"We're bound to
stick together."

At this moment Buck, who had gone forward, gave a loud cry of pleasure
and surprise. Jack and Dent hurried after him, and entered the door of
the rest-house. Here they saw Buck slapping the Shan boatman on the
shoulder. The man, like themselves, was dripping from the river, and
was telling his story to the Burman landlord. The latter acted as
interpreter, and they learned how the Shan, as much at home in the
river as out of it, had dodged the blows of the oar, and dived and
swum so far that their assailants had believed him sunk for ever, and
had followed up Jack and Jim. Meanwhile the Shan had swum quietly
ashore and walked up to the rest-house. His only trouble now was the
loss of his sampan, and his grief was soon turned to joy when he
received a sufficient sum of rupees to buy another and leave him
something in pocket.

"River-thieves," was the comment of the landlord on the story. "They
are very daring sometimes. Without doubt they heard you speak English,
and hoped to make a fine booty by drowning and stripping you." He
bustled off to get them a supper, and Buck looked at his companions.

"I dunno as I put much faith in this river-thief theory," he remarked.
"It's handy and natural, an' all these people jump at it, of course,
but I don't think there was much river-thieves about that lot."

"Nor me, Buck," rejoined Dent. "I'd be willing to lay a trifle that
some friends of U Saw had a finger in that little pie. It would have
been a nice clean sweep of us, and as safe a way of being rid of us as
could easily be found."

"After this I'm going to wear a gun," remarked Buck. "I fancy it
would have been rather useful if you could have pumped a few bits of
lead into that boat as it came swinging into us."

"Very useful, Buck," returned Jack, "but after all, this afternoon we
were in a train where it would have seemed as out of place to wear a
pistol as if you were going from the Mansion House to Westminster."

"Yes, things change mighty quick in this country," said Buck, "and
you've got to be ready to change with 'em."

"By the way," said Jack, "those fellows who attacked us seemed to have
nothing to shoot with."

"Best for them not," remarked Dent. "They've got their own way of
going to work, and a good one too. Their chief aim is to work in
silence. Suppose they'd cracked off gun or pistol at us. A sound like
that travels a long way over water, and draws a lot of attention.