as she understood
his meaning she grew almost white with rage.

"What!" she said; "you desire to leave me? Know, Vernoon, that I will
see you dead first and myself also, for then we shall be born again
together and can never more be separated."

Nor was this all, for she burst into weeping, threw her arms about him,
drew him to her, kissed him on the forehead, and then thrust him away,
saying:

"Curses on the priests' law that makes us wait so long, and curses on
that Mungana who will not die and may not be killed. Well, he shall pay
for it and within two months, Vernoon, oh! within two months----" and
she stretched out her arms with a gesture of infinite passion, then
turned and left him.

"My!" said Jeekie afterwards, for he had watched all this scene
open-mouthed, "my! but she mean business. Mrs. Jeekie never kiss me like
that, nor any other female either. She dead nuts on you, Major. Very
great compliment! 'Spect when you Mungana, she keep you alive a long
time, four or five years perhaps, if no other white man come this way.
Pity you can't take it on a bit, Major," he added insidiously, "because
then she grow careless and make you chief and we get chance scoop out
that gold house and bolt with bally lot. Miss Barbara sensible woman,
when she see all that cash she not mind, she say 'Bravo, old boy, quite
right spoil Lady Potiphar in land of bondage, but Jeekie must have ten
per cent. because he show you how do it.'"

Alan was so depressed, and indeed terrified by this demonstration on the
part of his fearful hostess, that he could neither laugh at Jeekie, nor
swear at him. He only sat still and groaned, feeling that bad as things
were they were bound to become worse.

Above the perpetual booming of the death drums rose a sound of wild
music. The door burst open, and through it came a number of priests,
their nearly naked bodies hideously painted and on their heads the most
devilish-looking masks. Some of them clashed cymbals, some blew horns
and some beat little drums all to time which was given to them by a
bandmaster with a golden rod. In front of them with painted face and
decked in his gorgeous apparel, walked the Mungana himself.

"They come to take us to Bonsa worship," explained Jeekie. "Cheer up,
Major, very exciting business, no go to sleep there, as in English
church. See the god all time and no sermon."

Alan, who wore a linen robe over the remains of his European garments,
and whose mask wa