iece which he had
discharged upon a projecting buttress-like root of the nearest tree.

"Hah! What's that?" cried Dean excitedly.

"That" was the soft pat, pat, of a bare foot upon the moist, leaf-strewn
earth, and showing his white teeth in a satisfied grin, Mak glided into
their sight and tapped each of the lads' extended hands.

"Come," he said quickly. "Come 'long."

Both tried to answer, but no words would come, and trying hard to shake
off the emotion which troubled them, they followed their rescuer as he
regularly glided in and out amongst the trees, till all at once they
were standing in a small circular clearing not twenty yards across, and
there they involuntarily stopped short, staring in wonderment at the
dimly pictured scene that greeted their weary eyes.

After what the boys had gone through it seemed something dream-like, and
they were ready to fancy that in that terrible dark forest they had
stumbled upon some strange abode of the fabulous gnomes or kobolds
described by the old German romanticists as being the haunting
inhabitants of the mines and cavernous underground regions.

As the two lads followed their guide into almost nocturnal darkness they
became aware of the fact that they were surrounded by some
five-and-thirty little beings, not one of whom seemed to stand above
four feet high. There was nothing dwarf-like about them, or sign of
deformity, for they were comparatively slight, though muscular and in
every way well built.

Their appearance was threatening, for each man amongst them was half
sheltering himself behind a tree, and standing holding a little bow with
arrow having its neck in the string and drawn nearly to the head as if
ready to let fly at the white strangers.

The two boys stopped short, involuntarily raising their rifles ready to
fire, and in the quick glance Mark swept round the little arboreal
circus he caught sight of as many more of the little people, much
smaller and slighter, as they cowered behind their companions.

It was a swift glance, but sharp enough for the boy to realise that
those were the women companions of the little men.

"Shall we fire?" whispered Dean.

"No; don't."

"But they mean fighting."

"Frightened of us," said Mark quickly. "Look, they are quite friendly
towards Mak."

For the big, shapely Illaka was stalking about here and there, and as he
passed each little warrior with drawn bow, the little fellow lowered his
weapon and looked