native officers. 
 
 "This palace is a big thing," said the professor, 
 "and is a mile in circumference, surrounded by 
 walls." 
 
 It contained, besides the palace of the king, the 
 public offices, temples, a theatre, barracks for several 
 thousand soldiers, and apartments for three thousand 
 women, six hundred of whom are the wives of the 
 king. But what interested them more than most of 
 the sights was the famous white elephant. He is said 
 to be of equal rank with the king, and is treated with 
 all possible deference and respect. He has a palatial 
 stable ; and being a king, he lives like one. His ser- 
 vants and attendants are all priests. But he is not 
 a pleasant sprig of royalty, and the visitors were 
 warned not to go too near him. 
 
 But it was time to return to the ship, and they 
 found the boat in the canal which Achang had indi- 
 cated. At dinner the conversation was concerning 
 the city, and the party mentioned many things the 
 Nimrods had not seen. On Tuesday morning the 
 ship sailed on her voyage to Saigon. 
 
A VIEW OF COCHIN CHINA AND SIAM 181 
 
 CHAPTEE XX 
 
 A VIEW OF COCHIN CHINA AND SIAM 
 
 THE ship sailed at six o'clock in the morning, but 
 nearly all the passengers were on deck as soon as 
 the screw began to turn. They were still in the 
 Torrid Zone ; and they saw the sun rise, though the 
 days had become a trifle longer. The Menam River 
 is the great thoroughfare of Bangkok, and the float- 
 ing houses lined the river three or four deep for a 
 considerable distance below the city. The party 
 found plenty of objects to engage their attention as 
 the steamer slowly made her way towards the Gulf. 
 Breakfast was served at the usual hour ; and as soon 
 as the pilot was discharged, the company gathered at 
 Conference Hall for the lecture. 
 
 The siamaags and the baby were still great favor- 
 ites with all on board ; and Mr. Mingo, Mrs. Mingo, 
 and Miss Mingo, as they had been named, had made 
 great progress in civilization. All of them were 
 regular attendants at the meetings in Conference 
 Hall, and always behaved themselves with the great- 
 est propriety. The mother usually occupied one of 
 the arm-chairs, while the baby was held in the lap 
 of one of the ladies. They looked at the speaker 
 just as though they understood what he was saying. 
 
182 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 They joined in the applause when the lecturer pre- 
 sented himself before his audience with their "Ka, 
 ra, ra ! " finishing with the squeak which was a 
 part of their language. 
 
 General Noury took his place on the platform after 
 he had shaken hands with Mrs. Mingo, who gave 
 him an encouraging smile as he mounted the ros- 
 trum. The Sumatra lady looked at him very earn- 
 estly, and Miss Blanche declared that she understood 
 everything that was going on. Mrs. Noury, the 
 Princess Zuleima, had the baby; and the little sia- 
 mang seemed to take as much interest in the proceed- 
 ings as her mother. Mr. Mingo was not literary, and 
 perched in the fore-rigging. 
 
 The great map seemed to have been drawn and 
 colored with even unusual care, perhaps because Mr. 
 Gaskette had had more time to attend to it. It 
 was displayed on the new frame which the carpenter 
 had built for it, and included the entire peninsula 
 east of the Burmese possessions, and south of China 
 and the Shan States. When the applause which 
 greeted the general had subsided, he directed the 
 pointer at the map. 
 
 " Perhaps some of you will be considerably confused 
 by the various names of the territory we are engaged 
 in visiting at the present time," he began ; and Mrs. 
 Mingo gave a louder squeak than usual as a special 
 greeting to the distinguished gentleman. " Cochin 
 China, I think, is the most common name, though 
 Indo-China is very generally used. It is also called 
 
A VIEW OF COCHIN CHINA AND SIAM 183 
 
 Farther India and Annam. Its various divisions are 
 the Shan States, tributary to Siam, taking their name 
 from a race of people who are of the same descent 
 as the natives of China. You observe that there are 
 more of these states in the territory of Burma, to 
 which they are subject. These states tributary to 
 Siam contain a population of about two millions. 
 
 "Next south comes Siam proper. Lying east of 
 the Shan States and Siam is a territory called the 
 Little Lao States, which are subject to the several 
 countries around them. On the east, bordering on 
 the China Sea, is Annam, a part of which is some- 
 times labelled Cochin China. A part of Annam is 
 Tonquin, in the north, next to China. What is 
 called Cambodia, next south of Siam, and appearing 
 to be a part of it, is an indefinite factor of Cochin 
 China, and may properly enough be counted in with 
 Siam. What is called Independent Cambodia, if it 
 is independent, is a triangular country south-east of 
 Siam. French Cochin China occupies the most south- 
 ern portion of the peninsula. 
 
 "Nearly the whole of the territory of Cochin 
 China is under the protection of France ; and in my 
 judgment, which you can accept for what it is worth, 
 the whole peninsula will eventually become French, 
 under whatever form it may be accomplished. Very 
 recently the relations between France and Siam were 
 very much strained over a disputed boundary ques- 
 tion. France had ships of war at the mouth of the 
 Menam, and sent some of the smaller craft up the 
 
184 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 river. It looked very much like war ; but before the 
 ships bombarded Bangkok, Siam yielded, and gave 
 up the portion of territory claimed; and no doubt 
 it will be the same story told over again from time 
 to time, until Siam exists only as a dependency of 
 France. 
 
 "Though you see mountains laid down on Mr. 
 Gaskette's map, the elevations hardly deserve that 
 name ; for nearly the whole of Cochin China is low 
 ground, almost flat. The Mekhong River is the lar- 
 gest in the peninsula, being 2,800 miles long. It 
 rises in Thibet, and is navigable only in its lower 
 waters. On account of the low level of the country 
 there are many canals, or bayous as you call them in 
 Louisiana, which connect many of the rivers. Let 
 us now return to Siam. By the way, I find the latest 
 map I have seen of this region in Chambers^, pub- 
 lished last year; and it is quite different from the 
 one before you." 
 
 " But not from the one that will be before you in 
 half a minute more," interposed Mr. Gaskette, as he 
 unrolled and hung up a smaller one which he had 
 just completed. "I made this one this morning, 
 after the commander had shown me the one to which 
 you allude ; and you can see that it is a very crude 
 one." 
 
 " I thank you, Mr. Gaskette, for the new map ; 
 and though you took it from a book not more than 
 a year old, I am afraid that it is not entirely correct 
 for to-day. You observe, my friends, that Siam 
 
A VIEW OF COCHIN CHINA AND SIAM 185 
 
 occupies nearly the whole of the peninsula east of 
 Burma. Annam is cut down to a very thin slice on 
 the China Sea ; and Tonquin, where France has kept 
 many soldiers employed for several years, is swelled 
 into a considerable territory. I doubt if the last 
 change in the boundary of Siam is shown before you. 
 The limits of Cambodia are closely defined. 
 
 " Nearly the whole of the peninsula was included 
 in the ancient kingdom of Cambodia, existing at 
 the Christian era ; and Buddhism is believed to have 
 been introduced into it in the fourth century. Some 
 remarkable ruins, with interesting sculptures, have 
 been found as testimonials to the greatness of this 
 ancient country. The Temple of Angkor had 1,532 
 columns, and the stone for the structure was brought 
 from a quarry thirty-two miles distant. Massive 
 bridges, so solidly built that they have resisted the 
 ravages of time and the inundations of more than 
 a thousand years, are still to be seen. One of them 
 is four hundred and seventy feet long, and has 
 thirty-four arches. An account of these wonders 
 was given by a Chinese traveller of the thirteenth 
 century, and they seem to bear some comparison 
 with the works of the ancient Egyptians. 
 
 " The native name of Siam is Muang Thai, which 
 you will please to remember ; and I mention it only 
 to tell you that it means 'The Land of the Free/ 
 and it must be a first cousin of your country, Mr. 
 Commander ; but I suppose you will not accept the 
 relationship because ' The Home of the Brave ' is 
 
186 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 not included. Siam has an area of about 250,000 
 square miles, as estimated by geographers ; and one 
 authority gives it a population of 6,000,000, and 
 another 8,000,000, but they agree in giving it 2,000- 
 000 Siamese, and 1,000,000 Chinese. The rest of 
 the number is made up with Malays, Laosians, and 
 other tribes. 
 
 " The Menam Eiver is six hundred miles long, and 
 it has several branches. On the banks of these 
 streams very nearly all the people live, for the 
 regions away from them are a wild jungle which is 
 not cultivated. The country is healthy enough for 
 a tropical region, though malarial fevers are very 
 trying to European residents and visitors. The wet 
 season is from May to November, when it rains 
 about every day ; and the rest of the year it does not 
 rain at all. The average rainfall is fifty-four inches 
 a year, and the average temperature 81, though the 
 glass goes up to 94 in April ; but New York beats 
 that in summer. 
 
 "Agriculture stands at a low ebb; but the abun- 
 dant rains and the rich soil produce very large 
 harvests of rice, the principal crop, and all the 
 productions of the Torrid Zone thrive. The labor 
 of Siam is done by Chinese coolies; for the native 
 workers are hampered by a law which requires them 
 to give one-fourth of their labor to the state. Domes- 
 tic elephants are used in hauling timber, for teak 
 is one of the products of the forests, and also for 
 travel and as bearers of burdens. Wild elephants are 
 
A VIEW OF COCHIN CHINA AND SIAM 187 
 
 hunted and trapped in Slam ; and tigers, bears, deer, 
 monkeys, and wild pigs abound in the jungles. Croc- 
 odiles live at the mouths of the rivers ; and the cobra, 
 python, and other reptiles are plentiful enough. 
 
 " The Siamese are peaceable people, lazy, and with- 
 out what you call < snap/ They are fond of jewelry 
 and high colors. They are rather small in stature, 
 and very like the natives of the several islands you 
 have visited. They live for the most part on rice, 
 used largely in various curries, dried fish in small 
 quantities, though the rivers and sea swarm with 
 fish. Tea is the favorite beverage, taken without 
 sugar or milk. Though they distil an intoxicating 
 liquor from rice, a tipsy person is rarely seen. They 
 chew betel-nut, males and females; and their teeth 
 are always black, which is their ideal of beauty, and 
 they use other materials to make them black and 
 shining. 
 
 "The worst vice of the Siamese is gambling; but 
 it can be practised only in houses licensed by the 
 government, though on certain holidays, New Year's 
 in April especially, the people are privileged to 
 gamble at home, or even in the streets. Marriages 
 are arranged by women of mature age. The birth- 
 days of the contracting parties must be agreeable ; 
 for the people are superstitious, and consult the stars 
 for their horoscopes. The old ladies agree upon the 
 amount of money the parents of the bride and groom 
 must pay to set up the young couple in life. The 
 ceremonies last three days or more ; and the principal 
 
188 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 observance is the chewing of betel, winding up with 
 a feast to all the friends. Priests are sometimes 
 called in to say prayers, and sprinkle the couple with 
 consecrated water. 
 
 " The Siamese believe that the arteries of the body 
 are filled with air, and that disease is caused by 
 some disturbance in these internal breezes. A wind 
 blows on the heart, and bursts it, causing death by 
 1 heart failure.' Almost everything is pressed into 
 the materia medico, for service, including such things 
 as cats' eyes, the bile of snakes, sea-shells, horns, 
 and probably dogs' tails, kittens' teeth, and monkeys' 
 tongues. Doctors are paid by the job, and not by 
 the number of visits. The price of a cure is agreed 
 upon ; and if the patient dies, or fails to get better, 
 the physician gets nothing. 
 
 " After poor people, dying, have been kept a few 
 days, they are cremated, as in India ; but they keep 
 a high noble nearly a year before they commit his 
 remains to the fire. When called upon, a Siamese 
 farmer or other person is compelled by law to fur- 
 nish transportation and board to travelling officials. 
 The law of debit and credit is curious, and amounts 
 to actual slavery. A man may borrow money, and 
 give his person for security. If he fails to pay as 
 agreed, the creditor can put him in irons, if need 
 be, and compel him to work for him till the debt is 
 discharged, the principal only, for his labor is the 
 equivalent of the interest. 
 
 " Missionaries are sent here from America, includ- 
 
A VIEW OF COCHIN CHINA AND SIAM 189 
 
 ing many female physicians ; and they have a great 
 deal of influence among the natives. 
 
 "The present king of Siam is Chulalongkorn I. 
 The former system of having the country ruled by 
 two kings has been abolished, and the present mon- 
 arch is the only king; and I never could find out 
 what the second king was for. The throne is now 
 hereditary, but the king formerly had the privilege of 
 naming his own successor. Chulalongkorn is an ami- 
 able and dignified ruler, well educated, and speaks 
 English fluently. The laws are made by the king 
 in connection with a council of ministers. The forty- 
 one provinces of the kingdom are in charge of com- 
 missioners appointed by the king. Such a thing as 
 justice is hardly known, and what there is of it is 
 very badly managed. Thieving and plundering are 
 carried on almost without check in Bangkok, which 
 includes about all there is of Siam except a great 
 deal of spare territory, and property is very unsafe 
 there. I think I have wearied you, Mr. Commander, 
 and ladies ancj gentlemen." 
 
 " Not at all ! " shouted several. 
 
 "Did you ever see the Siamese twins, General 
 Noury ? " inquired Uncle Moses. 
 
 " I never did ; , but I have read about them, and 
 looked them up this morning," replied the lecturer. 
 " They were born in Siam in 1811, but their parents 
 were Chinese. I don't quite understand in what 
 manner they were united." 
 
 "There was a ligament, which looked something 
 
190 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 like a small wrist, reaching from one to the other at 
 the breast-bones. Their garments were open enough 
 to enable the spectators to see this connection. 
 There was a great deal of speculation among the 
 doctors about them, I remember, and it was even 
 proposed to separate them with the knife; but that 
 was never done, for it would have spoiled the ex- 
 hibition business," the trustee explained. 
 
 "They were purchased of their mother at Mek- 
 long by an American in 1829, and taken to the 
 United States, where they were exhibited all over 
 the country, and then taken to England. It was 
 a good speculation to Mr. Hunter and to Chang and 
 Eng, the twins; for they all made their fortunes. 
 They were married to two sisters, and settled in 
 North Carolina, where they had children. They lost 
 their property in the Civil War, and again exhibited 
 themselves in England in 1869. They died in 1874, 
 one living two hours and a half after the death of 
 the other." 
 
 The general retired from the rostrum ; and the 
 party separated, Mrs. Mingo ascending the fore-rig- 
 ging, while the others went to various parts of the 
 ship to see the shores, which were still in sight. 
 
ON THE VOYAGE TO SAIGON 191 
 
 CHAPTER XXI 
 
 ON THE VOYAGE TO SAIGON 
 
 THE steamer was obliged to descend the Menam at 
 less than half speed, to avoid running down any of 
 the multitude of boats and vessels that thronged the 
 river, and because the stream was so crooked. 
 
 " How far do you think Bangkok is from the Gulf, 
 Captain Ringgold ? " asked the general, at the close 
 of the session. 
 
 " About twenty miles," replied the commander. 
 
 "One description of the city that I have read 
 makes it forty miles, another twenty-six, and three 
 others make it twenty miles," added the pacha; 
 "and I suppose the last is the right distance." 
 
 "I have come to that conclusion after consulting 
 all the books we have on the subject. You have 
 said the second king of Burma had been abolished, 
 General ; are you confident that such is the case ? 
 We certainly did not see him, and I did not hear 
 anything about him," added the captain. 
 
 " In the first place, I consider Chambers excellent 
 authority, and you have the latest edition in the 
 library, and the date is last year; and it says in 
 so many words that the second has been done away 
 with. The king who was the father of Chulalong- 
 
192 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 korn died in 1868. His prime minister was a pro- 
 gressive man, who introduced many reforms in Siam ; 
 and I am sure that he could not have helped seeing 
 the absurdity of the second king. The present king 
 is well educated, and also a progressive man, as his 
 father was not. I am sorry we did not look the 
 matter up, which we might easily have done with 
 the assistance of the missionaries. But I am satis- 
 fied that I was correct in regard to the statement." 
 
 In the course of another hour the ship came to 
 the mouth of the river. Crocodiles appear to prefer 
 the mouth of a stream, and a considerable number 
 were seen at the entrance to a canal or cut-off. 
 The pilot stopped the screw, and backed it, in order 
 to avoid a collision with a couple of vessels in the 
 channel. As the two vessels were under sail, it 
 looked as though it would be some time before the 
 channel was clear ; and the " Big Four " hastened to 
 their staterooms for their repeating-rifles. 
 
 Their appearance thus armed created a sensation 
 on the upper deck, and all the party secured positions 
 where they could see the sport. Mrs. Belgrave man- 
 ifested some anxiety when she saw the arms, for she 
 was somewhat afraid of such weapons. 
 
 "What are you going to do, Louis?" she asked 
 as her son passed her. 
 
 " Don't you see that there are a dozen crocodiles 
 at the mouth of that cut-off, mother ? " replied Louis. 
 "We are going to shoot some of them." 
 
 "But you can't get them if you do kill them." 
 
ON THE VOYAGE TO SAIGON 193 
 
 " We don't want to get them. They are not good 
 for anything to us." 
 
 " Then, why do you want to kill them ? They do 
 you no harm," protested the lady. 
 
 "But they would if they got the chance. Sup- 
 pose by any accident some one should fall overboard ; 
 those brutes would snap the person up as a fish snaps 
 the bait," answered Louis. " In Borneo they are reg- 
 ular man-eaters, more dangerous than sharks; and 
 I have no doubt they are the same here. As I told 
 you, they pay so much a foot for killing them in that 
 island. Ask the pilot how it is here, mother." 
 
 Achang was called, and was asked to inquire of 
 the Siamese if the crocodiles were dangerous. He 
 promptly replied that they were not only dangerous, 
 but a nuisance ; for they went ashore and swallowed 
 all small animals, and even attacked a cow. The 
 lady offered no further objection. She only hoped 
 the Nimrods would not shoot each other; and they 
 descended to the platform of the gangway, which 
 had not yet been hoisted up, and the crack of their 
 rifles was soon heard. 
 
 Each of the rifles could send out nine bullets, fixed 
 ammunition, contained in cartridges, nine of which 
 was the capacity of the magazine. Those on deck 
 watched the group of saurians ; but Louis fired the 
 first shot, and immediately there was a sensation 
 among the reptiles. One of them made a spring, 
 and came over on his back. 
 
 " Mr. Belgrave fired that shot," said Achang to 
 
194 FOUR YOUNG EXPLOilEKS 
 
 the hunter's mother. "He is dead shot, and he 
 never miss his aim." 
 
 " There is another turning over on his back," 
 added the lady. 
 
 " I think Mr. McGavonty fired that one ; for he is 
 a dead shot too, but not quite so sure as Mr. Bel- 
 grave," said Achang ; and he was correct in his 
 supposition. Both of them hit the crocodile in 
 the eye. 
 
 The next report that reached the ears of the party 
 was followed by five more in quick succession; and 
 the Bornean explained that the hunter had missed 
 his aim five times out of six, but his victim turned 
 over after the last one. 
 
 " Mr. Scott is better with lasso than with rifle," 
 criticised Achang, with a smile. 
 
 The next shot caused the fourth of the reptiles to 
 upset himself on the water, and then the screw of 
 the ship began to turn again. The crocodile's rea- 
 soning powers did not seem to be well developed, as 
 Mrs. Belgrave suggested when she saw one of their 
 number killed ; for they might have known there 
 was mischief in the air. The Nimrods came on deck, 
 and then carried their rifles to their staterooms, 
 where the commander required them to lock up the 
 weapons in their closets. 
 
 The third officer was ordered to have the gang- 
 way hoisted up when he returned to the deck, and 
 the ship proceeded to sea. The weather was pleas- 
 ant, and not very warm for the tropics ; in fact, they 
 
ON THE VOYAGE TO SAIGON 195 
 
 had suffered more from the heat in New York and 
 in Von Blonk Park than in Bangkok, though it is 
 sometimes extremely hot there. The south-west 
 monsoon cooled the air where they were, though the 
 sun poured down its blistering rays. 
 
 There was an awning over the platform where the 
 conferences were held, and another over the after 
 part of the promenade deck. But the former, with 
 its arm-chairs, was the most desirable location to be 
 had; and in a short time the company had seated 
 themselves there without any call to attend a lecture. 
 As soon as deep water was indicated by the sound- 
 ings, the pilot was discharged, and the captain then 
 gave out the course south by east. Everything was 
 in working order on board; and the commander 
 joined the party on the promenade, as it had always 
 been called before Conference Hall was located there. 
 It commanded the best view on both sides, though 
 not forward, where it was obstructed by the pilot- 
 house. 
 
 "What have you seen in Bangkok, Miss Blanche, 
 that the absentees have not seen ? " asked Louis, 
 who had seated himself at her side, after patting 
 Miss Mingo, whom she was holding in her lap. 
 
 " A great many things," she replied. " One was 
 the royal barge, which they said was rowed or 
 paddled by one hundred and fifty men ; but a good 
 many of us did not believe it contained so many." 
 
 "I have read about it, though I did not see it. 
 It is said to be one hundred and fifty feet long, and 
 
196 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 the book I read said it was paddled by one hundred 
 and twenty men," added Louis. "But it does not 
 make much difference, and the books do not agree in 
 regard to a great many things in this part of the 
 world. What did you think of the people you saw, 
 Miss Blanche ? " 
 
 " A lady and gentleman were pointed out to us 
 by one of the kind missionaries who guided us, and 
 I could hardly tell which was the lady and which 
 the gentleman till I had studied them a while/' 
 returned the fair maiden. " Both of them wore what 
 appeared to be trousers ; but it proved to be a cloth 
 as big as a sheet wound around the waist, and so 
 disposed about the legs as to look like trousers ; but 
 the garment was the same on both of them. The 
 lady had something like a shawl, which was passed 
 over the left shoulder, and under the right arm, 
 with some kind of a jacket under it. The gentle- 
 man wore a sort of tunic, which was regularly but- 
 toned up in front like a coat. The hair of each was 
 shaved off close to the head, except a tuft on the 
 crown, which was bunched up. They wore no orna- 
 ments of any kind, perhaps because it was not a 
 dress occasion. I saw one woman who had a kind 
 of necklace on the top of the shawl." 
 
 "I saw a woman's band of five pieces, and the 
 music they made was not bad," added Louis. 
 
 " I heard a band like that ; but I could not tell 
 whether they played a tune or improvised their 
 music. The missionaries took us into the garden of 
 
ON THE VOYAGE TO SAIGON 197 
 
 a nobleman, where we saw what was called a theat- 
 rical exhibition; but it was no more like a theatre 
 than it was like a cattle-show. We saw the king 
 too, and he was a nice-looking man forty years old. 
 He had what looked like a tunnel on his head. He 
 was sitting in a kind of big arm-chair on poles, and 
 eight men were bearing him to a temple. All the 
 natives in the street dropped on their knees as he 
 passed, and some lay flat on their stomachs. That 
 is the way they always do before him. But he 
 chews betel ; and his mouth was as black as though 
 he had just eaten a piece of huckleberry-pie, and it 
 looked horrid. That is all the fault I have to find 
 with him." 
 
 "It is a bad habit the people here have; but it 
 is not so bad as drinking whiskey, and we must be 
 charitable while our country has its faults ; and theirs 
 only spoils their looks, though I have been told there 
 is a 'kick/ or exhilaration, in the use of betel. I 
 don't think I should ever fall in love with a girl 
 who chewed- betel-nut. Some Dyak maidens would 
 have been passably good-looking if their teeth and 
 lips had not been blackened with this drug." 
 
 " The missionaries took some of us into the private 
 chapel of a nobleman. There were about a hundred 
 priests, all clothed in yellow robes, with their heads 
 shaven ; the service consisted of the constant repeti- 
 tion of a sentence, which a missionary told me meant 
 < So be it.' It reminded me of the howling dervishes 
 we visited at their monastery, whose service was a 
 
198 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 monotonous repetition of ' Allah il Allah.' You went 
 to some of the temples, Mr. Belgrave, and they seem 
 to me to be all alike. Now can you tell me how far 
 it is to the place where we are going next ? " 
 
 " It is about six hundred miles to Saigon, the chief 
 town of French Cochin China, and we shall get there 
 to-morrow," replied Louis. " You must brush up 
 your French, Miss Blanche, for we have not used 
 it lately." 
 
 " We are off Cape Liant now, and I must give out 
 a new course/' said the commander, rising from his 
 chair by the side of Mrs. Belgrave. 
 
 " South-east half-south ! " called the captain at the 
 side window of the pilot-house. 
 
 " South-east half-south," repeated the quartermaster 
 at the wheel. 
 
 " We are going to Saigon, you said, Mr. Belgrave ; 
 but I cannot pronounce the name," added the young 
 lady. 
 
 "As to that, you pays your money, and takes 
 your choice," laughed Louis. "The French call it 
 Sah-gong, shutting out the full sound of the last </," 
 added the speaker, pronouncing it several times with 
 the proper accent. "The English call it Sy-gon, I 
 believe ; but I have heard it called variously at 
 Sarawak." 
 
 " But we want to know something about it before 
 we go there," said the young lady. "We had to 
 ask no end of questions about Siam because the 
 lecture was postponed for the absentees." 
 
ON THE VOYAGE TO SAIGON 199 
 
 " After lunch to-day a short talk will be given in 
 relation to Saigon/' replied Louis, as the bell rang 
 for that meal. 
 
 When the company gathered in Conference Hall, 
 Louis was introduced as the speaker for the occasion, 
 and promptly presented himself before his audience. 
 
 "I have very little to say, Mr. Commander, for 
 General Koury has covered the whole subject under 
 the head of Cochin China," he began. "What is 
 more particularly known as French Cochin China 
 contains 23,000 square miles, and a population of 
 1,800,000. The part in the north is called French 
 Indo-China. The country is precisely that described 
 so carefully by the general, and I need not repeat it. 
 The Cambodia, or Mekhong River, flows through it 
 with many bayous or cut-offs. On one of these, 
 which is called the Saigon River, is the city of Sai- 
 gon, the capital of the French possessions in the 
 East, Lippincott says thirty-five miles, and Chambers 
 sixty miles, from the China Sea ; and of course both 
 of them cannot be right, and you are all at liberty 
 to take your choice. The town has grown up within 
 the last thirty-two years ; and, after the style of 
 French cities, it is handsomely laid out, with fine 
 streets, squares and boulevards. It contains numer- 
 ous canals, with stone or brick quays ; and perhaps it 
 will remind you of Paris along the Seine. It is said 
 to be one of the handsomest cities of the East. It 
 has a navy-yard and citadel, and is the most im- 
 portant port between Hong-Kong and Singapore. The 
 
200 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 people are French, Annamese, and Chinese. It has 
 a large trade, and contains two colleges, an orphan 
 asylum, a splendid botanical garden, to say nothing 
 of convents and other institutions. The population 
 is put by one at ninety thousand, and by another 
 at about half that number. I have nothing more to 
 say." 
 
 Louis retired, and the next day the ship arrived 
 at Saigon. 
 
IN THE DOMINIONS OF THE FKENCH 201 
 
 CHAPTEK XXII 
 
 IN THE DOMINIONS OF THE FRENCH 
 
 IT was not a long voyage from Bangkok to the 
 mouth of the Mekhong River ; and the sight of land 
 was not as thrilling an incident as it had often been 
 in the experience of the voyagers, and they were 
 not in condition to appreciate the feelings of Captain 
 Columbus when Watling's Island broke on his vision 
 four hundred years before. It had been smooth sail- 
 ing all the way ; the Gulf of Siam had been as gentle 
 and affectionate as a maiden among the flowers, and 
 the China Sea was scarcely more ruffled. 
 
 Mr. Gaskette had finished up his new map of 
 Cochin China, so that it was as creditable to his skill 
 and taste as his former efforts had been ; and it was 
 displayed on -.the frame in Conference Hall, which 
 was the usual sitting apartment of the company, 
 though some of them did a great deal of walking on 
 the promenade deck. The water was deeper inshore 
 than farther out at sea, where several spots were 
 marked at eight fathoms; and the passengers had 
 a view of the land before they were within a hun- 
 dred miles of the entrance .of Saigon Eiver. 
 
 " There is a broad opening in the coast, which must 
 be the Cambodia, or Mekhong Eiver," said Morris. 
 
202 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 "That is Batac Bay, with a large island in the 
 middle of it," replied Captain Ringgold. "It is one 
 of the mouths of the Mekhong ; for there is a Delta 
 here extending about a hundred miles, the Saigon 
 River being the most easterly." 
 
 " Mekhong seems to me a new word, though doubt- 
 less it was the native name of the great river ; but 
 when I went to school we never called it anything 
 but the Cambodia," added Uncle Moses. 
 
 "It is now called by both names, and both are 
 usually found on the maps and charts," said the com- 
 mander. 
 
 A couple of hours later he pointed out the mouth 
 of the great river. All the land was very low, and 
 much of it was sometimes under water. Felix had 
 become the owner of an excellent spy-glass, which he 
 had purchased at second-hand at Aden ; and he made 
 abundant use of it. It was too large to be worn in 
 a sling at his side, and he always carried it in his 
 hand when the ship was in sight of land. After 
 lunch, in the middle of the afternoon, he stationed 
 himself in front of the pilot-house, and kept a sharp 
 lookout ahead. 
 
 " Saigon light ! " he shouted, some time before it 
 could be made out without a glass. 
 
 The steamer was headed for Cape St. Jacques, near 
 the entrance to the river by which she was to reach 
 the city. The light soon came into view, and a boat 
 was seen pulling out of the mouth. The signal for 
 a pilot had been displayed on the ship, and one of 
 
IN THE DOMINIONS OF THE FKENCH 203 
 
 the men in it was believed to be the person desired. 
 The screw was stopped as he approached her, and the 
 ladder lowered for his ascent to the deck. As usual, 
 all the passengers wanted to see him. He was an old 
 man, or at least well along in years. 
 
 "Good-day, sir," said Louis, who had gone to the 
 main deck with the third officer to receive him ; and 
 he spoke to him in French. 
 
 He was conducted to the promenade deck, and pre- 
 sented to the captain. He said that he was born in 
 France, but had been in Cochin China nearly thirty 
 years. He was first sent down to Monsieur Odervie 
 for a lunch after he had given the course, and the 
 ship continued on her way. The cook was very glad 
 to meet a compatriot ; and, as he was getting din- 
 ner, he had several nice dishes, from which he treated 
 his new friend. But the pilot's services were soon 
 needed in the pilot-house. He spoke a little Eng- 
 lish, consisting mainly of nautical terms. 
 
 He took his place on the starboard side of the 
 wheel, with Quartermaster Bangs on the other side, 
 steering himself ; perhaps because he was not willing 
 to trust his English in giving orders. But the quar- 
 termaster seconded all his movements, and they 
 steered together in silence. The ship was soon well 
 in the river, and the passengers had enough to do in 
 observing the shores on both sides. 
 
 There were many openings in the banks of bayous 
 and cut-offs, and the land was as flat as it had been 
 during the last hundred miles of the voyage. The 
 
204 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 soil was very rich, and produced abundant crops 
 where it was cultivated. A very few villages were 
 to be seen; but each of them had its temple or pa- 
 goda, and the houses hardly differed from those they 
 had seen in Siam. 
 
 " I suppose this is all an alluvial soil, Brother 
 Avoirdupois," said Dr. Hawkes, as the ship was 
 passing a rice-field. 
 
 " So say the books I have consulted, Brother 
 Adipose Tissue. It is just the right land for rice, 
 and that is the staple product of all this region,' 7 
 replied Uncle Moses. 
 
 Both of these gentlemen weighed about two hun- 
 dred and twenty-six pounds apiece, and they contin- 
 ued to call each other by the appropriate names they 
 had given each other even before the ship left New 
 York on her voyage all over the world. 
 
 " What is alluvial soil, Doctor ? " asked Mrs. Blos- 
 som, who had read very little besides her Bible and 
 denominational newspaper. 
 
 "It is the soil or mud which is brought to its 
 location by the action of water; and here it is 
 brought down by the mighty river which spreads 
 itself out into a delta where we are," replied the 
 doctor good-naturedly, and without a smile at the 
 ignorance of the worthy lady ; for though her educa- 
 tion had been greatly neglected, she was esteemed 
 and respected by all on board, for in sickness she 
 had been the nurse of the patients. "It is just the 
 right soil for rice," he added. 
 
IN THE DOMINIONS OF THE FRENCH 205 
 
 " I have seen so many rice-fields out here, that I 
 should like to know something more about them," 
 suggested the good lady. 
 
 " Naturalists class it as a kind of grass ; but I will 
 not vex you with any hard words. Rice is the food 
 of about one-third of all the people on the globe. It 
 requires heat and moisture for its growth, and it is 
 raised in considerable quantities on the low lands of 
 Georgia and South Carolina and elsewhere in our 
 country. The plant grows from one to six feet high. 
 I don't know much about the culture of this grain 
 in the East; but in South Carolina they first dig 
 trenches, in the bottom of which the rice is sown in 
 rows eighteen inches apart. The plantation is pre- 
 pared so that water can be let in and drawn off as 
 desired. As soon as the seed is sown, the water 
 is let in till the ground is covered to the depth of 
 several inches. As soon as the rice comes up, the 
 water is drawn off, and the plant grows in the open 
 air rapidly under the hot sun. The field is again 
 flooded for a couple of weeks, to kill the weeds, and 
 again when the grain is ripening. The rice is in 
 a hull, like wheat and other grains; and you have 
 found parts of this covering in the rice when you were 
 cooking it. It is threshed out by hand or machinery 
 after it is dried, and then it is ready for market. 
 There is a rice-field on your right ; and you can see 
 the channels which have been dug to convey the 
 water to the plants, or to draw it off," said the 
 surgeon in conclusion. 
 
206 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " I see them, Dr. Hawkes ; and I am very much 
 obliged to you for taking so much pains to instruct 
 an ignorant body like me," replied Mrs. Blossom. 
 
 "It is quite impossible for any of us to know 
 everything, and I often find myself entirely ignorant 
 in regard to some things; and I have lived long 
 enough to forget many things that I learned when 
 I was younger," added the doctor with a softening 
 smile. 
 
 The villages increased in number and in size as 
 the ship approached the city ; though they were about 
 the same thing, except that in the larger ones the 
 temple was a handsomer structure. 
 
 " How far is it from the sea to Saigon ? " asked 
 Bangs, speaking to the pilot for the first time; but 
 the Frenchman could not understand him, and the 
 quartermaster called Louis in, who repeated the ques- 
 tion in French. 
 
 "Sixty miles if you go one way; thirty-five by 
 another," Louis translated the reply. 
 
 " That may account for the difference in the dis- 
 tance given in the books," said the captain, who was 
 in the pilot-house. " But the information we obtain 
 from what are considered the authorities is so vari- 
 ous on the same subject that I don't know where the 
 fault is." 
 
 "This is the largest village we have seen," said 
 Louis to the pilot in French. 
 
 "Yes, sir; and the next place is Saigon," replied 
 the Frenchman ; but he was so much occupied with 
 
IN THE DOMINIONS OF THE FRENCH 207 
 
 his duty that he would not talk much, even in his 
 own language. 
 
 The city was soon in sight, and the pilot began to 
 feel about for the bell-pull. He spoke to Louis, and 
 the quartermaster was told to ring the speed-bell. 
 A. little later, off the town, the gong sounded for 
 the screw to stop. The anchor was all ready, was 
 let go, and the steamer swung round to her cable. 
 The Blanche had not so readily obtained a pilot 
 as her consort, and she was an hour behind her in 
 arriving. 
 
 The Guardian-Mother was surrounded by boats as 
 soon as she was at rest, but the boatmen kept their 
 distance till the port physician and the custom-house 
 officials came on board. Both ships passed the or- 
 deal of the examination, and the boats closed up. 
 They were manned by all sorts of people, and they 
 were in all sorts of craft. The captain said that 
 most of them were Chinese sampans, and the boat- 
 men were of the same nation. 
 
 " There comes the Blanchita ! " exclaimed Felix, 
 who was walking about the deck with his spy-glass 
 under his arm. 
 
 " They got her overboard in a very short time," 
 said the captain, who had joined the company on 
 the promenade. " I am glad she is coming, for I 
 desire to see the general." 
 
 The gangway had already been rigged out ; and the 
 launch came alongside the platform, containing Gen- 
 eral Koury, his wife, the rajah, Captain and Mrs. 
 
208 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 Sharp, Dr. Henderson, the surgeon of the Blanche, 
 and the French maid of the princess. They were 
 warmly greeted on the platform by the commander 
 and Louis, and the ladies were assisted from the 
 boat. They mounted to the deck ; and the usual 
 hugging, kissing, and handshaking followed in the 
 boudoir. 
 
 " I am glad you have come, General Noury," said 
 Captain Kinggold, after he had shaken hands with 
 everybody. "We have been shut up on shipboard 
 for some time now ; and as we have come to a French 
 city, I propose to take my party to a hotel for a 
 day or two. Of course you can do as you please, 
 General." 
 
 " I like the idea, Captain, if there is a decent 
 hotel here," replied the pacha. " What do you 
 think, Zuleima ? " he asked, turning to his wife. 
 
 " I like it very much ; and the hotel cannot be any 
 worse than some we have lived in on our yacht voy- 
 ages," replied the princess. 
 
 "Here is the medical officer, and he can tell us 
 something about the hotels," suggested the com- 
 mander. 
 
 The doctor was consulted by the general in French, 
 and he said the Hotel de 1' Europe was very good. 
 The entire party of both ships were invited to go 
 on shore, and remain at the hotel. All of them ac- 
 cepted, including Captain Sharp and his wife. Those 
 on board the Guardian-Mother went below to pre- 
 pare for the shore, and the Blanchita returned to 
 
IN THE DOMINIONS OF THE FRENCH 209 
 
 the Blanche for the same purpose. The gentlemen 
 were on deck again in a few minutes. 
 
 " A visitor to see you, Mr. Scott," said a seaman, 
 approaching the third officer as he came from the 
 cabin. 
 
 " Captain Rayburn ! " exclaimed Scott as soon as 
 he caught sight of the visitor. " I am very glad to 
 see you, Captain j " and the young officer grasped 
 his hand. 
 
 " I am quite as pleased to see you, Captain Scott, 
 though I hardly knew you," replied the English 
 captain. 
 
 " I am no longer captain, though I am the third 
 officer of this ship ; and I did not wear my uniform 
 when I met you at Kuching." 
 
 " How are the rest of your party ? " inquired the 
 captain of the Delhi. 
 
 "Very well, and here they are." 
 
 " I am delighted to see you on board of your own 
 ship, Mr. Belgrave," said Captain Rayburn, rushing 
 to the young millionaire as he came on deck with his 
 bag in his hand. 
 
 Felix and Morris soon appeared, and gave the cap- 
 tain a hearty greeting. The commander happened to 
 pass near them, and he was approached by Scott. 
 
 " Captain Ringgold, allow me to introduce Captain 
 Rayburn, of the steamer Delhi, to whom the Borneo 
 party are greatly indebted for his kindness ; and the 
 Blanchita sailed in company of his ship from Ku- 
 ching to forty miles inside of Point Cambodia." 
 
210 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " Captain Rayburn, I am very happy to meet you ; 
 and I am glad of the opportunity to thank you for 
 your kindness to my young men, and especially for 
 standing by the Blanchita during the worst part of 
 her voyage to Bangkok. But we are all going ashore 
 at once to spend a day or two at the Hotel de 1'Eu- 
 rope ; and I cordially invite you to be my guest." 
 
 After some objections to the plan, he accepted the 
 invitation. He was well dressed, and a gentleman 
 in every sense of the word. He ordered the men in 
 his boat to return to the Delhi, and to bring off cer- 
 tain garments to the hotel. The Blanchita came up 
 to the gangway again, and the party embarked in her. 
 
A LIVELY EVENING AT THE HOTEL 211 
 
 CHAPTER XXIII 
 
 A LIVELY EVENING AT THE HOTEL 
 
 THE Blanchita had been painted since her return 
 from Borneo, and she had a decidedly holiday ap- 
 pearance. Captain Rayburn had been introduced 
 to all the ladies and gentlemen on board ; and in the 
 steam-launch he was presented to General Noury and 
 his wife, and to the others of the Blanche. The port 
 physician went on shore with them, pointed out to 
 them the landing-place, and directed them to the 
 hotel. 
 
 The party landed, and found the hotel "good 
 enough/' though hardly in the slang sense of the 
 phrase. Apartments were obtained for all, and dinner 
 was ordered. Captain Eayburn had been a couple of 
 days in Saigon, and had learned something about the 
 city. He was the guide of the Nimrods when they 
 took a walk before dinner. They went through the 
 French portion of the place, where they found the 
 streets broad, and ornamented with trees. The houses 
 were seldom more than two stories high. 
 
 The governor's palace was a magnificent residence 
 for Cochin China, and the cathedral was also a fine 
 building; but after going half over the world the 
 young voyagers did not find much to attract them. 
 
212 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 They were more interested in what the country it- 
 self produced than in what had been brought from 
 France. There was a European garrison in the cita- 
 del ; but the natives were enlisted as soldiers, and 
 drilled in French tactics. The promenaders met a 
 squad of the latter. They wore blue blouses, white 
 pants, and a flat cork-lined cap ; but they did not 
 wear shoes, and they looked very odd to the visitors 
 in their bare feet. 
 
 The walk ended with a visit to the botanical gar- 
 den ; but the tropical plants were what they had been 
 seeing for two months, and they were not a novelty 
 to them. The foreign plants and trees were more 
 interesting to them, and they had been set out with 
 a view of ascertaining what were adapted to the soil 
 and climate of the country. 
 
 "This place consists really of three towns united," 
 said Captain Kayburn as they walked back to the 
 hotel. " It was formerly but a group of fishing vil- 
 lages, though even then it was the capital. Pingeh is 
 the commercial town, on the west side of the river, 
 and Cholon is the native quarter. The citadel or 
 fortress is in Pingeh, but we have not time to visit 
 either of them to-night." 
 
 " You have been here before, Captain ? " asked 
 Louis. 
 
 " Not in the Delhi. I was for some years the com- 
 mander of one of the P. & 0. steamers ; but I was 
 taken very sick six months ago, and was obliged to 
 spend three months in Calcutta. When I got well, 
 
A LIVELY EVENING AT THE HOTEL 213 
 
 a merchant there who had been a good friend of mine 
 during my illness, was in a great strait to find a cap- 
 tain for the Delhi in place of one who had died. I 
 agreed to take her for a single voyage ; for she is 
 a very small craft for me, as I have been in command 
 of ships of six thousand tons. I shall return to my 
 steamer when she comes to Calcutta in a couple of 
 months." 
 
 " I thought you were too big a man to be in com- 
 mand of such a puny vessel as the Delhi," added 
 Scott. 
 
 " I took charge of her only to accommodate my 
 friend her owner. I don't find any fault with her, 
 except that she is old and very slow," added the 
 captain as they came to the hotel. 
 
 " Ah, Captain Kayburn, how do you do ? " ex- 
 claimed a gentleman, extending his hand to him. 
 " I was a passenger in your ship to Hong-Kong last 
 year." 
 
 " Monsieur Froler ! " replied Captain Kayburn, 
 grasping the -proffered hand. " Of course I remem- 
 ber you very well, for I don't often get so fully 
 acquainted with my passengers as I did with you; 
 and I only wished I could talk French with you. 
 But you speak English as well as I can, so that 
 it made no difference. Do you reside here ? " 
 
 "I went from Hong-Kong to Canton, and several 
 other Chinese cities, and then to Japan, after we 
 parted, and finally I came here. I like the place, 
 and have been here six months," replied the French 
 
214 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 gentleman, who was not over thirty years of age. 
 " I live at this hotel ; and we have a great American 
 party here, with an English steamer that has a 
 Moorish pacha on board with his wife, who is an 
 Indian princess, so the landlord told me ; and I 
 wish to be introduced to them." 
 
 "I can assist you to that, Mr. Froler. Are you 
 in business here ? " asked the captain. 
 
 " Not at all ; my father made my fortune for me, 
 and I do nothing but travel, and when I come to 
 a place I like I stay there as long as I please ; and 
 I am. doing that here." 
 
 " Mr. Froler, allow me to present to you Mr. Louis 
 Belgrave, the owner of the Guardian-Mother, the 
 American steam-yacht in the river," continued Cap- 
 tain Eayburn. 
 
 The French gentleman received the young man 
 with the greatest deference and politeness, and intro- 
 duced him to his companion. A conversation in 
 French followed ; for Louis was inclined to use that 
 language when he could, to keep "his tongue in," 
 as he put it. Mr. Froler told him that he was well 
 acquainted in the city with all the principal men, 
 and was familiar with all the localities. He would 
 be very happy to escort the party wherever they 
 wished to go, and to introduce them to the governor 
 and other officers of the army and officials. 
 
 Louis then conducted the Frenchman to the large 
 parlor where the tourists were waiting for dinner, 
 and introduced him to Captain Kinggold, who re- 
 
A LIVELY EVENING AT THE HOTEL 215 
 
 ceived him with his usual politeness. While Louis 
 was introducing him to all the members of the party, 
 Captain Kay burn informed the commander that he 
 had first met Mr. Froler when in command of a 
 P. & 0. steamer. 
 
 " Were you in command of a P. & 0. steamer ? " 
 asked Captain Ringgold, opening his eyes very wide. 
 
 " I am still in command of one/' replied the Eng- 
 lish captain ; and then explained how he happened 
 to be in the Delhi. "Mr. Froler was really the 
 most agreeable passenger I ever had, and I became 
 very intimate with him. He is very wealthy, and 
 travels all the time, though he sometimes stops a 
 year in a place. He is a high-toned gentleman in 
 every sense of the word. He is acquainted with 
 the principal merchants and all the officials in 
 Saigon, and desires to assist your party in seeing 
 the city and its surroundings." 
 
 " I shall certainly be very grateful to him for his 
 services/ 7 replied the commander, as Mr. Froler ap- 
 proached theln after making his round of introduc- 
 tions with Louis. 
 
 The Frenchman formally tendered his assistance 
 to the party, and they were gratefully accepted by 
 the commander. Of course he was invited to dinner 
 with the party; and the seat of honor on the right 
 of the captain was given to him, while that on the 
 left was appropriated to Captain Eayburn. The 
 princess was placed next to the Frenchman, with the 
 pacha next. The others took seats to suit themselves. 
 
216 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 The dinner was excellent, and Dr. Hawkes won- 
 dered if Monsieur Odervie had not had a hand in its 
 preparation; and this afterwards proved to be the 
 case. French cooks are very fraternal ; and when 
 one of them is to get up a great dinner, his confreres 
 generally tender their assistance to him. As no dinner 
 was to be served that day on the steamer, Monsieur 
 Odervie had obtained leave of absence, and called 
 upon the cook of the hotel. His proffered aid was 
 accepted, and the surgeon was confident he had made 
 the sauce for the excellent fish that was served. 
 
 It was a lively party at the table, for the guests 
 were desirous of knowing more about the mission 
 of the Guardian-Mother all over the world j and their 
 curiosity was gratified, the pacha telling the French- 
 man all about it in the language of the latter. No 
 wine was served, for the reason that none was or- 
 dered, doubtless greatly to the regret of the landlord ; 
 and the commander made an explanation, though not 
 an apology. 
 
 " I am a Frenchman, but I drink no wine," said 
 Mr. Froler ; " for the reason that it does not agree 
 with me. I have great respect for my stomach ; for 
 it is very serviceable to me, like my watch, if I keep 
 it in good order. I drank no wine nor liquor in Paris, 
 and still less would I do so in a tropical country." 
 
 "I am in the same boat with my friend Mr. Fro- 
 ler. The P. & 0. Company does not encourage its 
 captains to drink anything; and when I entered the 
 service as a fourth officer, I knocked off entirely, 
 
A LIVELY EVENING AT THE HOTEL 217 
 
 afloat or ashore ; and I have stuck to my text ever 
 since," added Captain Bay burn. 
 
 "Then our teetotal habits do not interfere at all 
 with our guests." 
 
 "Not at all," added both of them. 
 
 "Did you know that the captain of your consort 
 from Borneo was a commander in the P. & 0. ser- 
 vice, Mr. Belgrave ? " asked Captain Ringgold. 
 
 " I did not till this evening ; I knew that he was 
 a gentleman, and that was all that I wished to know," 
 replied Louis. 
 
 This remark was applauded warmly by the com- 
 pany. The captain then said that he wished to 
 introduce the guests of the occasion over again, 
 though they had been presented individually to all 
 the company. He wished to say that Captain Kay- 
 burn was actually the commander of a P. & 0. 
 steamer of six thousand tons, on leave of absence on 
 account of sickness. He also told them something 
 more about the Frenchman. He was a gentleman 
 whose father- had made his fortune for him, as he 
 expressed himself ; he was not engaged in any busi- 
 ness, and held no official position. He was travel- 
 ling only for his own amusement and instruction, 
 and his stay in Saigon had been prolonged to six 
 months. 
 
 As the party left the table, Mr. Froler had a 
 little talk for a few minutes, when he excused him- 
 self, and left the hotel, promising to return in half 
 an hour. Conversation was resumed in the parlor j 
 
218 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 and presently Mrs. Belgrave started one of the fa- 
 miliar hymns when she found a piano in the room, 
 in which the captain of the Delhi joined with a tre- 
 mendous bass voice. 
 
 While the music was in full blast, Mr. Froler en- 
 tered the apartment, accompanied by two ladies and 
 two gentlemen, both of the latter wearing the deco- 
 ration of the Legion of Honor. It was evident that 
 the visitors were magnates of Saigon ; and Mrs. Bel- 
 grave rose from the instrument, and the singing was 
 discontinued. 
 
 " I have the pleasure of presenting to Your Excel- 
 lency, Captain Einggold, commander of the steamer 
 Guardian-Mother, visiting Saigon with the company 
 of tourists here present," said Mr. Froler, leading 
 up one of the strangers. " Captain Einggold, I have 
 the honor to introduce to you His Excellency the 
 Governor of French Cochin China." 
 
 The two gentlemen then shook hands. Louis Bel- 
 grave was then presented, followed by General Noury 
 and his wife ; and the pacha then took His excel- 
 lency to every member of the party, and presented 
 each in due form. While this was in process, Mr. 
 Froler presented to the commander the other gentle- 
 man, who appeared to be about fifty years old, as 
 Monsieur Larousse, merchant of the city ; and Louis 
 followed the general in introducing him to the mem- 
 bers of the party. The master of ceremonies next 
 led up to Captain Kinggold the two ladies, present- 
 ing them as Madame and Mademoiselle Larousse; 
 
A LIVELY EVENING AT THE HOTEL 219 
 
 and they appeared to be the wife and daughter of 
 the elderly gentleman who had preceded them. 
 
 The daughter was a beautiful lady, apparently 
 about twenty-four years old, though it is not always 
 practicable to state the age of a French lady. By 
 this time General Noury had made his round, and 
 the governor was passed over to Mrs. Noury, at his 
 request. The commander made the circuit with 
 Madame Larousse, and the pacha offered his services 
 to conduct Mademoiselle Larousse. He presented 
 her to his wife first, interrupting her tete-a-tete with 
 His Excellency for a moment. 
 
 " Pretty woman," said Captain Eayburn to Captain 
 Ringgold. 
 
 "Very pretty," replied the latter. 
 
 "Between you and me, she is the particular rea- 
 son why Froler has prolonged his stay here to six 
 months." 
 
 " Then I congratulate him," added the commander. 
 
 "Her father is not rich; Froler does not care for 
 that, for he is a multi-millionaire himself, counted 
 in francs. But the prettiest lady here is the sister 
 of Morris, Miss Blanche." 
 
 "Madame Noury, you were singing when I came 
 in," said the governor when the introductions had 
 been completed. 
 
 " But they were singing American hymns, not 
 adapted to your religion or mine," replied Mrs. 
 Noury. 
 
 " I don't care for that," he added ; and both spoke 
 
220 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 French. "I liked what I heard very much, and I 
 should wish to hear some more of it." 
 
 Mrs. Belgrave was called, and the request repeated 
 to her in English by the magnate. And so it hap- 
 pened that the rest of the evening was passed in 
 singing gospel hymns. At a late hour the company 
 separated. 
 
TONQUIN AND SIGHTS IN CHOLON 221 
 
 CHAPTER XXIV 
 
 TONQUIN AND SIGHTS IN CHOLON 
 
 THERE was so little sight-seeing to be done m 
 Saigon that the tired tourists did not hurry them- 
 selves in the morning ; for breakfast was not served 
 till nine o'clock, and they went to the tables at their 
 own pleasure. The Nimrods had risen at an early 
 hour, and had taken a long walk before any others 
 came from their rooms. They were the first to take 
 the morning meal, and they had earned an appetite 
 before the regular hour for it. At half-past ten a 
 number of vehicles had been gathered by the land- 
 lord for the use of his guests. 
 
 Mr. Froler was in attendance as soon as breakfast 
 was ready, and the young men took their meal with 
 him. He seemed to have taken a fancy to Louis 
 when he learned that the Guardian-Mother was his 
 college, and he took pains to inform him in regard 
 to the affairs of the city and the country. 
 
 " How did the French happen to settle here in the 
 beginning ? " asked Louis when they were seated at 
 the table. 
 
 "England, Holland, Spain, and especially France, 
 began to take an interest in the countries of the East 
 at a very early date; and France entered the race 
 
222 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 for Oriental territory as early as 1787, and agreed 
 to assist Annam in its troubles. Two years later 
 the French Revolution broke out in the destruction 
 of the Bastille, on the fourteenth of July, which is 
 still celebrated. It is our < Fourth of July/ Mr. 
 Belgrave." 
 
 "I was in Paris on that day a few years ago, 
 when I was a smaller boy than I am now, and I 
 wondered that no fire-crackers were let off," replied 
 Louis. 
 
 "They are not permitted in Paris. France had 
 her hands full after the Revolution began, and was 
 unable to keep her agreement in full with Annam ; 
 but missionaries were sent there, and some commer- 
 cial relations in a very small way were continued 
 until 1831. Then the king died, and was succeeded 
 by one who did not believe in the missionaries, 
 French and Spanish, settled in Annam, as the whole 
 country east of Siam was then called. The new king 
 wanted to drive away the bearers of the gospel to 
 the natives, and killed or persecuted them. 
 
 "Twenty years later, France found it necessary 
 to interfere, which she did by sending a small army 
 to subdue the country. The fortifications which 
 had been built by French engineers held the soldiers 
 back to some extent. When the persecutions of the 
 Christians were believed to be ended, the French sol- 
 diers returned home. They were again renewed ; and 
 France and Spain sent out a fleet and army, which 
 captured the principal seaport, and continued the 
 
TONQUIN AND SIGHTS IN CHOLON 223 
 
 war for about four years, when a treaty of peace was 
 concluded. Annam was compelled to pay 25,000,000 
 francs for the expense of the war, and permit every 
 person to enjoy his own religious belief. The mis- 
 sionaries were to be protected, commercial relations 
 were established, and in 1886 a treaty was ratified at 
 Hue, by which the country was placed under the 
 protection of France, though the native princes were 
 nominally continued in power. This was the begin- 
 ning of the French dominion in this region." 
 
 "If it is not one now, it will eventually become 
 a French colony," suggested Louis. 
 
 " Probably it will, for it is largely so now," replied 
 Mr. Froler. 
 
 Captain Einggold, who had waited for Mrs. Bel- 
 grave, finished breakfast about the same time; for 
 they had not listened to a historical talk while they 
 were eating, and they left the room together. At the 
 time appointed for the ride, all the party were in the 
 parlor, and they were loaded into the vehicles. They 
 rode through the principal streets, and to the botani- 
 cal garden, where all the party walked through the 
 grounds. Then they rode along the banks of the river. 
 
 "Those small vessels look like men-of-war," said 
 Louis, who was seated in the first carriage, with Mr. 
 Froler, the commander, and Mrs. Belgrave. 
 
 "They are little gunboats, and the government 
 has about twenty of them," replied the Frenchman. 
 "But I think we had better alight here, and take 
 a general view of the river and the surroundings." 
 
224 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 At a given signal the whole party got out of the 
 vehicles. 
 
 " But what are those gunboats for, Mr. Froler ? " 
 asked Louis, as the company were looking at them. 
 
 " If there should happen to be a riot, or a disturb- 
 ance of any kind, up the river, which the police 
 could not handle, they would be used for transporting 
 troops; for we have the telegraph here, and could 
 be notified at once. They are also used to beat off 
 pirates, and to see that the laws are obeyed." 
 
 " Pirates ! " exclaimed Louis. " Are there any 
 about this country?" 
 
 "They are not such pirates as we read about in 
 olden times," replied Mr. Froler with a smile. " But 
 some of these natives may rig up a boat, and go on a 
 predatory excursion among their neighbors, especially 
 in the fishing regions on the Great Lake, over two 
 hundred miles up the river. Their principal plunder 
 is fish, though they take anything they can lay their 
 hands upon." 
 
 " I should hardly call them pirates," added Louis. 
 
 " But Chinese pirates have been known to capture 
 vessels in the China Sea, off the coast of Tonquin." 
 
 "I have heard of such within a few years." 
 
 "You can see the citadel, as it is called here, 
 though it would be simply a fort in most places. 
 There are 1,830 French soldiers here, and 2,800 
 native troops. Only 3,000 of the population are 
 French. The last census gave the country a popula- 
 tion of 2,034,453," continued Mr. Froler, consulting a 
 
TONQUIN AND SIGHTS IN CHOLON 225 
 
 memorandum book he carried in his pocket. " They 
 are mainly Annamites ; but Cambodians, Chinese, sav- 
 ages from the north, and Malays contribute to make 
 up the number. But I don't mean to lecture you, as 
 I am told you are addressed on board your ship by 
 some of your own number." 
 
 "But we are an educational institution in part, 
 and we are very glad to hear you," said the com- 
 mander. "We are supposed to be greedy for infor- 
 mation about the countries we visit. I suppose we 
 are about as near Tongking as we shall be, and I am 
 sure my company would like to learn something more 
 about it. We have a nice place here in the shade of 
 this tree to hear a short lecture." 
 
 " You use the English name for the region, which 
 is all right ; and I have seen it spelled Tonkin, which 
 I think is better yet for your people. The French 
 name is Tonquin," (and he gave the French pronun- 
 ciation). " It is larger than Cochin China ; and we 
 apply this name to what you designate as French 
 Cochin China, -for it has an area of 34,740 square 
 miles, and a population supposed to be about 9,000,000. 
 Its chief town is Hanoi', consisting of a number of 
 villages, with 150,000 inhabitants ; and its chief sea- 
 port is Hai-Phong. There has been war going on 
 against the people of this country for many years." 
 
 "We read something about these operations in 
 American papers, and know very little about Ton- 
 quin, which is the reason I asked for more knowledge 
 of the region," added the commander. 
 
226 FOUR YOUNG EXPLOKEBS 
 
 " The principal productions of Tonquin, ' Mr. 
 Froler, bowing to the captain, proceeded, " are rice, 
 silk, sugar, pepper, oil, cotton, tobacco, and fruits, 
 with copper and iron in small quantities. The ex- 
 ports are now 13,325,000 francs, which you reduce to 
 dollars by dividing by five. The imports are nearly 
 28,000,000 francs, only one-fourth from France, with 
 but a small portion of the exports to that country. 
 An expedition was sent out from home, at the in- 
 stance of Jules Ferry, to open the way by the Song- 
 koi River for the trade of Yun-Nan, a south-western 
 province of China. The experiment was an expen- 
 sive one, and the difficulty of navigation in the upper 
 waters of the river made it a failure. The troops 
 met with a disaster; and the colonial policy of the 
 statesman here and in Madagascar caused his ruin, 
 and he has since died. Jules Ferry was nicknamed 
 <le Tonquinais.' But I have talked too long." 
 
 "Not at all!" protested several of the company; 
 for they had read in the papers at home something 
 in short paragraphs about the war and other matters 
 in Tonquin, which they did not understand ; and 
 they are likely to read much more in the future, 
 which they will comprehend better if they remember 
 the brief account of Mr. Froler. 
 
 The party got into the vehicles again, but stopped 
 soon after at the market, where they alighted. Na- 
 tives in boats and on foot were bringing in fruits 
 and vegetables in great quantities. All the fruits of 
 the tropics were included, though bananas were the 
 
TONQUTN AND SIGHTS IN CHOLON 227 
 
 most plentiful. Some came with clumsy carts, loaded 
 with the produce of the surrounding country. The 
 vehicles were very trying to the nerves of the ladies 
 and some of the gentlemen ; for they creaked and 
 groaned, and seemed to be screeching for grease, 
 reminding them of the carts of Lisbon, where some 
 of the party had had a similar experience. 
 
 " The men here wear tunnels on their heads, after 
 the fashion of the king of Siam," said Morris as they 
 walked through the market, which consisted mainly 
 of an open square, filled with carts, barrows, and 
 baskets. 
 
 " The head-covering of the women is more curious," 
 added Scott. " It is about two feet across, and they 
 use them as umbrellas, both sexes." 
 
 "I see that you have the yellow dog here, Mr. 
 Froler, as in Constantinople," said Louis, as the 
 Frenchman came near with the captain and Mrs. 
 Belgrave. 
 
 "They are outcast dogs, like those in Constanti- 
 nople," replied the guide. " Nobody owns them, and 
 they have to pick up their living in the streets. 
 They are no more honest than some of the natives; 
 for some of them will steal a piece of meat, and then 
 comes a fight with all the others in the vicinity." 
 
 " Where does the meat used here come from ? " 
 asked Louis. 
 
 " From Cambodia," replied the Frenchman. " But 
 it is about time for your lunch at the hotel, and I 
 think we had better return. I see that your steam- 
 
228 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 launch is at the landing-place ; and we might go up 
 to Cholon in her, and visit the citadel." 
 
 The suggestion was adopted ; and on his arrival at 
 the hotel, the commander found a note from the 
 governor, inviting the party to dine with him that 
 day at seven. It was promptly accepted ; and after 
 the lunch the party embarked in the Blanchita, and 
 sailed up the river to Cholon, which is the native 
 portion of the city. 
 
 " It does not cost much here to build a house," 
 said Mr. Froler, as the yacht, under the pilotage of 
 the old Frenchman who had brought the Guardian- 
 Mother up the river, worked her way through the 
 multitude of boats that thronged the shore. 
 
 But the young men were busy observing the va- 
 rious craft ; for they were of all sorts and kinds, from 
 the simple Chinese sampan to the craft fifty feet 
 long, provided with a cabin, and parts of her covered 
 with the leaf awning, something like what they had 
 seen in Borneo. 
 
 " Where does this boat come from, Achang ? " asked 
 Felix. 
 
 The Bornean spoke to a man who seemed to be the 
 captain and a Malay. 
 
 "She come from Great Lake," reported Achang. 
 " She bring down dry fish to sell to the poor people 
 of Cholon." 
 
 " How much does it cost to build one of these 
 houses, Mr. Froler ? " asked Captain Einggold, after 
 they had looked over some of them. 
 
TONQUIN AND SIGHTS IN CHOLON 229 
 
 " About twenty-five francs." 
 
 "It ought not to cost more than that, for they 
 are nothing but shanties," replied the commander. 
 " Some of them are built on floats, as in Bangkok." 
 
 " Let us look into one of them ; they will not ob- 
 ject. This is a Chinaman's abode, and he belongs to 
 the better class here," said the Frenchman as he led 
 the way into the house, followed by the commander, 
 with Mrs. Belgrave on his arm. 
 
 Seated at a table was what a sailor would call a 
 kid, or small tub, containing a stew of fish and vege- 
 tables; and there was a dish for each individual, 
 which did duty as a plate. There were a man, a 
 woman, and three children at the table. 
 
 " These people belong to the aristocracy," said the 
 Frenchman, as they retired, and the family were vis- 
 ited by others of the party. " We will look into an- 
 other house of a lower grade of people ; " and they 
 went into a hut about six feet square, in which were 
 eight men, women, and children, huddled together 
 around a tub on the floor containing fish and rice. 
 The odor was not agreeable, and they hurried away. 
 
 " You noticed the two girls there. If you want 
 them, Captain, you can buy them for thirty dollars 
 apiece of your money." 
 
 " I don't want them ; and I don't care about stay- 
 ing any longer in this part of the town," replied the 
 commander. 
 
 They walked rather hurriedly to the yacht. On 
 the way they met a carriage something like a wheel- 
 
230 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 barrow, with a single large wheel, and a seat on each 
 side of it, one occupied by a fat Chinaman and the 
 other by a Malay. It was propelled by a native just 
 like an ordinary wheelbarrow. 
 
 "That's a big team," said Scott. 
 
 " You will see plenty of them in some of the cities 
 of China." 
 
 The Blanchita left Mr. Froler at the landing-place, 
 and then conveyed the passengers to the two ships ; 
 for the ladies insisted that they must dress for the 
 dinner at the governor's palace. 
 
SEVERAL HILARIOUS FROLICS 231 
 
 CHAPTER 
 
 SEVERAL HILARIOUS FROLICS 
 
 THE ladies certainly did dress for the occasion ; and 
 not only the ladies, but all the gentlemen. The cap- 
 tain put on a new uniform which he had not worn 
 since his ship left Colombo. Scott had a new uni- 
 form also ; Uncle Moses, the surgeon, Mr. Woolridge, 
 and the professor came out in evening costume, with 
 black dress-coats ; and the young men were clothed 
 for their age, in black. The ship's company looked 
 at them with astonishment when they came on deck, 
 for they had never seen them en grand tenue before. 
 
 The ladies were properly costumed for the dinner, 
 and all of them wore the best they had. When the 
 Blanchita came alongside the ship with the Blanche's 
 party, more surprise was manifested ; for Mrs. Noury 
 was dressed as a princess, as she was, with the rich- 
 est garments of India; General Noury clothed in 
 the full costume of his Moroccan rank, a dress which 
 had not been seen before. Captain Sharp wore his 
 uniform, and his wife proved that no money had been 
 spared on her dress and adornings. The rajah wore 
 his Indian suit, made of the costliest materials and 
 the most brilliant colors, and rubies and diamonds 
 sparkled upon him, as on the pacha. Dr. Henderson 
 
232 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 was in keeping with his professional brother of the 
 other party. 
 
 The seats of the yacht had been overlaid with rugs 
 and other materials, that the rich costumes need not 
 be soiled. The Blanche's barge came soon with the 
 Italian band on board ; for the general desired to sere- 
 nade the governor during the evening. It was an 
 hour too early ; for the commander had been so solici- 
 tous that the company should not be late, that he had 
 overdone the matter. The landlord was to have the 
 carriages at the landing at half-past six, and there 
 was an hour to wait. But the princess and Mrs. 
 Sharp declined to leave their seats in the launch, for 
 fear of mussing up their dresses ; and the general 
 called upon the band to play while they were waiting. 
 
 It was near the close of a clear day, and the music 
 was delightful. In a short time not less than a hun- 
 dred boats surrounded the ship, and three times as 
 many people stood upon the shore. The band had 
 not played before since their arrival. Mr. Froler, in 
 Parisian evening dress, had come to the landing to 
 receive the party, and when he heard the music, he 
 came off, standing up in a sampan ; for he was as care- 
 ful of his garments as the ladies. The captain had 
 ordered a carpet to be placed on the steps of the 
 gangway, and the polite Frenchman ascended to the 
 deck without peril to his clothing. 
 
 " Good-evening, Captain Ringgold," said he, extend- 
 ing his hand. " You have the most ravishing music 
 here." 
 
SEVERAL HILARIOUS FROLICS 233 
 
 " It is General Noury's Italian band, and he will 
 take it ashore to serenade the governor," replied the 
 commander. 
 
 "I have not seen your steamer before, and she is 
 a magnificent vessel," added the Frenchman. 
 
 " I should be happy to show her to you ; but we 
 have hardly time to do so now, for I see that the 
 ladies are taking their places in the launch/' an- 
 swered Captain Ringgold ; " but I shall ask the gov- 
 ernor and such ladies and gentlemen as you will 
 designate to spend the afternoon and evening on 
 board to-morrow, dining in the cabin. I arranged it 
 with the general. Both ships will be visited, the 
 band will play, and we will make a general frolic of 
 it. The next morning we shall sail for Manila." 
 
 Both of the gentlemen hastened to the gangway to 
 assist the ladies as soon as the commander saw Mrs. 
 Belgrave moving in that direction. Miss Blanche, 
 conducted by Louis, appeared about the same time. 
 Her costume was very neat, though not showy ; but 
 she was as beautiful as a fairy, and the Frenchman 
 clasped his hands in ecstasy when he saw her. In a 
 short time they were all seated in the Blanchita, and 
 the gentlemen then took their places. 
 
 Precisely at twenty minutes past six Captain 
 Sharp, prompted by Captain Einggold, gave the order 
 to cast off. A quartermaster of the Blanche was at 
 the wheel, and in five minutes she was alongside the 
 shore. A platform of clean boards, covered with a 
 carpet, had been laid down by the landlord of the 
 
234 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 Hotel de PEurope, and the vehicles were in waiting. 
 The ladies were handed from the boat to the car- 
 riages without a spot or a splash on their dresses, 
 though the shore was very muddy. 
 
 In ten minutes more the head of the procession 
 reached the governor's palace. There they found an 
 awning over the sidewalk, and carpets laid down for 
 the guests to walk upon. The French, English, and 
 American flags were flying on the building. The 
 ladies were conducted to the grand entrance of the 
 palace, and taken by the servants to the apartments 
 set apart for clothing. There were not less than a 
 thousand natives and French people gathered in the 
 vicinity, but they were kept in admirable order by 
 the Malay police. The pacha's band was admitted 
 to the grounds, and Mr. Froler was acting as chief 
 marshal; he notified them when the party began to 
 descend the stairs, and the music commenced then. 
 They came down in couples, Captain Ringgold and 
 Mrs. Belgrave leading, followed by the pacha and the 
 princess. 
 
 His Excellency stood at the head of the large 
 apartment, and received them as they advanced. He 
 was a widower and childless, so that he had no wife 
 nor daughter to present. Louis and Miss Blanche 
 were the next, though the commander had proposed 
 that Louis should come next to him and his mother; 
 but Louis rebelled, and insisted that he should follow 
 the pacha. The rajah came next, and had Mrs. 
 Blossom on his arm, to the no small amusement of 
 
SEVERAL HILARIOUS FROLICS 235 
 
 the party; but the deposed sovereign prince could 
 find no other lady disengaged. 
 
 Possibly Mr. Woolridge and wife were disconcerted 
 to come next ; but their daughter had been properly 
 honored, and both were too fond of Blanche to be 
 troubled about the precedence. Mr. Froler stood by 
 the governor, and announced the names of the mem- 
 bers of the party; for His Excellency could hardly be 
 expected to remember them. But he was very cor- 
 dial to all of them, speaking in his broken English, 
 except to the pacha and Louis. Some of the gentle- 
 men had to present themselves without ladies; but 
 there were at least twenty ladies and gentlemen 
 seated around the room. After all the party from 
 the ships had been received by the governor, they 
 were introduced to the other visitors. Some of the 
 Saigonians could speak English, and some could not ; 
 but the conversation soon became general. The com- 
 mander and Mrs. Belgrave found enough who could 
 speak English. There were seven persons among the 
 tourists who eould converse fluently in French, and 
 Mr. Froler employed these as interpreters for those 
 who could not speak the polite language. 
 
 The scene was quite amusing to all ; and even the 
 governor laughed heartily as he looked about him, 
 and saw the struggles in the matter of language. 
 The chief marshal proved to be a very potent func- 
 tionary, and he was omnipresent in the apartment. 
 When the governor spoke to him in praise of Miss 
 Blanche, he immediately sent Louis with her to His 
 
236 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 Excellency. The room was the audience chamber 
 of the palace, and the magnate of the occasion in- 
 vited her to a seat on the dais at his side. She 
 could speak French a little ; and it was soon observed 
 that she was enjoying herself very much, and the 
 governor even more. 
 
 Mrs. Sharp was passed over to Louis, and he made 
 the grand round with her. The princess was in- 
 structed to do the same with Mr. Woolridge, while 
 the professor rendered the same service to Mrs. Wool- 
 ridge. The rajah escorted Mrs. Blossom around the 
 chamber, and the poor woman was in a flutter all the 
 time. The long robe of the Indian prince bothered 
 her, and she had been nearly tripped up several 
 times ; but her new beau was as polite and deferen- 
 tial as though she had been a queen. She had a 
 story to tell the gossips of Von Blonk Park which 
 would last her the rest of her lifetime. It was even 
 a livelier time than that at the hotel, made so by the 
 confusion of tongues, which was not far short of 
 that at the Tower of Babel. 
 
 The dinner was announced by the major-domo of 
 the household. Ignoring the houris of the occasion, 
 the polite governor escorted Mrs. Belgrave to the 
 table, and seated her on his right, while the cap- 
 tain of the Guardian-Mother conducted the princess. 
 Those of the gentlemen who could speak French 
 were requested by Mr. Froler to attend the resident 
 ladies ; and the most distinguished was placed in 
 charge of the pacha. The contretemps of language 
 
SEVERAL HILARIOUS FROLICS 237 
 
 were frequent and laughable ; and so much amuse- 
 ment was derived from this source that some of the 
 visitors purposely made bulls to keep up the hilarity. 
 
 The dinner was a very elegant as well as a very 
 substantial affair. Monsieur Odervie and other 
 French cooks fraternized as usual on this great occa- 
 sion; and the table was ornamented with many set 
 pieces, and one from the citadel produced a Buddhist 
 temple in sugar, which was the admiration of the 
 guests ; and doubtless all these culinary artists would 
 assist the chef of the Guardian-Mother for the great 
 dinner of the following day. But it would require 
 a considerable volume to detail all the occurrences 
 of the governor's banquet. A speech was made by 
 His Excellency in French, which was replied to by 
 Captain Ringgold, without knowing much of what 
 had been said ; but Louis followed him in a few 
 remarks in French, thanking the governor and the 
 residents of the city for their kindness and hospi- 
 tality. 
 
 The pacha made the speech of the evening in the 
 vernacular of the host, which was violently ap- 
 plauded by the residents, especially by the military 
 officers from the citadel, who had been informed that 
 he was the command er-in-chief of the armies of his 
 country. The Italian band had been brought into 
 the palace, feasted, and stationed in the great hall, 
 where they discoursed their finest music, to the great 
 delight of the guests. Dancing followed, and the 
 governor led Mrs. Noury to the floor. The rajah 
 
238 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 asked Mrs. Blossom to dance with him; but she did 
 not know a step, and if she ever in her life regretted 
 that she could not dance, it was on this occasion. 
 The commander of the citadel and chief officer of 
 the army of Cochin China led out Mrs. Noury, and 
 the next in rank to His Excellency who could speak 
 English was favored by Miss Blanche. 
 
 It was kept up till after midnight ; and then the 
 tourists returned to the ships, visiting the hotel the 
 next forenoon to obtain their baggage. All the party 
 at the fete of the governor had been invited to the 
 ships ; and the Blanchita conveyed them from the 
 landing in two trips, one to the Guardian-Mother, 
 and the other to the Blanche. The guests were 
 shown over both steamers, and they expressed their 
 admiration in both languages. All the officers were 
 kept busy, especially Mr. G-askette, who spoke French. 
 Every passenger was a host or hostess, and the con- 
 fusion of tongues created as much merriment as it 
 had at the palace. Captain Ringgold devoted him- 
 self especially to the governor. The Italian band 
 played all the time on the deck of the Blanche, 
 which was hardly a ship's length from her consort. 
 
 After a light lunch had been served in the cabins 
 of both steamers, the party on board of the Guar- 
 dian-Mother, with their hosts, were conveyed to the 
 Blanche, where they spent a couple of hours, and had 
 a dance on her promenade deck under an awning. 
 Every part of the ship was visited ; and after a stay 
 of two hours, the entire company was conveyed in 
 
SEVERAL HILARIOUS FROLICS 239 
 
 two trips to the Guardian-Mother. When some of 
 the guests asked how the passengers contrived to 
 amuse themselves on the long voyage, Mrs. Belgrave 
 organized a section of them, and played Blindman's 
 Buff, Turning the Cover, Copenhagen, and other 
 games, to the intense delight of the guests. 
 
 At six o'clock dinner was announced. Monsieur 
 Odervie had had the assistance of not less than four 
 chefs all day ; and several set pieces in varied ingre- 
 dients, original and artistic, adorned the two tables. 
 The bill of fare had been printed in the city, and of 
 course it was all French. The occasion was much 
 the same as at the palace, with all the confusion of 
 tongues. At the close of the dinner Captain Ring- 
 gold made his speech, which the governor could 
 understand, and the chief official of the province re- 
 sponded in his own language. Several others were 
 heard ; and when Dr. Hawkes attempted to make 
 a speech in the polite language, he excited bursts of 
 laughter, and it was soon evident that he was speak- 
 ing for the fun of it. His gestures were more French 
 than his speech, which he interlarded with English 
 and Latin. Uncle Moses made a remark in the latter 
 language, which only the doctor and the professor 
 could understand ; but it was as vigorously applauded 
 as though every word had been comprehended. 
 
 After dinner the governor called for some singing, 
 and gospel hymns were introduced. Captain Bay- 
 burn was one of the guests on board, and his heavy 
 bass was the crowning glory of the music. 
 
240 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 The ship had been illuminated, and the band played 
 at times on the deck. The governor wanted some 
 more of Mrs. Belgrave's games, and they were re- 
 peated in the music-room. The Cupids, as the two 
 fat gentlemen had been named in Egypt, did their 
 best on this occasion, rolled on the floor, and were 
 as antic as boys. 
 
 It was after midnight when the Blanchita began to 
 convey the guests to the shore ; and the adieux were 
 very cordial, with many regrets that the ships must 
 depart so soon. The river was so full of boats that 
 the launch had some difficulty in making her way to 
 the shore ; but the Malay police soon made an open- 
 ing for her. 
 
 Mr. Froler had been invited to sleep on board, as 
 had Captain Eayburn ; and both accepted, the former 
 returning to the ship after he had seen his ladies 
 home. 
 
THE VOYAGE ACROSS THE CHINA SEA 241 
 
 CHAPTER XXVI 
 
 THE VOYAGE ACROSS THE CHINA SEA 
 
 THE tide was right at six o'clock in the morning, 
 and the order had been given the night before to sail 
 at this hour. Mr. Froler and Captain Kayburn were 
 on deck before this time ; and the latter took a boat 
 to his vessel, after very hearty thanks for the pleasure 
 he had enjoyed. 
 
 " I don't feel at all like leaving your steamer, Cap- 
 tain Einggold, but I suppose I must," said the French 
 gentleman, as the commander took him by the hand 
 in the morning. 
 
 " I am as sorry to have you leave as you are to 
 do so," replied the captain. " We have seen the 
 place, and made the acquaintance of quite a number 
 of the people. .. In fact, you have turned our visit into 
 a general frolic, and I am sure my party have never 
 enjoyed themselves more than during the past two 
 days ; and we owe it all to you, Mr. Froler." 
 
 " You praise my feeble efforts to enable you to see 
 the place and some of the people more than they 
 deserve," replied the Frenchman. 
 
 " When I meet you in New York, I shall do my 
 best to reciprocate your very kind and hospitable re- 
 ception, and I am confident all my passengers will 
 
242 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 do the same. I should be most happy to have you 
 continue on board." 
 
 " I should avail myself of your very kind invitation 
 so far as to go to Manila if there were a line of 
 steamers between that port and Saigon. But I should 
 have to go by the way of Singapore. With your per- 
 mission, I will go down the river with you." 
 
 " What is this coming alongside ? " asked the cap- 
 tain, as he moved over to the rail. 
 
 "It is one of the gunboats, Captain," answered 
 Mr. Froler. " There is the governor on her deck 
 and two ladies. His Excellency has come off to say 
 good-by to you." 
 
 " He is very considerate." 
 
 " And there is the landlord of the hotel." 
 
 " I paid his bill yesterday afternoon, and for 
 everything up to this morning," said the commander 
 as he hastened down the gangway to receive the gov- 
 ernor. 
 
 On his way he called Louis, who was on deck 
 early, and directed him to have the stewards call all 
 the passengers, and to inform them that His Excel- 
 lency was coming on board. The distinguished offi- 
 cial was received by the captain, and conducted to the 
 deck. It was a cordial greeting on both sides. The 
 governor declared that he had never enjoyed himself 
 more than on the day before, and he should go down 
 the river for the purpose of saying his adieux to the 
 party. 
 
 The gunboat would escort the ships to Cape St. 
 
THE VOYAGE ACEOSS THE CHINA SEA 243 
 
 Jacques, and he would return with it. In ten min- 
 utes after the call the passengers began to come on 
 deck, and the governor greeted them as though they 
 had been his friends for years. He was a jolly old 
 fellow, and made himself as familiar with the tour- 
 ists as though they had been his intimate friends. 
 When Miss Blanche came up he rushed to her, and 
 took her by both hands. Mr. Froler suggested that 
 the governor had come more to see the beautiful 
 women on board than for any other purpose. 
 
 The barge was hastily dropped into the water, and 
 sent for the passengers of the Blanche, the third offi- 
 cer being in charge of the message. The landlord 
 of the hotel said he had come on board to pay his 
 respects to his late guests, and he would go down the 
 river with them. The barge returned after some 
 delay, for none of her party were out of their rooms. 
 They warmly welcomed the governor and the captain 
 of the gunboat, who had been one of the guests the 
 day before. 
 
 Both ships, got under way at once, for the anchors 
 had been hove short. Mr. Sage and the cook were 
 set to work. The governor divided his attentions be- 
 tween Mrs. Noury and Miss Blanche ; and the pacha 
 was not at all disturbed by his old Mohammedan 
 notions about wives. The rajah took Mrs. Blossom 
 on his arm, and promenaded the upper deck with 
 her under the awnings. 
 
 " Faix ! Oi belay ve the ould feller manes to marry 
 her," said Felix. 
 
244 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " Nonsense, Flix ! He is a Mohammedan, and she 
 is a Methodist, and neither of them would consent 
 to marry the other," replied Louis. 
 
 " He knows she's a fust-rate nuss, and that's what 
 he needs. Oi'll give my free consint to it," added 
 Felix, as Louis was called away. 
 
 . The three hours' run to the sea was a continuation 
 of the frolic of the day before, even including the 
 games. At nine o'clock, with the ship in a sheltered 
 bay, breakfast was served ; and it was as lively as all 
 the other meals had been. More speeches and a con- 
 fusion of tongues followed. The two ladies who had 
 come off in the gunboat were the lady who was said 
 to have detained Mr. Froler so long in Saigon, and 
 her mother ; and they were treated with the utmost 
 consideration by all. The band played during the 
 breakfast, having been sent for by the pacha. 
 
 Everybody was so happy that Captain Ringgold 
 remained three hours longer than he had intended. 
 Then the time to separate came ; and the parting was 
 long and difficult, bringing about another confusion 
 of tongues, but it was over at last. The gunboat 
 received her passengers for up the river ; but the 
 craft did not go that way, and accompanied the two 
 steamers about five miles to sea, with the American 
 flag flying at the fore. 
 
 As the vessels were to separate finally, the gun- 
 boat fired a salute of seven guns, which was returned 
 by both ships ; and then they sped on their voyage of 
 eight hundred miles to Manila. The captain gave out 
 
THE VOYAGE ACROSS THE CHINA SEA 245 
 
 the course east by north half-north, and the French flag 
 was hauled down from the topmast. The passengers 
 of the Blanche had been sent on board of her, while 
 those of the Guardian-Mother continued to prome- 
 nade the deck. The commander noticed that some of 
 them were gaping and yawning, and he remembered 
 that they had had only three or four hours' sleep. 
 
 " I advise you all to turn in and finish your night's 
 sleep," said he. " Professor Giroud will give his lec- 
 ture on the Philippine Islands and Manila to-mor- 
 row at half-past nine. There is nothing to do till 
 dinner-time. No lunch will be served to-day in the 
 cabin, for you have but just left the breakfast-table ; 
 but any one can ring his bell, and send for whatever 
 is wanted." 
 
 The passengers seemed to think favorably of this 
 advice, for they all went below. There was nothing 
 to see ; for there was not a single island in the course, 
 and the ship was soon out of sight of land, not to see 
 it again till she made Luban Island, off the entrance 
 to Manila Bay. The wind was almost dead ahead, 
 though it blew very gently ; but this circumstance 
 soon attracted the attention of Scott, who had been so 
 busy with the frolics that he had not had time to con- 
 sult his books and chart. 
 
 It was not his watch; and he went to his state- 
 room, returning very soon with the blue book that 
 goes with the chart of the Indian Ocean. He found 
 that there was an east monsoon which prevailed in 
 the China Sea north of the equator. 
 
246 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " What's the matter, Mr. Scott ? " asked the cap- 
 tain when he found him absorbed over his book. 
 "Do you think we are going wrong, or that there is 
 a typhoon within hail ? " 
 
 " Neither, sir ; I was looking to see why the wind 
 was east to-day," replied the third officer. 
 
 " You have discovered by this time that there is an 
 east monsoon coming in between those from the north- 
 east and south-west." 
 
 " But we did not find it coming up from Sarawak 
 to Bangkok," added the young officer. 
 
 " Your course carried you within between one hun- 
 dred and one hundred and fifty miles of the Malay 
 Peninsula. This and the great island of Sumatra 
 doubtless have some influence on the winds. Both of 
 these bodies of land are very hot ; and, as the air from 
 them tends to the cooler atmosphere of the sea, they 
 favor the south-west monsoons. All these bodies of 
 land modify to some extent the prevailing winds." 
 
 Scott was satisfied with the explanation, for it con- 
 formed with what he found in his book. When he 
 carried his authority back to his room, he turned in 
 and took his nap, in order to be ready for his watch 
 at eight bells in the afternoon watch. In fact, all but 
 the watch on deck were asleep. 
 
 The passengers seemed to be rather logy in their 
 movements and heavy of intellect, perhaps because 
 they had slept so well. It was cool at sea in com- 
 parison with the shore, and they had by this time 
 become accustomed to extremely hot weather. But 
 
THE VOYAGE ACROSS THE CHINA SEA 247 
 
 they waked up before the meal was finished, and all 
 the talk was about the frolics of the last two days. 
 
 "What do you call the place where we go next, 
 Captain Kinggold ? " asked Uncle Moses. " I see 
 it spelled in the books with a single I and with a 
 double I. Which is correct ? " 
 
 " Both/' replied the commander. " If you are writ- 
 ing Spanish, you use one I ; if you are writing Eng- 
 lish, you may use two Vs 9 though I don't believe in 
 doing so." 
 
 " Do the Spaniards ever double the I ? " 
 
 "I will leave the professor to answer that ques- 
 tion/' replied the captain. 
 
 "They never spell Manila with two Vs when they 
 spell it correctly ; for that would make another word 
 of it, a common noun instead of a proper, and mean- 
 ing quite another thing," the professor explained. 
 
 " Perhaps I am stupid, Professor, and I know next 
 to nothing of the Spanish language," added Uncle 
 Moses, "but I don't quite understand you. If a 
 Spaniard speHed the capital of the Philippine Islands 
 with a double I it wouldn't be the capital at all ? " 
 
 "It would not." 
 
 "What would it be?" 
 
 "It would be something of which Miss Blanche 
 has a couple in her possession ; and I may say the 
 same of every lady at the table," said the professor 
 with a cheerful smile on his face. 
 
 " But which no gentleman has ? " suggested the 
 worthy trustee. 
 
248 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " I don't say that ; for the word means In Spanish 
 a small hand." 
 
 There was a general laugh around the table, and 
 all the party held out their paws like dancing bears. 
 
 " Then Spaniards must be good spellers," said Dr. 
 Hawkes. "There is very great difference between 
 the capital of the Philippine Islands and Miss 
 Blanche's pretty little hands." 
 
 " LI, which we call double Z, is treated as one letter 
 in Spanish, and it has its own peculiar sound, nearly 
 equivalent to ly in English; and therefore Miss 
 Blanche's small hand would be called mah-nil-ya, 
 which is not the capital spoken off. The name of 
 all the islands is spelled in English with double p, 
 Philippine; but that is not Spanish, though the 
 geographers have generally adopted that orthography. 
 The Spanish name is Las Islas Filipinas" 
 
 " Thank you, Professor ; and I think I understand 
 it now," added Uncle Moses. 
 
 " Quiera V. ensenarme sus manillas, Signorina 
 Blanche ? " said Louis with a laugh. Of course she 
 did not understand him ; and he added, " Will you 
 show me your small hands, Miss Blanche ? " But 
 she did not do so. 
 
 " I should very much like to have all geographical 
 names reduced to a common standard, for I do not 
 believe in translating proper names," said the com- 
 mander. "I have been sometimes greatly bothered 
 by the difference in names. When I came to Aachen 
 in Belgium, I did not know where I was till I looked 
 
THE VOYAGE ACROSS THE CHINA SEA 249 
 
 in my guide-book, and found it was Aix-la-Chapelle. 
 Vienna has about three or four different names, and 
 people there would not know what you meant if you 
 called it as we do, or Vienne as the French write 
 and spell it." 
 
 "I think you are quite right, Mr. Commander,' 7 
 added the professor. 
 
 "But I have a few words to say 'about our voy- 
 age ; for I find it necessary to repress the ambition 
 of some of my passengers," continued the captain. 
 " Some of them wish to visit all the Philippine Isl- 
 ands, and there are about two thousand of them." 
 
 " Oh ! oh ! oh ! " groaned some of the party. 
 
 " But the number I gave includes every rock, reef, 
 and shoal that lifts its head above the water. Some 
 call it twelve hundred. We will not stay to count 
 them ; but there are many of them big enough to 
 have quite a number of towns on them. I wish to an- 
 nounce that it will not be possible for us to go to any 
 of them except Manila, spelled with one I, and make 
 an excursion _up the Pasig Kiver, and to the lake. 
 But the ambition of the party is more expansive in 
 regard to China and Japan. As I have told you, 
 we can take only a specimen city in each country we 
 visit. Hong-Kong and Canton in China, with some 
 more northern port or city not yet selected, will be 
 enough to give us an idea of the Central Flowery 
 Nation." 
 
 The party left the cabin, and went on deck to 
 study the map of the islands they were to visit. 
 
250 FOUK YOUNG EXPLOliEKS 
 
 CHAPTEK XXVII 
 
 SOME ACCOUNT OF THE PHILIPPINES 
 
 THE Guardian-Mother continued on her course 
 without encountering either typhoon or other tem- 
 pest, and her passengers kept very comfortable under 
 the awnings. The ship was in about 10 of north lati- 
 tude and 110 of east longitude. She was sailing with 
 the wind nearly dead ahead, and therefore the breeze 
 was good on deck, and even in the cabins. 
 
 At the appointed hour the passengers were in their 
 chairs in Conference Hall, two of them occupied 
 by the siamangs, and the baby in the lap of Miss 
 Blanche, who had become very much attached to the 
 little creature. On the frame in front of the orang- 
 outang was a complete map of the Philippine Islands, 
 covering seventeen degrees of latitude, and ten of 
 longitude, with enough of the seas around them to 
 make their position clear to the audience. 
 
 Professor Giroud was introduced for this occasion 
 as the speaker ; and he was received with more than 
 usual applause, for he had not occupied the rostrum as 
 much as formerly, General Noury having been kept 
 busy since his reappearance off Batavia. It may 
 be said that after the rest of the day before the 
 party were in excellent condition to be instructed. 
 
SOME ACCOUNT OF THE PHILIPPINES 251 
 
 " We are sailing just now in comparatively shallow 
 water j and just to the south of us there are innumer- 
 able shoals, with only from four to ten fathoms of 
 water on them. If the water were entirely drained 
 from the China Sea, the bottom would be like a hilly 
 region ; for these numerous shoals would be the tops 
 of various elevations, and the same would be true 
 of a less extent north of us. The portion of the 
 sea over which we are now moving would appear to 
 be a considerable valley. You all have imagination 
 enough to see what I have described. 
 
 " All around the Philippines on the east and south 
 the water is from two to four thousand fathoms deep ; 
 so that if the seas were dried up around them, these 
 islands would appear like a number of irregular 
 chains of mountains, and the highest peak would 
 be over 10,000 feet above the present surface of the 
 water. 
 
 " From north to south these islands extend about 
 a thousand miles, and from east to west about half 
 that distance, with the Sulu or Mindoro Sea four 
 hundred miles across it in either direction, nearly 
 enclosed within them j for the north-east coast of 
 Borneo is part of its boundary on the south. As 
 the commander mentioned at dinner last evening, 
 there are over two thousand islands in the group ; 
 and leaving out those rocks and shoals which are not 
 big enough for a man to stand upon, there are 
 twelve hundred of them. 
 
 "On a map of the world, or even of Asia, the 
 
252 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 Philippine Islands occupy but a small space, and in 
 your school-days you have doubtless regarded them 
 as of but little importance ; but several of the islands 
 are larger than any New England State, and two of 
 them are as large as Virginia and Ohio, and nearly 
 as large as New York and Pennsylvania. Luzon 
 and Mindanao," and the professor pointed to them 
 on the map, " the most northerly and the most south- 
 erly, have each about 40,000 square miles, and the 
 area of all the islands is 116,000 miles. I think 
 most of you could have no idea from your study 
 of maps of the extent of the Philippines. 
 
 "Mindoro, the next island south of Luzon, has 
 9,000 ; and the others from 1,200 to 5,500. I shall 
 not mention or describe them separately. We shall 
 visit only Manila and the country near it, and you 
 would not remember even the names of the islands 
 over night. They are all mountainous and volcanic. 
 The highest mountain is Apo, in Mindanao, which is 
 10,400 feet high, and there are others of 9,000 feet. 
 
 "The islands are volcanic, and therefore subject 
 to earthquakes ; and an instrument in Manila which 
 indicates vibrations of the earth is said to be shaking 
 about all the time. Several destructive ones are 
 recorded in the past. In 1863 Manila was nearly 
 destroyed by one, and the great southern island is 
 especially liable to them. 
 
 " The mountain ranges mostly extend north and 
 south; and there is space between them for some 
 considerable rivers, as the Rio Grande in Luzon has 
 
SOME ACCOUNT OF THE PHILIPPINES 253 
 
 a course of 220 miles. The Agusan in Mindanao is 
 navigable for 60 miles. In this island are several 
 lakes, with rivers flowing from them. In addition 
 to which are many lacustrine basins." 
 
 " Spare us, Professor ! " exclaimed Uncle Moses. 
 
 " The word comes from lacus, Latin for lake, and 
 applies here to such lakes as send their overflow to 
 the sea or other lakes by streams made by the rush 
 of water. But I don't use many such words, and I 
 hardly expected a classical scholar to object," replied 
 the professor. 
 
 " But I objected in behalf of several here who 
 never studied Latin ; and besides the overflow is 
 entirely apart from the root of the word. But I 
 am satisfied, and the commander may invite you to 
 proceed," chuckled Brother Avoirdupois. 
 
 "On account of the high mountains and the 
 abundant sea-breezes, though hot and moist, this 
 group is not so unhealthy as most tropical islands 
 and countries. The fevers of hot countries are here 
 of the rnild, intermittent kind " 
 
 "What is intermittent, Professor?" asked Felix. 
 " Is it the kind they don't have in Ireland ? " 
 
 "I should say that it was." 
 
 "An intermittent fever, Felix, is one that comes 
 and goes, like the old woman's soap," interjected 
 Mrs. Blossom, the nurse; and everybody laughed to 
 hear her say anything. 
 
 "The diseases most dreaded in these islands are 
 consumption, dysentery, and anaemia" 
 
254 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " Mercy, Professor ! " cried Mr. Woolridge. 
 
 "The reduction in the amount of blood in the 
 system, and the condition resulting from this loss, 
 is anaemia. Dr. Hawkes can explain it more fully," 
 replied the professor. 
 
 "Not necessary/' added the surgeon. 
 
 "As all over the Eastern Archipelago, there are 
 two seasons, the wet and the dry, produced by the 
 monsoons ; but the irregularity of the surface vari- 
 ously modifies the result. For the southern and 
 western sides of the mountains the south-west mon- 
 soons give the wet season, and the north-east the 
 dry season, and vice versa. Manila is subjected by 
 the influence of the south-west winds to rains from 
 June to November, with dry weather the rest of 
 the year. 
 
 " The temperature is about the same all the year 
 round. The coolest month is December, when the 
 glass stays at about 77 ; and in May, the hottest 
 month, at 86. Of course there are days, and times 
 of day, when the temperature is lower than the one, 
 and higher than the other. The extremes where we 
 are going vary only about 25 from 66 to 91 ; and 
 we have it hotter than the last in New York. The 
 average rainfall is about seventy inches, varying by 
 months from one-third of an inch in March, to 
 twenty inches in August. 
 
 "The flora of the islands is just what you would 
 expect in this climate. Nearly or quite all the 
 plants you have found in the other islands you 
 
SOME ACCOUNT OF THE PHILIPPINES 255 
 
 have visited are to be found here. Particularly 
 plenteous here are the fibrous plants, and abaca 
 forms in its prepared state one of the most im- 
 portant exports of the islands. This is a sort of 
 plantain from which comes the Manila hemp, as 
 it is sometimes called, though it is a misnomer; 
 and with us it is called simply manila, the sailors 
 tell me. It is extensively cultivated here, and 
 grows something like the banana. 
 
 "The stalks on which the leaves grow are split 
 into long strips, are threshed, combed, washed, and 
 dried, and then they become manila, of which many 
 of the ropes of this ship are made, though hemp 
 makes the better article. The finest fibres are 
 sometimes fifteen feet long, and from such some 
 very delicate manufactured goods are produced. 
 The coarser parts are used for cordage, which is 
 very serviceable. When we were at Nassau, in the 
 Island of New Providence, last year, we saw fields 
 of sisal, which has in late years come into use as 
 a substitute for common hemp and manila, and is 
 said to resist the action of sea-water better than 
 any other material. 
 
 "The fauna may seem to be quite limited to the 
 Nimrods of our company, for the large animals we 
 have found in other islands do not exist in the 
 Philippines. The buffalo and the gibbon are the 
 largest in the islands, with a variety of monkeys. 
 The elephant, tiger, rhinoceros, bear, and orang- 
 outang have no home here. The only dangerous 
 
256 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 animals are the crocodile, serpents, and other rep- 
 tiles. If the Nimrods wish to hunt they will have 
 to try their hand at the wild buffaloes, though they 
 are not to be found near Manila. 
 
 "Birds are numerous and various, and especially 
 the gallinaceous bipeds, such as barnyard fowls, 
 grouse, and pheasants; but the most highly valued 
 here is the ' rooster/ if I may call him by his 
 common American name, for cock-fighting is one 
 of the national amusements of Spain and its de- 
 pendencies. You will see plenty of it in Manila, 
 if you are so disposed ; but it is not an elevating 
 sport, any more than bull-fighting, which may pos- 
 sibly prevail here. Coal and iron are the most 
 common minerals, with others; but mining is too 
 severe work for the enterprise of the people, and 
 I believe most of the mines of Cuba are worked 
 by Americans. 
 
 "The original inhabitants of the Philippines were 
 doubtless Negritos ; and I hasten to explain the name 
 before I ain < picked up.' It was the word used by 
 the Spaniards to designate, not alone the negroes as 
 we find them in Africa, but those who are similar to 
 them. People of this race formerly inhabited all 
 these islands, but there are scarcely any of them left 
 at the present time. Hindus, Malays, and other 
 natives of the adjacent countries and islands, came 
 here, and the races mingled. 
 
 " The people found here at the present time have a 
 variety of names, beginning with the pure Spaniards, 
 
SOME ACCOUNT OF THE PHILIPPINES 257 
 
 Creoles, Tagals, Chinese, and Mestizoes. The Span- 
 iards and the Tagals need no explanation, for the 
 latter are the pure natives of the islands. Creole, I 
 believe, is variously used in different locations; but 
 it is a Spanish word, coming from criolla, which 
 means grown up. They are one thing in the Spanish 
 West Indies, another in Brazil. 
 
 " A more general definition is a person born in any 
 country, but not of native blood. In the Philippines, 
 Creoles are the children of Spanish fathers and native 
 mothers. Mestizoes are children of Chinese parents 
 on one side and natives on the other. The last class 
 are usually called ' metis ' in Manila and elsewhere. 
 You will doubtless see all of these classes, and with 
 a little practice will be able to identify them. 
 
 " The Spaniards of the islands are Catholics, often, 
 I am sorry to say, merely nominally such. Many of 
 the natives are Mohammedan, though the greater 
 portion are Catholic. The Philippines were discov- 
 ered by Magellan, as we generally call him, though 
 that was not -his correct name, in 1521. He was 
 born in Portugal, and his name was Magalhaes. He 
 served as a soldier in Malacca and Morocco, and was 
 lamed for life in a battle in the latter. He did not 
 think his services were appreciated by his king, and 
 he offered them to Spain. 
 
 " He presented to Charles V. a plan for reaching 
 the Moluccas by sailing to the west ; and, his scheme 
 being approved, he was fitted out with a fleet of five 
 ships. He passed through the straits south of Pata- 
 
258 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 gonia, which still bear his name, crossed the great 
 ocean, to which he gave the name of Pacific, though 
 it was discovered by Balboa, who called it the South 
 Sea. Succeeding in his enterprise, he reached the 
 Philippines, after putting down a mutiny. He was 
 killed in an expedition he led in the islands. The 
 Victoria, his ship, returned to Spain in charge of one 
 of his subordinates, thus completing the first voyage 
 ever made around the world. 
 
 "There were several governments in the islands, 
 and most of them were conquered or conciliated so 
 that they came under Spanish rule ; but the Moham- 
 medans of Sulu, the Archipelago north-east of Bor- 
 neo, and Mindanao retained their independence for a 
 long period, and they still retain their boundaries 
 and government. 
 
 "Manila has a population of 270,000, and there 
 are several other considerable towns with 30,000 or 
 more. There is a submarine cable to Hong Kong, 
 720 miles of telegraph, and 16 miles of railroad out 
 of Manila. The army consists of 4,800 men, with 
 3,500 gendarmerie, or police, such as ride in pairs 
 all over Spain. It has a navy of two corvettes, six 
 avisos, or despatch vessels, sixteen gunboats, with 
 2,000 sailors and marines. I believe I have told you 
 all that is necessary to know about the Philippine 
 Islands in a general way ; and I thank you for your 
 attention through the long talk I have given you," the 
 professor concluded, and retired from the rostrum in 
 the midst of the hearty applause bestowed upon him. 
 
SOME ACCOUNT OF THE PHILIPPINES 259 
 
 " I think we all know more about the Philippines 
 than we ever knew before, though I have been there ; 
 and to-morrow I shall have something to say, very 
 briefly, about the city of Manila," said the com- 
 mander. 
 
 " When shall we get there, Captain ? " asked Dr. 
 Hawkes. 
 
 " Day after to-morrow morning ; but I shall lay off 
 so as not to get there at three in the morning." l 
 
 1 On board of a steamer from Colombo, Ceylon, to London, I 
 met an educated Scotch gentleman from Manila, who pronounced 
 the name Philippine, the last i long. On the steamer from Liver- 
 pool to Boston, I met a lady, also from Manila, and she pro- 
 nounced it with a long i in the last syllable. I conclude this is 
 the fashion among English-speaking people in the Philippine 
 Islands. O. O. 
 
260 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 CHAPTER XXVIII 
 
 THE DESCRIPTION OF AN EARTHQUAKY CITY 
 
 IN the afternoon of the second day out Professor 
 Giroud called his pupils together in the library, 
 which was the schoolroom of the ship, and resumed 
 the lessons which had been interrupted since the ar- 
 rival at Sarawak. The long intermission had sharp- 
 ened the intellects of the class, and they were very 
 earnest in their studies. But it could be only for 
 the afternoon and the next day, for the commander 
 was very diligent in the business of sight-seeing. 
 
 At half -past nine the next forenoon, the passengers 
 were all assembled in Conference Hall, as the captain 
 had appointed ; and the siamangs, who spent much 
 of the time aloft running up and down and along the 
 foreyards, were in their usual places, for chairs had 
 been provided for them ; and they looked as grave and 
 attentive as though they understood the whole of 
 the lecture. Captain Einggold appeared on the ros- 
 trum, after he had patted Mr. and Mrs. Mingo on the 
 head, and glanced at Miss Mingo in the lap of Miss 
 Blanche. 
 
 "Manila is the capital of all the Spanish posses- 
 sions in the East, as the professor has informed 
 you j it has a population of 270,000, which is 40,000 
 
DESCRIPTION OF AN EARTHQUAKY CITY 261 
 
 greater than Havana," he began. " It is on the 
 south-west coast of Luzon, 650 miles from Hong- 
 Kong, which is a run of about forty-seven hours for 
 the ship. It is located on both sides of the little 
 river Pasig, which is the outlet of Lake Bahia, or 
 the Lake of the Bay. When I was here many years 
 ago, I spoke Spanish enough to get along; but I 
 shall leave the language now to the professor and 
 Mr. Belgrave, for I forget most of it. 
 
 " In going to the city we have to pass through 
 Manila Bay, which is really a sea of itself; and, 
 though it is land-locked, it affords little if any pro- 
 tection for vessels in heavy weather, for it is about 
 thirty miles long from north to south, and twenty- 
 five from east to west. A west or south-west wind 
 rakes it about the same as the ocean. 
 
 " The city forms a circle, with a piece of it cut off 
 on the bay ; and the suburbs are on several islands 
 in the river and bay. To keep a clear channel, the 
 Pasig is extended into the bay between two piers, 
 with a fort" at the end of one, and a lighthouse at 
 the end of the other. The anchorage in the bay is 
 good enough so far as holding ground is concerned, 
 except in the south-west monsoon, when vessels of 
 four hundred tons or more have to go to Cavite, ten 
 miles south south-west from the city ; and their cargo 
 must be taken to and from them in lighters. 
 
 "The oldest part of Manila is on the southern 
 bank of the Pasig, and is strongly fortified; but it 
 has a dilapidated look, for it was founded in 1571. 
 
262 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 On the north side of the river is the Binondo 
 suburb, as it is called, which is .more populous than 
 the old part. The foreign merchants live here, and 
 it is the more important commercial centre. You 
 would hardly know, if you waked from a sleep there, 
 whether you were in a Spanish or an Oriental city, 
 for you would see something of both. Gloomy-look- 
 ing churches, awkward towers, and heavily built stone 
 houses are mixed up with pleasant cottages in groves 
 of tropical trees. I believe the people are now in- 
 clined to build more of wood than stone on account 
 of the prevalence of earthquakes, which shake down 
 the heavier structures, and crush the occupants under 
 the weight of the material. 
 
 " As in Burma and Siam, the cottages I mentioned 
 are built on posts ; for the land is sometimes inundated, 
 and the water requires a free passage, or it would do 
 more mischief. In the month of August, nearly two 
 feet of water falls on a level; and it makes bad work 
 in the low places'. The streets are wide and not 
 paved ; and in the rainy season, with a foot or two 
 of water lying loose around, they become very nearly 
 impassable. The houses are built in Spanish fash- 
 ion, with a central court-yard. They are generally 
 two stories high j for in an earthquaky country like 
 this, where terra firma becomes terra shaky, the 
 people are not encouraged to erect buildings twenty 
 stories high, as in New York and Chicago. 
 
 " An iron suspension bridge connects the old town 
 with Binondo. It was formerly a stone bridge, built 
 
DESCRIPTION OF AN EAIiTHQUAKY CITY 263 
 
 more than two hundred years ago, which was thrown 
 down by the earthquake of 1863. A street in the 
 new suburb, called the Escolto, seems to be the 
 Broadway of the city; for it is the great shopping 
 locality, and it is flanked with shops and stalls, filled 
 with people of various races. Beyond this the Chi- 
 nese, Tagals, and half-castes congregate in numerous 
 occupations, as jewellers, oil and soap dealers, con- 
 fectioners, painters, and those of other trades. Here 
 you will find plenty of gambling-houses, if you are 
 looking for them. 
 
 " As in Singapore, certain sections of the city are 
 given up to particular branches of business. At San 
 Fernando, there are immense cigar manufactories, like 
 the one you saw in Sevilla in Spain, where six thou- 
 sand women are employed ; and probably as many are 
 to be found in some of them here," continued the 
 commander, consulting memoranda he took from his 
 pocket. " At Santo Mesa is a cordage manufactory ; 
 at Alcaicerfa the Chinese have a landing-place for 
 their sampans ; fishermen and weavers live at Tondo, 
 whose gardens supply the markets with fruit and 
 vegetables ; Malate is the resort of the embroiderers ; 
 Paco is favored by artists and artisans; and Santa 
 Ana and San Pedro Macati are health resorts." 
 
 " McCarty ! " exclaimed Felix, as he caught what 
 sounded like an Irish name. "I wondher if he 
 comes from Kilkenny." 
 
 " A place, and not a man ; and it did not come from 
 Kilkenny. It is a Spanish name, spelled Ma-ca-ti," 
 
264 FOUR YOUNG EXPLOKERS 
 
 replied tne captain. " I have read off all these names 
 from my memoranda, not that I expect you to re- 
 member them, but to show you how things work 
 here. All the buildings for public use in a capital 
 city are found here, and a cathedral, the palaces of 
 the governor-general and the archbishop, an elegant 
 town-house, churches, three colleges for young men, 
 and two for young women (not behind the times, 
 you see), a large theatre, probably not as large as 
 that in Barcelona, custom-house, barracks, etc. The 
 Prado is the largest public square, and is ornamented 
 with a statue of Charles IV., or Carlos, King of 
 Spain from 1788 to 1808 ; and I wonder there is not 
 one of Magellan, who discovered the islands, and lost 
 his life here. 
 
 " The streets of the city are lighted with kerosene- 
 oil lamps, and not with gas, for the reason that the 
 earthquakes made bad work of the latter; and the 
 works were destroyed in a hurricane in 1882, as was 
 half the city. They do not build houses of brick or 
 stone now, but of wood, the former being so destruc- 
 tive of human life in an earthquake. The native 
 dwellings are constructed of bamboo, thatched with 
 the leaves of the nipa palm. 
 
 " Glass windows are not used here ; but the flat 
 shell of a large oyster is substituted for glass, and 
 the sashes all slide horizontally. Both of these de- 
 partures from ordinary methods are said to be to 
 exclude the great heat ; but I confess that I cannot 
 see it. I find among my memoranda that 21,000 
 
DESCRIPTION OF AN EARTHQUAKY CITY 265 
 
 women and 1,500 inan are employed in making 
 cigars; which in Sevilla includes the putting up of 
 tobacco in papers for smoking, and it may be so 
 here. Before I close I wish to say that authorities 
 differ in regard to the population of the city; but 
 I think the professor was about right in putting it 
 at 270,000. Lippincott gives it with the suburbs at 
 160,000, and Chambers at nearly 300,000. You have 
 been patient and longer suffering than I intended you 
 should be, and I thank you." 
 
 The commander made his bow, and descended from 
 the rostrum. Hearty applause followed, and the 
 siamangs joined with repeated cries and squeaks. 
 Miss Mingo had fallen asleep in her comfortable 
 quarters ; but the noise woke her with a start, and 
 she sprang to the shoulder of Miss Blanche, where 
 she gave her " Ka ! Ea ! Ka ! " and the squeak 
 which is the " tiger " at the end of it. As the audi- 
 ence left their chairs for a walk on the deck, Mr. 
 and Mrs. Mingo sprang into the fore-rigging, climb- 
 ing the shronds, and over the futtock-shrouds, dis- 
 daining to crawl through the lubber-hole to the top. 
 
 Miss Mingo looked up at them, and then sprang 
 into the rigging ; for her strength and agility seemed 
 to have greatly increased since she came on board, 
 making it probable that the sea-air agreed with her. 
 But her mamma did not appear to be quite satisfied 
 with this venture ; and she sprang over the futtocks, 
 and seized her with one arm as she began to mount 
 them. 
 
266 FOUK YOUNG EXPLOKEKS 
 
 Mr. Mingo ran up the topmast rigging, and seated 
 himself on the cross-trees. The anxious mother 
 looked at him a moment, and then darted down to 
 the deck with the baby in her arm. Then, seeing 
 Mrs. Belgrave seated in one of the arm-chairs on the 
 promenade, she carried Miss Mingo to her, placing 
 the infant in her lap. The lady immediately folded 
 the little one in her arms so that she could not 
 escape, caressing her so that she did not offer to 
 follow her mother up the rigging, though she watched 
 her ascent. 
 
 Mrs. Mingo ascended to the cross-trees, where she 
 and the gentleman siamang seemed to hold a con- 
 ference. The latter then sprang up to the topgallant 
 yard, and was closely followed by his mate. They 
 turned somersets, and went through a variety of 
 athletic feats, which greatly interested their audience 
 on deck, who gave them a round of applause. They 
 seemed to understand and appreciate this manifesta- 
 tion of approbation, for they attempted various other 
 feats. 
 
 Mrs. Mingo got hold of the topgallant halliards, 
 and finding them loose, swung out over the lee side 
 of the ship. Captain Einggold was startled at this 
 movement. She swung out as far as she could, the 
 line yielding, and suddenly she dropped into the 
 water. The captain rang the gong to stop the screw, 
 and then to back it. If the siamang could swim at all, 
 she was very clumsy in the water ; and the waves, for 
 there was considerable sea on, seemed to bother her. 
 
DESCRIPTION OF AN EARTHQUAKY CITY 267 
 
 " Clear away the second cutter, Mr. Gaskette ! " 
 shouted the commander as soon as he had rung the 
 gong to stop the screw, and the ship was as nearly at 
 rest as she could be on the billows. 
 
 " All the second cutters, on deck ! " shouted Biggs, 
 the boatswain, after he had piped his whistle, at the 
 order of the second officer. 
 
 The boat was swung out in as much haste as 
 though the cry had been " Man overboard ! " and 
 her crew took their places in good order. The cutter 
 was lowered into the water, and the men gave way 
 on a favoring wave and went clear of the ship. They 
 pulled with all their might; and Lanark, the cock- 
 swain, steered her for the siamang. 
 
 " Stand by, bowmen, to haul in the lady ! " called 
 Mr. Gaskette, as the cutter approached the unhappy 
 animal. " In bows ! " and the two bowmen tossed 
 their oars, and brought them down in place, the men 
 springing into the fore-sheets to seize hold of the 
 creature. " Way enough ! " 
 
 It looked t those who were anxiously watching 
 the operations of the men, fearful that Miss Mingo 
 would become an orphan, as though the boat would 
 strike Mrs. Mingo, and kill her by the collision. 
 
 " Stern all ! " cried Mr. Gaskette with energy. 
 
 The order was obeyed, and the cutter came to 
 a stop when near the animal. The bowmen were 
 reaching to get hold of her, when she made a vigor- 
 ous leap into the fore-sheets, grasping the rail as 
 she did so. She shook herself with all her might 
 
268 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 as soon as she was in the boat, and a cheer went up 
 from the deck of the ship. The lady then seated 
 herself on the little platform in the bow, and seemed 
 to be as happy as ever, and that was saying a great 
 deal. 
 
 " Give way ! " said Mr. Gaskette, laughing at the 
 apparent self-possession of Mrs. Mingo when her 
 troubles were over. The cutter came alongside the 
 ship under its davits, the falls were hooked on, and 
 the boat was hoisted up. The lady was the first 
 to leap from her place to the rail of the ship. 
 
 The passengers applauded as she moved aft; and 
 she replied with her usual cry, and ended it with a 
 squeak. She went directly to the promenade, which 
 she mounted, and then hastened to Mrs. Belgrave's 
 chair. She looked at her baby as though it had 
 been overboard. Miss Mingo's keeper had taken 
 care that the infant should not see her mother in the 
 water; and the little one could not have told what 
 was the matter if any one had asked her, first be- 
 cause she did not know, and second for an obvious 
 reason. 
 
 The ship was going ahead again, and the captain 
 came to the promenade. He took the lady into the 
 sun, and persuaded her to lie down and dry herself. 
 She seemed to understand the matter, and stretched 
 herself out. 
 
 " What made her fall overboard, Captain ? " asked 
 the lady meaning Mrs. Belgrave this time, and not 
 the siamang. 
 
SHK MADI-: A VH;OI:<>I s LKAP INTO TIIK i OKE-SHKKTS. 
 
 Paye 267. 
 
DESCRIPTION OF AN EARTHQUAKY CITY 269 
 
 "The fore topgallant halliard was not made fast 
 to the cleat, and when it ran out, it jerked her from 
 it," replied the commander. " It ought not to have 
 been loose, and there is a bit of discipline for some 
 jack-tar." 
 
 The ship went along as before ; and when the pas- 
 sengers turned out the next morning Manila was in 
 sight, and not five miles distant. 
 
270 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 CHAPTEK XXIX 
 
 GOING ON SHORE IN MANILA 
 
 THE ship had slowed down in the afternoon, and 
 reached the entrance of Manila Bay about eight bells, 
 or four o'clock in the morning. At the Boca Grande 
 she had taken a pilot ; but she still had twenty-five 
 miles to run. She had come in by the larger of the 
 two passages, formed by a group of islands, both of 
 which are called " mouths " (bocas) ; and the smaller 
 of them is the Boca Chica. The Blanche had followed 
 the example of the Guardian-Mother in slowing 
 down, and had taken a pilot at about the same time. 
 
 The passengers had asked the steward on watch in 
 the cabin to call them at half -past five, and they were 
 all on deck as soon as it was light enough for them 
 to see the shore clearly. But the bay is so large that 
 they could make out the shores only ahead of the 
 ship. They could see the mountains in the distance, 
 with a lower stretch of land between them and the 
 low ground of the shore. All that they could observe 
 was tropical verdure, with lofty palms on every hand. 
 The low ground, covered with water in the rainy sea- 
 son, was planted with rice-fields. 
 
 The ladies declared that the view was lovely ; and 
 certainly it presented variety enough, with the high 
 
GOING ON SHOKE IN MANILA 271 
 
 lands in the background, and the rich and luxuriant 
 growth near the bay. The pilot was a Spaniard who 
 could speak a little English ; and the commander 
 ordered him to bring the ship to anchor at a safe 
 place, as near as convenient off the end of the two 
 piers at the mouth of Pasig. The Blanche took a 
 position abreast of her, off the fort, while the first 
 was off the lighthouse. 
 
 The health-officer came on board, and by this time 
 it was after sunrise. He was blandly received by 
 the commander, as every official or visitor was, and 
 the conversation was carried on in English. All the 
 ship's company and the passengers were mustered on 
 the upper deck. The papers, including lists of all 
 the persons on board, were examined, and compared 
 with the number presented, which made it clear 
 that no one was sick in his stateroom or in the fore- 
 castle. 
 
 The custom-house officers were not far behind, and 
 the character of the steamer was explained. There 
 was no manifest, for there was no cargo to be in- 
 voiced. The principal officer was very minute in his 
 inquiry, and not particularly courteous. He was 
 evidently impressed by his authority ; and the cap- 
 tain did not invite him to breakfast, as he would have 
 done if he had been somewhat less conscious of the 
 magnitude of his office. 
 
 The duties on merchandise brought into the islands 
 were formerly discriminating in favor of Spanish ves- 
 sels, which caused other merchantmen to avoid the 
 
272 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 port to its commercial injury ; but about twenty years 
 before a uniform tariff was established, without re- 
 gard to the flag under which the ship sailed, and all 
 export duties were abolished. The official went over 
 the ship, and the arrangement of her accommodations 
 ought to have been enough to convince the man that 
 the vessel was a pleasure yacht. The self-sufficient 
 officer retreated in good order when he had completed 
 his examination, leaving a subordinate on board to 
 see that no merchandise was landed. The latter was 
 a gentlemanly person, spoke English, and was dis- 
 posed to make himself agreeable. He was invited to 
 breakfast in the cabin. 
 
 The passengers had seated themselves on the prom- 
 enade during the official examination, observing all 
 the proceedings, and watching the boats in sight, 
 some of which were different from anything they had 
 seen before. They were near enough to the piers to 
 see some distance up the river. Of course the 
 Blanche was subjected to the same examination ; but 
 a different set of officials had boarded her, and com- 
 pleted their work in a much shorter time. It could 
 be seen that her crew were putting the steam-launch 
 into the water. 
 
 " The Blanchita will be exceedingly serviceable 
 here," said the commander, who had taken a stand 
 near the steps of the promenade. "We can go on 
 shore, and land anywhere we please; for there are 
 quays all along the river." 
 
 "Boat coming down the river with the American 
 
GOING ON SHORE IN MANILA 273 
 
 flag at the stern, Captain Kinggold," said Mr. Scott, 
 saluting the commander. 
 
 " Our consul probably," added the captain. 
 " Would you like to go to a hotel in Manila, ladies ? " 
 asked he. 
 
 No one answered the question, but three of them 
 glanced at Mrs. Belgrave, as though they expected 
 her to reply ; but she made no sign. 
 
 " You don't answer, ladies," added the captain. 
 
 " We are waiting for Mrs. Belgrave to speak," 
 said Mrs. Woolridge. 
 
 " I beg you will excuse me," said that lady, laugh- 
 ing. "I do not know why I am expected to voice 
 the sentiments of the party ." 
 
 "Because, like the wife of the President of the 
 United States at home, you are the first lady on 
 board," returned the wife of the magnate of the 
 Fifth Avenue. " Your son is the owner of the 
 Guardian-Mother, and you are the mother for whom 
 the ship is named." 
 
 "I most respectfully decline to be so regarded; 
 and if I have ever put on any airs, I will repent 
 and reform," replied Mrs. Belgrave, laughing all the 
 while. 
 
 " You have never put on airs, or assumed anything 
 at all," protested Mrs. Woolridge. 
 
 "I consider my son a very good boy, and an ear- 
 nest advocate of fair play with others," continued 
 the "first lady" more seriously; and all the party 
 heartily approved the remark. "Louis found that 
 
274 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 the other members of the ' Big Four ' were disposed 
 to rely upon him, and wished to do as he desired. 
 On the Borneo question he took a secret ballot, and 
 would not express his own opinion till the vote was 
 declared, though he voted himself. Every one voted 
 for himself, and could not have been influenced by 
 his desire. I propose to follow my son's example. 
 I wish the commander to be guided by the views of 
 all rather than mine." 
 
 All the passengers, gentlemen included, applauded 
 her unselfish stand. The lady tore off a blank leaf 
 from a letter she took from her pocket, and made it 
 into twelve pieces, which she proceeded to distribute 
 among the passengers. 
 
 " I think the gentlemen are just as much interested 
 in the question as the ladies; and I invite them to 
 vote, Mr. Scott included. The question is, Shall we 
 go to a hotel in Manila, or live on board of the ship," 
 said the lady. . " You will vote yes or no ; yes for 
 the hotel, and no for the ship." 
 
 "Perhaps I ought to inform you before you vote 
 that there are at least three hotels in Manila, the 
 Catalana, the Universe, and the Madrid. Of the 
 merits of each I cannot speak ; but we can obtain 
 correct information before we go to any one of them, 
 and probably there are more than I have mentioned," 
 interposed the commander, very much amused at the 
 proceedings. 
 
 "Please to separate now; and I put you on your 
 honor to be secret, and not consult any person in 
 
GOING ON SHORE IN MANILA 275 
 
 regard to your vote," Mrs. Belgrave added. "I ap- 
 point Mr. Gaskette to collect, sort, and count the bal- 
 lots. After voting, please return to the promenade." 
 
 The passengers went individually to various cor- 
 ners, and wrote their votes. The second officer 
 collected them in his cap, and then went into the 
 pilot-house to make out his return. It required but 
 three minutes to do this, as there was no scattering 
 votes ; and he returned to the promenade. 
 
 " Whole number of votes, 12 ; necessary to a choice, 
 7 ; Yes, 2, No, 10, and the No's have carried it," read 
 Mr. Gaskette, handing the paper to Mrs. Belgrave, 
 and retiring with a graceful bow. 
 
 " Yes means hotel, and no means ship," said the 
 lady. "Mr. Commander, the party have voted to 
 live on board of the ship. I am willing to acknowl- 
 edge that I cast one of the two yes ballots. But I 
 am infinitely better satisfied than J ^hould have been 
 if I had influenced you the other way. I hope you 
 all consider that the thing has been fairly done." 
 
 "Boat coming alongside, sir," reported Mr. Scott 
 to the captain. " Another boat near, flying the 
 English flag, headed for the Blanche." 
 
 Captain Ringgold hastened to the gangway to re- 
 ceive the occupant of the boat, whoever he might 
 prove to be. One of the men on the platform 
 brought him a card, on which he found the name 
 of the American consul, who mounted at once to the 
 deck just as the gong sounded for breakfast. 
 
 " I am very glad to meet you, Mr. Webb, and to 
 
276 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 welcome you to my ship, which is the steam-yacht 
 Guardian-Mother, on a voyage around the world," 
 said the captain, as he grasped the hand of the offi- 
 cial. " Captain Ringgold, at your service." 
 
 "I am very happy to meet you, Captain, for I 
 have heard of you ; and I tender my services for any 
 assistance I may be able to render to you and your 
 party," replied the consul. 
 
 " Now I will introduce you to the ladies and gentle- 
 men on board, and you will do us the honor to break- 
 fast with us," added the commander, as he took the 
 arm of his guest, and conducted him to the prome- 
 nade, where he was duly presented to all the passen- 
 gers individually. 
 
 Louis Belgrave was presented as the owner of the 
 steamer, for the captain never omitted to give him 
 a prominent position. The breakfast was the usual 
 one ; but it was always very nice, and Mr. Sage had 
 hailed a boat, and obtained some very fine fish for 
 the meal. Mr. Webb was placed on the right of the 
 commander, Louis's usual place; but he was glad 
 enough always to get the seat next to Miss Blanche. 
 The consul was next to Mrs. Belgrave ; and he found 
 her very agreeable, as she never failed to be. 
 
 "Now, what are we going to do here, Mr. Com- 
 mander ? " asked the " first lady," as some had actu- 
 ally begun to call her already. 
 
 "We are going to see the city, of course," he 
 replied. 
 
 "I feel for one as though we had already seen 
 
GOING ON SMOKE IN MANILA 277 
 
 it, and I can see it all in my mind's eye now," added 
 the lady. "You and the professor have given us 
 such a minute account of the place and its surround- 
 ings that it seems to me that I have taken it all in. 77 
 
 " I think most of us have," said Mrs. Woolridge j 
 and several of the company expressed themselves 
 to the same effect. 
 
 " We have several books in the library about the 
 city and the islands, and some of us have read them 
 all," suggested Louis. 
 
 " What books have you on board, Mr. Belgrave ? " 
 asked the consul. 
 
 " We have < Twenty Years in the Philippines ' by 
 Monsieur de la Gironiere, which some say was writ- 
 ten by Alexandre Dumas, but I don't know about 
 that j ' Travels in the Philippines,' by F. Jagor, with 
 an epitome of the work in Harper's Magazine; 
 and we have Chambers's Encyclopaedia, Lippincott's 
 Gazetteer of the present year, and some other 
 works." 
 
 " You seem to be well provided with information, 
 and with the best extant, unless you consult the 
 archives of Spain at Madrid," returned the consul. 
 
 "The Blanchita is coming alongside, Captain," 
 said Mr. Scott, to whom a message to this effect 
 had been sent down by the officer of the deck. 
 
 The breakfast was nearly finished when the word 
 came ; and the party soon went on deck, where they 
 found all the passengers of the Blanche and the 
 British consul. The usual hugging and kissing on 
 
278 FOUR YOUNG EXPLOKEKS 
 
 the part of the ladies and hand-shaking by the 
 gentlemen followed, and the two consuls were duly 
 presented to all. 
 
 " It is time for us to go on shore," said General 
 Noury, looking at his watch. " The Blanchita is 
 at the gangway, and I have engaged a pilot for 
 her. Of course you are all invited to go on shore 
 in her." 
 
 The two consuls volunteered to act as guides ; and 
 the company took their places in the launch, which 
 was large enough to accommodate double the number. 
 The pilot took her into the river j and if the ears of 
 the tourists had been filled full of Manila, there was 
 plenty for the eyes to take in, and it was not five 
 minutes after they passed the lighthouse before most 
 of the passengers were laughing at some of the queer 
 costumes worn by the people. 
 
 They passed a craft which Mr. Webb called a 
 passage-boat. It was a sort of canoe, manned by 
 three men, two of them rowing, and one working 
 a paddle to steer her. Over the after part was an 
 awning, made of the big leaves of the nipa palm ; 
 and under it were two men and two women, bound 
 up the river. But a freight-boat interested the young 
 men most. The hull of it looked more like a canal- 
 boat than any other craft they could think of. The 
 planking of the sides extended a little higher up 
 forward and aft than amidships; and the whole 
 was covered with an arched roof woven on hoops, 
 like those of a baggage-wagon, with palm leaves. 
 
GOING ON SHORE IN MANILA 279 
 
 The portion at the bow and stern could be removed, 
 as the whole could. The man at the helm was under 
 the stern section of the cover, and it was lifted about 
 a foot to enable him to look ahead. 
 
 A wide plank was secured on iron brackets 
 fastened to each side of the craft, on which were 
 two men poling the boat up the stream. It was 
 so far like the mud-scows formerly in use on some of 
 the waters of New England, except that the men who 
 worked her with poles walked on the gunwale of the 
 scow. The boys watched it till it passed out of view 
 astern. The Blanchita made a landing near the 
 bridge, on the Binondo side ; and all the passengers 
 went on shore. 
 
280 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 CHAPTER XXX. 
 
 EXCURSIONS ON SHORE AND UP THE PASIG 
 
 THE Pasig flowed from east to west in the city; 
 and landing on the north side of the stream, the 
 tourists soon came to the Escolto, which extended 
 both ways parallel to the river. It was the prin- 
 cipal street for shoppers and promenaders, and was 
 exactly what they wished to find, as they had in- 
 formed Mr. Webb and Mr. Gollan, the two consuls 
 who had brought them there. 
 
 The avenue was filled at this hour with a motley 
 variety of people of all the races known in the 
 islands, from the Tagal Indian up to the native- 
 born of Spain. Some of them were disposed to 
 laugh at the strangeness, not to say the absurdity, 
 of some of the costumes which confronted them; 
 but all of them were too well bred to indulge their 
 mirth, or to stare offensively at the subjects of 
 their suppressed merriment. One young man ex- 
 cited their attention especially; and Louis at the 
 side of Miss Blanche, and the rest of the quartet 
 of youDg Americans, were also interested. 
 
 "He is one of the swells of the city," said Scott, 
 looking industriously at the clear blue sky. 
 
 "He looks like it," replied Louis, as he and his 
 
EXCURSIONS ON SHORE AND UP THE PASIG 281 
 
 female companion each gazed with one eye into a shop 
 window while they fixed the other upon the native, 
 who was sporting a cane . in fantastic twirls, and 
 evidently believing he was worth looking at. 
 
 The subject of their mirth, variously concealed, 
 was what would be called a colored man at home, 
 though not a negro ; but he was not many removes 
 in complexion from the original Negrito. He was 
 toying with a cigar, and wore a monocule and a 
 " stovepipe " hat. His trousers were a sort of plaid ; 
 and his upper works were covered with what looked 
 like a blouse, though it was really his shirt, with a 
 linen bosom, secured with studs. At the base of 
 his figure was a pair of patent-leather shoes, though 
 he did not affect the luxury of stockings. 
 
 The party observed his magnificent movements 
 till he was out of sight ; but their attention was 
 immediately attracted by a feminine water-carrier, 
 who was standing on the opposite side of the street. 
 On her head was a good-sized earthen jar, which 
 she poised on the summit of her cranium with- 
 out support from either hand, one of which she 
 employed in coquetting with a banana leaf instead 
 of the national abanico, or fan, of the Spanish 
 ladies. 
 
 " That girl has a very fine form," said Dr. Hawkes, 
 who was standing near the boys. "She is not a 
 Spanish maiden, but her complexion is quite as fair 
 as any of them." 
 
 " She has an abundant crop of dark hair, and 
 
282 FOUR YOUNG EXPLOKERS 
 
 she puts it to a good use; for it is braided and 
 rolled up so that it makes a cushion for the water- 
 jar," said Scott. 
 
 " She is much taller than the natives we have 
 been in the habit of seeing/ 7 added Louis. 
 
 By this time the entire party had halted, and, 
 taking their cue from the surgeon, were looking at 
 the water-bearer. The girl had been observing the 
 strangers before any of them saw her; but as soon 
 as she realized that she was the object of their 
 scrutiny, she smiled, and her pretty face lighted 
 up as though she did not object to being stared at. 
 Her under garment, with long sleeves, was all the 
 covering she wore above the belt ; and below it her 
 skirt of uneven length reached just below the knees. 
 She wore neither shoes nor stockings, and her feet 
 looked as though they had been " Trilbied." 
 
 " I suppose that man over there is carrying 
 that rooster to market," said Mrs. Belgrave, who 
 was walking between the commander and Mr. 
 Webb. 
 
 "Not at all, madam; that is a game-bird. The 
 national amusements of Spain are bull-fighting and 
 cock-fighting," returned Mr. Webb. " I was in 
 Madrid one Sunday, and the programme for the 
 day was a cock-fight at one, a bull-fight at three, 
 and the Italian opera at six ; and I went to all of 
 them." 
 
 "On Sunday?" queried the lady. 
 
 "I was there to see the sights, and learn the 
 
EXCURSIONS ON SHORE AND UP THE PASIG 283 
 
 customs of the people; and a bull-fight could be seen 
 only on Sunday, and the cock-fight was patronized 
 on that day by the high admiral of the navy. In 
 Madrid, as in other cities of Continental Europe, 
 Sunday is not regarded as it is in England and the 
 United States ; and their failure to observe it as we 
 do is not an evidence that they are irreligious. The 
 next day was All Saints' or All Souls' Day, I forget 
 which; and every shop was closed. The noise and 
 confusion of Sunday and all ordinary days were 
 silenced. The churches were all open and well 
 filled, and the people went to the cemeteries to de- 
 posit flowers on the graves of their dead. In Stock- 
 holm, which is a Protestant city, people went to 
 church in the forenoon ; but at one o'clock the band 
 struck up, and the rest of the day was given up 
 to frolicking." 
 
 " I prefer to live in Von Blonk Park," added Mrs. 
 Belgrave, with a smile. 
 
 " But cock-fighting is vastly more prevalent here 
 than in Spain^ or any other country I have visited. 
 Wealthy people have their games, and all the poor 
 people also," continued the consul. " About every 
 man who can raise money enough to buy one owns 
 a game-cock, and many take them with them when 
 they go out. 
 
 " Observe that man and woman approaching us ; 
 they are Spanish metis. Both of them wear rather 
 gay colors. On the other side of the street is a pair 
 of Chinese metis ; and one couple is not much differ- 
 
284 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 ent from the other, except, if you are an expert, you 
 can see something of the high cheek-bones of the 
 Chinese. Both of the men wear stovepipe hats, 
 which seems to be the fashion among that class. 
 Some of them are quite wealthy." 
 
 "Do all these different grades fraternize, Mr. 
 Webb ? " asked the commander. 
 
 " In business they do, but not socially. The pure 
 Spaniards look down upon all the native and half- 
 caste people ; and in turn all the other classes do con- 
 siderable looking down upon some other grades, till 
 you get to the Tagals, who are so unfortunate as 
 to have no other class to look down upon." 
 
 The tourists walked along this Broadway of the 
 city till they were tired, and then turned into a side 
 street to observe some of the dwelling-houses. The 
 first thing that they noticed was that most of the 
 houses were covered on the roof with red tiles, as in 
 Spain and in other countries. They all had very 
 small windows, with sliding sashes ; and the panes, of 
 oyster-shells instead of glass, were smaller in propor- 
 tion than the windows. Most of them had a balcony 
 of some sort, which was an out-door sitting-room, 
 used during leisure hours by the people. 
 
 The consuls then conducted the party to a stand 
 for carriages, and enough of them were engaged to 
 accommodate all. They were taken for two hours, 
 with the proviso that the passengers were to be set 
 down at the landing by the bridge. 
 
 " You must pay in advance," said Mr. Webb. 
 
EXCURSIONS ON SHORE AND UP THE PASIG 285 
 
 " That is the custom here. The drivers were cheated 
 so often in some former time, that it became ' no pay, 
 no ride.' I bargained at five pesetas an hour for each 
 vehicle." 
 
 The captain, Mrs. Belgrave, and Mr. Webb occu- 
 pied the first carriage; and the consul directed the 
 driver where to go. 
 
 " Five pesetas," said the lady when they were 
 seated. " How much is that ? " 
 
 " About one dollar. A peseta is the legal unit of 
 the currency, and is of the same value as the French 
 franc and the Italian lira, or nineteen cents, three 
 mills of our money, as estimated by the director of 
 the United States Mint. The real is a quarter of a 
 peseta, but the escudo of ten reales has been sup- 
 pressed. The Spanish dollar, the same as ours, 
 though not on a gold standard, is the usual medium 
 of trade here." 
 
 The tourists were driven to the cathedral, the 
 palaces of the governor and the archbishop, and to 
 several of the public squares ; but they found little 
 occasion to describe them in their note-books, though 
 they were all worth looking at. They were taken 
 through some of the streets occupied by the poorer 
 classes and to the great cigar factories. Then they 
 went a little way into one of these, where thousands 
 of women of all the lower grades of the city were 
 employed, so that they obtained a good idea of the 
 establishment. 
 
 They were taken to the landing-place as agreed, 
 
286 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 and embarked immediately in the Blanchita for the 
 ship, where all were to lunch, feeling that they 
 had seen all of the city that they wished to visit. 
 The consuls went with them, but all were tired 
 enough to rest during the hour given them for the 
 luncheon. At the expiration of the hour, the com- 
 mander remorselessly drove them on board of the 
 steam-yacht for an excursion up the Pasig to Lago de 
 Bahia, which is Spanish for Lake of the Bay. 
 
 Some of the party were tired ; but the captain 
 declared that they could rest in the little steamer, 
 and remain seated all the afternoon if they chose. 
 A skilful pilot for the river and lake had been ob- 
 tained by Mr. Gollan, who devoted himself especially 
 to the pacha and the princess, for they were the 
 passengers of the English steamer, though he 
 was very kind and polite to all the company. 
 Above the bridge the passengers began to open 
 their eyes, for they had explored the river below 
 this point. 
 
 The captain and Mrs. Belgrave (of course), with 
 Miss Blanche, Mr. Webb, and the " Big Four," were 
 all in what had been called the fore cabin in the 
 Borneo cruises. It was as handsomely and comfor- 
 tably fitted up as the after cabin, with an awning 
 overhead, and curtains at the side, which were regu- 
 lated by the relative positions of the boat to the sun. 
 Two of the English sailors, dressed in their white 
 uniforms, were on board to adjust these curtains, and 
 do any other work required of them. 
 
EXCURSIONS ON SHORE AND UP THE PASIG 287 
 
 " There's a dead man on a raft ! " exclaimed Mrs. 
 Belgrave, pointing ahead. 
 
 " The man is not so dead as he might be," replied 
 the consul, laughing. "But the raft is something 
 worth looking at for you. The affair is simply a 
 native going to market with his cocoanuts. Ask the 
 engineer to whistle sharply," he added to one of the 
 sailors ; and it was done. 
 
 Suddenly the man on the raft sprang to his feet, 
 and looked around him. The launch was stopped 
 to enable the party to see his craft. 
 
 "You can see that his boat is a lot of cocoanuts, 
 a hundred or more, strung together with lines. The 
 raft easily floats the man, with the current, down 
 to the city, where he sells his fruit, and then walks 
 back, or rows in a passage-boat for his fare," Mr. 
 Webb explained forward, and Mr. Gollan aft. 
 
 Presently they came to a little village where half 
 a dozen dark-colored girls, with their long hair drag- 
 ging in the water, were swimming in a small bay 
 at the side of the stream like so many nymphs. It 
 was an aquatic frolic, and the Naiads were enjoying 
 themselves to their hearts' content. By the river- 
 side was a house on stilts, with an open door, from 
 which the tourists saw two girls dive into the stream, 
 and swim away as though the water were their nat- 
 ural element. They cut up all sorts of capers, to the 
 great amusement of the party ; and then two of them 
 swam to the launch, and held out their hands. They 
 received a couple of pesetas each from the captain 
 
288 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 and the pacha. Then all the rest of them followed 
 their example, and were rewarded in like manner. 
 
 The Blanchita resumed her course up the river 
 at her usual speed ; and the voyagers found enough to 
 interest them, and enough in the explanations of the 
 consuls to instruct them. The boat rushed by the 
 barges and passage-boats as though they were at 
 anchor. The villages and the houses reminded them 
 of those they had seen on the Menam in the vicinity 
 of Bangkok. 
 
 " Do you notice the horned cattle ? " asked Mr. 
 Webb. "They call them buffaloes here." 
 
 "They are what we should call broad-horns at 
 home," replied the captain. " I never saw any such 
 wide-spreading and long horns as I see here." 
 
 "I am told that you have a quartet of Nimrods 
 in your company ; and I am sure they would find 
 plenty of sport in the country beyond the lake, where 
 the wild buffalo is to be found in herds as on our 
 Western prairies formerly. But they are a dangerous 
 beast to hunt ; for they will fight like tigers, and not 
 a few hunters have been killed by them." 
 
 " We should like to try them ; and with rifles good 
 for nine shots, I think we could take care of our- 
 selves," replied Louis. 
 
 They found plenty of buffaloes on the shores of 
 the river, but they were as tame as doves. At one 
 place on the bank they saw a naked boy of ten fool- 
 ing with one of them, jumping over him, and being 
 dragged by his tail. It was but a short trip to the 
 
EXCURSIONS ON SHORE AND UP THE PASIG 289 
 
 lake for the Blanchita, and the party sailed all 
 around it. They were all delighted with the excur- 
 sion ; and the launch was hurried down the river, 
 and reached the Blanche, where they were to dine 
 at seven o'clock. 
 
290 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 CHAPTER XXXI 
 
 HALF A LECTURE ON CHINESE SUBJECTS 
 
 THE dinner on board of the Blanche was fully 
 up to the standard of the epicureans on board of 
 both steamers ; for the cooks of both had been busy 
 all day, and the consuls declared that it was fully 
 equal to the best of which they had partaken in 
 London or Paris. As it was to be the last time 
 the tourists were to meet these excellent and accom- 
 plished officials, the occasion was a very jolly affair. 
 Speeches were made by both of them, in which they 
 were lavish in praise of both the dinner and the 
 elegant accommodations of both the steamers. 
 
 Captain Einggold replied, returning the most 
 hearty thanks to both of the official gentlemen for 
 their kindness in acting as the guides of the travel- 
 lers, and for the interesting and valuable informa- 
 tion they had given them. Both of them had 
 declared that the company ought to remain in 
 Manila at least a week ; but the commander pleaded 
 the long voyage still before the ships, and re- 
 peated what he had so often said before, that, in 
 such a long cruise as they were taking, it was quite 
 impossible to do anything more than obtain a speci- 
 men of each country or island they visited. 
 
HALF A LECTURE ON CHINESE SUBJECTS 291 
 
 When they left the table the consuls took leave 
 individually of each of the passengers, and were 
 sent on shore in the barge of the Blanche, for the 
 steam-launch had already been taken upon the deck 
 of the ship. During the day both steamers had 
 taken in a supply of coal, and the chief stewards 
 had procured stores of provisions, ice, and especially 
 fruit. As the party were taking leave of the two 
 agreeable gentlemen, they heard the hissing of steam 
 on the Blanche, which they did not quite under- 
 stand, as the commander or Captain Sharp "had 
 made no sign." The Guardian-Mother's people were 
 taken on board, after another leave-taking, and con- 
 veyed to their ship in their own boats. 
 
 " What is going on, Captain Kinggold ? " asked 
 Mrs. Belgrave, when she heard the hissing steam 
 on board of the Guardian-Mother. 
 
 " Going on to Hong-Kong," replied the com- 
 mander. 
 
 " To-night ? " 
 
 " To-night.^ 
 
 " But we have been here only one day," suggested 
 the "first lady." 
 
 " The anchor is hove short ; but if you think of 
 anything more that you wish to see in Manila or 
 its vicinity, I will remain," added the captain. 
 
 "I don't know that there is anything more to 
 be seen. I seemed to know the city before I had 
 seen it." 
 
 "Very well, then we will go to sea to-night." 
 
292 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 By ten o'clock the ships were under way ; and in 
 a couple of hours more they were in the China 
 Sea, headed north-west-by-north, for Hong-Kong. 
 The sea was as smooth as glass, for the east mon- 
 soon seemed to be interrupted under the lee of the 
 islands. The passengers retired at an early hour, 
 and there was no excuse for not going to sleep at 
 once. 
 
 In the morning the ship was a long way out of 
 sight of land. Breakfast had been ordered for an 
 hour later than usual, in order to let the party sleep 
 off the fatigue of the day before. But some of 
 them were on deck at sunrise, and saw the beauti- 
 ful phenomenon of that orb coming out of the eastern 
 sea. There was not an island or anything else in 
 sight but the broad expanse of water. The air was 
 delightful ; and it was not hot in the early morning, 
 and under the awnings it would not be during the 
 day. A gentle sea gave the ship a little motion, 
 but it was a quiet time. 
 
 Breakfast was served at the appointed hour ; and 
 at this time Mr. Gaskette was busy with his assis- 
 tants, arranging the frame for a new map, consider- 
 ably larger than any used before, at the head of 
 Conference Hall. He had been at work upon it 
 for several days, and he intended that it should 
 surpass anything he had done before. The orang- 
 outang, the monkey, and the pheasant had been 
 removed to the library, where there was plenty of 
 room for them. 
 
HALF A LECTURE ON CHINESE SUBJECTS 293 
 
 China was a great country, and the professor 
 thought it would require a long talk to dispose of 
 it; and the conference was called for ten o'clock, 
 and so announced at breakfast time. When the 
 passengers went on deck, the first thing that at- 
 tracted their attention was the new map; and con- 
 sidering that it was made on board of the ship, it 
 was a beautiful piece of work, for the second officer 
 was an artist. At the appointed hour they were 
 all in their seats. 
 
 This map, though correct at the time it was 
 made, did not, of course, include the changes which 
 resulted from the war between Japan and China, 
 and which have not even yet been incorporated in 
 modern history. The pacha had been invited to 
 give the lecture on China ; but he declared that it 
 was too difficult a subject for him to undertake, 
 and he begged to be excused, and Professor Giroud 
 had willingly undertaken it. It had required all 
 his time on the voyage from Saigon, and all his 
 spare time _at Manila, to prepare himself for the 
 difficult task. With the three siamangs in their 
 usual places, he mounted the platform. 
 
 A signal from the Blanche caused him to resume his 
 seat, and the screw was stopped. The barge from 
 the consort dropped into the water; and the gen- 
 eral, his wife, the rajah, Mrs. Sharp, and Dr. Hen- 
 derson came on board, and chairs were provided 
 for them. Miss Blanche gave up the baby to Mrs. 
 Noury, who was very fond of the little creature. 
 
294 FOUli YOUNG EXPLOKEHS 
 
 The professor then took his place again on the ros- 
 trum, with the pointer in his hand. 
 
 " Mr. Commander, ladies and gentlemen/' he 
 began. " Before I say a word, I desire to acknowl- 
 edge my very great obligations to Mr. Gaskette for 
 the elegant map he has prepared and placed before 
 us. You observe that it extends from the Amur 
 Eiver, which is spelled in older books Amoor ; but 
 the latest fashion is to make it Amur, as Hindu and 
 similar words have been changed from oo to u, for 
 both have the same sound in most European and 
 Oriental names, from the Amur River to Tonquin, 
 about thirty degrees of latitude, with the nineteen 
 provinces of China, with Korea, properly spelled 
 with initial K, with the islands of Formosa and 
 Hainan. It has given the artist a great deal of labor, 
 and he has done his work in a manner to call for your 
 highest commendation." 
 
 The audience vigorously applauded this statement ; 
 and the siamangs added their " Ka ! Ka ! Ea ! " with 
 a volley of squeaks. Mr. Gaskette bowed his ac- 
 knowledgments ; and the professor handed him the 
 pointer, which looked like a new arrangement. 
 
 " The artist is as well or better acquainted with 
 the map than I am, and I have invited him to assist 
 on the platform. Manchuria, and I adopt the most 
 modern spelling of the name," continued the profes- 
 sor, as the artist pointed to the province. 
 
 " I thought the subject for to-day was China," in- 
 terposed Mrs. Belgrave. 
 
HALF A LECTU11E ON CHINESE SUBJECTS 295 
 
 '' So it is, madam ; but the modern history of China 
 begins with Manchuria. On the west of it is Mon- 
 golia, which any of the old-fashioned gentlemen may 
 call Chinese Tartary if they prefer, though that 
 designation is not in use now. Manchuria is a prov- 
 ince of China ; though the latter was a province of 
 the former three hundred and fifty years ago, for 
 then it conquered China, whose present emperor is 
 the descendant of the conquering Manchu monarch. 
 Manchuria has an area of 280,000, and a population 
 of 21,000,000 ; but not more than one million of the 
 people are Manchus, who wear the costume and 
 speak the language of the Chinese. The rest of the 
 people are emigrants from China or other countries, 
 and are as industrious and prosperous as any other in 
 the vast empire. 
 
 " The Manchus are the aristocracy of the country ; 
 and ever since they gave China its ruler, their 
 country lias been the principal territory for recruit- 
 ing the Celestial armies; and there are said to be 
 80,000 of tjieir soldiers in service. And they also 
 furnish China with its magistrates and police. But 
 I will leave their country to take its place with the 
 other provinces of the empire. China is believed 
 by its own chronologists to have been in existence 
 2637 years before the Christian era, and perhaps 
 from a date still farther back ; but these dates are 
 doubtful. 
 
 "The people of China do not know their country 
 by the name so familiar to us, or they know it only 
 
296 FOCTK YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 so far as they have learned it from merchants and 
 travellers. In the matter of names they all seem 
 barbarous to us ; I do not attempt to pronounce 
 them ; and I don't think you will succeed in doing so 
 any better than I have. I may add that I have never 
 been in China ; and what I tell you I did not pick up 
 myself, but must derive it from others who have 
 travelled and lived in the country. 
 
 "I have obtained nearly all my information from 
 the very learned and valuable article of Dr. Legge, 
 in Chambers's. He is familiar with the language of 
 the Chinese, has travelled and lived in the country, 
 and is fully acquainted with the manners and cus- 
 toms of the people. In the oldest literature of the 
 empire, it is called Hwd Hsid, the first word meaning 
 1 flowery/ and the second is the proper name of the 
 country. Chung Kwo is the Middle Kingdom, which 
 came into being in the feudal period, in the midst of 
 the several states and tribes; and if you wish to 
 know more of China, there is an American edition 
 of Dr. Williams in four volumes, which will tell you 
 all about it. But the name did not mean the middle 
 of the earth, as sometimes claimed, nor is it the 
 foundation of the derisive term applied to China, 
 < The Central Flowery Nation.' 
 
 "Other names have been given to China, though 
 seldom seen or heard; but Cathay, perhaps coming 
 from the Russian name Kitai, is not at all uncom- 
 mon, especially in poetry. The name we use comes 
 to us from India, when two Buddhist missionaries, 
 
HALF A LECTURE ON CHINESE SUBJECTS 297 
 
 who came from ' the land of Chin/ called it China 
 and Chintan. 
 
 "As stated before, the native Chinese line of ru- 
 lers, the Ming dynasty, conquered China in 1644, and 
 placed the first of the Tsing monarchs on the throne. 
 I will not tangle up your intellects by following out 
 the individuals of the succession any farther than to 
 say that the present emperor, or Hwangti, of China 
 is Tsait'ien, who was proclaimed as such in January, 
 1875. The ruler may name his successor, for the 
 descent is not hereditary to his eldest son; and if 
 he fails to do so, the default is made good by his 
 family. He is the ninth emperor of the Manchu or 
 Tartar dynasty. 
 
 "As I said, China has nineteen provinces, includ- 
 ing the island of Formosa, all of which are repre- 
 sented on the map before you. The divisions of the 
 country are immensely populous ; though the average 
 of the whole to the square mile is less than that of 
 Belgium by nearly one-half, several of whose prov- 
 inces are more densely peopled than any in China. 
 It is also less than the State of Rhode Island, and 
 but a little above that of Massachusetts, the two 
 States the most densely inhabited in our own country. 
 
 " Many say that the population of China has been 
 exaggerated ; and it is variously given at from 282,- 
 000,000 to 413,000,000, a very great difference, and 
 you suit yourselves with the figures if you can. 
 Dr. Legge thinks that 400,000,000 is not an over- 
 estimate. The area of the eighteen provinces is 
 
298 FOUK YOUNG EXPLOREKS 
 
 1,336,841 square miles, to which about 15,000 may 
 be added for Formosa; but the area of the whole 
 Chinese empire is 4,218,401, while that of the United 
 States, including Alaska, is 3,501,409. 
 
 " If you look at the map, you will see that there 
 are numerous chains of mountains in the countries 
 lying west of China, especially in Tibet, while China 
 proper has but few of them. The land generally 
 slopes from the several ranges to the sea, but I 
 will not perplex you with the names of them. The 
 rivers, of course, flow from the mountains, and you 
 can see that they have space for a long course. 
 They are generally called ho in the north, and chiang 
 or kiang in the south. The Ho, Hoang-ho, or 
 Yellow River, and the Chiang, known to us as the 
 Yang-tsze Chiang, must be over three thousand miles 
 long. I will not follow them from source to mouth. 
 Canton, or Choo-Chiang River, which means Pearl 
 River, is also a very large stream. All these water- 
 ways, you notice on the map, have a general course 
 from west to east. All of them are navigable, though 
 the Hoang-ho is less so than the Yang-tsze Chiang, 
 the 'most beloved' of the Chinese; for its counter- 
 part in the north is a turbid stream, so tricky that it 
 changed its course in 1853 so that its mouth is now 
 about two hundred and fifty miles north of where 
 it was before that date." 
 
 Mr. Gaskette pointed out the former course, which 
 he had indicated by double dotted lines, and that 
 of the present course to the Gulf of Pe-chi-li. 
 
HALF A LECTURE ON CHINESE SUBJECTS 299 
 
 " Chinese history begins twenty-four hundred years 
 before our era, when the first human kings of Egypt 
 were on the throne, with the narrative of a tremen- 
 dous inundation, which some have identified as that 
 of the Flood in the Old Testament. But the floods 
 did not cease with that event, for several others 
 have followed. As late as 1887, only half a dozen 
 years ago, the treacherous Hoang-ho broke loose, and 
 poured its waters into the populous province of Ho- 
 nan, tearing everything to pieces and destroying mil- 
 lions of lives. There have been so many of these 
 floods that they have given the great river the name 
 of l China's Sorrow/ But the Manchu rulers are 
 repairing damages, and providing against such dis- 
 asters in the future. 
 
 " I have to speak next about the Grand Canal and 
 the Great Wall ; but I will defer it for half an hour 
 for a recess, for I think you must be tired of the dry 
 details I have been giving you," said the professor, 
 as he stepped down from the rostrum. 
 
 The company then promenaded the deck for the 
 time indicated. 
 
300 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 CHAPTER XXXII 
 
 THE CONTINUATION OP THE LECTURE 
 
 A WALK of half an hour had freshened up the 
 minds and bodies of the passengers, and they took 
 their places on the promenade for the continuation 
 of the lecture. The professor had been to his state- 
 room, and returned with additional notes. 
 
 "Dr. Legge quotes Marco Polo, the greatest travel- 
 ler of the Middle Ages, who visited China in the 
 thirteenth century," the speaker began, taking a 
 paper from the table, and reading as follows in 
 regard to the Grand Canal : " < Kublai caused a water 
 communication to be made in the shape of a wide 
 and deep channel dug between stream and stream, 
 between lake and lake, forming as it were a great 
 river on which large vessels can ply.' Kublai was 
 the first sovereign of one of the old dynasties. 
 
 " The canal extended from Peking, the capital, 
 in the north, to the south of the empire, a distance 
 of six hundred miles ; and it was in use all the way 
 in former times. The Chinese were not distinguished 
 as navigators ; but in modern times steamers ply 
 between Canton and the ports of the Gulf of Pe- 
 chi-li, so that the canal is less necessary, and much 
 of it is in bad condition. 
 
THE CONTINUATION OF THE LECTURE 301 
 
 "The Great Wall is better known to all the 
 world than the Grand Canal as a peculiarly Chinese 
 wonder, and every school boy and girl has heard of 
 it. It was built as a defence against the raids of 
 the northern tribes, though for this purpose it was 
 a failure ; but it still stands, though some of the 
 English newspapers only a few years ago treated 
 it as a myth ; yet there is no doubt whatever of its 
 existence, for it has been visited by many reliable 
 English and American travellers. It was begun 
 two hundred and fourteen years before the Chris- 
 tian era. 
 
 " Our artist has indicated the wall on the map ; " 
 and Mr. Gaskette pointed it out on the west shore 
 of the Gulf of Liau-tung, properly a part of the 
 Gulf of Pe-chi-li, and traced it some distance to 
 the west. " Its length, following its numerous twists 
 and bends, through valleys and over mountains, is 
 fifteen hundred miles. It is twenty-five feet wide 
 at the base, and fifteen at the top. It is formed by 
 two walls of brick, different from those we use, 
 weighing from forty to sixty pounds; and the space 
 between them is filled with earth and stones. It 
 varies in height from fifteen to thirty feet. 
 
 "The top of the wall is paved with brick, but 
 is now overgrown with grass. Along the wall, and 
 not on it, are towers of brick at intervals. You 
 observe that at Peking the wall makes a sweep to 
 the north, perhaps thirty miles or more, enclosing 
 a square of land of this extent outside of the general 
 
302 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 course of the structure. I met an American gentle- 
 man who had been to the capital of China, and he 
 told me he had been to the Great Wall. Dr. Legge 
 may take the conceit out of some travellers when 
 he says : ' What foreigners go to visit from Peking 
 is merely a loop-wall of later formation, enclosing 
 portions of Chih-li and Shan-hsi.' 
 
 " Leaving the Grand Canal and the Great Wall, 
 we will pass on to the lakes of China. They are 
 not on a large scale, like the rivers; and they are 
 insignificant compared with those of our own country. 
 The Tung-ting Hu appears to be the largest, mostly 
 in the province of Hunan, which is sixty-five or 
 seventy miles long. The others are Po-yang Hu, 
 in Chiang-hsi, and the Tai Hu, which is noted for 
 its romantic scenery and numerous islets. 
 
 "The temperature of the various provinces is on 
 the average lower than any other country in the 
 same latitude. There is every variety of climate 
 in the vast territory of China. The natives consider 
 the three southern provinces, including the island 
 of Hainan, less healthy than the other portions of 
 the country ; but foreigners find no difficulty in re- 
 siding in them. In a region taking in over twenty 
 degrees of latitude, the productions vary from those 
 of the tropics to those in the latitude of central 
 New York, from bananas and pineapples in the south 
 to wheat and Indian corn in the north. 
 
 " About all the common grains are raised in the 
 north, and rice is the staple product of the south. 
 
THE CONTINUATION OF THE LECTURE 303 
 
 All sorts of vegetables and herbs, ginger, and various 
 condiments, are produced and largely used; though 
 I believe the people are not so hot, gastronomically, 
 in their taste as we found them in Batavia and some 
 other places in the islands. They raise the cane 
 and make sugar in Formosa and the southern prov- 
 inces. All the fruits of our own country, including 
 Florida and Louisiana, are grown in different parts 
 of China. Opium, which formerly came into the 
 country only from India, is now produced even in 
 Manchuria. 
 
 "The Chinese are pre-eminently agriculturists, and 
 farming is their occupation above anything else. In 
 the spring the emperor turns over a few furrows in 
 a sacred field, introducing the work of the season ; 
 and the chief official in every province does the same, 
 keeping the importance of farming pursuits always 
 before the people. The tools they use are very 
 primitive ; the hoe being the principal hand-tool, and 
 the plough of ancient use for animal power. There 
 is an extensile application of irrigation, which is 
 found to be so necessary in some of our extreme 
 Western States. In the north wells are used; and 
 various simple machinery is employed to raise water 
 when the canal or river is below the level of the field 
 where it is needed, which you may have an opportu- 
 nity to see. 
 
 "No kind of fertilizer is wasted, and some are 
 used which are often neglected in other countries. 
 A great deal of fun and sarcasm is applied to the 
 
304 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 food of the Chinese, but most of us rather approved 
 the dishes set before us by our host of the Flowery 
 Nation in Singapore. In some articles used for culi- 
 nary purposes, Parisians go beyond the Chinese, as 
 in the use of horse-beef. I have been in a provision 
 store in Paris where nothing else was sold ; and every 
 part of the animal was economized, including the liver, 
 kidneys, and tongue, and sausages of this meat were 
 on view and for sale to epicures in this flesh. But I 
 believe the Chinese do not eat the horse, unless it be 
 in a season of famine ; and they had to eat cats in 
 Paris during the siege of 1870. 
 
 "When you go into the markets you may see 
 whole dogs dressed for food, or cut up into pieces 
 ready for cooking. These are not common yellow 
 dogs, such as you saw in the capital of the Turkish 
 empire; but they are the peculiar Chinese breed, 
 sleek and hairless, which are carefully fatted, and 
 prepared for market. I have no doubt that your 
 stomachs revolt at the very idea of eating dog ; but 
 I cannot see that it is any worse than eating pork 
 and fowls, which feed more or less on animal food. 
 However, I do not hanker after dog-meat. 
 
 " The Buddhist religion prevails to a great extent 
 here, which diminishes the quantity of beef used, 
 though not so much as the kindly feeling towards 
 the creature that is so useful in tilling the soil. 
 Pork is the most common in use for meat, and the 
 number of pigs raised is enormous. Geese and ducks 
 are abundant, artificially hatched as in ancient Egypt, 
 
THE CONTINUATION OF THE LECTURE 305 
 
 and to a considerable extent in America, and are 
 largely used for food. 
 
 "The sea, rivers, and lakes supply fish in all 
 needed quantities. They are taken in nets, and 
 also by a novel method of fishing with which you 
 cannot be familiar. A boat goes out with a number 
 of cormorants trained for the purpose, which are 
 fishers by nature. The birds dive and bring up 
 the fish, which they deposit in the hand-nets of the 
 boatman. 
 
 "Dr. Legge says the Chinese are not gross feed- 
 ers, as generally represented, except the very poor, 
 and that a Chinese dinner of twenty-seven courses 
 'may hold its own with the most luxurious tables/ 
 He adds that the famous bird's-nest soup is a mis- 
 nomer ; but he admits that nests from the Indian 
 Archipelago are sliced into other soups, in his opinion 
 without improving the flavor. 
 
 " For a drink, tea has superseded every other bev- 
 erage, and is taken without sugar or milk. It was 
 not used at all in ancient times, but its use is univer- 
 sal at the present time. The plant is not grown in 
 the north. Black tea comes from the central prov- 
 inces, and green from two eastern mainly. Next to 
 silk, if not equal to it, tea is the principal article 
 of export. The doctor says that tea-drinking pro- 
 motes the temperance of the people more than any 
 other influence. Alcoholic liquors are distilled from 
 rice and millet. 
 
 " From the twelfth century B.C. the literature of 
 
306 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 the nation abounds in temperance lectures, warning 
 the people against the injury of strong drinks ; but 
 tea has done vastly more to prevent their use than 
 anything else. As a people at home the Chinese 
 make little use of liquors, though that is not always 
 the case with those who live in New York. They 
 do not sit down to tea as we do, but keep it at hand 
 at all times, and treat their visitors with it. Tea is 
 written in the vernacular of the natives cttd. When 
 it was first imported into England it was called fay ; 
 but those who gave it the name were doubtless Irish- 
 men, and they still stick to it. 
 
 "There is no doubt that silk was first produced 
 in China; and silk, linen, and cotton form the cloth- 
 ing of the people. A ceremony like that with the 
 plough is performed by the emperor over the silk- 
 worms and mulberry-trees, whose leaves are the 
 food of the worm. From before the twenty-third 
 century B.C., the care of the silkworm, and the spin- 
 ning and weaving of the thread from the cocoon, has 
 been the particular labor of the women. The mul- 
 berry-tree grows everywhere in the country, and silk 
 is manufactured in greater or less quantities in every 
 province. 
 
 " The cotton-plant has been propagated in China ; 
 and the cloth is largely used there, though not equal 
 in finish to the imported article, but is heavier and 
 more lasting in wear. Nankeen comes from Nan- 
 king. There are no fireplaces in the houses ; and the 
 people keep warm, if they can, by increasing their 
 
THE CONTINUATION OF THE LECTURE 307 
 
 clothing. Woollen goods are not manufactured to 
 any great extent. 
 
 " I will not describe the pagodas, pavilions, bridges, 
 and palaces; for you will see them for yourselves. 
 The streets of the cities in the south and some in 
 the north are no better than mere lanes; and the 
 crowds of people hustling through them fill them 
 about full, and make you think the place is vastly 
 more populous than it really is. As a set-off to this 
 idea, you will wonder what has become of the women, 
 for you rarely meet any of them. 
 
 "The streets are paved with stone slabs, badly 
 drained, and abounding in bad odors, and you are 
 not likely to enjoy your walks through them ; but 
 they have magnificent names, which you will not 
 read at the corners, such as the street of Benevo- 
 lence, Righteousness, etc. When you go into the 
 house of a tolerably well-to-do family, you will find 
 the quantity of furniture rather scanty, and not luxu- 
 rious. The floor may be covered with matting, but 
 you will find- no carpets or rugs. A table and some 
 straight-backed chairs are the principal pieces. On 
 the walls you may find Chinese pictures, which will 
 not challenge your admiration, though they may be 
 artistic in China. Some jars and specimens of fine 
 porcelain may adorn the room, with writings on the 
 walls expressing moral sentiments. There may be 
 a couch, or more of them, of bamboo and rattan. 
 
 " The bamboo is quite as important a production in 
 China as we have found it in India and the islands ; 
 
308 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 and it is used for all the purposes here, and more 
 in addition than have been mentioned to you before. 
 The bastinado of the magistrate and the school- 
 master's instrument of torture are both bamboos. 
 
 " Our Nimrods would not find much sport here ; 
 for the country is too densely populated to afford 
 hiding-places for wild animals, though a bear or a 
 tiger may sometimes appear, and is quickly killed. 
 There are elephants, rhinoceroses, and tapirs in the 
 forests of Yun-nan ; and the emperor has tame ele- 
 phants at Peking for state purposes. The brown 
 and the black bear are found in certain localities, as 
 well as varieties of deer. 
 
 " The domestic four-footed animals are small horses 
 and small cattle, which have not been improved. 
 The donkey is a livelier beast than in England or 
 America. About the capital there are very fine 
 mules, which are fashionable there as they are in 
 some parts of Spain. Birds of prey are common, 
 and magpies are sacred birds which the Nimrods 
 must not shoot. The people are very fond of song- 
 birds and flowers, which proves their good taste. 
 
 " There are vast quantities of minerals beneath the 
 soil of the country, yet little had been done in min- 
 ing ; though, since the government has steamers of its 
 own, they are doing more to develop the mines. The 
 currency of the country is nowhere ; for the only coin 
 that is legally current is the copper cash, of which it 
 takes ten to make our cent. Large payments are 
 made in silver by weight, and the housekeeper has to 
 
THE CONTINUATION OF THE LECTUKE 309 
 
 keep a pair of scales handy to ascertain the value of 
 the silver she receives or expends. 
 
 " But I know, my friends, that I have wearied you ; 
 and though I have something more to say about this 
 very interesting country, I shall defer it till such 
 time as the commander shall appoint." 
 
 The professor bowed and retired j but, as an offset 
 to his last remark, the applause was more prolonged 
 and vigorous than usual. 
 
310 FOUR YOUNG EXPLOKEKS 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIII 
 
 THE CONCLUSION OF THE LECTURE 
 
 AT lunch the passengers talked about the lecture 
 that was not yet finished ; and all of them who said 
 anything declared that they were very much pleased 
 with it, and they hoped the remainder of it would, be 
 given in the afternoon. Of course all of them had 
 read more or less about China ; and while there was 
 much that was new to them, they were glad to have 
 their knowledge of the country revived. 
 
 "I have been in Hong-Kong, Canton, and Shang- 
 hai, and I have heard no lecture on board that 
 pleased me more than that to which we listened this 
 forenoon ; and I appoint this afternoon at three 
 o'clock for the conclusion of it," said the commander. 
 
 At this hour all the company, including the pas- 
 sengers from the Blanche, were in their places ; and 
 the speaker mounted the rostrum, apparently as 
 fresh as ever. He was received with as much and as 
 earnest applause as had been given at the end of the 
 second part of his lecture; and with this pleasant 
 approval of his work, he continued his discourse. 
 
 " According to the accounts of all recent travellers, 
 the roads of China are in a villanously bad condi- 
 tion, and there are no railroads worth mentioning," 
 
THE CONCLUSION OF THE LECTURE 311 
 
 he began. " And yet the necessity of good common 
 roads was apparent to the ruler, even before the 
 building of the Great Wall, and twenty thousand 
 of them have been constructed ; but the Chinese, 
 having finished a great work, do not meddle with 
 it again. The roads have never been repaired 
 thoroughly, and that accounts for their present con- 
 dition. The rivers and canals furnish the principal 
 means of communication, though the roads are still 
 used. 
 
 "The dress of the poorer classes is very much 
 the same for both sexes. It is regulated by sump- 
 tuary laws for all classes ; but it is varied by the 
 wealthy in the use of costly material, and the orna- 
 ments they add to it. You have all seen Chinamen 
 enough in the streets of New York and other cities, 
 and the dress they wear is about the same as that 
 worn in their native land. The queue is the most 
 notable thing about them. This was not the ancient 
 custom of wearing the hair, but was introduced and 
 enforced by^the Manchu rulers over three hundred 
 years ago, when it was considered a degrading edict ; 
 though now the Chinaman sticks to his queue with 
 as much tenacity as he does to his very life. 
 
 " The small feet of the women, even of the highest 
 class, is quite as notable as the queues. This species 
 of deformity was not required by the Manchus, for 
 they wore their feet as God gave them; and it is 
 not an ancient custom, for it has prevailed only 
 from the sixth century of our era. Nature's growth 
 
312 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 is checked by tightly bandaging the feet in early 
 childhood, subjecting the victim to severe pain and 
 discomfort. But you will see the women for your- 
 selves, and can judge of the effect upon them. The 
 very poor and those in menial conditions are not 
 necessarily subjected to the torture, but fashion car- 
 ries even many of this class into the custom. Small 
 but natural feet are the pride of our young ladies, 
 and some of them complain that when the feet were 
 given out they got more than their share. 
 
 " The sexes are kept apart until marriage ; and 
 this has been a social feature from the earliest time. 
 Girls and boys in the family did not occupy the 
 same mat or eat together from the age of seven, 
 and when the former were ten they ceased to appear 
 outside of the women's apartments. Girls were 
 taught manners therein, to handle the cocoons, to 
 do all the work appertaining to the manufacture 
 of silk and the details of Chinese housekeeping. 
 This was in the feudal time ; and the females were 
 not instructed in book-learning, and are not now, 
 though they pick up something of an education, and 
 learned women are not unknown, even those who 
 have written books. 
 
 " In regard to marriage, the parents have entire 
 control, and professional match-makers are an in- 
 stitution. It is to a great extent a matter of horo- 
 scopes. Usually the bride and groom have not seen 
 each other till the marriage ceremony, and of course 
 they lose all that delightful period which precedes 
 
THE CONCLUSION OF THE LECTUKE 313 
 
 the event. But they appear to take to each other 
 when brought together, and to be happy as man and 
 wife. Though the man has one legal wife, there is 
 no law or custom to prevent him from taking half 
 a dozen more secondary wives. 
 
 "There are seven lawful grounds for divorcing a 
 wife from her husband, disobedience to her hus- 
 band's parents; failure to give birth to a son; dis- 
 solute conduct ; jealousy of her man, especially in 
 regard to the other wives ; talkativeness ; thieving ; 
 and leprosy. I will leave the ladies to make their 
 own comments. There are three considerations 
 which may set aside these reasons for divorce, 
 that her parents are no longer living; that she has 
 passed with her spouse through the years of mourn- 
 ing for his parents ; and that he has become rich 
 after being poor. The children are often affianced 
 in childhood, and probably this fact furnishes many 
 of the grounds for proceedings in the divorce court. 
 
 " Infanticide is not an uncommon crime in China, 
 female children being almost always the victims. 
 Probably its prevalence is somewhat exaggerated. 
 It is among the poorest class that this atrocity pre- 
 vails, the universal desire for male children, in con- 
 nection with the ancestral worship of the people, 
 being the root of the evil. Public opinion is against 
 the practice, though not as decidedly as might be 
 wished. 
 
 " The complexion of the Chinese is yellowish, as 
 you have seen in our streets ; and from the extreme 
 
314 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 north to the Island of Hainan, they all have long 
 black hair, almond or oblique eyes, high cheek-bones, 
 and round faces. They are greatly addicted to 
 opium and gambling wherever you find them. Dr. 
 Legge says that the longer one lives among them 
 the better he likes them, and the better he thinks 
 of them ; but we are not likely to be able to test 
 the correctness of this remark. 
 
 "The Chinese bury their dead in graves in the 
 form of a horseshoe, and with an almost infinite 
 variety of ceremonies and sacrifices. Where the 
 friends are able to pay the expense, the last rites 
 are ostentatious and very costly. You may chance 
 to see something of them before you leave the coun- 
 try. When a very rich Chinaman travels, he takes 
 his coffin with him. 
 
 " They have no day in the week corresponding 
 to our Sunday, but they have an annual universal 
 holiday at New Year's. It is a season of rejoicing 
 and festivity all over the country. Stores are closed 
 for several days, and the government offices are shut 
 up for a month. The people ' dress up,' and the 
 temples are visited, the gambling resorts are in full 
 blast, and crackers and other fireworks make Fourth 
 of July of the season. 
 
 "There is some sort of a festival every month, 
 such as the ' Feast of Lanterns,' on the full moon, 
 of the tombs, l Dragon Boats,' and 'All Souls,' in 
 honor of departed relatives, when the supposed hun- 
 gry spirits from the other side of the Styx are fed 
 
THE CONCLUSION OF THE LECTUKE 315 
 
 at the cemeteries. The people are extravagantly 
 fond of theatricals; and a kind of bamboo tent is 
 erected for the performance, which is usually of 
 inordinate length. Females, as in India, do not 
 appear on the stage. 
 
 " It would be quite impossible for me to follow 
 the consecutive history of China from 2637 B.C. 
 down to the present time ; it would be an inflic- 
 tion upon you, and I shall only mention some of 
 the principal events. Our authority in these re- 
 marks numbers the Chinese army at three hundred 
 and fifty thousand ; the Year Book makes it double 
 this number. Judged by a European standard, it 
 does not amount to much outside of mere numbers ; 
 though in addition to it there is a sort of militia, 
 camped in the several provinces, more in the nature 
 of police than soldiers, of twice as many men as 
 the imperial army. 
 
 "The first great war in China was the Tai-Ping 
 rebellion, which the older of you can remember. It 
 began in 1851,-and was continued for nearly twenty 
 years. Its leader was Hung, a poor student, who 
 studied up a new religion, which was certainly an 
 improvement upon those of the people, for it recog- 
 nized the Great God, and Christ as the Elder Brother. 
 A strict morality and the keeping of the Sabbath 
 were required of its adherents, and idolatry and the 
 use of opium were forbidden. 
 
 " Hung incited the rebellion ; and its object was to 
 overturn the ruling dynasty of the Manchus, and 
 
316 FOUR YOUNG EXPLOttKLiS 
 
 place himself on the throne. It was at first very 
 successful in its progress, and it looked as. though 
 the imperial cause was doomed. In 1855 the rebels, 
 for the want of sufficient re-enforcements in an at- 
 tempt to capture Pekin, were compelled to retreat 
 to Nanking, and then the decline of the insurrection 
 began. A body of foreigners under an American by 
 the name of Ward joined the imperialists, and ren- 
 dered important service ; but he was killed in battle 
 in 1862. He was succeeded by one of the subordi- 
 nates, who became General Burgevine; and he was 
 quite as successful as General Ward had been. The 
 new general fell out with the government, and re- 
 tired. By the influence of British residents at Shang- 
 hai, who had organized an effective army, General 
 Charles George Gordon, of whom you heard in Egypt, 
 was placed in command. He captured Nanking, and 
 the rebellion was suppressed in 1865. 
 
 " You have been informed of the movements of 
 the Portuguese, English, French, Dutch, and Span- 
 iards to obtain territory in the East from 1497, when 
 Vasco da Gama doubled the Cape of Good Hope. 
 All of them established colonies ; and in 1516 they 
 began to send their ships to China, whose people 
 did not receive them kindly. This was in the early 
 days of the Manchu rulers, who claimed to be su- 
 perior to all other monarchs on the face of the earth ; 
 they would not acknowledge the visitors as their 
 equals, and regarded them as vassals. 
 
 " When the Chinese ruler learned of the conquests 
 
THE CONCLUSION OF THE LECTURE 317 
 
 of those from the West he tried to prevent their 
 approach to his dominions. But trade had been es- 
 tablished; and the opium traffic had its birth, and 
 the people were crazy to procure and smoke it. This 
 was the cause of the wars between China and Eng- 
 land and France, with the vassal question. In 1800 
 an edict of the emperor prohibited the importation 
 of opium into his dominions. 
 
 "England before this had entered upon the task 
 of making a treaty to settle the relations between 
 the two countries ; but no treaty was made, and the 
 smuggling of opium continued for many years. In 
 1816 another embassy went to Pekin ; but it was 
 summarily and contemptuously dismissed because the 
 ambassador refused to go through the ceremony of 
 repeatedly prostrating himself before the emperor, 
 and acknowledging his own sovereign as a vassal of 
 the emperor. 
 
 "The trade went on after India passed to the 
 government of England. China was still obstinate, 
 insisted upon the vassalship of the Western nation, 
 and was confident in her power to repress the opium 
 trade. The merchants pressed vigorously for the 
 enlargement of their trade with China, which did not 
 seem to be aware of its weakness before a European 
 power. A famous mandarin was appointed governor- 
 general of the Kwang provinces to bring the bar- 
 barians to their senses. He proceeded in earnest, 
 and England declared war against the country in 
 1840. The result was evident from the first, and 
 
318 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 the war ended with the peace of Nanking in 1842. 
 The items were the ceding of Hong-Kong to the 
 victor, the opening of five ports to the trade and resi- 
 dence of the British. Correspondence was established 
 between the officials of the two nations; but not a 
 word was said about opium, and the smuggling went 
 on as before. 
 
 " In 1857, after some troubles in Canton in which 
 the English were at fault, and the refusal of the 
 governor-general to meet an agent of the British gov- 
 ernment, the latter declared war again, with France 
 as an ally. Canton was captured the same year ; and 
 Yeh, the governor, was taken prisoner, and sent to 
 Calcutta. There was little fighting in this war ; and 
 Canton being in possession of the allies, a joint com- 
 mission, attended by representatives of the United 
 States and Eussia, proceeded to Pekin to make their 
 demands upon the emperor. A treaty was made at 
 Tien-tsin, confirming the former, and with many im- 
 portant articles. One provided for the appointment 
 of ambassadors by each nation, another for the pro- 
 tection of Christian missionaries, and several others 
 of less moment. 
 
 " It looked as though the Chinese emperor had 
 been sufficiently humiliated ; but the treaty < slipped 
 up,' for its last clause provided that the treaty should 
 be ratified at Pekin within one year. The emperor 
 could not abide the idea of permitting the ambassa- 
 dors to enter the sacred capital, and he looked about 
 him for the means of escaping the issue. The forts 
 
THE CONCLUSION OF THE LECTURE 319 
 
 between the capital and the Gulf of Pe-chi-li had 
 been rebuilt and were well armed. The Chinese 
 officials urged the signing at Tien-tsin, and this 
 was done by several of the embassy; but France 
 and England insisted that it must be signed in 
 Pekin, as provided in the instrument itself. 
 
 " They started for the sacred city with several 
 men-of-war, but they found the mouth of the river 
 closed to them by the forts. A severe engagement 
 followed, in which the allies were beaten, the only 
 battle gained by the Chinese. At the end of a year 
 another expedition with twenty thousand men went 
 with the ambassadors, the forts were all taken, and 
 the officials went to Tien-tsin. The force marched 
 on Pekin ; and the emperor fled, leaving his brother 
 Prince Kung to meet the embassy. The north-east 
 gate of the city was surrendered, and the treaty 
 was duly signed at Pekin. 
 
 "In 1861 the emperor died, having named his 
 son, six years old, as his successor. A dozen years 
 later he took .possession of the throne, the regency 
 expiring then. He died two years later, and a 
 nephew of Prince Kung was appointed to the suc- 
 cession by the imperial family. He was a child of 
 four years of age then, and reigned under a regency 
 till 1887, when he took possession of the govern- 
 ment at the age of sixteen. 
 
 " I should have said before that a change of the 
 tariff in 1842 made the importation of opium legal 
 in the empire. The country has in recent years 
 
320 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 employed foreign officers in its army and navy, 
 and foreign mechanics in its workshops. China is 
 represented at five of the principal nations of the 
 world by ambassadors. It has built up a very re- 
 spectable navy, mostly at the shipyards of Great 
 Britain; and foreign officers have greatly improved 
 the condition of the army. 
 
 "Telegraphic communication has been extensively 
 established, and a railroad eighty-one miles long 
 has been built. Educational institutions have been 
 founded, and schools opened for the instruction of 
 young men in several foreign languages. The in- 
 creasing consumption of opium, which seems to have 
 been placed in the way of the people by the action 
 on the part of England, is a cause for great regret 
 among the friends of China. I have said too much 
 already, and I know you must be very tired. I 
 thank you for bearing with me so long ; and I will 
 promise not to do so again, at least so far as China 
 is concerned. China is at peace with all the world, 
 and I leave her so." 
 
 The professor retired with even greater applause 
 than in the forenoon. Since he spoke, China has 
 been engaged in a great war with Japan; and pos- 
 sibly his account of the country will assist those 
 who are yet to read the history of the conflict. 
 
SIGHT-SEEING IN HONG-KONG AND CANTON 321 
 
 CHAPTER XXXIV 
 
 SIGHT-SEEING IN HONG-KONG AND CANTON 
 
 AFTER the conclusion of the lecture in the after- 
 noon, the passengers of the two ships had another 
 frolic, as Captain Ringgold called it, and then dined 
 in the cabin ; after which those from the Blanche 
 " went home," as the ladies termed it. 
 
 Towards the close of the following day, while 
 the passengers of the Guardian-Mother were seated 
 on the promenade, the lookout forward shouted, 
 " Land, ho ! " The announcement caused a sensa- 
 tion, as usual, though it was an old story. It was 
 reported off the port bow; and the captain said it 
 was Lema Island, a considerable distance from Hong 
 Kong. 
 
 " The Chinese name of Hong-Kong is Hiang-Kiang, 
 which means ' sweet waters/ " said the commander. 
 "It is a ridge of rocks, the highest point of which 
 is over eighteen hundred feet above the water. It 
 is ninety miles south by east of Canton. The island 
 has an area of twenty-nine square miles, and is not 
 more than half a mile from the main shore. It is 
 a barren rock, and you will hardly see a speck of 
 vegetation on the whole of it. In the south-west 
 corner of the island is the city of Victoria, with a 
 
322 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 population of two hundred and twenty-one thousand ; 
 and it is one of the great centres of trade with 
 Western nations. The principal import is opium, 
 and the principal exports are tea and silk. We 
 shall anchor soon in its splendid harbor." 
 
 An English pilot was taken ; and at sunset the ship 
 was at anchor, and the party had abundant occupa- 
 tion in observing the rugged shores, the shipping that 
 filled the harbor, and especially the Chinese boats, 
 in charge of boat-women generally. A few junks 
 were in sight; and they had seen several of them 
 among the islands which form an archipelago at 
 the mouth of Canton River, extending some distance 
 up the stream. 
 
 " There are a number of hotels here with Eng- 
 lish names/' said the captain at dinner ; " but I shall 
 not trouble you to take a vote on the question of 
 going to one of them, for we shall not remain here 
 long, not more than one day. Our steamers can go 
 up to Canton; but I think we had better go up in 
 one of the regular steamers, not Chinese." 
 
 After breakfast the next morning, the first thing 
 in order was to ascend the promontory for the view 
 it would afford. But they could not walk up, it 
 was so difficult and tiresome. Before they left the 
 ship the American consul visited her, and proffered 
 his assistance to the tourists ; for he had read about 
 the ships in the papers of some of the ports they 
 had visited. 
 
 This gentleman was very kind and very polite, and 
 
SIGHT-SEEING IN HONG-KONG AND CANTON 323 
 
 while he was on board the party from the Blanche 
 came to the ship in the steam-launch. He was in- 
 troduced to everybody, and advised the travellers 
 to take Chinese sampans for their visit to the shore, 
 for the novelty of the thing. The water around 
 the ship was covered with them, and a sufficient 
 number of them were taken to accommodate the 
 party. " The colonel," as the consul was generally 
 called, talked " pidgin " English, which is practically 
 a dialect in itself, to the boat-women. 
 
 The captain, Mrs. Belgrave, the colonel, and a few 
 others went in the first sampan, and the lady was 
 pleased with the women in charge of the craft ; and 
 several children were in a coop at the stern. The 
 price of the craft was ten cents for half an hour. 
 In a few minutes they were landed at the town ; and 
 then a crowd of coolies, as the laborers are called 
 here, surrounded the party with sedans and rick- 
 shaws, and all were anxious for a job. The passen- 
 gers waited till all the company had landed, and then 
 took sedans or -rickshaws for the Hong-Kong Hotel. 
 
 It required twenty of them to accommodate the 
 party. The commander and the consul went into the 
 hotel ; and a lunch, or tiffin as it is called here as in 
 India, was ordered for the tourists at one o'clock. 
 Then the colonel instructed the coolies where to go, 
 and the procession started for a round in the city. 
 The buildings are constructed of granite, which is 
 the material of the surrounding heights, the dwell- 
 ings with verandas. 
 
324 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " How is the weather here, Colonel ? " asked the 
 captain, when they stopped to examine a locality. 
 
 " The average temperature is seventy-five ; and that, 
 of course, gives us some hot days in summer, which 
 is a rainy season. Thunder-storms come often ; and 
 once in a while a typhoon breaks in upon us, some- 
 times doing an immense amount of damage," replied 
 the consul. " But the climate is not unhealthy. If 
 the town had been built around the corner of the 
 island, it would have been cooler, though we could 
 not have had this magnificent harbor." 
 
 The company had all descended when a stop was 
 made ; and most of them insisted upon walking along 
 Queen's Road in order to have a better opportunity 
 to look into the stores, and see the street traders, 
 for most of the Chinese pursue their business in the 
 open air. The stores were filled with the curious 
 goods peculiar to the East, such as China crapes, 
 porcelain vases, and other wares, and camphor-wood 
 boxes, proof against moths. The shop people were 
 well dressed and extremely polite. Several stores 
 were visited, those indicated by the colonel. 
 
 One man, who appeared to be the "boss," sat at 
 a desk with a little brush, or camel's-hair pencil, for 
 the natives do not write with pens, and made a tea- 
 chest character in a kind of book for every article 
 sold. The salesmen were very skilful in handling 
 the goods, and showing them in the most tempting 
 manner. Mrs. Belgrave bought some things that she 
 fancied j and then came up the question as to how to 
 
SIGHT-SEEING IN HONG-KONG AND CANTON 325 
 
 pay for them, for they had no Chinese money. The 
 colonel helped them out by giving cards, like bank- 
 checks, payable by the steward of the Hong mer- 
 chants. 
 
 Continuing the walk, they came to a money- 
 changer. The commander put down two English 
 sovereigns, for which he received a bag full of the 
 current coins, which were not the native cash, but 
 the pieces made for Hong-Kong, as they are made 
 for the island of Jamaica, where an English penny 
 will not pass. The smallest was of the value of a 
 cash, or one mill. A cent was about the size of our 
 old copper one, and a ten-cent piece was a little 
 larger than our dime. The value was given in Chi- 
 nese as well as English for the benefit of the natives ; 
 and the cash piece had a square hole in the centre, 
 for the natives keep them on strings or wires. 
 
 The captain gave about a half a dollar's worth 
 of this money to each person, so that none need be 
 bothered about paying for small articles. The boys 
 invested a portion of their wealth for a quantity 
 of Swatow oranges, about the size of heavy bullets. 
 They could not understand the native seller, and 
 permitted him to take his pay out of a handful of 
 coins ; but he took next to nothing, and they were 
 confident they were not cheated, for he took the 
 same coins from the hands of all. 
 
 Among the pedlers all sorts of vegetables were for 
 sale, and the groper-fish, shark-fin soup, meats minced 
 with herbs and onions, poultry cut up and sold in 
 
326 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 pieces, stewed goose, bird's-nest soup, rose-leaf soup 
 with garlic heaven with the other place, Scott 
 called it and scores of other eatables for native 
 palates, and some of them would suit the taste of 
 Americans. 
 
 Taking their places in the vehicles, the tourists 
 were borne through the principal streets. There 
 are only five or six thousand English in the city, 
 and Hong-Kong is substantially Chinese. At about 
 eleven, the coolies toted the sedans to the top of the 
 peak, where an observatory is located, following a 
 zigzag path. The approach of every vessel of any 
 consequence is signalled from this elevation by flags. 
 The ascent is difficult, it is so steep ; and the bearers 
 of the sedans had to stop and rest occasionally. 
 The view is magnificent, and the consul pointed 
 out the objects of interest. 
 
 It was easier to get down the steep than to get 
 up, and the party reached the hotel at the appointed 
 time. The lunch was ready, though it was hardly 
 first-class. When the captain asked about the ex- 
 pense of living for Europeans in China, the colonel 
 said that the price per day at the best hotels was 
 from four to six dollars, and that one could not 
 keep house for less than four thousand dollars a 
 year. In summer the people live in bungalows on 
 the peaks, where quite a town has grown up. The 
 captain paid the bill in English gold. In the after- 
 noon the company made an excursion by a regular 
 steamer to Macao, on the other side of the river, 
 
SIGHT-SEEING IN HONG-KONG AND CANTON 327 
 
 forty miles distant. It has been a Portuguese settle- 
 ment since 1557 ; but it had little interest for the 
 tourists, and they returned by the same steamer, and 
 went on board of the ship. 
 
 The colonel dined on board, and the captain an- 
 nounced his intention to go to Canton the follow- 
 ing day. The next morning the tourists were on 
 board of the steamer for that city. The colonel 
 could not go with them ; but he procured a couple 
 of English guides to attend them, one of whom was 
 Mr. Inch and the other Mr. Larch. 
 
 " Kwang-tung is the native name of the city to 
 which we are going, and from this the English had 
 made Canton," said Mr. Larch, as the boat left the 
 shore ; and he proceeded to name the islands in 
 sight, and point out all objects of interest, as he 
 did all the way up the river. 
 
 The city is on the north side of the Choo-Chiang, 
 or Pearl River, ninety miles from Hong-Kong. They 
 saw nothing of especial interest except a temple on 
 the shore, aad a fort with a three-story pagoda 
 rising from the centre of it. On the arrival of the 
 steamer off the city, she was surrounded by boats 
 as at Hong-Kong. The captain of the boat recom- 
 mended one he called Tommy, though it was a 
 woman ; and her craft was engaged, with as many 
 more as were needed, indicated by her. 
 
 At the landing-place Mr. Seymour, the American 
 consul, to whom the colonel had telegraphed, was 
 waiting for them. He introduced himself, and was 
 
328 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 soon on the best of terms with all the tourists. He 
 advised them to go to the International Hotel, and 
 they went there. A score of sedans and rickshaws 
 were at once engaged; and Tommy and the other 
 women carried the valises and bags for them, each 
 attended by the owner. They were to remain three 
 days in Canton. Dinner was the first ceremony they 
 performed after they went to the hotel, and the 
 consul joined the party by invitation. 
 
 "Canton is a city with a population estimated at 
 a million and a half, including the people that live 
 in boats from one year's end to the other, and doubt- 
 less you noticed their aquatic dwellings as you came 
 up the river," said the consul, who had been invited 
 to tell the company something about the place. " It 
 is surrounded by a wall nine miles in length, built 
 of brick and sandstone, twenty-five to forty feet high, 
 and twenty feet thick, and divided by a partition 
 wall into two unequal parts. There are twelve outer 
 gates, and also gates in the partition wall. The 
 names of these are curious, as Great Peace Gate, 
 Eternal Rest Gate, and others like them. There 
 are more than six hundred streets, lanes you will 
 call them; for they are not often more than eight 
 feet wide, very crooked, and very dirty. This is the 
 general idea of the city, and the details you will see 
 for yourselves." 
 
 After breakfast the next morning the party was 
 organized for sight-seeing, and the sedans they had 
 used the day before were ready for them. The two 
 
SIGHT-SEEING IN HONG-KONG AND CANTON 329 
 
 guides insisted upon going on foot, the better to 
 discharge their duties. They rode through some of 
 the principal streets, looked into the shops, and ob- 
 served the pedlers ; but all was about the same as 
 in Hong-Kong, except that the streets were wider 
 in the latter. The same goods were for sale. They 
 looked into a tea saloon j and the gentlemen entered 
 an opium den, which nearly made some of them sick. 
 
 " This is called the Plain pagoda," said Mr. Inch, 
 when they came to it. "It was built a thousand 
 years ago, and is one hundred and sixty feet high." 
 
 They were taken to a couple of Joss-houses, or 
 temples. A sort of tower attracted their attention ; 
 and they were told that the one before them, and 
 hundreds of others, were occupied each by a watch- 
 man at night to call out the hours of the night, and 
 give the alarm in case of fire. They halted before 
 the nine-story pagoda, the most interesting structure 
 they had seen, and the most peculiarly Chinese. 
 
 "It is one hundred and seventy feet high, and 
 was built thirteen hundred years ago," Mr. Larch ex- 
 plained. " Brick, covered with marble or glazed tile, 
 is the material used. Each story is smaller than the 
 one below it, and each has a balcony around it." 
 
 "Now we come to the Temple of Honam, which 
 is one of the largest in China," said Mr. Inch, as 
 they halted before its gates, after the party got out 
 of the sedans. "With its grounds it covers seven 
 acres, and one hundred and seventy-five priests are 
 employed in it." 
 
330 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " What is the religion of these people ? " asked 
 Mrs. Woolridge. 
 
 ""The priests and nnns of Canton number more 
 than two thousand, and nine-tenths of them are 
 Buddhists. The Temple of Five Hundred Genii con- 
 tains that number of statues, various in size, and was 
 erected in honor of Buddha and his disciples." 
 
 At the usual hour the party went to lunch, and 
 were tired, though they had done but little walking. 
 The sedans were dismissed till the next morning; 
 the afternoon was devoted to an excursion on the 
 river, and Tommy had been directed to provide the 
 boats. They moved through the wilderness of float- 
 ing dwelling-places, and looked them over with won- 
 der and surprise. Many of the sampans were made 
 of three planks; and the people on board of them, 
 mostly women, were exceedingly amusing. 
 
 Large junks, some of them from five hundred to 
 sixteen hundred tons burden, were to be seen, and 
 long, broad, flat Chinese men-of-war, with twenty 
 to forty guns ; but the latter are out of fashion now, 
 and modern-built vessels take their places. They 
 have two great painted eyes on the bow to enable 
 them, as the Chinese say, to find their way over the 
 sea. But the most beautiful sight was the flower- 
 boats, having galleries decorated with flowers, and 
 arranged in most fantastic designs. Each of these 
 floating gardens contains one large apartment and 
 a number of cabinets. The walls are hung with 
 mirrors and graceful draperies of silk, and glass 
 
SIGHT-SEEING IN HONG-KONG AND CANTON 331 
 
 chandeliers and colored lanterns are suspended from 
 the ceiling. Elegant little baskets of flowers are 
 hung in various places. It seems very like fairy-land 
 on these boats. They are stationary, and dinners 
 are given on board by the Chinese who can afford 
 them. They are also places of amusement by day 
 and night, and plays, ballets, and conjuring take 
 place at them; but no respectable females frequent 
 them. 
 
 During the next two days the tourists continued 
 to wander on foot and in sedans over the city with 
 the guides. One day they went to the great exam- 
 ination hall, 1330 feet long by 583 wide, covering 
 sixteen acres, and containing 8653 cells, in which stu- 
 dents are placed so that there shall be no stealing 
 others 7 work. 
 
 When a member of the party asked the meaning 
 of certain tall buildings, he was told that they were 
 pawnbrokers' offices; for the Chinese have a mania 
 for pawning their clothes, or whatever they have, 
 even if not in iTeed of the money, to save the trouble 
 of taking care of the articles. Before the third day 
 of the stay in Canton was over, some of the party 
 had seen enough, and preferred to remain at the 
 hotel while others were out with the guides. The 
 next day they returned to Hong-Kong, and were glad 
 to be once more on board the ships, for sight-seeing 
 is the most tiresome work in the world. 
 
332 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 CHAPTER XXXV 
 
 SHANG-HAI AND THE YANG-TSZE-CHIANG 
 
 THE passengers of the Guardian-Mother were on 
 deck at an early hour the next morning, and the 
 smoke was rising from the funnel as though it was 
 the intention of the commander that she should sail 
 soon; and some of them began to wonder if they 
 were to see anything more of China than could be 
 seen from the deck of the ship. 
 
 "Well, ladies and gentlemen, have you seen all 
 you wish of China ? " said Captain Ringgold, as he 
 seated himself at the head of the table at break- 
 fast. 
 
 " We can put it to vote," suggested Mrs. Belgrave. 
 
 "I don't think it is necessary," replied the com- 
 mander, laughing. " We shall sail this forenoon for 
 Shang-hai, for I suppose that some of you who keep 
 hens wish to see the home of the famous rooster 
 that bears that name." 
 
 "I thought yesterday afternoon that I had seen 
 enough of China to last me the rest of my lifetime : 
 but I feel a little different this morning since I got 
 rested," said Mrs. Woolridge. 
 
 " It is said that travellers enjoy their visits to 
 foreign countries more after they get home, and think 
 
SHAXG-HAI AND THE YANG-TSZE-CHIANG 333 
 
 over what they have seen, than they do while going 
 from place to place," added Mrs. Belgrave. " I think 
 of a hundred things I saw in Canton, and did not 
 understand, that I shall recall when I read about 
 China, as I intend to do when I get home." 
 
 " That is just my idea ! " exclaimed Mrs. Wool- 
 ridge. " It will take me three years, at least, after I 
 get home to read up what I have seen on this voyage." 
 
 Much more in the same general direction was said 
 by others. When they went on deck they found the 
 pilot who had brought the ship into port walking 
 back and forth. He had brought off the China Mail, 
 and three other newspapers in English, and a pile 
 of others in Chinese to be kept as curiosities by the 
 party. The captain had obtained his clearance and 
 other papers the day before, as soon as he arrived 
 from Canton, with the assistance of the colonel, who 
 had come off with the pilot to make his adieux. In 
 less than half an hour the ship was under way again, 
 with the Blanche following her. 
 
 " How far is* it to Shang-hai ? " asked Mrs. Bel- 
 grave, as she met the captain in front of the pilot- 
 house. 
 
 " It is eight hundred and seventy miles, and the 
 voyage will require two days and fourteen hours," 
 he replied. " I shall keep well to the eastward, and 
 if you are up by six to-morrow morning you will 
 see the island of Formosa. Then we shall be about 
 on the Tropic of Cancer, when we shall pass out of 
 the Torrid Zone out of the tropics." 
 
834 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 This information was circulated by the lady among 
 all the passengers. Before noon the ship was out of 
 sight of land, and the voyage was just about the 
 same as it had been in smooth seas and pleasant 
 weather. All the party were seated on the prom- 
 enade at six o'clock the next morning. 
 
 "But there is land on both sides of us, Captain 
 Kinggold," said Mrs. Belgrave. " Which is For- 
 mosa ? " 
 
 " That on your right. We are going through the 
 Formosa Channel; and the islands on the port side 
 are the Pescadores, about twenty miles from For- 
 mosa." 
 
 After breakfast, when the ship had passed the 
 smaller islands, and the passengers were seated on the 
 promenade, the commander opened upon them with 
 a talk about Formosa: "The name of the island 
 in Chinese is Taiwan; and it is off the province 
 of Fu-chien, and from ninety to two hundred and 
 twenty miles from it. It has an area of 14,978 
 square miles, or about the size of the States of Massa- 
 chusetts, Rhode Island, and Connecticut put together. 
 It has a chain of mountains through it, the highest 
 peak of which " and the speaker looked at his mem- 
 oranda " is 12,847 feet high. 
 
 " The number of inhabitants is estimated at about 
 2,000,000, mostly immigrants from China, with the 
 original natives. The island is exceedingly rich in 
 its vegetation, and the plants are about the same 
 as those of the main land. Rice paper is made of 
 
SHANG-HAI AND THE YANG-TSZE-CHIANG 835 
 
 the pith of a tree found only in Formosa. In the 
 south sugar and turmeric are the staples. The latter 
 is a plant whose root is bright yellow, used in dyeing 
 silk. Formosa tea has become well known at home 
 as of excellent quality. Other productions are about 
 the same as in southern China. 
 
 "There are plenty of birds there, but no wild ani- 
 mals of any consequence that are game for the Nim- 
 rods. A great deal more might be said about the 
 island, but you have more now than you are likely 
 to remember. You can see many junks now, and 
 the trade with China is mostly carried on in them ; 
 and some of them are pirates in these seas, even 
 to the south of Hainan, for a trading-junk turns into 
 a pirate when her captain can make some money 
 by it." 
 
 After lunch the Blanche's people came on board, 
 and all hands had the usual frolic during the after- 
 noon and evening. The next morning the captain 
 told his passengers that they had passed out of the 
 China Sea the day before, and that they were on the 
 Tung-hai, or Eastern Sea, outside of which was 
 the broad Pacific Ocean. On the third morning from 
 Hong-Kong, when the company came on deck, they 
 found the Guardian- Mother at anchor, but just get- 
 ting under way with an English pilot on board, who 
 had been taken late the evening before. 
 
 " Where are we now, Captain Kinggold ? " asked 
 Mr. Woolridge, when the party had seated themselves 
 on the promenade to see what was to be seen. 
 
336 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 " We are at the mouth of the great river Yang-tsze- 
 Chiang ; but we shall soon pass into a branch of it 
 called the Woo-Sung, and find Shang-hai, for it is 
 correctly written with a hyphen between the syl- 
 lables," replied the commander. " But the tide is 
 right ; and we can go over the bar without any delay, 
 the pilot says. It is about twelve miles up the river 
 to the town ; and, as you can see, the country is low 
 and flat. The city has 250,000 inhabitants, and is 
 the principal central port of China for foreign 
 trade." 
 
 The channel of the river was crowded with junks, 
 and there are sometimes as many as three thousand 
 of them between the town and the sea ; but they were 
 careful to keep out of the track of steamers, even 
 though they had the right of way. The two steamers 
 picked their way through the native boats, and they 
 were at anchor off the city in season for the late 
 breakfast ordered. 
 
 " Shang-hai stands on low ground ; and cholera, 
 dysentery, and fevers prevail here in summer," said 
 the commander when they were all seated at the 
 table. " The English, French, and American quar- 
 ters are in the suburb north of the native city, and 
 they have broad and clean streets ; but in the city 
 proper, they are narrow and filthy, not unlike those 
 of Canton. It is enclosed by a wall five miles in 
 extent. What else there is here you can see for 
 yourselves." 
 
 The captain decided, after the pacha came on 
 
SHANG-HAI AND THE YANG-TSZE-CHIAXG 337 
 
 board in his barge with the rest of his party, to 
 lunch and dine at the Astor House, perhaps because 
 the name sounded like home ; but he found that the 
 hotel " was a horse of another color." They went on 
 shore in some of the native boats that crowded 
 around the ship ; and their first care was to secure six 
 guides, all that offered their services on the quay. 
 The next was to procure a supply of the money cur- 
 rent in the city, which was accomplished with the 
 aid of the principal guide, all of whom were Eng- 
 lish, who could speak Chinese and pidgin. 
 
 The company were then divided into six parties, 
 who had suggested this plan when they found that 
 this number of guides could be obtained. The " Big 
 Four " went together, and the rest of the company 
 were in parties of three. The conveyances were 
 found to be small, low broughams, pony gigs, palan- 
 quins, jinrickishas, and wheelbarrows, the last such 
 as the party had seen in Cholan. The boys decided 
 to walk first, and try the vehicles later. They went 
 into a shop where Louis saw something in a window 
 he wanted, and the guide asked the price for him. 
 The dealer refused to show the article, or to name a 
 price, unless Louis would agree to buy if he did so. 
 
 They were not like the Hong-Kong salesmen ; for 
 there were several of them, and they were impolite 
 enough to make fun of the tourists. Scott doubled 
 his fists, and was inclined to pitch into the one who 
 refused to show any goods till they were practi- 
 tically sold ; but Louis begged him to desist. They 
 
388 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 next went into a tea saloon in the middle of a dirty 
 pond of water, which would have just suited the 
 taste of a Dutchman at home. 
 
 The tea was given to them in the cups, and they 
 poured in hot water. The keeper swindled them in 
 asking about five times the price, and the guide re- 
 monstrated ; but the fellow was saucy, and the charge 
 was paid to avoid trouble. The guide said the other 
 fellow would have cheated them in the same ratio, if 
 Louis had agreed, as he required, to buy. Then they 
 looked into an opium joint, where the smokers were 
 reclining on broad benches. The pipe was a tube 
 with the bowl on the top. The drug is boiled till it 
 is of the consistency of honey. Something like a 
 knitting-needle is then taken by the smoker, the end 
 of which is dipped in the jar ; the needle is then 
 turned till the opium becomes a ball as big as a pea. 
 It is then held in a flame till it is partially lighted, 
 when it is dropped into the bowl of a pipe. The 
 amount used is counted in pipes, some being satiated 
 with two or three of them, while the hard cases re- 
 quire twenty. In either case he goes to sleep, and 
 has pleasant dreams. The habit is very deleterious 
 to those who practise it, and death results from ex- 
 cessive use of the drug. 
 
 "There is a sedan with a Chinese magnate in it, 
 with four bearers," said the guide ; " but it is not so 
 common here as in Hong-Kong and Canton." 
 
 The barrow excited the attention of the boys more 
 than the other vehicles. At the door of the shop 
 
SHANG-HAI AND THE YANG-TSZE-CHIANG 339 
 
 they saw a native reading a paper, wearing a pair of 
 spectacles whose eyes were almost as big as saucers. 
 After walking through the streets of Hong-Kong and 
 Canton, the boys saw very little that was new to 
 them. 
 
 " Is there a cemetery in the town ? " asked Louis, 
 after they had become somewhat tired, not to say 
 disgusted, with the dirty streets, and the crowd in 
 them. 
 
 " Nothing that you Americans would call by that 
 name," replied the guide. " There are some small 
 burial-grounds; but the Chinese generally bury their 
 dead in private grounds, outside of the cities. They 
 have a reverence for their dead which is not equalled 
 by any people on the face of the earth. The graves 
 of the rich and noted are very carefully selected, and 
 are decorated with great care and taste. Some of the 
 finest gardens in the country are those enclosed in a 
 private burial-place. 
 
 " A rich Chinaman thinks more of his coffin than 
 he does of his iiouse. He often buys it years before 
 he has occasion to use it, and keeps it, taking better 
 care of it than he does of his female children. 
 Wherever a Chinaman dies, he must be sent home to 
 be buried ; and many of them come here from Amer- 
 ica, taken up from the earth even a year or more 
 after death." 
 
 At this point the party came to an open place 
 where there were all the different vehicles used in 
 the city waiting to be employed ; and as it was nearly 
 
340 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 time for the lunch, they decided to ride to the hotel. 
 Louis took a rickshaw, as it is called here ; Scott 
 and Morris preferred a wheelbarrow, and Felix took 
 another, balanced by the guide. They were novel con- 
 veyances to the boys, and they enjoyed the ride very 
 much. The rest of the parties returned to the hotel 
 about the same time. There were Chinese dishes on 
 the table ; and those who had tried some of them be- 
 fore ordered them, especially the bird's-nest soups. 
 The hams were very nice, and the captain hoped that 
 Mr. Sage had procured some of them for the ship. 
 
 The afternoon was spent as the forenoon had been, 
 but the party found little to interest them. The 
 next day the tourists made an excursion up the Yang- 
 tsze-Chiang, and enjoyed it very much. They saw a 
 little of the farming operations, as a man ploughing 
 with a buffalo, which looked more like a deer than a 
 bovine ; others carrying bundles of grain, one at each 
 end of a pole on their shoulders ; another threshing by 
 beating a bunch of the stalks on a frame like a ladder 
 or clothes-horse ; but what pleased them most were 
 the fishermen. One had a net several feet square, 
 suspended at the end of a pole. It was sunk in the 
 water, and then hauled up. Any fish that happened 
 to be over it then was brought up with it ; but Scott 
 declared that this device was an old story, and they 
 were used in the United States, though an iron hoop 
 was the frame of the net. 
 
 They were more interested in the fishing with cor- 
 morants. A man with a dip-net in his hand stood 
 
SHA^G-HAI AND THE YANG-TSZE-CHIANG 341 
 
 on a bamboo raft, on which was a basket like those 
 the snake-charmers use in India, to receive his fish. 
 The birds were about the size of geese. They dived 
 into the water, and brought up a fish every time. 
 They have a ring or cord on their necks so that they 
 cannot swallow their prizes, and they drop them into 
 the dip-net. 
 
 They went up as far as Taiping, where they took 
 a returning steamer, and that night slept on board 
 the ships. On the following morning the steamers 
 went down the river; and then the question where 
 they were to go next came up, and the commander 
 soon settled it by announcing that the ship was 
 bound to Tien-tsin, on the way to Pekin. 
 
342 FOUJi YOUNG EXPLOKEiiS 
 
 CHAPTER XXXVI 
 
 THE WALLS AND TEMPLES OF PEKIN 
 
 THE company had hardly expected that Captain 
 Ringgold would go to the capital, for it was off the 
 course to Japan, which was the next country to 
 be visited ; but their curiosity had been greatly 
 excited, and he was disposed to gratify it. 
 
 "Pekin is not on navigable water, and we can- 
 not go there in the ship," said he. " We go to 
 Tien-tsin, which is the seaport of Pekin, about 
 eighty miles distant from it. It is a treaty port, 
 and is said to have a population of six hundred 
 thousand ; the number can doubtless be considerably 
 discounted. The next thing is to get to Pekin; 
 though we can go most of the way by boat to Tung- 
 chow, thirteen miles from the capital. Some go all 
 the way on horseback or by cart. We will decide 
 that question when we get to Tien-tsin." 
 
 " How long will it take us to go there ? " asked 
 Uncle Moses. 
 
 " About two days ; we are off Woo-Sung now. We 
 have the pilot on board, and we shall go to sea at 
 once," replied the commander. 
 
 Nothing of especial interest occurred on the voy- 
 age ; and before noon on the second day out the two 
 
THE WALLS AND TEMPLES OF PEKIN 343 
 
 ships were off the mouth of the Pei-ho Kiver, and a 
 Chinese pilot was taken. As they went up the river 
 they saw the Taku forts, where the Celestial soldiers 
 won their only victory over the English, but were 
 badly beaten the following year. On the rising tide 
 the ships got up the river, and anchored off the 
 town. 
 
 The place was like any other Chinese city, and 
 was quite as dirty as the dirtiest of them. Two of 
 the guides from Shang-hai, wha were couriers for 
 travellers, had been brought, one in each ship; and 
 both of them were intelligent men. The Blanchita 
 had been put into the water as soon as the anchors 
 were buried in the mud ; and the party went on 
 shore in her, to the great disgust of the boat-people. 
 
 The American consul came on board with the 
 Chinese officials ; and the commander took him into 
 the cabin for a conference in regard to getting to 
 Pekin, while the tourists were on shore with the 
 guides. Mr. Smithers had seen the steam-launch, 
 and the question was whether the party could go 
 up Pekin Kiver in her. The consul could see no 
 difficulty in the way, any more than there would 
 be in the ships' barges. He thought he could put 
 them in the way of making the trip securely, and 
 they went on shore together in the barge. 
 
 Mr. Smithers knew a couple of high officials who 
 were going to the capital the next day, and the com- 
 mander was introduced to them. They were very 
 polite, and both of them spoke English. One had 
 
344 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 been educated at Yale College in New Haven. They 
 were invited to go with the party to Pekin in the 
 Blanchita, and accepted. The arrangements were 
 completed for the trip. They went on board of 
 the Guardian-Mother, and were treated with the 
 most distinguished consideration, shown over the 
 ship, and invited to lunch. 
 
 When the launch came off with the party at noon, 
 all the ladies and gentlemen were presented to 
 them by the commander. The pacha, the rajah, 
 and the princess were clothed in their elegant robes ; 
 and they evidently made a profound impression. 
 The plan for the journey to the capital was an- 
 nounced to the passengers, and they could not help 
 being delighted with it. Mr. Sage had been directed 
 to spread himself on the lunch, and he did so. Mon- 
 sieur Odervie even prepared a few Chinese dishes, 
 the art of doing which he had learned from a native 
 cook in Hong-Kong. 
 
 In the afternoon the party went on shore again, 
 under the escort of Mr. Psi-ning and Mr. Ying-chau, 
 visiting the temple in which the treaties had been 
 signed, and several others, and then walked through 
 the street of " Everlasting Prosperity," as the Chinese 
 gentlemen explained it. The prosperity seemed to 
 consist mainly in the sale of eel-pies with baked 
 potatoes, the former kept hot at a small charcoal 
 fire. Live fish in shallow bowls with a little water 
 in them were common, and cook-shops for more elab- 
 orate Chinese dishes were abundant. 
 
THE WALLS AND TEMPLES OF PEKIN 345 
 
 Both the native gentlemen were mandarans of 
 different orders, and they were received with the 
 most profound deference by the common people. 
 The tourists saw everything in the town that was 
 worth seeing; and early in the afternoon they re- 
 turned to the Guardian-Mother, where the consul 
 and the native gentlemen were to dine. The latter 
 were invited to sleep on board in order to be in 
 readiness for an early start the next day, and they 
 had ordered their baggage to be sent to the ship. 
 Mr. Psi-ning said he had telegraphed to an official 
 at Tung-chow to have conveyances ready for the 
 party at that place, which was as far as the boat 
 could go, thirteen miles from Pekin. 
 
 Mr. Smithers was exceedingly kind, and did far 
 more than could be expected of a consul. The 
 commander expressed his obligations to him in the 
 most earnest terms for all he had done, and espe- 
 cially for introducing the distinguished Chinese gen- 
 tlemen. The dinner was the most elaborate the 
 steward and the cook could provide, and it was one 
 of those hilarious affairs which have several times 
 been described during the voyage. In the evening 
 there were Mrs. Belgrave's games, music, and dan- 
 cing with the assistance of the Italian band, and 
 finally the singing of the Gospel Hymns. 
 
 The Blanchita was prepared for her voyage as 
 soon as she came off from the shore, coaled for the 
 round trip, supplied with cooked provisions, though 
 the galley was available, and with everything that 
 
346 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 could possibly be needed. She was put in about 
 the same trim as when she went up the rivers of 
 Borneo. Felipe was to be the engineer, Pitts the 
 cook, and four sailors were detailed for deck-hands. 
 The excursion had been arranged for five days ; and 
 the bags, valises, and other impedimenta of the 
 voyagers, were on deck at an early hour. Breakfast 
 was ready at half -past six ; and at half -past seven 
 the Blanchita got under way with a native pilot for 
 the river, who could speak pidgin English. 
 
 The party were in a frolicsome mood ; and they 
 went off singing a song, to the great astonishment 
 of the native boat-people. Mr. Psi-ning joined with 
 them; for he had learned the tunes in the United 
 States, where he had travelled extensively. Tien- 
 tsin is the terminus of the Grand Canal in the 
 north, and they passed through a small portion of 
 it into the river. The trip was through a low coun- 
 try. The road to the capital was in sight, and they 
 saw various vehicles moving upon it. The first that 
 attracted their attention was one of the barrows, with 
 a native between the handles, supporting them with 
 a band over his shoulders. On one side of the large 
 wheel was a passenger ; and behind him was a lofty 
 sail, like those depending from the yards of a ship, 
 but about three times as high in proportion to its 
 width. It had five ribs of wood in it below the 
 upper yard to keep it spread out. The boys thought 
 the craft would be inclined to heel over with all the 
 cargo on the starboard side. 
 
THE WALLS AND TEMPLES OF PEKIN 347 
 
 They saw a rickshaw rigged with a sail in this 
 manner. A man on a farm was working with an 
 ordinary wheelbarrow sailing in this way. There 
 were no end of men riding ponies, or in the two- 
 wheeled passenger-carts having a cover over them 
 which extended out over the horse. Farther up 
 they observed a couple of coolies irrigating the land 
 with a machine which had four paddles for moving 
 the water, with four more each side of the stream, 
 under a frame to which two men were holding on, 
 and working treadmill fashion, with their feet on 
 each of the four arms. They noticed mixed teams 
 of horses and bullocks, such as one sees in Naples. 
 The most curious was a mule-litter, which was simply 
 a sedan between two animals. 
 
 Felipe drove the launch at a nine-knot speed, and 
 at half-past three in the afternoon the boat arrived at 
 Tung-chow. Contrary to their expectation, the pas- 
 sengers had greatly enjoyed the trip; but it was out 
 of their own hilarity rather than their surroundings. 
 Pitts had arranged the lunch in a very tasty manner 
 on the tables in what the boys had called the fore 
 and after cabins. They found all the variety of 
 vehicles they had seen on the road, and in three 
 hours they came to the great gate of Pekin. They 
 were conveyed to the small German hotel, which 
 they more than filled ; and other lodgings were pro- 
 vided for some of the gentlemen, though the meals 
 were to be taken at the public-house. 
 
 The Chinese gentlemen had to leave them to 
 
348 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 attend to their own affairs, but after dinner the 
 professor told them something about Pekin : " The 
 city is in about the same latitude as New York, 
 and the climate is about the same. It is situated 
 on a sandy plain, and the suburbs are comparatively 
 few. The town consists of two cities, the Manchu 
 and the Chinese, separated by a wall ; and the whole 
 is surrounded by high walls, with towers and pagodas 
 on them, as you have already seen. The Manchu 
 wall is fifty feet high, sixty feet wide at the bottom, 
 and forty at the top. Without the cross-walls, there 
 are twenty-one miles of outer wall, enclosing twenty- 
 six square miles of ground. 
 
 "There are sixteen gates, each with a tower a 
 hundred feet high on it. Your first impression 
 must have been that Pekin is the greatest city in 
 the world. You came in by a street two hundred 
 feet wide, with shops on each side; but when you 
 have seen more of it, you will find dilapidation and 
 decay, and about the same filth you have observed 
 in other Chinese cities. But it is one of the most 
 ancient cities in the world, for this or another city 
 stood here twelve hundred years before Christ. 
 Kublai, a grandson of Genghis Khan, the great con- 
 queror of the Moguls, made Pekin the capital of 
 all China. When the Manchus came into power the 
 city was all ready for them, and for a time they 
 kept it in repair ; but for more than a hundred 
 years it has been going to ruin. 
 
 " The Manchu, or inner city, is divided into three 
 
THE WALLS AND TEMPLES OF PEKIN 349 
 
 parts, the largest of which is the real city. In the 
 middle of it are two walled enclosures, one within 
 the other. The outer one seems to be the guard- 
 room of the inner, to which entrance is forbidden 
 to all foreigners, and even to Manchus and Chinese 
 not connected with the court. This last is called the 
 Purple Forbidden City, two and a quarter miles 
 around it, and is the actual imperial residence. It 
 includes the palaces of the emperor and empress 
 and other members of the family. It contains other 
 palaces and halls of reception. 
 
 " The < Hall of Grand Harmony J is built on a 
 terrace twenty feet high, and is of marble, one hun- 
 dred and ten feet high. Its chief apartment is two 
 hundred feet long by ninety wide, and contains a 
 throne for the emperor, who holds his receptions 
 here on New Year's Day, his birthday, and on other 
 great occasions. The < Palace of Heavenly Purity' 
 is where the monarch meets his cabinet at dawn for 
 business ; and you see that he must be an early riser. 
 Within these enclosures are temples, parks, an arti- 
 ficial lake a mile long, a great temple in which the 
 imperial family worship their ancestors, and many 
 other grand palaces, temples, and statues, which I 
 have not time to mention. 
 
 " The outer, or Chinese, city, is thinly populated, 
 and a considerable portion of it is under cultivation. 
 The principal streets are over a hundred feet wide; 
 but those at the sides of them, like Canton and other 
 cities, are nothing but lanes. None of the streets 
 
350 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 are paved, and mud and dust reign supreme. As 
 with other Eastern cities, the population of Pekin is 
 exaggerated , being estimated by some as high as two 
 millions; but Dr. Legge thought it was less than 
 one million. 
 
 "The charge of infanticide seems not to be ap- 
 plicable to Pekin or the surrounding country, and 
 is said to be almost unknown there. A dead-cart 
 passes through the streets at early morning to pick 
 up the bodies of children dying from ordinary causes 
 whose parents are too poor to bury them. There 
 are foundling hospitals, to which the mothers prefer 
 to take their female children rather than sacrifice 
 them. In fact, infanticide is said to be known only 
 in four or five provinces. I have nothing more to 
 say, and I leave you to see the rest for yourselves," 
 said the professor, as he resumed his seat. 
 
 The next morning Mr. Psi-ning presented himself 
 at the hotel, before which were gathered vehicles 
 enough to accommodate the entire party. The rick- 
 shaw had recently been introduced from Japan, and 
 several of them were included in the number ; but 
 the carts and the barrows were generally preferred. 
 The company selected what they pleased. Mr. Psi- 
 ning led the way through the principal street, and 
 through some of the lanes; but the scenes in them 
 were so much like what they had seen in three other 
 cities that the novelty of them had worn off. The 
 residences of the ambassadors of foreign countries 
 were pointed out to them, including that of the Hon. 
 
THE WALLS AND TEMPLES OF PEKIN 351 
 
 C. Denby, before which they halted ; and the Chinese 
 gentleman conducted them all into it, where they 
 were presented in due form to His Excellency, who 
 received them very pleasantly. 
 
 They then went to the Temple of Heaven, which 
 was quite a curious building, somewhat in pagoda 
 style. It began on the ground at a round structure, 
 with an overhanging roof. The second story was 
 smaller, with the same kind of a roof ; and the third 
 was the same, but with a roof coming to a point, 
 like a cone. It was almost a hundred feet high. 
 The tiles were of blue porcelain, in imitation of a 
 clear sky. 
 
 In the afternoon the tourists were conveyed to the 
 office of the Board of Punishments, and Mr. Psi- 
 ning explained the criminal processes and sentences. 
 The latter are very severe, including torture, which 
 makes one think that he is reading Foxe's " Book of 
 Martyrs." The party declined to witness any of the 
 punishments. Some culprits are treated to twenty 
 or more blows- with a bamboo. Men suspected are 
 tortured to make them confess. They are put in 
 all sorts of painful positions. 
 
 Capital punishment is inflicted by placing the vic- 
 tim on his knees, with his arms bound behind him, 
 and his head is severed from his body by the stroke 
 of a heavy knife or sword. 
 
 The next day the mandarin conducted the tourists 
 to the gate of the Forbidden City; for he had ob- 
 tained a permit for the admission of the whole of 
 
352 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 them in a body. The professor had described the 
 principal structures within the enclosure ; and it would 
 be only a repetition to report what the mandarin 
 said of them, though he added considerable to what 
 had come from the books. The third gateway was 
 especially noted as one of the finest pieces of Chinese 
 architecture the party had seen. 
 
 The " Abode of Heavenly Calmness " was the no- 
 blest, richest, and most luxuriously furnished in the 
 great palace ; for it is the private apartment of the 
 emperor. The Great Union Saloon, where His Im- 
 perial Majesty receives the high-class mandarins, was 
 elegant enough for any royal apartment. 
 
 The tourists walked about among the Chinese 
 glories till they were tired out. The two Cupids 
 were completely " blown ; " and when they found a 
 place, they seated themselves, and let the rest of the 
 company finish the survey of the Forbidden City. 
 The palace of one prince of the imperial house was 
 so large that three thousand men could be quartered 
 in the out-buildings, and doubtless as many more 
 could be accommodated in the main structure. The 
 Cupids were picked up on the return ; but there was 
 more to be seen, and they went to the beautiful tem- 
 ple of Fo, containing a gilded bronze statue of the 
 god, sixty feet high, with one hundred arms, and 
 Scott remarked that he was like a big man-of-war, 
 well armed. 
 
 They came again to the Temple of Heaven ; but 
 the mandarin had not obtained a permit, which was 
 
THE WALLS AND TEMPLES OF PEKIN 353 
 
 exceedingly difficult to procure in recent years. Mr. 
 Psi-ning told them that the interior, in its chief 
 hall, represented the heavens. It was a circular 
 apartment surrounded by twenty-two pillars, and 
 everything was painted sky-blue. A portion of this 
 temple is the " Penitential Eetreat " of the emperor, 
 where he keeps three days of fasting, meditating 
 over his own sins and those of the government, pre- 
 vious to offering up his sacrifice. Connected with 
 the temple was a band of five hundred musicians, 
 who reside there ; but the commander was thank- 
 ful that the party were not compelled to listen to 
 their performance. 
 
 The tourists were very glad to get back to the 
 hotel in the street of the legations, and they did not 
 go out again that day. The question of visiting the 
 Great Wall then came up for discussion. Brother 
 Avoirdupois and Brother Adipose Tissue declared in 
 the beginning that they would not go ; and the man- 
 darin laughed heartily when these names were applied 
 to them, and still, more when they were called the 
 Cupids. 
 
 " It is forty-five miles to the loop-wall which trav- 
 ellers generally visit from Pekin," said Mr. Psi-ning. 
 " You would have to go in mule-litters, or on horse- 
 back, or by the carts you have used; and it would 
 take you a day to get there, and as long to return. 
 Then it would be only the loop-wall, and not the 
 Great Wall, which cannot be reached without going 
 over a hundred miles. I can say for myself that I 
 
354 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 have never been to either, just as I heard a man in 
 Boston say that he had lived there over sixty years, 
 and had never been to Bunker Hill Monument." 
 
 " The wall is an old story to you, I suppose," said 
 the princess. 
 
 " You have seen the walls of Pekin, and they are 
 a good specimen of the Great Wall ; at any rate, 
 they satisfied me," replied the mandarin. 
 
 But the " Big Four " and Professor Giroud decided 
 to visit the loop-wall, and the Chinese gentleman ad- 
 vised them to start immediately after lunch. One 
 of the guides, who had been there several times be- 
 fore, was to accompany them, and was sure they 
 could reach their destination by sunset; and they 
 started as soon as they had lunched. Mr. Psi pro- 
 cured for them six fine horses and a mule-litter. 
 The road was paved with solid granite slabs, ten 
 feet long, all the way. 
 
 The attentive mandarin kept the rest of the tour- 
 ists very busy the next two days ; and they visited 
 everything that was worth seeing in the capital, and 
 they dined with him one day in his palace. The 
 party from the wall returned before night the next 
 day, and said they had had a good time, though the 
 wall did not amount to much more than that seen 
 at Pekin. 
 
 " I have a government mission in Tokyo next week, 
 and I have to go to Japan," said Mr. Psi-ning, while 
 they were dining together at the German Hotel. " I 
 shall probably meet you there." 
 
THE WALLS AND TEMPLES OF PEKlN 355 
 
 " If yon are going to Japan, permit me to offer 
 you a stateroom on board of the Guardian-Mother," 
 interposed the commander eagerly. "You are prac- 
 tically an American after a five years' residence in 
 the United States, and are familiar with our way 
 of living ; though I will add that Monsieur Odervie, 
 our French cook, has learned to make a few Chinese 
 dishes, and we will endeavor to make you comfort- 
 able." 
 
 "Your living will suit me perfectly, for I am 
 used to it ; and having dined with you on board, 
 I know that your bill of fare is better than any 
 hotel in the States. But when do you sail ? " 
 
 " Whenever you are ready, my dear sir." 
 
 " I have to spend a day in Tien-tsin, and then 
 I was to take a steamer to Shang-hai, and thence 
 a P.'& 0. to Yokohama." 
 
 "But that is out of the way; and we go direct 
 to Yokohama, or we will go there first if you honor 
 us with your company," said the captain, glancing at 
 General Noury. *" 
 
 " By all means ! " exclaimed the pacha. " Mrs. 
 Noury and myself will be delighted to have you with 
 us, Mr. Psi-ning." 
 
 " Then I shall be too happy to accept your cordial 
 invitation," replied the mandarin. That matter was 
 settled ; and the new passenger went to his palace 
 to prepare for his journey, though he did not forget 
 to send one of his people to Tung-chow to arrange 
 for the reception of the party the next day. 
 
356 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS 
 
 The horses the young men rode, the mule-litters, 
 wheelbarrows, and jinrikishas were at the door of 
 the hotel early in the morning; and the mandarin, 
 with his valet, were on time. The company reached 
 Tung-chow before noon; and a Chinese lunch was 
 ready for them, ordered by the new passenger. The 
 Blanchita was all ready for them to step on board 
 when they had partaken of roast goose, duck, and 
 chicken at the inn. The passage down the river 
 was a frolic all the way, and the guest told them 
 more about China than they had learned before in 
 regard to matters not generally known. 
 
 Felipe hurried the steamer, and she was alongside 
 the Guardian-Mother before five in the afternoon. 
 Mr. Psi-ning had several pieces of baggage, including 
 despatch-bags, which were placed in the finest state- 
 room on board. The commander had telegraphed for 
 dinner at the usual hour. Mr. Smithers came on 
 board before it was ready, and was invited to join 
 the company. From him they learned that Mr. 
 Psi-ning was in the diplomatic service of the gov- 
 ernment, and that he would be of great assistance to 
 them in Japan. 
 
 The ships had to wait only one day for him; 
 and on Wednesday, May 10, at six in the morning, 
 they sailed for Tokyo, though the commander's 
 original intention had been to go first to Nagasaki. 
 The Blanche's party went on board of the Guardian- 
 Mother before she sailed, with the Italian band. 
 They played to the great delight of the boatmen 
 
THE WALLS AND TEMPLES OJT PEKIN 357 
 
 around the ship, as well as of those on board. The 
 consul went to the mouth of the river, and took a tug 
 home. It was a frolic all day and till midnight, 
 when the Blanche's passengers returned to her. 
 
 It was a smooth sea all the four days of the voy- 
 age, even on the Pacific shores; and the Guardian- 
 Mother's people spent the next day on board of the 
 consort. On the third day there was a lecture on 
 Japan in Conference Hall, given by Mr. Psi-ning, who 
 was as familiar with that country as with China. 
 But his discourse must be reported in another vol- 
 ume. 
 
 Those who are disposed to follow the tourists 
 through Japan, and then on their long voyage of two 
 thousand miles to Australia, New Zealand, and the 
 Sandwich Islands, will be enabled to do so in " PACIFIC 
 SHORES ; OR, ADVENTURES IN EASTERN SEAS." 
 
OLIVER OPTIC'S BOOKS 
 
 ALL-OVER-THE-IORLD LIBRARY 
 
 Illustrated Per Volume !. 25 
 
 FIRST SERIES 
 
 A MISSING MILLION or the Adventures of Louis Belgrave 
 A MILLIONAIRE AT SIXTEEN or The Cruise of the Guardian Mother 
 A YOUNG KNIGHT ERRANT or Cruising in the West Indies 
 STRANGE SIGHTS ABROAD or A Voyage in European Waters 
 
 SECOND SERIES 
 
 THE AMERICAN BOYS AFLOAT or Cruising in the Orient 
 THE YOUNG NAVIGATORS or The Foreign Cruise of the Maud 
 UP AND DOWN THE NILE or Young Adventurers in Africa 
 ASIATIC BREEZES or Students on the Wing (in press) 
 
 THIRD SERIES 
 
 ACROSS INDIA or Live Boys in the Far East 
 HALF ROUND THE WORLD or Among the Uncivilized 
 FOUR YOUNG EXPLORERS or Sight-Seeing in the Tropics 
 PACIFIC SHORES or Adventures in Eastern Seas 
 
 " The bare announcement of a new series of books by Oliver Optic 
 will delight boys all over the country. When they further learn that their 
 favorite author proposes to ' personally conduct ' his army of readers on 
 a grand tour of the world, there will be a terrible scramble for excursion 
 tickets that is, the opening volume of the ' Globe Trotting Series.' Of 
 one thing the boys may be dead sure : it will be no tame, humdrum jour, 
 ney; for Oliver Optic does not believe that fun and excitement are in- 
 jurious to boys, but, on the contrary, if of the right kind, he thinks it 
 does them good." Current Review. 
 
 LEE AND SHEPARD Publishers Boston 
 
OLIVER OPTIC'S BOOKS 
 
 The Blue and the Gray Afloat. By OLIVER OPTIC. Six 
 volumes. Illustrated. Beautiful binding in blue and gray, 
 with emblematic dies. Cloth. Any volume sold separately. 
 Price per volume, $1.50. 
 
 1. Taken by the Enemy. 4. Stand by the Union. 
 
 2. "Within the Enemy's Lines. 5. Fighting for the Right. 
 
 3. On the Blockade. 6. A Victorious Union. 
 
 The Blue and the Gray on Land. 
 
 1. Brother against Brother. 2. In the Saddle. 
 
 3. A Lieutenant at Eighteen. 
 
 ( Other volumes in preparation. ; 
 
 " There never has been a more interesting writer in the field of juvenile 
 literature than Mr. W. T. ADAMS, who, under his well-known pseudonym, is 
 known and admired by every boy and girl in the country, and by thousands 
 who have .long since passed the boundaries of youth, yet who remember with 
 
 >ing style < 
 
 series is as bright and entertaining as any work that Mr. ADAMS has yet put 
 forth, and will be as eagerly perused as any that has borne his name. It would 
 not be fair to the prospective reader to deprive him of the zest which comes 
 from the unexpected by entering into a synopsis of the story. A word, how- 
 ever, should be said in regard to the beauty and appropriateness of the binding, 
 which makes it a most attractive volume.'* Boston Budget. 
 
 Woodville Stories. By OLIVER OPTIC. Six volumes. Illus- 
 trated. Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25. 
 
 1. Rich and Humble; OR, THE MISSION OF BERTHA GRANT. 
 
 2. In School and Out; OR, THE CONQUEST OF RICHARD GRANT. 
 
 3. "Watch and Wait; OR, THE YOUNG FUGITIVES. 
 
 4. Work and Win; OR, NODDY NEWMAN ON A CRUISE. 
 
 5. Hope and Have; OR, FANNY GRANT AMONG THE INDIANS 
 
 6. Haste and Waste; OR, THE YOUNG PILOT OF LAKE CHAMPLAIK. 
 " Though we are not so young as we once were, we relished these stories 
 
 almost as much as the boys and girls for whom they were written. They we- e 
 really refreshing, even to us. There is much in them which is calculated. o 
 inspire a generous, healthy ambition, and to make distasteful all reading tend- 
 ing to stimulate base desires." Fitchburg Reveille. 
 
 The Starry Flag" Series. By OLIVER OPTIC. In six volumes. 
 Illustrated. Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, 
 $1.25. 
 
 1. The Starry Flag; OR, THE YOUNG FISHERMAN OF CAPE ANN. 
 
 2. Breaking Away; OR, THE FORTUNES OF A STUDENT. 
 
 3. Seek and Find; OR, THE ADVENTURES OF A SMART BOY. 
 
 4. Freaks of Fortune; OR, HALF ROUND THE WORLD. 
 
 5. Make or Break; OR, THE RICH MAN'S DAUGHTER. 
 
 6. Down the River; OR, BUCK BRADFORD AND THE TYRANTS. 
 
 " Mr. ADAMS, the celebrated and popular writer, familiarly known as OLIVES 
 OPTIC, seems to have inexhaustible funds for weaving together the virtues of 
 life; and, notwithstanding he has written scores of books, the same freshness 
 and novelty run through them all. Some people think the sensational element 
 predominates. Perhaps it does. But a book fbr young people needs this, and 
 so long as good sentiments are inculcated such books ought to be read." 
 
 LEE AND SHEPARD, BOSTON, SEND THEIR COMPLETE CATALOGUE FREE. 
 
OLIVER OPTIC'S BOOKS 
 
 All-Over-the-World Library. By OLIVER OPTIC. First 
 
 benes. Illustrated. Price per volume, $1.25. 
 2* t wnr nff M . illioi i; OR THE ADVENTURES OF Louis BELGRAVE. 
 nnaire Slxfceen J R THE CRUISE OF THE GUARDIAN 
 
 3. A _ Young Knight Errant; OR, CRUISING IN THE WEST INDIES. 
 
 4. Sstrange Sights Abroad ; OR, ADVENTURES IN EUROPEAN WATERS. 
 
 All-Over-the- World Library. By OLIVER OPTIC. Second 
 Series. Illustrated. Price per volume, $1.25. 
 
 1. American Boys Afloat; OR, CRUISING IN THE ORIENT 
 
 2. The Young Navigators; OR, THE FOREIGN CRUISE OF THE MAUD " 
 
 3. Up and Down the Nile; OR, YOUNG ADVENTURERS IN AFRICA. 
 
 4. Asiatic Breezes; OR, STUDENTS ON THE WING. 
 
 All-Over-the- World Library. By OLIVER OPTIC. Third 
 
 Series. Illustrated. Price per volume, $1.25. 
 
 1. Across India; OR, LIVE BOYS IN THE FAR EAST. 
 
 2. Half Round the World; OR, A MONO THE UNCIVILIZED. 
 
 J. Four Young Explorers; OR, SIGHT-SEEING IN THE TROPICS. 
 
 (Other volumes in preparation.) 
 
 Young- America Abroad: A LIBRARY OF TRAVEL AND 
 ADVENTURE IN FOREIGN LANDS. By OLIVER OPTIC. Illus- 
 trated by NAST and others. First Series. Six volumes. 
 Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, $1.25. 
 
 1. Outward Bound; OR, YOUNG AMERICA AFLOAT. 
 
 2. Shamrock and Thistle; OR, YOUNG AMERICA IN IRELAND AND 
 
 SCOTLAND. 
 
 3. Red Cross; OR, YOUNG AMERICA IN ENGLAND AND WALES. 
 
 4. Dikes and Ditches; OR, YOUNG AMERICA IN HOLLAND AND 
 
 BELGIUM. 
 
 5. Palace and Cottage; OR, YOUNG AMERICA IN FRANCE AND 
 
 SWITZERLAND. 
 
 6. Down the Rhine; OR, YOUNG AMERICA IN GERMANY. 
 
 "Tne story from its inception, and through the twelve volumes (see Second 
 Series), is a be.vitching one, while the information imparted concerning- the 
 countries of Europe and the isles of the sea is not only correct in every particu- 
 lar, but is told in a captivating style. OLIVER OPTIC will continue to be the 
 boys' friend, and his pleasant books will continue to be read by thousands of 
 American boys. What a fine holiday present either or both series of ' Young- 
 America Abroad ' weuld be for a young- friend ! It would make a little library 
 highly prized by the recipient, and woufd not be an expensive one." Provi- 
 dence Press. 
 
 Young" America Abroad. By OLIVER OPTIC. Second Series. 
 Six volumes. Illustrated. Any volume sold separately. 
 Price per volume, $1.25. 
 
 1. Up the Baltic; OR, YOUNG AMERICA IN NORWAY, SWEDEN, AND 
 
 DENMARK. 
 
 2. Northern Lands; OR, YOUNG AMERICA IN RUSSIA AND PRUSSIA. 
 
 3. Cross and Crescent; OR, YOUNG AMERICA IN TURKEY AND GREECE. 
 
 4. Sunny Shores; OR, YOUNG AMERICA IN ITALY AND AUSTRIA. 
 
 6. Vine and Olive; OR, YOUNG AMERICA IN SPAIN AND PORTUGAL. 
 6. Isles of the Sea; OR, YOUNG AMERICA HOMEWARD BOUND. 
 
 " OLIVER OPTIC is a nom deplume that is known and loved by almost every 
 boy of intelligence in the land. We have seen a highly intellectual and world- 
 weary man, a cynic whose heart was somewhat embittered by its large experi- 
 ence of human nature, take up one of OLIVER OPTIC'S books, and read it at a 
 sitting, neglecting his work in yielding to the fascination of the pages. When 
 a mature and exceedingly well-informed mind, long despoiled of all its fresh- 
 ness, can thus find pleasure in a book for boys, no additional words of recora 
 mendation are needed." Sunday Times. 
 
 LEE AND SHEPARD, BOSTON, SEND THEIR COMPLETE CATALOGUE FREE. 
 
OLIVER OPTIC'S BOOKS 
 
 The Great Western Series. By OLIVER OPTIC. In six vol- 
 umes. Illustrated. Any volume sold separately. Price per 
 volume, $1.25. 
 
 1. Going West; OR, THE PERILS OF A POOR BOY. 
 
 2. Out West; OR, ROUGHING IT ON THE GREAT LAKES. 
 
 3. Lake Breezes; OR, THE CRUISE OF THE SYLVANIA. 
 
 4. Going South; OR, YACHTING ON THE ATLANTIC COAST. 
 6. Down South; OR, YACHT ADVENTURES IN FLORIDA. 
 
 6. Up the River; OR, YACHTING ON THE MISSISSIPPI. 
 
 " This is the latest series of books issued by this popular writer, and deah 
 with life on the Great Lakes, for which a careful study was made by the author 
 in a summer tour of the immense water sources of America. The story, which 
 carries the same hero through the six books of the series, is always entertain- 
 ing, novel scenes and varied incidents giving- a constantly changing yet always 
 attractive aspect to the narrative. OLIVER OPTIC has written nothing better." 
 
 The Yacht Club Series. By OLIVER OPTIC. In six volumes. 
 Illustrated. Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, 
 $1.25. 
 
 1. Little Bobtail; OR, THE WRECK OF THE PENOBSCOT. 
 
 2. The Yacht Club; OR, THE YOUNG BOAT BUILDERS. 
 
 3. Money-Maker ; OR, THE VICTORY OF THE BASILISK. 
 
 4. The Coining Wave; OR, THE TREASURE OF HIGH ROCK, 
 
 5. The Dorcas Club; OR, OUR GIRLS AFLOAT. 
 
 6. Ocean Born; OR, THE CRUISE OF THE CLUBS. 
 
 " The series has this peculiarity, that all of its constituent volumes are inde- 
 
 for he makes very interesting stories, and inculcates none but the best senti- 
 ments, and the 'Yacht Club* is no exception to this rule." New Haven 
 Journal and Courier. 
 
 Onward and Upward Series. By OLIVER OPTIC. In six 
 volumes. Illustrated. Any volume sold separately. Price 
 per volume, $1.25. 
 
 1. Field and Forest; OR, THE FORTUNES OF A FARMER. 
 
 2. Plane and Plank; OR, THE MISHAPS OF A MECHANIC. 
 
 3. Desk and Debit; OR, THE CATASTROPHES OF A CLERK. 
 
 4. Cringle and Crosstree; OR, THE SEA SWASHES OF A SAILOR. 
 
 5. Bivouac and Battle; OR, THE STRUGGLES OF A SOLDIER. 
 
 6. Sea and Shore; OR, THE TRAMPS OF A TRAVELLER. 
 
 " Paul Farringford, the hero of these tales, is, like most of this author's 
 heroes, a young man of high spirit, and of high aims and correct principles, 
 appearing in the different volumes as a fanner, a captain, a bookkeeper, a 
 soldier, a sailor, and a traveller. In all of them the hero meets with very 
 exciting adventures, told in the graphic style for which the author is famous." 
 
 The Liake Shore Series. By OLIVER OPTIC. In six volumes. 
 Illustrated. Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, 
 $1.25. 
 
 1. Through by Daylight; OR, THE YOUNG ENGINEER OF THE LAKE 
 
 SHORE RAILROAD. 
 
 2. Liightning Express; OR, THE RIVAL ACADEMIES. 
 
 3. On Time; OR, THE YOUNG CAPTAIN OF THE UCAYGA STEAMER. 
 
 4. Switch Off; OR, THE WAR OF THE STUDENTS. 
 
 5. Brake Up; OR, THE YOUNG PEACEMAKERS. 
 
 6. Bear and Forbear; OR, THE YOUNG SKIPPER OF LAKE UCAYGA. 
 
 " OLIVER OPTIC is one of the most fascinating writers for youth, and withal 
 one of the best to be found in this or any past age. Troops of young people 
 hang over his vivid pages ; and not one of them ever learned to be mean, ignoble, 
 cowardly, selfish, or to yield to any vice from anything they ever read from his 
 pen." Providence Press. 
 
 LEE AND SHEPARD, BOSTON, SEND THEIR COMPLETE CATALOGUE FREE. 
 
OLIVER OPTIC'S BOOKS 
 
 Army and Navy Stories. By OLIVER OPTIC. Six volumes. 
 Illustrated. Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, 
 
 $1.25. 
 
 1. The Soldier Boy; OR, TOM SOMERS IN THE ARMY. 
 
 2. The Sailor Boy; OR, JACK SOMERS IN THE NAVY. 
 
 3. The Young Lieutenant; OR, ADVENTURES OF AN ARMY OFFICER. 
 
 4. The Yankee Middy; OR, ADVENTURES OF A NAVY OFFICER. 
 
 5. Fighting Joe; OR, THE FORTUNES OF A STAFF OFFICER. 
 
 6. Brave Old Salt; OR, LIFE ON THE QUARTER DECK. 
 
 " This series of six volumes recounts the adventures of two brothers, Tom 
 and Jack Somers, one in the army, the other in the navy, in the great Civil War. 
 The romantic narratives of the fortunes and exploits of the brothers are thrill- 
 ing- in the extreme. Historical accuracy in the recital of the great events of 
 that period is strictly followed, and the result is, not only a library of entertain- 
 ing volumes, but also the best history of the Civil War for young people ever 
 written." 
 
 Boat Builders Series. By OLIVER OPTIC. In six volumes. 
 
 Illustrated. Any volume sold separately. Price per volume, 
 
 $1.25. 
 
 1. All Adrift; OR, THE GOLDWING CLUB. 
 52. Snug Harbor; OR, THE CHAMPLAIN MECHANICS. 
 
 3. Square and Compasses; OR, BUILDING THE HOUSE. 
 
 4. Stem to Stern; OR, BUILDING THE BOAT. 
 6. All Taut; OR, RIGGING THE BOAT. 
 
 6. Ready About; OR, SAILING THE BOAT. 
 
 " The series includes in six successive volumes the whole art of boat building, 
 boat rigging, boat managing, and practical hints to make the ownership ofa 
 boat pay. A great deal of useful information is given in this Boat Builders 
 Series, and in ^ach book a very interesting story is interwoven with the infor- 
 mation. Every reader will be interested at once in Dory, the hero of 'All 
 Adrift,' and one of the characters retained in the subsequent volumes of the 
 series. His friends will not want to lose sight of him, and every boy who 
 makes his acquaintance in ' All Adrift ' will become his friend." 
 
 Riverdale Story Books. By OLIVER OPTIC. Twelve vol- 
 umes. Illustrated. Illuminated covers. Price: cloth, per 
 set, $3.60; per volume, 30 cents; paper, per set, $2.00. 
 
 1. Little Merchant. 7. Proud and Lazy. 
 
 2. Young Voyagers. 8. Careless Kate. 
 
 3. Christmas Gift. 9. Robinson Crusoe, Jr. 
 
 4. Dolly and. I. 1O. The Picnic Party. 
 
 5. Uncle Ben. 11. The Gold Thimble. 
 
 6. Birthday Party. 12. The Do-Somethings. 
 
 Riverdale Story Books. By OLIVER OPTIC. Six volumes. 
 
 Illustrated. Fancy cloth and colors. Price per volume, 30 
 
 cents. 
 
 1. Little Merchant. 4. Careless Kate. 
 
 . Proud and Lazy. 5. Dolly and I. 
 
 JJ. Young Voyagers. 6. Robinson Crusoe, Jr. 
 
 Flora Lee Library. By OLIVER OPTIC. Six volumes. Illus- 
 trated. Fancy cloth and colors. Price per volume, 30 
 cents. 
 
 1. The Picnic Party. 4. Christmas Gift. 
 
 2. The Gold Thimble. 5. Uncle Ben. 
 
 3. The Do- Somethings. 6. Birthday Party. 
 
 These are bright short stories for younger children who are unable to com- 
 prehend the Starry Flag Series or the Army and Navy Series. But they 
 all display the author's talent for pleasing and interesting the little folks. They 
 re all fresh and original, preaching no sermons, but inculcating good lessons. 
 
 LEE AND SHEPARD, BOSTON, SEND THEIR COMPLETE CATALOGUE FRFF 
 
OLIVER OPTIC'S BOOK? 
 
 The Way of the World. By OLIVER OPTIC, illustrated. 
 $1.50. 
 
 "One of the most interesting American novels we have ever read." Phila- 
 delphia City Item. 
 
 "This story treats of a fortune of three million dollars left a youthful heir. 
 The volume bears evidence in every chapter of the fresh, original, and fascinat- 
 ing style which has always enlivened Mr. ADAMS' productions. We have the 
 same felicitous manner of working out the plot by conversation, the same 
 quaint wit and humor, and a class of characters which stand out boldly, peu 
 photographs of living beings. 
 
 " The book furnishes a most romantic and withal a most instructive illustra- 
 tion of the way of the world in its false estimate of money." 
 
 Living" too Fast ; OR, THE CONFESSIONS OF A BANK OFFICER. 
 
 By OLIVER OPTIC. Illustrated. $1.50. 
 
 This story records the experience of a bank officer in the downward career of 
 crime. The career ought, perhaps, to have ended in the State's prison; but 
 the author chose to represent the defaulter as sharply punished in another way. 
 The book contains a most valuable lesson; and shows, in another leading 
 character, the true life which a' young business man ought to lead. 
 
 In Doors and Out ; OR, VIEWS FROM A CHIMNEY CORNER. By 
 OLIVER OPTIC. Illustrated. $1.50. 
 
 " Many who have not time and patience to wade through a long story will 
 find here many pithy and sprightly tales, each sharply hitting some social 
 absurdity or social vice. We recommend the book heartily after having read 
 the three chapters on 'Taking a Newspaper." If all the rest are as sensible 
 and interesting as these, and doubtless they are, the book is well worthy of 
 patronage." Vermont Record. 
 
 "As a writer of domestic stories, Mr. WILLIAM T.ADAMS (OLIVER OPTIC) 
 made his mark even before he became so immensely popular through his 
 splendid books for the young. In the volume before us are given several of 
 these tales, and they comprise a book which will give them a popularity greater 
 than they have ever before enjoyed. They are written in a spirited style, 
 impart valuable practical lessons, and are of the most lively interest." Boston 
 Home Journal. 
 
 Our Standard Bearer. A Life of Gen. U. S. Grant. By 
 OLIVER OPTIC. Illustrated by THOMAS NAST. Illuminated 
 covers, $1.50. 
 
 It has long been out of print, but now comes out in a new edition, with * 
 narrative of the civil career of the General as President for two terms, his 
 remarkable journey abroad, his life in New York, and his sickness, death, and 
 burial. Perhaps the reader will remember that the narrative is told by 
 " Captain Galligasken " after a style that is certainly not common or tiresome, 
 but, rather, in a direct, simple, picturesque, and inspiring way that wins the 
 heart of the young reader. For the boy who wants to read the life of General 
 Grant, this book is the best that has been published, perhaps the only one 
 that is worth any consideration. 
 
 Just His Luck. By OLIVER OPTIC. Illustrated. $1.00. 
 
 It deals with real flesh and blood boys; with boys who possess many noble 
 qualities of mind; with boys of generous impulses and large hearts; with boys 
 who delight in playing pranks, and who are ever ready for any sort of mischief; 
 and with boys in whom human nature is strongly engrafted. They are boys, 
 as many of us have been; boys in the true, unvarnished sense of the word; 
 boys with hopes, ideas, and inspirations, but lacking in judgment, self-control, 
 and discipline. And the book contains an appropriate moral, teaches many a 
 lesson, and presents many a precept worthy of being followed. It is a capital 
 book for boys." 
 
 LEE AND SHEPARD, BOSTON, SEND THEIR COMPLETE CATALOGUE FREE. 
 
LEE AND SHBVARD'S ILLUSTRATED JUVENILES 
 
 J. T. TROWBRIDGE'S BOOKS 
 
 THE START IN LIFE SERIES. 4 volumes. 
 
 A Start in L/ife : A STORY OF THE GENESEE COUNTRY. By 
 J. T. TROWBRIDGE. Illustrated. $1.00. 
 
 In this story the author recounts the hardships of a young lad in his first 
 endeavor to start out for himself. It is a tale that is full of enthusiasm and 
 budding hopes. The writer shows how hard the youths of a century ago were 
 compelled to work. This he does in an entertaining way, mingling fun and 
 adventures with their daily labors. The hero is a strik'ing example of the 
 honest boy, who is not too lazy to work, nor too dull to thoroughly appreciate 
 a joke. 
 
 Biding His Time. By J. T. TROWBRIDGE. Illustrated. $1.00. 
 
 " It is full of spirit and adventure, and presents a plucky hero who was willing 
 to ' bide his time,' no matter how great the expectations that he indulged in 
 from his uncle's vast wealth, which he did not in the least covet. . . . He was 
 left a poor orphan in Ohio at seventeen years of age, and soon after heard of a 
 rich uncle, "who lijjed near Boston. He sets off on the long journey to Boston, 
 finds his uncle, an eccentric old man, is hospitably received by him, but seeks 
 employment in a humble way, and proves that he is a persevering and plucky 
 young man." Boston Home Journal. 
 
 The Kelp Gatherers: A STORY OF THE MAINE COAST. By 
 J. T. TROWBRIDGE. Illustrated. $1.00. 
 
 This book is full of interesting information upon the plant life of the sea- 
 shore, and the life of marine animals ; but it is also a bright and readable 
 story, with all the hints of character and the vicissitudes of human life, in 
 depicting which the author is an acknowledged master. 
 
 The Scarlet Tanager, AND OTHER BIPEDS. By J. T. 
 TROWBRIDGE. Illustrated. $1.00. 
 
 Sl\ 
 
 tales. One of his grer 
 depict little saints, or incorrigible rascu's, but just boys. This same fidelity to 
 nature is seen in his latest book, "The Scarlet Tanager, and Other Bipeds." 
 There is enough adventure in this tale to commend it to the liveliest reader, 
 and all the lessons it teaches are wholesome. 
 
 LEE AND SHEPARO, BOSTON, SEND THEIR COMPLETE CATALOGUE FREE. 
 
J. T. TROWBRIDGE'S BOOKS 
 
 THE SILVER MEDAL STORIES. 6 volumes. 
 
 The Silver Medal, AND OTHER STORIES. By J. T. TROW- 
 
 BRIDGE. Illustrated. $1.25. 
 
 There were some schoolboys who had turned housebreakers, and among their 
 plunder was a silver medal that had been given to one John Harrison by the 
 Humane Society for rescuing from drowning a certain Benton Barry. Now 
 Benton Barry was one of the wretched housebreakers. This is the summary 
 of the opening chapter. The story is intensely interesting in its serious as 
 well as its humorous parts. 
 
 His Own Master. ByJ. T. TROWBRIDGE. Illustrated. $1.25. 
 
 " This is a book after the typical boy's own heart. Its hero is a plucky young 
 fellow, who, seeing no chance for himself at home, determines to make his own 
 way in the world. . . . He sets out accordingly, trudges to the far West, and 
 finds the road to fortune an unpleasantly rough one." Philadelphia Inquirer. 
 
 " We class this as one of the best stories for boys we ever read. The tone is 
 perfectly healthy, and the interest is kept up to the end." Boston Home 
 Journal. 
 
 Bound in Honor. ByJ. T. TROWBRIDGE, Illustrated. $1.25. 
 
 This story is of a lad, who, though not guilty of any bad action, had been an 
 eye-witness of the conduct of his comrades, and felt " Bound in Honor" not 
 to tell. 
 
 " The glimpses we get of New England character are free from any distor- 
 tion, and their humorous phases are always entertaining. Mr. TROWBRIDGE'S 
 brilliant descriptive faculty is shown to great advantage in the opening chapter 
 of the book by a vivid picture of a village fire, and is manifested elsewhere with 
 equally telling effect." Boston Courier. 
 
 The Pocket Rifle. By J. T. TROWBRIDGE. Illustrated. $1.25. 
 
 "A boy's story which will be read with avidity, as it ought to be, it is so 
 brightly and frankly written, and with such evident knowledge of the tempera- 
 ments and habits, the friendships and enmities of schoolboys." New York 
 Mail. 
 
 11 This is a capital story for boys. 'TROWBRIDGE never tells a story poorly. 
 It teaches honesty, integrity, ana friendship, and how best they can be pro- 
 moted. It shows the danger of hasty judgment and circumstantial evidence; 
 that right-doing pays, and dishonesty never." Chicago Inter-Ocean. 
 
 The ^Tolly Rover. ByJ. T. TROWBRIDGE. Illustrated. $1.25. 
 
 " This book will help to neutralize the ill effects of any poison which children 
 may have swallowed in the way of sham-adventurous stories and wildly fictitious 
 tales. 'The Jolly Rover' runs away from home, and meets life as it is, till he 
 is glad enough to seek again his father's house. Mr. TROWBRIDGE has the 
 power of making an instructive story absorbing in its interest, and of covering 
 a moral so that it is easy to take." Christian Intelligencer. 
 
 Young Joe, AND OTHER BOYS. ByJ. T. TROWBRIDGE. Illus- 
 trated. $1.25. 
 
 "Young Joe," who lived at Bass Cove, where he shot wild ducks, took some 
 to town for sale, and attracted the attention of & portly gentleman fond of shoot- 
 ing. This gentleman went duck shooting with Joe, and their adventures were 
 more amusing to the boy than to the amateur sportsman. 
 
 There are thirteen other short stories in the book which will be sure to please 
 the young folks. 
 
 The Vagabonds: AN ILLUSTRATED POEM. By J. T. TROW- 
 BRIDGE. Cloth. $1.50. 
 
 " The Vagabonds " are a strolling fiddler and his dog. The fiddler has been 
 ruined by drink, and his monologue is one of the most pathetic and effective 
 pieces in our literature. 
 
 LEE AND SHEPARD, BOSTON, SEND THEIR COMPLETE CATALOGUE FREE. 
 
J. T. TROWBRIDGE'S BOOKS 
 
 THE TIDE-MILL ^TORIES. 6 volumes. 
 
 Phil and His Friends. By J. T. TROWBRIDGE. Illustrated. 
 
 $1.25. 
 
 The hero is the son of a man who from drink got into debt, and, after having 
 given a paper to a creditor authorizing him to keep the son as a security for 
 nis claim, ran away, leaving poor Phil a bond slave. The story involves a 
 great marry unexpected incidents, some of which are painful, and some comic. 
 Phil manfully works for a year, cancelling his father's debt, and then escapes. 
 The characters are strongly drawn, and the story is absorbingly interesting. 
 
 The Tinkham Brothers' Tide-I^Iill. By J. T. TROWBRIDGE. 
 
 Illustrated. $1.25. 
 
 " The Tinkham Brothers " were the devoted sons of an invalid mother. The 
 story tells how they purchased a tide-mill, which afterwards, by the ill-will and 
 obstinacy of neighbors, became a source of much trouble to them. It tells also 
 how, by discretion and the exercise of a peaceable spirit, they at last overcame 
 all difficulties. 
 
 " Mr. TROWBRIDGE'S humor, his fidelity to nature, and story-telling power 
 lose nothing with years; and he stands at the head of those who are furnrshing 
 a literature for the young, clean and sweet in tone, and always of interest and 
 value." The Continent. 
 
 The Satin-WOOd Box. By J. T. TROWBRIDGE. Illustrated. 
 $1.25. 
 
 " Mr. TROWBRIDGE has always a purpose in his writings, and this time he 
 has undertaken to show how very near an innocent boy can come to the guilty 
 edge and yet be able by fortunate circumstances to rid himself of all suspicion 
 of evil. There is something winsome about the hero; but he has a singular 
 way of falling into bad luck, although the careful reader will never feel the 
 least disposed to doubt his honesty. ... It is the pain and perplexity which 
 impart to the story its intense interest." Syracuse Standard. 
 
 The Little Master. By J. T. TROWBRIDGE. Illustrated. $1.25. 
 
 This is the story of a schoolmaster, his trials, disappointments, and final 
 victory. It will recall to many a man his experience in teaching pupils, and 
 in managing their opinionated and self-willed parents. The story has the 
 charm which is always found in Mr. TROWBRIDGE'S works. 
 
 ' Many a teacher could profit by reading of this plucky little schoolmaster." 
 Journal of Education. 
 
 His One Fault. By J. T. TROWBRIDGE. Illustrated. $1.25. 
 
 "As for the hero of this story, 'His One Fault' was absent-mindedness. He 
 forgot to lock his"uncle's stable door, and the horse was stolen. In seeking to 
 recover the stolen horse, he unintentionally stole another. In trying to restore 
 the wrong horse to his rightful owner, he was himself arrested. After no end 
 of comic and dolorous adventures, he surmounted all his misfortunes by down- 
 right pluck and genuine good feeling. It is a noble contribution to juvenile 
 literature." Woman's Journal. 
 
 Peter Budstone. By J. T. TROWBRIDGE. Illustrated. $1.25. 
 
 " TROWBRIDGE'S other books have been admirable and deservedly popular, 
 but this one, in our opinion, is the best yet. It is a story at once spirited and 
 touching, with a certain dramatic and artistic quality that appeals to the literary 
 sense as well as to the story-loving appetite. In it Mr. TROWBRIDGE has not 
 lectured or moralized or remonstrated; he has simply shown boys what they 
 are doing when they contemplate hazing. By a good artistic impulse we are 
 not shown the hazing at all ; when the story begins, the hazing is already over, 
 and we are introduced immediately to the results. It is an artistic touch also 
 that the boy injured is not hurt because he is a fellow of delicate nerves, but be- 
 cause of his very strength, and the power with which he resisted until overcome 
 by numbers, and subjected to treatment which left him insane. His insanity 
 takes the form of harmless delusion, and the absurdity of his ways and talk 
 enables the author to lighten the sombreness without weakening the moral, in 
 a way that ought to win all boys to his side." The Critic. 
 
 LEE AND SHEPARO, BOSTON, SEND THEIR COMPLETE CATALOGUE FREE 
 
J. T. TROWBRIDGE'S BOOKS 
 
 THE TOBY TRAFFORD SERIES. 3 volumes. 
 
 The Fortunest^ ^ofoy Trafford. By J. T. TROWBRIDGE. 
 
 Illustrated, <? i 
 
 "If to make children's stones as true to nature as the stories which the 
 masters of fiction write for children of a larger growth be an uncommon 
 achievement, and one that is worthy of wide recognition, that recognition 
 should be given to Mr. J. T. TKOWBRIDGE for his many achievements in this 
 difficult walk of literary art. Mr. TROWBRIDGE has a good perception of 
 character, which he draws with skill; he has abundance of invention, which he 
 never abuses; and he has, what so many American writers have not, an easy, 
 graceful stvle, which can be humorous, or pathetic, or poetic." R . H. Stoddard 
 in New York Mail. 
 
 Father Brighthopes : AN OLD CLERGYMAN'S VACATION. By 
 J. T. TROWBRIDGE. Illustrated. $1.25. 
 
 This book was published in the early fifties by Phillips, Sampson & Co., of 
 which firm Mr. Lee (of Lee and Shepard) was then a member. It was very 
 favorably received, and was followed by other stories, a long series of them, 
 
 still lengthening, and which, it is hoped, may be prolonged indefinitely. 
 Recently a new edition has appeared, and for a preface the author has related 
 with touching simplicity the account of his first experience in authorship. 
 
 It is well known that Mr. TROWBRIDGE is primarily a poet. Some beautiful 
 poems of his were printed in the early numbers of the Atlantic Monthly (in 
 company with poems by LONGFELLOW, EMERSON, LOWELL, and HOLIVIES), 
 and were well received. "At Sea" is a gem that has become classic. The 
 poetic faculty has not been without use to the story-writer. The perception of 
 beauty in nature and in human nature is always evident even in his realistic 
 prose. But his poetic gift never leads him into sentimentality, and his char- 
 acters are true children of men, with natural faults as well as natural gifts and 
 graces. His stories are intensely human, with a solid basis, and with an 
 instinctive dramatic action. He has never written an uninteresting book. 
 
 Woodie Thorpe's Pilgrimage, AND OTHER STORIES. By 
 J. T. TROWBRIDGE. Illustrated. $1.25. 
 
 " The scenes are full of human interest and lifelikeness, and will please many 
 an old reader, as well as the younger folks for whose delectation it is intended. 
 As in all the books of this author the spirit is manly, sincere, and in the best 
 sense moral There is no 'goody' talk and no cant, but principles of 
 truthfulness, integrity, and self-reliance are quietly inculcated by example. 
 It is safe to say that any boy will be the better for reading books like this." 
 
 St. Botolph. 
 
 Neighbors' Wives. By J. T. TROWBRIDGE. Cloth. $1.50. 
 
 As a novelty, the following acrostic is presented. The praise from the dif. 
 ferent newspapers is brief, but to the point. 
 
 N ot in the least tiresome. Troy Press. 
 
 E xquisite touches of character. Salem Observer. 
 
 J. ntroducing strong scenes with rare skill. Gloucester Telegraph. 
 
 G roups well certain phases of character. New Bedford Standard. 
 H appy sprightliness of style and vivacity which fascinates Dover Legion. 
 B y many considered the author's best. Journal. 
 O ne of the best of TROWBRIDGE'S stories. Commonwealth. 
 R eader finds it difficult to close the book. //earth and Home. 
 
 S toryall alive with adventures and incidents striking and vivid. Dover Star. 
 W hich is one of TROWBRIDGE'S brightest and best. Boston Transcript. 
 
 I s destined to be enjoyed mightily. Salem Observer. 
 V ery pleasant reading. New York Leader. 
 E xcefe any of the author's former books. Montana American. 
 
 S tory is in the author's best vein. New Haven Register. 
 
 LEE AND SHEPARD, BOSTON, SEND THEIR COMPLETE CATALOGUE FREE, 
 
ff 
 
Four young; explorers 
 
 M529793 
 
 A