l doomsday I couldn't even begin to convey to your gross mind the
most feeble and shadowy notion of the joys and delights which have been
mine."

He spoke rapidly in tones of feverish excitement, and his eyes were
almost as luminous as those of King Cole, who sat up on his haunches,
alert and quivering, on the other side of the pallet.

"Look here, old chap," said Dick anxiously, "easy on. Don't get
excited, whatever you do. Your adventure of this afternoon has given
you a rather bad shaking up. You've had a pretty severe shock, both
mental and physical, if I'm any judge, and it looks to me very much as
though you are going to be ill. Better let me mix you a soothing
draught, hadn't you? Just tell me what ingredients to take, and how
much of each, and I'll mix them in a brace of shakes--"

But by the time that Dick got thus far, Earle had begun to talk again,
loudly and excitedly, and was sitting up on the pallet, waving his arms
wildly. And when Dick attempted to force him back into a reclining
position the American suddenly developed a kind of frenzy, seizing
Cavendish by the throat and doing his utmost to throttle him, while King
Cole, sorely puzzled at such extraordinary behaviour on the part of his
two especial friends, snarled angrily and bolted out of the tent into
the velvety star-lit darkness.

So violent did Earle become, and such extraordinary strength did he
develop under the influence of the delirium which had now seized him
that Dick was compelled in self-defence to shout for help; and presently
Peter, Inaguy, and some three or four others came rushing in, and, under
the impression that the two leaders were fighting, separated them. But
a few hurried words of explanation from Cavendish "put them wise" to the
situation, and while by main force they restrained Earle from rising and
rushing naked into the night, Dick routed out the medicine chest and,
hurriedly consulting the pages of the accompanying book of instructions,
prepared a strong sleeping draught, which, among them, they compelled
the now violently crazy patient to swallow.

But it was nearly an hour before the potion became fully effective, and
even then Earle's sleep was fitful and disturbed, his semi-coherent
mutterings showing that his mind was still unhinged. To be brief, the
outbreak of delirium was followed by a period of extreme weakness and
profound dejection, during which the patient lost all memory of his
splendid dream, and