The Pensacola journal. (Pensacola, Fla.) 1898-1985, 1912-04-21

Upon Sheldon fell the UNPLEASANT
task Of tallying the heads. They were
all there, nine Of them, white mems
heads, the faces Of which he had been
familiar with when their owners had
camped in Berande compound and set
up the polling boats. Blnu Charley.
hugely interested, lent a hand. turn.
ing the heads around for Identification.
noting the Ratchet strokes and remark
ing the distorted expressions.
Other heads, thoroughly sun dried
and smoke cured, were found in abun-
! dance. but with two exceptions, they
were the heads Of blacks.
''Me savvee black Mary, me sayyee
white Mary" quoth Binu Charley.
"Me no savvee that fella Mary. What
! name belong himf"
Sheldon looked. Ancient and with
cred, blackened by many years OF the
smoke OF the devil-devil house, never
theless the shrunken. mummylike face
was Enthusiastically Chinese. How II
had come there was the mystery. Il
was woman's head. and he had never
heard OF a Chinese woman in the his
tory Of the Solomons. From the ears
hung two inch long earrings. and at
Sheldon's direction the Binu man
rubbed away the accretions of smoke
and dirt and from under bis fingers
appeared the polished green Of Jade,
the sheen of pearl and the warm red
Of oriental gold. The other head,
equally ancient. was a white mans,
and Sheldon wondered what forgotten
| beche-der-mer fisherman or sandalwood
trader had gone to furnish that ghast-
ly trophy.
Telling Binu Charley to remove the
earrings and directing the Poonga-
Poonga men to carry out the old fire
tender, Sheldon cleared the devil-devil
house and set fire to IL. Soon every
house was blazing merrily. while the
ancient fire tender sat upright in the
sunshine. blinking at the destruction
| OF his village. Every member of Tu-
| doris expedition was accounted for,
and 1t was long, dark way out Of the
head hunters country. Releasing their
two prisoners, who leaped away like
startled deer, they plunged down the
steep path into the steaming jungle.
That night found them back IN camp
with Tudor, and at high noon Of the
third day, travelling with the current
and shooting the rapids, the expedi-
ton arrived at Berande. Joan, with
a sigh, unbucklcd her revolver belt and
hung 1t on the nail In the living room,
while Sheldon, who had been lurking
about for the sheer Joy Of seeing her
perform that particular homecoming
act, sighed, too, with satisfaction. But
the homecoming was not all Joy to
him, for Joan set about nursing Tudor
and spent much time on the veranda
when he lay in the hammock under the
mosquito netting.
The ten days OF Tudor's GONZALES
cence that followed were peaceful
days on Berande. The work of the
plantation went on like clockwork.
With the crushing of the premature
outbreak Of Gogoomy and his follow
ing all characterization seemed to have
vanished. Twenty more OF the old
time boys, their term Of service up,
were carried away by the Martha,
and the fresh stock Of labor, treated
fairly, was. proving Of excellent quail
fly. AS Sheldon rode about the plan
tation acknowledging to himself the
comfort and convenience Of a horse
and wondering why he had not thought
of getting one himself, he pondered
the various improvements for which
| Joan was responsible.
There were times when he was dizzy
with thought OF her and love of her,
when he would stop his horse and with
closed eyes picture her as he had seen
her that first day in the stern sheets
of the whaleboat dashing madly in TO
shore and marching belligerently along
his veranda to remark that It was
pretty hospitality, this letting stran-