nnocent and set free.

Poor Mamba had to witness all this before his own turn came. Once more
he was questioned, but continued dumb. Then he was made to swallow his
three pieces of skin and to drink the Tangena.

The state of mind of his friends, as they watched him after what they
had just seen, may be conceived but cannot be described. In Mamba's
case the poison acted differently. Being well diluted, its effects,
although severe, were not to be compared with those experienced by the
first sufferer. Still they were bad enough, and vomiting commenced much
sooner. To the great satisfaction of his friends the three pieces of
skin were ejected, and Mamba, being pronounced innocent, had his fetters
removed and was set free.

But when Mark hastened to congratulate him, what was his surprise to see
the poor fellow clasp his hands and raise them to Heaven, while an
expression of pain--very different from that resulting from physical
suffering--convulsed his features.

"Oh! no, no!" he exclaimed, in a tone of agony, "I am not innocent. I
am guilty! guilty! _very_ wicked! I have denied Thee, dear Lord, by my
_looks_, though not with my lips! Forgive me, O God!" Then, turning
quickly to the officers of justice, "Here--put on the chains again. I
_am_ a praying man! I love the Lord Jesus. He will save _you_ as well
as me if you will come to Him!"

As this was spoken in the native language our Englishmen did not
understand it, but they had little difficulty in guessing the drift of
it when they saw the officers replace the chains and lead Mamba back to
prison, where the last words the jailor heard as he left him were,
"Mother, mother! Ramatoa! I shall never more see your dear faces in
this life--never more!"

But in this Mamba was mistaken, as the sequel will show.

Meanwhile Mark hurried back to the palace and told Rakota what had
occurred. The Prince was not surprised. He had mingled much with the
Christians, and knew well the spirit by which they were animated. He
went at once to the Queen, who was enraged at first by his persistent
pleading, vowed that Mamba should die, and gave orders to that effect.
But on reconsidering the matter she commuted the sentence into life-long
slavery in long chains.

There is usually but brief delay between a sentence and its execution in
Madagascar. The very next day heavy chains were riveted on Mamba.
These, at one end, were attached to an iron collar round his neck, a