What man could have served me as he did? He has given me
Iris. He gained for me at her father's hands a concession such as
mortal has seldom wrested from black-browed fate. He brought my uncle
to my side in the hour of my adversity. Hate him! I would have his
statue carved in marble, and set on high to tell all who passed how
good may spring out of evil--how God's wisdom can manifest itself by
putting even the creeping and crawling things of the earth to some
useful purpose."
"Dash it all, lad," vociferated the elder Anstruther, "what ails thee?
I never heard you talk like this before!"
The old gentleman's amazement was so comical that further tension was
out of the question.
Robert, in calmer mood, informed them of the manner in which he hit
upon the mine. The story sounded like wildest romance--this finding of
a volcanic dyke guarded by the bones of "J.S." and the poison-filled
quarry--but the production of the ore samples changed wonder into
certainty.
Next day a government metallurgist estimated the value of the contents
of the two oil-tins at about £500, yet the specimens brought from the
island were not by any means the richest available.
And now there is not much more to tell of Rainbow Island and its
castaways. On the day that Captain Robert Anstruther's name appeared in
the Gazette, reinstating him to his rank and regiment, Iris and
he were married in the English Church at Hong Kong, for it was his
wife's wish that the place which witnessed his ignominy should also
witness his triumph.
A good-natured admiral decided that the urgent requirements of the
British Navy should bring H.M.S. Orient to the island before the
date fixed for the ceremony. Lieutenant Playdon officiated as best man,
whilst the Orient was left so scandalously short-handed for many
hours that a hostile vessel, at least twice her size, might have
ventured to attack her.
Soon afterwards, Robert resigned his commission. He regretted the
necessity, but the demands of his new sphere in life rendered this step
imperative. Mining engineers, laborers, stores, portable houses,
engines, and equipment were obtained with all haste, and the whole
party sailed on one of Sir Arthur Deane's ships to convoy a small
steamer specially hired to attend to the wants of the miners.
At last, one evening, early in July, the two vessels anchored outside
Palm-tree Rock, and Mir Jan could be seen running frantically about the
shore, for no valid reason save that he could not stand still. The
sahib brought him good news. The Governor of Hong Kong felt that any
reasonable request made by Anstruther should be granted if possible. He
had written such a strong representation of the Mahommedan's case to
the Government of India that there was little doubt the returning mail
would convey an official notification that Mir Jan, formerly
naik in the Kumaon Rissala--he who once killed a man--had been
granted a free pardon.
The mining experts verified Robert's most sanguine views after a very
brief examination of the deposit. Hardly any preliminary work was
needed. In twenty-four hours a small concentrating plant was erected,
and a ditch made to drain off the carbonic anhydride in the valley.
After dusk a party of coolies cleared the quarry of its former
occupants. Towards the close of the following day, when the great
steamer once more slowly turned her head to the north-west, Iris could
hear the steady thud of an engine at work on the first consignment of
ore.
Robert had been busy up to the last moment. There was so much to be
done in a short space of time. The vessel carried a large number of
passengers, and he did not wish to detain them too long, though they
one and all expressed their willingness to suit his convenience in this
respect.
Now his share of the necessary preparations was concluded. His wife,
Sir Arthur and his uncle were gathered in a corner of the promenade
deck when he approached and told them that his last instruction ashore
was for a light to be fixed on Summit Rock as soon as the dynamo was in
working order.
"When we all come back in the cold weather," he explained gleefully,
"we will not imitate the Sirdar by running on to the reef,
should we arrive by night."
Iris answered not. Her blue eyes were fixed on the fast-receding
cliffs.
"Sweetheart," said her husband, "why are you so silent?"
She turned to him. The light of the setting sun! illumined her face
with its golden radiance.
"Because I am so happy," she said. "Oh, Robert, dear, so happy and
thankful."
* * * * *
POSTSCRIPT
The latest news of Col. and Mrs. Anstruther is contained in a letter
written by an elderly maiden lady, resident in the North Riding of
Yorkshire, to a friend in London. It is dated some four years after the
events already recorded.
Although its information is garbled and, to a certain extent,
inaccurate, those who have followed the adventures of the young couple
under discussion will be able to appreciate its opinions at their true
value. When the writer states facts, of course, her veracity is
unquestionable, but occasionally she flounders badly when she depends
upon her own judgment.
Here is the letter:
"MY DEAR HELEN:
"I have not seen or heard of you during so long a time that I am
simply dying to tell you all that is happening here. You
will remember that some people named Anstruther bought the Fairlawn
estate near our village some three years ago. They are, as you
know, enormously rich. The doctor tells me that when they
are not squeezing money out of the wretched Chinese, they dig it in
barrow-loads out of some magic island in the Atlantic or the
Pacific--I really forget which.
"Anyhow, they could afford to entertain much more than they
do. Mrs. Anstruther is very nice looking, and could be a leader of
society if she chose, but she seems to care for no one but
her husband and her babies. She has a boy and a girl, very charming
children, I admit, and you seldom see her without them. They have a
French bonne apiece, and a most murderous-looking
person--a Mahommedan native, I believe--stalks alongside and
behaves as if he would instantly decapitate any person who
as much as looked at them. Such a procession you never saw! Mrs.
Anstruther's devotion to her husband is too absurd. He is a
tall, handsome man, of distinguished appearance, but on the few
occasions I have spoken to him he impressed me as somewhat
taciturn. Yet to see the way in which his wife even
looks at him you would imagine that he had not his equal in
the world!
"I believe there is some secret in their lives. Colonel
Anstruther used to be in the army--he is now in command of our
local yeomanry--and although his name is 'Robert,' tout
court, I have often heard Mrs. Anstruther call him 'Jenks.'
Their boy, too, is christened Robert Jenks Anstruther.' Now,
my dear Helen, do make inquiries about them in town circles.
I particularly wish you to find out who is this person
'Jenks'--a most vulgar name. I am sure you will unearth something
curious, because Mrs. Anstruther was a Miss Deane, daughter of the
baronet, and Anstruther's people are well known in Yorkshire. There
are absolutely no Jenkses connected with them on either side.
"I think I can help you by another clue, as a very
odd incident occurred at our hunt ball last week. The
Anstruthers, I must tell you, usually go away for the winter, to
China, or to their fabulous island. This year they remained at
home, and Colonel Anstruther became M.F.H., as he is certainly a
most liberal man so far as sport and charity are
concerned.
"Well, dear, the Dodgsons--you remember the Leeds clothier
people--having contrived to enter county society, invited
the Earl of Ventnor down for the ball. He, it seems, knew nothing
about Anstruther being M.F.H., and of course Mrs. Anstruther
received. The moment Lord Ventnor heard her name he was very
angry. He said he did not care to meet her, and left for London by
the next train. The Dodgsons were awfully annoyed with him,
and Mrs. Dodgson had the bad taste to tell Mrs, Anstruther all
about it. And what do you think she said--'Lord Ventnor need
not have been so frightened. My husband has not brought his
hunting-crop with him!'
"I was not there, but young Barker told me that Mrs. Anstruther
looked very impressive as she said this. 'Stunning!' was the
word he used, but young Barker is a fool, and thinks Mrs. A.
is the most beautiful woman in Yorkshire. Her dress, they say, was
magnificent, which I can hardly credit, as she usually goes
about in the plainest tailor-made clothes. By the way. I
forgot to mention that the Anstruthers have restored our parish
church. The vicar, of course, is enraptured with them. I dislike
people who are so free with their money and yet reserved in their
friendship. It is a sure sign, when they court popularity,
that they dread something leaking out about the past.
"Do write soon. Don't forget 'Jenks' and 'Lord Ventnor';
those are the lines of inquiry.
"Yours,
"MATILDA.
"PS.--Perhaps I am misjudging them. Mrs. Anstruther has just sent
me an invitation to an 'At Home' next Thursday.--M.
"PPS.--Dear me, this letter will never get away, I have just
destroyed another envelope to tell you that the vicar came in to
tea. From what he told me about Lord Ventnor, I imagine that Mrs.
Anstruther said no more than he deserved.--M."
NOTE.--Colonel Anstruther's agents discovered, after long and costly
inquiry, that a Shields man named James Spence, a marine engineer,
having worked for a time as a miner in California, shipped as third
engineer on a vessel bound for Shanghai. There be quitted her. He
passed some time ashore in dissipation, took another job on a Chinese
river steamer, and was last heard of some eighteen months before the
Sirdar was wrecked. He then informed a Chinese boarding-house
keeper that he was going to make his fortune by accompanying some
deep-sea fishermen, and he bought some stores and tools from a
marine-store dealer. No one knew when or where he went, but from that
date all trace of him disappeared. The only persons who mourned his
loss were his mother and sister. The last letter they received from him
was posted in Shanghai. Though the evidence connecting him with the
recluse of Rainbow Island was slight, and purely circumstantial,
Colonel Anstruther provided for the future of his relatives in a manner
that secured their lasting gratitude.