up and bring it in," continued Archie firmly; and
the Major grunted, for he was evidently cooling down.

"There! Humph! Dinner," grunted the Major again. "Now, quick! What
have you got to say?"

Archie was silent for a few moments, for the simple reason that he could
not speak, only stand trying to gaze steadily in the eyes of the fine
old officer, who was watching him intently with a look that forced him
to speak at last; but even then his voice shook a little, in spite of
his efforts to make it firm and loud. Then the word that had struggled
for utterance came, and it was in Latin:

"Peccavi."

It was only that word, but it was enough to make the old Major lean
forward, clap one hand on the lad's shoulder, and half-whisper:

"Spoken like your father's son!" and then, as the door behind him
opened, he half-shouted, "Coming!" Then to his companion, "Now, my
lad--dinner!"

CHAPTER THREE.

A MALAY FRIEND.

Archie Maine's sensations as he marched beside his chief into the
mess-room were such that he would far rather have escaped to his own
quarters; but he began to pull himself together as he caught sight of a
friend, and the next minute he was being in turn introduced by the
quiet, gentlemanly Resident to the Rajah Suleiman, a heavy-looking,
typical Malay with peculiar, hard, dark eyes and thick, smiling lips,
who greeted him in fair English and murmured something about "visit" and
the "elephants and tigers." And then, as the Eastern chief, who did not
look at home in the English evening-dress he had adopted, turned away to
smile upon another of the officers, Archie joined hands at once with a
slight, youthful-looking visitor also in evening-dress, who as the
youths chatted together showed his mastery of the English language
sufficiently to address the subaltern as "old chap," following it up
with:

"When are you going to get your boss to give you a day or two's leave?"

"Oh, I don't know," replied Archie. "Not for some time; I'm in
disgrace."

"Disgrace! What do you mean?" was the inquiry.

"Oh, not sticking enough to my duties."

"Duties?"

"Yes; drill and practice."

"Oh, nonsense! You don't want to be always drilling and drilling and
drilling. Your men could kill us all off without any more of that. I
shall ask the Major to let you come and stay with me a month."

"No, no, no," said Archie, though his eyes were flashing with eagerness.

"And I say yes, yes, yes. I haven't got su