“Me found eberyting, sar.  First come to village.  Not bery big, twenty or thirty men dere.  Den a hundred yards furder tree huts stand.  Dey new huts, but not built last night, leaves all dead, built eight or ten days ago.  Me crawl on tomack among de trees, and lay and watch.  In de furder hut two white lady.  Dey come in and out, dey talk togeder, de oders not go near them.  Next hut to them, twenty, thirty yards away, two white men.  Dey sit on log and smoke cigar.  In de next hut four white sailor.  Den a little distance away, twelve black fellows sit round fire and cook food.  Plenty of goats down in valley, good gardens and lots of bananas.”

“How did the white ladies seem?”

“Not seem anyting particular, sar.  Dey neber look in de direction ob oders.  Just talk togeder bery quiet.  Me see dere lips move, but hear no voice.  Hear de voice of men quite plain.”

“How close can we get without being seen?”

“About fifty yards, sar.  Huts put near stream under big trees.  Trees not tick just dar; little way lower down banana trees run down to edge ob stream.  If can get round de village on dat side widout being seen, can go through bananas, den dash across de stream and run for de ladies.  Can get dere before de oders.  Besides, if dey run dat way we shoot dem down.”

“Thank God, that is all satisfactory,” Frank said.  “But it is hard having to wait here another five hours before doing anything.”

“We are ready to go and pitch into them at once, sir,” one of the sailors said.  “You have only to say the word.”

“Thank you, lads, but we must wait till within an hour or two of sunset.  I expect that we shall have to fight our way back, and we shall want darkness to help us.  It would be folly to risk anything, just as success seems certain after these months of searching.  Still, it is hard to have to wait.

“It is getting on to twelve o’clock.  You had better get that basket out and have your dinners.”

The next four hours seemed to him interminable.  The sailors and negroes had gone to sleep as soon as they had finished their meal and smoked a pipe.  Frank moved about restlessly, sometimes smoking in short, sharp puffs, sometimes letting his pipe go out every minute and relighting it mechanically, and constantly consulting his watch.  At last he sat down on a fallen tree, and remained there without making the slightest motion, until George Lechmere said: 

“I think it is time now, Major.”

“Thank goodness for that, George.  I made up my mind that I would not look at my watch again until it was time.