Jerry of the Islands

y, all his love for his new-found beloved eloquent in his throat. But quickly all sounds died away as the Arangi drifted from him. And then, in the loneliness

hreatened the unknowable thing, vaguely but terribly guessed, namely, death. As regarded himself, he did not comprehend de

foreboded the ultimate catastrophe of life about which he knew nothing at all, but which, nevertheless, he felt to be the conclusive supreme disaster. Alth

sea. And so he whimpered and cried, lost child, lost puppy-dog that he was, only half a year ex

*

erceness went out of the wind and the cloudburst of tropic rain began to

d Van Horn. "Hit us to

just before she hit us

the rain in th

roke off w

ng you fella boy?" he shout

fill on the other tack. The Arangi was beginning to work back approximately over the course she had just traversed. And this meant that she was going b

g-splice the tackle he had cut. As the rain thinned, so that the crackle of it on deck became less noisy, he was attracted by a sound from out o

shouted to Borckman. "Ba

ing a cluster of retur

! Come in spanker sheet! Fl

e and took a hurried compass bear

o the wheel and put it down himself, repeating over and over a

he waited. Despite the fact that by his manoeuvre the Arangi had been hove to, he knew that windage and sea-driftage would quickly send her away f

er the stern, Van Horn was back. He was undeterred by the barbed wire, lifting boy after boy of the boat's crew over it and dropping them sprawling

hove to. Don't hoist the mainsail. Clean up the

wers with: "Washee-washee, good fella, washee-wa

orth-east by east a quarter east. Then he remembered that the boat compass, on such course,

He had them row in circles, and work back and forth, up to windward and down

irst. "Maybe one fella boy hear 'm pickaninny dog sing out, I gi

en fathoms calico and ten ten sticks tobacco" to

*

t than he did of the first stars showing in the sky. It never entered his mind that it might be a star nor even that it might not be a star. He continued to wail and to strangle with more salt water. But when he at length heard Skipper's voice he went immediately wild. He att

reach him. But when he could answer he burst forth in a joyous yelp. Skipper was coming to take him out of the stinging

joy in his own yelp was duplicated by the joy in Skipper's voice, whic

ing, Jerry, coming. Stick it out, old man. Stay with it.-Washee-washee like hell!-Here we

him, was blinded by the stab of the torch full in his eyes, and, even as he yelped his joy, felt

bbing madly all over Skipper's chin and mouth and cheeks and nose. And Skipper did not know that he was himself wet, and that he was in the first shock of r

d with the sweep between his arm and his side in

ned, and continued to croon, over

ost children immediately after they are found. Also, he shivered violently. But

Horn stated his re

Nor was he washed overboard. I had him fast

he three-score return boys who were all on deck, and f

s cut. The knot's still in it.

e light on them, and such was the accusation and anger i

speak," he complained.

as close against his legs as he could, so close t

oy," he said, his words quick and exciting, his

stant, jumping about, barking

confided to the mate. "Come on, Jerry, find 'm, sick '

ging cries increased his excitement. Then he was struck by an idea, and a most definite idea it was. The circle of boys broke to let him through as he raced for'ard along the starboard side to the t

to go in after the wild-dog? But Skipper laughed and waved his hand to

might be. Yet it quickly dawned on him that it was not such things Skipper was after. His heart

rantic. That was it. He must identify the boat's crew and the return boys by their l

as that it was Lerumie who had broken the taboo of his sacred person by l

, and Jerry pursued amid the laughter of all the blacks. Several times, in making the circuit of the deck, he managed to scratch

his electric torch on the black in the rigging, and saw the long parallel scratches on the fingers of the hand that had invaded Jerry's

rry up and soothe

ed and sealed him. Some do

im as he clung in the rigging, and his vo

along you fella

" came the chirpin

along Pe

along M

his arms. After all, it was a return boy. In a day, in tw

o much along you. Me angry along you any amount. What name you fell

ly, resigned to receive a whipping such as he had long si

estion, and the black repeated t

give you strong fella talk too much. You look 'm eye belong you one time along this f

aintively replied; and

d the mainsail and put the Arangi on her course. And Skipper, under a dry blanket fro