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Peters says that the Hili-lites always seemed to know what he was thinking about, and were always able to anticipate and thwart his acts when they so desired.
In addition to this, the Hili-lites engraved on a number of suitable rocks on each island an inscription, briefly recording a reminder of the terrible results of this attempt at conquest, heading each inscription with the rude representation of a man with arm extended to the south, over which and parallel with which was placed an arrow pointing to the north meaning, 'There is the direction in which a certain foolish people may go to find quick death: from there comes war and extermination!
The party had no weapons other than a few peculiarly-shaped clubs, similar to those mentioned by me in describing the fight of the early Hili-lites against the invading barbarians, and a long dirk-knife in the possession of Peters.
Then, at variable distances from the crater, and in different directions, islands were to be found of almost any desired temperature. The wealthier Hili-lites owned summer residences on these out-lying islands, situated at sailing distances varying from an hour to six hours' travel from Hili-li.
F. There was, just across 'The Mountain' as the Hili-lites frequently spoke of the rings of mountain-ranges surrounding the central crater an island of somewhat greater area, upon which ice was at all times to be found at a few feet above sea-level, and which, during eight months of the year, was so cold that no animal life could have existed upon it.
They were educated, and they possessed the treasures of knowledge born of a thousand years of Roman supremacy; from the beginning they had that other priceless treasure, leisure that real essential of perfect culture; they had for the first five hundred years no human enemy to contend with, and even then with the merest weaklings weaklings in the hands of a people at that period very strong; for by that time the Hili-lites must have numbered a million souls, or almost as many as they now are.
The Hili-lites believed the feelings to be a guide to true happiness; and whilst they would certainly have controlled the circumstances leading up to the seemingly unwise marriage of a girl of sixteen for they believed also in a proper education of the feelings they would not have prevented even a seemingly unwise marriage, provided the feelings of those concerned loudly demanded such a union I mean that if in reason such a marriage should seem unwise But enough.
The Hili-lites claim that in this way those who live to seventy or eighty acquire a fairly good general education, but of this I have my doubts.
And the men even they must have been superb were types of perfect manly elegance. "I spent many hours in trying to draw from Peters facts which I might put together and so become competent to explain the perfection, physical and mental for they possessed both of these charms of the Hili-lites.
"So effective were the means employed by the Hili-lites to prevent future raids, that, though the inhabitants of these islands had again increased, probably to a million or more, no second invasion had ever been attempted by even the strongest and bravest of their savage chiefs."
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