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Vailima Letters
by Robert Louis Stevenson
CHAPTER I
IN THE MOUNTAIN; APIA; SAMOA;
MONDAY; NOVEMBER 2ND; 1890
MY DEAR COLVIN; … This is a hard and interesting and
beautiful life that we lead now。 Our place is in a deep
cleft of Vaea Mountain; some six hundred feet above the sea;
embowered in forest; which is our strangling enemy; and which
we combat with axes and dollars。 I went crazy over outdoor
work; and had at last to confine myself to the house; or
literature must have gone by the board。 NOTHING is so
interesting as weeding; clearing; and path…making; the
oversight of labourers becomes a disease; it is quite an
effort not to drop into the farmer; and it does make you feel
so well。 To come down covered with mud and drenched with
sweat and rain after some hours in the bush; change; rub
down; and take a chair in the verandah; is to taste a quiet
conscience。 And the strange thing that I mark is this: If I
go out and make sixpence; bossing my labourers and plying the
cutlass or the spade; idiot conscience applauds me; if I sit
in the house and make twenty pounds; idiot conscience wails
over my neglect and the day wasted。 For near a fortnight I
did not go beyond the verandah; then I found my rush of work
run out; and went down for the night to Apia; put in Sunday
afternoon with our consul; 'a nice young man;' dined with my
friend H。 J。 Moors in the evening; went to church … no less …
at the white and half…white church … I had never been before;
and was much interested; the woman I sat next LOOKED a full…
blood native; and it was in the prettiest and readiest
English that she sang the hymns; back to Moors'; where we
yarned of the islands; being both wide wanderers; till bed…
time; bed; sleep; breakfast; horse saddled; round to the
mission; to get Mr。 Clarke to be my interpreter; over with
him to the King's; whom I have not called on since my return;
received by that mild old gentleman; have some interesting
talk with him about Samoan superstitions and my land … the
scene of a great battle in his (Malietoa Laupepa's) youth …
the place which we have cleared the platform of his fort …
the gulley of the stream full of dead bodies … the fight
rolled off up Vaea mountain…side; back with Clarke to the
Mission; had a bit of lunch and consulted over a queer point
of missionary policy just arisen; about our new Town Hall and
the balls there … too long to go into; but a quaint example
of the intricate questions which spring up daily in the
missionary path。
Then off up the hill; Jack very fresh; the sun (close on
noon) staring hot; the breeze very strong and pleasant; the
ineffable green country all round … gorgeous little birds (I
think they are humming birds; but they say not) skirmishing
in the wayside flowers。 About a quarter way up I met a
native coming down with the trunk of a cocoa palm across his
shoulder; his brown breast glittering with sweat and oil:
'Talofa' … 'Talofa; alii … You see that white man? He speak
for you。' 'White man he gone up here?' … 'Ioe (Yes)' …
'Tofa; alii' … 'Tofa; soifua!' I put on Jack up the steep
path; till he is all as white as shaving stick … Brown's
euxesis; wish I had some … past Tanugamanono; a bush village
… see into the houses as I pass … they are open sheds
scattered on a green … see the brown folk sitting there;
suckling kids; sleeping on their stiff wooden pillows … then
on through the wood path … and here I find the mysterious
white man (poor devil!) with his twenty years' certificate of
good behaviour as a book…keeper; frozen out by the strikes in
the colonies; come up here on a chance; no work to be found;
big hotel bill; no ship to leave in … and come up to beg
twenty dollars because he heard I was a Scotchman; offering
to leave his portmanteau in pledge。 Settle this; and on
again; and here my house comes in view; and a war whoop
fetches my wife and Henry (or Simele); our Samoan boy; on the
front balcony; and I am home again; and only sorry that I
shall have to go down again to Apia this day week。 I could;
and would; dwell here unmoved; but there are things to be
attended to。
Never say I don't give you details and news。 That is a
picture of a letter。
I have been hard at work since I came; three chapters of THE
WRECKER; and since that; eight of the South Sea book; and;
along and about and in between; a hatful of verses。 Some day
I'll send the verse to you; and you'll say if any of it is
any good。 I have got in a better vein with the South Sea
book; as I think you will see; I think these chapters will do
for the volume without much change。 Those that I did in the
JANET NICOLL; under the most ungodly circumstances; I fear
will want a lot of suppling and lightening; but I hope to
have your remarks in a month or two upon that point。 It
seems a long while since I have heard from you。 I do hope
you are well。 I am wonderful; but tired from so much work;
'tis really immense what I have done; in the South Sea book I
have fifty pages copied fair; some of which has been four
times; and all twice written; certainly fifty pages of solid
scriving inside a fortnight; but I was at it by seven a。m。
till lunch; and from two till four or five every day; between
whiles; verse and blowing on the flageolet; never outside。
If you could see this place! but I don't want any one to see
it till my clearing is done; and my house built。 It will be
a home for angels。
So far I wrote after my bit of dinner; some cold meat and
bananas; on arrival。 Then out to see where Henry and some of
the men were clearing the garden; for it was plain there was
to be no work to…day indoors; and I must set in consequence
to farmering。 I stuck a good while on the way up; for the
path there is largely my own handiwork; and there were a lot
of sprouts and saplings and stones to be removed。 Then I
reached our clearing just where the streams join in one; it
had a fine autumn smell of burning; the smoke blew in the
woods; and the boys were pretty merry and busy。 Now I had a
private design:…
'Map which cannot be reproduced'
The Vaita'e I had explored pretty far up; not yet the other
stream; the Vaituliga (g=nasal n; as ng in sing); and up
that; with my wood knife; I set off alone。 It is here quite
dry; it went through endless woods; about as broad as a
Devonshire lane; here and there crossed by fallen trees; huge
trees overhead in the sun; dripping lianas and tufted with
orchids; tree ferns; ferns depending with air roots from the
steep banks; great arums … I had not skill enough to say if
any of them were the edible kind; one of our staples here! …
hundreds of bananas … another staple … and alas! I had skill
enough to know all of these for the bad kind that bears no
fruit。 My Henry moralised over this the other day; how hard
it was that the bad banana flourished wild; and the good must
be weeded and tended; and I had not the heart to tell him how
fortunate they were here; and how hungry were other lands by
comparison。 The ascent of this lovely lane of my dry stream
filled me with delight。 I could not but be reminded of old
Mayne Reid; as I have been more than once since I came to the
tropics; and I thought; if Reid had been still living; I
would have written to tell him that; for; me; IT HAD COME
TRUE; and I thought; forbye; that; if the great powers go on
as they are going; and the Chief Justice delays; it would
come truer still; and the war…conch will sound in the hills;
and my home will be inclosed in camps; before the year is
ended。 And all at once … mark you; how Mayne Reid is on the
spot … a strange thing happened。 I saw a liana stretch
across the bed of the brook about breast…high; swung up my
knife to sever it; and … behold; it was a wire! On either
hand it plunged into thick bush; to…morrow I shall see where
it goes and get a guess perhaps of what it means。 To…day I
know no more than … there it is。 A little higher the brook
began to trickle; then to fill。 At last; as I meant to do
some work upon the homeward trail; it was time to turn。 I
did not return by the stream; knife in hand; as long as my
endurance lasted; I was to cut a path in the congested bush。
At first it went ill with me; I got badly stung as high as
the elbows by the stinging plant; I was nearly hung in a
tough liana … a rotten trunk giving way under my feet; it was
deplorable bad business。 And an axe … if I dared swing one …
would have been more to the purpose than my cutlass。 Of a
sudden things began to go strangely easier; I found stumps;
bushing out again; my body began to wonder; then my mind; I
raised my eyes and looked ahead; and; by George; I was no
longer pioneering; I had struck an old tr