e utterance to encouraging expressions and even to slightly
jovial sentiments, which tended very much to comfort Alice, and Poopy
too.

"Sure?" he exclaimed, rolling on his other side to obtain a view of the
child, (for, owing to his position and his fettered condition he had to
turn on his right side when he wished to look at Poopy, and on his left
when he addressed himself to Alice.) "Sure? why, of course I'm sure.
D'ye think your father would leave you lying out in the cold all night?"

"No, that I am certain he would not," cried Alice, enthusiastically;
"but, then, he does not know we are here, and will never think of
looking for us in such an unlikely place."

"Humph! that only shews your ignorance," said Corrie.

"Well, I dare say I _am_ very ignorant," replied Alice, meekly.

"No, no! I don't mean _that_," cried Corrie, with a feeling of
self-reproach. "I don't mean to say that you're ignorant in a general
way, you know, but only about what men are likely to do, d'ye see, when
they're hard put to it, you understand. _Our_ feelings are so different
from yours, you know, and--and--"

Here Corrie broke down, and in order to change the subject abruptly he
rolled round towards Poopy, and cried with considerable asperity--

"What on earth d'ye mean, Kickup, by wriggling about your black body in
that fashion? If you don't stop it you'll fetch way down the hill, and
go slap over the precipice, carrying Alice and me along with you. Give
it up now, d'ye hear?"

"No, me won't," cried Poopy, with great passion, while tears sprang from
her large eyes, and coursed over her sable cheeks. "Me _will_ bu'st dem
ropes."

"More likely to do that to yourself if you go on like that," returned
Corrie. "But, I say, Alice, cheer up," (here he rolled round on his
other side,) "I've been pondering a plan all this time to set us free,
and now I'm going to try it. The only bother about it is that these
rascally savages have dropt me beside a pool of half soft mud that I
can't help sticking my head into if I try to move."

"Oh! then, don't move, dear Corrie," said Alice, in an imploring tone of
voice; "we can lie here quite comfortably till papa comes."

"Ah! yes," said Corrie, "that reminds me that I was saying we men feel
and act so different from you women. Now it strikes me that your father
will go to all the most _unlikely_ parts of the island first; knowin'
very well that niggers don't hide in _likely_ places. But