Chapter IX--As Between a Man and a Woman

by Jack London

　　It was Satan's inexhaustible energy and good spirits that mostimpressed them. His teeth seemed perpetually to ache with desire,and in lieu of black legs he husked the cocoanuts that fell fromthe trees in the compound, kept the enclosure clear of intrudinghens, and made a hostile acquaintance with every boss-boy who cameto report. He was unable to forget the torment of his puppyhood,wherein everlasting hatred of the black had been woven into thefibres of consciousness; and such a terror did he make himself thatSheldon was forced to shut him up in the living room when, for anyreason, strange natives were permitted in the compound. Thisalways hurt Satan's feelings and fanned his wrath, so that even thehouse-boys had to watch out for him when he was first released.

　　Christian Young sailed away in the Minerva, carrying an invitation(that would be delivered nobody knew when) to Tommy Jones to dropin at Berande the next time he was passing.

　　"What are your plans when you get to Sydney?" Sheldon asked, thatnight, at dinner.

　　"First I've heard that I'm going to Sydney," Joan retorted. "Isuppose you've received information, by bush-telegraph, that thatthird assistant understrapper and ex-sailorman at Tulagi is goingto deport me as an undesirable immigrant."

　　"Oh, no, nothing of the sort, I assure you," Sheldon began withawkward haste, fearful of having offended, though he knew not how."I was just wondering, that was all. You see, with the loss of theschooner and . . and all the rest . . . you understand . . I wasthinking that if--a--if--hang it all, until you could communicatewith your friends, my agents at Sydney could advance you a loan,temporary you see, why I'd be only too glad and all the rest, youknow. The proper--"

　　But his jaw dropped and he regarded her irritably and withapprehension.

　　"What is the matter?" he demanded, with a show of heat. "What haveI done now?"

　　Joan's eyes were bright with battle, the curve of her lips sharpwith mockery.

　　"Certainly not the unexpected," she said quietly. "Merely ignoredme in your ordinary, every-day, man-god, superior fashion.Naturally it counted for nothing, my telling you that I had no ideaof going to Sydney. Go to Sydney I must, because you, in yoursuperior wisdom, have so decreed."

　　She paused and looked at him curiously, as though he were somestrange breed of animal.

　　"Of course I am grateful for your offer of assistance; but eventhat is no salve to wounded pride. For that matter, it is no morethan one white man should expect from another. Shipwreckedmariners are always helped along their way. Only this particularmariner doesn't need any help. Furthermore, this mariner is notgoing to Sydney, thank you."

　　"But what do you intend to do?"

　　"Find some spot where I shall escape the indignity of beingpatronized and bossed by the superior sex."

　　"Come now, that is putting it a bit too strongly." Sheldonlaughed, but the strain in his voice destroyed the effect ofspontaneity. "You know yourself how impossible the situation is."

　　"I know nothing of the sort, sir. And if it is impossible, well,haven't I achieved it?"

　　"But it cannot continue. Really--"

　　"Oh, yes, it can. Having achieved it, I can go on achieving it. Iintend to remain in the Solomons, but not on Berande. To-morrow Iam going to take the whale-boat over to Pari-Sulay. I was talkingwith Captain Young about it. He says there are at least fourhundred acres, and every foot of it good for planting. Being anisland, he says I won't have to bother about wild pigs destroyingthe young trees. All I'll have to do is to keep the weeds hoeduntil the trees come into bearing. First, I'll buy the island;next, get forty or fifty recruits and start clearing and planting;and at the same time I'll run up a bungalow; and then you'll berelieved of my embarrassing presence--now don't say that it isn't."

　　"It is embarrassing," he said bluntly. "But you refuse to see mypoint of view, so there is no use in discussing it. Now pleaseforget all about it, and consider me at your service concerningthis . . . this project of yours. I know more about cocoanut-planting than you do. You speak like a capitalist. I don't knowhow much money you have, but I don't fancy you are rolling inwealth, as you Americans say. But I do know what it costs to clearland. Suppose the government sells you Pari-Sulay at a pound anacre; clearing will cost you at least four pounds more; that is,five pounds for four hundred acres, or, say, ten thousand dollars.Have you that much?"

　　She was keenly interested, and he could see that the previous clashbetween them was already forgotten. Her disappointment was plainas she confessed:

　　"No; I haven't quite eight thousand dollars."

　　"Then here's another way of looking at it. You'll need, as yousaid, at least fifty boys. Not counting premiums, their wages arethirty dollars a year."

　　"I pay my Tahitians fifteen a month," she interpolated.

　　"They won't do on straight plantation work. But to return. Thewages of fifty boys each year will come to three hundred pounds--that is, fifteen hundred dollars. Very well. It will be sevenyears before your trees begin to bear. Seven times fifteen hundredis ten thousand five hundred dollars--more than you possess, andall eaten up by the boys' wages, with nothing to pay for bungalow,building, tools, quinine, trips to Sydney, and so forth."

　　Sheldon shook his head gravely. "You'll have to abandon the idea."

　　"But I won't go to Sydney," she cried. "I simply won't. I'll buyin to the extent of my money as a small partner in some otherplantation. Let me buy in in Berande!"

　　"Heaven forbid!" he cried in such genuine dismay that she brokeinto hearty laughter.

　　"There, I won't tease you. Really, you know, I'm not accustomed toforcing my presence where it is not desired. Yes, yes; I knowyou're just aching to point out that I've forced myself upon youever since I landed, only you are too polite to say so. Yet as yousaid yourself, it was impossible for me to go away, so I had tostay. You wouldn't let me go to Tulagi. You compelled me to forcemyself upon you. But I won't buy in as partner with any one. I'llbuy Pari-Sulay, but I'll put only ten boys on it and clear slowly.Also, I'll invest in some old ketch and take out a trading license.For that matter, I'll go recruiting on Malaita."

　　She looked for protest, and found it in Sheldon's clenched hand andin every line of his clean-cut face.

　　"Go ahead and say it," she challenged. "Please don't mind me.I'm--I'm getting used to it, you know. Really I am."

　　"I wish I were a woman so as to tell you how preposterously insaneand impossible it is," he blurted out.

　　She surveyed him with deliberation, and said:

　　"Better than that, you are a man. So there is nothing to preventyour telling me, for I demand to be considered as a man. I didn'tcome down here to trail my woman's skirts over the Solomons.Please forget that I am accidentally anything else than a man witha man's living to make."

　　Inwardly Sheldon fumed and fretted. Was she making game of him?Or did there lurk in her the insidious unhealthfulness ofunwomanliness? Or was it merely a case of blank, staring,sentimental, idiotic innocence?

　　"I have told you," he began stiffly, "that recruiting on Malaita isimpossible for a woman, and that is all I care to say--or dare."

　　"And I tell you, in turn, that it is nothing of the sort. I'vesailed the Miele here, master, if you please, all the way fromTahiti--even if I did lose her, which was the fault of yourAdmiralty charts. I am a navigator, and that is more than yourSolomons captains are. Captain Young told me all about it. And Iam a seaman--a better seaman than you, when it comes right down toit, and you know it. I can shoot. I am not a fool. I can takecare of myself. And I shall most certainly buy a ketch, run hermyself, and go recruiting on Malaita."

　　Sheldon made a hopeless gesture.

　　"That's right," she rattled on. "Wash your hands of me. But asVon used to say, 'You just watch my smoke!'"

　　"There's no use in discussing it. Let us have some music."

　　He arose and went over to the big phonograph; but before the discstarted, and while he was winding the machine, he heard her saying:

　　"I suppose you've been accustomed to Jane Eyres all your life.That's why you don't understand me. Come on, Satan; let's leavehim to his old music."

　　He watched her morosely and without intention of speaking, till hesaw her take a rifle from the stand, examine the magazine, andstart for the door.

　　"Where are you going?" he asked peremptorily.

　　"As between man and woman," she answered, "it would be tooterribly--er--indecent for you to tell me why I shouldn't goalligatoring. Good-night. Sleep well."

　　He shut off the phonograph with a snap, started toward the doorafter her, then abruptly flung himself into a chair.

　　"You're hoping a 'gator catches me, aren't you?" she called fromthe veranda, and as she went down the steps her rippling laughterdrifted tantalizingly back through the wide doorway.