To have ordered him away would have clouded his beaming happiness; so he
remained, and told us exactly what he thought of our possessions, adding
much to the pleasure of the opening of the trunks. If any woman would
experience real pleasure, let her pack all her belongings into
trunks - all but a couple of changes of everything - and go away out-bush,
leaving them to follow "after the Wet" per bullock waggon, and when the
reunion takes place the pleasure will be forthcoming. If she can find a
Cheon to be present at the reunion, so much the better.
Some of our belongings Cheon thoroughly approved of; others were passed
over as unworthy of notice; and others were held up to chuckling
ridicule. A silver teapot was pounced upon with a cry of delight
(tinware being considered far beneath the dignity of a missus, and seeing
Sam had broken the china pot soon after its arrival, tinware had graced
our board for some time), pictures were looked at askance, particularly
an engraving of Psyche at the Pool; while the case for a set of carvers
received boundless admiration, although the carvers in no way interested
him.
The photographs of friends and relatives were looked carefully over, the
womenfolk being judged by what they might bring in a Chinese matrimonial
market.
"My word! That one good-looking. Him close up sixty pound longa China,"
was rather disconcerting praise of a very particular lady friend.
A brass lamp was looked upon as a monument of solid wealth, "Him gold,"
he decided, insisting it was in the face of all denials. "Him gold. Me
savey gold all right. Me live longa California long time," he said,
bringing forward a most convincing argument; and, dismissing the subject
with one of his Podsnapian waves, he decided that a silver-coloured
composition flower-bowl in the form of a swan was solid silver; "Him sing
out all a same silver," he said, making it ring with a flick of his
finger and thumb, when I differed from him, and knowing Cheon by now, we
left it at that for the time being.
After wandering through several trunks and gloating over blouses, and
skirts, and house-linen, and old friends the books were opened up, and
before the Maluka became lost to the world Cheon favoured them with a
passing glance. "Big mob book," he said indifferently, and turned his
attention to the last trunk of all.
Near the top was a silver filigree candlestick moulded into the form of a
Convolvulus flower and leaf - a dainty little thing, but it appeared
ridiculous to Cheon's commonsense mind.
"Him silly fellow," he scoffed, and appealed to the Maluka for his
opinion:
