Uncanny Tales Read online

  II

  THE ARMLESS MAN

  I first met Bob Masters in the hotel at a place called Fourteen Streams,not very far from Kimberley.

  I had for some months been trying to find gold or diamonds by diggingholes in the veldt. But since this has little or nothing to do with thestory, I pass by my mining adventures and come back to the hotel. I cameto it very readily that afternoon, for I was very thirsty.

  A tall man standing at the bar turned his head as I entered and said"Good-day" to me. I returned the compliment, but took no particularnotice of him at first.

  Suddenly I heard the man say to the barman:

  "I'm ready for another drink."

  That surprised me, because his glass was still three-quarters full. ButI was still more startled by the action of the barman who lifted up theglass and held it whilst the man drank.

  Then I saw the reason. The man had no arms.

  You know the easy way in which Englishmen chum together anywhere out ofEngland, whilst in their native country nothing save a formalintroduction will make them acquainted? I made some remark to Masterswhich led to another from him, and in five minutes' time we werechatting on all sorts of topics.

  I learnt that Masters, bound for England, had come in to FourteenStreams to catch the train from Kimberley, and, having a few hours towait, had strolled up to the collection of tin huts calling itself atown.

  I was going down to Kimberley too, so of course we went together, andwere quite old friends by the time we reached that city.

  We had a wash and something to eat, and then we walked round to thepost-office. I used to have my letters addressed there, _posterestante_, and call in for them when I happened to be in Kimberley.

  I found several letters, one of which altered the whole course of mylife. This was from Messrs. Harvey, Filson, and Harvey, solicitors,Lincoln's Inn Fields. It informed me that the sudden death of my cousinhad so affected my uncle's health that he had followed his only sonwithin the month. The senior branch of the family being thus extinct thewhole of the entailed estate had devolved on me.

  The first thing I did was to send off two cablegrams to say that I wascoming home by the first available boat, one to the solicitors, theother to Nancy Milward.

  Masters and I arranged to come home together and eventually reached CapeTown. There we had considerable trouble at the shipping office. It wasjust about the time of year when people who live in Africa to makemoney, come over to England to spend it, and in consequence the boatswere very crowded. Masters demanded a cabin to himself, a luxury whichwas not to be had, though there was one that he and I could share. Hemade a tremendous fuss about doing this, and I thought it very strange,because I had assisted him in many ways which his mutilation renderednecessary. However, he had to give way in the end, and we embarked onthe Castle liner.

  On the voyage he told me how he had lost his arms. It seemed that he hadbeen sent up country on some Government job or other, and had had theill-fortune to be captured by the natives. They treated him quite wellat first, but gave him to understand that he must not try to escape. Isuppose that to most men such a warning would be a direct incitement tomake the attempt. Masters made it and failed. They cut off his right armas a punishment. He waited until the wound was healed and tried again.Again he failed. This time they cut off his other arm.

  "Good Lord," I cried. "What devils!"

  "Weren't they!" he said. "And yet, you know, they were quitegood-tempered chaps when you didn't cross them. I wasn't going to bebeaten by a lot of naked niggers though, and I made a third attempt.

  "I succeeded all right that time, though, of course, it was much moredifficult. I really don't know at all how I managed to worry through.You see, I could only eat plants and leaves and such fruit as I cameacross; but I'd learnt as much as I could of the local botany in theintervals."

  "Was it worth while?" I asked. "I think the first failure and its resultwould have satisfied me."

  "Yes," he said slowly, "it was worth while. You see, my wife was waitingfor me at home, and I wanted to see her again very badly--you don'tknow how badly."

  "I think I can imagine," I said. "Because there is a girl waiting for metoo at home."

  "I saw her before she died," he continued.

  "Died?" I said.

  "Yes," he answered. "She was dying when I reached home at last, but Iwas with her at the end. That was something, wasn't it?"

  I do hate people to tell me this sort of thing. Not because I do notfeel sorry for them; on the contrary, I feel so sorry that I absolutelyfail to find words to express my sympathy. I tried, however, to show itin other ways, by the attentions I paid him and by anticipating hisevery wish.

  Yet there were many things that were astonishing about his actions,things that I wonder now I did not realise must have been impossible forhim to do for himself, and that yet were done. But he was sosurprisingly dexterous with his lips, and feet too, when he was in hiscabin that I suppose I put them down to that.

  I remember waking up one night and looking out of my bunk to see himstanding on the floor. The cabin was only faintly lit by a moonbeamwhich found its way through the porthole. I could not see clearly, but Ifancied that he walked to the door and opened it, and closed it behindhim. He did it all very quickly, as quickly as I could have done it. AsI say, I was very sleepy, but the sight of the door opening and shuttinglike that woke me thoroughly. Sitting up I shouted at him.

  He heard me and opened the door again, easily, too, much more easilythan he seemed to be able to shut it when he saw me looking at him.

  "Hullo! Awake, old chap?" he said. "What is it?"

  "Er--nothing," I said. "Or rather I suppose I was only half awake; butyou seemed to open that door so easily that it quite startled me."

  "One does not always like to let others see the shifts to which one hasto resort," was all the answer he gave me.

  But I worried over it. The thing bothered me, because he had made noattempt to explain.

  That was not the only thing I noticed.

  Two or three days later we were sitting together on deck. I had offeredto read to him. I noticed that he got up out of his chair. Suddenly Isaw the chair move. It gave me a great shock, for the chair twistedapparently of its own volition, so that when he sat down again thesunlight was at his back and not in his eyes, as I knew it had beenpreviously. But I reasoned with myself and managed to satisfy myselfthat he must have turned the chair round with his foot. It was justpossible that he could have done so, for it had one of those lightwicker-work seats.

  We had a lovely voyage for three-quarters of the way, and the sea was ascalm as any duck-pond. But that was all altered when we passed CapeFinisterre. I have done a lot of knocking about on the ocean one way andanother, but I never saw the Bay of Biscay deserve its reputationbetter.

  I'd much rather see what is going on than be cooped up below, and afterlunch I told Bob I was going up on deck.

  "I'll only stay there for a bit," I said. "You make yourself comfortabledown here."

  I filled his pipe, put it in his mouth, and gave him a match; then Ileft him.

  I made my way up and down the deck for a time, clutching hold ofeverything handy, and rather enjoyed it, though the waves drenched me tothe skin.

  Presently I saw Masters come out of the companion-way and make his wayvery skilfully towards me. Of course it was fearfully dangerous for him.

  I staggered towards him, and, putting my lips to his ear, shouted to himto go below at once.

  "Oh, I shall be all right!" he said, and laughed.

  "You'll be drowned--drowned," I screamed. "There was a wave just nowthat--well, if I hadn't been able to cling on with both hands like grimdeath, I should have gone overboard. Go below."

  He laughed again and shook his head.

  And then what I dreaded happened. A vast mountain of green water liftedup its bulk and fell upon us in a ravening cataract. I clutched atMasters, but trying to save him and myself handicapped me badly. Thestrength
of that mass of water was terrible. It seemed to snatch ateverything with giant hands, and drag all with it. It tossed a hen-coophigh, and carried it through the rails.

  I felt the grip of my right hand loosen, and the next instant wascarried, still clutching Masters with my left, towards that gap in thebulwark.

  I managed to seize the end of the broken rail. It held us for a moment,then gave, and for a moment I hung sheer over the vessel's side.

  In that instant I felt fingers tighten on my arm, tighten till they bitinto the flesh, and I was pulled back into safety.

  Together we staggered back, and got below somehow. I was trembling likea leaf, and the sweat dripped from me. I almost screamed aloud.

  It was not that I was frightened of death. I've seen too much of that inmany parts of the earth to dread it greatly. It was the thought of thosefingers tightening on me where no fingers were.

  Masters did not speak a word, nor did I, until we found ourselves in thecabin.

  I tore the wet clothes off me and turned my arm to the mirror. I knew Icould not have been mistaken when I felt them.

  There on the upper arm, above the line of sunburn that one gets fromworking with sleeves rolled up, there on the white skin showed _the redmarks of four slender fingers and a thumb_! I sat down suddenly at sightof them, and pulling open a drawer, found a flask of neat brandy, andgulped it down, emptied it in one gulp.

  Then I turned to him and pointed to the marks.

  "In God's name, how came these here?" I said. "What--what happened upthere on deck?"

  He looked at me very gravely.

  "I saved you," he said, "or rather I didn't, for I could not. But _she_did."

  "What do you mean?" I stammered.

  "Let me get these clothes off," he said, "and some dry ones on; and I'lltell you."

  Words fail to describe my feelings as I watched the clothes come off himand dry ones go on just as if hands were arranging them.

  I sat and shuddered. I tried to close my eyes, but the weird, unnaturalsight drew them as a lodestone.

  "I'm sorry that you should have had this shock," he said. "I know whatit must have been like, though it was not so bad for me when they seemedto come, for they came gradually as time went on."

  "What came gradually?" I asked.

  "Why, these arms! They're what I'm telling you about. You asked me totell you, I thought?"

  "Did I?" I said. "I don't know what I'm saying or asking. I think I'mgoing mad, quite mad."

  "No," he said, "you're as sane as I am, only when you come acrosssomething strange, unique for that matter, you are naturally terrified.Well, it was like this. I told you about my adventures with the niggersup country. That was quite true. They cut off both my arms--you can seethe stumps for that matter. And I told you that I came home to find mywife dying. Her heart had always been weak, I'd known that, and it hadgradually grown more feeble. There must have been, indeed there was, astrange sort of telepathy between us. She had had fearful attacks ofheart failure on both occasions when the niggers had mutilated me, Ilearnt on comparing notes.

  "But I had known too, somehow, that I must escape at all costs. It wasthe knowledge that made me try again after each failure. I should havegone on trying to escape as long as I had lived, or rather as long asshe had lived. I knelt beside her bed and she put out her arms and laidthem round my neck.

  "'So you have come back to me before I go,' she said. 'I knew you must,because I called you so. But you have been long in coming, almost toolong. But I knew I had to see you again before I died.'

  "I broke down then. I was sorely tried. No arms even to put round her!

  "'Darling, stay with me for a little, only for a little while!' Isobbed.

  "She shook her head feebly. 'It is no use, my dear,' she said, 'I mustgo.'

  "'I'll come with you,' I said, 'I'll not live without you.'

  "She shook her head again.

  "'You must be brave, Bob. I shall be watching you afterwards just asmuch as if I still lived on earth. If only I could give you my arms! Apoor, weak woman's arms, but better than none, dear.'

  "She died some weeks later. I spent all the time at her bedside, Ihardly left her. Her arms were round me when she died. Shall I ever feelthem round me again? I wonder! You see, they are mine now.

  "They came to me gradually. It was very strange at first to have armsand hands which one couldn't see. I used to keep my eyes shut as much aspossible, and try to fancy that I had never lost my arms.

  "I got used to them in time. But I have always been careful not to letpeople see me do things that they would know to be impossible for anarmless man. That was what took me to Africa again, because I could getlost there and do things for myself with these hands."

  "'And they twain shall be one flesh,'" I muttered.

  "Yes," he said, "I think the explanation must be something of that sort.There's more than that in it, though; these arms are other than flesh."

  He sat silent for a time with his head bowed on his chest. Then he spokeagain:

  "I got sick of being alone at last, and was coming back when I met youat Fourteen Streams. I don't know what I shall do when I do get home. Ican never rest. I have--what do they call it--_Wanderlust_?"

  "Does she ever speak to you from that other world?" I asked him.

  He shook his head sadly.

  "No, never. But I know she lives somewhere beyond this world of ours.She must, because these arms live. So I try always to act as if shewatches everything. I always try to do the right thing, but, anyway,these arms and hands would do good of their own accord. Just now up onthe deck I was very frightened. I'd have saved myself at any costalmost, and let you go. But I could not do that. The hands clutched you.It is her will, so much stronger and purer than mine, that stillpersists. It is only when she does not exert it that I control thesearms."

  That was how I learnt the strangest tale that ever a man was told, andknew the miracle to which I owed my life.

  It may be that Bob Masters was a coward. He always said that he was.Personally I do not believe it, for he had the sweetest nature I evermet.

  He had nowhere to go to in England and seemed to have no friends. So Imade him come down with me to Englehart, that dear old country seat ofmy family in the Western shires which was now mine.

  Nancy lived in that country, too.

  There was no reason why we should not get married at once. We had waitedlong enough.

  I can see again the old, ivy-grown church where Nancy and I were wed,and Bob Masters standing by my side as best man.

  I remember feeling in his pocket for the ring, and as I did so, I felt ahand grasp mine for a moment.

  Then there was the reception afterwards, and speech-making--the usualsort of thing.

  Later Nancy and I drove off to the station.

  We had not said good-bye to Bob, for he'd insisted on driving to thestation with the luggage; said he was going to see the last of us there.

  He was waiting for us in the yard when we reached it, and walked with uson to the platform.

  We stood there chatting about one thing and another, when I noticed thatNancy was not talking much and seemed rather pale. I was just going toremark on it when we heard the whistle of the train. There is a sharpcurve in the permanent way outside the station, so that a train is onyou all of a sudden.

  Suddenly to my horror I saw Nancy sway backwards towards the edge of theplatform. I tried vainly to catch her as she reeled and fell--right infront of the oncoming train. I sprang forward to leap after her, buthands grasped me and flung me back so violently that I fell down on theplatform.

  It was Bob Masters who took the place that should have been mine, andleapt upon the metals.

  I could not see what happened then. The station-master says he saw Nancylifted from before the engine when it was right upon her. He says it wasas if she was lifted by the wind. She was quite close to Masters. "Nearenough for him to have lifted her, sir, if he'd had arms." The two ofthem staggered for a moment,
and together fell clear of the train.

  Nancy was little the worse for the awful accident, bruised, of course,but poor Masters was unconscious.

  We carried him into the waiting-room, laid him on the cushions there,and sent hot-foot for the doctor.

  He was a good country practitioner, and, I suppose, knew the ordinaryroutine of his work quite well. He fussed about, hummed and hawed a lot.

  "Yes, yes," he said, as if he were trying to persuade himself. "Shock,you know. He'll be better presently. Lucky, though, that he had noarms."

  I noticed then, for the first time, that the sleeves of the coat hadbeen shorn away.

  "Doctor," I said, "how is he? Surely, if he isn't hurt he would not looklike that. What exactly do you mean by shock?"

  "Hum--er," he hesitated, and applied his stethoscope to Masters' heartagain.

  "The heart is very weak," he said at length. "Very weak. He's alwaysvery anaemic, I suppose?"

  "No," I answered. "He's anything but that. He's----Good Lord, he'sbleeding to death! Put ligatures on his arms. Put ligatures on hisarms."

  "Please keep quiet, Mr. Riverston," the doctor said. "It must have beena dreadful experience for you, and you are naturally very upset."

  I raved and cursed at him. I think I should have struck him, but theothers held me. They said they would take me away if I did not keepquiet.

  Bob Masters opened his eyes presently, and saw them holding me.

  "Please let him go," he said. "It's all right, old man. It's no use yourarguing with them, they would not understand. I could never explain tothem now, and they would never believe you. Besides, it's all for thebest. Yes, the train went over them and I'm armless for the second time.But--not for long!"

  I knelt by his side and sobbed. It all seemed so dreadful, and yet, Idon't think that then I would have tried to stay his passing. I knew itwas best for him.

  He looked at me very affectionately.

  "I'm so sorry that this should happen on your wedding-day," he said."But it would have been so much worse for you if _she_ had not helped."

  His voice grew fainter and died away.

  There was a pause for a time, and his breath came in great sighing sobs.

  Then suddenly he raised himself on the cushions until he stood uprighton his feet, and a smile broke over his face--a smile so sweet that Ithink the angels in Paradise must look like that.

  His voice came strong and loud from his lips.

  "Darling!" he cried. "Darling, your arms are round me once again! Icome! I come!"

  * * * * *

  "One of the most extraordinary cases I have ever met with," the doctortold the coroner at the inquest. "He seemed to have all the symptoms ofexcessive haemorrhage."