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diff --git a/old/68389-0.txt b/old/68389-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 5495856..0000000 --- a/old/68389-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,7177 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of In the grip of the Hawk, by Reginald -Horsley - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: In the grip of the Hawk - A story of the Maori wars - -Author: Reginald Horsley - -Release Date: June 23, 2022 [eBook #68389] - -Language: English - -Produced by: Al Haines - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK IN THE GRIP OF THE HAWK *** - - - - - - - -[Illustration: Cover art] - - - - -[Frontispiece: There lay Winata Pakaro, famous fighting Chief, lips -set in a grin of hate. (page 93).] - - - - - IN THE GRIP OF - THE HAWK - - A Story of the Maori Wars - - - BY REGINALD HORSLEY - - AUTHOR OF - 'STONEWALL'S SCOUT,' 'THE YELLOW GOD,' 'THE BLUE - BALLOON,' 'HUNTED THROUGH FIJI,' ETC. - - - - LONDON: T. C. & E. C. JACK, LTD. - 35 & 36 PATERNOSTER ROW, E.C. - AND EDINBURGH - - - - - TO - - SIR JAMES BALFOUR PAUL, F.S.A. (SCOT.) - - Lyon King of Arms - I DEDICATE THIS BOOK - IN MEMORY OF MANY YEARS - OF FRIENDSHIP - - - - -PREFATORY NOTE - -As the long struggle between Maori and Pakeha dragged to a close, a -new interest was given to it by the perversion of numbers of Maoris -of various tribes to a singular religion, styled by its founders _Pai -Marire_--that is, 'good and peaceful.' - -There was nothing good or peaceful about the new religion, which was -a fantastic blend of very elementary Christianity, Judaism and -Paganism. Deadly hostility to the Pakeha, or white man, was an -all-important item in this curious creed, whose votaries were known -as Hau-haus, and prominent amongst its prophets was the rebel chief, -Te Kooti, one of the best generals and one of the worst men of his -day. - -Brave, ferocious and animated by an almost oriental fatalism, the -Hau-haus were formidable antagonists and, moreover, shocked even -their compatriots by their ruthless savagery. At the very outset -they defeated a mixed contingent of the 57th Regiment and Colonials -at Taranaki, and cut off the head of Captain Lloyd, who had been -killed in action. Lloyd's head, preserved after the Maori fashion, -was then carried round from tribe to tribe by two Hau-hau -missionaries, who strove to make converts to the new faith. When -they succeeded, the head was spiked upon the summit of the _niu_, or -sacred pole, round which the fanatics leaped and danced until they -grew frenzied, uttering at frequent intervals their characteristic -barking howl, 'Hau-hau! Hau-hau!' which has been described as the -most frightful of noises, and a trial to the nerves of the bravest. - -While in no sense a history of a particular period of the war, the -story is built upon a historical basis. Thus, the imprisonment of Te -Kooti on Chatham Island--according to some upon a fabricated -charge--his escape thence in a brig, the sacrifice of his aged uncle -in order to propitiate the wind-god, his landing near Poverty Bay, -the massacre there, the fight at Paparatu and the final storming of a -strong _pah_ in which he had taken refuge, are all matters of -history. Te Kooti, however, did not massacre the crew of the brig, -nor was he slain in battle. Like the yet more infamous Nana Sahib, -he escaped to be no more heard of. It is interesting to note that a -nephew of Te Kooti appeared a few months ago in New Zealand, -threatening to preach a new religion and to bring about the downfall -of the Pakeha. - -The _mere_[1] (pronounced almost as 'merry') or war-club of the -Maoris was in shape something like an old-fashioned soda-water -bottle, flattened, and was made of wood, bone, a very hard gray -stone, whalebone, jade, or of the valuable mineral, nephrite, more -commonly known as 'greenstone,' which is found in the Middle Island. -The Maoris regarded the greenstone with superstitious veneration, and -in times of danger would sacrifice their ornaments fashioned from it -to the particular god whose aid it was desired to invoke. Greenstone -clubs were the peculiar possessions of chiefs or very important -tribesmen, inferior mortals contenting themselves with those of less -costly materials. - - -[1] In Maori every letter is pronounced. Thus: _whare_, a house = -'wharry,' not 'whar.' - - -Regarding the particular greenstone club which figures so prominently -in the story, it is, perhaps, only fair to admit that it will be -useless for readers with archæological tastes to endeavour to verify -the tradition of its origin or the sinister prophecy attached to it. - -While I took no part in the struggle, I well remember, when a very -little boy, adding my small voice to the enthusiastic cheers of the -people as first one regiment and, later on, another, marched through -the streets of Sydney on their way to embark for New Zealand. When -several sizes larger, it was my fortune to see much of the native -races of the southern seas--in Maori-land, Fiji, the Loyalty Islands, -and elsewhere. Now if I can succeed in interesting my readers by -picturing for them some of the scenes which filled my childhood with -so much colour and interest and delight, I shall be satisfied. - -REGINALD HORSLEY. - - - - - CONTENTS - - CHAP. - - I. FAMILY JARS - II. THE QUEEN'S SHILLING SUNDERS FRIENDS - III. THE PRICE OF SUCCESS - IV. TE KAREAREA - V. THE GRATITUDE OF TE KAIHUIA - VI. THE STORY OF THE GREENSTONE MERE - VII. STORM SIGNALS - VIII. THE STORM BURSTS - IX. JUST IN TIME - X. TOGETHER AGAIN - XI. ONE MYSTERY THE LESS - XII. VANISHED - XIII. DOWN AMONG THE DEAD MEN - XIV. MAGIC, BLACK AND WHITE - XV. POKEKE, THE SULLEN ONE - XVI. SPLENDIDE MENDAX - XVII. SAFE BIND, SAFE FIND - XVIII. PAEROA AT LAST - XIX. PAEROA'S VENGEANCE - XX. A BID FOR LIBERTY - XXI. IN THE FLAX SWAMP - XXII. THE DOOM OF THE HOUSE OF TE TURI - - - - -LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS - -There lay Winata Pakaro, famous fighting chief, his lips set in a -grin of hate . . . _Frontispiece_ - -Captain Varsall was seen to flee at top speed towards the beach - -George turned from the mate to find Te Karearea at his elbow - -In another moment Terence's wrists were free and the rifle in his -grasp - -The tunnel took a turn, widening into a cave - -Map of the _Pah_ of Death and its surroundings - - - - -IN THE GRIP OF THE HAWK - - - -CHAPTER I - -FAMILY JARS - -The long-drawn, melancholy wail of the curlew rose and fell thrice in -the garden, and Terence Moore went to the window and looked out into -the clear moonlight. - -'Is that you, George?' he hailed. - -'Yes. Come out quietly; I want to talk to you.' - -Terence hung by his hands from the sill and dropped to the ground -beside his visitor. 'What is the matter, George?' he inquired -anxiously. 'Why won't you come in?' - -'Because I wish to see you alone, and I don't want any one to know -that I am here. You may as well hear it first as last, old fellow--I -have left home.' - -'I am not surprised. My only wonder is that you have stayed there so -long,' Terence commented, lifting his tip-tilted nose still higher. - -'Things have come to a head, you see,' explained George Haughton. -'The colonel struck me this evening, and though, of course, I don't -mind that, yet I can't stand any longer the sort of life I have been -forced to lead for the past year or two.' - -'I am not surprised,' repeated Terence. 'Few fellows would have been -as patient, I think. Wait a moment and I'll get my hat.' - -He was back again almost immediately, and, linking arms with George, -drew him round the house to the front gate. - -These two had been friends from earliest childhood, though both in -appearance and disposition they differed remarkably from one another. -George Haughton, tall and commanding, finely made, with well-knit, -muscular frame, fair, curling hair, and Saxon-blue eyes, was the very -type of a healthy young Englishman. The other, Terence Moore, was -blue-eyed also; but his shock of red hair, his densely freckled skin, -the tilt of his nose, and his wide smiling mouth as plainly betrayed -his Irish origin as did his name. He was much shorter than George, -but his broad shoulders and extraordinary length of arm amply atoned -for any deficiency in the matter of inches. - -Terence was a bushman to his finger-tips, and once had been heir to a -fine estate, but on the death of his father, two years before the -opening of this story, he had been left penniless. Mrs. Moore had -died when her boy was but an infant, and so it happened that the lad -lost parent, money and home at one stroke, for the creditors seized -his father's station, along with everything upon it which could be -turned into cash. - -Young Moore, then only eighteen, had not money enough to take up land -and develop a new station, and though his dear friends, the -Haughtons, would have helped him to any extent, he was too proud to -become dependent, even upon them. So he started driving fat cattle -from one part of the country to another, an occupation at once -profitable and healthy. In the intervals of work he stayed in Sydney -with his mother's sister; and thus securing the companionship of -George Haughton, proceeded to make the latter still more discontented -with his lot, by pouring into his ear all the moving incidents by -flood and field which fall to the share of the gentleman-drover. - -To this sympathetic friend did George now confide the tale of the -crisis of his long dispute with his father, to which Terence, anxious -to secure a congenial companion during his long rides through the -bush, replied by an earnest appeal to George to throw in his lot with -his own. - -As a matter of fact, there had been a terrible scene at 'Sobraon.' -For two years Colonel Haughton had fumed and fretted at his son's -evident disinclination to follow the path marked out for him, and -to-day a climax had been reached. The colonel, enraged at George's -invincible opposition, had lost command of himself and struck his -son; and the way in which it all came about was this: - -After the famous battle of Sobraon, in which he was severely wounded, -Colonel Haughton had retired from the army and bought a beautiful -property on the wooded heights of one of the tiny bays which break -the noble outline of Sydney Harbour. Here he had settled with his -wife and his son, George, then a burly little fellow of three, whose -obvious destiny was the army, in which his father had served with -such distinction. But after the lad's tenth birthday the colonel's -views underwent a change, and it was decided to send the youngster -into the bush, so that he might grow familiar with station life, and -in due course become capable of managing the fine run which his -father intended to purchase for him. - -This was much more to George's taste than school, and six months with -his father's old friend, Major Moore, went far towards making a -thorough little bushman of him. Terence and he were already chums, -and the constant association which continued during their youth -cemented a friendship which endured throughout their lives. - -The colonel's 'system,' thus inaugurated, was further developed by a -visit to New Zealand, where George's uncle, Captain Haughton, R.N., -retired, had settled some years before. Thereafter Colonel Haughton -divided each successive year into four parts, every three months of -study alternating with a like period in the bush, either with Major -Moore in New South Wales, or with Captain Haughton in New Zealand, as -the turn of each came round. - -Brain and body developed most satisfactorily under this system, and, -as a natural consequence of so much healthy outdoor life, George at -nineteen was as sturdy and well-developed a youngster as could be -found, while in height he already over-topped his father, who stood -five feet eleven outside his boots. The boy's future seemed -splendidly assured, when a season of drought, common enough in -Australia, frightened the colonel, and, after much deliberation, he -astounded everybody by declaring his intention to launch his son in -business. - -But here he reckoned without George, for nothing less suited to the -lad's disposition, tastes or early training could have been hit upon, -and the one thing which kept him from open rebellion was his desire -not to give pain to his mother. But when, quite suddenly, Mrs. -Haughton died, George, who had been devoted to her--though he had a -great admiration and love for his father, too--determined to resist -the proposed change with all his might. - -He said little, however, until his twentieth birthday was passed, -though his attitude was always one of firm, respectful opposition; -and then at last the crisis came, and the blow struck by the -hasty-tempered father in support of his authority broke down the last -lingering scruple on the part of his son. It is difficult, all facts -considered, to blame George too severely, even if his conduct in -taking the law into his own hands cannot be entirely excused. - -'You can't do better than come with me, George,' urged the wily -Terence, when George had told him of the tempestuous scene at -'Sobraon,' as Colonel Haughton had named his house. 'You can't do -better,' he repeated; 'that is, if you have made up your mind not to -return home.' - -'That is decided,' said George. 'To go back would only mean further -hopeless bickering with my father, and I don't want to run any risks.' - -'Then that is settled. You will have to lie low for a week or so -until I am on the move again; but you can write to your father and -let him know that you are safe. I dare say he will come round as -soon as he sees that you are really in earnest. He is a good sort, -is the colonel,' wound up Terence, with a grin at the recollection of -a sound thrashing his old friend had once given him. - -'He is, I admit,' granted the colonel's wayward son. 'All the same, -he won't come round easily. He would wear out my will by sheer -persistence and get his own way if I remained in the house. My only -safety lies in flight.' - -'I believe you. And you will fly with me to the bush.' - -'No, Terence; I have another plan.' And straightway George delivered -himself of a statement which astonished his voluble friend into -something like absolute silence. But this did not last very long. -For a few moments Terence remained pensive, his thoughts evidently -far away; then, as they turned to take the homeward road he -astonished George in his turn by cutting a caper in the middle of the -street. - -'Hurroo!' he cried, relapsing into the rich brogue he could assume at -pleasure, and poured out a torrent of strange sounds, which George -declared to be gibberish, but which Terence insisted were 'the rale -Oirish for unbounded deloight.' - -'But what is the matter with you?' George asked helplessly at last. -'Why should you behave like a lunatic because I am going away?' - -'Because _we_ are going, if you please,' corrected Terence, suddenly -serious. - -George stared at him. 'You don't mean that you are coming, too?' - -'An' why wouldn't I? Do you think I'll allow a great baby like you -to go off alone among all those murtherin' ruffians? Yes,' he -concluded, with a mock salute, 'with your leave, or without your -leave, I'm going with you.' - -'But--but----' began George in stammering protest. - -'No buts, old fellow. I am going with you,' declared Terence; 'so -there is no more to be said.' - -'But your prospects?' objected George. - -'Oh yes, my prospects. Fine, aren't they? I shall have quite as -good a chance of getting on in the world--and a better--by going with -you, as I shall by jogging peacefully behind a lot of fat cattle. -Besides, we are not going away for ever, I hope; and I know plenty of -people who will be only too glad to get me to drive their beasts, no -matter how long I may stay away. So say no more about it; the thing -is settled.' - -'You are a good friend, Terence,' said George, with some emotion, and -the two linked arms once more and set off in the direction of -Woolloomooloo, where Terence resided when in town. - -* * * * * * - -_Midnight!_ The solemn strokes of some big clock in the city boomed -over the quiet waters of the bay, and the two soldierly old men who -were standing on the little jetty at the foot of the garden at -'Sobraon' turned rather helplessly towards one another. - -'We may as well go in, Charles,' said the elder, who was Colonel -Haughton's brother-in-law, General Cantor. He will not return -to-night, I feel sure.' To himself he added: 'I don't believe he -means to return at all, poor lad.' For General Cantor had been to a -large extent in his nephew's confidence, and had long ago made up his -mind that George would one day end the constant friction by a sudden -snapping of home ties. - -'I dare say you are right, William,' the colonel answered, too -depressed to argue; 'yet he often pulls home across the bay at night. -Well, well; I have been a tyrant and a fool. I see that {missing -words} pray God not too late.' There was a {missing words} voice, -and he turned about to cast one more look over the shimmering sea. -'God bless the boy, wherever he is, whatever he does,' he murmured, -and, leaning heavily upon his upright little brother-in-law, went -back to the house. - -There they wished one another good-night rather tremulously; but the -colonel set the French-window of his son's room ajar, and with a -prayer in his sorrowful heart for the absent lad went thoughtfully to -bed. - -The first streak of morning found him again in George's room, looking -eagerly for some sign of his presence. George was not there, but the -window had been shut, and a letter lay conspicuously upon a table. -The colonel caught it up and tore it open with trembling fingers. A -glance gave him a grasp of the contents, and with a bitter cry he -flung himself upon his knees by the empty bed and poured out his -heart in prayer that no harm might come to the son whom he loved so -well and had used so hardly. - -The letter ran: - - -'MY DEAR FATHER,--I think that it is wiser for me to leave home for a -time and strike out a line for myself. It grieves me to oppose you, -but, as I feel myself to be utterly unfitted for a commercial life, -there is nothing else to be done. We used to be such {missing words} -and we have neither of us been very happy since mother died. Don't -imagine that I am going away because of our little breeze to-day. I -have not thought of that again. Really, I have not. I shall write -as soon as I have settled to the work I have chosen, and will keep -you posted as to my movements. Good-bye, my dear old dad. My love -to Uncle William; and you may both of you be sure that I shall try -and remember your teaching and his and keep straight. I am afraid -you will say that I am making a crooked beginning; but, father, in -this matter I can't obey you. I can't indeed. Good-bye again. Try -to remember me as your affectionate son, - -GEORGE.' - - -And this was almost the last that Colonel Haughton heard of his son -for many a day. - - - - -CHAPTER II - -THE QUEEN'S SHILLING SUNDERS FRIENDS - -Down the South Head Road, down the long, narrow length of George -Street, headed by its splendid band, swept the famous regiment, a -glittering streak of scarlet and steel; and all the way from -Paddington Barracks to the great wharf at the Circular Quay, where -lay the waiting transport, the people cheered themselves hoarse, -waving banners and scattering flowers under the marching feet. For -the gallant 600th were going to New Zealand--going to the war. - -Everywhere was orderly bustle as the men embarked, and no one found -time to heed the behaviour of two young civilians, who had managed to -get on board, and who at once made a hurried descent into the darkest -corner of the forehatch; nor did they emerge even when the noisy bell -clanged out a warning to those who belonged to the shore to make all -haste and get there. - -The transport, led by a proud little tug, was passing Farm Cove, the -beautiful anchorage for ships of the naval squadron, which fronts the -ornamental grounds of Government House, when the disciplined quiet of -the frigate was disturbed by an outcry in the neighbourhood of the -fo'c'sle, and Sergeant-major Horn, hurrying to ascertain the cause, -was met, to his great surprise, by a couple of his men, who haled -between them a pair of dishevelled youths. - -'Silence, you there!' commanded the sergeant-major sternly. Then to -George and Terence--for they, indeed, were the stowaways: 'What's the -meaning of this? Who are you? Where do you come from? What brought -you here?' His quick eye at once discerned that the young men he -addressed were not of the same class as those who detained them. - -George had not reckoned upon being compelled to make a public -declaration. He had looked for a quiet word with the sergeant-major, -whom he hoped to win to his side. Consequently, he was for a moment -at a loss; but, while he was framing a reply, Terence, with a comical -glance at the men, struck in, employing his richest brogue. - -'Aw! Sargint, darlin', listen to me, now. We're gintlemin out av -work. We've come out of two dir-r-rty barr'ls in the forehatch. We -wor brought here be the boys in rid. And as to the manin' av ut all, -why, I'll tell ye that, too, so I will; but only in your own ear, me -jool.' - -'None of your impudence, now,' quoth Horn darkly, and scowled at the -men, who were grinning broadly at Terence's absurd appearance. For -his shock of red hair was more tousled than ever, and the assumed -simplicity of his expression would, according to one of the men, have -made a cat laugh. - -'Luk at that, now!' cried Terence, deftly shifting the burden of -reproof from his own shoulders. 'B'ys, I wonder at ye, so I do, -laughin' at your shuparior offisher an' all'; which was too much for -the men, who sent back a storm of chaff. - -'Silence!' roared Horn, 'Now then, you two, give an account of -yourselves, or over the side you go.' - -Terence had no intention of allowing his sense of fun to spoil their -chance, so he shot a look at George, who replied quietly: 'We came on -board, hoping that you would see your way to enlist us in the -regiment.' - -'Oh! I thought you might be trying to snatch a passage to New -Zealand,' returned Horn, inwardly admiring the splendid physique of -the speaker, with whose features he was vaguely familiar. 'If to -enlist is your game, why didn't you come up to the barracks -yesterday, instead of sneaking on board like this?' - -The pair flushed at this offensive way of putting it; but George -could hardly admit that they had avoided the barracks for fear of -being recognised, since many of the officers were personal friends of -his father and himself, and all were on visiting terms at his home. -So he replied simply: 'The truth is, it was quite impossible for us -to enlist yesterday.' - -Horn was puzzled. The couple in front of him were fine specimens of -physical manhood, but what they asked for smacked strongly of -irregularity. Besides, they might have been up to some mischief, and -he did not wish to incur a responsibility which might get him into -more or less serious trouble. But he wanted these two likely -fellows; so he determined to speak to the adjutant about them. - -But George read his thoughts, and, unobtrusively slipping a sovereign -into his hand, said in a low voice: 'Don't report the matter just -yet, Sergeant-major. We don't want to run any risk of being stopped.' - -Horn took another good look at them as he deftly pouched the gold. -'No,' said he; 'I don't believe that either of you would play a dirty -trick. I'll chance it, though I expect there'll be a row. Line up -here.' - -George was radiant. He shook Terence heartily by the hand, and in so -doing shifted his position so as to bring his friend opposite to the -sergeant-major, who very naturally addressed him first, putting -several questions to him, all of which Terence answered in his own -humorous fashion. - -'I'll get even with you presently, my fine fellow,' said Horn dryly, -and finally inquired: 'Do you join of your own free will, being -sober, and not under compulsion?' - -'Sober!' echoed Terence, to the huge delight of his audience. 'Why, -I'm as dhry as a cow widout a calf; and as to compulsion-- - -'None of your lip,' cut in Horn, handing him a shilling with the -verbal bonus: 'And now look here, young shaver, if I have any more of -your cheek, you'll begin your military career in the punishment cells -on bread and water. So now you know.' - -The look which accompanied these harsh-sounding words was genial -enough, and Terence had the wit to understand the hint conveyed, -namely, that he now belonged to a disciplined body, whose dealings -with their superiors were very nicely regulated. - -'Now then, you,' said Horn to George. 'What's your name?' - -Confident that before he had been many hours a soldier some of the -officers would be sure to recognise him, George thought it useless to -assume a _nom de guerre_. So he answered in a clear voice, 'George -Haughton.' - -'George Haughton!' sounded like an echo behind him. 'So it is! And -what brings you here, George?' - -And at the sound of that too-familiar voice, which he recognised as -that of his father's old friend, Colonel Cranstoun, commanding the -600th, George realised with bitter disappointment that his chance of -taking the Queen's shilling that day was as good as gone. - -Colonel Cranstoun had watched the scene on the foredeck under the -impression that the sergeant-major was interrogating a couple of -stowaways, but when he saw the pair line up, he suspected some -irregularity, and hastened to investigate the matter. He was -short-sighted, so that it was not until he neared the group that he -was struck by something familiar in the appearance of the two young -men; but, as he came up behind them, it was only when he heard -George's name that he realised, to his unbounded surprise, that the -would-be recruit was the son of his old friend and sword-brother, -Colonel Haughton. - -'What on earth are you doing here, George?' repeated the amazed -chief, as the men fell back respectfully. - -'I was just going to enlist, sir,' George answered quietly, though -inwardly he was raging. - -'Oh! Were you indeed?' said Colonel Cranstoun dryly. 'And Mr. -Moore? Does he, too, wish to enlist?' - -'Begging your pardon, sir,' put in Horn, saluting, 'he has this -moment enlisted.' - -Colonel Cranstoun looked deeply annoyed. 'Who authorised you to turn -the fore-deck into a recruiting depot?' he demanded sternly of Horn, -who cast an imploring look at George. - -'It was my fault, Colonel,' interposed George at once, adding -naïvely, 'I was afraid that if you knew you would prevent us.' - -Under pretence of giving his moustache a twist, Colonel Cranstoun hid -a smile behind his hand. 'Follow me to my cabin, George,' he said, -and, curtly returning the dejected Horn's salute, walked off, -followed by George, who felt decidedly cheap. - -Terence, left behind, looked after his friend with an air of comical -resignation, and inquired of the sergeant-major in a dolorous whine: -'Aw, sergeant dear, can I offer you a guinea to take back the -shilling I had of you just now?' - -'Oh, dry up!' snapped the disgusted Horn. 'Why couldn't you say you -knew the colonel? I'll get my head blown off. But how was I to -know? _You're_ booked anyhow,' he wound up, with a snarl. - -'Faith, 'tis cooked as well as booked I am,' sighed Terence. 'He'll -never let George enlist, and then what will I do at all, at all?' - -'Take him out of this!' vociferated Horn. 'No; let him stay. The -colonel may want him when he's done with that other lump of -mischief.' He stalked off in high dudgeon. - -Meantime Colonel Cranstoun had shut himself in his cabin with George. -'Tell me the meaning of all this, my boy,' he said kindly. 'Is it a -case of bolt?' - -George nodded gloomily; then burst out with impetuous pleading: -'Don't ask me to go back, Colonel Cranstoun, for I can't and I won't.' - -'Let me hear your story,' said the colonel; and as briefly as -possible George gave him the details of his difference with his -father. When he had finished, Colonel Cranstoun laid a hand upon his -shoulder. - -'It must be clear to you, George, that I cannot countenance this -escapade. What should I say to my old friend--if we ever meet -again--were I to allow his son to do a foolish thing, and put forth -no hand to save him from his folly?' - -One glance at the fine, inflexible face told George that pleading -would be thrown away; so he said as quietly as he could: 'Very good, -sir. I would rather serve under you than under any one; but since -you won't have me, I shall enlist as soon as we reach New Zealand.' - -'You are not going there in this ship,' the colonel said curtly. - -This was a facer, and George caught his breath. He had reckoned -without his host. He had a sickening sense of what was coming. - -'Now, George, you know your duty as well as I do,' went on the -colonel. 'Make your father understand that you can't adopt -the--er--profession he has in view for you--I don't blame you for -that; quite the contrary--but don't try to persuade yourself that you -are doing anything heroic in running away from home like a schoolboy.' - -'Well, sir,' answered George in his quietest manner, 'if I can't go -in this ship, I will in another.' - -Colonel Cranstoun's gesture indicated impatience. 'I must inspect -the men before we pass the Heads,' he said. 'Listen to me, George. -I am going to send you back in the tug; but I want you to promise me -that when you reach Sydney you will go straight home.' - -'No, sir; I will make no such promise.' - -The colonel's temper departed with startling suddenness. 'You -obstinate young dog!' he roared. 'I don't wonder your father -thrashed you. Give me your promise, or I'll have you clapped in -irons and handed over to the master of the tug.' - -'I shall make no promise, whatever you do,' retorted George. - -'Then make none, and be hanged to you!' snapped the colonel. 'I -shall know how to deal with you. Dash it, sir! don't imagine that -you can play fast and loose with me.' - -He flung out of the cabin in a royal rage; but George was at the door -before he could close it. 'What about Terence, sir? He only -enlisted because he believed that I should do so, too--as I most -certainly should have done, had not you, unfortunately, put in an -appearance when you were least wanted.' - -The remark was unfortunate, at all events, and there was a wicked -gleam in the colonel's eye as he said relentlessly: 'Your friend has -taken the Queen's shilling, sir, and I shall make it my business to -see that Her Majesty gets value for her money. I'll not interfere.' - -He did not tell George that, owing to the irregularity of the whole -proceeding, he could, as colonel, have quashed the enlistment with a -word. 'Besides,' he went on, 'I suspect that young Moore has been -leading you into mischief, and I dare say your father will thank me -for taking him out of your way for a time. What, sir? Not a word! -No; I'll not hear another word.' - -'Yes; you shall hear just one,' cried George, now in a rage on his -part. 'It is most unjust of you to revenge yourself upon my innocent -friend, and to accuse him in this monstrous fashion because I won't -give in to you. But whatever you do'--he laughed defiantly--'I'll -get to New Zealand in spite of you.' - -The colonel glared at him; but George met him eye to eye, and -presently, age and experience gaining the upper hand, Colonel -Cranstoun marched out of the cabin with a dignity which somehow made -George feel small. In a quarter of an hour he was back again, -saying, as if nothing had happened: 'The tug is ready, George. I -take it that you will give me the promise I asked for.' - -'No, sir; I can't do that,' George answered respectfully; 'but I beg -your pardon for the manner in which I spoke to you just now.' Then -he fell in behind the colonel and marched to the side, where he found -that the old warrior had so far relented as to allow Terence to stand -by to bid him adieu. Some of the men giggled, but most of them -looked sorry for him, and his friends among the officers nodded -sympathetically as he passed them. - -Silently the friends clasped hands, and George said in low tones: -'Keep a bright look-out for me, Terence; I shall not be long in -following you.' - -Colonel Cranstoun overheard the remark as he came up with -outstretched hand; but he merely smiled and said: 'Good-bye, George. -Don't bear malice. I am only doing my duty, you know.' - -George shook hands cordially enough with him, and with another grip -of his chum's hard fist jumped aboard the tug, which immediately cast -off. For some time young Haughton watched his friend, who had -climbed into the rigging and was waving frantically; but when the -frigate came up to the wind and Terence was no longer visible, he -flung himself down upon a coil of rope and bitterly reviled his own -hard lot. - -Presently he rose again and gazed seawards over the heaving Pacific. -The fine frigate, under a cloud of canvas, was already far distant. -With longing eyes George looked after her, and, as she skimmed away -upon the starboard tack, leaned over the taffrail and gave himself up -to gloomy meditation. - -The rough-and-tumble motion of the tug suited the turbulent thoughts -which filled George's mind, but as the little vessel passed back -through the Heads and came suddenly to an even keel, as suddenly did -the unwilling passenger realise that, while every moment was bearing -Terence nearer to the goal of their hopes, he himself, balked and -trapped, was being sent ignominiously home like a bale of damaged -goods. - -He turned and began to pace the deck with quick, decided steps. He -would not, he could not, go home. On that point he was determined. -Right or wrong, he had made his choice and would abide by it. -Besides, there was Terence to be thought of; Terence, who so -willingly had sacrificed a paying occupation to follow the fortunes -of his friend, and who now was left in the lurch by this unkind trick -of fate. No; by hook or by crook he must get to New Zealand. But -how? There was the rub. - -'What ship is that?' he asked a sailor, pointing to a smart brig -anchored about half a mile from the quay, and flying the 'Blue Peter.' - -'The _Stella_, sir,' the man answered, 'and a handy craft she is. -She sails at six o'clock to-morrow morning for Chatham Island, with -stores for the prisoners there.' - -George's heart gave a great leap, and the sailor, greatly to his -surprise, received half a crown for this very trifling piece of -information. But it was by no means trifling to George, whose -despondency evaporated like dew in the sunshine, as he told himself -that, come what might in the way of opposition, he would sail in that -brig and somehow reach New Zealand. For in the Chatham Islands, some -three hundred miles east of their coast, the New Zealand Government -had established a penal settlement for Maoris, at which ships -occasionally called with provisions and other necessaries. And of -this fortunate circumstance George then and there made up his mind to -take the fullest advantage. - -The skipper of the tug had received a sovereign from Colonel -Cranstoun as passage money for 'the young gentleman,' and fully -expected to receive another from Colonel Haughton on delivering the -said young gentleman in good order at his own front door. But this -money was never earned, for it cost George but little effort to evade -the clumsy seaman, and, as soon as the tug touched the quay, he -leaped ashore and ran for his liberty. - -Once out of sight he defied capture, though no attempt was made to -take him, and, having written his father a letter, in which he -described his adventure and stated his intentions, he returned to the -quay after nightfall, hired a dingy, and pulled out to the brig, -where he had a satisfactory interview with her skipper. - -The outcome of this was an arrangement whereby George was to help as -far as he could on the voyage to Chatham Island, to pay the cost of -his food, and to give the skipper a bonus of two pounds. In return -he was to receive a free passage to whatever New Zealand port the -brig should first touch at on her return voyage. The agreement made, -George and the skipper shook hands heartily with mutual esteem, each -complimenting himself upon his shrewdness in driving an excellent -bargain. - -And so George fulfilled his promise to Terence that he would not be -long in following him; though, little as he expected it, he was -destined to meet with some strange adventures before he once again -clasped hands with his friend. - - - - -CHAPTER III - -THE PRICE OF SUCCESS - -It was a lovely evening; lovely as evening can be in the isle-strewn, -iridescent seas beneath the Southern Cross. The sun, setting behind -the ship which came sailing out of the radiant west, threw his magic -mantle over the rolling clouds which lay in inky masses where the -ocean touched them in the distant east, filling their hollows with -crimson, fringing their pinnacles and battlements with ruddy gold. -Fronting the dreamy horizon, Wari-Kauri, Rangi-Haute, and -Rangatira[1] slumbered peacefully in the rosy light, while great Te -Wenga's gloomy bosom caught and kept the fire-tipped shafts. -Northwards, the uprising cones of basalt reflected the flames in the -sky. Southwards, green-black forest and fern-grown gully blazed for -a moment ere they paled away in the dusk. Ahead, the surges, fearful -of the night, curled and broke with ceaseless thunder upon the reefs, -flinging high their snowy crests to snatch yet one more glory from -the day, and falling back, a shower of jewels of ineffable hues. -Astern, as if to guide the gliding ship, long paths of crimson light -streamed from the sinking sun, and shot aslant in wavering lines from -sky to sea, from sea to shore. And as the _Stella_ slipped to her -moorings, the rattle of the chain, the splash of the falling anchor, -broke in upon the sweet peace; day, affrighted, fled with the sun, -and night, fearing no terrors, brooded upon sea and land. - - -[1] The Chatham Islands, a group lying some 300 miles east of New -Zealand. Wari-Kauri is Chatham Island proper. - - -As the _Stella_ neared the shore, a boat, manned by Maori prisoners, -put off to give what help might be required. In the stern sat a man -who instantly attracted George's attention, and, curiously enough, -the young Englishman seemed at the same moment to become the object -of profound interest on the part of the Maori, who stared at him as -if fascinated. - -George had seen many Maoris and admired them; but this one attracted -him strangely, and, certainly, no one looking at the man would have -taken him for a convict. His face was handsome, notwithstanding the -intricate designs carved upon it from brow to chin; his eyes bright, -and so restless that they conveyed the impression of incessantly -shooting points of light. His figure was strong, though not massive, -and much more symmetrical than is usual among his countrymen, who are -generally short legged and long-bodied. - -Altogether he was a remarkable man, and he moved among his companions -with a stateliness and an air of condescension which, but for his -impressive appearance, would have seemed ludicrously incongruous. As -his furtive brown eyes, glancing this way and that, encountered those -of George, frankly full of interest and admiration, they fell for an -instant, and then, seeing that the Englishman was about to advance -and speak to him, he clambered hastily over the side and dropped back -into the boat. - -'That is an uncommonly fine-looking fellow,' thought George. 'I -wonder what he has done to be cooped up along with those evil-faced -rascals. Not that his own expression is particularly engaging; but -he has not the cut of a convict. And what a figure! I should like -to see more of him.' - -It is sometimes unwise to express a wish without previous -consideration, and had George dreamed that he was to be taken at his -word, or even faintly imagined how much more he was to see of this -splendid Maori before all was done, he would have borrowed the -wishing-cap once more, and had himself carried back to Sydney without -delay. - -But George was troubled with no sinister anticipations, and he was up -and on deck betimes next morning, for there was much to be done, and -he was not one to shirk that part of his contract which included hard -work. The men had quickly discovered this, and, in consequence, -every one on board liked him, while George, on his side, liked every -one. He gave himself no airs, being sure of his own position, but -respected himself and others, and did loyally what he had agreed to -do. As a natural result he gained the respect and goodwill of those -with whom he was associated. - -The day dawned in all the lovely colours of the tropics, and the -scene upon which George gazed was but a more radiant rendering of the -exquisite picture of the previous evening. Bustle already reigned -upon deck, and the captain's gig floated gently upon the ingoing -tide, ready to bear the skipper ashore. On the island all was quiet -to the eye, and apparently the inhabitants had not yet risen, for not -a soul was to be seen. - -With a cheery 'Good-morning, Mr. Haughton. I'll be back in an hour,' -Captain Varsall set off for the shore, and George went to work with a -will, bending his strong back over the cases in the hold and -arranging a number of iron rods for easier stowage in the boats. - -So absorbed was he in what had to be done, that his thoughts were -wholly diverted from the shore until, half an hour or so after the -departure of the gig, he was startled to hear the sharp smack of a -rifle, fired not far away. He left his work, and hurried to the side -of the ship, an example which was followed by most of the crew. - -A singular sight met their eyes. A boat-load of Maoris was being -pulled with frantic haste towards the brig, while on the island men -and women, brown and white, were running wildly and, it seemed, -aimlessly in all directions. Shots, too, became frequent, though -neither their source nor result could be distinguished, since they -were fired somewhere behind the houses. Then, while the watchers -wondered, Captain Varsall was seen to run headlong out of the -Residency, turn and discharge his revolver thrice in quick -succession, and flee at top speed towards the beach. All at once he -stopped, threw his arms above his head, and, just as a puff of smoke -curled lightly upwards from one of the windows, fell face down upon -the sand, and lay still, with arms outstretched. - -[Illustration: Captain Varsall was seen to flee at top speed towards -the beach (page 28).] - -But there was scant time to lament the captain's fate, for a crowd of -brown men clambered over the rail and dropped upon the deck before -George could move from the spot whence he gazed, fascinated, at the -vivid picture of life and death. Then, even as he turned, a deep -musical voice at his side exclaimed: 'Move an inch, young Pakeha,[2] -and you shall walk swiftly to Reinga.[3] - - -[2] White man. - -[3] The abode of departed spirits. - - -George possessed a good working knowledge of the Maori tongue; but it -needed no linguist to interpret the significance of a gun, held in -powerful hands and presented at his head; nor was it less obvious -that a rising of the convicts had taken place with complete success -for the mutineers. Resistance was out of the question, for another -lot of Maoris boarded the brig, and ere the bewildered remnant of the -crew had fairly grasped the fact that they were attacked, they were -roughly bundled into the hold and the hatches battened down. - -George wondered why he had not been served similarly; but he was -evidently reserved for more distinguished treatment, for his guard, -motioning towards the deck-house, said: 'Let the young Pakeha go in -there, into the little whare (house) that sits upon the bosom of the -ship.' - -'_Ka pai!_' (Good!) returned George, and the fierce brown face -lightened for an instant at the sound of the Maori speech in the -mouth of the handsome young Pakeha. - -'_Haere ra!_'[4] exclaimed the Maori, grinning and using the native -form of salutation to a departing guest; and '_Au haere!_'[5] -answered George, feeling pleasantly satisfied that no harm was -intended him, in the first instance at all events. - - -[4] Literally, 'Go truly.' - -[5] 'I go,' i.e. 'Good-bye.' - - -'This is a sudden change,' thought the young man, as he looked -through a little window at the shore. 'The poor skipper is done for; -he has not moved since he fell. There's that tall fellow who was -aboard yesterday. He is making for the beach. Now for developments. -I suspect that he is at the bottom of this wretched business.' - -As he watched, boat-load after boat-load of Maoris put off from the -shore, their embarkation being directed by the tall, dignified man -with whom George had been so struck the day before. As each boat -reached the brig, it emptied itself of its passengers and stores, and -returned for more, so that in no very long time all the quondam -prisoners, to the number of about two hundred, were transferred to -the ship. - -Presently the last of the boats left the beach, bringing the tall -Maori and such of his associates as had been employed to guard the -Residency and other houses, as well as the two sailors who had rowed -the unfortunate skipper ashore. A short interval followed, and then, -amid the most lively demonstrations of welcome and respect, the -organiser of the revolt boarded the brig, and stood looking about him -with the proud air of a conqueror. - -With a few curt words he dismissed the fawning crowd, and after a -thorough examination of the brig and her cargo, returned to the -deck-house. A whisper sent the guard out of earshot, and a moment -later George found himself in the presence of the man who was -destined ere long to prove himself a mighty warrior, and to incur the -bitter hatred and execration of every colonist in New Zealand. - - - - -CHAPTER IV - -TE KAREAREA[1] - - -[1] The Sparrow-Hawk. - -As Englishman and Maori faced one another, they afforded admirable -examples of opposite types. The one tall and superbly moulded, -fair-haired and blue-eyed, and with winning frankness and generous -high-mindedness in every line of his well-cut features; the other not -quite so tall, but equally well made, with coal-black hair, furtive -brown eyes, and an expression indicative of courage and intelligence, -but also of a high degree of cunning. - -'Salutations to you, O friend!' began the Maori in his own language. -'How are you called? I am Te Karearea. It seems you speak with the -tongue of the Maori.' - -'To you also salutations, O chief!' returned George. 'I am called -Hortoni.' He gave his name according to Maori pronunciation, adding: -'I would rather that you spoke the speech of the Pakeha, for it is -long since I was in the land of the Maori, and I have forgotten much.' - -Te Karearea took no notice of this appeal. 'There are some things it -is wiser to forget,' he said sententiously, with a backward glance at -the shore. 'Let us forget that I have been a--what I have been. It -is better to remember only that I am Te Karearea, an _Ariki_.'[2] - - -[2] A chief of the highest class. - - -'I will remember, O swift-flying, quick-striking one!' replied -George, with a slight inclination. - -This allusion to the significance of his name pleased the chief, -whose fierce features relaxed in a smile. 'It is good,' he said. -'Fear nought, Hortoni; I mean you no evil. No one shall suffer at my -hands.' - -'Yet the captain of the brig lies dead upon the sand,' observed -George, with less than his usual tact. - -'He was a fool,' answered Te Karearea, with darkening brow. 'He -resisted, and my young men slew him.' He studied George intently for -a moment, and resumed: 'They who are wise will not walk to Reinga. -You, for instance, Hortoni, would rather that they should carry you -there. Is it not so, my friend?'[3] - - -[3] By one familiar with Maori metaphor this would be understood to -mean that a man would prefer to await death in the natural course of -events, rather than anticipate it by resistance. - - -George gravely inclined his head. - -'Then hear the word of Te Karearea,' pursued the chief. 'Can I not -swallow the Pakehas on this ship as the inrushing tide swallows the -beach? Can I not slay or spare, according to my will?' There was a -deep, booming note in his voice, as of distant thunder, threatening a -storm, and he paused, glaring at George, who held his respectful -attitude, not being a fool, as Te Karearea had admitted. - -'I hate the Pakehas, though there are some whom I am able to esteem,' -went on the chief, accompanying the softening clause with a sly smile -in the direction of the listener. 'Yet, though I hate, I can be -merciful. I can spare as well as slay. Is it not so, O Hortoni?' - -Still George only bowed acquiescence, wondering what the chief would -be at. He knew perfectly well that all this circumlocution meant -that the chief wanted something of him, but what it was he could not -imagine. So he tried the effect of a direct question: 'What are you -going to do with us?' - -But the wily Maori was not to be caught. 'Time will show, Hortoni,' -he replied. 'At present I say nought.' - -'To what end all this talk then, O Chief? Are we not as rats in a -trap? Why should the hawk converse with the rat, if not to devour -him? Will you then spare the lives of the rats in the hold?' - -'What is all this talk of taking life?' the Maori demanded. 'Behold, -they who speak of Reinga are on the road to Reinga. You are young -and strong. I set you over the Pakehas. It is the desire of Te -Karearea to set them free, and to that end let them bring the ship to -Turanga and go. Do they wish to be turned loose in the water?' he -finished with a sinister grin, and stalked out. - -It was out at last--the end of this roundabout parleying was in view. -Not for nothing had Te Karearea spared the lives of the sailors. -Without the crew the ship would have been of little use to him; but -by sparing the men he would be enabled to reach New Zealand as -speedily as the brig could sail thither. Otherwise, at the mercy of -the winds and waves, he might be months in completing the voyage--if, -indeed, it ever were completed. - -'So that is his little game,' thought George. 'He offers us our -lives to bring him and his brother rascals to New Zealand. I must -see the mate and talk it over with him. I can't decide upon my own -responsibility." - -At this moment the door opened and the mate was ushered in. - -'Well now, Mr. 'Aughton, this 'ere's a rummy go, and no mistake,' he -began. 'And the poor skipper gone, too. I saw it all, Mr. 'Aughton, -as you may say, and----' - -But George had had too much experience of the mate's garrulity to -scruple about cutting it short; so he briefly put before the sailor -the proposal of the chief--for it amounted to a proposal--and wound -up by asking his opinion as to the best course to pursue. - -Mr. Bigham's opinion, tersely stated, was that he hated to give in to -a nigger. - -'I says, let us seem to agree, but round on the blankety niggers if -we see a good chance,' he suggested joyously. - -'If we promise, we must perform, Mr. Bigham,' said George gravely. -'Perhaps news of the rising will reach New Zealand before we do, and -a cruiser may be sent to intercept us.' - -'No chance of it. That smart chief has seen to that,' returned -Bigham gloomily. 'The only vessel belonging to the island was a -ketch, and the beggar sent her drifting out to sea.' Once again he -expressed an extremely uncomplimentary opinion of 'niggers' and all -their works and ways. - -'Then there is nothing for it but to accept, if we wish to save our -lives. But we must play fair,' said George. - -'I can't see as we're bound to keep our word to a lot of darned -niggers,' objected Mr. Bigham, with heat. 'If we get a chance to -knock the brown brutes on the head, why shouldn't we take it?' - -George answered the fool according to his folly. - -'Can't you see, Bigham, that, as we are outnumbered by more than ten -to one, we must submit?' - -'But only till we get the chance to square the account,' persisted -Bigham, who hailed from Bolton, and had all the native obstinacy of -the Lancashire man. 'Well; I'll go and tell the men.' And he went. - -The voice of the chief roused George from meditations of a somewhat -mixed character. 'Have you decided, Hortoni?' he inquired, and there -was a note of triumph in his tone which convinced George that he knew -a great deal more English than he chose to admit. - -After a moment's consideration George replied for himself. 'I give -you my word that I will help to navigate the brig to Turanga, and -that I will not attempt to embarrass you while I am on board. On -your part, you undertake to set me free as soon as we touch land. -That is our bargain; is it not?' - -'And will Big Man promise, too? Will the sailors help?' asked the -chief. 'Ha! here he comes. Let us hear what he has to say.' - -'We agree,' the mate announced, but with a wink so portentous that -George was made fully aware that the acceptance of the chief's terms -covered some deep mental reservation. But he took no notice of the -stupid fellow's side-hint, and, turning to their captor, said: 'It is -well, O Hawk of the Mountain. We will bring the ship to land, if you -will thereafter let us go free.' - -'It is well,' echoed Te Karearea, flashing a glance at the mate. -'You have dealt fairly with me, Hortoni, and I am minded to be your -friend. The eyes of the hawk are very keen, and he sees what is good -and what is bad. So, too, I read the hearts of those upon whom my -eyes are fastened.' Just then they were blazing upon Bigham with a -malignity which even that dullard should have perceived. But as he -regarded George, the chief's glance became milder. - -'You have chosen wisely, O Hortoni!' he concluded. Then with a final -ambiguity, 'I shall not forget what I have heard,' he folded his mat -about his shoulders and stalked out of the deck-house. - -'You also will do well to remember what you have heard, Mr. Bigham,' -George said, translating Te Karearea's speech for him. 'I hope you -were sincere in what you said just now,' he continued with some -severity. 'We have to deal with a very clever man, and I earnestly -advise you not to measure your wits against his.' - -Bigham's grin widened, and he winked more portentously than before. -Otherwise he made no reply. - - - - -CHAPTER V - -THE GRATITUDE OF TE KAIHUIA - -For the first few days the voyage was uneventful, and the Maoris, -revelling in the freedom which the courage and skill of their leader -had won for them, behaved like a parcel of children unexpectedly let -loose from school. Te Karearea himself devoted a good deal of time -to the conciliation of the young Englishman, with whom he would often -engage in conversation with a charm of manner which was hard to -resist. Invariably, too, he bewailed his inability to converse in -the Pakeha tongue, though he admitted that he had mastered a few -words which served him well enough upon unimportant occasions. - -Nevertheless, one night when Bigham--who was for ever whispering -among the men after dark--dismissed three of his cronies after a -muttered colloquy, the dark form of the chief rose from the lifeboat, -beneath which the meeting had taken place. He looked cautiously -about him, and then, seeing no one but his own guards, who patrolled -the deck night and day, leaped lightly down and stole away. - -But George had observed him, and deliberated whether he should warn -Bigham. Finally, however, he decided to wait, feeling confident that -the mate would not take any important step without consulting him, in -which case he would be in a better position to protest against any -foolhardy venture. - -The days wore on, the light winds growing lighter and lighter, until -at length there fell a dead calm; the _Stella_ floated idly upon the -vast bosom of the sea, and the lively chatter of the Maoris gave way -to gloomy silence, while their scarred faces scowled, and their -fierce brown eyes flashed wrath at the white sailors, as if they -alone were responsible for the vagaries of the weather. - -One afternoon--it was the third day of the calm--as George swung -drowsily in his hammock, he was aroused by a shrill scream and the -patter of feet along the deck. Again the scream rang out, high and -quavering, and presently was drowned by a deep-toned chant, chorussed -by a hundred rich male voices which rose and fell in unison. - -'They are propitiating the wind-god, I suppose,' mused George, -feeling too lazy to get up and find out. 'Yesterday they threw their -greenstone ornaments overboard; but it did no good. What children -they are for all their strength and--Hullo! Good heavens!' - -He sat suddenly upright, with the result that he pitched out of his -hammock with a nasty bump; but he was up in a second, and as he raced -up the forehatch, the words of the chant came clearly to his -horrified ears: - - '... Come, then, Te Kaihuia, old friend! - Come, O thou ancient and venerable Palm Tree! - Come, beloved uncle, and be sacrificed straightway! - The deep sea waits for thee; - For us wait the gentle, favouring winds - To bear us home. So come....' - - -The Maoris were grouped in a double crescent, the horns touching the -starboard gangway, beside which stood Te Karearea, wearing the -complacent expression of a man who generously sacrifices a most -cherished possession for the good of the public. Opposite to him two -big Maoris bent over a very old and withered creature, whom, with -many expressions of endearment, they were encouraging to take a -header into the sea. - -The old man--the 'ancient Palm Tree' of the chant--was Te Kaihuia, an -uncle of Te Karearea, and since the sacrifice of the greenstone -ornaments had not availed to propitiate the god of winds and storms, -the chief had graciously given permission for his aged relative to be -thrown into the sea. Meanwhile the singers, at the top of their -lusty voices, asserted the cheerful acquiescence of the victim. - -But the poor old man was not willing, and his heartrending appeal for -mercy so moved George that he roughly pushed his way through a group -of grinning seamen, sharply chiding them for their cruel -indifference, and walked straight up to the chief. - -'What is this, O Te Karearea?' he demanded haughtily. 'Why do you -allow your young men to maltreat old Te Kaihuia? Whatever your -followers may believe, you know well enough that to murder an old man -for the sake of getting a breeze is a piece of stupid cruelty.' - -In his excitement he had spoken in English; but the amused gleam in -the chief's eyes assured him that he had been understood, so without -a pause he went on in Maori: 'Let him live, my friend, and I promise -you the wind before evening.' - -Te Karearea started and stared hard at George, who had, of course, -spoken impulsively, and looked rather foolish when pressed for an -explanation; whereupon the chief's lips curled in a cynical smile, -and he made a covert sign to the men who were holding his ancient -relative. - -Alert to catch the signal, they swung up the old fellow and, before -George could turn, flung him far out into the sea, where, with that -curious instinct which seems to attract them whenever death is in the -air, several sharks were already gathered, their triangular dorsal -fins moving ceaselessly to and fro as they waited, expectant, for -their prey. - -But, even as the old man vanished over the side, George burst through -the crescent and took a running jump into the sea. So swift was his -action that the noise of the two bodies striking the water came to -the ears of those on board as one great splash, and as the crew of -the brig, now thoroughly ashamed of themselves, cheered -enthusiastically, George appeared above the surface, holding the old -Maori in the loop of one arm, while with the other he struck out -vigorously. - -Quick as thought, Te Karearea seized a rifle from the nearest armed -guard and fired at a black fin which drove swiftly in the wake of the -swimmer. The ball went home, and in an instant the sea was dyed red, -as the rapacious sharks tore in pieces the body of their late ally. - -But for this timely intervention a frightful tragedy must have been -enacted; but, as it was, while the guards at a word from their chief -directed a terrific fusillade at the sharks, Bigham cast a rope to -George, who was hauled up not much the worse for his dive, while the -air rang with the hurrahs of the crew. - -The ancient gentleman was handed over the side in a very limp -condition, and borne away to be dried and ironed, as it were, while -George, with an ugly scowl at Te Karearea, who came up all smiles and -compliments, hurried below to change his clothes. - -Singularly enough, shortly after this exciting episode the smiling -azure of the sea began to darken, and as the shadow crept nearer, and -Neptune's white horses left their stables in the deep and galloped -upon the crests of the waves, a light breeze began to tickle the -cheeks of the sails and to hum among the cordage; so that presently -the bo'sun's cheerful pipe shrilled along the deck, and the sailors, -bounding aloft or hauling upon the sheets, soon made all snug for the -run. - -The amazement of the Maoris, who had overheard and jeered at George's -promise to their chief, may be imagined, and the venturesome -prophet's reputation was then and there established among them. -Whatever he thought of the matter, Te Karearea kept his opinion to -himself, and, waving aside those who would have babbled of it, -wrapped himself in his mat and paced the deck in grave meditation. - -When George had changed into a blue pilot-cloth suit, which had -belonged to Captain Varsall, he hurried on deck to look for old Te -Kaihuia, whom he found reclining upon a mat in a sunny corner. - -'A narrow escape, O venerable friend!' began the young man, smiling -down upon the shrivelled figure. 'You have looked through the gates -of Reinga.' - -The old Maori smiled back into the frank, good-tempered face, and -motioning George to a mat beside him, intimated his desire to perform -the _hongi_, or pressing together of noses, to which George submitted -with a good grace and, when the ceremony was over, prepared to -withdraw. But the old man begged him to remain, as he had something -further to say. - -With the greatest gravity Te Kaihuia drew a parcel from beneath his -mat, and with trembling fingers unrolled the half-dozen layers of -native cloth which formed the wrapping. Then with an air of -reverence almost amounting to awe, he drew out a greenstone -_mere_,[1] or club, of most perfect shape and colour, which he held -up to the admiring gaze of the Englishman. - - -[1] Pronounced almost as the English word 'merry.' - - -'What a beautiful--what a magnificent piece of greenstone!' exclaimed -George in genuine delight. Then, as Te Kaihuia regarded the weapon -with a look of mingled veneration and affection: 'Is it an -heirloom--the _mere_ of your ancestors?' - -'You are right, Hortoni,' replied the veteran. 'Far back in the -misty past, approaching the time when the Maori first set foot in Te -Ika A Maui,[2] this _mere_ belonged, according to tradition, to my -ancestor, Te Turi.[3] After him, it was handed down from father to -son through many generations.' - - -[2] The north island of New Zealand. Literally, 'The Fish of Maui.' - -[3] Maori names were frequently bestowed on account of physical or -mental peculiarities, or of real or fancied resemblance to natural -objects. Te Turi means The Obstinate, or Stubborn, One. - - -'Then your ancestor, Te Turi, was one of the earliest settlers in New -Zealand?' - -'He was, Hortoni, having come with Ngahue from Hawaiki.'[4] - - -[4] According to tradition, Ngahue was the Maori discoverer of New -Zealand, arriving from a mythical island, Hawaiki. - - -George took up the club and examined it. He had seen many a piece of -greenstone before, both in the rough and fashioned into ornaments and -weapons; but never had he seen anything so beautiful as this _mere_. -Its shape was perfect, and not only was the rich green mineral nearly -as transparent as glass, but all through its substance ran the most -exquisite veining and traceries, resembling fern-fronds, flowers, -miniature trees, and even birds and fishes. 'It is a most beautiful -object,' he said, handing it back. 'Your ancestor must have had -wonderful pride in his workmanship.' - -Te Kaihuia cast an apprehensive glance around; then whispered almost -inaudibly: 'The _mere_ was bestowed upon Te Turi. He did not make -it.' - -'Well, who gave it to him?' inquired George, amused at the -goblin-like aspect of the old creature. - -With another timid look above and around, Te Kaihuia whispered again -with thrilling emphasis: 'It was made by Tumatauenga, the god of war, -and he bestowed it upon Te Turi.' - -'Ah! then I am not surprised you set such store by it,' said George, -careful to suppress the smile which would have hurt the old man's -feelings. 'Such a beautiful piece of work deserves to have a -romantic history.' - -But he was destined to be surprised after all, for the aged Maori, -balancing the club in his worn hands, said impressively: 'You, too, -must set great store by it, Hortoni, for it is the gift of a god, and -has marvellous powers. O brave young friend, who thought the remnant -of an old man's life worth the risk of your own, stretch forth your -hand and receive this gift from me. Treasure it, my son, for it is -yours.' - -'_Mine!_' echoed George, supremely astonished. '_Mine!_ Oh no, Te -Kaihuia, this must not be. I will not take so valuable an heirloom -from you.' - -'It is mine to give,' persisted the hoary chief. 'Descendants I have -none. There is but my sister's son, Te Karearea, and rather than -that he should inherit it, I would fling it into the sea. And this I -swear I will do, Hortoni, if you take not the _mere_ as a gift.' He -gently pressed the club upon George, who took it with the greatest -reluctance. - -'Hearken, Hortoni,' the old man went on. 'There is much virtue in -this _mere_, and some day, perhaps ere long, you shall rejoice that -it is yours. Take it, my son, and with it an old man's blessing for -that your stout heart and strong arm succoured him in his extremity.' - -The superstitious veneration in which the Maoris held the greenstone, -and their devotion to family relics, were well known to George; but -when he realised that the old chief was sincere in his intention to -destroy the heirloom rather than allow it to pass into other hands -than his own, he made suitable acknowledgments, and thrust the -beautiful weapon into that division of his belt which had once -contained his revolver. - -His point gained, old Te Kaihuia seemed highly delighted, and rubbed -his lean hands together, grinning and chattering to himself. Finally -he calmed down, and with a sly glance at George, said coaxingly: 'If -you are not tired of an old man's tale, Hortoni, perhaps you would -like to hear the history of the _mere_ which has now become your own.' - -'I should, indeed,' answered George, who had been wondering whether -he might ask this very favour without giving offence or intruding -upon family secrets. - -Te Kaihuia looked pleased, settled himself upon his mats, coughed -once or twice after the manner of an orator about to address an -audience, and then, after a false start or two, unfolded to the -interested listener the following singular history. - - - - -CHAPTER VI - -THE STORY OF THE GREENSTONE MERE - -Te Turi, my ancestor, one day called to him his two friends, Te Weri, -the Centipede, and Te Waerau, the Crab, whom he loved best after -Ngahue, and taking a sailing canoe, with three men to row upon -windless days, set out from Te Ika A Maui on a course to the south. - -And when they had sailed for many days, they came to the mouth of a -river, and there they ate food and landed. - -And as they stepped ashore, Te Turi chanted a prayer of propitiation -to the Spirit of the Land, and they six prayed together and -humiliated themselves. And afterwards, looking about them, they saw -that the land was very fair; for the _pohutukaua_ trees[1] and the -_ratas_[1] were ablaze with red blossoms, and the white flowers of -the _puawananga_[2] were shining like stars in the deep green of -lofty boughs. And the blue sky smiled down upon them, and the warm -sun of morning stirred their blood, and the sweet scents of the -forest beguiled their senses, so that with one accord they cried -aloud, 'Behold! The new land which the gods have given us is very -good.' - - -[1] The pohutukaua and rata trees belong to the myrtle order. - -[2] The puawananga is a variety of clematis with large, star-like -white blossoms. In the flowering season the effect of these white -stars amid the dark metallic green of the overhead foliage is most -beautiful. - - -But of a sudden the forest grew denser, till at last they saw neither -sun nor moon, nor could they find food to eat or water to drink--not -even fern-roots or _kanini_ berries, which might have stayed the -terrible pangs of hunger. - -So then the five began to blame Te Turi that he had brought them out -of a land of plenty into this wilderness, and Te Turi, being sorry -for them, bade them rest while he went on to seek deliverance. - -So Te Turi walked alone, and, as he walked, it grew so cold that he -drew his mat of _kiwi_[3] feathers close about him. Yet still was he -cold as death, and at last, crying to the gods to show him a way -whereby his friends and the three men might be saved, he fell prone -upon the ground. - - -[3] The _apteryx_, a curious, small, wingless bird. - - -Now the blackness of night was around him, though it was yet full -day; but, though he feared the darkness, he feared more for his -companions lest they should die of cold and hunger and thirst. 'For -then,' said he, 'the blame shall be mine, for I it was who brought -them to this pass.' Wherefore he prayed for his friends more than -for himself. - -But presently he rose and made a fire of sticks to warm his blood. -But, though the fire burned, neither did it warm him nor give any -light beyond itself. Wherefore Te Turi was sure that the gods were -angry, and he prayed that he might propitiate them by the sacrifice -of the best thing he had, though he himself should die for want of it. - -So he laid his beautiful mat of feathers upon the fire, which -greedily devoured it, and then he scattered the ashes to the four -quarters of the earth and chanted a prayer to ATUA.[4] - - -[4] The gods collectively, or Fate. - - -Then lo, a marvel! For of a sudden Te Turi grew warm and the dark -forest fell away, and before him opened a glade, rich in flowers and -fruit, and in the midst of it a stream of water, crystal pure. - -Then, filled with joy, Te Turi stretched out his hand, for he was -very hungry. Yet even in that moment he remembered his friends and -the men, and, having first gathered fruit and filled a gourd with -water for them, he ate and drank his fill. - -And now, being strengthened in spirit and in body, Te Turi bowed his -head and gave thanks to ATUA and prayed to his ancestors. - -And, as he lifted his head, lo, before him was a mat of kiwi -feathers, larger and more beautiful than he had ever seen, and very -soft and perfect, as a mat sent from the gods ought to be. For Te -Turi knew that the gods had sent him the mat because he had thought -of his friends before himself. So, marvelling, he put it on and -turned to rejoin his companions. - -But a voice cried 'Stay!' and Te Turi, seeing no one, feared, and -turned again. - -And the voice was dull and muffled, as though it came from the bowels -of the earth, and it said: 'O Te Turi, I am HAUMIATIKITIKI, god and -father of men and of the foods which men gather and eat. For all thy -life abundance of such food shall be thine. Behold, I have spoken!' - -Then Te Turi gave thanks and turned to go. But another voice cried -'Stay!' and he remained. - -And the voice came from the surface of the ground and from the -tree-tops, and it said: 'O Te Turi, I am RONGOMATANE, god and father -of men and of the foods which men prepare for themselves. For all -thy life abundance of such food shall be thine. Behold, I have -spoken!' - -And again Te Turi gave thanks and turned to go. But a third voice -cried 'Stay!' and, marvelling, he stayed. - -And the voice was like to the murmur of waving boughs, the humming of -bees, and the sweet singing of birds, and it said: 'O Te Turi, I am -TANE MAHUTA, god of the forests and the birds. The trees shall be -thine for thy dwellings, and the hardest trees for canoes and spears -and clubs; and the birds shall be thine for food and dress as long as -thou livest. Behold, I have spoken!' - -And once more Te Turi gave thanks and turned to go. But a fourth -voice cried 'Stay!' and with wonder in his heart he stood still. - -And the voice was like the leaping of fish and the croaking of frogs, -and it said: 'O Te Turi, I am TANGAROA, god of fish and reptiles. -All through thy life thou shalt have fish to eat and sharks' teeth -for ornament, and whalebone and whales' ribs for thy weapons. And -the little lizards shall not affright thee, nor the great -_Taniwha_[5] harm thee. Behold, I have spoken!' - - -[5] A mythical monster, presumed to be a saurian, inhabiting the sea -or vast forests, and regarded with deepest awe by Maoris. - - -And again Te Turi gave thanks and essayed to go. But a fifth voice -cried 'Stay!' and, filled with awe, he halted where he was. - -And the voice was like the roaring of a mighty wind, and the sound of -trees falling in the bush, of rain and hail beating upon the hard -ground, and thunder rolling among the caverns of the clouds upon the -mountains. And it said: 'O Te Turi, I am TAWHIRI-MA-TEA, god of the -winds and storms, and whether thou walkest upon dry land or sailest -upon the bosom of the deep waters, harm shall be far from thee. -Behold, I have spoken!' - -Then Te Turi gave thanks and turned to go. But a sixth voice shouted -'Stay!' and he stayed, his heart melting within him for fear. - -For of a sudden there arose a mighty noise, and such a clashing and -clanging and screaming and shouting and shaking of the earth, as -though all the warriors of all the world ran to and fro over it, -contending in battle. And then, also of a sudden, there fell a great -silence, and Te Turi waited with bowed head for the sixth god to -speak. - -But, when at last he heard no voice, he lifted his eyes, and lo, a -rat which sat upon a bough and fished in the river with a line. -Whereat Te Turi was amazed, fearing magic. But, when the rat drew in -the line, behold, not a fish, but a piece of greenstone of the best -and purest was on the end of it. And the rat swung the line so that -the stone came near to Te Turi, who put forth his hand and caught it. - -And then the sixth voice spake and said: 'Hold fast that which thou -hast gotten, O Te Turi, for never weapon like it was given to mortal. -I am TUMATAUENGA, god and father of men and war. In the fight I will -guard thee, and in battle thou shalt prevail so long as the _Mere of -TUMATAUJENGA_ remains thine. And so shall it be with thy seed after -thee, until the _mere_ shall pass to one of a strange race, and then -there shall be an end. Behold, I have spoken!' - -And Te Turi looked, and lo, in his hand was a most perfect _mere_ of -greenstone, with flaxen wrist-loop, and on the narrow end the print -of two fingers and a thumb, where TUMATAUENGA had held it. Whereat -Te Turi marvelled exceedingly, thinking not of the prophecy which -went with the gift, and, bowing his head, he gave thanks to the six -great brethren. - -And now once more he turned to go; but, even as he turned, lo, a -Thing, a great and horrible Thing, stood in his way. - -The Thing was as a bird, but bigger than any bird of the forest, for -it stood thrice the height of a man. Its neck was the length of a -tall man, its legs the thickness of a man's trunk, and on its feet -were claws the length of a whale's rib and sharp as the teeth of a -shark. Its wings were little, but its beak was as long as two -spears, and the gape of its mouth was as wide as the cavern through -which men pass to enter Te Reinga.[6] - - -[6] Probably Te Turi encountered a Moa (Dinornis Moa), the gigantic -wingless bird, believed now to be extinct in New Zealand. His -imagination, excited by danger, doubtless added to its already -enormous proportions. - - -Now Te Turi was a very brave, strong man, but his legs shook under -him as he saw this ugly, fearful Thing. And the Thing, noting his -fear, gaped and rushed to swallow him, and out of its mouth came a -vast roaring, as of the sea breaking upon a pebbly shore. - -Then Te Turi dropped his greenstone club and fled for his life, -crying aloud to TANE MAHUTA: 'Where is now the dominion thou gavest -me over the birds? If indeed this monster be a bird, and not a -_taipo_ (devil), which much I doubt.' - -But it seemed as if the gods were angry with Te Turi; for, when he -would have hidden in the forest, lo, in a moment there grew up a tall -hedge of thorns and supple-jacks, through which neither man nor beast -could pierce. So then Te Turi gave himself up for lost. - -And, as he sped round and round the glade, the roaring of the evil -Thing shaped to a voice which cried after him: 'Malign now thy gods, -Te Turi, and I will cease from pursuing thee, and will make thee -great; but if thou worship not me thou shalt perish.' - -Then Te Turi knew that the Thing was indeed a _taipo_; but he would -not revile the gods, but only called more loudly upon ATUA for aid. - -And, as he called, his foot caught in a root and he fell headlong, -and the spear-bill of the Thing sped at him, coming so near that it -grazed his skin, and the blood flowed. And the point of the bill -drave into the ground for the half of its length, and there stuck -fast. - -Now when Te Turi saw this, he flung himself upon the long neck of the -Thing and strove to snap the bone, but his hands were not large -enough to encircle it, and meanwhile the Thing had freed half of the -buried part of its bill, and the earth flew this way and that, as it -scratched and tore and twisted, striving to loosen itself and finish -Te Turi. - -Then Te Turi went blind with rage, forgetting his danger, and, just -as the Thing won free, he rushed upon it once more and smote it so -mighty a blow that its head was crushed like the shell of an egg, and -the Thing fell to the ground with a dreadful crash, and sprawled -there in the agonies of death. - -Then did Te Turi swell out his chest and roll up his eyes and poke -out his tongue at the Thing, and because he was very glad, he -chanted: 'Behold, I have slain the evil Thing which sought to devour -me. Ha! With one blow of my naked fist I have slain it, for the -gods have made me very strong.' And he looked at the fist which had -done this wonderful deed. - -But lo, a marvel! For the greenstone club, which had dropped from -his hand, was now firmly clasped therein, and with the _mere_ of -TUMATAUENGA, and not with his naked fist, had he slain the Thing. - -Now when Te Turi knew that TUMATAUENGA, seeing his extremity, had -brought the _mere_ to his hand, he left off boasting, and chanted: -'Lo now the kindness of ATUA! Behold the goodness of TUMATAUENGA! -When I forget the debt I owe to TUMATAUENGA, then may ATUA forget me!' - -So he gave thanks for his great deliverance, and took the skin and -the tail-feathers of the dead Thing to make mats for a memory of the -marvel, and with a glad heart set off to rejoin his friends and the -three men. - -Yet, even as he thought of them, lo, he heard their voices, and was -back at the spot where he had left them. And they ate and drank and -were merry, knowing nought, for they had neither seen nor heard -anything, so that Te Turi might have thought that he had fallen -asleep and dreamed, but for the mat of _kiwi_ feathers and the -greenstone club and the parts of the great Thing. - -And so they six returned to Te Ika A Maui, taking with them many -pieces of greenstone and other good things, and so they came home. -And Te Turi made mats out of the skin of the Thing; and one he gave -to Ngahue, and one to Te Weri, and one to Te Waerau, and one to his -wife, and one he made for himself. Yet was there enough left to make -mats for all his children who came afterwards, of whom there were ten. - -But the greenstone _mere_ with the finger-prints of TUMATAUENGA Te -Turi kept for himself, and as often as he looked at it, so often did -he wonder at the prophecy which the god had spoken with the gift. -But at last, remembering that the _mere_ was to pass to his -children's children, he ceased from troubling upon a matter which he -could not mend. - -And Te Turi lived long and fought many good fights, being worsted in -none. And in the fulness of time this mighty chief passed to join -his ancestors, and the _mere_ of TUMATAUENGA and the prophecy he -bequeathed to his son and to his son's son after him through all -time, until at last they came down to me who tell the tale of them. - - - - -CHAPTER VII - -STORM SIGNALS - -Valuable as he knew the greenstone _mere_ to be, both intrinsically -and on account of its romantic history, it was with a new and deeper -interest that George regarded it at the conclusion of Te Kaihuia's -legend of its origin. Of course the story of its supernatural -appearance and manufacture was a fairy-tale which--he gave an -unmistakable start, and a grim smile curled the thin lips of the old -Maori, who was watching him intently. - -There, on the narrow end, or handle, of the club were three deeply -set impressions, which exactly resembled the imprint of two fingers -and a thumb. - -The mineral nephrite, or greenstone, is singularly hard and -unyielding, and how these peculiar marks came to be made upon the -club George concluded to leave to the antiquaries to solve; for, -needless to say, the old chief's version of their cause counted for -nothing with him. But he was far too courteous to allow his -incredulity to appear before the venerable narrator, whom he warmly -thanked as he rose to take his leave. - -Te Kaihuia took the young fellow's strong hand in both his own. - -'I have yet a word for you, Hortoni,' he said gravely. 'Never allow -the _mere_ to be far from your hand. Danger lurks we know not where. -Hear now my word.' - -Wondering whether the old man's mysteriously given advice held a -covert warning of impending trouble, George went below and locked the -greenstone club in a sea-chest which the dead captain had lent him. -Moreover, he determined to wear the weapon during his night-watches -on deck, in case of treachery such as his aged friend had seemed -vaguely to hint at. - -Trouble, indeed, was nearer than he thought; but it was not to -come--in the first instance, at all events--from Te Karearea and his -Maoris. - -Late that night as George swung in his hammock, he was awakened by -something jolting against his body, and, peering drowsily over the -edge, saw a line of dark figures stealing cautiously up the ladder. -In a flash he leaped lightly to the floor and collared the hindmost -of the procession. - -'You, Bigham!' he exclaimed as the fo'c'sle lamp illumined the face -of his captive. 'How comes the leader of the mutiny to bring up the -rear?' - -Bigham gave himself away at once. 'We knew you wouldn't approve,' he -whispered, 'so we thought we'd surprise you when the thing was done.' - -George flew into one of his rare rages. 'You ass! It will be a -mercy if one of us is left alive when the thing is done. Call back -the men. Quick! There is no time to lose.' - -But Bigham's Lancashire obstinacy resented this interference, and -with a sudden twist he darted on deck, saying huskily, 'Let them -laugh as win.' - -Slipping on his trousers, George made all haste after him, but the -night was so dark that he could not make out the stations of the -conspirators. Neither could he hear the soft pad, pad of the -bare-footed sentries. - -'Curious if the guards have been withdrawn on this night of all -others,' he mused. 'If I don't encounter our men in another minute, -I'll shout and rouse the ship. Better Bigham's wrath than the -slaughter which is sure to follow this senseless provocation of a -friendly foe.' - -Fearful of delay and its bitter consequences, he drew in his breath -for a shout, when, sudden as a lightning flash, a column of fire shot -into the air, illumining the black recesses of the brig. And, as it -flared, the quiet night was shaken by an appalling yell, shouts and -oaths, the tramp and shuffle of naked feet, the sound of shots and -heavy blows, all horribly mixed with screams of rage and hate. - -'It is all up!' muttered George, filled with resentment against the -stupid mate. 'The rising is none of my doing; but parole or no -parole, I can't stand by and see white men done to death by Maori -criminals.' He raised his voice to a shout. 'Bigham! Call to me!' - -No answer! Then out of the gloom a tall figure leaped at him with -uplifted arm and smote strongly downwards. - -George had neither heard nor seen the Maori's approach, though he -actually turned at that moment as if to face the threatening danger. -The first thing of which he was really conscious was the sound of a -blow and the jarring shock which ran from his fingers to his -shoulder. Then to his amazement a stalwart Maori fell with a thud -and lay dead or badly wounded at his feet. - -Experience has shown that, during the excitement bred of extreme -peril, one may perform many actions by instinct, or, at least, that -one's conscious intelligence does not appear to be fully at work. -And now so stupefied was George at the sequence of events, that he -stood staring down at the body of the Maori without the slightest -comprehension of what had happened. - -The light of the fire flared towards him, illumining the thing he -held in his hand. It was a greenstone club--his own; for he could -distinctly see the odd markings upon it. - -How was this? he asked himself. Was it possible that Te Kaihuia's -story--Oh, nonsense! ... Still, how came the _mere_ to his hand? He -had locked it away in his sea-chest.... He had never thought of it -when he rushed on deck at the heels of Bigham.... What could it mean? - -Thoughts are lightning quick, and but little time passed, as George -stood fixed and immovable beside the prostrate Maori, before another -tall form loomed suddenly out of the dark, and a familiar voice said -in Maori: 'Salutations, O friend! The fight is begun. Let the wise -look on while the fools strive with one another.' - -'Come and help me stop the conflict,' began George, when Te Karearea, -catching sight of the still form, interrupted sternly: 'What is this, -Hortoni? Had I not your promise? Wherefore have you slain my young -man?' - -'I--I hope he is not dead,' stammered George. 'I suppose I struck -him, but--oh, I dare say you won't believe me, Chief; but I knew -nothing of this foolish affair until a few minutes ago, and I did my -best to stop it.' - -Te Karearea drew a lantern from the folds of his mat, held it up, and -looked keenly into George's eyes. Then all at once his haughty glare -gave place to a look of abject terror. 'W-w-what is that in your -hand, Hortoni?' he asked, in a voice vibrating with intense feeling. - -'The club? It is a present which Te Kaihuia gave me after I pulled -him out of the water. He--why, what's the matter?' - -For Te Karearea, in what appeared to be mortal affright, reeled -backwards to the bulwarks, and only saved himself from a heavy fall -by clinging to the rail. 'The _mere_! The _mere_ of TUMATAUENGA!' -he shrieked, in a voice so shrill that it rose above the lessening -din of conflict. - -George was growing confused amid the maze of events through which he -was threading his way, but the incongruity of the position struck him -even then. Only a few yards distant strife was raging, bullets -actually sang over their heads, and yet there they stood, discussing -other matters, as if nothing out of the common were happening. There -was, however, an explanation of Te Karearea's unconcern with the -fight, which George did not receive till later. - -All that had occurred since he came on deck occupied far less time -than has been required to write of it; nevertheless, he was growing -anxious about the fate of Bigham and the crew. So, pointing aft, -where the struggle waned to a close, he said: 'While we talk here, O -Chief, blood is flowing over there. It is time to stop the mischief.' - -'The blood of the Pakehas is upon their own heads, Hortoni,' retorted -Te Karearea, who had recovered his equanimity, and now slowly -sauntered after George towards the scene of the fray. - -As they came up, Bigham, who was unhurt, greeted George with words of -scorn. 'There you are, Mr. Haughton, with your brown friend, safe -enough, I dare say. I hope you like your position. Had you joined -us, things might have been different.' - -'They would, indeed!' A voice close to George just breathed the -words. - -'Did you speak, Chief?' he asked sharply. - -'Nay; I said nought, Hortoni,' was the smooth answer. - -'Of course he would deny it,' thought George. 'What was his meaning, -I wonder.' He turned to Bigham. 'I gave you fair warning that I -would take no part in your wild schemes. However, we can discuss -later your grievance against me. How many of your men are hurt?' - -Another surprise, but this time an agreeable one. It was Te Karearea -who replied: 'None, Hortoni. I had knowledge of Big Man's plot--it -matters not how.' George thought that he knew. 'I gave orders, -therefore, that at a certain moment every Pakeha on deck should be -secured--save only yourself,' with a courteous bow. 'So Big Man and -those with him walked into my trap which I had set, and my young men -have done as I bade them--all save the stupid Paeroa, who blundered -up against you, and--and--the _mere_ of TUMATAUENGA smote him.' - -There was a tremulous note in his voice, and he glanced furtively -over his shoulder, while his lips moved as he muttered something -beneath his breath. - -At their chief's last words the Maoris huddled together in awed -surprise, and some of them followed his example and murmured a -karakia, or charm, to keep off invisible powers. - -Again George was puzzled. What was the matter with every one -to-night? At the same time he was greatly relieved; but, not wishing -to show his satisfaction too plainly, rallied the chief upon his -manifest trepidation. - -'Since there are no dead men, why do you mutter a _karakia_, O Hawk -of the Mountain?' he said. 'Are you afraid that _Taniwha_ will come -out of the sea and----' - -He broke off in amazement, for Te Karearea's teeth were chattering -and his eyes rolling wildly. Evidently he was under the dominion of -some fearful emotion. Thrice he essayed to speak and thrice failed, -while the Maoris, comprehending nothing but the one awesome word, and -perceiving, as they thought, its effect upon their leader, shrank -away, quaking with dread and muttering, '_Taniwha! Taniwha!_' in -terror of what might happen even now. - -In the light of the dying flare Bigham caught George's eye. His look -plainly said: 'You have thrown these fellows into such a mortal funk -by something you have said, that, at a sign from you, the crew will -take heart and sweep the whole lot into the sea before they know -where they are.' - -Something like this George read in the mate's expression, and for one -instant he hesitated. Was he indeed bound to keep a parole given -under such circumstances? And then the deeply rooted principles, -early implanted, asserted themselves. The word of a gentleman, once -passed, even to a 'darned nigger,' must be sacred. With an almost -imperceptible shake of the head at Bigham, he turned again to Te -Karearea, whose composure was by this time restored, and demanded his -intentions with regard to the twice-taken prisoners. - -Te Karearea, with his head turned aside, laughed shortly and waved -his hand with a gesture implying that the behaviour of a few foolish -Pakehas was unworthy of his serious consideration, and his men, quick -to understand him, released their hold of the dejected sailors and -allowed them to make their way below. - -Truly no great harm had been done in the scuffle, save for a broken -head or two; for the mate and his men, unarmed as they were--even -their jack-knives had been taken from them--had relied upon the shock -of surprise to drive the Maori guards below and batten them under -hatches, among the mass of sleepers. - -Even chance could hardly have favoured so stupid a plan, and, had it -not been for Te Karearea's foreknowledge of the time of the attack, -the white men must have fared ill in the struggle. As it was, the -Maoris had obeyed orders, and contented themselves with overpowering -their prisoners, while for greater moral effect they discharged their -guns in the air--to the infinite danger of George and Te Karearea, -past whom the leaden missiles sang spitefully during their -conversation in the waist. - -Feeling that he could do no less, George now sought a fitting -compliment upon the generous clemency of the chief; but, as the -latter faced him, there was something so sinister in the whole aspect -of the man, so basilisk-like was the stare of the stony and, for -once, unwinking eyes, that the young Englishman thrilled with the -conviction that beneath this seeming forbearance lurked an -unsatisfied hate, which would presently demand a sterner, because -belated, vengeance. - -He now felt sure that Te Karearea had only held his hand from a -general massacre from interested motives, and knew that he would not -be able to breathe freely until the Maoris had been set on shore and -gone their way into the interior. - -Determined to warn Bigham, George sought out the mate next morning, -and to his annoyance found him already engaged in entertaining the -chief with the few words of Maori he had at command. These he eked -out by the free use of English, which he seemed to think was certain -to be understood, provided that each word was delivered in a -stentorian bellow. - -Te Karearea greeted George very civilly, and smilingly claimed his -services as interpreter. Presently he inquired, carelessly enough, -what the mate intended to do after setting him and his Maoris ashore. -George put this question with the greatest reluctance to the -thick-skulled Bigham, who replied with genial truculence that not -only would he raise the countryside in pursuit, but would take a hand -in it himself, just for the pleasure of having a smack at the 'brown -beast,' as he styled the dignified chief. - -George toned down this senseless bombast as far as he could, but the -ill-suppressed sneer upon Te Karearea's thin lips convinced him that -the latter perfectly understood all that the mate had so absurdly -threatened. However, the chief laughed heartily, and, when George at -last got Bigham away from him, the mate would listen to no suggestion -of a disguised ill-will. But he promised to abstain from further -plotting, and from this George extracted such comfort as he could. - -Towards evening George paid a visit to the man whom he had so -mysteriously felled the night before, and who was reported to be -doing well. He still carried the greenstone club in his belt, and -when he entered the deck-house--which had been converted into a -sick-bay--found Paeroa with a bandaged head and looking ill and -weary, but with a fire in his eye which argued deep resentment. - -But to the Englishman's amazement, no sooner had he crossed the -threshold, than Paeroa clasped his hand in both his own, sank upon -one knee, and poured out a torrent of musically sounding words. - -'Hortoni, beloved of the gods, master of the _mere_ of TUMATAUENGA,' -he said, 'Te Kaihuia has spoken with me and has given me a word. O -great one, who callest up the wind at will, I thank thee for my life; -for surely hadst thou struck to slay, I had been slain.' - -'Stop! What are you saying?' interjected George, but Paeroa's speech -flowed on. - -'Behold now, Hortoni, because thou heldest back the strong arm of -TUMATAUENGA, I will follow thee. Whithersoever thou goest, be it -over the mountain or along the plain, through the deep forest or in -the green meadows, over the land or across the sea, whether there be -peace, or whether there be war, I am thy man, and I will follow thee. -Hear now the word which Paeroa has spoken.' - -George was wonderstruck, and, though far from understanding the -motives which moved the Maori to this extraordinary act of -self-abasement, was touched by the poor fellow's sincerity and by his -devotion to one who, however unwittingly, had done him serious -injury. He knew that it would be utterly useless to try to disabuse -the man of the belief that he had held back some potent force from -destroying him, so, smiling in his peculiarly engaging way upon the -young Maori, he replied: - -'O Paeroa, I thank you. When you get ashore, you must leave the -rascals by whom you are surrounded, rejoin your tribe, and try to -keep out of trouble for the future.' - -This speech sounded like bathos after the high-sounding periods in -which the Maori had addressed him, but Paeroa's sole reply was: 'I -have spoken, Hortoni'; whereupon George, a good deal embarrassed, -wished him a speedy recovery and rather hurriedly took his leave. - -Young Haughton was by no means too credulous, and with regard to the -incident of the previous night had come to the matter-of-fact -conclusion that he must have unlocked his chest and withdrawn the -greenstone club without, in his excitement, noticing what he was -about. Yet he very clearly recognised the powerful influence which -the tradition of its origin would exert upon the superstitious -Maoris, and he determined to wear it continually during the short -remainder of his association with them. - -As he was pacing the deck after his interview with Paeroa, Te -Karearea approached him, and with a grave salute requested permission -to speak with him upon a matter of importance. - -The chief lost no time in coming to the point. For an instant, as -his eyes fell upon the greenstone club, the same extraordinary change -passed over his face as on the previous day; but he speedily -recovered himself, and in tense, vibrating tones began: - -'I have a word for you, O Hortoni!' - -'Say it, friend,' answered George laconically. - -'There are no lies under my tongue, and my heart is clean,' pursued -the chief. 'Ha! I am not as the Pakehas, in whom is nought but -guile. I except you, my friend.' - -George bowed. - -'I will swallow the Pakehas as the sea swallows the little pebbles -upon the shore,' went on the chief. 'War shall there be round about -the land until the last of the accursed race be driven into _Moana_ -(ocean); for God is with me and with them whose priest I am, and His -strength shall dwell in our arms until we make an end of slaying -because there is no longer a Pakeha to be slain.' - -His voice rolled and swelled into a chant as the soft gutturals -poured out, an impetuous flood, and as he paused, glaring at George, -his deep-set eyes flashed, and the expression upon his scarred face -was very grim. - -'To what end do you speak thus to me, O Chief?' inquired George. - -'To this end, Hortoni,' cried the Maori. 'Cast off the accursed race -to whom you have belonged till now, and come in among us! Be my -Pakeha and the Pakeha of my _hapu_ (tribe). So shall we be honoured, -and we will honour you and give you a Maori _wahine_ (woman) to wife. -Land without measure shall be yours, and you shall dwell among us as -a great chief in power and peace, until they come to carry you to -Reinga. This is my word to you, O Hortoni!' - -'And hear you my word, O insulter of a strong race!' cried George -indignantly. 'Who you are I know not, nor whose priest you claim to -be. But this I know, O fool! The Pakeha is an eagle upon a mountain -peak, and the eagle shall swoop upon the hawk and clutch it in his -mighty talons and rend it into little pieces, which shall be -scattered to the north and to the south and to the east and to the -west. So shall there be an end of the stupid hawk. This is my word -to you, O Te Karearea!' - -The rage which laid hold of Te Karearea at this uncompromising -rejection of his singular proposal was so clearly exhibited, that -George stepped back a pace and suggestively dropped his hand upon his -greenstone club. The chief shrank back at once, controlled his wrath -by a mighty effort, and stalked away, sending over his shoulder a -Parthian shaft in the words: - -'You may yet dwell many days in my _hapu_, Hortoni, before you call -the eagle to rend the hawk.' - -He had no sooner disappeared than George took himself severely to -task for having so completely lost his temper. He knew that not a -few Maori chiefs had induced white men--not of the best sort--to -attach themselves to their respective tribes and to become Maoris in -all but colour. Of such degenerate whites--Pakeha Maoris they were -called[1]--the possessors were egregiously proud, and great were the -airs they assumed over their less fortunate brethren. A proposal of -this sort to a man of George Haughton's type was so utterly absurd, -that it might well have been passed over with contempt, instead of -having been met with windy words of wrath. As for Te Karearea's own -anger, that did not trouble George in the least. - - -[1] Their influence was not always wholly bad. - - -His meditations were cut short by the arrival of a Maori, who -informed him in picturesque language, that the feet of those who -waited to carry Te Kaihuia to Reinga were without the old man's door, -and that the aged chief had sent to beg Hortoni to come to him at -once, as he had a word for him before he himself departed for the -abode of the shades. - -Greatly shocked at this totally unexpected news, George hastened to -the spot where lay the withered form of the venerable chief, who was -travelling fast towards the valley of the great shadow. - -'O my poor old friend, I am grieved to see you like this!' cried -George. 'What is the matter? You were not ill this morning.' - -The dying chief gasped once or twice and by an effort raised his hand -and pointed, while he mumbled half-articulate words which smote the -listener with sudden, sickening horror. For they made it plain that -the old man had been done to death, partly because his age and -weakness would have rendered him a burden to the rest of the band on -their march through the bush. - -'Ah, who has done this dastardly thing?' raged George, angered out of -himself at the cruel indifference to suffering which could so coldly -rid itself of probable embarrassment. - -Te Kaihuia's attenuated body writhed under the agony of the poison, -and he stared, glassy-eyed, at George. - -'Be-ware,' he gasped. 'Be-ware--Te ... Beware--the--Hau----' - -The quivering jaw dropped, the palsied head fell back. Old Te -Kaihuia had gone down to Reinga with his warning word unspoken. - -'Thank heaven, we shall make land, and all this horror will be over -by to-morrow night at latest,' George said gloomily to himself, as he -crawled into his hammock an hour or so after poor old Te Kaihuia's -remains had been dropped overboard. 'The loathsome cruelty of -poisoning the harmless old creature because he was likely to be in -their way! I can't believe that Te Karearea had any hand in the -shameful business. The chief is high-minded in his way. Yet--oh, -what devils men can be! ... What was it, I wonder, against which the -poor old fellow wished to warn me?' He fell asleep still wondering. - -He awoke with a start. Midnight was just past, and upon everything -lay a great silence, faintly broken by the soft lap of the sea -against the timbers of the brig as she sped on towards the land -and--safety? No other sound was audible in the profound peace of the -night, and yet George was certain that something had startled his -sleep and awakened him. He sat up cautiously and listened, holding -his breath. Nothing! - -Then with frightful suddenness the solemn stillness was stirred by a -sound--a sound discordant, shrill, horrible; a sound which pierced -the heart of the watcher in the night, chilling his blood, so that, -for all his strength and hardihood, he shook and shivered as he heard -the hideous tones, inhuman yet resonant of human sadness and hate and -fury; appalling in their horror. And as George sat quaking in his -hammock, the weird noises, only half articulate, crashed again -through the stillness, stunning his affrighted ears. - -What was that strange, revolting, heart-sickening noise? What was -it? Like the howling of a pack of wild dogs, where no dogs could be. -Like the shrieking and sobbing of men in dire agony--yet what human -throat ever emitted such sounds? Like the hoots and jeers of -gibbering maniacs. Like none of these alone. Like all of them -together. What human ear was ever forced to listen to such inhuman -sounds? And at such an hour, too! What were they? - -By an immense effort George got to the floor. Bigham was muttering -fearfully in his hammock, two of the men were sobbing with fright, -and one prayed brokenly, his scattered wits recalling fragments of -the simple petitions of his childhood. Over all there hung the -shadow of the same awful terror. - -Once more that horrible wailing swept down from above. - -'Bigham, I can't stand this,' said George in a harsh whisper. 'I am -going on deck to find out what it means.' - -The mate only groaned. Then manhood reasserting its grip, 'Don't go, -Mr. Haughton,' he implored. 'The devil, I think, is let loose up -there. Come back, sir, for God's sake!' - -But George was already half-way up the ladder. Unless he took this -thing on the rush, he felt that he would have no nerve to face it at -all. He reached the companion, held back an instant while he fetched -a deep breath, and then sprang into the open. - -Not a soul was to be seen. A lantern or two shed a faint glimmering -light, the helm was lashed, the deck empty of life. - -With a gasp of horror George turned and raced back to the shelter of -the fo'c'sle. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII - -THE STORM BURSTS - -The gloom which hung over the fo'c'sle when day at length dawned was -in no wise lightened by the futility of all efforts to discover the -cause of the weird sounds of the night. George was, perhaps, the -only one who had not actually attributed the discordant din to a -supernatural source; but since more than one uncommonly odd happening -had chanced of late, even he would have found it a relief to be -assured upon one point, no matter what. - -As the day wore towards evening and the _Stella_ neared the coast, -the Maoris crowded into the bows, laughing and singing, as the deep -blue line of hills gradually took on natural colours, and showed as -forest-clad slopes, fronted by bare, frowning cliffs. Nor were the -whites less elated at the approach of the hour of parting, for they -were anxious to be relieved of an enforced service, not only irksome -in itself, but grown to be fraught with positive danger. - -Te Karearea intended to disembark shortly before sunset at -Whareongaonga, a point some fifteen miles south of the Bay of -Turanga, or Poverty Bay, as Captain Cook had named it, and thence to -march inland and disappear in the dense bush which stretched for -miles towards the north. As if to forestall any tricks on the part -of the white sailors, the brig was kept swinging from one tack to the -other all through the afternoon, keeping always a couple of miles off -shore, and George, who was using his eyes, liked the look of things -less and less; for all the men of the chief's company, fully armed, -kept the deck during the whole of the day. Seizing an opportunity, -he communicated his fears to Bigham. - -'Pooh! You're always looking for bogies, Mr. 'Aughton,' was the -mate's sneering reply. 'You don't see me grizzling.' - -'You were not very far from grizzling, as you call it, last night,' -George was stung to retort. - -'That was very different,' protested the mate, flushing through his -weather-beaten skin. You weren't too keen yourself about going on -deck.' - -'You are right,' George admitted frankly. 'I don't think that I ever -was so frightened in my life--and by a _mere_ sound, too.' - -This conquered Bigham. 'Well, you didn't act so,' he said; 'and that -sound was worse than any flesh-and-blood thing, however terrifying. -Yet you faced it, whatever it was. No,' affirmed Bigham; 'I never -meant to hint as you was wanting in pluck, sir. All I meant was as I -don't think the niggers will try on any games, for I judge they'll be -only too glad to get rid of us. - -George assented, but without conviction. - -'Any way, sir, you'll admit they haven't treated us as bad as might -have been expected.' He made a wry face, recollecting his recent -failure. - -'True; but even at the eleventh hour they could hardly have got on -without us, had the weather changed, or---- However, let that go. -One thing I will ask of you. Should any of them offer provocation, -take no notice. All we want is to be well rid of them.' - -'You are right, sir,' assented Bigham; 'and you have been right all -along. I'll warn the men.' Which, for a Lancashire man, was a very -notable surrender. - -Greatly relieved, George turned from the mate to find Te Karearea at -his elbow, all smiles and courtesy. 'We part soon, Hortoni,' he -began, 'and the Maori will again set foot in his own land, whence the -Pakeha unjustly drove him.' - -[Illustration: George turned from the mate to find Te Karearea at his -elbow. (page 79).] - -Resentment still smouldered in George at the insolent proposal made -to him, but, mindful of his own advice to Bigham, he answered -lightly: 'Possibly the Pakeha may endeavour to repeat his -performance.' - -'When a bird has screamed to the eagle the whereabouts of the hawk?' -queried the chief, grinning. - -'Oh, let us have peace for the short time we are to be together,' -pleaded George. 'You have not treated us badly. We will remember -that and forget the rest.' - -'So be it,' agreed the chief, and took himself off as he had come, -smiling. - -The hour arrived at last, and the brig, after a final tack, stood in -close to the shore and dropped her anchor. The boats were got away -and the women rowed ashore, but George noticed with misgiving that -the men were distributed in scattered groups among the sailors, six -or seven to each white man. He himself was separated by some ten -feet or so from the nearest man of his own colour, and between them -were as many Maoris. Bigham was leaning on the starboard rail, -endeavouring to chat with those about him; but the brown men paid -little heed to what he said, for their eyes were ever screwing this -way and that, and their faces wore the strained, expectant look of -those who await an assured crisis. - -Staring hard at Bigham, George managed to flash an eye-signal, 'Be on -your guard!' and the mate stiffened from his lounging attitude and -laid his hand carelessly upon a belaying pin. Nearer and nearer drew -the returning boats, and at last, as they grated against the side, Te -Karearea, who had been leaning contemplatively against the mainmast, -raised his right hand. - -For one instant there was tense silence. Then this was shattered by -a wild and deafening yell, which the hills gave back in a hundred -diminishing echoes, and, as the Maoris rushed towards the side, a -young chief, Te Pouri--the Melancholy One--stumbled heavily against -one of the sailors. The man retaliated with a sweep of his arm which -sent Te Pouri reeling backwards into collision with a second seaman. -This one, taking his cue from his messmate, shoved the Maori forward -with such violence that he must have fallen, but for the support of -the crowd into which he dived. - -The incident passed in a flash, but as Te Pouri recovered his -balance, another yell arose--this time a howl of hate, charged with -the lust of vengeance long deferred--and in a moment sharp spears -stabbed this way and that, piercing the shrinking flesh, while club -and axe, whirled aloft by sinewy arms, fell with sickening thud upon -the yielding bone. - -The man who had heedlessly begun the trouble was the first to go -down, split from crown to chin by a terrible stroke of Te Pouri's -long-handled tomahawk. Then George, who for a second had stood in -frozen horror at the awful suddenness of the change, leaped into the -press, striking right and left with his fists. - -Even in the hot excitement of the fight, he noticed with dull -surprise that the Maoris merely ducked to avoid, or warded off his -blows as best they could, without attempting to harm him. Ahead of -him he could see Bigham, belaying-pin in hand, smashing a path -through the packed brown forms, while, ringing high above the din of -conflict, he heard the voice of Te Karearea shrieking to his men to -hold their hands. - -But George had scant time for observation, or for thought over the -inexplicable attitude of Te Karearea, whom he had certainly credited -with engineering this massacre; for scarcely had he rushed into the -thick of the fray, than he was pulled down upon his back and pinned -to the deck by sheer weight of numbers. - -The next thing he saw was his greenstone club in the hands of Te -Karearea, who grinned at him, crying: 'Fear nought, Hortoni. I will -stop these dogs in their worrying.' With which he bounded into the -fight, aiming a blow at one of his own men which would certainly have -left the fellow few brains to think with, had he not ducked at the -critical moment, with the result that Te Karearea's _mere_, cleaving -the air downwards, met with terrific shock the upward sweep of -Bigham's belaying-pin. - -So severe was the jar, that the club, unsecured by its wrist-loop, -flew out of Te Karearea's hand over the side, and fell into the -water, just as Bigham, last survivor of the miserable crew, leaped -through the open gangway into the sea. There was an instant swirl of -lithe black bodies below the surface, and with a shrill yell the mate -sank beneath the waves and was seen no more. - -With a loud cry of wrath and despair Te Karearea rushed to the -gangway, and at his word a dozen tall fellows sprang upon the rail -and made ready to dive after the _mere_. But a number of dark, -triangular fins rose slowly to the surface, and the men instantly -jumped to the deck, nor could all Te Karearea's prayers and threats -avail to induce them to risk entering Reinga through such dreadful -portals. Whereupon, the chief sullenly ordered half a dozen of them -into a boat with instructions to drag the sea-bottom until the -greenstone club should be recovered. First, however, the dead bodies -of the sailors, along with the corpse of an old Maori, who had been -somehow crushed to death in the fight, were hove overboard, and -shortly afterwards guns were fired into the water, the surface -flogged with oars, and hideous noises raised to scare away the -watchful sharks, which was now less difficult to do. But, though -dredgers and divers did their best, the whereabouts of the _mere_ -remained undiscovered. - -The whole terrible scene had been enacted with frightful swiftness, -and, notwithstanding Te Karearea's apparent efforts to restrain his -men, and his solicitude for his captive's welfare--which the latter -was far from understanding--George felt convinced that the crafty -Maori was at the bottom of this and the other tragedies which had -marked the ill-omened voyage of the _Stella_. - -While the interest of all was centred upon those who were searching -for the greenstone _mere_, George became conscious of a lightening of -the top-weights, and instantly put all his strength into an upward -heave, which sent the fellow who was sitting upon him rolling on the -deck, while, at the same moment, he jerked himself free from the -others, sprang up, and made a dash for the gangway. - -With loud yells the Maoris closed in upon him from all sides, but, -though the odds were all against him, the Englishman's fighting blood -was up; he struck hard and fast, and Te Pouri received such a -tremendous blow in the eye, that he danced and howled with the agony -of it. An instant later, with a look of fiendish malignity, he swept -through the press and came upon George from behind. - -Within striking distance he stopped, swung up and poised the cruel -tomahawk, ready for the smashing downstroke which would have crashed -through scalp and skull and brain, when a piercing yell was heard, -and George, glancing in the direction of the sound, saw Te Karearea -bounding towards him, spear in rest. - -Instinctively the young man swerved to one side as far as the -close-packed throng would allow, and the movement saved his life. -For just then the tomahawk smashed downwards, missing his head by a -bare inch, while the flat of it, fortunately, struck his shoulder -with such force as to send his arm numb to his side, and bring him to -his knees. - -He was confusedly aware of swiftly parting brown bodies before the -onrush of the chief; he heard the soft thud of impact between spear -and flesh, a loud scream of mortal agony, and then the sky was -blotted out from his dazed eyes as a heavy body toppled upon him, -crushing him down, and forcing his head with fearful violence against -the deck. Then for a space he knew no more. - -No one ventured to protest against this summary execution; for their -chief's word was law, and they knew it. All were aware that Te Pouri -had disobeyed Te Karearea's order that, at whatever cost, Hortoni -should be spared, and, as death was the penalty of disobedience, -death, swift and inexorable, had been meted out to him. - -When George came to his senses some hours later, he was in a litter, -being carried he knew not whither; but, though it was too dark to -make out details, it was clear that the coast had been left behind, -and that Te Karearea had set out for his destination--wherever that -might be--under the friendly cover of night. - -As the dreadful scenes of the past afternoon came vividly back to -him, the ghastly memories so distressed George that presently he -became feverish, moving restlessly upon his litter, and reviewing in -mild delirium the varied events of the voyage and its horrible -conclusion. But ere long the tangled skein of thought knotted -suddenly, and, soothed by the pure, fragrant air of the bush, the -gentle, swinging motion, and the soft, monotonous chant of the -bearers, he fell into a sound, refreshing sleep. - -Morning at length shot up over the tall pines which rose erect and -towering without a branch for a hundred feet and more, and the litter -was set down at the base of a gigantic tree-fern, whose bright green -fronds spread tent-wise over the invalid, who still slept, unaware of -the gentle hands which now, as at intervals during the march, renewed -the cool dressings which had soothed his pain and calmed his shaken -brain. - -But when George at last opened his eyes, a pretty Maori girl came -running up, and with great solicitude inquired after his welfare. -The young man thanked her and tried to rise, but fell back, giddy and -confused, whereupon the girl renewed the dressings and warned him to -lie still until breakfast was ready. He followed her sound advice, -and, when he had eaten what he could of the food she presently served -upon wooden platters, felt decidedly better. - -The Maoris had marched throughout the greater part of the night, and -now they sprawled upon the soft green grass in restful attitudes, -some of them asleep, others busily oiling the locks of the rifles and -revolvers they had looted from the brig, while others again were -breakfasting and chatting with a light-hearted gaiety which gave -little suggestion of the bloody drama of the previous day. - -As his mind cleared George began to review his position. His -weakness made it imperative that he should rest for the present, but -he determined to escape as soon as possible, and, after communicating -with his father--whose anxiety, he felt, must by this time be very -great--hunt up Terence's regiment and enlist without attracting the -notice of Colonel Cranstoun. Failing this last, he would join the -Rangers--but first of all he must get away. - -Suddenly the maze of thought into which he had wandered took a new -turn, for he remembered to have seen Te Karearea charging down upon -him with levelled spear. Why, then, had the chief turned the point -of the weapon aside? He was sorely puzzled to discover the reason. -Of course he had no knowledge of the death of Te Pouri at the hands -of the chief; but, even had he known of it, the mystery would only -have deepened. - -His reflections were cut short by the arrival of Te Karearea himself, -who saluted his prisoner in his customary courteous and dignified -way, and sincerely hoped that none but the most trifling consequences -would ensue from the injuries he had received. - -Notwithstanding the disgust with which the chief inspired him, for he -believed him to be a wholesale murderer, George had too much tact to -show his feelings, and so, perhaps, ruin his chances. So he replied -politely to the chief's greeting. - -'But I am not very clear about it all,' he added; 'for the last thing -I recall is the sight of you rushing at me with a levelled spear. So -how--how----' he shook his head, bewildered. - -Te Karearea grinned at this, and hailing one of his lieutenants who -was passing, said: - -'Speak, O Winata Pakaro, and tell Hortoni what befell as the light -went out of his eyes. I tell not the tale, Hortoni, for I know that -you distrust me--not without reason, perhaps, from your point of -view.' He nodded to his subordinate, who drew for George a vivid -word-picture of the events which had accompanied his downfall. - -George had no choice but to believe the story, and he felt completely -mystified. Why should the possession of him be accounted so precious -that even the life of a valuable fighting-man was not allowed to -weigh down the scale against it? - -But Te Karearea dismissed Winata Pakaro and broke in upon his -thoughts with a question which sent flying what little power of -comprehension was left to him. 'Have you yet recovered your _mere_, -Hortoni?' the chief inquired blandly. - -George stared up at him. 'Are my wits wandering again?' he said. -'Do you seriously ask that question? You know as well as I do that -the greenstone club went to the bottom of the sea.' - -'Nevertheless, I ask you whether you have yet recovered it,' -persisted the chief; whereat George, weakened by his accident, grew -peevish. 'Am I then a magician, O Te Karearea?' he snapped back. - -Te Karearea's rich brown skin turned curiously sallow, and he -recoiled a step. 'Far be it from me to offend you, Hortoni,' he said -submissively. 'You are not a wizard if you say you are not. I do -but ask if you have got back your _mere_?' - -'Why, you are saying it again!' roared George, whose head was aching -with the strain of so much excitement. 'Are you mad that you bother -me with such stupid questions? Do you think that I have the thing -about me? Wizard be hanged! I know your supersti---- Eh! What! -Well, I never! Here! Hi! Come back, Chief!' For Te Karearea, -offended, or scared, by this unusual outburst, was stalking off. - -At George's hail he turned again, hesitated, and then hastened -eagerly to his captive's side. - -As for George, his face was a study. The most unbounded astonishment -expressed itself in every line as he half-sat, half-reclined, with -the _mere_ of TUMATAUENGA laid loosely across his open palms. - -'I know no more than you do where it came from,' he said, looking up -helplessly at the chief. - -'Oh, of course not,' sneered Te Karearea. 'May be RANGI cast it into -your lap, or perchance TUMATAUENGA came and gave it you just now when -my back was turned. Anything is possible, for there it lies.' - -Te Karearea'a face had grown hideous to behold. He rolled his eyes -until they appeared to be turned inside out, he poked out his tongue -until it nearly touched his chest, while bitter words came in -labouring grunts, as he shook his crooked hands impotently in the -air. At last by a mighty effort he controlled himself. 'But I knew -that it would return,' he muttered. 'Yes; I was sure of it.' - -George, though utterly bewildered, was quick to see the advantage -which the recovery of the club carried with it, and now rather -regretted that he had so openly shown his astonishment. However, he -was quite safe in that regard, for, not to put too fine a point upon -it, Te Karearea regarded his disclaimer as a lie told for some -personal reason, and the appearance of the _mere_ itself as evidence -of strong magical powers on the part of Hortoni. - -He was intensely annoyed that, once having gained possession of the -beautiful, mystic weapon, he should have lost it; but he had his game -to play, and it was no part of it to quarrel with his prisoner. So -he changed the subject, and, reverting to the question of parole, -said: - -'Give me your word again, Hortoni, and you shall go out and come in -among us as though you were really one of ourselves.' - -'I am obliged to you,' George returned sourly, not overpleased with -the compliment, which smacked rather too strongly of the -Pakeha-Maori. But he concluded to agree, since he could not hope to -escape until he had regained his strength, and so replied: - -'I give you my parole for one week. At the end of that time we will -talk again.' - -And Te Karearea, perforce content with this, withdrew. - -Quite exhausted by all the excitement he had gone through, and -knowing that his coveted greenstone was safe while the aroma of -present magic clung to it, George lay down once more, and, after -vainly trying to explain how that which he had seen falling into the -sea should be found beneath his mats, once more forgot his puzzles -and his troubles in sleep. - -He slept almost all round the clock, awaking next morning -considerably later than the sun. The march had evidently been -resumed during his long unconsciousness, and the litter was now set -behind a boulder on the top of a small hill, below which dense bush -spread out over a succession of smaller mounds to the valley. Food -and water had been placed near him, but not a Maori could be seen. - -George, having breakfasted, felt much better, though still stiff and -sore, and presently the unusual silence and absence of all signs of -life struck him oddly, and he began to look about him. - -'What can have become of all my rascals?' he wondered, and just then -the silence was stirred by a long wailing cry, which rose and fell -plaintively on the still air. 'A _weka_[1] calling to its mate,' -thought George, as the melancholy note sounded again in the depths of -the valley. - - -[1] _Ocydromus australis_, the wood-hen. - - -He began somewhat stiffly to descend the hill, when he was startled -by a harsh, imperative whisper close beside him: 'Lie down, Hortoni! -Quick, lie down!' - -Then, as he stared this way and that, seeing no one, a lithe brown -form rose from the other side of the rock beside which he stood, -compelled him with heavy hand to the ground, and sank out of sight as -swiftly and noiselessly as it had arisen. - -And as George, obedient to the pressure upon his shoulder, crouched -under the rock, a bullet flattened itself with sulky smack upon the -face of the boulder behind him, while, even as it dropped to the -ground, the crack of a rifle floated up from the valley. - - - - -CHAPTER IX - -JUST IN TIME - -'A clever marksman,' thought George, as he snuggled behind his rock. -'If I hadn't been pulled down, I should have handed in my parole for -good and all.' - -He drew a deep breath. He had courage enough to admit that he had -been scared. - -Smack! Another bullet lodged close by; but this time there was an -abrupt, dull thud, followed by a heavy groan, while a commotion -further up the hill told all too plainly of a human form writhing in -agony. - -'_Habet!_' muttered George. 'Whatever is all the rumpus about? Some -settlers, perhaps, have heard of our arrival and come out to stop us. -What clever beggars these Maoris are at taking cover! I could not -see a sign of one when I was up.' He twisted his head and stared -down into the valley; but, seeing nothing for his pains, peered round -the back of his sheltering rock. - -There lay Winata Pakaro, famous fighting chief, his lips set in a -grin of hate, his eyes glittering with the light of battle, his long -hair stirred by the breeze as the locks of the Furies by their -writhing snakes. Suddenly his rifle sprang to his shoulder, and -George, forgetful of his own danger, lifted his head by ever so -little over the rock to watch the effect of the shot. - -In a moment the explosion roared in his ear; but there was no one to -be seen in the valley. Only, almost simultaneously with the report -of Winata's rifle, the gloom of the distant scrub was rent by a vivid -flash, and George ducked again as the bullet came singing up to smash -the stock of the Maori's gun and glance off up the hill. - -'_Na!_' grunted the disgusted Winata Pakaro, and called softly to a -comrade, who glided out of the bushes, not three feet from George, -who, till then, had not the slightest idea that any one lay there. -Winata explained his wants, and the other, whose business it was to -keep in touch with the firing-line, crawled off as a fourth bullet -grazed Pakaro's shoulder. - -The hardy savage merely grunted, took another rifle from the hand of -his comrade, and stretched himself out as before. - -A crash, a groan, and, as the report of a fifth shot came from the -valley, the powder-monkey, so to call him, fell upon his face, and -lay still with a hole in his head. He had imitated George in peering -over the rock, and now there he was--dead. - -'I know only one man who can shoot like this,' thought George,' and -he must be a good bit east of here.' Another bullet knocked -fragments from the top of the rock. 'He has got our range to a -nicety. I wish he would turn his polite attention to some other part -of the hill. Ah! I thought so. It is getting too hot here.' For -with the sound of the last shot Winata Pakaro glided away, giving a -quick call to George to follow cautiously. - -Ten minutes later a couple of Maoris stood as if by magic at his -side, wound each an arm through his own, and, with their rifles at -the trail, set off with him at a terrific pace down the hill. - -Difficult as it was, George managed to snatch a fleeting glance or -two as he tore along between his guards. On this side the Maoris -were running at top speed, their objective being another hill, a -natural fortress, which rose out of the valley a mile or so away. On -that side, a mob of whites and friendly Maoris, far inferior in -number to Te Karearea's force, were racing desperately towards the -same hill, but wasting their breath in shouts and yells. But so far -it was anybody's race. - -'Let go!' panted George. 'I can run faster alone.' - -'No tricks then, Hortoni,' growled one of the guards. 'Try to escape -and we will brain you.' - -Stimulated by the occasional shots which followed them, they swept -along in fine style. As they neared the coveted hill, Te Karearea's -Maoris converged upon it from all sides, and simply over-ran a score -or so of whites who opposed them, braining one and wounding half a -dozen others. - -The hill gained, George flung himself upon his back, too blown to -heed the bullets which whistled over him; but, as one of them passed -uncomfortably close to his head, he crawled behind a rock to watch -the progress of operations. - -But the sharp excitement was over for the time, and the long day wore -to an end with nothing but desultory fire upon either side, for the -whites refused to cross a ravine, over which it would have been death -to charge. The fine marksman of the morning was now conspicuous by -his absence, and George wondered regretfully whether he was the man -who had been carried feet first towards the camp of the whites after -their one ineffectual charge upon the hill. - -But towards evening the captain of the white force was startled by -the sound of a Maori bugle in his rear, and, caught thus between two -fires, resolved upon a desperate charge. He encountered no -resistance as he led his men across the dangerous ravine; but, as he -ran on, a stream of fire belched from the heart of a bush, and he -had, literally, a close shave, for one of his whiskers was singed -completely off. So he retired a sadder and less hirsute man, only to -find that the astute Te Karearea had raided his camp and annexed his -reserve of ammunition, along with all his horses, accoutrements, -stores, and baggage. - -This calamity finished the gallant officer, who retreated throughout -the night over terrible country, with his weary and dispirited column -at his heels, ammunitionless and supperless. - -They were not pursued; for the Maoris themselves were tired and -hungry, and preferred to set about the preparation of a well-earned -meal. For even though a man fight in a bad cause, he yet gets up -appetite enough to enjoy his dinner. - -Wrath and disappointment at the result of the fight had made George -unusually sullen, but when the pretty maid who had so deftly bandaged -him, and whose musical name was Kawainga, or Star of the Dawn, -brought him supper, his sufferings, less poignant than his appetite, -did not compel him to refuse. - -A hungry man is an angry man, and certainly when George had eaten all -the good things set before him, and smoked a looted cigar--Te -Karearea with generous irony had sent him a handful--his temporary -irritation vanished, and his usual cool temper reasserted itself. He -had plenty of common-sense, and recognising that there was nothing to -be gained by quarrelling with the chief, presently accepted the -latter's invitation to stroll round the camp and visit the pickets. -For Te Karearea observed all proper military precautions, and -maintained an iron discipline in camp and field. - -'It would be no easy matter for a Pakeha to break through my lines, -Hortoni,' he remarked, as they turned again towards the bivouac. - -'If you are hinting at me, I have no intention of trying,' was -George's reply to this suggestive remark. 'But why are you so -anxious to detain me?' - -'Why are you so anxious to leave me, my friend?' countered the Maori, -and, as George burst out laughing, 'I have not treated you ill, -Hortoni,' he added rather wistfully. - -'True. Still, you talk as a fool. Home, friends, duty, inclination, -all call me away from you. You are in arms against the men of my -race. Is it any wonder that I fret in the toils?' - -'Yet there are chiefs who have their Pakehas,' urged Te Karearea. - -'That is not much to the credit of those Pakehas,' George said -loftily; and to change the subject went on: 'Where is Paeroa?' - -'Be wise in time, Hortoni,' the chief urged earnestly. 'You possess, -though you do not realise it, a certain means of attaining greatness. -Ascend the ladder which I am holding for you, and you will be great. -Refuse, and you are doomed, even as your race is doomed. You ask for -Paeroa. He is gone to carry the message of my coming.' - -'And who will listen to it?' George asked dryly. - -'Say rather, who will not hear my word?' Te Karearea drew himself up -proudly. 'Waikato and Ngatiawa shall hear and flock to my standard. -Taranaki and Wanganui shall lift the spear and shake the tomahawk. -Taupo and Ngaiterangi, Whakatoea and Ngatiporou, Ngatiapa and -Ngatihau[1]--all these and more shall hear and come with club and -gun. But Arawa, the accursed, shall be deaf, and them and the -Pakehas shall my legions smite and slay until the land which has been -ours since Maui drew it forth from the sea, is ours once again. -Behold! I, Te Karearea, have sworn it.' - - -[1] All the Maori tribes named above were in arms against the British -at one time or another during the wars. The Arawas were friendly. - - -The sonorous cadence of vowels rolled out into the night, and George, -to his surprise, felt a passing throb of sympathy for this uncrowned -king. After all, the land had originally--and not so long -ago--belonged to the Maori; nor could the Pakeha be said to be -altogether clean-handed in the matter. It was a fleeting mood; but -it sufficed to induce George to let the chief down gently, and to -refrain from further argument. - -Just then the rapid beat of a horse's hoofs was heard, and Te -Karearea, with a word of excuse to George, ran back to the sentry -they had just passed, whispered an order, and at once rejoined his -guest, as he was pleased to style his paroled prisoner. - -'During the afternoon I learned that the captain of the force opposed -to me sent to Turanga for reinforcements,' he began, smiling. 'This, -in all probability, is the messenger returning. I am going to catch -him.' - -'But,' objected George, 'if the messenger recognise that the sentry -is not a "friendly," he will bolt, and then your man will certainly -shoot him.' - -'It takes some education for a Pakeha to distinguish, let us say, -Arawa from Ngatiawa,' said Te Karearea reassuringly. 'No; there will -be no difficulty--of that sort.' He paused to whisper instructions -to a sentry on the inner ring, and George, glancing back, saw that -the messenger was slowly walking his tired horse towards the picket. - -'I must ask you to retire, Hortoni,' said Te Karearea courteously. -'I must examine this man, and----' - -'Oh, quite so,' agreed George. 'The poor beggar little dreams what -is in store for him. When your interrogation is at an end, turn him -over to me, and I will do my best to console him.' He nodded to the -chief and turned his back upon the bivouac, thinking as he went of -the grim jest which Fate was about to play upon the unlucky messenger. - -Hoping to get a bit of news on his own account, George strolled -towards the outer picket, and in course of time was challenged by the -sentry in the strictly orthodox manner: 'Halt! Who goes there?' - -George explained, and handed the sentry a plug of tobacco, off which -the Maori promptly bit a piece. But he was a surly fellow, and gave -a gruff negative when asked if he happened to know anything of the -Pakeha who had ridden into the camp. - -'They will eat the oyster and throw away the shell; that's all I -know,' he growled, his answer showing that he came from the coast. - -'Meaning, I suppose, that they will turn him out of the camp when -they have learned all that he has to tell,' commented George. 'I -should like a word with him before he goes. I wonder if he will come -this way.' - -'_Whakatore Atua!_' (the gods forbid) ejaculated the sentry, with a -nervous glance over his shoulder. 'Let him take another road to -Reinga. I want no ghosts on my beat.' - -'Ghosts? Reinga?' echoed George amazed. And then, as the full -significance of the Maori's words came home to him, he turned and -sped like the wind towards the bivouac, a prayer in his heart that he -might reach it in time. - -Meanwhile the messenger, a sturdy young fellow in the orthodox red -coat of the service, had led his horse to the bivouac of the head -chiefs. - -'I have come to the wrong place, it seems,' he said cheerfully, -little imagining how true were his words. 'It is Captain Westrupp's -bivouac I'm after. Well, boys, I suppose you licked those rascals?' - -'Yes; we licked them,' answered Winata Pakaro in fluent English, -while his leader remained unobtrusively in the background. 'They are -now in full retreat.' - -'Hurrah! Well, I must hunt up the captain. Where is his bivouac?' -He cast a longing eye upon the cold viands, scattered about. - -'Nay; sit and eat,' invited Winata Pakaro. 'You need food after your -long ride. The captain is not in the camp, nor is it likely that he -will return to-night.' - -'Oh, in that case, here goes'; and the young soldier sat down and ate -with appetite, while Winata Pakaro pumped him dry of information as -to the number and disposal of the British and Colonial troops. The -meal and the interrogation ended together. - -'Thank you, boys; you are the real old sort,' said the messenger -gratefully. 'Now tell me where my mates are camped. It is odd that -none of them are about; but I suppose they are all dog-tired.' - -He turned to go, smiling at them; but at a sign from Winata his arms -were pinioned, and while a couple of Maoris held him in a firm grip, -a third lashed his ankles together. - -He was very strong, that was evident; but he was intelligent too, and -did not waste his strength in useless struggles. 'You crafty -demons!' he snarled at them. 'You are Te Karearea's men.' - -'Yes,' admitted Winata Pakaro,' and we are also brothers of the men -who died to-day. So there is a blood-feud, and, as we have you, you -must die.' - -'You will not dare to kill a prisoner of war.' - -'Oh, we will do all things as they ought to be done, and follow the -rules of war. You come by night into our camp, pretending to take us -for "friendlies," and endeavour to worm information out of us. Thus -you are proved a spy. It is the custom of civilised nations at war -to hang spies. Good! We will hang you, and so escape the vengeance -of the Pakeha.' His saturnine chuckle was echoed by the chiefs who -stood in a semi-circle about the prisoner. - -The unhappy soldier looked round despairingly. What hope was there -for him? Before him a crescent of stern-faced men, and all about him -men of the same colour, with faces yet more fierce and horrid. For -the rank and file had gathered to hear the last of the discussion--to -see the last of the Pakeha. - -At a sign from Winata Pakaro two grim-visaged warriors stepped -forward with a rope, one end of which they cast over the stout limb -of a great tree. The other end, which was noosed, they slipped over -the head of the prisoner, who, pale as death, but erect and brave, -gave them back glance for glance. - -He was a soldier, and he would not show the despair he felt to these -enemies of his flag. 'I warn you that a terrible vengeance will be -taken if you murder me,' he said boldly. - -A derisive yell arose among the bystanders, and at a covert sign one -of the executioners drew the rope taut, handing the loose end to the -other. - -The miserable messenger gave up hope. He was brave, and he did not -mean to go out of the world like a craven. But it was hard, for he -was young and strong, and life glowed in his veins. He cast an -agonised glance around, but only savage, grinning faces met his eyes. -He closed them, murmuring a prayer, when a shout, not far off, struck -his tense nerves with such a shock that they quivered, like -harp-strings suddenly smitten, and for the first time he -trembled--not with fear, but with hope. - -Again that shout, loud and insistent, crying something in Maori which -he could not understand. Yet when he heard it, he trembled all the -more, for there was something in the voice which rang familiar in his -ears. Yet how could that be? - -Once more the frantic appeal: '_Kei whakamate ia koe!_--Do not kill -him! Do not kill him!' - -Stamping footsteps, crushing down the rustling fern--nearer, louder, -furious at the feeble opposition. And at last a man, panting, -sobbing for breath, burst into the open space illumined by the -bivouac fire, gasping as he came his ever-recurring '_Kei whakamate -ia koe!_' - -For one instant the soldier stared, incredulous. He seemed -paralysed. His eyes started from his head. His limbs shook under -him. Suddenly he felt the tightening noose, stiffened, caught at a -hasty breath, and spent it in a quavering shriek: '_George! Quick! -They're murdering me!_' - -The two Maoris with the rope set off at a run. But ere the cord -could press the swelling throat, George Haughton crashed through the -encircling crowd, tumbling them this way and that; and, as he charged -down upon them, whirling the mysterious _mere_ over his head, the -executioners dropped the rope and fled for their lives, howling. - -In an instant George was at his friend, plucked the cruel rope from -his neck, and flung it away. Then pushing Terence behind him against -the tree, he stood on the defensive, eyes glaring, but keen; his -chest heaving from his run; challenge and menace in every line of him. - - - - -CHAPTER X - -TOGETHER AGAIN - -When the Maoris recovered from the shock of his rush, they faced -George as he stood covering his friend's body with his own. There -was no noise, no shouting; but the stern Roman faces looked very grim -and determined. Then Winata Pakaro with oily tongue began an -argument, in the midst of which was heard the click of the hammer of -a gun drawn back to full cock. - -But while Winata's smooth periods flowed on, there was a sudden rush, -a scuffle, a shout of wrathful surprise, and there was George back -again under the tree with the rifle in his hand. He had wrested it -from the astonished warrior who had so stealthily--as he -imagined--made ready to use it. - -In another moment Terence's wrists and ankles were free and the rifle -in his grasp, while George once more flourished his famous club, -rightly judging that its moral effect would be considerable, while as -to its physical possibilities there was no doubt whatever. - -[Illustration: In another moment Terence's wrists were free, and the -rifle in his grasp (page 106).] - -These things done in the space of a second or two, George began to -harangue the Maoris, but Winata Pakaro cut into his first words with: - -'Stand aside, Hortoni! We wish not to injure you; but this man must -die.' - -'Stand you back, O Winata Pakaro!' retorted George. 'This man is my -brother in all but blood, and I say that he shall not die.' - -There was a roar of incredulous laughter at what the chiefs took to -be an expedient lie, and Winata muttered a hasty order over his -shoulder. - -'Look out!' cried George, suspecting his design. 'Fire as he jumps.' - -But a long whistle shrilled from Winata's lips, and he flung himself -flat on the ground as the Maoris made an ugly rush forward and -Terence's rifle spoke. - -Fortunately for the friends, the bullet merely startled an elderly -chief into a most undignified caper as it hummed past his ear, and on -the instant Winata leaped from the ground and hurled himself at -Terence. - -But the great fighter was handicapped by his fear of George, whose -own weapon came more than once so dangerously near his head that he -gave back in alarm; for there was no knowing when that magical piece -of greenstone would spring out of its master's hand and begin a -devil's dance upon its own account. - -Still, it might have gone hardly with Terence, but that, as the -Maoris surged about him, a deep voice cried angrily: 'Is the word of -Te Karearea of no weight in this _hapu_? And you, Hortoni, why do -you break faith with me?' - -Where the chief had sprung from George had no idea, but he was -uncommonly glad to see him, and, as the Maoris shrank back, he -briefly explained who Terence was and what had taken place. -Thereupon Te Karearea turned upon Winata Pakaro and rated him -viciously, demanding how he had dared to take so much upon himself. -To this verbal castigation Winata merely opposed a smile of cynical -amusement as he walked away. - -Then Te Karearea faced George once more and said graciously, 'I give -you, O Hortoni, the life of the friend for whom you would have given -your own. To-morrow you shall tell me the story of your friendship. -But he must give up the rifle.' - -At a nod from George, Terence surrendered the rifle, and Te Karearea -then extended his hand, as if expecting to receive the greenstone -club as well. But when this piece of impudent bluff--which was -extremely well acted--met with the reception it deserved, he grinned -good-humouredly and nodded to the pair to withdraw, which they did at -once. - -With his arm round Terence's shoulders, George piloted his chum -towards the huge fallen tree, beneath which he designed to pass the -night. 'You dear old fellow!' he said heartily, drawing Terence to -him. 'Who would have thought of meeting here, and like this? What a -mercy I came up in time!' - -'Thank God you did!' replied Terence, unable to repress a shudder; -for when a brave man has stared death in the face, and the grim -Gatherer has passed on, leaving him untouched, he is not, as a rule, -flippant about his experience. - -'When I came rushing up, I hadn't the faintest idea that I was to -meet you,' went on George. 'Indeed, I only recognised you when you -screamed at me in that queer, cracked voice. In the first place, I -had never seen you in uniform, and in the---- Hold up, old fellow!' - -For Terence staggered and would have fallen, had not the strong arm -around his shoulders slipped to his waist and supported him. - -George laid him down and bent anxiously over him, seeing that he had -fainted. The strain had been dreadful, and, brave though he was, his -emotional nature had lent an added poignancy to the sufferings of -that terrible half-hour. - -In a few minutes he revived, and looking up at his friend with an -apologetic smile, murmured: 'I'm all right now. I did not mean----' - -'Lie still and don't talk, dear old fellow,' interrupted George; but -Terence sat up with his back against the tree and drank a cup of -water which George handed him. Then George, wishful to take his -thoughts off his recent peril, began to chat about the sharpshooter -of the early morning. - -'What became of that crack shot of yours?' he inquired. 'He was -wonderful. The Maoris lost two men, and I myself came within an ace -of adding another bull's-eye to his score.' - -At this Terence gasped in a queer way and collapsed flat upon his -face; but when George, who thought that he had fainted again, was -about to rise, he scrambled to his knees, and catching his friend in -a bear's hug, exclaimed brokenly: 'Oh, thank God! O George, thank -God I didn't hit you! Oh!' - -He buried his face in his arms, while George patted his broad back, -saying soothingly: 'So it was you after all! Curiously enough, I -thought so at the time; but I did not see how such a thing could be. -Cheer up, old fellow! There's no harm done.' - -Terence wrung his friend's hand. There were traces of tears upon his -cheeks, but he did not seem to mind. 'I took deliberate aim at you,' -he said. 'We all thought that the white man on the hill must be one -of those Pakeha-Maori rascals; so I let drive and----' - -'Missed him! So that's all right,' finished George cheerfully. 'You -must not let out to these people that you were the slayer of their -comrades, or we shall hear a lot about a blood-feud and have endless -trouble. By the way, was Te Karearea present at your court-martial?' - -'I saw nothing of him until he stopped our little fight. Why?' - -George did not explain. He had reason to know that the chief did not -always choose to appear as the moving spirit in the programme of -events. 'No matter,' he said. 'Now, I want to hear all your news. -Are you hungry?' - -'Oh no; your friends fed me well before turning me over to the -hangman.' - -'Don't call them my friends,' protested George. 'I would----' - -'Oh! Then you are not a Pakeha-Maori?' put in Terence, with an air -of great simplicity. - -'You are yourself again, I see,' said George, laughing. 'Fill your -pipe and let me hear your adventures.' - -'I have had none until to-day,' began Terence. 'Colonel Cranstoun -was very kind to me on board; but he and Horn kept me at it with -never-ending drill. By the way, the colonel expressed his regret -that he had packed you off in the tug.' - -'No! Surely not?' George grinned. - -'Yes. He pulled his long moustache, and observed: "I should have -done better to keep the young scapegrace under my own eye."' - -'You humbug!' laughed George. 'Go on.' - -'He is a fine old fellow, George. On the third day out we met a -Sydney-bound brig, which hove to, and the colonel sent a letter to -your father. You saw it, no doubt.' - -'No; but I am glad he wrote it. I started on your trail next -morning.' - -'What a fellow you are!' said Terence admiringly. 'I was sure that -you would lose no time. But next morning!' - -'Get on with your yarn,' ordered George. - -'Right, sir! In due time we arrived at Auckland, where Colonel -Cranstoun took me out of the ranks and made me useful as an orderly, -or something of the kind. Since then I have been sent here, there, -and everywhere. My last mission was to bring dispatches from our -colonel in Wanganui to Major Biggs at Poverty Bay. There I found -Biggs just starting after your beauties, so I got permission to join -the expedition.' - -'How did he hear of our arrival?' put in George. - -'I can't say; and it is still a mystery to me how you come to be with -these fellows at all. I am burning to hear your story. However, I -will finish mine first. We have followed your trail for four days, -and to-day, as you know, the fight began. I was sent back to Turanga -for reinforcements; but as I heard on the way that Biggs was -somewhere else, hurrying up the commissariat, I rode hither again. -Of course I had not the least idea that the camp had meantime changed -hands. That's my history, and a dull one it is. Now for yours.' - -He listened, absorbed, to the recital of his chum's adventures. 'I -do envy you,' he said, as George wound up his narrative. 'You -certainly have not lacked incident. Let me see this -wonderful--_mere_, do you call it?' - -George handed over the club, which Terence examined with deep -interest. - -'It seems to me,' he said at last, 'that you will do well to take -that old man's advice and hold fast to this club; for----' - -'Oh, nonsense!' interjected George. 'How can there be any magic -inherent in a piece of greenstone? The curious things which have -occurred in connection with it are not inexplicable.' - -'Explain, then, its return after your own eyes had seen it falling -into the sea.' - -'There must be an explanation,' said George doggedly. - -'Say, rather, that, like all your unimaginative race, you refuse to -believe in anything you cannot understand. If there is nothing -exceptional about the club, why is Te Karearea so anxious to get it?' - -'It is, of course, surrounded with traditions,' began George, and -suddenly sprang up and darted round the tree in time to see a dark -figure bounding away into the bush. Pursuit was useless, so George -returned to their fire, expressing his conviction that the -eavesdropper had been Te Karearea. - -'As I said, he attaches importance to the club, if you don't,' was -Terence's comment. - -'More likely he came here to learn what he could about you,' George -argued; 'for I don't believe in his protestation of ignorance of -English.' - -'All the same, you follow the old man's advice, and never let that -club be far from you,' urged Terence. - -'Well, it is a singular fact that the moment of my greatest peril was -just after I had been deprived of the _mere_,' admitted George. - -'Yet even that peril was averted.' - -'Yes; and I do not understand why. From the moment of our meeting, -Te Karearea has treated me with great consideration, and--though it -may sound absurd--has sometimes seemed afraid of me. Not, of course, -in a physical sense. There is something incomprehensible at work.' - -'Perhaps he still hopes to convert you to his views.' - -'He need not on that account fear me.' - -'True. The great thing is the plain fact that association with the -club has saved your life so far. I think----' He yawned widely. - -'I think that you are more than half asleep,' finished George. 'Your -bed is there, under the tree, and here is a blanket for you.' - -Terence threw himself down at once, but almost immediately sprang up -again. 'Give me your hand, George,' he said. - -'What's the matter now?' asked George, obeying. - -'Brute that I am, I have never even thanked you. But you know, old -fellow--my dear old chum, you know----' He paused, blinking hard. - -'I should think I did!' cried George, capering with the pain of that -friendly squeeze. 'Brute! You are indeed. A grizzly isn't in it -with you. Away with you to bed, and don't talk any more nonsense.' - -'I won't,' said Terence seriously; 'but I will do at last what I -ought to have done at first.' Without a word more he dropped upon -his knees and buried his face in his hands. A few minutes later he -rose quietly, and with a nod at George, lay down upon his fern-bed -and prepared to sleep. - - - - -CHAPTER XI - -ONE MYSTERY THE LESS - -'The _réveillé_!' laughed Terence, as he awoke next morning to the -cheerful notes of a bugle. 'For a moment I thought that I was back -with the old regiment.' - -'Oh, the soldier fashion in which we do things here would not -disgrace the "old regiment," as you call it,' said George, smiling. -'Your own red coat, by the way, has a suspicious newness about it. -Did you sleep well?' - -'Never better. Ah, George, old fellow, I owe----' - -'Here's breakfast,' broke in George hastily, giving him a mighty -smack on the back, to the great delight of Kawainga, Star of the -Dawn, who appeared with two satellites, bearing the materials for a -substantial breakfast. - -Soon they were again upon the march, and Te Karearea, who had taken -every precaution against a surprise, jogged peacefully along, smoking -a looted cigar, and listening with interest to the story of the -youthful adventures of George and Terence, whom he addressed as Mura, -or The Blazing One. The name had much the sound of Moore, but it was -the appearance of the Irishman, with his red coat and flaming head of -hair, which had really suggested the title. - -'It is good to hear of such friendship,' the chief said, beaming upon -the pair during a pause in their narration. 'Surely Mura will not -wish to leave us now that he has found you, Hortoni. Persuade him to -stay, my friend.' - -George looked him in the eyes and laughed quietly. He translated to -Terence, but made no reply to the chief, who did not pursue the -subject. - -'What did he mean by that remark, George?' inquired Terence as they -lay in the shade during the midday halt. - -'I can't say exactly, for one never knows what the crafty beggar is -up to.' He looked cautiously round, but as no one was near, went on: -'He may even wish you to try and escape, in order to--to----' - -'To find an excuse for knocking me on the head,' supplied Terence. -'Then he'll be disappointed, for I'll not leave you--unless escape -meant a good chance of helping you out of the trap. In that case I'd -go this minute.' - -'I am sure you would, dear old fellow!' said George affectionately; -'but we will stick together as long as possible. Only, if the chief -does not parole you, then----' He broke off short, staring up at Te -Karearea, who had, as usual, approached unobserved. - -'It looks as if the rascal possesses the power to render himself -invisible at will,' said George disgustedly, when the chief had -withdrawn after informing them that the march was about to be -resumed. 'We shall have to go warily, Terence; for there is no -knowing how much he may have heard.' - -'Much good may it do him,' remarked Terence airily. 'And if it comes -to knocking on the head----' He bent his arm. The great biceps -contracted, bulging out the red sleeve. Let that enormous mass of -muscle be extended with the weight of the body behind it, and the -fist in front of it would surely trouble somebody's weak nerves. - -George smiled. 'Oh, I know what you can do; but a couple of hundred -to one is long odds. Meantime, you must not run the risk of -offending him; for, remember, he is utterly unscrupulous. In some -mysterious way I appear to be necessary to him; but were it -otherwise, he would kill me without the slightest compunction. Of -that I feel sure. Come! it is time we joined him.' - -Four days later, towards sunset, they debouched from the forest -through which for the last sixty hours they had toiled wearily along -a narrow, difficult track. It had been a terrible journey for the -Maoris, but far more so for the white men, and all alike rejoiced -when at last the dreadful bush lay behind them, and they beheld the -river which alone divided them from the _pah_ which was their goal. - -As was usual with the Maori fortresses, the position was one of -immense strength. The island plain, at the back of which rose a -considerable hill, was a swampy area overgrown with flax, and -extended for nearly a mile on every side of the eminence but one, -being itself enclosed by a forked ravine, at the bottom of which the -river roared and swirled among giant boulders. No doubt, at some -far-off day this roughly level plain had itself been covered with -forest; but dead and gone generations of Maoris had cleared away the -offending wood, so that no one could now approach the _pah_ -unobserved. The single side of the hill unflanked by the plain was -simply a vast, precipitous rock-face, having for its _vis-à-vis_ the -equally precipitous opposing wall of the ravine, into whose depths it -dropped a sheer two hundred feet, the twin cliffs forming a cañon -through which the river raced on its way to unite again with the main -stream. - -The place was, indeed, almost inaccessible when once the only -approach from the forest was barred. This was merely a rough bridge -across the river on the side furthest from the hill, and when the -tree-trunks forming this were withdrawn, a handful of men could -easily hold the island against an army. - -But even were the bridge to be rushed, the ascent of the hill was -made difficult by carefully laid trenches and rifle-pits, and, -finally, the _pah_ was encircled by a double row of palisades of -great height and immense strength, the chinks between the massive -logs being filled with hard-baked mud and clay. The palisades were -loopholed above, and a rude platform ran along the inner side of each -row, where men might lie, secure themselves, and fire upon an -advancing foe. - -It would indeed be a desperate and determined foe who would venture -to attack, much more succeed in taking, the _Pah O Te Mate_--the Pah -of the Slain, the Fortress of Death. - -As it happened, the weary travellers were not destined to enter the -_pah_ just yet; for as the vanguard swung out of the forest and -prepared to cross the hundred yards or so of cleared ground between -them and the bridge, they saw a sight which halted them as -effectually as though some sudden stroke had robbed their limbs of -all power. - -But they could not stand still, for those in the rear pressed them -on, and presently the little clearing became almost blocked with -armed men vainly striving to preserve their customary proud and -resolute bearing, and with trembling women who did not attempt to -hide their extreme terror. - -In the midst of the confusion the voice of Te Karearea was heard -angrily demanding the cause of the block, but no sooner had the chief -forced his way to the front than he, too, stopped as if compelled, -all signs of anger faded from his face, and he stood meek and -inoffensive, his hands crossed upon his broad chest, his plumed head -bowed low. - -And what was the cause of all this fear and commotion? Standing -alone at the bridge-head was one old man. His figure was bent, his -snow-white hair fell, a tangle of locks, below his shoulders, and the -hand which grasped the staff upon which he leaned, trembled as it -clutched the crook. Yet there was fire in his rolling eyes, and a -hint of mastery, if not of menace, in the gesture with which he flung -up his free hand, forbidding the advance; and his voice, far from -piping in the thin treble of extreme old age, rang stern and -sonorous, as the liquid Maori speech gushed from his venerable lips. - -He was Kapua Mangu--the Black Cloud--the _Tohunga_, and most notable -of all the Maori wizards. - -At the old man's bidding, Te Karearea advanced and listened -respectfully to some words spoken for his ear alone. Then, turning, -he rapidly issued an order which sent the warriors tumbling back into -the forest, while side by side with the great magician, the chief set -off across the plain in the direction of the _pah_. - -'So we are not to enter the fortress to-night,' George explained to -Terence as they followed the Maoris. 'According to the old -gentleman, a particularly malignant demon has taken up his quarters -on the hill, and any attempt to pass him would be fraught with dire -peril. To-morrow we are to make a kind of state entry.' - -'Which means that the ancient rogue has reasons for keeping us off -the hill to-night.' - -'Very likely; but it won't hurt us, fortunately. What do you say to -supper and early bed?' - -'I'm with you there,' agreed Terence, 'for I'm dog tired.' - -So they hunted about until they found pretty Miss Kawainga, who soon -provided them with an excellent meal, after which they selected a -comfortable spot for their bivouac, spread their blankets on the -fern, and were quickly asleep. - -An hour before midnight something awakened George, and he sat up and -looked in all directions for the cause. Everything was profoundly -still, and presently he made out that the camp was deserted, not a -single Maori being visible anywhere. Wondering sleepily what the -chief was about, he noticed that their fire had dwindled a good deal, -and, knowing that the early hours of morning would be cold, crept out -of his blanket-bag and rose, yawning, to replenish it. Hither and -thither he moved, gathering sticks and fern, when suddenly the wood -dropped through his hands, he turned cold, and his heart throbbed -heavily under his creeping flesh. He drew in a deep breath, and his -strong will and high courage fought desperately against the unnerving -sensations of the moment. For once again the quiet night was rent by -those weird, awful sounds which had so unmanned him during that -dreary midnight hour aboard the brig a week ago. - -'_Hau-hau! Hau-hau! Pai marire, hau-hau! Hau-hau!_' - -From afar the horrid noises screamed through the shivering forest, -mixed now and again with a singular gabble of words which somehow had -the sound of English, though the distance made it difficult to judge. - -George made a fierce effort to collect himself. Terence had suffered -enough already, and for his sake he must not give way. But to his -intense surprise he saw the object of his concern sitting up and -listening with an expression of deep interest on his face. - -'Queer row, isn't it?' said Terence. 'Do you see those lights on the -hill behind there? That is where they are. Perhaps this explains -the mysterious confab between the chief and the wizard. I vote we go -and have a look at them; we may never get another chance.' - -George could scarcely believe his ears. The noise which now, as -before, so shocked him, was accepted by Terence as something merely -interesting. Still, the sight of his friend's unconcern did much to -steady his own jumping nerves. - -Receiving no answer, Terence looked up. The dying fire added to the -ghastliness of George's face. 'Hullo! What is it, old fellow?' he -cried, rolling out of his bag. 'Are you ill?' - -'I plead guilty to a bad fit of the horrors,' answered George, -'though your coolness is rapidly convincing me that my bogy is not so -awful as I imagined it to be. I never was so frightened in my life -as when I first heard those terrible sounds at dead of night aboard -the brig. I did not speak of it to you when we met, because it had -nothing to do with my story. If you know what the noise means, for -heaven's sake tell me at once.' - -'I thought you knew all about it,' replied Terence. 'The row is -horrid, but simple enough in its origin. It is a part of the -religious service, or incantation, perhaps I should say, of the -Hau-haus.' - -'Oh! And who may the Hau-haus be? Men or devils?' - -'Men, distinctly; but with a strong dash of the devil in them, too.' - -'Are they Maoris?' - -'Very much so. The same among whom you have been adventuring this -month past. Let us steal back to that hill and lay your ghost for -once and all. I'll tell you what I know as we go.' - -'I'm with you,' agreed George. 'I'm thankful to have fathomed this -uncanny mystery. Hark! They are at it again.' Once more the unholy -clamour swelled upon the quiet air. - -Even the sentinels had left the camp and gone, presumably, to the -hill, where, as they advanced, the friends could see great fires -blazing and vomiting clouds of smoke into the blackness of the night. -As they went, Terence discoursed in low tones of the rise and -progress of the Hau-hau religion, and its effect upon those Maoris -who had embraced it. - -'I learned what I have told you from a friendly Arawa chief,' he -said, as they drew near the ravine which formed the approach to the -hill. 'He spun the yarn one night around the camp-fire, and by way -of illustration gathered a few of his men and surprised us a little -later with a very creditable imitation of the howling which so -disturbed you. I must own that, until I knew what it was, I felt far -from comfortable.' - -'I don't blame you,' said George with a shudder. 'And there have -been many converts to Hau-hauism, you say.' - -'Plenty; and to-day the Hau-haus are the fiercest and most implacable -of our foes. They have some very unpleasant customs, and that nasty -yowling, with its blasphemous invocation of the Holy Trinity, is not -the least atrocious of them.' - -Their cautious march ceased now, and they began to crawl quietly up -the side of the ravine, from the plateau above which came the hum of -many voices. - -'Te Karearea must have joined this sect before he was packed off to -Chatham Island,' said George. 'I remember that he said something one -day about being a priest among his own people.' - -'Hush!' warned Terence. 'I hear them moving just above us.' - -They flattened themselves against the side of the ravine and waited -their opportunity. Suddenly a succession of yells burst from three -hundred lusty throats, and the ground shook to the trampling of the -mob as they hurled themselves this way and that in their fierce -ecstasy. - -'Now is our chance,' whispered Terence, and under cover of the tumult -they dragged themselves up the bank and lay flat among the fern at -the top. - -What a sight met their astonished eyes! - - - - -CHAPTER XII - -VANISHED - -From where the friends lay they looked across a rude plateau, dotted -with ti-tree, koromiko, and other bushes, and upon this, at intervals -of a dozen yards, three huge fires blazed and roared and crackled -under frequent additions of fuel. The ground swarmed with Maoris, -many of whom Te Karearea had recruited on his march, and most of them -were naked, save for their _katikas_, or short kilts of flax. As -their bodies were splashed and streaked with red and white paint, it -required but little imagination to conceive them an array of -petticoated skeletons, gouted with blood, dancing round the wild -fires of a witches' sabbath. - -Between two of the fires there had been set up a long pole, upon -whose spiked summit, pitiful to see, was a human head, wonderfully -preserved after the Maori fashion. It was the head of a white man, -too, as was plainly shown by the fair hair and whiskers which still -covered the dried, stretched skin of scalp and cheeks. - -'All that is left of poor Lloyd,' whispered Terence. 'Te Karearea -must have sent for it. Look, here he comes with Winata Pakaro and -another. Where is the old wizard?' - -With stately tread the three chiefs approached, the Maoris forming in -two long lines on opposite sides of the great fires, while every eye -was bent upon the dignified figure of their commander. - -For some moments Te Karearea stood still, gazing up at the impaled -head. Then suddenly he began to dance. Slowly he moved at first; -but with each succeeding minute his steps grew quicker, his gestures -more frantic, his gyrations more wild. Round and round, up and down, -from side to side he sprang and whirled and bounded, until it seemed -a marvel how he kept his balance. All at once, after a figure of -extraordinary swiftness and duration, he stopped. - -With arms outstretched and head thrown back, so that his eyes stared -up at that poor head upon the pole, he stood an instant, and then -from his open mouth there issued a piercing voice, which screamed and -gabbled the most appalling mixture of frenzied prayer and blasphemous -incantation. - -And the voice which possessed Te Karearea was so unlike his own, so -compact of yell and howl and bark and screech and frenzied raving, -that George, shuddering where he lay, muttered to Terence: 'This man -hath a devil.' - -The awful voice ceased, and Te Karearea, falling headlong, writhed in -a convulsion. As if at a signal, the whole crowd, men and women, -broke ranks and rushed to form a circle round the _niu_, or sacred -pole. - -And then began a dance indeed. No one there but was -_pourewarewa_--half-mad--with religious ecstasy, and wholly consumed -with hatred of the detested Pakeha. So round and round they circled, -hands joined, at an ever increasing speed, till the lighter of them, -dragged off their feet by their stronger, swifter comrades, seemed to -fly like witches and warlocks through the air. - -And all the time the infernal din went on--the barking scream of -Hau-hau! Hau-hau! the blasphemous invocation, the senseless jumble -of word and phrase. - -It was a revolting scene, but so wildly exciting, that the watchers -forgot their fatigue and, more, the danger they ran from discovery. - -Slowly the mad orgies came to an end, and as one by one the dancers -gave way under the tremendous physical and mental strain, they fell -to the ground. And where they fell they lay, to be pounded and -bruised under the naked feet of those who still leapt and whirled -around the pole. - -'We had better make off,' whispered George,' for, if they find us -here, we shall neither of us see to-morrow.' - -'Right!' With the word Terence half-turned to begin the descent. -But at that very moment he became aware of an ominous sound, unheard -before in the hideous din--the soft pad-pad of scores of naked feet, -running swiftly through the forest. - -In a flash George grabbed him by the wrist. 'Lie close! We are cut -off. A number of them are coming up the hill.' - -Still as mice they lay, while the noise of the onrush grew louder, -and at last Te Karearea, raising himself wearily, shouted hoarsely, -'Awake, fools! Awake, and stand to your arms, unless ye desire to be -slain as ye lie. Ha! Awake!' - -Instantly a deep voice shouted from the ravine, 'All is well, O -Far-darting Hawk! We come from afar to do thy will. Forward, -brothers, to salute your chief!' - -A loud yell responded to this exhortation, and the men coming up the -hillside charged forward at a tremendous rate, while George and -Terence, feeling that now, indeed, their lives were the sport of -fate, threw themselves flat upon the ground and awaited the issue. - -George's belt had worked round, so that his greenstone club was in -front, the hard handle pressing painfully against his breast-bone. -As he had no time to adjust the belt, he cautiously raised himself on -his hands and knees, drew out the weapon, and laid it among the fern -in front of him. Before he could sink to earth again, the vanguard -of the new company crashed up the side of the ravine and broke, a -wildly-rushing wave, on all sides of him. - -Not daring to move, he held perfectly still, while the reinforcements -poured by, the tramp and clatter of their bare feet upon dead wood -and fern sounding a jarring undernote to their yell and song. The -hindmost of them passed swiftly, avoiding almost miraculously the -crouching figures in the fern, and George and Terence, -half-suffocated, breathed again. - -'Safe!' muttered George, hallooing, like many another, before he was -out of the wood; for, ere he could move, two more Maoris, the -whippers-in, perhaps, came racing up. The first sprang clear over -Terence, who still lay flat, but the second was neatly 'rabbited' -over George's broad, arched back and sent flying upon his face a -dozen feet ahead. - -In an instant the Maori was up and back with a panther-like bound at -the spot at which the accident had occurred. He knew that his fall -had been caused by a man, and his fears, actively working, assured -him that the man must be an enemy. - -With a loud, snorting 'Ha!' the Maori brought down his heavy wooden -club with deadly accuracy of aim, and Terence, who had scrambled up, -involuntarily closed his eyes, and would fain have closed his ears, -too. But instead of the dull scrunch which his quivering nerves were -expecting, he heard a sharp, rattling smack, an exclamation of wild -surprise, and, as he looked again, saw the wooden _mere_ sailing -through the air, to be caught, as it descended, by the outstretched -hand of the active Maori. - -For a moment Terence was stupefied, and then enlightenment came. The -greenstone club, which George had held in his upraised hands, had -once more come between him and death, intercepting the murderous -blow, and disarming his assailant. - -The Maori still held George at a disadvantage, but made no effort to -follow up his attack. Bending down until his lips were close to the -Englishman's ear, he muttered in agitated tones, 'Hortoni! Master! -Forgive! I knew thee not, and have brought danger upon thee. Fly -swiftly. I will hold them back.' - -The case was not one for argument, and as George and Terence raced -down the hill, Paeroa--for it was indeed he--sprang out of the bushes -with a yell and bounded after his comrade. - -The latter, of course, had heard the commotion, and was coming back -to inquire into its cause; but Paeroa met him with the frightful -announcement, 'It was a lizard! A _taipo_! I have slain him.' Then -screeching '_Taipo! Taipo!_' at the top of his voice, he sped -towards Te Karearea, closely followed by his friend, who had no -desire to investigate further. For the mere mention of a lizard is -horrible to a Maori, so ingrained is the superstition that evil -spirits of most malignant type invariably assume this shape. - -But Paeroa had reckoned without his over-lord. Te Karearea was by no -means free from superstition, but he was a man of keen intelligence, -and he instantly perceived that Paeroa's story did not square with -the noise of fast-retreating footsteps. So he rapidly issued orders -which sent a score of the newly-arrived Maoris hastening upon the -track of the fugitives, while Paeroa, who attempted to lead them with -a view of helping the Pakehas, was sternly ordered to remain where he -was. - -The Maoris, uncertain whether they were chasing men or demons, made a -lusty noise to scare the latter and keep up their own courage, and -with the roar of the pursuit thundering in their ears, George and -Terence dashed down the hill at what was very nearly breakneck speed. -For a fall among the boulders or a headlong crash against the trunk -of a tree might easily serve to smash a skull or snap a spinal column. - -But, fortunately for them, the nature of the ground soon became such -as no man could pass through at a run. - -Had they struck the rough path which Te Karearea's axe-men had hewn -while they slept, or chanced on one of the numerous tracks which -pierced the forest for miles around for the convenience of hunters, -all would have been well; for all these roads led to the river or to -the bivouac. Once there, ahead of the Hau-haus, they might have -defied detection, since no one but Paeroa could certainly have said -who were the intruders upon their grim rites. - -But in the first mad rush of their flight they had plunged deeply -into the maze of the forest, where, dark as it was, for the half-moon -was low, they were almost at the mercy of the thorns, which rent -their clothes and tore their bodies, and of the thousand-armed, -clinging _kawakawa_, the supplejack, whose tough, all-embracing -tendrils held them back with the power of ropes. - -'We are trapped,' panted Terence. 'Let us turn and make a fight of -it.' - -For behind, alongside, and even ahead of them pealed the vengeful -shouts of the Hau-haus. - -'Range up alongside me,' George answered over his shoulder. 'I have -a better plan than that.' His temper seemed to cool and his brain to -grow clearer the greater the emergency. - -'All right! Wait until I catch up to you,' said Terence. 'Then I -will--Ah-h-h----' - -Before he could finish what he was about to say, there broke from him -that strange, solitary note of alarm, sharp at first, then long drawn -and dying away in a curiously muffled shriek. Then silence, save for -the occasional yell of a pursuer, and a faint rustling near by, as of -branches coming gradually to rest after a puff of wind. But there -was no wind. - -'Terence!' George called softly. 'Terence! Where are you?' But he -got no answer, and, full of terror, began to grope his way to the -spot whence his comrade's voice had seemed to come. - -'Terence!' he called again loudly, careless of his own safety, if -only he might bring help to his friend. 'Terence! Speak to me. Oh, -what has happened? Where can he be? There was no sound of a blow -or--Ah-h-h----' - -Just as with Terence, that one sharp, quavering cry--and then -George's voice, too, died away, and a terrible silence fell upon the -dark bush. - - - - -CHAPTER XIII - -DOWN AMONG THE DEAD MEN - -Crash! George's heavy body broke through the tangle upon which he -had stepped, and down he went through impenetrable darkness to the -bottom of the hole into which he had fallen. - -Breathless and bruised he picked himself up, relieved to find his -bones unbroken. The mystery was dispelled now, for Terence must have -preceded him; but a spasm of fear gripped his heart as his foot -struck against the body of his friend. - -'Is that you, George? What a good fellow you are. I thought you -wouldn't be long after me,' came from the ground, and in the fullness -of his relief George laughed out. - -'What a joker it is!' he said. 'One would have thought that a fall -like this would have taken the sprightliness out of you, Terence.' - -'I fell on my head,' the Irishman answered simply, 'and that, no -doubt, saved my life. Strike a match and let us see where we are.' -Then, as George obeyed, 'Why, you are covered with blood. Are you -hurt, dear old fellow?' - -'I fell upon my nose,' replied George dryly, 'and, as it is not so -hard as your head, you see the result. But, thank God, we are no -worse. We seem to be in a kind of tunnel. If the Maoris know of the -place----' - -'We shall be in a hole, indeed,' put in the irrepressible Terence. - -But it was no tunnel into which they had fallen, but a vast, -underground forest--a wonder of God's own working. Here and there in -New Zealand these dead worlds exist, in which, when once you have -found your way thither, you must believe yourself to be within the -veritable home of the gnomes and elementals. The tops of dead trees, -fixed in the earth above and cemented by the decay of ages, form the -roof of your new world, while their great trunks, not so much decayed -as changed by mineral deposit, stand like tall sentinels guarding the -long gone past, the very emblems of the grandeur of repose. - -Such a space as this may extend for miles, or may show as a -comparatively small chamber, owing to subsidence from above; while -from some such hole as that down which the friends had fallen, or -from cracks in the upper earth, 'a dim, religious light' struggles -through, which faintly illumines, while it does not dispel, the weird -gloom of the subterranean forest. - -Of course all this did not become clear in a moment to our -adventurers; but one discovery George did make as he struck his third -match, and he raised something from the ground as it flickered out. - -'This looks as if the place was known and used,' he said, -endeavouring to ignite the thing he had picked up. It was a torch, -and a bundle of them lay at his feet. For some time he was -unsuccessful, but at last the end caught, and the torch burned with a -feeble light. - -'These were not made yesterday,' went on George, lighting another -from the one he held and handing it to Terence. 'Pick up a few and -let us explore a bit.' - -It was soon evident that they could not get out by the way they had -come in, at least, not without the aid of a rope, and from this, and -the condition of the torches, they argued that the place, though -known at one time, had long ago fallen into disuse. But Terence was -by no means disheartened, and was eager to go forward. - -'Come on!' he cried. 'Our way lies in this direction as far as we -know.' - -'But, if we go forward among the mazes of these dead trees, we may -discover no other outlet and be unable to find our way back to this -one,' argued George. - -'Never mind; let us chance it,' insisted Terence. 'There must be -another entrance or outlet or these torches would not be here.' - -George yielded against his better judgment, and for half an hour they -wandered through what they now realised to be a dead forest, but no -way out did they find. Suddenly the Irishman pulled up. - -'Why, in all this new excitement I had quite forgotten that -marvellous occurrence upon the hill,' he said. 'Of course I jumped -to the conclusion that the Maori was Paeroa, of whom you told me; but -what I want to know is--How came you to drag out your own club and -hold it over your head just in time to guard his stroke?' - -'My belt had got screwed round and the club was hurting my chest; so -I took it out and laid it on the fern in front of me when first we -"grassed" ourselves. But, if you will believe me, I have not the -slightest recollection of picking it up again when I rolled over on -my back as Paeroa struck at me.' - -'Then you expected to be struck,' said Terence. - -'I can hardly say. I know that I was mightily surprised when my -_mere_ broke the shock of the wooden club, for I did not see it in my -hands as I stared up at Paeroa.' - -'But you must have felt it,' persisted Terence. - -'I did not,' returned George with equal earnestness. 'It seems to me -that I had no knowledge of it whatever until Paeroa struck his blow.' - -Terence rumpled his fiery curls. 'It is all very odd and uncanny. -How do you account for it?' he asked. - -'I can't account for it,' George answered. 'Perhaps the mystery, if -there is one, will explain itself some day. Meantime, where are we?' - -'One thing is certain,' said Terence, ignoring the change of subject. -'That greenstone club always seems to be interposed, or to interpose -itself, between you and danger--if not death--in the nick of time. -Well, it's no use speculating. Where are we? In goblin-land, I -should say. The very place for them.' - -They walked on for the best part of an hour and then found themselves -at the bottom of a shallow gully, in the opposite steep of which -gaped a large rent, which looked as if it might be the mouth of a -cave. - -The impulsive Terence dashed into the black opening, followed more -sedately by George, and the cave turned out to be a short tunnel with -a sloping floor, which descended to the level and then quickly sloped -again upwards. Small rills of water trickled from the walls or -splashed musically upon the floor, where, as from the roof, -stalactites and stalagmites had formed during the slow march of -centuries. - -'I believe we have passed under the river,' said George, 'and that -tunnel was made by the hand of man--though how long ago it is -impossible to guess. Ah! Here is a poser.' - -'Had we not passed through that tunnel, I should think that we had -been walking in a circle all this time,' remarked Terence, rather -hopelessly; for the scene upon which they issued was the counterpart -of that which they had left behind them on the other side of the -passage. - -Still they walked on, always ascending now, as it seemed to them, and -at last, just as they came to the base of a slope, between which and -the opposite ridge a wide, shallow gully extended, Terence halted -suddenly and gripped George's wrist with a warning 'Hush!' - -He pointed to the left, where a number of Maoris sat in a circle; but -none of them turned round or took the least notice of the intruders. - -'Let us go nearer,' whispered Terence. 'You can speak to them if -they seem inclined to be nasty.' - -But the Maoris who faced them continued to stare unconcernedly, while -the others neither turned their heads nor made any motion of inquiry -towards their fellows. They were evidently men of distinction, for -their mats were of the finest workmanship, while the hair of each, -carefully dressed, was adorned with the coronet of _huia_[1] plumes, -the invariable mark of a chief. - - -[1] _Neomorpha Gouldii_--A rare bird. - - -The two moved quietly forward until they were within six paces of the -silent chiefs, who still neither moved nor spoke. - -'Salutations, O friends!' began George. 'Far be it from us rudely to -disturb your meditations; but----' - -He broke off abruptly. Not a movement, not a change of expression -upon the grim faces. Silent, motionless, rigid, the ten chiefs sat, -and, suddenly, the truth flashed upon George. - -'Terence!' He caught his breath. 'They are all dead men!' - -'Dead men?' - -'Yes. Where are their eyes?' - -'Dead men without eyes!' The emotional Irishman shuddered, and, -scarcely knowing what he was about, poked his bundle of torches into -the back of the figure nearest to him. Instantly the uncanny thing -fell over, and at the sight revealed Terence burst into wild, -hysterical laughter. - -But in an instant George's arm was round his neck, and George's -strong hand was pressed firmly over his mouth. - -'Control yourself,' was the stern order. 'These are dead, but the -living may not be far away.' - -Terence nodded, gasping, and, George having released him, the two -bent over the fallen figure and pulled aside its mat. George held up -a warning finger, for Terence again began to giggle at the -extraordinary sight. - -For the thing had no body! Not one in all that silent circle -possessed aught but a head, stuck upon a pointed stick, with a -crosspiece for shoulders, upon which the mat was hung. In the full -glare of day the illusion would have been impossible; but here, in -the gloom of the underworld, with only the smoke-veiled light of a -couple of torches, it looked real enough, and horrible enough, too. - -'We were a pair of jackasses to be taken in,' said Terence, politely -including himself. 'It did not strike us that they were sitting here -in the dark, and that, but for our torches, we should not have seen -them at all.' - -George was gazing thoughtfully at the heads. 'You know the -established custom,' he said at last. 'When a Maori is killed in -battle, or dies away from home, it is the duty of a friend to cut off -his head and bring it to his relations, so that the family _mana_, or -honour, may not be sullied. Then the head is preserved, and retains, -as you see, a weirdly lifelike appearance.' - -'I do see,' said Terence, whose lips were twitching. - -'Now observe,' went on George. 'That is the head of Te Pouri, whom -Te Karearea slew, and next to it is all that is left of old Te -Kaihuia. Both of these were brought along by our contingent, so that -they must have been placed here within the last few hours. It is -reasonable to deduce from this that there must be an outlet not far -away.' - -'But why have these bodiless heads been set up here, do you suppose?' -inquired Terence. - -'This may be the storing ground for family relics, or, perhaps, there -may be something peculiarly drying in the atmosphere. I really don't -know; but----' - -'Hush! Some one is coming,' in a fierce whisper from Terence, who -instantly extinguished his torch upon the ground, George following -his example. - -'We must wait, for they will hear us if we run,' thought George, and -then an idea came to him. He smiled grimly in the darkness, groping -here and there with his hands. 'Do as I do,' he breathed into -Terence's ear, rapidly whispering directions. - -'Oh, lord, no; I can't,' sighed Terence. - -'You must. We may be dead men else. Quick! There is no time to -lose.' - -Voices sounded now, not far away, and dancing flashes of light began -to illumine the near distance. It was as well that a sharp rise of -the ground intervened between the fugitives and the newcomers; for, -otherwise, the glare from their own torches would long ago have -betrayed the presence of the former. - -Presently the light broadened, and, to the surprise of the watchers, -Te Karearea, following the old _tohunga_, Kapua Mangu, appeared upon -the crest of the ridge, some twenty paces away from the grim circle -of heads, now once more complete. - -Te Karearea, who had apparently shaken off the physical effects of -his recent exertion, pulled up short as Kapua Mangu plunged his hand -into a hole in the trunk of an enormous fallen tree, which formed a -long, low arch across the ridge. Then, striving to hide his terror -of some supernatural manifestation under a mask of cultured -indifference, the chief advanced again with the evident intention of -looking over the magician's shoulder. - -But the old man swung suddenly round and, crying in a loud, clear -voice the single word, '_Tapu!_' flung a dark object at the feet of -the chief. - -With a howl of terror Te Karearea reeled away from the thing upon the -ground. '_Ngara! Tuatara!_' he screeched, and turned to flee from -the spot. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV - -MAGIC, BLACK AND WHITE - -The gods of the old religion were good enough for Kapua Mangu, who -detested the blasphemous absurdities of Hau-hauism, and he had -brought Te Karearea, the backslider, to the underground haunt--known, -he believed, only to himself--partly to convince him that the arms of -these same old gods were still powerful, and partly for another -reason. - -Actuated by the first of these motives, he had produced his very -strongest card at the outset of the interview, and flung at the chief -the dried body of a _tuatara_, a large and harmless lizard, -indigenous to New Zealand. - -Yet this was quite enough to overthrow the nerve of a strong, clever -man, and render him weak and impotent from actual fear. For in such -terror do the Maoris hold all lizards, that the mere pronunciation of -the word _Ngara_, a generic term for the whole race, makes the -bravest warrior tremble. - -The deep-voiced command of Kapua Mangu arrested the flight of the -chief, and, as if the sight of the demon on the ground were not -sufficient, the old man, with pointing finger, asked in a terrifying -screech: 'Where, O Hawk of the Mountain, where is the _mere_ of -TUMATAUENGA?' - -Te Karearea started, but before he could reply, the venerable mystic -flung his arms above his head and chanted in his fine, sonorous voice -the race-old prophecy of the greenstone club:-- - - 'Behold! In the days to come a strange, strong race - Shall contend with the Maori. - Ah! Then shall the days be full of evil and danger - For the house of Te Turi. - - 'And behold! In those days of unrest and contention - One of the House of Te Turi shall give to one of the strong, - strange race - The _mere_ of TUMATAUENGA. - Aue! Aue! Alas for the House of Te Turi. - - Aue! Aue! Then shall the doom and the end - Of the House of Te Turi be nigh! - - 'But behold! If the stranger cleave to the race of the Maori, - If he give back of his own free will to one of the House of - Te Turi - The _mere_ of TUMATAUENGA, - Then shall the House of Te Turi arise again from the dust. - Only thus shall the doom be averted!' - - -'All this thou knewest, O Hawk of the Mountain! All this I spake in -thine ear, O son of the dead and gone White Mist!' declaimed the old -wizard. 'Guile, not force, must win the _mere_ of TUMATAUENGA from -the Pakeha to whom Te Kaihuia gave it. Yet, if he resign the weapon -of his own free will, even though he lay it aside but for a moment, -and thou hast the wit to seize it, then it is thine.' His voice sank -suddenly to an ordinary tone. 'But doubtless, so astute a man as Te -Karearea, knowing all this, has already acted upon it. Say then, O -friend,' he concluded mildly, 'where is the _mere_ of TUMATAUENGA?' - -Very slowly Te Karearea drew his greenstone club from his belt and -stretched his sinewy arm across the _tapu_ line. 'It is here,' he -faltered, and almost as the lie dropped from his lips, leaped -backwards with a wild yell of terror. - -For the lizard, suddenly and mysteriously endowed with life, sprang -straight at him, its scaly body colliding with his hand. - -Te Karearea's club clattered to the ground, and his limbs, stiff with -horror, held him rooted to the spot after that one backward impulse; -while the lizard, its strange vitality extinguished as instantly as -it had been kindled, tumbled back inertly upon the ridge. - -'Liar!' shrieked the old man, shaking a warning finger in the face of -the trembling chief. 'Fool! who thought to deceive the watchful -TUMATAUENGA. Hear now, O stupid Hawk, the word which the gods have -spoken to me.' - -Te Karearea was badly stricken as it was, but his eyes bulged as -Kapua Mangu poured out the whole history of the greenstone club from -the moment when Te Kaihuia had handed it to George. He had spoken -with none but the chief since the arrival of the Hau-haus, and yet -the minutest details were known to him, and he lashed Te Karearea -with his tongue until, compelled by exhaustion, he stopped and -staggered back against the tree. - -Now was Te Karearea's opportunity to escape, and he stooped swiftly -to regain his club, keeping a wary eye upon the lizard, when suddenly -he discerned around the body of the _tuatara_ a thin cord of -blackened flax, indistinguishable in the gloom, unless closely looked -for. Te Karearea drew his mat across his face so that he might -indulge in a quiet grin. - -Presently Kapua Mangu, having got his second wind, advanced to -complete the humiliation of the chief; but to his amazement, he -detected a decided sneer on Te Karearea's thin lips. - -'Beware, O stupid Hawk!' he yelled fiercely. 'Beware, lest I deliver -you into the power of the tuatara.' - -For answer Te Karearea snatched up the cord, wrenched the end from -the magician's hand, and slung the lizard from him with a derisive -laugh. It fell just within the circle of heads. - -The chief was somewhat taken aback by this, which he certainly had -not intended; but he preserved a bold front, poked out his tongue -until it almost reached his chest, and rolled his eyes frightfully. - -But Kapua Mangu, confronted thus by such an uncivil infidel, set up a -howl of horror. - -'_Aue! Aue!_' he wailed. 'Alas for the House of Te Turi.' - -Tears ran from his aged eyes, and his gaunt body shook with a terror -which was quite unfeigned. - -'_Hi! Hi!_' exclaimed Te Karearea. 'What a fuss about nothing. I -saw the cord with which you made him jump. He cannot hurt.' - -'Nay, nay,' protested Kapua Mangu mournfully; 'you are a fool. It -was for your sake I put the cord upon him. Had I not pulled him back -when he jumped, he would have devoured you before my eyes.' - -This was an entirely new view of the situation, and the -self-satisfied grin faded from Te Karearea's face. The old -superstitions were tugging at him once more. 'I will bring him -back,' he said humbly, and took a hesitating step in the direction of -the heads. - -Kapua Mangu was genuinely frightened, but, being by no means certain -that anything would happen, he felt compelled to regain his -ascendency by thoroughly frightening the chief once more. So he drew -largely upon a vivid imagination in order to restrain the foolhardy -infidel. - -'Stay, fool!' he shrieked. 'The spirits of the dead are angry. -There is Te Pouri whom you slew, and Te Kaihuia whom you sped upon -the road to Reinga. They are talking to one another. They are -nodding their heads and saying: "Here comes the stupid Hawk. Let us -seize him and----" Ah-h-h!' - -It is impossible to describe the long-drawn, quavering scream which -brought the poor wizard's ravings to a sudden close. Never was -venerable sorcerer so completely taken aback, so utterly horrified at -the success of his own magic. - -For, as it happened, his last coherent words exactly described the -behaviour of two of the heads. Incredible to relate, they were -nodding at one another, and gruesome enough was the sight in that -gloomy underworld. It was too much for the old _tohunga_, and with -another yell of fear and horror, he fled from the awful scene which, -as he fully believed, his own magic had evoked. - -More scared by the wild talk of the wizard than he would have cared -to admit, Te Karearea glanced over his shoulder at that first -panic-stricken yell. Then he turned his head again, and his own -blood froze. - -For he, too, now saw the nodding heads and--oh, fearsome -sight!--their voiceless conference at an end, the pair came rushing -at him with a strange, bobbing motion, enough of itself to scare any -wretched mortal. But, as if that were not sufficient, the two -frolicsome heads stopped suddenly in their wild career, threw -themselves back, and burst into peal upon peal of harsh, demoniac -laughter. - -It was the last straw. One horrified look Te Karearea cast behind -him in frenzied appeal to the _tohunga_, and thus becoming aware of -that ancient fraud, who with flapping mat and twinkling, skinny legs, -raced along the back-track, he turned and rushed after the -discomfited magician, who just then afforded an admirable example of -an 'engineer hoist with his own petard.' - -No sooner did the chief take to his heels, than a still more singular -phenomenon was exhibited; for the two heads developed bodies, arms, -and legs, not to speak of trousers and boots, materialising, the one -into George, the other into Terence. The latter caught up the torch -from the ridge, the former secured the two heads with whose -personality they had made so free, and together they sped after the -vanishing couple, who were much too scared to think of looking behind -them. - -As they passed an immense jumble of logs and broken boughs, George -dropped the heads into the midst of it. 'This place may be useful to -us by and by,' he said, 'and if those two return and find them lying -about, they will smell a rat.' - -Terence burst into a sputtering laugh. 'I thought I should have died -when you squatted on your hocks and went hopping down on the chief. -And the face of his mightiness! Oh, oh, oh! I shall never forget -it.' - -'Steady, old fellow!' cautioned George, with a responsive grin. -'It's an ill wind that blows nobody good, and the chief's scare has -proved our salvation.' - -Closely following Te Karearea's line of flight, they soon passed -through a hole into the midst of some thick bushes. Then the cool -night air blew in their faces, and overhead blazed the myriad stars -of the southern sky. They were in the upper world once more. - -But what was their surprise when the black mass of the stockade -surrounding the _pah_ loomed in front of them, some forty rods away. -There was no doubt of it; for far below them, across the river, they -could see the twinkling fires of the bivouac in the forest, while in -the intense stillness the splash and scurry of the leaping water in -the cañon came plainly to their ears. - -'It is clear that we were all kept off the hill to-night in order -that our ancient friend might introduce the chief unobserved into the -secret haunt we have just left,' said Terence. - -'And little did they dream that they would have an audience,' put in -George. 'I know a good deal more about things than I did an hour -ago. Let us go down and camp on the flat. There are worse beds than -the heart of a flax-bush, and we shall be well concealed in case they -are hunting for us. We are sure to have been missed from the -bivouac.' - -'Let us take the bearings of this opening before we go,' suggested -Terence. 'How are we facing? Ah! there's the Southern Cross.' - -'This rock is a good guide,' said George. 'The bushes hide the -opening very completely, and I dare say it can be further disguised. -I wonder if many people know of it.' - -'I should think not, and I am sure that the hole by which we entered -is not commonly known,' replied Terence. 'We must do our best to -find it again.' - -They found the track and descended the hill to the plain, hiding -themselves as quickly as possible among the flax-bushes near the -river road. Then George said: - -'I will tell you to-morrow all that passed between Te Karearea and -Kapua Mangu, and why I am regarded as such a valuable asset. Why, -the chief's very existence appears to depend upon his success in -making a Pakeha-Maori of me.' - -'Tell all about it,' pleaded Terence. - -'You cormorant! Haven't you had excitement enough for one night? -Not a word--oh, just one. If I lay the greenstone club aside, even -for a moment, and you are by, call my attention to it at once, -please. Otherwise things may happen.' - -'You mean creature! How do you expect me to sleep in peace?' -complained Terence. 'I shall dream all night of you and your magic -club.' - -George curled himself up in the heart of a flax-bush. 'Don't tread -upon me if your dreams make you walk in your sleep,' he laughed. -'I'm for bed.' - -'Me too,' said Terence. 'I'm looking for a soft spot.' - - - - -CHAPTER XV - -POKEKE, THE SULLEN ONE - -It was high day when George awoke, and the sweet, confused odours -that stole from the forest on the breath of the morning filled him -with a pleasant sense of well-being as he stretched his great limbs -and rubbed the last mists of sleep out of his eyes. A few paces away -Terence still slept; but George, without awaking him, set himself to -study the lie of the land. - -It was an exquisite scene, full of light and colour. The sombre -green of the dense bush encircling the island was flecked with the -glowing scarlet of _rata_ blossoms and the beautiful white stars of -the clematis which garlanded and festooned the tall trees, while with -harsh scream and cackle occasional flocks of parrakeets swept by in -glancing flight, the crimson and green of their gaudy wings flashing -in the sunshine like fragments of a rainbow. It was difficult to -realise that, a mile or less away, five or six hundred grim-faced -warriors lurked in the peaceful forest glades. - -But it was in no romantic mood that George took his bearings, for his -dominant wish was to discover some way out of the trap in which they -were set, and which he meant to leave as soon as possible after -having withdrawn his parole. - -The whole of the island plain was densely covered with New Zealand -flax,[1] the ground being for the most part swampy, save close to the -road, from hill to river. Once among these flax-clumps, George -thought, a hard-pressed fugitive would have an excellent chance of -escape; for the so-called flax-bush is a collection of broad, stiff, -upstanding leaves, tough enough to stop a bullet, and dense enough to -conceal a man, who might dodge from bush to bush and reach the river -in safety. - - -[1] _Phormiun tenax_: not the true flax. - - -'That is the most satisfactory bit of landscape,' murmured unpoetic -George, and had just turned to greet Terence, who had hailed him, -when a voice close behind him said: - -'Salutations, Hortoni, and to you, Mura, salutations. I have looked -for you since the dawn. Where did you sleep last night?' - -'Here,' replied George, determined not to give away the least -advantage by overmuch speech. - -'Why did you leave the bivouac?' - -'I think the bivouac left us.' George smiled pleasantly. 'We woke -to find it deserted, and such a dreadful racket arose that it was -impossible to sleep through the din.' He interpreted to Terence, who -nodded emphatically, preferring this method on account of his -admitted tendency to 'open his mouth and put his foot in it.' - -'And so you removed to this side?' pursued the chief. - -'We had very little inducement to remain on the other,' said George -truthfully. 'What was the cause of that terrific noise?' - -'Night is the council-time of the Maori,' Te Karearea replied. 'I -and my people were met together. Then Paeroa returned with men of -Ngatiawa and Waikato, and reported that a band of Arawa dogs had -followed at his heels. Thereafter arose a cry that spies were -lurking in the scrub.' - -The furtive brown eyes, steady for once, stared hard at George, whose -expression was one of genuine surprise. - -This was news indeed, if true. Nothing would more effectually divert -suspicion from them than the supposed proximity of Arawa scouts. -George had much ado to conceal his satisfaction; but all he said was, -after interpreting to Terence: 'Can we still get breakfast at the -camp, Chief? We have slept late.' - -'Kawainga weeps for your absence,' returned the Maori, with an -ironical grin. 'Go and see.' He was evidently puzzled, and, as he -turned to go, informed them: 'At noon I enter the _pah_ with my -warriors. Be ready, Hortoni, for I desire that you and Mura should -enter it with me as honoured guests.' - -George bowed low, the corners of his mouth twitching, and, with a -dignified gesture of farewell, the chief drew his mat about his -shoulders and stalked away up the hill. - -After breakfast Terence strolled off to take a look at the -reinforcements, and, while George sat quietly on a log, smoking, -Kawainga appeared and began to collect the wooden plates and tin -cups. Once, as she passed him, she said almost in a whisper: 'Paeroa -waits on the bush track where the river forks'; and again, as she -repassed with her hands full: 'Hasten, Hortoni, for when the shadows -shorten the Hawk will return.' - -George made no sign that he heard, but as soon as the girl had -withdrawn, looked at his watch and strolled carelessly along the -track towards the river. There was not too much time, for it was -nearly half-past eleven; but he felt that he must learn what Paeroa -wanted with him, knowing that the man would not have sent him such a -message and in such a way for nothing. - -By the river bridge he stopped as if undecided which way to go, then -turned to the left and followed the bank towards the fork. Half-way -thither he stopped again, hands in pockets, and one foot idly kicking -up the soil. He was the picture of a man with nothing to do. Note -that he was standing now in the clearing between the bush and the -river, about midway between the two. - -While he loitered there, his greenstone club slipped from his belt to -the ground, and without the loss of a moment he stooped to recover -it. As he did so, a bullet hummed over his bending head, and he -heard the sharp smack of a gun close by. - -Once again the _mere_ had been the means of saving his life; for, had -he remained erect, he must have been shot through the head. - -Confusion seized George's brain as he snatched up the club and -bounded into the bush in search of the assassin. As he broke through -the fringing trees, he saw Terence, fists up, waiting for a burly -Maori to rise from the ground. No sooner had the fellow found his -feet than the Irishman hit him a terrific blow on the point of the -chin, and down he went again into the fern and lay senseless. - -'Oh, it was you he was after then,' cried George. 'He nearly hit me, -all the same.' - -'Naturally,' Terence observed drily. 'He was taking careful aim at -you when I spotted him. He pulled off before I could reach him, but -next minute I knocked him down. It is a good thing you saw him and -ducked in time.' - -'But I didn't see him,' George said rather wearily. 'The instant -before that shot was fired, the greenstone club slipped through my -belt to the ground, though I had secured it ten minutes earlier. As -I stooped to raise it, the bullet passed over my head.' - -Terence's eyes grew round. 'What are we to make of this?' he said. - -'This much. The fellow--who, I see, is one of the new -contingent--was watching for me. When he saw me separated from the -_mere_, he fired, supposing me vulnerable.' - -'No.' Terence shook his head. 'He rested his gun in the fork of -that sapling, and took careful aim at you as you stood. He could not -possibly know that you would drop the club at that particular moment. -I don't suppose he even knows you have it, as you say he is one of -the new men.' - -'But you don't mean to argue that the _mere_ slipped out of my belt -in order to open a way of escape for me?' - -'That is exactly what happened, at all events.' - -'And you had nothing to do with the matter?' Terence shook his head, -and George, passing his hand in a dazed way across his brow, said: 'I -can't think of anything just now. Besides, I must go. I'll tell -you where later on. Can you manage to take that fellow back to the -camp?' - -'Rather,' affirmed Terence; 'but you may as well tell him, that, if -he doesn't go quietly, I will lodge one of his own bullets in him.' - -George gave the required hint to the Hau-hau, who scowled. Then he -dashed out of the bush, almost upsetting Te Karearea, who was -standing in the open. - -'Can he be at the bottom of this latest outrage?' thought George. -'Confound him, I shall not be able to meet Paeroa. Well, it can't be -helped.' No; but the missing of that interview meant more to George -than he dreamed of at the time. - -'Whither do you run so fast, Hortoni?' demanded the chief. - -'Did you hear a shot just now?' returned George, eyeing him. - -'I heard it. One of my fools was firing at a parrot, or, perhaps, a -pig.' - -'In the eyes of your "fool" I stood for one or the other,' said -George, still staring at the chief. 'That shot was aimed at me; but, -as the trigger was pulled, I stooped to pick up something I had -dropped.' - -'No one would dare,' Te Karearea cried stormily. - -'The man fired to kill,' insisted George. 'Mura saw him and knocked -him down, and is even now taking him to be judged by you.' - -'Ha! Then Mura saved your life?' - -George met him eye to eye. 'Nay, O Hawk,' he said quietly; 'I owe my -life, under God's providence, to the _mere_ of TUMATAUENGA.' - -Te Karearea started violently. 'Again!' he muttered. 'Again!' -Then: 'Come with me, Hortoni, and we will deal with this breaker of -laws.' - -'Mura's hand has already fallen heavily upon him,' said George, as -they moved away. He did not notice Paeroa, who peered from behind a -tree near the fork, and immediately darted into the bush. But Te -Karearea's keen eyes saw him, though he said not a word to George. - -They reached the camp just as Terence emerged from the bush with his -prisoner. At once there was a rush of the new arrivals towards their -comrade, whose appearance was deplorable, for his nose had bled -freely, and his eyes were almost closed. The Maoris hung back for a -moment as Terence levelled his rifle, and Te Karearea, taking -advantage of the pause, sprang to meet them, crying: 'Back, dogs, or -I will loose upon you the _mere_ of TUMATAUENGA!' - -At this dread threat the Hau-haus recoiled, and Te Karearea whispered -a sharp aside to George: 'Quick! Give me the club. If the fools see -it in my hand, they will know that I have not told them a tale.' - -He was a great actor, this Te Karearea; but George was not taken in. -'I will show it to them, Chief,' he said, stepping to the front. - -'Behold the _mere_ of TUMATAUENGA!' he began, when there arose a -great commotion, and Te Karearea uttered a cry of warning. The Maori -whom Terence had battered, rendered reckless by rage and pain, -wrenched a rifle from the nearest of his compatriots, rushed at -George, and yelling, 'Die, accursed Pakeha!' pushed the muzzle within -a few inches of his chest and pulled the trigger. - -With a shout of horror, Terence sprang forward; but, to the utter -amazement of all, George, who still stood erect, holding up the -_mere_, reversed the weapon and with a quiet smile brought it down -sharply upon the head of his would-be murderer, who for the third -time that morning measured his length on the ground. - -With a feeling that the world was turning upside down, Terence stared -at his friend, while deep-toned exclamations expressed the -bewilderment of the Maoris. There was the burn upon the Pakeha's -coat, just over the heart. 'Na! The _mere_ of TUMATAUENGA was -strong indeed when it could turn a bullet like that. Na! Best let -the Pakeha alone and save themselves, lest his magic make short work -of them, even as it had done of Pokeke--the Sullen One--who had fired -the shot.' With one accord they bolted out of reach of this dealer -in magic and spells. - -With Terence gazing, wonder-struck, and Te Karearea glancing -fearfully at him, George still stood with rigid muscles and set -smile, though he was deadly pale. He was, indeed, as much amazed as -any of them at his marvellous escape. So many queer things had -happened, that it never occurred to him then, any more than to the -least intelligent among the Hau-haus, that in the hurry of loading an -unfamiliar weapon, the Maori who owned the gun had probably forgotten -to put in the wad over the ball, which had naturally rolled out of -the barrel long before the gun was fired.[2] - - -[2] A fact. - - -For all his outward coolness, he was shaken and spent, and it was -only by the supremest effort that he managed to control his quivering -nerves and stand there, calm and smiling, as if he had anticipated -this very result. - -Te Karearea was almost as frightened as were his men, and the -temptation he felt to run along with them warred hard against the -necessity for keeping up his dignity in their presence. But his iron -will conquered, and presently he turned to George and said with a -forced smile: 'Teach me your magic, Hortoni, I pray you. We Hau-haus -claim to be invulnerable in battle, but----' - -But George, now that the strain was lifted, felt suddenly limp and -intensely desirous of being left alone. So with a protesting wave of -the hand he cut into the chief's speech. 'Another time, O Hawk of -the Mountain, we will talk of this wonder. Now I go to give thanks -to my God, who is stronger than TUMATAUENGA, and who twice within the -hour has saved me from death.' - -He was about to withdraw when a thought struck him, and, pointing to -the prostrate Pokeke, he said: 'I claim that man to do with as I -will.' - -'He is yours,' Te Karearea assented laconically, and, closely -followed by Terence, George entered the bush and disappeared. - - - - -CHAPTER XVI - -SPLENDIDE MENDAX - -George, as has been said, had never thought of the simple explanation -of the amazing incident just related; but he readily accepted it when -suggested by Terence, for his healthy mind revolted from the constant -association with the apparently supernatural which circumstances -forced upon him. It was better and wiser, he felt, to esteem these -mysterious happenings capable of eventual solution, than to drift -into the habit of regarding them as inexplicable by natural means. - -'If it ever comes to a fight, you will have it all your own way,' -laughed Terence, 'for none of them will have the nerve to tackle you.' - -'When I left home, I had no idea that I should become a person of -such importance,' George said, smiling. 'Come; let us get back to -the chief.' - -As they appeared at the edge of the clearing, Te Karearea came up all -smiles and explanations; but the Hau-haus looked askance at them, -those nearest to them hastening to increase their distance. - -'I have postponed the march for two hours,' the chief informed them. -'I had no wish to disturb your devotions, Hortoni, and also, I did -not wish to enter the _pah_ without you. Meantime, Kawainga makes -ready your meal.' - -George acknowledged the courtesy, and, inquiring what had become of -Pokeke, was informed that he had been sent ahead to the _pah_ with -Paeroa for his guard. - -'Has anything been heard of the Arawa spies?' asked George. - -'No,' replied the chief, with twinkling eyes. 'It was Paeroa who -judged them to be Arawas; but we know better.' - -'We!' echoed George. 'What can I know about them?' He spoke -haughtily, while Terence, to whom he rapidly interpreted, assumed -what he honestly believed to be an expression of most virtuous -indignation. - -'You can answer that best, Hortoni,' the chief said quickly; 'but, -even for one so beloved of the gods as yourself, it is unwise to run -too many risks.' - -'You speak in riddles,' George began still more distantly, when he -was interrupted by an outrageous noise at the outskirts of the camp, -where two men were cutting chips from an immense log. In the -twinkling of an eye this innocent occupation changed to a furious -conflict; for six strange Maoris sprang from the fern behind the -giant trunk and savagely attacked the hewers, whose roars for aid set -the Hau-haus rushing towards them from all sides. - -Realising that they could not fight a host, the six spies--for such -they were--took to their heels; but one remained behind, cloven from -shoulder to midriff by a mighty stroke from a hewer's axe. The -others got clear away, for Te Karearea sternly checked pursuit, and, -running up to the big log, hastily scrutinised the corpse. - -'Arawa!' he shouted excitedly. 'Dogs of Arawa! They it was who -spied upon us last night.' - -He spurned the body with his foot, and the Hau-haus instantly flung -themselves upon it, and with revolting accompaniments hacked it to -pieces. - -'Then that story was true after all,' George said in a low voice. -'We are safe; for I am sure the chief has no suspicion of our -presence in the underground world.' - -'No; and in my opinion----' - -What Terence's opinion was, George was not to learn, for just then a -spattering volley rattled in the bush, several bullets hummed past -them, and they bolted for cover. In a moment the clearing was empty, -and the Hau-haus, sheltered behind the great trunks, answered the -challenge with a random fire. - -Te Karearea had thrown aside his mats, and now, naked like his -warriors, save for his waist-cloth and huia plumes, was dodging -actively from tree to tree, firing with great coolness whenever he -saw a chance. But, owing to the thick bush, little harm was done on -either side, and to the interested onlookers the affair seemed very -like a stale mate. - -But Te Karearea had always to be reckoned with. No sooner had the -spies fled, than he dispatched Winata Pakaro with fifty men to make a -rapid flanking march and ascertain whether they had to do with a -large force or a _mere_ screen of scouts. In either case Winata had -his orders, which he carried out to the letter, and in a few moments -from the firing of the first shot, the clearing was filled with a mob -of yelling combatants, and a hand-to-hand fight in the good old style -began. The muskets, useless now, were flung away, or swung by the -barrel, while tomahawk and club clashed and jarred and rattled in the -shock of their meeting. - -Presently the watchers heard Te Karearea's voice raised in a shout of -savage triumph. '_Mataika! Mataika!_' he yelled, and, grasping a -young Arawa chief by the hair with his left hand, dashed out the -man's brains with a single blow of the heavy club in his right. -'_Mataika!_' he yelled again. '_Ki au te Mataika!_' and, brandishing -the blood-stained _mere_, dashed into the midst of the foe. - -'Is that his battle-cry?' called Terence from behind his tree. - -'No. The first to be killed in a fight is called the _Mataika_,' -explained George. '"I have the _Mataika_" is the cry of the -successful slayer, and duels often arise after a battle, owing to -disputes among the claimants to the honour.' - -The Arawas, taken thus in the rear, and hopelessly outnumbered, had -no chance, and the end of the skirmish came when some twenty of the -brave, rash fellows--all that were left of fifty--broke through the -packed masses of their enemies and fled, unpursued, through the bush. - -'The Hawk has all the luck,' grumbled George. 'What a piece of folly -for so small a force to attack five hundred!' - -'Never mind,' Terence said cheerfully. 'It shows, at all events, -that some one is on our trail, and that our sweet chief is not to be -allowed to have everything his own way. Here he comes. Lo, what a -swelling port!' - -Te Karearea stalked up to them, his chest heaving, his eyes still -aflame with the fierce light of battle. His scarred visage looked -grimmer than ever as he grinned balefully at his 'guests.' - -'Ha! Even without the _mere_ of TUMATAUENGA, it seems that we can -still win a fight,' he said truculently. - -'You outnumbered the Arawas by ten to one,' began George, but added -hastily, as the chief's brows knit in a frown: 'That flanking -movement to take a probable foe in the rear was fine generalship.' - -Te Karearea was never above nicely judged flattery. 'Praise from a -soldier's son! That is good,' he said, nodding his plumed head. -'Had you been fighting by my side, Hortoni, not one of the dogs had -escaped. Why not become my Pakeha?' - -'One might really do worse,' returned George lightly. 'You have all -the luck.' Whereat the chief looked mightily pleased. - -'We will talk of this again, Hortoni,' he said. 'I remember that -your parole expires to-night. Will you renew your promise?' - -'Yes,' George answered at once. - -A gleam of suspicion came into the chief's eyes at this ready -concession. 'For how long, Hortoni? A week? A moon? What?' - -'I promise; that is enough,' returned George carelessly. 'When I am -tired of liberty I will tell you.' - -Te Karearea's eyes burned into his own, but he met their stare -unflinchingly, and presently the chief said: 'And you, O Mura--whom I -had not forgotten--do you also give your word?' - -'Oh yes,' replied Terence, when George had interpreted. - -Once again Te Karearea stared at them as if he would read their -inmost thoughts. Then with a curt 'It is good!' he stalked away, and -they heard his voice ringing out as he issued orders with regard to -the twice-interrupted march. - -They stood on one side, watching the eager Maoris, fine men for the -most part, and handsome too, despite the intricate patterns which -scored their faces--records, each of them, of some deed of -derring-do. For the Maori, not content with simple tattooing, cut -and carved his history upon brow and breast and cheek and chin, the -absence of such scars indicating either extreme youth, or a lack of -courage very rare among the men of their race. - -'He is beckoning to us. Come along,' said Terence. 'You first, -please, by reason of your exalted position.' - -Te Karearea, who had resumed his mat and kilt, cordially greeted them -as they fell in on either side of him, and amid inexpressible uproar -the march to the _pah_ began. - -But presently the men settled down, and, as they took the road across -the island to the hill, broke into a roaring chorus of the days when -all the land was their birthright, and again, of the time to come -when the Pakeha should be swept into the sea, and _Ao-Tea-Roa_,[1] -the Land of the Long-lingering Day, return to the Children of Maui -once more. - - -[1] New Zealand was thus poetically named by the early Maori settlers -there because of the twilight, to which they had been unaccustomed in -'Hawaiki.' - - -George, toiling up the steep and difficult ascent, and wondering how, -when their parole was withdrawn, they should ever escape from such a -stronghold as that upon the hill-top, was startled out of his reverie -by the sound of a harsh, dry sob. He glanced round, to find Te -Karearea, with bowed head and anguished face, stumbling almost -blindly along the rough track. - -'_Aue! Aue!_' wailed the chief, his low, tense tones scarcely -reaching beyond the ear of him for whom they were intended. '_Aue!_ -Oh, that the _mere_ of TUMATAUENGA might be mine but for one short -hour, that the god might see it in the hand of the last of the House -of Te Turi! Oh, that I might bear it into the _pah_, and hold it -while I pray to the gods and to my ancestors. Only for one little -hour. _Aue! Aue!_' - -He made no direct appeal, but his restless brown eyes dwelt wistfully -on George, who felt distinctly uncomfortable. - -They had reached a point some three hundred feet below the outer -palisades of the _pah_, and now George saw for the first time, what -had been invisible from the plain, that some convulsion of Nature had -cloven the hill into two unequal parts. The gash ran clear across -the face of the hill, forming a deep gulch with precipitous sides of -jagged rock. The chasm, like the river, was bridged, but more -securely, and provided with hand-rails of twisted flax which also -served as draw-ropes. - -Believing, as he did most firmly, that his own fate and the fate of -his House depended upon his possession of the greenstone club, Te -Karearea's emotion was not altogether feigned, and George, despite -the knowledge that his own life would not be worth a day's purchase -if he surrendered the _mere_, felt again that throb of sympathy for -this man who pleaded for what meant to him his very existence. - -Nevertheless, and though he grew more uncomfortable than ever, his -resolution hardened not to yield the club while he had strength to -retain it; so, to avoid the sight of Te Karearea's woebegone face, he -moved a pace or two ahead of the chief. - -They had come almost to the centre of the great tree which spanned -the chasm, and the main body had halted at the bridge-head in order -not to incommode the chief and his 'guests' during the crossing, -which, if not actually dangerous, was a matter requiring caution. -For, though wide enough to allow the three to walk abreast, the -bridge was yet so narrow, that the right arm of George and the left -arm of Terence brushed the ropes. - -But Te Karearea was desperate. Ignoring the warning that guile, not -force, must be employed to recover the _mere_, or that only by -voluntary surrender or carelessness on the part of Hortoni could it -become his own, he made a sudden snatch at the club, which hung -rather in front of George's right hip. The natural consequence -followed. George moved on with long, swinging stride just as Te -Karearea stooped with eagerly extended hand, the chief missed the -club, lost his balance, and, in full view of the horrified -spectators, rolled over the bridge. - -A howl of dismay went up from the Maoris, and George, turning -sharply, saw with amazed eyes the unfortunate chief sliding -head-downwards into the profound abyss. - -Without a thought of his own danger, George flung himself down upon -his face with hands outstretched, and succeeded, only just in time, -in seizing the chief's left ankle, to which he clung with the -tenacity of desperation. - -For the position was now awful in the extreme. Head downwards over -that frightful abyss the chief hung, held back from instant and -dreadful death only by the strong clutch of his intrepid captive, -who, with his own arms and face over the edge of the trunk, looked -down into the horrid rift into which he was slowly being dragged. - -But Terence was to the fore as well, and down he went on his knees -and hung on to his friend's legs with all the strength of his mighty -muscles. Then he shouted to Winata Pakaro, who ran lightly across -the bridge, stooped over the edge, and caught Te Karearea's right -ankle, thus allowing George to take a fresh grip of the left. - -And so, in a somewhat undignified manner, the great chief was hauled -slowly back from what a moment earlier had seemed, and a moment later -would have been, certain death. - -No loud expressions of delight greeted Te Karearea as he resumed the -perpendicular; for every Maori there had seen his attempt to possess -himself of the greenstone club, and noted, too, the swift and -terrible retribution which, by the magic of the Pakeha, had overtaken -him. Truly, the magician had chosen to arrest the fall of the -victim, but not until he had given striking evidence of his power. - -While the Maoris murmured together, Te Karearea addressed George in a -voice a little less firm than usual: 'I thank you, Hortoni. There is -a bond between us; for I owe you my life.' - -'Not so, O Chief,' answered George coldly. 'You saved my life aboard -the brig; so now we are quits.' - -Te Karearea merely nodded his head and echoed George's remark: 'Very -well, Hortoni; we are quits.' - -'I wish you had let the rascal slip through your hands,' remarked -Terence, as they ascended the slope. 'It would have been a good -riddance of a particularly bad form of rubbish. No, no,' he went on, -reddening as George looked at him; 'I don't mean that. You couldn't -have done it. Original instincts too strong and all that. I--oh, -you know.' - -'You need not apologise.' George smiled. 'The thought actually -crossed my mind as I held him up.' - -'He is brave, George. He bore that ordeal as few could or would have -done. Perhaps it is a pity that he is not on our side.' - -'No, no,' said George, with a passionate gesture. 'If there be any -excuse for his slyness, his lies, his murders, it is in the fact that -he acts as he does in the sacred name of patriotism. Were he in arms -against his own race, and still displayed his present -characteristics, he would be intolerable.' - -'Here he comes back,' exclaimed Terence; 'and beaming, by Jove! What -a man!' - -The wily Te Karearea had been quick to perceive the effect of his -accident upon the emotional minds of his countrymen, and with -characteristic effrontery set himself to efface the unfavourable -impression. Standing between the friends, he began a stirring -address to the warriors, who had now crossed the bridge and were -waiting to enter the _pah_, by the outer gate of which were grouped -the tohunga and his small garrison, ready to welcome the conquering -chief. - -With every trick of gesture and impassioned tone of the born orator, -he spoke to them until their fierce eyes were fastened upon his own, -and the sullen apathy dropped from their stern faces. Then, pausing, -he stepped back a pace, and, pointing to George and Terence, cried: -'But here, my friends, are two Pakehas whose hearts are even as those -of the Maori. You have seen for yourselves. For if Hortoni and Mura -had not been my friends, they would have left me to perish. Here -they stand, and'--his voice swelled to a triumphant shout--'friends, -they are ours!' - -George had listened with growing impatience to this splendid liar's -talk, and at the final cunning assertion he took an angry step -forward. But Te Karearea had anticipated this, and ere he could -protest, turned about with a magnificent sweep of his arm and pointed -to the open gate of the _pah_. - -Not another word was needed. He had won. Six buglers blew -prolonged, discordant blasts upon as many great _teteres_,[2] the -garrison yelled shrilly, and with a thunderous roar of triumph the -impatient Maoris surged forward, breasting the slope, and charged -furiously into the courtyard of the _pah_. - - -[2] A huge wooden trumpet, about six feet long. - - - - -CHAPTER XVII - -SAFE BIND, SAFE FIND - -When George Haughton managed to corner the busy chief and wrathfully -demand of him how he had dared to claim him as a Pakeha-Maori, Te -Karearea met his remonstrances quietly, professing himself astonished -at the other's indignation. - -'You said you might do worse,' he protested. 'I took that for -consent. Besides, Hortoni, if you had not been my friend, you would -not have stood between me and death. It is absurd to argue about so -simple a matter.' And he stalked off, leaving George raging at his -own incautiousness in having ventured to bandy ironical chaff with -such a master of tricks. - -Terence laughed when George reported the conversation. - -'We must remember,' said he, 'that, thanks to Te Karearea, the -Hau-haus are inclined to be friendly; but if we contradict his -highness too energetically, we shall find ourselves surrounded by -malignant enemies, and probably be separated. I am for making the -best of it.' And in this view George at length concurred. - -Events proved Terence right; for as time went on they did what they -liked, and no one attempted to interfere with them. Nevertheless, an -uneasy feeling that they were closely shadowed withheld them from any -exploration of the surrounding country, and they wandered about, -watching the girls at work on the kumara[1] fields across the river, -inspecting the bags of the hunters, and keenly interesting themselves -in the active preparations for war. - - -[1] Potato. - - -'There is something in the wind,' George said one day a fortnight -after their arrival. 'I am told that the war-dance was performed -last night. Now, a big war-dance is a thing unknown except on the -outbreak of war, or just before a battle; so perhaps word has come of -the approach of our troops, or there may be friendlies in the -neighbourhood.' - -'I noticed no particular excitement to-day,' observed Terence. - -'Perhaps not; but all the same some big military movement is -imminent. If you could understand their talk, you would have heard -them boasting that none of the dancers fainted or fell, which is -always considered a good omen.' - -On the following afternoon, attracted by bursts of laughter, the -comrades turned into one of the long lanes between the _whares_, and -came upon a dozen lads amusing themselves by casting clubs at a sort -of Maori equivalent to the 'Aunt Sally' of English fairs. The -'uncle,' as it was here, was grim enough, being the dried head of one -of the Arawas slain in the recent fight. On the crown of this dismal -object was set an empty beer-bottle, and to bring this down without -touching the head was the object of the throwers. - -But the more they threw, the more they missed, which struck Terence -as odd, and, at last, Te Karearea, who was leaning nonchalantly -against a door-post, looking on, drew out his _mere_ and stepped -forward. - -'Let us show these children what men can do,' he said, and shivered -the bottle at the first throw. 'Can you better that, Hortoni?' - -'Perhaps I can equal it,' returned George, taking his stand. Te -Karearea's eyes gleamed and flashed a glance of intelligence at a -lank youth who was lounging near the mark, apparently uninterested. - -Back swung George's arm; but as his right foot was raised preparatory -to the cast, his greenstone club was plucked from his fingers, and he -turned sharply to find Terence smiling at him and holding the -precious weapon. - -Without a word or a look at Te Karearea, George thrust the club back -into his belt and strode away. Terence, however, lingered an instant -to grin triumphantly at the chief, in exchange for which attention he -received a scowl so hateful and malignant that he thought it wise to -follow his friend without delay. - -The captives were greatly troubled by their inability to discover the -whereabouts of Paeroa, Kawainga his betrothed, and Pokeke the -Hau-hau, not one of whom had been seen since the day of their -entrance into the _pah_. George was convinced that all three had -been hidden away, if not killed out of hand, in order to prevent them -from coming further under his influence; and concerning Paeroa and -his sweetheart he was sincerely distressed. - -'It is intolerable to think that our pretty Morning Star should be at -the mercy of such an unscrupulous brute as the chief,' Terence -exclaimed angrily, as they were discussing this question in their -quarters one stormy night. 'We must search for her and Paeroa. We -have been here nearly three weeks, and I think we might venture to -begin.' - -'Let us chance it,' agreed George. 'We will try the under----' - -'Salutations, friends!' said Te Karearea, appearing in the doorway. -'I come to ask if you will renew your parole.' - -'We cannot renew what we have not withdrawn,' George answered -irritably. He was wondering how much the chief had heard. 'When we -are tired of liberty we will tell you. There will be no need for you -to come and ask us.' - -'The Pakehas are abominably deceitful,' Te Karearea remarked -absently. 'It is very difficult to know when they are telling the -truth.' - -'How dare you say such a thing to us?' George cried hotly; while -Terence, when he understood, flushed and glared at the chief. - -'There is a bad spirit in you to-night, Hortoni,' the Maori said -smoothly. 'When you stopped me with angry words, I was about to say -that neither you nor Mura would break your promises.' - -'Oh, were you?' returned George, by no means appeased. 'Hear now my -word, O Hawk of the Mountain, for it shall be the last. Until we -tell you that we intend to take back our parole, we shall respect it.' - -'Until you tell me--not Winata Pakaro or another?' queried the chief, -darting glances at them. - -'It is you to whom we are responsible,' answered George curtly. - -'Then, until I hear with my own ears from your own mouths the words -"We take back our parole," I may rest assured that you will make no -attempt to escape?' went on Te Karearea, with curious persistence and -a sharp anxiety of voice and manner which George noticed but did not -understand. - -'You may,' he replied loftily. 'And for the future do not come here -with insults in your mouth.' - -'It is well,' Te Karearea said suavely. 'Sleep soundly, my friends, -and dream of peace.' After a grave inclination, he drew his mat -around his shoulders and stalked out. - -'What is at the back of all that, I wonder,' said Terence. - -'It was like his impudence to talk as he did,' fumed George; 'but he -does nothing without a reason. But I am too tired to solve -conundrums. Let us go to bed.' - -Once or twice during the night Terence awoke and sat up, listening to -the extraordinary clamour of wind and rain, in which, it seemed to -him, a multitude of tongues spoke softly, and the faint pad-pad of -naked feet made itself manifest. But the noise of the elements -confused him, and it was not until breakfast-time next morning that -he mentioned his fancies to George, who looked uncommonly grave as he -listened. - -'Let us go and find out if anything did happen,' he suggested as they -rose from their meal; for he was oppressed by an uncomfortable -feeling that trouble was in store for them. His presentiment -presently grew stronger, for, as they walked towards the _marae_, or -open courtyard of the _pah_, the unusual quiet of the long lanes -surprised them, for the inhabitants were early astir as a rule. - -The court itself was deserted, save for two old men, who sat upon a -seat opposite to the open gates. George looked down upon the plain, -where a company of women and children could be seen returning from -the bush across the river. In anxious haste he turned to one of the -old men. - -'Where is everybody, O my father?' he inquired. 'Where is Te -Karearea?' - -The old Maori shook his head and showed his toothless gums. 'Nay; he -is not here, Hortoni. He is gone to fight the Pakeha.' - -'Gone to fight the Pakeha!' echoed George. He looked down again. A -band of armed Maoris had issued from the bush and were crossing the -river bridge. 'Is that the Hawk returning?' he asked. 'Wake up, old -man!' He gently shook the ancient. 'Is it the Hawk who flies -hither?' - -The old fellow blinked drowsily in the warm sun. 'Nay; Te Karearea -is gone to drive the Pakeha into _Moana_. Who knows when he will -return? Let me slumber, Hortoni.' - -George wheeled round upon Terence. 'The crafty rascal!' he cried -wrathfully. 'I see it all now. It was the noise of his departure -that you heard in the night, Terence. Well might he scheme that we -should bind ourselves fast with our own words. Oh, if you had but -woke me! But now we have promised, and----' He shook his fist in -the direction of the bush. 'Terence, we have been properly fooled. -We are caught in a trap of our own making.' - -'A parole extorted by such a piece of treachery can hardly be -considered binding,' objected Terence. - -'Oh, we will keep our word, if only to shame him, if that were -possible. But let the subtle Hawk look out for himself when we do -take back our parole.' - -'And may I be there to see,' finished Terence, taking his friend's -arm. 'Let us go to meet those people and learn the news.' - - - - -CHAPTER XVIII - -PAEROA AT LAST - -As the comrades encountered the returning warriors, who had been left -as a garrison, their leader, a young chief named Rolling Thunder, -called out: 'Salutations, Hortoni! The Pakeha Eagle takes an early -flight; but he is too late to catch the Hawk, who has gone to flesh -his beak and talons.' - -'He will meet with a few more eagles who will make small account of -his beak and talons,' answered George grimly. 'When does he wing his -way back to his eyrie? I mean, if he ever gets the chance.' - -'Not until he has scattered the fragments of the last Pakeha to the -four winds,' replied Rolling Thunder proudly, and marched off in high -dudgeon at their shouts of derisive laughter. - -Just then Terence caught sight of a solitary figure disappearing into -the bush. He recognised the man as a _tutua_, or common fellow, -named Sounding Sea, one of the meanest and least considered Maoris in -the _pah_, whose sly face, destitute of scars, showed him either a -coward, or singularly to have lacked opportunity to gain the right to -heraldic distinctions. Just then, however, there was nothing out of -the way in the fellow's behaviour, so Terence thought no more about -him. - -'It is still very early, and I vote for exploration,' he said to -George. Then he drummed idly on the rail of the bridge, gazed down -into the rushing stream and sighed. Presently he looked up at his -friend and smiled rather wistfully. 'I was thinking. Bad habit; -isn't it, old fellow? Come; make up your mind what to do.' - -'Exploration be it,' agreed George. 'Let us look for the hole into -which you so gallantly dived. Like Quintus Curtius, it may yet prove -that you took that plunge for the good of your country.' - -He spoke lightly, knowing well what was passing in Terence's mind. -By tacit consent they seldom referred to home or friends, finding the -subject too painful. Terence had no near relations except his -mother's sister, to whom he was devoted; but his affection for the -Haughton circle was almost as deep as that of George, and the peppery -colonel and his fine little brother-in-law held a very warm place in -his heart. Many a silent prayer went up for their own preservation -and for those they loved; for these two were brave and loyal lads, -who had not learned to forget God, and were not ashamed to show that -they maintained their trust in Him. - -They easily found the hill upon which the Hau-hau rites had been -celebrated, but though they over and over again made it their base of -operations, failure met them at each attempt to discover the entrance -to the underground world. - -'We shall never find it,' said George; 'for even in this short time -the undergrowth has covered the mouth of the hole. We must try from -the other end; but if we lose ourselves----' - -'We can't--with this,' interposed Terence, holding up a small, but -perfect compass, made by one of England's foremost opticians. 'I -stole this from the stealers, who were examining the contents of a -looted saddle-bag. The compass had fallen to the ground unnoticed, -and, as my feet are adapted to cover much bigger things, I calmly -stood over it until I got a chance to annex it.' - -'Your petty larceny is condoned by the court,' laughed George. 'I -wish you could put your foot upon a couple of good revolvers.' - -'Don't move,' Terence said quickly. 'Look to your right--three or -four hundred yards away--without appearing to do so. There is a -Maori watching us.' - -George looked and laughed again. Apparently there were half a dozen -Maoris, squatting upon the ground at irregular intervals, their long -spears held erect, their mats hanging down so as to conceal their -bodies. - -'You are looking at a row of grass-trees,' George explained. 'You -are not the first to mistake a grass-tree at a distance for a -squatting native.' - -'I did not say they were Maoris,' Terence replied coolly. 'There -were six grass-trees when I first noticed them, and now there appear -to be seven. Aha! Look, George. Number seven is crawling off. It -is our friend Sounding Sea, who has been spying on us. I saw him -dodging into the bush this morning, and now that I am sure of his -game, I may tell you that I have suspected him for a week past.' - -'What keen eyes you have to pick the fellow out,' said George -admiringly. 'In certain lights, and at a distance, the illusion of -the grass-tree is perfect. It is as well, perhaps, that we failed to -find the hole, since that rascal is on our track.' - -'Well, we know where we stand now,' observed Terence, 'and the gay -Sounding Sea will find that two can play the game of spying. We will -look for Paeroa to-morrow in spite of him.' - -Late next night the friends crept out of their _whare_, which stood -near the back of the stockade, and searched for four hours in the -underground world; but they found no trace of the missing trio. - -'We must get back before dawn,' said George; 'for Sounding Sea may -take it into his head to pay us an earlier visit than usual. I don't -think that Paeroa is hidden down here. The existence of the place is -known only to the privileged few, so there would be no occasion to -confine him far from the entrance.' - -'Besides, I fancy that both the chief and the wizard would fight shy -of the spot after their uncanny experience.' Terence chuckled at the -recollection. 'Yes; come on. We can't afford to take risks.' - -Thrice they unsuccessfully explored the underground reaches during -the next fortnight; twice they tried, and failed, to find the forest -opening; and then, suddenly, the face of the situation began to alter. - -It was now three weeks since Te Karearea had set out for the front, -and sick or wounded Maoris were constantly filtering into the _pah_, -one and all with the same story to tell--the continued success of the -chief, and the impending annihilation of the detested Pakeha. The -worst news they brought was that of the death of old Kapua Mangu, who -had been shot while weaving a spell for the destruction of the -Arawas. His head had been brought back to the _pah_, and was now in -the hands of the gentleman whose business it was to preserve the -grisly relic. - -One night George entered their hut in a state of great agitation. -His face was pale and his eyes glittered; but for some time he sat -silent, while Terence watched him anxiously. - -'Anything wrong, old fellow?' he inquired at last. - -'Wrong! wrong! Ay; it is all wrong together,' burst out George. 'A -devil is loose upon the earth, and his name is Te Karearea. -He--he----' His voice faltered, and he stopped for a moment. Then, -ominously calm all at once, he resumed: 'News has come that Te -Karearea and a company of his Hau-haus stole upon the settlement at -Poverty Bay at night and massacred--there's no other word for it, for -the poor people were quite unprepared--thirty-three people. And, -Terence'--he covered his eyes with his hand--'there were women and -little children among them. Your friend Major Biggs was killed, -and----' He could say no more. - -For a time the two sat without further speech. They felt sick with -horror; for the picture of those helpless, anguished mothers and -their babes would obtrude itself. But at last George sprang up and -shook his great shoulders, as if throwing off some fearful oppression. - -'Terence,' he said quietly, 'till now, in spite of what I knew him to -be capable of, I have had a sneaking sympathy with this ruffian, with -his misfortunes, with his aspirations. I knew that his point of view -must be different from ours. I was inclined to make allowances. But -now--now----' - -'I know,' Terence said in a low voice. 'It is--it is those babies.' - -George's strong teeth seemed to snap together. 'Yes; and he shall -answer for them to me.' Then he went out into the night. - -Next day, as they were sitting in the _marae_, a wounded Maori came -up and said, grinning: 'Pokeke fights at the side of Te Karearea, and -he constantly mutters "The great axe of Heora." He bade me tell you -this, Hortoni.' - -George laughed contemptuously. 'This Heora is, I believe, one of -their mythical heroes,' he explained to Terence. 'When a Maori -frequently repeats the words "The great axe of Heora," he means that -he is keeping his mind fast set upon revenge. Well, this settles the -locality of one of our trio.' - -'Yes; and it shows the value of any statement made by Te Karearea,' -put in Terence. 'Now I have a piece of news,' he went on. 'I have -discovered something very queer about Sounding Sea.' - -'What is it?' George asked, interested at once. - -'About the same time every night he sneaks past our hut--his own is -almost opposite--towards the back of the _pah_. I followed him last -night, and he climbed the fence and dropped down on the narrow ledge -between the palisades and the edge of the precipice.' - -'Go on,' urged George. - -'I was close behind him; yet, when I looked over, he had disappeared. -The ledge runs about fifteen feet on each side of the point where he -scaled the fence, which touches the edge of the cliff at the angles. -So, as he could not have gone round, he must have gone over.' - -'And what are you going to do?' - -'We will both follow him to-night after his visit.' - -Under pretence that he had been detailed by Te Karearea to see to -their comfort, Sounding Sea came to their hut at bed-time every -night. This night was no exception, for his sly face peered round -the door, and he inquired, humbly enough, if the Pakeha lords desired -his services. - -To throw him off his guard, George ordered him to bring a basket of -food, as they proposed to go for an early ramble in the bush on the -morrow. When the Maori returned with this, the friends were snoring -on their mats; so he placed it in a corner and withdrew, satisfied. - -Five minutes later Terence stole across to Sounding Sea's _whare_, -and returned almost immediately. 'There,' he said, with a gleeful -chuckle, and thrust a revolver and a handful of cartridges upon his -astonished friend. - -'Kapua Mangu's mantle must have fallen on you, you magician,' cried -George, overjoyed. 'Where--how----?' - -'It occurred to me that Sounding Sea, not being very courageous, -would have made provision for defending himself in case of a row with -us,' explained Terence; 'so I went to see. The fellow has a regular -arsenal there. I have brought away three revolvers and any number of -cartridges.' He hid one of them under his mat, along with a reserve -of ammunition. Then, having loaded their weapons, the friends stole -out on the track of the spy. - -In a few minutes they stood upon the three-foot ledge outside the -_pah_, where a pale, watery moon gave them light enough to see what -they were about. And this was as well; for movement, at the best, -was dangerous, and a slip might have been fatal. - -'I thought as much,' exclaimed Terence, after poking about in the -grass. 'This explains our gentleman's nocturnal trips, and I -shouldn't wonder if we were on the track of Paeroa.' - -Lying on their faces, peering into the awful depths of the cañon, -they could see a strong flax ladder, securely fastened to a couple of -stout pegs, driven into the ground between them. By means of a -gentle tug they ascertained that the lower end of the ladder was -free, and, before George could anticipate him, Terence swung himself -over. - -'I'll jerk three times when I reach the bottom,' he said. 'Steady -the thing for me.' - -Presently the signal came, and George joined his friend, who was -standing upon a narrow ledge about fifty feet below. 'Here we are,' -said Terence in greeting. 'This ledge runs in both directions. Ah, -this is the way. Look.' - -A tangle of creepers, recently disturbed, guided them, and they moved -cautiously along the ledge, which sloped very gradually downwards, -until they stood some twenty feet above the river, in full view of a -fine waterfall. Thereafter was nothing but sheer cliff to the broken -water below. Then while they looked about, puzzled, Terence suddenly -dragged George down behind a shrub, and they saw a wondrous sight. - -From out of the waterfall itself, right through the veil of falling -water, came Sounding Sea, shaking himself like a dog after a plunge. -He climbed upon the ledge, took a step or two upon the back track, -and then, with a gesture of annoyance, turned again and walked out of -sight through, or under, the fall. - -'He has forgotten something,' said Terence. 'After him!' - -Careless of risk, they passed the falling curtain and hurried on the -track of Sounding Sea, who was moving slowly through a natural -tunnel, the mouth of which gaped blackly at his pursuers. Had the -Maori not lit a torch the comrades could have done nothing but await -his return. - -Suddenly Terence swung back an arm and barred George's advance, for -the tunnel took a turn, widening into a cave. Peering round the -angle, they saw Sounding Sea, his torch set down, searching for -something he appeared to have dropped. - -[Illustration: The tunnel took a turn, widening into a cave (page -194).] - -But there was something else. Something which brought George's teeth -together with a click, and caused Terence to clench his fists. - -Stretched upon a mat, his wrists and ankles bound, and further -secured by a rope round his middle, which was attached to an iron bar -let into the floor of the cave, lay Paeroa, while a few feet from him -was Kawainga, much in the same case, save that her feet were free. - -Even in that light it could be seen that the unhappy pair looked -miserably weak and ill, though scraps of food and a bowl of water -showed that starvation had not been added to their other tortures. - -Terence felt the arm he held quivering in his grip. Indeed, George -restrained himself with difficulty; for the sight of the poor -sufferers set his blood aflame, and another black mark was added to -the long tally against Te Karearea. - -Just then Sounding Sea spoke. 'Where is my _mere_, O Paeroa? It was -in my belt when I fed you.' He made a dive and drew a wooden _mere_ -from the folds of the scanty mat upon which Paeroa lay. 'Pig!' he -vociferated. 'Would you steal my club? Were it not that Te Karearea -ordered me to keep you alive, I would dash out your traitor's brains. -As it is--take this!' - -He raised his heavy, sharp-angled club, dwelling upon his aim for the -downstroke, which would have smashed the shoulder-girdle and left the -arm useless for all time, when with a low growl of rage George leaped -across the intervening space and flung himself upon the cowardly -ruffian. - - - - -CHAPTER XIX - -PAEROA'S VENGEANCE - -So utterly unexpected was the attack, that Sounding Sea went down -with a yell of terror; but, quickly recognising his adversary, he -began to wriggle and twist, clawing and spitting like an angry cat. -But he could do nothing against such a stalwart as George, and -Terence, confident of this, busied himself in cutting the bonds of -the captives and gently chafing their swollen joints, while he smiled -into their wan faces, and spoke hopefully in a language they did not -understand of the good time coming for them. - -But hope is translatable into any tongue, and, as Terence chatted on, -the dull eyes brightened and a responsive grin overspread Paeroa's -drawn face, while Kawainga's lips quivered, and she burst into happy, -soothing tears. - -This was too much for Terence. His alluring smile vanished, and he -rose and solemnly punched the head of Sounding Sea. 'I don't often -hit a man when he is down,' he remarked, returning to his patients; -'but you deserve a taste of your own sauce.' - -'Quite right,' agreed George. 'Wait here, Terence, while I get my -flask. When I return, we can settle what to do.' - -He was back in a very short time, and the flask, which he had not -opened since he left Sydney, came in usefully now; for the strong -spirit, dashed with water, soon restored Paeroa and Kawainga, who sat -up and began to talk. - -'I did what I could, Hortoni,' Paeroa said sadly. 'Had you met me by -the fork that day all would have been well. As it is, I have still -one word of the white-haired chief to you. Te Karearea took the -other. Here it is.' - -Like all the Hau-haus, he wore his hair long, and now he pulled from -the tangled locks a soiled piece of paper, which he held out to -George, who took it and read aloud: - -'We ar~ on your t~ack. Try ~~~~~~scape ~nd meet us. Y~~rs--M. -Cra~sto~n.' - -Here and there the pencilled letters were obliterated; but the -meaning was clear enough. The question was--had Te Karearea driven -back, or annihilated the relief force? And this, of course, Paeroa -could not tell. - -'I wonder what was in the note which Te Karearea took,' said George. - -'Paeroa has made a mistake,' commented Terence. 'Colonel Cranstoun -is not white-haired, unless he has changed since I saw him.' - -'Well, there is no use worrying over a mistake,' said George. - -'Oh, of course not,' agreed Terence, looking curiously at his friend. -He had his own idea as to the identity of the writer of the missing -note, and thought that George's ignorance was bliss, in so far as it -saved him from much anxiety. - -Briefly, Paeroa's story was that, on the march to rejoin the main -body, he had stolen away at the risk of his life, worked round to the -rear of the Arawa contingent, and presented himself at the British -camp, where he found Colonel Cranstoun and others, to whom he told -the story of George's adventures as far as he knew them. He was -ignorant of the capture of Terence, so he could not remove the -impression which existed that the Irishman had been killed while -endeavouring to deliver Captain Westrupp's note. Promising to do all -he could for George, Paeroa departed with two short letters in his -care. He failed, as we know, to communicate with George on the day -of the fight with the Arawas; but, just before the skirmish, while -plotting with Kawainga to deliver the letters unobserved, the two -were suddenly overpowered by a strong guard of Hau-haus, and conveyed -to the _pah_. There they were kept in close confinement, and -eventually transferred to the cave under the waterfall, Sounding Sea -being appointed their gaoler. The mean and vicious Hau-hau had -amplified the chief's instructions, and gratified his own malevolent -nature by inflicting upon the prisoners as many hardships as he -dared, short of actually murdering them, so that their existence -since the departure of Te Karearea had been wretched indeed. - -'What is to be done now?' queried George, when Paeroa's story had -come to an end. - -Terence drew his revolver and turned to face Sounding Sea. 'Let him -know, George,' he said grimly, 'that, unless he tells the whole -truth, there will be a new arrival in Reinga within a minute.' - -'Stop!' shrieked Sounding Sea in English. 'I will tell all. I was -to keep these two here until Te Karearea's return. I have cared for -them and fed them. Mercy, great lords!' - -'We shall soon find out whether he has told the truth,' said George -gravely. 'We must leave him here, of course--and you two must also -be content to wait here a little longer.' - -Paeroa stood up shakily, endeavouring to throw out his chest. 'Hope -is a good medicine,' he said bravely. 'By the time Hortoni needs my -arm it will be strong enough to strike a blow for him.' - -As he spoke, Kawainga uttered a weak, wailing cry. George and -Terence wheeled, but Paeroa, his hollow eyes gleaming, staggered past -them, and hurled his wasted body full atop of Sounding Sea. - -Unperceived by the men, the villain had wormed his way close to -Kawainga, intending to finish her with one stroke of his club; but -the girl's scream spoiled the murderous ruffian's scheme. - -Sounding Sea, never a strong man, had grown weak and flabby in -consequence of his idle, dissolute life; but, nevertheless, Paeroa -had his work cut out for him, and the Englishmen, though anxious to -let him have the credit of saving his sweetheart's life, were -prepared to interfere should the contest go against him. They -thought, of course, that Paeroa meant simply to secure the fellow, -and hold him while they adjusted the slipped ropes. - -But Paeroa had no such intention. Wrought up to a pitch of fury at -the recollection of his wrongs at this coward's hands, and mad with -rage at the attempt upon the life of his betrothed, his strength was -unnatural. For one instant he came uppermost in the struggle; but it -was enough. Glaring wildly about him, he saw and scooped the wooden -club from the ground, and, without waiting to fasten his grip upon -the handle, brought the triangular edge smashing down upon the -upturned face of Sounding Sea. The force of the blow spent itself -upon the temple, and with a deep groan the Hau-hau fell back, killed -outright by that terrible stroke. - -'Ha!' Paeroa gasped, floundering to his feet and shaking the -bloodstained club. 'Ha! I have slain a _taipo_. The strength of -ATUA was in me.' Then he lurched forward like a drunken man, and -crashed down at Kawainga's feet. - -Horrified, George and Terence gazed at the swift, awful scene. It is -no light matter to see a man slain before your eyes. Moved by a -common impulse, they reverently lifted the dead man and carried him -to one side, while Kawainga fussed and crooned over Paeroa. - -'If any one is aware of his visits here, and knows that he was -employed to watch us----' began George; but Terence struck in: - -'We are armed now, and with revolvers, not to speak of your -greenstone club. By the way, why didn't you bring it with you?' - -'I did,' answered George, clapping his hand to his side. But the -loop in his belt was empty. The _mere_ was gone. - -Startled, George looked about the cave; but nowhere could he find the -club. - -'I fear it has dropped into the river as I came down the ladder,' he -said. 'Wait here, if you don't mind, Terence, and I will go and see -if I have left it in our hut. No; let me go, for if I meet any one, -my knowledge of the language will get me past him, whereas you might -be stopped.' - -'Bring back the basket of food with you,' Terence called after him as -he hurried away. - -As he rapidly ascended the ladder, George became conscious of an -extraordinary commotion in the _pah_. Shouts and cries, wailing of -_teteres_, even gun-shots, disturbed the quiet night, and, wondering -what had happened, he scaled the palisades and sped to his _whare_. - -A glance all round told him that the club was not there, so, -snatching up the basket of food, he was about to set off again, when -from the confusion of sounds in the direction of the _marae_, one -detached itself, clear and high: - -'_Rongo pai! Rongo pai!_' (Good tidings! Good tidings!) -'Salutations, O Hawk of the Mountain! O Slayer of the Pakeha, hail!' - -Without an instant's pause George turned and ran, scaling the -stockade, and dashing down the flax-ladder at perilous speed. - -'Come!' he shouted, when he had gained the entrance to the cave. -'Out of this for your lives. Te Karearea has returned!' - - - - -CHAPTER XX - -A BID FOR LIBERTY - -'Up with you!' said George, holding the swaying ladder. 'Wait on top -till we join you. What a good thing I had my flask.' - -It was. The strong spirit nerved the invalids to the effort they -were obliged to make, and in a few minutes the four of them were -standing on the ledge outside the _pah_, and by means of the ladder -easily scaled the palisades. - -The clamour still continued, and George and Terence swiftly piloted -their exhausted friends to the fence behind their hut. Here the -ladder came into play again, and they made for the underground world, -George explaining its peculiarities to Paeroa as they sped along. - -'You will be safe enough if you do not wander far from the entrance,' -he assured the Maori. 'We will manage to visit you before long.' - -They left the basket of food and the flask with the refugees, and, -still hurrying, for every minute was precious now, reached the -shelter of their _whare_ without encountering any of the Hau-haus. - -'Have you found your club?' Terence asked, carefully bestowing -cartridges in his various pockets. - -'No,' George answered gloomily. 'I must have dropped it last night -between the fence and the underground world. The strange part of it -is that I should not have missed it till just now.' - -'The thing is always generating mysteries,' grumbled Terence. 'I -hope we shall find it, though; for it may make all the difference -between life and death to us.' - -'You are right,' said George, who seemed much upset. 'Of course I do -not agree with you that there is anything supernatural about the -club; but still--but still----' - -Terence's eyes grew round. 'You don't agree with me! Why, you old -humbug, when did I say that the thing had any supernatural power?' - -'You talked of the English lack of imagination,' George replied -stiffly. - -Terence laughed. 'The most wonderful thing about that blessed club -is that it has twice brought you and me to the brink of a dispute. I -really believe---- Hullo! Here he is.' - -Unheard and unannounced, as usual, Te Karearea had entered. A grim -smile, quickly suppressed, parted his thin lips for an instant, and -he bent a frowning gaze upon George, who, angered out of himself at -the loss of his _mere_ and the memories which the sight of the chief -recalled, had sprung to his feet and was glaring defiantly at the -intruder. - -'Salutations, friends!' said Te Karearea coldly. 'You did not meet -me at the gate, so I have come to----' He interrupted himself, his -furtive eyes gleaming. 'Where is the _mere_ of TUMATATJENGA, -Hortoni? It hangs not at your side.' - -George made no answer; for it was important to ascertain whether the -chief had come straight from the _marae_, or had already visited the -hut and discovered their absence. Familiar with his friend's -lightest change of expression, Terence knew that the storm was ready -to break, and dropped his hand lightly upon the revolver in his coat -pocket, through which he covered the chief. If treachery were -intended, it was as well to be prepared. - -'Speak, Hortoni!' Te Karearea's tone was imperative to the point of -insolence. His scarred face looked terrible under his malignant -scowl. - -There was a steely glint in George's eyes, and his nostrils quivered; -but his voice was fairly calm as he answered: 'A man may do as he -likes with his own. If I have smashed the _mere_ among the rocks, or -thrown it into the river, what is it to you? You chatter like a -parrot, and with as little sense. Leave us. We wish to sleep.' - -But Te Karearea had sense enough, and whatever black design he had in -his mind when he entered the hut, he put it away for the time, until -he should discover the truth about the _mere_. So, to the surprise -of his hearers, instead of flying into a rage, he grinned genially at -them. - -'You are right, Hortoni,' he said. 'It is only children who talk -when they are tired, and quarrel till they fall asleep. I, too, am -weary and would rest. Perhaps you will be in a better mind -to-morrow, and will show me the _mere_ of TUMATAUENGA. I will go, -since you have nothing to say to me. Unless, indeed, you wish to -renew your parole,' he finished with a sneer. - -A sudden, inexplicable impulse swayed George. - -'Stay, O Hawk of the Mountain,' he said, and all appearance of anger -left him. 'For a moon past you have kept us here by means of a -trick. You caught us in a trap of our own making. Now shall there -be no more tricks, and, lest you go away again in the night, leaving -us fast here, I tell you to your face--you yourself and none -other--we take back our word.' - -For once in his life Te Karearea had received a setback. His usual -coolness deserted him, and his ready tongue tripped as he asked if he -had heard aright. - -'Does this mean that you will try to escape, Hortoni?' he inquired, -when both George and Terence had repeated their decision. He moved -backwards towards the door as if he feared an immediate attack. - -'Why not?' George answered coolly. 'We have told you that we do not -wish to stay here, yet you will not let us go. Now we will go -whether you will allow us or not.' - -But Te Karearea had recovered his equanimity. 'When?' he inquired, -with an air of great simplicity. - -George laughed. 'It is enough for you to know that we will go.' - -'When the gates of Reinga are shut, why seek to open them, Hortoni? -Take time to think,' suggested the chief. - -'It is time to act,' retorted George, and Terence, informed of his -friend's sudden resolution, nodded assent. - -Te Karearea was puzzled. Sly and designing himself, he could -appreciate straightforwardness in others; yet he could not believe -that his captives would have taken such a stand unless there was -something underlying their conduct of which he was ignorant. -Meantime, confident of his ability to prevent their escape, he -temporised. - -'Nevertheless, I give you time for thought, my friends,' he said. -Then, being a superb actor, he stopped on the threshold. 'If you -will, I can set my young men to look for your _mere_ in the morning, -Hortoni,' he suggested graciously. - -'Have I said that it was lost?' George countered quickly. 'But, if -it were, did your young men find it when it dragged itself from your -hand and flew into the sea? Have you yet to learn, O Te Karearea, -that my God has given me the _mere_ to stand between me and death?' - -Te Karearea was silenced. Muttering a charm, he slid through the -door, which presently was blocked outside. Terence put his ear to -the wall and could hear the shuffling of naked feet, as if a number -of men were dispersing. He turned to his friend. - -'If the _mere_ had been in your belt, George, I believe that the -chief would have taken chances and attacked you to gain possession of -it. He had a dozen men outside. But its absence puzzled him. Am I -far wrong in saying that, either by its presence or its absence, the -greenstone club is for ever coming between you and death?' - -'Even as I said to Te Karearea,' agreed George. 'Yes; old Te -Kaihuia's gift was nothing short of a providence. What are we to do -now? I had no idea of taking back our parole so suddenly; but -something seemed to force me to do it. You don't object?' - -'I should say not. The sooner we are out of here the better. I -didn't like the look in the Hawk's eyes.' - -'I hope we shall be out of it before dawn,' said George. 'When the -chief once realises that the _mere_ is gone, things will happen -quickly. You may be sure it was not simply for the pleasure of -greeting us that he came here to-night. He was in a black mood, and -I suspect, if the truth were known, he has been well hammered by our -people.' - -'More power to them!' cried Terence. 'You are right, George; it is -time to quit. I am not sure whether the chief takes us seriously; -but he has left a guard at the door.' - -'Only one?' asked George, and Terence nodded. 'I have a plan in the -rough,' he went on, looking at his watch. 'It is just eleven. The -sentry will probably be changed at two or three o'clock. We will -divide that time between watching and resting. If we are quiet, -sentry number one will give a good account of us. Then, an hour or -so later----' - -'We must dispose of number two.' Terence filled in the pause. - -'I am afraid so,' said George regretfully. 'Our lives hang in the -balance, and the lives of many others as well. We will avoid extreme -measures if possible. I wish I had my club. The very sight of it -would frighten the fellow into submission.' - -Terence looked up at the roof and grinned. 'I am waiting to see if -your genii, _taipos_, _taniwhas_, or whoever are the slaves of the -greenstone club, will bring it back to you the instant you express a -wish,' he said. 'There is a smack of Aladdin and his lamp about the -thing. Well, what next?' - -'We must scale the fence behind the _whare_,' answered George, -smiling. 'The sentries are stationed at intervals along the -platform, and we must manage to dodge the nearest. We'll manage -it--we _must_.' - -'I'll take the first watch,' said Terence. - -'No; I will, in case there is any talking to be done. I wish that we -had another basket of food. It may go hard with us in the bush. Lie -down and sleep while you may, old fellow.' - -Terence drew his mat over him as he lay upon his bed of fern, and -with the readiness of a bushman dropped asleep, while George sat with -his knees drawn up to his chin, thinking out details and planning, as -far as he could beforehand, to meet developments. - -The hours passed, he heard the stealthy footsteps of the relief, and -caught a word or two of the low-voiced colloquy as the guard made his -report. And all the time Terence slept comfortably, though the time -for his watch had come and gone. - -All at once George started, raised his head and listened intently. -What was that thin, scratching noise at the back of the hut? He -lightly laid his hand upon Terence's shoulder, and the practised -bushman was instantly awake, alert and vigilant. - -'Some one is cutting through the thatch,' George breathed into his -comrade's ear. - -This was possible enough. The roof, which, after the Maori fashion -of architecture, descended within a few feet of the earth, was -thatched with _raupo_ and other reeds which, though thick, were soft -and might easily be ripped by a sharp knife. The only question was -the motive of the intruder. - -Presently a piece of _raupo_, detached from the thatch, fell upon the -floor. The visitor, whoever he was, had penetrated the roof. George -stole to the widening hole, Terence to the door, and so they waited, -holding their revolvers by the barrel, ready for whatever might -chance. - -'_Hortoni!_' Just the whispered word; but George's heart leaped, for -the voice was Paeroa's, and he knew that his faithful ally, and not -an enemy, stood without. - -'I am here, O Whispering Wind,' he breathed back. 'Why----' - -'Hush! Speak not, Hortoni. Do you and Mura take these knives and -widen the hole. I will return.' - -Presently, as they ripped and cut, the Maori returned and whispered -with his mouth at the hole: 'Te Taroa, whom the Hawk set to guard -you, is asleep. Hasten, Hortoni, for there are evil spirits in the -air, and Life and Death contend which shall have you.' - -Hurriedly he told them how he had come back to the entrance of the -underground world, vaguely suspecting mischief, and found it blocked. -Alarmed, he had fetched Kawainga, wormed a way out, and sent the girl -down the hill to the flax-patch on the west. Then he had crept under -the stockade and learned from the chatter of the sentries that Te -Karearea had suffered a crushing defeat and had fled to the _pah_ to -renew his supplies and ammunition. Further, he learned of the loss -of the greenstone club, the withdrawal of the prisoners' parole, and, -knowing well the consequences to Hortoni if the _mere_ were really -gone, had scaled the palisades in order to urge his friends to escape -without loss of time. - -The hole in the roof being now wide enough for them to pass through, -Terence very unwillingly went first. George was half-out and half-in -when a sneeze was heard in front of the hut, followed by a yawn and -the comfortable grunt of a man stretching himself. Te Taroa was -awake, and, more, was coming round the hut, as though to atone for -his carelessness. - -Suddenly he stopped, every keen sense alert, and sprang back, -open-mouthed; but, before he could yell an alarm, the butt of -Terence's revolver crashed down upon his head, and he fell back -stunned. - -George was now out, and by Paeroa's directions he and Terence removed -their boots, lest they should clatter as they climbed the palisades. -The Maori went first, then Terence passed down the boots and swung -himself over, and, lastly, George jumped on to the platform and laid -his hands on the top of the stockade. - -Ten seconds more and he would have been over, but, as he straddled -the fence, the roar of a gun at close-quarters and the 'wheep' of a -bullet past his head so startled him that he lost his balance and -fell headlong. But, instead of rolling into the ditch he banged -against the fence and remained suspended there, unable for the moment -to free himself. His sock had caught upon a projecting stake near -the top of the stockade. - -'Run!' he gasped. 'I'm after you.' - -Not suspecting his plight, Paeroa and Terence sped towards the upper -bridge, while a number of Hau-haus clambered over the fence, leaped, -or floundered through, the ditch, and hurried away in blind pursuit. -For the night was very dark. - -George's peculiar position undoubtedly saved his life, for the -Hau-haus deemed him far ahead; so, when the chase had swept by, he -reversed his uncomfortable attitude and dropped into the ditch. - -Not caring to run any more risks, he laid his revolver on the top of -the bank before climbing out; but, he had scarcely begun to move when -a Maori swung over the stockade and landed fairly on top of him. - -The yell died in the man's throat as George grappled with him, -forcing him back against the sloping side of the ditch with one hand, -while he groped for his revolver with the other. But he had been -dragged somewhat to one side in the short, sharp struggle, and the -weapon eluded his grasp. The Hau-hau turned and twisted, striking -ineffectual blows; but he had no chance against George, whose groping -hand presently encountered a long, hard stone just below the edge of -the ditch. - -'This will do,' he thought, and laid the man out with a well-directed -blow. Then down he went on his hands and knees to search for his -revolver. Realising how important it was that he should find it, he -drew a match from his pocket and, covering it with his hat, struck it -against the stone which he still held in his hand. - -For an instant it flickered, and then flared up. But George, -careless of his exposed situation, knelt, staring with wide, almost -frightened, eyes at the greenstone club, which he held once again in -his hands. - - - - -CHAPTER XXI - -IN THE FLAX SWAMP - -Loth as George was to yield to the superstitious feeling which the -coincidences in connection with the greenstone club invariably -engendered, he was almost stupefied at its reappearance at the -present juncture. Yet there was nothing supernatural about it. He -had jumped into the ditch almost at the exact point at which the -_mere_ had dropped from his belt, and had naturally stumbled upon it. -He was too well balanced to remain long under the spell of the -occurrence, and with a sigh of thankfulness picked up the club, -stripped the mat from the shoulders of the unconscious Maori, and -ran, light-footed, in the direction of the upper bridge. Before he -had gone twenty yards he bounced into a number of Maoris hurrying -towards the same spot. - -'Have you caught them?' he said thickly, congratulating himself that -the darkness and the mat about his shoulders would prevent immediate -recognition. - -'_No hea?_' grumbled a Hau-hau. The words, meaning literally 'from -whence?' imply in Maori phraseology that the thing inquired for is -nowhere. It was an admission that the superstitious fellows did not -expect to retake the fugitives. - -'Hortoni, indeed, is under the protection of TUMATAUENGA,' growled -another. 'Else would the Hawk have slain him ere now.' - -'But Hortoni has lost the _mere_--so they say,' returned George, -quickening his pace a little, so as to pass the talkative Maori. - -'_Na!_ the _mere_ of TUMATAUENGA cannot be lost,' a third observed -sententiously as George drew ahead of him. 'By this time Hortoni -again wears it by his side. _Ehara!_ It is extraordinary, and I do -not know why ATUA should favour a Pakeha. But so it is. _Ea!_' he -grunted disgustedly. 'In my opinion Hortoni is a god. Who can -prevail against a god?' - -The first part of this speech was so true that George felt once more -that curious thrill which had so often affected him when the -greenstone club was in question. The last part shocked him and, -forgetful of his assumed character, he impetuously contradicted the -astounded speaker. - -'Fool! I am no god,' he cried. 'There is but one God, the God of -the Pakehas, and He----' - -The next moment he was flying for his life across the tree bridge and -down the hill, while the Maoris, ignoring in their turn his presumed -divinity, scampered after him, their yells blending with the shouts -of those who had already reached the plain. - -Stumbling and slipping, George dashed along the track, bruising -himself badly against a hundred obstacles, but grimly silent lest by -any outcry he should drag his friends back into danger. Far behind -him he could hear the voice of the arch-liar Te Karearea calling to -him that the greenstone club had been found, and that all would be -well if he would return. Once he collided with a Hau-hau who rose -suddenly from behind a boulder; but his ready wit saved him, and the -two ran side by side to the bottom of the hill, where George branched -off to the right. - -'Go that way, my friend, and I will go this,' he cried. 'We will -meet at the bridge and scoop in the Pakehas as with a net.' - -He spoke loudly now, confident that his friends were safe, and hoping -thus to convey to them the assurance of his own escape. - -Just then the cry of the _weka_ arose almost under his feet, and -George thought for a moment that he had disturbed a real bird, so -natural was the startled note. The next, he remembered the signal -they had agreed upon in case of separation, answered it, and -instantly felt his arm grasped by some one who rose apparently out of -the ground beside him. - -'_He! He!_' Paeroa's voice sounded the note of caution and alarm. -'This way, Hortoni. Into the flax. Quick!' - -Hard upon his brown friend's heels followed George, treading -cautiously upon the rough track of _manuka_[1] which ran more or less -interruptedly across the swampy ground in which the flax-bushes -flourished. More than once his foot encountered bubbling ooze and -slime; but Paeroa's hand was ever ready to help him over these gaps, -and for a hundred yards or so they went along without serious mishap. -Then the shouts and cries which came from scattered points about the -plain seemed to concentrate in one long yell of triumph, a noisy -hubbub arose at the point where the _manuka_ pathway began, and a -spattering volley followed them as they stumbled forward. - - -[1] _Leptospermum scoparium._ - - -'They are after us,' panted George, swerving involuntarily as a -bullet smacked into a flax-bush a few inches from him; but Paeroa -whispered a hurried instruction and, even as another small hail of -balls whimpered past, they leaped from the track into the heart of a -flax-bush, thence into the midst of a second, out of that into a -third, where George crouched, struggling fiercely to quiet his rough, -laboured breathing, while Paeroa with a last encouraging word, -slipped into a bush a little further on and squatted there. - -With one hand grasping the stiff, upstanding leaves, and with the -other fast closed about the handle of his club--the loop of which he -had taken the precaution to secure round his wrist--George sat -listening to the murmur of voices coming gradually nearer. As far as -he could judge there were only two or three Maoris on the track, -whence he argued that the commotion at the other end had been merely -a _ruse de guerre_ to induce the fugitives to believe that they were -discovered. Still, it would not do to be too sure, for the Hau-haus -were all over the place, and it might well be that while some -advanced along the track, others were creeping through the swamp, -searching each bush in turn. - -Suddenly there fell a silence. The men on the manuka had either -stopped to reconnoitre or given up the search and gone back, and -George, feeling cramped and stiff, was about to change his position, -when a low '_he! he!_' from Paeroa warned him to remain still. A -moment later a Maori leaped from the track into a flax-bush, searched -it swiftly, and passed on to another. - -The sound indicated that the man was coming in his direction, and -George ardently wished that he had continued to hunt for his -revolver, instead of gazing, moonstruck, at the greenstone club. -Another leap and the man was in the clump next to him. One more -and---- - -A stream of fire, the roar of a revolver, and with a loud, choking -gasp the Hau-hau fell dead somewhere in the ooze, while from the -adjoining bush came Terence's voice: 'Quick, George, after me! We -are close to the spot where the river forks. Kawainga is already -across. I came back for you.' - -Amid the tumult of pursuit, crackling rifle fire and yells, as now -and again an incautious Maori floundered into the swamp, they left -their cover and leaped from bush to bush across the space between the -broken end of the track and the small strip of hard ground by the -river. Here Paeroa joined them and, guided by him, they crossed the -stream and plunged into the bush. - -[Illustration: Map of the 'Pah' of Death and its surroundings] - -'Safe!' muttered Terence. 'I had to shoot that fellow, George, for -he landed almost on top of me. I don't think that they will find us -now; but we had better get away as far as possible before we halt. -We are not out of the wood yet.' - -'Very much in it, I should say,' answered George, as a thorn-branch -smacked him sharply across the cheek. 'Don't go too fast, Paeroa. -It will not do for us to lose touch with one another. Besides, you -must be almost worn out. Where is Kawainga?' - -'Here I am, Hortoni,' said the girl. 'I waited for you on the flat -with Paeroa, though you did not see me.' There was a note of pride -in her voice. - -'You are both good friends, I know,' replied George. 'Are you weary, -Star of the Morning?' - -'Nay; the Maori is never weary when a friend is in danger,' the girl -answered simply. 'Press on, Hortoni. Day is very near.' - -'Ay! It must be,' put in Terence. 'Hark, George, those fellows are -still roaring under the impression we have been kind enough to wait -for them in the swamp. I can't understand why that astute chief did -not order torches to be lit.' - -'Possibly because he found out that we had got possession of -firearms, and did not wish to give us a good target. By the way, -Terence, have you got the third revolver? I lost mine as I crossed -the ditch. My club is all very well; but----' - -'Your club!' Terence's tone expressed amazement. 'You don't mean to -say that the thing has come back to you!' - -'No; I don't.' George laughed a little. 'However, I have found it. -It was on the bank of the ditch where we crossed after our last -excursion.' - -'Oh yes; that sounds quite commonplace,' said Terence. 'All the same -I'll warrant that you were mightily surprised when you found it.' - -'I was; and thankful too,' admitted George. 'But you see how easily -everything in connection with the club may be explained when once we -begin to sift matters.' - -'I should like to know, then, how it found its way back to you from -the bottom of the sea,' Terence said slyly. - -'It was I who brought it back, O Mura.' Paeroa's voice came out of -the gloom ahead of them. 'I found it the first time that I dived, -and, as I had been too hurried to take off my waist-cloth, I hid the -_mere_ therein and waited till I could give it to Hortoni. But he -was sleeping with his face towards the gates of Reinga, so I slipped -it under his mats as he lay on his litter--and after that he got -well,' he finished innocently. - -Terence drew a long breath. 'Another illusion gone!' he commented. -'Before we are done we shall be forced to believe that the wonderful -_mere_ is only a piece of common greenstone after all. I think that -we should halt. What do you say, Paeroa?' - -'Let us rest. The poor fellow must be worn out,' put in George. 'I -feel tired enough myself, now that the hot excitement has died down.'. - -After crossing the stream they had turned sharply to the left and -struck into the blazed track which Te Karearea's axe-men had made on -the night of their arrival. Otherwise they would not have been able -to get through the thick bush, and must have fled through the forest -by the beaten track, along which the Hau-haus even now trailed like -so many dogs on the scent of a fox. As it was, their progress had -been difficult enough, for the undergrowth had renewed itself in the -intervening weeks, and their low-voiced conversation came in -disjointed sentences as they struggled through the tangle of fern and -creeper which strove to hinder their steps. - -'Now, listen to me, all of you,' George said earnestly, as they -gratefully stretched themselves on the fern and divided the food -which Kawainga had carried. 'As soon as it is dawn Te Karearea will -organise a hunt for us. If any of us should be captured, those who -escape must not think of the plight of their friends, but hurry on to -the camp of the British or the Friendlies. It is important that this -nest of rebels should be cleared out. Is that agreed, Terence? Do -you understand, Paeroa?' - -After some hesitation Terence muttered 'Agreed!' and Paeroa, who had -waited for him to speak first, answered, 'I hear, Hortoni!' and -George was satisfied, knowing that with him to hear was to obey. - -As Terence had had most sleep at the beginning of the night, he now -took the first watch and, as the grey dawn stole through the bush in -ghostly, almost ghastly silence, he thought how different it all was -from Australia, where the morning would have been heralded in by the -beautiful matin-hymn of the magpie, so called, the cheerful hoot of -the laughing-jackass, and the exquisite treble and alto of hundreds -of smaller birds. Here was nought but solitude and stillness--a -stillness so profound that it began to get upon Terence's nerves, and -he more than once stretched out his hand towards George; for the -sense of companionship was somehow greater if he only touched his -friend's coat--or so he thought. - -Presently the sky grew lighter, and the outlines of various objects -began to appear. Right ahead of him, a quarter of a mile away, was -the hill where George and he had lain and watched the Hau-haus at -their weird and blasphemous rites. Down that hill and through this -very bush they had run until pulled up by that tumble into the -underground world. If he could only find that hole again! Why -should he not try? The desire grew with the idea. - -'I believe I could find it,' he said within himself, rising and -stretching his arms above his head. Then in the midst of a -satisfying yawn he dropped noiselessly out of sight behind the tree -against which he had been sitting. - -From a hundred different points, ahead and on each side of him, brown -forms were dodging from tree to tree, and from as many different -spots among the fern scarred, brown faces peered, as it seemed, -malevolently at him. - - - - -CHAPTER XXII - -THE DOOM OF THE HOUSE OF TE TURI - -Terence opened his mouth to shout a warning to the sleepers to be up -and away, but, his bush training coming to his aid, he shut it with a -snap. - -'I don't think that they have seen me,' he thought; 'but it is too -late to run now, at all events.' - -He wondered why the advancing Maoris should exercise such caution -when, apparently, not a foe was near. 'It must be their way,' he -concluded; 'and as one never knows when----' - -The unspoken words jumbled in his brain and his eyes grew round. Two -of the Maoris, crawling from point to point, had suddenly and -instantaneously disappeared, heads down and heels up. - -'They have found it!' Terence muttered grimly. 'What a nuisance.' -He laid his hand on George's shoulders, who at once opened his eyes, -but lay perfectly still, mutely questioning. - -'Maoris!' whispered Terence. 'The fern is full of them, and two of -them have tumbled into our underground world.' - -'Bother take them!' murmured George. 'Let me have a look.' - -He peered over the tall fern at a group of Maoris who were standing -up beside the spot at which their comrades had so mysteriously -vanished, and with grave gestures and puzzled frowns were discussing -the new situation. Their faces cleared and they grinned at one -another as muffled voices from below assured them that neither -_taipo_ nor _taniwha_ had swallowed their friends. Then they bent -down over the tangled mass of creepers and held a colloquy with the -imprisoned ones. - -'They evidently know nothing about the place,' whispered George. -'How unfortunate that they should succeed where we have so often -failed. I think that we had better wake the others and creep away -into the bush while they are still absorbed with their find; for---- -Oh, good heavens! Look at Paeroa! He is going to his death.' - -For the Maori, his alert senses stirred by their low-voiced talk, had -awakened, risen to his knees, and peered over the fern at the -newcomers. - -Even as George spoke he bounded to his feet, threw his hands above -his head and rushed towards the group of Maoris, shouting: '_Arawa! -Arawa! E tika ana!_--It's all right!--_Ka kitea te wahi i kimihia -mai ai e ratou!_--They have found the place we were looking -for!--_Kapai Arawa! Kapai Arawa!_ Hurrah for the Arawas!' - -His long hair, dressed Hau-hau fashion, streamed behind him and, -before any one could intervene, he dashed into the midst of the -Arawas. - -With a gasp of horror George ran for all he was worth. If at this -last moment Paeroa, the faithful Paeroa, should be---- The dreadful -thought was lost in the rush. - -Already Paeroa was overpowered, his weak state allowing him no -possible chance against his stalwart foes. Utterly unmindful of the -British principle of sympathy for the under dog, two Arawas held him -by the arms, another grasped his long hair, pulling his head -backwards, while a fourth, with raised club, was about to dash out -his brains. - -But with a rush George was among them and, ignoring ceremony, struck -right and left with his fists, upsetting the would-be slayer and -those who held Paeroa as well. Without an instant's delay Paeroa -scuttled into the bush, pending the adjustment of the dispute. - -'Pardon, friends!' George said apologetically, turning his glance -upon two who stood ruefully rubbing their swollen noses. 'You were -about to kill the wrong man. That is Paeroa, who brought word of my -captivity.' - -'And you are Hortoni?' queried a thin, lithe man who was evidently in -command. None of the Arawas seemed either surprised or resentful. - -'It is so,' replied George. 'I have just escaped with Mura, -Kawainga, and Paeroa from the nest of the Hawk.' - -'Mura! If you mean Tereni, he was slain after the fight at -Paparatu,' said the Arawa chief. - -'No; he is here,' corrected George. 'Te Karearea meant to kill him -that night, but I came up in time to----' - -'To stop them from shoving me through the gates of Reinga,' put in -Terence, bobbing up from the fern and airing his broken Maori. 'I am -very much alive, I assure you, Chief.' The Arawa leader and he -grinned cheerfully at one another. - -'Don't you remember me?' went on Terence. 'You are Te Ingoa, who -imitated the Hau-hau cry that night at our bivouac.' - -'Yes; I remember you, O Tereni,' replied the Arawa in English. 'You -told us of Hortoni, and how he had run away from the white-haired -chief.' - -"The white-haired chief." George heard without understanding. 'What -are we to do, O Te Ingoa?' he asked. 'Even now Te Karearea scours -the bush for us with his young men.' - -'While he scours the bush, we may clean up the _pah_, Hortoni,' the -Arawa replied sententiously. 'Two of my men have fallen down a hole -here. They say that there is quite a large space, but fear to go on -lest Taniwha should lurk at the other end. What am I to do?' - -'There is indeed a _taipo_ at the other end,' George answered -gravely. 'It is in the form of a Hawk who devours women and little -children.' Then, as the Arawa's eyes gleamed with comprehension: -'Let me lead you through the passage, O Te Ingoa. The issue of this -hole is close by the _Pah_ of Death, more than half way up the hill. -There is the upper bridge to cross, but----' - -'Lead on, Hortoni,' Te Ingoa interrupted excitedly. 'To us shall -fall the honour of clipping the Hawk's talons and blunting his beak. -The rest, with the white-haired chief, your father, are behind. I -will send a messenger to hurry them.' - -George turned to Terence, who was smiling sympathetically at him. -'Colonel Cranstoun is evidently not far away,' he said. 'Te Ingoa -wishes to march forward. But don't you think we ought to wait until -the others come up?' - -'Decidedly not,' replied Terence. 'Let these fellows do their own -killing. The white-haired chief, as they call him, will be better -out of this fuss.' - -'I am not sure that the colonel would agree with you,' said George. -'Still, there are enough of us here, and it is a pity to waste -valuable lives.' He turned to the Arawa. 'The sooner we go the -better, Chief.' - -'I am ready, Hortoni. Show us the way.' - -Without more words George and Terence dropped into the hole--more -circumspectly than on the first occasion--followed by all of the -Arawas except three whom Te Ingoa sent upon the back track. Also, by -George's order Paeroa and Kawainga remained behind, for they were -thoroughly exhausted by their exertions. - -When at last the contingent stood beneath the exit on the hillside it -was precisely six o'clock, an hour when ordinarily the _pah_ would -have been humming with the bustle of commencing day. On this day -there was bustle, indeed, but not of the usual kind. - -Before disturbing the barricade which Te Karearea had for some reason -placed before the opening, Te Ingoa, his lieutenants, and the two -Pakehas held a final brief conference. George was for waiting until -night before delivering the attack, but the Arawa argued that he -would be unable to hold in his men, who were mad to get to grips with -Te Karearea, whose revolting cruelties had disgraced the name of -Maori. - -'Then you will suffer terribly,' said George; 'for the place is -extraordinarily strong.' - -'We shall of course lose a few as we cross the bridge and rush the -walls,' Te Ingoa agreed coolly. 'That is to be expected. All the -same, the Hawk's nest shall be harried this time, I promise you.' - -'Well, I don't want to be a wet blanket,' said George, giving in. -'We two will do our best to help you.' - -'I am sure of that,' Te Ingoa replied heartily, and shook hands, -English fashion. 'As you and Tereni know the lie of the land, you -had better go out first and reconnoitre.' - -It was easy enough to displace the barricade and, as the boulders -were thrown aside and sounds from the outer world began to penetrate, -it was evident that something out of the common was afoot. For, -borne upon the morning wind, came the noise of distant shouting, the -snapping crackle of independent rifle fire, and the short, sullen -bark of revolvers. Then, as George and Terence hurled down the last -obstruction and excitedly pushed through the opening, the roar of a -heavy volley close at hand stunned their ears, and to their amazement -they saw the plain and hillside alive with men, fighting furiously, -and all, apparently, in the most extraordinary confusion. - -'Come out!' shouted George. 'Hold back your men, though, until you -have seen this thing for yourself. I can't make it out.' - -'I think I can,' cried Terence, jumping about in his excitement as Te -Ingoa joined them. 'The main body of your force has come up on the -heels of the advance and got between Te Karearea's rascals and the -_pah_. See--the walls are almost deserted.' - -'You are right,' agreed Te Ingoa. 'Those are my _kupapas_ (volunteer -Maoris), and they are settling accounts with the Hau-haus.' - -'What are you going to do?' George asked eagerly. - -'And thus, almost without a blow struck at itself, falls the _Pah_ of -Death,' said Te Ingoa, half to himself. He waved his hand downwards. -'Ignorant of our approach--he could hardly be careless of it--Te -Karearea has allowed his men to get out of hand in his desire to -recover the greenstone club. One column of my fellows is busy with -the remnant of the garrison, the other is there by the river, -blocking the advance of the returning Hau-haus. What am I going to -do? Why, charge down the hill, take this lot in the rear, and then -join column number two in polishing off the fellows by the river. I -never expected such an easy job, I must say.' - -'He talks like an Englishman,' observed Terence, as the Maori dived -below to summon his men, 'and he feels, like an Irishman, sorry that -he won't have enough fighting.' - -'He may get as much as he cares for before all is done,' said George. -'All this is very unlike Te Karearea. I suspect a trick.' - -'Well, down we go! Here come Te Ingoa and his merry men.' The whoop -Terence let out would have done credit to a Comanche. 'Hurrah! -Stick close to me, George. I believe the old Hawk has been caught -napping.' - -It really was so. The crafty Te Karearea, unsettled by the escape of -his prisoners, and still more so by the disappearance of the -greenstone club, had allowed his men to get out of hand, and was now -paying heavily for his error. Perhaps, too, the words of the old -prophecy haunted him, and the hopelessness of averting the ruin of -his house still further unbalanced him. - -At any rate, instead of playing tricks and laying ambuscades, there -he was on the hillside, fighting like a demon. As the comrades raced -down the slope in advance of Te Ingoa, the desperate Hau-hau turned -his head and saw them, and with a loud howl of fury sprang through -the press and made straight at them. - -It was magnificently brave--one man charging two hundred--but the -upward rush of the Arawas to meet Te Ingoa bore back the Hau-haus, -and Te Karearea, shouting hateful words of vengeance, was swallowed -up in the recoiling wave of his own men. Another moment and the -Arawas, swooping down the hill, struck their prey, driving them back -upon the weapons of the Arawas below, and the Hau-haus, like the -hard, defiant quartz between the crushing hammer and the plate, were -smashed to pieces. - -Armed only with his _mere_, George was able to do very little -execution, for the Hau-haus who recognised him gave him a wide berth. -However desperate a conflict may be with ordinary folk, there is -always a chance of escape; but when it comes to engaging a wizard -armed with a magical club, it is best to take no chances. - -The slaughter was terrific, for the combat was in the old style, hand -to hand. Neither side had had time to reload, and while some swung -their guns by the barrel, others used their ramrods like rapiers, -thrusting viciously at eyes and throats. One wretch, pierced through -and through, rushed howling into the thick of it, the slender steel -rod, protruding front and back, wounding others and barring his own -progress, till he was mercifully slain with a blow from a bone _mere_. - -'Come out of this,' George shouted to Terence, who was fighting back -to back with him. 'It is sickening. Let us go and help our folk by -the river. These fellows are done for.' - -'Right!' Terence yelled back, sweeping his clubbed rifle round to -clear a path. His empty revolver had long ago been thrown in the -grinning face of a Hau-hau. 'Come on!' He rushed off, screeching -with excitement, under the impression that his friend was close -behind him. - -So George had been at the start; but, as he ran, he heard a shout: -'Turn, Hortoni! Accursed Pakeha, I fear neither you nor your _mere_. -Stop and die!' - -Without the least desire to accept this gracious invitation, which -resembled that of the famous Mrs. Brown to the duck, George turned -his head to find Pokeke rushing at him with levelled spear, his eyes -glowing and his mouth agape with hate. - -That turn nearly cost George his life, for his foot slipped and he -fell heavily on his face. The long spear sped to its mark, but much -fighting had made Pokeke's hand unsteady. He missed George -altogether and, retaining too long his grasp of the shaft, turned a -half somersault and sprawled beside his intended victim. - -Both of them were so shaken that they lay still for some seconds. -Pokeke was up first and, before George could rise, flung himself upon -him, grasping his hair and drawing back his head, while in his right -hand he raised his wooden _mere_ with which to give the _coup de -grâce_. - -Now, if ever, the wonderful greenstone club ought to have shown its -power; but, alas! George had fallen with his arm under him, and -TUMATAUENGA'S _mere_ was jammed so tightly beneath his heavy body -that not even the war-god himself could charm it forth. - -But, as the wooden club descended, the stock of a rifle, sweeping -horizontally, met it with such violence as to send it spinning many -yards away, while the brass-shod butt, continuing its swing, caught -Pokeke a frightful blow between the eyes, crushing in his skull. - -'Not hurt?' shrieked Terence, whose face was flaming. 'Come on!' He -lugged George from the ground. 'Go first!' he screamed, his voice -cracking. 'I told you before we left Sydney that I couldn't trust -you out of my sight.' He was almost mad with the fierce joy of his -first battle. - -'Where is the Hawk?' he sang out to George as they ran down the hill. - -'Somewhere in the thick of it,' panted George. 'Haven't seen him -since the start. Come on!' - -The combat on the hillside waned to a close; but as yet there had -been no concerted movement towards the river-bridge, where a much -smaller force of Arawas did battle with an outnumbering body of -Hau-haus. Still, every now and then an Arawa from the hill would -arrive and take a hand, so that matters were growing more equal as -the friends came racing across the plain. - -'Pull up for a moment,' gasped George. 'If we don't get our wind we -shall be brained for a certainty. Where are the white soldiers and -Colonel Cranstoun?--Oh, God help us! Look at that!' - -With a horrible fear at his heart he hurled himself towards the -bridge, at the far end of which two Pakehas were defending themselves -against a dozen Hau-haus. Both were elderly, while the hair of one -was snow-white; but their erect carriage, fearless demeanour, and the -manner in which they wielded their old-fashioned swords, occasionally -getting in a shot with the revolvers in their left hands, showed that -they were old soldiers, and quite accustomed to give a good account -of themselves. - -The construction of the bridge gave them an advantage, and no doubt -they could have held their own against any frontal attack; but what -horrified George and Terence was the sight of Te Karearea, who with -four Hau-haus were hurrying to assail the two old soldiers from -behind. - -He with his men and George with Terence were running along two sides -of a triangle, the bridge being the apex. If the chief reached it -first--No! George set his teeth and swore he should not. - -'Father!' he shouted after one long indrawing of breath. 'Keep at -it! We are behind you!' For he feared that the noise of footsteps -racing up behind would disturb the attention of Colonel Haughton and -General Cantor, whose presence there he could in no way account for. - -They were indeed the only white men with Te Ingoa, for Colonel -Cranstoun to his great annoyance had been called south. But he had -set the wheels in motion, and the friendlies, along with Colonel -Haughton and his brother-in-law, had marched against the _pah_. -George had presumed the "white-haired chief" to be Colonel Cranstoun, -never dreaming that his father and General Cantor had crossed the sea -in chase of him as soon as they learned that he was in New Zealand. - -Te Karearea heard George's shout and grinned at him, shaking his -bloodstained _mere_. He was slightly in advance and running like a -deer. - -'Aha! Hortoni, they told me up there who the white-haired chief -was,' he yelled. 'Give me the _mere_ of TUMATAUENGA, and I will call -off my men.' - -'Take it, fiend!' shouted George, leaping across the narrowing apex -and aiming a furious blow at the chief, while Terence and the four -Hau-haus raced for the bridge. One of them Terence brained with his -rifle, but the other three dodged him and ran on, while he -despairingly toiled after them, knowing that he would be too late. - -Then to his intense relief he heard the welcome 'wheep' of bullets -past his ears, and first one and then another of the Hau-haus rolled -over, dead or out of action. Two minutes more and a strong party of -Arawas under Te Ingoa himself swarmed round the old soldiers and slew -every man of the Hau-haus who were attacking them. - -And now it was the turn of Colonel Haughton and General Cantor to be -anxious, for between George and Te Karearea a fearful combat raged. -The Hau-hau had parried the blow aimed at him, and the Englishman -himself had reeled back before a fierce counterstroke. For a moment -after they circled round one another, like two wrestlers seeking a -grip. Then with a shout they clashed together. - -Disregarding his _mere_, which he allowed to hang from his wrist by -its loop, George fastened the strong fingers of his left hand round -the chief's sinewy throat, while with the other he clutched the fist -that closed round the club and bent the wrist backwards so -unmercifully that with a groan Te Karearea opened his fingers and let -his weapon fall. Then, writhing free, he flung his arms round George -and strove to throw him. The _mere_ of TUMATAUENGA slipped from the -dangling wrist and lay unheeded on the hard ground while the two -strong men fought for the possession of it. - -Backwards and forwards they rocked and reeled, locked in what each -realised to be a death-grapple, neither yielding the slightest -advantage to the other. Arawas and whites looked on, amazed, unable -to help their champion, so quick and sudden were the turnings and -twistings of the combatants. - -Suddenly George quitted his hold. But before Te Karearea could utter -the yell of triumph which sprang to his lips, he felt his long hair -seized from behind, his head jerked backwards with a force which -nearly broke his neck, and he fell, dragging George with him. - -Over and over they rolled; but George, though he received some heavy -blows in the face, shifted his grip, but never loosed the hold he had -got of that long black hair. - -Now his hands were on each side of Te Karearea's head, his fingers -tightened in the coarse locks, and with a supreme effort he rolled -the chief on his back and flung himself astride of him. Then, -drawing up the malevolent, grinning face till it was close to his -own, he dashed it from him with terrible force. - -There was a dull, smacking sound, as if two stones had been brought -together. A fierce scream, strangled in its utterance, burst from -the chief, and his eyes gazed ragefully into the stern, flushed face -above him. Then their baleful light was suddenly extinguished, the -grinning teeth parted, the strong jaw dropped, the clinging hands -fell away. - -Te Karearea, the back of his skull crushed like an eggshell against -the hard greenstone club, quivered for an instant and passed through -the gates to the waters of Reinga. - -The man of "the strange, strong race"--the race of the Eagle--had -held to the _mere_ of TUMATAUENGA, and the doom of the House of Te -Turi had fallen. - -* * * * * * * - -What a lot they had to say to one another that night, as they sat -round the bivouac fire and watched the flames as they shot up from -the stockade and _whares_--for Te Ingoa had not left standing a -single stick of the _Pah_ of Death. The long day after the battle -was won had worn quickly to an end, for there was much to do, and -those who had come through the stress of the fight were now gathered -together, resting and celebrating their victory, each after his own -manner. - -Around one fire sat Colonel Haughton and George, reconciled for all -time, and anxious only to please one another, Terence and General -Cantor, Kawainga, the faithful Paeroa and the Arawa chief, Te Ingoa, -who listened, absorbed, to the story of the adventures of the two -young Pakehas. The greenstone club, of course, came in for a -considerable share of attention, and Terence stoutly championed its -claim to magical powers. - -'You can't explain how it came to be in your hand that first night on -board the _Stella_,' he declared. 'You can't account for the fact -that it got between you and Paeroa's club on the hillside over there. -You can't ex----' - -'Look here, my son,' struck in George, smiling up into his father's -face, though he addressed Terence, 'the explanation of the whole -business lies in four words--"the Providence of God." Each time the -greenstone club came into play was a time of tremendous excitement, -and I have no doubt that I was too preoccupied to notice what I did -or did not do with regard to it. So encrusted with legend is the -_mere_ of TUMATAUENGA that, because I cannot remember exactly what I -did each time I used it, miraculous powers are at once attributed to -it.' - -'So you make out that there was nothing extraordinary about it at -all,' said Terence, disappointed. 'Of course one does not expect -miracles nowadays.' - -'Don't you, my boy?' interposed Colonel Haughton. 'God's providence -works miracles on our behalf almost daily. Is it not a miracle that, -after death has stared him in the face so often, I should have my -dear son back again? Was it not a miracle that when you stood with -the rope round your neck he should come up in time? Suppose he had -not walked towards the sentry and learned what was toward.' - -'You are right, Colonel,' Terence answered, abashed; 'though I did -not quite mean what I said.' - -'A thing is none the less miraculous because you can sometimes -explain it,' remarked General Cantor. 'However, I am sure that both -you boys know well enough to whom you owe your safety, and that you -are not so ungrateful as not to acknowledge His care for you.' - -There was silence for a moment, and then Colonel Haughton said: -'Before we say good-night I want to tell you two something. I have -bought back Major Moore's old station, George, and the title-deeds -are made out in the joint names of you and your friend Terence.' - -'Father!' For a moment George could not say another word. Then he -gripped a hand each of his father and his friend. 'You could not -have pleased me better,' he cried. 'Thank you, dad, thank you. -Partner, I congratulate you.' - -'But what have I done to be treated like this?' objected Terence. -'George saves my life, and I am rewarded for it. That seems odd.' - -'You returned the compliment to-day,' Colonel Haughton reminded him. -'Your father was my dear friend, Terence, as you know; and, indeed, I -could give you other good reasons for my action. But why should I? -The thing is done.' - -'There, Terence, you must make the best of it,' said George, -laughing. 'Unless, indeed, you don't feel inclined to chum with me -any longer.' - -Terence gave him an eloquent look and tried to thank Colonel -Haughton. But he could only press the old man's hand, so George -threw an arm round his shoulders and led him away. - -Together they stretched themselves under a great tree, just as they -had done on that other night when Terence had walked into the grip of -the Hawk. The flames died down on the summit of the hill--the _Pah_ -of Death was no more. The blazing stars of the south looked down -upon the battlefield, still strewn with relics of the fight. Here -and there in the bivouac some wounded wretch stirred uneasily and -groaned in his troubled slumber. But deep in the fern the friends -slept the peaceful sleep of healthy, happy youth--youth which can -forget past sorrow as easily as it dreams of coming joy; and between -them lay what George had called 'God's Providence'--the greenstone -_mere_ of TUMATAUENGA. - - - -THE END - - - - PRINTED IN GREAT BRITAIN AT - THE PRESS OF THE PUBLISHERS. - - - - - - - -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK IN THE GRIP OF THE HAWK *** - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the -United States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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