The Ebbing of the Tide

This second collection of Louis Becke's stories highlights the rough side of paradise. Love, lust, honor, betrayal, passion, indifference, honesty, and villainy--all these traits are shared by native and foreigner alike in these tales of adventure, greed, and passion. First published in the late 19th Century, Becke spoke to an audience hungry for information about the South Seas. But even as it was being penned, the region he knew so well had become more settled by Western culture and "civilization" had begun to take its toll on the native population, both physically and psychologically.