Enter thou first, Loisé, and he waved it away.
A faint smile of pleasure illumined her face; Baldwin, rough and careless as he was, was yet studious to observe native custom.
The white men followed her, and then in the open doorway Baldwin stopped, turned, and raised his hand, palm outwards, to the throng of natives without.
I thank thee, friends, for thy welcome. Dear to mine ears is the sound of the tongue of the men of Rikitea. See ye this young man here. He is the son of my friend who is now deadhe whom some of ye have seen, Kapeni Paraisi (Captain Brice).
A tall, broad-shouldered native, with his hair streaming down over his shoulders, strode up the steps, and taking the young mans hand in his, placed it to his forehead.
The son of Paraisi is welcome to Rikitea, and to me, the chief of Rikitea.
There was a murmur of approval; Baldwin waved his hand again, and then, with Brice, entered the house.
Outside, the boy and girl, seated on the verandah steps, talked and waited for orders.
Said Maturei, Loisé, think you that now Tâmu hath found thee to be faithful to his house and his name that he will marry thee according to the promise made to the priests at Tenararo when he first brought thee here?
She took a thick coil of her shining black hair and wound it round and round her hand meditatively, looking out absently over the calm waters of the harbour.
Who knows, Maturei? And I, I care not. Yet do I think it will be so; for what other girl is there here that knoweth his ways, and the ways of the white men as I know them? And this old man is a glutton; and, so that my skill in baking pigeons and making karri and rice fail me not, then am I mistress here.... Maturei, is not the stranger an evil-looking man?
Evil-looking! said the boy, wonderingly; nay, how canst thou say that of him?
What a jolly old fellow he is, and how these people adore him! thought Brice, as they sat down to dinner. Two or three of the village girls waited upon them, and in the open doorway sat a vision of loveliness, arrayed in yellow muslin, and directing the movements of the girls by almost imperceptible motions of her palm-leaf fan.
Brice was strangely excited. The novelty of the surroundings, the wondrous, bright beauty of sea, and shore, and palm-grove that lay within his range of vision were already beginning to weave their fetal spell upon his susceptible nature. And then, again and again, his glance would fall upon the sweet, oval face and scarlet lips of the girl that sat in the doorway. Who was she? Not old Baldwins wife, surely! for had not the old fellow often told him that he was not married? And what a lovely spot to live in, this Rikitea! By Jove, he would like to stay a year here instead of a few months only.... Again his eyes rested on the figure in the doorwayand then his veins thrilledLoisé, lazily lifting her long, sweeping lashes had caught his admiring glance.
Brice was no fool with womenthat is, he thought so, never taking into consideration that his numerous love affairs had always ended disastrouslyto the woman. And his mother, good simple soul, had thought that the best means of taking her darling son away from unapproved-of female society would be a voyage to the islands with old Tom Baldwin!
Dinner was finished, and the two men were sitting out on the verandah smoking and drinking whisky, when Brice said, carelessly
I wonder you never married, Baldwin.
The old trader puffed at his pipe for a minute or two ere he answered
Did you notice that girl at all? and he inclined his head towards the door of the sitting-room.
The young man nodded.
Then the candid Baldwin told him her history. I cant defend my own position. I am no better than most tradersyou see it is the custom here, neither is she worse than any of these half-blooded Paumotuans. If I married a native of this particular island I would only bring trouble on my head. I could not show any preference for any particular girl for a wife without raising the bitterest quarrels among some of the leading chiefs here. You see, as a matter of fact, I should have married as soon as I came here, twenty years ago; then the trouble would have been over. But I didnt. I can see my mistake now, for I am getting old pretty fast; and now that the missionaries are here, and I do a lot of business with them, I think us white men ought to show them some kind of respect by getting marriedproperly marriedto our wives.
Brice laughed. You mean, Baldwin, they should get married according to the rites of the Roman Catholic Church?
Aye, the old trader assented. Now, theres Loisé, therea clever, intelligent, well-educated girl, and as far as money or trade goes, as honest as the day. Can I, an old white-headed fool of sixty, go to Australia and ask any good woman to marry me, and come and live down here? No.
He smoked in silence awhile, and then resumed.
Yes; honest and trustworthy she is, I believe; although the white blood in her veins is no recommendation. If ever you should live in the islands, my ladwhich isnt likelytake an old fools advice and never marry a half-caste, either in native fashion or in a church with a brass band and a bishop as leading features of the show.
Loisé came to them. Will you take coffee, Tâmu? she asked, standing before them with folded hands.
The trader bent his head, and as the girl with noiseless step glided gracefully away again he watched her.
I think I will marry her, Brice. Sometimes when the old Marist priest comes here he makes me feel dd uncomfortable. Of course he is too much of a gentlemanalthough he is a sky-pilotto say all he would like to say, but every time he bids me good-bye he sayscunning old chapAnd think, M. Baldwin, her father, bad as he was, was a white man!
The young man listened in silence.
I dont think I will ever go back to civilisation again, my ladI am no use there. Here I am somebodythere I am nobody; so I think Ill give the old Father a bit of a surprise soon. Then with his merry, chuckling laughand youll be my best man. You see, it wont make any difference to you. Nearly all that I have, when I peg out, will go to youthe son of my old friend and shipmate.
A curious feeling shot through Brices heart as he murmured his thanks. The recital of the girls history made him burn with hot anger against her. He had thought her so innocent. And yet the old traders words, Ive almost made up my mind to marry her, seemed to dash to the ground some vague hope, he knew not what.
That night he lay on a soft mat on Baldwins verandah and tried to sleep. But from between the grey-reds of the serried line of palms that encompassed the house on all but the seaward side, a pale face with star-like eyes and ruby lips looked out and smiled upon him; in the distant and ever varying cadences of the breaking surf he heard the sweet melody of her voice; in the dazzling brilliancy of the starry heavens her haunting face, with eyes alight with love, looked into his.
Dn! He rose from his couch, opened the gate, and went out along the white dazzle of the starlit beach. What the devil is the matter with me? I must be drunkon two or three nips of whisky.... What a glorious, heavenly night! And what a grand old fellow Baldwin is! And Im an infernal scoundrel to think of heror a dd idiot, or a miserable combination of both.
In a few days two things had happened. Baldwin had married Loisé, and Brice was madly in love with her and she with him. Yet scarcely a word had passed between themhe silent because of genuine shame at the treachery of his thoughts to the old man; she because she but bided her time.