He was delighted to have him back, safe and sound, and stood there wringing his hand till it seemed that he could never stop. However, Dick was a practical fellow, and it was a long time since he had been in the stockade.
“Food and something to drink, Johnnie, like a good fellow,” he cried. “Run along and see what you’ve got, while I take a look outside. Now,” he said, when he had reached the walls and had discovered the position of the chief of the miners, “what is your report? Any sign of them?”
“They have gone back to their posts. We knew that they were watching, and we almost expected an attack. We were looking for you too, chief. You can leave us to guard the place till you are ready to come back to the walls. Go and eat, for you must be hungry.”
Dick undoubtedly was, and fell to eagerly upon the good things which were placed on the folding wooden table in the hut. For Johnnie was general caterer as well as stoker, and in addition, it seemed, commander of the post at a pinch. He placed a bottle of water near at hand, some yams, and a cut of tinned beef, and on these our hero fell.
“Yo’s make de most of dem water,” said Johnnie, as he watched his master drink, for it had been a hot day, and never a drop of fluid had Dick been able to touch. “Make de most of him, for dere little more. De jars nearly dry, and where we fill dem again? So drink him to the velly bottom.”
“What! No water in the place! Run out already!”
No wonder that he was again dismayed, for Dick had such a young head upon his shoulders that he could not be expected in a matter of a couple of months or more to correct all the faults committed by his predecessor. True, the site of the stockade was excellent in nearly every respect, for it commanded a wide, open space on every side, and could not be fired into from the crest above. It boasted a moderate amount of shade, for there was a small group of trees within the compound, and in addition, it enjoyed a delightful breeze, which kept it cool, and drove the fever away. It had its failings, however. It could not stand a siege, for the simple reason that it was perched well up above the stream in which the gold was washed, and there was no well. A store of water was carried up every day, and that store had disappeared with rapidity since the miners had taken post at the stockade.
“I ought to have thought of that before. We should have had a tank or something of the sort,” cried Dick, with vexation, quite forgetful of the fact that the nearest point at which such a thing could be obtained was Elmina.
“Yo’s dink him up and smack de lip,” said Johnnie. “No use make fuss now dat dere no water left. Hab to leave den, dat’s all. Get way into de forest.”
“And meet these two hundred Ashanti warriors. No, thank you, Johnnie. Come, tell me how all this has happened. I was away in the forest, and thought I heard the alarm sounded. Then there were shots, and when I came to the clearing and could see, there were bodies lying around, and you were holding the enemy in check. I heard then that two hundred more are expected, and waited till a double ring was thrown round us. Then I came on. And that reminds me. It was a plucky rush you made, and just saved me. Thanks, very much.”