“Never mind: say it,” said Brazier.
“I was going to ask if you had left me a little scrap of the prog.”
Rob looked at him sharply and then at Brazier, who did the same, but neither of them replied; and the old sailor put his own interpretation upon their silence.
“All right, gentlemen,” he said; “you must have both been terrible hungry. Don’t say anything about it. Now, how could I manage to catch a fish?”
“After breakfast, Shaddy, please,” said Rob merrily. “Mr Brazier thought we ought to wait for you.”
“What! You don’t mean to say you haven’t had any?”
“When three people are situated as we are, Naylor, a fair division of the food is necessary. Get it at once.”
“Well!” ejaculated the old sailor, as he took down the packet from where he had secured it in the upper branches; and again, as he placed it on the loose platform, “Well!” Then—“There, gentlemen, I can’t tell you how thankful I am to you for being such true comrades. But there, let’s eat now. The famine’s over, and I mean to have some more food soon.”
“How, Shaddy?” said Rob, with his mouth full; “you can’t wade because of the reptiles, and the piranas would attack you.”
“No, sir, I can’t wade unless I could make stilts, and I can’t do that. It will be a climb for fruit, like the monkeys, for luncheon if the water doesn’t go down.”