druped. Acting upon this theory,
she hastily essayed to seize the morsel. The impact of her bill upon his
nose woke Bob in terrible indignation. A short scuffle and a plaintive
quack, and that duck's career was ended. But that was not all. So
serious did the bulldog consider this insult to his dignity that, in
spite of repeated castigations, he never rested until he had killed the
whole of the remaining brood of ducks.[19]

[Footnote 19: Whenever I think of Bob and the ducks I remember
that line of Virgil, in which he tells of Juno's hatred of the
Trojans--"AEternum servans sub pectore vulnus."]

Bob's predecessor in office had been poisoned by a native cook. "But I
got her two months," H---- added, "and told my people that I had sent
for another bulldog from England, and that if they poisoned _him_ I
should send for six more."

"But you once told me you had your house broken into. How did that
happen?" This was in one of our talks in the smoking-room after dinner.

"It wasn't a very exciting business," he replied. "All I know was that
the money was gone the next morning. The night before I was very tired
and slept soundly; when I woke up I found my despatch-box gone. I
summoned my people and set them to look for it; it was found about a
hundred yards away, with the papers in it, but the money gone. About a
month afterwards I discovered that one of the natives had been spending
more money than he could account for, and, by the help of the native
police, I got him convicted and sentenced to transportation for four
years. There were three men concerned, but the others escaped through
insufficient evidence. One of the stable boys had pulled up the bolts of
the front door, and the thieves had quietly walked in, taken the box
outside, and broken it open. It was a mere accident--my putting the
money into the despatch-box instead of into the safe; but, of course, I
took precautions against a repetition of the affair. I had my safe
fastened into the ground, and the two safes at the office were built
into the wall, as you saw.

"Now, you see, they know there's always a revolver here"--pointing to
the desk--"and another by my bedside at night. There are a couple of
guns there, but of course they would not be any good, although the
bowie-knife hanging by them would. I always have two dogs in the house,
one here and one in my bedroom, and there are five or six outside."

[Illustration: COFFEE BERRIES.]

CH