Part 53 (2/2)

At length thewail reached their ears It was of a re Le Duc had evidently soether Not a sound was heard, except the soughing of the wind round the tower Still their patience had to be tried Soure coer, they ht have to bind hith of rope for the purpose

He appeared to be a peasant wearing a broad-brioad in his hand They were so well concealed, crouching down against the wall, that he did not perceive the out to seize him, when he said, in a lohisper, ”Don't you know me, friends? Follow me, but bend down as low as you can, that if seen fros or sheep Pardonso”

”No necessity for that; lead on, ill follow,” said Rayner

Walking upright, staff in hand, he proceeded at a good rate across the open space at the back of the village They could see the lights gli from several houses on its borders

They soon reached a streae thrown over it

Here, as they would be exposed to view, the sooner they could get across it the better They hurried over, still stooping down, Le Duc walking erect At last their backs began to ache fro in a bent position

They were thankful when they reached the edge of a plantation, and Le Duc, stopping, said, ”You have acted admirably, my friends Come on a little farther to a spot where we shall find soet over soht, and the inhabitants we shall thenvery stupid will not discover that you are English, provided those who do not speak French hold their tongues”

”A very right precaution,” said Rayner After he had thanked Le Duc for his exertions, he added, ”Remember, Brown and Fletcher, neither of you attempt to open your mouths except to put food into them If you are spoken to, make off, or pretend that you are deaf and du another mile or so, they reached a solitary hut, partially in ruins Le Duc here produced five bundles from behind a heap of rubbish, covered over with bushes

”These I brought by the desire of Madahters, and their black girls, and old Francois, worked away very hard to get theendarmes left the house It was Made lady Directly the dresses were completed, Francois and I started off on horseback, as we knew the road you had taken, I dressed as you seeround ed to a circus before I became a sailor, so I was at honerves, messieurs One without the other is of small value United, wonders can be worked How I did bamboozle those stupid fellows! It was fortunate, however, that none of the black crew of the schooner or my late shi+pmates appeared, or I should have been discovered Now, put on these dresses, they are such as are worn by the planters of this country, and you can pretend you are going to a fair at Goave to buy ood head on his shoulders I wish that he could have come with us, but as soon as he had deposited these clothes he had to ride back as fast as he could to attend to his mistress, and I undertook the rest”

”You have indeed done your part well,” said Rayner ”What shall we do with our own clothes?”

”Do your jackets and trousers up in bundles, and carry them with you

You must take care, however, not to let them out of your hands,”

answered Le Duc

As they were in a solitary place, with no chance of being overheard, the ht of a lantern Le Duc had carried, though he had not until now lit it, indulged in hearty laughter

”You do look like an overseer, Brown,” said Jack, ”and I should be precious sorry to be a black slave when you had your whip lifted above hty hard, I've a notion”

As Rayner and Oliver surveyed each other, they expressed strong doubts whether their disguise was sufficient to enable thereed that it would be necessary to keep as much as possible out of the way of the inhabitants Still, the risk ht would be very serious to them, yet more so to Le Duc, ould al assisted in their escape

Having done up their clothes in the handkerchiefs which had contained the dresses they now had on, they pushed forward

Le Duc had never before been in that part of the country, but he had received uide thele Francois had told Le Duc of this, and that he would find a path through it They hunted about for some time in vain

”Coth ”This one a short distance to the southward, and now led on, feeling the ith his long stick The others followed The path was narrow, and the trees met overhead, so that they were in co close behind each other, for there was no rooood pace The jungle seeone on, they fancied, for two or threein water

”I a into a swamp, messieurs,” said Le Duc ”It cannot be helped; we ht it would be an advantage It won't do to stop here, however”

The water grew deeper The ground had now become very soft, and they were often up to their knees in reatly delayed