oughly-made hut of some negro, which appeared to have been only quite
lately forsaken.

He entered the hut cautiously, expecting to find traces of inhabitants,
and these were simple and plain in the shape of several cocoanut shells
that had been used for food vessels, and close at hand a large dry
calabash.

Trembling with excitement, the discoverer seized the latter vessel and
one of the nut-shells, to bear them to the side of the grip, where he
dipped with the shell and drank with avidity of the perfectly
clear-looking water, which proved to be of a deep amber colour, but
tasted sweet and refreshing.

He refilled the nut-shell and drank again with a feeling of excited hope
running through him. Then filling the calabash, he drew the cutlass he
bore, hacked through the fruit-stalk of the ripest banana plant he could
find, shouldered it, and with the calabash in his right hand paused for
a few moments to look excitedly round, fully expecting to find that he
was watched.

But the place was quite forsaken, and, trembling with eager desire now
to get back to the two sufferers he had left behind, he muttered to
himself, "Saved!" and stepped out, but only for his heart to sink again,
for in his excitement he felt that he had not taken sufficient
precaution as to his way back.

It was after some minutes and only through forcing himself to step back
and stand in the very position where he had first felt, that he was
gazing upon the clearing, that he caught his idea of location of the
place again, when he started back with the treasures he had found, and
further encouraged himself with one of the sweet succulent fruit which
with the water gave him invigoration and enabled him to recover his
traces and blazings of the trees on his way back.

And now it was that he found how much further he had strayed away than
he had thought, and twice over he seemed to have missed his marks
entirely, and turned hot and faint.

A fresh draught of the water he bore, however, restored the failing
clearness of his intellect, and he found that which he had missed,
started afresh, and at last to his intense delight he staggered with his
load to where he found Roberts lying asleep, but quite alone.

"Dick!" he cried excitedly, as he looked round in vain, while laying
down his burden.

There was no reply.

"Dick! Here, Dick," he whispered softly, lest he might raise an alarm
and bring upon them danger from their lurking foes.

There wa