e
the course of events--how the old barbarism of the Malay was dying out,
to give place to the busy civilisation taught by the white men from the
west; and he felt sure that the most civilised and advanced of the young
chieftains would occupy the best positions in the future. Hence then he
had sent his son for long spells at a time to Singapore and Penang, to
mingle with the English, and pick up such education as he could obtain.

Ali, being a clever boy, had exceeded his father's expectations, having
arrived at the age of eighteen, with a good knowledge of English, in
which tongue he could write and converse; and in addition he had imbibed
a sufficiency of our manners and customs to make him pass muster very
well amongst a party of gentlemen.

Bob Roberts and he were sworn friends directly, for there was something
in their dispositions which made them assimilate, Ali being full of life
and fun, which, since his return to Parang, he had been obliged to
suppress, and take up the stiff stately formality of the Malays about
him, of whom many of the chiefs looked unfavourably at the youth who had
so quickly taken up and made friends with the people they looked upon as
so many usurpers.

No sooner were the three lads out of sight of the attap-thatched roofs
and the island, the fort and steamer, than all formality was thrown to
the winds, and they tramped on chattering away like children. Tom,
however, walked on rather stiffly for a few minutes, but the sight of a
good broad rivulet was too much for him; drill, discipline, the strict
deportment of an officer and a gentleman, whose scarlet and undress
uniforms had cost a great deal of money, and in which, to tell the
truth, he had been very fond of attiring himself when alone with his
looking-glass, all were forgotten, and the bottled-up schoolboy vitality
that was in his breast, seethed up like so much old-fashioned ginger
beer.

"Follow my leader!" he cried, handing his gun to one of the Malays,
whose eyes rolled with pleasure as he saw sentimental Tom Long take a
sharp run, leap well from the near bank, and land on the other side of
the stream, but he had to catch at some bamboos to save himself from
falling back into the water.

"With a cheerly hi ho," shouted Bob Roberts, dropping his gun on a bush.
"Look out, soldier."

The words were on his lips as he ran, and in his leap alighted on the
other side, in so bad a place that he had to catch at Tom, to save
himsel