Picaroon

“ The sub-tropic beach comber and the picaroon acquire nasty tricks with knives, and have an uncanny skill at their use.
Brice twisted to one side, with a sharp suddenness that all but threw his back out of joint. The knife whizzed through the still air like a great hornet. The breath of its passage fanned Gavin's averted face, as he wrenched his head out of its path.
The collie had watched the supposed gambols of the two men with keen, but impersonal, interest. But here at last was something he could understand. Instinct teaches practically every dog the sinister nature of a thrown object. ”

“ The Picaroon? I steal from the poor and give to the rich?"
Comstock turned his head and looked inquiringly at Pat. She was as puzzled as he.
Considerably crestfallen the man said, "The greatest outlaw in all New Australia? The man the R.A.'s would give their left arms to capture?" A frown crossed his face, then he said as though talking to himself, "The dirty rats! ”

“ The only people that there was the slightest chance of trouble with, were the roisterers who staggered out of the saloons from time to time, and here the danger was slight, for as soon as an inebriate hove into view the Picaroon would wink mightily, link arms with Pat on one side and with Comstock on the other and the trio would mimic drunkenness and sing bawdy songs till the real drunks were gone. ”

“ There is no attempt to scare the wicked by means of awful examples, the moral lesson is contemptuously thrown aside; the veil of romance is rent in twain, and the picaro-the nephew of the public executioner-is revealed as he is, gloating in cruelty and revelling in the conscious enjoyment of crime. But though Quevedo detests mankind, his morose vision of existence rarely degenerates into caricature. In his repugnant, misanthropic masterpiece the sordid genius of the Spanish picaroon finds absolute expression. ”

“ Below them, the Picaroon rolled his head back and forth angrily. This was the only part of him that he could move. He said, "So you were spies!" He spat. "I should have known. Always should the master criminal work alone. All the text books I have read make that point. It serves me right for not being a lone mink ... or wolf or whatever the earth word is."
Comstock paid no attention to his grumbling as he tried to assay the situation. They could not endanger the safety of the house by just walking into view of one of the windows and waving to capture the attention of Grundy or Helen. ”

“ Pat said, leaning forward hopefully, paying no attention to the bonds that held her.
"Think of the shock of such an action! Every law-abiding citizen would rise up in wrath. Then the hue and cry would be such that no longer would the Picaroon work long hard hours through the night without ever getting the fame which is his due." Comstock could hardly believe that even this lunatic would fall for what they were suggesting. ”

“ When I sauntered carelessly along the street in days past I have shed doubloons, and picaroons, and silver shekels at every step, and I have often been followed by a tumultuous throng, who fought among themselves over the coin that rained from my radiant person. Still to-day here I am broke, busted, while the world jogs on just the same, and nobody seems to care a ripityrap. ”

“ The barrio was certainly preparing for a fiesta and no ordinary one, either, for elaborate and barbaric decorations shrouded huts and street. Raised on two posts at the entrance of the village, was a carcass of a mammoth crocodile, in its opened jaws a human skull. Piang shuddered. He had heard that Dato [258] Ynoch’s followers were gathered from among the renegade Dyak pirate head-hunters, who fled to Mindanao from Borneo justice. The human skull confirmed the rumor, for there are no cannibal tribes among the Moros. ”

“ As soon as he chose one to pursue, it flaunted its charms the more and capered and dodged behind its fellows. Like a giant may-pole, the largest island held several smaller ones in leash, permitting them to revolve around it, interlacing vines and creepers that were rooted on the mother isle. Monkeys and jungle creatures crept fearlessly along these natural ropes, sporting from one island to another. Hablar-birds and aigrets squabbled over bits of rice and wild fruits. Piang caught sight of a civet-cat crouching in a tree on one island. ”

“ There they hear of Luzón, where the Chinese trade annually. Departing from Mindanao, they anchor at Cagayan Sulu, a penal settlement for Borneo, where the blowpipe and poisoned arrows are used, and the daggers adorned with gold. The next anchorage is at Paragua, although before reaching that island, the men have been tempted to abandon the ships because of hunger. There the rice is cooked under the fire in bamboos and is better than that cooked in earthen pots. Those people raise fighting cocks and bet on their favorite birds. ”

“ Piang seated himself on the soft turf opposite Ganassi; the fawn nosed her head under Piang’s arm and sank by his side.
“The charm that I am about to give you will protect you from tempest, danger, and deceit: no storm can destroy you; no animal can creep upon you unaware, and no man can lie to you. You will become the wise man of Mindanao, the guide of your people, the heart of the island.” ”

“ A moment he paused, awed by a superstitious fear of the dead, but a violent clap of thunder terrified him into forgetting all but his immediate danger. There were only a few moments left; if he could reach the top of the tree before the island dashed past the vines, he might save himself. His hands tremblingly sought the notches sacred to the dead; he scrambled upward. Thorns pierced his tired limbs; vines and creepers took vicious delight in fastening themselves upon him. The tree shook as the monkey jumped farther out on a limb, and the movement seemed to put new strength in Piang. ”

“ Piang crouched back in his cramped quarters. The tiny white ants announced their disapproval of the intrusion by vicious stings, but Piang did not move. A sudden jolt made his heart beat wildly. Some one had jumped on the other end of the log, and the rotting wood had caved in. He expected each moment to be his last. Over his head the pattering of bare feet, running along the trunk, sounded like thunder.
When the lepers moved off into the jungle, Piang was not deceived. They would lie in wait, and their revenge would be the more terrible for the delay. Sweat poured down Piang’s face ”

“ The whole quantity brought to the Celestial Empire every year amounts to 90,000 pikols, but the demand is always ahead of the supply; and yet the trepang is not a people's food in China; for, while the number of individual sea cucumbers consumed there annually rises to 99,000,000, the empire has 380,000,000 inhabitants; so that only every fourth Chinaman could possibly get a trepang a year. The market price in China ranges from about $23 to $135 a pikol. Averaging it at $54 a pikol, we find that the frugal Mongolian sons of heaven yearly spend nearly $9,000,000 for this sea worm. ”

“ In the jungle it is always wiser to be the one to attack. The sound was repeated, and Piang breathed easier. It was made by an animal, not by his dread lake enemies. Gradually he crept nearer and when he parted the bushes and peeped through, he almost shouted in his excitement. He had reached the Big Pass. A broad river swept rapidly by, and along the banks wild carabao rolled and splashed, making queer diminutive [171] sounds, not in keeping with their ungainly size. Piang was careful to keep out of sight, as they are apt to be dangerous when their very uncertain nerves are startled. ”

“ Spurred on by hope, he redoubled his efforts and was rewarded by the sight of a cocoanut grove in a clearing.
There was a general protest from the inhabitants as he made his appearance, but he paid no attention to the monkey insults hurled at him and gratefully picked up the cocoanuts with which they bombarded him. Shaking each one, he [165] tossed it from him. They were all dry. The monkeys were too clever to waste any nuts that had milk in them. Piang tied his feet together loosely with his head-cloth, and, using it as a brace, hopped up one of the trees as easily as a monkey. ”

“ Piang’s spear silenced the menacing crocodile, and the party hurried on. A taloetook (owl) wailed his melancholy koekh-koekh, and the mournful sound seemed to draw the handful of men closer together. Through the jungle the river wound its serpentine way; dense growths crowded the bank and leaned far out over the stream. Trailing vines and hanging [141] ferns brushed the occupants of the canoe, and in fear they avoided contact with them, so often did their velvety green conceal wicked thorns and poisonous spines. ”

“ Bravely the boy crept forward, knife in hand. Whatever it was, hiding under that log, Piang must take his chances; if he remained where he was he would certainly be killed by falling trees. His feet made a sucking sound; a vivid flash of lightning blinded him, and it was all he could do to force his way through the wall of water that was pounding down upon him. With a desperate effort, he pulled himself along by vines, hoping to pass the unknown animal before [41] it could leap; but the branches stirred, and he sprang back with a cry.
“Babui!” (“Wild boar!”) ”

“ According to observations made by the Prince von Wied, the Picapare is to be met with in Brazil and Paraguay, its habitat extending to 25° south latitude, so that it may be said to occur throughout a considerable part of South America. It is by no means scarce upon the rivers of East Brazil, but is often overlooked, as it hides itself amongst the luxuriant vegetation that covers the shore; wherever darkness and silence favour its presence, it is always to be found. ”

“ Dogs, pigs, chickens, and children tumble in the dust. Dejected Filipino ponies, tethered to the shacks, are waiting for their masters to exhaust the tuba market. Down the lane a panting carabao, with a whole family clinging to its back, is slowly coming into town. Another, covered with the dust of travel, laden with bananas, hemp, and copra from a distant barrio, is being driven by a fellow in a nipa hat, straddling the heavy load. ”

“ There are about five hundred Filipinos living with the Moros, mostly slaves. Deer, jungle-cock, wild hogs, and cattle are to be found in [268] the plains and forests near the lake. The soil is fertile, and sufficient crops of corn, rice, coffee, and tobacco may be raised, Camotes (wild potatoes) , fruits, and cocoanuts are very scarce.
Though many of the dattos are disposed to treat the Americans as friends, three in particular will entertain a different attitude. These are Bayang, Mario, and Taraia, who, among them, have control of many men. ”

“ Only Piang came to the none too popular mestizo’s assistance. He hurled himself at the reptile’s head, campilan raised to strike, but instead of falling upon the mark, his knife severed the one remaining cable and set the monster free. Perceiving its new antagonist, and feeling its [155] freedom, the snake rapidly unwound its tail from Sicto, who fell to the ground with a dull thud. Darting forward with lightening rapidity, it caught Piang in its circular embrace, and, coiling its tail around the tree, flattened the boy against it, as if in a mill. ”

“ Piang defiantly bared his breast, exposing the sacred charm suspended from his necklace of crocodile teeth. There was moaning in the crowd, sobs of excitement, and protests of impatience, but every head remained lowered until the august relic was again covered. Piang began to chant in a high, nasal voice, and the others rose and joined in creating a weird, monotonous drawl. Like a statue stood the boy, holding the branch high above his head while they circled round and round him. Faster, faster they whirled ”

“ The Picariæ are highly characteristic of tropical faunas, for while no less than 15 out of the 25 families are exclusively tropical, none are confined to, or have their chief development in, the temperate regions. They are best represented in the Ethiopian region, which possesses 17 families, 4 of which are peculiar to it; while the Oriental region has only 14 families, none of which are peculiar. The Neotropical region has also 14 families, but 6 of them are peculiar. The Australian region has 8, the Palæarctic 9 and the Nearctic 6 families, but none of these are peculiar. ”

“ And so, Piang, no true Mohammedan will eat the flesh of the wild boar. Beware, lest you ever let a Christian hear this story; it is not for us to acknowledge that Isa is greater than Mahomet.” [68]
Piang was shocked. No wonder his people abstained from the flesh of the boar.
“Can you tell me what makes the sea rise and fall, and why the tides rush in and flow out again?” asked Piang.
A smile broke over Ganassi’s leathery features.
“In a far distant sea lives a giant crab; when he goes into his hole, the water is pushed out, and when he comes forth for food, the water rushes in.” ”

“ Especially valuable to the student in Philippiniana is the short description of the Philippines by Chao Ju-kua, who probably wrote in the thirteenth century, more than a century before the first European discovery. Chao Ju-kua’s information seems to have been obtained personally from Chinese traders to the Philippines, and although very imperfect and all too short, one can identify almost certainly the islands of Luzón, Mindoro, Mindanao, Paragua, and the Visayas. The people are slightly described; and various products of the islands are given and trading methods described. ”

“ The eight Philippine species at present known are all peculiar to the group. They are common in the deep forests of the wilder islands, but are most readily observed and easily obtained in the coconut groves near and in the native villages, where they feed on the young blossoms and drink the ‘tuba.’ The latter article of diet is the palm juice which the natives obtain by cutting off the blossom stalks of the coconut trees and fitting a joint of bamboo over the cut ends. ”