He softly wrenched himself round, and gazed in the indicated direction, to see a black figure standing in bold relief against the orange slope of the mountain. He was nearby a hundred feet higher than where they lay, having mounted upon a ridge which was probably one of the hardened lava-streams which had flowed down, and as they watched him, one by one seven more joined him. He stood looking round for a few moments, and then uttered the cry they had heard before, and turned to descend, making straight for the bend of the ravine which seemed to lead to the shore. The call was responded to, and a few minutes after another party came into sight away to the left, making apparently for the same place, and if they kept on, it was evident that they would pass about a hundred yards from Jack and his companion, so that their policy was to lie quite still. "Be too dark to see us in ten minutes, sir," whispered Ned. "Yes; and then we can't do better than make our way up that ridge till we come upon another valley running down to the shore." "That's the way, sir," said Ned. "Only wants a little thinking about. A set o' naked niggers beat you at scheming? Why, it ain't likely." But they had a scare a quarter of an hour later, the second party of blacks coming into sight suddenly, not twenty yards away, tramping in Indian file, with their spears over their shoulders, and for the moment Jack's heart seemed to stand still, and he grasped his weapon, ready to make one blow for his life. For it seemed impossible that the men could pass by--men of such a keen, observant nature--without seeing the pair lying there amongst the trailing growth of the potatoes. Worse still, they came nearer, so as to avoid a block of stone in their way, and one of the number leaped upon it, and after a look round, uttered the call of his tribe, just as one of a flock of running birds does to keep the rest together. "Now for it," thought Jack, as the black looked straight in his direction, and he prepared to spring up as the man leaped down, and seemed about to run at him, spear in hand. But just when an encounter for life or death seemed inevitable, the savage trotted on, and the others followed, seeming to grow shorter, till one by one they disappeared, shoulders, heads, tops of the spears, dissolving into the coming gloom of evening. "Oh, scissors!" whispered Ned. "I say, Mr Jack, sir, if I'd held my breath much longer, I'm sure all the works would have stopped." "I thought it was all over, Ned." "Yes, sir, so did I; but I meant to have a dig at one or two of 'em first. Talk about as near as a toucher, that was nearer. How do you feel now?" "Heart beats horribly." "So does mine, sir. It's going like a steam-pump with too much to do. But who's afraid?" "I am, Ned."