Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1905-04-05
CHAPTER IN.

CHAPTER IN.
f"lHE sailor went after those mon
keys in a mood Of relentless
severity. Thus far the regular
. deniZens of Rainbow island
had dwelt together in peace and mu.
tual good will. but each diminutive
wou-wou must be taught not to pull
any strings he found tied promiscu-
ously to trees or stakes. AS pre-
limimsry essay jerks resolved to try
force combined with artifce. Failing
complete success, he would endeavor
to kill every monkey in the place,
though he had in full measure tile In.
herent dislike of Anglo-India to the
Staying of the tree people.
This, then, is what he did: After
filling biscuit tin with good sized
pebbles lie donned Dyak hat, blouse
and belt, rubbed earth over his face
and hands and proceeded to pelt the
wou-wous mercilessly. For more than
an hour he made their lives misera-
BILE until ut the mere sight Of him they
fled, shricking and gurgling like a
thousand water bottles. Finally he
constructed several Dyak scarecrows
and erected one to guard each of his
alarm guns. The device was thor
oughly effective. ThencefOrth, when
some adventurous monkey, swinging
with hands or tail among the tree
tops in the morning search for appetiz-
Ing nut or luscious plantain, saw one
of those fearsome bogies, he raised
such a hubbub that all his companions
scampered hastily from the confines of
the wood to the inner businesses.
During each of the two daily exami-
nations of the horizon, which he never
omitted, jerks infinitely scrutinized
the sea between Rainbow island and
tho
needless precaution. The Dyaks would
come at night. With favorable wind
they need not set sail until dusk, and
their fleet sampans would easily cover
the intervening forty miles in FIVE
hours.
He could not be positive that they
were actual inhabitants Of the islands
to the south. The China sea swarms
with wandering pirates, and the tribe
whose animosity he had earned might
be equally noXious to some peaceablc
fishing community on the coast. Again
and again he debated the ACCESSIBILITY
Of constructing Il seaworthy raft and
endeavoring to make the passage. But
this would be risLing all on fright
full uncertainty, and the accidental dis
covery of the eagles nest had given
him new hope. Here he could make n
determined and prolonged stand, and
in the end help must come. So he dis
missed the navigation project and de-
voted himself wholly to the perfecting
Of the natural fortress in the rock
That night they finished the rope lad
der. Indeed jerks was determined not
to retire to rest until it was placed. lie
did not care to try second time to
carry Iris to that elevated perch.
One of the first things he contem-
plated was the destruction if possible
of the point on the opposite cliff which
commanded the ledge. This, however,
was utterly impracticable with the ap-
planes ut his command. The top Of
the rock sloped slightly toward the
west, and nothing short of dynamite
or regular quarrying operations would
render it untenable by hostile marks
men.
During the day his rifles ut ninety
yards range might be trusted to keep
the place clear of intruders But at
night that was the difficulty. lie
partially solved it by fixing two rests
on the ledge to support rifle in exact
line with the center Of the encmy's
supposed position, and as variant on
the outer rest he marked lines which
correspondent with other sections of
the entire front available to the foe.
Even then he was not satisfied. When
time permitted, he made many expert
ments with ropes reeved through the
pulley and attached to rifle action.
He might have succeeded in his main
object had not his thoughts taken
new line. His aim was to achieve
some method Of opening and closing
the breech block by means of two
ropes. The difficulty was to secure the
preliminary and final lateral movement
of the lever bolt, but it suddenly oc-
CURED to him that If he could manage
to convey the impression that Iris and
he had left the island the Dyaks would
go away after fruitless search. The
existence of ropes along the face OF the
rock-an essential to his mechanical
scheme = would bctiny their where
abouts or at any rate excite dangerous
curiosity. So he reluctantly abandoned
his original design, though not wholly,
as will be seen in due course.
In pursuance of his latest idea he
sedulously removed from the foot of
the cliff all traces Of the clearance
effected on the ledge, and, although lie
provided supports for the tarpaulin
covering, lie did not adjust it. Iris and
he might lie perdu there for days with
out their retreat being found out. This
development suggested the necessity of
hiding their surplus stores and am
munition, and what spot could be more
suitable than the cave?
So jerks began to dig once more in
the interior, laboring manfully with
pick and shovel in the locality of the
fault with its vein of anthony.
Rainbow island had given him the
one thing a man prizes above all else
pure yet passionate love for woman
beautiful alike in body and mind And
now it was to endow him with riches