Chapter 20: The Escape.
Soon after eight o'clock customers began to drop in, and throughoutthe day a brisk trade was carried on. Surajah was sent for, in thecourse of the morning, by the governor; who bought several silverbracelets, brooches, and earrings for his wife. Most of the otherofficers came in during the day, and made similar purchases, and manytrinkets were also sold to the soldiers, who considered them a goodinvestment for their money. Indeed, no small portion of the earningsof the natives of India are spent upon silver ornaments for theirwomen, as they can at any time be converted into cash.
The commoner cloths, knives, beads, and trinkets were almost alldisposed of, by the end of the day, for as no traders had come up forsix months, and as a long time might elapse before others did so, thegarrison were glad to lay in a store of useful articles for themselvesand families, especially as the prices of all the goods were at leastas low as they could have been bought in a town.
"We sha'n't leave much behind us," Dick said, as he looked round afterthe last customer had left, and they had sat down to their eveningmeal. "Almost all the silver work and the better class of goods havegone, and I should say three-quarters of the rest. I daresay we shallget rid of the remainder tomorrow. I don't suppose many of thesoldiers stationed down by the gate have come up yet; but when theyhear that we sell cheaply, some of them will be here tomorrow. We havemade no money by the transaction, but at any rate we shall have gotback the outlay. Of course, I should not have cared if we had gotnothing back. Still, it is satisfactory to have cleared oneself.
"I wonder how Ibrahim is getting on, down in the wood."
"He won't be expecting us today," Surajah replied, "but I have nodoubt he will begin to feel anxious by tomorrow night. I wish we couldhave seen some way of getting the horses down. It will be awkwarddoing without them."
"Yes. I hope we shall get a good start. Of course, we must put on ourpeasant's dresses again. I am glad enough to be rid of that rope,though I have had to put on two or three additional things, to fill meout to the same size as before. Still, I don't feel so bound in as Idid, though it is horribly hot."
"I am sure I shall be glad to get rid of all this stuffing," Surajahsaid. "I felt ready to faint today, when the room was full."
"Well, we have only one more day of it," Dick said. "I do hope Fatherwill be able to get out by ten o'clock. Then, before eleven we shallbe at the edge of the rock. Say we are two hours in getting down, andwalking round to join Ibrahim. That will take us till one, and weshall have a good five hours before Father's escape will bediscovered. They will know that he can't have gone down the road, andit will take them fully two hours to search the fort, and all over therock. It will be eight o'clock before they set out in pursuit, and bythat time we ought to be well on the road between Cenopatam andAnicull.
"If we can manage to buy horses at Cenopatam, of course we will do so.We shall be there by five o'clock, and ought to be able to get them ina couple of hours. Once on horseback, we are safe. I don't think theywill pursue very far--perhaps not even so far as Cenopatam; for thegovernor will see that he had better not make any fuss about a whitecaptive having escaped, when it was not known that he had one there atall. I think it more likely that, when he finds Father has got fairlyaway, he will take no steps at all. They have no cavalry here, and hewill know, well enough, that there will be no chance of our beingtracked and overtaken by footmen, if we had but a couple of hours'start."
"I think that is so, Dick. He has done his duty in keeping your fathera prisoner, but I don't think he will be, at heart, at all sorry thathe has made his escape."
"I think, Surajah, I will write a letter to him, and leave it here, tobe found after we have got away, thanking him in Father's name for thekindness that he has always shown him, saying who I am, why I camehere, and asking his pardon for the deception that I have been obligedto play upon him. He is a good old fellow, and I should think it wouldplease him."
"I should think it would," Surajah agreed.
"I will do up my brace of pistols in a packet, and put them with thenote," Dick went on, "and will say, in it, that I hope he will acceptthem as a token of our esteem and gratitude. They are well-finishedEnglish pistols, and I have no doubt he will prize them. I willmention, too, that we shall have made our escape at eleven o'clock,and therefore, by the time he receives my letter, we shall be farbeyond the reach of pursuit. I daresay that will decide him uponletting the matter pass quietly, and he will see himself that, bymaking no fuss over it, no one outside the fortress will ever knowthat a prisoner has escaped."
The next day passed comparatively quietly. A good many soldiers andwomen came up from below, and before sunset their goods werecompletely cleared out. The governor came over in the afternoon andhad a talk with them. They expressed their satisfaction at the resultof their trading, and said that they should be off before sunrise.
"I hope you will come again," he said; "but not for another sixmonths, for assuredly you will take away with you pretty nearly everyrupee in the fortress. My wife and the other ladies are all wellcontent with their purchases, and agree that they would not have gotthem cheaper at Seringapatam, or Bangalore."
"We try to buy cheaply and sell cheaply," Surajah said modestly. "Inthat way we turn over our money quickly. But it is seldom, indeed,that we find so good a market as we have done here. When we leftBangalore, we thought that it might be a month before we should haveto go back there to replenish our packs from our magazine; but weshall only have been away five or six days."
"I am glad that you are content, for you are honest traders, and notlike some of the rascals that have come up to the forts I havecommanded, and fleeced the soldiers right and left."
Although not given to blushing, Dick felt that he coloured under hisdye at the praise; for although they had certainly sold cheaply, hedoubted whether the term honest could be fairly applied to the wholetransaction.
As ten o'clock approached, the two friends sat with open door,listening intently for every sound. Conversation was still going on inthe houses, and occasionally they could make out a dark figurecrossing the yard.
It was not yet ten when a light footfall was heard, and a moment laterCaptain Holland appeared at the door.
"It is all right so far," he said, "but wait five minutes, to give metime to get the ladder fixed. You had better come one by one, andstroll quietly across the yard. It is too dark for anyone to recogniseyou, unless they run right against you; and even if they do so, theywill not think it strange you should be out, after having been coopedup all the day."
In another moment he was gone. They had each, during the day, gone outfor a time, and had walked round through the narrow lane behind thegovernor's house, to see that there were no obstructions that theymight fall over in the dark. They agreed, on comparing notes, thatCaptain Holland had chosen the best possible place for scaling thewall, for the lane was evidently quite unused, and the house, whichwas higher than the wall, would completely screen them fromobservation.
In five minutes Dick followed his father, leaving Surajah to come onin a minute or two. They had secured about them the gold and silverthey had received for their purchases, but they left behind a largeheap of copper coins, on the top of which Dick had placed his letterto the governor, and the parcel containing the brace of pistols. Hemet no one on his way to the rendezvous, but almost ran against hisfather in the dark.
"Steady, Dick, or you will run me down," Captain Holland said. "I havegot the ladder fixed, so you had better go up at once. Take thesethree spears with you. I will bring the long ladder."
"We sha'n't want the spears, Father. We have a brace ofdouble-barrelled pistols, and two brace of single barrels."
"Never mind that, Dick. You will see that they will come in useful."
Dick took the spears, and mounted the ladder without further question.His father then came up and placed the long rope, which, with thepieces of wood, was a bulky bundle, on the wall and then descendedagain. It was another five min
utes before Surajah came up.
"I was stopped on the way," he said, "and had to talk with one of theofficers."
He and the captain were soon by Dick's side. The ladder was thenpulled up, and lowered on the other side of the wall. They were soonstanding at its foot.
"Shall I jerk the ladder down, Father?"
"I think not, Dick. It would only make a clatter, and it is no matterto us whether they find it in the morning or not. You had betterfollow me. I know every foot of the ground, and there are some nastyplaces, I can tell you."
They had to make several detours, to avoid ravines running deep intothe plateau, and for a time Captain Holland walked very cautiously.When he had passed these, he stepped out briskly, and in less than anhour from starting they were near the edge of the precipice. Theireyes had, by this time, become accustomed to the darkness.
"We are just there now," Captain Holland said. "But we must go verycautiously, for the rock falls sheer away, without warning. Ah! Thereis the edge, a few yards ahead of me.
"Now, do you stay where you are, while I feel about for that spearhead I put in to mark the place. It had about three feet of the staffon it. If it were not for that, there would be small chance of findingit. I know it is somewhere close here."
In a few minutes he returned to them.
"I have found it," he said. "Keep close behind me."
After walking for fifty yards, he stopped.
"Here it is, lads.
"Now give me those spears, Dick."
He thrust them firmly into the ground, a few inches apart.
"Throw your weight on them, too," he said. "That is right. Now theywill stand many times the strain we shall put on them.
"I have chosen this place, Dick, for two reasons. In the first place,because it is the most perpendicular, and in the second, because thesoil and grass project slightly over the edge of the rock. There is acushion in that bundle, and four spear heads. I will peg it down closeto the edge, and the rope will run easily over it.
"Now, Surajah, we had better let you down first. You will be tiedquite securely, and there will be no risk whatever, as you know, ofthe rope giving way. I should advise you to keep your eyes shut, tillyou get to the bottom, for the rope will certainly twist round andround; but keep your arms well in front of you, and whenever you feelthe rock, open your eyes, and send yourself off with your arms andlegs. I don't think you will touch, for at this point it seemed to me,as I looked down, that the rock projects farther out than anywhereelse on the face of the precipice, and that a stone dropped straightdown would fall some fourteen or fifteen feet from its foot. Would youlike me to bandage your eyes?"
"No, thank you. I will keep my eyes closed."
"That is the best thing you can do," Captain Holland said, "though itis so dark that you would not be able to see, if you did. When you getto the bottom, untie the rope, pull it gently down, and call out to mewhether the lowest piece of stick touches the ground. If it does not,I will pull it up again and fasten on some more. I have got a dozenspare ones with me."
Captain Holland then told Surajah and Dick to take off their uppergarments. These he wound round and round the lower four feet of therope, increasing its diameter to over two inches.
"There," he said, as he fastened this round Surajah's body, under thearms. "It won't hurt you, now. That silk rope would have cut in aninch deep before you got to the bottom, if it had not been covered."
Then he took off his own garment, made it up into a roll, lashed oneend to the rope in the centre of Surajah's back, passed it between hislegs and fastened it to the knot at his chest.
"There," he said; "that will prevent any possibility of the thingslipping up over your shoulders, and will take a lot of the strain offyour chest."
Then he lay down and crawled forward to the edge, pegged the cushiondown, and then, turning to Surajah, said:
"All is ready now."
Surajah had felt rather ashamed that all these precautions should betaken for him, while the others would have to rely solely upon theirhands and feet, and, sternly repressing any sign of nervousness, hestepped forward to the side of Captain Holland.
"That is right," the captain said approvingly. "Now, lie down by myside, and work yourself backwards. Go over on one side of the cushion,for you might otherwise displace it. I will hold your wrists and letyou over. Dick will hold the rope. I will put it fairly on thecushion. Then I shall take it and stand close to the edge, and pay itout gradually as you go down. If you should find any projecting pieceof rock, call out 'Stop!' I will hold on at once. We can then talkover how we can best avoid the difficulty. When you are down, and Itell you Dick is coming, take hold of one of the steps, and hold theladder as firmly as you can, so as to prevent it from swaying about.
"Now, are you ready?"
"Quite ready," Surajah said, in a firm voice.
Dick, who was standing five or six yards back, tightened the rope.Gradually he saw Surajah's figure disappear over the edge.
"Slack out a little bit," his father said. "That is right. I have gotit over the cushion. Now hold it firmly until I am on my feet. That isright. Now pay it out gradually."
It seemed an endless time, to Dick, before his father exclaimed:
"The strain is off! Thank God, he has got down all right!"
A minute later there was a slight pull on the rope, and the captainpaid it out until he heard a call from below.
"Have you got to the lowest stick?" he asked, leaning over.
"Yes; it is just touching the ground."
"Not such a bad guess," the captain said, as he turned to Dick. "Thereare about twenty feet left."
He now fastened the rope round the spears in the ground.
"I will lower you down, if you like, Dick. You are half as heavy againas that young native, but I have no doubt that I can manage it."
"Not at all, Father. I am not a bit nervous about it. If it was light,I should not feel so sure of myself, for I might turn giddy; but thereis no fear of my doing so now."
"Well, lad, it is as well to be on the safe side, and I manufacturedthis yesterday."
He put a loop, composed of a rope some four feet long, over Dick'sshoulders and under his arms. To each end was attached a strong doublehook, like two fingers.
"There, lad! Now, if you feel at all tired or shaky, all you have gotto do is to hook this on to one of the steps. Do you see? One hook oneach side of the cord. That way you can rest as long as you like, andthen go on again. You say you can go down a rope with your hands only.I should advise you to do that, if you can, and not to use your legsunless you want to sit down on one of the long steps; for, as youknow, if you use your feet the rope will go in till they are almostlevel with your head; while, if you use your arms only, it will hangstraight down."
"I know, Father. And I don't suppose I shall have to rest at all, forthese cross sticks make it ten times as easy as having to grip therope only."
Dick laid himself down as Surajah had done, and crawled backwardsuntil he was lying half over the edge. Then he seized the rope andbegan to descend, hand over hand. He counted the rungs as he wentdown, and half way he sat down on one of the long pieces, hitched thehooks on to the one above, and rested his arms. After a short pause,he continued until he reached the bottom.
The captain, who was stooping with his hand on the rope, felt thevibration cease, and as he leaned over he heard Dick call out:
"I am all right, Father. Those bits of wood make easy work of it."
Then the captain at once began to descend, and was soon standingbeside his son and Surajah.
"Thank God that job is finished! How do you both feel?"
"My arms feel as if they had done some work, Father. I have been fouror five months without practice, or I should hardly have felt it."
"And how are you, Surajah?"
"I feel ashamed at having been let down like a baby, Captain Holland,and at being so nervous."
"There is nothing to be ashamed of," Captain Holland
said. "Ropeclimbing is a thing that only comes with practice; and as tonervousness, most landsmen are afraid to trust themselves to a rope atall. Did you open your eyes?"
"Not once, Sahib. I kept my arms out, as you told me, but I did nottouch anything. I could feel that I was spinning round and round, andwas horribly frightened just at first. But I went down so smoothly andquietly that the feeling did not last long; for I knew that the ropewas very strong, and as I did not touch anything, it seemed to me thatthere could be no fear of it being cut against the rock."
The clothes were soon unwound from the rope, and put on again. CaptainHolland cut off all the slack of the rope, and made it into a coil.
"The slope is all right, as far as I could see from the top," he said;"but we may come across nasty bits again, and this will stand inuseful, if we do."
They went down cautiously, but at a fair rate of speed; until, withoutmeeting with any serious difficulty, they arrived on the plain. Fourmiles' brisk walking brought them to the grove where Ibrahim had beenleft, and they had scarce entered among the trees when he asked:
"Who is it that is coming?"
"It is us, Ibrahim. We have got my father!"
Ibrahim gave an exclamation of joy, and a minute later they joinedhim.
"You were not asleep, then, Ibrahim?" Dick said.
"No, my lord. I have slept during the day, and watched at night; but Idid not sleep yesterday, for I was growing sorely anxious, and hadbegun to fear that harm had befallen you."
"Well, let us be off at once. Of course, we have had to leave thehorses behind us, and I want to be at Cenopatam by daybreak. We willbuy horses there."
They struck across the country to the southwest, until they came on aroad between Magree and Cenopatam, and arrived within sight of thelatter town just at daybreak. As they walked, Dick and Surajah had,with no small amount of pain, removed their beards and the patches ofhair.
"You ought both to have shaved before you put those things on,"Captain Holland said, as they muttered exclamations of pain. "You see,cobbler's wax, or whatever it is, sticks to what little down there ison your cheeks and chin, and I don't wonder that it hurts horribly,pulling it off. If you had shaved first, you would not have felt anyof that."
"I will remember that, Father, if I ever have to disguise myselfagain," Dick said. "I feel as if I were pulling the whole skin off myface."
The painful task was at last finished.
"I shall be glad to have a look at you in the morning, Dick," hisfather said, "so as to see what you are really like; of which I havenot the least idea, at present. You must feel a deal more comfortable,now that you have got rid of the rope."
"I am, indeed. I am sure Surajah must be quite as much pleased atleaving his padding behind."
They stopped half a mile from the town, which was a place ofconsiderable size. Dick took, from the saddlebag of the horse Ibrahimwas leading, the bottle of liquid with which he was in the habit ofrenewing his staining every few days, and darkened his father's faceand hands. Then they took off their costumes as merchants, and put ontheir peasants' attire. Dick directed Ibrahim to make a detour, so asto avoid the town and come down on the road half a mile beyond it, andthere wait until they rejoined them--for his father was to accompanyIbrahim.
It was growing light as Dick and Surajah entered the town, and in halfan hour the streets became alive with people. After some search, theyfound a man who had several horses to sell, and, after the properamount of bargaining, they purchased three fairly good animals.Another half hour was occupied in procuring saddles and bridles, and,after riding through quiet streets to avoid questioning, they left thetown, and soon rejoined their companions.
"Now, Surajah," Dick said, "we will be colonels again for a bit."
The saddlebags were again opened, and in a few minutes they weretransformed.
"Why, where on earth did you get those uniforms?" Captain Hollandasked, in surprise. "Those sashes are the signs that their wearers areofficers of the Palace, for I have seen them more than once atKistnagherry; and the badges are those of colonels. There is nothinglike impudence, Dick, but it seems to me it would have been safer ifyou had been contented with sub-officers' uniforms."
Dick laughed.
"We are wearing them because we have a right to them," Dick laughed."We are both colonels in Tippoo's army, and officers of thePalace--that is, we were so until a month ago, though I expect sincethen our names have been struck off their army list. I will tell youabout it, as we ride."
"You had better tell me afterwards, Dick. I have never ridden a horsein my life, except when they were taking me from the coast to Mysore,and I shall have enough to do to keep my seat and attend to mysteering, without trying to listen to you."
They rode all day, passed through Anicull and Oussoor, and halted forthe night in a grove two or three miles farther on. They had not beenquestioned as, at a walk, they went through the town. Captain Hollandhad ridden behind with Ibrahim, and the latter had stopped and laid ina stock of provisions at Anicull.
"Thank goodness that is over!" Captain Holland said, as theydismounted. "I feel as if I had been beaten all over with sticks, andam as hungry as a hunter."
"Ibrahim will have some food ready in half an hour, Father, and Ishall be glad of some myself. Though, you know, we all had somechupatties he bought."
"They were better than nothing, Dick, but a pancake or two does not govery far, with men who have been travelling since ten o'clock lastnight. Well, lad, I am glad that you have got rid of your beard, andthat, except for that brown skin, I am able to have a look at you asyou are. You will be bigger than I am, Dick--bigger by a good bit, Ishould say, and any father might be proud of you, much more so one whohas been fetched out from a captivity from which he had given up allhope of escaping. As it is, lad, words can't tell how grateful I feel,to God, for giving me such a son."
"My dear Father, it is Mother's doing. It has been her plan, eversince she heard that you were wrecked, that we should come out here tofind you, and she has had me regularly trained for it. I had mastersfor fencing and gymnastics, we always talked Hindustani when we weretogether, and she has encouraged me to fight with other boys, so thatI should get strong and quick."
That evening by the fire, Dick told his father the whole story of hislife since he had been in India.
"Well, my lad, you have done wonders," his father said, when he hadfinished; "and if I had as much enterprise and go as you have, Ishould have been out of this place years ago. But in the first place,I was very slow in picking up their lingo. You see, until within thelast three or four years, there have always been other Englishmen withme. Of course we talked together, and as most of them were able tospeak a little of the lingo, there was no occasion for me to learn it.Then I was always, from the first, when they saw that I was handy atall sorts of things, kept at odd jobs, and so got less chance ofpicking up the language than those who were employed in drilling, orwho had nothing to do but talk to their guards. But most of all, I didnot try to escape because I found that, if I did so, it wouldcertainly cost my companions their lives. That was the way thatscoundrel Tippoo kept us from making attempts to get off.
"Well, soon after the last of the other captives was murdered, wemoved away to Kistnagherry, which was a very difficult place to escapefrom; and besides, very soon after we got there, I heard of the warwith our people, and hoped that they would take the place. It was, asyou may suppose, a terrible disappointment to me when they failed intheir attack on it. Still, I hoped that they would finally thrashTippoo, and that, somehow, I might get handed over to them. However,as you know, when peace was made, and Kistnagherry had to be givenover, the governor got orders to evacuate it, without waiting for theEnglish to come up to take possession.
"Well, since I have been at Savandroog, I have thought often of tryingto get away. By the time I got there, I had learned to speak thelanguage fairly enough to make my way across the country, and I havebeen living in hopes that, somehow or other, I might g
et possession ofa rope long enough to let myself down the rocks. But, as I told you, Ihave never so much as seen one up there twenty feet long.
"I did think of gradually buying enough cotton cloth to twist up andmake a rope of; but you see, when one has been years in captivity, oneloses a lot of one's energy. If I had been worse off, I should haveset about the thing in earnest; but you see, I was not badly treatedat all. I was always doing odd carpentering jobs for the colonel andofficers, and armourer's work at the guns. Any odd time I had over, Idid jobs for the soldiers and their wives. I got a good many littlepresents, enough to keep me in decent clothes and decent food--if youcan call the food you have up there decent--and to provide me withtobacco; so that, except that I was a prisoner, and for the thought ofmy wife and you, I had really nothing to grumble about, and was indeedbetter off than anyone in the fortress, except the officers. So yousee, I just existed, always making up my mind that some day I shouldsee a good chance of making my escape, but not really making anypreparations towards casting off my moorings.
"Now, Dick, it must be past twelve o'clock, and I am dog tired. Howfar have we to ride tomorrow?"
"It is thirty-five miles from Oussoor to Kistnagherry, which will befar enough for us to go tomorrow, and then another five-and-twentywill take us down to Tripataly. As the horses have gone about fortymiles, it would be a long journey for them to go right throughtomorrow."
"I don't think I could do it, Dick, if they could. I expect I shall bestiffer tomorrow than I am now. Eager as I am to see your dear mother,I don't want to have to be lifted off my horse when I arrive there,almost speechless with fatigue."
The next day they rode on to Kistnagherry, passing a small frontierfort without question. They slept at the post house there, Dick andSurajah having removed their scarves and emblems of rank, as soon asthey passed the frontier, in order to escape all inquiries. Theystarted next morning at daybreak, and arrived within sight ofTripataly at ten o'clock.
"Now, Father, I will gallop on," Dick said. "I must break the news toMother, before you arrive."
"Certainly, Dick," his father, who had scarcely spoken since theystarted, replied. "I have been feeling very anxious about it, all themorning; for though, as you tell me, she has never lost faith in mybeing alive, my return cannot but be a great shock to her."
Dick rode on, and on arriving at the palace was met in the courtyardby the Rajah, who was on the point of going out on horseback. Hedismounted at once.
"I am truly glad to see you back, Dick, for your mother has been in asad state of anxiety about you. Eight days ago, she started up from anap she was taking, in the middle of the day, and burst out crying,saying that she was certain you were in some terrible danger, thoughwhether you were killed or not she could not say. Since then she hasbeen in a bad state. She has scarcely closed an eye, and has spent herwhole time in walking restlessly up and down."
"It is quite true that I was in great danger, Uncle, and I am sorryindeed that she is in this state, for my coming home will be a shockto her; and she has an even greater one to bear. Surajah and I haverescued my father, and he will be here in a few minutes."
"I congratulate you," the Rajah said warmly. "That is news,indeed--news that I, for one, never expected to hear. It is simplymarvellous, Dick. However, I am sure that your mother is not fit tobear it, at present. I will go up now, and tell Gholla to break yourreturn gradually to her. I will say nothing about your father to youraunt. As soon as the news that you are here is broken, you must go toyour mother. Tell her as little as possible. Pretend that you arehungry, and have a meal sent up, and persuade her to take somenourishment; then declare, positively, that you won't tell heranything about your adventures, until she has had a long sleep. Ghollawill prepare a sleeping draught for her.
"In the meantime, I will ride off, directly I have seen my wife, tomeet Surajah and your father, and bring him on here. I sha'n't tellanyone who he is, in case a chance word should come to your mother'sears. If she wakes up again this evening, and asks for you, you mustjudge for yourself whether to tell her anything, or to wait untilmorning. You might, perhaps, if she seems calm, gladden her with thenews that, from what you have heard, you have very strong hopes that aprisoner in keeping at one of the hill forts is your father. Then,tomorrow morning, you can tell her the whole truth. Now I will run upto Gholla. There is no time to be lost."
"I shall be in the dining room, Uncle, when I am wanted."
A few minutes later, Gholla came in hastily.
"Your mother has fainted, Dick. I broke the news to her very gently,but it was too much for her, in her weak state. When she comes roundagain, and is able to talk, I will fetch you. In the meantime, I willsend Annie in to you."
Two minutes later the girl ran in with a flushed face, threw herselfinto Dick's arms, and kissed him.
"I can't help it, Dick," she said, "so it is of no use your scoldingme. This is a surprise. Who would have thought of your coming back sosoon? But it is lucky you did. Your mother has been in a sad way, andshe was so sure that you had been in some terrible danger, that I havebeen almost as anxious as she has. And now, it seems that I need nothave frightened myself at all."
"I was in great danger, Annie. Just at the time my mother dreamt aboutme, Surajah, Ibrahim, and I were attacked by a party of Stranglers,disguised as merchants; and if it had not been that I had some strangesuspicion of them, we should all have been murdered. As it was, weshot the whole gang, who, fortunately for us, had no firearms."
"It must have been your mother who warned you," Annie said gravely."She told us that she dreamt you were in some terrible danger, thoughshe could not remember what it was, and she tried with all her mightto warn you."
"Perhaps it was that, Annie. I don't know why I suspected them sostrongly--Surajah quite laughed at the idea. Anyhow, it saved ourlives.
"And how are you getting on, Annie? Are you happy?"
"Oh, so happy!" she exclaimed. "At least, I was until your mother gotill, and I was working very hard at my lessons; but of course that hasall been stopped, as far as taking them from her is concerned. But Ihave gone on working, and the Rajah's sons have been very good, andhelped me sometimes, and I begin to read words of two letters. Andwhat has brought you back so soon?"
"That I can't tell you yet, Annie. I will only tell you that it is notbad news; and no one but my uncle will know more than that, till Ihave told my mother--even my aunt won't hear it."
"Has Surajah come back too, Dick?"
"Yes; I heard horses in the courtyard just now, and I have no doubt itwas him. I rode on first, being anxious to see my mother."
They chatted for a few minutes. Then the Rajah came to the door, andcalled Dick into the next room.
"I have settled your father in the room at the other end of thegallery, Dick. He agreed with me that it was better for him to keepthere, by himself, until you have told your mother that he is here. Ihave just ordered a meal to be sent, and after that will send mybarber in to shave him. He says your mother will never recognise him,with all that hair on his face. I am going to see if something cannotbe done to take the stain off his face, and shall then set half adozen tailors to work on some dark blue cloth, to turn him out a suitbefore tomorrow morning, in what he calls sailor fashion, so that hemay appear before your mother in something like the style in which sheremembers him."
A few minutes later Gholla came in, and said that Mrs. Holland wasready for Dick to go in to her. Dick found his mother looking pale andweak; but the joy of his coming had already brightened her eyes, andgiven a faint flush to her cheeks.
"I have been so dreadfully anxious, Dick," she said, after the firstembrace. "I was certain you had been in some terrible danger."
"I have been, but thank God I escaped; owing, I think, to the warningAnnie says you tried to give me. But we must not talk about that now.I will tell you all the story tomorrow. You are not fit to talk. Youmust take some broth, and some wine, and a sleeping draught; and Ihope you will go off, and not wake up t
ill tomorrow morning.
"Now, you do as I tell you. While you are drinking your broth, I willgo in and take something to eat, for I have had nothing today, and amas hungry as a hunter. Then I will come back, and sit by you till yougo off to sleep."
He was not long away, but he was met at the door by his aunt, whosaid:
"She has gone off already, Dick. I have no doubt that she will sleepmany hours, but if she wakes, I will let you know at once."
"If that is the case, Gholla," the Rajah, who had come in at the samemoment, said, "I can let you into a secret, which no one but myselfknows yet, but which, now that Margaret is asleep, can be told."
Gholla was very pleased when she heard the news, and Dick went off atonce to his father. It was a great relief, to the latter, to know thathis wife had gone off to sleep, and would probably be well enough tohave the news broken to her in the morning.
"I hear that you are preparing for the meeting, Father, by gettingyourself shaved, and having a blue cloth suit made?"
"Yes, Dick. I should like to be as much like my old self as possible."
"I don't think Mother will care much what you look like, Father.Still, it is very natural that you should want to get rid of all thathair."
"What bothers me, lad," Captain Holland went on, putting his hand tothe back of his neck, "is this shaved spot here. Of course, with theturban on and the native rig, it was all right, but it will look a rumaffair in English clothes."
Dick could not help laughing at his father's look of perplexity.
"Well, Father, it is just the same with myself. I have not changedyet, but when I do, the hair above, which is now tucked up under theturban, will be quite long enough to come down to the nape of theneck, and hide that bare place till the hair grows again."
"Yes; I did not think of that. My hair is long enough to come downover my shoulders. I was going to tell the barber to cut it short allover, but I will see now that he allows for that."
"Now, Father, do you mind my bringing in Annie Mansfield? I know shewill be wanting to keep close to me all day, and I should never beable to get rid of her, without telling her about you."
"Bring her in by all means, Dick. She must be a plucky young girl, bywhat you said about her."
"Where have you been, Dick?" Annie inquired, when Dick went out a fewminutes later. "I have been looking for you everywhere. Nobody hadseen you, unless it was the Rajah. I asked him, and he said thatlittle girls must not ask questions, and then laughed.
"You have not brought home another white girl?" she exclaimedsuddenly.
"Would it not be very nice for you to have a companion, Annie?"
"No," she said sharply; "I should not like it at all."
"Well, I will take you in to see her, and I think you will like her.
"No; I am only joking," he broke off, as he saw tears start into hereyes. "It is not another girl. But you shall see for yourself."
He took her hand, and led her to his father's room.
"There, Annie, this is the gentleman who has come back with me thistime."
Annie looked at Captain Holland in surprise, and then turned her eyesto Dick for an explanation.
"He is a respectable-looking old native, isn't he, Annie?"
"Yes, he looks respectable," Annie said gravely; "but he doesn't lookvery old. Why has he come down with you, Dick? He can't have been aslave."
"But I have, lass," the captain said, in English, to Annie's intenseastonishment. "I have been in their hands a year or so longer than youwere."
Annie turned impulsively to Dick, and grasped his arm.
"Oh, Dick," she said, in an excited whisper. "Is it--is it yourfather, after all?"
"Ay, lass," the captain answered for him. "I am the boy's father, anda happy father, too, as you may guess, at finding I have such a son.And I hear he has been a good friend to you, too."
"Oh, he has, he has indeed!" Annie cried, running forward and seizinghis hands in both of hers. "I don't think there ever was anyone sokind and good."
"What bosh, Annie!" Dick exclaimed, almost crossly.
"Never mind what he says, my dear. You and I know all about it. Now wecan do very well without him, for a time. He can go and tell his uncleand cousins all about his adventures, which, I have no doubt, they aredying to hear; and you and I can sit here, and exchange confidencesuntil my barber comes. I don't look much like an Englishman now, but Ihope that they will be able to get me something that will take thisstain off my face."
Mrs. Holland did not wake till evening. She seemed very much better,and had a short chat with Dick. She would have got up, had he not toldher that he should be going to bed himself, in a short time, and thatall his story would keep very well until the morning, when he hoped tofind her quite herself again.
By dint of the application of various unguents, and a vast amount ofhard scrubbing, Captain Holland restored his face to its original hue.
"I look a bit sunburnt," he said, "but I have often come back, brownerthan this, from some of my voyages."
"You look quite like yourself, in your portrait at home, Father," Dicksaid. "It is the shaving and cutting your hair, even more than gettingoff the dye, that has made the difference. I don't think you look mucholder than you did then, except that there are a few grey hairs."
"I shall look better tomorrow, Dick, when I get these outlandishthings off. I have been trying on my new suit, and I think it will do,first rate. Those clothes that you wore on board ship, and handed tothem as a model, gave them the idea of what I wanted."
And indeed, the next morning, when Captain Holland appeared in his newsuit, Dick declared that he looked just as if he had walked down fromhis picture. The ranee had agreed to break the news to Mrs. Holland,as soon as she was dressed. She came into the room where the otherswere waiting for breakfast, and said to Captain Holland:
"Come. She knows all, and has borne it well."
She led him to the door of Mrs. Holland's room, and opened it. As heentered there was a cry of:
"Oh Jack! My Jack!"
Then she closed it behind him, and left husband and wife together.
A few days afterwards, there was a family consultation.
"Now, Dick," his father said, "we must settle about your plans. Youknow we have decided upon going home, by the next ship, and takingAnnie with us, without waiting for her father's letter. Of course Ishall have no difficulty in finding out, when I get there, what hisaddress is. I have promised your mother to give up the sea, and settledown again at Shadwell, where I can meet old friends and shall feel athome. We have had a long talk over what you said the other night,about your insisting that we should take the money those jewels ofyours fetch. Well, we won't do that."
"Then I will sell them, Father," Dick said positively, "and give themoney to a hospital!"
"I have not finished yet, Dick. We won't take all the money, but wehave agreed that we will take a quarter of it. Of course, we couldmanage on my savings, as your mother did when I was away. We shalllose the little allowance the Company made her, but I shall buy ashare in a ship with my money, which will bring in a good deal betterrate of interest than she got for it in the funds, so we could stillmanage very well. Still, as we feel that it would please you, we agreeto take a quarter of the money the jewels fetch; and that, with what Ihave, will give us an income well beyond our wants. So that issettled.
"Now, about yourself. I really don't think that you can do better thanwhat you proposed, when we were talking of it yesterday. You would belike a fish out of water, in England, if you had nothing to occupyyour time; and therefore can't do better than enter the Service here,and remain, at any rate, for a few years.
"As your commission was dated from the time you joined LordCornwallis, two and a half years ago, you won't be at the bottom ofthe tree, and while you are serving you will want no money here, andthe interest of your capital will be accumulating. If I invest it inshipping for you, you will get eight or ten percent for it; and as Ishall pick good ships, comm
anded by men I know, and will divide themoney up in small shares, among half a dozen of them, there will bepractically no risk--and of course the vessels will be insured. Sothat, at the end of ten years, by reinvesting the profits, your moneywill be more than doubled, and you will have a nice fortune when youchoose to come home, even if the jewels do not fetch anything likewhat you expect."
A week later the party journeyed down to Madras, where they stayed fora fortnight. Dick, on his arrival, called upon the governor, whocongratulated him most heartily when he heard that he had succeeded infinding and releasing his father, and at once appointed him to one ofthe native cavalry regiments; and his parents had the satisfaction ofseeing him in uniform before they started. Annie showed but littleinterest in the thought of going to England, and being restored to herparents, being at the time too much distressed at parting from Dick togive any thought to other matters. But at last the goodbyes were allsaid, and, as the anchor was weighed, Dick returned on shore in a surfboat, and next day joined his regiment.
Surajah had wanted to accompany him to Madras, and to enlist in anyregiment to which he might be appointed; and the assurance that itmight be a long time before he became a native officer, as these werealways chosen from the ranks, except in the case of raising newregiments, had little influence with him. The Rajah, however, hadfinally persuaded him to stay, by the argument that his father, whowas now getting on in years, would sorely miss him; that the captainof the troop would also be retiring shortly; and that he should, as areward for his faithful services to his nephew, appoint him to thecommand as soon as it was vacant. Ibrahim entered the Rajah's service,preferring that to soldiering.