Tom Cameron

“ I think they’re rather coarse and ugly. Look at this half Indian ahead of us.”
“What do you mean—him?” exclaimed Tom Cameron, who was pretty well disgusted with The Fox and her sly and sneering ways. “Why, he’s got a better education than most of the men you meet. He stood high at Carlisle, in his books as well as athletics. You wouldn’t scoff at any other college-bred fellow—why at Jib?”
“Indian,” said Mary Cox, with her nose in the air.
“His folks owned the country-the whole continent!” cried the excited Tom, “until white men drove them out. ”

“ Somehow the ceremony affected Tom Cameron strongly. At the feet of the row of men were laid two bodies lashed in a covering, or shroud. They were the men mowed down by the machine gun which Tom himself had manipulated from the American airplane.
The Germans are sentimentalists, it must be confessed. They would take time on their way to raid an enemy city from the air in a most cowardly fashion, to read the burial service over their comrades.
For the airship was over the sea now, and, as 168 though from the deck of a sailing ship, the dead bodies could be slid into the water. ”

“ Before, however, we had covered half the distance which lay between us and the Golden Fleece, the clouds had risen and obscured the heavens, and we could feel faint, chill puffs of air fanning our cheeks.
“Give way, lads,” cried Tom, who was pulling stroke, “or we shall never reach her; and in a cockle-shell like this we can never live out a storm such as is coming on.”
Bill and I needed no urging, and if possible pulled harder than before; but suddenly Tom’s oar broke in half, and he fell on his back in the bottom of the boat. ”

“ If Katy had one subject more loyal than another it was young Tom Tubbs, whose boyish blood had often boiled with rage at the cool manner with which Wilford treated his wife, when, as she sometimes did, she came into the office. Tom worshiped Katy Cameron, who, in his whispered confidences to Mattie, was an angel, while Wilford was accused of being an overbearing tyrant, whom Tom would like to thrash. ”

“ I never heard of anybody who liked James Mason—except Tom. He seems fond of him. The men all say he's 'able' and 'square,' in an eye-for-an-eye, tooth-for-a-tooth sort of way, but everybody grants that he's a regular old curmudgeon. He's never had the least sympathy or patience with Bob's scrapes. If he had, the boy might not be so utterly irrepressible. As it is, Tom's the only person in the world who has the slightest influence over either of them. Bob's such a brilliant fellow too! ”

“ And it has sometimes seemed that Governor Rhodes was doing the right thing, even when Uncle Tom said— But what do I know about it? How can I judge? Uncle Tom is in the fight. He knows—and he is right!" Defiantly she challenged him, and solemnly he answered.
"Again I swear to you, by all a man holds sacred, that I have told you nothing but the absolute truth. Now, I am utterly in your power. If Tom Parker finds me here at this hour, under these circumstances—you know as well as I what will happen. I'll have no chance in the world." ”

“ You know, Tom, you're not used to farm work." Ralph laid down his pen and blotted the letter with much deliberation. His pale face, from which the freckles had faded noticeably during a week of indoor confinement, wore an expression of deep concern. "And it's not easy, I can tell you!"
Arthur Cameron chuckled. Though he said nothing, the expression on his face was one of such utter disbelief that even Tom noticed it and turned on him, frowning. ”

“ Tom, too, got his musket, and said that what the dead man had wished should be carried out, and that he would die before he was prevented.
Calla, who seemed to have not overmuch heart in the business, and was, as was afterwards proved, less of a savage than his countrymen, said something to them in his own language, on which they sulkily withdrew, while he tried to prevent our being angry at what had occurred. He said,—
“You sabe Bristol Bob him live along o’ we plenty long time—seven yam time. Him be all one same chief, same my fader Wanga. Make plenty one big bobbery for him die. ”

“ When he had done this he stood up and said, “I can see the canoes now. There are five, as Calla said—great big double ones; and besides the men paddling, there are a lot of chaps up on a great platform amidships.”
“How long before they’ll be up with us?” I asked. “Can we fetch Aneitou before they catch us?”
Tom looked round and said, “I scarcely dare say that. There’s a point as runs out, where maybe we might do it; but there’s such a surf a-tumbling on it as would smash up us and the Escape, and all belonging to us.” ”

“ Calla, when he heard the sound of the drums and songs of his fellow-islanders, laid in his paddle, and seizing on an axe and knife commenced a dance in which he defied his late captors, accompanying it with screeches and howls of which I should have thought no human throat could be capable.
Closer and closer drew the canoes from Paraka, but still faster did we run down on those from Aneitou; and before Tom thought it well to open fire on our pursuers, we were passing through the fleet of our friends. ”

“ We instantly relieved our parching thirst, and then set to work to rub each other to ease the pain caused by the lashings which had bound us.
After a time we felt more at ease, and began to consider what would become of us.
“I expect they will kill and eat us,” said Bill; “but surely we can find some way to escape. I would Tom were here; he’d know what to do.”
“I’m afraid Tom must be a prisoner or dead; but, anyway, let us search round this place, and find if there is any way out. If we could get out, and get to the beach, and steal a canoe, we might have a chance.” ”

“ Ye’ve rigged that craft of yours up on some island.”
Tom told him our story in as few words as he could, and said how thankful we were to have met him, and be rescued from being killed, cooked, and eaten, which would doubtless have been our fate if we had fallen into the hands of the Paraka cannibals.
“That ’ud be about your lot anywheres here, for all of ’em eat men; only as how as you’ve brought off Calla, and his father’s a big man in his island, you may be safe for a time.” ”

“ Bill and I flew for our paddles as soon as Tom assented to our wish, and taking with us some smoked fish and a dozen of green cocoanuts to drink on our way, we started off, Bill and I paddling, while Tom was busy in the stern hammering and chopping at something which, as to paddle we faced forward, we could not see.
“What are you making all that row about, Tom, old man?” asked Bill.
“Never you mind. You’ll see in good time,” he answered.
“Oh!” I cried; “Tom has an old head on young shoulders. I wonder his hair ain’t grey. He’s doing something good, you may be sure.” ”

“ I asked, “where are your canoes from your island? They must hear the drums now.”
Calla answered, “That live for true; but s’pose hear drum—man run one side, where canoe he be, and men make get bow and spear, make long time.”
“Give way, lads,” said Tom. “It’s no use wasting our breath talking. The nearer we get to this fellow’s island, the better chance we have. It’s a bad business, Sam, that you let that musket fall overboard. We have none now for Calla, who could use one well.”
Tom, when he had said this, paddled away some time in silence, Bill pulling the oar, and I steering ”

“ Before Cameron left he had given Louis a signed order for the apocryphal manuscript. Of the two men we brought one back with us, Captain Smith, who, having lost his schooner on this island, remained as a trader. He seemed a modest, intelligent young man, rather above the South Sea average. Tom Day, however, is—must be—the "flower of the Pacific." Tom is fifty years of age, with a [121] strong, alert figure and the mobile face of an actor; his eyes are blue-grey in deep orbits, blazing with energy and drink and high spirits. ”

“ My! den he drink.”
“When does a ship come?”
“Sometime one yam time, sometime two, sometime three yam time.”
“You see, mates, there’s a chance. A ship looks in once in one, two, or three years; and I suppose this white man is some drunken old beach-comber. Anyway, we won’t be eaten there,” said Tom.
“What are you looking at, Johnny,” interrupted Bill, for he noticed that Calla was evidently anxiously looking at the island we had left.
“Be still, white man. Man flog war-drum for fight. Me look see where war-canoe come.” ”

“ As soon as the villagers saw me they sent up a great shout, and made way for Tom to lead me to the stool, where I sat down, he standing by me to act as my sponsor.
As soon as we were in our places Karema came out of the enclosure where his huts were, accompanied by his wives and drummers. All his followers remained outside the circle, except one man, who was to promise for him ”

“ We saw some the first day, and none have come near our hut, and I’m tired of fish and cocoanuts,” said Bill.
“No, I won’t run any risk,” said Tom. “I’ll deck her right in, except a well for our stores, and we can raise on her gunwale with a couple of good strakes of palm.”
“More work!” I answered. “And where are the nails to come from?”
“No nails wanted. We’ll lace ’em on India fashion,” said Tom, “and put a couple of half trunks round her as fenders.”
“That’s work enough, Tom. However, as you say it, done it must be; but I hope you’ll remember the carpenter.” ”

“ White man he come along of them.”
“How can you tell?” said Tom.
“Me sabey him canoe.” And then looking to windward at our pursuers, Calla said, “Now plenty soon big corroboree. Aneitou men and Paraka men” (Paraka was the name of the volcanic island) “come all one time to we.”
“Pull away lads, pull away,” cried Tom; “as Calla says, we shall be saved yet, though I must own I thought at one time we should be caught. I own it ain’t so much the being killed I don’t like, as the being eaten after.”
“Why, what difference can that make?” said Bill and I together. ”

“ While this was going on we heard a dull, smothered roar as of an explosion, and the dancers, who we afterwards found were priests or sorcerers, as well as all the people who were looking on, rushed down to the beach.
I was lying close to Bill, and said, “I wonder what that is; it sounds like the magazine on Bristol Bob’s island blown up.”
“So it is,” said Bill. “I hope Tom ain’t damaged, and that these beggars won’t make him prisoner. As long as he’s free there’s hope for us.”
“Yes,” I answered, “we can trust Tom not to desert us ”

“ Tom and the men who had formed the crew of our canoe then rushed forward, brandishing their arms, and went through a lively representation of a fight, in which they were soon joined by the warriors of Karema’s village. The antics of the men, their yells, and the noise of drums and horns, all combined to form a regular pandemonium ”

“ This done, Tom replaced the dressing on his wound, and told Bill and me to go back and close and cover up the door of the place where the powder was. When this was done we came back to the hut. We found Tom sitting down with his elbows on his knees, and holding his head between his hands, while Bristol Bob moaned wearily on his couch; and always we heard the weird sound of the native drums. ”

“ Whilst we were yarning away, Bill suddenly said, “I forgot something I found by the box the money was in. Look here!” and he pulled out of the breast of his shirt a small leather bag tied up carefully. “See,” he said, as he undid it and poured out the contents; “there’s a lot of pretty beads; pity they haven’t holes in ’em, or we might string ’em.”
“Well, they are pretty,” said both Tom and myself, as we eagerly bent over the little heap of shining balls; “but ’tis a pity they’re not of a size and true shaped. I suppose they’re some of the beads the natives wouldn’t have to do with. ”

“ I'm glad, too, that I can honestly say I had never seen the man before, that I didn't know when he came into the car, and that he left it before the excitement was over. It was a very natural, boyish sort of thing to do under the circumstances, but it wasn't, as it turned out, a thing that a dignified, responsible, rather elderly man would care to have published and spread broadcast about himself. Now was it?" She appealed to Tom. ”

“ He stepped toward the coat-closet, and behind the closed door Bobby braced himself for a spring, determined not to be captured without a fight and believing all other hope to be lost. It seemed to him that Parker's hand must be on the door, when Joan's voice rang out, sharply:
"Uncle Tom!"
"Yes? What's the matter, girlie?" Genuine concern colored the tone, and the footsteps receded again. "Are you ill?"
"No—no, of course I'm not ill—only nervous." She achieved a little laugh. "Uncle Tom, there was—a man here."
"A man? What man? ”

“ Wait, my lass, till you're as auld as I am, with no a soul in the wide world caring a bawbee if you're clad in sackcloth and ashes, and then see if ye woudna like to be made a lily o' the field. Just arrayed in glory wi'out a toil or a spin."
"Quite right, Mrs. Cameron," put in Dr. Kennedy, with a laugh. "She will have plenty of toiling and spinning by and bye; why shouldn't she be a flower and do credit to us all for one evening?"
She looked at him from head to foot. "A flower for you to wear in your buttonhole, apparently. Tom, are all men alike?"
"I am human, at any rate," he said quietly. ”

“ I and Bill were about to light a fire on the beach to cook our supper, when Tom said,—
“For goodness’ sake, don’t be such fools; we don’t know nothing of what sort of folks there be in the island, and if they see fire we may have a lot of murdering cannibals down atop of us afore ever we know where we are.”
“But it’s cold, mate, and I want to roast some corn. It’s bad eating dry corn, like a horse,” said Bill.
“Very true,” said Tom; “but I fancy there’s a sort of cave just here, and we can make a fire inside and sleep there warm and comfortable.” ”