Part 10 (1/2)

”To hear the groaning of the prisoner; to loose those that are appointed to death;”

”The children of thy servants shall continue, and their seed shall be established before thee”

”Hum!” said Leonard to himself, ”the quotation seems very appropriate

If one had faith in oood one” And in his heart he believed it to be so

Another hour's journey brought the which they had been travelling

”Ah,” said Otter, ”now I know the path again This is the right stream, that to the left must be a new one Had we taken it we should have lost our way, and perhaps have found it no more for days, or not at all”

”Say, Otter,” said Leonard, ”you escaped from this slave-camp How did you do it--in a boat?”

”No, Baas The Baas knows that I ath also to make up for it, and it is well, for had I been beautiful as you are, Baas, and not very strong, I should have been a slave now, or dead With my chained hands I choked him as set to watch th I broke the irons--see, Baas, here are the scars of them to this day When I broke them they cut into my flesh, but they were old irons that had been on many slaves, so I mastered them Then as others came to kill me I threw myself into the water and dived, and they never sawfro along the shore where the reeds were not too thick, till at length I escaped into the open country I travelled four days to reach it, and most of that time I was in the water”

”And what did you feed on?”

”Roots and the eggs of birds”

”And did not the alligators try to eat you?”

”Yes, one, Baas, but I aot upon the water-snake's back--ah! h his eye into his brain Then I smeared myself over with his blood, and after that they did not touch ht that I was their brother”

”Say, Otter, are you not afraid of going back to this place?”

”Somewhat, Baas, for there is that hell of which you white people talk

But where the Baas goes there I can go also; Otter will not linger while you run Also, Baas, I am not brave, no, no, yet I would look upon that Yellow Devil again, yes, if I myself must die to do it, and kill him with these hands”

And the dwarf dropped the paddle screa ”Kill him! kill hiht frorily; ”do you want to bring the Arabs on us?”

But to hiht that he should be sorry for Pereira, alias the ”Yellow Devil,” if once Otter found a chance to fly at his throat

CHAPTER IX

THE YELLOW DEVIL'S NEST

Sundown caht, the three travellers ca for the ht two flapper-ducks in so a fire to cook theerous,”

he said, ”for fires can be seen from afar” So they made a wretched s

It was fortunate that his caution prevailed, since, as the twilight was dying into dark, they heard the stroke of paddles andthe behind it, and the men in theuese and now in Arabic

”Lie still, lie still,” whispered Otter, ”these are the slave- boats”

Leonard and Soa followed his advice to the letter, and the slavers, paddling furiously up stream, passed within thirty feet of where they crouched in the rushes