to the cotton, and then rolled it up longways.

"That will be dry enough, by the time we want to start," Dick said. "I
hope we sha'n't have to use it, but if there is no other way, we must
do so."

They remained where they were, until they thought that the garrison of
the fort would be, for the most part, asleep. Then they crossed the
stream, and walked along by the side of the road, taking care not to
show themselves upon it, as their figures would be seen for a long
distance, on its white, dusty surface. Presently, the sides of the
valley approached more closely to each other; and, just where they
narrowed, they could make out a number of dark objects, which were,
they doubted not, the houses occupied by the garrison. They at once
took to the bed of the stream, stooping low as they went, so that
their bodies would be indistinguishable among the rocks.

They could hear the murmur of voices, as they passed through the
village. Once beyond it, they entered the gorge. Here there was but
room enough for the road and the stream, whose bed was several feet
below the causeway. A few hundred yards farther, the gorge widened out
a bit, and in the moonlight they could see the wall of the fort
stretching before them, and a square building standing close to it.

"That is the guard house, no doubt," Dick said, in low tones. "It is
too close to be pleasant, if we have to attack the sentry."

Very carefully, they picked their way among the rocks, until close to
the wall; then Dick gave a low exclamation of disappointment. The
stream ran through a culvert, some twelve feet wide and ten feet high,
but this was closed by iron bars, crossing each other at intervals of
only five or six inches, the lower ends of the perpendicular bars
being fixed in a stone dam, extending across the bed of the stream.
Dick waded across the pool formed by the dam, and felt the bars, but
found them perfectly solid and strong.

"It is no good, Surajah," he said, when he returned. "There is no
getting through there. There is nothing for it but the gate, unless we
can find the steps up to the top of the wall, and get up unnoticed.
Then we might tear up our sashes longways, knot them together, and
slip down.

"The first thing to do is to have a look round. I will get up close to
the wall. It is in shadow there."

Entering the pool again, he climbed up the steep bank, which was here
faced with stones. He stopped when his eyes were above the level, and
l