“Are you an officer?” was the first question put.
“No,” answered our hero, with quiet dignity, but without the slightest tinge of defiance either in tone or look.
“Will you tell me how many men you have in Suakim?”
“No.”
“Dare you refuse?”
“Yes; it is against the principles of a British soldier to give information to an enemy.”
“That’s right, John Miles,” said Molloy, in an encouraging tone; “give it ’im hot! They can only kill us once, an’—”
“Silence!” hissed the Mahdi between his teeth.
“Silence!” echoed the interpreter.
“All right, you nigger! Tell the baboon to go on. I won’t run foul of him again; he ain’t worth it.”