ught it, Buck?" said Mark, one day, as he lay helpless,
listening to the trickling water of the spring in the thick patch of
forest that had been made their camp.

"Thought what, sir?" said the big driver, as he emptied the last scraps
of tobacco from his pouch into his homemade corn-straw pipe.

"That that little black would be so grateful for what the doctor did."

"Oh, yes, sir; he's a reg'lar little trump--the Jack, me and Dan call
him, and old Black Mak the King. Those two chaps arn't as fond of you
as Christians would be, but they think a deal more of you than dogs
would, and it seems to me they are a kind of people as never forgets,
especially the little 'un. Anybody that has ill-used them they'd wait
if it was for years till they got their chance to let them have it
again, and as Dan says, they never seem as if they could do enough for
one who has done them a good turn. Why, old Dan and me got so chopped
about that night that we could only just crawl about after we had cooled
down. Luckily in the 'citement we didn't feel so bad, but after a day
or two we could hardly move, and as to doing a bit of hunting or
shooting, we were good for nothing. Why, we might have got thinking
that we should starve out here in the woods, but here have we been
living like fighting cocks."

"Oh, don't talk about eating!" said Mark peevishly. "I don't see why
not, Mr Mark, sir. Dan says a bit of eating helps to put life into
you."

"Ah!" said Mark, with a low deep sigh. He made an effort to turn round
on the bed of leaves, that the blacks had made for him, but it was
beyond his strength, and Dean, giving him a wistful look, tenderly
placed him in the position he wished, Mark grasping his hand the while,
and strengthening his grasp as Dean tried to draw his own hand away.

The next minute to his surprise Dean found that his cousin had sunk into
a deep sleep, and many hours passed before the boy awoke, still holding
his cousin's hand.

That next morning was the turning point, for Mark answered a wistful
look from his cousin with the words, "I couldn't help it, Dean--no, no,
no, Dean! Dean! Dean!--I say, I couldn't help it after what had
happened. There, that's all dead and buried."

Dean hesitated, but he saw his cousin's eyes flash, and he held out his
hands and drew him into a sitting position.

"Here, Dan!" cried Mark; and the little sailor sprang to him from where
he was busy cooking.

"Hullo, Mr Mark, sir!"