258 



7'.7/-; .1 1/ /-'/,', 



■I.V I] KE- KEEPER. 



ScplcDiber 



took a si.v K :>.ia wcint: across the gangway 

 on to the pavcU wharf, where he found the 

 others, who said they were all going too. 



It was then a moot point as to winch di- 

 rection to take. The majority decided for 

 the right haml. so up the right hand street 

 they went, past an old and battered church, 

 down another street, where the people sat 

 at their duurs iind panted with the heat. 

 One of the P'H'tv, who knew Italian to 

 sojiie extent, asl:ed if any festa was going 

 on and was ti;.,l no. Presently they came 

 into till! sqiKii'e and saw a few groups of 

 folk, but not. ling unusual. Nor did any 

 sound of anything but a guitar come to 

 thtir ears. 



"The majority is wrong — «nd usually 

 is," said Slater "I'm going straight back 

 to the ship to listen again. You needn't 

 come with me if you don't want. Good 

 night. ' ' 



However, two of the others elected to re- 

 turn with him, and tlie three retraced 

 their steps accordingly until they stood by 

 the Coromandcl once more. Slater put a 

 hand behind each ear, and, after a mo- 

 ment, said, "Of cour.se!" and went sharp 

 off to the k^ftward, followed by the others. 



The moon now rode high, like a dimin- 

 ishing, paling orange, and they followed 

 the railway line for some minutes till 

 there was a- crossing, over which they 

 went. A hisi rose in front of them with 

 some ruin nii its crest, and a road ran past 

 inland; tlu' : )und of pipe and concertina 

 was now '.I'lir, though still distant, and 

 Slater follcr>. d his instinct up the rocky 

 hillside, gi.i.ig his shins a bruise or two 

 in the sliadoss- 



At last t 111 y passed through a gap in the 

 parapet wall il.at stretched a broken circle 

 round the i-unence and stood beneatli a 

 queer old i; I ^li fortress, very malodorous 

 and quiti^ ; viess. The music now rose 

 clearer, an;! i raying around by the patii 

 they looki'! lown into a nest of houses, 

 beyond wh'^'\ stretched lone natches oi 

 field. There were furiows and piles upon 

 those lighted places, heaps of sticks or 

 sheaves, or bLUulies of weeds for burning — 

 species and sort became lost in that garish 

 glitter and everything was jagged light 

 and jagged shadow. Again the music rose. 



Slater and James and the other man de- 

 scended by a winding path that felt du.sty 

 and smeiieu biihy. The night was Lot, 

 and in this squalid place it seemed, if pos- 

 sible, even Lui.^r. When they came to the 

 bottom, tlu y f.illowed the piping quite 

 naturally Uuwn a crooked lane, and the 

 turn brought them suddenly into a small 

 throng of folk, standing in front of a two 

 storied hoii.se, upon whose whitewashed 

 front and si uti'ed panes the moon struck 

 full and gi ..'ing. The lower part was a 

 cellarlike soil of a place, lighted with all 



lengths of c;,i.i.le ends, stuck in bottles 

 9,nd on Si- ikes. Some person inside seemed 

 to be out of breath with much blowing of 

 the pipe. E\ery now and then the instru- 

 ment gave a guttural gurgle, and there 

 was a liLtle .-iUippage while the player 

 wiped his mouth and perhaps took a sip 

 of something, the concertina still ambling 

 along witJi a two chord accompaniment 

 until the pipi^ joined it again. Slater and 

 James and iiic (.L..er man shoved forward 

 thi'ough tiieii.HhL knot and looked into the 

 room with i\ cs of curiosity, like the others. 



Tuis is \s . at they saw: 



Benches and a tew casks turned on end, 

 onions aiid gn en rubbish heaped and 

 pushed av.ay into corners, a cleared space 

 in the middle and a large, comely girl 

 dancing a wild tarantella barefoot to the 

 playing of a couple of men, while a short, 

 squat hag beat the earth with her boots to 

 incite the di.ncer, as friends will run be- 

 side one in a lou ,; race. The girl's bush of 

 black hair was fast coming undone; she 

 pressed it witli her hands as if to push it 

 together, and down it rolled over her 

 swarthy shoulders and breast, a cloudy 

 mass, flying up and down, winding about 

 her arms, su;.ietimes nearly brushing the 

 floor as she bent and bounded and whirled. 



After a while of this she suddenly drop- 

 ped her arms to her sides, her head sank 

 back antl rocked over one shoulder, her 

 bosom shook like an uncertain sail flapping 

 in the breeze. She casta languorous, hall 

 fainting glance around. Instantly the pipe 

 stopped, leaving the concertina ambling 

 on with tl.-e accompaniment, and ere the 

 fall could take place a squarely built young 

 fellow in sii-iped trou-sers leaped forward 

 and caught her round the waist, gripping 

 her tight wuth one arm and holding in his 

 other hand a bottle. Some words he said 

 in her ear, alternately caressing and 

 threatening, it seemed, while she lay quite 

 limp against him, her head on his shoul- 

 der, her hair hanging over him like a 

 black mantle, her eyes gazing into his 

 with a histerless, dazed expression, her 

 full lips pavied as one who dreams heavily. 

 He put the bottle to her mouth, and she 

 took a little passively, as a child might. 

 Then a light came into her dull look, she 

 raised a hand, took hold of the bottle for 

 herself, drank long and deeply with greedy 

 eagerness, and lier feet twitched with the 

 fresh pulse of tlie dance that was arising 

 in them. She now struggled a little in the 

 arm that held her, and when the man re- 

 laxed her gradually and returned to his 

 place she put her hands to her head and 

 stooped, as if in thought, with her hail 

 hanging still. 



Then out shrilled the pipe notes, and in- 

 stantly she f!ung her head back and sent 

 her hair roUnd her in great waves, pressed 



