leave because he
would not go away till they were out of danger, and there are very few
men who would have done that. I shall never forget his kindness. And now
let us talk of something else. You will have to establish a little mess
on your own account, Mr. Wilson, as both the Captains are married men,
and the Major has also an incumbrance."

"Yes, it will be horribly dull, Mrs. Doolan. Richards and I have
quarters together here, and, of course, it will be the same there, and
I am sure I don't know what we shall find to talk about when we come to
have to mess together. Of course, here, there are the messroom and the
club, and so we get on very well, but to be together always will be
awful."

"You will really have to take to reading or something of that sort, Mr.
Wilson," Isobel laughed.

"I always do read the Field, Miss Hannay, but that won't last for a
whole week, you know; and there is no billiard table, and no racquet
court, or anything else at Deennugghur, and one cannot always be riding
about the country."

"We shall all have to take pity on you as much as we can," Mrs. Doolan
said. "I must say that, like Miss Hannay, I shall not object to the
change."

"I think it is all very well for you, Mrs. Doolan; you have children."

"Well, Mr. Richards, I will let you both, as a great treat, take them
out for a walk sometimes of a morning instead of their going with the
ayah. That will make a change for you."

There was a general laugh, but Wilson said manfully, "Very well, Mrs.
Doolan; I am very fond of youngsters, and I should like to take, anyhow,
the two eldest out sometimes. I don't think I should make much hand with
the other two, but perhaps Richards would like to come in and amuse them
while we are out; he is just the fellow for young ones."

There was another laugh, in which Richards joined. "I could carry them
about on my back, and pretend to be a horse," he said; "but I don't know
that I could amuse them in any other way."

"You would find that very hot work, Mr. Richards," Mrs. Doolan said;
"but I don't think we shall require such a sacrifice of you. Well, I
don't think we shall find it so bad, after all, and I don't suppose
it will be for very long; I do not believe in all this talk about
chupaties, and disaffection, and that sort of thing; I expect in three
months we shall most of us be back again."

Ten days later the detachment was settled down in Deennugghur.
The troops were for the most part