ou to be as good friends as me and him is."

The result was that Archie fed the great beast, and was caressed, the
sensation being upon the lad, as he listened to the flapping of the
elephant's ears, that the beast's two little, pig-like eyes were
piercing some crack in the door and watching him intently.

Then, as if quite satisfied with his share in the provender, which he
must have taken as a dainty addition to the vast quantities of jungle
grass and leafage which formed his real support, the elephant swung off,
bowing his huge head and muttering softly, to overtake his companions,
while Peter gave his officer a very knowing look.

"There, sir," he said, "that's just what we want, only no sentry. You
will have to creep out with the prog and the spears, and the krises when
they comes, which we shall have all ready, while I'm feeding him, and
then go on yourself giving him some bread which we will save up for him.
I shall join you, and tell him to kneel down; up we gets. You will
crawl on and hold on by the ropes while I settle down with my legs under
his ears. It will be just as easy as A, B, C."

"_IF_," said Archie, in capital letters.

But the days passed wearily on; provisions were stored up, and there had
been no chance of securing a kris, let alone two, and Peter declared
that it was all out of aggravation that some sentry or another always
took up his daily task before the elephants came.

"They are making a regular custom of it, sir," he said. "Cuss them!"

"What's that, Pete?"

"I only said _custom_, sir. I warn't swearing. I won't say what I
might have said if you hadn't been here."

That very afternoon, as if fate had become weary of fighting against
them, Peter, who had been watching the sentry's weapons with covetous
eyes till it was beginning to grow dusk, suddenly uttered an
ejaculation.

"What is it, Pete?"

"Look here, sir. Be smart, before it gets dark. I have been watching
this 'ere chap for a hour. He has been nodding off to sleep all the
time, and now he's off sound."

"What of that?"

"Kris, sir," said the lad; and crossing the floor of the great building,
he climbed cleverly up to the thatch and passed out, and Archie heard a
faint rustling, and then sat listening in the dark till, after what
seemed to be an impossibly short space of time, the rustling began
again, and a few minutes afterwards Peter, panting heavily, dropped down
on his knees by the subaltern's side.