Hawaii by Michener James A

Author:Michener, James A. [Michener, James A.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Adventure, Historical, Adult, Epic, Classic
ISBN: 9780375760372
Google: MAZbAAAAMAAJ
Amazon: 0375760377
Barnesnoble: 0375760377
Goodreads: 12658
Publisher: Fawcett
Published: 1959-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

“Gathering maile vines, as usual,” she said.

They saw the vines and believed. “If you see the Chinese in your clearing, come out to the road and report them.”

“I will,” the gigantic woman agreed, and slowly she moved on down the road.

Now Nyuk Tsin ran ahead, and it was fortunate that she did so, for when she reached the spot where she had left her husband, she saw that Mun Ki had disappeared, and she experienced a moment of despair, but she was soon able to pick up his tracks through the muddy leaves and she guessed that he was headed toward the highway, to give himself up. In panic Nyuk Tsin followed his trail and saw him just as he was about to climb an embankment and cry to passing strangers. Leaping ahead, she dashed up behind him and caught his legs, grappling with him and dragging him back down into the forest. “I have brought you food,” she gasped.

“Where?” he asked, sure that his wife’s empty hands proved the hoax.

“There!” Nyuk Tsin replied, and through the trees that edged the highway she pointed to the figure of a huge woman, rolling and wheezing along in a tentlike brown dress made of Boston fabric. She wore maile chains about her neck and an unconcerned, happy smile upon her enormous brown face.

“Who’s that?” Mun Ki whispered.

“Apikela,” his wife replied, and darted out to haul the Hawaiian maile-gatherer into the forest. The big woman looked at the leper’s sad condition and tears came into her eyes. Handing Nyuk Tsin the bundle of food, she gathered the scrawny Chinese to her capacious bosom and whispered, “We will take care of you.”

For nearly a month Apikela and her slothful husband Kimo sequestered the Chinese, sharing with them their meager supplies of food. Because there were now four to feed, Apikela had to go each day into the forest to gather maile, which her husband prepared for market by skillfully slitting the bark, cutting out the pithy core, and leaving a fragrant supple vine that could be woven into leis. Periodically he lugged the maile into Honolulu, peddling it among the flower merchants. With the money thus gained he would shoot a few games of pool, buy some breadfruit, a little pork and some rice. Since Hawaiians rarely ate rice, this purchase occasioned comment, which Kimo rebuffed by observing, “I’m switching to rice so I’ll be smart, like a Pake.”

Once when big, lazy Kimo ambled home with rice, Nyuk Tsin bit her lip and asked, “Why do you do this for us, Kimo?” And Apikela interrupted, saying, “When we were children going to the church we were often told of how Jesus loved the lepers, and it was a test of all good men how they treated those who were sick. And no leper ever came to Jesus without receiving aid, and no leper will come to the house of Kimo and Apikela to be turned away.”

“How much longer can we hide here?” Nyuk Tsin asked.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.