Chapter 53 fifty three

"Look, there's Captain Bruno," she exclaimed one day, while I was putting together in my mind the bits and pieces of the story Tiare told me about Strickland. "This man knows Strickland well. He's been to where Strickland lives." What I saw was a Frenchman past middle age, with a large black beard, much of it graying, with a tanned face and large, shining eyes.He was wearing a neat canvas suit.In fact, I had already noticed him during lunch. Alin, a Chinese waiter at the hotel, told me that he came from Baumotus Island, and the boat he took had just landed that day.Tiare introduced me to him; he handed me a card.The business card was very large, with his name printed on it—René Bruneau, and the following small characters read "Captain of the Dragon Valley".I was sitting with Tiare on a little lanai outside the kitchen, and Tiare was cutting a dress for one of her girls.Captain Bruno sat down with us.

"Yes, I know Strickland well," said he. "I like to play chess, and he will play with him as long as he finds a chess friend. I come to Tahiti three or four times a year for business matters. If he happens to be in Papeete, he always wants to play with me." A few dishes. Later, he married"—Captain Bruno smiled at the word married and shrugged his shoulders—"before he went to live in the country with the girl Tiare introduced him to. , he invited me to have a chance to see him. I was one of the guests on the day of the wedding." He glanced at Tiare, and they both smiled. "He seldom came to Papeete since we were married. After about a year, I happened to be in the neighborhood where he lived, for an errand I forget. When the errand was over, I told myself said: 'Well, why don't I go and see poor Strickland?' I asked one or two of the natives if they knew of such a man, and I found out where he lived It was less than five kilometers away from my place. So I went. The impression of my visit this time will never be forgotten. My home is on Coral Island, which is a low ring-shaped island surrounded by a lagoon. The The beauty of the place is the beauty of the sea and the sky. It is the changing colors of the lake and the swaying of the coconut trees. But where Strickland lives is another kind of beauty, as if living in the Garden of Eden. Oh, I wish I could describe to you that bewitching place. A secluded corner, secluded from the world, with a blue sky overhead, surrounded by lush trees. There are endless colors and fragrances. The fragrance of the earth, the cool air of shade. This paradise on earth is indescribable. He lived there, not caring about the affairs of the world, and the world completely forgot him. In the eyes of Europeans, I think, that The place may seem a bit too squalid; the house is shabby and not kept clean at all. As soon as I approached the house, I saw three or four local people lying on the balcony. You know people here always love Together. I saw a young man lying sprawled on the ground, smoking a cigarette, wearing nothing but a Palio."

The so-called palio is a long strip of red or blue cotton cloth printed with white patterns, which is wrapped around the waist and draped over the knees. "A girl, about fifteen or sixteen years old, was weaving a straw hat out of pineapple leaves, and an old woman was squatting on the ground smoking a pipe. I saw Ata later. She was nursing a newborn child, and another , bare bottom, playing at her feet. When Ata saw me, she greeted Strickland. Strickland walked from the house to the door. He also only wore a Pali Oh. He has a big red beard, his hair is sticky, and his chest is covered with hair. He looks really weird. His feet are calloused and have many scars. I can tell he never wears them. Shoes. In fact, he is more rustic than the locals. He seemed very happy to see me, and told Ata to kill a chicken to entertain me. He led me into the house, and showed me when I came. A picture I drew. There is a bed in a corner of the room, an easel in the middle, and a piece of canvas nailed to the easel. Because I think he is very pitiful, I bought some of his paintings for a small price. These I sent most of the paintings to my friends in France. Although I bought these paintings out of sympathy for him, after a long time, I still like them. I find these paintings have a strange beauty. Call me crazy, but it turns out I was right. I was the first person in the area to appreciate his paintings."

He smiled gleefully at Tiare.And again Tiares recounted to us the old story of how, when the estate of Strickland was auctioned off, she paid no attention to his paintings, and bought them for only twenty-seven francs. An American kerosene stove. "Do you still have these paintings?" I asked. "Yes. I still keep it. I will sell it when my daughter reaches the age of marriage and give it to her as a dowry." He went on to tell us about his visit to Strickland. "I'll never forget the evening I spent with him. I wanted to stay with him for only an hour, but he insisted on keeping me overnight. I hesitated for a while; and to tell you the truth, I didn't like his suggestion. Called the straw mat I slept on. But in the end I shrugged my shoulders and agreed to stay. When I built myself a house on Baumotus, I slept out in the open for weeks Here, the bed I sleep on is much harder than this straw mat, covered only with grass leaves. When it comes to biting bugs, my hard and thick skin is really the best defense.

"While Ata was preparing supper for us, Strickland and I went down to the creek to take a bath. After supper we sat on the terrace to enjoy the shade. We smoked and chatted. I came The young man I saw at the time had an accordion, and he played the tunes that were popular in the concert hall more than ten years ago. On a tropical night, in such a place thousands of miles away from human civilization, these tunes gave people a sense of A strange feeling. I asked Strickland if he found it disgusting to live with all kinds of people in such a random way. He replied no; he liked that his model was right in front of him. After that Soon the natives were yawning loudly and going to bed, and Strickland and I were alone on the terrace. I cannot describe to you how still the night was. On our island of Poumatus, night It has never been so quiet here. There are a thousand kinds of small animals rustling on the seashore. There are all kinds of small crustacean things that never stop crawling around, and there are others that live on the land. crabs scrabbling past. Sometimes you can hear the fish jumping in the lagoon, and at other times a brown shark starts the other fish and makes the lake crackle. splashing. But overriding all this noise was the rumbling of the sea against the rocks, which, like time, never ceases. But here there was no sound at all, and the air was filled with the scent of white flowers that bloomed at night. Here the The night is so beautiful that your soul seems unable to bear the shackles of the body. You feel that at any moment your soul may float into the ethereal space, and the face of death is as familiar as your dear friend."

Tiari sighed. "Oh, I wish I was fifteen again." At this time, she suddenly saw a cat stealing prawns from the kitchen table. Following a string of curses, she swiftly and accurately threw a book on the tail of the fleeing cat. "I asked him if he was happy with Ata." "'She doesn't bother me,' he said. 'She cooks for me and looks after the children. She does what I tell her to do. She gives me everything I ask of a woman.'" "'Have you never regretted leaving Europe? Do you sometimes miss the lights of the streets of Paris or London? Miss your friends, your companions? And things I don't know, theaters, newspapers, public The sound of carriages rumbling over cobbled roads?'”

For a long, long time, he didn't say a word.Finally he said: "'I'm willing to stay here until I die.'" "'But you're never bored, never lonely?'" I asked. He giggled a few times. "'My poor friend,' said he, 'it is quite clear that you do not know what it is to be an artist.'" Captain Bruno turned his head and smiled at me, with a strange gleam in his kindly black eyes. "It's so unfair of him to say that, because I know what it means to dream. I have fantasies myself. In a way, I'm an artist myself."

We didn't speak for a long time.Tiari took a handful of cigarettes from her wide pocket and handed us each one.All three of us started smoking.At last she spoke: "Since this gentleman is interested in Strickland, why don't you take him to see Dr. Coutras? He can tell him something about how Strickland fell ill and died. ,etc." "I'd love to," said the captain, looking at me. I thank him.He looked at his watch. "It's past six o'clock now. If you'll come with me, I think he's at home at this time." Without saying a word, I stood up immediately; we both walked to the doctor's house immediately.Kutras lives outside the city, and the Flower Hotel is on the edge of the city, so within a few steps, we have already reached the countryside.The road is wide, and the pepper trees shade it all the way.The road is lined with coconut and vanilla plantations.A small bird, known locally as a pirate bird, chirped among the palm tree leaves.On our way we passed a shallow stream with a stone bridge over it; we stood for a while on the bridge and watched local children playing in the water.They laughed, shouted, and chased each other in the water, their little brown bodies dripping with water and glistening in the sun.