there they were safe, while their bullets were
flying amongst us. It is that cursed Englishman!"

The bitterness of his misfortune seemed to overwhelm him, for he threw
himself on the grass, muttering and beating his hands together. Then he
pulled a cigarette from his pocket, for this half-caste had accustomed
himself to the manners of Europeans, and lit it with a match.

"To add to our trouble, there is no gold to be had," he almost shouted.
"The dogs carried their day's takings to the stockade, where the
remainder is stacked, I suppose. There are weeks of profit there,
comrades; and we have heard that they have done well. Shall we retire
now till our friends come to help us, or shall we make a second attempt?
In a day we can have a hundred men to aid us, and then there will be no
doubt of success."

"While the booty will be the smaller, for the reason that it must be
divided," added one of the natives.

"Which is better than losing more lives," exclaimed James Langdon.
"Besides, there will be plenty of booty for us all, for you know what is
happening. We are on the way to Elmina. Your king is going to drive
these white men out of the country, and that means plenty of loot for
every man of us. But I will leave it to you. We will attack again now,
for there are fifty of us, or we will make a ring round them, and hold
them tight till our friends come. We have them safely, in any case."

Dick listened with all his ears. At the mention of reinforcements his
heart sank into his boots, while the news that war with Britain had
broken out came as a shock to him. True, there had been grave rumours
of trouble before he and the expedition had left the coast. But it was
expected that the difficulty would be settled amicably. If there was
war, he was cut off from his friends. In all probability the enemy were
already between him and the coast, and, in any case, they would make for
the river. It was a serious situation, and had he been in any other
place, and not beset by foes, Dick would then and there have sat down
and thought deeply, for, young and inexperienced though he was, his wits
had been sharpened by the responsibility thrown upon him. He was
naturally a shrewd young fellow; but till he came to Africa he had never
been called upon to settle questions of great moment. He had hardly
given a command in his life, save to the boys in his company in the
cadet corps at school, and there, there had been no dif