Honolulu star-bulletin. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1912-2010, 1916-05-20
BEFORE ADAM
- BY -
- loNDo ~

same way l aIe berries from vines Anu
bushes. This was beyond any expert
enee Of mine. -. III.
l shall never forget the lrst time /
saw blueberries served on the table.
had never seen blueberries before. and
vet al the sight of them there leaped
up in my mind memories of dreams
wherein had wandered through
swampy land eating my fill Of them.
NY mother set before me dish of the
berries. | filed my spoon, but before
I raised II 10 my mouth l knew Just
how they would taste. Nor was ! dis
appointed. II was the same tang that
had tasted thousand times in my
sleep.
Snakes? Long before had heard OF
| the existence Of snakes was torment.
ed by them in my sleep. They lurked
| for me in the forest glades; leaped up,
striking. under my feet: squirmed on
through the dry grass or across naked
patches of rock or pursued me into the
| treetops. encircling the trunks with
| their great shining bodies, driving me
higher and higher or farther and far
| Their out on swaying and cracking
branches, the ground dizzy distance
| beneath me. Snakesi With their fork.
| ed tongues, their beady eyes and gilt,
| tering scales, their kissing and their
rattling-did not already know them
far too we'll on that day of my first
| circus when | saw the snake charmer
lift them up? They were old friends
| Of mine, enemies rather, that people
my nights with fear.
| All, those endless forests and their
/ horror haunted gloom! For what eter-
mites have wandered through them,
a timid, hunted creature, starting at
/ the least sound, frightened by my own
shadow, keyed up, ever alert and yigi-
| liant, ready on the instant TO dash away
In mad flight for my life, for ! was
| the prey of all manner of fierce life
that dwelt In the forest, and II was
| In ecstasies of fear that few before
the hunting monsters.
| When ! was FIVE years old went
to my first circus, ! came home from
| II sick, but not from peanuts and pink
| lemonade. Let me tell you. As We
entered the animal tent a hoarse roar
| ing shook the, air. tore my hand
loose from my fathers and dashed
/ wildly back through the entrance.
| collided with people, fell down, and all
/ the time | was screaming with terror.
| My father caught me and soothed me-.
/ He pointed to the crowd of people, all
i careless Of the roaring, and cheerec
me with assurances OF safety.
Nevertheless 1t was In fear and trem-
bling and with much encouragement
on his part that at least approached
/ the lions cage. All, knew him on
i the instant-the beast, the terrible
one! And on my inner vision dashed
/ the memories of my dreafns-the mid
/ day sun shining on tall grass. the wild
bull grazing quietly, the sudden part
/ Ing OF the grass before the swift rush
i OF the tawny one, his leap to the bulls
back, the crashing and the believing
| and the crunch, crunch of bones, or,
again, the cool quiet of the water hole,
the Wild horse up 10 his knees ana
/ drinking softly, and then the tawny
| one-always the tawny one-the leap,
the screaming and the spiashing of the
\ horse and the crunch, crunch OF bones,
/ and yet again the somber twilight and
the sad silence of the end of day and
! then the great. full throated roar, sud.
den, like q trump of doom. and swift
upon Il the insane shrieking and chat
tering among the trees, and ], too,
am trembling with fear and am one OF
the many shrieking and chattering
among the trees.
At the sight'of him, helpless within
the bars OF his cage, became enrag-
Il - \ faA nj m 6anR06
up and down, screaming an incoherent
| mockery and making antic faces. He
responded. rushing against the bars
/ and roaring back at me his impotent
wrath. All. he knew me, too, and the
sounds made were the sounds Of old
i time and ineligible 20 him.
My parents were frightened. "The
child Is ILL.," said my mother. He is
/ hysterical," said my father. ! never
told them, and they never knew. Al
ready had I developed reticence con-
corning this quality of mine, this semi.
i disassociation of personality as think
am justified In calling 1t.
/ saw the snake charmer, and no
more of the circus did see that night.
| was taken home, nervous and over.
/ WfOuSul, SICK viii tie luNhbl0u Vi NY
real life by that other life of my
dreams.
/ have mentioned my reticence. Only
| once did confide the strangeness OF
| IL all TO another. He was a boy, my
! chum, and we were eight years old.
| From my dreams ] reconstructed for
| him pictures of that vanished world in
which | do believe | once lived.
/ told him of the terrors Of that early
time, Of Lop Ear and the pranks we
played. of the gibbering councils and
| Of the Fire People and their squatting
| places. =.
i He laughed at me and jeered and
4 told me tales of ghosts and of the dead
that walk at night But mostly did he
laugh at my feeble fancy. told him
more, and he laughed the harder.
/ swore in all earnestness that these
things were so. and he began to look
upon me queerly; also he gave amaz-
ing garblings Of my tales to our play
mates until all began to look upon me