Part 29 (1/2)
When he came on deck next morning they were close to land. He looked at it with greedy eyes. There was a thin strip of silver beach rising quickly to hills covered to the top with luxuriant vegetation. The coconut trees, thick and green, came nearly to the water's edge, and among them you saw the gra.s.s houses of the Samoans; and here and there, gleaming white, a little church. Mrs Davidson came and stood beside him.
She was dressed in black and wore round her neck a gold chain, from which dangled a small cross. She was a little woman, with brown, dull hair very elaborately arranged, and she had prominent blue eyes behind invisible _pince-nez_. Her face was long, like a sheep's, but she gave no impression of foolishness, rather of extreme alertness; she had the quick movements of a bird. The most remarkable thing about her was her voice, high, metallic, and without inflection; it fell on the ear with a hard monotony, irritating to the nerves like the pitiless clamour of the pneumatic drill.
”This must seem like home to you,” said Dr Macphail, with his thin, difficult smile.
”Ours are low islands, you know, not like these. Coral. These are volcanic. We've got another ten days' journey to reach them.”
”In these parts that's almost like being in the next street at home,”
said Dr Macphail facetiously.
”Well, that's rather an exaggerated way of putting it, but one does look at distances differently in the South Seas. So far you're right.”
Dr Macphail sighed faintly.
”I'm glad we're not stationed here,” she went on. ”They say this is a terribly difficult place to work in. The steamers' touching makes the people unsettled; and then there's the naval station; that's bad for the natives. In our district we don't have difficulties like that to contend with. There are one or two traders, of course, but we take care to make them behave, and if they don't we make the place so hot for them they're glad to go.”
Fixing the gla.s.ses on her nose she looked at the green island with a ruthless stare.
”It's almost a hopeless task for the missionaries here. I can never be sufficiently thankful to G.o.d that we are at least spared that.”
Davidson's district consisted of a group of islands to the North of Samoa; they were widely separated and he had frequently to go long distances by canoe. At these times his wife remained at their headquarters and managed the mission. Dr Macphail felt his heart sink when he considered the efficiency with which she certainly managed it.
She spoke of the depravity of the natives in a voice which nothing could hush, but with a vehemently unctuous horror. Her sense of delicacy was singular. Early in their acquaintance she had said to him:
”You know, their marriage customs when we first settled in the islands were so shocking that I couldn't possibly describe them to you. But I'll tell Mrs Macphail and she'll tell you.”
Then he had seen his wife and Mrs Davidson, their deck-chairs close together, in earnest conversation for about two hours. As he walked past them backwards and forwards for the sake of exercise, he had heard Mrs Davidson's agitated whisper, like the distant flow of a mountain torrent, and he saw by his wife's open mouth and pale face that she was enjoying an alarming experience. At night in their cabin she repeated to him with bated breath all she had heard.
”Well, what did I say to you?” cried Mrs Davidson, exultant, next morning. ”Did you ever hear anything more dreadful? You don't wonder that I couldn't tell you myself, do you? Even though you are a doctor.”
Mrs Davidson scanned his face. She had a dramatic eagerness to see that she had achieved the desired effect.
”Can you wonder that when we first went there our hearts sank? You'll hardly believe me when I tell you it was impossible to find a single good girl in any of the villages.”
She used the word _good_ in a severely technical manner.
”Mr Davidson and I talked it over, and we made up our minds the first thing to do was to put down the dancing. The natives were crazy about dancing.”
”I was not averse to it myself when I was a young man,” said Dr Macphail.
”I guessed as much when I heard you ask Mrs Macphail to have a turn with you last night. I don't think there's any real harm if a man dances with his wife, but I was relieved that she wouldn't. Under the circ.u.mstances I thought it better that we should keep ourselves to ourselves.”
”Under what circ.u.mstances?”
Mrs Davidson gave him a quick look through her _pince-nez_, but did not answer his question.
”But among white people it's not quite the same,” she went on, ”though I must say I agree with Mr Davidson, who says he can't understand how a husband can stand by and see his wife in another man's arms, and as far as I'm concerned I've never danced a step since I married. But the native dancing is quite another matter. It's not only immoral in itself, but it distinctly leads to immorality. However, I'm thankful to G.o.d that we stamped it out, and I don't think I'm wrong in saying that no one has danced in our district for eight years.”
But now they came to the mouth of the harbour and Mrs Macphail joined them. The s.h.i.+p turned sharply and steamed slowly in. It was a great land-locked harbour big enough to hold a fleet of battles.h.i.+ps; and all around it rose, high and steep, the green hills. Near the entrance, getting such breeze as blew from the sea, stood the governor's house in a garden. The Stars and Stripes dangled languidly from a flagstaff. They pa.s.sed two or three trim bungalows, and a tennis court, and then they came to the quay with its warehouses. Mrs Davidson pointed out the schooner, moored two or three hundred yards from the side, which was to take them to Apia. There was a crowd of eager, noisy, and good-humoured natives come from all parts of the island, some from curiosity, others to barter with the travellers on their way to Sydney; and they brought pineapples and huge bunches of bananas, _tapa_ cloths, necklaces of sh.e.l.ls or sharks' teeth, _kava_-bowls, and models of war canoes.
American sailors, neat and trim, clean-shaven and frank of face, sauntered among them, and there was a little group of officials. While their luggage was being landed the Macphails and Mrs Davidson watched the crowd. Dr Macphail looked at the yaws from which most of the children and the young boys seemed to suffer, disfiguring sores like torpid ulcers, and his professional eyes glistened when he saw for the first time in his experience cases of elephantiasis, men going about with a huge, heavy arm or dragging along a grossly disfigured leg. Men and women wore the _lava-lava_.