im that little bit of kindness; and
then at last I seemed to be stroking his shaggy head, and then it seemed
that I was not free to do it, and then all at once it seemed to be
morning, with the sun shining, and plenty of black fellows passing and
repassing to the huts of what was evidently a populous village.

It all looked very bright and beautiful, I thought, seen through the
open door, but I was in great pain. My head had pretty well ceased to
throb, but there was a dull strange aching in my arms and legs. My
shoulders, too, seemed as if they had been twisted violently, and I was
giddy and weak for want of food.

"Prisoner or no prisoner they sha'n't starve me," I said half aloud; and
I was about to shout to a tall savage who was going by spear on
shoulder, when I suddenly recollected Gyp and looked sharply round for
the dog, but he was not to be seen.

For the moment I wondered whether I had not made a mistake and dreamed
all about the dog; but no, it was impossible, everything was too vivid,
and after lying thinking for a few minutes I called to the first black
who came near.

He stopped short, came to the door, thrust in his head and stared at me,
while, for want of a better means of expressing myself, I opened my
mouth and shut it as if eating.

He went away directly, and I was about to shout to another when the
first one came back with a couple more, all talking excitedly, and
evidently holding some discussion about me.

This ended by two of them going away, leaving the other to stand
watching.

He was a fine stalwart looking fellow, black as Jimmy, but of a
different type of countenance, and his hair was frizzed and stuck out
all round, giving his head the aspect of being twice the size of nature.

As soon as the others had gone he stooped down over me, turning me
roughly on my face so as to examine my bound hands.

He wrenched my shoulders horribly in doing this, but it did not seem to
hurt my hands in the least, and he finished by unfastening the cords of
twisted grass and making me sit up.

This I did, but with great pain, my arms hanging helplessly down by my
sides.

The men soon returned, and to my great delight one had a gourd and the
other some plantains, which they put down before me in a morose,
scowling way.

I bent towards the gourd, which I believed to contain water; but though
I tried to take it with my hands I could not move either, and I turned
my eyes up pitifully to my captors