Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1912-01-26

land before. and he Elrrnled f." ghel
don's benefit most horrible lairs vi tue
bushmen.
"Gogoomy he finish along them FLA
bushmen." he assured Sheldon. NV
word. he finish close up. kaiiai alto
gether."
So the expedition turned back. Moth
ing could persuade the coast natives t.
venture farther, and Sheldon. with his
four Tahitians. knew that it was mad
ness to 80 on alone.
That night. after dinner. Sheldon and
Joan were playing billiards when Satan
barked in the compound and Lalaperu.
sent to see. brought back tired and
travel stained native who wanted to
talk with the "big fella white marster."
Sheldon went out on the vcranda to
see him.
what name you come along house
belong me sun he go down."
me Charley" the man muttered
apologetically and YEARLY. ME stop
along Binu."
'Ah, Binu Charley. eli? Well. what
name you talk along me? What place
big fella marster along white man he
stop?"
Joan and Sheldon together listened
to the tale Rinu Charley had brought
He described Tud0r's expedition up
the Balesuna. the dragging of the boats
up the rapids. the passage up the river
where it threaded the grass lands. the
innumerable washings of gravel by the
white men in search of gold. the first
rolling foothills. the man traps Of
spear staked pits in the jungle trails,
the first meeting with the bushmen
who had never seen tobacco and knew
not the virtues Of smoking. their friend
illness. the deeper penetration of the
interior around the TANKS Of the Lions
Head, the bush sores and the fevers of
the white men. and their madness in
trusting the bushmen. One morning
Binu Charley noticed that the women
and children had disappeared. Tudor,
at the time. was lying in stupOr with
fever in late camp five miles away,
the main camp having moved on those
FIVE miles in order to prospect an out.
crop Of likely quartz. Binu Charley
was midway between the two camps
children struck him as suspicious.
"My word" he said. ''me savvee too
much trouble close up. Me run. My
word. me run"
Tudor. quite unconscious. was slune
across his shoulder and carried mile
down the trail. Here. hiding new trail.
Binu Charley had carried him for a
quarter of mile into the heart Of the
deepest jungle and hidden him in big
banyan tree. Here. and from the direc-
ton OF the main camp. he had heard
two rife shots. And that was all. He
had never seen the white men again.
There is only one thing to do Shell
don said to Joan. ''I'll start the first
thing in the morning"
well start" she corrected. II can
get twice as much out Of my Tahitians
as you can, and. besides. one white
should never be alone under such cir
cumstances.
Sheldon sent for gang boss and
told him to bring ten of the biggest.
best and strongest PoongaP oonga
men.
mot salt water boys" Sheldon eau
toned, "but bush boys--leg belong him
strong fella leg. Roy no savvee mus
ket, no good. You bring IN shoot
musket strong fella."
They were ten picked men that filed
up on the veranda and stood in the
glare Of the lanterns. Their heavy.
muscular legs advertised that they
were bushmen. Killing was their nat
ural vocation. not weed cutting: and,
while they would not have ventured
the Guadalcanar bush alone. with a
white man like Sheldon behind them,
and a white Mary such as they knew
Joan to be. they could expect a safe
and delightful time. Besides. the great
master had told them that the eight
gigantic Tahitians were going along
Plenty strong fela fight Sheldon
warned them in conclusion.
They grinned and shifted delighted
ly.
"S'pose bushmen kai-kai along you?"
he queried.
mo fear answered their spokes-
man. one Koogoo. strapping, thick
Tipped Ethiopian looking map "Spose
Poonga-roonga boy kai-kai bush boyT'
Sheldon shook his head. laughing,
and dismissed them and went to over
haul the dunnage room for small
shelter tent for Ioan's use.
1t was quite formidable expedi-
ton that departed from Berande at
break of day next morning in feet
of canoes and dingeys. There were
Joan and Sheldon. with Binu Charley
and Laaperu. the eight Tahitians and
the ten Poonga-Foonga men, each
proud in the possession Of a bright and
shining modern rifle.
Binu Charley led the way onward
into the rolling foothills. following the
trail made by Tudor and his men
weeks before. That night they camp.
ed we'll into the hills and deep in the
tropic jungle The third day found
them on the runways Of the bushmen
narrow paths that compelled single
file and that turned and twisted with
endless convolutions through the dense
underground.
Here. in the midmorning. the first
casualty occurred. Binu Charley had
dropped behind for a time and koQgoo,
the Poonga POOnga man who had
boosted that he would eat the bush