United States or El Salvador ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
I laid under the shade of a bush lost in gloomy reveries and temporary unpopularity; Kaiber by my side lulled me with native songs composed for the occasion, and in prospective I saw all the dread sufferings which were to befall the doomed men who sat around me, confident of their success under the new plan; but like all prophets I was without honour amongst my own acquaintance; and after considering the matter under every point of view I thought it better for the moment to succumb to the general feeling, yet to lose no opportunity on every subsequent occasion of endeavouring to rouse the party into a degree of energy suited to our desperate circumstances.
Walker, Corporal Auger, and Kaiber came winding down the hills under Mount Fairfax, and gave the following account of their proceedings: On ascending the cliffs opposite to us they had found Stiles's tracks, and had followed them until they reached the sea beach; on passing the stream on their way there they found a place where he had halted and made up all his flour into dampers; but on coming out on the shore they saw a large party of natives seated on the sandhills in front, whilst others were fishing in the sea at this point; and the tracks of Stiles turned off into the interior: this hero, who wished to encounter all the natives of the island single-handed, had evidently fled from them.
Coles and Auger also undertook to carry a large sextant, turn about; all my own papers, such charts as I thought necessary, and some smaller instruments I bore myself; but Kaiber, in order to relieve me, took charge of my gun and some other articles. Mr. Smith carried his sketchbook and box of colours.
This was rather too ridiculous a threat when the coward was afraid to move five yards from us; I therefore ordered a gun to be fired, and then, telling the men to remain steady and prepared in case of accident, I walked off towards the natives, Kaiber, in the meanwhile, sitting on his haunches under cover, muttering to himself, "The swan, the big head, the stone forehead;" and, as these denunciations reached me, I could not, even in all my misery, forbear smiling at them.
At length however the men, who were much too cold to sleep, got up and, renewing their efforts, succeeded in kindling a blaze. Kaiber soon collected plenty of wood, and as I was unable to sleep I passed the night in meditating on our present state.
I could bear this no longer, and, starting up, said, "You deceive: the sun falls! just now I spoke: Koolyum, nganga dabbut garrum wangaga." Again he forced a laugh and said, "Surely, you play." I answered shortly, "Did I ever tell you a lie, Kaiber? I now speak the truth."
At length I had the pleasure of seeing that the black cockatoos, who found we were not likely to leave them in possession of the water, had taken up their position for the night in a large clump of trees distant not more than half a mile, and I hereupon started with Kaiber to try and get a shot at them.
I very deliberately raised Kaiber by the hair, as all expostulations to him were useless, and then called up the others. Kaiber had completely swelled himself out with this thick muddy liquid, and from the mark upon the sides of the hole had evidently consumed more than half of the total supply.
April 8. We started very early this morning and Kaiber exerted himself to the utmost to find Stiles's traces. At the end of three miles, on a course of 180 degrees, we descended from the elevated scrubby plains we had been moving along to the lowlands, and on reaching this came upon the bed of a small watercourse.
The native Kaiber, who acted as guide to the travellers, gazed upon this scene with concern and uneasiness.
Word Of The Day