Carstairs; but I
wasn't--now was I?"

"Coward! No," I said, "of course not. Here, fill my cup with water."

We were sitting pretty close to the edge of our shelter, which really
might have been termed a very shallow cave, some twenty feet above the
level; and as I spoke I held out the tin pannikin towards Jack, for the
heat had made me terribly thirsty. The next moment, though, something
struck the tin mug and dashed it noisily out of my hand, while before I
could recover from my astonishment, the doctor had dragged me backwards
with one hand, giving Jack Penny a backhander on the chest with the
other.

"Arrows!" he whispered. "Danger! There are savages there below."

CHAPTER NINETEEN.

HOW WE WERE BESIEGED, AND I THOUGHT OF BIRNAM WOOD.

I believe the doctor saved us from dangerous wounds, if not from death,
for, as he threw himself flat, half a dozen arrows struck the roof of
our shelter, and fell pattering down amongst us as we lay.

"Here, quick! pass these packages forward," the doctor whispered; and we
managed to get the blacks' loads between us and the enemy, making of the
packages a sort of breastwork, which sheltered us while we hauled
forward some pieces of stone, arrow after arrow reaching this extempore
parapet, or coming over it to strike the roof and fall back.

The natives with us understood our plans at once, and eagerly helped,
pushing great pieces of stone up to us, so that in about a quarter of an
hour we were well protected, and the question came uppermost in my mind
whether it was not time to retaliate with a charge of shot upon the
cowardly assailants, who had attacked us when we were so peacefully
engaged.

We had time, too, now to look round us and lament that our force was so
much weakened by the absence of Jimmy and Aroo, who had gone to fetch
more water.

"They will be killed," I said, and I saw Ti-hi smile, for he had
evidently understood my meaning. He shook his head too, and tried to
make me understand, as I found afterwards, that Aroo would take care of
himself; but we left off in a state of the greatest confusion.

Being then well sheltered we contrived loopholes to watch for our
enemies, and Ti-hi pointed out to me the place from whence the arrows
were shot every time the enemy could see a hand.

The spot he pointed to as that in which our assailants lay was where a
patch of thick growth flourished among some stones, about fifty yards
along the rocky pass in the