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the house of pride and other tales of hawaii-第6部分
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and were ripping it apart as a woman rips apart a sheet of cotton
cloth。 But it was such an immense ripping; growing swiftly nearer。
Koolau glanced up apprehensively; as if expecting to see the thing。
Then high up on the cliff overhead the shell burst in a fountain of
black smoke。 The rock was shattered; the fragments falling to the
foot of the cliff。
Koolau passed his hand across his sweaty brow。 He was terribly
shaken。 He had had no experience with shell…fire; and this was more
dreadful than anything he had imagined。
〃One;〃 said Kapahei; suddenly bethinking himself to keep count。
A second and a third shell flew screaming over the top of the wall;
bursting beyond view。 Kapahei methodically kept the count。 The
lepers crowded into the open space before the caves。 At first they
were frightened; but as the shells continued their flight overhead
the leper folk became reassured and began to admire the spectacle。
The two idiots shrieked with delight; prancing wild antics as each
air…tormenting shell went by。 Koolau began to recover his
confidence。 No damage was being done。 Evidently they could not aim
such large missiles at such long range with the precision of a
rifle。
But a change came over the situation。 The shells began to fall
short。 One burst below in the thicket by the knife…edge。 Koolau
remembered the maid who lay there on watch; and ran down to see。
The smoke was still rising from the bushes when he crawled in。 He
was astounded。 The branches were splintered and broken。 Where the
girl had lain was a hole in the ground。 The girl herself was in
shattered fragments。 The shell had burst right on her。
First peering out to make sure no soldiers were attempting the
passage; Koolau started back on the run for the caves。 All the time
the shells were moaning; whining; screaming by; and the valley was
rumbling and reverberating with the explosions。 As he came in sight
of the caves; he saw the two idiots cavorting about; clutching each
other's hands with their stumps of fingers。 Even as he ran; Koolau
saw a spout of black smoke rise from the ground; near to the idiots。
They were flung apart bodily by the explosion。 One lay motionless;
but the other was dragging himself by his hands toward the cave。
His legs trailed out helplessly behind him; while the blood was
pouring from his body。 He seemed bathed in blood; and as he crawled
he cried like a little dog。 The rest of the lepers; with the
exception of Kapahei; had fled into the caves。
〃Seventeen;〃 said Kapahei。 〃Eighteen;〃 he added。
This last shell had fairly entered into one of the caves。 The
explosion caused the caves to empty。 But from the particular cave
no one emerged。 Koolau crept in through the pungent; acrid smoke。
Four bodies; frightfully mangled; lay about。 One of them was the
sightless woman whose tears till now had never ceased。
Outside; Koolau found his people in a panic and already beginning to
climb the goat…trail that led out of the gorge and on among the
jumbled heights and chasms。 The wounded idiot; whining feebly and
dragging himself along on the ground by his hands; was trying to
follow。 But at the first pitch of the wall his helplessness
overcame him and he fell back。
〃It would be better to kill him;〃 said Koolau to Kapahei; who still
sat in the same place。
〃Twenty…two;〃 Kapahei answered。 〃Yes; it would be a wise thing to
kill him。 Twenty…threetwenty…four。〃
The idiot whined sharply when he saw the rifle levelled at him。
Koolau hesitated; then lowered the gun。
〃It is a hard thing to do;〃 he said。
〃You are a fool; twenty…six; twenty…seven;〃 said Kapahei。 〃Let me
show you。〃
He arose; and with a heavy fragment of rock in his hand; approached
the wounded thing。 As he lifted his arm to strike; a shell burst
full upon him; relieving him of the necessity of the act and at the
same time putting an end to his count。
Koolau was alone in the gorge。 He watched the last of his people
drag their crippled bodies over the brow of the height and
disappear。 Then he turned and went down to the thicket where the
maid had keen killed。 The shell…fire still continued; but he
remained; for far below he could see the soldiers climbing up。 A
shell burst twenty feet away。 Flattening himself into the earth; he
heard the rush of the fragments above his body。 A shower of hau
blossoms rained upon him。 He lifted his head to peer down the
trail; and sighed。 He was very much afraid。 Bullets from rifles
would not have worried him; but this shell…fire was abominable。
Each time a shell shrieked by he shivered and crouched; but each
time he lifted his head again to watch the trail。
At last the shells ceased。 This; he reasoned; was because the
soldiers were drawing near。 They crept along the trail in single
file; and he tried to count them until he lost track。 At any rate;
there were a hundred or so of themall come after Koolau the leper。
He felt a fleeting prod of pride。 With war guns and rifles; police
and soldiers; they came for him; and he was only one man; a crippled
wreck of a man at that。 They offered a thousand dollars for him;
dead or alive。 In all his life he had never possessed that much
money。 The thought was a bitter one。 Kapahei had been right。 He;
Koolau; had done no wrong。 Because the haoles wanted labour with
which to work the stolen land; they had brought in the Chinese
coolies; and with them had come the sickness。 And now; because he
had caught the sickness; he was worth a thousand dollarsbut not to
himself。 It was his worthless carcass; rotten with disease or dead
from a bursting shell; that was worth all that money。
When the soldiers reached the knife…edged passage; he was prompted
to warn them。 But his gaze fell upon the body of the murdered maid;
and he kept silent。 When six had ventured on the knife…edge; he
opened fire。 Nor did he cease when the knife…edge was bare。 He
emptied his magazine; reloaded; and emptied it again。 He kept on
shooting。 All his wrongs were blazing in his brain; and he was in a
fury of vengeance。 All down the goat…trail the soldiers were
firing; and though they lay flat and sought to shelter themselves in
the shallow inequalities of the surface; they were exposed marks to
him。 Bullets whistled and thudded about him; and an occasional
ricochet sang sharply through the air。 One bullet ploughed a crease
through his scalp; and a second burned across his shoulder…blade
without breaking the skin。
It was a massacre; in which one man did the killing。 The soldiers
began to retreat; helping along their wounded。 As Koolau picked
them off he became aware of the smell of burnt meat。 He glanced
about him at first; and then discovered that it was his own hands。
The heat of the rifle was doing it。 The leprosy had destroyed most
of the nerves in his hands。 Though his flesh burned and he smelled
it; there was no sensation。
He lay in the thicket; smiling; until he remembered the war guns。
Without doubt they would open upon him again; and this time upon the
very thicket from which he had inflicted the danger。 Scarcely had
he changed his position to a nook behind a small shoulder of the
wall where he had noted that no shells fell; than the bombardment
recommenced。 He counted the shells。 Sixty more were thrown into
the gorge before the war…guns ceased。 The tiny area was pitted with
their explosions; until it seemed impossible that any creature could
have survived。 So the soldiers thought; for; under the burning
afternoon sun; they climbed the goat…trail again。 And again the
knife…edged passage was disputed; and again they fell back to the
beach。
For two days longer Koolau held the passage; though the soldiers
contented themselves with flinging shells into his retreat。 Then
Pahau; a leper boy; came to the top of the wall at the back of the
gorge and shouted down to him that Kiloliana; hunting goats that
they might eat; had been killed by a fall; and that the women were
frightened and knew not what to do。 Koolau called the boy down and
left him with a spare gun with which to guard the passage。 Koolau
found his people disheartened。 The majority of them were too
helpless to forage food for themselves under such forbidding
circumstances; and all were starving。 He selected two women and a
man who were not too far gone with the disease; and sent them back
to the gorge to bring up food and mats。 The rest he cheered and
consoled until even the weakest took a hand in building rough
shelters for themselves。
But those he had dispatched for food did not return; and he started
back for the gorge。 As he came out on the brow of the wall; half a
dozen rifles cracked。 A bullet tore through the fleshy part of his
shoulder; and his cheek was cut by a sliver of rock where a second
bullet smashed against the cliff。 In the moment that this happened;
and he leaped back; he saw that the gorge was alive with soldiers。
His own people had betrayed him。 The shell…fire had been too
terrible; and they had preferred the prison of Molokai。
Koolau dropped back and unslung one of his heavy cartridge…belts。
Lying among the rocks; he allowed the head and shoulders of the
first soldier to rise clearly into view before pulling trigger。
Twice this happened; and then; after some delay; in place of a head
and shoulders a white flag was thrust above the edge of the wall。
〃What do you want?〃 be demanded。
〃I want you; if you are Koolau the leper;〃 came the answer。
Koolau forgot where he was; forgot everything; as he lay and
marvelled at the strange persistence of these haoles who would have
their will though the sky fell in。 Aye; they would have their will
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