ation of the British sailor, cheered now as they were
by the sight of the great river right ahead, with the sloop of war well
in view; and in place of bemoaning their fate or heeding their
sufferings the scorched and hair-singed men were full of jocular remarks
about each other's state.

One of the first things observable was the fact that to a man all save
the officers were bare-headed, the men's straw hats having suffered
early in the struggle against the flames, while the caps of the officers
were in such dismal plight that it was questionable as to whether it was
worth while to retain them.

Titely, the seaman who had been speared, was the butt of all his
messmates, and the requests to him to show his wound were constant and
all taken in good part; in fact, he seemed to revel in the joke.

But there was another side which he showed to his young officer as,
cheering at intervals, the party began to near the river edge and get
glimpses of the boats waiting with a well-armed party to take them off
to the sloop.

"It's all werry fine, Mr Murray, sir," said Titely, "and I warn't going
to flinch and holloa when one's poor mates wanted everything one could
do to keep 'em in good heart; but I did get a good nick made in my
shoulder, and the way it's been giving it to me all through this here
red-hot march has been enough to make me sing out _chi-ike_ like a
trod-upon dog."

"My poor fellow!" whispered Murray sympathetically. "Then _you_ are in
great pain?"

"Well, yes, sir; pooty tidy."

"But--"

"Oh, don't you take no notice, sir. I ought to be carried."

"Yes, of course! Yes, I'll tell Mr Anderson."

"That you don't, sir! If you do I shall break down at once. Can't you
see it's the boys' chaff as has kep' me going? Why, look at 'em, sir.
Who's going to make a party of bearers? It's as much as the boys can do
to carry theirselves. No, no; I shall last out now till I can get a
drink of cool, fresh water. All I've had lately has been as hot as
rum."

"Hurray!" rang out again and again, and the poor fellows joined in the
cheers, for they could see nothing but the welcome waiting for them, and
feel nothing but the fact that they had gone to clear out the horrible
hornets' nest with fire, and that the task had been splendidly done.

CHAPTER TWELVE.

AFTER THE LESSON.

As the suffering party gathered together upon the river shore
preparatory to embarking in the boats, Murray's first care was to se