“I always knew you were a big scholar, Mr Jack, sir,” continued Ned, “but I didn’t think you were up to this jibber-jabber.—Thankye, old chap. Nice state you’ve got my hands in though. Why, I don’t believe the size gloves I should want are made. Look, Mr Jack, about four-and-twenty they’d take, wouldn’t they? How’s yours?”
“They ache horribly, Ned.”
“Oh, mine don’t. I shouldn’t know I’d got any if I couldn’t see ’em. Plain enough though, ain’t they?”
Ned had no time to say more, for his captor urged him on.
“Just like driving a donkey, sir, ain’t it?—All right, blackie, I’ll go.”
The party descended as rapidly as they could till just after the great orange sun had descended over the rim of the sea, and then, as if perfectly familiar with the place, they turned suddenly off to the left, down a second ravine much steeper than the larger one they had left, and after going down about a quarter of a mile to where dwarf trees were beginning to grow thickly again, they stopped short in a natural shelter close by a rock pool, into which a clear thread of water trickled.
Jack’s captor pointed to the pool, and the lad lay down and drank deeply, Ned following his example without orders, and upon being satisfied they rose, to find the men busily preparing a fire.—Then one of the party rubbed a couple of pieces of wood together till the friction produced sparks, which began to glow in the wood dust fanned by the fire-maker’s breath, and soon after the fire was burning merrily.
Jack did not see it dug out, but a quantity of closely-packed green leaves were lying about, and a rough hollow was close at hand where it had evidently been buried—it proving to be the hind-quarters of a small pig, which as the fire burned up well was put to roast, and soon began to send out a pleasant odour.
The prisoners had taken the place pointed out to them, and found that they were well guarded, Ned drawing Jack’s attention to this fact.
“And that means, sir,” he said, “that it’s of no use to try and run unless they go sound off to sleep again as soon as they’ve had a feast. We might perhaps steal off then, but not if we’re watched. I don’t want any more arrows in me, and I’m sure you feel the same. I say, sir, I hope they mean to ask us to dinner. Only fancy niggers dining at quality hours in black soots!”