The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1899-07-19

''No. Cha Fong knew trick or
two when he bought these boots; they
are waterproof"
"That Is good. Now what shall we
| do, now that we are on land?"
"The very first thing is to get q
comfortable spot and sit down to talk
over the situation. There seems to be
plenty of comfortable spots. Let US
go up there on the knoll and get under
the big palms."
VERY we'll. Let me carry some
thing"
"You can carry the rifle. This pack
is too heavy for you. can manage
that. I guess you'll have to take the
ax, too"
Thus equipped, we made our way to
the spot I had pointed out, and put
down our loads.
"Well, we are on land, at least. We
are on the land, it is true; but what
land? This is strange part of the
world. The widest men may live
within few miles of great town. II
this is China-and lido not see how it
can be anything else-we are not in
any part that is familiar to me. So
we cannot be near Hong Kong. If we
meet with savage men, we are no bet
ter off than before
"Miss Arnold" I said, "we can
meet with no more savage men than
those we have already met. do not
fear the meeting with men so much as
I do wild beasts. And as for this be-
ing China, it is certainly the mainland
or an island on the coast. Do you
know OF any island that might fill the
bill?"
'I know the island of Formosa is
east of Hong Kong nearly two days
sail. The island of Hainan is about
the same distance west. These islands
are both large and inhabited. In
fact, they contain large cities. Then
Hong Kong itself is on an island, but
there are no parts of the island left in
pristine simplicity such as we have
here. You could not 60 in any part
of the island of Hong Kong without
meeting people. My knowledge of the
China Sea reaches no further. If we
are not on Hainan or Formosa or the
mainland, then I do not know where
we are"
I sat down on a log to think.
Miss Arnold sat on the other end of
the log and looked atme disconsolate-
ly.
"I don't see but one thing for US to
do" said, soberly.
"What is that?" she asked.
eve must make tramp for it. We
may not be far from human .habitation,
and we may. But sitting here will
not help us out any. They will not
come to US. We must go to them"
'I am ready to do anything you
think is BEST" she said.
"By following the coast" I con-
tinued, "we may reach a fshing-vil-
lage. We may at least chance upon
hunting-party. We cannot make rapid
progress. In the first place, it will
not be safe to leave any of our sup
plies behind, for we may lose them.
More than that, we don't want to lose
time in countermarches. So we must
carry our pack as we go. 1t will not
do, either to tire you, so we must be
content to do little every day until
we fetch up somewhere"
Miss Arnold was very pale. My
plan was not particularly reassuring.
sBut what Of the yacht? Shall we
not continue to use it?"
II have thought of that, but I do
not as yet give up the idea that this
land is inhabited. If we do not find
traces of human presence by nightfall,
we will consider plan of taking the
yacht along the coast with US. I am
so poor sailor, however, that I do
not care to risk our lives in it. I have
heard that the China Sea is frequently
swept by terrific typhoons, that come
up without warning and destroy every
thing in their paths. A very insignif-
can't squall would be more than amatch
for my poor seamanship, so we had
better be content on land"
Every we'll, just as you say"
"Let me reconnoiter.
walked few steps into the thicket
and performed semicircle around the
spot where Miss Arnold stood.
The land upon which We had drifted
was very fertile. Great Towering trees
and bushes grew in abundance as iar
as the eye could see. Everywhere, on
every hand, we're countless myriads of
gay-colored and beautiful flowers.
Ferns of the most beautiful pattern
grew thick around hsssocks or rocks.
There were not many of these rocks,
but the few to be seen were as white
as fa!abaster. Their highly polished
suriat es contrasted beautifully with
the rich green of the MOSES and ferns
that clung to them. Along the coast
the way seemed clear enough, but to
get inland one must fight his way
through the jungle. The air was fra
grant with per umes of naIy fowers<
We saw innumerable small birds.
some gorgeous in plumage and sweet
in song, and great numbers of small
animals gave spice of life to the
grand and noble scene.
"It is beautiful spot" said Miss
Arnold.
ga yeritable Garden of Eden
"But beauty is not always safety.
Shall we stay here any longer?"
"No; there is no need. It would
be simply q waste of time"
picked up the pack and, with
a cord made of grass, bound