near some island now; but what could they be drumming for so late
in the night?"

"There would be nothing very unusual about that," said Arthur. "The
Areoi Societies, which are extended over most of the larger inhabited
islands in this part of the Pacific, sometimes hold their great
celebrations, like the pow-wows, and war-dances, of our American
Indians, in the night-time. At the Feejee Islands they have a strange
ceremony called `Tambo Nalanga,' which they celebrate at night, with the
beating of drums, the blowing of conches, and a number of savage and
cruel rites. Something or other of the same kind is observed at most of
the islands, though under different names, and with slight variations."

While speculating in this way, and endeavouring to account for the noise
which had startled us so much, we all at once became aware of an
increasing light in the south, the `Cross,' now half-way between the
horizon and the zenith, enabling us to fix the points of the compass.
As we gazed in that direction, the sky became strongly illuminated by a
red glare, and an immense column of flame and smoke was seen shooting up
in the distance. Nothing but the expanse of the ocean, splendidly
illuminated, and glowing like a sea of fire, could be discerned by this
light. Whether it was caused by a burning ship, at such a distance that
nothing but the light of her conflagration was visible, or by a fire on
some distant island, we could not determine. It was in the same quarter
from which the sound had seemed to come.

Arthur was now of the opinion that we were in the neighbourhood of an
inhabited island, or group, and that the light proceeded from the
burning beche-de-mer house of some successful trader, who had set fire
to it, (as is their custom at the end of a prosperous season), to
prevent it from falling into the hands of others in the same business.

We all grasped eagerly at this idea, for the probability that we were
not only in the neighbourhood of land, but of a place where we should
meet with Europeans, and have an opportunity of getting home, or perhaps
to the places of our respective destination, was full of encouragement.
In a very short time the conflagration was over, and a dark column of
smoke, which marked the spot where it had raged, was lifted slowly into
the air. We heard no more of the mysterious sound. None of the
explanations suggested were so perfectly satisfactory, as to remove
entirely the unpleasant i