'A mixture you 'll often find among sailormen, if I may say so,' said the captain. 'But Grinson mustn't have all the credit, you know, Mr. Trentham. That dodge of yours with the Raider----'

'Is she sunk?' asked Trentham.

'Sunk by the stern; all below water except a bit of her fore deck and her funnel. But she can be salved, and there 'll be something to share out, or I 'm a Dutchman.'

'You came into the cove?'

'I did, sir, and anchored within half a cable's length of the Raider. A couple of Germans on shore flung up their hands at once, and we marched up under Mr. Hoole's lead without delay. You 're surprised to see no more of us, but the fact is, we met the Germans running for their lives. They were glad enough to surrender, for these savages don't know the meaning of mercy, and I 'm afraid they had already killed a number of them before we came on the scene. However, my ship's company--the queerest mixture I ever commanded--are marching the rest of them down to the cove, and as I 've plenty of cargo space on board, I gave 'em orders to drop them into the hold; by this time to-morrow we 'll hand 'em over in proper form as prisoners of war. I take it you 're ready to come with us?'

'Quite, I can assure you. But I think we ought to bury the German dead first. These people are cannibals.'

'Burying 's no good; they 'd dig 'em up as soon as our backs were turned. We can't give them seamen's burial, the sea being so far away. The only thing left is to burn them; certainly we couldn't leave them for a cannibal feast. And we had better set about it while most of the savages are away; there 'll be less trouble. Oh! here we are. A most uncommon native village. A few photographers will take a trip out here when your story is known. That's Grinson, I suppose. Who 's the fellow with him?'

Grinson was walking towards the hut, accompanied by the medicine-man carrying water in a huge banana stalk. Trentham laughed.

'That's the village doctor,' he said. 'A thorn in our flesh until Grinson tamed him by a sort of strong man exhibition. Now he 'll follow Grinson like a dog.'

'Natural philosophy,' said Hoole. 'The Germans will be the better for a dose of the same physic. It's a low order of intelligence that admits no superiority but brute force, and I guess you must deal with people as you find 'em. Ahoy, Grinson! How 's Meek?'