lay in."

"It is not much of a garden, Miss Hannay. We had something like a garden
when I was a boy at home; the governor's is a jolly old rectory, with a
splendid garden. What fun we used to have there when I was a young one!
I wonder what the dear old governor and mater would say if they knew the
fix we were in here. You know, sometimes I think that Forster's plan
was the best, and that it would be better to try and make a dash through
them."

"We are in your way, Mr. Wilson; you wouldn't be able to do much
fighting if you had one of us clinging to you."

"I don't know, Miss Hannay," Wilson said quietly, "what my fighting
powers are, but I fancy if you were clinging to me I could cut my way
through a good deal."

"I am sure you would do anything that anyone could do," the girl said
kindly; "but whatever you might feel, having another person behind
you could not but hamper you awfully. I would infinitely rather try to
escape on foot, for then I should be relying on myself, while if I was
riding behind anyone, and we were pursued or attacked, I should feel all
the time I was destroying his chances, and that if it were not for me
he would get away. That would be terrible. I don't know whether we were
wise to stay here instead of trying to escape at once; but as uncle and
Mr. Hunter and the others all thought it wiser to stay, I have no doubt
it was; but I am quite sure that it could not have been a good plan to
go off like that on horseback."

Another day passed quietly, and then during the night the watch heard
the sounds of blows with axes, and of falling trees.

"They are clearing the ground in front of their battery," the Major,
who was on the watch with his party, said; "it will begin in earnest
tomorrow morning. The sound came from just where we expected. It is
about in the same line as where they made their first attempt, but a
hundred yards or so further back."

At daylight they saw that the trees and bushes had been leveled, and a
battery, with embrazures for six guns, erected at a distance of about
four hundred yards from the house. More sandbags were at once brought up
from below, and the parapet, on the side facing the battery, raised two
feet and doubled in thickness. The garrison were not disturbed while so
engaged.

"Why the deuce don't the fellows begin?" Captain Forster said
impatiently, as he stood looking over the parapet when the work was
finished.

"I expect they are waiting for the Rajah