em in the game.
The doctor tried to explain at first, but after five minutes we begged
him to desist. So we sat and looked on, drinking cups of black coffee
and endeavouring to make friendly overtures to the babies, who openly
showed that they considered us distinctly dangerous.

The house itself was curious. The ceiling was low and the walls were
of great thickness. The windows were so small that it was barely
possible to squeeze one's head through the opening. The idea of the
house is to obtain the maximum amount of warmth, for the cold of these
mountainous regions is intense in winter. In summer, however, these
houses are delightfully cool.

The evening before our departure from Kolasin we were invited to an
open-air feast at the peasant's country house.

The "country house" was, it is true, only a rough wooden shanty, but,
as our meal was outside, it didn't matter.

When we arrived, after an hour's walk, we found a table set out with a
white cloth and three wooden chairs on a green slope overlooking the
valley of Kolasin. It was a delightful spot. Some little distance away
the last few turns were being given to a lamb roasted whole on a spit
over an open fire.

The feast was soon served up. The entire lamb, on a great wooden
platter, an enormous bowl of milk, eggs, sheeps' cheese, and unlimited
spirits. The women-folk waited on us and kept our platters full. Other
men with their wives joined us, not to partake of this Homeric feast,
but to see us gorge ourselves. It may not be a nice expression, but we
were literally forced to eat to an uncomfortable state of repletion.
They took no denial, and even then the lamb was not nearly finished.
These mountaineers eat meat only on great festivals, and consume
enough to last them for the next few months. They did not realise that
we were content with sufficient to last us for the next few hours.

Our glasses, too, were kept replenished with the potent spirit of the
land, and our respective healths were drunk, on the average, once
every three minutes. When this began to pall they toasted each other,
in which we had naturally to join, and these were followed by
patriotic toasts. It was rather an uproarious evening.

About ten we took our leave, and our hosts drew their pocket cannons
and started firing; we naturally replied, and a deafening fusillade
went on till every man had emptied his revolver. With singing ears we
returned to our hotel to find the town alarmed, ex