whose father was a blacksmith, "it's very
easy; you have only to put the barrels in the fire." A great fire of
wood was made on shore, and the unlucky barrels put over it, to secure
the handsome rifle colour. To Jack's utter amazement the barrels came
asunder. To get out of the scrape, his companion and he stuck the pieces
together with resin, and sent it to the owner, with the message, "It was
all they could do for it, and they would not charge him anything for the
job!" They had also invented an original mode of settling a bargain;
having ascertained the market price of provisions, they paid that, but no
more. If the traders refused to leave the ship till the price was
increased, a chameleon, of which the natives have a mortal dread, was
brought out of the cabin; and the moment the natives saw the creature,
they at once sprang overboard. The chameleon settled every dispute in a
twinkling.

But besides their good-humoured intercourse, they showed humanity worthy
of English sailors. A terrible scream roused them up one night, and they
pushed off in a boat to the rescue. A crocodile had caught a woman, and
was dragging her across a shallow sandbank. Just as they came up to her,
she gave a fearful shriek: the horrid reptile had snapped off her leg at
the knee. They took her on board, bandaged the limb as well as they
could, and, not thinking of any better way of showing their sympathy,
gave her a glass of rum, and carried her to a hut in the village. Next
morning they found the bandages torn off, and the unfortunate creature
left to die. "I believe," remarked Rowe, one of the sailors, "her master
was angry with us for saving her life, seeing as how she had lost her
leg."

The Zambesi being unusually low, we remained at Tette till it rose a
little, and then left on the 3rd of December for the Kongone. It was
hard work to keep the vessel afloat; indeed, we never expected her to
remain above water. New leaks broke out every day; the engine pump gave
way; the bridge broke down; three compartments filled at night; except
the cabin and front compartment all was flooded; and in a few days we
were assured by Rowe that "she can't be worse than she is, sir." He and
Hutchins had spent much of their time, while we were away, in patching
her bottom, puddling it with clay, and shoring it, and it was chiefly to
please them that we again attempted to make use of her. We had long been
fully convinced that the steel plate