Where Vandals Die

Auckland Star, Volume LXIX, Issue 24, 29 January 1938, Page 2 (Supplement)

Where Vandals Die

FROM beneath bushy brows he favoured me with a prolonged, intense look. "So you're one of those reporter fellows, eh?" he.said, nodding his head aagely. I admitted the fact as, opening another bottle of frothing lager, I leaned across and refilled his tankard. "Well—l euppose you can't help it, anyhow!" This was hardly encouraging. I guessed that this hard old island trader must have some pretty solid reason for euch an opinion. If I were to get my etory from him, I ehould have to be tactful and probably listen to' a tirade or two before I could draw him out. We must all earn a living, you know," ToL u e ggeeted ' & note o£ a P ol * o sy in m y eanT , *. 4 '! "V * reckon that eant get akmg whhout ne a _ and newspaper* mean reporters of course. But what I want to know i> *hy must you barge in here!" I laughed. Before I had time to «TaTp tw * eUitab i e reply he went °£ Jake this group of islands, for example. Jot .o long ago we were all more or less a happy family. Everyone knew everyone else. We knew each other , 9 &h J comings, and allowed for them The natives knew us, too, and had ue all pretty well tabbed off. Things move slowly , n the islands, we are so isolated 1 he occasional new arrival took a few years to settle down before he wae accepted into the family, so to speak. "We are nil hard livers, and mostlv linrrl drinkers, but we have our little code--although it'* not in writing. We depend on each other, and respect each other; anrl. although 1 say it. the natives have a pretty good spire of respect for us. too." He paused, and spat reflectivplv over the low verandah railing, then buried hie face (or most of it!) in the foaming beer. "And things are not so, now?" 1 prompted, soothingly.

"Now? Holy smoke! Since yon fellows have been writing books and article*, shoals of 'em, mostly fairy tales which we who live here sit back and laugh at, the place has been deluged with all sorts of scum: the lazy scum who read those books and come here without a ceflt, thinking that the islands are'a kind of institution where Nature and natives will nuree 'em, spoon-feed 'em, and penerally look after their welfare. "Why, they think they have only to sit under a coconut palm and smile languidly at a native girl and ehe will feed him, and play with him, and minister to all his physical wants into the bargain." Sent More Beer Below Hatches He paused and snorted, transferred another large consignment of beer below hatches, then glared at me as if I were a beachcomber. "It'e all through you," he continued, shaking an admonitory finger at me. "Without thoee books the islands were a bit of a mystery to the rest of the world. Occasionally the odd globetrotter would blow in, worry us for a month or so, and then skip along his tinsel way to annoy someone else. But we had time to get over the likes of them. They left a nasty taste in our mouths, but that evaporated as soon ae fa*"" mone y" ba 2 e "topped flapping in our "But now? Hell! You'd think the islands were a kind of cheap bazaar, a vawdry sideshow, where every visitor takes all he can get as vulgarly as he "Faugh! The spineless blighters who read those books seem to "ather the impression that this is the sbow-pl ace for sensuality. They just arrive, live on the natives, sponge on the jrenuine white settlers, and lower our preetijre into the mud. He eyed me aggressively as he relapsed into a dignifiedsilence." From what I had seen during my short stay in these romantic islands," I was ready to believe that the old trader's

remarks were true. It wae deplorable, but—well, I hadn't invited thie old shellback of the islands along just to hear a disquisition on his pet grievances. I broached another bottle. When he had lowered the contents, his exacerbated feelings seemed a little less so. Mellowed, no doubt! Diplomatically, I determined in favour of silence for a while. I would judicially minister to the wants to my froth-blowing friend before I opened the subject wmch piqued my curiosity. In the meantime, I gazed across at the untrammelled vista, and was filled anew with the charm of this island where men seemed to find a content, a quiet joy, away from their kind. The rustling , , silver-grey palms, green-tufted, the wide strip of white coral sand sloping gently to the placid expanse of green lagoon bounded in the distance by the ever-white line of curling peef-breakers, the soothing murmur as the rollers broke frothily on coral ramparts, the very air perfumed with fraiigipani and a thousand exotic blooms —it was all very different, very wonderful. At length I glanced at my companion*. His expression was now serene. "How long have you been here?" I queried. "A matter of thirty-eight years or so," he replied, quietly. "And you never become tired of the same old scenery?" He looked surprised, a little hurt. "Tired of it ... why should I? I've sailed round the world a goodish bit, and have never found anything quite like this."' It was simply stated, yet it carried conviction. At the time, I doubted, but smee? Well, I agree with him there's nothing else just like it, with it's indefinable air of serenity, of tranquillity.

By ... Errington Ford

Then I remembered that I had something else besides beauty to think of to-night. My companion's relaxed attitude, his slightly flushed countenance, surely indicated amiability. "Do you remember Dr. Moriarty?" I hazarded. "So that's why you invited me along to-night?" he countered sharply. Where was my diplomacy now if this old chap could see through it on the instant? I laughed, a.nd he grinned slyly, amusedly. "Well, yes," I confessed. "I must admit that that was my main object. I remembered that the report of his death seemed remarkably vague as to details, and it certainly intrigued my curiosity at the time." "Hum! What drd the report say?" he questioned. "That Dr. Moriarty met his death owing to shock followed by heart failure."' "And why should you doubt it?" he retorted. "Because I knew the doctor many years ago. He always struck me as being a man who would take a devil of a. lot of shocking. Also, one or two things which I heard at Manareva. before I came on here, made me wonder. I gathered that you were the last person to see him alive, and that you could throw more light on the circumstances surrounding his death ... if you would." The trader glanced at me sharply, then slowly nodded hie head as he settled back comfortably. "And that's right.

too," he said, quietly. "I don't know of any reason why I shouldn't tell you. Old Fairu is dead now, so it can't harm him. It would also illustrate the point I was talking about just now—of natives losing their respect for us through the actions of you visitors." "What!" I exclaimed, amazed. "Did even the celebrated Dr. Moriarty lower the prestige of the white man?' , ' "Even Dr. Moriarty? He certainly did . . . very considerably. Being a high and mighty sort of fellow, they admired him, and trusted him just a bit more than ordinarr." "And?" "And he turned out to be ... a common vandal." I sat back, surprised, and prepared for something unusual. This Dr. Moriarty (eaid the trader) came here ae a elap-bang-up scientist chap. He spent weeks examining the , Makatea, the cavee and the reef. He secured various fossils which, he said, threw additional light on evolution and all that sort of thing. He told me about the coral polyp and how it built up the barrier reef around the island. I heard from him the theory regarding the formation of the Makatea. and the isolated central plateau. He wae certainly a man of vast, knowledge wfw our friend the doctor. He wae pretty good with the natives, too. Apparently he was a good physician. He doctored them up, and they thought that he was a big medicine-man-chlef.

Not To Interfere

With Burial Room

After lie had investigated the caves he heard that there were some secret oiitv* where the skeletons of warrior ohiefe had been buried in the olden deye. He wanted to see them; nothing eke would satisfy him. Xow, the natives are very reticent end superstitious on this subject. They don't like the idea of white men mucking around with their ancestors' remains. Quite right, too! We wouldn't like, for example, a Chinaman to come nosing around our cemeteries and fingering our grandsires' bone* as if they were curios. Xow, would we ? Finally the doctor, wTio was very persistent, induced me to persuade old Fairu (who was the paramount cliief then) to take Uβ down the secret cave and show u<; the skeletons of hie anoeotorp. Feiru iva« a fine old chap, and T could see that he hated the idea: but. at last, being after all an eaey-going Polynesian, he gave way and gr«nted his permission.

One thing he insisted on, however, was that we were not to interfere w.tli a single thing in the King'e burial chamber, as it was called.

The doctor gave a most solemn promise not to touch or remove any part of the skeletons, or to handle any of the curios in the chamber. He was intensely excited about it all. and could hardly contain himself a« the eppoiiitt-d day drew near. He had everything mapped out. and kept talking about ilio treatise lie would write on the subject.

Eventually we set out upon the adventure. There was the doctor and I. with old Fairn and two native boys. The native? carried a number of torcho? made by binding dried eocomrt fronde

together. The doctor and I each electric torches. The boys had immense baskets strapped to their shoulder.*. These wore filled with mapi leaves which were strewn behind us. every few yards. as we went. Even the natives did not know their way about the tortuous cave passages well enough to dispense with a trail. After leering the village we walked along the sand* for a few miles iiml then struck inland. You have noticed the formation of thk island? For perhaps a width of half a mile it is encircled by a mess of iipfliinpr coral: a bare wilderness of pinnacles, slab*, rocks and sharp clinkers, where nothing but palms and a few stunted f>l)rub* will grow. Slowly we climbed over thi* rocky outcrop. I could see faint tra.vs of what h«d been, years before, a track. But it was hard goinjr now. Coral splinters protruded on every hand, scratching our lejrs and bruising nu r fe*t even through the rubber soles of our shoe*. Even the native*, with their hard and calloused feet, had to pick their way carefully. At length we arrived at a huge boulder of coral resting precariously agaiil't a cliff face. Fairu leading, we etonprd beneath this end entered the mouth of a cavern. It was not above 4ft in height, and the floor was covered with fine white sand. After a short distance it eloped steeply downward*, suddenly opening out into a larjre cflve. from the roof of which were suspended innumerable stalactites. The doctor was los; in wonder. So far we had used the torches, but as they were insufficient to light the huge expanse which loomed i ahead, he ordered one of the coconut flares to be lit. He spent sonic time examining the fantastic formations, tin<l j the curious layer-like composition of the ; walls. "Marvellous! I must come buck again. T mti«t take sample-*." mill *i> ; forth, he kept repeating to himself. K>>; i until the flare burnt itself out could ho j be persuaded to leave thi* apartment. ; We continued our way along a tunnel : opening out of the farther wall, using , j our torches agrain. and noticing that the i boys dropped irreen leevee at more <v \ leee even disteacee as we walked. Sol we traversed tfce teasel* for a great'

('distance, always dropping our trail of • leaves behind us. Every little while we came to high a relied caves, which the i doctor wanted to examine. They all .looked much the same to me. but he seemed to spot all sort? of differences. .Finally. Fairu became impatient of . j these delays and in*i«ted that we push lon more quickly. The native boys' superstition made them nervous in the darkner* which surrounded us. Cave Like Vast Amphitheatre The next cave dwarfed all others. It • was like a vast amphitheatre, with walls of a soft wax-like white which seemed Ito -low incandescently in the flickering jlijiht. Away aloft, possibly .30ft or so, j the roof was a maw of serrated ribs. (with long graceful stalactites reaching : down from it. I Impatiently. Fiiiru led the way down !!a high but narrow tumi"l which was a ! maze of windings and turnings. I" 15 ! opened out. not into another cave, but j int., a long, low room, resembling j lmthina so much a.» an und Tground railway tunnel. It presented an eerie si?ht 'in 'the iiiji-ertain li'jin from the flaring brand- carried by 'he boy?. Raised I mound* of solid coral-lime ran. like huge beds, along each side. On 'ach of these I stone bier- rested a Jiri-ly skeleton. Over the heads of the smouldering bones, against the walls, were deadly-looking 1 spears and other rude implements of war. The whole place was dank and cold, j and made my hair creep on my -.-alp. i N'ot that I'm superstitious or belies e in ghosts and such thing*. It whs just the ] weirdness of being alone, we live, in a ! tomb-like vault peopled 'by grinning I skeletons; and knowing that rhould the J light fail or a fall of coral gravel occur, we would probably die and rot in this • subterranean grotto. It \\.i~ rather ! unnerving. But the doctor? (iood L->rd! j He didn't suffer from such thoughts. ] His eyes tver.e alight with e.igei as ; he passed from mound to mound, examI in? the skeletons and muttering a whole ! lor of jargon about frontal bones, br.iia I cavities and such like. ' (To be concluded.)