“Yes; I was just going to give you a very broad hint. Fire, eh?” said the doctor.
The lieutenant nodded.
“I must just have a word or two with the captain first,” said the lieutenant, and giving the order, the men began to march to where the boats lay with their keepers, and a sentry or two had been thrown out to guard against surprise.
Murray closed up to the doctor, who was looking sharply about him at the trees which remained standing amongst the almost countless huts.
“Not many cocoanuts, Murray,” he said.
“Oh,” cried the young man, who felt more annoyed by the doctor’s indifference than ever, “I was not thinking about palm-trees!”
“But I was,” said the doctor; “they’ll burn tremendously.”
“Ah,” cried the midshipman, “that was what I wanted to speak about. Did you mean to suggest that the place should be burned?”
“Certainly, sir,” said the doctor shortly.
“The village—but with the slave barrack?”