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The Call Of The South, by Louis Becke
The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Call Of The South, by Louis Becke This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
Title: The Call Of The South 1908
Author: Louis Becke
Release Date: March 22, 2008 [EBook #24895]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1
*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE CALL OF THE SOUTH ***
Produced by David Widger
THE CALL OF THE SOUTH
By Louis Becke
CHAPTER I
~ PAUL, THE DIVER
"Feeling any better to-day, Paul?"
"Guess I'm getting round," and the big, bronzed-faced man raised his eyes to mine as he lay under the awning on the after deck of his pearling lugger. I sat down beside him and began to talk.
A mile away the white beach of a little, land-locked bay shimmered under the morning sun, and the drooping fronds of the cocos hung listless and silent, waiting for the rising of the south-east trade.
"Paul," I said, "it is very hot here. Come on shore with me to the native village, where it is cooler, and I will make you a big drink of lime-juice."
I helped him to rise--for he was weak from a bad attack of New Guinea fever--and two of our native crew assisted him over the side into my whaleboat. A quarter of an hour later we were seated on mats under the shade of a gr