these were most unpalatable facts for our friends to listen to. but, however painful they might be, and however offensive to the ear of a patriotic dutchman, yet they were facts which could neither be ignored nor explained away. very gravely and very sadly the five young men sat slowly rocking themselves in their chairs and watching the wreaths of blue smoke as they curled upwards from their manillas. thus they passed some time in silent thought, when suddenly, in the distance were heard fresh volleys of musketry, redoubled banging of mertjons, and this noise accompanied by loud bursts of cheering repeated again and again, which, arising within the banqueting hall, was taken up by the thousands of natives who stood without waiting for the display of fireworks. that crescendo in the festive din was occasioned no doubt by lim yang bing’s eloquent speech in honour of resident van gulpendam. “sabieio, fill the glasses!” cried van nerekool to his servant, making an effort to shake off the gloomy thoughts which oppressed him, and which not even van beneden’s story had been able to dissipate.
for the next few minutes they all sat listening to the disturbance outside, and when at length the noise had died away, van rheijn re-opened the conversation.
“you told us just now, my dear august, that tio siong mo had found no co-operation or support among the inferior class of officials; but that these, on the contrary, sided with the more powerful company hok bie. now i take it for granted that you did not talk merely at random; but that you had some sufficient grounds for saying what you did. one thing, however, is not quite clear to me, and that is whether you meant that accusation to apply to the native opium-officials or to the europeans. you will grant me, i suppose, that the accusation is a rather serious one.”
van beneden did not raise his eyes, he drew a deep breath. at length after an interval of a few seconds, he said:
“yes, you are perfectly right, the charge is undoubtedly a serious one. as a lawyer i am perfectly aware of that; and [472]you were quite right also in presuming that i did not utter it without due consideration. the question you now ask me is this: ‘to whom do you intend this grave censure to apply?’ i might answer with perfect truth, that i apply it to native and european officials alike. but to be absolutely candid i ought to go further and confess that, when i spoke, i was aiming specially at the european officers.”
“august!” cried van rheijn, evidently much moved at his friend’s earnestness and sincerity. “may you not be taking too partial and unfair a view of the situation?”
“my dear fellow,” replied van beneden, “just listen to what i am about to tell you, and then i will leave you to judge for yourself—
“among the mass of documents relating to this tio siong mo’s business, i came upon some remarks made by a very highly placed official, a man perfectly competent to form a correct opinion; and who had, in fact, been consulted on this very occasion. his remarks run thus:
“?‘the salaries paid to the officials who are employed in checking the trade in contraband opium are wholly insufficient; and in the discharge of their most arduous duties, these public servants receive no support at all. the consequence of this is, that hardly a single person who is properly qualified for the work will ever offer his services. in what manner, then, are those places filled? why, in the simplest manner possible. individuals are appointed quite at random and are then placed under the orders of some resident or other. these poor creatures, who, as a general rule, have no very brilliant antecedents to boast of, and who know little or nothing of the opium trade, receive a salary of 150 guilders (￡12 10s.) a month, and are stationed at such points as the smugglers are most likely to resort to. it follows, of course, from the nature of the case that these stations are far away from any inhabited spot, generally in the heart of some swamp or in the all but impenetrable jungle on the north coast of java. in such localities there can be no question of a house; and some of these men have to hire a small bamboo hut at the rate of 25 or 30 guilders a month, or else they run up a kind of rough shanty at their own expense. they have no staff whatever—there being no money to provide one—and thus, on an emergency, they have to apply for help to the chiefs of the nearest dessas, and that is very much like going to the devil for confession. moreover, the residents compel these people to keep two [473]horses, which animals they must purchase for themselves, and they have to pay 10 guilders a month at least for forage for each horse. if now we take into consideration deductions for widows’ and orphans’ fund, then these wretched creatures receive only about 102 guilders a month, out of which they must find house rent and servants’ wages, leaving them, say 67 guilders to live upon, to find themselves in dress, and to keep their often numerous families. now, the question is, how can such persons manage to live at all in even the most frugal manner? how do they manage to keep body and soul together? they have no other resource than to apply to the opium-farmer for assistance, and in him they always find a most obliging money-lender. the whole question, then, comes to this: are not such officers forced by mere pressure of circumstances to squeeze as much out of their wretched billet as can be got out of it?’
“and thus, you see, my dear edward, that all these men either are, or very soon get to be, under the thumb of the opium-farmers, and the consequences of such a state of things are, you must grant, inevitable. by the side of the note i read to you just now, i found a list—it was a long list—of the names of such individuals as, either for neglect of duty or for having aided and abetted the smugglers, had been dismissed the service. there were others who were mere puppets in the farmers’ hands, and who could not venture on the slightest remonstrance if the farmer himself was implicated in the smuggling trade. then there was a third—alas! the list was a very short one—of officials who undertook to perform their duties conscientiously, and who, looking upon a smuggler as a smuggler, whether he happened to be an opium-farmer or not, were determined to put down the illegal traffic whoever might be engaged in it. i regret, however, to have to add that those names very quickly disappear from the scene. the residents soon found fault with such men—they had no tact—no management—in fact, some ground of complaint was sure to be found. and then, of course, the government does not like to see the farmers, so long as they pay their contract money regularly into the treasury, annoyed by opposition of any kind.”
“but,” exclaimed grenits, somewhat warmly, “what becomes, at that rate, of the assertion made over and over in parliament by the colonial secretary, that the abuse of opium is in every possible way kept in check? as far as i can make [474]out from your statement, the government seems, indirectly of course, actually to protect the smuggling by the farmers, and these, equally of course, in order to dispose of their contraband, press the drug by all means, legal or illegal, upon the helpless population.”
“the sum and substance of all i have told you is simply this,” said van beneden. “no man who has the slightest respect for himself can or will undertake any office for the suppression of opium smuggling, and therefore a lower class of people must be employed, and thence, you see, it becomes possible for the tricks and dodges of such companies as hok bie to succeed.”
“by jove!” cried van nerekool, “that’s another nice little glimpse into the charming situation which the system of opium-farming has created. come! now we are about it, we had better exhaust the unsavoury subject as far as we can. did you not say just now, van rheijn, that you also had an opium tale to tell?”
“oh, yes,” replied edward, “and something else besides that.”
“indeed!” said grashuis; “go on then. i thought i was pretty well informed; but every moment i am making fresh discoveries.”
“now, gentlemen,” said van nerekool, “are you all furnished with cigars? van rheijn, we are waiting to hear you.”
“i have had a letter from murowski,” began van rheijn.
“from murowski?” cried one.
“from our pole?”
“from our doctor?”
“yes, gentlemen, from our expert at the scientific opium-smoke. now, as his letter contains very few, if any, secrets, and that moreover it is addressed to us in general, i need not follow our host’s example; and i will read it to you in full.”
“but, my dear fellow,” said grenits, “it is getting late, nearly nine o’clock. is there anything in that letter about butterflies?”
“oh, yes.”
“and about beetles and snakes?”
“oh yes, certainly.”
“then, i say! heaven help us, those entomologists are so long-winded; they don’t spare you a single claw, not an antenna, not a shard!” [475]
“oh, you won’t find it so bad as all that,” laughed van rheijn; “just listen.”
“?‘my dear friend, in your last letter you ask me how i pass the time at gombong. at first, i must confess, it was tedious work and everything looked very black. you know, i was rather smitten with agatha van bemmelen, and i have reason to flatter myself that she used not to shut her little peepers very hard when she happened to meet me at santjoemeh. so, when i first came here, my thoughts ran entirely on her; i detested my new place, and cursed the man who had played me the scurvy trick of having me transferred. of entomology there was no question. two or three times i went out and tried to get some specimens, but i failed woefully. wherever i went, in whatever direction i took my walks, there was but one picture before my eyes—the image of my agatha’s sparkling eyes and my agatha’s rosy cheeks.
“?‘so utterly lost was i in rapture that the rarest specimens in butterflies fluttered past my very nose without my so much as holding out my net. i gave the whole thing up in despair, and tossed all my apparatus into a corner. but, what to do with oneself at gombong? the officers of the garrison were busy enough; but i had nothing—absolutely nothing—to occupy my time. the climate of gombong is a wretched one—most miserably healthy, no chance of ever getting a patient here! being a devout catholic, i sent up a little prayer every now and then for a good epidemic, or at least some case worthy of keeping one’s interest going—nothing of the kind!’?”
“well now,” cried theodoor, “did you ever hear of such a fellow, praying for an epidemic! such a chap as that ought to be put out of the colony altogether—he is fit only for the new lunatic asylum at buitenzorg!”
“nonsense!” retorted van rheijn, “does not every one pray for his daily bread? does not our friend van beneden here pray for a good lawsuit—and that is, perhaps, not much less serious a matter than an epidemic. but let me go on.
“?‘seeing that my prayers were not heard, i sought refuge in poetry;—perhaps i might say i prayed and wrote verses alternately. i celebrated my well-beloved in alexandrines, in iambics, in pentameters, in hexameters, in odes, in lyrics, in sonnets, in stanzas, in german, in polish—’?”
“that must have sounded well!” interrupted grashuis.
“?‘—in polish, in french, nay, even in latin!’?” [476]
“in latin!” exclaimed grenits, with a shout of laughter, “the fellow must have gone raving mad!”
“just fancy the poor child receiving an ode from her adorer entitled ‘solis occasus,’—and ‘virgini agath? pulcherrim? bemmelensi dedicatus’—i should like to have seen her little phiz,” cried van beneden.
“do stop all that nonsense,” remonstrated van rheijn, who nevertheless was laughing as heartily as the others, and when silence had been restored, he continued:
“?‘and heaven only knows how much paper i might have wasted had not suddenly the news reached me that my adored agatha was engaged, and was, indeed, on the point of being married. then i crumpled up all my poetical effusions, and that very evening made a nice little fire of them. they were of some use in that way in keeping off the mosquitoes and other such like vermin. i invited all the officers of the garrison to a jolly good champagne supper; and, after having passed a night in which i rivalled the seven sleepers of holy memory—i arose next morning a new man—perfectly cured!—’?”
“that pole is a practical fellow,” cried grashuis. “i say, charlie, you should take a leaf out of his book!”
“?‘thereupon i resumed my insect hunting, and then, for the first time, it dawned upon me that the hemiptera, the diptera, the hymenoptera, the lepidoptera, the coleoptera—’?”
“i say, i say!” cried grenits, “might you not skip all these barbarous words. that a pole like murowski makes use of them is excusable perhaps—he knows no better; but that he should inflict them upon us!—it is unpardonable.”
“oh, well!” replied van rheijn, “i have almost done—
“?‘—the coleoptera, the crustaceans are really our best and truest friends, and that they would, after all, afford me the most wholesome recreation. i happened to be in luck’s way. patients there were none, and, to make assurance doubly sure, a medical officer, and therefore a colleague of mine, had arrived here in gombong. he had obtained three months’ leave, and, in this mild and singularly equable climate, he hoped to find a cure for an incipient liver-complaint. this gentleman was willing, he was indeed quite eager, to take my place in any unforeseen emergency, if it were only to break the monotony of his existence out here. i quickly availed myself of this favourable opportunity to ask our military chief for eight days’ leave to go on a trip into the karang bollong mountains and give myself up to my passion for entomology. [477]
“?‘?“by all means,” said the kind-hearted captain, “by all means, you go and catch butterflies and snoutbeetles. only see that in those wild mountain districts you don’t come to grief; and, mind you, be back again in time.”
“?‘an hour after, i had shouldered my gun, slung on my game-bag; and, with the tin box for my collection strapped to my back, i was on the war-path, my servant following with the other necessaries. from gombong i marched through the dessas karang djah, ringodono and pringtoetoel, and there i was in the heart of the mountain country. that journey i did not make in a single day; but i took my time, and spent two days in covering the ground.
“?‘i will not tire you with an account of my insect-hunt, that would, in fact, be casting pearls before swine.’?”
“upon my word, that is a good one!” exclaimed grenits, laughing. “our pole is exquisitely polite!”
“well,” laughed van rheijn, “he is paying you back in your own coin, you remember what you said about ‘barbarous words’ just now. but let me get on.
“?‘but yet i must tell you that my trip was very successful. i have every reason to be satisfied; for among many other rare and valuable specimens, i secured a fine ulysses and a splendid priamos. but what will constitute the real glory of my collection is an atlas, a truly magnificent creature, which, with outspread wings, covers an area of nearly a foot square. i will not however dwell on these matters. i know you take no interest in them. no, no, i have a subject to write upon which will prove much more attractive to yourself and to your friends. our experiment in opium-smoking has been haunting me ever since i witnessed it; and i have by no means forgotten the conversation we held on that occasion. what i then heard and saw has opened my eyes and my ears, and has made me very attentive whenever the opium question is mentioned. and, i must say, that i have here been brought to the very spot where i am able to glean most interesting information about the use of that drug. in my wanderings through the karang bollong mountains, i have been brought into contact with the gathering of the far-famed birds’ nests. whether you gentlemen are acquainted with that source of the dutch revenue, i know not; but in order to come to the subject i wish to lay before you, that is, the abuse of opium and the encouragement the government gives to that abuse, i must give you a short account of this most interesting gathering of birds’ nests. [478]you must, for the present at least, take my word for the truth of every syllable i write—’?”
“the deuce we must!” cried grenits, “he is rather exacting!”
“i bet we shall have a lot of learned stuff inflicted upon us. the prigs which the german universities turn out can be pedantic to the last degree.”
“no fear,” replied van rheijn, “for my part i must say that i have found in this letter, a great number of highly interesting particulars. but i must get on.
“?‘the karang bollong mountain range is, as you are probably aware, a spur of the goenoeng djampong which again forms the connecting link between the midangang mountains and the goenoeng batoer. the bulk of these karang bollong mountains consists of extensive chalkbeds which form the table-land known as goenoeng poleng; and, on the side of the sea, these chalk-beds are surrounded by a broad band of trachyte rock which rises perpendicularly out of the indian ocean. in this massive wall of trachyte the ocean, with its mighty breakers rolling in from the south pole upon java’s coast, has washed numerous holes or cavities, some of which extend to a considerable distance underground. it is in the innermost recesses of these caves that men find the nests of a certain kind of swallow which the natives call manoek lawet, and to which the zoologists give the name of hirundo esculenta.’?”
“didn’t i tell you so?” cried grenits indignantly; “the pole is beginning already to bring in his latin names. heaven only can tell what may be in store for us!”
“and what about me, then?” remarked van rheijn. “i have had to read the whole letter! you need not trouble yourself, that latin will come all right enough. i go on:
“?‘——give the name of hirundo esculenta. the nests consist of a slimy substance which is found in the stomach of the birds. these little swallows cover the spot in the rock they have selected for their nest with an extremely fine coating of this gelatinous stuff. as soon as this layer has dried and has had time to harden, they apply a second coat, which again must have time to dry before they can proceed with their building. and thus they go on gradually and layer by layer until the nest is complete. when it is finished it looks like a saucer of small diameter which has been broken in two with the line of fracture cemented to the wall of stone. thus these little nests [479]consist of a hardened gelatinous mass of a light yellow colour and which, when they are of superior quality, ought to be somewhat transparent.’?”
“and the chinese eat such trash as that and like it?” cried grashuis curling his lip in disgust.
“do let me go on,” said van rheijn.
“?‘when soaked in water and properly cooked these nests are looked upon by the chinese as the rarest delicacy. a cup of broth made of that gelatinous substance represents, in their estimation, the most delicious beverage that can gratify the human palate. they ascribe to this soup rare medicinal virtues and prize it as a never-failing aphrodisiac. in my opinion this latter is the only quality which gives value to the nests.’?”
“and this again is the sort of thing out of which the dutch government makes a revenue!” exclaimed grenits. “it is a very lucky thing that the ingathering of these nests can only be carried out on a small scale, or else, no doubt, some means would be found to force this kind of food upon such chinese as do not, at present, crave for it; just as the farmers do their utmost to drive the population into their infamous opium-dens.”
“?‘the gathering of these nests,’?” continued van rheijn still reading murowski’s letter, “?‘takes place three times a year. the first gathering begins in the latter part of april and is called “oedoean kesongo.” the second begins in the middle of august and is called “oedoean telor,” and the third, the “oedoean kapat,” takes place in december. now that kind of birdsnesting, my friends, is an occupation which i very willingly leave to the javanese who make it their business. to gain the entrance of one of those caves they must clamber down the perpendicular face of the rock along ladders. the ladder, for instance, which leads to the mouth of the djoembling cave is only 660 feet long. my heart beat high with desire to make a trip to these subterranean vaults. but—when i laid myself flat down and got my head over the edge of the rock while a couple of javanese were holding on to my legs—when i saw that rottang ladder swinging hither and thither in the breeze sometimes clinging to the wall and then again curving inward and for a while lost to the eye. when, at a giddy depth below, i saw the huge breakers come tumbling in and forming there at the foot of the rocks a savage scene, a wild and whirling chaos of spouting water, of dazzling foam and of blinding spray. when my ear caught the hoarse thunder of their charge while i felt the very stone under me [480]quiver with the shock—then, i must confess a feeling of sickening horror came over me; i started back involuntarily, and nothing on earth could have induced me to plant my foot on the crazy ladder which, a few moments ago, i had made up my mind to descend.
“?‘but how grand, how magnificent, how sublime was the spectacle! the towering waves which like a stately row of hills came moving along the intense azure blue of the indian ocean—that graceful curve of the billow as it neared the pumice reefs which lie at the base of the mass of trachyte—then the thundering fall of this mighty crest toppling over, as it were, into a sea of seething milk in which every drop, every foam-speck glittered in the rays of the tropical sun—that finely divided spray which hung over the watery mass and wrapped it as in a veil of transparent silver-gauze—all this, my friends, formed a spectacle which can never be effaced from my memory but will dwell there engraven as on tables of stone. at times, when a wave of unusual height came rolling in, the entrance of the caves would be completely swallowed up and hidden and the water driven into the interior would continue its perpetual work of excavation. then, for a few moments it seemed as if the holes had disappeared. but presently, when the wave flowed back again, the water, impelled by the tremendous force of the compressed air within, would rush forth like a horizontal fountain five or six hundred feet in length, spouting and hissing and blowing with a roar which was perfectly appalling, and forming whirls and high-flowing eddies in the retreating wave.
“?‘no, no, no, i durst not touch that swinging ladder; but i have nevertheless made up my mind to penetrate by some other means into the interior of those mysterious cavities. the natives here tell me that when the south-east trade-wind is far from the south-coast of java, on very calm days a flat-bottomed boat may enter the goewah temon, which is the name of one of the grots. the loerah of the dessa ajo has promised me to keep a canoe in readiness for me, if i will give him notice beforehand; and, on the first favourable opportunity i mean to make the attempt. meanwhile, however, i have had to satisfy myself with a description of this birdsnesting which i soon hope to witness in person, and this is what one of the chiefs has told me concerning it.
“?‘from the mouth of the caves the javanese have stretched a couple of cables along the interior wall. the lower of these [481]rottang-cables serves as foot-hold, the upper is grasped in one hand, while with the other hand, the man engaged in the work picks the birds’ nests from the rock. when the hand cannot reach them the man detaches them by means of a long bamboo pole furnished with an iron hook, and as they fall he has to catch them in a small hand net. as you may suppose, the taking of these swallows’ nests is an extremely perilous undertaking. first to clamber down that ladder to an extreme depth along the perpendicular face of the rock and dangling over that boiling sea, then to penetrate into these holes into which the ocean thrusts its waves. in rough weather the work has to be stopped altogether in many of the caves; and, not unfrequently, it happens that the ropes are washed away and the poor fellows who trust to them are dashed to pieces or miserably drowned. you will ask then, perhaps, how can people be found to venture on so hazardous an undertaking? you know, of course, that no race on earth is more attached to its native soil than the javanese. that characteristic is found in this part of the island also. there is perhaps no wilder and more ungrateful soil in this world than this region in the karang bollong mountains. nothing, or next to nothing, can be made out of agriculture. the tiny rice-fields one meets with here and there on the mountain slopes, are not worth mentioning; and, as far as tradition reaches, the scanty population of this part of java has always supported itself and does still support itself, by collecting these edible nests.
“?‘whether they fared better or worse before the dutch government appropriated that source of income to itself, i have not been able to ascertain. but one thing is certain, that the pay these poor wretches receive from the government is something worse than pitiful. i have now lying before me a statement drawn up by an official in this part of the country, from which i gather that, for every sack of 80 nests delivered into the government stores, the man who collects them gets a sum of 15—let us put it down in words—of fifteen cents (about 3d.)!’?”
“aye but,” said grashuis, “before we follow the grumblings of our pole any further, it would be well to know what is the commercial value of those 80 nests.”
“as a merchant,” remarked grenits, “i can at once supply you with the information you require. the chinese are always ready to give five thousand guilders for a pikol of nests, and, since one hundred of them weigh about one kattie and the pikol contains one hundred katties, our government receives [482]four hundred guilders, while it sends the poor devil of a native about his business with 15 cents! by heaven it is a crying shame!”
“but has not the government other expenses to meet?” asked grashuis.
“allow me to continue,” said van rheijn, “i promise you an answer to your question, august.”
“all right, drive ahead!”
“?‘it is true,’?” continued van rheijn, “?‘that when a man has good luck he may deliver 12 bags.’?”
“that comes to one guilder eighty cents (about 3s.),” cried grenits! “and then he must be in luck! god help the poor fellow!”
“now do not be constantly interrupting me!” cried edward impatiently.
“?‘one must be a javanese to encounter such perils for so miserable a pittance; for, to realize that magnificent sum, the poor devil must make several trips to the cave which has been assigned to him. the shortest gathering always lasts three weeks, and the longest sometimes goes on for more than two months. now, how can the native be induced, for such utterly inadequate pay, to face this perpetual and deadly risk? i fancy i can see that question hovering on your lips, and if you will bear with me for a few moments i will tell you. in the first place the government has secured the co-operation of the native chiefs. you know what a dependent race are the javanese, how they trust implicitly to their chiefs, and these men are indeed paid on a much more liberal scale. where the actual worker receives his three shillings, the loerah, for instance, is paid twenty guilders (￡1 13s. 4d.), besides a number of perquisites of all kinds, and he receives this, mind you, merely for superintending the work, as it is called. yet it is probable that the respect and obedience of even a javanese would not endure such miserably inadequate pay, and therefore the government has devised another means of binding these poor creatures hand and foot, and that means, my dear friends, is—opium!
“?‘i will not trouble you with all the superstitious fads which the government not only tolerates but pays for in the matter of this gathering of birds’ nests; nor will i speak of the idolatrous worship of njahi ratoe segoro kidoel which precedes every expedition, and which also is paid for out of the public purse. i will merely point out to you the use which is made of opium, [483]the pernicious effect of which, when taken in anything like excessive quantities, you have yourselves been able to observe.
“?‘well then, let me tell you that in everything which has any relation whatever to this gathering of nests the current coin is opium.
“?‘if the wajang and toppeng-players have to be sent for, five petty chiefs and four dessa-folk are despatched to fetch them. for this piece of service each of the former receives one kedawang, and each of the latter half a kedawang of opium, the kedawang being equivalent to about two matas. for the cleansing and clearing of the goewah bollong loerahs and other chiefs are specially appointed, the former receiving each two and the latter one kedawang of opium. the wajang and toppeng-players receive on their arrival, sixteen kedawangs apiece and four kedawangs for sadjen or offering, and, on their departure, they are paid with a further present of sixteen kedawangs of opium.
“?‘in the goewah bollong a feast is always held before the commencement of the expeditions; and for this feast, a certain number of bullocks and one goat have to be killed. for the slaughtering of each of these animals eight kedawangs of opium are paid. for each quarter of the slaughtered animals which must be brought in and carried by one petty chief and two dessa men, the chief is paid one, and the men have half a kedawang of opium apiece. when the ladders are brought to the edge of the cliff, a ceremony which requires two chiefs and two men, the former receive one kedawang, and the latter half a kedawang of opium.
“?‘but i have not finished yet, the abuse of opium goes much further than that. my friends, i beg you have patience and read on.
“?‘at the festival itself the following quantities are served out: to each loerah and each petty chief two kedawangs, and to every guest one kedawang. i have now lying before me a paper from which the following words are an extract:
“?‘?“it is impossible to give, with any exactness, the number of persons present at these customary festivals; but seeing that every guest has his portion of opium served out to him, it may be taken for granted that no one who has the slightest right to be present, fails to avail himself of it. at the opening of every cave eight kedawangs are served out, and when the ropes are fastened another eight kedawangs are paid.”
“?‘during the ingathering of the nests—but how shall i get [484]through it all? let me try to be brief. the loerah of goewah jedeh gets 76, the loerah of goewah dahar gets 64, the one at goewah mandoe loro 44, and the other loerahs receive 40 kedawangs apiece. the toekans of these caves receive each 54, the bekels 24, and the sekeps each 12 kedawangs of opium.
“?‘but even this is not all. the dessas in which the ladders are made are paid in opium, the persons appointed to mount guard over the nests when they are gathered receive their pay in opium. the transmission of the produce, the carrying to and fro of orders, the return of the ladders, the guarding of the caves—everything—everything—is paid with the same fatal drug. in one word, the entire thing is simply an opium debauch on a colossal scale; and it is the surest means of accustoming the people to the use of the deadly narcotic. but—why should i further dilate upon this matter, my letter is already, i fear, too long and i have still to communicate to you certain things which i know will be of the greatest interest to you.’?”
“is there much more of the letter?” asked grashuis.
“yes, i have some pages more to read,” replied van rheijn.
“you have given us quite a budget already,” remarked van beneden.
“true; but it is extremely interesting,” said grenits.
“by jove, those poles know how to make use of their eyes.”
“he has learnt that lesson from the germans, you know they steal with their eyes.”
“true, witness the franco-german war in which the teutons proved that they knew more about france than the french authorities themselves.”
“don’t you think,” asked van rheijn, “we had better get on as fast as we can? the most interesting part of the letter is yet to come.”
these last words he spoke with a strange look at charles van nerekool.
“had we not better have a drink first?” suggested grenits.
“by jove, yes!” cried van rheijn, “my throat is as dry as a rasp.”
“sabieio!” cried van nerekool, “fill the glasses.”
while the servant performed that duty the gentlemen lit a fresh cigar, rocked themselves for a while in their rocking-chairs and then were all attention. [485]
