AMONG THE CANNIBALS 107 



in a fool's paradise, and have eyes but see not, ears 

 but hear not, minds but heed not. Why, look, man ! 

 Is there a lad among all these forty men? Not one. 

 All, to a man, fighting men, and warriors pretty work- 

 men these 1 Hang me, if you are not all fools ! ' 

 And I went off in a fume. 



All day I could do nothing but moon about the 

 deck and watch these forty new fellows, no fishing, or 

 reading even, and I made a very poor hand at dinner 

 and tea. A sense of impending calamity came over 

 me, and I could not shake it off. The others chaffed 

 me, asking me if I were afraid, but I shut them up by 

 saying I had little wish to become bokolo (' baked 

 man ') if they had. 



At 10 p.m. I got the Oba lad -chief down in the 

 cabin, and gave him out thirty new two -foot knives, 

 to arm (on the quiet) his men, while the mates scoffed 

 and the captain stared ; but he went up shortly after- 

 wards, I noticed, and set ' anchor watch.' I went 

 and turned in, but I'm hanged if I could sleep a wink, 

 and after a few hours' tossing in the bunk, went on 

 deck, to find half the Oba boys prowling round with the 

 long knives I had served out under their sulus. Evi- 

 dently they smelt a rat at all events. At daybreak 

 a strange lad touched me, and whispered in good Fijian : 

 1 White man, I have a message for you, but can't give 

 it here ; meet me alone after you have eaten at that 

 little mangrove islet yonder don't fail,' and he glided 

 over the side like a shadow, and I heard the faint 

 sweep of his paddle as he slipped off in the dimness of 

 the dawn. Well, after breakfast, I dropped into the 

 big port boat lying alongside, and sculled myself off 

 to the little island. Sure enough I had not landed a 



