. Wine-dark seas and tropic skies; reminiscences and a romance of the South seas . lages thatwere tiny pagan cities of the forest. The inhabitants, a finerace of handsome, semi-savage people, lived in primitivesplendour, nursing their old traditions and secretly practisingheathen rites that were supposed to be extinct. Naturesmysterious grace had given them a palatial home of naturalwarmth, beauty and plenty. Fertile hills, mountain slopesgiving forth abundance of glorious fruits to the gaze of thekind sun, surrounded me. By the hut towns mighty shelter-ing trees, bending their gnarled, sympat
. Wine-dark seas and tropic skies; reminiscences and a romance of the South seas . lages thatwere tiny pagan cities of the forest. The inhabitants, a finerace of handsome, semi-savage people, lived in primitivesplendour, nursing their old traditions and secretly practisingheathen rites that were supposed to be extinct. Naturesmysterious grace had given them a palatial home of naturalwarmth, beauty and plenty. Fertile hills, mountain slopesgiving forth abundance of glorious fruits to the gaze of thekind sun, surrounded me. By the hut towns mighty shelter-ing trees, bending their gnarled, sympathetic arms, threwtawny bunches of coco-nuts and delicious foods into thehands of her wild children. Beneath the forest floor for evertoiled that patient eremite, Dame Nature, pushing upthrough the mossy earth the clothes that so well suited herchildrens modest requirements : bright bows, green-fringedkerchiefs, weaved loin-cloths, stiff grass-threads for sewingfibrous materials into cheap scented suits, also debonairhats for their fierce heads ! I liked those fierce heads. I 24. THE MAID OF ROMANCE found them crammed with kindness. They applauded myviolin solos, and brought me sweet foods when I slept beneaththe trees, untroubled by man ! Yet how wealthy was I, lyingbeneath the coco-palms, counting my wealth in the number-less stars of strange constellations till I fell asleep. It waswhilst I was hard up, sleeping beneath the friendly trees, thatI first came across a native woman, Madame Lydia. Shespied me from her bungalow window hole, as, lying on mycheap mossy sheet, I counted the clouds that crawled likemonstrous spiders across my vast, blue ceiling. Aloah, monsieur, she said, as she poked her sun-varnishedphysiognomy through the bamboos and handed me a panni-kin of hot tea. I accepted the gift with alacrity and thanks,and I unconsciously ingratiated myself into her good graces. She turned out to be the kind old wife of B , an English sailor and trader. She was a full-blood
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Keywords: ., bo, bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, bookpublishernewyorkdoddmead
