te Pasha and Limewash Effendi on the war-path, and--"

"And the natives believe in lighted tar-barrels and a cordon sanitaire!
No, D., things must take a turn, or the game's lost and we'll go with
it. Success is the only thing that'll save their lives--and ours: we
couldn't stand failure in this. A man can walk to the gates of hell to
do the hardest trick, and he'll come back one great blister and live,
if he's done the thing he set out for; but if he doesn't do it, he falls
into the furnace. He never comes back. Dicky, things must be pulled our
way, or we go to deep damnation."

Dicky turned a little pale, for there was high nervous excitement in
Fielding's words; and for a moment he found it hard to speak. He was
about to say something, however, when Fielding continued.

"Norman there,"--he pointed to the deck-cabin, "Norman's the same.
He says it's do or die; and he looks it. It isn't like a few fellows
besieged by a host. For in that case you wait to die, and you fight to
the last, and you only have your own lives. But this is different. We're
fighting to save these people from themselves; and this slow, quiet,
deadly work, day in, day out, in the sickening sun and smell-faugh! the
awful smell in the air--it kills in the end, if you don't pull your game
off. You know it's true."

His eyes had an eager, almost prayerful look; he was like a child in
his simple earnestness. His fingers moved over the maps on the table,
in which were little red and white and yellow flags, the white flags to
mark the towns and villages where they had mastered the disease, the red
flags to mark the new ones attacked, the yellow to indicate those where
the disease was raging. His fingers touched one of the flags, and he
looked down.

"See, D. Here are two new places attacked to-day.

"I must ride over to Abdallah when Norman goes. It's all so hopeless!"

"Things will take a turn," rejoined Dicky, with a forced gaiety. "You
needn't ride over to Abdallah. I'll go with Norman, and what's more I'll
come back here with Mustapha Kali."

"You'll go to the Mudir?" asked Fielding eagerly. He seemed to set so
much store by this particular business.

"I'll bring the Mudir too, if there's any trouble," said Dicky grimly;
though it is possible he did not mean what he said.

Two hours later Fielding, Dicky, and Norman were in conference,
extending their plans of campaign. Fielding and Norman were eager and
nervous, and their hands and faces s