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diff --git a/46460-8.txt b/46460-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 0dfc5fc..0000000 --- a/46460-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,11400 +0,0 @@ - GUNBOAT AND GUN-RUNNER - - - - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost -no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it -under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this -eBook or online at http://www.gutenberg.org/license. - - - -Title: Gunboat and Gun-runner - A Tale of the Persian Gulf -Author: T. T. Jeans -Release Date: July 31, 2014 [EBook #46460] -Language: English -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK GUNBOAT AND GUN-RUNNER *** - - - - -Produced by Al Haines. - - - - -[Illustration: Cover art] - - - - -[Illustration: THE _BUNDER ABBAS_ COMES UPON A LARGE ARAB DHOW IN THE -VERY ACT OF LANDING GUNS. _Page_ 105] - - - - - Gunboat and - Gun-runner - - A Tale of the Persian Gulf - - - BY - - SURGEON REAR-ADMIRAL T. T. JEANS, - C.M.G., R.N. - - Author of "John Graham, Sub-Lieutenant R.N." - "On Foreign Service" "Ford of H.M.S. Vigilant" - &c. - - - - _Illustrated by C. M. Padday_ - - - - BLACKIE & SON LIMITED - LONDON AND GLASGOW - 1914 - - - - -BLACKIE & SON LIMITED - _50 Old Bailey, London_ - _17 Stanhope Street, Glasgow_ - -BLACKIE & SON (INDIA) LIMITED - _Warwick House, Fort Street, Bombay_ - -BLACKIE & SON (CANADA) LIMITED - _1118 Bay Street, Toronto_ - - - - _Printed in Great Britain by Blackie & Son, Ltd., Glasgow_ - - - - - *Preface* - - -For many years the fierce, unruly tribes beyond the north-west frontier -of India have only been able to obtain rifles from the Arabian coast. -Arab dhows bring them across the Persian Gulf and adjacent waters, and -caravans of camels convey them to their destination through the mountain -passes of Baluchistan. - -Ships of the Royal Navy and the Royal Indian Marine, armed launches -manned by officers and men lent from the Royal Navy, and ships' armed -cutters cruise and patrol these waters from one year's end to another, -overhauling dhows, landing men to search villages suspected of -concealing arms, and ceaselessly striving to put a stop to this trade. - -My story describes the conditions of service in one of these armed -launches, and is based on actual occurrences which took place some ten -years ago. Most of the incidents have been described to me by -participators in them. The proof-sheets have also been revised by -officers who have themselves taken part, during more recent years, in -the suppression of "gun-running". - -As a result, the story is, I trust, free from errors and -improbabilities. - -T. T. JEANS, - -Surgeon Rear-Admiral, Royal Navy. - - - - - *Contents* - -CHAP. - - I. A Splendid Appointment - II. The Story of the "Twin Death" - III. Skipper of the "Bunder Abbas" - IV. Adrift in a Dhow - V. My First Capture - VI. The Edge of Civilization - VII. The Battle of the Paraffin Can - VIII. Ugly Rumours - IX. Trapping a Caravan - X. The Fight in the "Coffee-Cup" - XI. The Cobra Bracelet Again - XII. Mr. Scarlett Bares his Arm - XIII. Rounding up a Prodigal - XIV. We Deal with Jassim - XV. A Tragedy of the Telegraph - XVI. The Siege of Jask - XVII. Jassim Takes his Revenge - XVIII. To the Rescue - XIX. The Grey-Eyed Lady Decides - - - - - *Illustrations* - -The "Bunder Abbas" comes upon a large Arab dhow in the very act of -landing guns . . . _Frontispiece_ - -The four of us tried to haul the yard and sail on board, hauling for all -we were worth - -Looking through my loophole I saw a tall, fine-looking Arab peering into -the chasm beneath - -Bowing in the most dignified manner to the prodigal son and ourselves, -they squatted in a circle round us - - - - - *GUNBOAT AND GUN-RUNNER* - - - - *CHAPTER I* - - *A Splendid Appointment* - - -At the time this yarn commences I was a lieutenant of four years' -seniority, a "watchkeeper" aboard H.M.S. _Russell_, longing earnestly to -see the world, but with no probable prospect of my desires being -realized. - -I had been serving in the Channel and Atlantic Fleets, continuously, for -seven years--appointed from one ship to another, from a battleship to a -destroyer, from a destroyer to an armoured cruiser, and from her to the -_Russell_. In fact, I began to wonder whether my whole naval career was -to be spent plodding round the British Islands, and the limits of my -world were to be bounded by an occasional view of the coast of France, -and a still more infrequent sight of the rugged headlands of Spain. - -Then, by a lucky stroke of good fortune, my chance did at last come. - -I happened to be on forty-eight hours' leave in London, and at my club, -the "Junior", met a captain under whom I had served a year or two -previously. - -We talked about our former ship, and I told him how tired I was of -sticking at home, and how anxious I was to see some foreign service. He -jerked out, in the abrupt way he had: "Why, man, clear out!--get along -to the Admiralty!--full speed!--off you go! I was talking to the Second -Sea Lord not half an hour ago, and he'd just heard that a lieutenant was -wanted for the Persian Gulf. Give him my card. Why, bless my rags, I -haven't one!" and he scribbled his name on the back of a club envelope -and hustled me out. - -I found myself jumping into a hansom (there were no taxis available then -as now) and driving to the Admiralty before I fully realized what I was -about to do. - -"No, the Second Sea Lord won't see nobody," a porter at the Admiralty -told me; adding, mysteriously: "The First Lord 'as just a-been an' sent -for him. You 'ad better see Mr. Copeland, 'is sec-re-tary." - -I always feel overawed at the Admiralty--merely being in the same -building with their "Lordships" is enough to overawe any humble -lieutenant--so I meekly followed the porter into a waiting-room, pacing -up and down restlessly till he came back again, beckoning me with a -confidential air. "'E'll see you, if you step this way. 'E is in a -middling good temper this morning--ain't 'ad many to worry 'im." - -My interview with Mr. Copeland was short and sharp. - -"What do you want?" he said curtly, more or less as if I was a -pickpocket or a beggar asking for a penny. - -"I hear there's a vacancy for a lieutenant in the Persian Gulf. I'm -Martin--Paul Reginald Martin of the _Russell_, four years' seniority -next May--and I want to go there. My late captain gave me this for the -Second Sea Lord;" and I handed him the envelope with the pencil note: -"Give this chap the job if you can", and his signature. - -The secretary glanced at it, threw it on his desk, and looked at me -suspiciously. "Yes, yes! I don't know how he came to hear of it. -Collingwood, of the _Bunder Abbas_, has died of sunstroke. Quite right! -quite right! I'll put your name down for her--if you wish." - -"Please!" I said. - -"Do you know what the job is?" he asked, as if, did I know, I should not -be so keen to go. - -"Not in the least," I answered; "and I don't mind, so long as I can get -abroad and out of the Channel Fleet." - -He smiled unpleasantly. "It's a patrolling job, and a lonely one." - -He said this as though--officially--he ought to warn me, -though--individually--he didn't care a button whether I went or not. - -That gave me some idea of the job. - -"The gunner's gone mad too. We'll have to send another out, I -suppose--confound him!" - -I could not help smiling at the idea of a mad gunner being left there. - -He cut my smile short with a sharp: "I'll put your name down. Good -morning!" - -I backed clumsily out of the door. - -"What's the _Bunder Abbas_?" I asked the porter outside. - -"The _Bunder Habbas_!" he corrected me, repeating the name to give -himself time to think. - -"Something in the Persian Gulf?" I said, to aid his memory. - -But he didn't know--none of the other porters knew; so he rang up some -mysterious individual on the telephone. - -"There's a gen'l'man 'ere wants to know what the _Bunder Habbas_ his. -_Habbas--Bunder Habbas_--hout in the Persian Gulf." - -He had a slight argument about pronunciation and spelling, and then -turned to me triumphantly. "She's a harmed launch, sir, that's what she -his, a-looking out to stop them Arabs a-gun-running," and hastened to -answer a bell, pocketing the half-crown I gave him. - -I hurried away down the corridor, and was so excited that I did not -notice my former captain until he tapped me on the shoulder. - -"I've just come round," he said; "will see the Second Sea Lord -myself--put in a word for you--thought I might fix it up at once--good -luck to you if you get it." - -"Thank you very much, sir," I said gratefully, and hurried out into -Whitehall. - -"Armed launch! Skipper of an armed launch--Collingwood dead of -sunstroke--gunner gone mad," and I grinned to myself and walked along -like a bird. - -"Fancy getting away from all this!" I thought, and looked round at the -babel of traffic and the throngs of people. Fancy getting away from the -Channel Fleet for a time! I thought of my ship, the _Russell_, lying -under Portland Bill, with other huge grey monsters; and thought of the -tense readiness for war aboard them, and the strain of it, month after -month. In a few weeks, with luck, I might be three thousand miles away, -patrolling the Persian Gulf--free as air--with a good launch under me, -and probably a 4.7-inch gun in her bows, ready to tackle any gun-running -Arab dhow which came along. Prize money, too--there'd be a chance of -that as well. - -It was grand. - -Collingwood, poor old Collingwood--I'd known him in the -_Britannia_--dead of sunstroke, and the gunner gone mad! That didn't -sound as if the job was exactly a bed of roses. But Copeland had put my -name down--the die was cast; I didn't mind if the whole crew had died of -sunstroke and plague combined. I rather hoped that they had, and that -any other chap who applied for the _Bunder Abbas_ would--well--feel a -little less keen about her when he heard. - -I didn't notice the rain or the mud splashed on my trousers from the -roadway. I could have whooped with joy. - -All these silly clothes my tailor bothered to make tight here or loose -there, to show more or show less of the waistcoat, as silly fashion -changed--why, with luck, in a month's time, a pair of flannel trousers -and a cricket shirt would be all the wardrobe I should want. I'd be my -own skipper, with a dozen blue-jackets, and a stout launch under us; -that 4.7-inch gun--or perhaps it would be a twelve-pounder--shining in -the bows under the awning. Wouldn't it shine, too! There'd be nothing -much else to do but burnish it, and burnished it should be till I could -shave by it. - -All that afternoon I waited patiently at the club for the evening paper, -and directly the waiter brought it into the smoking-room I pounced on -it. - -Sure enough, under "Naval Appointments" was my name--"Paul R. Martin -appointed _Intrepid_" (she was one of the cruisers on the East Indies -Station) "for armed launch _Bunder Abbas_". - -I gave a shout of delight, which rather startled some old fogies there; -and a man sitting near--a naval doctor whom I knew slightly--laughed at -me, wanting to know what was the matter. - -I pointed out the appointment. - -"Look at that! Isn't that grand?" - -"_Bunder Abbas_," he said, as we lay back in the luxurious chairs--they -really did feel comfortable now that I was going out to the waste parts -of the world. "That was Collingwood's launch. What's become of him?" - -"Died of sunstroke," I told him. - -"Really, now?" the doctor went on; "he's only been there three months. -I knew him slightly; he relieved a chap who had beri-beri, or one of -those funny tropical diseases--sometimes you swell, sometimes you do the -other thing. I forget now which he did before he was invalided home. I -did hear; it was quite interesting. So you're off there? Well, good -luck! Are the 'footer' results in that paper? - -"D'you want any tips for the Persian Gulf?" he asked presently, when he -had finished reading the football news. "Whatever you like to eat, -don't eat it. (You can't get it, so you needn't bother to remember that -tip.) And if you want gin or whisky, or any comforts like that, chuck -them over the side: they may kill the sharks; they won't kill you. In -fact, my dear chap, whatever you like doing and want to do, there's only -one tip to remember if you want to keep fit--don't do it! - -"If you get beri-beri," he called after me as I fled, "you might let me -know whether you swell or do the other thing." - -I packed my bag, not in the least disturbed by anyone's gloomy remarks, -and went back to my ship at Portland. - -My orders came next day. - -I was to take passage in a P. & O. mail steamer, sailing in twelve days' -time (a luxury I never expected), and join the _Intrepid_ at Aden, where -further orders would be given me. - -A fortnight later I was tumbling and churning through the "Bay" in the -P. & O. _Java_, as happy as a king, without a care in the world. - -A lieutenant named Anderson shared my cabin. He was going out to join -the _Intrepid_ as one of her watchkeepers. As, but for him, I should -probably never have survived to write the account of what happened to us -later on, I will give an idea of what kind of chap he was. First of -all, he was known to his chums as "The Baron" or as "Baron Popple -Opstein", though why these nicknames ever stuck to him I don't know. - -He was a great lumbering, clumsy giant, with a long red face, a big -hooked nose, and a large mouth, always smiling, and showing the whitest -set of teeth I have ever seen. He had laughing blue eyes, which saw -everything except people's faults, and a mop of yellow, silk-coloured -hair which grew down his great red forehead in a quaint triangular patch -pointing to his nose. His whole face beamed good humour and kindliness; -he was the simplest, happiest soul alive--one of those men with whom it -is good to live. He never did much talking, and never wanted anyone to -talk much to him; but would sit smoking his old, disgracefully charred -pipe, and beam by the hour, just happy to have the dancing sea under his -feet and the fresh salt air in his lungs. He really was a -splendid-looking fellow, but by some odd twist in his mind imagined he -was ugly. This made him rather retiring and bashful. He would sooner -try to stop a mad dog than be introduced to a lady. "My dear old chap," -he would say, if I wanted to introduce him to one of the lady -passengers, "what on earth can I talk to her about? She doesn't want to -hear about scrubbing hammocks, or the gunnery manual. I can't think of -anything else to talk about." - -The result was that we both kept pretty much to ourselves, and amused -ourselves watching the others. - -There was a major on board going out to India--a fussy, conceited -individual who imagined that all the ladies must be head over heels in -love with him. He tried to patronize us, but we gave him the cold -shoulder, and so did a little pale-faced, rather nice-looking girl about -twenty-two, with hair the very same shade as the Baron's. She was not -English--I could tell that by the way she talked--and she kept almost -entirely to herself. I never spoke to her during the voyage, but once I -overheard her snub the major in broken English, in the most deliberate, -delightful manner, and as he went away, with a silly expression on his -face, our eyes met. There was such an irresistibly humorous twinkle in -hers that I smiled too--I really could not help it. At that her smile -died away, as if ashamed of itself, her pale face flushed, and I -followed the major, feeling like a naughty boy who had been caught -prying. - -At Port Said we picked up Mr. Thomas Scarlett--Gunner, R.N.--serving in -the _Jason_, which was doing guardship there. - -I had seen his appointment to the _Bunder Abbas_ in the newspapers, and, -as we should have to live together for the next two years, I was anxious -to know what manner of man he was. - -He certainly looked a queer chap, tall and thin, with stooping -shoulders, bushy black eyebrows meeting across his forehead, two -piercing black eyes deeply sunk beneath them, a beaked nose over very -thin tight lips, and the blackest of hair, moustache, and pointed beard. -He looked very much like a vulture, with his long thin neck stretching -out from a low collar, much too large for him. When he talked, the -words tumbled out, one after the other, so quickly that, until one -became used to him, it was difficult to understand what he said. - -We soon found out that he had been in the Persian Gulf many times in the -course of the last few years, so Baron Popple Opstein and I used to take -him along to our special corner on deck, and ask him questions. He gave -us the impression that he did not wish to go out there again, and -whenever he talked of the Persian Gulf and of his former experiences -there he seemed nervous and very ill at ease. But, once we made him -talk, his stories of pirates, pearl-fishers, slavers, and gun-runners -were as absorbing as one could wish. Old Popple Opstein's face would -grow purple with excitement. Mr. Scarlett, too, would often work -himself into a great pitch of vehemence as he told some especially -thrilling yarn. - -"You might be an Arab yourself," I said one night, when he had brought a -story to a climax, leaving us breathless and fascinated with his -glowing, fiery description. - -"I am almost, sir," he said. "My father was the constable of the -Residency at Bushire, and my mother was half-Arab." - -That explained his dark complexion, and why, in the middle of a yarn, he -would often slide off his chair and sit Moorish fashion--cross-legged. -He could always talk more easily in that attitude. - -Ever since he had joined the Navy he had served, off and on, in the -East, his knowledge of all the languages and different dialects of those -parts, picked up when he was a boy, being so useful. - -One night, four days out from Suez, we were making him tell us all he -knew about gun-running. It was very warm, damp, and unpleasant, so he -took off his coat. In doing so he happened to pull the shirtsleeve of -his left arm above his elbow. By the light of a lantern overhead we saw -something glittering round his arm. My chum peered forward to look at -it, but the gunner hastily pulled his sleeve down. - -"What the dickens is that?" we both asked. - -First glancing fore and aft, to see that no one was near, he very -reluctantly pulled up his sleeve. - -He held his arm so that the lantern light fell upon it, and we saw that -the thing round his arm was a small snake, marvellously enamelled--a -cobra it was. The joints, even each separate scale, seemed flexible, and -as he worked his muscles underneath it the snake seemed to cling more -tightly to his skin, in the most horribly realistic fashion. Two -greenish-tinged opal eyes blinked at us as the light overhead flickered -in them. - -The Baron leant forward to touch it, but Mr. Scarlett, with a sudden -look of horror, shot out his right hand and clutched the Baron's hand so -violently that he cried out. - -"Don't touch it, sir! For God's sake, don't touch it. There's poison -enough in that thing to kill a dozen men!" he gasped fiercely. - -"What is it--what do you mean? Tell us!" we cried. - -Some passengers coming along the deck, he instantly covered it with his -sleeve. - -"I generally wear a bandage over it," he said nervously. "The night was -so hot that I took it off." - -"Well, tell us about it," we urged him. "Where did you get it?" - -"Jassim gave it to me," Mr. Scarlett answered, his black eyes burning -strangely as he looked round to see that no one could overhear him. -"I'll tell you when and how that snake came here. It's a long -story--and a sad one. When you have heard it you will know why I do not -want to go back to the Persian Gulf. But, for God's sake, sirs, don't -ever mention it to a soul!" - -We promised--we would have promised anything to learn its story. - - - - - *CHAPTER II* - - *The Story of the "Twin Death"* - - -"It was nearly thirty years ago when I first saw that bracelet," Mr. -Scarlett began in a strained voice. "I was only a boy then. It was -brought to my father's house, at Bushire, by a Banyan jeweller--a friend -of his--who showed it to him as one of the most marvellous and curious -pieces of workmanship in the East. I remember how frightened I was to -hear the stories he told of it, and to see them examining it. - -"When the jeweller had gone, my father, who knew its history, told me -that, when it was pulled off the arm which wore it, it would writhe and -strike with the poisoned fangs in its head, and kill both the wearer and -the person who tore it off. - -"There is an Arab song, nearly two hundred years old, which sings of it. -The song is about the woman who first wore it. She was the favourite -wife of a murdered Sultan of Khamia, and fell alive into the hands of -his Persian conqueror. He wanted to marry her because she was so -beautiful, and she dared him, if he would win her, to tear the bracelet -off her arm--dared him in front of his Court--and he was so mad with -love that he did so, although he knew what would happen. The snake -struck them both, and they died. In that Arab song she is supposed to -sing several verses after the fangs struck her, but," Mr. Scarlett's -voice trembled hoarsely, "I know that she had not time." - -"You don't mean to tell us that this is the same one?" the Baron asked -breathlessly. - -"It is, sir. I wish it wasn't." - -"But how did you get it?" he asked again. - -"Let the gunner spin his yarn," I told him impatiently. - -"Well," he went on, "it has always been worn by the chief wife of the -Sultan of Khamia. It is her privilege to be the only wife who follows -her husband at his death. She had to kill herself by tearing it off her -own arm, and if her courage failed her a slave stood by to do it, and -the two would die. The slave was not likely to fail her, for to die by -'the twin death' was supposed to be a sure way of attaining Paradise, -and not many slaves ever thought that they would have the chance to get -there. - -"Some of this my father told me, and the rest, and many other things -besides, I learnt afterwards from the Arabs up and down the coast. - -"I saw it next eight or nine years afterwards. I was an ordinary seaman -in a gunboat lying off Muscat, and, happening to be ashore one -afternoon, with nothing to do, I noticed that there was quite a crowd of -natives gathered on the shore. - -"They told me that the Sultan of Khamia was just going to embark on his -way to Mecca, so I stopped to see him, knowing that he was the worst -brigand and pirate in the whole of the Gulf, and wishing to see what -kind of chap he was. - -"Presently he came down with a crowd of attendants to guard him--a -fine-looking fellow he was--and after him followed some hooded cages or -palanquins. Inside these, hidden from view, were, I knew, his favourite -wives, accompanying him as far as Jeddah. Out of the first stretched a -beautiful arm, and on it was that snake bracelet. - -"I half expected to see it, and recognized it at once. You should have -seen that crowd of natives give way and fall back. Everyone knew what -it was, and what it meant. They edged away as if it was the devil -himself. - -"The closed cages were taken on board a lighter; the lighter was towed -out to a little steamer rolling in the mouth of the harbour between the -two old Portuguese forts, and I soon forgot all about the bracelet. - -"Five years afterwards fate brought me to the Gulf again. I was a petty -officer in the gunboat _Pigeon_ then, and everywhere we went we heard -the name of Jassim, the now Khan of Khamia--the absolute despot of the -south-western part of the Persian Gulf, the head of the Jowassim tribes -of slavers and pirates, and the terror of the seas. Not a dhow dared -leave any port without first paying tribute to him, and the tales of his -atrocities made our blood boil with rage; because he was not satisfied -with being master of the Gulf, but he'd swoop down on coast towns, -demand tribute from them, and, if there was any resistance--even -hesitation in paying--he would kill every man, woman, and child in ways -so callously brutal that you could not imagine a human being capable of -inventing them. - -"His latest exploit had been to capture the whole fleet of pearl-fishing -dhows and trading baggalows[#] inside Muscat harbour. He filled them -with his rascally followers--Bedouins chiefly--and thought himself -strong enough to tackle the English. - - -[#] Baggalow=large ocean-going dhow. - - -"We soon heard that he was preparing to seize the pearl-fishing dhows -which were then fitting out at Bahrein--under the English flag and the -English guns of the fort there--to sail for the pearl banks, down south. - -"The _Pigeon_ and the old _Sphinx_ were therefore ordered to search for -Mr. Jassim and teach him a lesson. - -"Well, after dodging in and out of the bays in that rocky coast, shoving -our nose in, finding nothing, and shunting out again, we found him, one -morning, anchored at the head of a shallow bay with all his fleet. - -"Four hundred and twenty-two dhows we counted, their sloping masts and -yards showing up like a forest against the shore. Every one of them was -flaunting the red flag with a white border, the flag of the Jowassims. -The whole place was a-flutter with them. - -"At the top of the bay Jassim had built himself a fort, and lived there, -we found out afterwards, in great style, with his harem, sheikhs' sons -to wait on him, gold plates to eat off, and everything simply tiptop. - -"Four hundred odd dhows were there, manned for the most part by -dare-devil Bedouins, with a fair sprinkling of Beni Ghazril, Ballash, -and Ahmed tribes--all low-caste tribes not too keen on fighting. Armed -they were with old smooth bores--nine-pounders, there or -thereabouts--and the little _Pigeon_ was equal to taking on the lot if -she could only have fetched in close enough; which she couldn't, as she -drew too much water. We had to anchor five miles away from these -dhows--five miles if a yard. - -"Out came a sheikh or a khan--some big swell--to say that Jassim was -only waiting for a change of wind to come out and eat us up. As it was -blowing a steady shamel (you two gentlemen will know what that is before -you've been out here long), blowing right into the bay, and not likely -to ease down for two or three days, we didn't trouble about them trying -to escape. Well, the skipper sent that sheikh chap back with a flea in -his ear, and presently Jassim himself came along in a grand barge, -flying the Turkish flag--like his cheek!--and as cool as anything comes -up the side and gives our skipper two hours to clear out of it. - -"The cheek of the man amused the skipper, who merely took him aft into -his cabin, kept him there for two hours, talking and drinking coffee, -showed him his watch and that the two hours had gone by, told him he -would have hanged him had he not been flying the Turkish flag, and sent -him back to his fleet. - -"The tide rising presently, we chanced our luck and moved in a bit -closer. Directly we moved, those dhows, hundreds of them, let rip at us -with their old pop-guns, the shot plunking into the water half-way, and -not even the 'ricos' reaching us. - -"That was just what the skipper was waiting for. He opened fire with our -four-inch guns, keeping it up from four o'clock that afternoon till six, -and setting a good many of the dhows on fire. Just before the sun went -down, along came the old _Sphinx_, paddling furiously, and chipped in -with her old-fashioned guns, till neither of us could see a thing to aim -at, except flames occasionally. The whole bay was a mass of smoke from -the dhows we had set on fire with our shells. - -"It was a fine sight as the sun set behind the great mountains inshore, -and the dark shadows of them came racing across the plain and the -harbour, showing up the flames still more brightly. - -"If you ever cruise along that coast don't miss that sight--the sight of -those shadows as the sun sinks behind the mountains," Mr. Scarlett -interrupted his yarn to tell us. - -"Well, all that night we and the _Sphinx_ fired occasionally to keep the -Arabs' nerves on edge, and made all ready to send in every boat we -possessed, at daybreak, to see what we could do. - -"That was the longest day's work I ever did, and the worst--the worst," -Mr. Scarlett hissed out, apparently waking up and altering his voice, as -if he had been somebody else telling the yarn before, or as if he had -suddenly turned over a fresh page in a book he was reading, remembered -the terrible ending, and wanted to shut it up. - -The Baron and I almost jumped out of our chairs. - -"Yes, the worst. My God! it was the worst." He jumped to his feet, -looked ashamed of himself, sat down, and went on to tell us in a -strained voice, as though the ending was too terrible, how the crews of -the _Pigeon_ and _Sphinx_ had pulled ashore in their boats, like midges -round a horde of elephants. He said that two of the bigger dhows, -placed end on end, would be nearly as big as the _Victory_. - -We did not believe him. - -He told us how, as one boat would clap alongside a huge towering dhow, -her demoralized crew would clamber down the other side to their boats or -jump overboard. The bluejackets had brought tins of paraffin, with -which they set on fire each dhow they boarded, adding still further to -the terror and disorder, until the crews of all those four hundred odd -junks abandoned them and clustered at the edge of the shore, behind the -walls of Jassim's fort, shouting bravely and shooting off their crazy -rifles in defiance. - -So the bluejackets left off their work of destruction, the boats pulled -ashore together, the men wading as soon as their keels grated on the -beach, whilst the Nordenfeldts and Gardner guns in their bows fired -point-blank into the demoralized crowd of Arab scum. There must have -been fifteen thousand of them on the beach; but panic broke out among -them, and they melted away from the shore and from the fort, scurrying -away inland in front of that handful of bluejackets until they had taken -refuge in the defiles and crevasses of those barren mountains, where (as -Mr. Scarlett told us) you could hardly believe it possible for a goat to -live, but where they sought shelter like frightened sheep. - -When he had come to this point Mr. Scarlett paused a little, as if he -was reluctant to go on. Then he started again hurriedly: - -"And we came back, very slowly back, panting, our feet red-hot and our -tongues swollen with thirst, the blazing sun on our backs. And we found -Jassim squatting on his prayer mat on the sloping shore, his back turned -to the sea and his burning ships, his face turned to the sun. - -"A woman crouched at his feet. - -"These two were alone, the only living things there; no other human -being had stayed with him; she alone of all his harem and his people -remained to share his fate. I was sent for to act as interpreter; and -our skipper--a tender-hearted man--had pity on Jassim now that his power -was absolutely broken, and gave him the choice of coming on board or -staying where he was. Jassim chose to stay, answering proudly and -defiantly, as though he was still lord of a powerful fleet, or as though -his spirit was not broken. Then it was that I saw this hateful snake -for the third time--it was on that woman's arm." - -Mr. Scarlett's voice began to tremble, and as he coiled cross-legged on -the deck, and put his hands to his forehead, we could see his dark, -burning eyes gazing outboard, across the deck and the deck rails, to -where the sea and the blackness of the night sky met each other, a dark -rim beyond the moonlit sea surrounding the ship. His face was haggard -and drawn, as if he saw what he was about to tell us. - -"Yes, he was there! Jassim was there, his head bowed beneath a coarse -burnous[#]; and whilst the rest of us went away to loot the fort and -destroy the guns, a seaman and myself were left as guard on those two. - - -[#] Burnous = loose Arab cloak. - - -"I spoke to him in his own tongue, told him to cheer up, that his luck -was 'out' now, but that it was fate, and a better time would come. He -seemed not to hear; he just sat gazing at the sun as it sank lower and -lower towards the rim of the mountains, where all his men had -disappeared; and his wife crouched moaning before him, putting a hand -out now and again to touch him, just to remind him that she was there -and suffering too. Presently she bared her left arm, and moaned to him -not to allow himself to fall into the hands of the infidel, but to seek -Paradise and take her with him, holding out her arm with the snake -coiled round it, imploring him to pull it off and set them both free. - -"Jassim never answered her, never looked down at her, never moved a -muscle of his face, and never looked at that bracelet. - -"But the sight of it was too much for the seaman left on guard. Poor -fool! he thought it would be a fine curio, and before I could stop him -he strode forward, bent down, and seized it. - -"The woman gave one shriek of agony as he pulled it from her arm, and -with an oath I saw him throw it down in the white sand, where it coiled -and writhed, whilst he looked at the back of his hand and wiped away two -tiny spots of blood. - -"'Suck them, for God's sake, suck them! The thing's poisoned!' I -yelled, and, springing to the woman, bent down and sucked two little -marks on her arm just below the shoulder. - -"Jassim never moved an eyelash. - -"The woman jerked herself from me as if the touch of an infidel defiled -her, and as if she courted death. She had scarcely dragged herself again -to her knees before she began to writhe with pain, and her arm became a -dusky swollen purple, spreading upwards over her shoulder as I watched. - -"The seaman, cursing, was staggering down to the sea, but swayed and -fell half-way, rolling convulsively, clawing at the sand and jerking -himself towards the edge of the water. - -"I could do nothing for either, and I could not take my eyes from that -woman. She was appealing to Jassim to make the snake kill him, so that -they should not be separated, and she implored him to hold her, so that -she could die in his arms. Never a muscle did he move; and she cried -piteously for him to look at her, just one look. But Jassim would not -look at her. Her face was dusky now, her swollen tongue came out of her -mouth, and in her agony her pride was broken, and she asked me for -water. It was the last word she spoke, poor soul! I had some in my -water bottle, so knelt down and held it to her lips. But she could not -drink, so I poured a little into her mouth and over her face. Her dark -eyes, dark as velvet they were, gave me one dumb look of gratitude; then -the life went out of them and she was dead. - -"As I knelt, Jassim must have stooped down and picked up the gold snake, -for he suddenly flicked it round my arm, saying in a deep guttural -voice: 'Blessed is the giver of water--above all men. Allah, the great, -the compassionate, gave water to those that burned in Hell, even as thou -gavest! Thy reward shall be great; only become a true believer, for this -is the key of Paradise.' - -"I jumped to my feet, half-dazed, and dared not touch the thing as it -clung to me, snuggling tightly round my arm. - -"The woman was dead. I ran to the sea; the bluejacket's body was moving -gently as the tiny waves rolled in. I knew that he was dead, and I -turned to implore Jassim to take it off if he knew how to do so without -killing me. - -"As I turned, the lower edge of the sun touched the top of those awful -mountains, and Jassim, crouching on his prayer carpet, a little patch of -red on the sloping white beach, with the dead woman in front of him, -suddenly raised himself to his knees, held wide his hands, and called: -'Allah ho Akhbar', as though summoning the faithful to prayer and his -contemptible followers back to him. - -"Then he prostrated himself, and, raising himself again, commenced: -'Bismillahi! Rahmanni! Raheem!' whilst I stood awed as he recited the -prayer, till the upper rim of the sun disappeared, and those dark -shadows came again down the sides of the mountains and along the waste -of sands, rushing like evil spirits towards us.... - -"The first lieutenant was at my side shaking me. He had his hand on the -snake, as if to take it. - -"'What the devil do you mean by looting?' he said; but I gave a shriek, -and sprang away, striking up his hand. - -"As I retreated backwards, step by step, I told him what had happened. -He did not believe me; he thought me mad--that I had a 'touch of the -sun'. But he let me be, presently, and I covered that thing up with the -sleeve of my flannel as best I could--and found myself back again on -board the _Pigeon_. Perhaps I was mad, for I could never remember how I -did get aboard, and I was on the sick list for many days, lying in a -cot, covering the snake with my free hand, and moaning for people to let -it be--so they told me afterwards." - -The gunner stopped talking, breathed heavily, and wiped his forehead. - -He began speaking in his ordinary composed way: - -"Since then, thirteen years ago--aye, thirteen years it is next June--an -unlucky year--that thing has coiled round my arm and never left it." - -My chum's eye had been gradually starting more and more out of his head. - -Now he gasped out: - -"Never! Do you really mean it?" - -"No, never," Mr. Scarlett groaned. - -"But, man, a pair of long pincers seizing the head and neck and sliding -a sleeve of thin tin or something like that underneath--next your -skin--why, there are heaps of ways you could get it off--safe ways--if -you really wanted to do so." - -"Don't you think I've been tempted, sir; dozens of different ways have -been suggested. All seemed safe, but there was just the chance that the -thing would strike somewhere--and--and--I'd seen those two die, and put -off trying for another day, till now I'm almost used to it. - -"Look," the gunner said, pulling up his shirt sleeve and holding out his -arm so that the moonlight showed the snake. "Watch its head!" and he -very softly began to push one finger underneath a coil. As he did so, -the head began to raise itself from his skin, and a tiny dark line, not -visible before, showed across the end where the mouth was. - -"Stop!" we both cried, perspiration pouring from me and running down my -back, the Baron's mouth wide open with fear. "Take your finger away." -And he uttered a hoarse, gasping laugh as he knew that at last we were -convinced. He drew back his finger, and the head lay back again. - -"Now you can guess why I don't want to come back to the Gulf. This -bracelet is known to every Arab there. The Sultan of Khamia is certain -to find out, sooner or later, that I have it, and then there will be an -end to me. Why, sirs, he would give half his wealth to get it back, and -once it becomes known that I have it he will get it somehow or other. -Getting it, I must die." - -"Man alive," the Baron cried, "why don't you try? A thin sheet of tin or -something pushed under it, then seize the head with pincers! Why, man, -it simply couldn't bite you! There'd be no risk whatsoever." - -"But I can't," Mr. Scarlett almost moaned. "I can't face it. If -anything did happen--I've seen those two die--remember that. It seems -part of me now--thirteen years it has been there--and I've been brought -up amongst Arabs--my mother was half an Arab, and there's something in -my blood which won't let me try. It's fate--Kismet--and I dare not fly -in face of that." - -The Baron fell back in his chair hopelessly. - -"Then why didn't you back out of coming here? Why didn't you explain?" I -asked. - -Then his manner changed again. He had come out of his dreams, and began -talking hurriedly as if his lips were shaking. - -"Truth is, gentlemen, I'm a born coward. I was too frightened to let on -that I was frightened of coming out this way again. It's the same thing -with many things I do. I'm too frightened to let on as how I'm -frightened, and up to now things have gone all right. I'm a coward, -sir, and I don't mind telling you," he said, turning to me. "We have to -live together for the next two years--if I'm spared--and you'll find -that out before you've known me many weeks, so you may as well know now. -Feel my hand, sir!" - -I felt it. It was cold and clammy and trembling. His dark face looked a -ghastly mud colour. - -"That's simply because I've been talking about it, and it reminds me of -things which have been--and might be again." - -"Come down below and have a brandy-and-soda," I said, and we took him -down below, rather glad to get into the noisy glare of the smoking -saloon, even though it was so hot. - -We always slept on deck, the Baron and I, but that night, whether it was -the heat or the effects of the gunner's story, precious little sleep did -we get; so, after tossing about restlessly for an hour, we gave up -trying, and leant over the deck rails and talked. - -"I'm sure it would be as easy as winking," my chum said. "One could -lash wire or even string round its head, so that the mouth could not -open. The fangs couldn't come out then. - -"I wonder what became of that man Jassim," he broke in presently. "He's -probably dead, so no one could possibly know that the gunner has it. If -he keeps it covered up he will be as safe as anything." - -He gazed out over the sea, thinking. - -"And probably what poison is left in it wouldn't kill a canary now," he -burst out again--neither of us could take our minds off the snake. -"Thirteen years ago! It must have lost its power by now." - -We went to our beds after a time and tried to sleep. Baron Popple -Opstein was soon snoring, but presently jumped up, shrieking, and I saw -him trying to pull something off his arm. - -I shook him until he woke up, very much ashamed of himself. He was -perspiring like a drowned rat, and it made me feel queer and shaky. I -did not like the mystery of the beastly thing. I had to live with the -gunner and it. If he was going to fill me up with many more such -stories, I should soon be frightened of my own shadow. - - - - - *CHAPTER III* - - *Skipper of the "Bunder Abbas"* - - -Two days later we arrived at Aden, and found the _Intrepid_ anchored -close to Steamer Point, looking cool and comfortable under her white -awnings and white paint. The officer of the "guard", coming across for -her mails, took the Baron and myself back with him. - -As skipper of the _Bunder Abbas_ I felt a somewhat important personage, -but Commander Duckworth, the captain of the _Intrepid_, a short, -red-faced, wiry man, full of energy, soon disabused me about that. - -It was terrifically hot in his cabin, and he was not in any mood for -talking. - -"Eh, yes, Martin--you are Martin, are you?--so you've come to take poor -Collingwood's job. I won't shake hands--too hot. Well, passages have -been booked for you and your gunner in that steamer," pointing to a -disreputable little steamer I could see through the gun port. "She -leaves to-morrow morning at daylight. You will go aboard her to-night. -We lent Wilson, one of our fellows, to the _Bunder Abbas_, until you -came. You'll find him at Jask--only too anxious to see you, I expect. -You'll take her over from him, and the boss at the telegraph station--a -kind of political agent--will pass on any orders to you. You are, more -or less, lent to the Indian Government, you know." - -I did not know, but that was nothing. - -His letters were brought in then, and he nodded for me to leave. -However, I was so fearfully keen to learn more that I blurted out: - -"Any chance of picking up a dhow or anything like that, sir?" - -"Of course there is always a chance," he said energetically. "Wilson -will tell you all about everything: good morning!" - -I went away to the ward-room, hoping to get more information there; but -the place was a litter of newspapers, and everybody was busy reading -letters and paid little attention to me. - -"_Bunder Abbas_. What size is she?" - -"Oh, about as big as that table!" was all that I could get out of them. - -The Baron and I parted company that afternoon, when I went aboard the -little steamer--the _Ras-al-Musat_. I found the gunner already there, -and also that solitary little lady, with the yellow hair and humorous -grey eyes--the little lady who had snubbed the fussy major--and me. She -also was bound for Jask, of all places in the world, and, as at meal -times she sat on the captain's right and I on his left hand, we had to -talk. However, she was much more interested in Mr. Scarlett and his -stories of Arabian life than in me. - -At daybreak of the fifth morning we dropped anchor two miles off Jask, -and I strained my eyes to catch a first glimpse of the _Bunder Abbas_, -though in the hazy light I could not distinguish her amongst a cluster -of dhows, anchored close inshore. All I could see was a wide sweep of -yellow sand and a low-lying peninsula, jutting out into the sea, with -some glaring white square buildings at its end. - -The place--if it really was an inhabited place--seemed absolutely -asleep, until, presently, some small, crazy lighters, full of jabbering -natives, came slowly off to unload whatever cargo we had for them. - -Half an hour later I spied a tiny little tub of a dinghy pulling our -way. As she drew closer I saw that Wilson was in it. I had known him -when he was a sub-lieutenant, and I met him at the gangway. - -"Jolly glad to see you," he burst out. "Everything's all right aboard -the _B.A_. I've ordered a chunk of goat for your breakfast--couldn't -get anything else. I told the political chap, up at the telegraph -station, that you'll be coming to see him. He will tell you anything you -want to know. Here's the 'signal book' and the 'cruising order book'. -Sign your 'tally' there. There are no more confidential books to hand -over." - -I signed the receipt for them. - -"Now you're the skipper of the _B.A_. I've finished with her, thank -Heaven! Griffiths, in the dinghy, can take you back now." - -Having so satisfactorily (?) concluded the formalities of handing over -command, Wilson took some letters which I had brought for him, and went -off to read them. I presumed that he was going to Karachi to catch a -steamer back to Aden, but did not take the trouble to ask him before the -gunner and myself left the _Ras-al-Musat_. - -If you had seen us being pulled inshore in that tiny dinghy to join my -first command you would have laughed. The dinghy's stern was nearly -level with the water, and her bows so cocked up in the air that Mr. -Scarlett had to creep for'ard to "trim the dish". - -As we gradually drew nearer the shore, I noticed a weird odour in the -air. - -"What's that?" I asked the bluejacket, sniffing it in. - -"All them Arab or Persh'un places smell like that, sir," he said. -"You'll not notice it in a week's time." - -I sucked it in through my nose. At last I had come to the edge of -things, and cut myself adrift from civilization. It was grand, and I -felt as happy as a bird--and looked like one, too, I expect, perched as -I was on the top of my two cases. - -"That's 'er, sir," the bluejacket said presently, jerking his chin over -his shoulder. Then I saw the _Bunder Abbas_ for the first time. She -and I were to have many exciting experiences together during the next -few months. - -As I saw her then she looked draggled to a degree. Her sides were a -positive disgrace--paint off in large patches; her awnings were dirty -and badly spread on bent, crazy-looking stanchions; and her rusty -unpainted cable hung drearily out of a most disreputable hawse-pipe. - -In her bows, under the awning, there was a gun, in a dirty canvas -cover--a six-pounder I guessed--and aft two Maxims were cocked up at -different angles, in the most slovenly manner. Their water-jackets, -which should have been so bright, were painted a beastly mud colour, and -from the muzzle of one dangled a bunch of green bananas. - -"Your own mother won't know you in a week's time, my sweetheart," I -chuckled to myself, as the bluejacket tugged at one oar and twisted the -dinghy alongside. - -I swung myself aboard, to be met by a bearded petty officer with a -shifty, crafty face, who saluted me about a dozen times in the first two -minutes. Five or six disreputable-looking sailors peered round the -corner of the engine-room casings to take stock of me, and some lascars -sitting jabbering round a stew-pot took no notice whatever. - -I looked round. The deck was littered with rubbish; men's clothes were -stretched on it everywhere--to dry; burnt matches and cigarette ends lay -in every corner. - -"We ain't scrubbed decks yet," the petty officer said, following my eye, -his hand bobbing up and down to his forehead all the time. "Wouldn't -you like to see the orficer's cabin, sir?" he added hastily, to distract -my anger, and led me up a ladder, through an opening in the fore awning, -to a platform round the mast and funnel. On this platform deck, for'ard -of the mast, were the steering-wheel, compass, and engine-room -telegraphs, also a tiny little signal-locker; aft of the funnel was a -diminutive deck-house, about half the size of a railway compartment. It -had a low bunk on each side, with scarcely room to stand between them, a -few shelves, lockers under the bunks, and a cracked looking-glass. -Overhead the paintwork was blackened by an oil lamp which swung from the -roof and looked as if it had not been cleaned or trimmed for years. - -Outside the cabin there was just enough deck space for a small folding -table and a couple of canvas folding chairs. - -"Them chairs belonged to Mr. Collingwood, what died of sunstroke, and -the gunner, what went off 'un 'is 'ead," the petty officer explained. - -I made a grimace. - -"You'll 'ave a cup of corfee?" he asked, rubbing his hands together and -smiling ingratiatingly as a dirty unkempt Indian boy (a Tamil I found -out afterwards) brought two cups of horrid-looking coffee and a tin of -condensed milk with milk congealed down one side of it. "Mr. Wilson 'as -ordered your breakfast, and this 'ere boy--Percy we calls 'im--looks -arter you two orficers." - -Nothing seemed to stop his talking machine. - -I snorted--it was the only way I could express my feelings--and looked -round to see what had become of Mr. Scarlett, who had disappeared. - -"What's your routine on board?" I asked, going down the ladder again to -that six-pounder in the bows. - -"We ain't exactly got none," the petty officer answered. "Mr. -Collingwood, 'im what died of sunstroke, 'e didn't 'ave no regular -routine--an' Mr. Wilson didn't alter nothing." - -He said this in a half-fawning, half-defiant manner, as much as to say: -"Don't you come making trouble." - -Mr. Scarlett joined us, his black eyes gleaming, stepping through the -little crowd of lascars and scattering them. - -"They won't hang any more bananas on my guns," he chuckled. - -I had heard a splash, so guessed what had happened, and smiled until -that petty officer, hanging round to join in the conversation, explained -that "They were a bunch Mr. Wilson bought yesterday, off a Karachi dhow, -and 'ung 'em up there to get a bit ripe for you two orficers." He -looked so cunningly pleased that I told him sharply to clear out of it -and I'd send for him when I wanted him. - -I smothered my anger, went up to the little cabin, and began to stow -away as much of my belongings as I could cram into the two shallow -drawers under the bunk, kicking out "Percy", who wanted to help. He did -not seem to mind, and was back again in a minute. If he was dirty, he -had a cheerful little face and a pair of big dog-like eyes. He pleaded -with them so hard to be allowed to stay and help that I had not the -heart to kick him out again. - -That "chunk" of goat soon disappeared, once Mr. Scarlett and I settled -down to breakfast. Whilst we were busy with it a European-built boat -pulled past us from the steamer, with our little yellow-haired friend -under the awnings. I almost felt inclined to wave to her, but, not -wanting another snub, did not do so. - -"I expect she's going to live at the telegraph station. She won't find -many comforts in this place," Mr. Scarlett said grimly, pointing to the -various square, white-faced buildings at the end of Jask peninsula. - -Down on the low ground, where the peninsula joined the coast line, there -was a neglected-looking red-brick building among some palm trees (Mr. -Scarlett said it was a fort), and another, larger and more imposing, -some little way inshore. With the exception of these there was precious -little to see except sand-hills, a few scattered palm trees, and perhaps -a hundred native huts dotted among them. We could see the track which -led inland to the town of old Jask, though the town itself was not -visible. On the horizon the misty outlines of barren mountains rose high -into the burning sky. Even at this hour the sun was very fierce. - -Presently that European boat came pulling off to the _Bunder Abbas_ with -a note for me from the Englishman in charge of the telegraph -station--the acting political agent--asking me to breakfast with him and -not to bother with formalities. - -"Off you skip, sir," Mr. Scarlett advised me. "They calls their lunch -'breakfast'. I'd like to have a few kind words with the men whilst you -are away." So on shore I went, landing on a broad, sandy beach, where -crowds of Arabs or Persians, and niggers of sorts--every sort, I should -fancy--were unloading those wretched lighters and some large dhows lying -half out of water. Donkeys, as patient as donkeys are all the world -over, and camels, as supercilious and discontented as they, too, always -are, were being laden with bales of merchandise. - -One of the boat's crew--a Zanzibar nigger he was--led me through them, -away from the shore and the native huts, through a small grove of palm -trees, where that old fort stood, and across an open cultivated space, -sloping gently upwards towards the telegraph station. At the top of -this was a double line of wire entanglements extending from side to -side. - -I opened my eyes as I saw these, and still more when he led me through -some roughly-designed earthworks, evidently meant for protection. Then -we came to the big barrack-like telegraph buildings themselves, with a -line of iron telegraph posts running from them down the peninsula and -then along the edge of the shore to the east'ard as far as my eye could -see. My guide led me to a building surrounded by a strong stone wall, -with loopholes through it, and at the entrance a short cheery man with a -round red face and a scrubby, yellow moustache was waiting to welcome -me. - -He was the political agent--Fisher by name. He introduced me to his -wife, who came out to join us--a tired-looking little woman--and on the -veranda, in the shade, which we hurriedly sought, was my little lady -friend from the steamer, talking to a tall, good-looking chap. The -political agent explained that this was Borsen, his right-hand man, the -only other European there, and that she, his sister, had come out to -keep house for him and be some company for Mrs. Fisher. - -"They are the only two women here, and it is very noble of them to come -to such a place as this," he said, speaking as though it might be jolly -unselfish of them but that he wished they were not there. - -"What do you think of your new ship?" he asked, smiling. - -"You won't know her in a month's time," I smiled back. - -"Shan't have the chance," he answered. "I have a very pretty job for -you along the coast--keep you busy for the next three months." - -I brightened up and wanted to hear more; but the head "boy"--a "perfect" -old chap in a yellow silk turban--announced breakfast, and until we had -finished there was no chance of my learning. - -Then Mr. Fisher took me into his work-room, brought out charts, and -explained things to me. - -"Look," he said, pointing to the Arabian coast at a place called Jeb, -some forty miles to the north'ard of Muscat. "I have information that -several thousand rifles have been brought down there. The Arabs will be -bringing them across at the first opportunity, and it was only yesterday -that I heard that camels are being collected in two villages not far -from here. It is fairly certain that somewhere between those two -villages they mean to land them. You see that headland jutting -out--look--close to Kuh-i-Mubarak--thirty miles to the west'ard. There -are two creeks; one just to the south'ard of it, the other about eleven -miles to the north'ard. They are favourite places for landing arms, and -those camels--a hundred or more--are somewhere close by. - -"The chart does not show it properly. I'll draw you a rough -sketch-map." - -He drew a sketch and explained it. A hill named Sheikh Hill (there was -a sheikh's house or fort on its summit) and the cliffs opposite it made -an anchorage safe from any wind, but the creek leading from a little -inlet past the village of Bungi (where half those camels had been -collected) was very shallow indeed. - -South of Sheikh Hill--eleven miles south--there was deep water right up -to the shore under Kuh-i-Mubarak, and the creek there was deep, winding -among sand-hills until it opened out into a "khor" or basin, with the -village of Sudab on its edge. Here was the remainder of the camels. - -The two creeks--the shallow one to the north and the deep one to the -south--were connected up at the back of the sand-hills and behind the -two villages by a channel some thirty yards broad, but so shallow that -only at high water could even the native boats use it. - -Behind all, some eleven miles inland, the Persian mountains towered up, -and passes between them led to the desert table-lands behind. - -"The track to Baluchistan and the north-west frontier of India lies -across those table-lands," Mr. Fisher said, making a groove with his -finger nail. "I want you to patrol from one creek to another, examining -every dhow which comes along. I hope you will have luck. Remember that -if a 'shamel' blows, the dhows will probably be driven south and make -for the deep creek at the base of Mubarak. - -"Gun-running has been very brisk lately. A caravan of rifles actually -passed last month within sight of the old town of Jask, on its way to -the Indian frontier." - -Then he told me more about this trade: how the restless tribes on the -north-west frontier of India will give almost any price for a military -rifle; that they live by brigandage, looting peaceful villages on the -British side of the frontier, or, when not so employed, fighting among -themselves. They cannot get rifles from India except by creeping up to -a British picket--natives or white men--shooting or stabbing, and -stealing rifles in that way; so the Arabs ship them across the Gulf, and -take them up on camels through the Baluchistan deserts. So many rifles -are now captured by our cruisers, gunboats, and steam-launches that the -demand is always greater than the supply; and as, directly they have -been run safely into Baluchistan, rifles which originally cost three -pounds are worth thirty to thirty-five each, the temptation to deal in -arms is enormous. - -"But who sells the Arabs these rifles?" I asked. The business was quite -a mystery to me. - -The political agent shrugged his shoulders. - -"You'd better not ask. We both of us have to obey orders, and neither -of us had better ask questions. Get away as soon as you like. The -_Intrepid_ is coming from Aden in a week's time, and will meet you off -the coast, but I want you there as soon as possible." - -"I'll go back at once," I said eagerly. - -He nodded approvingly, and took me to wish the ladies good-bye. - -"Do be careful," his wife said earnestly. "It was terrible about poor -Mr. Collingwood and his gunner; everyone was so upset." - -"I nearly waved to you when you passed the _Bunder Abbas_ this morning," -I told Miss Borsen, "but was afraid you'd think me forward--think me -like that fussy major." - -She laughed merrily. - -"You were quite right. You never wished me good-bye when you left the -steamer, so I should not have waved back." - -The political agent accompanied me part of the way. - -"That looks as if you expected to be attacked," I remarked, pointing to -the earthworks, breastworks, and lines of wire entanglement. - -"That's all over for the present. Some wandering brigand tribe did make -it unpleasant for us once, but that's ancient history now. Good-bye! -Look! my wife and Miss Borsen are waving good-bye." - -I waved my helmet, and strode down the path feeling quite a hero, my -head full of my new job. - -As my boat ran alongside the _Bunder Abbas_ Mr. Scarlett, with a grim -smile, received me, whilst Moore (the petty officer), looking as sulky -as a bear, "piped" me over the side, and the crew, lascars as well, -stood to attention. - -"I've had a few words with 'em. Told 'em the _Bunder Abbas_ wasn't a -Plymouth ash-boat but a man-of-war, and they'd behave as such," Mr. -Scarlett chuckled. - -"We have to get up steam and start hunting dhows as soon as ever we -can," I burst out enthusiastically, telling him what were my orders. - -I expected him to be as pleased as I was; but his face fell and he would -not look me in the eyes. I did not understand him yet--not in the -least. However, there were many difficulties in the way of sailing -immediately--chiefly due to the shortage of fresh water for the tanks -and boilers. Moore did not know where to get any on shore. He said -sullenly that it wasn't any use trying during the hot hours of the day, -that everyone on shore slept then, and that the crew, too, generally -slept. "It was a-working in the 'eat of the day what killed Mr. -Collingwood, 'im what died of sunstroke," he muttered, reminding me of -the latter's fate for about the tenth time since coming on board. - -I told him to "Get out of it and go to Jericho!" - -Fortunately there was a splendid fellow on board, Webster, the corporal -of marines, who knew how to get water on shore. He, the Persian -interpreter (a stolid, aristocratic individual in spotless white clothes -and a black fez), and myself went ashore in the dinghy and made -ourselves extremely unpopular, disturbing an Arab contractor and waking -half the village (if you could call it a village). But we got our water -alongside in a couple of hours and on board half an hour later. Oh, my -head was hot! On shore the sun seemed to strike right through my -helmet, glaring at me from the dusty, sandy ground and hitting me from -every white mud wall. I had never been so hot in my life. - -At last everything was ready. We hove up our rusty cable and slipped -out through the cluster of dhows anchored near us. The sun was low, and -as I set my course from a tall signal-mast at one corner of the -telegraph buildings, the white walls were tinged a rosy red. At the -foot of the flagstaff I thought I saw the figures of two women. Risking -another snub from the little lady with the yellow hair and grey eyes, I -waved my helmet. Sure enough, two white handkerchiefs fluttered for a -moment. I smiled, pleased that she had forgiven me. - -Then the sun sank in a glory of red gold, and off we steamed, whilst I -smoked my pipe and watched the lonely telegraph buildings and the -sand-hills behind them gradually sink below the horizon. - -I was so happy that I would not have changed places with all the kings -of England from William I--1066--that I could remember. - -For the first few hours, as we jogged along, a half-moon gave plenty of -light; but it set by midnight, and the night was dark, with hardly a -breath of wind. - -Several times dhows glided by noiselessly and mysteriously, with a -phosphorescent glow along their water-lines, and each time one passed I -felt as excited as a child. I was much too excited to sleep; kept Mr. -Scarlett's watch, and gradually edged to the eastward so as to be about -halfway between those two creeks, and five miles or so off the land, at -sunrise. - -That first sunrise--the flood of marvellously changing shades of -delicate colours, spreading upwards from behind the Persian -mountains--was magical. Even though my thoughts were full of other -things, I almost held my breath as I watched it. Away inshore, to the -south-east, was the little headland of Kuh-i-Mubarak, with a -peculiar-shaped rock (marked on the chart) on its top; and to the -north-east was Sheikh Hill and the cliffs which the political agent had -sketched for me. Between them the shore and the low sand-hills were, as -yet, invisible, and not a sail was in sight. - -"Well, here we are, Mr. Scarlett," I said with satisfaction, as he came -to relieve me after a sound night's sleep. "We're just where I wanted -to be. We'll go and have a look at that creek leading to Bungi." - -In half an hour we had shoved the _Bunder Abbas_ within a few hundred -yards of the foot of Sheikh Hill, with its old dilapidated fort perched -on top, and some white-robed figures squatting on the rocks outside it. -I went right in, almost under the high cliffs on the opposite side of -the little bay, until the mouth of the creek came in view, with a number -of native boats drawn up on the sand, and, far inland, the tops of a few -palm trees. - -Mr. Scarlett, looking nervous and anxious, spotted a dirty-looking chap -looking down at us from the tops of those cliffs. "He has a rifle," I -said, handing him my glasses, and had hardly spoken before a spurt of -water jumped up under our bows with a "flop", and a bullet, smacking -against the anchor, squealed past us. I saw Mr. Scarlett's face turn -grey, and his hand shook as he hurriedly gave back the glasses. - -"He's an Afghan," he said; "an Arab would not fire without some excuse. -We'd better get out of it, sir." - -The man had flung himself down among the rocks at the top of those -cliffs, almost over our heads. We could not have hit him with rifle, -Maxim, or six-pounder; so, as I had seen all that was to be seen, I -turned the _Bunder Abbas_ round and went to sea again. The Afghan, or -whoever he was, fired once or twice after us, but he was a wretchedly -bad shot. - -"Queer beggars, them Afghans," Mr. Scarlett said, recovering his -equanimity when we were out of rifle range. "It don't matter where they -are, but they'll take a pot-shot at a white man, even if they know -they'll be scuppered the very next moment. You may bet your life, sir, -that as there are some of them hanging round here, here they mean to -land them rifles." - -There was not a breath of wind to be felt, and no dhow could possibly -run in for the next few hours, so I sauntered down to look at the creek -near Kuh-i-Mubarak, eleven miles to the south. Here the water was very -deep right up to the shore, and in the creek. I steamed up it for a mile -and a half, winding between bare sand-hills, which concealed any view -behind them, until it widened suddenly into a great basin or "khor" that -shoaled rapidly. - -"There won't be any water for us," Mr. Scarlett said, fidgeting. - -Bother the water! I wanted to see all I could, so pushed on. I had not -seen a single living thing or sign of habitation, so crept along, -sounding as I went, until the sand-hills opened out and showed a wide -plain dotted with palm trees, a few huts close to the water, and many -boats drawn up in front of them. - -"Look!" I shouted. "Look! Look at all those things under the -trees--camels, as sure as ninepence!" Through my telescope I could see -fifty or sixty yellowish-brown things kneeling, like lumps of mud, under -the shade of those palms, moving their long necks, and some human beings -were walking about among them. At any rate I had seen one lot of -camels. I was quite satisfied, backed the _Bunder Abbas_ out until -there was room to turn her round, and put to sea. - -All the rest of that day, the next night, and for three more days and -nights we patrolled up and down from one creek to another, and not a -sign of dhow did we see. - -Those days were busy enough. Mr. Scarlett and I between us had "shaken -up" the crew with a vengeance. Moore wished he'd never been born. I had -the whole crew "fallen in" and said a few words to them, letting them -know that I was going to stand no nonsense, and that until the _Bunder -Abbas_ was clean above and below, inside and out, bright work polished -and paintwork clean, nobody would have any afternoon sleep whatever. - -The trouble of it all was that there were so few of them that either -they were on watch or standing off. - -The whole crew consisted of only ten white men, besides myself and the -gunner: Moore, the petty officer; Dobson, a quiet, determined-looking -leading seaman; four able seamen--Andrews, Jackson, Wiggins, and -Griffiths; a signalman named Hartley--the laziest man on board; and -three marines--Webster, the corporal, and Jones and Gamble, privates. -Picked men they were, I knew, though they had been allowed to get "out -of hand". Webster, the corporal, was, as far as I could judge, the best -man among them. He did the duties of ship's corporal, steward, -sick-berth steward, and writer--and did them well too. - -In addition to these there was Jaffa, the Persian interpreter, silent -and dignified, always spotlessly clean--a good-looking fellow if he had -not had a cataract in one eye. Jaffa was far and away ahead of all the -other natives. He gave you the impression that he was the descendant of -Persian emperors, brooding over the deserted grandeur and humbled state -of his country at the present time. In fact, I treated him with the -greatest respect from the very first day. - -There were three lascar drivers and nine lascar firemen to look after -the boilers and engine, their own lascar "bundari" or cook, another cook -of some unknown nationality, and his boy, to cook for the rest of the -crew. These two were the most depressed, dirty-looking objects I had -ever seen. One or the other, generally both, could be seen at any hour -of the day--or night, I believe--crouched on the deck, outside the -little galley, swishing a dirty cloth round the middle of a saucepan or -dish, gazing dejectedly across the sea, and looking as if they longed to -jump into it and finish all their worries. Last but one was a -snuff-coloured Goanese carpenter; and, last of all, Sinamuran, our Tamil -boy from Trincomalee, who "did" for Mr. Scarlett and myself, and soon -began to look quite respectable. We never had to call "Percy" a second -time, day or night, before he had glided, silent as a ghost, to our -elbows, looking with solemn black eyes to see what was wanted. - -This was the strangely-assorted crew collected in the little _Bunder -Abbas_--thirty in all, and speaking half a dozen languages. The white -crew lived aft and the coloured men for'ard. - -The bluejackets' uniform consisted of white, mushroom-shaped helmets or -topees, white-coloured singlets, and duck "shorts". At night they wore -their ordinary ship's caps, flannel jumpers, and duck trousers. I don't -believe there was a yard of blue serge in the launch; so the -"bluejackets" were not anything like the bluejackets one sees in -England. The armament of the _Bunder Abbas_ consisted of that -six-pounder in the bows, the two Maxims in the stern, ten rifles and -sword-bayonets, ten cutlasses, and twelve revolvers. We had plenty of -ammunition. So now, perhaps, it is possible for anyone to picture us as -we patrolled slowly up and down that coast, keeping well away from shore -in the sweltering daytime and creeping closer during the comparatively -cool nights. - -For four days and nights there was scarcely a puff of wind to ruffle the -surface of the sea--certainly not enough to move a dhow; so we saw -nothing. But on the evening of that fourth day a fair breeze sprang up, -only to die down again before midnight. Just before daybreak Mr. -Scarlett woke me. As I jumped to my feet he pointed seawards, and -there, sure enough, even in the indistinct light, was a dhow, about four -miles off, crawling inshore with a fitful breeze behind her. - -"That's no proper trader," Mr. Scarlett whispered hoarsely, his voice -shaking a little. "Look what a wretched thing she is! The Arabs never -run arms in a new or big dhow: the risk of capture is too great. See -that signal?" - -I looked ashore to where he was pointing. We were abreast Sheikh Hill, -and on it we could see a red light being moved about. - -"It's a warning signal," Mr. Scarlett said, "and she hasn't seen it -yet." - -"Off we go!" I chuckled, my heart thumping with excitement. "Get the -guns cleared away." - -"Aye, aye, sir," Mr. Scarlett answered bravely, but his voice trembled -and his face turned that muddy colour again. He would not catch my eye, -and went down on deck. I bit my lip with vexation. If I could not -depend upon him at a pinch, what was I to do? - -Percy brought me a cup of coffee, smiling, and looking at the dhow. I -drank it at a gulp. Extraordinarily thirsty I was, and the air had a -peculiar "dry feeling". - -Griffiths happened to be at the wheel. I nodded, and he turned the -launch towards the dhow, whilst I called down the voice-pipe to the -engine-room and ordered more steam. - - - - - *CHAPTER IV* - - *Adrift in a Dhow* - - -The crew of that dhow sighted us long before the puffs of black smoke -from our funnel showed that the lascars down in the stokehold were -pitching on more coal. The queer-looking craft turned up into the -breeze, hung there for a moment, as if hesitating what to do, and then -paid off, turning to the south'ard. - -Off we went after her, gathering speed--Griffiths at the helm, I -standing by him, and the others down below, under the awnings, round -their guns. I noticed that there was no dew on the awnings or -decks--usually it was very heavy; the air, too, was extraordinarily dry, -and a splash of water which fell on the deck as Percy brought my shaving -water to the cabin dried in no time. - -Griffiths was sniffing to wind'ard. "A 'shamel's' coming, sir, that's -what it is--a big one, I fancy; the air's allus like this a 'our or two -before they comes." - -A "shamel"! I had read about a shamel--the Sailing Directions for the -station was full of it: a changeable, boisterous gale from the -north-west, coming when least expected, sometimes blowing with terrific -force, and often lasting for five or six days; but I was too excited -just then to worry about it, even when Mr. Scarlett, putting his head up -through the gap in the awning, called out huskily: "Bad weather from the -north-west, I fear, sir." - -The sun shot up from behind the Persian mountains, its face blurred and -hazy. - -"Aye, it's a shamel all right, afore long!" I heard Griffiths mutter. - -Well, if it came, it came; I did not care what happened, so long as I -got alongside that dhow. - -In half an hour we were close enough to see that she was of about eighty -tons, high in the poop, low in the bows, and very ill found. She had -her big sail drawing full, and was streaking through the water. -Presently she began to haul it farther and farther aft, still keeping on -her course. - -"Ah! the breeze is backing," Griffiths muttered; "that's another sign -we're in for it all right, sir. It's going to be a tidy one too." - -We were now about a thousand yards from the dhow, and were rapidly -closing. I ordered Mr. Scarlett to fire a six-pounder shell ahead of -her. - -The little cloud of smoke spurted out from beneath the awning, and the -shell burst fifty or sixty yards in front of her bows. She took not the -least notice, except to ease away the big sail again, still keeping on -her course to the south'ard. - -"The shamel's coming, sure enough; she's reckoning on that," Griffiths -muttered under his breath. "When it comes, those chaps will carry on -till they lose their mast. They have rifles, or they'd have lowered -their sail. If they're caught, it means six months' 'chokey' for them, -besides losing the dhow, so they're going to have a run for their money. -That's what they're going to do." - -I was so excited that I could hear my heart drumming in my ears. - -The hardly ruffled surface of the sea now began to lose its clearness, -and a little spray sprinkled the fo'c'sle, drying almost as it fell. - -I called down to the fo'c'sle, and Mr. Scarlett fired a second gun, -whereupon the crew evidently thought it wiser to haul down their big -sail. Down it came, and, as we ran alongside, a little cur of a dog, -running backwards and forwards, kept jumping up on the gunwale and -barking at us. We could not help laughing at its absurd fury. - -"Any fight in them?" I asked Griffiths. - -"Not by a jugful, sir. They'll be as quiet as lambs. You'll 'ave to be -mighty 'nippy' a-searching of 'er, sir; the shamel's coming." - -As our sides grated together I clambered on board her, Jaffa, the -interpreter, Dobson, the leading seaman, Jackson and Wiggins following -me. The little dog snapped at us, then went howling aft to where the -crew of the dhow--nine or ten of them--were squatting, glaring at us. -There were two big hatches, one for'ard and the other aft of the mast, -both covered with several layers of timber planks, securely lashed down. -Beneath them were my rifles. I felt sure that she must be full of -rifles, and that they were mine already. As Jaffa followed me aft, the -others began to make the launch fast alongside with ropes thrown to -them. - -"Tell the nakhoda[#] to show his papers; tell him to get his hatches -uncovered," I told Jaffa; and he, perfectly accustomed to this job, -began jabbering to a saturnine, bearded old villain who sat on the -raised poop-deck between the tiller ropes. - - -[#] Nakhoda = captain. - - -The dog snarled and barked from beneath the poop, but the nakhoda and -the rest of the crew sat there absolutely silent, not moving a muscle, -just looking steadily at us. - -I cursed them, but the only effect was to make the old villain smile--a -curious smile, which I could not understand. - -"Send everyone you can spare to clear away the hatches," I shouted to -Mr. Scarlett. "They won't show their papers, and won't do anything." - -Three lascars and the Goanese carpenter (yellow with fright) climbed on -board with axes, and all my people began hacking at the ropes and -hauling away the balks of timber on top of the main-hatch cover. - -I yelled myself hoarse to make the Arabs come and lend a hand; Jaffa, -too, was trying to persuade them. I pulled out my revolver and -flourished it. Still no one budged an inch, except the nakhoda, who -kept turning his head to the north-west. - -It was half an hour's work to clear the main-hatch cover of all that -timber, and we were about to start knocking out the securing wedges when -I looked towards the land. Sheikh Hill was now six miles to the north; -its outline was indistinct, and the water under it had a peculiar -greyish, muddy appearance. - -I caught the nakhoda's eye, and saw that triumphant smile again. - -"Hurry up, men! it's coming on to blow," I shouted. - -Mr. Scarlett's voice, very shaky, called: - -"I shouldn't open those hatches, sir. We're a long way to leeward." - -Little I cared how hard it blew. Little you would have cared if you had -been in my place, on board my first capture, feeling certain that there -were hundreds of rifles and thousands of cartridges under those hatches. - -"Dig out, men, dig out for blazes!" I shouted, and then saw Mr. Scarlett -lean over the side of the launch and be violently sick--with fright, I -presumed--and was madly angry with him. - -That line of muddy-grey water was rushing towards us now; Sheikh Hill -was shut out in a blurred haze, and as the lascars were hammering at -those wedges the "shamel" struck us. It was like a wall of solid wind. -With a rush and a roar it swept down upon us, and I should have been -blown overboard if I had not been holding on to a shroud. It struck the -high poop of the dhow, and swung her and the _Bunder Abbas_ round like a -top. Spray whirled in front of the "shamel", and drenched us to the -skin. The big sail began lashing furiously from side to side, but not a -move did the Arab crew make; the little dog had fled back under the -poop, and the nakhoda was laughing in his beard. - -Mr. Scarlett shouted for me to cover up the hatch. - -Luckily we had not yet opened it. - -I yelled to my men to get hold of the sail, to lash it to the yard and -to haul taut the main sheets, the big block of which was banging about -in the most dangerous manner. - -Whilst we were doing this another squall struck us. The dhow's bows -paid off before it; the sail partially filled and bore her over until -the lee gunwale was awash, then bore her down against the _Bunder -Abbas_, the yard of the big sail tearing away the after awning and -crumpling the stanchions. The lascars and the Goanese carpenter, -frightened out of their lives, jumped into the _Bunder Abbas_ or were -knocked overboard into her. Jackson fell into the sea between the two. -I expected him to be crushed, but saw them drag him safely into the -launch--waiting their chance. Mr. Scarlett and a couple of "hands" were -lowering the hatches over the engine-room and stokehold; others on board -her were battening down for'ard, as the seas poured over the bows. - -It was marvellous what a sea had risen in such a short time. Waves, -striking the side of the dhow, surged up and topped aboard the launch; -she was half-buried in them. The Arabs, crouching nearer together under -the weather gunwale, pulled their cloaks over their heads to protect -themselves, chattering volubly and peering to wind'ard; the nakhoda, -clinging to one of the tiller ropes, chuckled to himself. - -The dhow fell off again broadside to the wind, seas began washing right -over her waist, and one by one those balks of timber were hurled -overboard. The launch was to wind'ard, now, banging against her side. -I did not know what to do. I could not bring myself to abandon the -dhow. - -Whilst I was trying to make up my mind, the dhow gave a tremendous -lurch, and the strain on the for'ard rope to the launch was too much for -it. It rendered, and before another could be secured the dhow had swung -away from her. Another wave fell aboard her; the _Bunder Abbas_ was -almost hidden in water; the damaged awning stripped and thundered to -leeward, and she heeled over so much that for a moment I thought she -would capsize. Then the stern rope parted and we drifted away from each -other. - -I yelled to Mr. Scarlett to come alongside again (my voice hardly -reached my own ears), but a cloud of steam rushed hurriedly up from the -boiler-room, and I knew what that meant--her fires had been put out, and -she was perfectly helpless. - -For a moment I wondered whether she could live in that sea. It flashed -across my brain that I'd made a fool of myself and lost her; then a wave -soaked me to the skin and half-smothered me. - -By this time we were a quarter of a mile apart, the dhow with her tall -sides and mast drifting to leeward much more rapidly than the _Bunder -Abbas_. As I watched her, wallowing deeply, the after awning tore away -completely, whirling and twisting. It was carried up in the air like a -dry leaf, and was actually borne right over the dhow before it fell into -the sea. I saw the nakhoda still smiling from under his burnous--he -knew perfectly well that neither the _Bunder Abbas_ nor her guns -mattered now--and I realized that Dobson, Wiggins, and myself were alone -with those Arabs in a crazy dhow, with a gale blowing harder every -moment, and no possible means of leaving her. I did not count Jaffa, -the interpreter; it was not his job to fight, and if it came to a scrap -he certainly did not look as if he would be of any use. - -"We'll have to take her into Jask, sir," Dobson roared in my ears. -"Right to lee'ard it is, sir. This breeze will take us there in next to -no time." - -What a chap! This "breeze"! Call this tearing, roaring fury of a gale -a breeze! - -My aunt; so we would! I'd never thought of that. We'd take her into -Jask. Yes, we would! But there were those Arabs to be reckoned with, -and they might have something to say about that. We should have to -master them first and make them help us or the dhow might not weather -the gale. We could do that, Dobson, Wiggins and I; we had our -revolvers, whilst they seemed to be unarmed. - -With something definite to do, and with the relief of not having yet -lost my captured rifles, I really minded but little what happened. -Those rifles were mine, and sooner than lose them--I'd go down with -them. Take her into Jask! Of course we would. But first I must stand -by the _Bunder Abbas_ until she had raised steam again and was in -safety. She was all right so far--a thousand yards to wind'ard, rolling -horribly. Someone began semaphoring, and I read, "Fires washed out--am -getting out sea anchor--will follow as soon as possible;" so Mr. -Scarlett, or Moore, or somebody, was keeping his head. - -"We must try and work her up to wind'ard," I bawled in Dobson's ear, but -he shook his head and bawled something back which I could not hear. I -meant to try, and the first thing to do was to get control of the helm, -though how to do that with all those Arabs squatting there, glaring at -us, I didn't know. - -"Tell them to get for'ard," I yelled to Jaffa, and saw him crawl aft and -shout something at them, gesticulating in a commanding way, though those -infernal fellows only smiled and sat still, half a dozen of them holding -on to the tiller ropes. - -Dobson looked at me and bawled in my ear: - -"I'll get hold of the helm tackles--just you shoot if any of them tries -any of their tricks." - -"No! I'll go," I yelled, ashamed to funk the job. - -I waited till the dhow was steady for a moment, worked my way along the -weather gunwale, dodging those balks of timber which were being washed -about the deck, until I was right in the middle of them. That beastly -little dog snapped at my bare feet as I grabbed one of the tiller ropes -to steady myself, and I kicked him back under the poop. - -I yelled and waved to the crew to get for'ard, staying among them and -kicking two of them in the ribs to make them let go of the ropes. They -took not the slightest notice. The nakhoda was just behind me, and I -feared, every moment, that I should feel a knife in my back. - -Jaffa came scrambling to join me--I never thought that he would have the -pluck to do so. - -"Tell the nakhoda that if the crew don't go for'ard in two minutes I'll -shoot him," I roared. - -The nakhoda looked impassively to wind'ard whilst I pointed my revolver -at his head and held up my wrist watch, so that he could see it, and -waited. - -A minute went past--Jaffa looked nervously round; the nakhoda folded his -burnous more closely round his head. Two minutes went by--not a single -one in all that stolid group moved; they still clung to the tiller -ropes. I gave him three minutes. Three minutes went by, and that Arab -nakhoda knew perfectly well that I would not shoot him in cold blood. - -Nor could I. I let go the tiller rope and crawled for'ard again, -absolutely not knowing what to do next. - -We were driving and twisting, screwing and yawing before the gale like a -bit of driftwood, seas toppling over the bows and the waist and washing -right across the decks. And that crowd refused to budge--would not have -done anything to save their own lives, I believe. - -If they had only taken the offensive and attacked us I should have -whooped with the joy of fighting--that cargo of rifles down below was -worth fighting for--but they would not. - -Dobson it was who settled the question. - -With a "Look out, sir, I'm going for 'em", he took the opportunity of a -moment when the dhow was on a level keel and rushed into the middle of -them. He seized the burnous over the nakhoda's head, and before that -malignant brute could get his hands free he had hauled the loose folds -across his throat, choked him, pulled him off the poop on to the deck, -and began hauling him for'ard. - -In a trice those Arabs were on their feet, throwing off their upper -clothes, and snarling like a lot of dogs. Two of them caught Dobson's -foot, and tried to throw him. Wiggins and I were among them in a -moment, hitting right and left, until my knuckles were bleeding. In a -jumbling, struggling crowd, with that dog barking and biting round us, -we were thrown from port to starboard, as the dhow rolled; but somehow -or other we managed to get between the Arabs and Dobson, who had never -let go of the old man's neck. - -A wave washed over us, and for a moment we had a breathing spell, and in -that moment I saw the nakhoda free one of his hands. He had a knife in -it, so I grabbed his arm, forced his wrist back, and gave him a blow on -the back of his head with the butt end of my revolver which knocked him -as limp as a rag. - -As he fell, the crew, like one man, bent down to the folds round their -waists, drawing knives. Two of them had pistols, and before either -Wiggins, Dobson, or myself could use our revolvers they had fired, and a -bullet had whizzed past my head. - -A pistol went off behind me; one of the Arabs--one of the two with -pistols--threw up his hands and fell. The others yelled and rushed for -us; but we were ready now. I chose the second man with a pistol, fired, -and missed him; another shot from behind knocked him over. I saw two -more fall. I got a slice over the head, the man who did it being -knocked down by Dobson before I knew he had touched me, and the rest had -had enough of it, and scrambled for'ard. The dog tried to follow them, -but made the mistake of attempting a last snap at Dobson's leg. Before -you could wink, that little cur was whirling through the air overboard. -In two minutes after Dobson had garrotted their nakhoda, we were masters -of that dhow. - -I felt rather rocky, and sat down, holding on to a rope, with blood -simply pouring over my ear and shoulder. - -Then it was that I saw Jaffa. I had forgotten him. He was standing -behind me, calmly re-charging a Mauser pistol in the most matter-of-fact -way possible, and I realized that it was his shots that had killed the -two pistol men. I tried to show that I was grateful. "Well shot, -Jaffa!" I shouted. "Tell them to take their dead and wounded for'ard." - -Presently the six Arabs still on their legs crawled and slunk aft, and -dragged the two dead bodies away, helping the wounded man along the -deck, and then sitting in a ring round the foot of the mast, motionless -and mute as bats, drawing their cloaks round them to protect them from -the seas. - -The nakhoda was still unconscious, so we secured him to a ring to -prevent him being washed overboard. - -Someone lashed a handkerchief round my head and stopped the bleeding. -That made me more comfortable, and I was able to take stock of our -position. - -Kuh-i-Mubarak, that hill near the southern creek, was now abreast us, -just visible through the gale. The shamel roared down on us more -fiercely than ever, driving in front of it a wild, jumping, short sea, -twenty feet high, with boiling crests. That such waves could have been -whipped up in such a short time seemed incredible. - -Every now and then the launch's white side and her yellow funnel and -mast showed up against the dark sky to wind'ard; so she was still safe. -But we were more than two thousand yards to leeward of her, and how I -was going to beat up against that wind and sea in this crazy dhow I -didn't know. - -However, I was not going to leave the launch helpless; I knew that she -could not raise steam for a long time, and determined to make the -attempt. - -"I'm going to hoist that sail--part way up--see if we can work to -wind'ard," I bawled to Dobson. - -He shouted back: "She'll never do it, sir; not in this sea." - -We should have to try anyway; so we rolled up and lashed the foot of -that huge sail as firmly as we could, and, having done that, all four of -us clapped on to the main-halyard purchase and slowly raised the big -yard about three feet. What canvas was now free lashed about -ferociously, giving us stern way. - -"Stand by your main sheets," I yelled. "Stand by to ease and haul your -tiller hard a-starboard." - -Dobson and Wiggins dashed aft to obey, and, as the rudder was put over, -our bows began to pay off from the gale, and, doing so, the full force -of it broke on the beam; that scrap of sail filled, and bore us over -until our bows were buried in the sea. - -"Midships the helm!" I shouted, and watched to see how the dhow would -behave. A squall struck her, and a wave of great height, leaping over -us, surged on board--solid water. The dhow heeled over till we could -not stand, and those lashings round the foot of the sail gave way like -pistol shots, one after the other; the whole of that huge sail shot out -like a balloon, and we gave a tremendous lurch. - -Where the bows had been was now a churning mass of water; the lee -gunwale and the foot of the lee shrouds were out of sight; I was up to -my waist in water; one of the Arabs was washed overboard, and the -nakhoda would have been had he not been lashed to that ringbolt. - -I struggled to the main sheet, yelling to Dobson to ease it, but it was -under water and had jammed; no one could get at it. - -I thought that unless the mast carried away we must capsize. - -"Cut it, for God's sake, cut it!" I roared, and Dobson hacked away at -one of the thick ropes. Whilst he was sawing away--his knife was blunt -and would not cut--Jaffa, quick as lightning, pulled out his Mauser -pistol, put the muzzle up against the rope, and fired in quick -succession. - -With a leap and a shriek the rope gave way, the running parts lashed -through the sheaves of the "purchase", the sail flew out to leeward, and -the dhow began to right herself, shaking the water from her like a dog. - -Thank God we had not opened the hatch cover! If we had done so we -should have sunk like a stone. - -As it was, we were in a bad enough plight. The huge sail was beating -madly, one second half-buried in the sea, the next whirled as high as -the masthead, and cracking with a noise like thunder, the big block on -the standing part of the main sheet attached to the sail being hurled -about like a stone on the end of a rope. This block kept on sweeping -over the stern, where we were taking shelter, splintering the railings -like matchwood, and it was all we could do to dodge it. If it had -struck anyone, that would have been the last of him. - -Perhaps, for most of the time, the sail, or the lower part, was in the -water, and the dhow could not lift it out or herself on an even keel; -like a huge bird, with one wing broken, we went rolling and reeling to -leeward, waiting for the mast to carry away. - -To have attempted to drag the sail on board and smother it would have -been sheer lunacy, even if we had twenty men to do it. It would have -been as easy to try to stop a wounded elephant tearing up trees round -him by lassoing his trunk with twine. - -To add to our troubles, the seas were beating against the rudder, which -was wrestling with the tiller ropes and trying to shake itself free. - -Jask! I wasn't thinking of Jask then, or of Mr. Scarlett and the -_Bunder Abbas_. What was to happen in the next half-minute was quite -enough for me. We could not stand without clinging to something, the -dhow was lurching too much, and sea after sea, four or five feet deep, -in foaming cataracts, poured over the dhow's waist. - -We had to do something: we tried to lower the big yard, struggling -waist-deep in the sea to reach the foot of the mast, where those poor -wretches of Arabs, in the last stage of fright, were clinging for dear -life. We could not move it or its clumsy rope "sleeve", securing it to -the mast, and Wiggins was banged against the mast by a wave--flattened -against it like a fly on a wall. It was all we could do to prevent his -being washed overboard. He broke two ribs, though we did not know that -until afterwards. - -As we scrambled back to the poop we saw the rudder head wrench itself -free from the tiller ropes, and to the noise of the gale and the -thundering of that mad sail now came the grinding noise of the rudder -breaking itself to pieces under the stern. Thank goodness, it broke away -before it had knocked a hole in our bottom, floating up and threatening -to come inboard on the top of the next wave. However, we drifted away -from it like a feather from a piece of seaweed, and had soon left it out -of sight. - -Why that mast did not go over the side I cannot think. The strain on it -and the weather shrouds must have been enormous. - -If it had broken we should have been perfectly helpless, and the -end--well, as I said before, we were too busy with each succeeding -half-minute to worry about anything beyond that. - -We were drifting to leeward at a tremendous rate; Kuh-i-Mubarak was -below the horizon, and the gale showed no signs of lessening. - -"If this goes on much longer we'll find ourselves blown a hundred miles -out to sea," Dobson roared in my ear. "We'd best cut away the mast. -She'll ride more easy and won't drift so quick." - -I looked to wind'ard. Even though the gale howled as fiercely as ever, -the sky showed signs of clearing; the line of the horizon was certainly -clearer than it had been the last time I looked. I knew that these -gales often died down as quickly as they rose; the fiercer they were the -quicker over, and I still hoped to sail into Jask. I even began to -think how best to rig a "jury" rudder. - -So I shook my head at Dobson, and determined to keep the mast unless -things became worse, and we hung on, dodging the waves and the block on -that main sheet. - -Presently the sail began to give way, great rents showing in it when it -lifted, spreading and ripping, and flying to leeward in long streamers, -which one by one tore themselves clear and spun madly down wind. - -As each strip parted it eased the strain, until, after a time, the dhow -came on a more even keel, and in the hollows of the seas wallowed less -deeply. - -Somehow or other we felt that the worst was over, and began to look -round us and shift into more comfortable positions. The old -nakhoda--half-drowned he was--began to recover consciousness, and the -Arabs ventured a little farther aft, crouching for shelter under the -weather gunwale. - -There was now no sign whatever of the _Bunder Abbas_--we had drifted out -of sight of her long ago--but the sky overhead was clearing; large blue -patches showed between the clouds, and though the gale still shrieked -down on us with unabated violence, our spirits rose considerably. - -The edge of civilization! Yes, I was there, with a vengeance! What an -extraordinary change seven weeks had made, after my long seven years in -home waters! I could not help picturing the Channel Squadron anchored, -as I last saw it, under Portland Bill, and wondered whether it was still -there, thanking Heaven that I was not keeping a monotonous day "on". - -To make things still more comfortable for us, that big wooden block, in -a last furious endeavour to dash our brains out, banged itself to pieces -against a big wooden bollard on the poop, so we had no longer to dodge -it. But to level up things we began to realize how horribly thirsty we -were. We found some water, or rather Jaffa found some, under the poop, -in an old kerosene tin. It tasted horrid, and was so brackish that it -did little to quench our thirst. My head, too, now that I had not so -much to think about, began to throb and ache. Wiggins began to complain -of his side. - -"We've got to stick it out, that's all," I called to them; and Dobson -smiled cheerily, shouting back that he thought "this 'ere shamel -wouldn't last long; it was too blooming strong at the start." - -He talked about a shamel as if it was an old acquaintance--sometimes in -a good, but now in a very bad temper. - -I began to feel that the wind was not so strong; waves were certainly -not breaking over the dhow so frequently nor with so much force. The -lee gunwale was well clear of the sea. - -I thought that now it might be possible to capture the remnants of that -sail, so, making a rope fast round my waist, and telling Dobson to come -with me, I scrambled to the foot of the mast. Whilst he stood by to -"pay out" I chose a moment when the big yard over my head was still, -climbed on to it, swung myself across it, and, holding on with arms and -legs, worked my way along it slowly. It tried to shake me off every -half-minute. Once it managed to get rid of my knees, whilst I clung -like grim death, my legs dangling almost in the water. Then it tossed -me like a feather, and I caught it again with my knees, waiting a moment -till it was possible to wriggle along still farther. I managed to crawl -almost twenty feet from the mast. That was far enough for my purpose. -I wanted to secure my rope to it there--the rope round my waist--but -that was the trouble; directly I let go with one hand, off I was jerked, -just as if the beastly sail and yard were waiting their opportunity. - -For a second I hung by one arm, my body actually in the water, then the -sail, billowing up, lifted me with it, and I clung to that yard like a -fly. There was a gap just below me, beneath the yard, where the sail -had torn itself away from its lashing. I wriggled through it and over -the yard again, the rope of course coming along after me, and by waiting -my opportunity I managed another wriggle round the yard. There I was, -with a turn of the rope round it and myself, secured to it like a pig -lashed to a pole. However, I could not be jerked off and could use one -hand. Looking down I saw Dobson yelling encouragement; the Arabs were -looking at me with frightened faces. - -Dobson paid out the rope very handsomely, and in a couple of minutes I -managed to take another turn round the yard, secure it, and unlash -myself. Then, shinning and clinging like a limpet as the yard waved -about, wriggling backwards when it was quiet, I managed to reach the -mast and clambered down on deck. - -"That's done 'im in the eye right enough!" Dobson shouted -enthusiastically, as he grabbed me by the feet. '"Im" was the shamel. - -Together we led that rope aft, passed it through a block under the lee -gunwale, took a turn round a cleat, and the four of us tried to haul the -yard on board, hauling for all we were worth. - -[Illustration: THE FOUR OF US TRIED TO HAUL THE YARD AND SAIL ON BOARD, -HAULING FOR ALL WE WERE WORTH.] - -We won a few inches at a time, between squalls, and another turn round -the cleat would prevent the yard dragging them out again. Slowly, inch -by inch, the end of it came closer to us, and at every inch the dhow -would heel over a little more. However, I knew how much she would stand -by now, so cared not a jot. - -However, at last the yard and sail beat us. It was all we could do to -hold in what we had won; not another inch could we gain. Then, to our -intense delight, the six Arabs came aft and clapped on too. - -"Go it, lads!" I yelled, and, working like one man, we pulled the yard -towards us until the peak of it was close to the railings round the -stern. - -Dobson scrambled up with a coil of rope, lassoed it, and captured it for -good and all. - -It was grand. - -"Now lower it!" I yelled, and we scrambled for'ard to the mast, Arabs -and all, slacked off the main halyards, and down it slid. - -The remnant of the sail made a last attempt to escape, then draggled -over the lee side, hanging down in the water--beaten. - -No one wanted an order; Dobson, Wiggins, Jaffa, and myself, and every -one of those Arabs, flung ourselves on to it to prevent it filling -again, clutching and pulling till, in a minute or two, it was all on -board, lashed to the yard, and as harmless as a handkerchief. - -The dhow now came on a level keel, and, her stern paying off before the -wind, our bows pointed into the sea. You can imagine what a relief this -was after we had been rolling over on our beam-ends for so long. - -However, she could not face the seas, and we were soon being spun round -and round again. - -"A sea-anchor; that's what she wants!" Dobson shouted. "That'll steady -her, sir; she'll be like a cradle when she's got one." - -There was plenty of timber on the fore hatch, so we unlashed it, and, -making half a dozen long balks fast to a big grass hawser we found in -the bows, we tipped them overboard, or allowed the seas to wash them -overboard--whichever happened first--one after the other. As the dhow -drifted to leeward so much faster than they did, the hawser soon -tautened out, and brought our bows round into the wind. - -Jolly proud we all were of that sea-anchor. It sounds easy enough to -make, but if you had seen us trying to prevent those planks and balks of -timber taking "charge" whilst we were passing the grass hawser round -each one singly, leaping away as they tore themselves out of our hands -and tried to break our legs, you would realize that it was not the -simple matter it sounds. - -We must have been struggling with it for at least an hour, up to our -waists in water most of that time, and were thoroughly exhausted by the -time we had paid out the whole of the hawser. - -But we were now riding head to sea, our decks were not washed by the -waves, and when we gathered on the poop to rest after our exhausting -work we were as comfortable, as Dobson said, "as fleas in a blanket". - - - - - *CHAPTER V* - - *My First Capture* - - -With that sea-anchor keeping our bows up to wind'ard, the worst of our -troubles seemed to be over. My wrist watch had been broken in that first -mêlée, so we did not know what time it was. From the height of the sun -we guessed it to be nearly noon. - -I climbed to the mast head. Not a sign of the _Bunder Abbas_ could I -see; in fact, the whole circle of the horizon was empty but for -ourselves, and as there was absolutely nothing to be done (for it would -have been madness to hoist a scrap of sail, and as for trying to make a -jury-rudder, we simply could not have done it whilst we were pitching -and tossing so violently) we four sat comfortably on the poop, dried -ourselves, and watched the Arabs squatting close to the foot of the -mast. They had asked Jaffa's permission to search for food, and had -found some dried dates. They seemed to enjoy them, and the sight of food -of any sort made us remember that we had not had any that day, and that -we were as hungry as hunters. - -Jaffa found a large store of these dates under the poop, and, though -they looked unappetizing to a degree, we enjoyed them hugely, washing -them down with another drink out of that kerosene tin. - -I was so hungry that I could have eaten a cat. - -The sun was now blazing down on us. Unfortunately we had not brought -our helmets or topees, having left the _Bunder Abbas_ at daybreak. Our -caps were little, if any, protection from it, in spite of our constantly -dipping them into the sea, and my head was burning and throbbing. Salt -water got into that wound, and I did not dare to take off the -handkerchief for fear of it bleeding again. Wiggins complained a good -deal of his ribs. - -The nakhoda, too, recovered consciousness, and begged for water, sitting -up and moaning when he saw all the wreckage round him. He had such a -cruel, cunning face that I could not trust him for'ard with the crew, -but kept him aft with us. He looked as if it would have given him a -great deal of joy to cut our throats, and no doubt it would. - -Every half-hour or so Dobson or I would go for'ard to see that the -hawser to the sea-anchor was not chafing in the "fairway," taking stock -of the weather at the same time. Every time I said: "I think it's -easing off," Dobson would shake his head; "'E ain't finished with 'is -tantrums yet, sir." - -However, at last I felt sure that the gale was moderating. There were -not such high waves, they did not boil down on us so furiously, they -were longer too, not so steep, and we were certainly riding more easily. -Dobson at last agreed: "'E's in a good 'umour, I do believe." - -The nakhoda's wicked old face was a good enough barometer. As the wind -and the sea fell, so did his face look more glum, until at last, when -there was no manner of doubt that the gale was fast dying down, he -scowled angrily. What idea he had in his cunning old head, I did not -know. - -"We'll be able to start rigging a jury-rudder soon," I told Dobson, -"hoist a bit of sail, and bear away towards Jask." - -I had given up any possibility of beating up to the _Bunder Abbas_. If -I could get into Jask the political agent would soon charter me a dhow -to go back and look for her. - -Well, we made that jury-rudder. It took us two hard-working hours, and -without the help of the Arab crew we could not have made it. A clumsy -thing it was; a triangle made of balks of timber, with one long -projecting plank at each corner for the steering ropes. We also managed -to secure the lower after end of what remained of the sail, binding a -rope round it to act, later on, as a sheet. - -There were still six able-bodied Arabs, not counting the nakhoda. The -wounded man (the one who could not walk) had been washed overboard by -the first big sea which struck us. The wounds of the others were not -worth troubling about. As far as I remember, Dobson's fists had made -them; certainly they had not been struck with bullets, because Jaffa was -the only one on board who had shown himself able to hit a haystack at -ten yards. - -Having completed the jury-rudder we rested until the falling wind and -sea allowed us to use it. We took it "turn and turn about" to keep -watch, Jaffa and I, Dobson and Wiggins--nothing to do and two to do it. -The only thing we had to do was to keep an eye on the treacherous old -nakhoda. - -The afternoon slipped by; the sun began to set in all its grandeur, and -only a few gloriously-tinted clouds, scudding across the sky, were left -to remind us that nature had been in such an angry mood. The wind and -the sea seemed to sink to rest with the sun; only an occasional sobbing -gust moaned through the rigging, and, rising from the sea, a huge full -moon, like a burnished silver plate, set deep in a dark indigo sky, -flooded us with light. - -It was now possible to try to bring the dhow under control; so, first of -all, overboard went the jury-rudder, with two hawsers lashed to those -projecting planks, and led to either side of the poop. Then we hoisted a -little of our tattered sail, cut away the grass hawser to the -sea-anchor, and, the breeze--it was only a breeze now--blowing steadily -and softly from the north-west, filling the sail gently, we squared the -yard and let her "rip". - -But the jury-rudder would not act as a rudder. It was too clumsy, and -the ropes attached to it too heavy. Twenty men on each would have been -scarcely sufficient to work it. However, it kept our stern to the -wind--acting as a drag on the dhow--and we scudded merrily away to the -south-east at about three knots. I imagined that we were about eighty -miles to the south-west of Jask, and hoped that as the breeze backed, as -it generally did for some time after a shamel, we should be presently -blown away to the east. - -Up to now the Arab crew had been helping quite willingly: but whilst -they were working aft with the jury-rudder I noticed that the sly old -nakhoda took every opportunity of speaking to them, and that afterwards, -though they still worked, they worked sullenly and unwillingly. - -I had thought of allowing him to go for'ard with them, but after this, -and after Jaffa had warned me not to do so ("He only make a mischief," -he said), I kept him aft where he was, much as I disliked his company. - -I rather fancy that that knock on the head had made me sleepy. I could -hardly keep my eyes open during my first turn of watch-keeping. It was -beautifully cool, the "shamel" was now nothing more than a respectable -breeze, and the long subsiding swell made a most heavenly sight in the -moonlight. Jaffa and I talked--it was the only way we could keep -awake--he telling me more about the peculiarities of the winds which -blew in this region. Then he went on to tell me some of the experiences -he had had during the nine years he had served in the British service as -an interpreter. Though they were very interesting I was more interested -in him and in his quiet aristocratic method of telling them. After the -wonderfully cool way he had handled his Mauser pistol that morning he -was not to me the same Jaffa who had boarded the dhow with us. - -Dobson and Wiggins relieved us presently. "The jury-rudder is keeping -our stern into the wind well enough," I told Dobson; "the sea is nearly -smooth, the wind mostly gone, and the Arabs are all sound asleep--the -nakhoda under the poop, the rest for'ard." - -Then I slept like a log until Dobson called me for another spell of -watch, and Jaffa and I were again on duty. - -It was as wonderful, enchanting a sight as I have ever seen. Above us -the great, dazzling, silent moon; around us the sea, a rippling surface -of silvery white, stretching away to the circle of the horizon. The -little dhow, with her white deck and black shadows, was the centre of -it, her sail a great patch of white, casting its clear-cut shadow to -starboard over the bows and over the water under them, as sharply cut -where it fell on the water as across the deck. - -In the bows, beyond the foot of the sail, the sleeping Arabs lay in its -dark shadow; in the stern, in the shadow of the poop, Dobson and Wiggins -were soon fast asleep--the nakhoda had crawled under the poop and slept -there. - -It was all so silent and so beautiful--the embodiment of all that is -lovely and peaceful and good in nature--that the perils and tragedies of -the day before seemed almost unreal, and it seemed impossible to realize -that, unless we kept wideawake and alert for the first suspicious -movement, we might have our throats cut at any moment. - -What we could realize--only too painfully--was that we were very hungry. - -Probably that helped to keep us awake more than anything else. - -At any rate we did keep awake until I thought that two hours had gone -by, when I woke Dobson, coiled down on deck again, and was asleep in a -second. - -Something touched me. I woke up. Dobson was bending over me. "There's -summat going on for'ard, sir. I don't like the sound of it. I've been -for'ard under the foot of that 'ere sail twice in the past 'arf-'our, -and those noises leave off. I find them Arabs a-lying there as quiet as -mice in a nest, and I don't understand it." - -I rubbed my eyes, sat up, and rose to my feet--very stiff I was. - -The sea was absolutely calm now; the moonlight flooded our decks. Every -seam and knot in the planks was distinct; every stitch and ragged tear -showed out clearly in the drooping sail, whose shadow swallowed up the -whole of the bows. - -"Listen, sir!" Dobson whispered, pointing for'ard. - -I heard a soft rasping sound, as if pieces of rough wood were being -drawn across each another. I crept for'ard close to the gunwale, and -had not taken two paces before the noise ceased. - -Dobson joined me. "It always leaves off directly I start to go for'ard, -sir." - -"Come along," I said, and we both walked along the deck, and, lifting -the foot of the sail, peered underneath. When our eyes were accustomed -to the darkness we could see the figures of Arabs huddled up close -together on top of the fore hatch. We waited for several minutes, but -no one stirred. - -We crept back again. - -"Where's Wiggins?" I asked, and Dobson pointed under the poop. "He felt -so bad with his ribs, sir, that I told him to go and lie down." - -"See if the nakhoda is under there," I told him, and he crept in. - -He came back again, white in the face. "'E's not there, sir." - -I crawled under myself, crawled all over the beastly place. He -certainly was not there. - -"I never saw 'im go, sir!" Dobson whispered apologetically. - -However, he was gone; there could be no doubt about that. He was -certain to have crept for'ard among his men, and it was as certain that -mischief would be brewing. - -"We'll turn 'em out and see what it is," I said, pulling my revolver -from its holster and opening the breech to see that it was loaded. - -We went for'ard again, and as we bent down under the sail, our revolvers -in our hands, there was a rush of bare feet and the whole crowd of them -leapt at us. Three or four were clinging to me, throttling me round the -neck, clutching my arms to my sides, and pulling my legs from under me. -In spite of all my struggles I was thrown to the deck on my face; -someone bent back my wrist to wrench the revolver away, but before it -was dragged out of my hand I managed to get my finger on the trigger and -pulled it. As my head whirled with the choking of those iron fingers -round my throat I did not know whether I had actually fired it or not. -I was banged on the deck, twisted round and round under a heap of -grunting Arabs; something was forced into my mouth; I nearly lost -consciousness, but when the grasp on my throat was relaxed I managed to -draw a breath of air and found myself next to Dobson, both of us lashed -up like mummies, lying on our backs on some coils of rope. - -We were both gagged, unable to speak, much less able to shout and wake -Jaffa and Wiggins--lying perfectly helpless. - -Two Arabs were squatting on their haunches on either side of us. Like a -fool I tried to struggle, and the one near me bent down and drew -something across my forehead--a knife; I felt its edge jag along the -bone and the blood running down the side of my temples and matting on my -eyebrows. - -I lay still, terrified lest the next time I moved that knife would be -across my throat. I really was horror-struck. - -I saw the remainder of those brutes stealing aft noiselessly, under the -sail into the moonlight, and had an awful fear that in our struggles we -had made so little noise that Wiggins and Jaffa would not have waked, -and that they, too, would be caught unawares. I did not know whether my -revolver had fired or not. I tried to imagine that it had, but -everything was too horribly blurred for me to be sure. - -Then my heart gave a great bound of relief, for, as the last of those -Arabs had stooped down and shown himself in the moonlight, I saw a flash -and heard Jaffa's Mauser pistol--and a louder one, Wiggins firing too. -Shots banged out close to us, from the foot of the sail. An Arab gave a -yell of pain, and the others came stampeding into the shadow again. - -Thank Heaven! They had not caught them asleep. - -Two of the Arabs--two with revolvers, mine and Dobson's I -imagined--knelt down by us and hunted for more ammunition, pressing the -muzzles against our foreheads to keep us quiet. The muzzle slipped into -that gash; how it did pain! I had no more cartridges--none, thank God! -Dobson had an unopened packet of twelve rounds, and we saw them -carefully dividing these between each other. A cartridge dropped -between us, and they hunted for it among the coils of rope, pulling us -away roughly. An Arab pounced on it with a hiss of delight. I saw the -Arab with a revolver take it and place it in his chamber, so I knew that -they only had twelve rounds between them. Then these two armed men -crept along, one on each side, to the edge of the shadow of the sail, -stooping down to see under it, whilst the others, with knives in their -hands, lay flat down on the deck between them. - -I was half-dazed and mad with mortification and rage. I would have -given my life to have known what Jaffa and Wiggins were doing at the -other end of the dhow. There was a dark shadow under the poop platform, -I knew, and trusted with all my heart that they had retreated there. -But not a sound came from aft; they might both have been hit for all I -knew. And not a sound did the Arabs make either. The only noise was the -creaking of the yard against the mast and its huge sleeve of rope. The -sail drooped down absolutely motionless, blotting out the moon. - -How long this silence lasted I have not the least idea. It seemed ages. - -"They have only twelve cartridges," was the only thing I could think of, -and waited to count the shots, holding my breath for fear the thudding -of my heart would prevent my hearing them. - -The dark figures of those Arabs suddenly seemed to stiffen, and then, -from either gunwale, where the shadows were darkest, the revolvers -flashed and banged, twice on my right, three times on my left. - -"Seven cartridges now, only seven," I thought joyfully, and each flash -had been answered by more flashes from aft, and bullets ripped along the -deck close to where Dobson and I lay. - -An Arab gave a low sob, and I heard a revolver clatter to the deck on my -left. A dark arm stretched out to pick it up, where it lay in the -moonlight, and as the dark hand seized it and hurriedly drew back into -the shadow a bullet splintered the deck where it had been. - -A long period of silence followed. Except for an occasional groan from -one of the Arabs, and the creaking of the yard above us, no sound came -to relieve the extreme tension of my ears. - -Seven more they had. How many had Jaffa and Wiggins? That was all I -could think about. Wiggins would probably have very few, but Jaffa--I -knew nothing about him. My ears were throbbing with the strain of -listening to count pistol shots which never came. Then they crept aft -again. I thought they were going to kill us. They dragged us aft until -we lay among them, just in the edge of the shadow of the sail, and one -of them began calling out. Though there was no reply from aft, I knew -well enough that they were telling Jaffa that he would probably hit us -if he fired any more. - -So long as these Arabs did not recapture the dhow, I did not care in the -least whether I was hit or not. - -The answer came with a single pistol shot from aft. As it flashed, both -the Arab revolvers went off. Probably they were waiting for this, and -fired at the flash. I was too dazed to count the number of shots. Was -it two or three? Had they five or four cartridges still? My brain was -whirling and numb. I could not be sure. - -They were probably as bad shots as ourselves, and appeared to be getting -nervous. - -There was a hurried consultation among them; they drew back farther into -the shadow, and all of a sudden began stripping off their loose cloaks, -five of them, two with revolvers, the others with knives, and I could -make out the figure and beard of the nakhoda as he gesticulated and -encouraged them. - -I knew that they were standing by to make a rush aft, when suddenly they -gave a hoarse cry and stiffened where they stood, pointing over the sea. -They stood like dark statues for a moment, and then the whole darkness -disappeared. They stood out in the glare of a searchlight, naked to the -waist, their eyes glittering, their lips drawn back in fear, showing -their white teeth, and their shadows thrown against the now lighted -sail. - -In another moment the searchlight--for it was a searchlight--had passed -and it was dark again. Jaffa and Wiggins fired half a dozen rounds very -rapidly; the bullets did not come for'ard, so probably they were firing -in the air; they yelled, too, and back the searchlight swept and -remained, whilst a small shell, bursting with a roar close to the bows, -threw up a column of fire and water. In a second those Arabs had -dropped on their knees, crouching below the gunwales and hiding from the -glare of the light--all except the nakhoda, who, yelling something like -"Allah", rushed at me with a long knife. - -He would have stuck it into me had not the others thrown themselves on -him and pulled him to the deck. - -As they did so Jaffa and Wiggins, shouting and cursing, rushed forward. - -In a minute I was free, Dobson was free. Wiggins had cut the ropes, -whilst Jaffa stood guard over the Arabs, and as I staggered to the deck, -bleeding like a pig again, a boat rasped alongside, and Popple Opstein's -great red face appeared as he climbed over the gunwale, followed by half -a dozen men. - -"Four more! They've got four more--or is it three?" was all I could -think of to say as he came for'ard. I had to sit down to prevent my -legs giving way. - -"Thank God you came along in time!" I said, as he shook some sense into -me and gave me something to drink. - -I was all right again in a few minutes, and whilst the Arabs were being -securely tied up, to prevent any unpleasant mistakes, I was able to tell -him what had happened. - -"What about your edge of civilization, Martin, old chap?" he laughed. -"You nearly toppled over the edge of it that time, eh? We spotted you -in the moonlight, and saw the revolver flashes, so knew something was -wrong. We never thought it was you." - -"Man, she's full of rifles. I'm dead certain she is," I burst out, "and -I haven't been out here ten days! Isn't it splendid?" - -"You don't look very splendid," my chum smiled grimly. "The sooner you -get on board to our doctor the better." - -I really felt almost intoxicated. I could not stop talking. "Look at -that one-eyed interpreter of mine," I babbled, turning to Jaffa, who was -leaning up against the gunwale cleaning his Mauser pistol. "Look at -him! He saved the whole show. He's simply grand with that pistol of -his. Aren't you, Jaffa?" - -He smiled his inscrutable, dignified smile. - -"You saved all our lives. We should not have pulled through without -you," I went on, and for the life of me I do not know whether he looked -pleased or not. - -The _Intrepid's_ men were going round collecting the knives which the -Arabs had dropped on deck. Dobson and I found our revolvers. - -For the life of me I could not keep silent. - -"How many cartridges are there in yours?" I asked him, opening my -breech. "There are only two in mine." - -"Not a blessed one, sir!" he grinned; so, after all, I had miscounted. - -"How many have you?" I asked Wiggins. - -"Not a blessed one either, sir! I did have two, but fired 'em when we -sighted the _Intrepid_--that 'ere Pershun told me to!" - -Commander Duckworth of the _Intrepid_ now came on board the dhow, and I -had to tell him the yarn all over again. In spite of feeling absolutely -"played out", I talked as if I should never stop, telling him detail -after detail, imploring him to go right away and hunt for the _Bunder -Abbas_. I rather fancy I suggested that he should leave us in the dhow -to sail into Jask. - -However, I found myself, Dobson, Wiggins, and Jaffa climbing down into -his boat and being pulled across to the _Intrepid_. I know that I -talked to them all the time, and to Nicholson, the staff surgeon of the -_Intrepid_, whilst he was probing and stitching those wounds of mine. -When he had finished these he stuck the needle of a syringe into my arm. -"That'll send you to sleep all right," he said, looking at me curiously. - -When I went aft he was commencing work on three wounded Arabs who had -been brought over. The rest of them were in the battery surrounded by -inquisitive bluejackets. The old nakhoda squatted on deck by himself, -covered up in his burnous, with only his eyes showing. He did not even -deign to look at me. The _Intrepid_ was already steaming ahead, her -boats hoisted, and the dhow ("My dhow, old chap," I said, slapping old -Popple Opstein on the back) was safely towing astern; I could see her -mast. - -"Rifles, my dear chap! She's simply chock-full of them!" I laughed. - -I was famished--starvingly hungry--and they got food for me down in the -ward-room, although Nicholson tried to make me lie down. The ward-room -chaps, in their pyjamas, sat round me as I talked to them. I could not -leave off talking, and I found that I didn't like anything they had on -the table, so could not eat. - -Nicholson took hold of my wrist and shoved another beastly syringe -needle into my arm. He made the fellows go away too, although I had not -told them nearly all that had happened, and in a little while I did let -Nicholson take me to a cabin--just to humour him. That is the last I -remember--I certainly don't remember undressing--but I woke in broad -daylight to find myself in pyjamas belonging to somebody else, feeling -rather shaky, my head covered in bandages, and Nicholson standing over -me with a satisfied smile on his fat face. - -My aunt! how hungry I was! - -"Food, Nicholson, that's what I want," I said. "I haven't had anything -worth speaking about for twenty-four hours." - -He felt my pulse, smiled, and went away. I called him back. "How about -the _Bunder Abbas_? Have you found her yet?" - -"She's been alongside us for the last forty hours or more," he said. -"We are anchored off Sheikh Hill. She's all right." - -I looked puzzled. I had not noticed that the engines were not working. - -"My dear chap, you've slept solidly for nearly three days. I've seen to -that." - -Popple Opstein came in, looking anxious, until Nicholson told him that I -was as "right as rain". "Man, you are lucky!" he cried, his face growing -violet with excitement; "she had nearly four hundred rifles on board. -Look! I've brought you one," and he held up a brand-new Mauser rifle. - -I handled it lovingly--my first capture. "You won't 'pot' at any poor -wretched sentry on the Indian frontier, my beauty," I thought. - -"How did you find the _B.A._?" I asked; and my chum explained that the -_Intrepid_ had taken my dhow in tow, steaming to the north'ard; that at -daybreak the launch had been sighted, and though she had raised steam -again she could not use her engines as something had fouled her -propeller, below the waterline of course, where Mr. Scarlett could not -get at it. - -"The result was," old Popple Opstein went on to tell me, "that we had to -tow her as well, and when we anchored here sent our divers down to clear -it." - -Later on Nicholson allowed me to dress, Percy smiling out of his great -eyes when he brought me some clean clothes. Afterwards I went aboard -the _Bunder Abbas_ to hear Mr. Scarlett's account of what had happened -and to see what repairs were still necessary. I found people from the -_Intrepid_ busily straightening the bent stanchions and fitting a new -after-awning cut from an old awning belonging to the cruiser. - -"She'll look all right in a couple of days," Mr. Scarlett said, as he -and I watched the last few boxes of ammunition being hoisted up through -the dhow's hatches and transferred to the _Intrepid's_ battery deck. It -was a most comforting sight. - -"Thought I'd seen the last of you, sir, when that big squall struck the -dhow, and thought you'd seen the last of the _Bunder Abbas_ when she -half-filled herself with water, her fires had been put out, and that -hawser coiled itself round the screw. - -"My, sir, but I was being sick every few minutes with pure fright--I was -that frightened that I wanted to jump overboard and get the drowning -over quietly, without a lot of lascars howling and clawing round me--as -I was waiting for 'em to do when she did sink. We made some kind of a -sea-anchor with what was left of that awning and some spars, got her -head to the wind, and baled her out with buckets--with buckets, sir! -Three mortal hours that took, and another six to raise steam again, the -lascars all preferring to drown up on deck, so not a blessed one would -go below. - -"We never noticed that hawser round her screw till we let the steam in -her engines, wound a few more turns round her screw, and brought them up -all standing. Thank God! we hadn't cast off our sea-anchor, or we'd -have had all the making of another over again--and dead tired, tired as -dogs, we all were." - -There was this to say for Mr. Scarlett--I never doubted him. Whenever -he told me of anything, I felt perfectly sure that he had told me all. -However, I was inquisitive to know how he himself had actually behaved, -so could not help asking Corporal Webster later on what kind of a time -they had had, hoping that he might have something to say about him. - -"Awful weren't the word for it, sir; the worst time I've ever had in my -life. We none of us thought she'd float, and she wouldn't have but for -the gunner--sick one moment, working like half a dozen men the next. -Why, sir, when we steadied her into the wind, an' baled her out, he laid -the fires in the boilers himself, no one else knowing how to do it, them -lascar chaps funking going below, and we chipping up a mess table (the -only dry bit of wood on board) and passing the bits down to him." - -I learnt still more of that extraordinary man by watching Percy, the -Tamil boy. His eyes showed the most unbounded admiration for the -gunner. He simply slaved for him all day long, and seemed to be -perfectly happy so long as he was doing something for him: pipeclaying -his helmet, or washing out his vests--anything, in fact. - -I don't pretend to be a judge of character--luckily--and he certainly -puzzled me. That gale had told me more about Mr. Scarlett, Dobson, and -Jaffa than I should have learnt in six months of ordinary cruising. - - - - - *CHAPTER VI* - - *The Edge of Civilization* - - -For two more days the _Intrepid_ remained at anchor, three miles off -Sheikh Hill, within sight of the open shallow creek running up to Bungi -village and of those cliffs from which the Afghan, a week before, had -wasted ammunition on the _Bunder Abbas_. The launch remained alongside -of her and the dhow astern. Why we were thus delayed I am not certain, -but from the many curious and inquisitive questions Nicholson -continually asked me, and from the many times I caught him watching me, -I imagine that it was principally on my account, and that Commander -Duckworth would not send me away cruising by myself until Nicholson had -reported favourably. - -At the end of this time both the _Bunder Abbas_ and I were in -first-class condition: the bandage which covered my wounds had been -replaced by what Nicholson called a collodion dressing, and the _Bunder -Abbas_ showed no signs whatever of her recent hard usage. I was ordered -to tow my empty dhow out to sea, set her on fire, and sink her. This I -did with very great regret, for, although she was old and rotten, she -was my first capture, and I wanted her to be condemned and sold properly -by a prize court. However, it was not to be; so she was burnt to the -water's edge, and her stone ballast quickly sank her. - -We all knew that her cargo of arms and ammunition represented not a -tenth of the great number reported to have been brought down to Jeb for -shipment to the Makran coast, and everybody felt certain that sooner or -later--probably sooner--more dhows would endeavour to run across. - -We were therefore very grateful when we did at last receive orders for -patrolling between the two inlets. - -Two cutters belonging to the _Intrepid_, with a Maxim gun in the bows of -each, had to patrol the creeks, keeping out of rifle shot from shore -during the day and running close in at night. My chum, Baron Popple -Opstein, commanded No. 1; and Evans, a little rat of a lieutenant, full -of "go", but all nerves, No. 2. - -I was ordered to patrol from one to the other, backwards and forwards, -on a line about six miles from the shore, during the daytime, and to -close to within a mile of the shore at sunset. I was also ordered to -communicate with both cutters each morning, as soon after daylight as -possible, to receive reports of any happenings during the preceding -night. Still farther out to sea the _Intrepid_ herself would patrol a -line twenty miles long, also closing at dusk to within sighting distance -of a Very's light, should we want to communicate with her by firing one. - -All being ready, Evans, Popple Opstein, and I went aboard the cruiser, -fully expecting that Commander Duckworth would give us a great deal of -unnecessary advice, as though we were a lot of babies, not to be trusted -a hundred yards from him; instead of which he simply asked us if we -understood his written orders, and when we answered that we did, merely -said: "Right you are! You can get away as soon as you like. Good -night!" - -"He's a splendid chap to serve under," Evans said in his nervous, -hurried way of talking. "He's always just like that." - -It was grand to be sent away entirely on one's own, without being tied -down this way and that before ever the conditions which might -conceivably happen had happened. - -"Imagine anything like this in the good old Home Fleet!" my chum said as -we parted. "We should be fathered and mothered day and night." - -So, an hour before the sun set, I took the two cutters in tow, dropped -_Intrepid_ No. 1 close under Sheikh Hill, and steamed down to -Kuh-i-Mubarak with No. 2, leaving her there in the mouth of the deep -creek running up to Sudab, the village where I had seen the camels. - -"Good night and good luck!" I shouted, as I steamed off to sea to -commence my own job. - -No one expected a dhow to slip across during those first days, because -there were so few hours of darkness; but the moon, of course, was rising -later each night, and every twenty-four hours increased our chances. - -However, nothing came in sight, and on the seventh day--a Thursday it -was--according to my orders, I fetched _Intrepid_ No. 2 back to the -anchorage off Sheikh Hill, and found the _Intrepid_ herself anchored -there, with my chum's boat already alongside. - -I made fast to her, and immediately began the job of filling up with -coal, water, and provisions; whilst the crews of the two cutters went -inboard in order to get a good meal and a comfortable sleep whilst their -boats were being revictualled. Sleep in a cutter crammed with gear is -not a success. It does not matter how comfortable you try to make -yourself, there is always something sticking into your back; and a -chum's foot in your face, though quite an unimportant detail, does not -induce slumber, especially if the owner happens to be restless. - -I went aboard to have my wounds dressed. Nicholson took out the -stitches, and said that both gashes were healing well. I wanted him to -let me take Wiggins back again. I had had to leave him behind with his -broken ribs (very much against his wish), but he was not yet well enough -to rejoin. - -Then my chum came aboard the _Bunder Abbas_ and smoked his dirty old -pipe with me on the little platform deck outside my cabin. We sat in -those two easy canvas chairs under the awning and had a good time. - -"Enjoyed the week?" I asked. - -"Splendid," he said, beaming and showing his white teeth. "Splendid." - -"Did that Afghan chap have a shot at you?" - -"Once or twice," he nodded. "He's a rattling poor shot." - -"Shoot back?" - -"Once or twice; never hit him." - -He was on board for three hours, and I don't believe he said another -word (as a matter of fact he slept most of the time); but as he was -going away he wanted to know whether I had seen Mr. Scarlett's snake -again. - -I had not. He kept a bandage round it now. If he did uncover it, he -did so at night. - -Popple Opstein was evidently still very interested in it. - -"I wish he'd let me try that dodge of a pair of pincers and a bit of tin -slipped under it, or wiring its head or something," he said. - -I shook my head, and told him that it was useless to suggest that again. - -Just before sunset I towed both cutters back to their positions, leaving -them there. - -Nothing happened during that week, although the darkness was very -favourable for any dhow to try to creep in. At sunrise every morning I -waited inshore to see that the two cutters were safe and had nothing to -report, then pushed farther out to sea to steam slowly up and down, -whilst the men not on duty scrubbed decks, cleaned guns, or washed and -mended their clothes. - -It was fearfully hot all this time, and I learnt that Moore was right -after all, and that one could hardly keep awake in the afternoon. From -noon until four o'clock the heat, even under the awnings, was at times -almost unbearable. I could not keep awake myself, so had to let the men -sleep too, and Moore did not hide his satisfaction at my first defeat. -The crew was so small, and, what with men on watch and those wanting -extra sleep after a night's watch, there were seldom more than three or -four "hands" to employ at odd jobs, so precious little cleaning was done -either, and I even began to wonder whether it would not be wiser to -paint the water jackets of the Maxims, and even the six-pounder, as they -were so difficult to keep bright. - -"There is either too much wind or not enough" is a sailor's saying about -the Persian Gulf; and although we were actually outside the Gulf itself, -yet the saying held true enough here. Hardly a puff of wind ruffled the -glassy, glaring surface of the sea for those first fourteen or fifteen -days: the sun blazed at us all day from an absolutely silent, -monotonous, burnished sky. I began to curse it when it rose, and when it -did set, and give me a chance to cool down, to dread its reappearance -and the heat of the next day. - -Mr. Scarlett told me that I should soon become accustomed to it. He -himself simply revelled in it. He advised me to drink as little fluid as -possible, if I did not want to be covered with prickly heat, and I did -my best to follow his advice, although the desire for liquid was -sometimes almost unbearable. - -Another Thursday we spent alongside the _Intrepid_, my chum coming -aboard me to sleep and smoke, and occasionally make some contented -remark. Then back we went to our stations for another week of patient -watching. - -On Sunday morning I edged in as usual, to see whether the Baron had -anything to report. - -It was about half-past four, still dark, but the darkness rapidly -disappearing, when he flashed a signal lantern, and I answered him. - -In ten minutes he was alongside. He had a sick man whom he wanted me to -take on board, so we hoisted him in and put him down below. - -"It's only a touch of the sun," the Baron said; "but we can't make him -comfortable here. You can give him back to-morrow." - -This occupied perhaps ten minutes. It had become appreciably lighter, -and I could see the sheikh's house or fort looming above our heads as I -started off to go along to Evans. - -We had not steamed a mile before we heard a Maxim firing very rapidly. -Looking inshore I could see the cutter pulling in under those cliffs -from which that Afghan had fired at us. - -"Put your helm over and wake up the engine-room people," I ordered, and -round we swung. The cutter had now disappeared round the base of the -cliffs, but as we hurried after her we could still hear the Maxim -firing. - -We all were grandly excited--all except Mr. Scarlett. As he went down to -see that our guns were ready I saw that his face was a muddy, grey -colour. He would not look me in the face, and his hand was shaking as he -steadied himself by the rail. My former feeling of contempt for his -cowardice came back. - -Percy came up with two cups of cocoa and some biscuits, grinning -delightfully; but his face fell when Mr. Scarlett refused any--he -thought that he had not made it properly. - -It was quite light now, and I steered wide of the cliffs, in order to be -able to look up the creek more quickly and to be able sooner to help the -Baron if he was "busy". - -Then, as the mouth of the creek opened out, there was a shout from -for'ard of "Look, sir; look there!" and I was astonished to see a large -dhow--a very large dhow--lying half in, half out of the water on the -beach, two thousand yards away. A red flag was trailing down from her -ensign staff, and her bows were surrounded by a great crowd of camels -and natives. The cutter was about nine hundred yards away--between us -and the dhow; pulling like mad her men were, and tut-tut-tut-tut went -the Maxim in her bows. I could see the line of bullet splashes, first -in the water, then in the sand among the camels, then in the water -again. They were making bad shooting--a Maxim is always a troublesome -weapon in a moving boat. - -"Give them a shell!" I yelled down to Mr. Scarlett. The little -six-pounder barked, and its first shell burst in the water, but the -second sent up a cloud of smoke and sand right among a tangled mass of -camels and men. We saw some camels struggling on the ground, and broke -into cheers as the rest of them were driven frantically up the beach and -the sand-hills, to disappear behind them. - -A few chaps, their loose cloaks flapping about, scampered after the -others, until not a single living thing was left in sight. - -"She's a fine dhow that," Mr. Scarlett said, coming up the ladder to me, -his voice very shaky. "We shall have to be very careful, sir." - -"Careful!" I shouted. "Why, man alive, they've run away! There's not a -soul to stop us. Look at the cutter, man; they're almost up to her." - -Mr. Scarlett looked and shivered. - -I saw that the cutter had taken the ground. Her bluejackets, with their -rifles in their hands, were jumping into the water and wading ashore, -racing ashore, my chum struggling to get ahead of them. - -"Go it, Popple Opstein!" I yelled, unable to control myself, and wished -that the old "_B.A._" would go faster, so that I could be alongside him. - -My aunt! What luck! Two dhows in less than a fortnight! - -"We shall be millionaires in no time," I said, turning to Mr. Scarlett, -to cheer him up; but he had gone down on deck again. - -Then I had to stop my engines. I dared not go in any closer; there was -not a foot of water under my keel. - -I shouted for the dinghy to be lowered. - -The Baron and his men--eight of them--were on the firm sand now, running -along towards the dhow, cheering and whooping, when suddenly I heard -rifle-firing--rifles from behind the tops of those sand-dunes, rifles -from the tops of those beastly cliffs, and saw the sand spurting up all -round them as they ran. Through my glasses I could see heads peering -over the sand-dunes and rifles firing over them. I yelled to the men to -leave the dinghy and open fire again with the six-pounder. - -Then two of those running figures fell; one rose and went on, the other -lay where he fell. - -"Lie down and shoot back, or you'll all be killed," I shouted, like a -fool, as if they could hear me eight hundred yards away. - -Then I realized that if they could reach the dhow they would obtain some -shelter from the fire. - -I saw my chum fall, sprawling, and get up again, stoop to pick up his -revolver--he never would put the lanyard round his neck--and go on -again, slowly, limping. Two men stopped to help him, but I saw him -waving them to leave him, and they dashed to the side of the dhow, flung -themselves flat down, half in, half out of the water, and commenced -shooting. My Maxims were busy now, and keeping down the fire a little; -but for a couple of seconds poor old Popple Opstein was alone on the -beach, with bullet-spirts jumping up all round him. Those two seconds -seemed like ages, till, with a gasp of relief, I saw him gain the -shelter of the dhow and throw himself down among the others. - -Thank goodness! he could not be very badly wounded. - -But the dhow only gave shelter from the men behind the sand-hills; my -chum and his people were still entirely exposed to a dropping, -long-range fire from the tops of those cliffs, and bullets still -splashed and spurted all round the dhow. - -The six-pounder shells were bursting well along the tops of the -sand-hills, and three men, left behind in the stranded cutter, were also -peppering them with their Maxim. These two guns kept the people on the -beach fairly quiet, so I cocked up my two Maxims and opened fire on the -cliff, the people up there immediately paying attention to us. A bullet -splintered the deck close to where I was standing, several whistled -through the awnings, others flattened themselves against the funnel. -Griffiths and I were standing there by the wheel and compass absolutely -exposed. I do not know how I looked, but I do know that I was chiefly -frightened lest I should look as frightened as I felt. I wondered what -Mr. Scarlett was doing. He was under the awning, so I could not see -him. A bullet smashed Percy's coffee-cup and broke it to atoms--bullets -were flying all round us. There was nothing for me to do; that was the -worst of it. To relieve the strain of being idle, I sent Griffiths to -bring up a rifle and some ammunition, and took the wheel myself. - -Before he came back I saw the figures close to the dhow rise up and dash -into the water, wade round her stern, and disappear from view. Seven -figures I counted; that little white heap halfway along the sand only -made eight; so another must have been badly hit. But now they were safe -for a time, entirely sheltered by the dhow. - -The natives, Afghans, Baluchis, whatever they were, thereupon turned -more rifles on to us and that stranded cutter--both from the sand-hills -and from the cliffs. The range from the sand-hills was well over twelve -hundred yards, and most of the firing was very wild; but one of our -chaps, Jones, a marine, working one of the Maxims, was shot through the -arm about this time. However, our high gunwales kept off most of the -bullets. - -It was very different with that stranded cutter. She was not more than -six hundred yards away from the sand-hills, closer still to the foot of -the cliffs, and almost immediately one of the three men still working -her Maxim fell and was pushed aside or crawled away--I couldn't see -which. - -Griffiths came up with his rifle. "Go on, fire yourself!" I shouted, -and he lay down and began potting at the people on the cliff, over our -heads. The shooting now slackened from there, and I quickly understood -why, for I saw fifty or sixty natives scampering down a cliff path and -wading through the shallow mouth of the creek. By the time I had -ordered a Maxim to swing round on them most of these had joined the -others behind the sand-hills. We bagged two or three, however. - -I knew that we were in a horrid mess, and didn't want Mr. Scarlett to -come up to me--absolutely yellow in the face--and tell me so. Just as -he was blurting and stuttering out something about a falling tide and -getting that cutter afloat, people down below began shouting: "Look! -Look!" - -Griffiths, peering over his shoulder with frightened eyes, pointed, and -I saw a regular horde of Afghans pouring over the tops of those -sand-hills and racing down the beach, straight for the stranded cutter. -I looked at her. Only one man was now working that Maxim, or trying to -do so, and making a bad job of it. Something had gone wrong with the -belt. He tried desperately to jerk it clear, failed, then gave it up, -caught sight of the yelling Afghans charging down on him, and hid under -the gunwale. - -The six-pounder fired as rapidly as it could, and must have killed many, -but one of our Maxims had jammed and the other would not bear. Mr. -Scarlett's piercing voice was shrieking for me to turn the _Bunder -Abbas_ round so that he could use the second Maxim. I gave the wheel a -turn and rang down to the engine-room. Before I was able to turn her -side farther towards the beach that fierce rush had reached the water's -edge. Scores of wild Afghans were splashing through the sea. We could -hear them yelling as they waded knee-deep--waist-deep--towards the -cutter. Then we saw the two men still alive in her peer over the -gunwale, and one seized a rifle and began firing, but the other crawled -across the thwarts, let himself down over the stern, and commenced to -swim towards the _Bunder Abbas_. - -A six-pounder will not stop a rush: its shells are not deadly enough. I -thought the Maxim would never fire. Looking at the dhow to see whether -our people were safe, I saw rifles sticking out from under her poop -railings, so knew that Popple Opstein and his men had climbed on board. -They, too, were firing on the Afghans charging through the water. On -these came; they were not thirty yards from the cutter; the man inside -it had his face turned appealingly to us. - -Then Mr. Scarlett started the Maxim. He found the range in a -twinkling--he only had to follow the splash of the bullets till they -fell amongst the natives, and then wobble the gun--and it was impossible -to miss. Their shouts of triumph changed to wild shrieks of terror. It -was just as if a scythe had swept over them. They subsided under the -water--they disappeared--only a few, crouching till their heads hardly -showed above the surface, regained the beach and the protection of the -sand-hills. - -There was no time for thinking of this sickening slaughter; my chum and -his men had to be brought off, his cutter had to be refloated, and that -dhow had still to be destroyed. - -"Land and help him!" The thought did come into my head for a second, -but it would have been idiotic. We should only be putting our heads -into the same trap that he was in. - -The Afghans had had such a terrible lesson that for a short time only a -few ventured to the edge of the sand-hills to fire on us. The fire from -the cliffs, whilst our Maxims were no longer keeping it down, became -somewhat more vigorous, and I knew that now was my chum's chance to rush -back along that beach and regain the cutter. - -I shouted to the signal-man to semaphore across to him, but he must have -also realized that this was his opportunity, for almost immediately we -saw the bluejackets sliding down the dhow's side--two had to be helped -down--and then they all--seven of them-- came back along the water's -edge. Very slowly they came, for one man was being carried and my pal -was limping badly, though managing without assistance. Only a few -Afghans were firing at them, and these we stopped by mowing the edges of -the sand-hills with Maxim bullets wherever a head showed. - -They seemed to be taking hours. I found myself yelling to them to try -to go faster. They kept on stopping to fire at the sand-hills. Then, -at last, they began wading out, and we cheered as we saw them climb -aboard the boat without further loss, get out their oars, and try to -push off. Our joy died down when we saw that they could not move her. -The tide had fallen, and the cutter was on top of a sandbank with not a -foot of water covering it. They jumped out again into the shallows and -strained and heaved, but not an inch could they shift her. - -All this time the Afghans on the cliff were firing at them. They -clambered back into the boat and replied to this fire with rifles: -something had evidently gone wrong with their Maxim. Afghans now -appeared over the sand-hills immediately behind the cutter, where we -dare not fire for fear of hitting my chum's people. These, too, opened -fire on the cutter, and the water all round it was alive with bullet -splashes. Another man fell down in the boat and his rifle overboard. - -Unless something was done very quickly they would all be killed. I -yelled for volunteers to pull the dinghy across and take them a rope. -Dobson, the leading seaman, and Webster, the corporal of marines, jumped -into her first. "Take the wheel and don't go farther inshore," I called -to Griffiths, and rushed down on deck to supervise the rope being passed -into the dinghy and coiled down in her stern-sheets. On my way I saw -Jaffa, standing at the foot of the ladder, aiming at the top of the -cliffs with a rifle. He was as calm as ever. - -The dinghy was on our shore side, away from the cliffs and sheltered -from fire. We coiled all the ropes we had into her stern, bending one -to the end of the next. I rushed back to the wheel and moved the -_Bunder Abbas_ in towards the cutter until my bows touched the sand. -Then I gave the word to Dobson and Webster and they shot ahead of the -bows, the rope uncoiling and paying out as they pulled. - -Directly they had cleared our bows the whole of the rifle fire was -turned on them, and they had not taken fifty strokes before Dobson was -hit. He dropped his oar, but grabbed it again, pulling with one hand. -A moment later he was struck a second time and fell forward. - -Webster seized his oar and went on, but I shouted to him to come back, -and with a brilliant thought he made fast the rope and we hauled him -back. As the dinghy came near I saw that Dobson was dead. We lifted -him out and Mr. Scarlett jumped in. - -"I'm going, sir," he said, and I was so astonished that I could say -nothing. - -We laid Dobson on deck and jumped back to work our guns, whilst Mr. -Scarlett and Webster pulled madly towards the cutter, paying out the -rope and steering wildly. We yelled with delight when they reached the -cutter and passed the rope inboard. - -In a moment the cutter's crew had clambered into the water again to -lighten the boat. They held up their hands to signal my rope made fast. - -I gave the "_B.A._" a touch astern and stopped her engines, the rope -tautened, the cutter's crew shoved and pushed and yelled that she was -moving. In half a minute we had her afloat, her men scrambling in as -she slid into deep water; in ten minutes we were out of range, and in -half an hour she and the dinghy were both alongside, and I had dropped -anchor two miles from the cliffs and out of sight of the dhow. The -cutter was peppered with bullet holes, her gunwales, sides, and oars -splintered and grooved in a hundred places. She leaked like a sieve, -and water filled her to her thwarts. - -She had one dead man on board--one of those left as boat-keepers--the -one I had seen shot when working the Maxim; one man shot through the -chest and leg; four others wounded (one with three bullet wounds through -soft parts), besides Popple Opstein. - -"It went clean through my calf muscles," he told me. "It's nothing." - -Not until then did anyone remember the man who had started to swim back -towards the _Bunder Abbas_ when those Afghans charged down. He had not -been seen since, and must have been drowned, or perhaps killed by a -bullet in the head. Two of the cutter's crew had been left on shore -dead, so these made the cutter's total casualties three killed, one -missing, and five wounded. Only four had escaped untouched. - -The dead man and the wounded were all brought aboard the _Bunder Abbas_: -the dead who might only have been wounded, the wounded who so easily -might have been dead. A turn of the head, and a bullet which would have -only grazed your ear blows out your brains; you drop a cartridge, stoop -to pick it up, and a bullet which would have gone through your heart -wings on its way without your knowing that it had ever come and gone. - -Whenever one sees dead and wounded brought back by the untouched men who -have been fighting alongside them, one cannot help thinking queer -thoughts, and casting enquiring glances at the survivors to see what -qualities they have which spared them. I must admit that I have never -yet noticed anything particularly noble about those who have escaped. -Since those gun-running days I have seen much fighting and many killed -and wounded, and the untouched have generally been cursing something or -somebody, giving relief to the strain on their nerves by cursing hard. -Thoughts take longer to write than to think, so they don't, in actual -practice, waste much time. - -We were obliged to take every heavy weight out of the cutter to prevent -her sinking, and then tried to stop the bullet holes below the water -line. - -Webster, the corporal of marines, was as handy with the medicine chest -and its bandages as he was with anything else I ever saw him try his -hands on. In half an hour he had made the wounded chaps as comfortable -as it was possible for them to be. Percy, too, was in his element -bringing them water, tinned milk, and coffee. He was like a dog in his -admiration for white men. If he had had a tail he would have wagged it -off that morning. - -Until that cutter was safe I did not care how many rifles the Afghans -took out of the dhow in our absence; but directly she was fairly -watertight I left her at anchor with the dinghy, Moore, the timid -Goanese carpenter, and a couple of hands, to carry on repairs, and -steamed inshore again. - -I kept wide of the cliffs (from which a terrific fire burst out) until -the beach and the dhow herself came in full view. - -The shore was again alive with Afghans and their camels. Through my -glasses I could see sacks of rifles being thrown from the dhow on to the -sand, snatched up by eager men, and rapidly packed on the camels' backs. -A long string of heavily-laden camels was already disappearing behind -the sand-hills. - -But I was not going to worry about them or Afghans. I was going to set -that dhow on fire with my shells. - -At twelve hundred yards I opened fire. - -"At the dhow!" I shouted to Mr. Scarlett. "Don't worry about people." - -Her woodwork began flying, and I knew that the shells were bursting -inside her. It was only a question of time--the people aboard and close -to her had vanished at the first shell--and presently smoke began to -pour from her hatches. We cheered at this--those of us on deck working -the gun, Griffiths at the wheel, and poor old Popple Opstein supporting -himself against the deck rails. The rest I had sent down below under -cover. - -We kept on firing at her, and soon there was a rush of black smoke, -small explosions took place aboard her, her stern blew out, her masts -came tumbling down, and she took fire fore and aft. Every other minute -some ammunition must have exploded, scattering fragments of wood and -broken rifles round her on the sand. It was courting death to go near -her; but, even so, some Afghans now and then rushed towards her, seized -a rifle, and rushed back again. What plucky fellows they were! - -By half-past ten o'clock there was no doubt that not a round of -ammunition remained in her, nor a rifle that was not entirely useless; -so, with a parting shot dropped behind the sand-hills, I went back to -the cutter and dinghy, running the gauntlet of the cliffs without -receiving any damage. - -Hoisting in the dinghy, and taking the empty, waterlogged cutter in tow, -I steamed very slowly seawards to find the _Intrepid_ and Nicholson. - -Four men killed, one missing, and five wounded among the cutter's crew, -one man killed and one wounded aboard the _Bunder Abbas_, was the price -of that Sunday morning's work. - -As we left Sheikh Hill behind us reaction set in, and we were very -depressed. - -The edge of civilization! I could not help thinking of that. At home -people were just getting out of bed, wondering what Sunday clothes they -should wear. I wished that some of them could have seen how we had spent -that morning. If only I could have got hold of the people, English, -French, or Germans--I didn't know and I didn't care--who had -manufactured those rifles or sent them out there, I should have enjoyed -torturing them. - -Poor old Popple Opstein sat moodily outside my cabin under the awning, -with his elbows on the table and his face buried in his hands. If I had -been in his place I know that I should have done exactly as he had done; -but, poor old chap, he knew as well as I did that he had bungled the -whole affair, that we might have destroyed the dhow and the rifles -without landing or losing a single man. He was suffering the tortures -of the damned. - -I put my hand on his shoulder and squeezed it. Nothing I could say would -do him any good, and nothing did either of us say. - -I dared not ask him if he was certain that those two men who had been -left on the beach were actually killed; the thought of them having -fallen alive into the hands of the Afghans was too horrible. Instead, I -asked one of his men, and, thank God! he was certain that they were both -dead. The one who had dropped halfway along the beach had been shot -through the head, and the other, the one shot whilst lying half in the -water under the dhow's stern, had been lying next to him, and his head -was under the water all the time they were there. - -The only touch of humour about the whole tragic business came from -Percy. Dressed in his best, and looking very important, he had come up -to me as we were in the middle of destroying that dhow and asked, -pointing to my chum: "Master have guest to breakfast?" I had laughed -like a fool, till I hurt myself. - -As we were eating the food he had prepared for us--on the way back to -the _Intrepid_ that was--I turned to the gunner. "Mr. Scarlett," I -said, "if you are a coward you are the bravest coward I have ever heard -of." - -"I do things like that just to try and beat it down, sir," he mumbled; -"but it's just as bad when the next show comes along. I can't help it, -sir; I really can't. I know I look frightened; but I don't look half as -frightened as I really am." - -Percy looked upon him as a demigod--that was very evident. - - - - - *CHAPTER VII* - - *The Battle of the Paraffin Can* - - -We were only able to tow that waterlogged cutter very slowly, so we did -not sight the _Intrepid_ until three o'clock that afternoon. Half an -hour later we crawled alongside, and my chum and I went on board to -report. He looked as if he was going to his execution, and though I did -my best to make him "buck up", and tried to hammer it into his head that -we had done our best, and could do no more, he seemed more "down in the -mouth" than ever. - -Commander Duckworth made us tell him all that had happened, and I -thought afterwards that if only people at home--just coming out of -church they should have been at that hour--could have peered down into -that luxuriously-furnished cabin of the _Intrepid_ in the middle of the -Straits of Ormuz, could have heard the story which my chum told, and -seen the agony in his face as he told it, how it would have impressed -them! - -Cool, grey-green silk curtains kept out the glare from the port-holes -and skylight; green-silk lampshades on the tables fluttered in the -grateful breeze from the electric fans; pictures of English scenery, old -naval prints, photographs of beautiful women in evening and Court dress, -and photograph groups of polo teams and their ponies covered the white -bulkheads. From photographs in silver frames, standing on the tables -between silver cups and trinkets, more delicate women looked out with -smiling sympathetic eyes, whilst backwards and forwards past them paced -the commander in his spotless white uniform. The Baron and I were -sitting on a dainty, silk-covered sofa, digging our bare feet and toes -into a soft Persian rug. We had no clothes on except dirty, open cotton -shirts (the sleeves rolled up), and a pair of dirty duck "shorts" -halfway up our thighs. Our bare legs and knees, our sunburnt chests and -arms, looked very much out of place among the luxurious surroundings. -Tied below his left knee Popple Opstein had a blood-stained -handkerchief, and on my head and forehead was the dressing which -Nicholson had put there three days ago. - -My chum still wore his revolver belt and holster, and, for once, the -dirty lanyard was round his neck. - -"I made a fool of myself, sir," he blurted out; "I'd never had a chance -before, and I went straight for her." His face was drawn with pain and -shame at his want of discretion. - -"You both want a brandy-and-soda," was all Commander Duckworth said when -he had heard our tale. - -He made us drink one--it was iced, and it was grand--and said not a word -of reproof for our foolhardiness. If he had stormed and cursed us, I do -not know what we should have done. - -I dreaded terribly that my chum would not be allowed to take his cutter -away again on account of his wound--if for no other reason--but I think -that the commander realized his distressed state of mind, and I breathed -freely when he quietly told us to repair all damages, that fresh men -would be sent to replace casualties (my chum winced), and that we were -to report as soon as we were ready to return to our stations. - -I saw Popple Opstein's face flush with gratitude. He said, tremblingly: -"Thank you, sir!" and limped out. - -Commander Duckworth stopped me. "I don't know whether I am doing wisely -or not in allowing him to go away again. Just have a look at him every -daybreak, and, if that wound goes wrong, bring him back. Tell Nicholson -to report to me what he thinks of it before he does go, and--and--just -let him know how things stand." - -"Very good, sir. Thank you, sir, very much! He's rather a strange old -chap, fearfully sensitive, and he'd break his heart if you stopped him -going." - -The cutter was hoisted to the davits, and, whilst all the carpenters and -ship-wrights in the ship were repairing her, the _Intrepid_ slowly -steamed inshore, towing my launch astern. Nicholson found time to look -at the wounds in my scalp and forehead. He told me that they had healed -splendidly; but when I saw them in a looking-glass--a great red line -across my forehead and another on the side of my head across a patch of -half-grown hair--I could not help making a grimace. - -"It won't show in a month's time," he said, laughing. "Don't you worry -about your beauty being spoilt; the girls will like you all the better -for it." - -Strangely enough, I did happen to be thinking that perhaps if that -little, yellow-haired lady saw me now, her mocking grey eyes might look -a little serious--for once. At any rate she could not possibly treat me -as an infant. I grew quite red--though that I should have done so was -perfectly absurd, because I scarcely knew her, had only spoken to her -once or twice, and then she had treated me as if I were a midshipman or -a mere child. - -Nicholson read my thoughts--or thought he did--and chaffed me till I -grew more red than ever, and wanted to kick him. - -Five miles off Sheikh Hill the _Intrepid_ lowered the repaired cutter, -the _Bunder Abbas_ came alongside for me and to take in more ammunition, -my chum and an entirely fresh crew manned his boat, and I towed him back -to his old billet. He looked so sad and "rigid" as the cliffs opened -out and he saw the blackened mass of woodwork, all that remained of the -dhow which had caused that tragedy of the morning, that I felt very -nervous to leave him alone for the night. It was quite dark when I -yelled "good night" to him and steamed away down the coast to -Kuh-i-Mubarak, to try to find Evans. - -We found him surely enough--or rather he found us. He mistook the -"_B.A._" in the darkness for a dhow, and fired twenty or thirty rounds -from his Maxim before he saw my flashing lamp. - -He was awfully apologetic; though, as no damage had been done, it did -not matter. He had not seen a suspicion of a dhow, nor had he heard the -noise of our firing, so went nearly "off his head" with excitement when -I told him what had happened. - -Having found that he was safe and sound, I went back to my patrolling -line. - -For several weeks everything went on extremely quietly. Every morning I -would hail old Popple Opstein, and find how things were going with him; -sometimes, when there was no hurry, he even came aboard for a cup of -coffee. Every morning I visited Evans, and these two events were about -the only excitement we had; except, of course, the weekly Thursday -afternoon alongside the _Intrepid_. - -The weather was monotonously fine, and it really was monotonous work. -Neither was Mr. Scarlett exactly the type of man I should have chosen to -live with. We agreed very well, indeed, but he was of a morbid -disposition, never laughed except cynically, and seldom talked much -unless something or other stimulated his rather brooding, sluggish mind. -Then, as you already know, it was difficult to make him stop. - -I liked talking at meals--he didn't; and, as a matter of actual fact, I, -being a cheerful kind of chap, found him rather a "damper". - -Wiggins had returned to the _Bunder Abbas_, and a leading seaman named -Ellis, a sturdy, hard-working, little man, rather opinionated and fond -of "gassing", had taken Dobson's place. He and Moore, the petty -officer, did not "get on" at all well together. Moore was jealous of -him, and was for ever coming to me complaining that "that 'ere Ellis -took too much on 'isself." - -Several times Moore brought him up to my platform deck (which we used as -a quarter-deck) and reported him for disrespect. Precious little -sympathy did he get from me, however. Still, in such a tiny little ship -it was unpleasant to know that they were not on friendly terms. The -jealousy first started, I fancy, when we had a "sing-song" one night. -Both of them had sung songs, and Ellis had been more often "encored" -than Moore. The reason seems perfectly inane, but full-grown men, under -conditions such as these were, often behave in the most childish way -possible. - -During these first weeks Mr. Scarlett and Jaffa, between them, put me up -to all the tricks of the gun-running business. What one didn't know of -the Arabs' dodges for concealing rifles the other did; so I became quite -an expert, theoretically. - -One evening when it was fairly cool--after a regular furnace of a -day--Mr. Scarlett became communicative. We had been speaking of boarding -suspected dhows. - -"Now take the case, sir, of a dhow flying the Turkish flag. You steam -up to her; down goes her sail; over you bob to her in the dinghy with -Jaffa, and tell the nakhoda to show his papers. You dare not board -until you have seen them. He hands them down to you. You look through -them--written in Turkish, English, and Hindustani; all three -probably--and so long as they are in order, whether you know for certain -that she's brim-full of rifles or whether you only suspect that she is, -you dare not board and search her. - -"I remember," he said, "running up against a fine dhow one morning--I -was away in the old _Pigeon's_ cutter then--a long time since. We ran -her down, headed her off till she couldn't get away, felt sure that she -was going to be a fair prize, and yelled "Hallib! Hallib!" until she -lowered her sails. And that reminds me, sir; never go alongside any dhow -until she's lowered her sail. They Arabs have a nasty trick of waiting -for you to come alongside, and then lowering the sail so that it and its -big yard drops into the boat and smothers it. I've known 'em carry away -a cutter's mast that way. Whilst you are helpless under the sail they -pot at you, hoist it up again, and sail away. I've been 'had' like that -myself once. - -"Just you see that sail properly lowered and then make them hold up the -halyards to show you that they are 'unbent', because they are as nippy -as sharks a-hoisting it again. - -"Well, as I was saying, we were as keen as mosquitoes over that 'ere -dhow, but, as we caught hold of her with our boat-hooks, she hoisted -Turkish colours and we dared not board her. The nakhoda, grinning at -us, leant over her side and handed down his papers. These were in -perfect order, so we no more dared board her than we dared stop the -mail-steamer. What riled us chiefly was the brazen-faced way they did -things. The cargo was put down as one hundred cases of champagne, -consigned to a dirty little Persian village of about twenty miserable -fishing-huts. We knew it well, we did, before--and after. We felt -jolly well 'had'. We were as certain as 'eggs is eggs' that she was -chock-full of rifles and ammunition, but they were as safe where they -were as if they'd been on top of the Eiffel Tower. - -"The lieutenant in charge of us cursed the Arab nakhoda, and called his -ancestors dogs and sons of dogs, hoping he knew enough Hindustani to -understand. Then off we had to shove. - -"Our only chance was to catch those rifles on their way to the beach -whilst the dhow was unloading, or when they once got there. All we -could do was to pull off again and follow her, and it was about all we -could do to keep up with her until she reached her blessed village just -before dark. - -"We'd been there a week before--for water--so we knew what it was like. -If there had been thirty half-starved fishermen then I'd be overshooting -the mark; now the beach was crowded with rascally Afghans and their -camels, and no sooner did the dhow drop her anchor, close in to the -beach, than those cases of champagne--about five feet long they were, -each holding a dozen fat rifles we felt sure--were bundled into boats. - -"We had a Gardner machine-gun in our bows, and opened fire with that and -our old Martin Henrys; but there must have been a couple of hundred -Afghans letting rip at us, so we had to pull out of range and watch -those cases of champagne being lashed on the camels' backs until it was -too dark to see anything more. At any rate, all those rifles got -ashore, and you can guess what they were used for later on--for potting -at British Tommies trying to keep order on the Indian frontier. - -"Don't you go away with the idea that we English don't have a hand in -the game," Mr. Scarlett continued gloomily. "Why, sir, many's the time -I've seen captured rifles with the old 'Tower' mark on them, showing -that they'd been made in England--old-fashioned Army rifles some of -them, others not. And the tricks they're up to! My word, they are as -artful as a bagful of monkeys! I've helped search a couple of hundred -dhows or more in my time, and that's taught me a thing or two." - -"The first dodge as I remember bowling out--and the simplest of 'em," -Mr. Scarlett told me another evening, as he sipped his tot of rum--for -it was not until Percy had brought along his rum and he had taken -several "sips", when the crew had "piped down" and everything was quiet, -that he generally started his "talking machine"--"they built double -bottoms in their dhows, made 'em so cleverly that we used to think they -were the real inner skin. But we happened to have emptied one of her -cargo, and walking about inside her she sounded hollow under our feet, -so we ripped up a board and found a snug little collection of rifles -lying there. Of course the nakhoda swore he knew nothing about them; he -and his crew called upon Allah and most of the minor prophets to testify -to that, but it didn't prevent them doing their five months 'chokey' or -losing their dhow. A nice little haul that was, and the word was passed -along to 'sound' the bottoms of all the dhows we overhauled. We used to -bang 'em with the butts of our rifles. They gave up that dodge after a -while and invented something 'cuter' still. They'd fasten ten or twelve -long ropes to the keel, outside her, bringing them over the side on -deck, and they'd lash the free ends to sacks of rifles. If they sighted -a gunboat or a launch, or any of our people, and there was a risk of -being caught and searched, they'd simply drop them overboard and let -them hang down in the water suspended from the keel. Along we would -come, and find nothing wrong; search her high and low, and let her go, -with our blessing or the other thing. Then one of our launches happened -to come upon a dhow unexpectedly, and caught them doing it, heaving the -sacks of rifles overboard--took her by surprise--and that game was 'up'. -Never you leave a dhow, sir, till you've 'underrun' her.[#] You'd be -surprised how many rifles we picked up that way. - - -[#] Underrun = drop a bight or loop of rope over the bows and haul it -along under her keel. - - -"Then there's another dodge they have round about these coasts. All -along the Arabian side there are plenty of mangrove trees, and a great -trade in firewood is carried on with the Persian coast. So what was -easier for a dhow than to stow a dozen or more rifles at the bottom of -the hold and fill up with firewood on the top of them? They'd chance us -getting tired of unloading them; a cutter cruising by herself couldn't -do it, because you daren't throw any of the stuff overboard, and there -wasn't room on the dhow's deck for all the wood stowed below. Why, sir, -I've seen the whole of the _Pigeon's_ upper deck on both sides full up -to the level of the 'nettings' with chunks of firewood. Just imagine -the amount of work that meant--five or six hours in the horrid -heat--every chap feeling as limp as putty with the climate and the -monotony. A cutter cruising by herself either had to let her go or -stand by the dhow, wasting perhaps three or four days, till her gunboat -came along to victual her. - -"However, we did search them, and we did find rifles, which meant -'Good-bye' for that dhow and 'chokey' for her crew. They found that -trick not worth the risk, these people being generally law-abiding -people (more or less), simply tempted every now and then to make a -larger profit by carrying a few rifles. They weren't what you might -call reg'lar hands at the business. - -"And there's another thing they do, sir; on top of the firewood they -often load a small cargo of their dried fish, thinking the British -sailor won't stomach the smell of it. Ugh! the stink from some of those -dhows! Why, we sometimes never got rid of the smell of it for weeks. - -"You never heard about the mail-steamers--the Royal British -Mail--carrying rifles themselves, I suppose, sir?" he asked, a little -less gloomily as the incongruity of it appealed to him. "Why, sir, for -one whole six months the mail-steamer brought up regular consignments of -sugar from Karachi to Bushire and landed them there for a respectable -firm of merchants. One fine day a careless chap at a winch, who was -lowering a cask of sugar into a lighter, let it drop. The cask was -stove in, and instead of sugar they found half a dozen rifles stowed in -pieces, packed in saw-dust. That was an eye-opener, I can tell you. -The mail-steamers don't carry so many casks of sugar now as they did -then," Mr. Scarlett finished, smiling sardonically. - -Another night he became talkative and began: - -"You remember that chap who fired at us--the first time we shoved our -nose under the cliffs at Sheikh Hill? I told you for certain he was an -Afghan and couldn't possibly help firing his rifle at a white man. -Well, sir, they often send one or two of these fellows across to the -Arabian coast in the empty dhows, just to see that the rifles are -brought to the proper place. You can always tell if there's one of -these chaps aboard a dhow when you come along to search her, because -he'll fire at you for a dead 'cert'. What we did was to make the crew -line the side nearest us, after they'd lowered the sail and unbent the -halyards. Our sportsman, the Afghan (or Afghans) dar'n't fire then for -fear of hitting his friends, or had to climb up where we could see him, -which didn't give him much of a chance, we being standing by waiting for -him. Still, he didn't mind being riddled with bullets so long as he got -in a shot at us English, more especially if he'd hit any of us. - -"The only thing in this world he does fear and does mind is the sea. If -there's a bit of a lop running you may bet your life that Mr. Afghan is -as sea-sick as a dog, and you'll find him coiled up like a cat somewhere -under the poop, without a kick left in him. He'd give anyone, white man -or no white man, all he possessed, if he'd only kill him right -out--that's when he's sea-sick. - -"He's a terrible bad sailor, is the Afghan!" Mr. Scarlett said -reflectively; "that's the only good point about him except being such a -born fighter." - -Mr. Scarlett, as you know, would talk about gun-running occasionally, -but never once in those weeks did he mention that bracelet snake of his. -It was covered with a bandage which he used to replace very carefully -every morning; sometimes I happened to catch him doing this and saw it, -but as he never referred to it neither did I. - -Percy, I am sure, was very inquisitive to know what was the matter with -his arm, because, as I said before, everything about Mr. Scarlett was of -absorbing interest to him; though, after he had been kicked out of the -cabin once or twice when Mr. Scarlett was dressing, he never ventured -near it again until he was called. - -Things went on like this for three weeks--three weeks of calm, intensely -hot weather. Popple Opstein's wound had healed without anything going -wrong with it; my scars were becoming less marked. Jones, the private of -marines, was well--as were all the other wounded. Popple Opstein was -quite himself again, and in fact everything was going on very -comfortably if monotonously. It certainly was monotonous, because -during all that time we never sighted one single dhow, and although the -_Intrepid_ had stopped and searched a few farther out at sea she had not -found a single rifle over and above the proper number a dhow is allowed -to carry for her own protection. - -Then, to vary the tedium, it began to blow. A shamel got up very -quickly, and blew steadily for eight or nine days. It was not so bad -that the _Bunder Abbas_ couldn't keep the sea and do her patrolling, but -the two cutters had to hug tight at anchor in their two little creeks. - -However, Evans grew restless after the third day, and put to sea one -morning, leaving the shelter of Kuh-i-Mubarak and beating into the -shamel long after he ought to have run back again. A squall carried -away his foremast when he was already to leeward of it, and he rapidly -began to drift farther to the south. Fortunately I happened to sight -him, went down to help him, and took him in tow. Towing him back into -shelter against a heavy head sea strained some of the planks in the -bows, below the water-lines, and the boat began leaking badly. We had -only left the _Intrepid_ four days previously, so that she would not be -coming inshore to revictual us for another three; and, as it would have -been foolish to attempt to tow the cutter right out to sea to find her -and repair damages, we decided to beach her, do a little amateur -caulking, and try to repair the foremast if that was possible. - -There was a jolly little sandy beach about half a mile up the creek, so -we beached her there after Evans had transferred his Maxim, ammunition, -and stores to the _Bunder Abbas_. I anchored close by, in case he was -attacked. There was little chance of that, however, because the village -of Sudab lay more than three miles away behind the sand-hills, not a -single living soul was in sight, and none could approach without being -seen for at least a mile. - -His men were soon busy working and skylarking, stretching their legs on -the strip of sand, and thoroughly enjoying themselves. Not a sign of an -Arab or an Afghan, not even of a miserable Baluchi, did we see all that -day. In fact, things seemed so safe and pleasant that I landed most of -my fellows too, and we got up a cricket match, with an empty paraffin -tin for a wicket, a ball made of "spun yarn", and a bat made out of a -broken oar. We equalized numbers with my lascars, and had a most -exciting game, the _Bunder Abbas_ winning the championship of -Kuh-i-Mubarak just before the "spun-yarn" ball was worn out completely. - -The work on the boat had been finished, the seams recaulked, and the -mast repaired; but Evans decided, as it was going to be a perfect -moonlight night, to stay there until next morning, in order that his men -might have a change from the cramped cutter and get a good night's -sleep. - -At sunset I took all my people back to the _Bunder Abbas_, leaving the -cutter's crew playing football with that paraffin tin, with their bare -feet, until they grew tired of that, and kicked it into the edge of the -sea. They then made themselves snug for the night, lying down on the -crest of the beach with their rifles by their sides, in case they were -attacked, and with one man doing "sentry go", to give warning if -necessary. - -When the moon rose I could see them all lying comfortably there, one -sleepy-looking figure sitting up among them, and some way along the sand -the cutter, with the sea--it was just about high water--lapping against -her stern-post. Having seen my own "look-out" man "standing by" with a -loaded belt in the Maxim, in case he was needed, I lay down on the deck, -outside my cabin, and slept gloriously. - -I was awakened by a rifle shot, and jumped up. More rifle shots -spluttered out. I looked ashore and saw the cutter's crew lying flat on -their chests firing along the strip of beach--showing up in the -moonlight as clearly as if it was daytime--and heard Evans shouting out -excited orders by the dozen. (I told you what a "nervy" chap he was.) -One of his men came crawling down towards us, yelling to us to open -fire. It did not want his shouts to alarm us; my fellows were already on -deck, looking wildly up and down the creek to see who was attacking. -Not a sign of an enemy could I see, and it was light enough to see half -a mile; but the hummocks of sand stretching inland and along the beach -cast such very dark shadows that whoever was attacking could lie there -absolutely hidden. - -To judge by the amount of ammunition the cutter's crew were expending, -Evans was evidently certain of his enemy. Spurts of sand were flying up -just in front of his men, although I could not see any flashes coming -from out of those dark shadows. I admit that I felt considerably -flustered; Mr. Scarlett's face looked ghastly in the moonlight, and I -wished with all my heart that I had not allowed Evans to sleep ashore. -I could not help thinking of how Popple Opstein had been caught, and was -very fearful that something of the same kind was going to happen again. - -If we could only have seen something to fire at it would have been less -frightening, but there was nothing. - -Then Evans himself came rushing down to where the cutter lay, and yelled -to me to open fire whilst his men shoved her off. - -I thought he could not possibly have made a mistake, so banged away with -a Maxim at those shadows. "There, sir, there! Look there, sir!" Moore -suddenly rushed at me, pointing excitedly to a dark object apparently -crawling along just by the water's edge not a hundred yards away. - -The cutter's crew had seen it too, their bullets were spurting close to -it, but Evans shrieked for them to come down and shove off the cutter, -so I started the Maxim. We saw our bullets splashing all round, ceased -fire, and waited for anything else to appear. Whatever that was, it -never moved again. - -By this time Evans had got the cutter afloat, and had come alongside the -_Bunder Abbas_. - -"Arabs crawling along the beach!" he shouted. "The sentry saw them -first, fired at them--we've all fired at them--we've not seen any more -since." - -"Were they firing at you?" I called down, when he left off shouting at -me. - -He didn't know--he was not certain of anything except that his fellows -had managed to kill at least one man. - -At any rate, whatever had happened, no one was attacking us now. I -stopped the Maxim, and together we waited on the qui vive all night, in -case we were attacked again. - -When the moon sank, an hour and a half before the sun was due to take -her place, it became extremely dark, which made it most trying and -nervous work waiting for daylight. Instead of the good night's sleep we -had all promised ourselves, not a soul among us so much as closed his -eyes after the alarm. - -At daybreak not a sign of any living thing could be seen on those -desolate sand-hills or on the beach, so we ventured ashore to pick up -the cutter's masts and sails, which had been left behind in the panic. - -I went too, to have a look at the chap we had shot, and guess what we -found--fifty yards along the beach--that paraffin tin! just where we had -thought we had seen the enemy crawling along to attack us--simply -riddled with bullets. It was like a nutmeg grater, and the sand all -round it was scored and tossed about by hundreds more. - -I simply sat down and laughed and laughed till I thought something would -crack. The whole thing was so obvious. It was high water when the men -went to sleep; as the tide fell it left that tin high and dry: the -sentry, suddenly catching sight of it and its shadow, lost his head, -thought it was someone crawling along the beach, let off his rifle at -it, woke the others, and in their excitement they fired at every shadow -they saw. - -"You killed him, sure enough," I roared, holding up the perforated tin; -"the attack was repulsed with great slaughter." - -It was not until we had walked behind the sand-hills, and found not a -single trace of footsteps, that Evans would allow that the whole thing -had been a false alarm. - -"Your Maxim fired at it too," he said angrily. "You've made a fool of -yourself as well." - -Evans never heard the last of his paraffin tin, nor did his boat's crew; -and, later on, when the yarn (with additions) spread aboard the -_Intrepid_, we all came in for a great deal of chaff. For months -afterwards, a messmate hankering after a black eye had only to ask a man -belonging to that cutter's crew, or to the _Bunder Abbas_, what kind of -an Afghan a paraffin tin was most like, and he got one. - -However, we had made the cutter watertight and mended the foremast -(after a fashion), though it was not strong enough to "look at" the -shamel still blowing; so, leaving Evans to wait until it had blown -itself out, I struggled up to wind'ard to have a look at Popple Opstein -and find out how he had fared. - -I found him snugly anchored under the lee of Sheikh Hill. He was so -close inshore that when I poked in to have a yarn, the "_B.A._" could -not get within half a mile of his cutter. - -I pulled across in the dinghy. - -"Has no one fired at you?" I asked him, seeing that he was within easy -range of the shore and even of those high cliffs. - -"Not a soul," he told me. "I've not seen a man, woman, or child these -five days. Just look at those palm trees!" pointing in the direction -where Bungi village lay. "They seem to have changed colour: they're -browner than they were; and we cannot see anyone moving about among the -sand-hills, not even from the top of the mast. I can't make it out." - -I had to tell him the yarn of last night's brilliant little battle with -the paraffin tin, and left him and his crew intensely amused. - -When I went back to the _Bunder Abbas_ I climbed her mast (much higher -it was than the cutter's masts), and through my glasses very carefully -searched the flats behind those sand-hills. Not a single living, moving -thing did I see, although I watched for quite a quarter of an hour. - -I sent Jaffa up to the masthead, and he came down puzzled, wanting me to -land him so that he could find out what had happened. - -He smiled when I suggested danger. "You wait, sir," he said, and -disappeared down below. - -My chum began making a signal to me, asking if I could spare any -matches, so I forgot about Jaffa until, going back to the cabin, I came -across him rigged out as a coast Persian or Baluchi--I didn't know -anything of the different tribes, and I don't now--a regular low-caste, -unkempt, miserable creature, dirtier than the dirtiest. The only thing -remaining of the immaculate Jaffa was his dignified smile. - -"You send me shore, sir, when dark comes. I go Bungi; find out things; -come back to-morrow night--same time." - -Mr. Scarlett told me that no self-respecting Afghan would waste a -cartridge or blunt a knife on him in that rig, and that he would run -very little risk; so, after sunset, and before the moon rose, I took him -ashore myself in the dinghy, feeling rather ashamed to let him disappear -behind the sand-hills alone, and promising to be there for him the next -night. - -At sunrise next morning, just as we were preparing to go to sea for the -day, he was seen strolling calmly over the sand-hills, not even deigning -to wave his arms to attract attention. One thing was certain: he could -not be in any danger. - -I stopped heaving in the cable, lowered the dinghy, and pulled ashore -myself, jolly glad to get some exercise. - -"What's the news?" I called out, as the dinghy took the ground. - -"Bungi all gone--houses burnt--men and old women lying all -round--killed--no one else there--no young women--no children--only dogs -and some goats--no Baluchis--no camels--no Afghans--all nothing." - -"What's the meaning of that?" I asked in horror and astonishment. - -He shrugged his shoulders. - -"Afghan take revenge--lose many fighting men--cannot have rifles so take -young women and children--take them to mountains--come and see." - -I was only too keen to go, and followed him over those same sand-hills -from behind which the Afghans had fired at Popple Opstein that horrid -Sunday morning. We walked nearly a mile across the sandy wastes--very -hot they were to my bare feet--and as we neared the clumps of palm trees -which showed where Bungi had stood I saw why they had changed their -colour--nearly all had been scorched by the heat from the burning -thatched roofs. Their big leaves, red and yellow and black, hung low, -mournfully. - -The whole village was destroyed and the scene was too horrible to -describe, but I saw enough to know that Jaffa was right. - -Some half-jackal half-wolf dogs went yelping away when we disturbed -them; nothing else lived. - -The cruel Afghans had not even been satisfied with this. It was plain -that they had driven their herd of camels up and down the patches of -cultivated ground until not a trace of them existed. Jaffa explained -this, and pointed out the innumerable hoof-marks. - -The one well was heaped with dead bodies. - -He said, in his quaint way, that that was a proof that "the Afghans had -been very angry"! - -Then he took me out of the village and showed me the broad track of -camel marks leading across the ford towards the mountains. - -The sooner the captain of the _Intrepid_ knew of this the better; so -back to the dinghy and the _Bunder Abbas_ we went. I signalled across -to tell Popple Opstein (we now knew why he had not been fired at) and -went to sea, steaming down to Kuh-i-Mubarak. The shamel was still -blowing strongly, so Evans was taking shelter in the creek close to the -site of the "battle of the paraffin can". As we passed him I shouted -out to tell him the news, and that I was going to find out whether Sudab -had met the same fate. - -I steamed up until the lagoon opened out and the water became too -shallow to go farther. Then, landing with Jaffa, Webster, the corporal -of marines, and two privates, all armed, we advanced very cautiously -inland towards those palm trees under which I had seen the camels many -weeks ago. Long before we reached them we knew by the burnt leaves and -the sickening smell which pervaded everything that Sudab had met the -same fate as Bungi. Even the fishing-boats had been smashed or burnt. -We were very glad to get away from it, tramping back through the hot -sand, and meeting Evans on his way to explore on his own account. I -tried to dissuade him from going, but he was too excited to listen. - -"I'm going along to find the _Intrepid_" I shouted after him. - -"I'll come along too, directly the shamel has finished," he called back. - -In an hour the little "_B.A._" was plunging and burying herself into a -head sea, making two knots, over the land. We went at it all the rest -of that day and all that night, sighting the _Intrepid_ next morning. - -I signalled across my news, and was immediately ordered to close. It -was too rough to go alongside. I was ordered to steam to Jask with -telegrams for the Admiral and to find out if the telegraph people had -any news. - -Of course, it was evident to everyone that the Afghans had given up any -idea of landing more rifles at either of these two places, so the sooner -the Admiral knew of this and the sooner we found out what fresh schemes -were under way, the better. - -But I was short of coal, and it took nearly two hours to fill up from -the _Intrepid_, making fast with a hawser to her stern, and passing -small bags from her poop to our bows along a running whip--no light job -with such a nasty sea running. Then I was off again for Jask. - -I looked at myself in the cracked glass inside our cabin. That scar -across my forehead still showed very plainly, and for the life of me I -could not help wondering what that little yellow-haired lady would say -when she saw it. - - - - - *CHAPTER VIII* - - *Ugly Rumours* - - -At daybreak next morning we were off Jask Point, with its square white -telegraph buildings and its low sand-hills jutting out into the sea. As -the shamel was still blowing hard from the north-west I anchored to the -east'ard of the point, close to some rocks, and among a number of dhows -sheltering there. - -Percy pipeclayed my shoes and helmet, laid out my last clean white suit -of uniform, and, having made myself look as smart as I could, I landed -close to the old ruined fort (or sheikh's house) and walked up towards -the telegraph buildings, meeting the political agent, in pyjamas, -smoking a cigar and looking critically at the earth breastwork and the -line of wire entanglements. - -"Hallo!" he called out cheerily; "they told me you were coming in. You -people have made it hot for everybody along the coast, and no mistake!" - -He did not want me to give him any news. He had already heard of the -capture of one dhow and the destruction of the other, of the terrible -losses of the Afghans, of our men being killed, and that Bungi and Sudab -had been destroyed. The Afghans had got the idea into their heads that -the poor, wretched Persian villagers had given the "show" away, so had -taken this ghastly revenge. - -"You can't keep anything secret in this country," he said; "the way news -travels is simply marvellous. I even heard that an officer had been -wounded. - -"Was that you?" he asked, looking at my forehead. "I heard that one of -you had been seen to fall whilst running along the beach." - -I shook my head. "I did not land. It was my chum. Shot through the -calf he was. He's all right now." - -"Those Afghans came along this way before they went home," he continued; -"camped round the new fort, halfway to old Jask; hanged a couple of -Persian customs people who lived in it; hanged them from the top of the -wall to show their contempt for the Persian Governor; looted it and went -away next morning with their camels and the women and children captured -in those villages. They had a great number of wounded, those you had -wounded--poor wretches!--and threatened to come along and cut our -throats later on. A few of them did actually ride up here and fire -their rifles--but that was nothing. They put down their losses--they -had more than sixty killed--and their ill luck with the gun-running -business to the telegraph cable--about right they are too--and would do -anything to destroy it and us. Before they went away they cut the land -line running along the coast to Karachi, just to give us the trouble of -repairing it." - -"Aren't you rather nervous?" I asked him. - -He shrugged his shoulders. - -"We have twenty fellows here who can handle rifles--Eurasians and people -like that--besides Borsen and myself. The governor of Jask, too, has -fifty or sixty border police, Bedouins, whom the Afghans hate more than -they hate us, so we could rely upon them at a pinch!" - -"I suppose they will not attempt to run more rifles into Bungi or -Sudab?" I said enquiringly. - -"No, no! they've had enough of those two places. They'll get news across -to the Arabian coast and lie quiet for some months. Come along and have -'chota-hazri'," he said, changing the subject. "You needn't say -anything about those Afghans or about them coming along here. My wife -knows nothing about it, nor does Miss Borsen; I don't want them to -know." - -He took me up to his house and sent off the telegrams for the Admiral. -The old head boy brought us tea, bread and butter, and fruit, and I -quite enjoyed myself, except that the old gentleman was wearing a -yellow-silk turban, and every time he came out on the veranda it caught -my eye, and I thought he was Miss Borsen. - -However, I might have spared myself the trouble of constantly turning my -head and expecting to see her, because she was not even living in that -house, but with her brother. - -Afterwards, on my way down to the beach, I saw her there, a slim little -figure on the shore, dressed all in white, with a big white helmet -almost covering her yellow hair, looking strangely out of place among a -motley crowd of Arabs, Persians, and Zanzibaris, loading and unloading -the dhows. - -"Her brother ought not to let her come down alone," I thought angrily. - -She had a camera with her, and was taking pictures of the natives and -their camels. She smiled when she saw me, and every mortal thing I had -in my head seemed to go out of it. I couldn't think of any blessed -thing to say except that it was a fine morning. - -Then she laughed until I grew red and uncomfortable. It was a relief to -shout across to the "_B.A._" for the dinghy, but whilst it was coming -she made me pose for my photograph. - -"I have a snapshot of your little steamboat (boat!--mind you); I must -have one of its captain too," she said, as if it was a great compliment -to be photographed by her. - -If there is one thing I hate more than another it is having my -photograph taken. Especially did I hate this, because she arranged me -and rearranged me, with Griffiths in the dinghy for a background, and -all the time he was grinning at me till I felt the idiot I looked. She -never mentioned the scar on my forehead, so I took my helmet off so that -she must see it, and then all she said was: "Do put your hat on again, -and turn side face; that nasty scratch quite spoils the picture." - -Hat! Nasty scratch! Spoils her picture! My word, what irritating -things girls are! I'd gone ashore wanting her to see the wound, perhaps -to say something nice about it, and hoping that she would treat me, for -once, as though I were a man; and she'd made me cover it up in order not -to spoil her picture, and made me stand there, like a baby, whilst she -took the snapshot. - -I felt very irritated, and when she said: "Let me come aboard and -photograph that dear Mr. Scarlett," I felt more annoyed than ever. At -that time of the morning the _Bunder Abbas_ wasn't clean and tidy, so I -answered rather cuttingly that I'd send the gunner ashore to be -photographed, and suggested that perhaps she'd better wait until her -brother or the political agent's wife could bring her on board some -other time. - -She smiled again her mocking smile, and, curtsying derisively, watched -me clambering clumsily into the dinghy, trying not to wet my feet. With -her eyes on me I felt like an elephant trying to get into a canoe, and -one of my feet slipped and went into the water. That buckskin shoe was -pretty well spoiled. - -When Griffiths shoved off--still grinning the brute was--I looked back -to salute; but she was already walking away from the beach and did not -turn her head. - -"She's offended now," I thought. "Serve her jolly well right! Fancy -asking herself aboard like that; no English girl would have dreamt of -doing such a thing!" - -However, I was not really in the least pleased, and Mr. Scarlett soon -found out that I was in a pretty bad temper. - -Commander Duckworth had ordered me to lie at Jask until replies to his -telegrams had been received from the Admiral, so there I had to -stay--possibly for days. - -The morning went by very slowly. I was in a thoroughly bad temper, and -didn't care a "buttered biscuit" whether the six-pounder's recoil -springs wanted adjusting or not; and when the lascar first-driver -reported that the packing in the high-pressure piston-rod gland was not -as tight as it should be, dragging me down below to see it, I cursed him -till he salaamed a hundred times a minute to appease me. Moore, too, -reported Ellis again for giving him "lip", and went away "with a flea in -his ear". - -I could not get the idea out of my head that those Afghans would come -back and attack the place. Those wire entanglements and earthworks -looked such puny things to keep back those fierce chaps who had faced -our Maxims and six-pounder near Bungi, that if they really meant -business, fifty rifles would not keep them out. - -It was such hard luck on those two women. The political agent and -Borsen did not count. They'd gone into the job with their eyes open, -but the women--well, that was different. They should never have been -allowed to come to this desolate, exposed, out-of-the-way spot, on the -very edge of civilization. - -Those mountains, too, were only twenty miles away; the Afghans could -swoop down from them in a night, appear as unexpectedly as a vulture, -get between the telegraph station and old Jask, with its fifty Bedouin -border police, and cut it off entirely. - -I sent for Jaffa and asked him what kind of fellows these border police -were. He shrugged his shoulders, as much as to say that they were -useless, and volunteered to go to Jask and find out, in the bazaars, -what news there was. I let him go, and he borrowed a camel from a -friend on the beach and rode away inland, his black lambskin fez -disappearing among the palms surrounding the ruined sheikh's house. - -That afternoon Mr. Scarlett and I enjoyed the luxury of a thoroughly -good sleep, lying back in our canvas chairs under the awning outside our -cabin until Percy woke us for afternoon tea--tinned milk, bread (stale) -buttered with liquid tinned butter, rancid at that. - -There was a little sandy cove among the rocks close alongside, so I sent -the whole crew ashore there, natives and all. They were soon enjoying -themselves to their hearts' content, bathing and skylarking, scrubbing -their clothes, drying them on the hot sand, and having a thoroughly good -time. - -"I'm hanged if I'm going to land at Jask again," I said to myself; but I -did go, bawling ashore for someone to bring off the dinghy, and wearing -my one respectable flannel suit of "plain clothes"--the very first time -I had worn "plain clothes" since joining the _Bunder Abbas_. - -I left Mr. Scarlett in charge; he never wanted to go ashore. He said, -quite openly, that he was afraid of meeting Jassim, and felt sure that -he would do so sooner or later. He was not a man one could argue with. -Once he had made up his mind that something gloomy was going to happen -he'd stick to it, and when it didn't happen he would be more certain -that something worse still would take its place. This silly business -about Jassim and the bracelet was, of course, at the bottom of it all. -It seemed so absolutely childish for him to imagine that he would meet -the man, or that anyone would remember the beastly thing, after all -these years, to say nothing of the fact that whatever poison was left in -the fangs after they had bitten those two could not possibly have -retained its powers, that I lost patience with him. - -I landed, but never intended going near the telegraph station, not by a -long chalk. I did not want to be treated like a child by Miss -Borsen--you bet I did not--so I wandered off to explore the ruins of -that sheikh's house or fort among the palm trees. - -It was a great square building with a tower at one corner, built up of -red sandy bricks, all rounded by age, and the mortar, or whatever it was -which bound them together, so friable and crumbling that I could loosen -a brick with the end of a stick in no time. An entrance under the tower -(from which the door had long since disappeared) led into a courtyard -covered with rubbish, and all round it were the remains of -dwelling-rooms, storehouses, and stables. Some still had roofs to them. -A great high wall with crumbling battlements and platforms seemed to -shut out every trace of breeze and shut in every ray of heat. The place -was like an enormous oven. I climbed up some rough brick steps leading -towards the battlements and base of the tower and had a good view over -the surrounding country. - -Beyond a few miserable palm trees was the open narrow piece of flat -ground forming the neck of the peninsula. It gradually rose towards the -telegraph buildings, and about halfway between--something like three -hundred yards from where I stood---were the line of wire entanglements -and the earth breastwork, stretching right across from the rocks under -which the _Bunder Abbas_ was anchored to the shore on the other side, -where the shamel was still driving white breakers up the beach with a -continuous roar. - -Still higher was that strong, loopholed wall surrounding the buildings -themselves. - -Away to the east'ard ran the telegraph line on its bare steel poles: the -line which ran along the coast to Karachi, and which the Afghans had cut -only a few days ago. I could follow the line of telegraph posts till -they dwindled into "nothing", and felt very thankful that it was not my -job to go along that appallingly lonely coast to repair damages. - -I suppose I was seen from the telegraph station, for a servant came -running down the peninsula, came into the middle of the courtyard, and -I'm hanged if I didn't get an invitation to tea with the political -agent's wife. - -I climbed down and followed him, pretending that I was unwilling to go, -and grumbling to myself that if I did meet Miss Borsen we should -probably have a row. In half an hour I found myself playing tennis with -a borrowed racket and borrowed shoes, which flopped about like canoes on -my feet, with Miss Borsen playing opposite me, and beating me time after -time with her low drives along the side lines. She seemed to take a -positive joy in seeing me falling over my own feet in my attempts to -return balls much too good for me. I hate being beaten at any game, -especially by a woman, so that did not improve my temper. - -"What about your gunner?" the political agent said, when at last I was -allowed to "cool off" out of range of that little torturer's eyes. -"Doesn't he ever come ashore?" - -This made me think of Jassim, the bracelet, and of snake poisons. - -"Do you know anything about poisons?" I asked. "How long do you suppose -a cobra's poison would remain deadly?" - -"In a dead cobra, do you mean? I don't know; but I should not care to -keep a dried one without having his poison gland removed." - -"No," I said. "If you extracted the poison and kept it in a--a bottle, -for instance." - -"Not for long, I should imagine," he answered; and then I was fairly -startled, for he began to tell me the story of the very cobra bracelet -on Mr. Scarlett's arm. I did my best to appear as if this was all quite -unknown to me, for fear he should guess that I knew something about it, -and drag more information from me than Mr. Scarlett would care I should -tell. - -"I've never seen it," he went on, quite unsuspiciously; "but an old -friend of mine, skipper of a tramp steamer doing a queer business in the -Gulf many years ago, saw it once, and told me that he'd never seen such -a beautiful piece of workmanship. It will turn up some day at Christie's -or at some other curio dealer's in London, I expect, and I'm rather -sorry for whoever buys it. If he is known to possess it the news will -come along out here, and I don't mind saying that it will disappear -again within six months. The present Khan of Khamia, the real owner, is -not the wealthy chap some of the former khans were, but he offers a -reward every three months in the bazaars of every town on both sides of -the Gulf--a reward of thirty thousand rupees--to whoever brings back the -'twin death', as it is called. That's two thousand pounds, and there's -not an Arab born yet who wouldn't give his body to earn that, to say -nothing about his being certain of Paradise if he helped to restore it -to its rightful owners." - -I mopped my perspiring face often enough to prevent him noticing how his -confirmation of Mr. Scarlett's yarn had stirred me, and was quite glad -to be called away to play tennis. - -I played worse than ever, and Miss Borsen grew more provokingly -successful. - -After all my determination never to go near her again, I found myself -weakly consenting to stay to dinner. The political agent rigged me out -in clothes of his own, and the meal was a most delightful change after -"pigging it" on board the "_B.A._" for six weeks on tinned grub, with -only the gunner's black-bearded, morose face in front of me. After such -fare as we had had this dinner was luxury, but still more of a luxury -than the food was the daintily decorated table with its soft -candlelight. - -It would have been absolutely enjoyable if Miss Borsen had not been -there too. She had a most irritating effect on me. Whether she -intended it or not she always seemed to be "pulling my leg", and I -instinctively "bristled up" and wanted to get the upper hand, and put -her in her proper place as a very dainty little lady who should listen, -very respectfully, whilst I talked. - -I tried to tell them about being carried away to sea in that dhow; but -when I came to the part where I climbed along the struggling yard, -instead of looking impressed, she merely giggled: "I wish I'd been -there; you must have looked like a frog." This put me "off" telling any -more yarns, and made me so annoyed with her that I disagreed with -everything she said. - -Every time I did so she came off best in the argument, in spite of not -speaking English very fluently. - -By the end of that dinner I felt that I wanted to pick her up--I could -have done so with one hand--and give her a thoroughly good shaking, just -to make her realize how strong I was, and that though she could defeat -me with her clever little tongue, she was, at any rate, helpless -physically. - -It was a most gloriously cool night, with millions of stars shining, and -they all walked down to the beach to see me go aboard. We came to a -dark patch close to the beach, where the tide sometimes washed across, -and when the political agent called out: "Be careful of your feet; it's -swampy," the temptation was too great. I whisked little Miss Borsen off -her feet, and, before she had time to make more than an angry protest, -had carried her twenty paces across it and set her down on the dry sand. - -She never spoke a single word after that, and I chuckled to think that, -at last, I had stopped her tormenting little tongue. I would try that -dodge again if necessary. - -I hailed the "_B.A._"; the dinghy came ashore for me, and off to my -launch I went, shouting good-night to them all. My little tormentor's -voice was not among the chorus of "good-nights" shouted back. She still -had her tongue tied. - -Mr. Scarlett was waiting up for me, looking more saturnine than ever. -His dark eyes gleamed maliciously when I came into the light of the -lamp, because a little blue-velvet bow had caught in a button of my -coat. It was one she had worn, and I got red, looked an ass, and -untwisted it. I kept it, too, as a trophy of the first victory I had -won. - -"Brute force is better than brains--sometimes," I chuckled to myself. - -"Jaffa come back?" I asked. - -Mr. Scarlett shook his head, and I felt rather nervous about him, -although that was quite unnecessary, because he arrived next morning, -safe and sound, but with very little definite information. The -townspeople in Old Jask were in a state of alarm at the threats of the -hill tribes, and the Khan or Mir had called in the border police from -outlying villages. He had actually served out ammunition to them--a -thing he did not often do for fear that they themselves would plunder -Jask. I went up to see the political agent to tell him of this. He -knew it already, but it was a good enough excuse to go, for I wanted to -know if I had offended Miss Borsen and apologize if I had done so. - -However, I did not see her; and although the replies to those telegrams -did not come from the Admiral for another four days, and I went there -every day, I never did see her. There was always some excuse: that she -had a headache, or was resting; but it was plain enough that I had -mortally offended her, and my victory seemed much more like a defeat. - -So it was quite a relief when the cipher telegrams did arrive, and when -the "_B.A._" steamed away north-west again, to look for the _Intrepid_. - -These telegrams ordered Commander Duckworth to proceed immediately to -Muscat. He wasted no time in picking up the two cutters and departing, -leaving me to cruise up and down that same strip of coast for another -fortnight, without seeing a sail--until, in fact, I had to run across to -Muscat myself, for coal and water. - -I found the _Intrepid_ there anchored under the black cliffs and the old -fort, and hoped to get ashore, but was ordered to fill up as quickly as -possible and to cruise off a place called Jeb, about forty miles to the -north'ard, where those rifles were originally reported to have been -stowed. A miserable native chap, with a grudge to repay, had come along -from there to say that a dhow was filling up with rifles for the Makran -coast. So off I had to go. - -This coast was entirely different from the one I had just left. -Stupendous barren mountains towered up to the sky; their ridges and -shoulders, sweeping down to the sea, ended abruptly in stupendous cliffs -whose feet were eaten away by the continual beating of the south-west -monsoon waves, until they looked as if they must soon topple over. -Forbidding-looking inlets here and there made very comfortable shelter -to lie in for a few hours, though I could not stay in them for long -without being "sniped". My orders were not to go within five hundred -yards of any inhabited place, because the people along the coast were so -well armed, and even in these desolate inlets they would discover me, -after a very short time, and compel me to go out into the heavy seas -again. - -Thank goodness, they were execrable shots! - -Luck was not in our way, for when we returned to Muscat we found that -the _Intrepid_ herself had captured that dhow, and all we had to do was -to tow it out and burn it--not a very heroic task. - -The next fortnight was spent still farther to the north'ard. Sixty -miles of coast we had to examine, and we started from the farthest -point, gradually working along towards Muscat. Wherever there was a gap -in the cliffs, or a valley running down to the sea, in we would go and -be sure to find a village, perhaps a dozen huts, perhaps fifty, nestling -under a few date-palm trees or along the banks of a stream. The natives -(fishermen, for the most part, owning perhaps a few sheep or goats, -which they guarded day and night from wolves and jackals) were an -inoffensive, absolutely ignorant lot of people. Even Jaffa could make -very little out of them except that they lived in perpetual fear of -Bedouins or other raiding Arab tribes and of wild animals. They did not -want money--they did not seem to know the use of it--and for a few dates -and a few pounds of rice--especially rice--we could get enough fish for -the whole crew. - -I had to search all these villages for concealed arms. It was supposed -that the Arabs--Bedouins or whoever they were--knowing that it was -useless to try to send any more rifles away from Jeb, would take them -farther up the coast in caravans, distributing them in small numbers -among these villages and compelling the natives to store them in their -huts, until dhows should come along and take them away. - -However, we found nothing whatever except a few old muzzle-loaders, -dating from the year "one". - -There was such an entire absence of danger that whilst a couple of -bluejackets or marines, under Moore, Ellis, or Webster, went from hut to -hut, searching, I would take the head man of the village away up the -slopes of the mountains and try to get a shot at a wild goat. I managed -to bag one or two, and when, one day, at some wretched place which I -don't believe possessed a name, I shot a leopard (I had only a shotgun -with me), breaking its hindlegs so that it could not get away and the -natives could surround it and beat it to death, I was looked upon as the -saviour of the village. They filled the dinghy with fish, and actually -brought along a sheep. Jaffa and Mr. Scarlett said it was a sheep; I -thought it was a goat; and I'm hanged if it was possible to tell, by -eating it, which it was. - -The news of my shooting the leopard spread along the coast, and whereas, -previously, the villagers had been half-frightened out of their lives -when the "_B.A._" appeared, flying hurriedly with their women and -children, goats and sheep, to the mountains, now, when we anchored off a -village, the beach would often be lined with people to welcome us and -implore me to go and shoot leopards or jackals. - -On the last day of this cruise, the last morning before we had to return -to Muscat for more coal and food, I took the _Bunder Abbas_ into a most -marvellous gorge in the cliffs. Just imagine enormous, perpendicular, -sea-worn cliffs, eight hundred feet high, with the south-west monsoon -swell roaring at their feet, and a cleft, not fifty yards across, cut -straight down through them, as by some enormous knife. - -Into this the "_B.A._" shoved her nose, twisted and turned, with those -huge walls on either side, until long after the sea had disappeared and -the booming of the breaking swell had ceased. Gradually the walls -trended downwards, until a last turn disclosed an inland basin, quite a -mile long and nearly as broad. Mangrove trees came down all round it -nearly to the water's edge; what looked like rich grass-land ran up the -slopes of the mountains until it faded among the gaunt bare rock; and at -one place, where a little stream opened, there was quite a large cluster -of huts, with many fishing-boats drawn up on the beach in front of them. -I anchored in front of this village--marked on the chart as Kalat al -Abeid--lowered the dinghy, and pulled ashore, with Jaffa to interpret, -and the three marines (armed with rifles) to do the usual searching. - -I took my shot-gun, but the head-man--a tall, wizened, old chap with a -scarlet sash round his waist and a scarlet turban on his head--as soon -as he saw it, shook his head, patted one of the marine's rifles, and -jabbered away excitedly to Jaffa, pointing up to the mountains. - -Jaffa interpreted: "He say plenty leopard in mountain--come down every -night--kill sheep and goats--two nights ago killed a woman. Want you -get rifle from ship--go shoot them--want all men go--kill many -leopard--he show you where they sleep in daytime." - -"Right oh, old cock!" I said, sent the dinghy back for another rifle, -and hurried away the marines and Jaffa to get their searching done. - -The villagers were so eager for us to go shooting that they had actually -stripped their huts of everything movable, bringing the things outside, -so that all we had to do was to stoop down through the low doorway, see -that the floor was bare and had not been disturbed lately (no rifles -buried there), then back out again and search the next. - -It was the quaintest sight in the world to see the excited -children--little brown naked urchins--staggering out with big clay -cooking utensils and brass cooking pots as big as themselves, as happy -as the day was long at this new kind of game. - -One or two huts were so dark inside that we could not see; but the -natives tore away some of the palm-leaf roof to let in light, in order -that nothing should delay us. - -Griffiths came back with the dinghy and my rifle, bringing a spare one -on the chance that I would let him have a day's sport too. I let him -come, and away inland we started, the head-man, Jaffa (with my -shot-gun), and myself leading, followed by Webster, his two marines, and -Griffiths, surrounded by a dirty, happy mob of natives, armed with -short, clumsy hunting spears, some only with boat's paddles. Innumerable -children followed, shrieking with delight, and a dozen or more women, -hooded so that we could only see their eyes, bearing vessels of -water--big earthenware chatties--on their heads, brought up the rear of -the expedition. - -If I had had any idea whatever of treachery the fact of the women coming -along would have dispelled that. We were just as safe as if we had been -going shooting among a lot of country people in England. - -Directly we had reached the limits of cultivation the children were sent -back very quickly. No leopard could have slept comfortably within a -mile of the noise they made. Then we commenced to wind up a track -towards the mountains themselves, and the nearer we came to them the -more rugged and barren they looked. Very nearly black they were in -places; great rents split whole shoulders from the main ridge; huge -masses of rock were poised on each other like vast columns, looking as -though a bird perching on them would upset them. Indeed the slope we -were ascending was so strewn with gigantic blocks of black rock that one -knew that they, at one time, must have fallen from just such columns. - -The head-man began talking volubly to Jaffa, and he, turning to me, -said: "Leopards there--come down at night--go back sleep close by." - -I told Jaffa that whatever happened I must be back by sunset. - -The old man understood and nodded--so we pushed on. It was very hot -work scrambling up that vast, debris-strewn slope, over smooth rocks -which gave scarcely any foothold, twisting round great boulders or -half-wading through loose sand, worn from the face of some steep, -precipitous part by countless years of exposure--everything too hot to -put one's hands on comfortably, and the sun always scorching on one's -back. I called a halt long before the old head-man had begun to show -the slightest sign of fatigue. - -I looked back. My three marines and Griffiths were some way below us, -among the admiring villagers, wiping their perspiring faces. Lower down -was the little group of women crouching together, with their water -chatties in front of them; a thousand feet below, beyond the dark, green -fringe of mangrove trees, the _Bunder Abbas_ lay in that inland basin, -and, winding out like a dark snake, the channel wriggled through the -cliffs to the sea. The blazing sun poured down relentlessly from a -cloudless sky. - -Jaffa touched my arm, pointing out to sea and to a faintly-showing trail -of smoke. Unslinging my glasses, I followed the line of smoke till I -saw a steamer. It was the _Intrepid_, evidently making for this same -harbour. - -"Why the dickens is she coming here?" I thought, and would have stayed; -but the head-man was impatient, so we shoved on again, though I kept -turning back to watch her until she disappeared under the shore-line. -In half an hour Jaffa, whose one eye seemed better than my two, swung me -round to see her emerge from the channel into the basin itself. - -Well, the old "_B.A._" was safe enough now. It did not matter how late -we got back; when he heard about the leopards Commander Duckworth would -be too good a sportsman to be annoyed that I was not there. I felt -quite at ease. - -So on we scrambled, in Indian file, higher and higher, until a turn of -the track round a shoulder of the rocks shut out the sight of the sea, -and also, thank goodness, gave us shelter from the sun. It was like -going from brilliant sunlight into a darkened room. - -We now found ourselves in an extraordinary hollow, more like being at -the bottom of a huge well or cup--a coffee-cup with a crack in it, the -crack the ravine through which we had just entered--its bottom strewn -with a jumble of rocks which had fallen in the course of ages from the -precipitous walls which shut out the sky. It was very gloomy and silent -but delightfully cool. - -Craning our necks backwards we looked up through the rim of our -coffee-cup to the burning sky overhead. That rim must have been a -thousand or twelve hundred feet above our heads if it was an inch, and -at one point, immediately opposite us, there was an extraordinary gap in -it. Just as the cleft in the cliffs through which the _Bunder Abbas_ -had steamed three hours before looked as though some giant had chipped -it out with an enormous axe, so this gap looked as though the same -giant, on his way to the sea, had pinched a piece out of the edge as he -swung himself across it. - -Strangely enough, Jaffa discovered afterwards that there was a local -tradition something to that effect. - -The villagers began to crowd round us, jabbering excitedly. The old -head-man drove them away, whacking them with his long stick. Then he -began talking to Jaffa. - -"Villagers stay here," Jaffa explained. "Head-man take you and us up to -gap--leopards lie among rocks all about here--when we climb up to top -villagers make noise--leopards try escape through gap--you shoot." - -What a grand idea! I would have gone anywhere with the sporting old -chap, although I had not the faintest idea how we were to get up there -without wings. - -"Right oh! Lead on!" I cried, and the old fellow began leading us -farther into the gloomy bottom of the "cup", clambering round the -boulders, Jaffa, myself, the three marines, and Griffiths following him. -Then he began to ascend the precipitous wall itself by a path--if you -could call it a path--so steep and so narrow in places that it was as -much as I could do to keep my feet or climb up it. It zigzagged up that -wall in twenty or more zigzags; looking down from the upper ones we -could see those below; looking upwards we could see no trace of any -foothold, nothing whatever but rocks rising sheer above us. At one or -two of the worst places the edge of the track actually overhung, and -small stones dislodged by my feet fell plumb down until I dare not watch -them far for fear of feeling dizzy. - -Presently we had scaled the rocks sufficiently high to come to the edge -of the shadow cast by the eastern rim of the "cup". Here I called a -halt, perhaps three hundred feet below the gap, and we leant back -against the rocks and rested. I felt like a fly on a wall, and only -wished that I had suckers on my hands and feet, or were a goat. - -"This isn't a proper track, is it?" I asked Jaffa. - -He smiled, and at the time I didn't believe him when he said: "The only -way out of the valley--only way inland from the village--for men or -camels!" - -"Camels! What nonsense!" I thought. - -The old head-man was much too energetic for me. Off he went again, and -led us into the full blaze of the sun. - -Great snakes! In a minute or two I was dripping with perspiration, and -when we did at last reach that gap, and I threw myself down on some -rocks there, I don't think that I had ever felt so hot in my life. - -However, a grand current of air whistled through the gap, as though -this, too, was the only way the sea-breezes could pour inland. I soon -cooled down. - -"What a climb!" I said to Webster, as we looked down at the -extraordinary chasm beneath our feet--the "coffee-cup", as I have called -it--and tried to trace the zigzag path up which we had climbed. It must -have taken us an hour at least to ascend, and I confess that, as I -looked down, I did not in the least relish the idea of having to crawl -down again. - -At the bottom it was dark and gloomy and silent; not a trace of -villagers could we see among the rocks there, nor could we get a view of -the _Intrepid_ or the sea beyond, because the crack in the "coffee-cup" -was shut in by another shoulder of the mountains. - -The gap was about five yards wide, its sides about twenty feet high, and -I took twelve paces before I looked down into the valleys on the far -side. Deep and misty they were, and beyond them stupendous ranges of -barren, naked mountains lost themselves in the distance. - -The old man made us take up positions on the crest on either side of the -gap, myself, himself, Jaffa, and Griffiths on one side, the three -marines on the other; and was just going to give the signal to the men -below to commence their drive--a leopard drive, mind you; think of it, -and think how happy and excited we were--when, turning to look down the -far side, his face became a muddy-yellow colour--just as Mr. Scarlett's -often did. All the life seemed to die out of it, and he gasped out: -"Bedouin!" - -We all turned, and through my glasses I saw what at first looked like -some huge snake winding up the valley towards us. Then I saw that it -was an apparently endless caravan of heavily-laden camels, wearily -trailing one after the other. Among them were many horsemen--a hundred -or more, although it was impossible to count them. - -Then I knew why the _Intrepid_ had turned up so unexpectedly. These -were the very fellows we had been hunting for, bringing their rifles -from Jeb to hide them in the village at our feet, until dhows could be -sent to take them away. And they must pass through this gap, on either -side of which we were lying, in order to get there. Some wretched brute -must have taken the news to Muscat, and given away the scheme (there -were always plenty of these fellows mean enough to sell their own -fathers for a few rupees). - -The old head-man, half-paralysed with fear, was worming himself down -into the gap. I clutched him. - -"Ask him how long before they reach here!" I told Jaffa. - -The old chap could hardly speak, he was so frightened. - -"In two hours!" Jaffa told me. - -My brain was hot with the fluster of wondering what I ought to do. - -Webster, the corporal of marines, came scrambling down across the gap -and up to me, his eyes gleaming. He was bursting to suggest something. - -"Out with it!" I said. - -"Beg pardon, sir, but the five of us could hold this here gap against a -whole regiment, and we'd drive these chaps off like winking. They can't -outflank us, they must come along in single file. It would be grand if -we could stop 'em." - -I could see that for myself; but at the first shot back would go the -whole caravan, and if those camels were laden with rifles and ammunition -not one should we capture. A better plan rushed through my head--to let -them get through and then prevent them getting back! - -I would send the head-man to tell Commander Duckworth. He would come -along with every man he could land, and do the whole business whilst we -stopped their retreat. It would be the grandest haul that had ever been -made. Instead of the villagers driving leopards up to us, the -_Intrepid_ should drive these Bedouins and their camels; instead of -getting a few mangled leopard skins, we would bag the whole caravan and -its rifles. - -I told Webster. He grinned with delight. - -"How many rounds of ammunition have we?" I asked. - -We had nearly six hundred between us; that was enough. - -Hurriedly I explained to Jaffa what we intended doing. I tore a leaf -from his note-book, and with his pencil wrote a message to Commander -Duckworth. - -"Give it to the old man! Tell him to take it to the _Intrepid_ as -quickly as he can; tell him to take his villagers and the women back -with him." - -Jaffa's eyes sparkled as he passed the orders to the trembling head-man -and gave him the note. - -I let go of his cloak, and he slid down the rocks like an eel, and was -off down the dizzy zigzag path, like a goat, to where his people lay -hid. - -Then Webster, with a grin on his face, went back to his side of the gap -with orders to conceal himself and his two men farther along the edge, -not to expose themselves on the sky-line for a single moment, and on no -account to fire until I fired. - -I knew that I could trust Webster. - -Jaffa drew out his beloved Mauser pistol to see that it was loaded, and -we had nothing to do but wait whilst those weary camels and their escort -wound their way up towards the gap. - - - - - *CHAPTER IX* - - *Trapping a Caravan* - - -From where I lay, sprawling on my stomach, on the very edge of that vast -ridge, like a fly clinging to the rim of a cup--my "coffee-cup"--I could -look down on both sides. Inland, the sides of the ridge fell away -steeply but not precipitously; the track from the gap did not zigzag -down, as it did on my other side, but wound and sloped at an easy angle -until I could trace it no farther. The leading horseman of the caravan -was, possibly, two miles away, and perhaps a thousand or fifteen hundred -feet below me--one could not judge heights or distances with any -accuracy--the middle portion of the winding caravan was hidden by a -swelling of the mountain slope, and the tail end, indistinct, lost -itself in the stifling haze which filled the valleys below. I watched -those first few mounted men. They kept on halting and waiting, going on -again and stopping, as though the camels could not keep pace with them. - -I turned my head the other way, and looked down the precipitous curtain -of rocks which fell almost sheer into the extraordinary hollow below me. -The red turban and flowing white cloak of the old villager showed up--a -bright spot against the dark rocks--as he scrambled hastily to join his -people, tiny little dots moving about between the boulders which strewed -the bottom of the "coffee-cup". I could not see the crack through which -we had entered the hollow, because the huge walls surrounding it -overlapped there, but I marvelled how we had managed to climb the path -without slipping and being dashed to pieces below. I really did not -believe it possible for a camel to negotiate it in safety. - -"Surely a camel cannot go there?" I asked Jaffa. - -"Yes, camel go down, safe; horse cannot; Bedouin leave horses behind -them." - -"Will they bring them up to the gap?" - -Jaffa did not think they would, and I devoutly hoped that they would -not. - -I thought how old Popple Opstein's face would have beamed, and his -yellow hair stood up, if only he had been here with me on that edge of -rocks. Yes, here I was literally on the edge of civilization, where all -my life I had longed to be. How my chum would have chaffed me about -that if he saw me now! Perhaps in a few hours, if he had the luck to be -landed, he would see me. - -And, thinking of yellow hair, perhaps little Miss Borsen, if she too -could see me and could realize what might soon happen, would treat me as -a man. More likely than not she would only have smiled in her -tantalizing, irritating way, and told me how uncomfortable I looked. - -Jaffa touched me. "Bedouin see very far; very good sight; see us soon." - -What an ass I was! I had ordered Webster and his fellows to conceal -themselves below the crest, and here I was still sprawling on the -sky-line myself. - -I crawled lower down; so did Jaffa and Griffiths. - -Until I had left the ridge it never occurred to me that probably the -advance party of Bedouins would scale the sides of the gap and scatter -along the edge. If they did that they would certainly see us; so it was -necessary to hide much farther away from it and take no such risk. - -I whistled softly to Webster, and he came crawling across to me, keeping -well below the sky-line. - -"Take your men a hundred yards along the ridge," I told him; "hide among -those rocks there, below the edge, and for Heaven's sake don't show -yourselves, not until the last Arab and the last camel have gone halfway -down the zigzag, and not until you see me move." - -"I understand, sir," he answered grimly, and presently I saw him and his -two men scramble to a cluster of detached rocks much farther along. - -When they were safely hidden, Jaffa, Griffiths, and myself crawled in -the opposite direction, away from the gap, behind some more boulders. -We shifted about among them until we found a position from which we -could see that gap, and also look down the zigzag path. We were about -one hundred and fifty yards from the gap, and practically on a level -with it. Of course we could see nothing of the approaching horses and -camels, but I trusted to my ears to hear them. - -Lying there under these conditions was an extraordinary trial to my -nerves, and I thanked my stars that Webster had come ashore with me that -morning and not Moore. Moore would have made a hopeless muddle of his -job, and could not have controlled his own nerves, let alone those of -his men. As it was, I presently found the strain of waiting and -listening so great that I had to hang on to those rocks, like a maniac, -to prevent my legs making me crawl up to the sky-line, twenty feet above -us, to have one more look at the caravan. - -I do not believe that if I lived a thousand years I could be more -excited or "jumpy". - -I breathed more freely when I saw the head-man reach the bottom of the -"coffee-cup", gather his villagers together, and disappear with them, -like a lot of white ants, out of sight round that projecting corner of -rock which marked the huge crack or rent giving exit to the path. I -relied upon the old sportsman hurrying down to the village as quickly as -he could, and hoped that in another hour Commander Duckworth would -receive my note. In another forty or fifty minutes afterwards he might -be able to land his men, and in another hour and a half they might reach -the entrance to the "coffee-cup". - -Then the fun would begin. - -My wrist watch was, of course, still smashed--there had been no chance -of having it repaired--so I could only judge by the height of the sun -that the time was about eleven o'clock. At the earliest the _Intrepids_ -could not reach the bottom of the zigzag path for another three hours; -and, if the head-man had been accurate, the head of the caravan would be -at the gap an hour and a half before they arrived. - -The only thing that troubled me then was whether the leading Arabs would -have descended it, turned the corner, and sighted the _Intrepid_, and -perhaps the advancing bluejackets, before the rear of the caravan had -passed through the gap and had begun the perilous descent. - -Once the rear-guard was below us I felt that we could prevent them -climbing back; but if it should happen that the _Intrepids_ were sighted -and the alarm given when only a part of the caravan had passed us, then -our position would be perilous. - -If they searched the ridge before even commencing to send their camels -down I knew that we should be discovered, and in that case there would -be nothing for it except to sell our lives as dearly as possible. But I -did not think they would take the trouble to do this, nor did Jaffa, and -the chief danger lay in the alarm being given before all the camels and -Arabs had passed through the gap. - -If this happened, I made up my mind to shoot as many camels as possible, -to prevent the Arabs getting away with all their rifles; and I told -Jaffa that if anything went wrong, I relied upon him and his Mauser -pistol to prevent either Griffiths or myself falling alive into their -hands. - -Somehow or other I could rely upon Jaffa, and it was a comfort. Webster -would have to look after himself and his two men; I knew that he would -not fail. - -Writing this now, the fact that I really thought this ending possible, -or prepared for it, seems almost unreal. Time has quickly blurred the -remembrance of the extraordinary peril of our position at that time, and -only left vivid recollections of the wonderful feeling of exhilaration -which took hold of us as we lay there feeling almost like wild beasts -waiting for our prey, and listening for the first sound of their -approaching feet. - -A large bird appeared above us, circling with motionless wings. -Suddenly he came gliding downwards, disappearing behind the crest. -Looking up again into the burning sky I saw more specks coming from all -directions. Soon there were ten or twelve of the ugly brutes circling -round. So close to us did they come that I could see their heads and -their naked necks stretched towards the ground. They were vultures, and -one by one they slid downwards in huge spirals and disappeared. - -Jaffa whispered: "A camel or a horse has dropped; they must be driving -them hard." - -He told me that the speed of a camel caravan was about two and a half -miles an hour. As the crow flies, Jeb was probably thirty miles away -from the spot where we lay. It was inside the mark to add another -fifteen for the turns and twists of the track through the mountains and -valleys; this would bring the probable march to forty-five miles, and if -the camels had been pressed forward day and night, as Jaffa imagined -likely, the poor beasts must be very weary. - -Jaffa had noticed when he first looked through my glasses at them that -their necks were very straight. He now explained to me that the halter -of one camel is secured to the one next in front, and that, as the -leading camels of a gang were always the best, when the others tire they -tend to be dragged along, and the ropes stretch their necks until they -are almost straight and not curved. - -"They were very straight," he said. - -This waiting was a tremendous strain. To know that the caravan was -approaching on the other side of that ridge, behind and above us, made -the longing to climb up and look over simply maddening. - -To pass the time we made little loopholes between the rocks, through -which we could fire towards the gap and down the zigzag path without -being seen ourselves. Griffiths asked me, under his breath, if he could -smoke his pipe. He asked simply to hear himself speak. He knew that I -would refuse, but it was a comfort for him to whisper and a comfort for -me to whisper back that the blue smoke might show--a fact he knew well -enough. - -Then a horrid thought struck me. When we had first reached the gap I -had lighted a cigarette, and the burnt match and the end of the -cigarette must be lying somewhere there still. If either of them were -seen the alarm would be given at once. My whole mind became tortured -with picturing them lying there on the bare stones, and I would have -given anything in the world to be able to crawl across and try to find -them. I did not fear that our tracks would be found: the rocks were -quite bare; what loose stones there were between them would not leave a -foot-mark; but even now, as the scene comes back to me, I remember that -the fear of the burnt match and cigarette end being discovered was -horrible at the time. - -Just as the strain became almost unbearable, and the impulse to crawl to -the gap almost more than I could resist--I had actually risen to my -hands and knees--Jaffa gave a low sound, and pressed me down. - -Looking through my loophole I saw a tall, fine-looking Arab standing -erect at our side of the gap, with a rifle in his hand, turning his head -from side to side and then peering below into the chasm beneath. - -[Illustration: LOOKING THROUGH MY LOOPHOLE I SAW A TALL, FINE-LOOKING -ARAB PEERING INTO THE CHASM BENEATH.] - -I felt certain that the white cigarette end must be lying there at his -feet, and that in another second he must see it. My heart seemed to -stop beating and my ears buzzed. He turned and looked intently at the -very heap of boulders behind which we lay. I could have sworn that our -eyes met. I had to put my hand to my mouth to prevent me giving way to -the frantic desire to yell. Then he disappeared back into the gap, and -I breathed more freely. - -"He tell others--all safe--see nothing--camels come presently," Jaffa -whispered. - -In two or three minutes more Arabs--ten, then twenty--crowded through -the gap, their rifles held ready and their fierce eyes scanning every -rock. - -Thank goodness! The towering sides of the "coffee-cup" hid the -_Intrepid_ from view. - -They moved stiffly, as though tired, talking quietly and squatting on -the rocks for a few minutes, until they suddenly stood up, looked back -through the gap, slung their rifles over their shoulders, and commenced -to scramble down the zigzag path. - -They had hardly left the gap when, with a light scraping noise, the ugly -head and neck of a camel appeared. He hesitated as he saw the steepness -of the path below him, but the camel leader beat him about his head and -lips until he condescended to move out of the gap, and with hesitating -paces, putting down his huge feet with very great care, started the -descent. As his body came into view we saw long sacks or bundles of -matting--containing rifles, we felt sure--strapped one on either side of -him. - -From his quarters stretched taut the halter of the camel "next astern", -and another supercilious, scornful, ugly head appeared. Camel after -camel (all with their bundles), Arab after Arab (some armed, others -simply leading camels) squeezed after each other through the gap in the -crest and started down the zigzag path. - -I was thankful to notice that the advance-guard seemed in no hurry to -reach the bottom, but would go on for a hundred yards, wait for the -leading camel to overtake them, and go on again. The longer the time -which elapsed before they sighted the _Intrepid_, the more chance would -there be that the end of the caravan had already passed through the gap -before the alarm was given. - -Fifty camels I counted; sixty; sixty-two--three; but as the sixty-fourth -head emerged into sight it sank down to the rocks. The wretched brute -had fallen on his knees, his neck stretched quite straight as his halter -to the camel ahead took the strain. He was dragged bodily forward for a -few inches on the smooth rock, then the halter "parted", and his neck -curved again. - -Another ugly camel's head appeared over his back, but there was no room -to pass--the gap was too narrow--and he stopped, swaying his head -angrily from side to side. - -The Arabs called shrilly one to another---half-dazed they seemed to be, -probably from fatigue--and a dozen of them, surrounding the kneeling -camel, tried to make him rise to his feet. They prodded him with their -rifles and spears, howling execrations, hauled on the broken halter, and -beat him on the nose and face. They actually fired rifles close to his -face; but he took not the slightest notice. He never even moved his -head, holding it up quite motionless, with that extraordinary sarcastic, -supercilious look which camels always have, and appeared to be quite -unaware of the cruel treatment. - -"Camel--finish--much tired--never get up--stay to die," Jaffa whispered. - -Two vultures--appearing from nowhere--perched silently on the rocks -behind which lay Webster and his two men, saw them, and flapped across -to another rock. The Arabs were too busy to notice this or they might -have been suspicious. - -Then a fine-looking, very richly dressed Arab, with a flowing red[#] -patriarchal beard and a green turban pushed past the camel and began to -give orders. The ropes securing the bundles were unlashed, the bundles -were dragged aside and propped up against the projecting rocks, and -then, hauling on those ropes (they passed under the camel's belly), -shouting and yelling as though hell had broken loose, the Arabs tried to -hoist him to his feet. - - -[#] The sheikh must have visited Mecca three times, as only after three -such pilgrimages are beards dyed red. - - -The sheikh, or whoever he was, climbed to the top of the gap, the better -to superintend operations. A grand-looking chap he was, with a fine -"fighting" face, beetling eyebrows, and a great hooked nose. - -For a moment I thought again of that cigarette end, and grew sick with -fear lest it was there and he should see it. But he was too much -interested in the camel to see anything else. Although his men heaved -with all their might they only raised the poor beast a few inches, and -down it would sink again. - -Then the sheikh gave more orders. Men began calling down to those on -the paths of the zigzag, immediately underneath the helpless camel, and -I saw these hurriedly making large gaps in the line of camels. Two men -took hold of the poor brute's halter and hauled the head round until it -was touching the hind quarters; the others, gathering at the side of the -camel farther from the precipice below, using their rifles as levers and -also pressing against his lean flanks, shoved "all together"; the men on -the head-rope tugged the head still farther round, and the helpless -brute toppled over the edge. Rolling and falling, sliding through the -gaps in the lines beneath, bounding from boulder to boulder, he at last -"fetched up", two hundred feet below, against a rock, and lay there a -shapeless mass of broken back and neck and legs. - -The two vultures hopped about excitedly and flapped a little farther -down, eyeing the remains with twisted heads. - -At another order from the sheikh those bundles were torn open, and I -simply "thrilled" to see at least two dozen rifles--brand-new -rifles--hauled out. Each man, taking one or two of them as he passed, -started off again along the zigzag path after the rest of the camels. -The sheikh, clambering down to the path, followed them slowly, and that -procession of camels commenced afresh through the gap, camel after -camel, until I had counted eighty-three. After the eighty-third came -many more, pace by pace, with weary feet, but these were loaded with -boxes of ammunition. No attempts had been made to conceal that fact; -the boxes were just as they had left the manufacturers, slung in great -nets across the camels' backs. - -One hundred and thirty-four passed through, counting both those with -rifles and those with ammunition; and, last of all, led by two men, a -magnificent camel, splendidly caparisoned, with a scarlet, -silver-embroidered cloth and with silver-mounted harness, stalked -angrily through, followed by two smaller ones with unwieldy burdens. -These three were doubtless the sheikh's own camels, his riding camel and -the two which carried his tent and the cooking gear and food which he -might want on the march. - -No more camels came. - -I could hardly believe our good fortune. Everything had turned out as -we had planned. Looking down into the "coffee-cup" I could see the -zigzag of painfully-descending camels; and still farther below them the -white figures of the advance-guard, not yet near the bottom or that -corner beyond which they would be able to see the _Intrepid_. Not one -of those Bedouin Arabs suspected that we six were lying there above -them, or that the _Intrepids_ were--possibly--hurrying up to drive them -back to us. I would have given much to know what was happening beyond -the mountain screen, whether the _Intrepids_ had actually landed, and, -if they had landed, how near they were. I reckoned that, by now, if all -had happened as I hoped, they would be about halfway up from the -village, and in another quarter of an hour, or less, the first of those -Arabs would have scrambled out of the bottom of the "coffee-cup" and -should see them. - -What the time was, or how long it had taken those one hundred and -thirty-seven camels to pass through the gap, I had no idea; but the sun -was already slanting downwards in the west and was no longer lighting -the rocks at the bottom of the "coffee-cup". In fact they had -disappeared for some time in the shadow cast by the ridge on which we -were hidden, and as the sun gradually sank, so did the sharply-outlined -shadow of the ridge and the gap, rising upwards along the opposite face -of the chasm, gradually shade the zigzag path higher and higher. - -We were fearfully thirsty, but we still dared not shift our cramped -positions to get at our water-bottles and make ourselves more -comfortable. We simply lay where we were, peering through our loopholes -between the rocks at the caravan crawling down the path. Vultures, -perched on the rocks around us, craned their bare necks downwards and -watched too. It looked like some huge centipede or caterpillar, as each -camel carefully felt for his next foothold and swung his long ungainly -legs stiffly and cautiously forward. I caught sight of one, the third -in a gang or string of five, evidently making very "heavy weather" of -it. Whenever the path was sufficiently broad I noticed that an Arab -would take hold of his halter to steady him. I pointed out this camel -to Jaffa, and scarcely had he whispered: "He fall--soon," when the poor -brute stumbled, tried to recover his feet, and fell on one knee, the -other leg sprawling over the edge, violently pawing space. The Arab -guiding him sprang away, clinging to the rocks, and in a moment the -camel had toppled over. I heard wild cries of alarm; the camel leaders -on the zigzag below tried desperately to make a gap in their line as -they saw what was happening over their heads; but too late. The camel -fell; the two camels behind were dragged after him, and the three slid -like an avalanche down the rocks, sweeping more camels and one or two -Arabs from the narrow zigzags below, bursting their bundles and -scattering rifles until they disappeared in the gloom beneath. - -It was a horrid sight, and for two or three minutes there was the utmost -confusion. The frightened drivers pulled the camels' heads this way and -that, and how the poor stupid creatures could keep their foothold at all -was marvellous, especially as in many places the path was so narrow -that, even from where I was, I could see the "inner" bundles of rifles -scraping against the rocks. - -We were so intent on watching this that we never turned our heads; but -when I did again look across the gap to see whether Webster and his men -were still hidden, I had a terrible fright. - -Squatting right in the mouth of the gap, and on both edges of it, were a -score or more of Arabs, their rifles slung over their shoulders. Jaffa -saw them; Griffiths saw them. If they were as frightened as I was they -did not show it. - -We hardly dared to breathe. There they were, the nearest of them not -fifty yards away. They evidently meant to stay, for they had brought -firewood, and some of them were trying to set light to it, whilst others -were pouring water from a skin into a brass cooking pot. - -That anything such as this should happen had never entered my head. I -never thought that they would have taken the precaution of leaving a -rearguard to protect their line of retreat, and to have done so entirely -altered the whole situation and upset all my calculations. - -If they took to wandering along that ridge we should be discovered, and -if they simply remained where they were we could not fire on the caravan -without exposing ourselves to this new force. At the very first shot -they would take cover, find out where we lay, and then crawl to the -rocks overhead and shoot down. In those first few moments my whole idea -was to kill as many as possible before being killed myself. - -We watched them with straining eyes. If they had scattered and come -near us I should have opened fire. My fingers clutched my rifle to draw -it to me, and then loosened again, because they all collected round that -cooking pot; the blue smoke came curling up among them, and they -evidently had no other thought than to rest and make coffee. They never -even troubled to look down to see whether their comrades and the camels -were recovering from their disorder, but huddled close together, -sheltering their heads from the sun with their dirty cloaks. - -There was no immediate danger, so I turned to watch the caravan. Down -at the gloomy bottom of the "coffee-cup" I could just distinguish little -white figures moving among the boulders---the advance party had at last -reached the gorge which led them out into the open. Three or four -disappeared round the shoulder of the rocks which shut out my view of -the gorge, and I knew that in a moment or two they would sight the -_Intrepid_ lying at anchor--and perhaps her advancing men. - -I was right. Hardly had they disappeared before back they came into -view, very hurriedly, and in a marvellously short space of time the -whole of that "coffee-cup" rang with strange cries and shouts as they -passed the word up and up its precipitous sides. Along the zigzag -path--from one zigzag shouted to the next above--we could hear the news -being passed. The camel leaders seized the heads of their camels and -stopped them; the Arabs crouching round the gap sprang to their feet as -the shouting disturbed them, unslung their rifles, and began talking -excitedly. - -Down below I saw the green turban of the sheikh as he worked his way -along the lowest zigzag, until he too reached the bottom and also -disappeared from view. - -I would have given all I possessed to know what he could see. - -Whatever he had seen I quickly knew that he had seen something which -convinced him that the caravan could not hope to escape downwards, -because more orders--flurried and high-pitched--were shouted upwards -along the zigzag until the deep ravine re-echoed from side to side with -them. The camel leaders began unfastening the long halters from the -camels, and, very nervously, began to try to turn the tired animals -round to face upwards again. Some had room enough and managed to do so; -others were in places so narrow, with steep rocks so close to the path, -that it was a pure impossibility for a camel to turn. Many camels -absolutely refused to try, sinking to their knees; two or three tried, -toppled over their clumsy feet, and fell, increasing the horrible -confusion as they crashed below. - -I realized now that the caravan could neither move upwards nor -downwards. If only Commander Duckworth and his people could come -quickly the whole of these rifles and ammunition would be theirs. In -the joy of knowing this I cared not a jot what happened to us. - -The shouting and confusion below us grew greater; every armed Arab was -trying frantically to reach the bottom of the path, squeezing past the -standing or crawling over the kneeling camels. Directly they reached -the bottom they hurried away round the shoulder out of sight. - -Some unarmed camel men began shouting to the men round the gap, and ten -or twelve of these left the group round that cooking bowl and began the -perilous descent. They had not gone more than a hundred yards along the -first arm of the zigzag before more shouts came from below; they turned -and called back to the others, and the remainder of the rear-guard rose -and followed them. - -In five minutes we six were alone on that ridge, with the blue curling -smoke of that Arab fire between our two little parties. - -I had to hold my breath to prevent myself shouting with joy; Jaffa's -face was beaming; I heard Griffiths chuckling with delight. - -The relief from the awful strain of having that rear-guard so close to -us was too much for Webster or one of his men, because for a moment I -saw the barrel of a rifle appear behind their rocks and almost expected -to hear a cheer. The rifle disappeared as if someone had pulled it down -violently. - -By this time the caravan was in a state of the most hopeless confusion, -totally unable to move either upwards or downwards; many camels had -fallen, others were kneeling and refused to move; some were facing one -way, some the other. The frightened camel leaders had given up any -attempt to restore order and were gradually moving up the path as if to -escape themselves, even if they could not bring their camels with them. - -Only the upper few zigzags were now in sunlight; the gloom down at the -bottom was increasing very rapidly, and unless the Arabs there had worn -fairly white clothes we should not have been able to see them as they -scrambled among the boulders, to disappear out of sight round that -corner. - -I realized now that when the sun sank still lower, and the gloom -increased still more, we should be able to see nothing whatever to fire -at down below. And, too, I had never thought that if they tried to -defend the approach to the gorge they might take up a position round -that corner where our fire could not reach them. They were evidently -doing this, and it upset my scheme still more. - -I knew enough of soldiering to know that a small force, well posted -behind rocks, could hold the mouth of that ravine (the crack in the -"coffee-cup") for an almost indefinite time against a very much superior -force. If the _Intrepids_ were actually advancing, and had not brought -Maxims or field-guns, these Arabs, with their "backs to the wall", could -keep them at bay for the three and a half or four remaining hours of -daylight. If so, they might be able during the night to withdraw a -remnant of the caravan, and in the dark our five rifles and six hundred -cartridges would not stop them. - -There was only one thing to do. It sounds heroic, but there was no -thought of heroism. Those men still scrambling to the bottom and the -men of the rear-guard must be stopped. We five must open fire on them -and compel them to remount the zigzag to attack us, and therefore -prevent them joining those who had already issued from the "coffee-cup" -to defend it against the _Intrepid's_ people. - -If I could only have been certain of what was actually happening down -there, outside our line of vision, we might have waited; but I did not -know, and it was absolutely necessary to do something, and to do that -something quickly. - -We had to take the risk that perhaps after all the _Intrepids_ had not -landed, and that directly we opened fire the whole force of Arabs would -turn back and overwhelm us. - -I told Jaffa and Griffiths that we must open fire. Griffiths nodded. -"Just as you like sir; I'm ready." - -Webster must be told, and Jaffa was the man to tell him, because, if he -was seen, his clothes at a distance might be mistaken for those of an -Arab. - -I told him to make his way to the top of the ridge, find out what was -happening down in the valley, how far away the horses were, and how many -men had been left with them. Then he had to work his way along beneath -the sky-line to Webster, and tell him to separate his men, station them -on the top of the ridge so that they could not be seen, but, if -possible, be able to fire down both ways, and, when I opened fire, to do -so himself at every armed Arab in sight. - -Jaffa understood, took my field-glasses, and wriggled away up to the -ridge, whilst Griffiths and I listened to the noise of grating stones. -Then there was silence and what seemed a very long period of waiting -whilst we anxiously watched that rear-guard descending. If we did not -open fire soon it would be too late. - -At last I could stand the strain no longer. Jaffa must have had time to -reach Webster, although we had not seen him crawling over the ridge. - -Already the leading men of the rear-guard were indistinct in the gloom -of the lower zigzags. - -"We must chance it," I whispered to Griffiths. "You scramble up till you -get a comfortable place where you can see both ways. I'll go halfway -towards the gap. When I open fire you commence; aim awfully carefully. -Now go!" - -We both rose stiffly to our hands and knees, dodged round the rocks, and -separated. Some cartridges fell out of my bandolier. I stopped to pick -them up: one cartridge might make all the difference. I crawled to the -top of the ridge. - -I gave one hurried look into the valley, but not a sign of horses or -Arabs could I see. I threw myself down and crawled to the edge of a -rock from where I could point my rifle into the darkening "coffee-cup". -As I did so I saw Webster and his two marines leave their shelter and -clamber up the crest on their side of the gap. - -There was no time to wait; the excitement was too great to think what -would be the result of this new move, too great to realize anything. -Not twenty armed Arabs were in sight down in that vast hollow beneath -us, little, dirty, whitish, moving figures threading their way past the -motionless camels. - -I took a very careful aim at the nearest and fired. - - - - - *CHAPTER X* - - *The Fight in the "Coffee-cup"* - - -As I fired so did Griffiths; our two rifles went off almost together. -We fired again. Three shots also came from Webster's side of the gap. - -The effect was immediate. - -Those camel-drivers who were abandoning their camels and creeping up to -what they thought was safety, stopped; those still squatting among the -camels scrambled to their feet; the little string of moving figures, the -last of the rear-guard (it was at them we had fired) turned, looked up, -and tried to find cover. Unfortunately for them there was no cover -where they were, and they showed up against the rocks sufficiently well -to make fair targets. We kept on firing at them, firing almost -vertically downwards, and presently saw one stumble and fall off the -path among the boulders strewn at the bottom. The rest managed to crawl -safely down the last "leg" of that zigzag and scattered among those same -boulders, hiding one by one. - -I had no fear that they would "spot" us yet, because the Lee Metfords -made scarcely a streak of smoke. For the same reason they would not be -able to know how few we were. - -Jaffa, having given my message to Webster, returned and crawled to my -side, and told me the comforting news that he had seen the horses, quite -two miles away down the valley, with very few men left to guard them. - -As I peered below I could see the camel-drivers seeking cover all along -the line, squeezing themselves behind rocks or underneath the motionless -camels themselves. We made many of them hurry still more by firing at -them, until in less than a minute after we had opened fire there was -absolutely nothing to be seen on the wall of precipitous rocks except -the zigzag line of camels--some standing, others kneeling, some facing -upwards, others downwards. - -Jaffa cried for me to look. - -At the bottom, hastening back round that projecting corner of rock which -hid the outlet from the "coffee-cup", many little moving dots appeared. -I seized the glasses, and believed I could see the green turban of the -sheikh. Dropping them I called to Griffiths to fire, and emptied my -magazine into the middle of the group. - -It was grand, it was just what I had wanted. The more men we forced to -come back within sight the fewer would remain to defend the ravine out -of sight, where we could not get at them. - -Now if only the _Intrepids_ would hurry up! - -I pricked up my ears. One solitary report of a rifle came up from -below, dull and muffled. More followed rapidly, and I fully expected to -hear bullets coming our way, thinking that the sheikh's party had -commenced firing in our direction. However, none came, nor could I see -any spurts of flame from among those boulders, although it was so gloomy -there that I certainly should have seen them had those fellows been -firing at us. The only explanation could be that the firing was outside -the ravine, and must be at the _Intrepid's_ people--or perhaps _from_ -them. My ears tingled as I tried to decide which. - -The volume of fire increased so rapidly that soon I could not -distinguish individual shots; there was one continuous grumbling rumble, -and suddenly whatever doubt I had was swept away, for I heard the -tut-tut-tut-tut of a Maxim--faint but unmistakable. - -That settled the question. Griffiths shouted: "They've come, sir; -that's their Maxim," and a moment later, to make still more certain, a -sudden flash of flame burst out among those boulders at the bottom of -the "coffee-cup" and the noise of a bursting shell came bellowing up to -us. - -I found myself waving my arms and cheering; the others were doing the -same. Some vultures which had remained indifferent to the noise of -rifle firing flapped heavily up from below. The camel-leaders were -peeping down to see what was happening; the camels themselves showed no -signs of alarm. - -Several more shells bursting there in quick succession so filled the -hollow beneath us with smoke that we could see nothing until, very -leisurely, the white cloud began drifting upwards, clinging to -projecting rocks in little eddies, just like the morning mist in some -deep valley before the sun has quite driven it away. Eventually we -could actually smell that powder smoke as it escaped over the "rim" of -the "coffee-cup", and it was the most beautiful scent we could wish for. - -Good little nine-pounder! I'd often seen it on the _Intrepid's_ poop. - -The noise of the firing continued without cessation, rising and falling -in fierceness, and although we could still hear shells bursting we could -not see them. Probably those first few had been fired before the -_Intrepids_ knew where the Arabs lay concealed. - -Occasionally a different sound came up to us--the puff of a bursting -shrapnel--and as I pictured the little balls flinging themselves down -among the rocks, and finding out the defending Arabs, I wondered how -long they would stand such a trial. - -The worst of it was that we could take no part. - -Those Arabs who had come back with their sheikh--and the rear-guard, -too--had probably wormed their way out of the hollow and were taking -part in the defence. There was no one for us to fire at. A few of the -camel-leaders were in view, though, as they were unarmed, we did not -waste ammunition on them. - -All five of us had ceased fire and were listening to the noise of -fighting. We tried to distinguish some difference between the Arab -firing and the shots from our own people, but that screen of rocks -seemed to muffle them and make this impossible. We could not even tell -whether the rattle of the Maxim was getting nearer to us; nor could we -distinguish the firing of the nine-pounder at all. - -Whether hours seemed minutes or minutes hours I could not tell. All I -did know was that we were not helping, and that it might be impossible -for the _Intrepid's_ people to dislodge the Arabs. What could we do to -compel some of them to come back? I racked my brains but could think of -nothing. - -Then Jaffa suggested shooting the camels. "You shoot camels--they fall -down--break rifles--Bedouin lose camels and rifles as well--must come -back to save them!" - -I did not know; but we might try, however cruel and inhuman it was. - -I sent him across to tell Webster to single out the nearest standing -camel and fire at it until it fell. I called to Griffiths to fire at -the second standing camel, and chose the third myself. It was that -magnificently-caparisoned one belonging to the sheikh, standing perhaps -four hundred feet below me, entirely unconcerned, and unmistakable in -its gorgeous crimson cloth. - -I fired very carefully at him. At my second shot he swung his head -round as if a fly had bitten him; at my third he lurched forward, fell -over the edge, and plunged down. Almost immediately one of those -smaller animals toppled over, and both, crashing across zigzag after -zigzag, swept more camels in front of them. The bottom was so filled -with powder smoke that we could scarcely follow the confused mass of -bodies as they hurtled downwards. - -The utmost terror broke out among the unarmed Arabs. We could see them -leaving their camels and taking shelter under any projecting rock they -could reach. I fired at another wretched brute, standing with his -bundle of rifles so closely pressed against the side of the precipice -that I knew that the path must be very narrow there. Immediately below -him, on the next zigzag, was a confused group of animals clustered on a -broader path. - -At my second shot he staggered, fell right among them, swept three or -four off their feet, and another avalanche swept down. - -I felt almost sick at what I had done and stopped firing to see what -would happen. The others ceased firing too. - -Jaffa came back and lay down near me. His one eye was better than my -two, so I gave him the glasses. - -Then--all at once--bullets came whizzing our way, striking rocks below, -above, at each side of us, and screaming away out of the "coffee-cup". -The noise of this rifle fire was very different--each shot was a roar, -magnified a hundred times, and multiplied a hundred times as it -re-echoed from the walls of the chasm. - -Thank goodness! At last we had compelled the sheikh to weaken his -defence by trying to save his caravan from destruction. - -Griffiths and I began firing at more camels; Webster and his men -followed suit; more went hurtling down. - -We had to do this, however cruel and beastly it was. Unless we kept -those fellows away from the mouth of the ravine, the _Intrepids_ might -never force their way in. - -I could now see the flashes of many rifles--it was a beautiful sight. - -Jaffa, excited for the first time, told me that twenty or thirty armed -Arabs were climbing up the zigzag. I wished that fifty or a hundred were -coming--the more the better. They could not possibly see to aim at us, -nor could they know how few we were, and as they emerged from the gloom -we could pick them off like starlings on a fence. - -Several more camels were hit and fell. Absolute panic had broken out -among the unarmed men; many of those on the upper zigzags began creeping -and crawling downwards, and I knew that when they met the Arabs coming -up to attack us, the confusion on that awful path, and in that awful -obscurity below, would be appalling. - -After this events began to follow each other very rapidly. - -The number of bullets whizzing round us was great, and proved that very -many men must have been withdrawn already, back into the hollow; I felt -certain that the noise of the Maxim gun seemed louder. If this meant -anything it meant that the Arabs were gradually being forced back and -that the line of bluejackets was advancing. - -Very shortly afterwards the character of the noise of rifle firing -altered entirely. There was very little of that muffled rumbling which -we had heard before; the noise was sharper and very much louder, and -amongst it, quite distinct, I could hear the most distant sound of our -own rifles, much like tin tacks being driven into wood with single blows -of a big hammer. The bottom of the ravine, too, was lighted up with -hundreds and hundreds of rifle flashes, and shells began bursting there -again. This made it certain that the Arabs had actually fallen back -into the bottom of the "coffee-cup", and I knew that they must be so -bunched up together that the shrapnel bullets would soon compel them to -scatter up the lower legs of that zigzag. Once there it would be -difficult to reach them, but I did not bother about that. They would -have to come up and attack us if they wanted to save a single camel. - -Jaffa quietly told me that they were already beginning to do this, and -then, almost before he had spoken, I heard the faint sound of cheering, -and knew that the _Intrepids_ were rushing the mouth of the ravine. - -Oh, what a grand, comforting sound that was! - -The nine-pounder had stopped firing; so had the Maxim. Probably the -guns' crews could not keep pace with the last rush of our fellows, or -could not fire without hitting them. - -Then I saw spurts of rifle flame spitting out into the gorge, in the -very opposite direction from which they had been spluttering before, and -knew that they came from our own people. - -It was grand! It meant absolute victory and the capture of the entire -caravan. I turned and grinned at Jaffa and Griffiths. - -"Bedouin come up very fast--plenty come," Jaffa said. - -"Well, let them come; so much the better," I thought; but then it struck -me that in my excitement I had not noticed how rapidly the sun was -setting. The shadow of the ridge above us had long since swallowed up -the whole of the opposite face of the walls of the "coffee-cup". What -with the powder smoke and the shadow I could not see farther down than -about the third zigzag. In the morning it had taken us a full hour to -scale the path when it was clear; now these people had to do the same -thing when it was blocked with camels. They could not possibly do this -in less than two hours, and by then I knew that the sun would have set -and that it would be completely dark before one of them could put foot -in the gap. - -This difficulty now faced us, and I had not foreseen it. - -If those Arabs intended to abandon their camels, scale the path, and -endeavour to escape back to their horses in the valley, what should we -do, or, rather, what would become of us? - -So long as they only thought of escape, all would be well. They were -probably well beaten now, but directly it became impossible for our -people to keep them "on the move" with rifle fire--owing to the lack of -light to aim at them--they would begin to recover from their panic. -Once they came up to where we were we dare not fire on them, because the -flashes of our rifles would have told them immediately that there were -only five of us. - -If we did not fire they would imagine that we had evacuated the ridge, -and the obvious thing for them to do was to occupy it themselves, and -wait until morning. If they did that, I realized very well that we -could not escape, and, more important still, I knew that it would be -impossible for Commander Duckworth to remove a single camel from the -path under the fire of their rifles, and that all the nine-pounders and -Maxims in the Navy could not dislodge them. - -Already rifle fire was dying down at the bottom. It was too dark to aim -there, and it would soon be too dark for us to aim either. No bullets -had come our way for some time, so I had not them to disturb me as I -tried to think what to do. - -At first I thought that we all should gather in the gap itself and -defend ourselves there, but I gave up that idea because I felt sure they -would scale the ridge above it on either side, shoot down, and make an -end of us pretty soon. - -I did not know what to do. - -All I could see now, except for the very occasional flash of a rifle, -was a frightened group of camel-drivers huddled together on the third -zigzag, apparently waiting for the armed men to join them before they -plucked up sufficient courage to start the ascent. It was too dark -farther down to see a single camel. - -Then Jaffa turned to me and said simply: "I go down path--speak to camel -men--tell them you no want kill Bedouin--Bedouin throw rifle away--you -won't shoot--if they no throw rifle away you kill them all." - -My aunt! What a chap! What a scheme! If it would only work, and if -only the camel men could get the Arabs to listen! - -"I tell them you have a hundred men on top--they no know--very -frightened--very much frightened." - -"But they might kill you," I said. - -He shook his head, and drew his beloved Mauser pistol. "I go and speak -to them." - -"All right! Good for you! Go along!" - -He did not stand up and scramble down to the path; he wriggled himself -below the farther side of the crest, and presently appeared through the -gap, walking coolly along the path, his white suit making him very -conspicuous. - -I crawled over the crest myself, and made my way to the gap. So did -Griffiths. - -We saw Jaffa holding up his hands to show that he came in peace, and -heard him calling loudly. Then some heads appeared much nearer than I -imagined any Arabs to have reached, and gazed at him. He stopped and -harangued them, pointing along the crest where we had been lying, -sweeping his hands from side to side as if there was a bluejacket behind -each rock. - -The Arabs were answering him, and he was arguing with them like a -father. Then, as the last rays of the sun streamed through the gap, he -came sauntering back to us. Webster and his marines had joined me. -"They believe me," Jaffa said. "All very frightened--will tell -Bedouin--Bedouin throw away rifles." - -"You are a splendid chap!" was all I could say. - -I told Webster what Jaffa proposed to do, and at his suggestion we all -began to show ourselves at different points along the crest--one here, -two there, all of us at another place--dodging backwards and forwards, -dividing into parties, and going to opposite sides of the gap. I felt -as though we were a lot of "supers" in a pantomime, trying to "make -believe" that we were an army. - -Breathless, we all collected again at the gap. - -It was not quite dark yet--not behind us--where the twilight lingered a -little, and we could see perhaps fifty yards along the path into the -"coffee-cup". - -Presently Webster proposed that he and I should take station at either -side of the mouth of the gap, and that the two marines should do the -same at the other end of it. He suggested this because if we all stayed -where we were there would be no room for the Arabs to pass. Griffiths I -sent up to the ridge above it, with orders to fire only when told to do -so. He did not like leaving us, because it was so dark. In fact we -could hardly see each other, and, looking down into the hollow, the -darkness seemed like black velvet. - -Up from that blackness came sounds of men calling to each other; once or -twice there were yells of pain or fright, and we strained our ears to -hear whether anyone had fallen down. The noises were still far below, -but gradually approaching. - -We waited, and, with nothing else to do, began to grow fearfully -nervous. When one is frightened one gives an enemy credit for all the -virtues and valour and skill imaginable, and thinks that he must be cool -and collected. At that time I could not conceive how we could escape -being killed, and was only certain of one thing--that I'd account for as -many Arabs as possible before that happened. - -I wondered what our fellows were doing at the bottom, and whether old -Popple Opstein was there. I knew that they dared not attempt to climb -the path at night. - -Jaffa began to coach us as to what we should say when the Arabs came. -He made us repeat after him: "Khalli bunduk 'ak", meaning "Throw down -your rifle"; "Ist agel", meaning "Hurry up"; and "Ma kattle kum", -meaning "Won't shoot you". - -We repeated these after him till we knew them. Shall I ever forget them! - -Then he said it was time for him to go, and asked me for a box of -matches. Luckily I had one--nearly full it was. Why he wanted matches -I did not know. - -We heard the stones rattling under his feet as he slipped away down the -path. - -"Can you see me?" he called out. - -I shouted back: "Yes." - -He went farther down the path, asking at every two or three paces -whether we could see him. When our eyes had become accustomed to -following his white clothes we could distinguish them at quite a -distance. - -At last he had gone too far. - -"We can't see you!" I called. - -He retraced his footsteps until he was again visible. Then he seemed to -rise in the air. - -"I stand on rock by side of path!" he shouted; "path is under my -feet--to my right--very narrow--Bedouin must pass one by one--I speak to -them--make them throw away rifles--if no give up rifle I strike -match--you see match--fire below match--kill Bedouin." - -"Come back!" I yelled. "It's too dangerous!" - -"No! I stay!" and nothing would induce him to give up his plucky -scheme. - -Plucky! Why, it was the bravest job any man could have taken on -himself. - -Quite close beneath us men began shouting. I hoped these were the camel -men warning the armed Arabs to throw away their rifles if they wanted to -save their lives. I knew that in a few minutes the first of them would -reach Jaffa, and that then the crisis would come. Webster was fidgeting -with the bolt of his breech-block and breathing hard. - -Already Jaffa was beginning to call out: "Khalli bunduk 'ak! Khalli -bunduk 'ak! Ma kattle kum! Ist agel! ist agel!" - -Our nerves were very much on edge. - -Then footsteps began to approach, softly, cautiously. Jaffa altered his -tone of voice. One could almost imagine that he was imploring someone, -for his own safety, to throw away his rifle, just as a father might have -done. We heard the noise of a rifle falling on to the rocks, then -another and another, and, before Webster and I realized it, dim, cloaked -figures came up to the gap and stopped there, as if frightened and -uncertain what to do. - -My heart was in my mouth then, and I said as firmly as I could: "Ma -kattle kum! Ist agel!" Webster chipping in with a quaver in his voice, -and the two marines and Griffiths bellowing these words behind and above -us. - -For a moment the Arabs still hesitated, but then they commenced to pass -through the gap between Webster and myself. - -One, two, half a dozen, a dozen panting figures glided through, and more -came--twenty or thirty more--and all the time Jaffa's voice sounded--as -calmly as if he were aboard the "_B.A._"--"Khalli bunduk 'ak! khalli -bunduk 'ak! Ma kattle kum! ma kattle kum!" - -Then I heard Griffiths moving among the rocks overhead, probably -shifting himself into a more comfortable position, and the fool must -have had his finger on his trigger, because his rifle went off, right in -our faces, almost blinding us. - -Of course the approaching Arabs thought that we were firing at those who -had passed through the gap, and believed that they were going to be -murdered. - -I cursed Griffiths, and shouted: "Ma kattle kum! ma kattle kum!" - -Jaffa yelled to us not to shoot--but no more Arabs came. - -Out of the darkness Jaffa's voice sounded, higher pitched now: "Khalli -bunduk 'ak," and voices at his feet answered him, angry voices, -despairing voices; a crowd of Arabs seemed to be collecting all along -the path, and people were calling up from below. I realized that they -were refusing to part with their rifles, preferring to have a chance for -their lives, or to die, if they had to, with them in their hands. - -We were all shouting: "Ma kattle kum! Ist agel!" The two marines, -knowing that something was wrong, ran to us. - -"Stand by to fire! Be very careful; fire below, and to right of the -match, if Jaffa strikes one." - -There was a very ominous murmur now. Jaffa was haranguing, -expostulating; then he stopped. - -"Stand by!" I shouted, bringing my rifle to my shoulder. - -A tiny light showed. Jaffa had struck a match. - -"Fire!" I yelled, and our four rifles went off together. - -We heard groans, a yell of pain, and a body falling. Some of our bullets -had gone home. - -Jaffa's pistol flashed once; we fired again; it flashed a second time, -and then, with a glare and a startling roar, a shell burst not fifty -yards below us, and for a second or two lighted up the whole -scene--Jaffa on the rock, and those Arabs, a whole line of them, surging -up to him. Wild screams came up from a lower path, and told us that men -there had been wounded; and Jaffa began in his old voice of calm -assurance, "Ma kattle kum! Khalli bunduk 'ak"--he never once stopped -talking. - -"No shoot," he called to us; "they throw away rifles--they come:" and -with the most intense relief from the strain of those few awful seconds -I heard the welcome clatter of rifles on the rocks, and that weird -procession began again to pass between us. - -In their hurry to escape this new terror of the bursting shells the -Arabs actually swept the two marines back to the farther end of the gap. - -Another shell burst, some way from us, but near enough for all to hear -the fragments smashing against the rocks, and enough to break the nerves -of any who had already suffered as those poor wretches had done. - -I realized now that they were absolutely panic-stricken; they were -throwing away their rifles long before they reached Jaffa. They came in -one continuous line through the gap, struggling with each other to -escape those shells, and to escape from that awful inferno below them. - -They were mere terror-stricken fugitives, with no more fight left in -them, and Webster and I had to step aside, out of the mouth of the gap, -to prevent them carrying us along with them in their flight. We were -shouting: "Ist agel! Ma kattle kum!" more to let them know the way to -the gap than anything else, for the glare of those shells (which burst -dangerously close to us every four or five minutes) blinded everyone, -and they could not see the way. In fact, we four standing there, and -Jaffa on his rock, were now doing nothing more dangerous than a -policeman does in calling out to a crowd to pass along. The marines at -the farther end of the gap had forgotten their Arabic words, and -forgotten their fright--if they had been frightened--and were shouting: -"'Urry up there! keep a-moving! 'Ere, you won't get no front seat if -you don't 'urry. Pass along, please! First turn to the right takes you -to the 'orses. 'Urry up! 'urry up! The show's about to begin." - -Griffiths, on the rocks above, had altered "Ma kattle kum," into "Call -the cattle home," and was droning this out under the impression that he -was talking the proper "lingo". - -As one shell burst I had seen a group of men on one of the paths -apparently bearing a comrade. In time they came up to Jaffa, and I -heard the sound of voices entreating something. Jaffa called to me that -it was the sheikh's son, badly wounded and asking for water. - -With shuffling footsteps they bore him up to the gap, and laid him on a -rock. - -I could well imagine the awful experience he must have had whilst being -carried up there amongst his terrified followers, and the tremendous -pluck of those who had stuck to him. - -They now began crying "Pani! ma!" and Jaffa called out that the -sheikh's son wanted water. He, poor chap, did not deign to ask; but for -a half-suppressed groan, when they laid him on the rocks, he was -absolutely silent. - -We had no water (our water-bottles had been emptied long ago), but I -remembered that brass cooking bowl in which the rear-guard had started -to cook coffee. - -It had been placed between some rocks, so had not been upset, and I -groped round and found it. There was still some liquid "of sorts" in -it. I gave the bowl to the men, and they scooped up a little fluid with -their hands and poured it into his mouth. They finished the remainder -themselves. Then they picked him up and bore him through the gap as he -muttered something, apparently to me--though whether a blessing or a -curse I did not know. - -The two marines hurried them on with cruel jests, and, before they had -passed through, the blaze of another shell lighted up the mournful -little band and the red-stained beard of the sheikh. I looked for the -green turban, but that was gone. - -During the next few minutes perhaps twenty limping, hard-breathing men -passed us. After that, though we waited and watched the zigzag path -whenever a shell burst, not a single man could be seen. - -It was time to stop those shells. They were meant well, but they had -done their work and had scared the Arabs; now we should be very relieved -if no more came, because many were unpleasantly close. - -I ordered the two marines, Webster and Griffiths, to fire three volleys -into the air, giving them the word of command, and firing myself. -Whether the _Intrepids_ saw these volleys or not, or whether they -understood that we were "all correct" or not, I did not know, but they -ceased firing. - -Then, at last, we knew that we had won, that the morning would show us -our prize--the caravan of living camels strung along the zigzag path and -the dead ones below. But we were too worn out with the strain of that -day's work, and that last hour or more in the gap, to feel any -exultation. All we wanted to do was to lie down and sleep, and all we -wanted to see was the rising of the blessed sun. We had cursed it a -good many times during the last three months; now, how we did long to -see it again! - -Jaffa came back to us, and we made much of him, praised him, and told -him that it was he who had saved us and captured the caravan, that all -the credit was due to him. - -He simply lay down and slept. Praise from us seemed to mean nothing to -him. I let every one of them sleep. I only had to say the word, and -they simply subsided where they stood, and straightway fell asleep. - -Backwards and forwards by myself I paced from one end to the other of -that gap, my rifle in my hand, looking down into the black obscurity as -I came to the opening on each side. - -Away down in the valley which had swallowed up those panic-stricken -Arabs I sometimes heard voices, gradually growing fainter and fainter in -the distance. Below, in the "coffee-cup", occasionally weird noises came -up, perhaps from those poor wretched camels still huddled on that awful -path, with their unwieldy burden of rifles flattened against the rocks. -Once or twice a momentary twinkle of light flickered far below; probably -the bluejackets were striking matches to light their pipes. It was a -comfort to think that someone down there still kept watch. - -Presently a land-breeze began gently sweeping through the gap, on its -way to the sea; so warm and heavy was it that it made the desire to -sleep an agony. How I could have remained awake without my pipe, I do -not know; that, and perhaps my hunger, kept me going. - -Hyenas, jackals, or wolves began howling in the valley; others, along -the walls of the "coffee-cup", answered them. They must have scented -blood, and appeared to be gathering all along the ridge, but did not -venture down, staying there howling and whining in piercing cadences. I -set their hateful music to a tune of "Keep awake! keep awake! one turn -more! twelve paces! one turn more!" - -There was no means of judging the time, but perhaps it was an hour after -I had been left to myself when two wretched Arabs came stumbling up, or -hopping up, dragging broken legs after them, and supporting each other. -Poor, wretched, miserable creatures! the agony they must have suffered -would have made me feel pity for them had not my brain been absolutely -numbed with the craving for sleep, and unable to think of anything -except the necessity for fighting it. - -At last, when I thought that I must have done more than my share of -"sentry-go", I simply collapsed on top of Webster. I remember him -scrambling to his feet, but I am certain that I was sound asleep before -I lay flat on the ground. It was no use being ashamed of myself; I was -not. It was physically impossible for me to keep awake any longer, and, -as it turned out, it was physically impossible for any of us to keep -awake. - -When I did awake it was broad daylight; the sun was just appearing over -the opposite rim of the "coffee-cup", and dear old Popple Opstein was -bending over me, shaking me. The gap was full of the _Intrepid's_ -bluejackets, and they were trying to shake life into the others. Jaffa -was leaning against a rock. - -"Water! water!" was the first thing I said, and Popple Opstein, with his -face that strange violet colour, his eyes ablaze with excitement, gave -me his water-bottle. - -"We couldn't climb the path in the dark, Martin, old chap," he burst -out. "We tried, but we couldn't do it. Two of our chaps fell over and -broke legs or arms, so the commander brought us back. - -"Thank goodness that he did call you back!" I said. "You would have all -been killed. It's bad enough in daylight, with nothing blocking it." - -"It took us three hours to get up," he said. "We counted more than a -hundred camels on the path, and you knocked over any number. They are -lying in heaps at the bottom!" - -He gave me a ship's biscuit. Nothing I have ever tasted tasted so -appetizing as that did, and he spared me another mouthful of water to -wash the last crumbs down my throat. - -Then I lighted a cigarette, and together we walked through the gap to -see if there were any traces of the disarmed Arabs. The valley was -empty and silent, shrouded in shadow. Not a single living thing could -we see except a few vultures. - -We walked back again and looked into the "coffee-cup". The zigzag path -was now swarming with villagers and bluejackets trying to restore order -among the camels. Close to the rock where Jaffa had stood, rifles lay -scattered everywhere. - -"We must have captured a couple of thousand rifles and thirty or forty -thousand rounds of ammunition," my chum said exultingly. "It's the -finest haul, they tell me, that's been made for years." - -I don't mind saying that if he had told me that there was a steaming hot -dish of bacon and eggs and a potful of coffee waiting for me round the -corner I should have been much more excited--just at this time. - - - - - *CHAPTER XI* - - *The Cobra Bracelet Again* - - -Take the whole world over, and you would not have found a more happy -group than we made that morning, sitting in the gap, yarning whenever -our jaws were not busy crunching the ship's biscuits the _Intrepids_ had -brought us; Webster, Griffiths, Jaffa, and the two marines surrounded by -a crowd of bluejackets eager to learn every detail of the adventure, and -the Baron and myself squatting on a rock, he beaming at me like an old -mother hen who had just found her long-lost chick, and watching me munch -his biscuit as if it was the most pleasant sight in the world. - -"When darkness came on," he was saying, "We gave you up for 'finish'. -We thought they'd rush you; we thought you'd have not the slightest -chance of escape. You remember firing rifles--at the beginning--when it -first got dark? We were waiting for them. We tried to help you with -those shells of ours--it was the only thing we could do--but we made so -certain that it was the beginning of the end for you that, when no more -rifle flashes showed up, we thought you all were killed. We felt sick -that we couldn't climb up and kill a few Arabs to revenge you, so we -kept plugging away with the nine-pounder in sheer desperate anger. Man! -we never guessed for a moment what was really happening. Look down -there at that litter of rifles; the path and the rocks for a hundred -yards are simply smothered with them. It's splendid! splendid, old -chap!" - -In his excitement my chum leant forward and gripped my shoulder till I -winced. - -"If you'd seen Jaffa standing there on his rock, and heard him calling -out: 'Khalli bunduk 'ak. Ma kattle kum! Ist agel!' you'd have thought -him splendid. He's the hero of the affair," I said, pointing to Jaffa, -who was extricating himself from the crowd of his admirers and stalking -solemnly away to perch himself on a rock, where no one could come and -worry him with questions. "We shall never forget those words; we -shouted them till we were hoarse. Didn't we, Webster?" - -Webster smiled. "Pretty ticklish work--part of the time, sir!" - -"Those shells of yours just did the trick," I went on, telling him how -Griffiths's rifle going off accidentally had nearly brought about a -catastrophe. "They were simply hideous in the darkness; the chasm looked -a perfect hell, and the half-crazed wretches fled through the gap from -them like a flock of sheep. How the dickens did you manage to train the -gun and aim it? That's what beat me." - -He explained that before it was too dark to see the gap from the bottom -of the "coffee-cup" they had found a rock which gave, more or less, the -proper elevation when the muzzle of the gun rested on it, and when the -trail of the carriage was pushed up against another, the gun pointed -somewhere in the right direction. After every shot they had had to drag -it back, feel about for the rocks, and trust to luck. That was why the -shells were so erratic and the firing so slow. - -"We were very nearly as frightened of them as the Arabs were," I -laughed, "and were mighty glad when you stopped your fireworks and bits -of ironmongery flying round us." - -Recollecting those volleys we had fired when all was over, I asked my -chum whether they had seen them, and how they knew what we meant. - -The Baron shook his head. "Too much smoke down there; we saw nothing. -We only stopped firing for the simple reason that we'd fired every -blessed shell we had. Why, my dear old chap, we thought you'd been -'deaders' long before. Even this morning we thought we should have to -fight our way here; it was a kind of a forlorn hope; the commander -didn't want me to come, and it was not until we were halfway up without -being fired on that we had a glimmer of an idea that the Arabs had -'hoofed' it during the night. And you and your fellows were so fast -asleep you never heard us cheering as we scrambled up the last fifty -yards. - -"When we saw you six huddled here we thought it was a burial party -wanted--nothing else. Why, dear old ass, I was just turning you over to -see where you'd been killed, when you began muttering some outlandish -gibberish." - -"Ma kattle kum!" I suggested, smiling. - -"Something like that," he grinned. "Ugh! it was a bit of a shock," and -his cheeks flushed that curious violet colour. - -"What was a shock?" I asked. "Finding me alive?" - -"No, you fool! Thinking we'd have to bury the lot of you, and not an -inch of ground where we could stick a pickaxe, let alone a spade, for -miles." - -The Baron lifted his helmet and wiped his forehead. - -The sight of his yellow hair reminded me of Miss Borsen, and I told him -how I had managed to silence her tormenting little tongue. "Just picked -her up like a feather, carried her twenty yards before she could say -'knife', and never a word more did she say. I thought I'd got the best -of her for once, but she only thought me a horrid cad, and wouldn't even -let me apologize, wouldn't even let me see her again. So she came off -best after all." - -"Women always do," the Baron grinned. "Irritating things, women." - -We were both agreed on that point. - -Then he told me his part of the yarn. It was just as I had thought. -Some skunk of an Arab with a grievance had come along to Muscat and -sneaked, given the whole show away, and the plan of taking all the -rifles and ammunition still remaining at Jeb to Kalat al Abeid (the -little village whose head-man had brought me up here to shoot leopards). -That was why the _Intrepid_ had hurried round. Even before Commander -Duckworth had heard from Mr. Scarlett that I was up in the mountains he -was preparing to land his men, and when he received my scribbled note it -had been a case of hurrying ashore in double-quick time, to try to take -possession of the mouth of the ravine leading to the "coffee-cup" before -the Arabs reached it. - -As you know, they did not, in spite of the villagers clapping on to the -nine-pounder and Maxim and dragging them up those baking slopes. They -had been met with a very fierce fire, and it was not till the resistance -began to weaken (when many Arabs had been withdrawn to defend the camels -from us) that the _Intrepids_ could make any impression. But once an -Arab leaves his first position for one farther in the rear, his chief -anxiety is to keep his eye on a still safer place behind him; so, once -they had begun to retire, the job was comparatively easy. - -Before they gained the mouth of the ravine the _Intrepids_ had lost two -men killed and five wounded. My chum told me that Nicholson, the staff -surgeon, did not expect one of those to pull through safely. - -"It's jolly hard luck on them," the Baron said, his face falling. - -We sat silent for some time, looking into the "coffee-cup" and watching -the very tedious and dangerous work of getting the remaining camels -safely down to the bottom. - -Then a message was semaphored that the commander wanted to see me and my -party; so I gathered them together and left the Baron and his men to -keep watch at the gap in case the Arabs recovered from their fright and -came back. There was precious little chance of this. - -The zigzag path was the most extraordinary sight, littered with rifles, -bandoliers, water-bags, turbans, and cloaks, showing how hurriedly the -poor wretches had tried to escape. It was dangerous work there, and -worse still when we reached the camels. Each poor brute thought we were -bringing him food, and was furious when he saw we were not, swaying his -neck and making an angry rumbling noise somewhere from halfway down his -neck, scraping his bundle of rifles or ammunition-boxes against the -rock. We had to squeeze past each one very carefully indeed, with an -eye on his head and neck and a hand gripping at his bundle. Lower down -we came to the villagers trying their best to shift the camels, make -them get on their feet if they were kneeling, or turn them round if they -were facing upwards. Poor devils, they were only fishermen, and were -evidently making a poor job of this. Among them was my old friend the -head-man, shouting orders by the dozen. He smiled affably, and gabbled -a lot of weird words as I squeezed past him. Jaffa explained that he -was comparing me "to the sun for strength and the jackal for cunning". -I smiled back, and as Jaffa followed he commenced another long -rigmarole, which I did not stay to listen to, but which Jaffa afterwards -told me was to the effect that the Bedouin would be very angry, and -would come back presently, when the _Bunder Abbas_ and _Intrepid_ had -gone away, and kill them all. - -That was the worst of it. I knew enough about the temper of those -gun-running fellows--hadn't I seen what had happened at Bungi and -Sudab?--and the Arabs are no whit less ferocious and revengeful than the -Afghans. It seemed such hard luck to get those villagers to help us and -then leave them to certain vengeance. These especial people were so -simple, and had been so useful, that it would be a shame to leave them -unprotected. But what could we do? Neither the _Bunder Abbas_ nor the -_Intrepid_ could stay there for ever. - -Lower down still, quite close to the bottom of the zigzag, I met the -commander, very pleased with himself and with me too. - -"You should get promotion out of this," he said, as I saluted; "it's the -finest haul that's been made for years--three thousand rifles at least, -and more ammunition than we've destroyed in the last twelve months." - -He made me tell him the whole yarn over again, and then ordered me to -take my men back to the _Bunder Abbas_. I did not want to go, but had -to. - -At the bottom of the "coffee-cup" I saw the mangled remains of many of -the camels which had fallen down the precipice. Rifles from their burst -bundles were scattered round them, and some of the _Intrepids_ were -still moving about among the boulders, searching for dead or wounded -Arabs. Then at the very entrance to the gorge, round the corner where -the Arabs had taken up their first position, I found Nicholson busy with -the wounded, and showing some natives how to make litters. - -The man who had been so desperately wounded was dead. "Nothing could -have saved him," Nicholson told me, as though I might think he had not -done enough for him. He brightened when he saw how little the scar on -my forehead showed. - -"A good bit of work--that," he said, quite pleased, and wanted me to -take the other four wounded back to the village. - -So off we started with them. Two could walk, and we took it in turns to -carry the others, for the villagers were much too excited and impatient -to realize the necessity for gentleness. They wanted to run along with -them as if they had been sacks of potatoes. - -Fifty or sixty of the camels were already slowly tramping down the rocky -slope ahead of us, and when we reached the village we found them -kneeling under the shade of some trees, looking quite contented--that -is, if a camel can look contented. The youngsters who had brought them -down, and all the women and children in the village, were gathered round -in a state of wonderment. The women covered their faces when they saw -us; but the children came crowding round us, clapping their little brown -hands, and followed us down to the beach, dancing and jumping with glee. - -I took the wounded men on board the _Intrepid_, and then went aboard the -_Bunder Abbas_, where I had a great reception. Even the dismal cook and -his still more dismal "mate" showed symptoms of pleasure, and Mr. -Scarlett's face--for once--was beaming. His claw-like hand shot out and -gripped mine like a vice. "I've had a terrible bad time of it for the -last twenty-four hours, sir. Never thought to see any of you alive -again. We all wanted to come along and lend a hand, but you know that -we dursn't leave the '_B.A._', sir, don't you?" - -He was terrified lest I should think he had failed me. Of course he -hadn't. - -I sent him, and as many men as could be spared, up to Commander -Duckworth, in case they should be needed. They went ashore like a lot -of boys, Mr. Scarlett one of the youngest, but had had enough of the sun -and hot rocks before they eventually returned. By dark every camel had, -somehow or other, been brought down to the village, and by midnight all -the rifles and ammunition were aboard the _Intrepid_. - -As I looked shorewards to the grim dark mass of mountains towering into -the starlit sky, I was most thankful that I had not to spend another -night on top of them. We all had had enough excitement to last a long -time. - -I went across to the _Intrepid_ to gloat over the rifles piled in her -battery, and had supper with the Baron. A most joyous and hilarious meal -it was. Afterwards Commander Duckworth sent for me to give me orders to -proceed to Muscat next morning. - -This gave me the chance of putting in a good word for the villagers. - -"It does seem precious hard," he said, shrugging his shoulders. "These -hundred and thirty or more camels are not the slightest use to them; -they dare not take them inland to sell, and those Arab chaps are certain -to wipe out every man of them. But what can I do? I can't stay here -for ever." - -I suggested that he should let them have some of the captured rifles. - -"They won't know how to use them," he said; "they'll only shoot each -other." - -However, he changed his mind next morning, for as I weighed anchor he -signalled across: "Am sending fifty rifles and two thousand rounds of -ammunition to the village ". - -If the inoffensive, childlike villagers would only learn to use them -properly, and would guard that gap night and day, they would be safe; -but--I knew they would not. They were simply fishermen; they could not -spare men from the boats; and after the first few days had passed -without anything happening they would imagine themselves safe, or, still -more likely, never take any precautions whatsoever, considering it wrong -to interfere with "fate". - -Just as the _Bunder Abbas_ was shoving off, a native boat came paddling -furiously from shore. I stopped my engines, and it came alongside with -a couple of sheep--a parting present from my old head-man. Sending back -a message of thanks, and dragging them aboard, I went ahead again, wound -my way through that extraordinary channel in the cliffs to the open sea, -and by sunset found myself once more anchored in Muscat harbour. - -It was too late to report myself to the political agent that night, so I -went next morning. He heard my news with great satisfaction, said very -nice things about my part of the "show", and expressed the opinion that -the loss of the valuable caravan would be such a blow to the inland -tribes that the gun-running trade would be dead on that part of the -coast for many months. He agreed with me that something ought to be -done for the villagers, but shook his head when I suggested that the -"_B.A._" might be spared to protect them for a few weeks. - -"Can't anything be done for them?" I asked anxiously. - -"The most I can do," he said, "is to let the local Arab camel dealers -know that they have all those camels to sell--almost for the asking. -Once they have got rid of them there won't be so much temptation for the -Bedouins to attack them." - -He did this, and during the afternoon six or seven large trading -buggalows glided out of harbour. I hoped that they were off to my -village, and, one passing close to the "_B.A._", Mr. Scarlett hailed her -to know where she was going. - -"Yes," he nodded, after much shouting backward and forward; "they are -all on their way there as quickly as they can. They aren't going to let -the chance slip; they don't expect those Bedouins will leave the camels -there many days." - -Poor devils! Precious little profit would they make out of their -assistance to us, and precious little would those traders give them. - -We "coaled" and "watered" that day, having a good deal of trouble with -the natives in the lighters. There was such a swell running into the -harbour that we were banging against those lighters rather heavily, and -the natives were often frightened to carry the coal on board. Jaffa was -ashore, so Mr. Scarlett had to do all the persuading. He was in his -element at "persuading". I don't believe he had any more feeling for -those chaps than if they'd been dogs. - -"There now, that comes of knowing the 'lingo'!" he said cheerfully, when -at last the eighteen tons of coal had been stowed below, and he came up -on deck to have a drink. "I told them a few things about their -grandfathers and fathers, grandmothers and mothers, which fairly got -them on the raw." - -He was a very strange chap. He would be cheerful and talkative one -moment, morbid and taciturn the next--one never knew. I often tried to -chaff him out of these fits of depression, told him they were worse at -full moon, and joked him about being in love. The moon may have had -nothing to do with them; but I often noticed that he grew silent and -morose towards sunset, and have often seen him go and hide himself in -the cabin or turn his back to it. - -Once I asked him why. - -"I can't help it, sir; every time I see the sun setting I remember those -shadows racing down from the mountains that time Jassim's wife was -killed with this," and he tapped his left arm where the bracelet was. - -He happened to be quite cheerful that evening, after his successful -day's work with the lightermen, so when it was cool I simply forced him -to come ashore. - -"Come and have a walk; it will do you good," I said, and took him with -me in the dinghy. Directly we landed, between the Custom House and the -Sultan's palace, he started off along the shore at a great pace, pushing -in and out of the Arabs busy loading and unloading dhows as if he never -even saw them. As I caught up with him I saw that he was in one of his -morbid fits again. - -"What's wrong now?" I asked. - -"This is the very spot where I stood eighteen years ago and saw the -cursed snake for the second time. The Khan of Khamia came down here, and -his wives were carried along that passageway--the arm with this bracelet -on it showed up just there--there!" and he gripped my arm and pointed, -his eyes glittering as if he could really see it again. - -"Come along, man; don't be a fool!" I cried angrily; "people will think -you mad," and dragged him reluctantly away through narrow, tortuous -passages, jostling natives of every black or brown nationality under the -sun, and pressing back occasionally against the walls of the miserable -houses to let laden donkeys pass. The Eastern smell pervading -everything delighted me; it was splendid; but I do not suppose he -noticed it. At last we came to the main gate of the town, with its -armed guard of ruffianly Arabs, and turned to the right along an open -space where many horses were tethered, until we found ourselves close to -a wretched mosque and a crowd of idlers lazily listening whilst a -decrepit-looking old chap, standing on the steps, read from a paper he -was holding. As we pressed through the people I caught the words -"Khamia", when Mr. Scarlett stopped suddenly, gripped my arm fiercely, -and literally pulled me away. He was shaking all over, and that muddy, -frightened expression had come back. - -"What the dickens is the matter now?" I asked, very irritated. - -"Come back; get back to the '_B.A._,' sir; I can't breathe here." - -He let go of my arm and simply ploughed his way through the crowd, and -when clear of it actually began running. - -I caught him up and stopped him. I was furious. - -"Didn't you hear what he was reading?" he said, trembling. "It was the -proclamation offering a reward for the 'Twin Death'?" - -"That's nothing, man; you know they read it out every few weeks." - -"I can't help it, sir; don't leave me, sir! For God's sake get me back -to the '_B.A._'! That's not all. I've seen something else." - -He would not tell me what, but walked as fast as he could, looking back -every other second, with wild eyes, as if he was afraid of being -followed. He walked so fast that I could barely keep up with him, and -in one street or alleyway, which was fairly empty, he broke into a run -again. - -He was in a pitiable state of terror, and I was mighty glad when we did -at last reach the beach, jump into a shore boat, and get aboard the -_Bunder Abbas_. - -It was not until he had had a glass of brandy that he began to calm -down, and presently he apologized most abjectly for spoiling my walk. - -I knew that I should never take him ashore again; I was very irritated. -The whole business was so childish. He might take the bracelet off--I -would guarantee to have it off in ten minutes--without the least risk. - -I tried to argue with him; but it was not of the least use; he only -became more agitated. He shut himself in our cabin, and I left him -there till Percy announced dinner, with a grin of importance at having -provided a special feast for us from one of the sheep those poor devils -of villagers had given us. - -"Kid-ney on to-ast," he said, his eyes and mouth wide open with delight. - -"Come along, Mr. Scarlett!" I shouted, and tried to make him come out. - -"I durs'n't yet, sir; I'll wait till it's dark." - -"What on earth are you frightened of--now?" - -"Of being seen, sir; I durs'n't show myself. Look at those boats there, -sir," he said, pointing through the cabin door at some native boats -which were passing--such boats were passing at all hours of the day. -"He might be there." - -"Who? Not that decrepit old chap we saw this afternoon?" - -"No," he said, clutching the side of his bunk and looking half-mad; -"Jassim! Jassim himself!" - -"Jassim? You haven't seen him, have you?" I asked, startled. - -"Yes," he groaned; "and he saw me! We came face to face in that crowd -outside the mosque. I knew him directly, and he knew me--I'll swear -it." - -"You're mistaken, man; it couldn't have been he." - -Mr. Scarlett shook his head. "No, no! I recollect his face as though -it was yesterday--he has a scar on his upper lip, too. No, no! I -couldn't make a mistake! He shot out an arm, felt above my elbow, then -turned away without a word." - -"Touched the bracelet; made sure it was still there, did he?" - -Phew! I whistled, and shivered in spite of the terrible heat inside the -cabin, for there was something so uncanny about the whole business. If -Jassim had recognized him there might be danger--might be very great -danger, unless Mr. Scarlett would let me or someone take the cursed -thing off his arm. We could not hope that we had escaped by hurrying -away. Two Englishmen couldn't walk through the town of Muscat without -everyone knowing from where they came. There was not a mail steamer in -the harbour, and even if there had been, and we might have been taken -for passengers, the native boatmen who had brought us off from shore -would give us away. It was very awkward. - -"Kid-ney get cold, master," Percy pleaded, with a disappointed look in -his face; so I went and tried to eat, sending Mr. Scarlett's share into -the cabin. - -I ate but little; he ate less. His nervousness and fright were -infectious. I began to feel as nervous as a cat. Fearing lest -Jassim--if indeed it was Jassim--should try to force his way on board, I -gave very stringent orders that no native boat should be allowed to come -alongside and no one allowed on board without my permission. I also -stopped the leave of the native crew, lest they should be tampered with. - -Webster, Moore, and Ellis, who acted as quartermasters, were provided -with revolvers, and ordered to use them if anyone did attempt to come -aboard during the night. I don't know what they thought had suddenly -made this precaution necessary. Certainly the whole crew knew that -something had happened, and every one of us was in a horrid state of -nerves. - -When the sun had set, Mr. Scarlett ventured out for a breath of the hot -air. I had a terrible night with him. I had never seen anyone so -unmanned as he was. Eventually he did go to sleep, but woke screaming -in a hideous nightmare, and there was no more sleep after that--for -either of us. - -Next morning he would not be content until he had rigged a screen round -the little upper deck where the cabin was, and there he stayed, hour -after hour, peering through a slit in the canvas, with a pair of -field-glasses at his side to scrutinize any approaching boat. This made -me more "jumpy" than ever. But a screen would not keep Jassim away, nor -did it, and during the forenoon a native boat came pulling towards us -with a single Arab in the stern-sheets. Mr. Scarlett called out for me, -and I found him yellow with fear, peeping through his screen. - -"That's him, sir. He's coming." - -"He can't do anything; I won't let him aboard!" I said. "For goodness' -sake don't be such a confounded coward." - -"But I am a coward! I told you I was a coward. I am, sir; I can't help -it;" and he slunk into his cabin and fastened the door. - -"No one allowed to come aboard," I reminded Ellis, who happened to be -the quartermaster at the time. He waved off the boat, but the Arab -forced the boatman to bring it closer, and as I saw him more clearly I -gasped with amazement, for I had seen him before; he was the sheikh who -had commanded the caravan we had captured--the red-bearded man to whose -wounded son I had given water. There could be no possible mistake. His -beard was not dyed now, but once having seen this man Jassim---if it was -Jassim--there was no forgetting him. - -To meet him under these conditions was startling, to say the least of -it, and I was quite thrown off my balance. To gain time I told Jaffa to -ask him what he wanted. - -A long conversation followed, and then Jaffa said: "Say he want very -great talk---must have very great talk." - -In my own opinion it would have been better to let him come aboard, have -the matter out once and for all, and hear what he proposed doing; but -the door of the cabin overhead slid back and Mr. Scarlett whispered -through the screen: "For God's sake, sir, send him away; don't let him -come near me." - -So, as my head really was rather dizzy with my discovery, I sent him -away, and back he went, never moving a muscle of his face to show that -he was disappointed. - -I certainly was disappointed; one doesn't meet such people every day, -and I should have liked to find out whether his son was alive. One -thing, only, I determined on--not to let Mr. Scarlett know that it was -his caravan of rifles we had captured, because I knew this would only -add to his fright and his fear of impending calamity. - -That afternoon a letter was brought off addressed in sprawling letters -to the "Officer with black beard, His Britannic Majesty's ship, _Bunder -Abbas_." - -The quartermaster brought it to me and I took it up to Mr. Scarlett, who -seized it with trembling fingers and tore it open. Presently he called -me to come to him. - -"I've translated it, sir. He wants the snake; he offers me five -thousand rupees if only I will let him take it off my arm. He says he -does not want to do me any harm, but that he is desperately hard up and -must and will have it. It's really a threat, sir," he said, his hands -trembling violently. - -I guessed why he was so desperately "hard up", though I did not tell Mr. -Scarlett, but spent the whole day trying to argue with the poor chap, -going over the same old arguments which Baron Popple Opstein and I had -used so often--with the added inducement of his now being able to make -money by getting rid of the snake. - -Every now and again he would almost yield. Then he would remember -seeing Jassim's wife dying and that bluejacket clawing his way down to -the sea, and he would rock himself from side to side, like a woman in -despair, shouting at me that he would sooner be killed than die such a -death. - -I really thought that he was going mad--as his predecessor had done. - -So when Jassim came next morning I sent him away again. Not a flicker -of disappointment crossed his face, but as I watched the retreating boat -and his motionless back I could not help feeling that we had done a very -foolish thing indeed, and that trouble would certainly follow. - -Not a soul stirred out of the _Bunder Abbas_ all day; there was a -strange sensation of impending trouble, and as darkness fell and the -lights of the gloomy, unruly town twinkled out, I felt an unpleasant, -gruesome feeling that we had let him go, had lost touch with him, and -should not now know when danger threatened or from where. Whether my -mind had gradually been influenced by association with Mr. Scarlett or -not, yet although I did my utmost to induce myself to believe that there -was no danger, the effort was extremely unsuccessful. Jassim now had -good reasons for revenge on both of us, and he badly needed money. If -he had turned out to be an insignificant nonentity or a mere cadging -loafer whose only trace of his former power and dignities remained in -his remembrance of them I should not have feared him; but this Jassim -was evidently a man of great influence still (you must remember that -gun-running or slave-running were then the only aristocratic occupations -the sheikhs of the various tribes indulged in), and must even now have -powerful friends scattered everywhere who would be only too glad to -assist him. - -I do not mind saying that it caused me most unpleasant thought, and I -was more than ever sorry that we had rebuffed him twice already. - -Luckily the _Intrepid_ came in next morning, and I was extremely pleased -to receive orders to return to Kalat al Abeid for a fortnight. - -Whilst our lascars were raising steam I saw the commander going ashore -to call on the political agent, and on his way back he came aboard the -_Bunder Abbas_. - -"The political agent's delighted with our haul," he said, as I saluted -him. "He's mentioning your name in his dispatches to the Indian -Government. You ought to get something out of it. You got my orders. -Well, you can go there for a fortnight; you can't be spared for longer. -Don't get into trouble. You can finish off those leopards. I killed a -couple; there are plenty more." - -I thanked him very warmly, and as he was shoving off he called out: -"They're getting nervous at Jask again. Some brigands of 'sorts' from -the hills have been cutting the telegraph line and threatening to burn -the telegraph station." - -"Is nothing going to be done?" I asked. - -"No," he called back. "We've advised them to send away those two -ladies--two are there, I hear--but nothing else. They're always crying -'wolf', and we can't keep a ship tied to the telegraph-posts all the -time." - -I had intended telling him that Jassim was in Muscat, but this news made -me forget him and spoilt my pleasure at getting away from Muscat and -being able to help my friends the villagers. It made me very -uncomfortable to think of those two fragile ladies exposed to such -dangers in those sunbaked telegraph buildings on the little promontory -of Jask. - -We were not ready for sea until next morning, and that night I dreamt -that I had to rescue those two ladies, or, rather, choose which I should -rescue, and I picked up the little yellow-haired lady with the grey eyes -and tried to carry her down to the _Bunder Abbas_; but my foot wouldn't -move properly, and an Arab with a flaming-red beard and a knife in his -hand would have caught me had I not woke up. - -However, if one always worried about dangers which might happen at some -uncertain future one's time would be pretty well occupied. When once we -were out at sea, and the little "_B.A._" was tumbling about with the -tail end of the south-west monsoon swell sliding under her, our cares -and troubles seemed quickly blown away. The whole crew had caught some -of yesterday's gloom, and they too were now as cheery as schoolboys. -Even Moore and Ellis--still enemies--exchanged a few friendly remarks, -and the dismal cook and his "mate" chattered to each other as they -carried on their everlasting scouring of pots and pans. Mr. Scarlett -was a different being altogether. He was his natural colour again, and I -could have sworn that he was fatter than the day before. As for Percy, -his glistening brown cheeks were split with a smile which extended from -ear to ear. He knew that there had been something wrong, that his hero -had been in some danger, and his two solemn great eyes followed Mr. -Scarlett wherever he moved. To him the gunner was the most wonderful -thing his little world held, and if you had seen him squatting in a -shady corner outside our cabin, whitening Mr. Scarlett's shoes or -helmet, daubing here and there, then waiting for the damp places to dry -in the sun, holding them up to see the effect and trying to make them -look whiter than any shoes or helmet had been before, you would have -felt a great liking for the little chap in his queer surroundings so far -from his home and people. - -All that day we steamed along that tremendous coast line of cliffs, and -whenever some particularly barren rock stuck out into the sea I could -not help, for the life of me, picturing the white telegraph buildings at -Jask, and remembering the fluttering of a white handkerchief I had once -seen waving "good-bye" from the corner near the flagstaff. - -"No other tune you know?" Mr. Scarlett asked me cynically, whilst we -were thoroughly enjoying the lunch Percy had furnished. "You've been -whistling and humming the same old tune for the last three hours." - -I'm hanged if I'd known it at the time, but it was "Two Eyes of Grey". -Well, to know that those treacherous Afghans were threatening that -isolated telegraph station was enough to make anyone think of the little -grey-eyed lady imprisoned there. - -In the afternoon we passed quite close to one of those buggalows which -had gone to Kalat al Abeid to purchase the camels, and her deck was -crowded with them. We met another as we threaded our way through the -channel cut in the cliffs, also laden with camels. She was drifting out -with the tide, and we had some difficulty in passing her. - -When we anchored off the village itself, three more were half in, half -out of the water, and we could see our friends the villagers trying to -persuade more stubborn brutes to climb aboard along sloping gangways. - -The head-man was along in a jiffy, bringing another sheep with him. I -hardly recognized him for a moment in a green turban and a scarlet -burnous with a flaming scarlet belt, into which he had stuck -silver-mounted daggers (the green turban I found out afterwards was the -one Jassim had lost that awful night, and I remembered that he was not -wearing it when he followed his wounded son through the gap). Across his -knees he had one of the rifles we had given him--each man in the boat -had one--and he was treating it as if it was a baby or something alive. -When he stepped on board, all smiles and friendliness, he brought it -with him, and kept on patting it affectionately, shaking a bag slung -from his shoulder by a piece of coarse string, and smiling like a big -baby when the cartridges inside it rattled. - -He was vastly amusing in his new finery. He told Jaffa, for my -edification, that "men of Kalat al Abeid no fish--so much good things no -work any more--Arab trader from Muscat bring so much food--dates, rice, -cloth, beads, bracelets for women--brass cooking-pots; never want -nothing no more. No fear Bedouins--taffenk--fishenk[#]--kill them all." - - -[#] Rifles, cartridges. - - -Jaffa soon found out that, as I thought, he never bothered to keep even -a few men posted in the gap in the mountains. "It was absurd to keep -them there in the daytime: surely they could see the Bedouins coming -down from the ravine and shoot them; and as for at night, why, everyone -knew that devils and horned dragons breathing flame came and went -through that gap during the dark hours." - -If he had spent the night with us up there, whilst the _Intrepid's_ -shells were bursting, he might have had some foundation for his yarn. - -At any rate, not a man of the village dared stay there after dark, and -it was useless work trying to chaff the old chap out of his -superstitions. He certainly had not seen any devils or horned dragons -breathing flame--no one alive had; but their fathers had told them about -them, and that was good enough for him. - -"Sometimes hear big noise of wind rushing through the gap," Jaffa -interpreted, as the old man evidently tried to back his superstition -with some tangible facts. - -"Well, ask him about the leopards. Tell him I want to go there and -shoot some," I told Jaffa. - -He was quite willing to talk about them, but did not want to give me the -trouble of climbing all that way. He patted his rifle, pointed to those -of his men, and Jaffa explained, without a smile on his face: "The white -sea-lord shall recline in the shade of my hut whilst I and my men go and -shoot leopard--bring back plenty skins, and plenty claws to make -necklace for white sea-lord." - -"But the white sea-lord jolly well wants to do the shooting himself," I -laughed, "and to-morrow too." - -When this was interpreted to the old man--I must call him sheikh, now -that he was so important--he smiled, as though he thought me rather a -mad ass. - -"Well, tell him I'll come ashore to-morrow an hour before sunrise, and -we'll have a great day together." - -That was arranged satisfactorily, so I gave him a packet of cigarettes, -and he went ashore, still patting and fondling his rifle, to hurry up -the embarkment of the remaining camels. - - - - - *CHAPTER XII* - - *Mr. Scarlett Bares his Arm* - - -Mr. Scarlett was in such high spirits at getting safely away from Muscat -that he declared his intention of coming shooting with me, and he did. -I left Webster, the corporal of marines, in charge of the "_B.A._", and -took Moore, the petty officer, Hartley, the lazy signal-man (who was so -fat I knew he'd sweat his soul out climbing up the mountains), and the -two marines, Jones and Gamble. Of course Jaffa came with us; we could -do nothing without our aristocratic Persian interpreter. - -Early as it was, we found the shore swarming with the villagers, helping -the crews of those dhows to embark the last of the captured camels, and -making enough noise to prevent any respectable devil or horned dragon -venturing within a hundred miles of them. - -When they saw us they hastily rushed back to their huts, and by the time -we had landed and found the sheikh waiting for us near his white-domed -well, they came running back--the whole crowd of them--every man with a -rifle and a bag of cartridges. At a word from the beaming sheikh they -began firing their rifles to welcome us. How it was that no one was hit -was a marvel, for they knew less about handling them than I do of a -sewing-machine. - -You may bet your last dollar that I was not going shooting with that -little lot, and it took Jaffa at least a quarter of an hour of talking -before they stole away to their huts, and came sorrowfully back without -their rifles, but with much more useful spears and sticks. - -I asked Jaffa how he had managed this. - -"Tell them in England country sheikh ask great man shoot--insult if -villagers shoot too." - -I could not help laughing at the idea of a day's "shoot" at home when -all the beaters from the countryside carried rifles. It would make some -"shoots" a good deal more exciting than they often are. - -The sheikh himself would have sent his rifle away as well, though I saw -that it would almost break his heart to do so. However, I explained by -gestures that I wanted him to shoot with me, and his pride and joy were -comical to see. - -Eventually we shoved off for the ravine, followed by hooded women -bearing huge chatties of water, and every "toddler" in the village -carrying a bigger or smaller bundle of dry date-palm leaves. It was as -quaint a shooting party as ever I had seen. - -As we traversed the rocky slopes across which the _Intrepids_ had -advanced to the attack of the mouth of the ravine, the natives spread -out to pick up battered bullets and empty cartridge cases. They were -lying there in hundreds, and every big stone had one or two white marks -where bullets had struck it. At the mouth of the ravine, at the spot -where the Arabs had first taken up a position, the stones and rocks were -white with splashes and fragments of nine-pounder shells, and fuses and -shrapnel bullets lay among them. Close by were three cairns with wooden -crosses. These were the graves of the three who had been killed, and -the sheikh explained that he and his people had piled up those big -stones so that the wolves and jackals should not disturb them. - -Passing through the ravine we once more entered that vast hollow, left -the sunshine behind us, and craned our necks upwards to see the gap. -Six days ago, when I was there, it and the path had been full of living -creatures and ringing with shouts from one zigzag to another, as the -bluejackets and villagers tried to bring down the camels. Now the gloom -was haunted with silence and loneliness. Except for two or three -bloated vultures, which flew heavily upwards and disappeared over the -rim, not a thing moved. The not-yet-whitened skeletons of several camels -showed what a feast they and the jackals had made. - -As we did on that first memorable day, so we did on this. The villagers -were ordered to remain at the bottom whilst the sheikh, Mr. Scarlett, -myself, and the rest of the men climbed up the zigzag. We left Hartley -below; he solemnly shook his head when he saw what kind of a path it -was, and, as he was already pretty well "done up", I let him stay. He -promptly went to sleep. - -When we did reach the top, walked through the gap, and looked down into -the valleys beyond, I almost expected to see the huge snake of a caravan -wriggling up to us again. I showed Mr. Scarlett where we had first seen -it, and pointed out the rocks behind which we had crouched nearly all -that day; also the rock on which Jaffa had stood calling out in the -dark: "Khalli bunduk 'ak! Ma kattle kum! Ist agel!" - -He was very interested, but the sheikh was still more impatient, so we -spread out along the crest just as we had done before, and then he gave -the signal for the villagers to beat up towards us. - -I don't know what I imagined they would do. They were not flies, or even -goats, so I could hardly expect them to climb up the precipice; but what -actually occurred was that, after spreading over the whole of the bottom -of the "coffee-cup", yelling and throwing stones into any places likely -to conceal a leopard, they all made for the zigzag path and came up it -very swiftly, one behind the other, yelling like fury, beating the rocks -with their spears as they passed them, the ones in rear beating the -rocks which had already been struck a hundred times already, just as -vigorously as the first. Occasionally they threw blazing bundles of -date-palm leaves into crevices and caves; but, except for this and the -noise they made, their ideas of what was wanted were very laughable. - -The sheikh had lain down close to me. Presently he gave an exclamation -and pointed. I saw a leopard slinking round a rock just ahead of some -shouting villagers; he was at least four hundred yards away, and before -I could stop the old man he had fired his rifle, regardless of the fact -that if his aim was anywhere in that direction he was far more likely to -hit one of his own people than the leopard. I need not have worried -myself. The bullet struck a rock close below us and shrieked away into -the sky, whilst the recoiling butt struck his cheek. First of all he -looked to see whether the leopard was dead, and as it had disappeared -behind a rock he was as pleased as "Punch"; then he felt his cheek and -patted his rifle reprovingly as if it were a naughty boy. But he -smacked it a moment after, when the leopard appeared again, bounding up -the rocks. - -I roared with laughter, which of course upset him. Holding the rifle -more gingerly than ever, and keeping his face well out of the danger -line (he could not possibly have looked along his sights) he fired -again, and of course "thump" went the butt against his shoulder. At -that he laid the rifle down, sat up, and gazed scornfully at it, -jabbering something to me which I, of course, did not understand. - -The leopard was now standing on a rock, entirely unaware that he had -been fired at, watching the advancing beaters, twitching his tail, and -uncertain what to do. - -I nodded to the sheikh to watch how it should be done, took a steady -aim, and fired. - -The animal was two hundred yards away, if an inch, and I did not expect -to hit him, but luck was with me. He sprang up, pawing the air, gave -two or three huge bounds from rock to rock, then just missed the edge of -a boulder, clawed frantically for a moment, and fell on the zigzag path -dead. - -The wonder and amazement showing in the old man's eyes were the greatest -compliment I had ever had paid to my skill. He handed me his rifle and -wanted to try mine, taking it with an awed expression as if it were a -live thing. Then he noticed the difference in the breech (mine was a -Lee-Metford, his a Mauser), and a cunning smile flickered across his -face, as if that was the reason why mine had behaved so much better. -His eyes simply danced from rock to rock, watching for something to -appear, so that he could show me that with the same rifle he was just as -good a shot as myself. Presently a wolf or jackal trotted along a -narrow ledge of rock below us. He threw up my rifle, pressing the -trigger at the same moment, and, as he never even held it tightly, and -was sitting up on his haunches, was nearly knocked over by the recoil. - -Where the bullet went goodness knows, but his look of abject -disappointment when he recovered himself and saw the beast still running -along was too comical for words. He gave the rifle back to me, waved -his hands as if to say that he would have nothing more to do with such -works of Satan, folded his cloak round him, and sat sulkily indifferent. -His green turban and crimson cloak made him a quaint figure in the -glaring sunlight. - -The others fired a few shots (though at what I could not see) and I only -hoped that they would not shoot the villagers. Nothing more appeared -for us to shoot at, till presently a vulture, coming from nowhere, -perched heavily on a rock not fifty yards away--a splendid target for a -rifle. He was quite indifferent to our presence. - -I made the sheikh lie down--he was as excited as a child again--showed -him how to hold the rifle, press it into his shoulder, and look along -the sights; the bird watching us all the time, looking like a ragged -tramp sitting for his photograph. - -When he at last fired, the bullet hit a rock at least ten yards below -the bird; but the report frightened it and it flew away. - -The old man evidently thought he had wounded it, for he recovered his -affability and patted the rifle approvingly, smiling at me. - -Whether or no there were as many leopards as we had believed, at any -rate we saw no more there, and presently they brought my dead one up to -the gap and commenced skinning him. Whilst they were doing this the -sheikh led us down to some craggy rocks on the other slope, and a -leopard was frightened out of them but broke back through the frightened -villagers, and only gave me a long and hopeless shot whilst he was -travelling very fast. I am sure the old gentleman was rather pleased -that he wasn't the only one who missed. - -This was a disappointing day's shooting, but the exercise did us all the -good in the world, and we went back to the village quite content. As we -drew near the villagers rushed ahead to exchange their spears and sticks -for their beloved rifles, came back to meet us, and fired another _feu -de joie_. - -At a word from Mr. Scarlett the sheikh, seizing a stick, rushed in among -them and whacked left and right till they stopped. If he realized the -danger it was a very plucky thing to do, because bullets were whizzing -all round us. - -It was very evident that if the villagers went on expending their -precious cartridges as they had this day, they would soon have none left -to keep the Bedouins away. This waste of good ammunition so outraged -Mr. Scarlett's professional feelings that he actually spent the greater -part of the next week teaching them the elements of rifle shooting. I -had never seen him so happy for so many days together. - -Under the shade of some "nabac" trees close to the well he rigged a -tripod and a sand-bag for a rifle to rest on, painted some black -bull's-eyes on the side of one of the huts, and every evening showed the -villagers how to look along their sights and get them in a line with the -bull's-eye. - -At the end of the week he rigged a target some way along the beach and -invited me to see the results of his training. I do not suppose that -there was a single man, woman, or child but had come down to join in the -excitement. They were all gathered round the firing point, some eighty -or one hundred yards from the target, jabbering noisily--the children -not being more childish than the "grown-ups". - -Then in absolute silence--even the children held their breath--the first -man lay down and aimed very carefully. He fired, and every single soul -scampered pell-mell along the beach to the target to see where it had -been hit. - -In spite of actually seeing most of the bullets striking the sand, they -had the most implicit confidence in each other's marksmanship; and I -nearly burst myself with laughing, when, after a little while, they -began to tire of running to and fro after every shot, and actually -gathered round the target itself with their heads as close to the black -bull's-eye as they could get them, waiting for the next shot. - -Mr. Scarlett managed with difficulty to bring them back, but at this -rate the millennium would have arrived by the time each man had fired -the three rounds he allowed them. As a matter of fact this exhibition -of the result of his training did take three evenings, and I do not -remember that any man hit any part of the canvas more than twice. Most -of them never hit it at all. However, they were not in the least -disappointed; they were all too ignorant and stupid to mind what became -of the bullet so long as the noise and recoil were big enough. Not even -when Mr. Scarlett put the target four hundred yards or so farther along -the beach, and he and I fired a dozen rounds and hit the bull's-eye -seven times between us, did they show much appreciation. Every one of -them--even the children--put their fingers in the holes and shouted with -glee; but they evidently considered the whole performance due to -magic--not our magic, but the rifles' magic. - -The sheikh refused to fire, evidently not wanting to disgrace himself -before the tribe, although his explanation, given to Jaffa, was that it -was quite unnecessary--"that if he could hit a vulture at twenty paces, -of course he could hit a huge piece of canvas." - -Well, even Mr. Scarlett could not be expected to train those poor -ignorant fishermen in three or four days. I do believe that they -imagined that all that was necessary was to put a cartridge in the -rifle, show it the object, and pull the trigger. Allah would look after -the bullet. If he did not mean it to hit--well it wouldn't, that was -all--and Mr. Scarlett and Jaffa had not sufficient command of their -language to make them believe otherwise. - -Even after this fatuous display the sheikh confidently told Jaffa that -he pitied any poor Bedouins who tried to attack his town--town! mind -you; not collection of hovels, as it actually was. His own house and -the dome-shaped well were the only two structures you could lean against -without risk of falling through the sides. He and his silly simpletons -of villagers really believed that they were now a formidable tribe--with -their rifles, their new finery, their sacks of dates, and the flocks of -sheep the Arab traders had given them in exchange for the camels. They -suffered badly from "swollen heads", were too proud to fish, and loafed -about the village with their rifles and silver-mounted daggers--doing -nothing. The women were just as foolish over the stores of food and the -unaccustomed finery they now had, and all had lost any fear of the -Bedouins swooping down through the gap to take revenge. - -Every camel except one had been taken away, and that one the sheikh kept -for his own use, fitting it out with the gorgeous trappings belonging to -Jassim's own riding camel--the one I had killed on the zigzag path. -When he was perched, insecurely and uncomfortably, on top of all this -splendour, he thought himself the finest fellow in the world, in spite -of the fact that the brute could only be induced to move, and that only -at a snail's pace, by being pulled along by his halter. - -He used to mount it and come along with me when I went shooting along -the mountain slopes; but he could never keep up with me, however much -the attendant villagers hauled on the head-rope. - -One evening, as our fortnight's stay was drawing to a close, we saw from -the _Bunder Abbas_ two little dots moving rapidly down from the mouth of -the ravine. As they drew nearer we saw that they were two camels, and -that a man was riding the first and leading the other. Darkness -swallowed them up; but next morning there were three camels kneeling -under the shade of the dark-green "nabac" trees alongside the well--the -sheikh's and the two strange ones. And whilst we were wondering who the -man could have been, a boat paddled off with a letter for Mr. Scarlett. -As he caught sight of the handwriting he actually seemed to shrivel; the -lines in his face became drawn and haggard, his eyes positively sank -into their sockets, and that horrid, frightened, muddy colour spread -over his face and down his neck. I knew then who had written the -letter--Jassim. - -Mr. Scarlett staggered into the cabin and slid the door across. It -seemed hours before he opened it--just a crack--and beckoned to me. - -"Same thing, sir, only more threatening. Says he will take it off -without hurting. That he must have it, and he'll give me still more -money." - -I had not the patience to try to persuade him to run the slight risk and -get rid of the beastly bracelet once and for all, so said nothing. It -was he who at last, trembling and sweating with fright, suggested that -Jassim should be allowed to come on board and talk things over--"if--if -you'll stand by with a revolver, sir, and kill him if he tries to seize -it." - -It was the only sensible course to take; and, later on, Jassim did come -aboard. - -What a grand-looking fellow he was in spite of his age, and how he must -have hated me and the _Bunder Abbas_ for the part we had played in -capturing his caravan! If he did, he showed no sign, salaaming to me as -to an equal. I took him up to our little deck, to Mr. Scarlett, and the -two began yarning very earnestly, whilst I stood by to see fair play. -Jassim was evidently explaining how he proposed to take off the -bracelet, and produced two pairs of thin pincers--the same idea that my -chum and I had suggested a hundred times. - -Some extraordinary excess of courage seemed to come to Mr. Scarlett, and -he actually bared his arm, uncovered the bandage, and showed the snake. -As it glittered in the sunlight I saw Jassim's eyes flash with something -which was not all greed. He slid on his knees, bent down till his lips -touched it, holding out his hands and muttering something. Then he rose -to his feet, his chest muscles working under his muslin shirt, walked to -the rails, and stood for a few moments looking towards the mountains. -Mr. Scarlett's arm was stretched across the table, the muscles clenched -so hard that they stood out in lumps. He looked at me appealingly, said -something to Jassim, who came back to the table, lay half across it to -steady himself, and took up those two pincers. Very, very gently he -began to insert the jaws of one under a coil of the bracelet, whilst -with the other he held fast the head of the snake. I noticed Mr. -Scarlett shudder as the pincers touched his skin, and great drops of -sweat gathered on his forehead. Then Jassim gently pulled at the coil -until it began to come away from the skin. I was looking on, -fascinated, my eyes riveted on the head, which, although it was gripped -by the other pair of pincers, seemed to be fighting to twist itself -backwards and wriggle itself free. At an unlucky moment those pincers -slipped off the head, and as the iron dug into Mr. Scarlett's arm and -the head flattened itself against the skin, Mr. Scarlett's self-control -gave way. - -Clenching his free hand over the snake, and seizing the pincers which -held the coil, he tore them out of Jassim's hand and jumped away. His -chair and the pincers fell with a clatter on the deck, and he stumbled -blindly into the cabin, crying to me to send Jassim away, and closing -the door behind him. - -I turned towards the Arab. He too seemed to have grown older. His face -was not pleasant to look at. I managed somehow or other to get rid of -him, but there was no peace for me. Mr. Scarlett would not let me leave -him all that day nor all through the night. I think he must have been -mad. He sat crouched in one corner of the cabin, clutching the snake -with his right hand, and moaning for me not to leave him if ever I -stirred. - -I did everything I could to rouse him--taunted him with cowardice, told -him that he was not fit to be called an Englishman, let alone an -officer; but he only whimpered like a child, and moaned that it was the -Arab blood in him, rocking himself backwards and forwards, cursing -himself for ever having allowed Jassim to see the snake. - -When day broke after that horrid night those two camels had disappeared -from under the nabac trees. Seizing my telescope and looking towards the -mountains I could see them entering the gloomy mouth of the ravine. Mr. -Scarlett was just in time to see them too, and some of the terror in his -face faded away as they were lost to view. All day he followed me, -cringing and apologizing in the most abject manner. Twice he came to -me, with his face set and determined, to ask me to take off the snake; -but at the sight of it round his bare arm he would alter his mind and -say: "Not now, sir; let's wait till Jassim shows his hand again; let's -wait till we go back to Muscat!" I lost patience with him completely, -and would not speak to him. - -The whole crew were, of course, aware that something mysterious had -occurred, and Percy guessed that danger threatened his hero. It was -quite pathetic to watch him following Mr. Scarlett with his big brown -eyes, and looking wistfully sad at not being able to help him. - -This affair of Jassim completely upset me, and made me wish that the -_Bunder Abbas_ should be sent patrolling again. However monotonous that -might be, there would not be the dread of such a scene and such a horrid -night as I had just spent with the gunner. Our fortnight at -Kalat-al-Abeid had now come to a close, so I went ashore to wish my old -friend the sheikh good-bye and to give him a few parting words of -advice--through Jaffa. I pointed out to him that if a man and two -camels could come riding down from the gap without anyone seeing them, -five hundred could do so just as easily and just as unexpectedly. -However, he only smiled a superior smile and patted his rifle, so I left -him complacently oblivious to his danger, and took the _Bunder Abbas_ -through the channel in the cliffs out into the open sea once more. Once -out there Mr. Scarlett quickly recovered his composure, but I very much -dreaded what would happen should we be detained at Muscat for any length -of time. - -However, we were in luck. When I went aboard the _Intrepid_ to report -myself, and told Commander Duckworth that, so far, the Bedouins had made -no attempt to attack the village, and amused him by describing the -results of their rifle practice and the grand appearance of the old -sheikh on his walking camel, he said: "Well, Martin, you've had a -fortnight's rest, and now I have rather an amusing job for you. There's -a place called Sur on the chart; it's thirty miles to the south'ard, a -deep backwater with two towns--Heija, on the north-east side, belonging -to the Beni-Bu-Ali tribe; and, on the west, Shateif-al-Kabira, inhabited -by the Beni Janaba. They hate each other like poison, and are always -having rows. There is only one decent well for both towns--half-way -between them--and the old Sultan has a fort and keeps a garrison there -to protect it and keep order. A few months ago he sent a son of his -there to command, and the harum-scarum young ass got himself into a -mess, enraged both tribes so much that they've joined forces--for the -first time on record--and surrounded his precious fort. As a personal -favour the Sultan has asked the political agent if he will get him out -of this trouble; so there's your job, and off you go as soon as you're -ready. The Sultan is sending off a few thousand rupees, and if you find -these won't do the trick, and the tribes are bent on getting the young -scamp's blood, just bring him back with you. The _Bunder Abbas_ can get -quite close in to the fort, and you ought to have no trouble. At any -rate, fix things up as best you can." - -"Thank you very much, sir!" I said, and asked him if there was any more -news from Jask. - -He shook his head. "The political agent is always hearing rumours of -trouble--nothing more. They haven't sent those ladies away. I wish -they would." - -So did I. - -I stayed on board to lunch with Popple Opstein. He was beginning to find -lying off Muscat rather dull work after the exciting times we had had, -and almost wished we had not captured all those arms. "The gun-running -business has been knocked on the head for the next few months or so," he -told me, "and things are as dull as ditch-water." - -The _Bunder Abbas_ had taken nearly all her coal, water, and provisions -on board by the time I went back to her, and I found Mr. Scarlett in -another of his nervous saturnine fits. Moore told me he had shut -himself in his cabin ever since the coal lighter had come alongside. -When he came out to speak to me he was so nervous and shaky that I was -more than ever anxious about him. - -To come back from the noisy, cheery mess aboard the _Intrepid_ to be -cooped up alone with him again made me feel extremely miserable. I was -beginning to dread Percy announcing a meal. The food, generally -speaking, was horrid--horrid to look at and horrid to eat. The gunner -would sit on one side of the table, I on the other, and we often never -spoke a single word all through a single meal except to curse Percy or -the cook or the flies or the sun blazing through the awning. At least -once every day the wretched cook would be sent for by the gunner and -slanged in Hindustani or Urdu or some such queer dialect or other until -he slunk down the ladder trembling with fear. Often to avoid a row with -the gunner I would go away and leave him to finish his meal by himself. -Latterly, when I saw Percy laying the cloth for "food", I would find -myself a job of work to do, hoping that Mr. Scarlett would finish before -I came. But that was no good; he would always wait for me. - -I was, in fact, heartily sick of him. I don't mean to say that I -actually disliked him, but we had nothing whatever in common once we had -told each other all the yarns we knew and when the subject of -gun-running was worn threadbare. - -It suddenly occurred to me to ask old Popple Opstein to get leave and -come along with me for this trip to Sur, so I signalled across, and -presently back came a semaphore: "Right oh! leave granted. What time do -you sail?" - -I was not going until the morning; it was no good spending a night at -sea along that coast. So I signalled: "Daybreak--delighted." - -He made me dine with him; we had a great sing-song on the poop, with the -ship's company chipping in, and after it he came back with me, bringing -his bedding and other gear. - -The night was as hot as Hades, without a breath of air, but the old -"_B.A._" standing out in the moonlight was a different ship with Popple -Opstein climbing up her side and with him to yarn to before we lay down -on the little deck outside the cabin (inside which Mr. Scarlett had -again shut himself) and tried to sleep. - -Not much sleep did we get, so much had we to talk about, and so pleasant -it was for me to have someone to talk to. - - - - - *CHAPTER XIII* - - *Rounding up a Prodigal* - - -At daybreak next morning our little steam-winch ran the anchor out of -the water merrily, and off we went for Sur, its two towns of -irrepressible Arabs, and the young scamp of a Sultan's son who had -caused all this bobbery. Old Popple Opstein, in his pyjamas, lay back -in my easy chair, smoking his noisy pipe--the deck all round him soon -strewn with half-burnt matches--and looking happy and contented to sit -there and watch me take the _Bunder Abbas_ out of harbour. Mr. Scarlett, -his old self once more, was in the bows under the awning, securing the -anchor, and I'm almost certain he was whistling a cheerful tune; the -crew, both black and white, were skylarking and singing snatches of song -whilst they scrubbed and holystoned the decks; Percy's big, shy eyes -were dancing with fun as he brought three cups of tea up the ladder to -our little deck; and even the despondent cook seemed to have made a -better brew than usual that morning. - -"Here's luck to the '_B.A._'!" Popple Opstein cried, as he drank his, -and the _Bunder Abbas_, not intending to be left out of the -lightheartedness and gaiety he had brought with him, dipped her bows -into the swell and gambolled and sported like a porpoise. - -It was a very joyous morning, and though the monsoon was in a rather too -playful mood we made five knots against it as we steamed along that -grand coast line. By noon Jebel-al-Khamis, towering into the burning -vault of blue sky, showed that we were abreast the opening in the cliffs -which led to Sur, so over went the helm and inshore we steamed, with the -swell catching us up, sliding under us, and hastening ahead to crash -itself to a foaming dazzling death. A cairn perched on the top of the -naked cliff, and a vast jumble of rocks, piled on each other like a heap -of enormous broken bricks, at its foot, marked the entrance to the -actual channel. In half an hour we were inside just such another ravine -as the one leading to Kalat-al-Abeid, only the walls were not so high -nor so bold. The roar of the breaking swell outside died away: we -twisted this way and that, and saw by the chart that in a few minutes we -should turn another corner, enter the open backwater, and see right -ahead of us the fort which guarded the well, and the two towns whose -people were trying to "do for" the Sultan's son, or the "Prodigal Son" -as my chum called him. - -By this time we were both in uniform--if one could call it uniform: -white topee helmets, white cotton shirts with the sleeves rolled up, -white cotton "shorts", bare legs, and canvas shoes. We only had to put -our neck through our revolver lanyards and buckle our revolver belts -round our waists to be ready to land and demand the Prodigal Son; quite -ready even though ten thousand Arabs wanted to keep him. The chart -showed three fathoms of water quite close to the fort which he was so -gallantly, or otherwise, holding out against such odds; the little -"_B.A._" only drew eight feet at the stern, so we could run up almost -alongside, and the one thousand or ten thousand Arabs would, we feared, -soon alter their minds when they heard the chink of those dollars. Both -of us sincerely hoped that they would not and would give the six-pounder -and the Maxims a chance of arguing it out with them. We were doing this -for the Sultan as a personal favour, so knew he wouldn't mind how many -of his faithful (?) subjects went to Paradise during the argument. We -certainly did not. - -"My dear old chap," Popple Opstein said, smacking me on the back as this -thought struck him, "there'll be no red-tape business about this little -job; none of your beastly waiting for them to fire at you first, no -worry about 'papers' and nationality or rot like that. Just go straight -in, see how things are; if he's in a tight place, and they won't take -the old man Sultan's bag of dollars, pull the Prodigal Son out by the -scruff of his neck--and there we are. We ought to have fine sport." - -Presently we ran clear of the channel into a big backwater or "khor", -not so big as that at Kalat-al-Abeid but longer and more narrow, its -shores thick with scraggy, dried-up-looking mangrove trees, with here -and there a clump of darker almond trees, the everlasting bare hills -rising behind everything. - -"There's the fort," we both cried, pointing to the top end, where we -could see a big, square, battlemented building about two miles away, -standing alone on a waste of sand in which even the mangrove trees -apparently could not exist, for they stopped short perhaps five hundred -yards from either side of the fort. Almost at the same moment we -spotted the two rebellious towns--one on each shore--nestling under the -trees. Through my telescope I saw that the red flag of Muscat drooped -down from the flagstaff over the fort, so we had not arrived too late! -Not another sign of life appeared, no figures were moving about behind -the parapet of the fort, and not a single soul showed on the open sandy -space. As we drew nearer, a dark patch close to the edge of the sea -turned out to be a couple of trees half-concealing a dome-shaped -well--the well for the guarding of which the fort had been built. - -It all seemed so peaceable that we were rather disappointed, until -suddenly that open space round the fort simply swarmed with crawling -figures, hundreds of little white "puff-balls" of smoke seemed to grow -out of the sand, and great spurts of white smoke leapt out from the -battlemented parapet of the fort itself. The dull booms coming across -the water told us that the Prodigal Son must be firing his old -muzzle-loading cannon. To judge by the amount of firing, he was having -a very bad time of it indeed. - -"Just in time, Martin, old chap," Popple Opstein chuckled, his face -becoming violet in his excitement. "Shove the '_B.A._' ahead and we'll -chip in." - -Mr. Scarlett, sucking in his breath and looking unhappy, wondered why -they were fighting in the heat of midday. - -"They never do so," he said. "It must be a very fierce attack." - -But I was not going to shove on any faster. To begin with, I had to go -carefully, because there were many shoal patches marked on the chart; -and, to end with, I couldn't go faster, because the packing in the -high-pressure piston-rod gland had opened out on the way down. The -lascar engine-drivers were already terrified at the escape of noisy -steam, and if we shoved her on faster the packing might blow out -altogether. - -So I just sent along two or three six-pounder shells--or, to be -accurate, four--two among the people on one side, two among the people -on the other. - -"The white sea-lord metes out even justice," old Popple Opstein chuckled -(of course I had told him the yarn about the "white sea-lord jolly well -wanting to shoot his own leopards "). - -The little shells burst beautifully, and their result was magical. The -dark crawling figures making "puff-balls" tore back to the cover of some -huts at the edge of the mangroves, whilst the defenders of the fort gave -it them hot with the little cannon. - -As we anchored within fifty yards of the shore--just abreast the big -fort with its red flag, and the white-domed well close to it--the big -door at one corner was flung open, and out streamed a crowd of men laden -with water-skins and chatties--any mortal thing which would hold -water--hurrying to the well. They began working like the very dickens -to fill them, and staggered back again into the fort with anxious -glances to right and left, to see whether the tribesmen were going to -attack again. - -"We were just in time, old sonny," my chum grinned; "they were short of -water." - -"That's why they were fighting at noonday," Mr. Scarlett explained. "It -must have been a very close thing." - -I prepared to land. Where I went my chum went too. We both buckled on -our revolver belts, and I saw to it that he put his lanyard round his -neck this time. Jaffa, clean as a new pin, standing at the side waiting -for Griffiths to bring the dinghy alongside, was making certain that the -magazine of his Mauser pistol was full. Mr. Scarlett remained in -charge; Moore had to "stand by" with the six-pounder, and Webster and -his marines manned one Maxim, Ellis and his bluejackets the other. With -the knowledge that they would shoot straight and quickly there was no -danger in landing, and I knew that no Arab would play the fool with us. - -It was my chum who suggested that we should lay out a kedge-anchor -astern, in order to bring the "_B.A._"'s broadside to bear. This -delayed us for a quarter of an hour, but at last we were ready, and with -a white ensign flying in the stern of the dinghy--almost as big as -herself--we landed on the beach: Popple Opstein, Jaffa, and myself. My -aunt, but it was hot! The sand seemed to burn through our rope-soled -shoes as we tramped up towards the well and its two weeping "nabac" -trees. Footmarks in thousands were all round it; one deep trail leading -to the door of the fort, two more leading away along the sand to the -towns on either side. - -As we left the shade of the trees the door at the angle of the fort -opened, and out came four Arabs, armed to the teeth with rifles, belts -of cartridges, swords, and huge curved daggers. They advanced to meet -us, salaaming a hundred times. The leader fixed his dark eyes on me -whilst he jabbered away to Jaffa. - -Jaffa translated, to the effect--more or less--that, thanks to the -all-seeing benevolent kindness of the Prophet, whose name be praised, -who always shielded the true believer and scattered his enemies just as -they were cock-sure of having won in an innings with runs to spare--or -words to that effect--we, rulers of the sea and sons of the Great White -Queen, had unexpectedly turned up and scored the winning goal just as -time was called. He implored us to demean our noble selves sufficiently -to take some abominable refreshment (he was pretty well right in that) -under the wretched roof of his cowardly and entirely despicable master, -the mighty fighter, the heaven-born leader of men, born with a -double-edged sword in his hand, and destined to bring joy to the heart -of his noble father, the Sultan of Muscat, "to whom all we pigs and -nobodies own eternal allegiance--Mohammed be praised!" There was -another long rigmarole to explain why the Prodigal Son could not come to -receive us, but I gathered that he had been wounded in this recent -attack, and was having his wounds dressed even now. - -"Right oh! We'll go along with them," I told Jaffa, cutting him short. -"Tell him that we didn't come here by chance, but at the request of the -Sultan." - -The sheikh, or whoever he was, received this news with astonishment. - -"He say they all lay down lives for Sultan--love Sultan very much," -Jaffa interpreted to me with impassive face. - -Off we went, and, my word, it was a most unpleasant place! The foot of -the walls of the fort was piled with all kinds of rubbish--cast-off -blood-stained clothes, bones, skeletons of dogs and camels, all the -filth one could imagine--and the stench was horrid. - -Popple Opstein pointed out any number of bullet marks in the crumbling -bricks of the forts, and we made grimaces as we realized what a very -tough defence they must have been making, and how excessively -uncomfortable they must be. - -Two solemn, weary-looking Arabs--one bandaged about the head--opened a -little door in the big one, which had been closed again, and we passed -into a large passage, which opened out into the court-yard in the centre -of the fort. Stone benches on either side of this passage-way were -thronged with more tired-looking soldiers, most of them asleep, and very -many of them evidently wounded. In the court-yard itself the heat and -the smell were awful. Thirty or forty lean horses were tethered in the -open, a dozen camels knelt stolidly in the shade which a mat-screen gave -them, whilst hundreds of goats and sheep wandered about feeding on -whatever garbage lay about. As we passed across, and tried to avoid -falling over sheep, being kicked by a horse, or bitten by a camel, a -score or more battle-stained Arabs raised themselves wearily from the -ground and leant on their rifles. - -"A beastly place to be cooped up in," Popple Opstein whispered, as we -followed our guides through an archway into a delightfully-cool chamber -or hall, and up some winding stone steps to the upper story. This was -evidently where the officials and officers lived--much more handsomely -decorated it was, with carvings, and lattice-work of stone, wood, and -iron, elegant pillars and arches forming a delightfully-cool, -creeper-covered balcony above the four sides of the crowded court-yard, -from which, however, the smell and the noise of all the animals below -were still too unpleasantly evident. Fifty or more soldiers were lying -on this balcony in every attitude of weary sleep, and as we hurried -along it after our silent guides we could catch a glimpse of the -battlements on the flat roof above our heads, and a motionless sentry -standing out vividly against the sky, watching to give the alarm did the -tribesmen make another attack. - -We passed several elegant door-ways screened with matting, and then, at -last, a richly-embroidered curtain was drawn aside and we were ushered -into a long, darkened room, the wooden floors carpeted with splendid -rugs, on which six or seven magnificently-dressed Arabs were seated. -They welcomed us gravely. Most of them appeared to have been wounded: -one had his arm in a sling, another had his leg swathed in white cotton -and tried to repress a groan when he moved. We, in our very rudimentary -costume, must have made a comical appearance in the midst of all this -magnificence; but we didn't care "tuppence" about that. On a raised, -rug-carpeted platform a very handsome Arab stood erect, his left arm -bound closely to his chest under his white linen shirt, his right hand -grasping the hilt of a gold-mounted dagger stuck in his belt. Salaaming -gravely, he stepped down to meet us with outstretched hand, drew us to -the platform, and made us sit beside him. - -We almost fell over ourselves when he burst out with: "It's awfully good -of you fellows to come along--awfully lucky, too; just when things were -queer. Another hour of it and my chaps would have burst out to get water -or die--you saw them scurrying out. I can never be too grateful. You -are on your way to Muscat, I suppose; if you can see my father, the -Sultan, or get hold of the Chief Wazir, tell him you have saved his -son's honour. He will do anything for you, I know." - -"Oh no!" I said, when I'd recovered from my astonishment at hearing him -speak such English. "We've come straight from Muscat, at the Sultan's -special request, to get news of you." - -I did not like telling him that we'd come to rescue him. - -"Really!" he said, his eyes glowing. "We are all the more in your debt. -But when you return, do not say anything about this," he touched his -left arm; "it's nothing. A bullet splintered the bone. It will do -quite well. My father will only worry if he knows of it. Have some -coffee and cigarettes," he continued, as a Zanzibar slave brought round -a tray. "Now you've given me the chance of stocking my fort with water -we can hold out until these tribes leave us alone to fight each other. -They're certain to do that soon. I need hardly tell you that we are all -very grateful indeed." - -He turned and spoke to the others, who answered with a murmur of -respectful and dignified acquiescence. - -Coffee was brought in tiny little enamelled metal cups, more cigarettes -were handed round, and the Prodigal Son kept us busy answering questions -about the latest news from Muscat; and, when he discovered that we were -practically ignorant of anything that was happening there, asked -questions about European politics, of which neither Popple Opstein nor I -knew much more. It seemed really most extraordinary that though he was -wounded and surrounded by the tribesmen from those two towns, thirsting -to eat up him and his handful of soldiers, he should interest himself in -events so far away. To show him that I was not altogether ignorant of -Court "goings on", I told him of the two sums of money which the Sultan -had already tried to send him overland. - -"The Sultan is a good father; he deserves a better son," he said with -such engaging frankness that he raised himself tremendously in our -estimation. To cap all, I told him that he had sent five thousand -rupees with us, not daring to trust them by land again, and that if he -thought they would be of any use in pacifying the two tribes, I would -send them ashore directly we returned to the _Bunder Abbas_. - -"If not," I added with a great show of importance, "I have orders to -take you back to Muscat." - -He smiled, such a jovial frank smile that I could not wonder why he was -such a favourite with his father. - -"What would you do in my place?" he asked. "Here I'm given a fairly -important job, to protect this well and keep peace between the two -towns. I've done it so successfully that they are as thick as thieves, -and are so hot-headed with the imagined strength of their combined -forces that they dare to revolt. Would you give up the job until you -were compelled, now that it has turned out a failure? A few more weeks, -perhaps months, a little money paid out here and there--now that you -have brought me some--and I shall be able to report that all is peace -again, and commence to levy taxes, of which (he shrugged his shoulders) -I have not sent to Muscat enough to buy a skinful of wine--not for the -last five months." - -There was no necessity for us to tell him what we should do if we were -in his place--he knew; but the interview was becoming rather prolonged, -so I hinted to him that unless we showed ourselves outside the fort -fairly soon that six-pounder on board the _Bunder Abbas_ might "go off". - -He smiled delightfully, apologized, and immediately led us out, down the -stone staircase, across the courtyard, through the passage-way with its -sleeping soldiers, and out into the glare of the open waste land. I -could have sworn that I heard some women's voices singing to the twang -of musical instruments, and women's merry laughter coming from an upper, -lattice-hid window. What a place for women, and how brave they must be -to be merry under these conditions! I could not help thinking of Jask -and those two ladies there, and wondered whether they kept up their -spirits as well as these did. - -At last we were again in full view of the _Bunder Abbas_, and I guessed -that the sight of us must have been a great relief to Mr. Scarlett. - -A brilliant idea struck the Prodigal Son. - -"How much money did you say you brought? Five thousand? It's not much, -is it? but we'll see if the Khans of the two towns are open to a little -bribing. They often are, in spite of them being such important people," -he laughed. - -"I'll send messengers to them at once," he said. "Come down to the well. -We always discuss things there." - -He gave some orders, and before we had reached the grateful shade of -those two nabac trees, two mounted Arabs, bearing white flags fastened -to spears, came out from the fort, separated, and galloped away along -the sands. - -We sat down, thoroughly enjoying our amusing experience, and whilst we -were waiting I sent Griffiths in the dinghy to bring back the money -bags. Before he returned with them, nine or ten splendidly-mounted Arabs -had galloped up from the two towns and dismounted. Bowing in the most -dignified manner to the Prodigal Son and ourselves, they squatted in a -circle round us, keeping their eyes fixed on my chum's yellow hair and -blue eyes--in evident admiration. More coffee was brought from the fort -and more cigarettes were rolled, and a discussion--a very heated -discussion--took place, of which we, of course, could not understand a -word. - -[Illustration: BOWING IN THE MOST DIGNIFIED MANNER TO THE PRODIGAL SON -AND OURSELVES, THEY SQUATTED IN A CIRCLE ROUND US.] - -However, the Prodigal Son seemed to soothe them and when Griffiths came -up the beach with four fat bags of rupees--making two trips with -them--and dumped them down at my feet, they became very affable indeed. -To watch those dignified Arabs--half of them wounded and all of them -scarred--try to pretend not to be interested in the four bags, when all -the time their eyes kept turning towards them, evidently calculating how -much was inside, was as good as a play. - -Eventually, after innumerable cups of coffee, everything seemed to have -been arranged peacefully. They rose to their feet, bowed to us, to the -Prodigal Son, to each other, mounted their horses, and rode back to the -two towns, leaving us alone. - -"Well, I cannot thank you enough," he began, his face twitching as he -pressed one hand against his broken arm, as though the pain was very -great. "With your help, and with the money my father sent me, I have -patched up the quarrel, and I trust it will be lasting." - -"The quarrel or the patching up?" Popple Opstein interrupted admiringly. -"I do really believe you'd prefer the first." - -I'm certain that he was right too. - -We induced him to come aboard the "_B.A._", which he did in the -uncomfortable little dinghy, first having sent the bags of silver into -the fort, and he made himself so agreeable to Mr. Scarlett that the -gunner's dark eyes glowed with pleasure. - -"Will you do me one more favour?" he asked before he went ashore. "The -Sultan will be anxious to hear how things are--you have seen for -yourself. He is an old man, and he worries. Both of us will be the more -grateful if you let him know as soon as you can." - -We were so carried away by his delightful personality that within an -hour the "_B.A._" was steaming back to Muscat, going so fast--to save -daylight--through that tricky channel that the lascar drivers were -scared to death by the noise of steam escaping through the piston-rod -gland. We saved daylight right enough, and were soon tumbling about in -the swell outside; but the gland gave so much trouble that we could only -manage to go dead slow, with barely enough way to prevent the _Bunder -Abbas_ being driven on the rocks, where the roar of the breaking swell -boomed in our ears all night. We had a most horrid time of it--old -Popple Opstein and I--not knowing from one minute to another when the -engines would stop entirely. It was not the slightest use to try to -reach Muscat, and I only waited for the first streak of daylight to -crawl back through the channel into safety. - -My lascar first-driver said he could repair the gland in two days at -anchor, and I intended anchoring close to the fort again; but before we -were clear of the channel the packing blew out altogether, the -engine-room was filled with steam--the whole launch seemed to be in a -cloud of it--and the engines stopped entirely so there was nothing to do -but anchor where we were. It was a beastly nuisance, because I was so -anxious to take the news to Muscat as quickly as possible; otherwise I -did not care a rap. - -Popple Opstein suggested that we should sail the dinghy up to the fort -and spend the day with the Prodigal Son. No sooner said than done. Out -went the dinghy; Griffiths stepped the mast and put up the sail; my chum -and I jumped in with a loaf of bread, a tin of tongue, and some -sardines, and off we went, only to pull back again for water and for -Jaffa--we had forgotten both, and both were necessities. We drifted and -sailed, pulled round corners, and sailed again until we came out into -the open "khor", met a fairly-steady breeze--a soldier's breeze--which -filled our little sail, and made us bubble through the water. - -In a couple of hours from leaving the "_B.A._" we were hauling the -dinghy on to the sand, close by the well, and were tramping up to the -fort as happy as schoolboys, leaving Jaffa to guard the boat from a -crowd of loafing Arabs who surrounded it. We noticed one thing -immediately--the horses, camels, sheep, and goats were now outside the -fort, so we knew at once that all was peace. - -However, the Prodigal Son was not at home--we imagined that he had -perhaps gone to distribute the money; so, as the silly soldiers at the -big door would not let us inside, we amused ourselves by examining the -outer walls, walking all round them and looking up at the battlements -and the muzzles of the silly little cannon sticking out from the towers -at the corners. The walls were pitted everywhere with bullet marks, -especially round the loopholes, and we felt that we had underrated the -Arab marksmanship. The heat thrown back from those lofty bare red-brick -walls was so great that soon we were only too glad to go back to the -shade of the nabac trees near the well, until the attentions of the -crowd gathered there became rather irritating and the beastly flies -almost insupportable. So off we went for a short walk to have a look at -Heija. - -Whilst we were wandering round it, feeling like a couple of trippers, we -turned round a corner, and, clatter, clatter, with a smother of dust, a -dozen or more Arab horsemen dashed madly past us. Behind them, at a -more dignified pace, cantered others, and among these we at once -recognized the Prodigal Son, who, catching sight of us, drew his horse -back almost on his haunches to speak to us. On his right wrist was a -hooded falcon, and he was holding the reins with his left hand--holding -in a troublesome, fiery horse with the arm we had seen bandaged to his -side the day before, the one he had said was broken. Although we -recognized several of the cavalcade, not one now had a bandage or a sign -of a wound; even the man whose leg had been swathed in cotton was -joyously curveting and pirouetting on a splendid horse. - -For a minute neither of us quite realized the real truth. Then, when we -looked enquiringly at his left arm, the Prodigal Son burst out laughing, -and even the older, more dignified among them smiled grimly. - -They lent us a couple of horses to ride back with them, and old Popple -Opstein disgraced himself by falling off, but afterwards managed to -stick on until we reached the fort. There we were taken up to that same -audience-hall and had more cigarettes and coffee. The Prodigal Son never -gave us a chance of asking for an explanation of the marvellous -recoveries, and presently we found ourselves sailing merrily back to the -"_B.A._", so delighted with his amusing, frank manner that it was not -until we were halfway there that we even began to wonder what was the -meaning of it. - -Jaffa's dignified face had been gradually relaxing, as if he was -bursting to tell us something amusing. - -"Out with it, Jaffa," I called. "What is it?" - -"Very much laughter--in Heija--in Shateif also--make much fool of -Sultan--poor people very angry--sheikhs and soldiers much joy. Plenty -men from Heija and Shateif come to well--tell me. All pretence--the -fighting--surround fort--much powder play--news goes Muscat--Sultan's -son in much danger--want money--buy peace--money comes--son rob -caravan--Sultan think wild Bedouin rob caravan--send more--son rob -that--writes letter that he in much danger--Sultan thinks money never -come to him--so send more money in _Bunder Abbas_." - -"But we saw them fighting like 'billy loo', going it 'hammer and tongs' -yesterday. You mustn't believe everything you hear," I said, -incredulous still. - -Jaffa shook his head. "All game--make pretence to fight--all men know -_Bunder Abbas_ bringing more money--runner come from Muscat in early -morning--when they see her come, begin pretend fight--fort fires powder -from cannon--men fire rifles--take no aim--only make noise. Then hurry, -pretend have many wounds when masters land--take money--send masters -away with good tale for Sultan." - -"Nonsense!" Popple Opstein blurted out; "the walls are peppered with -bullet holes. We've seen them ourselves." - -Jaffa smiled again. "Make them--themselves--when merry--fire at -loophole for target--all play." - -My chum was the first to believe the yarn. He roared with laughter. -"It all fits in like a puzzle. The Prodigal Son! What a name for the -chap! That's why they all looked like cripples yesterday, and left off -their bandages to-day. My holy Moses! the whole thing was a 'plant', -simply to delude us. What a chap! Didn't you hear those girls singing -and laughing? They wouldn't have been there if there had been real -fighting--or they wouldn't have been so cheery. D'you remember the rush -for water? My sacred aunt!" - -He kept on roaring with laughter every few minutes. - -As he had said, the whole thing fitted in like a puzzle. It amused him, -but it did not amuse me to be made a fool of. I was very angry, though -with my chum in the boat it was impossible to remain angry for long, and -soon I, too, saw the funny side of the expedition, and was laughing as -much as he was. - -And the Prodigal Son had been so anxious for us to hurry back to Muscat, -and so anxious for us not to mention his poor wounded arm to his father! -Of course not! It was all as plain as a pikestaff now. If the Sultan -heard of it, back to Muscat he would order him, and evidently the fatted -calf there was not half so much to his liking as the spree he was having -in that fort. - -On our return to the _Bunder Abbas_ we told Jaffa not to breathe a word -of this to anyone. - -By next night the steam gland had been repacked so, threading our way -out again to the sea, we steamed back to Muscat. - -I went across to the _Intrepid_ and told Commander Duckworth everything. -He, too, roared with laughter but quickly checked himself. - -"That's all right. It doesn't matter one way or the other. You saw the -battle; you got there just in time to stop it; the money was just in -time to make peace; and you saw the Prodigal Son, as you call him, out -hawking. That is all the Sultan wants to know, and he'll be just as -grateful to us as though you had actually rescued him." - -And he was, too, and sent me a Mauser pistol, just like Jaffa's, as a -present. - - - - - *CHAPTER XIV* - - *We Deal with Jassim* - - -The packing in the high-pressure piston-rod gland blew out again as we -anchored at Muscat. As a matter of fact, the whole of our engines -required a thorough overhaul after practically four months of almost -continuous steaming; and though the lascar engine-drivers had done their -best--a very poor best--it was now entirely beyond their capabilities to -put things to "rights", and make all the necessary readjustments and the -_Bunder Abbas_ again fit for sea. - -In these circumstances, and as neither the political agent nor Commander -Duckworth had anything very pressing for us to do, artificers were sent -across from the _Intrepid_ to carry out the necessary repairs. Whilst -they were opening out the engines, working and sweating down below, -there was, of course, but little to do on deck, and I had at first a -very pleasant, lazy time indeed--pleasant, at any rate, after five -o'clock in the evening. Before five o'clock the heat was much too great -except to pant and perspire under the awnings; after that hour one's -muscles began to call out for exercise. Then, with Popple Opstein and -the rest of the _Intrepid's_ officers, we would often pull across to a -sandy beach--where no sharks ventured--about a mile from the rock on -which the southern of those two old Portuguese forts stood, and have -grand bathing picnics--in and out of the water for a couple of hours at -a time. Occasionally fifty or sixty of the men would come with us and -drag the seine-net, for the sea was simply alive with fish. If we did -not do this, we would go up to the political agent's house and play -tennis in the compound there--on a concrete court--in the most terrible -glare; or perhaps we would wander out through the main gates of the town -and scramble about the ravines and defiles leading inland. - -I have never in my life been in such a hot place as this was. The -little white town of Muscat is surrounded by bare, razor-backed, -volcanic, rocky ridges; the harbour itself is enclosed by more black, -naked cliffs, and these seem to collect the violent heat of the sun all -day to give it out all night. The temperature in the shade on board -seldom fell below a hundred degrees during the day, and seldom dropped -more than four or five degrees at night. Sleep under these conditions -was very difficult, very unrefreshing, and often I have tumbled and -sweated on my grass mat till daybreak, kept awake by the oppressive heat -and the weird chants of the watchmen calling across the harbour from the -towers of the two great forts. - -Several of my men went sick. Little wounds (a scratched mosquito bite, -for instance) simply would not heal; and Wiggins, the broken-rib man, -had to be sent down to Karachi suffering from fever. He was very loath -to go, poor chap. - -For the first two or three days Mr. Scarlett was quite happy. I let him -take some men ashore to paint the name of the launch on the rocky face -of one of the sides of the harbour. He painted it in white letters, -four feet long--"BUNDER ABBAS"--among the names of a hundred other ships -which had done the same during the last twenty years, and this kept his -mind occupied; but after he had finished, he shrank into his usual -saturnine self, his dark eyes seemed to sink farther back than ever -beneath his shaggy eyebrows, and he spent his whole time watching lest -Jassim should come again. For fear of seeing him, and for fear of any -violence, he never ventured on the mainland. - -Jassim had sent him another letter, increasing his offer to fifteen -thousand rupees if only Mr. Scarlett would let him have the bracelet. -My chum happened to be on board when the letter arrived, and we both -went over the same old arguments as before, doing our utmost to persuade -him to take the risk, and holding out before him all he could do with -the money--a thousand pounds would be a fortune to him--and how with -that and his pension he could retire and live comfortably ever after. -If he had been an ordinary warrant-officer we might have argued with him -successfully. But he was not; he was more than half-Arab, by nature and -upbringing if not by birth; and if our arguments were met at first by a -half-shrinking consent, the possibility of a fatal result would so -terrify him immediately afterwards that he always ended with a flat, -sullen refusal. - -"Kismet," he would groan, and once he had used that word we knew it was -impossible to move him. - -If he did agree to accept the increased offer we were to hoist a red -flag; and the mere knowledge that evening that Jassim's gloomy eyes were -watching us from shore, awaiting his signal, made even my chum and -myself feel nervous. It drove Mr. Scarlett into the locked cabin, where -he stewed all night. - -As you can imagine, this state of things was bad for his health, and -when one day he ran a rusty nail into the palm of his left hand the -wound festered, and the hand and the whole of his arm swelled -tremendously. - -He was so ill that Nicholson, the staff surgeon of the _Intrepid_, -determined to give him chloroform, and make deep cuts into both hand and -arm. The snake, of course, would have to be exposed during the -operation, and Mr. Scarlett was so desperately anxious that no one else -should know anything about it that he only consented when Nicholson -promised (I had told him about it) to come across to the _Bunder Abbas_, -and, if Popple Opstein and I would stand by and give him a hand, do it -there. He came that very evening, when the great heat of the day was -over, and we (with Percy terrified and sad) cleared a space on the -little upper deck, just outside the cabin, for the operation. Having -kicked Percy down the steps and screened the deck from observation, -Nicholson began. - -It is not necessary to go into all the details, but when Mr. Scarlett, -lying on the deck, was thoroughly insensible, we unwound the bandage and -found the beastly snake almost sunk in a deep groove of the mottled, -swollen skin, clinging ever so tightly. I noticed Nicholson run his -finger along it until he came to the head, when he tried to pass one -finger under the jaw, but my nerves were very much on the stretch. I -saw him pick up a knife, and, not being used to such things, turned away -my head. It was not till Mr. Scarlett had given one or two sudden, -half-conscious moans that I turned round again. There were the deep -cuts in the arm and hand, but--I almost started out of my skin--the -snake had disappeared, and only the deep groove round the arm remained, -the scale marks showing how tightly the snake must have buried itself. - -Nicholson quietly pointed to a corner of the deck close to the funnel, -and there, sparkling in a patch of sunlight coming under the edge of the -awning, was the bracelet--writhing, coiling, and uncoiling, drawing -back, and striking with its head. - -Popple Opstein's face was blue, his mouth wide open, his eyes staring at -it, his great red hands shaking violently. - -Nicholson went on with his work. - -"Good God!" I at last managed to gasp. "Did it bite him or you?" - -Nicholson did not answer. Mr. Scarlett was recovering consciousness -now, and he was working very rapidly. Popple Opstein and I had to fly -round and do this and that as he bade us. There was no time to ask -questions or answer them. - -At last Nicholson, starting to bandage the arm, asked for a piece of -rope--a couple of feet of signal halyard. - -"Now a needle and thread," he called, and, when I fetched them, sewed -the bandage very securely. - -Not till then had I time to look at the snake again. - -It was now lying perfectly still, coiled closely like a watch-spring, -the flat head pressed over the coils and the light flickering in its -green opal eyes and playing on the enamelled scales. - -Nicholson, busy holding Mr. Scarlett's head, jerked out: "Hide it! - -"Pick it up," he said irritably, as my chum hesitated to touch it; "the -confounded thing won't hurt you." - -Popple Opstein stooped and took hold of it very gingerly. As it did not -move he held it in the palm of his hand, and we were both examining its -marvellous beauty when Nicholson again jerked out: "Hide it -somewhere--lock it up--Mr. Scarlett's coming round--he mustn't see it." - -I took it very nervously from Popple Opstein, and in the excited state -of my nerves, its scales seemed to press themselves into my hand and -wriggle. I could only just prevent myself dropping it, and darted into -the cabin and locked it in my one drawer. - -"Now, help me to lift him," Nicholson called out, and in a couple of -minutes Mr. Scarlett lay moaning in his bunk, with the bad arm swathed -in cotton-wool and bandages. - -"He'll do all right now. Give me a drink, and have this mess cleared -up," Nicholson said gruffly. - -"How did you do it?" I asked him. - -"Feel that," he answered, and with a blood-stained finger and thumb -pinched the end of one of my fingers. - -I winced--he might have had hold of me with pincers. - -I shouted for Percy, and sang out for Moore to send up a couple of -hands, and whilst Nicholson kept an eye on his patient my chum told me -what had happened. - -"He took up his knife. I set my teeth; but just as I thought he was -going to use it he dropped it, and before I could wink an eyelash he'd -nipped the jaws of the snake--just as he nipped your finger--bent four -inches of its neck right away from the arm and, with the fingers of the -other hand, swept round under the coils and unwound it. For a moment or -two he held it in the air, the jaws in between his finger and thumb, the -body coiling and twisting--I could hardly breathe--then he threw it away -where you saw it, and it lashed about like a live thing. It's done now; -what danger there was is over. Won't he be thankful?" - -"We'll tell him directly he's round," I said. "My country, won't he be -pleased! He'll be a new man." - -Nicholson, coming out of the cabin, sang out: "No, you won't, unless you -want to kill him. He's bad enough now, and he'll fancy the swelling is -due to poison, whatever we tell him. He must not know until he's well -again. As many people die of sheer fright, after being bitten, as from -the poison itself." - -"Is that why you coiled the signal halyard round the groove?" we both -asked excitedly. - -"Of course it was. He'll feel it under the bandage and think the -snake's still there. I sewed the bandage so that he couldn't take it -off to make certain. Don't you tell him till I give the word." - -A very anxious week followed, for Mr. Scarlett was so ill that he had to -go aboard the _Intrepid_. Whilst he was away, several more letters came -from Jassim, and at last Jassim himself came aboard. - -On the chance of his coming I had given very strict orders that no one -should say where Mr. Scarlett had gone, and when I took him all round -the _Bunder Abbas_ his face fell as he realized that he was not on -board. Not a word would he say about the snake, never so much as a hint -to Jaffa; but as he left the ship he spoke to him, looking at me, and -Jaffa repeated: "Twenty thousand rupees". I could not resist asking -him, through Jaffa (who, if he had a shrewd suspicion that he was the -red-bearded leader of the caravan, never mentioned it), how his son -was--the wounded man who had been carried through the gap. - -At the question Jassim gave me a glance of such terrible hatred that I -knew at once that the poor chap was dead, and that he blamed me for it. - -This could not help but worry me, and another worry came along about -this time: there was disquieting news from Jask. Mr. Fisher, the acting -political agent, had telegraphed across that the Baluchis were causing -trouble and constantly threatening to come down from the hills and -attack the place. The land wire had been cut in several places, and a -party of native employees had been beaten and robbed about twenty-five -miles to the eastward. He had borrowed a few of the border police from -the Mir of Old Jask, but they were such brigands and so much of a -nuisance that he had sent them back again. - -It really made me angry to think of keeping Miss Borsen and Mrs. Fisher -there. I actually asked if the "_B.A._" could not go as soon as ever -her repairs had been effected, but Commander Duckworth shook his head. - -"It's just as it always is at this time of year," he said. "Those -tribesmen keep on threatening, hoping to get 'backsheesh'. They do it -every year; but nothing will come of it. They won't risk their skins." - -However, this did not relieve my anxiety. I seemed to have a personal -interest in little Miss Borsen, because, I suppose, she had come out -from England with me, and possibly because we had quarrelled. - -One day Nicholson signalled across that he and Popple Opstein were -bringing Mr. Scarlett across that evening. They came, he looking -desperately ill, although his arm was practically well. When we four -were alone he pulled out another letter--Jassim had evidently soon found -where he had gone. - -"He offers me twenty thousand rupees," he said wearily. "It's a lot of -money." - -He thought that we should commence the same old arguments again, but, -Nicholson winking at me, I went into the cabin, unlocked my drawer, and -brought out the bracelet. I handed it to Nicholson, for it was "up" to -him to tell the good news. He simply laid it on Mr. Scarlett's thin -knees and said quietly: "It's been off your arm for ten days. I took it -off when you had the operation." - -Mr. Scarlett shrank from it and clutched his arm. "But it's there--I can -feel it--I've felt it a hundred times in these last days." - -Nicholson smiled, pulled up his sleeve, cut through the bandage, and -showed him the signal halyard. - -Mr. Scarlett gave a wild look at each of us, dropped the snake on the -deck, bolted into the cabin, and we heard him sobbing like a child. - -Nicholson yelled for Percy. "Brandy and soda for Mr. Scarlett." - -"For all of us," I said, because we needed it. - -Eventually Mr. Scarlett came back and asked to see the bracelet, -handling it tenderly. He was much too disturbed to talk coherently, or -to thank Nicholson or either of us. It was pitiful to watch him. He -had not found his "bearings"; did not realize all that it meant to him, -and kept on rolling up his sleeve to look at his bare arm as if he did -not believe his own eyes. - -He gave way again, buried his face in his lean hands, lying half over -the table, which shook with his sobs. It was very distressing to watch. - -"Can't we hoist that red flag, sir?" he asked presently, lifting a -haggard face. - -I nodded. - -He jumped to our signal locker, picked out a red-and-white flag, tore -off the white part like a maniac, bent it to the halyard, and hoisted it -to our little yardarm, where it drooped in the heated air. Seizing a -pair of glasses he watched the shore as though he expected Jassim to -come paddling out. But Jassim did not come, and in his nervous -condition Mr. Scarlett worked himself into a terrible state of agitation -lest he had disappeared, and was, even now, preparing violent measures -to regain the bracelet. - -I think that before Nicholson went away he had taken the precaution of -giving him a very strong sleeping-draught, because he eventually became -calmer and went to sleep. - -When he was asleep I took the bracelet away from him and locked it in my -drawer, hoping most devoutly that Jassim would soon come and claim it; -and next morning, without saying anything to him, I took the precaution -of sending the bracelet across to the _Intrepid_, so that the sight of -it should not upset him, and that Jassim, if he came, should not be able -to terrorize him into giving it away before the money was produced. - -Jassim did come that day, and his manner was mysterious and threatening; -nor did I like the look in his eyes when Mr. Scarlett bared his arm and -he realized that the bracelet had disappeared and that the gunner had -not now the fear of taking it off. - -Jassim evidently wanted to get rid of me; but I would not go. - -"When he puts down his twenty thousand rupees he shall have it, not -before," I told Mr. Scarlett. "The bracelet is not on board, and I shall -not tell you where it is. Never you mind where it is." I stopped him -enquiring. "You tell him to bring his money and he shall have it." - -As I imagined, Jassim could not produce the money, nor do I think that -he ever intended doing so, hoping all along so to work on the gunner's -fears that he could get it for nothing. The two of them began talking -very excitedly, waving their arms and thumping the little table. From -the fierce looks which Jassim occasionally turned on me I was evidently -being talked about, and was not very popular in that quarter. - -I saw that hateful muddy colour spread over Mr. Scarlett's face and his -eyes narrow with fear. He turned to me, hardly able to speak. - -"For God's sake, sir, give up the wretched thing," he stuttered. "Tell -me where it is and I will give it him. I don't want any of his money; -all I want is to be quit of it." - -"When you've got your money, not before," I said. - -"But, sir, remember we are not in England. He swears he'll kill you; -that if you land he will kill you; if you don't he'll find other ways of -killing you. He won't touch me, because I gave his wife that drink of -water. But, sir, it's different with you." - -"I gave his son water a month ago," I said, with a sudden inspiration. - -Mr. Scarlett was too much agitated to enquire when or where. He turned -to Jassim and asked him something. Jassim replied bitterly. - -"He says you shot him, and he died; the drink of water made no -difference. You don't know these people out here," he implored. "Don't -run any risk. I don't want the money, indeed I don't." - -Jassim had risen to his feet and stood not three feet from me, glaring -at me as if he would willingly kill me then and there. I saw in his -eyes that what Mr. Scarlett had said was true. I don't know what made -me do it--I certainly never thought, and regretted it immediately -afterwards--but I suddenly locked my arms round him, and before he could -make a move I had tripped him over the railings and dropped him -overboard. - -The boat which had brought him off was close there, and he scrambled on -board like a drowned rat, sat down in the stern-sheets, folded his -clinging wet burnous round him, and, without deigning to turn his head -in our direction, was paddled ashore. - -"You've done it now, sir," Mr. Scarlett moaned, burying his face in his -hands and sprawling across the table. "For God's sake let's get away -from Muscat." - -I tried to pacify him by pointing out that if Jassim killed me he would -lose all chance of finding the snake. "He won't be such a fool as -that," I said. - -"He'll want revenge--revenge more than the snake--now, sir," Mr. -Scarlett groaned. - -There are times in plenty in most men's lives when, either through anger -or stubbornness, danger does not influence them. This was a case in -point. I had suffered so much from Jassim and his wretched snake that -his threats simply stiffened my back to such an extent that I much -preferred to be killed than give in. The mail steamer was leaving next -day so to make certain that Jassim should not get it, I went aboard the -_Intrepid_, told Popple Opstein what had happened, and after one last -look at the bracelet we packed it up and sent it home to my bankers in -London. At any rate, whatever happened to me (and I did not really -believe that anything would happen) Jassim should never have it, and -later on we might be able to negotiate for the reward of thirty thousand -rupees with the rightful owner, the Khan of Khamia himself. - -I breathed more freely when the mail steamer left the harbour, and not -until it had gone did I tell Mr. Scarlett what I had done. - -He and I stood watching till she disappeared behind the rocks at the -entrance, and, drawing a deep breath of relief, he said: - -"It seems wonderful, sir; don't it, sir? Here for thirteen years it's -been part and parcel of me, and now I'm finished with it. I never want -to set eyes on the beastly thing again." - -From that moment Mr. Scarlett began very rapidly to mend. He grew -stouter, his eyes lost their hunted look, and though he worried much -about the risks I was running, still it is a different thing to worry -about other people's risks from worrying about one's own, and he rapidly -recovered his spirits. - -I made light of any danger and took no precaution whatever, until one -night, shortly afterwards, I was awakened by the noise of a scuffle and -a splash in the water alongside. - -"What's that?" I sang out, springing up. - -Webster answered out of the darkness: "It's all right, sir. It's that -Arab chap you hove overboard the other day. He was trying to creep on -board over the stern. I spotted him, sir, and popped him back into the -'ditch'." - -Another day I was bathing with the _Intrepids_, and we were skylarking -afterwards on the beach, when a bullet hit the sand close to me and we -heard the report of a revolver. Spotting someone moving behind a rock -we all darted in that direction, but when we reached it saw no one. - -I don't mind saying that those two things happening made me extremely -nervous, and made me stick pretty close to the "_B.A._". - -I could now realize what mental agony Mr. Scarlett had suffered, and -though perhaps I did not show it as much I felt it most acutely. The -boot was on the other foot now with a vengeance, and it was I who, when -it grew dark, looked longingly at the little hot oven of a cabin and -felt a great temptation to lock myself in until daylight. - -A few days after the revolver-shot incident Mr. Scarlett astonished me -by asking leave to go ashore for a walk in Muscat itself. Remember that -he had not dared to land since he and I had had that first walk there -and had run across Jassim. Away he went, taking Jaffa and Webster with -him, and they did not return on board until long after I had finished -dinner. - -Mr. Scarlett was chuckling--I had never seen him so pleased with -himself--Jaffa had a contented smile on his face, and Webster so far -forgot himself as to wink at me. - -"Hallo, what have you been doing?" I asked. - -"He's all right, sir," the gunner said, rubbing his hands. "Mr. Jassim -won't be worrying you again for some time." - -"What has happened?" I asked eagerly. "Have you killed him?" - -"Well, sir, not exactly, but we just happened to meet him--after we'd -been hunting round for him all the afternoon--and we just happened to -have a bit of a row, and there just happened to be a couple of the -Sultan's soldiers handy. I made a bobbery, Jaffa and I calling out that -he had stolen money from us, and off they took him up there," and Mr. -Scarlett jerked his thumb towards the big fort on the right, whose -towers and battlemented walls showed out in the moonlight over our -heads. "There he'll stay, sir, as long as we like to pay for his keep. -It cost us five chips to the soldiers and another twenty to the sheikh -in charge of the fort. It was well worth it. Don't you think so, sir? -So long as we pay the governor of that fort or jail, call it what you -like, five rupees a day he'll keep him there and feed him," Mr. Scarlett -said, emphasizing the "feed him" as if that made his action quite -meritorious. - -Well, it was a very "low-down" game to play, and if I had known they -were going to play it I should have put a "stopper" on it; but now the -man was under lock and key it was so much a relief that I had not the -honest courage to blame the gunner or take steps to have Jassim set -free. - -After that Mr. Scarlett visited the jail nearly every day, to assure -himself that Jassim was still there; nor was he content until he had -peered through a grating overlooking the court-yard in which untried -prisoners were kept, and seen him. He seemed to take a fiendish delight -in those visits, and I must say that I fully shared his satisfaction, -for, to me, the resulting comfort and relief from anxiety was cheap at -the price--only five rupees a day. It may have been a cowardly, -despicable thing to do, but I don't believe that anyone placed in the -same circumstances would have done otherwise. - -We had now been very nearly a month at Muscat, and the artificers from -the _Intrepid_ had not quite finished my engine-room defects, when one -morning, four or five days after Jassim had been secured, an urgent -signal came from Commander Duckworth that he wanted to see me at once. -I had a presentiment that something had gone wrong at Jask. - -I was right. As I went into his cabin the Commander sang out: "You'll -have to go across to Jask after all, and as soon as ever you are ready. -There's more trouble there. One of the European telegraph people has -been killed somewhere along the coast by a marauding lot of brigands who -have cut the wire again. Fisher dare not send his people to repair it -without an escort, so you had better go across and see what you can do. -When can you start?" - -"By midnight, sir," I told him, having taken the precaution of finding -out before I left the "_B.A._". - -"Right you are! Off you go! I don't fancy that there is anything -serious. If there is you can telegraph for me and I will bring the -_Intrepid_ along. Good-bye! Good luck!" - -What a grand chap he was! I left his cabin feeling that he had not -hampered me with any restrictions whatsoever, and had placed entire -confidence in my judgment. If only senior officers would always treat -their juniors in that way they would not so often have to grumble at the -way they are served--and, what is more important still--they would make -more efficient officers of them. - -I met Popple Opstein outside. For once he had shipped a long face. - -"Did the skipper tell you who has been killed?" he asked. "I'm afraid -it's our poor little friend's brother. What rotten hard luck on her if -it's true!" - -In my excitement at getting this job I had never thought. Of course it -must be Borsen; he was the only other European there. Poor fellow! -Poor little sad-eyed slip of a girl, she would be weeping her heart out. - -I had a burning feeling inside me, and I wished that I could have -started off then and there to blow a dozen or more of those cowardly -treacherous Baluchis to atoms. - -"I wish I could come along with you," my chum said wistfully. "I'd love -to have a 'go' at them!" - -He tried to get leave, but without success, so back I went to the -"_B.A._", angry, and impatient to get away. - -"Good-bye, old chap! Tell her how very sorry I am," he called after me. - -"Right you are!" I shouted back, but had an uneasy thought that perhaps -she was still too angry to allow me to speak to her. - -I told Mr. Scarlett the news, rather expecting him to show the old -half-frightened expression, and was quite taken aback when he smiled and -said: "A chance of our seeing a bit more scrapping--eh, sir?" He said -it as if he, too, rather looked forward to such a thing happening, and I -had to look again at his face to make sure. Well, his disposition -seemed to be changing, and as there was nothing else to account for the -change except the parting with the snake I put it down to that. - -It was splendid the way those artificers and lascars worked to finish -their job. They knew why they had to hurry, and they toiled and sweated -in the heat of the engine-room like demons. - -By half-past ten that night we were ready. I sent the _Intrepid's_ -artificers back to their ship with something inside them to warm their -stomachs, flashed across the "Permission to part company", and steamed -out of the harbour. - -"He won't be there very long now," Mr. Scarlett grunted, jerking his -thumb towards the fort, whose towers and walls showed up above us in the -moonlight. - -I really had forgotten Jassim, and did not care how soon he bribed the -jailers and got free. I despised myself for having allowed him to be -kept there. - -Off we went to Jask---easily at first, to give the engines a chance of -settling down; later on as fast as they would whizz round. - -We were all so impatient to get there that however fast they went the -"_B.A._" seemed to crawl along. - -At ten o'clock next morning we met the fortnightly mail-steamer coming -from Jask, on her way to Muscat and Hartley semaphored across to ask if -all was well there. - -Someone on board took in the signal and answered "Yes," to our great -relief, and then I asked if the two ladies from Jask were on board. - -"No," was semaphored back, and I was half-glad and half-sorry--glad to -know that I should see them, sorry that another fortnight must elapse -before another steamer would give them a chance of escaping. - -By noon the little white telegraph buildings showed up over the horizon, -and two hours later I steamed close in under the rocks on which they -stood, and anchored. No white handkerchief fluttered from the -signal-mast. Poor little lady, if it was her brother who had been -killed she must be somewhere inside those white walls in a terrible -state of grief. - -I landed immediately. - - - - - *CHAPTER XV* - - *A Tragedy of the Telegraph* - - -As the keel of the dinghy grated on the sand, and I scrambled ashore, -Mr. Fisher, the acting political agent, came down the path to meet me, -looking so thin and haggard I scarcely recognized him. - -In answer to my eager questions he told me that he feared Borsen had -been killed, but was not yet certain. - -"Five days ago the poor chap went down the coast on his usual monthly -duty of paying the local people at the different relay stations along -the telegraph-line. He took with him a Goanese telegraphist and half a -dozen native employees. The party rode away on their camels, and the -next I heard of them--two days later--was a telephone message that they -had seen some wandering parties of Baluchis or Afghans and had been -warned, by a friendly village where they had halted, that they might be -attacked and robbed. He intended to send the pay-chest, that night, -secretly, to the next village and to push on after it next morning. - -"A message came from him to his sister, next morning, saying that he was -thoroughly enjoying himself and wished she was with him--that was to -allay her anxiety. Within an hour the Goanese telephoned in that he had -been killed, but the message was then interrupted, the wire was cut, and -we have heard nothing since. Quite probably this man was killed as -well. - -"All we know is that the wire was broken somewhere about twenty-eight -miles away, and that when I took a large party out to try to reach the -spot, we found the coast swarming with brigands and were glad enough to -get back safely. We only returned a few hours ago, and now I want you -to take us down there as quickly as you can. It is our only chance of -finding any of the party alive--and a very poor chance, I'm afraid." - -Of course I was ready to go anywhere or do anything. He and his party -were "standing by" to embark, and some ten or twelve natives were -already coming down from the telegraph-station with folding-ladders, a -portable telephone apparatus, coils of telegraph-wire, and repairing -tools. They also brought with them a roughly-made coffin, and, as fast -as they arrived, I sent them aboard the _Bunder Abbas_. Whilst Griffiths -was pulling the dinghy backwards and forwards I asked Mr. Fisher how his -wife and Miss Borsen were bearing up. - -"Wonderfully well," he said, his face twitching. "Women sometimes make -us men almost ashamed of ourselves--they are so patient and brave." - -The dinghy had returned for us, and just as we were stepping in we heard -a girl's voice calling, and saw poor little Miss Borsen standing behind -us, looking the picture of misery and distress, so sad and so pale under -her big, white topee that I felt horribly sorry for her. I saluted and -tried to show my sympathy. As I did so she flushed scarlet, and as -quickly every trace of colour left her face; she seemed to freeze, and -only bowed in the most distant manner. I knew that she meant this as a -direct "cut", to remind me that she had not yet forgiven me for carrying -her over the swamp that night. - -Speaking to Mr. Fisher, and ignoring me, she implored him to take her. - -He tried his best to dissuade her, but she insisted on coming. - -"Do you mind if she comes?" he asked, turning to me. - -"Not at all," I answered coldly, as if she were a complete stranger. -"Anybody you care to bring may come." - -I looked to see if that hurt her, but she gave no sign whatever that she -had heard. I felt angry to be so snubbed, and a brute to feel so -enraged with her just when she was so miserable; but I could not help -it. - -So they both came aboard with me, and an extremely uncomfortable trip it -was--squeezed up together in the little dinghy as we were, with Miss -Borsen ignoring me completely. - -However, I was sitting where I could see her profile, and she looked so -utterly woebegone and lonely that my anger died away, until we got -alongside, when she smiled so sweetly on Mr. Scarlett, as he helped her -out of the boat, that I was furious again. I beat the feeling down, -and, as she evidently loathed the sight of me, kept away, giving her and -Mr. Fisher the use of the cabin and the little deck aft of it, and -rigging up a screen for'ard of it, so that she need not see me whilst I -took the "_B.A._" out of harbour. Percy fetched my pipe and tobacco, and -I smoked furiously and fumed inwardly all the way down the coast, unable -to avoid hearing Mr. Scarlett, on the other side of the screen, spinning -one of his most exciting yarns and trying to take her thoughts away. - -However, he soon found that was no use, and came for'ard to me shaking -his head. "Poor little lady! Poor little soul!" - -Percy was a fickle youth. Whilst Popple Opstein had been aboard, on -that amusing "Prodigal Son" adventure, he had transferred his worship -from Mr. Scarlett to him. Now he transferred it again to Miss Borsen, -and waited on her hand and foot, standing by with his big eyes fixed on -her as if she was some beautiful angel come straight down from heaven -into this little world of his. He was such a nuisance that Mr. Scarlett -had to drag him out and drop him down the ladder on to the fo'c'sle. - -Mr. Fisher joined us presently, and we three, through our glasses, -examined the shore and desert plains running inland behind the line of -telegraph-posts. Before we had steamed ten miles we saw numerous bands -of mounted men moving about the dreary wastes, and Mr. Fisher was on -thorns to get back as quickly as possible to the telegraph-station -(which was now without a white man), and kept on saying: "I must send my -wife and Miss Borsen away by the very next steamer. I don't like the -look of things at all." He also told me that he had tried to make them -go by yesterday's mail-steamer--the one we had "spoken"--but that Miss -Borsen would not go until she had definite news of her brother's fate, -and his wife would not leave her at Jask alone. "They'll have to stay -there for another fortnight now," he said, shrugging his shoulders. - -"She doesn't seem very pleased to see me," I said bitterly. - -"I'm afraid you rather annoyed her the last time you were here." - -"How? Carrying her over that swampy place?" - -"Yes," he nodded; "she thought it an insult." - -"If she never gets a bigger insult than that she won't do badly," I -answered angrily. "However, I'm sorry; but she won't let me tell her -so." - -At last, about half-past four, Mr. Fisher thought we were abreast the -place where the last telephone message had come from--the five hundred -and twentieth telegraph-post I think he said it was--so I turned the -"_B.A._"'s bows inshore, with Ellis heaving the lead every few seconds, -to warn us of shoaling water. - -It was a shallow, sandy bay with nothing to be seen on the desolate -shore except the endless line of telegraph-posts. I anchored three -hundred yards off and took ashore Mr. Fisher, a native telegraphist, and -the portable telephone apparatus. - -They connected this to the telegraph-wire and tried to call up Jask. If -Jask answered, we were on the near side of the cut wire; and, as Jask -did answer, it showed that the spot where the tragedy had taken place -must be still farther away. - -So back to the "_B.A._" we went, and I heard Miss Borsen asking Mr. -Fisher, with a half-sob, whether he had found anything. - -We weighed anchor and felt our way, carefully, still farther along to -the east'ard. - -Presently the signal-man shouted to me that he saw someone on the beach, -and, looking through my telescope, I made out a man hopping down towards -the water's edge on one leg and waving his arms to attract attention. - -I called out to Mr. Fisher that we had found the place, pushed the -"_B.A._" in as far as I dared, anchored, and he and the man with the -telephone-box came ashore with me. - -"The wire's cut about two hundred yards on the left," Mr. Scarlett -shouted after us. "I can see it trailing on the ground." - -Griffiths pulled us in to the spot where the man--a Goanese he was--was -waiting for us, squatting down close to the sea. As I jumped ashore I -realized why he had been hopping--his left foot had been roughly hacked -off above the ankle. He was gesticulating and sobbing, jerking his head -backwards and forwards. Raving mad I thought him; certainly he was -half-delirious, and as he held out both his arms towards us I shuddered, -for he had no right hand, only a stump of a forearm. - -"Right hand, left foot--a common custom," Mr. Fisher said, quite calmly, -as he let him sip from his water-bottle and tried to calm him. - -Presently he was helped upright, and went hopping through the sand to -the top of the beach, where he clung to a telegraph-pole, close to the -foot of which were the remains of a wood fire and what I took to be -charred sticks. - -He began speaking very rapidly. - -He stopped, and Mr. Fisher led me away just as the repair party landed -about two hundred yards farther along the beach. - -"Would you mind going and giving them a hand? They will work better if -you do. I must stay here." - -I thought his request strange. His manner was very strange: his eyes -were burning with fear and disgust. - -I did as he asked me and walked along to where the telegraph-wire lay on -the sand, coiled in spirals like a snake. The repairing people were -very smart at their job, fixed a rope and tackle from one cut end to the -other, and then hauled taut the great length of wire between the two -nearest telegraph-posts, mounting their portable ladders and fixing -things in a most seamanlike way, until they had the wire as taut as they -could haul it, with six or seven feet of rope tackle bridging the gap -and the two cut ends of the wire hanging down. Then they commenced to -put in a splice, and worked so cleverly and systematically that I was -quite interested. - -The sun was getting close to the horizon by the time the wire was -properly joined together and their work finished. Mr. Fisher came to -see the job, and the telephone-box was brought along and messages sent -into Jask and to the nearest relay station on the other side. - -"Well, that is done," he said, with a sigh of relief, "until they cut it -again." - -The repairing people took their gear back to the "_B.A._" and we were -left alone. He took me to where we had landed, and I saw the mutilated -Goanese sitting close to the coffin, which I had not noticed being -brought ashore. - -"Did you find Borsen's body?" I asked. - -He nodded very sadly. "Yes; all that was left of it--a few charred -bones. They had cut him in pieces and burnt them." - -I shuddered, and knew that what I had mistaken for charred sticks had -been bones. That was why he had sent me away. - -There was nothing more to say, and we stood looking out over the sea, -with rage burning within us, at the thought of the hideous, useless -tragedy which had taken place at this spot only two days ago. - -The glorious sunset was bathing everything--the sea, my little launch, -the shore--in a flood of molten gold, shading to the tenderest pinks as -it reached the barren mountains standing up so clear and sharp against -the silvery, green sky behind them. The radiant glow threw our shadows -and the shadows of those gaunt telegraph-poles slanting across the -sands, far across the trackless desert towards the feet of the -mountains. If we moved our bodies, our shadows swept in huge arcs -across the infinite silence, and, as we moved our arms, shot out huge, -ghastly tentacles horrid to see. The setting sun seemed to mock us in -its beauty, to laugh and say: "See, I rejoice in the wild wastes of -eternal sands. I wash their edges with my golden sea. I paint them -with my wondrous tints, and your ghostly shadows, and the shadows of the -telegraph-posts you have dared to place there, are the only blots on my -fair handiwork." - -A beautiful sunset generally gives me a feeling of hope and of trust in -a glorious future. That evening I felt myself trembling with an -ill-defined fear of impending danger, and as though we and that lonely -telegraph-line had trespassed, had forced ourselves and our civilization -upon a land where nature, primitive and unchanged, held her sway, and -that we too should have to pay the penalty of our vandalism, even as -poor Borsen had already paid for his. - -The dinghy was coming ashore, her sides glowing with light, the blades -of her oars dropping showers of golden spray as Griffiths lifted them -from the surface of the sea. - -I stirred myself as the bows rasped on the beach, and helped to carry -the coffin into the boat, not daring to look behind me. It was very -heavy, and I looked enquiringly at Mr. Fisher. - -"Sand," he said, and I understood. - -The poor Goanese had crawled a little distance away, and was digging at -the sand with one hand. We found that he had buried his -telephone-box--the one by which he had sent that interrupted message -into Jask, and we quickly brought it to light. I knew what the look of -satisfaction in his eyes meant--he had saved it from falling into the -hands of the brigands, and had been faithful to his trust. The fellow -deserved a V.C., but seemed perfectly contented when Mr. Fisher spoke a -few words of praise to him. - -We pulled away from the appalling loneliness of the telegraph-wire and -gaunt poles, and as we came alongside, the sun slid down below the -horizon, and Hartley, the signal-man, struck our little ensign. - -What Mr. Fisher told Miss Borsen I do not know. I heard him take her -into the little cabin, slide the door across, and leave her there. The -port-holes were close to me as I stood by the compass giving orders to -the helmsman, and her broken-hearted sobs seemed to tear their way right -through me. Poor little fragile, lonely thing, and I had been so -fiercely angry at her scorn of me! I would have given the whole world -for her to forgive me and to be able to comfort her. - -Presently her sobs ceased; possibly she slept. I dared not look through -the port-holes to see, and gave my orders in a whisper lest they should -disturb her. You could not hear a sound aboard the _Bunder Abbas_ except -the noise of the engines and the occasional tinkle of cooking-pots as -the dismal cook went on with his everlasting washing of them. - -On the way back to Jask Mr. Fisher told me all that he had been able to -learn from the Goanese. The morning after Borsen had sent off the -pay-chest all his native employees deserted, so he and the Goanese had -to continue their inspection alone. They thought that the brigands would -not molest them; but when these cruel brutes galloped up and found the -money-chest gone, they were so enraged that they had killed Borsen, -mutilated the Goanese (as you know), and galloped away again. They -probably thought that the wretched telegraphist would die of sun and -thirst, and so he would had he not bravely crawled to the wire, dragging -the telephone-box after him, and with consummate pluck, considering the -horrible agony he must have been in, had thrown up the connecting wire -till its hook caught the telegraph-wire overhead, and enabled him to -send the message into Jask. This was the message which had been -telegraphed to Jask, from there to Muscat, and had brought us a hundred -and twenty miles across the sea to save his life. He had not been able -to complete it, because the Baluchis--some of them--had ridden back and -cut the wire between him and the telegraph-station. There he had been -for more than forty-eight hours without one drop of water. It was -indeed marvellous how he had survived. - -On the way back, Percy and the dismal cook prepared as lavish a meal as -our little meat-safe and a small store of tinned food (kept for special -occasions) could provide, but I was in no fit mood to eat, and stayed -alone at the wheel. I steered to the south'ard, to get well away from -the land before laying off my course to Jask, picked up the light shown -from the telegraph-station some time before midnight, and anchored close -in under the rocks. - -I believe that Miss Borsen slept all the way back. Poor little lady, the -strain of the last two days must have been awful, and she must have been -dead tired. I thought that the sight of me would increase her misery, so -I did not go down on deck when Mr. Fisher took her ashore. - -Leaving Mr. Scarlett to see that everything was fixed up for the night, -I turned in, weary in mind and body, and dreamt once more that I was -carrying Miss Borsen down the path from the telegraph-station, pursued -by a score of mounted Baluchis, and that Griffiths was trying to bring -the dinghy ashore, but had lost one oar and was turning circles. I was -yelling for him to come my way, when Jassim suddenly appeared between me -and the sea. - -I jumped up in a perspiration, and found Mr. Scarlett bending over me. - -"What's the matter, sir? You're making a terrible noise. I had to give -you a shake." - -I murmured some apology, and he left me to sleep again. - -Mr. Fisher had asked me to go up to the telegraph-station early next -morning, and so I did, landing in time to have some "chota-hazri" with -him in the veranda. The old head-boy, wearing his best yellow turban, -came forward for my helmet, and smiled a greeting. - -"Have some coffee; there are some bananas too--yesterday's steamer -brought them," Mr. Fisher said. - -I asked him how Miss Borsen was, but he did not know. His wife had been -with her all night, and he had not seen her. - -He tried to talk of many things, but with manifest effort. At last he -blurted out: "The truth is, affairs are in a very unpleasant position. -It's impossible to disguise the fact any longer. Our coolies, and even -some of the house boys, are leaving us. They all say the same thing: -don't want to go, but they have wives and children, and they don't want -to be killed. They are going to their village, and presently, they say, -they will come back. 'Presently' means," he said bitterly, "if the -tribesmen don't kill us all. There is no doubt in my mind that they -intend to attack this place. Almost daily I get warnings from the Mir -of Old Jask, who's a feeble, well-meaning old chap, with all he can do -to look after his own town, and quite unable to spare us any of his -soldiers. Not that they would be of any help. I've tried them, so know. - -"You see," he continued, "I have no absolute proof of any rising more -formidable than what has just occurred. No one knows what is going on -behind those beastly mountains. I've sent plenty of warnings both to -Karachi and to Muscat (I knew that), even to Teheran; but the answer is -always the same: Sit tight, and if anything definite happens, let us -know. - -"Well, you are here, that's something; and I don't mind telling you that -the presence of your little launch makes all the difference in the -world. Up there, right away beyond those hateful hills (he had risen -and was pointing away towards the gaunt Baluchistan ranges), in every -village for a hundred miles or more, it is known you are anchored here; -and the head-men at this very moment probably are deliberating whether -they had better not keep quiet till you steam away." - -"I'm hanged if I'm going!" I said, rising too. "If I'm ordered away I'll -break down my engine and take a month to repair it." - -He smiled. "I want you to come round our little defences with me and -make suggestions. We have nineteen Eurasians here who can be trusted -with rifles. If the worst came to the worst we might hold out for a -week until help came; but I wish with all my heart that those two women -were not here. It's getting on my nerves. I find myself peering through -the big telescope up there hour after hour, searching the desert. I -can't tear myself away from it, and at night I can't sleep. This place -at the best of times is one of the worst holes in the world, and after -being stuck here for two solid years my mind is so enfeebled that it is -almost impossible to concentrate my thoughts. - -"Oh, I forgot to tell you!" he continued; "I sent a telegram to -Duckworth last night informing him of yesterday's proceedings." - -I had forgotten all about doing this, so, before any reply could be -received, I wired again that I considered it advisable to remain at Jask -on account of the disturbed condition of the surrounding district. -Commander Duckworth might laugh at my self-assurance for imagining that -the little "_B.A._" could be of much use, but I did not think that he -would--nor did I care, so long as he did not order me away. My whole -aim in life now seemed centred round the forlorn little lady with the -sad grey eyes; and even if she would not make friends with me again, I -hoped to be able to protect her. I knew perfectly well that this was -the impelling force which decided me to remain there. - -The telegram having been sent, Mr. Fisher took me round the whole -position. - -As you know, the telegraph buildings were built on the rocky end of the -peninsula and surrounded by a strong, loopholed wall. He explained to -me that there was no probability of an attack either from the sides or -from the end, because the Baluchis and Afghans hated the sea, and -nothing would induce them to get into a boat. - -If they came, they must attack along the neck of the peninsula, and up -the open, sloping space below the wall. Across this, as you already -know, there was a small breastwork of earth, with a still smaller trench -behind it, looking much more like an elongated vegetable-marrow bed than -a defence work and, fifty yards lower down, two rows of barbed-wire -railings stretching across from sea to sea. - -Five hundred yards away, on the narrowest portion of the peninsula, and -commanding the landing place to the east--on our right as we looked -inland--was the ruined sheikh's fort, or Old Fort, which I had explored -on my first visit. It was half-hidden in a fold of the ground and by -some date-palm trees. A thousand yards away on the western side--our -left-hand side--commanding the beach and landing place there, was the -new sheikh's fort, or New Fort, where the custom-house officers had been -hanged by the Baluchis on their way back from destroying Bungi and -Sudab. Between these were perhaps a score of native "matting" huts. -The whole of the sloping neck of the peninsula afforded no cover -whatever; but on the right side of the slope, just between the line of -barbed-wire and the baby entrenchment was a line of more substantial -huts belonging to the coolies and other servants of the telegraph staff. - -I don't pretend to be a soldier; but it struck me immediately that this -line of huts must be destroyed. It interfered with the fire space from -the loopholed wall. Also I told Mr. Fisher that the half-ruined -sheikh's house--the Old Fort--must be pulled down, as it would give -grand cover for an attacking force. - -He shook his head. "I daren't do that; it belongs to the Mir of Jask." - -"If you don't pull it down, blow it up," I said, smiling. "You can tell -him it was an accident." - -All sorts of plans ran through my head. I suggested this and -that--twenty different schemes--and rather swept Mr. Fisher off his feet -with suggestions. "The first thing to do?" he asked, passing his hand -nervously across his forehead, as if he only wanted to be told one thing -at a time. - -"Blow up the Old Fort!" I told him, and he promised to start right away, -as soon as he could get hold of his people. He took me up on the roof -of the signal station, where the big telescope stood on its tripod, and -I had a grand view of the surroundings of Old Jask, eight miles away, -and the wriggling track which led to it round swampy inlets of the sea; -of the dreary wastes of sand stretching east and west as far as the eye -could see till they lost themselves in the mountains; of the -interminable telegraph-poles dwindling away in the distance along the -shore line to the east'ard and to the west'ard (to our left as we looked -down), of the little _Bunder Abbas_ under her now trim awnings, and of a -cluster of dhows moored close to the new sheikh's fort and the village -of New Jask. - -From force of habit Mr. Fisher slued round the telescope and diligently -searched the plains at the foot of the mountains, in whose ravines and -valleys the wild tribesmen were concealed. - -"Can't see a single band of them this morning," he said with much -relief. "The _Bunder Abbas_ is the cause of that." - -Afterwards I returned aboard her and sent Hartley, the signal-man, to -the telegraph-station, so that I could communicate with Mr. Fisher and -he with me at any time. I also sent Jaffa to Old Jask to try to obtain -news in the bazaar there. - -That done, I had a yarn with Mr. Scarlett. A great change had come over -him since he had got rid of his snake bracelet. I am sure he was -fatter; the lines in his face were certainly not so deep, nor his eyes -so sunken. He had lost that furtive look in them and that vulture -appearance. He received the news that I was going to stay here, and -that there would probably be some fighting, with positive pleasure. - -"Anything we can do to help the poor little lass sir! Now, a Maxim, -that's what's wanted up there (pointing to a prominent corner on the -flat roof of the main building); from there it could sweep the whole -approach. We might lend 'em one of ours if it came to the pinch. Eh, -sir?" - -"Right oh!" I told him. "Directly we get permission to stay, you can -mount one there." - -Permission did come, Hartley semaphoring the telegram that very -afternoon, and Mr. Scarlett waking me to give the good news. I could -swear that he was as pleased as I was. - -For the next few days I spent most of my time on shore, landing at -sunrise and supervising, in a sort of way, the destruction of the ruined -sheikh's house, and the strengthening of the breastwork and the wire -entanglements. I say "in a sort of way", because neither Mr. Fisher nor -I knew which of us should take entire charge of the defence -preparations, with the result that there was a lot of unnecessary work -done and some muddling. At any rate the one or two charges exploded in -the walls of the Old Fort did not do much damage, and I did not care to -interfere. - -Meanwhile Mr. Scarlett busied himself preparing the corner of the roof -of the telegraph buildings and placing big balks of timber behind the -parapet to receive the mounting of a Maxim, if the occasion arose. In -spite of the desertion of most of the servants, labour was plentiful, -natives of all nationalities and shades of colour clamouring for a job. -Many of them were Afghans and Baluchis, and probably were spies; but the -only information they could give was that we were expecting an attack -and preparing for it, which it was good for them to know. We set these -people to work strengthening the barbed-wire fence and the -"vegetable-marrow" trench. - -At first I had most of my meals with Mr. Fisher and his wife--Miss -Borsen never joined us. In fact, I never saw more of her than a flick -of a skirt as she fled round a corner one day when I had appeared -unexpectedly. She was so obviously avoiding me that it became most -unpleasant, and later on I never went to the house unless I was obliged -to do so. - -This worried me a good deal--the fact of her refusing to forgive me, I -mean---and took away a great deal of my enjoyment. - -In spite of this the days went past very quickly. Hartley occasionally -saw bands of mounted people wandering about the plains and the coast, -but the telegraph-wire was untouched. Jaffa could report nothing more -definite than a general feeling of uneasiness; trading dhows came and -went, and, day after day, trains of camels and donkeys shuffled -backwards and forwards through the eight miles of sand to Old Jask, -loading or unloading them. - -Indeed, the only exciting incident was the sudden bursting of a strong -"shamel", which scattered the dhows and compelled me to raise steam and -take shelter from it round the other side of the peninsula. - -A fortnight passed, and the mail-steamer had called and left again -without either of the two ladies. This time it was Mrs. Fisher who -would not leave her husband, and Miss Borsen who would not leave Mrs. -Fisher; so they both stayed--out of a mistaken and foolish sense of -duty--much to Mr. Fisher's secret grief. - -Then the blow fell, the morning after the steamer sailed. - -Of course I always slept on board, and just as daylight was dawning I -was awakened by hearing a tremendous fusillade. Mr. Scarlett and I -jumped up, peering ashore in the direction from which the noise came, -and saw a great number (a multitude they looked in the indistinct light) -of people on camels streaming right along the peninsula, firing rifles -as they rode, whilst a furious burst of firing farther away, in the -direction of the new village and the New Fort, told us that another band -must be attacking that. - -The crew of the _Bunder Abbas_ were tumbling to their guns, and Mr. -Scarlett jumped down on deck to see that everything was ready. - -Fascinated, I watched that mad rush of shrieking, firing natives. -Leaping off their camels, two or three hundred of them began advancing -up the slope towards the telegraph building, stopping to fire, moving -on, and stopping again. - -"For God's sake get those guns going!" I yelled down. - -"In a minute, sir, in a minute!" Mr. Scarlett's voice, calm and -collected, came back. - -I clutched the railings and gasped as I thought of those two women up -there and wondered whether the door through the loopholed wall was -closed or not--it was not light enough for me to see. If it was -open--God help them! - -By this time the leading Baluchis--or whatever they were--were almost up -to the line of the barbed-wire; but then I was intensely relieved to -hear a few shots popping off from the telegraph buildings, so knew that -some of the people had had time to seize their rifles. - -"What the devil has gone wrong? Why don't you open fire?" I bawled, as -the first of the attacking party reached the barbed-wire. It stopped -them for a moment, but then they began throwing their loose cloaks -across it and scrambling over. - -Now was our chance, and, mad with fury, I dashed down below, yelling to -the six-pounder and Maxims' crews to open fire. Mr. Scarlett was not -there, nor Moore. Someone told me they were below, aft, and I heard a -smashing of woodwork, jumped down, and found them smashing open the door -of the magazine. I seized a box of Maxim cartridge-belts and simply -heaved it up through the hatchway. In a mad rush of Mr. Scarlett, -myself, Moore, and two or three others we were on deck again with a box -of six-pounder ammunition between us. As we dragged it forward the -marines and Ellis, with his seamen, were pulling the Maxim belts through -the breech-blocks; and as we wrenched off the cover of the six-pounder -cartridge-box I saw that the crowd of Baluchis were already swarming -over the line of breastworks. The long cartridge was thrown into the -empty breech of the six-pounder, and as I darted up the ladder to the -upper deck it fired. A moment later both Maxims opened too. - - - - - *CHAPTER XVI* - - *The Siege of Jask* - - -Fortunately the _Bunder Abbas_ was lying broadside on to the shore, so -that all three of her guns were able to bear on the ground leading up to -the telegraph-station--about fourteen hundred yards away. I reached the -upper deck and looked ashore just in time to see the first six-pounder -shell bursting on the open slope, close to a group of fifty or sixty of -the enemy, who had already reached the breastwork. Some had jumped down -into the little trench, others were still clambering over the earthwork. -Most of them were firing their rifles, though (as far as I could see -through my glasses) without taking the trouble to aim--in fact they were -practically firing in the air. As the shell burst among them they -swerved aside, just as minnows do when you drop a stone among them, but -still went on. Another shell made them swerve again and scatter a -little more widely, but did not stop them. A Maxim was wanted--not -shells. - -Although both Maxims were firing very rapidly, Ellis and Webster did not -seem able to find the range. This may have been due to excitement or the -uncertain light. At any rate, from where I was I could see, quite -plainly, the bullets tearing up the ground near the end of the -barbed-wire fence, some two hundred yards this side of where the -Baluchis were crossing it. - -I yelled down that they were going short, and actually watched the -furrows advancing until in another moment those streams of bullets had -reached the poor wretches and simply ploughed lanes through them. These -people made such a fine target that Ellis and Webster instinctively kept -firing at them, and more time was lost before I could make one of them -slue his gun round to support Moore's shells. When he did so, the -rushing, yelling crowd, who were scrambling across and beyond the -trench, seemed to melt away, and only a few were left alive--some to -fall back into the trench, where they lay comparatively safely, and -others to take refuge among the mat shed huts belonging to the telegraph -employees--the huts I had so often implored Mr. Fisher to burn. -Ellis--I think it was Ellis--was still "playing" the Maxim on the barbed -fence, and was not able to see, or too excited to realize, that he was -only firing on dead men lying heaped in masses, or sprawling singly over -the fence. I shouted down to tell him not to waste more ammunition. - -At this time there were not more than perhaps twenty of the enemy to be -seen, and these were doing their best to escape, crawling and creeping, -dodging towards those confounded huts. - -I stopped the Maxims and ordered Moore to fire a few shells among the -huts, hoping to set fire to them, or at any rate turn out the Baluchis -taking shelter there. Before he could do this my fellows began -shouting: "More are coming, sir; look, sir!" and I saw another horde of -chaps dash out from the Old Fort and the dip in the ground round it, -rushing up the slope as the others had done, but keeping away to their -left, to avoid the mangled heaps of their tribesmen huddled near the -barbed-wire fence. - -They were already within fifty yards of the huts before we could swing -our guns round, only to discover that whilst they kept on the far side -of the slope the curvature of the ground protected them to a certain -extent, and we could not reach them easily. Only their heads could we -see, their heads and their arms brandishing rifles. - -We let rip at them without doing much damage, if any, for I never saw -the rush waver. But then they came to the barbed fence, and climbing -over it they made a better target. They must have suffered horribly, -but at least a hundred passed it and disappeared among those huts to -join the remnant of the first rush. - -I guessed what would happen. Directly they had regained breath the -whole crowd would dash for the loopholed wall. - -I yelled for everybody to "stand by" and train their guns on the upper -slope. - -"They'll be in the open in a minute!" I shouted, and glued my glasses to -my eyes. It was quite light now. Turning for a moment to the -telegraph-station, I saw Hartley trying to semaphore something from the -top corner. Rifles were poking out through the loopholes, and, thank -goodness, that door in the wall was shut. - -Shooting was still going on everywhere--one could not distinguish -exactly from where. - -"Drop a shell among the huts and turn 'em out," I called down. "Stand -by with the Maxims to follow them when they break cover." - -Moore fired twice. Then, as I expected, a regular horde of Baluchis -rushed out from among the huts, yelling and firing their rifles, making -a most appalling din as they swarmed up the slope. - -But they were in full view and entirely exposed. The Maxims swept -through them; the six-pounder scattered bits of iron and stones amongst -them and tumbled many over like rabbits. But we could not stop them -all, and before I realized it the wave of men--thinned, it is true, but -still numerous--had swept to the foot of the white, loopholed wall -itself. The desperate savages were leaping up to grab the top, climbing -on each other's backs, poking their rifles through the loopholes, and -hammering at the door with their rifle butts. And at this very time the -Maxims stopped firing; so did the six-pounder. - -I dashed below. - -"Go on!" I shouted. "Go on! Why the devil ain't you firing?" - -"We'll hit the telegraph people, sir!" they called. - -"Don't worry about them--fire--fire--carry on the Maxims," I yelled, "or -they'll be inside in a moment." - -I cared not a rap whether we killed all the telegraph people, so long as -we kept the Baluchis outside. Miss Borsen wouldn't be anywhere near the -wall, so we should not hurt her. - -The Maxims began pumping out more lead--by good fortune they worked -splendidly, the belts jerking through like lightning--and in less time -than it has taken me to write this the Baluchis had begun to fall back. -Once they were clear of the wall Moore opened on them with shell, and -though these shells do very little damage in the open they kept them on -the run whilst more Maxim belts were being slipped in. - -They fled back to the huts almost too quickly for the guns to follow -them. From the rear of the huts they burst forth, trying to keep out of -sight; but as they came to the wire-fence they had to climb over it, and -one of the Maxims was waiting for them and played terrible havoc. The -remnant simply flew down--their heads showing beyond the contour of the -slope--till they disappeared among the date-palm trees round the Old -Fort. - -My fellows began to cheer--they had been too busy before--and the -lascars and all the other natives danced about and cheered too--Percy -wildly excited; all except of course the cook and his mate, who were -busy preparing the men's cocoa, and were apparently still contemplating -their usual early suicide directly the saucepans had been cleaned again. - -Jaffa, left to himself, had been firing a rifle. He looked pleased and -happy. As for Mr. Scarlett, he was beaming. - -"Drove 'em 'Balooks' back all right, sir!" he said, rubbing his hands. -"They've learnt a lesson or two, those poor wretched devils," and he -jerked his thumb towards the open sloping ground, which now looked as if -a fierce gust had blown the washing out of a laundry and distributed it -unevenly over the ground. - -I asked him what had been the matter at first, and why he had broken -down the doors of the magazine. He told me that as Moore had run aft -with the key he had dropped it overboard in his excitement. This was -Moore all over. Just like the idiot he was! - -We now had time to look towards the village and the New Fort. - -Only a very occasional shot came from that direction, and through our -glasses we saw that the parapets and battlements were black with -figures, so knew that the Baluchis had captured it. The trading dhows -were being hauled off-shore and were putting to sea, their crews working -desperately to save them from falling into the hands of the Baluchis; -the bay was full of their frightened cries as they hoisted their clumsy -sails and tried to gain safety. - -Just then bullets began to fall round us, and soon we were under a -brisk, long-range fire--apparently from the fugitives round the Old -Fort. It was so badly aimed that it was hardly enough to disturb us but -a badly-aimed bullet is just as dangerous as a well-aimed one--if it -happens to find a billet. So whilst the Maxim crews were getting up -more ammunition and reloading belts, I made Moore throw a few shells -close to the Old Fort. The first few they stood but at the seventh we -had the gratification of seeing them bolt back into a fold of the ground -close to the landing-place on the other side of the peninsula. They -drove their frightened camels into this shelter and were safe from any -tokens of "esteem" we could send them. - -Just then someone called my attention to the telegraph buildings. I -looked and saw the door in the loopholed wall thrown open, and men began -filing out and racing down the slope--a man in pyjamas leading them. It -was Mr. Fisher. Why they were coming out goodness only knows; but down -they ran, apparently with the idea of manning the trench and breastwork. -They had almost reached it before I remembered that some of the enemy -might possibly be there still; and, sure enough, as the leading ones -leapt into the trench on one side, I saw thirty or forty Baluchis, who -had been hidden from us on the other side, spring up, fire point-blank, -and leap over, dropping their rifles and slashing with swords as they -jumped down among them. We could not possibly give assistance; we could -not fire into the mêlée, and stood stock-still, holding our breath, -watching the hand-to-hand struggle. It probably did not last fifty -seconds, though it seemed more like fifty minutes, and at last the -telegraph staff began to retreat uphill. Luckily very few--not half a -dozen--followed them; the rest contenting themselves with lying down and -firing. - -Mr. Scarlett, without orders, took the risk and fired a shell among this -lot, and made them scramble over the breastwork again out of sight. The -others stopped as well and came back. - -Mr. Fisher, in his pyjamas, tried to lead his people to charge down once -more; but they would not follow him. Instead, they fell back inside the -loopholed wall--the white figure being the last to enter--and I breathed -again when the door was once more closed. - -We now had all we could do to prevent the _Bunder Abbas_ being damaged -by the fleeing dhows. Their crews had quite lost their heads. One -fouled us amidships and tore a stanchion out before she drifted clear; -another, having cut her "grass" hawser cable, drifted helplessly right -across our bows, with our little cable tautening under her bottom. Every -single soul of us was trying to shove her free, and I had to veer cable -before she eventually scraped past, hanging up for a moment as her -projecting stern caught in the stem-post and carried away another -stanchion, which let the whole fore part of the awning fall over the -six-pounder gun--and over us too. If only the Baluchis had taken -advantage of this moment we could have done nothing. Luckily the poor -wretches were disheartened, or perhaps they never even saw their chance. - -Away inshore, by the New Fort, there was much yelling and screaming. -The whole village was humming like a hive of bees disturbed--the -inhabitants fleeing along the beach and staggering under their -valuables, until some shots, apparently from the New Fort, fell among -them, when they dropped their burdens and fled all the faster. The -enemy in that fort commanded the track to Old Jask, and these poor -wretches had to make a great circuit before they could hope to reach -safety. - -Honestly, I had not imagined that an attack would have been delivered -with so little warning. As Mr. Scarlett said: "It was not at all like -their usual way of doing things." They ought to have come along in the -daylight, settled themselves across the base of the peninsula, and then -sent in a messenger to ask for a ransom, failing which they would storm -the place. That had always been the custom in this part of the world, so -both Jaffa and Mr. Scarlett assured me. - -It was not very flattering to our own military instincts and preparation -for defence to realize that if they had not begun firing their rifles -almost before they had reached the neck of the peninsula, and long -before they ever commenced to dismount from their camels to charge up -the slope, they must have taken the telegraph-station by surprise. We -should have heard or seen nothing until too late; and I really went cold -"all over", to think what would have happened inside those walls with -the _Bunder Abbas_ absolutely powerless to interfere. I knew now, -though I did not know it before, that none of these people can control -themselves; they must let off their rifles to work up their courage to -the charging-point, and must continue wasting ammunition to keep it -there. - -The extraordinary thing was that Jaffa had ridden nearly twenty miles -inland only yesterday, and had actually visited several villages at the -foot of the mountains, without obtaining any warning whatever. - -Hartley began signalling again from the top of the roof. - -"Two men killed and two missing," I read. "Mr. Fisher wishes to know if -you can clear the trench. There are fifty or sixty of the enemy still -there?" - -I'd forgotten them. - -I called out to Mr. Scarlett and asked him whether he thought we could -turn them out with shell and Maxims. We both agreed that we could not -do so without expending more ammunition than we could afford. - -"Right oh! We shall have to land and drive 'em out!" I said. - -He was very anxious to come with me. - -"Don't leave me this time, sir," he pleaded, and I could not help but -wonder at the change which had come over him. - -He saw my look of surprise and burst out with: "I am a different man -now, sir; I feel a different being altogether since I got rid of that," -and he touched his left arm. I shook my head and told him that he would -have all he could do to keep the main body back if they had the heart to -come along again. - -I semaphored to Hartley to tell Mr. Fisher to keep up a fire on the -trench, so as to occupy the minds of those chaps still there, and in -half an hour landed in the dinghy, just below some rocks at the end of -the barbed-wire fences, with Webster, Jones, and Gamble. Sending the -dinghy back for Ellis, Andrews, and Griffiths, we dashed to the top of -the beach and lay down between the end of the fence and the breastwork. -Until they came it was a very ticklish position to be in; for if those -fifty or so "Balooks" had spotted us, and had the "heart of a worm", -they might have "done for" all three of us. - -We lay there absolutely motionless, glued to the ground, whilst the -noise of casual firing from above told us that the telegraph people were -doing what I'd asked them--firing at the trench farther along. Not a -hundred yards from us rifles began answering them. It was a great -relief when the dinghy came back and Ellis, Griffiths, and Andrews -joined us. - -Then we rose, fixing bayonets and rushing up and across the open to the -wretched breastwork, much too excited to worry about how many chaps we -should find there. I knew that the trench had no traverses--we had -never thought them necessary; so once we scrambled over and into it we -should be able to sweep the whole length of it with our rifles. - -We just caught sight of the ghastly heaps of dead lying at the foot of -the fence a little farther along, some actually leaning over as if they -were alive. Then we saw some live Baluchis lying down on our side of the -breastwork, too busily engaged plugging at the loopholed wall to think -of danger behind them. - -Directly we saw them we yelled--we could not restrain ourselves any -longer--and as we rushed for them they saw our bayonets, squealed with -fright, and leapt across the breastwork into the trench. We were after -them in a moment, each racing to be first, jumping the breastwork with a -bound, and seeing them flying helter-skelter to the far end. I jumped -clean on a wounded man, who wriggled up and tried to slash at me with a -sword; but I was away before the blow touched me. We simply emptied our -magazines into these chaps and they never gave us a chance to close. A -few fell, but our aim was too wild to account for many, and most of them -scrambled out, over, and down towards the barbed-wire, like a lot of -rabbits making for their "bury". We knocked over one or two as they -flung themselves over the wires, and the rest simply dashed down the -slope to join the main body hidden in the hollow. - -A faint cheer came from the loopholed wall, and I heard a cry of disgust -from my own men. Looking back I saw them bending over the corpse of -what had been one of the Eurasian telegraph people. It was horribly -mutilated. - -A little farther on another lay dead, mutilated in the same hideous -manner. It made me sick to look at them. - -In fact the whole place was a shambles. There must have been nearly a -hundred--perhaps more--bodies dotted about in little white heaps near -the fence and the breastwork, the heaps being more scattered between the -breastwork and the wall where the Maxim had caught them in their final -rush. Along the foot of the wall corpses lay singly. What grand-looking -men they were, too, with fierce high-bred faces. It was a horrid -business. - -The edge of civilization! Yes! I was there again, and the only -satisfaction this slaughter gave was the knowledge of what the fate of -those two poor frightened women would have been had the attack -succeeded. - -I don't want, in this yarn, to worry anyone with the thoughts which -flashed through my head on this or that occasion, but I should like to -write just this and have done with it. To stand quietly, as I was doing -then, on that slope where not many minutes previously four or five -hundred raging men in the prime of life had rushed up with the one idea -in their souls to "kill or die", "kill or die", and to see now the -huddled, white-cloaked figures lying all round, so calm and still and -dignified by death, made me feel wearily sad. - -It was my duty to kill them--I was sent there, on the edge of -civilization, to do so--and it had fallen to my lot to do it. "Kismet!" - -It was only one more wave of fanatical, unthinking, misdirected -barbarism broken again as it tried to wash back the advance of -civilization, and civilization cannot and must not cease to roll back -such waves, in the eternal progress of the world. I remembered the day -I had walked so jauntily out of the Admiralty with every contempt for -the roar and bustle of traffic and trade, and every nerve tingling with -delight at soon leaving it for the edge of civilization; and now that I -was there, and had done a man's work with the tools and engines of war -which civilization had put in my hand, I was neither pleased nor proud. - -It was all too cruel, too brutal, all so meaningless and useless a waste -of life. These men had died because we prevented them, by every means -in our power, from obtaining more rifles. They only wanted them to -carry on their family and tribal blood feuds, to raid other tribes, and -to shoot our own soldiers across the Indian frontier. But to these poor -wretches this was their whole duty in life, and they knew that the -telegraph-cable was one of their chief enemies--it could give warning of -attempts to land arms; it could summon ships from below the horizon to -prevent them being landed: so they had laid down their lives in the -endeavour to destroy it, and had left their waiting wives to teach their -fatherless children black hatred of the white man, and to bring them up -with the one idea, later on, when they were big enough to hold a rifle, -of trying to revenge their fathers' deaths and beat back--in their -turn--advancing civilization. - -Standing among all these heaped-up corpses I could not help thinking -what a wailing there would be when these grand men did not return to -their village fastnesses in those grim mountains standing up like a huge -wall against the horizon. - -A rifle suddenly went off close to me. Turning, I saw Webster open his -breech and jerk out a cartridge. - -"A wounded chap tried to stab me, sir," he said in explanation. - -That was the worst part of it. The wounded never expected anything but -death, and wanted revenge before they died. It was not the slightest -use trying to attend to their wounds, in fact it was dangerous to go -anywhere near a man, even though he looked as dead as a stone--he might -only be pretending to be dead and waiting his opportunity for you to get -close. I ought to have given orders for my men to go round and shoot -every one with any sign of life in him, but this I absolutely refused to -do. The poor, ignorant wretches should have the chance of crawling down -among their own people--if they could. - -I called my men away, and, carefully avoiding every patch of tumbled, -distorted bodies, went up to speak to Mr. Fisher, whom I saw coming -towards me--still in his pyjamas--a revolver in his hand. - -He was quite cool. "Thank you very much!" he said simply. - -"How is Miss Borsen," I asked eagerly, "and your wife?" but he did not -know. He had not seen them since the first alarm. - -"What will these Baluchi chaps do now?" I asked. - -"Baluchis!" he said. "Most of them are Afghans, the real fighting -Afghan; there are only a sprinkling of Baluchis. I don't know what they -will do, but they've had such a lesson that they'll probably be off -again to the hills to-night. I've sent off a wire to Duckworth to tell -him that we've been attacked and that you beat them off by fire from -your launch." - -He seemed undecided what to do. He still hesitated about burning those -confounded huts which had already caused so much trouble. He did not -want to irritate the employees who lived there, and kept on saying: -"We'll wait till the morning; there probably won't be a sign of them -then." - -But he gladly accepted my offer to mount one of my Maxims on top of the -station, and I went back to the _Bunder Abbas_ with my people to send it -ashore as quickly as possible. - -Already some at least of the Afghans were recovering their fright, for -as we marched down to the beach we came in for a sharp "sniping", and -Jones the marine was shot through the arm. He dropped his rifle and -swore at Gamble, thinking he had struck him; then he looked at the -place, shook his fist towards the Old Fort, picked up his rifle with the -other hand, and came on. - -It was the same arm which had been hit during the engagement with the -Afghans at Bungi whilst we were trying to get old Popple Opstein out of -his trap. - -Once aboard the _Bunder Abbas_ I took charge and sent Mr. Scarlett -ashore with the Maxim. - -He was delighted to go, unshipped it and lowered it, with two thousand -rounds of ammunition, into the dinghy, and set off ashore with Jackson -and Ellis to help him. - -Some of the telegraph coolies were waiting to carry it up the slope, and -as I ate some breakfast which Percy had ready for me, and afterwards -smoked my pipe, I watched the three of them busy mounting it at the -corner of the parapet. - -Before leaving the _Bunder Abbas_ I had ordered steam to be raised, and -directly the lascar first-driver reported the engines ready I signalled -to Mr. Fisher that I intended to steam round to the other side of the -peninsula and try to teach the enemy another lesson. - -This I did, and, as I expected, found them totally unprepared for my -approach. They must have seen the _Bunder Abbas_ getting under way and -steaming out, but possibly imagined that she was going to sea. At any -rate, as I suddenly appeared round the head of the peninsula and the -rocks there, I found them crowded together, almost on the shore, among -their camels. - -They appeared to be asleep, but woke with a fright when Moore let rip a -shell among them. - -As they rose to their feet I turned the _Bunder Abbas_ round and gave -them a taste of the Maxim as well. - -They had had one lesson at daybreak; they now, at midday, had a still -harder one. It was pure, undiluted slaughter; but, though sickening, -was absolutely necessary. They fled helter-skelter inland, leaving -their camels to fend for themselves, rushing behind the ruins of the Old -Fort, and, when a couple of shells drove them out of that, flying -panic-stricken in a long straggling line--the devil take the -hindmost--through the sand-dunes towards the mainland, many of them -making a long detour in the direction of the New Fort. What I did hate -to see was the poor, wretched, wounded camels hobbling about, falling -down, and struggling to their feet again. - -Having cleared this side of the peninsula I went back and anchored at my -old billet. From there I could see the remnant of the enemy huddled -round the walls of the New Fort. I might have stirred them with a few -more shells, but did not. Mr. Scarlett signalled presently that the -Maxim was mounted and ready, so I ordered him to bring Jackson back to -the ship; Ellis and Hartley between them would be able to work it, and I -was too short-handed already to spare anyone else. Mr. Scarlett was -very pleased with himself and with the splendid fire zone which the -Maxim he had just mounted could sweep. He had seen the ladies, and said -that though they were very white they seemed fairly cheerful. - -I asked if they'd sent any message to me. - -"Mrs. Fisher did, sir, but I'm hanged if I remember what it was -exactly." - -"Did Miss Borsen?" I asked, trying to hide my nervous anxiety to know -whether perhaps what had occurred might have made her show signs of -forgiving me. - -I felt miserable when he shook his head. "Not as I remember, sir." - -There were two things that troubled him: those confounded huts, which -rather interfered with his beloved Maxim, and that breastwork. He -pointed out that there were not nearly enough men to defend the -breastwork, and that it formed admirable cover for an attacking force. - -"We ought to level it in, that we ought," he said, shaking his head. - -Of course he was right. Hadn't we seen what had happened that very -morning? - -"Mr. Fisher expects them to clear away back to the hills to-night," I -told him. "What do you think?" - -He shook his head again. "They don't seem to be carrying out their -usual routine; not a bit of it. They ought to retire--that is, if -experience is anything to go by. I don't like the look of them -occupying the fort; it looks as if they meant to stay." - -When I asked him whether he thought the Mir of Old Jask would attack -them, and endeavour to recapture his fort, he only made a grimace. - -All that afternoon there was absolute quiet except for an occasional -shot from the New Fort and also a few shots fired on the slope itself, -where the telegraph coolies were busy dragging the dead into heaps and -burning them. These last shots told me that some of the wounded Afghans -had had to be dispatched. - -Mr. Scarlett was so anxious for me to try to get a "move on" Mr. Fisher -about burning the huts and levelling the breastworks that I went ashore -later in the day and again urged him to do this. - -Nothing I could say could make him realize the necessity. "I am certain -they'll all have cleared away home by to-morrow morning. We'll wait -till then. Besides, I dare not overwork the coolies. If I do they will -desert," was all I could get out of him. - -I suggested that it might be advisable to send Mrs. Fisher and Miss -Borsen on board the _Bunder Abbas_ for the night; but he declined for -the same reason as he declined everything else--that he expected the -Afghans to disappear before morning. - -"Do you know that you are responsible for much of this?" he said, as he -walked backwards and forwards with me outside the loopholed wall. - -"Responsible! What do you mean?" - -"Why," he said, "they all know of the loss of that huge caravan over on -the Muscat coast--the one you and the _Intrepid_ captured between you. -It they had got those rifles and all that ammunition through to the -Indian frontier there would have been another 'rising' there. They were -only waiting for them before giving the signal to the tribes along a -hundred miles of the frontier to pour down through the passes and lay -waste the valleys and murder the tribes living there under British -protection. They all know this, and to-day they have been trying to -revenge themselves for their lost opportunity. I've seen among the -killed several men I know: powerful sheikhs, Arabs from the other coast, -leading men from Afghan villages. It is a bigger business than I -thought at first. - -"However, they will probably be gone by the morning, and you may pride -yourself that but for your capturing that big caravan the other day, the -Indian Government would have had another little war on its hands. - -"Oh," he added, "I'd almost forgotten! I had a wire from Muscat. The -_Intrepid_ has gone off up the coast after some more arms." - -I went back to the _Bunder Abbas_ rather elated at the idea that I had -helped to stop a little war, and remembered what Commander Duckworth had -said: "They ought to do something for you." It was rather early to -expect promotion, but it would be grand if it came. - -"Can't budge him," I told Mr. Scarlett. "He still thinks they'll have -gone back home by the morning. The _Intrepid_ has gone after some more -arms so we shan't be disturbed till she gets back. That's one good bit -of news." - -Just before sunset a small dhow came drifting slowly into the bay. She -was flying the Muscat red flag and did not seem to notice anything -unusual, or that the anchorage was deserted of shipping, so I sent Jaffa -across to warn her nakhoda of what was happening. Jaffa came back to say -that he was very grateful and would put to sea again, but had several -passengers for Old Jask who preferred to land and would take shelter at -the telegraph-station until things were quiet. I saw them later -on--three cloaked figures--land on the beach and make their way up -towards the loopholed wall. - -We also saw numerous little spirals of blue smoke rising into the air -round the walls of the New Fort, so knew that the tribesmen were -preparing food; and Hartley, just about this time, signalled that he -could see a large mass of mounted people moving across the plains in our -direction. This did not worry us. We, Mr. Scarlett and I, were quite -happy. From what he told me it was out of the question that, even -though they did not retreat that night, they would attempt an attack. -Their ideas of war and sieges were to attack at dawn; it was a tradition -to attack at dawn, and seldom had they been known to attack at any other -time. - -The sun was setting now in its usual magnificence; everything--the -rocks, the telegraph-station over them, the sandy shores, the walls of -the New Fort, were flooded with delicate rose tints. The mountains -behind and the few wisps of clouds overhanging them were suffused with -the same delicate colours, and out from behind them rose the -moon--nearly full--and we knew that directly the sun's light vanished -her light would take its place and enable us to defeat any attack -(almost inconceivable) that the Afghans might attempt. - -We only had to keep vigilant watch, and if they tried to rush the slope -again we should see the white-cloaked figures as plainly as in daytime. - -I kept the first watch that night, Griffiths with me. At about ten -o'clock flames burst out ashore, in the direction of the New Fort, and -soon it was evident that the whole of the village was on fire. It was a -grand spectacle as the flames spread from hut to hut, leaping high in -the air, lighting up the walls of the fort, even the white walls of the -telegraph buildings, and making the water of the bay and the brasswork -of the _Bunder Abbas_ glow red. - -The flames and crackling were still fierce when Mr. Scarlett relieved me -at midnight. In his opinion the Afghans had set the huts on fire -purposely, and were probably retreating inland under cover of the heavy -cloud of smoke which lay above them. - -I had four hours in which to sleep, so, stretching myself on my bed, I -lay down on that little upper deck outside our cabin, leaving him and -Gamble to keep the "middle" watch. - - - - - *CHAPTER XVII* - - *Jassim Takes his Revenge* - - -At four o'clock in the morning Mr. Scarlett shook me and reported all -quiet and the fire on shore dying down. I scrambled to my feet to take -over the "morning" watch, feeling as fresh and wakeful as though I had -not been to sleep for a fortnight! - -The moonlight was very brilliant, so brilliant, indeed, that the -telegraph buildings on the dark rocks and the New Fort on the white sand -stood out quite as boldly as in the daytime; and all that could be seen -of the remains of the fire was a glowing line of red-hot ashes extending -along the beach, where the village had been. - -The slope leading up to the loopholed wall was so flooded with light -that I could distinguish even the barbed-wire fence and the shadows of -the wires and uprights. - -Of the Afghans themselves nothing whatever could be made out; but this -did not imply that they had gone away, because most of them might be -sleeping inside the fort and the others behind it, and at the base of -the peninsula the fringe of date-palms threw such extremely dark, -puzzling shadows that the camels might have been concealed among these, -or even been driven farther along behind the sand-hills without our -having noticed any movement. - -At any rate, whatever had or had not happened, I was not going to leave -anything to chance, or take any risks: so the rest of the hands were -called and stood to their guns; cocoa was served out; and to make sure -that Ellis and Hartley were on the alert I made a flashing signal to -them. As it was answered I knew that they, too, were "standing by" -their Maxim. - -After this there was nothing to do but strain our eyes shorewards and -wait for daylight. In the half-hour when the increasing light of dawn -is absorbing the light of the moon and rendering the outlines of objects -uncertain and ill defined, this waiting for an attack is always most -scaring. It makes no difference how often one experiences this feeling -of acute tension, it always seems to occupy one so completely that not a -soul moves or speaks; even breathing is a difficult matter, and breaths -come in deep jerks, only when they can be held no longer. - -But if the strain is great when the moon is there to help, it is ten -times as great when there is no moon and the first glimmer of daylight -distorts everything so strangely and forms such strange weird shapes. - -How grateful we were to the moon that morning! - -Daylight did come at last. The fading shadows under the fringe of -date-palm trees showed us hundreds of motionless lumps which gradually -outlined themselves into camels; figures began moving about among them, -and out from the door of the fort streamed many more to kneel on the -sand, facing the glory of the rising sun, throw their arms above their -heads, and bend at their devotions. - -This might only be the preliminary to an attack; so still we remained at -our guns, until the sight of many little spirals of blue smoke rising in -the calm morning air, and the little groups of men seated round -them--evidently cooking--made it absolutely certain that they did not -intend any such thing--not that morning. - -"That finishes the business," Mr. Scarlett said, drawing a deep breath, -and letting it out again with a jerk. - -We had been so certain--Mr. Scarlett and I--that they would have done -the one thing or the other, and now they had done neither; they had -simply stayed where they were, in complete possession of the base of the -peninsula, and entirely cutting it off from any assistance from Old -Jask. - -Mr. Scarlett shook his head and shrugged his shoulders. He could not -understand these tactics. - -"It ain't like 'em, sir; it ain't like anything I've seen or heard of -before, and I don't care about it," he said, as I dismissed the men from -the guns to get their breakfasts and scrub decks. - -Whilst they were doing this we were startled suddenly by the sound of -rifle firing, a long way off, in the direction of Old Jask, and drawing -rapidly nearer. Without waiting for the order, the crew tumbled up from -below to their guns, but no one could see anything happening. At first -we made sure that another band of Afghans were attacking the old town; -but this could not be so, because the people round the New Fort seemed -even more startled than we had been. They sprang to their feet, seized -their rifles, and whilst some began to "round up" the camels, driving -them close to the wall, others poured into the fort itself. - -Whilst we were wondering what all this meant, the battlements of the -fort became alive with dark turbans; puffs of smoke darted out from -them, and the reports of their rifles came across to us. At what they -were firing we could neither see nor guess. - -At last, after firing had been going on continuously for four or five -minutes, Mr. Scarlett saw a cloud of dust, and, looking in the direction -of his finger, I made out a number of mounted men--some on horses, -others on camels--advancing over the plain from Old Jask. Spurts of -light, showing in the cloud of sand dust over their heads, told us that -it was from them we had heard the first firing. - -"It's the old Mir's border police coming to recapture the fort," Mr. -Scarlett sang out. "Now you'll see some pretty fighting. Just -remember, sir, that they are mostly Bedouins from the other coast, and -they and the Afghans hate each other like poison. Now watch what's going -to happen." - -I did; we all did. - -The line of men came charging up to the base of the peninsula, sweeping -away to the right and wheeling round the bend of the swamp lying there, -until they were not more than two thousand yards from the fort. Firing -from both parties was continuous. Then for a moment I lost sight of -them behind some sand-hills, and expected, when next they appeared, to -find that they had dismounted, left their horses and camels in rear of -those sand-hills, and were attacking properly--with short rushes or -something of that sort--although I was puzzled to think what they could -effect against the thick walls of the fort. - -Instead of this they reappeared in sight--in somewhat looser formation -certainly, but still mounted--and galloped madly along the intervening -sand, firing rapidly, whilst the fusillade from the parapet and towers -of the fort swelled furiously, and the people who had driven the camels -under cover of the walls lay down to fire as well. - -The attacking party came to five hundred yards--to three hundred; none -of them seemed to have been hit. Still they galloped, the men on camels -bringing up the rear left far behind. Then the horsemen suddenly -divided into two parties, and, yelling and firing their rifles, they -circled completely round the fort, enveloping it, meeting in the rear of -it, and dashing round again. A continuous splutter of musketry burst -out from the walls above their heads, without, as far as we could see, -doing the faintest damage. In fact, the firing was so wild that a good -many bullets began falling round us, and one banged against the funnel -close to where I was standing. - -The circling rings of horsemen grew larger as they curveted and pranced -in the clouds of dust kicked up by their own horses' hoofs, until they -all swooped off like a flock of birds and gathered in a knot about half -a mile from the fort; whereupon the firing died down almost completely. -Every now and then a horseman darted out from among them, dashed towards -the fort, gave a display of horsemanship, fired his rifle, performed -some circus tricks, and then dashed back again. - -I was so interested and amused that I forgot that the fort was well -within range of our six-pounder. - -"Let's help them," I shouted, ordering Moore to "plug" a shell at the -fort. - -Mr. Scarlett only laughed. "You'll see what happens." - -Our first shell burst short, burying itself in the sand; the second blew -a hole in the soft bricks of the fort; and before we could fire a third -the whole covey of those border police had whirled round and galloped -rapidly away, quickly disappearing in another cloud of dust on their way -back to Old Jask, still firing their rifles furiously. - -I don't believe that a single man of them had been hit. - -"Shall we cease fire, sir?" Mr. Scarlett asked. "We haven't enough -ammunition to waste any more on the fort." - -"Right oh!" I nodded. - -The horsemen of the party had galloped off, but the few men on camels -who had been left in the rear had evidently "rounded up" some of the -Afghans' camels, for they now reappeared beyond the sandhills trying to -drive a dozen--perhaps more--in front of them. - -Immediately there was a stir among the Afghans outside the wall; more -poured out through the door of the fort, and in a twinkling they were -after them on foot, wading across the swamp so as to head off the party -with the camels. Firing burst out more furiously than ever, and it was -not many seconds before the captured camels were abandoned and the other -fellows followed the horsemen. - -"Well, sir, that little 'show' was what they call a battle--a regular -'pitched' battle," Mr. Scarlett said. "How they decide who's won beats -me. It's an accident if anyone gets killed or even wounded, but those -Bedouins will go back and pour out a long yarn to the old Mir; every one -of them will have to give an account of the fierceness of the fight, and -probably they'll all desert during the day and go looting on their own -account--looting peaceful villages, which is much more in their line. -We may as well let our chaps, and the Afghans too, go on with their -breakfasts." - -In ten minutes the whole of the tribesmen were squatting round their -fires again as though nothing had happened. - -Now that we knew they had not retired--had no intention of doing so--Mr. -Scarlett was as anxious as I was that those huts should be burnt, the -breastwork levelled, and the trench filled in; so I went ashore to try -to persuade Mr. Fisher to make a start on these jobs. - -I found him much more surprised at the non-retirement of the Afghans -than we had been, and very much more disappointed. In fact, he looked -about as worried as any man could look. He took me up to the house so -that I could personally assure his wife that the _Bunder Abbas_ would -not leave them. She was in a terrible state of alarm, almost beside -herself; her eyes were terrified, and she clutched my arm so tightly -whilst she was imploring me to stay that her finger nails left deep -marks. - -"Why don't you send for the _Intrepid_? We shall all be killed," she -said in the most agitated manner; and it was quite useless to tell her -that the _Intrepid_ had gone up the coast and that we could not -communicate with her. When she did let go of my arm her hands worked -convulsively at her sides, and I no longer wondered why her husband -looked so worn. - -Miss Borsen was not there, of course, and I had not the courage to ask -after her. In fact, I was very glad to tear myself away and go up to -the Maxim on the roof, to see for myself whether it could sweep the -whole slope. - -Mr. Scarlett had told me correctly. The Maxim had a grand position, and -no one could approach without coming under its fire except towards the -right, where it was possible to creep up unseen behind those huts. - -Ellis and Hartley had filled old flour-sacks with sand and placed them -along the parapet, on each side of the gun. They were busy bringing up -more, and were quite happy. "If only those huts were out of the way, -sir, nothing could get near us," Ellis said; and though I again implored -Mr. Fisher to burn them he still refused. He took me to see the two -wounded Eurasians--one shot through the arm and the other badly slashed -about the head. They were bandaged in very "shipshape" fashion, and -looked comfortable enough. - -"Who did that?" I asked, pointing to their dressings; and when he told -me that Miss Borsen had looked after them, as she knew something of -"first aid", I envied them for a moment. - -He had now only fifteen of the telegraph staff remaining, and, as he -said, none of them knew anything about fighting. He was doubtful about -trusting rifles to the servants and telegraph employees, because these -were of all nationalities--Zanzibaris, Baluchis, Tamils, and various -half-castes; but he had collected the rifles strewn over the slope -yesterday when those fellows had been shot down--nearly a hundred of -them there were, of all patterns. Very little ammunition had been found -on the dead bodies, and that, too, was all mixed up--Mauser, Mannlicher, -Le Bras, Lee-Metford, Martini--all in a hopeless jumble. He promised to -have them sorted. - -Then I was taken all round the outside of the loopholed wall, and -discovered--what I had not thought of before--that it was possible for -an enemy to crawl along the rocks on the eastern side--the right side -looking inland--without being seen, to clamber up them, and attack that -flanking wall without exposing themselves. However, the man who -designed the wall must have realized this and had built it nearly -fifteen feet high, so that unless they brought ladders with them it -would be difficult to scale. The cable-house--a little square building -into which the cable from Muscat wriggled out of the sea--stood isolated -on the rocks, and could be attacked at night with impunity. - -Walking round the rear wall I satisfied myself that no attack could be -made from that quarter, because the rocks at the end of the peninsula -could only be reached in boats, and as the sea was always rough there at -this time of year a landing was out of the question. The western -side--the one looking over the bay where the _Bunder Abbas_ was -anchored--was fairly safe, though here again a daring enemy might creep -round by the beach (where I had just landed) and attack from short -range. However, so long as the _Bunder Abbas_ remained (or had -ammunition), and the nights were moonlit, this possibility did not worry -me. - -Mr. Fisher kept on complaining of the few men he had left--fifteen all -told--which was a ridiculous number to protect all three of the -vulnerable sides; but I implored him to arm the servants and any of the -labourers he could trust, and gradually convinced him that this was -safe. - -As we came back to the front side I saw that thirty or forty men were -already shovelling the breastwork back into the trench. This pleased -me. - -Then he took me through the door--covered with bullet marks and the -dents of rifle butts--as I wanted to see where best to make a defence -should the wall itself be captured. I went all round the buildings, and -came to the conclusion that his own house would be the most suitable. -It was strongly built; it had a raised veranda running round it, and was -almost overlooking the left-hand corner of the loopholed wall--the -corner nearest to the _Bunder Abbas_. This was the house on the roof of -which the Maxim was already mounted, and from the parapet there it would -be easy to pick off any Afghans who had gained a lodgment on the wall -itself. Another point in its favour was that the well was close to -it--in the rear. - -I urged him to get sand-bags and pile them up round the veranda and in -the open door-ways or windows. I also urged upon him the necessity of -bringing in food from the telegraph stores and also all the reserve -ammunition. All my arguments could not convince him that this was -necessary, and he pointed out that, whatever happened, he could not -abandon the telegraph instruments in the other building. - -"We must keep them working at all costs," he said stubbornly. - -He had not said this many seconds before up came a messenger, followed -by an excited Eurasian "operator", to tell him that the overland wire to -Karachi had been cut again some fifteen miles out. - -"That solves part of the difficulty," I said, smiling. "You cannot pass -on cable messages, so won't want so many of the staff at work." - -He too seemed relieved, and told me that half his fellows had been -lining the wall all last night and the other half working the -instruments. "They can't keep awake twenty-four hours out of the -twenty-four. Now they'll be able to get a little sleep. - -"Oh, I forgot," he went on; "a dhow which came in last evening brought -some passengers for Old Jask. They stayed here during the night, and are -waiting to see me at my office, though how they think I can get them -through I don't know. By the way, they brought a letter for your -gunner. I've been carrying it about in my pocket. Here it is," and he -handed me an envelope addressed in Arabic. "You might give it him." - -I caught sight of Miss Borsen coming towards us and evidently wishing to -speak to Mr. Fisher; so, as I did not want to worry her with my -presence, and had done all I wanted to do, I took the letter and went -down the slope to the dinghy and so back to the _Bunder Abbas_. - -"Here's a letter for you," I told the gunner. "It's not Jassim's -writing this time." - -He grinned as he read it. - -"It's from the governor of the Muscat fort. He says that Jassim's got -out. I didn't imagine he'd keep him there long after my back was -turned." - -"Well, he won't bother us here," I said, much more amused to think how -Mr. Scarlett's dread of him had disappeared than alarmed at any possible -danger to myself. - -For the rest of the morning and afternoon we kept a good look-out, in -case the Afghans made any move; though, except for a few small foraging -parties, they simply slumbered or smoked at the foot of the walls, -shifting round with the shade as the sun travelled westwards. - -It was a great temptation to stir them up with a few shells; though, if -we had done so, we should only at the best have driven them out of range -and out of sight, and once out of sight we should not have been able to -observe their movements. There was another reason--a much more pressing -one: we had none too much six-pounder ammunition. - -An hour before sunset Mr. Fisher made a signal that he wanted to see me -again, and he came down to the beach to meet me. The Afghans had sent a -messenger in to say that they would attack at dawn next morning with -twice as many men as they had had yesterday, and he wanted my advice. - -"Of course it's only bluff," he said nervously; "but I want you to -persuade my wife and Miss Borsen to go aboard the _Bunder Abbas_." - -On the way up to the door in the loophooled wall he took me along the -trench to see how well his people had been working. They had filled in -about a hundred yards of it, and were still busy. Those wretched huts, -however, still stood there, right in the line of fire. - -"Why the dickens don't you burn them?" I said, really angry, and he was -muttering a half-apology when some noise behind me and a warning shout -made me turn round. - -Not ten yards from me stood Jassim. I knew him at once--how could I -forget him?--his face flaming with hatred, the veins of his neck -standing out; and in his hand he held a Mauser pistol levelled at me. - -He fired, and instinctively I ducked, seized a spade which was lying at -my feet, and dashed at him. Mr. Fisher drew a revolver from his pocket -and I heard him fire. Then I felt something hit my chest on the right -side. It tumbled me over like a rabbit; but I was up again on one knee -in time to see Mr. Fisher fire a second shot and Jassim stagger back. He -still had those awful eyes fixed on me, glaring death, and as he raised -his pistol again I rolled into the trench to escape being hit a second -time. - -Something filled my throat, and I spat up a lot of bright blood, and -felt dazed and foolish. I was trying to get to my feet again when Mr. -Fisher came to me with a face as white as a sheet, jumped into the -trench, and made me lie back. - -"There!" I said, spitting up more blood; "he got me there," and I put my -finger where the bullet had hit me. - -I felt no pain whatsoever--only a peculiar half-drunk feeling--and tried -to sit up again; but this only brought on more coughing, and Mr. Fisher -pressed me down. - -Then I knew that I should be no more use--only a burden to everyone. - -I looked up at him apologetically. - -"Get me aboard the '_B.A._'; I shall be all right soon:" but the effort -of speaking forced more blood into my mouth, and I had to stop. - -With a frightened expression on his face he bade me stop talking and lie -still. - -"I'll have you carried down," he said; "wait till we can get a -stretcher." - -By this time there was a whole crowd of people round me, though I seemed -hardly to notice them; someone put my topee over my eyes, to shield them -from the slanting sun. - -Presently, as if in a dream, I heard Mr. Fisher's voice. - -"He's shot through the lung--the right side, thank God!" and someone -touched my wrist very gently; and although I could not see her, on -account of the topee over my face, I knew it was Miss Borsen's hand. My -mouth filled with blood again, and everything became quite dark and -peaceful. - -I opened my eyes, feeling most horribly weak, and not knowing what had -happened or where I was. - -Opposite me were two parallel streaks of white light, and these seemed -to hypnotize me. I could not move my eyes from them for a long time; -but gradually my brain pulled itself together, and my sense of -surroundings came back. I was in a square room with shutter-closed -windows all round it. Deep shadows on the whitewashed walls seemed to -come from a lamp behind me, and I was lying on a little trestle-bed. -Presently I realized that those two streaks of light were made by the -moonlight forcing its way in through cracks in one of the shutters, and -just below them I saw something white resting on a chest of drawers, and -recognized my own topee. - -I noticed that I could hardly breathe; something seemed to be squeezing -my chest, and I put up one hand--very shakily--to find out what it was. -As I did this there was a rustle behind my shoulder, and a very small -white hand took hold of mine and put it back where it had lain, and Miss -Borsen's voice, sounding ever so far away, told me to lie absolutely -still and not attempt to speak. - -I felt so extraordinarily weak--just as if I had lost all control of -myself--that I obeyed without the slightest effort to resist. I did try -to turn my head, but it seemed to be wedged on each side with pillows, -and a finger she placed on my forehead stopped me immediately. - -I lay quite still, staring at the ceiling and the round patch of light -thrown on it by the lamp, until all that had happened came back to me. -I looked at my topee to make sure, and the hard luck of being knocked -over just when there was so much to be done made me so miserable that I -could not help groaning. - -"You must not make the least noise or speak; you must not move your -hands or feet; it's your only chance," Miss Borsen said, speaking from -the head of the bed: and her voice had such a soothing, hypnotizing -effect that I closed my eyes and seemed to float away into space almost -immediately. - -When I woke again Mr. Fisher was sitting by my bedside. He turned -quickly when my eyes opened, and he too said the same thing: "Lie -absolutely still, and don't speak." - -He saw by my face that I wanted to ask him something, and guessed what -it was. - -"Jassim is dead," he said. "I shot him." - -"Poor devil!" I thought, and was sorry. - -He then went on to tell me that Mr. Scarlett had been informed of all -that had happened, and had come ashore to see me whilst I was asleep, -and make all arrangements for the night in case the Afghans attacked. - -"We are all ready. Your two men (the signal-man and the man you sent -with the Maxim) and I are taking it in turn to keep watch down by the -fence all through the night. The signal-man is there now, and half my -fellows and twenty of the coolies are lining the wall, so they can't -take us by surprise. The greater part of the trench is filled in, and -there is nothing more to be done until daylight. I've wired to Muscat -to tell the political agent about everything, and of you being wounded, -and have asked him to inform the _Intrepid_, but she is not back yet. - -"It's nearly midnight now, and my turn for the wire fence. Keep -absolutely still, and try to go to sleep until I come back." - -He rose--his shadow was thrown on the wall as he bent over to lower the -lamp--and I heard him go out. - -But sleep was now impossible; my chest was so tightly bandaged that I -could hardly breathe, and though I counted all the cracks in the shutter -through which the moonlight was showing, counted them time after time -until it was almost maddening, sleep would not come. - -It seemed ages before I heard a very soft footstep creeping towards me, -and the lamp threw the shadow of a woman on the wall, and for a moment -the silhouette of Miss Borsen's face. - -For a second I had a great longing to ask her if she would forgive me, -but I still seemed to be under the spell of her orders not to speak or -move, and, fearful of seeing her, I closed my eyes. - -She felt my pulse, lowered the lamp the slightest degree more, and I -heard her go out as noiselessly as she had entered. - -After that the night dragged on somehow. I seemed to be rather -delirious, and fancied all sorts of strange things. At one time the -shadows on the wall took on the shape of old Popple Opstein, and I -thought we were sitting yarning on the little deck outside the cabin; -and at another they turned to Jassim, and I thought he was "coming" for -me again. Then I thought I was once more trying to carry Miss Borsen -down to the dinghy, but my feet would not move, and Jassim was after us. -It was horrid. - -With the first streaks of daylight I came to my senses again, and waited -and waited to hear the sound of firing and the yells of the Afghans -charging up to the loopholed wall. I strained my ears to catch the -noise of the six-pounder, but all was still. Gradually the light grew -stronger, people began moving about in the house, and presently, when it -was quite daylight--even though the shutters were closed--Mr. Fisher -came in with a joyous expression on his face. - -"They've thought better of it," he said. "They're still down there, but -aren't making a move. - -"Don't talk," he added as he saw I wanted to ask him something, and he -brought me a block of notepaper and a pencil. He held the note-paper -whilst I wrote in a very shaky way: "Thirsty", for I was most terribly -dry. - -He gave me some beef-tea of "sorts", holding the cup to my lips. My -aunt, but it was good! I could have drunk a bucketful. - -I pleaded with my eyes for more, but he shook his head. "Acting under -orders--Miss Borsen's orders; can't," he said, and, thinking to relieve -my mind, told me that his men were already at work on the trench. - -He could only spare me a very few moments, but came in every now and -then throughout the day. - -Ellis and Hartley occasionally put their heads inside the door to tell -me that everything was quiet, and Mr. Scarlett paid me a visit during -the afternoon. He was fearfully apologetic about my wound, and seemed to -think it was his fault entirely. In case I wanted them he had brought -me a clean uniform and my dispatch-box with all my letters. - -"I've been down the slope, sir, to have a look for that chap, Jassim," -he said, "but I'm hanged if I can find him." - -I was too weak to worry about this. - -Mrs. Fisher visited me once and tried to read to me, but the effort was -too great for her nerves, so she did not stay very long. Miss Borsen -never came near me, and it was the old butler or head boy who was my -most constant visitor, bringing me beef-tea and jelly, feeding me, and -trying to make me comfortable. - -About sunset Hartley came in to tell me that several large bands of -Afghans could be seen winding their way down from the mountains in our -direction, and when Mr. Fisher came later to confirm this, I wrote on -the note-paper block: "Send women to _B.A._," because I fully expected -that the great attack must come next morning. - -With very great difficulty he at length persuaded his wife to go aboard -the _Bunder Abbas_, but nothing would induce Miss Borsen to accompany -her. - -"She's got the idea into her head that she's responsible for the two -Eurasians and yourself, and is not going to leave any of you till you're -on your legs again," Mr. Fisher told me hopelessly. - -That night was even more unpleasant than the first, but it did at length -pass, and as the daylight crept through the shutters no attack was -made--not a rifle was fired. It was very strange, and I could not -understand it. - -Perhaps an hour later Mr. Fisher came in, looking ghastly. - -"We are isolated!" he cried. "They've crept round by the rocks during -the night to the cable-house, cut the cable, and must have had a boat -helping them, for we cannot find the sea end. I dare not send people -out to look for it; they'd never pick it up." - -I wrote: "Try. _B.A._ will help," and wrote a signal to Mr. Scarlett to -get up steam and go round to the east bay. - -Mr. Fisher promised to try, but did not see how they could succeed, as -they had no proper grappling gear. - -The cutting of the cable seemed to determine him to follow my advice -about preparing his house for any emergency. All day I heard people -lumbering in and out, and the old butler, looking scared, told me that -they were putting sand-bags round the veranda and filling the upper -rooms with stores, the most portable of the telegraph apparatus, and -ammunition. They even carried sand-bags through my room and piled them -up on the balcony outside. - -Ellis and Hartley supervised these preparations and kept me informed of -what the _Bunder Abbas_ was doing; and when, later on, I heard a good -deal of rifle firing and one or two rounds from her six-pounder, they -told me that the Afghans were sniping at the boat whilst it was trying -to grapple the end of the cable. - -I could not help wondering whether this was very soothing to Mrs. -Fisher's nerves, and I pictured her in the cabin with that six-pounder -going off just below her, and wishing that she had remained on shore. -At sunset they reported that the boat had returned, unsuccessful, and -that the _Bunder Abbas_ had steamed round to her former anchorage. - -I now had not spoken for forty-eight hours, and had lain like a log all -the time. I felt distinctly stronger, and no blood had come into my -throat and mouth since the early morning. - -I slept fairly well that third night, and was awakened from a nightmare -by real shrieking and yelling, by the firing of hundreds of rifles -beneath the windows, and the tut-tut-tut-tut of the Maxim on the roof -above me. A moment later came the comforting sound of the six-pounder -and the noise of the other Maxim aboard the "_B.A._". - -Not a soul could I hear stirring in the house, and the feeling of being -left quite alone, without knowing what was happening and how things were -going, was almost insupportable. A bullet, splintering a shutter, -flattened itself against the wall over my bed and dropped with a thud on -the floor, a shower of plaster following it, and some dropping on my -face. Outside the wall of the room there was a sound as if men were -hammering on the stonework, and I gradually realized that these were -bullets, not hammers. - -The horrid noises seemed to be drawing closer, and I thought that they -were growing louder away to the right, where those huts stood. - - - - - *CHAPTER XVIII* - - *To the Rescue* - - -As I lay there on my trestle-bed, groaning at my miserable position, -more bullets came in through the shutters and brought down showers of -plaster from the wall behind me. - -At last I could stand the strain no longer, and was on the point of -trying to reach the shutters and open them, so that at least I could see -what was happening, when Miss Borsen, white as a sheet, came in, and, -seeing me with one leg over the side of the bed, bade me angrily to lie -down and not move or speak. - -I lay down, but had to speak to tell her to crouch on the floor, out of -the way of the bullets, and the effort made more of that blood come into -my mouth. Down I lay as flat as a pancake, and she huddled on the floor -too, because, whilst she was bending over me to wipe the blood from my -mouth, another bullet had smacked up against the wall and sprinkled her -with plaster. - -She crouched there, her face twitching as the Maxim overhead rattled, -and the clamour and shrieking outside, coming from the direction of the -slope and barbed-wire fence, seemed to grow nearer and louder. - -At last the appalling uproar sounded as if it were right under the -loopholed wall itself--almost under the windows of the house. Ellis's -Maxim stopped--stopping, I realized, because the loopholed wall now -screened the Afghans from its fire; but the Maxim aboard the "_B.A._" -fired more vigorously than ever, and six-pounder shells were bursting -rapidly, one after the other, quite close beneath us. - -Miss Borsen had buried her face in her hands. Suddenly she raised -herself, and, with open mouth and eyes, listened. The character of the -yells had altered; they were screams now, they were going away from us. -The attack was failing. - -The Maxim on the roof opened again as the Afghans fell back from the -cover of the loopholed wall. I heard Ellis and Hartley shouting -joyously, and knew they had got them on the run. - -The second attack had been driven back. - -Miss Borsen gave a great gulp and sprang to a shutter, opened it, and -looked out. In a moment she had recoiled, covering her eyes with her -hands. - -"They're flying down the slope; those awful white heaps are growing near -the fence. Oh God, it is awful!" she cried, and she burst into tears -and ran away. - -Ellis's Maxim ceased firing, and gradually all became quiet. - -In perhaps half an hour Mr. Fisher ran in to see me--flushed and -excited. He stopped for a moment when he saw the blood-stain on my -pillow, but then burst out with: "We've beaten them off! we've beaten -them off! Thank God! Now they'll go! I'm sure they'll go! The Maxim -from the _Bunder Abbas_ got them whilst they were crowded under the wall -and crumpled them up--crumpled them up--swept them down!" - -Ellis came in too, grinning as he reported: "That little lot 'as gone -'ome--what was left of them, sir--'oping as 'ow you're going on all -right; but we ain't more'n 'arf a beltful of cartridges left, sir, that -we ain't. If it 'adn't been for them blooming 'uts they'd never 'ave -got near 'arfway." - -Mr. Fisher jerked out: "It's no good burning the huts now. They'll go -back to the mountains to-night! I'm certain they will! It's no use -burning them now!" - -He had been very enthusiastic about the slaughter and the terrible -punishment the Afghans had received, but when he came to count the dead -there were only thirty-two on the slope; and although that meant -thirty-two fewer Afghans, it was more than counter-balanced by a very -grave signal from Mr. Scarlett saying that he had fired forty-eight -rounds of six-pounder ammunition and eight hundred rounds from the -Maxim, leaving only thirty-five more six-pounder and three thousand -rifle and Maxim rounds on board. This meant, as I knew only too well, -that to repulse one more attack would leave the "_B.A._" practically -helpless to assist again. - -I kept this knowledge to myself, and sent a signal to Mr. Scarlett to -come and see me and bring ashore with him another thousand rounds of -ammunition for Ellis's Maxim. - -A good deal of firing began again, as if to contradict Mr. Fisher's -optimism, and I heard isolated shots, from a considerable distance, with -occasionally the smack of a bullet on the outer wall of the house, -though, as no one was with me, I did not know what was actually -happening. - -Presently the gunner arrived, with a very long face. "I was careful as I -could be, sir, but you know what it is, and things looked so precious -ugly at one time that we had to fire fast. It's my belief they simply -did it a' purpose, just to make us waste ammunition. They haven't lost -heart over it either, for they're skulking all over the place, down -among the trees round the Old Fort, and along the beach. They potted at -me all the way from the '_B.A._', that they did. They are firing at -everyone who shows his nose outside the wall, and none of these here -people can go on with levelling the breastwork. They've given that up -as a bad job and gone inside again. - -"It's a nasty bit of work this, sir, and the sooner I have you safe and -sound aboard the '_B.A._,', sir, the better I shall be pleased. And the -little lady too; she ought to come and keep Mrs. Fisher company. Mrs. -Fisher, sir," he added, lowering his voice and smiling grimly, "tried to -come ashore again, but I locked her up in the cabin before I started, -and told Percy to shove her breakfast through the port-hole." - -I smiled too, for I could quite imagine him doing this, and not wasting -any words over it either. - -"It was the only thing I could do, for the cabin's made of good steel -plate, and if she'd been left to wander round she might have been hit by -some of them bullets," he explained. - -"I'm certain we shall find them gone to-morrow morning," Mr. Fisher -cried, coming abruptly into the room; "and if we don't, the Muscat -people will know that the cable is interrupted and something wrong, so -will tell the _Intrepid_ as soon as she gets back from the coast. We -shall have her here in no time." - -"Do you know that we've only got enough ammunition for one more show -like this morning? That's a fact," Mr. Scarlett growled, turning -furiously on him. "This is going to be a regular siege; none of your -rushing and firing, packing up and going home again. Them Afghans mean -to get inside here, and if we can't stop them you can't. The sooner -everyone comes aboard the '_B.A._' safe and sound, and waits there for -the _Intrepid_--well--the sooner the better. This isn't any darned -tomfoolery business, I tell you--twenty times I'll tell you. If your -chaps can't stand a few bullets smacking among 'em down by that trench," -he went on savagely, "they'd better get along ramming sand into more -sacks, bags, anything they can get hold of, and make this house -shipshape." - -I don't think that Mr. Fisher much cared about being spoken to like -that. - -"If you can get any work out of them you're welcome to try; I can't," he -said sharply. "They've been awake and working, off and on, for the last -thirty hours." - -"Right you are, sir; you bet I will. If I can't do a bit of -slave-driving there is no one in the British Navy who can," and, taking -him at his word, Mr. Scarlett darted off. - -He had hardly gone when Hartley ran in to say that a hundred or more -Afghans had rushed up the slope from the Old Fort, and behind the -sand-hills there. - -"They've gone and 'idden among those blessed huts, sir." - -Firing broke out again almost immediately, and bullets came thudding -against the wall outside my room. Mr. Fisher darted away to line the -loopholed wall with his men, and Hartley, singing out: "They're trying -to knock out the Maxim; Ellis and me must get more sand-bags round it," -disappeared too. - -I knew that if one lucky bullet pierced the water-jacket the gun would -be useless, and I lay there listening to Ellis and Hartley cursing, as -they dragged heavy weights across the roof over my head, and to the -patter-patter of bullets thudding against the outer wall and parapet. - -Those chaps must not be allowed to stay down by the huts--that was -imperative. If they got a firm footing there the others would join them -during the night, and they would be within a stone's throw of the -loopholed wall. Others could creep round at the foot of the rocks on -the east of the building and attack the wall on that side; we could not -stop them. Mr. Scarlett and Mr. Fisher both came to my room, and both -were of the same opinion. - -"I'll signal to the '_B.A._' to plug in a few shells till they see us -come out of the door, and Ellis and Hartley can work the Maxim, whilst -we rush down and drive 'em out," Mr. Scarlett said, his eyes glowing -with excitement. What a change had come over him! - -"And we'll burn the huts whilst we're about it," Mr. Fisher added in a -crest-fallen, disappointed, rather shamefaced manner. - -The two of them went away to collect some men, and I heard either Ellis -or Hartley running down the stairs from the roof to join them. Firing -went on vigorously from the direction of those huts. I heard the buzz -of excited voices as people collected under the windows, somewhere near -the door in the wall, and waited to hear it opened and the sortie -commence. Presently "boom" came the report of the six-pounder from the -"_B.A._", and the Maxim overhead began rattling. Then the bolts of the -door were thrown back, and I heard Mr. Scarlett's voice yelling -hoarsely, "Come along," and the crush of people pressing out through the -door-way after him with rather half-hearted cheers. - -Miss Borsen entered the room and stood listening. "They've left me all -alone," she said; "I am frightened," and the next moment, with a scared -face, was at a window looking down the slope. - -"They are rushing down," she cried. "Mr. Fisher and your gunner and the -man ahead of the others. A shell has just burst in the huts. I can't -see anyone firing at them. Oh, Mr. Fisher has tumbled down! He's up -again. He's catching up your gunner." The Maxim overhead ceased -firing. "Now they're right among the huts. The telegraph people are -nearly there--yes, they've got there too. Some of them have cans with -them--paraffin cans. There they go! there they go! The Afghans are -bolting down the slope! Smoke's coming out of the huts. Why don't they -come back? - -"Now they're coming. Your gunner is helping Mr. Fisher. He's hurt; I -know he is. I must go and see" and she ran away again. - -The "_B.A._" fired a few rounds of precious Maxim ammunition, and by the -time all was quiet Mr. Scarlett had come to tell me, with a chuckle, -that "That little business is all done correct, sir. Mr. Fisher got a -bullet through his left shoulder, but it ain't done much damage." - -Soon I heard the crackle of the flames and smelt the smoke from those -huts, so knew they would not bother us any more. - -That bullet through his shoulder muscles (I think it broke off a bit of -bone there) seemed to alter Mr. Fisher completely. When I saw him -next--rather pale, and with his arm in a sling--he had given up all -pretence of imagining that the Afghans would retire. In fact it was he -now who suggested, feverishly, doing things to make the house ready to -stand an assault. "But for goodness' sake," he told me, "don't let -anyone suggest abandoning the telegraph buildings or going aboard the -_Bunder Abbas_. I won't do so until the very last moment--I can't--I -daren't. If the Afghans got inside for even half an hour they'd wreck -the whole of the transmitting instruments, and it would be six months -before the cable would work again." - -With Mr. Scarlett, Ellis, and Hartley to help him, the four of them -began to get things into order, divide the people into parties--those -they could trust with rifles into batches, under Eurasians, to man the -wall whilst the others rested; those for whom there were no rifles, or -who couldn't be trusted with them, being set to work to complete the -defence and provision the house. - -All the rest of that day they laboured; the house was turned upside down -and a litter of sand-bags filled up every aperture in the walls and -along the verandas and balconies. Pillow-covers, blankets, sheets, -everything that could be made to hold sand was requisitioned--and I -could not help smiling when finally two burly nigger Zanzibaris dragged -through my room one of Mrs. Fisher's dresses bulged out with sand and -threw it on top of a wall of other sand-bags blocking a window. It was -a jolly good thing that she was safely out of the way, and I wished most -earnestly that Miss Borsen could be induced to go as well. - -After the Afghans had been driven from the huts, and these had been -burnt to the ground, they remained quiet for the rest of the day. Mr. -Scarlett returned to the "_B.A._", the sun set, there was a very -unpleasant half-hour before the moon rose sufficiently to give light, -and almost as soon as it did so distant firing began--a scattered -occasional shot every now and again, quite sufficient, however, to keep -everyone on the alert and nervous. The old head boy brought me some -food and fed me. He also brought me a lamp, for which I was very -grateful, as on account of the sand-bags in the windows the moonlight -could not enter, and it was almost completely dark. - -This was, I think, the worst night since my wound; for the atmosphere of -the room was stuffy and smelly, hardly a breath of air came through the -blocked windows, rifle bullets occasionally thudded up against the -sand-bags, and with Mr. Fisher wounded I did not know who was carrying -on in command in case the Afghans attacked during the night. Why they -didn't Heaven knows. If they had done so there was nothing to keep them -out; but I suppose that they would not depart from their usual habits. -At any rate they waited till dawn, when just the same awful din broke -out, and they made just such another rush up the slope. The "_B.A._" -chipped in as she had done before, and eventually the attack recoiled; -but I had counted twenty-three rounds of six-pounder, so knew that for -all practical purposes she had none left--not half a dozen, anyway. - -Mr. Scarlett almost immediately reported by signal--ammunition -remaining--four six-pounder, twelve hundred Maxim and rifle. At the -same time Mr. Fisher, haggard and drawn, staggered in to tell me that -although the main body had been repulsed a large number had succeeded in -reaching the fifteen-foot wall on the east side and could not be -dislodged. - -"They're there now," he said hopelessly. "We can't touch them; they're -firing up through the loopholes. They tried to climb the wall, but I -got some of my men and your man Ellis to fire from the roof of an -outbuilding close there, and they've cleared them off. What shall we do? -Could the _Bunder Abbas_ steam round and drive them away?" As this -seemed reasonable I wrote out a signal telling Mr. Scarlett to raise -steam at once and come round to the east bay. But the "_B.A._" could -not move for at least two hours, and meanwhile Ellis and his few natives -remained on top of that outbuilding, lying down behind the parapet ready -to pick off any Afghan who attempted to climb the wall. More ammunition -and some sand-bags were sent across to him to make his position more -secure. However, the Afghans were quite content to wait where they -were--under the foot of the wall--and made no offensive movement. - -If they had done so the time might have gone by more quickly. As it -was, it seemed an eternity before Hartley reported that the _Bunder -Abbas_ was under way. - -Perhaps half an hour afterwards I heard her Maxim firing--at a great -distance seemingly--firing only a few of her precious rounds and then -ceasing. - -It turned out that she had driven the Afghans away from the rocks near -the cable house, but owing to the contour of the ground she could not -reach the fellows under the wall itself. She stayed there to prevent -any reinforcements joining them, and then had to come back hastily again -because more parties of enemy were taking advantage of her absence from -the west bay to creep along the beach there--the beach where we always -landed in the dinghy--to try to find a lodgment under the opposite wall -of the telegraph-station. - -However, the Maxim on the roof kept those in check, and directly the -"_B.A._" appeared round the end of the peninsula they all fled back to -the New Fort. - -One thing gave me much relief: we had not expended many rounds of -ammunition. - -The situation was now alarming, to say the least of it. If those -fellows stayed where they were there was nothing to prevent them -climbing the wall during the night, and Mr. Fisher explained (and I was -perfectly convinced) that if they did this most of our natives would -simply bolt. The Eurasians might put up some sort of a fight, but there -were only eight of them now unwounded and they were almost exhausted. - -We both realized that there were only two courses open: the first, to -abandon the telegraph-station and take refuge aboard the _Bunder Abbas_; -the second, practically to abandon the _Bunder Abbas_ and bring her -white crew on shore with their rifles and the few remaining rounds of -ammunition. - -As Mr. Fisher absolutely refused to consent to the first, the second -plan was the only alternative. I decided to do this. First of all I -took the block of note-paper and wrote: "Miss Borsen must be sent to -_Bunder Abbas_"; but she, coming into the room at this moment, read what -I had written and shook her head. She said there was work for her to do -here and she wouldn't leave it; she stamped her foot angrily when Mr. -Fisher implored her to go. - -So I sent for Mr. Scarlett, and with my scribbled notes and Mr. Fisher's -explanations we made him understand. - -He was very furious, and "swung off" at Mr. Fisher for exposing everyone -to such risks, doing his utmost to point out the horrible consequences -which might happen if once the _Bunder Abbas_ was abandoned and escape -cut off, looking at me to back him up. - -He felt that this second plan was more a disgrace to us than the -abandoning of the station would be to Mr. Fisher; instead, he offered to -bring ashore all the men he could spare, make a sortie, and drive the -Afghans away from that side wall just as he and Mr. Fisher had driven -them from the huts yesterday. He would bring his men ashore during the -few minutes of dark after sunset (when they might hope to escape -observation), lead them round the west wall and the wall towards the end -of the peninsula, and then swoop along the eastern fifteen-foot wall -from the top end. The Afghans would never expect an attack from that -quarter, and whilst he was doing this he wanted Mr. Fisher (if his -damaged shoulder let him), Ellis, and Hartley, with as many men as -possible, to make a sortie through the door in the wall facing the -slope, to creep along the face of that wall to the corner, and thus -catch the enemy between two fires. - -I, too, hated so much the idea of abandoning the "_B.A._" that I nodded -my head in consent, and, having made all the arrangements with Mr. -Fisher, he went back to the dinghy, though not before Mr. Fisher had -implored Miss Borsen again, unavailingly, to accompany him. Not long -afterwards he made a signal that he had determined to bring all hands -with him, and that until they returned the "_B.A._" would be quite safe -at her anchor. - -I only hoped that she would, and I lay there dejected in the extreme, to -think that now, of all times, I was helpless. It was no use pretending -that I was not. Even without Miss Borsen to assure me that my only -chance lay in remaining absolutely still, there was a funny feeling in -my chest that the least exertion would finish me altogether. One or two -drops of blood had come into my mouth during the day, and I -instinctively knew that more was only waiting its chance. It was an -extremely unhappy position to be in. - -The remainder of the afternoon passed fairly quietly, and the dread of -the coming night seemed to make the hours of daylight fly very quickly. -Miss Borsen brought me some tea, and whilst she was in the room I -remembered some signal I wanted to make to Mr. Scarlett. But the pencil -had dropped off the bed and broken its point, so that it would not -write, and I motioned to her that there was a knife in my dispatch-box. -Whilst she was looking for it, jumbling among my letters and other -papers, out slipped that little velvet bow, the one which had stuck to -my button the night I had carried her over the swamp and made her so -angry. - -She picked it up, grew red, and I thought she was very angry at being -reminded of the quarrel; because she shut up the box, said: "Bother the -knife; it isn't here," and went away, sending in Hartley to help me with -the signal. - -This added to my worries. - -As dark came on--very completely in the room, because of the -sand-bags--I pictured the dinghy pulling to and fro to land Mr. Scarlett -and the rest of the crew, and had a horrid feeling that they ought never -to have left her. I feared, too, that they had not done this -unobserved, because a good deal of firing broke out from the direction -of the beach. However, there was no one to tell me what was happening, -so I had to guess, listening anxiously to the murmur of voices outside, -below the balcony, as Mr. Fisher and the others gathered near the door -in the wall and prepared for their sortie. - -I could hear them filling the magazines of their rifles, occasionally -dropping a cartridge on the ground, and my ears were straining to hear -the bolts fly back and to hear them rushing out; but instead of this a -tremendous fusillade broke out down the slope, and the same yelling -which had always accompanied the previous attacks broke the silence. So -fearfully excited was I that more blood came into my mouth, and -thoroughly frightened I lay flat, hardly able to breathe. The noises -seemed to grow until they became one awful roar, dinning into my -ear-drums till they seemed to overpower my brain altogether, and I must -have lost consciousness. - -I had a dim recollection of men running through my room, of rifles going -off, and then woke to the fact that rifles were being fired quite close -to me, outside on the balcony, their flashes lighting up the room, and -that from every quarter came the most fearful uproar. People were -running backwards and forwards, up and down the stairs; Zanzibari -niggers came dragging sand-bags back through my room; the old butler, -without his turban, came and went without giving a glance at me; no one -seemed to take the least notice of me, and for some time I thought it -must be another of those nightmares and I should presently waken. - -Then the uproar seemed to grow more distant; a red glow filled the room -with weird shadows, and what finally brought me to a realization that I -was actually awake was Miss Borsen's hand sliding down to my wrist to -feel my pulse. - -"Hush!" she whispered; "keep still; you're all right now. They've got -inside the walls and have gone off to burn down the other buildings. Mr. -Fisher is down below--most of the others too; we are safe for some -time." - -I remembered that Mr. Scarlett and all the rest of my men ought to be on -the outside of the wall, and wondered what had become of them. - -"Mr. Scarlett?" I muttered, but she put a finger on my lips. "Be quiet; -be still." - -The niggers and servants must have torn away some of the sand-bags to -make better openings to fire through or to take them somewhere else, for -the room now was filled with a red glare. The crackling noise of flames -seemed to grow more furious and closer; but above everything I heard -Hartley's voice down below shouting orders. - -It was a comfort even to know that he was there. - -Then men began to climb the stairs outside the room, panting heavily and -running down again. Miss Borsen went out to see what they were doing. -She crept back, terrified. - -"They're carrying water up to the roof--the flames are so close. It's -awful--awful!" and she crouched on the floor with her hands over her -eyes. She pulled herself together when Hartley--bleeding from a wound -on his head--rushed in to tell me that we were fairly safe for the -present, but that Ellis and a few natives on the top of that -outbuilding, where they had been all day, were cut off, and that no one -knew what had become of Mr. Scarlett and his party. "What with the -moonlight and these 'ere flames from the mess buildings," he said, "it's -as light as day now, and the Afghans won't come out in the open. -They're skulking in the shadows under the walls, and daren't run across -the open spaces." - -After this--for a time--there was but little rifle firing near us, and -the glare from the burning building died down somewhat. Outside on the -balcony I could see the Zanzibaris there moving about in the shadow -behind the sand-bags and peering over them to look below. Presently one -of them saw something to fire at, for he let off his rifle and called to -the others. A regular fusillade broke out, and in the midst of it I -heard, to my intense relief, Mr. Scarlett's stentorian voice roaring -out: "Stop that firing," and then shouting something in Hindustani. - -Before I realized what was the meaning of this Miss Borsen sprang to her -feet and was out on the balcony in a moment, pulling the wretched -servants and Zanzibaris away from the sand-bags and calling out: "Stop! -stop! - -"It's Mr. Scarlett and your men climbing over the loopholed wall," she -cried. "They are crawling over the corner just below us." - -In a very few minutes Mr. Scarlett was standing in the room. - -"We got caught on the 'hop' that time, sir; they saw us coming ashore -and we had a fight for it. Managed to get up the slope near the wall, -but then had to fall back again. Couldn't make headway against them. -Jones was wounded again--badly this time. Most of the chaps were -knocked about, so we dragged him back among the rocks and kept the -Afghans off till they cleared out up here to join in the loot. We found -the dinghy on the rocks with her bottom stove in, so couldn't send Jones -on board, and we've brought him along with us--dodged the Afghans and -hoisted him in over the wall. He's down below--pretty comfortable; but -Moore's missing. No one's seen him since we had the first 'scrap', poor -devil. I hope he's killed outright. - -"Don't you go fussing," he went on. "There's five of us, besides -Hartley and me, and we'll pull you through--and the little lass too. -We're just off to line the veranda and the sand-bags there till those -devils come at us again at daybreak. They'll come sure enough then. -I'm off now, sir." - -He left me alone again, for Miss Borsen had slipped away directly she -had heard that there was another wounded man below, and she did not come -back. - -To know that Mr. Scarlett and his men were safe and were on the veranda -below put heart into me; but the position seemed so desperate that I -wonder my brain didn't throb itself out of my skull that night. It -seemed to be trying to do so. The noise of the flames had died down; -but scattered rifle shots rang out in the compound below every few -minutes hour after hour, and the room seemed to be so full of smoke that -I could hardly breathe. The old butler, going out to the balcony with -food for the people there, gave me some water once, and I was very -grateful. - -Towards dawn there was an almost complete lull, as if everyone was too -tired to go on shooting. Mr. Scarlett took this opportunity to come in -and tell me that, so far, the Afghans had not broken into the building -where the transmitting instruments were. They had to cross the concrete -tennis-court to get to it, and Ellis and his people had kept them out so -far. "We've done our little bit too, sir," he added, quite pleased with -himself. - -As dawn broke the Afghans first turned their attention to that -outbuilding from the roof of which Ellis had punished them so heavily -during the night. Of course I could not see this, but heard the uproar -and the shooting, and in the middle of it Mr. Scarlett and Mr. Fisher -came in (his left arm bound to his side) looking very anxious. - -"We'll have to go along and bring Ellis out of it," the gunner said; "he -and his chaps can't hold out much longer. Don't you worry, sir; we'll -be back in a 'brace of shakes'." Stooping, before he left me, he placed -a revolver on the chair at the head of the bed. "If you want it, sir," -he said, and I understood. - -They both went away, and I knew that they were going to lead another -sortie across the compound and that open tennis-court. I heard them run -down the stairs, heard the burst of cheering as they and others dropped -down from the veranda, whilst the natives still on my balcony crowded -away to the right of it and opened fire. - -Almost immediately the noise of fierce hand-to-hand fighting came -through the windows, and I waited, tremblingly, to hear the cheers which -would tell me that Mr. Scarlett's people were coming back with Ellis; -but, instead, the Afghans began yelling triumphantly, as if they were -getting the upper hand. I turned my head and saw Miss Borsen stagger -into the room, her face whiter than the dress she wore. - -She stood still for a moment, listening, then saw the revolver, glided -across and steadied herself to pick it up and to open it. She made sure -it was loaded, and then, in a broken voice, told me that Mr. Fisher, Mr. -Scarlett, and the rest had been cut off and forced back against the -telegraph building. - -"The Afghans are flocking down here now, and there is no one left in the -house--only a few of the telegraph people down below, and they can't do -it," she moaned. Then she stood at the side of my bed and handed me the -revolver, saying, in a very low voice: "If the Afghans break in I want -you to kill me." - -She looked me through and through as I took it, as though she was not -certain that she could rely on me; but then she seemed satisfied, for -she knelt down close to the bed, with her head just above the edge of -it, staring fixedly out to where the daylight grew and to where a -surging wave of roaring, savage yells seemed to be beating round and -against the whole house. - -The Zanzibaris began coming back into the room from the balcony, grey -with fright, running, throwing away their rifles and looking for -somewhere to hide, taking not the slightest notice of us. - -It was "all up" with us now, I felt sure, and I had to speak to her -before the end did come. - -"Will you forgive me?" I asked. "You know what for! I'm sorry." - -She put out a hand and touched mine, the one which held the revolver, -and said: "I have--for a long time." Then she turned her head away. - -There we stayed--for how long I do not know--and although every moment I -expected to hear the Afghans breaking into the rooms below us and -charging up the stairs, and knew what I should have to do then, I felt -quite happy. - -Suddenly, among all the furious tumult and clamour below and all round -us, I heard, we both heard, another sound--the sound of -cheering--cheering loud and lusty. All the noises seemed to die away -before it; it grew; nearer and nearer it came; it swelled through the -windows, across those sand-bags, in a continued shout of victory; rifle -firing died down as though by magic, then burst out again; those shouts -of despair which we knew so well by this time filled the whole of the -compound, and Miss Borsen, springing to the balcony, tore away a -sand-bag, looked down, and rushed back to me. - -"The _Intrepid_!" she cried, fell on her knees, and sobbed as if her -heart would break. - - - - - *CHAPTER XIX* - - *The Grey-eyed Lady Decides* - - -Dear old Popple Opstein was the first to find us, rushing up the stairs -two steps at a time, calling out my name, and bursting into the room, -his yellow hair standing up from his forehead like a parrot's, and his -eyes staring out of his violet face. - -Miss Borsen flung herself at him, clinging to his great sunburnt hands, -laughing and crying hysterically. She would not let him do more than -grip my hand, taking him away very quickly for fear the excitement -should start the bleeding again, although I imagined that if the agony -of that last half-hour had not done so nothing else would. - -Presently she brought Nicholson, who came lumbering into the room, fat -and jolly as ever, felt my pulse, heard what she had to say about me, -and told me the same old thing: "Just you lie still, absolutely still, -and don't speak". He promised to come and overhaul me properly later -on. - -"I've a terrible lot of jobs on hand now," he said. - -He must have given orders for no one to visit me, because I was left -entirely alone, impatient to hear of all that had happened, and -listening to the heavy booming of guns--the _Intrepid's_ guns, out at -sea--shelling the retreating Afghans. At least I imagined that was what -they were doing. - -In about an hour's time the old head boy brought another trestle-bed -into my room, and, whilst I was wondering who was going to use it, Mr. -Scarlett was carried in, quite unconscious, his head swathed in -bandages. - -Nicholson followed, and told me that he had had "the devil's own whack" -with the butt end of a rifle, and there was no knowing what would -happen. - -The reaction after the strain of the last four days was now very great, -and there was no disguising the fact that I was as weak as a cat. I had -had no real sleep for at least four nights, and listening to the long, -slow, snoring noise coming from Mr. Scarlett's bed made me drop off to -sleep too. When I woke it was night, but by the light of the lamp I saw -Percy--a melancholy-looking figure in white--squatting on the floor at -the side of the gunner's bed, with his eyes fixed on his hero's bandaged -head. He turned and smiled at me when I moved, but only for a moment, -turning again like some big faithful dog to watch the gunner. - -For two whole days the only other people I saw were Nicholson, who -doctored me, and the head boy--his yellow turban once more as smart as a -new pin--who brought me food and fed me. - -At the end of those two days Mr. Scarlett began to show signs of -returning consciousness, and Percy, who had not left him day or night, -wept tears of joy when his eyes opened and he asked where he was. - -Popple Opstein was now allowed to come and talk to me. - -From him I heard how the _Intrepid_ had been called away from Muscat, on -what turned out to be a wild-goose chase, after some dhow reported to be -loading rifles down the coast; how she had heard on her return that Jask -telegraph-station had been attacked in force and the telegraph cut; and -how she had come across at full speed. - -"I'm almost certain Jassim was the chap who brought the news which took -us down the coast. We heard he'd shot you dangerously, and I put two and -two together. My dear old chap, I was in the dickens of a funk. The -skipper had the men all ready waiting to land; they were over the side -and in the boats almost before the anchor dropped, and we were only just -in time. Your fellows were all pushed up against the side of the -building, with a crowd of chaps howling round them, and were getting the -worst of it, half of them laid out already. Another half-hour and it -would have been 'finish'." - -He gave me a list of the casualties, and they were very severe. Jones -had died of his wounds, and Moore's body had been found on the rocks -close to the smashed dinghy, with three dead Afghans near him; so the -poor, irritating chap had made a great fight for his life. There was -not a single one of the "_B.A._"'s who had not a wound of "sorts". - -Mrs. Fisher had come ashore from the "_B.A._", but her nerves were so -completely shaken that she intended to go down to Karachi very shortly. -Miss Borsen was to accompany her. Both of them visited me occasionally, -but always together, and I was longing for the day to come when -Nicholson would give me permission to talk, because I had much to tell -the little, sad, grey-eyed lady, and much, very much, to ask her. At -last came the great day when I was allowed to sit out on the veranda and -talk--just a little--as long as I did not raise my voice. By this time -Mr. Scarlett was very nearly his old self, or, rather, his new self, -once more; and Percy was so happy that we had to make the head boy kick -him--half a dozen times a day--to stop him singing to himself. We now -had crowds of visitors, from Commander Duckworth, Mr. Fisher (his -shoulder nearly well), and Popple Opstein, down to Jaffa, clean and -white and as impenetrable as ever. The one I wanted most was Miss -Borsen, but she seldom came, and then only with Mrs. Fisher. As I -recovered, so she seemed to shrink from coming near me, and I counted -the days before she was to sail for Karachi in fear lest I should never -have a chance of speaking to her alone. - -One evening, as Mr. Scarlett and I were sitting on the veranda, watching -the last glow of the sunset on the Baluchistan mountains, Popple Opstein -came bounding up the stairs and out to us. - -"We've just got the news!" he cried excitedly. "There's going to be a -great 'show' here. The Indian Government is sending a whole brigade -from Karachi, the Persian Government has ordered round the old -_Persepolis_ with a lot of troops, the flagship's on her way from -Bombay, and we're going to land a naval brigade--with guns. There's to -be a regular expedition into the mountains to punish those Afghans, and -who d'you think is going in charge of the guns? Why, you, old chap, you! -The skipper has just sent me along to tell you the great news. The -Indian Government has asked for you. Just fancy that! It's a reward -for collaring that caravan. 'Nick' says you'll be as fit as ever by the -time everything's ready to start. I am so glad, old chap, and you bet -I'll find some excuse for coming along as well, even if it's only to -carry old Nick's 'first-aid' bag." - -"What a ripping show!" I said, tremendously pleased, and Mr. Scarlett -came over to congratulate me, as pleased as I was. - -My chum fidgeted about, and although it was now too dark for me to see -his face I knew that he had something else to tell me. - -"Out with it! What is it?" I asked. - -Smacking his knees, he burst out with: "I've done it! Old Martin, I've -done it!" - -"Done what?" - -"Don't you know? Can't you guess? Little 'Grey-eyes' and I are -engaged--engaged! What d'you think of that, old tongue-tied? I've felt -it would come ever since we met her in the steamer coming out, and the -last few days have done the trick. Isn't it glorious? She goes home -to-morrow, worse luck! but I couldn't let her go without telling her, -and we're to be spliced as soon as ever I get back to England. You'll -have to do 'best man'. You will, won't you?" - -It was dark. I stuttered out how pleased I was, and he, too excited to -suspect anything, dashed downstairs again, singing lustily. - -"D'you think you could manage to take me along with you, sir, when you -land in charge of those guns?" Mr. Scarlett asked me diffidently. - -"I will," I told him. "We'll land together, and have another smack at -those Afghans--the treacherous brutes. We'll go back to the old -'_B.A._' to-morrow morning, doctor or no doctor. We can't stay loafing -round here any longer. I'm sick of being a cripple." - -The night air seemed to have turned cold, so we went back into our -whitewashed room with its bullet marks on the wall behind my bed, and as -Mr. Scarlett lighted the lamp we heard Popple Opstein whistling "Two -Eyes of Grey" somewhere down the slope towards the beach. - -"That used to be your tune," Mr. Scarlett said as he closed the -shutters; "d'you remember, sir--a while back? It used to get on my -nerves at times; that it did!" - - - - - - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK GUNBOAT AND GUN-RUNNER *** - - - - -A Word from Project Gutenberg - - -We will update this book if we find any errors. - -This book can be found under: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/46460 - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no one -owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation (and -you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without permission -and without paying copyright royalties. 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