ad long ago, but Little Bonsa
play the game, she not want to sink in stinking swamp when so near her
happy home. Come out all right somehow, as from dwarf. Every cloud have
silver lining, Major, even that black chap up there. Oh! my golly!"

This last exclamation was wrung from Jeekie's lips by a sudden
development of "forces of Nature" which astonished even him. Instead of
a silver lining the "black chap" exhibited one of gold. In an instant it
seemed to turn to acres of flame; it was as though the heavens had taken
fire. A flash or a thunderbolt struck the water within ten yards of
their canoe, causing the boatmen to throw themselves upon their faces
through shock or terror. Then came the hurricane, which fortunately was
so strong that it permitted no more rain to fall. The tall reeds were
beaten flat beneath its breath; the canoe was seized in its grip and
whirled round and round, then driven forward like an arrow. Only the
weight of the men and the water in it prevented it from oversetting.
Dense darkness fell upon them and although they could see no star, they
knew that it must be night. On they rushed, driven by that shrieking
gale, and all about and around them this wall of darkness. No one spoke,
for hope was abandoned, and if they had, their voices could not have
been heard. The last thing that Alan remembered was feeling Jeekie
dragging a grass mat over him to protect him a little if he could. Then
his senses wavered, as does a dying lamp. He thought that he was back in
what Jeekie had rudely called "City bucket shop," bargaining across the
telephone wire, upon which came all the sounds of the infernal regions,
with a financial paper for an article on a Little Bonsa Syndicate that
he proposed to float. He thought he was in The Court woods with Barbara,
only the birds in the trees sang so unnaturally loud that he could not
hear her voice, and she wore Little Bonsa on her head as a bonnet. Then
she departed in flame, leaving him and Death alone.

Alan awoke. Above the sun shone hotly, warming him back to life, but in
front was a thick wall of mist and rising beyond it in the distance he
saw the rugged swelling forms of mountains. Doubtless these had been
visible before, but the tall reeds through which they travelled had
hid the sight of them. He looked behind him and there in a heap lay the
Ogula around their chief, insensible or sleeping. He counted them and
found that two were gone, lost in the tempest, h