"Heaps; a regular lot of them, sir."
"You must fill them with earth, havildar, and pile them against the wall. Make an embrasure in the middle for the machine gun."
"What, sir?" said the Babu, surprised.
"I forgot: you did not know about it. In the little chamber behind the house there is a machine gun, with plenty of ammunition. We will get it out in the morning."
"It is good, sahib," said the havildar.
"You knew about it?" said Bob, catching a curious expression on the Sikh's countenance.
"I knew about it, sahib. I saw the parts unpacked."
"And locked your knowledge in your silent bosom," said the Babu, with an aggrieved look. "That was cruelty to animals, sir. With knowledge of so ingenious a weapon of defence we should all have slept more securely in our beds."
"All this must be done as quietly as possible," continued Bob, ignoring the Babu's indignant protest. "We must try not to let the Kalmucks on the other side know that anything out of the ordinary is going on."
"That will not be easy, sahib," said the havildar.