y visible in the zenith, so that if any
fighting had to be done we should at least have light enough to
distinguish between friend and foe.

This anticipation of an attempted surprise of course necessitated the
maintenance of a keen and incessant look-out I accordingly posted half
my small command round the walls, with instructions to fire
unhesitatingly at any moving object which might come within their range
of vision. But I did not expect an _immediate_ attack; indeed, the more
I weighed the chances of such a thing the less did they appear to be,
and in the meantime we were in urgent need of water, our stock being
almost exhausted. Hitherto we had refrained from drinking the river
water, it having a peculiar sweetish taste which scarcely suited our
palates, but very soon it would be "river water or nothing," and I
thought that probably this pause of expectation, as it were, would
afford us as good an opportunity as we were likely to have for refilling
our breakers.

I therefore directed the party who were not engaged upon sentry duty to
make ready for a trip to the river with two of the empty breakers. But
before engaging so large a portion of my little force in an expedition
which, though of the briefest, might expose them to great, because
unexpected, dangers, I resolved to reconnoitre the ground in person, and
with this object in view slipped noiselessly over the parapet to the
ground outside, and throwing myself at full length upon the grass,
already wet with the heavy dew, commenced a slow and disagreeable
journey to the water side. I intended at first to take a look at the
cutter _en passant_, but a moment's thought decided me against this
course, it being just possible that I might find a few savages either
already established in possession or keeping a stealthy watch upon the
boat in readiness to pounce upon any incautious white man who might
venture to approach her. I accordingly set out in a direction about at
right angles to that which would have led me down to the boat, and
though this entailed a considerably longer journey I regarded it as also
a very much safer one.

After a somewhat long and tedious journey--long, that is to say, in
point of time, though the distance traversed was very short--I reached
the water's edge without adventure, and without having seen the
slightest sign indicating the presence of savages upon the island. I
therefore hastened back to the battery--narrowly escaping bei