He tries to find a distraction

Dear Sir Williard .

In the course of putting the events of this Saturday morning into the letter, I found myself becoming excited in a most unbecoming fashion. Suffice it to say that with the lovely Akemi trussed up like a lamb for slaughter I spent an unusually long time that morning exploring the sensual delights of absolute control. I have mention several times already my lord how pleasing in form the young Nipponese maid is, but with her bound so tightly I found the pleasure to be even greater. The reason I had to stop the account of what transpired with my maid was the intense desire I suddenly felt to have one or more of the lovely young Englishwomen that I see strolling the streets of the town in their revealing dresses and flowers in their hair bound and squirming as I misused them.

I am deeply shamed to report that the idea of having a daughter of one of the many fantastically wealthy and powerful families that control both the East Orion Trading company and almost every aspect of life here on Rajah-4 under my absolute control was wildly exciting. I would have anticipated that my ardor would be cooled knowing that my innocent victim was the product of Britain's finest families, but instead I found myself envying Dr. Miller and the way he has finessed his way into mistreating those lovely blossoms and even being paid for the act. I so wanted to bind each and every one of these teasing nymphs and then roughly have my way with them again and again, sadistically disciplining one after another for no reason other than it pleased me. It was for that reason that I threw down my pen (if you look closely at the margin on the previous page you can even see the splatter of ink from the fall of the pen on my desk) and swore that I would do whatever it took to never behave so foully.

I resolved then and there to avoid further descent into those lustful desires that have plagued me by means of hard physical labor. I have found on occasion that extreme exertion can both exhaust my muscles and clear my mind. To this effect I turned my attention to the very boathouse from which I had taken the rope which had bound Akemi, setting these desires aflame.

I spent much of my day doing manual labor in the heavy stone building that sat on the river's edge. Unlike the brick house, the boathouse was fashioned from massive rough-hewn blocks of native stone, the walls were thick and the only windows were thin vertical slits each no wider than my arm. The key to the reinforced locked gates was missing, but the gardener procured by Andrews (a dark-skinned burly man with a bright smile) had little trouble sawing through the lock on the small stone building. I must tell you Sir Williard that I opened the doors of the boathouse with a delight that had nothing to do with sexual desire or professional ambition.

Inside I found two watercraft; the first was a small punt with two oars perfect for sculling about the river, the second a twenty-five foot powerboat with a good-sized forward cabin and a open deck with cushions arranged in a comfortable 'U' all around the stern of the boat. The motorboat was powered by a steam engine with a four speed transmission and dual propellers. Both these boats were up out of the water, the light punt hanging from hooks on the wall and the large powerboat dragged up into the boathouse on greased skids by the contrivance of chains, pulleys and other mechanisms of mechanical advantage. I am confident that it will be easy enough to launch either one of the boats into the waiting river through the water gate, and with the help of a single man (perhaps even by myself) hoist the heavy boat back into the shelter of the boathouse.

Instead of immediately launching the heavy steam-cruiser or even the small boat to row around in, I continued my exploration of the sturdy little building. Along the West wall was a work area complete with a sturdy bench and overhead oil lamps; apparently this outbuilding had never been connected to the resonator in the main house. Once lit I could see an impressive collection of tools and spare parts for the motorboat in the light of the flickering yellow flames. Overhead, heavy rafters hewn from native lumber and more storage accessed by a ladder that had been bolted to the wall by the door. Almost a year's worth of dirt and grime covered every inch of the boathouse Sir Willard, and I spent the next several hours working in this dark building. I wore just a cotton undershirt and trousers that I had rolled up to just below my knees, and I worked with such intensity that I was perspiring freely. I confess I looked much more like one of the thousands of filthy coolies that swarm all around the water-fronts of Tei-Pai than a gentleman Doctor with a 1,500 lb yearly stipend and a household staff to attend to my every need.

Mid-afternoon, Andrews showed up with a wrapped luncheon of cold chicken rice and a salad of greens dressed with a simple vinaigrette. If he was distressed to see his employer working like a common laborer with a bucket of suds and dirty rags washing the cushions of the power-cruiser he hid his feelings well. In fact, Sir Willard, he was delighted to find the workshop well stocked with tools and spent the entire time that I was eating examining the assorted draws and cabinets much like a child opening presents on Boxing Day.

When Andrews left me after lunch, I looked around the rectangular room again pleased by the progress that I had effected. The stone walls and gently sloping wooden floor were clean and already almost completely dry. I was struck with the odd notion that the structure lit by burning flames, and constructed of native stone felt more like an ancient fortress of old Europe than a inconsequential out-building for a small cottage on the outskirts of a city on a distant planet, light-years from old earth.

Perhaps what I found most pleasing, your grace, was the condition of the newly washed watercraft. Both the small punt and the Anna-Leigh (the name on the stern of the powerboat) were gleaming, their varnished hardwood hulls still in excellent shape and for all intensive purposes sound and watertight. I still cannot make any speculation about the condition of the Anna-Leigh's steam-engine but if it has been maintained as well as the rest of the boat, your lordship, I will have an exceptional tool to continue my detailed exploration and surveying of this planet.

I discovered one final mystery, your Lordship, upon climbing the ladder into the loft above. Mixed in among the old life-preservers, umbrellas and fishing gear, I found a pile of bedding that appears to have been used fairly recently. But by whom? It is a mystery that I will think on later, for I have to admit I am too tired for careful analytic thought.

I am however, pleased to report, that upon returning from the boathouse later that evening (I replaced the lock with a new one provided by the ever surprising Andrews) I was too weary to couple in any manner with Hilda, and certainly not take her in the manner that I had savaged Akemi. The exhausting work I put into the sturdy little boathouse was precisely what I needed to tire my muscles. If each day I can repeat this process I will be far less likely to succumb to the curse of the Blush that afflicts the colonists of this planet.