The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-04-21


Tindig smiled and soon forgot all about
the incident, but Nipa did not laugh, nor
did Sepa when Nipa had talked the mat
ter over with her Their home, which
was not far from the water, was butt
on bluff which was protected from the
typhoons by a great hill behind it and
by forest on either side. When they
were settled there, Tindig showed them
his labor. In the morning he went out
In his prahu to the shell ground, and
there with long rakes and sometimes by
diving. he brought up from the bottom of
the sea the great fiat oyster shells which
abound in those waters. The smallest
were as large as his hand, while the larg-
est We're as great in size as his shoulder
The small ones were very common, but
the large ones very rare. Nearly all
were white like pearl, but sometimes, on
the inside, the pearl would be pink like
the inner leaves of the rose, and some
times blue like the heavens, and some
times pale green like the budding leaf Of
the bamboo
The color made a great difference. A
hundred white shells were only worth
tael of silver but five pink shells were
worth a tael of silver, and one blue shell
and one green she'll were worth tael
of silver The shells were brought to
the beach and thrown into a pot of
WdIGE Heated ny T6u-IlOL SlOIIeS. IH0y
were next cleaned. and the ugly backs
were split off with chisels Then the
outsides were ground smooth in the hol-
low of a board filled with sand
After this treatment they were ready
for the traders, who Travelled sometimes
by land, but more often by water. and
for the Chinese coasters which came
across the sea during the southwest mon
soon. It was very hard work, and only
a strong man could do 1t. Sometimes
there were sharks, but these Tindig at
tackled and killed with his creese. Some
times there were hag- snakes. whose bite
is death, and whose skin looks like a
running sore, and these Tindig slew with
his spear. Sometimes there were pi-
rates, but these Tindig avoided, and
sometimes there were typhoons, but Tin
dig was a wise sailor and could foreteN
their coming as we'll as the birds and
the beasts which lived around his home
When Tindig came back from Paluan
he thought he would have to work hare
in order to provide for his two wives,
but before a week had passed he saw
that Nipa was more skilful than he was,
and that Sepa was certainly as strong.
He soon began to devote all his time to
finding the shells while the wives killed
and finished them ashore. Then he
bought slave and his profits increased
He added another slave who was a skill
full diver After this he bought two
more slaves to attend to the killing and
finishing, and before the first year had
gone by he found to his joy that he was
the richest man in the village.
But neither he nor his wives grew
proud They were good neig'hbors, and
kind to the sick and the injured. Final
ly, when one of the elders Of the village
died, the other elders waited upon Tin>
dig and told him that he had been made
an elder. The villagers rejoieed and held
great catapusan, or festival, in honor
of his election, and he, in turn, supplied
so much food and wine and fruits and
fishes that all said it was the finest
catapusan which had ever been held in
Batangas. On the morning after the
catapusan he went slowly honeward.
tired and sleepy from the dancing ana
festivities. His wives had gone at day
break and he regretted that he had not
had their wisdom.
He passed the house Of the old man
against whom he had been warned by
Nipa but he was so tired that he looked
neither to the left nor to the right.
Suddenly he heard a cry and, as he
turned, something struck him on the
head, and he fell unconscious. When he
came to- he found his head, covered with
blood upon the lap Of Nipa, who with
a cloth was washing his face, while be-
yond him on the ground lay the dead
body Of the old man, and standing over
him with a bolo in her hand was Sepa.
The two women had reached hoR1et
when Nipa remembered that Tindie
would pass the old mans house, and
fearing that in his over-confidence he
would come alone and without suspicion
Of danger, she and Sera had armed
themselves and crept back to the house,
Here their suspicious were confirmed.
They saw the old man behind tree,
watching the road, and then they saw
in his hand a mclave club wrapped with
cloth. This is the bludgeon used by rob-
bers which disables and even kills, leav-
ing scarcely mark behind. They in
turn had crept up until they were Gloss
behind the watcher. They had not given
him credit for the agility he displayed.
Their intention was to kill him the mo-
ment he started out to strike Ttndig.
but they camesupon the scene a moment
too late. The blow was struck. Before
it could he followed up, however, Sepa' 3
bolo had killed the assassin.
The next month T ndig had another sur
prise but this time it was Of a peaceful
character He had come home in the aft
ernoon with his prahu laden down with
great shells, and had walked over to
the mat-shed where his wires and the
slaves usually worked. Today they -Sere
not working, but were dressed as if for a
festival. He walked forward, astonish-
ed, and curious to see the Cause. The two
wives met him and led him to tho stand
on which they kept the finished Shells.
He looked at them and gasped with
mazement. Instead of q hundred or
more white Sh els there were two or
three score of red as miry Of blue,
~ In. In frnn
of him a richer assortment than all
which he had in the rast got together.
Then Nipa told him proudly how it had
come about
81 thought" she said, that the white
shells must be colored red by the red
mud in which they grow. and the blue
shells by the mud in which they grew.
and the green shells by the mud and
seaweed where they were found, end
long and patiently have I boilel white
shells with red mud III one rot and
blue mud in another rot, and with green
mud and seaweed III third pot When
they boiled one day, there was no diff
ference. but on the third day there was
a little change, and on the seventh there
was more change, and at the emil Of a
month they were az they are now. and
lest the slave should and out my secret
I and Sepa have done this all alone
In our house, because if the secret was
a good one the slaves would betray it
to other people, and we would lose the
advantage it might give
Tindig wondered greatly and said:
1.-THE cruel king pronounced you, Nipa.
the most artful maid in the world. and
now say that you are the wisest being
in the world And then all three laugh
ed merrily.
When. a Chinese trader came a few