chap say it when the
Doctor had done strapping up his cut that time when there was a fight
between the two Rajahs' men. I've picked up a lot more, too, of their
lingo, but it's all mixed up together somewheres, and my head's about as
muddled as poor Mister Archie's. Poor old chap! I got it too, but I'd
a deal rather I'd had his topper and he'd had mine, and that's honest;
for though he's a gentleman and I have only been a rough recruity, he's
always been a good chap to me, and I never liked him so much as I do now
when he's in such trouble. I wonder where poor Miss Minnie is."

_Phoonk_! came from somewhere outside, and there was a rattling as of an
iron chain.

"Oh, there you are, are you?" said Peter. "The Doctor said in that
lecture he gave us chaps that helephants is the most intelligent beasts
there is--more so than dogs--that they get to understand all sorts of
words that are spoken to them. That there _phoonk_, or whatever it was,
sounded just like an answer to something I had said; but, of course, it
couldn't be. These 'ere are Malay helephants, and 'tisn't likely they
could understand English. I wish, though, this was the one that I got
to be so chummy with on the sham-fight day. I'd give him half these
'ere bananas and some of the cake, for I don't feel ready to eat much,
and I don't believe that when the governor wakes up he will take
anything but some more water. Well, anyhow, he's better than he has
been since we've been here. How long is it?"

The lad raised his hand wearily to his aching brow, and held it there
for some minutes, before shaking his head sadly.

"I d'know," he said. "It's all getting mixed up again. Oh, my poor
nut! How it do ache! I know what would do it good--lie down and try to
go to sleep. But I can't; for so sure as I did, Mister Archie would
wake up and want some water, and begin to talk about Miss Minnie. Oh
dear! It's far worse than mutiny--to go to sleep when you are on
sentry; and it would be ten times worse to begin to snooze now, with
that poor, half-cranky chap in such a state. So I'll have one or two of
them finger-stall fruit things and a good drink of water, and then lean
back against the side and see how many Malay words I can remember; and
if that don't keep a poor fellow awake, nothing will."

He stepped softly amongst the rustling leaves and bent down over Archie,
to find that he was breathing freely, and evidently plunged in the deep
sleep of ex