And as he thought,
strangely enough it seemed to Murray in his faint, dreamy state, he
stretched out one hand to separate the great green leaves of the banana
near at hand so as to open a way for him to look beyond the great plant
through the plantation and see if the blacks were coming.

Then somehow, half unconsciously, the middy's hand closed upon something
soft to the touch and smooth--something that he plucked and peeled and
ate, and then plucked and ate again and again, till he began to grow
less faint, and refreshed as well as clear of brain, ending by feeling
strengthened and ready to crawl back into the hut, half wondering at
what had happened, until he fully realised it all and was able to tell
himself that he had been thoroughly exhausted and was now refreshed as
well as rested and ready to take fresh steps to help his less fortunate
comrade.

"Asleep still, Dick, old chap?" he whispered cheerfully.

But there was no reply, and after bathing the poor fellow's injury again
and watching him anxiously by the clear light that struck through the
roof, Murray rose to his feet, feeling more and more refreshed and ready
to act. He was encouraged, too, by the growing restfulness that came
like a soft flood through his senses.

"Well," he said to himself, "there's nothing wrong with me now. I was
completely done up. It's of no use to despair, for it is only cowardly.
I'm in a bad position, but it might be worse, even as poor old Dick's
is horribly bad, but as soon as I got to work I found that I could make
him better. It was a very simple thing to do, and if I could make him
better when he was so bad, now he is better I ought to be able to make
him better still."

But first of all he tried to settle thoroughly within himself what it
was his prime duty to do.

"Nature says to me, Try and save your own life. But then that seems to
be so horribly selfish and unnatural. I am fairly healthy and strong
now that I have got over that bit of a fit--bit of a fainting fit, I
suppose."

Here the lad pulled himself up short to think a little more.

"Fainting fit," he said to himself. "That sounds like being a girl. I
don't know, though: men faint as well as women when they are exhausted
by pain or by bleeding. Well, I was exhausted, and now I'm strengthened
and mustn't let myself get so weak again, and what's more, I mustn't let
poor Dick grow so weak. Oh, if old Reston were only here with his
bottles of stuff