Eagle River review. [volume] (Eagle River, Wis.) 1890-1927, 1894-08-02
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CHAPTER XVI.
VERY FAINT OLLIE.


terinp his emotion. What now is
that hope? Conceal nothing from me .
"MOnsieur," the Frenchman an
swered, Struggling his shoulders with
an expression of utter impotence. Il
have as good reasons for wishing to
lind out ALL that as even you can have:
Your secret is my secret; but with all
my pains and astuteness | have been
unabie to discover it. The natives are
reticent, very reticent indeed, about
all these matters. They fear taboo
and they fear I'u Kila-kila. The Wo-
men TO be sure in a moment of eNpan-
sion, might possibly tell One but, then,
the women unfortunately, are not ad-
mitted to the mysteries. They know
no more of these things than we Go.
The most | have been able to gather
Cor certain is this that on the dlscoV-
cry OF the secret depends Tu-klla-
kila's life and power Every Boupari
knows this Great Taboo; it is commu-
nicated to him in the assembly of
adults when he gets tattooed and
reaches manhood. But no BOuparl
maa ever communicates ito strangers;
and for that reason, perhaI S, as be-
lieve, Tukila-Kila often chooses for
korong. as far as possible, those per-
sons who aye east by chance upon the
island. 1t has always been the custom,
SO i;tr aS | can make out, to treat cast
aways or prisoners taken i'll war as
gods, and then at the end of their
tern to kill them ruthlc5sly. This
plan is popular with the people at
lar9e, because it saves themselves
3vxom the dangerous hOnorS OF deitica-
ton but it also serves Tukiia-kiIa 5
purpose, because it usually elevate5 to
Heaven those innocent persons who
are unac Iuainted with that fatal secret
which Is. as the natives say, Tu hlla
kila S death his word OF dsm ;ssal.
''Then if only we could find out this
secret -" Felix cried.
His new friend interrupted him,
"What hope is there Of your finding it
out, monsieur" he exclaimed you,
who have only d few months to live
when |, who have spent nine long
years of exile on the island, and seen
Two Tu kila-kilas rise and fall, have
boon unable with my utmost pains, to
discover it? Teneh; you have no idea
yet OF thessupei stitions of these peo-
ole, or the diuicult.cS that lie in the
way OF fathoming them. Como this
way To nay aylary: | viii show you
something that viii help you to real
i2c the complexities OF the situation.N
Hc rose ald led the way TO another
cleared space at the back of the hut,
where several birds OF gaUdy plumage
were fastened to perches on sticks by
lcathcry iaShcS O. dried sharks skin.
tied Just above their taIons. Il an
the King OF the Birds, monsieur. YOU
must romcmber," the Frenchmau said.
tondling one of his screaming pyotege3.
'4ThCsa are & ieW Of my subjects. Bat
40 W. f,,,,
zach Of them is the soul Of the tribe TO
which it belongs. This, for example
my Clauscret is the Soul Of all the
gray parrots; that you sec yonder
-Badinguet. | call hlm-is the Soul of
:he hawks; this, my Mimi, is the Soul
OF the little yellow crested kingtisher.
Ny task as King of the birds is to keep
~ representative OF each OF these al
WINS on hand; in which eudeavor am
faithfully aided by the whole pop1la
SION OF the island, who bring me eggs
and nests, ana young birds IN abuud-
a.rsee. IL the Soul of the little yellow
Isinsstis her now were to die without Il
successor being found ready at once to
receive and embody It, then the whole
race Of little yellow kinghshers would
Naaish altogether; and if | myself, the
Ming Of Birds, who am, as it we're, the
soul and life Of all Of them, were to die
without q successor being at hand to
.receiEe nay spirit, then all the race Of
birds. with one accord, would become
extinct forthwith and forever
R& moved among his pets easily, like
n KING among his subjects Most of
them seemed t. know him and love his
presence. Presently, he came to one
Hsry old parrot, quite different from
vany Felix had ever seen Oh any trees
in the island; it was a parrot with
black crest and a red mark on its
-shroat, half blind with age, and totter-
aug on its pedestal. This solemn cd
bird sat apart from all the others,
uodding its head oraculariy in the sun
hight, and blinking now and again with
its white eveli6s in curious seniIe
fash on.
The Frenchmau Turned to Felix
with an air Of profound mystery.
2oGs bird" be said, so.emnly
stroiiug It's head with his hand, while
she parrot turned round to him and
bit his finger with half-dodderiug at
fectlon this bird is the oldest OF all
NV birds = is it not so, Methuselah?-
and illustrates we'll in one of its as
pects the superstition of these people.
Yes, my friend you are the last Of a
moi mon vieuN? No, no, there gen
tys! Once upon time, the natives
tell me, dozens of these parrots eN-
listed in the island: they locked
amome trees, and were held very sa-
cred but they were hard TO catch and
difficult to keep. and the Kings OF the
Birds. my predecessors, failed to Sc
cure an heir and coadiutor to this one.
So as the Soul Of the species, which
YOU see here before you, grew old and
feeble, the whole of the race TO which
1t belonged grew old and feeble with
1T One by one they withered away
and died, till at last this solitary speci-
men alone remained to vorch for the
former existence OF the race in the
island Now. the islanders say, moth
ing but the soul itself is left: and the
soul dies, the red-throated parrots
will.be gone forever. One of my pred