black japanned
cruet-stand, with some trumpery bottles. There was one of those brown
earthenware teapots, and an old willow-pattern soup tureen, without
cover or stand, but full of flowers. Besides which, there were knives
and forks, and spoons, regular cheap Sheffield kitchen ones, and as
rusty as an old ring-bolt."

"Indeed!" said Tom Long.

"I looked at our officers, and they had hard work to keep solemn; and I
half expected to see a pound of sausages, and some potatoes in their
skins, for the banquet. But wait a bit; those were the English things
brought out in compliment to us. Mr Sultan had plenty of things of his
own, some of silver, some of gold. He had some beautiful china too; and
the feed itself--tlat!" said Bob, smacking his lips. "I wish you had
been there."

"I wish I had," sighed Tom Long. "Getting well's worse than being
wounded."

"Never mind; you'll soon be all right," continued Bob. "Well, we had
some good fish, nicely cooked, and some stunning curry; the best I ever
ate; and we had sambals, as they call 'em, with it."

"What the dickens are sambals?" said Tom Long.

"Well, it's either pickles or curry, whichever you like to call it,"
continued Bob. "These sambals are so many little saucers on a silver
tray, and they are to eat with your curry. One had smashed up cocoa-nut
in milk; another chillies; another dried shrimps, chutney, green ginger,
no end of things of that kind--and jolly good they were! Then we had
rice in all sorts of shapes, and some toddy and rice wine, and some
sweets of sago, and cocoa-nut and sugar."

"But you didn't eat all those things?" said Tom Long, peevishly.

"Didn't I, my boy? but I just did. I thought once that the sultan might
be going to poison us all; and, as they say there's safety in a big
dose, and death in a small, I went in for a regular big go. But I say,
the fruits! they were tip-top: mangosteens and guavas, and mangoes, and
cocoa-nuts, and durians, and some of the best bananas I ever ate in my
life."

"You didn't try one of those filthy durians again?"

"Bless 'em, that I did; and I mean to try 'em again and again, as long
as a heart beats in the bosom of yours very faithfully, Bob Roberts.
They're glorious!"

"Bah!"

"That's right," said Bob. "You say `Bah!' and I'll eat the durians.
But I didn't tell you about the drinks. We had coffee, and pipes, and
cigars, and said pretty things to each other; and then the sultan told
Mr Lin