Cook's clothing, sword, hat,
were waved in scorn under the sailors' faces. The women had hurried to
the hills. The old king was hidden in a cave, where he could be
reached only by a rope ladder; and emissary after emissary tried to
lure the whites ashore. One pitch-dark night, paddles were heard under
the keels. The sentinels fired; but by lantern light two terrified
faces appeared above the rail of the _Resolution_. Two frightened,
trembling savages crawled over the deck, prostrated themselves at
Clerke's feet, and slowly unrolled a small wrapping of cloth that
revealed a small {207} piece of human flesh--the remains of Cook. Dead
silence fell on the horrified crew. Then Clerke's stern answer was
that unless the bones of Cook were brought to the ships, both native
villages would be destroyed. The two savages were former friends of
Cook's and warned the whites not to be allured on land, nor to trust
Koah, the leper priest, on the ships.
Again the conch-shells blew their challenge all night through the
darkness. Again the war fires danced; but next morning the guns of the
_Discovery_ were trained on Koah, when he tried to come on board.
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