CHAPTER III.
A DRUNKEN MAN’S TALK—ON THE SEA—JOHANNES UP A TREE—UP THE KAHAJAN—AN ÆOLIAN HARP—THE SOENGEI TROESSAN—IN THE DAHASAN—A WOOD SPECTRE—A MOSQUITO CHARM—FURTHER PLANS—LOOK OUT FOR YOUR HEAD—SUITS OF BLACK.
The two Swiss were indignant at La Cueille’s unreasonable exclamation and even Johannes was furiously angry. A single look at the Walloon, however, explained the cause. During the time they had been planning their escape he had faithfully kept his word and had not tasted a drop of spirits. He had left untouched the rations of gin which in accordance with the rules of the service had been served out to him. Deeming it a pity to leave good spirits unclaimed, he had asked the Colonel’s permission to receive his daily rations and to save them up for use as a liniment for swollen feet. This permission was necessary as the regulations required every soldier to drink his allowance of gin from the hand of the sutler. The Colonel, knowing how well La Cueille liked his drop, suspected that the Walloon wished to accumulate a sufficient quantity for a regular drinking bout, and in the hope of detecting him ordered his feet to be uncovered for examination. They were found to be red and swollen, the result [[36]]of a ligature which he had purposely placed above the knee. Accordingly his request was granted and he saved all his gin, which by the time it was taken on board the canoe had accumulated to about two pints. On the evening of his escape, while lying down on the boat, he produced the bottle and swallowed a couple of mouthfuls. Oh! that was delicious. How it warmed him! A second draught followed the first. “Train de plaisir de ma bouche à mon estomac,” the Walloon muttered as he began to feel himself in a pleasantly excited condition. What a time they were in getting that coffin on board! He must regale himself while waiting. Then he finished the first bottle.
At length the coffin arrived. “Poeah! what an odor! enough to give one the fever! Well, the rich drink champagne as a safeguard; gin may perhaps have the same effect.” So he continued imbibing until he finished the second bottle.
When the priestesses arrived the funeral cortege began to move. La Cueille sat looking on, unmoved and perfectly quiet. Trees and shrubs passed by in the midnight gloom like spectres. There stood the dark outlines of the fort. The voice of the sentry was plainly heard, crying the usual “Werda”—“Who goes there?” Presently there came the order to lay to. When the cortege stopped obedient to this command, a sergeant approached to examine the boats, but as soon as he discovered that one of them bore a case of cholera he stepped back frightened and gave the word to proceed. A few more strokes and the vessels had passed the pier. At this point the drunkard could not restrain himself and he burst out with the cry,
“Enfoncés les Hollandais, les têtes de fromage!” [[37]]
“Beseai goeloeng,” shouted Johannes—“Row fast,” as he sprang forward to stop the Walloon’s mouth. When the order to return came a second time from the fort, La Cueille, now mad with drink, repeated his salutation and before any one could interfere seized a rifle and fired in the direction of the fortification. Then came a flash, followed by the discharge of a cannon, which rent the air like a thunderbolt. The two canoes shook and darted forwards carried by the strong tide into the middle of the wide stream. In the boat of the priestesses two men were killed and one wounded, but the deserters remained unhurt. The frightened oarsmen pulled with all their force, the white foam flying up from under the prow, and their speed was maintained until daybreak, when the fugitives saw before them the open sea!
When the eastern sky became decked in purple Wienersdorf took his glasses and scoured the horizon. Two cruising canoes were seen far away, going in a north-westerly direction, as if making for the mouth of the Barito. Further off he saw the smoke of a steamer but could not determine her course. In the south-west was a trading-canoe very much like their own, going toward the Lesser Dayak river. As soon as they were clear of the mouth of the river they steered westward. One of the men advised them to land for the double purpose of burying the body and of covering their canoe with palm leaves in order to elude the observation of the cruisers. The Europeans thought it much more simple, instead of burying the body to drop it overboard, all the protests of the Dayaks notwithstanding. They, however, landed and cut a sufficient quantity of leaves to cover the canoe so that it could not be distinguished from the green herbage of [[38]]the coast. They then resumed their voyage and in the hope of remaining quite unobserved kept near the shore, the rowers deftly handling their oars in such a way as to prevent any reflection on the surface of the water. They resolved to enter the mouth of the Kahajan, to conceal themselves in the first creek they should reach and to wait until evening should close in ere they continued the voyage westward. Everything succeeded precisely as they wished. The cruisers sailed away to the mouth of the Lesser Dayak, where they anchored. The other vessel observed in the south-east proved to be a trader. Our fugitives thus disembarrassed, rowed vigorously onwards and reached the mouth of the Kahajan by mid-day. They soon found a convenient creek where they concealed the canoe under some drooping shrubs; and as they were thoroughly tired out, sought repose in order to recruit their strength for the work before them.
They had been lying down perhaps a couple of hours when they were roused by the discharge of a cannon. They all leaped to their feet and Johannes with cat-like celerity clambered into a cedar tree close at hand, which commanded an extended view seaward. What he saw was far from reassuring. A number of canoes shot out from the Lesser Dayak and signalled the cruising vessels. These immediately weighed their anchors and made sail to meet the canoes. The trader had altered her course, spread more canvas and was keeping close to the wind. She had also begun to employ her oars, endeavoring by the aid of vigorous rowing to avoid being overhauled. A wild pursuit of her now commenced; but although the cruisers carried as much [[39]]canvas as they could set, the pursued vessel seemed to keep her advantage. A couple of shots danced along the tops of the waves, but the diminutive guns of the Dutch Indian cruisers could not carry far enough. Johannes at last could distinguish nothing more than a couple of dim specks on the horizon. He therefore descended and with a sigh attacked La Cueille, in reprehension of his culpable indiscretion.
“See there,” he said, “the consequences of your drunken cry. Beastly sot! They are on our track already.”