"Which--which--that--which--or which--but which--in which--for which--to which--phew! this is hot work. I wonder which would be best. Ah!

Gray, sit down here a minute, my lad, and tell me what to say. I've been hours over this report."

"I am off on special business directly, sergeant," said Gray; "but let me see."

He read over the sergeant's report, and then dictated half-a-dozen lines, which that officer wrote down as quickly as he could. "I shall copy it out afterwards," he said, "neat and clean. Go on, my lad, go on."

Gray dictated a few more lines, which ended the report in a short, concise manner, and Sergeant Lund's face, which had been all in corrugations, smoothed itself into a satisfied smile.

"That's beautiful," he said, looking up at the private admiringly. "I shall copy that all out in a neat hand, and the thing's done. I say, Gray, how do you do it? Here, what takes me hours, only takes you minutes; and while it's hard labour to me to get it into shape, you run it off like string from a ball. Thanky, my lad, thanky. Now what can I do for you?"

"I want a bayonet and a revolver, with ammunition, directly," said Gray.

"What for?"

"Captain's orders, and private," said Gray, showing Captain Smithers'

card, with a few lines pencilled thereon.

"Right," said the sergeant bluffly. "I'm not an inquisitive man. Come along, Gray."

He led the way into the part of the fort used as an armoury, and furnished the required weapons, which Gray proceeded to b.u.t.ton up under his jacket.

"Oh! that's the game is it, my lad?" he said. "Then look here; don't take those clumsy tools; any one can see that you've got weapons hidden there. I'll lend you this little revolver; it's handier, and will do quite as much mischief. You can have this dirk, too, with the belt."

He brought out a handsome little revolver, about half the weight and size of the heavy military "Colt" previously supplied; and also a well-made, long, thin dirk, with a thin belt.

"There, my lad!" he said, buckling on the belt under Gray's jacket, and then thrusting the revolver into a little leather pouch. "There, you are now fitted up sensibly, and no one would be the wiser. Stop a moment, you must fill your pocket with cartridges. Let me have those things back safe, and I hope you won't have to use them; but being ready, my lad, is half the battle. You know I'm never ill."

"No, sergeant; you have excellent health."

"Right, my lad, I do; and I'll tell you why: I bought the biggest box of pills I could get before I left London. Four-and-six I gave for it, and I have never taken one. Diseases come, and they know as well as can be that I've got that box of big pills--reg'lar boluses--in my kit; and they say to themselves, 'This man's ready for action, with his magazine well stored!' and they go somewhere else."

"I see, sergeant," said Gray, smiling. "Good-bye!"

"Good-bye, my lad, good-bye. Here, n.o.body's looking. Sim's asleep.

Shake hands, my lad, shake hands. You see, as your superior officer that's a bit of stooping on my part; but, between man and man, I, Sergeant Lund, look up to you, Private Gray, and always feel as if we ought to change places."

"Good-bye, sergeant," said Gray, shaking hands warmly with the sergeant, "and I echo your wish that I may not have to use the weapons; keep a sharp look-out."

"You leave that to me, private," said the bluff sergeant, and he nodded his head as Gray went off upon his mission.

It was rather an awkward one, for he wished to watch Abdullah without exciting his attention. Gray thought, however, that he might prove a match for the Malay, and as he wandered slowly along he began to consider what he should do?

The first idea that suggested itself was that he should go to Dullah and sit there and eat fruit; but he discarded the idea directly as too palpable a way of watching. He felt that the Malay would suspect him directly, as he was not a man who was in the habit of visiting the hut.

No; he must have some better plan than that, but no idea struck him for a few minutes, till happening to glance at the flowing river, the notion came, and going straight back he was soon after seen sauntering down to the river, armed with a long bamboo, a fishing-line, and some bait, with which he proceeded to fish as soon as he reached the river, but having no sport he began to grow impatient, fishing here and there, but always getting nearer to Dullah's hut, where he remained seated on the bank, fishing very perseveringly to all appearance, and occasionally landing a little barbel-like fellow, known by the natives as _Ikan Sambilang_, or fish of nine, from the number of little barbs beneath its mouth.

Gray fished on, never once turning his head to see what was going on at the hut, but making the keenest use of his ears. He made out, while landing a fish or re-baiting his hook, that there were a couple of sampans lying there, in which were some Malays who appeared to be basking in the sunshine; and, soon after, his quick ears told him plainly enough that some one, whom he believed to be Dullah, was approaching.

As the Malay came nearer, it was to find Gray's rod lying in the water, and the soldier, apparently overcome by the heat, sitting in a heap, with his chin down upon his chest, regardless of the fact that a little fish was upon its hook, tugging away to get free.

Dullah seemed about to speak to the intruder; but seeing this, he refrained, contenting himself with examining Gray closely, and then going slowly back.

"That will not do to report," thought Gray. "He saw me fishing, and he came to see what I had caught, and then went away. I must have something better than that."

However he had obtained a position whence, unsuspected, he could sit and watch what went on at the hut; for after satisfying himself as he had, it was not likely that the Malay would trouble himself any more about the presence of the private so near his place.

So Gray sat there, apparently fast asleep, all through the afternoon.

The night closed in as the sun went down rapidly, as is the case near the equator, and still Gray felt that he had nothing to report. Two men rose up once in the sampan nearest to Dullah's hut, but they appeared to lie down again amongst their fruit baskets; and Dullah himself, the last time Gray saw him, was seated, peacefully smoking, by his verandah.

As it became dark, Gray ran over in his mind the positions of the various sentries, and thought of how soon he could get help, should he need it; and then, after a little thought, he came to the conclusion that he ought to make his way to the fort, and tell Captain Smithers of his want of success.

Just then the glimmering of the stars in the water put an idea in his head. He paused for a moment, as the proceeding was so risky; but on consideration he felt that, if he carried out his plan, he would know for certain whether mischief was brewing. So, giving up his intention of going back to the fort at present, he proceeded to put his plan into execution.

CHAPTER FORTY ONE.

THE VALUE OF PRIVATE SIM.

Where Adam Gray had been seated fishing, the bank was about three feet above the surface of the water, and this clayey bank was either perpendicular, or so hollowed out beneath by the action of the river, that if any one had the courage to lower himself into the water, here about four feet deep, and to cling to the tangled vegetation, and wade along close to the overhanging bank, he could pa.s.s right up to Dullah's hut unperceived.

There was danger, of course; for the stream ran swiftly, and the venturesome wader might be swept away. A crocodile, too, might be lurking beneath the bank; but the business was so important that Gray resolutely set his face against the idea of danger, telling himself that it was his duty; and leaving his rod upon the bank, he quietly lowered himself into the river, the cold water sending a sharp shock through him as he stood, breast high, holding on by some tangled roots, while the water pressed against him, with no little force, as it ran.

He paused there for a few minutes listening, half fancying that he had heard a noise, and that the slight splash he made might have been noted by Dullah or the men on the sampans; and as he listened, sure enough there was a dull noise, as of a blow, followed by a little rustling, and then, just above his head, he could hear somebody breathing hard, as if after some exertion.

Gray did not stir; and fortunately he was quite concealed by the overhanging bank, as a Malay, down upon his hands and knees, leaned over the edge and looked up and down the river.

For the moment Gray felt that he must be seen, and his hand stole involuntarily towards his breast in search of a weapon; but he was in utter darkness beneath the bank, and the man's eyes were more directed outward.

The result was that the Malay, who, kris in hand, had crept cautiously from Dullah's hut right up through the undergrowth and long gra.s.s, to where he believed the Englishman to be fishing, drew cautiously back, and crept once more away.

Gray remained motionless for a few moments, and then, convinced that this meant ill to him, he began to wade cautiously along towards where the sampans lay in the stream, some thirty yards away.

He moved very slowly, so as to make no plash in the water, which sometimes, as the river shallowed, came only to his waist, while at other times it nearly reached his chin; and had he not clung tightly to the water-washed roots and depending bushes, he must have been swept away.

Gray had gone about half the distance; and as he neared the sampans, whose forms he vainly tried to make out in the darkness, to his horror, he found that something was moving towards him in the water.

Quick as lightning he drew the long keen dirk from his belt, and stood ready to thrust, for it was either a crocodile or some large animal, he felt sure; but directly after he stood holding on by his left hand, to a bunch of tangled root hanging from the bank, and felt his heart seem to stand still, for, to his surprise, he plainly made out that it was a man, wading in the opposite direction, and evidently for a similar purpose to his own.

It was, in fact, one of the Malays from the nearest sampan, who, while a companion had undertaken to stalk the Englishman from the sh.o.r.e, as he sat there asleep, had set off from the boat, meaning to get there at the same time as his friend, but had miscalculated the period it would take.

He was now coming along cautiously, and had nearly reached Gray in the darkness before he became aware of his presence.

As soon, though, as he made out that it was the Englishman who was before him, he made a lunge forward, striking at Gray with his kris; but the latter avoided the blow and prepared to close with his antagonist, feeling as he took a step back, that the result would probably be death for both, for they must be swept away by the swift stream.

Just then the Malay seemed to leap at him, but at the same moment he uttered a smothered cry, which was silenced directly by the rushing water, and Gray found that he was alone.

He needed no telling that one of the loathsome reptiles of the river had been close at hand, and had seized his enemy; his wonder was that he himself had not been the victim.