Island Hideaway 43 - The first dodo lecture​​

Before she left, Mo translated what she had learnt about the dodos. She tried to teach me to speak dodo, but I struggled with the arm positions but was too two-dimensional. I could get the general position of arms at 3 o'clock or whatever, but I couldn't see the subtle differences, right arm pushed slightly forward, left back, which was the difference between the word for 'ant' and the dodo word for 'lettuce'. I consequently caused a great deal of confusion wherever I went.​​​

​​​Failing to teach me the language, Mo decided to teach me at least the important tales of dodo history and legend.​​​

​​​The most oft told dodo legend is that of the Great Hide.​​​

​​​One day thousands of humans descended on the island. As is their nature, the dodos went into hiding. They had no previous dealings with humans, but unlike their Mauritian cousins, they didn't trust them. No good would come of these strange beings, is what the dodos thought. ​​​

​​​The dodos have, of course, no idea why humans suddenly decided to come here, nor do they have an accurate estimation of the numbers, thousands seems extreme, yet who can be sure? Maybe there was some famine or virus on the mainland which caused people to leave en masse, but maybe living on an island just became fashionable. Human beings, it has to be said, are as much of a mystery to me as they are to the dodos. ​​​

​​​All they know was that mankind suddenly descended on the island in their hundreds, maybe thousands. For the dodos, it was the greatest game of hide and seek ever, they all went into hiding, even the males. From their hideouts in the bushes they saw everything. Mankind started building houses and planting foods, it's the reason why, hundreds or thousands of years later, the island is so rich with such a diverse range of plants.​​​

​​​Trees were chopped down to build houses and to clear ground for more houses, for which more trees were chopped down. In no time at all there were disputes, with houses being built on areas that had just been planted with new fruit trees, corn or other seeds. There seemed, to the dodos at least, no sensible attempt to allocate land sensibly or fairly, people grabbed what they like, some building huge houses and claiming large tracts of land for gardens. Some of these super-houses were torn down, with smaller settlements forming in their stead. But others hired guards to protect the property, large fences were erected enclosing large tracts of land, with guards posted While more and more people competed for the small spaces available the giant houses remained, some expanding, using increasing force to retain their size. Soon the gardens these houses had seized were no longer big enough to sustain the huge staff of guards the properties needed, and they looked to expand, with the guards smashing and seizing all nearby ​houses and farmland and built new fences around them. ​​

​​​The uprooted people would sometimes try to attack the large houses, but this was futile, more often they would turn on the other small houses, as these were less well defended, leading to an almost constant fight, with houses smashed, burnt, seized and variously destroyed on a daily basis. To the dodos, secreted safely in their bushes, it resembled a war of all against all. Well, all against all bar the few very big, very powerful houses.​​​

Of course this couldn't last, what crops there were pulled up, seized, destroyed in the ongoing fights, across the island there was a great famine, large numbers died.​​

​​​The destitution became so great that rather than die the smallholders and homeless organised coordinated raids on the large houses, where food was still plentiful. Dozens, perhaps hundreds, charged the fences at once. There were fights with the guards, but they were for once outnumbered and fled. The raiders swarmed across the enclosed gardens like locusts, in no time all the crops were gone. Then they turned their attention to the houses, tearing them down, seizing anything of value they could find. The house-owners fled and their land was stripped bare. ​​​

​​​The mob, fuelled by success, turned their attention to the next large house, then the next. In no time at all they were all dismantled, their owners fled.​​​

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With the large landowners and their hired thugs gone there was now enough land to feed and house everyone, but it was too late. Savagery had taken over, people no longer retained the ability nor desire to plant crops and wait for them to grow. Across the island the mob rampaged, until every house was wrecked, every crop stripped bare. ​​​

​​​Then, just as quickly as they had first arrived, the humans left, en masse, as if they were all mere parts of one great beast.​​​

​​​In less than a year since they had first arrived, the humans were gone and the dodos came out of hiding.​​​

​​​This, and this alone, was the dodos experience of humankind before my uncle arrived.​​​

​​​He stayed long enough to build a house, then absented for a long time, before returning to the island to retire and (it transpired) die. ​​​

​​And then I arrived. ​​​