luckily grazed, and not broken the bone. At the end
of that time, some of the principal men came to him and, by signs,
directed him to write a letter to the British commander, saying
that he was a prisoner, that he was held as a hostage against any
further attempt to penetrate into the valley; and that, in the
event of another British force approaching, he would be at once put
to death.

Four of the Afridis always sat at the entrance to the house, which
was one of the largest in the valley. He was served regularly with
food; of which, as the valley had not been entered, there was, of
course, abundance. The women in the house seldom came in to see
him, except when they brought him his meals; and then it was
evident, from their surly manner, that they strongly objected to
his presence.

As he lay on his rough pallet, he resolved to maintain the
appearance of being unable to walk, as long as possible. He knew
very well that, if General Lockhart had to make another movement
against the Bara valley, he could not be averted from his purpose
by the fact that the Afridis held one officer prisoner, though he
would assuredly revenge his murder, by destroying every house in
the valley; and that he must accordingly trust only to himself to
make his escape. To do this, it would be absolutely necessary to
procure a disguise; and this, at present, he did not see his way to
accomplish.

The guards below were relieved every few hours, and kept up their
watch every day. Still, as they watched only the door, it might be
possible for him to let himself down from the window at the back of
the house.

On the tenth day he found himself really able to walk, without very
great difficulty. Looking out of the window, one morning, he saw
that the women of the house were all gathered round the guards, and
talking excitedly. Evidently some messenger had come in with news
from the Tirah valley. He knew, by this time, how many there were
in the house, and was satisfied that they were all there.

He at once made his way down to the floor below; feeling confident
that, for the moment, he would not be disturbed. Hanging against
the wall were several men's dresses and clothes. He hastily took
down sufficient for a disguise. They were summer clothes--for the
Afridis, when leaving to act against our troops in the mountains,
wear sheepskin garments. At any rate, there was little fear that
their loss would be discovered until the men returned from th