inside the line of forest.

"It is a nuisance," the captain said, when he told him the result
of his examination of the shore. "I suppose, in a day or two, we
shall have hundreds of them down here. I don't think they will try
to interfere with us, as long as we are at work; but they will
certainly oppose us, if we attempt to enter the forest, and will
effectually prevent our wandering about in search of water. We
could only go in a strong body and, even then, might lose a good
many lives from their arrows.

"Of course, we should be able to beat them off; but I should be
sorry to have to kill a lot of the poor little beggars. One can
hardly blame them for their hostility. Naturally, they want to have
the place to themselves, and are just as averse to our landing as
our forefathers were to Julius Caesar and his Romans.

"Of course they would be, if they only knew it, very much better
off by being civil. We have numbers of things that would be
invaluable to them. For instance, I would willingly give them a
dozen cooking pots, and as many frying pans, if they would let us
obtain water peaceably. I suppose that, at some time or other,
Malays landed here, and carried off a number of heads; or they may
have been shot down by some reckless ruffians of traders, and have
so come to view all strangers as deadly enemies. However, so far as
I have heard, there is no chance of their being friendly; and
native traders say that, of vessels that have been wrecked on the
coast, none of the crew ever escaped.

"By the way, I believe that fish are extremely plentiful here. We
have a good supply of fishing lines on board, for we generally fish
when we are at anchor."

"If you will let me have them, tomorrow," Harry said, "Abdool and I
will look after that. I hate having nothing to do and, certainly,
fish would be a very agreeable change, after such a long spell of
salt meat."

"You shall have them, the first thing in the morning."

Accordingly, the next day the lines were got out; and the Malay
interpreter, who knew a great deal more of fishing than did Harry
or Abdool, took the matter in hand. The hooks were baited with
pieces of meat, or shreds of white or scarlet bunting. The fish bit
eagerly, and all three were kept actively employed in drawing them
up, and rebaiting the hooks. They were of all sizes, from a quarter
of a pound to four or five pounds and, by dinner time, there were
enough to furnish an ample meal for all on bo