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When the World Shook-Part26_H.Rider Haggard(1856-1925)_English Literature(文学名著)-第2页

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Bastin's and my hair, after which I did him the same service.

Then Bickley who was normally clean shaven, set to work to remove



a beard of about a week's growth, and I who wore one of the

pointedvariety, trimmed up mine as best I could with the help of



a hand-glass. Bastin, too, performed on his which was of the

square and rather ragged type, wisely rejecting Bickley's advice



to shave it off altogether, offered, I felt convinced, because he

felt that the result on Bastin would be too hideous for words.



After this we cut our nails, cleaned our teeth and bathed; I even

caught Bickley applying hair tonic from his dressing case in



secret, behind a projecting rock, and borrowed some myself. He

gave it me on condition that I did not mention its existence to



Bastin who, he remarked, would certainly use the lot and make

himself smell horrible.



Next we found clean ducks among our store of spare clothes, for

the Orofenans had brought these with our other possessions, and



put them on, even adding silk cumberbunds and neckties. My tie I

fastened with a pin that I had obtained in Egypt. It was a tiny



gold statuette of very fine and early workmanship, of the god

Osiris, wearing the crown of the Upper Land with the uraeus



crest, and holding in his hands, which projected from the mummy

wrappings, the emblems of the crook, the scourge and the crux



ansata, or Sign of Life.

Bastin, for his part, arrayed himself in full clericalcostume,



black coat and trousers, white tie and stick-up clergyman's

collar which, as he remarked, made him feel extremely hot in that



climate, and were unsuitable to domestic duties, such as

washing-up. I offered to hold his coat while he did this office



and told him he looked very nice indeed.

"Beautiful!" remarked Bickley, "but why don't you put on your



surplice and biretta?" (Being very High-Church Bastin did wear a

biretta on festival Sundays at home.) "There would be no mistake



about you then."

"I do not think it would be suitable," replied Bastin whose



sense of humour was undeveloped. "There is no service to be

performed at present and no church, though perhaps that cave--"



and he stopped.

When we had finished these vain adornments and Bastin had put



away the things and tidied up, we sat down, rather at a loose

end. We should have liked to walk but refrained from doing so for



fear lest we might dirty our clean clothes. So we just sat and

thought. At least Bickley thought, and so did I for a while until



I gave it up. What was the use of thinking, seeing that we were

face to face with circumstances which baffled reason and beggared



all recorded human experience? What Bastin did I am sure I do not

know, but I think from the expression of his countenance that he



was engaged in composing sermons for the benefit of Oro and the

Glittering Lady.



One diversion we did have. About eleven o'clock a canoe came

from the main island laden with provisions and paddled by Marama



and two of his people. We seized our weapons, remembering our

experiences of the night, but Marama waved a bough in token of



peace. So, carrying our revolvers, we went to the rock edge to

meet him. He crept ashore and, chief though he was, prostrated



himself upon his face before us, which told me that he had heard

of the fate of the sorcerers. His apologies were abject. He



explained that he had no part in the outrage of the attack, and

besought us to intercede on behalf of him and his people with the



awakened god of the Mountain whom he looked for with a terrified

air.



We consoled him as well as we could, and told him that he had

best be gone before the god of the Mountain appeared, and perhaps



treated him as he had done the sorcerers. In his name, however,

we commanded Marama to bring materials and build us a proper



house upon the rock, also to be sure to keep up a regular and

ample supply of provisions. If he did these things, and anything



else we might from time to time command, we said that perhaps his

life and those of his people would be spared. This, however,



after the evil behaviour of some of them of course we could not

guarantee.



Marama departed so thoroughly frightened that he even forgot to

make any inquiries as to who this god of the Mountain might be,



or where he came from, or whither he was going. Of course, the

place had been sacred among his people from the beginning,



whenever that may have been, but that its sacredness should

materialise into an active god who brought sorcerers of the



highest reputation to a most unpleasant end, just because they




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