ISLAND WIRELESS

New Zealand Herald, Volume LVI, Issue 17348, 20 December 1919, Page 3 (Supplement)

ISLAND WIRELESS

P\Sl I.S* § By ▼. SYLVESTER WALKER ("Coo-ee'») % '

HIS Majesty King George's Australian sloop Platypus had just made Squally, an island lying to the north of the boomerang curve o. the Bismarcks.

No one would*, have known her to be, with her steam power, wireless, and new sea-going appliances an erstwhile pearling schooner belonging to Pierre Lafond, but since the war Thursday Island had been expediently fertile.

When the gunboat was closer, the presumably Dutch Consul, Mynheer Van Kirschbaum, was seated in the verandah of his pretty bungalow amidst his copra, cocoanuts, ' pearl-shell, trochas, and bananas. A long-sleeved tumbler containing an amber-coloured liquid reposed in the right-hand receptacle of his longarmed Colombo chair. The clink of fragmentary ice against the glass when his native attendant boy placed it there, as well as three golden straws emanating from its depths, hinted that the Mynheer possessed an underground hurricane house, used as a cellar for refrigerating purposes.

" Donner und Blitzen," said he, in approval, and as he proceeded to dispose of the contents his eyes rested upon a very pretty girl emerging from the jungle at the edge of his plantations. She was accompanied by a little green and scarlet parrot. It was nibbling at a bunch of scarlet-podded capsicums which she dangled before its beak.

Glancing up at the Consul with a look of derisive inquiry, she failed to get an adequate response, because he was absorbed in his sherry cobbler.

A brown, shock-headed native emerged from an opposite belt of jungle, and made a sign after the girl had gone into the house.

This was appreciated, and a countersign given instantly. A stout, good-looking half-caste Marquesan woman came out from a verandah window behind Mynheer and remained face to face with him 'like a full-blown interrogation. Then he spoke:

" Ah! vat a peety it is, Sara Schoost ven I vas about to take you and the leetle Marie back to your own home. We could have gone avay this veek if dot infernal little dog-of-war gunboat had kept vere he belong to, and not komm here mit his barking and snapp'ng for der Australian Government. You saw Lamm? Is it not so, ma cherie?"- »•

She nodded wearily. She understood. That was all.

" 'E is goot intelligence, is Lanna," remarked the Consul, cheerily, as ;he extracted a long black Manila cheroot from a case in the pocket of his voluminous silk pyjamas. ".To vara ze oder natives 'e 'as gone. Zey will make of zemselves der invisible. Of my own brain I hai some leedel breparations to inorchurate. In den minutes dime I vill send dot leetel batrol poat about ees pusiness. Go you to Marie at once, and into der jungle mit you both. You are dead."

Jumping up from his seat and followed by his wife, he went briskly into the house, and in a brief time came out to throw the remainder of his cheroot at a blue butterfly of abnormal sise., Then he ran down the verandah steps and on to the road for the beach.

I But this time he was almost nude, with the bare exception of a very short pair of striped cotton drawers. In that highly ventilated costume he walked jauntily onwards,, to halt near the beach in a thick grove, bordered with sensitive plants and gemmed with scarlet capsicums. Peering through the stems of the cocoamit" palms, he watched the crew of the Platypus •manoeuvring to anchorage. Her mudhook was dropped with a resounding roar, and very soon she swung to between its lengthened cable and the beach. The port cutter was lowered, marined, manned, and commanded by a young Australian naval lieutenant. Then the boat's crew began to pull towards Van Kirschbaum. Not till then did he clear the grove to venture ankle-deep into the water.

But as the boat came nearer he waved frantically despairing hands and arms, shouting to them to keep away, at the peril of their lives.

At forty yards distance he raved at them, and, pointing to his arms, body, chest, and legs, swore plaintively. The lieutenant, astonished, levelled a pair of binoculars, and the crew hacked water as Van Kirshchbaum yelled, in an appalling crescendo:

" It is not der Kava leprosy, I dells you, but mit.puponic blagues I affected am. Go avay. Go avay! Everybody on Squally is dead but me." The lieutenant looked decidedly gravelled at this awful intelligence.

" Back further off, men," he ordered. " The poor devil's a goner, that's sure enough. Back, men, back. I don't want to have to fly the yellow Jack just now. How the devil has all this happened. All the natives who could get away will, of course, have scooted in prahus, lakatois, and junks, when this came on, and the whole of the Bismarcks, now we have got them, will be tainted. He's all over spots. And there's only one thing to be done, so far as I can see, and that is to shoot him. Easy all, men. And I call you to witness that the proceeding is a matter of necessity, justice, and precaution."

The crew murmured a hoarse assent as the lieutenant took up a heavy navy rifle from a thwart beside him and stood up.

" You are a brave mm, Van Kirschbaum, to come and tell us," he said, "and I am pained to have to do it. But I'll aim at the heart."

" No, no," howled the Consul. " I must vait. I haf der Australian Government reports .to fill in and disinfect, but I'll be dead before you or anyone else can land to get them. So it matters not the shooting. Get avay at once mit you, and make your report to your headquarters. In der line of der infection you must not remain. I vill myself shoots ven I my work have done."

He sprang to attention, smote his chest, saluted and walked off with a great and growing dignity.

" Poor old Kirschy, he's as game as they make them," murmured the lieutenant admiringly. " And his going off like this on his own hook leaves us blameless." Then, in a quick and strident aside he volleyed: " Pull, men, pull like the devil. I can absolutely smell the beastly infection, and we shall be lucky if we get clear. Pull! Lay on to it. Even if we get back to headquarters untouched we shall be a quarantined ship. Dashed hard lines, too. Just when we were calculating upon enjoying ourselves here as usual.''

A blank look spread over the faces of the boat's crew, and one of them asked th« lieutenant how Pierre Lafond would take it. "It's lucky he's not with us, sir."

" By the Lord Harry, I never though* of him for a moment," murmured the lieutenant. " The Mynheer's statement and appearance knocked me all of a heap. It will break Pierre's heart. Good God! What a pass to come to. By what fiendishagency can the plague have been caused? We can't tell him the truth, of course. And it's his watch below after the trouble we had last night with our bearings. Break it to him as gently as possible when he comes on duty. Make any excuse you like."

Pierre (put off with a report of sudden orders for a visit to another aland, and a quick return to Squally) cam* on deck . to cast a last lingering look on the place where his lady love lived, whilst the gunboat pitched out to sea again through the opening in the reef. Whilst thus, engaged the watcher was startled by a' small parrot alighting on bis shoulder. • He took it below with a sigh of relief caused by the letter he knew it would carry. And at that precise moment Marie Van Kirschbaum was laughing heartily to herself in the fringing foliage of Squally's inmost bay. Dad is very up to date," ran her thoughts in pure French, " but now ho will be suspect. Men of his nation are often too clever the wrong way round. And I do not want Pierre to have wrong impressions about his Dutch neutrality."Then she laughed right out until she nearly cried. Again the Colombo chair ■ received a perfectly self-possessed, welldressed, and journey-gomg-Consul. And yet again Mrs. Van Kirschbaum stood before him as an important but inter-" rogatory unit in his Cosmos. She was also arrayed as if for a journey, but kept him at arm's length in the query farm until he again opened his lips. "I go' to Dutch New Guinea to-night, Sara," he observed, "on important business. She ie neutral, andlTfihall have safe quarters, so do you stay here and keep quite calm. Id is necessary. to - safeguard der golden apples of the Hesperides. Mit patience and bananas comfort yourselves, you and der little Marie. .Lanna is waiting for me with his lakatoi oa der oder side of dar island." " So you would"leave us," shrieked Mrs. Van Kirschbaum, suddenly gathering herself together like an avalanche about to descend upon her errant spouse. " That you shall never do. Made is not sour child, but—" - * * " It would be beet for you to go easv/\ ordered Van Kirschbaum, " Id is a crisis. By and by you shall your share haf, and liddel Marie, too." " No," said the girl, suddenly appearing - from a side door. "You go not n0w,... . dad. You will be stopped. I have . known what you have done, and.l have sent word." '.'Nonsense, ijhilcL Lanna is waiting ">■ for me. You® understand. I must at' " vonce avay get." - ',:', ' ,».-».» ... Boom! A blank shotted 5 cartridge - .- shook the bungalow with a terrific concussion. ...'•'• ~ - - " The gunboat is back," signalled Lanna" '"'■ from the Jungle. - - * - ic:-?: "Name of a pig stammered Van •,« Kirschbaum. "Donner und BUfaep! Sacre mille tonneres. Hunderfc tausand" ** teufels. Gott strafe everybody, every, - • things. Ow did zey to know get?" Marie shook with laughter again and againi as her bewildered stepfather dived head first off the verandah' into "his" '" hurricane house, reappeared, ran • about, , - came back .to the j bungalow,.. shot into . .-. the bedroom, and finally sat down in*his Colombo chair, at a dead loss for any. >-- thing else to do. " . ..„.. ~... The lieutenant, a sergeant of -marinas ' ........ and his boat's crew now appeared, and ranged themselves officially in front of him, and a little parrot flew from Pierre' Lafond's shoulder to Marie's. ~ v "■■'■"' "' '""** "Mynheer Van Kirschbaum, you are - - my prisoner," said the lieutenant, sternly.' " Your .ways and manners and little neutral tricks against Australia are of no* avail. • "To whom, then, do I my flag lowerT"demanded the Consul. - " ■ ■+>.- .. . "To France and Hollands I received -~ • despatches practically from both- these. 7 , countries, and I find, .that you are .in"'"" possession, amongst your personal effects, of Australian securities, as well as several ■' valuable pearls, and a lot of trochas shells .-■■- commodities of which we have pressing ""' " need to pay off our war debt." ; ■ -•.>->*-?■ "There are three very fine pearls of- " the most valuable. lam field-marshal for my country until' I deposed am, but to you I gif them back under your laws, besides others. I will sign of release .[ to the enemy of all moneys and documents """' I haf, but I remain here until de Kaiser annexes de Bismarks again. Der- boot will then on the other foot be," dictated ..,< the ex-consul unblushingly s **. But did „,- you find out?" .; .; . v _\ " Aek Miss Marie there," bowed, the,* lieutenant. Ask Pierre here, Herr Vein -• Kirschbaum," he added ironically. '■•-'' - .'' . And Pierre, with the bird -son his .---.■. shoulder, kissed it ere it flew back t0..,. ... Marie's. , Sara Van Kirschbaum was 7 I'." trembling with a new and succinct' in-. ."„" : telligence, and'so was her spouse.' ------ . "It is -the bird through then, a -•'-«•• gilded popinjay," he remarked bitterly. " I have fed it and fed it, and it against ■,-..- me turns, though it cannot . enough to dell dalk." * "No, but Miss Marie can, and she*' knows Pierre well," went on the lieutenant, instinctively mimicking him. "A little note, a paper of the smallest, borne by her system of wireless, was your in- " dictment, you bloated German sausage. ' You are interned for good now, and I will leave a guard when I go elsewhere." " With, of course, Pierre in command," ' laughed Marie. " Affaire of State, certainly, Mademoiselle. Pierre represents our feeling for your gallant country and her' possessions in the Marquesas. The affair is yours entirely. You have saved Holland from a serious mistake. And now, Von Kirschbaum, ask us to dinner." " Sara, my dear, to it you will see, N'est ce pas, ma cherie," affably returned the Consul. I stop here after all until you gee to your property in a more intelligent way with people of your own race in charge. Marie, my dear, with Pierre you will now retire- And the popinjay bird. And I vill the three of you my blessing give. "I am naturalised again. lam interned in my old sanctum. I orchids hunt. I butterfiys catch. To snakes and beetles are my collecting jars. Of the manners and culture of the islanders I make comments in a note-book to send to my native land. But van der warships of Kiel come you vill all strafed be mit very much more rightfulness." " Give me your arm to examine," ordered the Lieutenant, suddenly and sharply. "Pierre, roll up his sleeve. Where' are the marks I saw this morning?" " Id is not der Kava leprosy," whimpered the foiled one. " It is der German measles. You are all infect." " Why, there isn't a mark left," shrieked Marie, " Manan, bring the bottler But take care. The liquid is very strong, and to smell it I have been obliged." " I vill the clean breast make," shouted Van Kirschbaum, hoarsely, " though of shame I suffer much. Of my own a little secret it is- I can der German measles make. Der small pox and der Kava leprosy I too manufacture can. But komm, mein leiber friends. _ I am now interned mit a vacuum in my. estomac. By and by I will, in der Kaiser's name, the whole of New Guinea - and dev oder islands annex." " But, in the name of all that's marvellous, how did you do it?" asked the lieutenant, breathless with wonder. "' From der Australian Government's . medicine chest I take one leedel bottle of acedic acid, and mit some necessary dilutions I strafes myself on der skin mit spots," returned the erstwhile Consul,- ■ complacently. - " *"