The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1911-11-11
BY ROE FULKERsoN.

He laughed wildly and fiourishel
the knife above his head. \ Ioud
"Whoo-pee!" went out over the ocean.
Come on" he yelled you devils!
you are missing the best piece Of
shark bat that ever hit the South
Seas."
Laughing defiantly, he replaced the
knife in its sheath; and, with a long
overland stroke, he resumed his way
down the path of the moon toward
the shore he could not see.
He felt that he could swim for
week Turning on his back for an
instant, he looked to the rear. He
, could not see his ship. He felt disap-
, pointed. He would have liked to swim
back to it and wipe out every insult
he had received.
! As he rolled over, he hit the water
a contemptuous smack with his open
hand, and swan steadily onward with
deep stroke that stretched his body
| full length. He filled his mouth with
the salt water and spurted it out in
front of him like a boy. His shoes
annoyed him a little, and he paused to
kick them off Once more he settled
down to his work. He hummed a col
lege song through his nose.
At last, as he slipped through the
water, he plainly heard the surf on
the reef as it rolled in to the shore.
If he could only strike a passage
through the Jagged coral, he could
make the beach. He would strike the
passage He would land!
Louder and louder roared the surf
on the reef. Now he could see the
white line of the breakers.
He took the outside one with the
Hi! Hi! Hi" of the cowboy on
bucking broncho. He swirled into the
next one, and it broke over his head.
Rising to the surface out of the
smother he shook his head like 4
huge dog, and regained his lost
breath.
Everywhere now there was a blur
of white spume; the air was thick
with foam; and the roar of the boil
ing, seething water filled his ears
He was tired, but with a laugh. he
disappeared beneath the upshooting
swirl that marked the inside barrier
of the reef toward which he was be-
ing rushed headIong.
A pig was busy husking a cocoa
nut under the shadow of the palms.
When he had finished, he shouted It
out of the shade to where the hot sun
would burst it open for him.
The nut rolled quite a way down
the incline of the beach. AS the pig
followed it, he saw a man stretched
out just in the edge of the water.
With ''woof" of fright the pig scam
pered back into the purao thicket,
shaking the branches, and making the
poppy-like flowers nod to and fro as
he disappeared from view.
The surf dubbed warmly up the
beach as high as the knees of the man
who still lay there and the tiny waves
rolled the cocoanut husks back and
forth on the sand.
AS the water sagged back, the wet
pebbles made marvels of color and
design between his feet then, as the
sun quickly dried them, they again
became colorless, like those higher ~
the beach.
A cricket sang in the shade of the
thicket and some shrill thing whist
led in a tuft of weeds. The mosqui-
toes sung and stung.
Yellow Jack rolled to a sitting pos
ture. CHANGING around him, he care
fully tucked his blue flannel shirt in I
side the belt that held up his dun
garee trousers. He stood up and .
looked in every direction. Then ne .
took the same path through the jun
gle as the vanished pig.
A hundred yards from the beach he .
heard the tumbling of a waterfall. +
Pushing through the bushes, he found |
a deep pool at The base Of little |
cliff. Lying down on his belly, he .
drank his fill of the cool water. He .
took off his two garments and soused .
them up and down in the pool to rinse .
out the salt with which they were inn .
from his long swim, He .
spread them on a bush 10 dry. He .
took a bath himself
Nearby was a short stretch of white /
sand. He lay down on it to rest, heap /
ing it over him to keep off the flies .
and mosquitoes. He soon slept the .
sleep of exhaustion.
The sun was low when he awak- .
ened. Washing off the sand from his .
body, he put on his dry clothes and |
followed the path through the jungle. .
II skirteJ the edge of a hill and soon |