Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1905-05-13

He guessed by the way I'm which the
sea raced past these points that the
land did not extend beyond them. Be
hind him il rose steeply TO a considera-
bic height, $50 or 200 feet In the cen
ter was the talleSt hill. which seemed
to end abruptly toward the southwest.
On tie northeast side Il was connect
ed with a rocky promontory by ridge
of easy grade. The sailor turned TO the
southwest as Offering the most likely
direction for rapid survey.
He was not surprised TO find that
the hill terminated in "A sheer wall of
rock. which stood out. ominOus and
massive. from the wealth OF verdure
clothing the remainder OF the ridge.
Facing the precipice and separated
from it by Al strip Of ground not TWEEN
" feet above the sea level i'm the high
est part was another rocS Srilt emf
hence quite bare OF trees. biackcned by
the weather and Scared i'm q manner
that attestcd the attacks If lightning.
The intervening belt was sparsely
dotted with trees. casuarinas. poon and
other woods be did not know. resem-
bling ebony and cedar 4 number Of
at work but not recently He passed
into the cleft and climbed q tree that
offered easy access. As he expected.
after rising Il few feet from the ground
his eyes encountered the solemn blue
line Of the sea. not half mile distant.
lie descended and commenced sys-
tematic search. Men had been here.
Was there a house? Would he sudden
" encounter some hermit Malay or
Chinaman?
At the foot OF the main cliff was a
cluster OF fruit bearing trees-plan-
tains. arcca nuts and cocoa palms. 4
couple of cinchonas caught his eve. In
one spot the underground was rank
and wildly green. Tie caSSava. or
tapioca plant. reared its high passion
flower leaves above the grass. and
some sage palms thrust aloft their
thick stemmed trunks.
Here is "a change OF menu. at any
rate" he communcd
Breaking q thick branch OF a pOOn
tree. lie Whitfield away tie minor
stems y strong stick was ncedful to
explore that leafy fastneSs thoroughly.
a few cautious strides and vigorous
whacks with the stick laid bare the
| cause of such productivity I'm a soil Gov
cred with drifted sand IA Jumps OF
black and white spcckled coral The
trees and bushes incloscd n well-safe-
, guarded. I'm fact. from being choked
with sand during the first gale that
blew.
Delighted with this discovery. more
precious than diamonds al the mo
mcnt - for he doubted the ACCESSIBILITY
OF existing ON the water supply of the
pitcher plant-he knelt TO peer into the
excavation. The well had been proper
~ made. Ten feet down he could sec
the reelection Of his face Expert hands
had tapped the secret reservoir of :he
island by stretching 90 the fun ex-
tent OF his arm he managed 20 plunge
/ the stick into the water Tasting the
drops. ne found that they were quite
sweet The sand and porous rock pro
vided the best Of filter beds
He rose. well pleased. ana noted that
on the opposite side the appearance
OF the shrubs and tufts OF long grass
indicated the existence of a grown over
path toward the cliff Tie followed IT.
walking carelessly. wiz eyes seeking
the prospect beyond when something
ratified ana cracked beneath his feet
Looking down he was Mortified 20 lind
he was trampllng on "a skeleton.
Had venomous snake coilcd its glls-
tening folds around his leg he would
not have been more startled. But this
man OF iron nerve soon recovered. He
frownod deeply after The first mvolun-
tary heart throb.
With the stick ne cleared away the
underground and revealed the skeleton
Of man. The bones were big and
strong. but oxldized 10y the action OF
the air jerks had injured the left
tibia 10y his tread. but three fractured
ribs and smashed shoulder blade told
some terrible unwrittcu story.
Beneath the mouuful relies We're
fragments OF decayed cloth IL was
blue serge. Lying about were few
blackened objects. brass buttons mark
Ell with an anchor The dead mans
boots were in the best state Of preser-
walton, but the leather had shrunk. and
the nails protruded like fangs
on the left breast Of the skeleton rest
Ell a round piece of tin. the top Of a
canister, which might have reposed in
a coat pocket jerks picked il up.
Some curious marks ana figures were
punched into its surface After hasty
glance he put it aside Tor more leisure
ly examination.
No weapon was visible He could
form no estimate as 20 the cause Of the
death of this poor unknown nor the
time since the tragedy had occurred.
jerks must have stood many min
utes before he perceived that the skel-
eton was headless. AT first he mag
ined that in rummaging about with the
stick he had disturbed the skull. But
the most minute search demonstrated
that it had gone-had been taken away,
in factor the plants which so effectu-
ally screened the lighter bones would
not permit the skull 10 vanish.
Then the frown on the sailors face
became threatening. thunderous. He
recoilected the rusty creese. Indistinct
memories OF strange tales of the China
sea crowded unbiddcn 10 his brain.
"IDVakSff no ssroxr1eT farcaIv "a