ting the boat, Mr. Ch. was taken very ill
with fever, and I nursed him for some days; he was somewhat better by
Christmas Eve, and we had the satisfaction of bringing the saved launch
back to the station. He was visibly relieved, and his good humour was
agreeably felt by his boys as well as by his employes, to whom he sent
a goodly quantity of liquor to celebrate the occasion. We sat down to
a festive dinner and tried to realize that this was Christmas; but it
was so different from Christmas at home, that it was rather hard. At
our feet lay the wide bay, turquoise blue, edged with white surf;
in the distance rose the wonderful silhouette of Mota Lava Island;
white clouds travelled across the sky, and a gentle breeze rustled
in the palms of the forest. The peaceful picture showed no trace of
the fury with which the elements had fought so few days ago.

Tired with his exertions, Mr. Ch. withdrew early, and I soon followed;
but we were both aroused by the barking of the dogs, followed by the
pad of bare feet on the veranda, whispering and coughing, and then by
a song from rough and untrained throats. The singers were natives of
a Christian village some miles away, who came to sing Christmas hymns
in a strange, rough language, discordant and yet impressive. When
they had finished the director went out to them; he was a man whom one
would not have believed capable of any feeling, but he had tears in his
eyes; words failed him, and he thanked the singers by gestures. We all
went down to the store, where they sang to the employes, and received
presents; after which they spent the rest of the night with the hands,
singing, eating and chatting. On Christmas Day the natives roasted
a fat pig, the employes spent the day over their bottles, and I was
nurse once more, my patient being delirious and suffering very much.

Before New Year's Day the launch was sent to all the different
stations to fetch the employes, an interesting crowd of more or less
ruined individuals. There was a former gendarme from New Caledonia, a
cavalry captain, an officer who had been in the Boer war, an ex-priest,
a clerk, a banker and a cowboy, all very pleasant people as long as
they were sober; but the arrival of each was celebrated with several
bottles, which the director handed out without any demur, although the
amount was prodigious. Quarrels ensued; but by New Year's Eve peace was
restored, and we all decorated the director's house with wreaths for