Before one would have had time to wink, the Britisher was lying on the stones of the pi-pi, and the chief man of the party was in possession of the gun. It was a most startling transformation, and Benson appeared quite as surprised as Phil and I; but instead of showing fight he rose to a sitting posture, where he remained as meek as any lamb, evidently satisfied that it would not be well for him to make further move toward leaving the building. With the Britisher thus disposed of, there was a tremendous lot of jawing done by the men, and at short intervals other parties came up, the greater number looking as if they had been running, until it seemed as if we had near us the entire population of the town which had been destroyed. Puzzle our brains as we might, Phil and I were wholly at a loss to understand the meaning of what was going on around us; but were perfectly satisfied with the position of affairs so far as we were concerned. But for the knowledge that Benson was treated so roughly, I should have thought that we were being fed up in order to get us in a better condition for roasting; but it had been shown that he was in disgrace, and no one could have mistaken the fact that they wished us to look upon them as our very friendly hosts. Finally there was a great commotion outside and an old man appeared, showing by his manner as well as his costume that he was higher in authority than any of those around him. The owner of the dwelling now began to tell him about our having been taken prisoners, as we could understand from the gestures; and when the story was come to an end, some order was given the Britisher, who came to his feet all standing. The chief man--he may have been the king, for all I know--seemed to be giving Benson a severe rating; and when he had come to an end, our enemy approached us so sweetly that butter wouldn't have melted in his mouth. It was difficult then to realize that he was the same villain who had promised we should be roasted and eaten. "You lads are to be taken to Nukuheva Bay, if you feel able to walk so far before resting," he said without raising his eyes. "Nukuheva Bay!" I repeated in astonishment. "Do you mean that the Typees no longer intend to serve us up as a roast?" and a glimmer of the truth now flashed across my mind. "The Typees are your friends." "Then how does it happen you reckoned so confidently on our being killed?" I asked, grown bolder now the danger appeared to be over. "The Yankees have beaten them in the battle which was fought this forenoon, and you are to be sent back as a peace offering," Benson said meekly; but it must have cost him an effort to admit the truth of the matter. "And what about you?" Phil asked curiously.