“But I may be killed,” Marshall said, in a voice struggling with emotion.

“If you are, lad, there is an end of the business.  As you know, I am very well off, and the loss would not affect me in any way.  Very likely you will light upon some rich booty in one of these affairs with a rebel Rajah, and will be able to pay it all off at once.”

“I will if I can, Mallett, though I think that it will be much more satisfactory to do it out of my savings, except that I shall have the pleasure of knowing that if I were wiped out afterwards you would not be a loser.”

A few days later Frank Mallett was sent with his company to rout out a party of rebels reported to be in possession of a large village twenty miles away.  Armstrong was laid up by a slight attack of fever, and he asked that Marshall should be appointed in his place on this occasion.

“One wants two subalterns, Colonel,” he said, “for a business like this.  I may have to detach a party to the back of the village to cut off the rebels’ retreat, and it may be necessary to assault in two places.”

“Certainly.  Take Marshall if you wish it, Captain Mallett.  The young fellow has been behaving excellently, and has gone far to retrieve his character.  Captain Johnson has reported to me that he is exemplary in his duties, and has shown much gallantry under fire, especially in that affair near Neemuch, in which he rushed forward and carried off a wounded man who would otherwise have certainly been killed.  I reported the case to the Brigadier, who said that at any other time the young fellow would probably have been recommended for a V.C., but that there were so many cases of individual gallantry that there was no chance of his getting that; but Marshall was specially mentioned in orders four days ago, and this will, of course, count in his favour.

“Take him with you by all means; your ensign only joined with the last draft, and you will certainly want someone with you of greater experience than he has.”

Marshall was delighted when he heard that he was to accompany Captain Mallett.  In addition to his own company, a hundred men of the Punjaub infantry and fifty Sikh horse were under Captain Mallett’s command, the native troops being added at the last moment, as a report of another body of mutineers marching in the same direction had just come in.

Frank spent a quarter of an hour in inspecting some maps of the country, and had a talk with the native who was to act as guide.  When the little force was drawn up, he marched off in quite another direction from that in which the village lay.  Being in command, he was mounted for the first time during the campaign.  The lieutenant in command of the Sikhs presently rode up to him.

“I beg your pardon, Captain Mallett, but I cannot but think that your guide is taking you in the wrong direction.  I looked at the map before starting, and find that Dousi lies almost due north.  We are marching west.”