GUESTS OR PRISONERS?

Five more days were pa.s.sed ascending the river, which by degrees began to display banks that were park-like and densely packed with forest trees. The dismal mangroves had disappeared, and in their place graceful palms shot up and spread their feathered plumes; bamboos rose in clumps like gigantic gra.s.ses, and canes swung from branch to branch, and festooned specimens of timber which was often one blaze of colour, and whose petals sprinkled the now bright clear water.

A tiny village was pa.s.sed at intervals, and from time to time some boat floated by them deeply laden with rice or tea. At night the boat was moored to some tree trunk. The men went ash.o.r.e, and collected wood and lit a fire for cooking purposes, and then all returned to sleep on board before starting early in the cool misty morning, so as to have some hours' rest in the middle of the day, before the journey was resumed in the evening.

It was a calm and peaceful, even if it were a monotonous little voyage, for, in spite of some object worthy of a naturalist's attention being pointed out, Murray preferred to wait till he was farther on his way before commencing his collecting; and white-plumaged falcon and beautiful long-tailed kingfishers were allowed to fly by unmolested.

"Wait a bit, Ned," he said, "and you shall have your hands full."

The river was now beautiful. It was a broad clear stream, with mountains visible away to the east, wherever an opening occurred in the woods, and it seemed a wonder that so lovely a country should show so seldom that it was inhabited.

At the villages they pa.s.sed, the people looked peaceful, quiet, and inoffensive, although every man carried a deadly-looking kris in its wooden sheath, thrust in the twisted-up band of the scarf-like silk or cotton sarong, which was wrapped round the middle in the form of a kilt, and with the exception of something worn in the shape of a hat to keep off the sun's piercing rays, this was the only garment many of the people displayed.

They brought fruit when asked, every house having its cl.u.s.ter of fruit-trees about it. In some cases there were cocoa-nuts, but more frequently bananas of two or three kinds, which they parted with for a mere trifle, these forming an admirable addition to the supply of food.

Hamet generally went to market, and came back smiling often enough with a large bunch of the finger-shaped fruit, a bag of rice, and when he was most fortunate in his foraging, a couple of skinny-looking chickens and some eggs.

"Getting tired, Ned?" said Murray, one glorious morning as the men were steadily rowing on, keeping close up to the trees on their right, for the sake of the shade and the slower motion of the stream.

"No, not tired," replied the boy. "It's all too beautiful for one to get tired, but I do feel as if I should like to be doing something. I keep seeing birds I want to shoot, and flowers I should like to pick."

"Then here's news for you, boy. I reckon that we are now well up into the region I wanted to explore, and to-morrow work shall begin in real earnest."

Ned's eyes sparkled. "Begin shooting?"

"Yes, and collecting botanical specimens. There will be no need now to toil up a certain distance every day, and we shall stop at every likely-looking collecting ground to go ash.o.r.e, and certainly explore every side stream or creek."

"And fish? Hamet says it would be capital if I could catch enough fish for a dinner now and then; and I want to bathe."

"Of course, and you shall try; but there are crocodiles. I have seen two within the past hour, one swimming, and the other lying on a sandbank."

"Why, I saw that," cried Ned; "but it was so still that I concluded it was all fancy, it lay so close, and looked so like the sand and mud.

Well, I may fish if I can't bathe, and--well, that does seem curious just as I said that. Look, there are two of the black fellows at it."

"A dark brown and a light brown to be more correct," said Murray, as he looked at a boat some fifty yards ahead of them, where it had just shot round a bend of the smooth stream, with a Malay boy paddling; while another in bright sarong and gay-looking baju or jacket, and a natty little military-looking cap on one side of his head, leaned back trailing a line for some kind of fish.

"I say, you sir," cried Ned loudly, as he noted that the brown-looking boy was about his own age, and that he was watching the newcomers eagerly, "what's the Malay for what you are catching, and how many have you caught?"

For answer the boy gave his line a s.n.a.t.c.h in, and let it go again, showing his teeth, and laughing heartily.

"Well, you might be civil," said Ned flushing. "I say, Hamet, ask him how many he has caught."

The boatman asked the required question, and received an answer in the Malay tongue.

"He says he has only just begun."

"Well, ask him what sort of fish he catches."

But before the question could be asked, the boy shouted something.

"He says, sahib, are you fond of fishing?"

"Yes, of course," shouted Ned, forgetful of the apparent need of an interpreter.

By this time, the boats had pa.s.sed each other and the distance was increasing, when there came in good plain English: "I say, where are you going?"

"Up the river," cried Ned in astonishment. "Know any more English?

Where do you live? How far is it away from here, and what's your name?"

The boy in the boat threw out his line again, and burst into a shout of laughter, greatly to Ned's annoyance, for it sounded derisive; but there was no opportunity for further attempts at communication, for their boat swept round the bend, and it was plain enough whence the fishers had come, for, beautifully situated in a lake-like curve of the stream, they could see quite a pretentious-looking village with what was evidently a mosque, and just beyond it, a strong-looking stockade. The houses were of exactly the same type as those they had before pa.s.sed, but in addition there were several of considerable size, whose sides were woven in striking patterns, while dense groves of cocoa, betel, and nipah palms added to the beauty of the scene.

Along the sh.o.r.e a dozen or two of boats were drawn up, while floating alone and doubled in the mirror-like water was a large prahu on whose deck several men were lolling about. Just then a naga or dragon, boat came swiftly from behind it, propelled by a dozen men in yellow jackets and scarlet caps, and three or four showily-costumed Malays could be seen seated and standing in the shade of the awning, which, like that of their own boat, was of palm-leaves or attap, but far more neatly-made.

"What place is this, Hamet?"

"Don't know, sir," he said. "Never been so far. It must be Campong Bukit, and that is one of the rajah's boats."

"What rajah?"

"Rajah of Dah. Great prince."

"Ah, well, we may as well stop and land, and I daresay we can buy some fresh fruit and chickens and rice. What's that?"

"Ibrahim says don't stop--not good place," replied Hamet, for one of the men had whispered to him.

"Oh, but Mr Wilson said this was an important village, and that there were English people here."

The question of stopping or not was soon decided, for by a dexterous turn the dragon boat was swept across them, their way stopped, and one of the Malays beneath the awning shouted something imperiously to the men.

Hamet replied in Malay, while Murray strained his ears to try to pick up the meaning of some of the words, without success, and then turned impatiently to Hamet.

"What do they want?" he said.

"To know who you are, sir, and where you are going."

"Tell him to mind his own business," said Murray, sharply, and to Ned's great delight. "No; it would be uncivil. Tell him I am an English gentleman travelling for my pleasure, and that we are going to land to look at the place and buy provisions."

This was duly interpreted, a fresh answer made, and permission given, the naga being kept close alongside as they all rowed for what proved to be quite a respectable landing-place, that is to say, a roughly-made jetty formed by driving bamboos into the sand and mud.

"Ask him if there are not some English people here," said Murray to Hamet.

"No, uncle, don't. Look there, in front of those trees, there's an Englishman with a white umbrella, and a lady with a parasol. Oh, I say, what a shame; she's using an opera-gla.s.s--and you said we were coming up into quite a savage place."

"So I did, Ned," said his uncle, rubbing his ear; "but I can't help it.

Civilisation crops up everywhere now, and they say you can't get away from cotton prints and Staffordshire pottery without running up against Sheffield knives."

"But it is so disappointing. I say, look, and there's another lady, and they're going on to that jetty to see us come in. There'll be a steamboat call next, and I daresay there's a railway station somewhere among the trees."

"Never mind, Ned," said Murray, with a comical look of chagrin in his countenance. "We'll only buy what we can and be off again directly. I certainly didn't expect this. Why, there's another Englishman," he said, more loudly than he had intended, for they were close up to the jetty now, and the man of whom he had spoken, a red-faced youngish fellow in flannel shirt and trousers and a straw hat, said loudly: