ove water, but safe to stay there in the opposing elements of
fire and water whose contest must come to a climax when fire reached
water line.

"There goes the old _Barang_, sir," groaned Barry, his thoughts on his
ship as a good shipmaster's should be. "I could have saved her by towing
her out and sinking her. No trouble at all to raise her again. Did it
before, you know. Now she's gone."

"It iss better so," replied Houten. The amazing man was scanning the
nearby shore and gave no glance to his ruined ship. The skipper stared
at him blankly, meanwhile swabbing at his burns with oiled waste. "Yat,
it iss better so, mine friendt. It wass not arranged like this, but it
iss much better so, now ve haf lost no mans, after all. Schall ve put
into dot schmall cove dere, captain? It vill hide us from the riffer,
unt pretty soon our friendts vill be dere. The boat iss too full; unt
dese mans need cool grass."

Barry picked out the cove indicated, immediately opposite the flaming
creek, hidden from riverwards by an outflung, bush-capped hummock of
earth. There the launch was moored, and the last trace of fire danger
was beaten out with wet grasses and leafy branches. Of the entire party
but five men had escaped unhurt, but none of the hurts were more
serious than Houten's flesh wound unless the arrow that Gordon still
carried neatly spiked between two ribs proved serious. But Bill Blunt
thought not, and Houten produced his medical and surgical kit from the
launch in order that Bill's assertion might be tested. The seamen
soothed each other's burns, and those of them who had received arrow or
spear wounds waited in fear for the result of Blunt's attentions to
Gordon.

"Try an' laugh out loud, sir," muttered old Bill, as he snapped off the
arrow stem and Gordon winced involuntarily. "I knows it pinches, but we
got to fix up them natives too, an' them ain't werry brave, sir. Grin,
won't ye?"

Gordon laughed, but his lip ran blood. The arrowhead was pulled through
and out, and the cut bound together, and after that the seamen submitted
to the same surgery like sheep. Blunt kept them quiet by subtle blarney,
telling them they couldn't let white folks beat them out for stoicism.

In this manner the camp settled into quiet rest, food and water, spirits
and fresh clothes coming from the fully equipped launch. Then came a cry
from their lookout on the hummock crest, and they climbed up beside him.
The man pointed silently back ove