第14章

"Yes，itisveryhardtothinkthatIwhowanttotouchyoucannotmakemyselfunderstoodaswellasthey。AndyetIspeakthelanguageofyourchildhood，thelanguageofthemanforwhomthereisnohopebutinyourgenerosity。"

Heshookhishead。Shegazedathimanxiouslyforamoment。"Inyourmemoriesthen，"shesaidandwassurprisedbytheexpressionofprofoundsadnessthatover—spreadhisattentiveface。

"DoyouknowwhatIremember？"hesaid。"Doyouwanttoknow？"

Shelistenedwithslightlypartedlips。"Iwilltellyou。

Poverty，hardwork——anddeath，"hewenton，veryquietly。"AndnowI’vetoldyou，andyoudon’tknow。That’showitisbetweenus。Youtalktome——Italktoyou——andwedon’tknow。"

Hereyelidsdropped。

"WhatcanIfindtosay？"shewenton。"WhatcanIdo？Imustn’tgivein。Think！Amongstyourmemoriestheremustbesomeface——somevoice——somename，ifnothingmore。Icannotbelievethatthereisnothingbutbitterness。"

"There’snobitterness，"hemurmured。

"O！Brother，myheartisfaintwithfear，"whisperedImmada。

Lingardturnedswiftlytothatwhisper。

"Then，theyaretobesaved，"exclaimedMrs。Travers。"Ah，I

knew……"

"Bearthyfearinpatience，"saidHassim，rapidly，tohissister。

"Theyaretobesaved。Youhavesaidit，"Lingardpronouncedaloud，suddenly。Hefeltlikeaswimmerwho，inthemidstofsuperhumaneffortstoreachtheshore，perceivesthattheundertowistakinghimtosea。Hewouldgowiththemysteriouscurrent；hewouldgoswiftly——andseetheend，thefulfilmentbothblissfulandterrible。

Withthisstateofexaltationinwhichhesawhimselfinsomeincomprehensiblewayalwaysvictorious，whatevermightbefall，therewasmingledatenacityofpurpose。Hecouldnotsacrificehisintention，theintentionofyears，theintentionofhislife；

hecouldnomorepartwithitandexistthanhecouldcutouthisheartandlive。Theadventurerheldfasttohisadventurewhichmadehiminhisownsightexactlywhathewas。

Heconsideredtheproblemwithcoolaudacity，backedbyabeliefinhisownpower。Itwasnotthesetwomenhehadtosave；hehadtosavehimself！Andlookeduponinthiswaythesituationappearedfamiliar。

HassimhadtoldhimthetwowhitemenhadbeentakenbytheircaptorstoDaman’scamp。TheyoungRajah，leavinghissisterinthecanoe，hadlandedonthesandandhadcrepttotheveryedgeoflightthrownbythefiresbywhichtheIllanunswerecooking。

Damanwassittingapartbyalargerblaze。Twoprausrodeinshallowwaternearthesandbank；ontheridge，asentrywalkedwatchingthelightsofthebrig；thecampwasfullofquietwhispers。Hassimreturnedtohiscanoe，thenheandhissister，paddlingcautiouslyroundtheanchoredpraus，inwhichwomen’svoicescouldbeheard，approachedtheotherendofthecamp。Thelightofthebigblazetherefellonthewaterandthecanoeskirteditwithoutasplash，keepinginthenight。Hassim，landingforthesecondtime，creptagainclosetothefires。Eachprauhad，accordingtothecustomsoftheIllanunroverswhenonaraidingexpedition，asmallerwar—boatandthesebeinglightandmanageablewerehauleduponthesandnotfarfromthebigblaze；theysathighontheshelvingshorethrowingheavyshadows。Hassimcreptuptowardthelargestofthemandthenstandingontiptoecouldlookatthecampacrossthegunwales。

Theconfusedtalkingofthemenwaslikethebuzzofinsectsinaforest。Achildwailedonboardoneoftheprausandawomanhailedtheshoreshrilly。Hassimunsheathedhiskrisandhelditinhishand。

Verysoon——hesaid——hesawthetwowhitemenwalkingamongstthefires。Theywavedtheirarmsandtalkedtogether，stoppingfromtimetotime；theyapproachedDaman；andtheshortmanwiththehaironhisfaceaddressedhimearnestlyandatgreatlength。

DamansatcrossleggeduponalittlecarpetwithanopenKoranonhiskneesandchantedtheversetsswayingtoandfrowithhiseyesshut。

TheIllanunchiefsrecliningwrappedincloaksonthegroundraisedthemselvesontheirelbowstolookatthewhites。Whentheshortwhitemanfinishedspeakinghegazeddownatthemforawhile，thenstampedhisfoot。Helookedangrybecausenooneunderstoodhim。Thensuddenlyhelookedverysad；hecoveredhisfacewithhishands；thetallmanputhishandontheshortman’sshoulderandwhisperedintohisear。Thedrywoodofthefirescrackled，theIllanunsslept，cooked，talked，butwiththeirweaponsathand。Anarmedmanortwocameuptostareattheprisonersandthenreturnedtotheirfire。ThetwowhitessankdowninthesandinfrontofDaman。Theirclothesweresoiled，therewassandintheirhair。Thetallmanhadlosthishat；theglassintheeyeoftheshortmanglitteredverymuch；hisbackwasmuddyandonesleeveofhiscoattornuptotheelbow。

AllthisHassimsawandthenretreatedundetectedtothatpartoftheshorewhereImmadawaitedforhim，keepingthecanoeafloat。

TheIllanuns，trustingtothesea，keptverybadwatchontheirprisoners，andhadhebeenabletospeakwiththemHassimthoughtanescapecouldhavebeeneffected。Buttheycouldnothaveunderstoodhissignsandstilllesshiswords。Heconsultedwithhissister。Immadamurmuredsadly；attheirfeettheripplebrokewithamournfulsoundnolouderthantheirvoices。

Hassim’sloyaltywasunshaken，butnowitledhimonnotinthebrightlightofhopesbutinthedeepenedshadowofdoubt。Hewantedtoobtaininformationforhisfriendwhowassopowerfulandwhoperhapswouldknowhowtobeconstant。WhenfollowedbyImmadaheapproachedthecampagain——thistimeopenly——theirappearancedidnotexcitemuchsurprise。ItwaswellknowntotheChiefsoftheIllanunsthattheRajahforwhomtheyweretofight——ifGodsowilled——wasupontheshoalslookingoutforthecomingofthewhitemanwhohadmuchwealthandastoreofweaponsandwhowashisservant。Daman，whoaloneunderstoodtheexactrelation，welcomedthemwithimpenetrablegravity。Hassimtookhisseatonthecarpetathisrighthand。Aconsultationwasbeingheldhalf—aloudinshortandapparentlycarelesssentences，withlongintervalsofsilencebetween。Immada，nestlingclosetoherbrother，leanedonearmonhisshoulderandlistenedwithseriousattentionandwithoutwardcalmasbecameaprincessofWajoaccustomedtoconsortwithwarriorsandstatesmeninmomentsofdangerandinthehoursofdeliberation。Herheartwasbeatingrapidly，andfacingherthesilentwhitemenstaredatthesetwoknownfaces，asifacrossagulf。FourIllanunchiefssatinarow。Theiramplecloaksfellfromtheirshoulders，andlaybehindthemonthesandinwhichtheirfourlonglanceswereplantedupright，eachsupportingasmalloblongshieldofwood，carvedontheedgesandstainedadullpurple。Damanstretchedouthisarmandpointedattheprisoners。Thefacesofthewhitemenwereveryquiet。Damanlookedatthemmutelyandardently，asifconsumedbyanunspeakablelonging。

TheKoran，inasilkcover，hungonhisbreastbyacrimsoncord。

Itrestedoverhisheartand，justbelow，theplainbuffalo—hornhandleofakris，stuckintothetwistofhissarong，protrudedreadytohishand。Thecloudsthickeningoverthecampmadethedarknesspressheavilyontheglowofscatteredfires。"Thereisbloodbetweenmeandthewhites，"hepronounced，violently。TheIllanunchiefsremainedimpassive。Therewasbloodbetweenthemandallmankind。Hassimremarkeddispassionatelythattherewasonewhitemanwithwhomitwouldbewisetoremainfriendly；andbesides，wasnotDamanhisfriendalready？Damansmiledwithhalf—closedeyes。Hewasthatwhiteman’sfriend，nothisslave。

TheIllanunsplayingwiththeirsword—handlesgruntedassent。

Why，askedDaman，didthesestrangewhitestravelsofarfromtheircountry？Thegreatwhitemanwhomtheyallknewdidnotwantthem。Noonewantedthem。Evilwouldfollowintheirfootsteps。Theyweresuchmenasaresentbyrulerstoexaminetheaspectsoffar—offcountriesandtalkofpeaceandmaketreaties。Suchisthebeginningofgreatsorrows。TheIllanunswerefarfromtheircountry，wherenowhitemandaredtocome，andthereforetheywerefreetoseektheirenemiesupontheopenwaters。Theyhadfoundthesetwowhohadcometosee。Heaskedwhattheyhadcometosee？Wastherenothingtolookatintheirowncountry？

Hetalkedinanironicandsubduedtone。Thescatteredheapsofembersglowedadeeperred；thebigblazeofthechief’sfiresanklowandgrewdimbeforeheceased。Straight—limbedfiguresrose，sank，moved，whisperedonthebeach。Hereandthereaspear—bladecaughtaredgleamabovetheblackshapeofahead。

"TheIllanunsseekbootyonthesea，"criedDaman。"Theirfathersandthefathersoftheirfathershavedonethesame，beingfearlesslikethosewhoembracedeathclosely。"

Alowlaughwasheard。"Westrikeandgo，"saidanexultingvoice。"Weliveanddiewithourweaponsinourhands。"TheIllanunsleapedtotheirfeet。Theystampedonthesand，flourishingnakedbladesovertheheadsoftheirprisoners。A

tumultarose。

WhenitsubsidedDamanstoodupinacloakthatwrappedhimtohisfeetandspokeagaingivingadvice。

Thewhitemensatonthesandandturnedtheireyesfromfacetofaceasiftryingtounderstand。Itwasagreedtosendtheprisonersintothelagoonwheretheirfatewouldbedecidedbytheruleroftheland。TheIllanunsonlywantedtoplundertheship。Theydidnotcarewhatbecameofthemen。"ButDamancares，"remarkedHassimtoLingard，whenrelatingwhattookplace。"Hecares，OTuan！"

HassimhadlearnedalsothattheSettlementwasinastateofunrestasifontheeveofwar。Belarabwithhisfollowerswasencampedbyhisfather’stombinthehollowbeyondthecultivatedfields。Hisstockadewasshutupandnooneappearedontheverandahsofthehouseswithin。Youcouldtelltherewerepeopleinsideonlybythesmokeofthecookingfires。Tengga’sfollowersmeantimeswaggeredabouttheSettlementbehavingtyrannicallytothosewhowerepeaceable。Agreatmadnesshaddescendeduponthepeople，amadnessstrongasthemadnessoflove，themadnessofbattle，thedesiretospillblood。Astrangefearalsohadmadethemwild。ThebigsmokeseenthatmorningabovetheforestsofthecoastwassomeagreedsignalfromTenggatoDamanbutwhatitmeantHassimhadbeenunabletofindout。HefearedforJorgenson’ssafety。Hesaidthatwhileoneofthewar—boatswasbeingmadereadytotakethecaptivesintothelagoon，heandhissisterleftthecampquietlyandgotawayintheircanoe。Theflaresofthebrig，reflectedinafaintloomupontheclouds，enabledthemtomakestraightforthevesselacrossthebanks。

Beforetheyhadgonehalfwaytheseflameswentoutandthedarknessseemeddenserthananyhehadknownbefore。Butitwasnogreaterthanthedarknessofhismind——headded。Hehadlookeduponthewhitemensittingunmovedandsilentundertheedgeofswords；hehadlookedatDaman，hehadheardbitterwordsspoken；

hewaslookingnowathiswhitefriend——andtheissueofeventshecouldnotsee。Onecanseemen’sfacesbuttheirfate，whichiswrittenontheirforeheads，onecannotsee。Hehadnomoretosay，andwhathehadspokenwastrueineveryword。

IV

LingardrepeateditalltoMrs。Travers。Hercourage，herintelligence，thequicknessofherapprehension，thecolourofhereyesandtheintrepidityofherglanceevokedinhimanadmiringenthusiasm。Shestoodbyhisside！Everymomentthatfatalillusionclungclosertohissoul——likeagarmentoflight——likeanarmouroffire。

Hewasunwillingtofacethefacts。Allhislife——tillthatday——hadbeenawrestlewitheventsinthedaylightofthisworld，butnowhecouldnotbringhismindtotheconsiderationofhisposition。ItwasMrs。Traverswho，afterwaitingawhile，forcedonhimthepainofthoughtbywantingtoknowwhatbearingHassim’snewshaduponthesituation。

LingardhadnottheslightestdoubtDamanwantedhimtoknowwhathadbeendonewiththeprisoners。ThatiswhyDamanhadwelcomedHassim，andlethimhearthedecisionandhadallowedhimtoleavethecamponthesandbank。Therecouldbeonlyoneobjectinthis；tolethim，Lingard，knowthattheprisonershadbeenputoutofhisreachaslongasheremainedinhisbrig。Nowthisbrigwashisstrength。Tomakehimleavehisbrigwaslikeremovinghishandfromhissword。

"DoyouunderstandwhatImean，Mrs。Travers？"heasked。"TheyareafraidofmebecauseIknowhowtofightthisbrig。TheyfearthebrigbecausewhenIamonboardher，thebrigandIareone。

Anarmedman——don’tyousee？WithoutthebrigIamdisarmed，withoutmeshecan’tstrike。SoDamanthinks。Hedoesnotknoweverythingbutheisnotfaroffthetruth。HesaystohimselfthatifImantheboatstogoafterthesewhitesintothelagoonthenhisIllanunswillgettheyachtforsure——andperhapsthebrigaswell。IfIstopherewithmybrigheholdsthetwowhitemenandcantalkasbigashepleases。Belarabbelievesinmenodoubt，butDamantrustsnomanonearth。Hesimplydoesnotknowhowtotrustanyone，becauseheisalwaysplottinghimself。HecametohelpmeandassoonashefoundIwasnottherehebegantoplotwithTengga。Nowhehasmadeamove——aclevermove；acleverermovethanhethinks。Why？I’lltellyouwhy。BecauseI，TomLingard，haven’tasinglewhitemanaboardthisbrigIcantrust。Notone。Ionlyjustdiscoveredmymate’sgotthenotionI

amsomekindofpirate。Andallyouryachtpeoplethinkthesame。

Itisasthoughyouhadbroughtacurseonmeinyouryacht。

Nobodybelievesme。GoodGod！WhathaveIcometo！Eventhosetwo——lookatthem——Isaylookatthem！Byallthestarstheydoubtme！Me！……"

HepointedatHassimandImmada。Thegirlseemedfrightened。

Hassimlookedoncalmandintelligentwithinexhaustiblepatience。Lingard’svoicefellsuddenly。

"Andbyheavenstheymayberight。Whoknows？You？Doyouknow？

Theyhavewaitedforyears。Look。Theyarewaitingwithheavyhearts。DoyouthinkthatIdon’tcare？OughtItohavekeptitallin——toldnoone——noone——notevenyou？Aretheywaitingforwhatwillnevercomenow？"

Mrs。Traversroseandmovedquicklyroundthetable。"Canwegiveanythingtothis——thisDamanortheseothermen？Wecouldgivethemmorethantheycouldthinkofasking。I——myhusband……"

"Don’ttalktomeofyourhusband，"hesaid，roughly。"Youdon’tknowwhatyouaredoing。"Sheconfrontedthesombreangerofhiseyes——"ButImust，"sheassertedwithheat。——"Must，"hemused，noticingthatshewasonlyhalfaheadlesstallthanhimself。

"Must！Oh，yes。Ofcourse，youmust。Must！Yes。ButIdon’twanttohear。Give！Whatcanyougive？YoumayhaveallthetreasuresoftheworldforallIknow。No！Youcan’tgiveanything……"

"IwasthinkingofyourdifficultywhenIspoke，"sheinterrupted。Hiseyeswandereddownwardfollowingthelineofhershoulder。——"Ofme——ofme！"herepeated。

Allthiswassaidalmostinwhispers。Thesoundofslowfootstepswasheardondeckabovetheirheads。Lingardturnedhisfacetotheopenskylight。

"Ondeckthere！Anywind？"

Allwasstillforamoment。Somebodyaboveansweredinaleisurelytone：

"Asteadylittledraughtfromthenorthward。"

Thenafterapauseaddedinamutter：

"Pitchdark。"

"Aye，darkenough，"murmuredLingard。Hemustdosomething。Now。

Atonce。Theworldwaswaiting。Theworldfullofhopesandfear。

Whatshouldhedo？Insteadofansweringthatquestionhetracedtheungleamingcoilsofhertwistedhairandbecamefascinatedbyastraylockatherneck。Whatshouldhedo？Noonetoleavehisbrigto。ThevoicethathadansweredhisquestionwasCarter’svoice。"Heishangingaboutkeepinghiseyeonme，"hesaidtoMrs。Travers。Sheshookherheadandtriedtosmile。Themanabovecougheddiscreetly。"No，"saidLingard，"youmustunderstandthatyouhavenothingtogive。"

Themanondeckwhoseemedtohavelingeredbytheskylightwasheardsayingquietly，"Iamathandifyouwantme，Mrs。

Travers。"HassimandImmadalookedup。"Yousee，"exclaimedLingard。"WhatdidItellyou？He’skeepinghiseyeonme！Onboardmyownship。AmIdreaming？AmIinafever？Tellhimtocomedown，"hesaidafterapause。Mrs。TraversdidsoandLingardthoughthervoiceverycommandingandverysweet。

"There’snothingintheworldIlovesomuchasthisbrig，"hewenton。"Nothingintheworld。IfIlostherIwouldhavenostandingroomontheearthformyfeet。Youdon’tunderstandthis。Youcan’t。"

Cartercameinandshutthecabindoorcarefully。Helookedwithserenityateveryoneinturn。

"Allquiet？"askedLingard。

"Quietenoughifyouliketocallitso，"heanswered。"Butifyouonlyputyourheadoutsidethedooryou’llhearthemallonthequarter—decksnoringagainsteachother，asiftherewerenowivesathomeandnopiratesatsea。"

"Lookhere，"saidLingard。"IfoundoutthatIcan’ttrustmymate。"

"Can’tyou？"drawledCarter。"Iamnotexactlysurprised。ImustsayHEdoesnotsnorebutIbelieveitisbecauseheistoocrazytosleep。Hewaylaidmeonthepoopjustnowandsaidsomethingaboutevilcommunicationscorruptinggoodmanners。SeemstomeI’veheardthatbefore。Queerthingtosay。Hetriedtomakeitoutsomehowthatifhewasn’tcorruptitwasn’tyourfault。Asifthiswasanyconcernofmine。He’sasmadashe’sfat——orelseheputsiton。"Carterlaughedalittleandleanedhisshouldersagainstabulkhead。

LingardgazedatthewomanwhoexpectedsomuchfromhimandinthelightsheseemedtoshedhesawhimselfleadingacolumnofarmedboatstotheattackoftheSettlement。Hecouldburnthewholeplacetothegroundanddriveeverysoulofthemintothebush。Hecould！Andtherewasasurprise，ashock，avaguehorroratthethoughtofthedestructivepowerofhiswill。Hecouldgivehereversomanylives。Hehadseenheryesterday，anditseemedtohimhehadbeenallhislifewaitingforhertomakeasign。Shewasverystill。Heponderedaplanofattack。Hesawsmokeandflame——andnextmomenthesawhimselfaloneamongstshapelessruinswiththewhispers，withthesighandmoanoftheShallowsinhisears。Heshuddered，andshakinghishand：

"No！Icannotgiveyouallthoselives！"hecried。

Then，beforeMrs。Traverscouldguessthemeaningofthisoutburst，hedeclaredthatasthetwocaptivesmustbesavedhewouldgoaloneintothelagoon。Hecouldnotthinkofusingforce。"Youunderstandwhy，"hesaidtoMrs。Traversandshewhisperedafaint"Yes。"Hewouldruntheriskalone。HishopewasinBelarabbeingabletoseewherehistrueinterestlay。"IfIcanonlygetathimIwouldsoonmakehimsee，"hemusedaloud。

"Haven’tIkepthispowerupforthesetwoyearspast？Andheknowsit，too。Hefeelsit。"WhetherhewouldbeallowedtoreachBelarabwasanothermatter。Lingardlosthimselfindeepthought。

"Hewouldnotdare，"heburstout。Mrs。Traverslistenedwithpartedlips。Carterdidnotmoveamuscleofhisyouthfulandself—possessedface；onlywhenLingard，turningsuddenly，cameupclosetohimandaskedwitharedflashofeyesandinaloweredvoice，"Couldyoufightthisbrig？"somethinglikeasmilemadeastiramongstthehairsofhislittlefairmoustache。

"’CouldI？"hesaid。"Icouldtry，anyhow。"Hepaused，andaddedhardlyabovehisbreath，"Forthelady——ofcourse。"

Lingardseemedstaggeredasthoughhehadbeenhitinthechest。

"Iwasthinkingofthebrig，"hesaid，gently。

"Mrs。Traverswouldbeonboard，"retortedCarter。

"What！onboard。Ahyes；onboard。Whereelse？"stammeredLingard。

Carterlookedathiminamazement。"Fight！Youask！"hesaid，slowly。"Youjusttryme。"

"Ishall，"ejaculatedLingard。Heleftthecabincallingout"serang！"Athincrackedvoicewasheardimmediatelyanswering，"Tuan！"andthedoorslammedto。

"Youtrusthim，Mrs。Travers？"askedCarter，rapidly。

"Youdonot——why？"sheanswered。

"Ican’tmakehimout。IfhewasanotherkindofmanIwouldsayhewasdrunk，"saidCarter。"Whyishehereatall——he，andthisbrigofhis？Excusemyboldness——buthaveyoupromisedhimanything？"

"I——Ipromised！"exclaimedMrs。TraversinabittertonewhichsilencedCarterforamoment。

"Somuchthebetter，"hesaidatlast。"Lethimshowwhathecandofirstand……"

"Here！Takethis，"saidLingard，whore—enteredthecabinfumblingabouthisneck。Cartermechanicallyextendedhishand。

"What’sthisfor？"heasked，lookingatasmallbrasskeyattachedtoathinchain。

"Powdermagazine。Trapdoorunderthetable。ThemanwhohasthiskeycommandsthebrigwhileIamaway。Theserangunderstands。

Youhaveherverylifeinyourhandthere。"

Carterlookedatthesmallkeylyinginhishalf—openpalm。

"IwasjusttellingMrs。TraversIdidn’ttrustyou——notaltogether……"

"Iknowallaboutit，"interruptedLingard，contemptuously。"Youcarryablamedpistolinyourpockettoblowmybrainsout——don’tyou？What’sthattome？Iamthinkingofthebrig。IthinkIknowyoursort。Youwilldo。"

"Well，perhapsImight，"mumbledCarter，modestly。

"Don’tberash，"saidLingard，anxiously。"Ifyou’vegottofightuseyourheadaswellasyourhands。Ifthere’sabreezefightunderway。Iftheyshouldtrytoboardinacalm，trusttothesmallarmstoholdthemoff。Keepyourheadand——"HelookedintenselyintoCarter’seyes；hislipsworkedwithoutasoundasthoughhehadbeensuddenlystruckdumb。"Don’tthinkaboutme。

What’sthattoyouwhoIam？Thinkoftheship，"heburstout。

"Don’tlethergo！——Don’tlethergo！"Thepassioninhisvoiceimpressedhishearerswhoforatimepreservedaprofoundsilence。

"Allright，"saidCarteratlast。"Iwillsticktoyourbrigasthoughsheweremyown；butIwouldliketoseeclearthroughallthis。Lookhere——youaregoingoffsomewhere？Alone，yousaid？"

"Yes。Alone。"

"Verywell。Mind，then，thatyoudon’tcomebackwithacrowdofthosebrownfriendsofyours——orbytheHeavensaboveusIwon’tletyoucomewithinhailofyourownship。AmItokeepthiskey？"

"CaptainLingard，"saidMrs。Traverssuddenly。"Woulditnotbebettertotellhimeverything？"

"Tellhimeverything？"repeatedLingard。"Everything！Yesterdayitmighthavebeendone。Onlyyesterday！Yesterday，didIsay？

Onlysixhoursago——onlysixhoursagoIhadsomethingtotell。

Youheardit。Andnowit’sgone。Tellhim！There’snothingtotellanymore。"Heremainedforatimewithbowedhead，whilebeforehimMrs。Travers，whohadbegunagestureofprotest，droppedherarmssuddenly。Inamomenthelookedupagain。

"Keepthekey，"hesaid，calmly，"andwhenthetimecomesstepforwardandtakecharge。Iamsatisfied。"

"Iwouldliketoseeclearthroughallthisthough，"mutteredCarteragain。"Andforhowlongareyouleavingus，Captain？"

Lingardmadenoanswer。Carterwaitedawhile。"Come，sir，"heurged。"Ioughttohavesomenotion。Whatisit？Two，threedays？"Lingardstarted。

"Days，"herepeated。"Ah，days。Whatisityouwanttoknow？Two……three——whatdidtheoldfellowsay——perhapsforlife。"ThiswasspokensolowthatnoonebutCarterheardthelastwords。——"Doyoumeanit？"hemurmured。Lingardnodded。——"Waitaslongasyoucan——thengo，"hesaidinthesamehardlyaudiblevoice。"Gowhere？"——"Whereyoulike，nearestport，anyport。"——"Verygood。That’ssomethingplainatanyrate，"

commentedtheyoungmanwithimperturbablegoodhumour。

"Igo，OHassim！"beganLingardandtheMalaymadeaslowinclinationoftheheadwhichhedidnotraiseagaintillLingardhadceasedspeaking。HebetrayedneithersurprisenoranyotheremotionwhileLingardinafewconciseandsharpsentencesmadehimacquaintedwithhispurposetobringaboutsinglehandedthereleaseoftheprisoners。WhenLingardhadendedwiththewords：

"Andyoumustfindawaytohelpmeinthetimeoftrouble，O

RajahHassim，"helookedupandsaid：

"Good。Youneveraskedmeforanythingbefore。"

Hesmiledathiswhitefriend。Therewassomethingsubtleinthesmileandafterwardanaddedfirmnessinthereposeofthelips。

Immadamovedastepforward。ShelookedatLingardwithterrorinherblackanddilatedeyes。Sheexclaimedinavoicewhosevibrationstartledtheheartsofallthehearerswithanindefinablesenseofalarm，"Hewillperish，Hassim！Hewillperishalone！"

"No，"saidHassim。"Thyfearisasvainto—nightasitwasatsunrise。Heshallnotperishalone。"

Hereyelidsdroppedslowly。Fromherveiledeyesthetearsfell，vanishinginthesilence。Lingard’sforeheadbecamefurrowedbyfoldsthatseemedtocontainaninfinityofsombrethoughts。

"Remember，OHassim，thatwhenIpromisedyoutotakeyoubacktoyourcountryyoupromisedmetobeafriendtoallwhitemen。A

friendtoallwhiteswhoareofmypeople，forever。"

"Mymemoryisgood，OTuan，"saidHassim；"Iamnotyetbackinmycountry，butisnoteveryonetherulerofhisownheart？

Promisesmadebyamanofnoblebirthliveaslongasthespeakerendures。"

"Good—bye，"saidLingardtoMrs。Travers。"Youwillbesafehere。"Helookedallaroundthecabin。"Ileaveyou，"hebeganagainandstoppedshort。Mrs。Travers’hand，restinglightlyontheedgeofthetable，begantotremble。"It’sforyou……Yes。

Foryoualone……anditseemsitcan’tbe……"

Itseemedtohimthathewassayinggood—byetoalltheworld，thathewastakingalastleaveofhisownself。Mrs。Traversdidnotsayaword，butImmadathrewherselfbetweenthemandcried：

"Youareacruelwoman！Youaredrivinghimawayfromwherehisstrengthis。Youputmadnessintohisheart，O！Blind——withoutpity——withoutshame！……"

"Immada，"saidHassim’scalmvoice。Nobodymoved。

"Whatdidshesaytome？"falteredMrs。Traversandagainrepeatedinavoicethatsoundedhard，"Whatdidshesay？"

"Forgiveher，"saidLingard。"Herfearsareforme……"——"It’saboutyourgoing？"Mrs。Traversinterrupted，swiftly。

"Yes，itis——andyoumustforgiveher。"Hehadturnedawayhiseyeswithsomethingthatresembledembarrassmentbutsuddenlyhewasassailedbyanirresistiblelongingtolookagainatthatwoman。Atthemomentofpartingheclungtoherwithhisglanceasamanholdswithhishandsapricelessanddisputedpossession。ThefaintblushthatoverspreadgraduallyMrs。

Travers’featuresgaveherfaceanairofextraordinaryandstartlinganimation。

"Thedangeryourun？"sheasked，eagerly。Herepelledthesuggestionbyaslightinggestureofthehand。——"Nothingworthlookingattwice。Don’tgiveitathought，"hesaid。"I’vebeenintighterplaces。"Heclappedhishandsandwaitedtillheheardthecabindooropenbehindhisback。"Steward，mypistols。"Themulattoinslippers，apronedtothechin，glidedthroughthecabinwithunseeingeyesasthoughforhimnoonetherehadexisted……——"Isitmyheartthatachesso？"Mrs。Traversaskedherself，contemplatingLingard’smotionlessfigure。"Howlongwillthissensationofdullpainlast？Willitlastforever。