as they did so.

The fire of the ship's guns was now directed towards the portion of the
town facing the forest, as it was here that the Malays would probably
be gathered. Port fires had been distributed among the landing party. As
these were lost to sight as they entered the town, those on board ship
watched eagerly for the sound of combat. Nothing, however, was heard for
a minute or two; then came a single shot, and then a rattle of musketry.

"They are making a stand now," the captain said.

"Mr. Hopkins, will you please go round and tell the gunners to be very
careful in their aim? Let them watch the smoke rising among the houses,
and aim a short distance beyond it. Impress upon them that it is better
to fire too far than to risk hurting our own men."

The order was obeyed; soon flames were seen to rise beyond the spot
where the fighting was going on, the resistance to the advance speedily
ceased, and a dropping fire took the place of the sustained roll of
musketry which, five minutes later, broke out again at the edge of the
town facing the wood, and the fire of the guns was now directed against
the edge of the forest, to which the Malays had evidently fled. In a few
minutes smoke began to rise all round the place, showing that the
men with port fires were at work, and in a quarter of an hour the
bluejackets and marines were seen issuing from the houses and coming
down to the shore. The place was by this time a sheet of fire, the
lightly built huts, dried in the heat of the sun, catching like tinder,
and blazing up in a fierce flame, that in a few minutes left no vestige
behind it.

The ship's fire had by this time ceased, and the sailors, as they looked
out of the portholes, cheered as the boats came up. Their appearance was
far less orderly than it had been when they put off from the ship, every
man having carted off some sort of loot--sarongs, spears, krises, and
other articles, some obtained from the huts, others thrown away by
the Malays in their flight. There were, too, some articles of European
manufacture, which had been carried off from the palace before the
flames had obtained entire possession. These were in themselves strong
proofs that the rajah's prahus had been engaged in piratical attacks
upon European craft, for they consisted of bales of silk, chronometers,
watches, double barreled guns, mirrors, and other articles which had
evidently formed a portion of a ship's fittings.

"Any casualties,