The Devil-Tree Of El Dorado: A Novel - free ebook by Frank Aubrey

The Devil-tree of El Dorado A Novel

BY FRANK AUBREY WITH ILLUSTRATIONS BY LEIGH ELLIS AND FRED. HYLAND. NEW YORK NEW AMSTERDAM BOOK COMPANY 156 FIFTH AVENUE LONDON: HUTCHINSON &amp; COMPANY Copyright, 1897, by NEW AMSTERDAM BOOK COMPANY....

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PREFACE.

SHALL RORAIMA [1] BE GIVEN UP TO VENEZUELA? Shall Roraima be handed over to Venezuela? Shall the mysterious mountain long known to scientists as foremost among the wonders of our earth—regarded by many as the greatest marvel of the world—become definitely Venezuelan territory? This is the question that hangs in the balance at the time these words are being written, that is inseparably associated—though many of the public know it not—with the dispute that has arisen about the boundaries of Britis

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CHAPTER I. “WILL NO ONE EXPLORE RORAIMA?”[3]

Beneath the verandah of a handsome, comfortable-looking residence near Georgetown, the principal town of British Guiana, a young man sat one morning early in the year 1890, attentively studying a volume that lay open on a small table before him. It was easy to see that he was reading something that was, for him at least, of more than ordinary interest, something that seemed to carry his thoughts far away from the scene around him; for when, presently, he raised his eyes from the book, they looke

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CHAPTER II. MONELLA.

Two days later Dr. Lorien and his son arrived in Georgetown and, after taking rooms at the Kaieteur Hotel, went at once to call upon the Kingsfords. This haste was, in reality, prompted by Harry, whose thoughts were bent upon his hopes of once more seeing the pretty Stella; but the ostensible reason that he urged upon his father was somewhat different, and had to do with the message of which they were the bearers from the white stranger they had met in their travels. At the evening dinner the ma

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CHAPTER III. THE JOURNEY FROM THE COAST.

The greater part of the interior of British Guiana consists of dense forests which are mostly unexplored. No roads traverse them, and but little would be known of the savannas, or open grassy plains, and the mountains that lie beyond—and they would indeed be inaccessible—were it not for the many wide rivers by which the forests are intersected. These form the only means of communication between the coast and the interior at the present day; and so vast is the extent of territory covered with for

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CHAPTER IV. THE FIRST VIEW OF RORAIMA.

When Leonard came to himself sufficiently to see and understand what was going on around him, for the moment he thought himself once more in his days of childhood; for the first face he recognised was Carenna’s, his Indian nurse, who was bending over him in much the same way and with the same expression as of yore. But, when he looked round, he saw that he was in an Indian hut; and slowly the memory of what had occurred came back to him. Carenna, when she saw that he was himself again, gave a jo

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CHAPTER V. IN THE ‘DEMONS’ WOOD.’

The following day, Monella led the two friends to the road he had begun to cut into Roraima Forest; but first he showed them two llamas that were kept in a rough corral near his dwelling. “I brought them all the way from the other side of the continent,” he said. “You know that there they are the only beasts of burden, and in this country there are none. They will be useful to us later.” As to the so-called ‘road,’ it was really but a pathway; and, in places, almost a kind of tunnel. The great t

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CHAPTER VI. THE MYSTERIOUS CAVERN.

When the time drew near for the adventurers, if Monella’s calculations proved correct, to reach the base of the towering rock towards which they were making their way with so much labour, a suppressed excitement became apparent throughout nearly the whole party. It was clearly visible in the Indians and in Elwood; and Templemore, even, showed signs of anxiety. Monella alone was imperturbable as ever, and, if any unusual feeling arose in his mind, there was no trace of it to be seen in his placid

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CHAPTER VII. THE CANYON WITHIN THE MOUNTAIN.

Monella , with the lantern in his hand, led his two companions through an arched opening into a second cavern which seemed to be larger and loftier than the first; and this, in turn, opened into a third, at one end of which they could see that daylight entered. Monella stopped here and, lifting the light high in one hand, pointed with the other to side-openings in the rock. “They are side-galleries, so to speak,” he said, “but do not appear to be of any great extent. I have been to the end of tw

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CHAPTER VIII. ALONE ON RORAIMA’S SUMMIT.

When Monella returned about two hours later, the two young men had much to tell him of the wonderful flowers and plants they had found, of strange fish in the water, and curious perfumed butterflies that they had mistaken for flowers. There were many of these extraordinary insects flying about. In colouring and shape they resembled some of the flowers; when resting upon a spray or twig they looked exactly like blossoms, and upon nearing them, one became conscious of a most exquisite scent. But j

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CHAPTER IX. VISION OR REALITY?

The following afternoon, a long train of Indians, with Monella and Elwood at its head, was making its way slowly along the tunnel-like road that had been cut through the heart of Roraima Forest. They all carried loads, and they had with them, besides, Monella’s two llamas, which were also loaded with as much as they could carry. All looked more or less wearied from their long march, and cast many anxious glances ahead as they approached the end of their journey. When they reached the part where

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CHAPTER X. IN SIGHT OF EL DORADO.

The next morning Templemore, after leading Monella and Elwood to the hidden cave he had discovered, set out early with the Indians for ‘Monella Lodge’ to bring in the remainder of the stores; and, while there, in the evening, he wrote long letters to his friends, to be entrusted to Matava to take to Georgetown. Amongst them, we may be sure, was one to the fair Maud, who, amidst all the excitement of his adventures, was never long absent from his thoughts. His letter to her was grave, almost sad

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CHAPTER XI. ULAMA, PRINCESS OF MANOA.

The morning broke fine, and the sun rose with a splendour that was not often seen even in this land of gorgeous sunrises. As Leonard looked up at the sky above, with its tint of deep sapphire blue flecked with cloudy flakes, and cirri tinted with gold and pink and crimson, he thought he had never witnessed any effect to equal it. But, when they had quietly passed through the narrow belt of wood, and stood just within its cover, gazing down at the wondrous ‘golden city’ that lay sleeping at their

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CHAPTER XII. A PRELIMINARY SKIRMISH.

The words that had been spoken on both sides in this conversation the two young men had followed fairly well; though they had listened in silence and made no attempt to join in the discussion. On their way back towards the wood, Elwood was at first very thoughtful; then he turned to Monella and said excitedly, “How do we know she is safe, out there alone? And what will her father, the king, say to us, if harm come to her? It seems to me we are acting in strange fashion to leave her thus.” “Patie

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CHAPTER XIII. A KING’S GREETING.

During the walk—which now more resembled a procession, for they had been joined by numbers of the inhabitants who had heard the rifle shots and had come out in curiosity or alarm to inquire into the cause—Jack Templemore had observed many pumas that, like tame dogs, accompanied the people who crowded round them. They were mostly smaller than the one that had followed him from the mountain top down the canyon, though a few equalled it in size. But he looked in vain for any sign of recognition fro

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CHAPTER XIV. DAKLA.

Ulama also left her seat and came forward to the two young men. “Your friend,” she said, “has taken my father by surprise; else had he bidden you be seated. Nor did I know that he could not earlier have received you, or I would have sent my maidens to you with refreshment. Come now and sit near us, and I will point out to you my friends that they may be your friends; meantime Zonella will order fruit and wine for your sustainment. Anon you will be invited to our table; but meantime you will need

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CHAPTER XV. MARVELS OF MANOA.

During the following days Elwood and Templemore learned much of the strange land in which they found themselves; of its people, of their condition, and other details. But, since to give every separate conversation, incident, or other means by which they gained their information, would be tedious, it will suffice to cite some extracts from Templemore’s diary that summarise the knowledge then and subsequently obtained. “I am able now to jot down some account of this strange place and its inhabitan

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CHAPTER XVI. LEONARD AND ULAMA.

“How I should like to see this wondrous outside world that you come from!” said Ulama dreamily. “The more you tell me of it, the more you whet my curiosity, and the more I long to see its marvels for myself.” “And yet,” was Elwood’s answer, “nowhere will you find so marvellously beautiful a scene as that which now surrounds us. I have travelled a good deal myself; and my friend Jack much more; and Monella, where has he not been? He seems to have visited every corner of the world! Yet he said to

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CHAPTER XVII. THE FIGHT ON THE HILLSIDE.

It had become the custom of the two young men to go every morning, when the atmosphere was clear, to a height at one end of the valley, from which a view could be obtained over the whole country surrounding that end of Roraima. The spot was a level table of rock under a picturesque group of fir-trees—for on the upper cliffs fir-trees were numerous—and from it, looking in the direction farthest from the mountain, the view was grand in the extreme; while, on the other side of them was the great va

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CHAPTER XVIII. THE LEGEND OF MELLENDA.

Monella’s anticipations of what would follow the severe lesson they had given Coryon’s followers turned out to be well founded. For when Dakla, with his arm in a sling, revisited his master, bearing a message from the king, the conditions offered were accepted. Dakla had been straightly charged that these terms would have to be submitted to; if not that his master and all his followers would be starved into submission. They would be confined to their own colony, supplies of food refused, and any

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CHAPTER XIX. HOPES AND FEARS.

Amongst other advantages of the peace or truce that had been arranged with the mysterious Coryon, one was that Elwood and Templemore were free to visit the canyon and the caves where their reserve stores lay, and assure themselves that they were all safe. To do this they had to arrange to be away one night, since it was a day’s journey each way. That night they passed in the cavern—which they had named ‘Monella Cave’ in honour of their friend; the canyon itself they called ‘Fairy Valley’—and the

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CHAPTER XX. THE MESSAGE OF APALANO.

The furniture in use in the city of Manoa, in material and style, was not unlike that found in Japan. That in the palace was of exquisite design and finish, much of it inlaid with gold and silver. It was such a cabinet that Monella now unlocked: he took from it a parchment roll. “This,” said he, “is the document I gave the king the first day he received us. Now, of course, it belongs to him; but I have borrowed it, temporarily, to show you. It was written by Apalano, the last descendant of those

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CHAPTER XXI. THE GREAT DEVIL-TREE.

In pursuance of their design of making signals from the summit of Roraima, the two friends made further explorations of the northern side. And this led them into an adventure, one day, that had well-nigh proved fatal to them both. On mentioning their intention to Monella, he had at first objected; but, upon Leonard’s reminding him of the anxiety and distress Templemore’s mother and fiancée might be, too probably were, in, he had given a reluctant consent. “Your friends, Dr. Lorien and his son, t

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CHAPTER XXII. SMILES AND TEARS.

One morning, Monella sought Leonard and reverted to their former conversation about Ulama. “You have well considered all the words I spoke to you, my son?” he said. “Are you still of the same mind?” “I had hoped that you knew me too well to think it necessary to ask the question,” Leonard said earnestly. “Since I first looked upon Ulama, my love for her has been given past all recall. I have never wavered in my resolution to remain here for her dear sake, if I may hope to gain the king’s consent

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CHAPTER XXIII. THE DEVIL-TREE BY MOONLIGHT.

It was about ten o’clock when Templemore, with Ergalon as guide, came out from the king’s palace by a side-entrance that was little used, and the door of which the latter now opened with a key. Outside, at a short distance, they found Monella pacing up and down. Before leaving, Templemore had told Leonard just so much as would explain his absence; then had managed to slip away unobserved by their friends of the king’s court. The night was fine but chilly, and all three were muffled up. In the sk

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CHAPTER XXIV. TRAPPED!

One day the king announced his intention to fix a day for Leonard’s formal betrothal to Ulama according to the usage of the country. Immediately the people began preparations to do honour to the event; and congratulations and marks of friendship and goodwill were showered upon the young couple by all those who were well affected towards the king. In the opposite camp, however, as might be expected, the announcement was differently received; and, indeed, the crafty Coryon took advantage of it to

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CHAPTER XXV. ‘IN THE DEVIL-TREE’S LARDER!’

Leonard awoke from a deep sleep, on the morning after the fête , to find himself, like Templemore, in a place that was strange to him. So profound had been the slumber induced by the drug that had been mixed with the drink, that he had been carried all the way to Coryon’s retreat in absolute unconsciousness. When he at last woke up, he was in one of the cells under the terrace within the reach of the great flesh-eating tree. No words can describe the horror and anguish that filled his breast whe

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CHAPTER XXVI. CORYON.

At sunrise on the morning of the day that was to have witnessed Leonard’s public betrothal he was sitting staring gloomily, through the grating of his cell, at the never-resting branches without, when the sounds of drums, on which a long tattoo was being beaten, broke on his ear. The sounds came from both near and far, some half-muffled in the galleries and caverns of the cliff, others echoing from one side to the other of the rocky enclosure till they died away in the far distance. Since the pr

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CHAPTER XXVII. ON THE ‘DEVIL-TREE’S LADLE!’

When Coryon sat down, a kind of buzzing or hum or talk in low tones broke out on all sides. Exclamations and expressions of astonishment were heard, for never had such audacity been known in a prisoner standing thus on the very brink of death and almost within reach of the clutch of the fatal tree. Leonard was now bound again, and Dakla sent two or three of his subordinate officers to stand beside him. But, even while they bound him, the guards, as he could hardly fail to see, treated him with a

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CHAPTER XXVIII. RALLYING TO THE CALL.

To make clearer the events described in the previous chapters, it should be stated that, when Templemore and Ergalon had returned from their journey down the canyon in quest of arms and ammunition, they found with Zonella, who was anxiously awaiting them, a messenger from Monella. It was not yet daylight, and the two who had made the descent and ascent of the difficult path under conditions of considerable hardship, were very much exhausted. They were therefore glad, though surprised, to find th

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CHAPTER XXIX. ‘THOU ART MY LORD MELLENDA!’

To return to the scene in the amphitheatre. Monella, and those with him, advanced with measured tread; but suddenly his eyes fell on Ulama. For a few moments he bent over her, then he came slowly to the front and looked around him, and in that rapid survey he seemed to take in everything. Beckoning to Leonard and Zonella he said, when they had joined him, “The princess lies there in a dead faint. This is no place for the poor child. Bear her tenderly outside. My people will protect you.” Then he

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CHAPTER XXX. A TERRIBLE VENGEANCE!

Of all the spectators of what had occurred in the amphitheatre, no one, probably, was so utterly astonished and helplessly bewildered as was Templemore. At Monella’s assumption of the royal office he felt no great surprise. It seemed almost a natural thing, taking all the circumstances into account, that the king, finding his daughter stolen away and himself too ill to pursue and punish her captors, should delegate his authority to the man in whom he had of late reposed such confidence. But at C

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CHAPTER XXXI. ‘THE SON OF APALANO!’

On leaving the amphitheatre, Monella and his followers formed a long and imposing procession. Only a few had been left behind to guard the prisoners. These last were immured in cells pointed out by Fernina, who was well acquainted with the interior arrangements of Coryon’s retreat. For within the rocks was an almost endless series of passages and galleries opening, at the further end, on to an extensive hanging terrace on the very face of the great precipice that formed one end of Roraima’s perp

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CHAPTER XXXII. THE TREE’S LAST MEAL.

“And now,” said Monella, “I have some other news to give you; for you have slept for nearly two days, and in that time much has been done. While you slept we have been busy.” “Do you never sleep—yourself?” Templemore asked. “Yes; but not for long at a time. However, the long rest you have taken is no reproach to you, for it was my doing. I saw that it was needful to restore your strength and good spirits. You are the better for it; the princess, the lady Zonella, and others have also had long re

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CHAPTER XXXIII. THE LAST OF THE GREAT DEVIL-TREE.

Templemore did not find the occupation of directing the operations for destroying the great devil-tree a very agreeable or engrossing one. His memories of the amphitheatre filled him with disgust and loathing both of the place and of the vegetable monster it contained, and he never went near them without reluctance; for all that, he stuck conscientiously to the task now that he had undertaken it. But there was neither excitement nor interest in it to keep his thoughts engaged, and to prevent the

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CHAPTER XXXIV. A MARRIAGE AND A PARTING.

In the ancient Temple of the White Priests Leonard and Ulama were solemnly made man and wife according to the custom of the country. King Dranoa was able to be present at the ceremony, and nearly the whole population may be said to have assisted, for they thronged in crowds to the great building where in ages past their kings had all been married; though comparatively few of the populace could find room inside the Temple. The remainder filled all the surrounding open spaces, and waited patiently

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CHAPTER XXXV. JUST IN TIME!

At sunrise, one morning, a fortnight after the events recorded in the last chapter, a party of travellers, consisting of three white men and a number of Indians, set out from the Indian village of Daranato, making their way in the direction of Roraima. The three white men were Dr. Lorien, his son Harry, and Robert Kingsford; and among the Indians was Matava. As they toiled along the rough path it was easy to see that the travellers were, for the most part, travel-worn and weary; they moved forwa

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CHAPTER XXXVI. THE END.

Templemore was carried, with much difficulty, to ‘Monella Lodge,’ where an attack of fever supervened, and it was nearly two weeks before the doctor pronounced him out of danger. Carenna came over from her village to nurse him, and tended him as devotedly as she had Leonard. In the height of the fever he raved constantly of the great devil-tree, of gigantic serpents, of Monella, and of ‘lost souls’; and, mixed up with all, were a number of names strange to those who listened to him; for he had b

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