eshed, to lie listening to the
dogs, wondering what it all meant.

The sun was up, and horizontal rays were streaming in between
ill-fitting boards and holes from which knots had fallen consequent upon
the shrinking of the wood. There was a feeling of cool freshness in the
air, too, that was exhilarating; but for a few moments Nic could not
make out where he was.

Then the slight confusion passed away, as he heard the rustling of
leaves, and turned to see his companions stirring and yawning, while at
the same moment a dog's great head was butted at him as if its owner
were a playful sheep, and it then drew back, swinging its tail slowly
from side to side.

The next minute the heavy bar was swung down, the great padlock rattled,
and the door was drawn open, to let in a flood of light, followed by the
two blacks who had fitted on the irons, but who now bore a huge loaf of
bread and a pitcher of water; while two more blacks, each shouldering a
musket, closed in behind them, to stand as if framed in the doorway.

"Heah, jump up," cried the big smith. "Make has'e; eat your brakfas'
'fore you go to de boat."

As he spoke he turned an empty barrel with its head upward, banged the
loaf down upon it, drew a knife from its sheath in his belt, and counted
the prisoners over with the point of the blade. He then drew a few
imaginary lines upon the top of the loaf, paused to rub his woolly head
with the haft, looking puzzled and as if cutting the loaf into as many
pieces as there were prisoners bothered him, and ended by making a dash
at his task.

He cut the loaf in half, then divided it into quarters, and went on
working hard as he made these eighths, and finally sixteenths.

By this time the top of the barrel was covered.

"Now, den, 'tan' in a row," he cried importantly.

The men scowled, but they were hungry, and obeyed, the black sticking
the point of his knife into the chunks he had cut, and handing a piece
to each in turn, beginning with Humpy Dee, who did not seem any the
worse for his immersion, and ending with Nic.

After this he began again with Humpy, went down the line again, and had
begun for the third time when it suddenly struck him that there would
not be enough to go round, and he snatched the piece back.

Humpy Dee uttered a furious growl, and made a step forward to recover
it; but the big black presented the point of the knife at him and
shouted:

"Ah, what dat? You back, sah, 'fore set de dog