“When I woke up it was pitch dark, exceptin’ that somebody had lighted a big fire in the middle of the open space, and there was our lads all lyin’ round fast asleep. I felt cold, for the night had turned foggy, and I was tryin’ to make up my mind to climb down and get a bit nearer to the fire when a most awful yellin’ arose, and the next second the place was chock-full of leapin’ and howlin’ niggers flourishin’ great clubs and spears, and bowlin’ over our chaps as fast as they got up on to their feet. A few of our people managed to get up, hows’ever, and they got to work with their pistols and cutlasses, and I let fly with my pistol from where I sat up aloft among the branches, and bowled over an ugly, bald-headed old chap rigged in a monkey-skin round his ’midships, and carryin’ a live snake in his hand.
“The loss of this old cock seemed to have a most astonishin’ effect upon the other niggers, for whereas the minute afore they’d been doin’ all they knew to kill our chaps, no sooner was this old party down than all hands of ’em what had seen him fall stops dead and yells out ‘pilliloo’ to t’others, when, dash my wig if the whole lot of ’em didn’t just make one jump upon our people—them that was still alive I mean—and beat their weapons out o’ their hands, after which they lashes ’em all together, with their hands behind ’em, and marches ’em off into the bush, some twenty or thirty of ’em stoppin’ behind to make sure that all of our lads as was down was also dead. And d’ye know how they did that, sir? Why, by just choppin’ off their heads with great swords made of what looked like hard wood!
“Seven of our pore chaps lost the number of their mess in this way, and then the savages cleared out, carryin’ the heads away with ’em, and leavin’ the bodies lyin’ scattered about the place. I waited up in my tree until the murderin’ thieves had got clear away, and then I starts to climb down, intendin’ to foller ’em and find out what they meant to do with the white men as they’d took away alive with ’em, when, as my feet touched the solid ground once more, dash my wig if these here four mates of mine didn’t drop out of some other trees close at hand. They’d been worried wi’ the ants and what not, same as I was, and, seein’ me shinnin’ up a tree, they’d gone and done likewise, and that’s the way that we five escaped bein’ massicreed.
“Then the five of us goes to work and holds a council o’ war, as you may say; and we agreed that two of us should foller up the savages to find out what game they was up to, while t’other three should go back to the boat and take care of her. But, seein’ that away from the scattered embers of the fire it was so dark that you could hardly see your hand before you, we agreed that ’twas no use attemptin’ to do anything until daylight; so we got up into our trees again, and held on where we were in case any o’ them savages should come back. And a precious lucky thing it was that we thought of doin’ so, for—it’s the solemn truth I’m tellin’ you, gen’lemen—we hadn’t very much more’n got settled back on our perches when back comes about a dozen o’ them savages, creepin’ out from among the trees as quiet as cats, and starts searchin’ the whole place up and down as though they’d lost somethin’. My mates and me reckoned it up that them niggers had seen us and counted us some time yesterday, and had found, after the massacree, that we wasn’t all accounted for, and so they’d come back to look for us. It was a fort’nit thing for us that we was pretty well hid by the leaves, also that the niggers didn’t seem to think of lookin’ for us up in the trees, and by and by, just as the day was breakin’, they took theirselves off again.
“When they’d got fairly away out o’ our neighbourhood I climbed down again, and the others follered suit; and Mike, here, and I made sail along the path that the niggers had gone, while the other three topped their booms for the boat, the onderstandin’ bein’ that they was to get her afloat and swung round all ready, and then wait till Mike and me j’ined ’em.
“Well, Mr Carter, sir, and gen’lemen, Mike here and me follered along the path that the savages had took, for a matter of a couple o’ mile, when we hears a tremenjous hullabaloo of niggers shoutin’, and tom-toms beatin’, and dogs barkin’, and what not, so we knowed that we was pretty close aboard a native village, as they calls ’em, so we shortened sail and got in among the bushes, creepin’ for’ard until we could see what was happenin’. And when at last we was able to get a pretty clear view, the sight we saw was enough to freeze a man’s blood. They’d got all our chaps lashed to stakes set up in a clear, open space in front of the village, and one of the pore unfort’nit fellers was stripped stark naked and bein’ tormented by a crowd o’ niggers what was puttin’ burnin’ splinters between his fingers, and stickin’ ’em into his flesh, and pourin’ red-hot cinders into his mouth, what they’d prised open by thrustin’ a thick stick in between his jaws; and the shrieks as that unhappy man was lettin’ fly was just awful to listen to; but the savages seemed to enjy ’em, for they just yelled with delight at every shriek. Mike and me we turned as sick as dogs at what we seen; and presently Mike grabs me by the hand and says: ‘Let’s get back to the ship, mate, and report. P’rhaps the skipper’ll forgive us for what we’ve done, and persuade the navy gent to fit out a hexpedition to rescue the others.’ So away we came as fast as we could, but when we got to the boat she was aground, and we had to wait a long time until she floated. But here we are, sir; and oh, gen’lemen, for the love o’ God do somethin’, if ye can, to save them pore chaps what’s bein’ tormented to death over there.”