"I wish Mrs Bolter were here to tackle this dreadful woman!" laughed Hilton. "We men can't manage her; but that clever, sharp little body would bring her to her senses. What do you want Bolter for?" "Oh, he'd mix up a dose for the guards, and give it to them in their tea, or whatever they drink; then they'd go to sleep, and we could calmly walk back to the fort." "I wonder what Harley thinks of our absence?" "Thinks we're dead, probably, and reposing happily each of us in a crocodile sarcophagus. Well, Bertie, old man, what's to be done? The Inche Maida has quite cut us it seems, and we're all alone, I suppose. Come, what's to be done to get us out of this plight? You're quite right, old fellow; it is most absurd!" "Absurd? It is disgraceful! I feel as if we were not men, but a couple of silly girls!" "With beards," said Chumbley. "And now give me your advice." "Well, that's soon done," replied Chumbley. "I've quite made up my mind what advice I shall give." "Well, what?" "Do you mean what shall we do?" "Yes; of course." "Nothing." Hilton uttered an ejaculation that was far from pious, and began to fume and fret, till Chumbley rose in his slow, cumbrous fashion, placed a cigar in his friend's hand, and bade him smoke it. "Look here, old fellow," he said, quietly, "if we are to escape, it can only be when a chance offers itself; and if you will bring your profound wisdom to bear upon the matter, you will see that all we can do is to wait for that chance." "And until that chance comes we must put up with this wretched woman's insults!" "Yes, if you like to call them so; and I'd do it, old fellow, without getting into a bad temper and calling names, seeing--" "Seeing what?" "That she tries to make up for her rather unladylike conduct by being very civil; while her cooking is good, the dinners excellent, and the breakfasts, the wines well chosen, and the cigars--there, did you ever smoke a better than that?" "Oh, pish! Everyone can't take things as quietly as you do, Chumb." "Poor fellows, no," said the latter, with a satisfied air. "It's the only quality I possess of which I am really proud. You see it makes me perfectly well suited for this climate, for no troubles or worries ever put me in a perspiration. I wish, though, we had a chess-board and men." "Chess-board! men!" retorted Hilton, laughing, in a half-amused, half-vexed tone; "who in the world could ever think of playing chess! Really, Chumbley, I believe you are quite happy and contented." "Well, not so bad, dear boy--not so bad now the novelty and the unpleasantly of the affair have worn off. You see, a fellow has only so long to live. Well, isn't it a pity to spoil any of that time by making yourself miserable if you can help it? Take my advice and behave as young Jacob Faithful suggested, `Take it coolly;' and as the sailor in another story I once read said, `if you can't take it coolly, soldier, take it as coolly as you can.'"