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One of the four seamen was a Kanaka named 'Tommy Sandwich. He was a native of Sandwich or Vaté Island in the New Hebrides. In a very short time this man had ascended a lofty palm-tree, and was throwing down the coco-nuts to the others, who for some minutes were busily engaged tying them together to carry them to the boat. 'That will do, Tommy, cried the captain, presently.
That his garden might not only be instructive but profitable to mankind, Neptune heaved on to its verge three coco-nuts, the goose-barnacles on two of which bore testimony to a long drift. That which retained the germ of life fell into the hands of a visiting black boy, who split it open to feast on the pithy and insipid "apple" within its shell at the base of the sprout.
So after a real birth the young shoots of the jack-fruit, the rose-apple, certain kinds of banana, and the thin pulp of young coco-nuts are mixed with dried fish, salt, acid, prawn-condiment, and the like dainties to form a sort of salad, which is administered to mother and child for three successive days.
Standing apart from the rest of the houses was Captain Hayes's dwelling-house an enormous structure, a hundred and fifty feet long and fifty wide. Here he ruled in state, and from his door watched his boats, manned by their savage crews, pulling to and fro on their mission of collecting coco-nuts.
Then all around us, stowed in every conceivable place, were bundles of young drinking coco-nuts, husked and unhusked, taking up a great deal of room, and weighing heavily, and three or four rolls of sleeping-mats, presented to Niâbon, were wedged into the cabin.
Courtenay turned sharply. "Good," he said. "But no it's too far to throw them." "I think I could just about fetch it, sir," said the man. "All right," said Courtenay. "Try it while I get some men together." "Here y' are, chum," said the man, "you light 'em an' I'll chuck 'em. This way for the milky coco-nuts!" Rawbon watched curiously.
"There's no fear of Caroline wanting anything of that sort," said Mrs. Bradford. "Ellen's sister, Mrs. Creddle, is as steady as Ellen." "She'd need to be, with four children on her hands, and a husband like one of those coco-nuts at Hull fair that have the husk partly left on," said Miss Ethel. "I never could understand how a nice-looking girl, such as Mrs.
"How came this thing about?" I asked her presently. "The German sent Tematau away in his boat to one of the little islands at the far end of the lagoon to gather coco-nuts, and bade him hasten back quickly. Tematau and those with him filled the boat with husked coco-nuts, and were sailing homewards in the night when she struck on a reef and tore a great hole in her side.
"As good as a gold-mine," said Breezy Jim, who every day became breezier, so that he threatened to develop into a gale of good humour. "Better than splitting coco-nuts at the Mission Station," said Billy Boolah. "Do you ever feel like chucking Mammerroo overboard now?" Another fortnight saw another big load on the way to the agents.
In these countries, when people are sick, they make a vow to offer meat to the devil in case of recovery; and when they recover, they make a banquet, with many pipes and drums and other musical instruments, dancing all night, and their friends bring gifts of coco-nuts, figs, arecas, and other fruits, and with much dancing and rejoicing they offer these to the devil, giving him to eat, and then drive him out.
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