moments, and then he held out his hand to the
rajah.

"Thank you," he said. "Forgive me for doubting you, but I cannot stay."

"I tell you that you are going to your death," whispered the rajah,
earnestly. "The whole city is in revolt against your people; the sepoy
regiment has slain all its officers, and your own men are scattered
Heaven knows where."

"How do you know?" said Brace, fiercely.

"Those men I was speaking with have ridden over from the town. They
just gave me the news."

Brace looked at the fierce-looking fellows, and knew that they were
watching us intently.

"I will gladly take your offer for my man," said Brace at last.

"And you yourselves?" said the rajah, eagerly.

Brace turned to us.

"What do you say?" he said.

"I shall follow my captain," replied Haynes.

"Doctor?"

"I am an Englishman," he said quietly.

Brace looked at me.

"Vincent!" he said, in a low hurried voice. "We have a painful tramp
before us, and in all probability the buggies will not come to meet us.
You are young and not used to such work as we have before us. The
doctor will give you a few instructions, so you shall stop and look
after Denny."

I don't know how it was--I make no professions of being brave, but a
strange feeling of exaltation came over me then, and I said quickly--

"Don't make me feel like a coward. I cannot stay; I must go with you."

He looked at me fixedly for a few moments, and then turned to the rajah.

"Give us bread and wine," he said.

The rajah pointed toward his house, but Brace refused to turn, and, in
obedience to a command, a couple of men were sent in, and directly after
three of the chiefs servants hurried out with refreshments and handed
them to us.

We partook sparingly, and as we ate and drank Brace whispered--

"See, all of you, that you have plenty of ball cartridges."

The order was needless, for we were all well supplied; and, five minutes
later, a brief and distant leave-taking followed, and, shouldering our
pieces, we set off, through the hot afternoon sunshine, to try and
follow the track to the road. This reached, it would be one steady
descent to Rajgunge, but, as we afterwards owned, not one of us believed
that we should reach it alive.

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Note 1. Budmashes are outlaws, footpads.

Note 2. Hathees are elephants.

CHAPTER THIRTEEN.

"Seems too bad to leave my patient,