ry before he should quit the island.

Mamba was of an inquiring disposition. In ordinary circumstances he
would have paused frequently to rest and meditate and pray. He would
have turned aside to examine anything peculiar in his track, or even to
watch the operations of a spider, or the gambols of a butterfly; but now
he had "business" on hand, and set his face like a flint to transact it.

The distance from the capital to Tamatave was nearly two hundred miles.
There were dangers in the way. As we have said, the Queen's spies were
everywhere. Mamba's wounds and bruises were still sufficiently obvious
to attract attention and rouse curiosity, if not suspicion.

At one part of the journey he came upon some criminals in long chains
which extended from their necks to their ankles. They were doing work
on the roads under a guard. He would fain have conversed with these
men, but, fearing to be questioned, turned aside into the shelter of a
plantation and passed stealthily by.

At another place he came to a ferry where, when he was about to enter
the boat, two men stepped in before him whom he knew to be government
officers and suspected to be spies. To have drawn suddenly back without
apparent reason would have proclaimed a guilty conscience. To go
forward was to lay himself open to question and suspicion, for he had
prepared no tissue of falsehoods for the occasion. There was no time
for thought, only for prayer. He committed his soul to God as he
entered the boat, and then began to converse with the boatman in as easy
and natural a tone of voice as he could assume. Having to face the
boatman for this purpose enabled him to turn his back upon the
government officers. Scarce knowing what he said in the perturbation of
his spirit, his first question was rather absurd--

"Did you ever upset in crossing here?" he asked.

"Of course not!" replied the boatman, with a look of offended dignity.

"Ha! then," continued Mamba, who quickly recovered his equanimity, "then
you don't know what it is to feel the teeth of a crocodile?"

"No, I don't, and hope I never shall. Did you?"

"Oh yes," returned Mamba, "I have felt them."

This was true; for it happened that when he was a little boy, his mother
had taken him down to the side of a river where she had some washing to
do, and while she was not looking the urchin waded in, and a crocodile
made a snap at him. Fortunately it failed to catch him, but its sharp
teeth