Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1921-11-24
LURE IS Varied
Men Have Odd MotNes.for Seek.
ing Exile in South Seas.
somstInes II 10 More or Less Humor.
Gus, Occasionally Deeply Tragic,
but Always interesting.


I have often speculated on the mo-
tives actuating the men and women
who come TO the South seas-most of
them OF a class neither adventurous
nor imaginative. Why have they left
home at ali. and why have their wan
derings led TO place so insignificant
and emotef
In some cases, OF course, the motives
are not complex. ! remember mid
dle-aged Californian. who did not hest
tate TO be frank. We were sitting on
the hotel veranda, wasting an after
noon In idle talk.
"Why did I come 10 Tahiti?' he said.
That's simple-I wanted to live in a
place where could have drink with
out breaking the law. reckon I'm a
good American, but I like 10 be let
alone. The French are great fellows
TO mind their own business; | found
that out during the war. Yes. was
there-over age, but l got into the
National Guard at the start When ]
got home I took n look around and
then made my partner proposition
TO buy me out. We had n nice little
business; my share of N. turned into
bonds. brings in about three thousand
year.
"When the deal was fixed, I got n
map and hunted up the nearest French
colony reckoned II would be Quieter
there than in France. guess I'll leave
my bones on Tahiti. My house win he
finished in another month; It's close
to the water and big shady veranda
where you can sit and look out across
the lagoon 10 Morea.
III don't want any women, or ser
wants, or newspapers, or plantations,
or business OF any klnd-I Just want
to be let alone; but any man who
doesn't talk polftlcs Will be welcome
TO drop In for drink"
Here was one accounted for. A few
moments later, on the same veranda,
another man told his story in eight
words pregnant as they were brief.
There was an Englishman with us
a traveller, who was stopping over a
steamer In the course OF an eastward
tour around the world He had been
In India. and was showing us his col
lection OF photographs of that land.
While the pictures were passed about,
I noticed an elderly American. Of mo-
rose and corpulent mien, sitting at
some distance from the rest of the
company and taking no part in the
conversation. though he uttered from
time TO time a series OF nasal sounds
vaguely suggestive Of French and cor
rectly interpreted by the pative girl
10 mean: zone rum punch"
In time we came 10 the inevitable
picture of the Tai Mahal; and while
we gazed at II. marveliRs the
tourist spoke Of the vast expense OF
raising such monument. When he
had finished. the man who wanted 10
be let alone was the first TO speak.
Just think OF that guy" he re-
marked. spending 10 million dollars
to bury his wife. ~
Musing on the ancient and costly
bit Of sentiment we sat for a moment
In silence-a silence broken by
sepulchral voice. 1s
"I'd give more than that to bury
mine! ~
It was the orderer OF rum punches
who spoke, addressing the company
FOR the first and last time. He said II
without a shadow Of hurnor-so earn
estly. so convincingly,. that several
seconds elapsed before any Of us
smiled.
He had placed himself. Curiosity re-
garding him was at an end II he
chose to spend the rest of his days in
the South seas, gossip would pass him
by, TO whisper Of others less communi-
cative-the ever-pressnt rumored
murderer or defaulting flnancier. For
all we knew. the morose gentleman
might have been quite capable OF
building a second Tai Mahai-Charles
Bernard Nordhoff In the Atlantic
Monthly. ~ n