rd, sir. He will cross
there, and ride back down the river some five coss before he comes to
Malda."

"But could he not swim the river?"

"He could, sir, but it is a feat he is not likely to attempt, seeing that
there is no need for haste. I implore you, sir, start at once. Otherwise
I am a ruined man; my old age will be spent in poverty and distress."

"If he can not cross, how can I?" said Desmond.

"There is sure to be a boat on the bank, sir, unless they have all been
seized by the Nawab, who, rumor says, is coming from Bhagwangola by river
to Rajmahal."

Desmond felt uneasy and perplexed. He doubted whether his duty to Clive
did not forbid him to go in search of the ladies, and there was no
possibility of communicating in time with either Clive or Coote. Then it
suddenly occurred to him that pursuit of Diggle might well come within
his duty. Diggle was in the service of the Nawab; it was possible that he
was even leading an advance guard of Law's Frenchmen.

"Were there any other Europeans besides the risaldar among the horsemen?"
he asked.

"Two, sahib, and they were French. I suspect they were from the force of
Law, sahib; he was, I know, at Patna a few days ago."

Desmond hesitated no longer. His affection for Mr. Merriman prompted an
attempt to save the ladies: his mission from Clive was to discover the
movements of the French. If he set off on Diggle's track he might succeed
in both. It was a risky adventure--to pursue fifty men under such a
leader as Diggle, with only a score. But twice before he had tried
conclusions with Diggle and come off best: why should fortune fail him
again?

Hurriedly explaining the situation to Mr. Toley and Bulger, he hastened
with his men down to the river. There was no boat at the village ghat. He
looked anxiously up and down. On the opposite side he saw a long
riverboat moored in a narrow backwater. He could only get it by swimming,
and here the current ran so swiftly that to swim would be dangerous. Yet
on the spur of the moment he was preparing to take to the water himself
when one of his men, a slim and active Sepoy, volunteered to go.

"Good! I will give you ten rupees if you bring the boat across. You are a
good swimmer?"

"The sahib will see," replied the man, with a salaam and a smile.

He took a kedgeree pot, an earthen vessel used for cooking, and firmly
tied to it a stout bamboo some six feet long, so that the thicker end of
the pole was even with t