e thought.

But the colossus turned his trunk unexpectedly toward the brink where
he was accustomed to see Nell and began to trumpet more mournfully than
he had ever done before.

Stas went peacefully to the passageway and behind the rock found Nell,
who did not want to return to the tree without him.

The boy had an uncontrollable desire to say to her: "See what you have
done! On account of you I might have been killed." But there was no
time for reproof as the rain changed into a downpour and it was
necessary to return as quickly as possible. Nell was drenched to the
skin though Stas wrapped her in his clothing.

In the interior of the tree he ordered the negress to change Nell's
dress while he himself unleashed Saba, whom previously he had tied from
fear that in following his tracks he might scare away the game;
afterwards he began to ransack all the clothing and luggage in the hope
that he might find some overlooked pinch of quinine.

But he did not find anything. Only at the bottom of the small gallipot
which the missionary had given him in Khartum there lay a little white
powder which would scarcely suffice for whitening the tip of a finger.
He nevertheless determined to fill the gallipot with hot water and give
this gargle to Nell to drink.

Then when the downpour had passed away and the sun began to shine
again, he left the tree to look at the fish which Kali had brought. The
negro had caught about twenty upon a line of thin wire. Most of them
were small, but there were three about a foot long, silver speckled and
surprisingly light. Mea, who was bred upon the banks of the Blue Nile,
was conversant with these fishes; she said that they were good to eat
and towards evening they leap very high above the water. In fact, at
the scaling and cleaning of the first it appeared that they were so
light because they had big air bladders. Stas took one of them about
the size of an apple and brought it to show to Nell.

"Look!" he said. "This was in the fish. We could make a pane for our
window from about a dozen of these."

And he pointed at the upper opening in the tree.

But reflecting for a time he added:

"And even something more."

"What is it?" asked Nell.

"A kite."

"Such as you used to send up in Port Said? Oh good! Do."

"I will. With thin, cut pieces of bamboo I will make a frame and I will
use these membranes instead of paper for they are lighter and the rain
will not soak them. Such a kite wil