What the outer fringing reef had suffered from the storm they hardly knew as yet; but from the door of the hut Felix could see for himself how even the calm waters of the inner lagoon17 had been lashed18 into wild fury by the fierce swoop19 of the tempest. Round the entire atoll the solid conglomerate20 coral floor was scooped21 under, broken up, chewed fine by the waves, or thrown in vast fragments on the beach of the island. By the eastern shore, in particular, just opposite their hut, Felix observed a regular wall of many feet in height, piled up by the waves like the familiar Chesil Beach near his old home in Dorsetshire. It was the shelter of that temporary barrier alone, no doubt, that had preserved their huts last night from the full fury of the gale22, and that had allowed the natives to congregate23 in such numbers prone24 on their faces in the mud and rain, upon the unconsecrated ground outside their taboo25-line.
But now not an islander was to be seen within ear-shot. All had gone away to look after their ruined huts or their beaten-down plantain-patches, leaving the cruel gods, who, as they thought, had wrought26 all the mischief27 out of pure wantonness, to repent28 at leisure the harm done during the night to their obedient votaries29.
Felix was just about to cross the taboo-line and walk down to the shore to examine the barrier, when Toko, his Shadow, laying his hand on his shoulder with more genuine interest and affection than he had ever yet shown, exclaimed, with some horror, “Oh, no! Not that! Don’t dare to go outside! It would be very dangerous for you. If my people were to catch you on profane30 soil just now, there’s no saying what harm they might do to you.”
“Why so?” Felix exclaimed, in surprise. “Last night, surely, they were all prayers and promises and vows32 and entreaties33.”
The young man nodded his head in acquiescence34. “Ah, yes; last night,” he answered. “That was very well then. Vows were sore needed. The storm was raging, and you were within your taboo. How could they dare to touch you, a mighty god of the tempest, at the very moment when you were rending35 their banyan-trees and snapping their cocoanut stems with your mighty arms like so many little chicken-bones? Even Tu-Kila-Kila himself, I expect, the very high god, lay frightened in his temple, cowering38 by his tree, annoyed at your wrath39; he sent Fire and Water among the worshippers, no doubt, to offer up vows and to appease40 your anger.”
Then Felix remembered, as his Shadow spoke41, that, as a matter of fact, he had observed the men who usually wore the red and white feather cloaks among the motley crowd of grovelling42 natives who lay flat on their faces in the mud of the cleared space the night before, and prayed hard for mercy. Only they were not wearing their robes of office at the moment, in accordance with a well-known savage43 custom; they had come naked and in disgrace, as befits all suppliants44. They had left behind them the insignia of their rank in their own shaken huts, and bowed down their bare backs to the rain and the lightning.
“Yes, I saw them among the other islanders,” Felix answered, half-smiling, but prudently45 remaining within the taboo-line, as his Shadow advised him.
Toko kept his hand still on his master’s shoulder. “Oh, king,” he said, beseechingly46, and with great solemnity, “I am doing wrong to warn you; I am breaking a very great Taboo. I don’t know what harm may come to me for telling you. Perhaps Tu-Kila-Kila will burn me to ashes with one glance of his eyes. He may know this minute what I’m saying here alone to you.”
It is hard for a white man to meet scruples47 like this; but Felix was bold enough to answer outright48: “Tu-Kila-Kila knows nothing of the sort, and can never find out. Take my word for it, Toko, nothing that you say to me will ever reach Tu-Kila-Kila.”
The Shadow looked at him doubtfully, and trembled as he spoke. “I like you, Korong,” he said, with a genuinely truthful49 ring in his voice. “You seem to me so kind and good—so different from other gods, who are very cruel. You never beat me. Nobody I ever served treated me as well or as kindly50 as you have done. And for your sake I will even dare to break taboo—if you’re quite, quite sure Tu-Kila-Kila will never discover it.”
“I’m quite sure,” Felix answered, with perfect confidence. “I know it for certain. I swear a great oath to it.”
“You swear by Tu-Kila-Kila himself?” the young savage asked, anxiously.
“I swear by Tu-Kila-Kila himself,” Felix replied at once. “I swear, without doubt. He can never know it.”
“That is a great Taboo,” the Shadow went on, meditatively51, stroking Felix’s arm. “A very great Taboo indeed. A terrible medicine. And you are a god; I can trust you. Well, then, you see, the secret is this: you are Korong, but you are a stranger, and you don’t understand the ways of Boupari. If for three days after the end of this storm, which Tu-Kila-Kila has sent Fire and Water to pray and vow31 against, you or the Queen of the Clouds show yourselves outside your own taboo-line—why, then, the people are clear of sin; whoever takes you may rend36 you alive; they will tear you limb from limb and cut you into pieces.”
“Why so?” Felix asked, aghast at this discovery. They seemed to live on a perpetual volcano in this wonderful island; and a volcano ever breaking out in fresh places. They could never get to the bottom of its horrible superstitions52.
“Because you ate the storm-apple,” the Shadow answered, confidently. “That was very wrong. You brought the tempest upon us yourselves by your own trespass53; therefore, by the custom of Boupari, which we learn in the mysteries, you become full Korong for the sacrifice at once. That makes the term for you. The people will give you all your dues; then they will say, ‘We are free; we have bought you with a price; we have brought your cocoanuts. No sin attaches to us; we are righteous; we are righteous.’ And then they will kill you, and Fire and Water will roast you and boil you.”
“But only if we go outside the taboo-line?” Felix asked, anxiously.
“Only if you go outside the taboo-line,” the Shadow replied, nodding a hasty assent54. “Inside it, till your term comes, even Tu-Kila-Kila himself, the very high god, whose meat we all are, dare never hurt you.”
“Till our term comes?” Felix inquired, once more astonished and perplexed55. “What do you mean by that, my Shadow?”
But the Shadow was either bound by some superstitious56 fear, or else incapable57 of putting himself into Felix’s point of view. “Why, till you are full Korong,” he answered, like one who speaks of some familiar fact, as who should say, till you are forty years old, or, till your beard grows white. “Of course, by and by, you will be full Korong. I cannot help you then; but, till that time comes, I would like to do my best by you. You have been very kind to me. I tell you much. More than this, it would not be lawful58 for me to mention.”
And that was the most that, by dexterous59 questioning, Felix could ever manage to get out of his mysterious Shadow.
“At the end of three days we will be safe, though?” he inquired at last, after all other questions failed to produce an answer.
“Oh, yes, at the end of three days the storm will have blown over,” the young man answered, easily. “All will then be well. You may venture out once more. The rain will have dried over all the island. Fire and Water will have no more power over you.”
Felix went back to the hut to inform Muriel of this new peril60 thus suddenly sprung upon them. Poor Muriel, now almost worn out with endless terrors, received it calmly. “I’m growing accustomed to it all, Felix,” she answered, resignedly. “If only I know that you will keep your promise, and never let me fall alive into these wretches’ hands, I shall feel quite safe. Oh, Felix, do you know when you took me in your arms like that last night, in spite of everything, I felt positively61 happy.”
About ten o’clock they were suddenly roused by a sound of many natives, coming in quick succession, single file, to the huts, and shouting aloud, “Oh, King of the Rain, oh, Queen of the Clouds, come forth for our vows! Receive your presents!”
Felix went forth to the door to look. With a warning look in his eyes, his Shadow followed him. The natives were now coming up by dozens at a time, bringing with them, in great arm-loads, fallen cocoanuts and breadfruits, and branches of bananas, and large draggled clusters of half-ripe plantains.
“Why, what are all these?” Felix exclaimed in surprise.
His Shadow looked up at him, as if amused at the absurd simplicity62 of the question. “These are yours, of course,” he said; “yours and the Queen’s; they are the windfalls you made. Did you not knock them all off the trees for yourselves when you were coming down in such sheets from the sky last evening?”
Felix wrung63 his hands in positive despair. It was clear, indeed, that to the minds of the natives there was no distinguishing personally between himself and Muriel, and the rain or the cyclone4.
“Will they bring them all in?” he asked, gazing in alarm at the huge pile of fruits the natives were making outside the huts.
“Yes, all,” the Shadow answered; “they are vows; they are godsends; but if you like, you can give some of them back. If you give much back, of course it will make my people less angry with you.”
Felix advanced near the line, holding his hand up before him to command silence. As he did so, he was absolutely appalled64 himself at the perfect storm of execration65 and abuse which his appearance excited. The foremost natives, brandishing66 their clubs and stone-tipped spears, or shaking their fists by the line, poured forth upon his devoted67 head at once all the most frightful68 curses of the Polynesian vocabulary. “Oh, evil god,” they cried aloud with angry faces, “oh, wicked spirit! you have a bad heart. See what a wrong you have purposely done us. If your heart were not bad, would you treat us like this? If you are indeed a god, come out across the line, and let us try issues together. Don’t skulk69 like a coward in your hut and within your taboo, but come out and fight us. We are not afraid, who are only men. Why are you afraid of us?”
Felix tried to speak once more, but the din37 drowned his voice. As he paused, the people set up their loud shouts again. “Oh, you wicked god! You eat the storm-apple! You have wrought us much harm. You have spoiled our harvest. How you came down in great sheets last night! It was pitiful, pitiful! We would like to kill you. You might have taken our bread-fruits and our bananas, if you would; we give you them freely; they are yours; here, take them. We feed you well; we make you many offerings. But why did you wish to have our huts also? Why did you beat down our young plantations70 and break our canoes against the beach of the island? That shows a bad heart! You are an evil god! You dare not defend yourself. Come out and meet us.”
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1
lizards
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| n.蜥蜴( lizard的名词复数 ) | |
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forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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basked
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| v.晒太阳，取暖( bask的过去式和过去分词 )；对…感到乐趣；因他人的功绩而出名；仰仗…的余泽 | |
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cyclone
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| n.旋风，龙卷风 | |
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cyclones
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| n.气旋( cyclone的名词复数 )；旋风；飓风；暴风 | |
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foliage
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| n.叶子，树叶，簇叶 | |
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strands
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| n.（线、绳、金属线、毛发等的）股( strand的名词复数 )；缕；海洋、湖或河的)岸；（观点、计划、故事等的）部份v.使滞留，使搁浅( strand的第三人称单数 ) | |
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8
joints
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| 接头( joint的名词复数 )； 关节； 公共场所（尤指价格低廉的饮食和娱乐场所） （非正式）； 一块烤肉 （英式英语） | |
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mighty
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| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
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boughs
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| 大树枝( bough的名词复数 ) | |
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stumps
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| （被砍下的树的）树桩( stump的名词复数 )； 残肢； （板球三柱门的）柱； 残余部分 | |
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12
banyan
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| n.菩提树，榕树 | |
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entirely
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| ad.全部地，完整地；完全地，彻底地 | |
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14
wreckage
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| n.（失事飞机等的）残骸，破坏，毁坏 | |
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15
strewed
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| v.撒在…上( strew的过去式和过去分词 )；散落于；点缀；撒满 | |
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16
shuddered
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| v.战栗( shudder的过去式和过去分词 )；发抖；（机器、车辆等）突然震动；颤动 | |
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17
lagoon
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| n.泻湖，咸水湖 | |
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18
lashed
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| adj.具睫毛的v.鞭打( lash的过去式和过去分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥 | |
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swoop
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| n.俯冲，攫取；v.抓取，突然袭击 | |
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20
conglomerate
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| n.综合商社，多元化集团公司 | |
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21
scooped
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| v.抢先报道( scoop的过去式和过去分词 )；（敏捷地）抱起；抢先获得；用铲[勺]等挖（洞等） | |
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22
gale
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| n.大风，强风，一阵闹声（尤指笑声等） | |
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congregate
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| v.(使)集合，聚集 | |
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24
prone
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| adj.(to)易于…的，很可能…的；俯卧的 | |
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25
taboo
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| n.禁忌，禁止接近，禁止使用；adj.禁忌的；v.禁忌，禁制，禁止 | |
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26
wrought
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| v.引起；以…原料制作；运转；adj.制造的 | |
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27
mischief
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| n.损害，伤害，危害；恶作剧，捣蛋，胡闹 | |
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repent
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| v.悔悟，悔改，忏悔，后悔 | |
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29
votaries
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| n.信徒( votary的名词复数 )；追随者；（天主教）修士；修女 | |
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30
profane
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| adj.亵神的，亵渎的；vt.亵渎，玷污 | |
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vow
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| n.誓(言)，誓约；v.起誓，立誓 | |
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vows
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| 誓言( vow的名词复数 )； 郑重宣布，许愿 | |
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entreaties
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| n.恳求，乞求( entreaty的名词复数 ) | |
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34
acquiescence
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| n.默许；顺从 | |
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35
rending
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| v.撕碎( rend的现在分词 )；分裂；（因愤怒、痛苦等而）揪扯（衣服或头发等）；（声音等）刺破 | |
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rend
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| vt.把…撕开，割裂；把…揪下来，强行夺取 | |
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din
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| n.喧闹声，嘈杂声 | |
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cowering
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| v.畏缩，抖缩( cower的现在分词 ) | |
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wrath
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| n.愤怒，愤慨，暴怒 | |
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40
appease
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| v.安抚，缓和，平息，满足 | |
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41
spoke
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| n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说 | |
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42
grovelling
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| adj.卑下的，奴颜婢膝的v.卑躬屈节，奴颜婢膝( grovel的现在分词 )；趴 | |
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43
savage
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| adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人 | |
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44
suppliants
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| n.恳求者，哀求者( suppliant的名词复数 ) | |
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45
prudently
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| adv. 谨慎地，慎重地 | |
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46
beseechingly
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| adv. 恳求地 | |
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47
scruples
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| n.良心上的不安( scruple的名词复数 )；顾虑，顾忌v.感到于心不安，有顾忌( scruple的第三人称单数 ) | |
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48
outright
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| adv.坦率地；彻底地；立即；adj.无疑的；彻底的 | |
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49
truthful
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| adj.真实的，说实话的，诚实的 | |
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50
kindly
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| adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地 | |
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51
meditatively
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| adv.冥想地 | |
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52
superstitions
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| 迷信，迷信行为( superstition的名词复数 ) | |
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53
trespass
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| n./v.侵犯，闯入私人领地 | |
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54
assent
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| v.批准，认可；n.批准，认可 | |
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55
perplexed
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| adj.不知所措的 | |
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56
superstitious
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| adj.迷信的 | |
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57
incapable
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| adj.无能力的，不能做某事的 | |
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58
lawful
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| adj.法律许可的，守法的，合法的 | |
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59
dexterous
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| adj.灵敏的；灵巧的 | |
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60
peril
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| n.(严重的)危险；危险的事物 | |
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61
positively
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| adv.明确地，断然，坚决地；实在，确实 | |
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62
simplicity
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| n.简单，简易；朴素；直率，单纯 | |
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63
wrung
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| 绞( wring的过去式和过去分词 )； 握紧（尤指别人的手）； 把（湿衣服）拧干； 绞掉（水） | |
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64
appalled
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| v.使惊骇，使充满恐惧( appall的过去式和过去分词)adj.惊骇的；丧胆的 | |
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65
execration
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| n.诅咒，念咒，憎恶 | |
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66
brandishing
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| v.挥舞( brandish的现在分词 )；炫耀 | |
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67
devoted
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| adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的 | |
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frightful
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| adj.可怕的；讨厌的 | |
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69
skulk
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| v.藏匿；潜行 | |
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70
plantations
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| n.种植园，大农场( plantation的名词复数 ) | |
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