El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1911-11-16
overture
By Jack London
econtLI.ued Ion Yesterday.

east Yankee. as I believe they are call
/ ed. and the other was a guzzling Ger
man.
They were slave drivers. To begin
with, they bought their labor from
Johnny Be-blowed. the most notorious
! recruiter in the Solomons. He is work
ing out a ten years sentence in Fiji
now, for the wanton killing Of a black
boy. During his last days here he
/ had made himself so obnoxious that
the natives on Malaita would have
/ nothing to do with him. The only way
! he could get recruits was by hurrying
/ to the spot whenever a murder or
series Of murders occurred. The muir
( derers were usually only too willing to
sign on and get away to escape ven
geance Down here they call such
escapes pier head jumps There IS
suddenly a roar from the beach. and
g niger runs down to the water pur-
sued by clouds Of spears and arrows.
OF course. Johnny Be-blowed's whale
boat IS lying ready TO pick him up.
In his last days Johnny got nothing
but pier head jumps
And the first owners Of Berande
bought his recruits-a hard bitten gang
OF murderers. They were all FIVE year
boys. Well, that's the gang Of murder
ers we've got on our hands now. OF
course, some are dead, some have been
killed. and there are others serving
sentences at TuIagi. Very little clear
ing did those first owners do. and less
planting 1t was war all the time.
They had one manager killed. One of
the partners had his shoulder slashed
nearly of by a cane knife. The other
was speared on two different occasions.
They were chased away-literally
chased away-by their own niggers
and along came poor Hughie and me-,
two new chums, to take hold OF that
hard bitten gang. We did not know
the situation, and we had bought
Berande, and there was nothing to 90
but hang on and middle through some
how.
AT first we made the mistake Of in
discreet kindness. We tried to rule
by persuasion and fair treatment. The
niggers concluded that we were afraid
Then came the day when Hughie rep
rimanded one Of the boys, and was
nearly killed by the gang. The only
thing that saved him was the number
on top of him, which enabled ne to
reach the spot in time
Then began the rule OF the strong
hand. 1t was either that or quit, and
we had sunk about all our money into
the venture, and we could not quit.
And besides, cur pride was involved.
We had started out to do something,
and we were SO. made that we just had
to go on with it. Do you know. we
have been unable to get white men in.
We've offered the managership to half
a dozen. won't say they were afraid,
for they were not. But they did not
consider 1t healthy-at least that is
the way it was put by the last one
who declined our offer. So Hughie and
did the managing ourselves"
"And when he died you were pre-
pared to go on all alone!" Joan cried,
with shining eyes.
Il thought I'd muddle through. And
now, Miss Lakeland, please be charit-
able when I seem harsh. and remem-
Der that the situation is unparalleled
down here. We've got a bad crowd.
and we're making them work
Joan nodded but remained silent She
was too occupied in glimpsing the Vi
sion Of the one lone white man as she
had first seen him. helpless from fever,
a collapsed wrath in a steamer chair,
who. up TO the last heart beat, by
some strange alchemy of race, was
pledged to mastery.
1T is a pity" she said But the
white man has to rule. l suppose"
Il don't ike it, Sheldon assured
her. ''To save my life I can't imagine
how I ever came here. But here ! an,
and can't run away"
Blind destiny Of race" she said.
family smiling. I'VE whites have
been land robbers and sea robbers from
remotest time. It is in our blood. [
guess. and we can't get away from it,
Il never thought about it so alb
stractly." he confessed. I've been too
busy pulling over why came here"