“Call ’em up,” he said, in a low voice. “Don’t talk loud; they’ve not gone to bed yet indoors.”
The Malay gave Tim a peculiar searching look, but the Irishman was tapping the ash out of his pipe and putting it in his pocket, after which he took a brass box from the basket just as the Malay uttered a low guttural sound, and his men stole up silently one by one.
“Whisht!” said Tim. “Tibakky;” and he divided about half the contents of the box, the leaf being eagerly received and deposited in a fold of the sarong.
“Whisht!” said Tim again, after a stealthy glance back at the house, and putting the tobacco back, he drew out a bottle. “Will you drink the new ranee’s health?”
His question was received in utter silence.
“No!” said Tim. “I thought you wouldn’t, and I’m sorry for your religion. Well, I will. Long life to my darling young misthress!”
He took out the cork, passed his hand over the top of the bottle, and then applying it to his lips, took a long gurgling draught, swallowing pretty well a pint before he lowered the flask, the Malays gazing longingly at him as he drank.
“I’m sorry for you, boys,” said Tim; “for that’s a drop of good stuff,” and he replaced the bottle. “But, look here,” he said, with a laugh, “left from up-stairs;” and holding up the basket, he took out a cake or sweet of the kind cleverly concocted by the Malay women, and began to eat. “Any one do a bit in this way!” he continued, with his mouth full.
If he had offered the bottle now, they would have drunk from it to a man, and after a momentary pause the chief of the guard took a cake from the basket, broke off a scrap, removed his betel-nut, tasted the sweet, took a good bite, and uttered a low guttural order; which resulted in each man taking a cake, the last man growing excited from the belief that they would not go round; but there was just one each, and the head-man spoke again, with the result that his men went back to their posts eating greedily, while Tim stood in the darkness trembling with excitement.
“Well,” he said, fearing to betray himself; “now then for my snooze. Good-night!”