“Why did you not tell me this before, Flo?” “Because I looked upon it at the time as the freak of a drunken man, and I had no wish to give you unnecessary pain. But it was foolish of me. I ought to have told you.” “When did this scene take place?” Walter asked, thoughtfully. “Three days ago. That is, last Wednesday.” “This is very strange, Flora. On that day the rascal asked me for leave of absence till Monday, as he wished to visit a sick relation.” “Depend upon it, Walter, he will never return to you.” “Never return! You are really talking in riddles. What do you mean?” “I feel sure that there was truth in what the man told me, and his leaving you on that day was part of the scheme. You may say I am nervous, foolish, stupid, what you will, but I understand the natives well. I know how treacherous they can be; and it is useless our trying to cheat ourselves into a belief that they love us, because they don’t do anything of the sort.” Walter laughed, as he pressed a kiss on the lips of his companion. “Look here, Flora, you are certainly low-spirited to-night, and have got some strange fancies in your head. If you have any more of these morbid imaginings, I shall have to place you under the care of Dr. Macdonald. I have been very stupid to lend a serious hearing to your fears for a single moment. I am sure you are wrong. Our power is too great to be broken. The natives fear that power too much to do anything rash. Ah! good-evening, Harper, old boy,” he exclaimed, springing from his seat, as Lieutenant Harper and his wife entered the verandah. “I am very glad you have come. Flo is suffering from a fit of nervousness, and wants cheering up. Look here, Emily,” with a laugh, and turning to Mrs. Harper, “just give your sister a shaking, and shake her into a better frame of mind.” “Surely you young people have not been quarrelling,” Harper remarked, as he threw himself into a seat, and offered his friend a cigar. “Oh dear no; but Flo has got an idea into her little head that the natives are going to rise _en masse_, and massacre us all.” “By Jove, they will have tough work, then,” laughs the lieutenant. “They had an example this morning of what we can do. If there had been the slightest sign of insubordination on the parade, we should have mowed them down with grape and canister.” “Don’t talk quite so loud, Master Charlie,” his wife remarked. “There are two of the bearers at the end of the verandah, and they seem to be listening.” “All the better, my dear. Nothing like impressing these black wretches with a sense of our superiority. What say you, Walter?” “Well it depends a great deal upon what we consider ourselves superior in.” “Superior in!” exclaimed his friend. “Surely you are not going to estimate your countrymen so low as to suppose for a moment that we could be inferior to the natives in any one respect.”