To understand this story you must know that at one point of Ochori borderline, the German, French, and Belgian territories shoot three narrow tongues that form, roughly, the segments of a half-circle. Whether the German tongue is split in the middle by N'glili River, so that it forms a flattened1 broad arrow, with the central prong the river is a moot2 point. We, in Downing Street, claim that the lower angle of this arrow is wholly ours, and that all the flat basin of the Field of Blood (as they call it) is entitled to receive the shadow which a flapping Union Jack3 may cast.
If Downing Street were to send that frantic4 code-wire to "Polonius" to Hamilton in these days he could not obey the instructions, for reasons which I will give. As a matter of fact the code has now been changed, Lieutenant5 Tibbetts being mainly responsible for the alteration6.
Hamilton, in his severest mood, wrote a letter to Bones, and it is worth reproducing.
That Bones was living a dozen yards from Captain Hamilton, and that they shared a common mess-table, adds rather than distracts from the seriousness of the correspondence. The letter ran:
"The Residency,
"September 24th.
"From Officer commanding Houssas detachment Headquarters, to Officer commanding "B" company of Houssas.
"Sir,--
"I have the honour to direct your attention to that paragraph of King's regulations which directs that an officer's sole attention should be concentrated upon executing the lawful8 commands of his superior.
"I have had occasion recently to correct a certain tendency on your part to employing War Department property and the servants of the Crown for your own special use. I need hardly point out to you that such conduct on your part is subversive9 to discipline and directly contrary to the spirit and letter of regulations. More especially would I urge the impropriety of utilizing10 government telegraph lines for the purpose of securing information regarding your gambling11 transactions. Matters have now reached a very serious crisis, and I feel sure that you will see the necessity for refraining from these breaches13 of discipline.
"I have the honour to be, sir,
"Your obedient servant,
"P. G. Hamilton, 'Captain.'"
When two white men, the only specimen14 of their race and class within a radius15 of hundreds of miles, are living together in an isolated16 post, they either hate or tolerate one another. The exception must always be found in two men of a similar service having similar objects to gain, and infused with a common spirit of endeavour.
Fortunately neither Lieutenant Tibbetts nor his superior were long enough associated to get upon one another's nerves.
Lieutenant Tibbetts received this letter while he was shaving, and came across the parade ground outrageously17 attired18 in his pyjamas19 and his helmet. Clambering up the wooden stairs, his slippers20 flap-flapping across the broad verandah, he burst into the chief's bedroom, interrupting a stern and frigid21 Captain Hamilton in the midst of his early morning coffee and roll.
"Look here, old sport," said Bones, indignantly waving a frothy shaving brush at the other, "what the dooce is all this about?"
He displayed a crumpled22 letter.
"Lieutenant Tibbetts," said Hamilton of the Houssas severely24, "have you no sense of decency25?"
"Sense of decency, my dear old thing!" repeated Bones. "I am simply full of it. That is why I have come."
A terrible sight was Bones at that early hour with the open pyjama jacket showing his scraggy neck, with his fish mouth drooping26 dismally27, his round, staring eyes and his hair rumpled23 up, one frantic tuft at the back standing28 up in isolation29.
Hamilton stared at him, and it was the stern stare of a disciplinarian. But Bones was not to be put out of countenance30 by so small a thing as an icy glance.
"There is no sense in getting peevish31 with me, old Ham," he said, squatting32 down on the nearest chair; "this is what I call a stupid, officious, unnecessary letter. Why this haughtiness33? Why these crushing inferences? Why this unkindness to poor old Bones?"
"The fact of it is, Bones," said Hamilton, accepting the situation, "you are spending too much of your time in the telegraph station."
Bones got up slowly.
"Captain Hamilton, sir!" he said reproachfully, "after all I have done for you."
"Beyond selling me one of your beastly sweepstake tickets for five shillings," said Hamilton, unpleasantly; "a ticket which I dare say you have taken jolly good care will not win a prize, I fail to see in what manner you have helped me. Now, Bones, you will have to pay more attention to your work. There is no sense in slacking; we will have Sanders back here before we know where we are, and when he starts nosing round there will be a lot of trouble. Besides, you are shirking."
"Me!" gasped34 Bones, outraged35. "Me--shirking? You forget yourself, sir!"
Even Bones could not be dignified36 with a lather37 brush in one hand and a half-shaven cheek, testifying to the hastiness of his departure from his quarters.
"I only wish to say, sir," said Bones, "that during the period I have had the honour to serve under your command I have settled possibly more palavers39 of a distressingly41 ominous42 character than the average Commissioner43 is called upon to settle in the course of a year."
"As you have created most of the palavers yourself," said Hamilton unkindly, "I do not deny this. In other words, you have got yourself into more tangles46, and you've had to crawl out more often."
"It is useless appealing to your better nature, sir," said Bones.
He saluted47 with the hand that held the lather brush, turned about like an automaton48, tripped over the mat, recovered himself with an effort, and preserving what dignity a man can preserve in pink-striped pyjamas and a sun helmet, stalked majestically49 back to his quarters. Half-way across he remembered something and came doubling back, clattering50 into Hamilton's room unceremoniously.
"There is one thing I forgot to say," he said, "about those sweepstake tickets. If I happen to be killed on any future expedition that you may send me, you will understand that the whole of my moveable property is yours, absolutely. And I may add, sir," he said at the doorway51 with one hand on the lintel ready to execute a strategic flank movement out of range, "that with this legacy52 I offer you my forgiveness for the perfectly53 beastly time you have given me. Good morning, sir."
There was a commanding officer's parade of Houssas at noon. It was not until he stalked across the square and clicked his heels together as he reported the full strength of his company present that Hamilton saw his subordinate again.
The parade over, Bones went huffily to his quarters.
He was hurt. To be told he had been shirking his duty touched a very tender and sensitive spot of his.
In preparation for the movement which he had expected to make he had kept his company on the move for a fortnight. For fourteen terrible days in all kinds of weather, he had worked like a native in the forest; with sham54 fights and blank cartridge55 attacks upon imaginary positions, with scaling of stockades56 and building of bridges--all work at which his soul revolted--to be told at the end he had shirked his work!
Certainly he had come down to headquarters more often perhaps than was necessary, but then he was properly interested in the draw of a continental57 sweepstake which might, with any kind of luck, place him in the possession of a considerable fortune. Hamilton was amiable58 at lunch, even communicative at dinner, and for him rather serious.
For if the truth be told he was desperately59 worried. The cause was, as it had often been with Sanders, that French-German-Belgian territory which adjoins the Ochori country. All the bad characters, not only the French of the Belgian Congo, but of the badly-governed German lands--all the tax resisters, the murderers, and the criminals of every kind, but the lawless contingents60 of every nation, formed a floating nomadic61 population in the tree-covered hills which lay beyond the country governed by Bosambo.
Of late there had been a larger break-away than usual. A strong force of rebellious62 natives was reported to be within a day's march of the Ochori boundary. This much Hamilton knew. But he had known of such occurrences before; not once, but a score of times had alarming news come from the French border.
He had indeed made many futile63 trips into the heart of the Ochori country.
Forced marches through little known territory, and long and tiring waits for the invader64 that never came, had dulled his senses of apprehension65. He had to take a chance. The Administrator66's office would warn him from time to time, and ask him conventionally to make his arrangements to meet all contingencies67 and Sanders would as conventionally reply that the condition of affairs on the Ochori border was engaging his most earnest attention.
"What is the use of worrying about it now?" asked Bones at dinner.
Hamilton shook his head.
"There was a certain magic in old Sanders' name," he said.
Bones' lips pursed.
"My dear old chap," he said, "there is a bit of magic in mine."
"I have not noticed it," said Hamilton.
"I am getting awfully68 popular as a matter of fact," said Bones complacently69. "The last time I was up the river, Bosambo came ten miles down stream to meet me and spend the day."
"Did you lose anything?" asked Hamilton ungraciously.
Bones thought.
"Now you come to mention it," he said slowly, "I did lose quite a lot of things, but dear old Bosambo wouldn't play a dirty trick on a pal38. I know Bosambo."
"If there is one thing more evident than another," said Hamilton, "it is that you do not know Bosambo."
Hamilton was wakened at three in the next morning by the telegraph operator. It was a "clear the line" message, coded from headquarters, and half awake he went into Sanders' study and put it into plain English.
"Hope you are watching the Ochori border," it ran, "representations from French Government to the effect that a crossing is imminent70."
He pulled his mosquito boots on over his pyjamas, struggled into a coat and crossed to Lieutenant Tibbetts' quarters.
Bones occupied a big hut at the end of the Houssa lines, and Hamilton woke him by the simple expedient71 of flashing his electric hand lamp in his face.
"I have had a telegram," he said, and Bones leapt out of bed wide awake in an instant.
"I knew jolly well I would draw a horse," he said exultantly72. "I had a dream----"
"Be serious, you feather-minded devil."
With that Hamilton handed him the telegram.
Bones read it carefully, and interpreted any meanings into its construction which it could not possibly bear.
"What are you going to do?" he asked.
"There is only one thing to do," said Hamilton. "We shall have to take all the men we can possibly muster73, and go north at daybreak."
"Spoken like a jolly old Hannibal," said Bones heartily74, and smacked75 his superior on the back. A shrill76 bugle77 call aroused the sleeping lines, and Hamilton went back to his quarters to make preparations for the journey. In the first grey light of dawn he flew three pigeons to Bosambo, and the message they carried about their red legs was brief.
"Take your fighting regiments78 to the edge of Frenchi land; presently I will come with my soldiers and support you. Let no foreigner pass on your life and on your head."
When the rising sun tipped the tops of the palms with gold, and the wild world was filled with the sound of the birds, the _Zaire_, her decks alive with soldiers, began her long journey northward80.
Just before the boat left, Hamilton received a further message from the Administrator. It was in plain English, some evidence of Sir Robert Sanleigh's haste.
"Confidential81: This matter on the Ochori border extremely delicate. Complete adequate arrangements to keep in touch with me."
For one moment Hamilton conceived the idea of leaving Bones behind to deal with the telegram and come along. A little thought, however, convinced him of the futility82 of this method. For one thing he would want every bit of assistance he could get, and although Bones had his disadvantages he was an excellent soldier, and a loyal and gallant83 comrade.
It might be necessary for Hamilton to divide up his forces; in which case he could hardly dispense84 with Lieutenant Tibbetts, and he explained unnecessarily to Bones:
"I think you are much better under my eye where I can see what you're doing."
"Sir," said Bones very seriously, "it is not what I do, it is what I think. If you could only see my brain at work----"
"Ha, ha!" said Hamilton rudely.
For at least three days relations were strained between the two officers. Bones was a man who admitted at regular intervals85 that he was unduly86 sensitive. He had explained this disadvantage to Hamilton at various times, but the Houssa stolidly87 refused to remember the fact.
Most of the way up the river Hamilton attended to his business navigation--he knew the stream very well--whilst Bones, in a cabin which had been rigged up for him in the after part of the ship, played Patience, and by a systematic88 course of cheating himself was able to accomplish marvels89. They found the Ochori city deserted90 save for a strong guard, for Bosambo had marched the day previous; sending a war call through the country.
He had started with a thousand spears, and his force was growing in snowball fashion as he progressed through the land. The great road which Notiki, the northern chief, had started by way of punishment was beginning to take shape. Bosambo had moved with incredible swiftness.
Too swift, indeed, for a certain Angolian-Congo robber who had headed a villainous pilgrimage to a land which, as he had predicted, flowed with milk and honey; was guarded by timorous91 men and mainly populated by slim and beautiful maidens92. The Blue Books on this migration93 gave this man's name as Kisini, but he was in fact an Angolian named Bizaro--a composite name which smacks94 suspiciously of Portuguese95 influence.
Many times had the unruly people and the lawless bands which occupied the forest beyond the Ochori threatened to cross into British territory. But the dangers of the unknown, the awful stories of a certain white lord who was swift to avenge96 and monstrously97 inquisitive98 had held them. Year after year there had grown up tribes within tribes, tiny armed camps that had only this in common, that they were outside the laws from which they had fled, and that somewhere to the southward and the eastward99 were strong forces flying the tricolour of France or the yellow star of the Belgian Congo, ready to belch100 fire at them, if they so much as showed their flat noses.
It would have needed a Napoleon to have combined all the conflicting forces, to have lulled101 all the mutual102 suspicions, and to have moulded these incompatible103 particles into a whole; but, Bizaro, like many another vain and ambitious man, had sought by means of a great palaver40 to produce a feeling of security sufficiently104 soothing105 to the nerves and susceptibilities of all elements, to create something like a nationality of these scattered106 remnants of the nations.
And though he failed, he did succeed in bringing together four or five of the camps, and it was this news carried to the French Governor by spies, transmitted to Downing Street, and flashed back again to the Coast, which set Hamilton and his Houssas moving; which brought a regiment79 of the King's African Rifles to the Coast ready to reinforce the earlier expedition, and which (more to the point) had put Bosambo's war drums rumbling107 from one end of the Ochori to the other.
Bizaro, mustering108 his force, came gaily109 through the sun-splashed aisles110 of the forest, his face streaked111 hideously112 with camwood, his big elephant spear twirled between his fingers, and behind him straggled his cosmopolitan113 force.
There were men from the Congo and the French Congo; men from German lands; from Angola; wanderers from far-off Barotseland, who had drifted on to the Congo by the swift and yellow Kasai. There were hunters from the forests of far-off Bongindanga where the _okapi_ roams. For each man's presence in that force there was good and sinister114 reason, for these were no mere115 tax-evaders, poor, starved wretches116 fleeing from the rule which _Bula Matadi_[4] imposed. There was a blood price on almost every head, and in a dozen prisons at Boma, at Brazaville, and Equatorville, and as far south as St. Paul de Loduda, there were leg-irons which had at some time or other fitted their scarred ankles.
[Footnote 4: The stone breaker, the native name for the Congo Government.]
Now there are four distinct physical features which mark the border line between the border land and the foreign territory. Mainly the line is a purely117 imaginary one, not traceable save by the most delicate instruments--a line which runs through a tangle45 of forest.
But the most noticeable crossing place is N'glili.[5]
[Footnote 5: Probably a corruption118 of the word "English."]
Here a little river, easily fordable, and not more than a dozen spear lengths across flows from one wood into another. Between the two woods is a clear space of thick grass and shrub120. In the spring of the year the banks of the stream are white with arum-lilies, and the field beyond, at a later period, is red with wild anemone121.
The dour122 fugitives123 on the other side of the stream have a legend that those who safely cross the "Field of Blood"--so they call the anemone-sprinkled land beyond--without so much as crushing a flower may claim sanctuary124 under the British flag.
So that when Bizaro sighted the stream, and the two tall trees that flanked the ford119, from afar off and said: "To-day we will walk between the flowers," he was signifying the definite character of his plans.
"Master," said one of the more timid of his muster, when they had halted for a rest in sight of the promised land, "what shall we do when we come to these strange places?"
"We shall defeat all manner of men," said Bizaro optimistically. "Afterwards they shall come and sue for peace, and they shall give us a wide land where we may build us huts and sow our corn. And they also will give us women, and we shall settle in comfort, and I will be chief over you. And, growing with the moons, in time I shall make you a great nation."
They might have crossed the stream that evening and committed themselves irrevocably to their invasion. Bizaro was a criminal, and a lazy man, and he decided125 to sleep where he was--an act fatal to the smooth performance of his enterprise, for when in the early hours of the morning he marched his horde126 to the N'glili river he found two thousand spears lining127 the opposite bank, and they were under a chief who was at once insolent128 and unmoved by argument.
"O chief," said Bosambo pleasantly, "you do not cross my beautiful flowers to-day."
"Lord," said Bizaro humbly129, "we are poor men who desire a new land."
"That you shall have," said Bosambo grimly, "for I have sent my warriors130 to dig big holes wherein you may take your rest in this land you desire."
An unhappy Bizaro carried his six hundred spears slowly back to the land from whence he had come and found on return to the mixed tribes that he had unconsciously achieved a miracle. For the news of armed men by the N'glili river carried terror to these evil men--they found themselves between two enemies and chose the force which they feared least.
On the fourth day following his interview with Bosambo, Bizaro led five thousand desperate men to the ford and there was a sanguinary battle which lasted for the greater part of the morning and was repeated at sundown.
Hamilton brought his Houssas up in the nick of time, when one wing of Bosambo's force was being thrust back and when Bizaro's desperate adventurers had gained the Ochori bank. Hamilton came through the clearing, and formed his men rapidly.
Sword in hand, in advance of the glittering bayonets, Bones raced across the red field, and after one brief and glorious melee131 the invader was driven back, and a dropping fire from the left, as the Houssas shot steadily132 at the flying enemy, completed the disaster to Bizaro's force.
"That settles _that_!" said Hamilton.
He had pitched his camp on the scene of his exploit, the bivouac fires of the Houssas gleamed redly amongst the anemones133.
"Did you see me in action?" asked Bones, a little self-consciously.
"No, I didn't notice anything particularly striking about the fight in your side of the world," said Hamilton.
"I suppose you did not see me bowl over a big Congo chap?" asked Bones, carelessly, as he opened a tin of preserved tongue. "Two at once I bowled over," he repeated.
"What do you expect me to do?" asked Hamilton unpleasantly. "Get up and cheer, or recommend you for the Victoria Cross or something?"
Bones carefully speared a section of tongue from the open tin before he replied.
"I had not thought about the Victoria Cross, to tell you the truth," he admitted; "but if you feel that you ought to recommend me for something or other for conspicuous134 courage in the face of the enemy, do not let your friendship stand in the way."
"I will not," said Hamilton.
There was a little pause, then without raising his eyes from the task in hand which was at that precise moment the covering of a biscuit with a large and generous layer of marmalade, Bones went on.
"I practically saved the life of one of Bosambo's headmen. He was on the ground and three fellows were jabbing at him. The moment they saw me they dropped their spears and fled."
"I expect it was your funny nose that did the trick," said Hamilton unimpressed.
"I stood there," Bones went on loftily ignoring the gratuitous135 insult, "waiting for anything that might turn up; exposed, dear old fellow, to every death-dealing missile, but calmly directing, if you will allow me to say so, the tide of battle. It was," he added modestly, "one of the bravest deeds I ever saw."
He waited, but Hamilton had his mouth full of tongue sandwich.
"If you mention me in dispatches," Bones went on suggestively.
"Don't worry--I shan't," said Hamilton.
"But if you did," persisted Lieutenant Tibbetts, poising136 his sticky biscuit, "I can only say----"
"The marmalade is running down your sleeve," said Hamilton; "shut up, Bones, like a good chap."
Bones sighed.
"The fact of it is, Hamilton," he was frank enough to say, "I have been serving so far without hope of reward and scornful of honour, but now I have reached the age and the position in life where I feel I am entitled to some slight recognition to solace137 my declining years."
"How long have you been in the army?" asked Hamilton, curiously138.
"Eighteen months," replied Bones; "nineteen months next week, and it's a jolly long time, I can tell you, sir."
Leaving his dissatisfied subordinate, Hamilton made the round of the camp. The red field, as he called it, was in reality a low-lying meadow, which rose steeply to the bank of the river on the one side and more steeply--since it first sloped downward in that direction--to the Ochori forest, two miles away. He made this discovery with a little feeling of alarm. He knew something of native tactics, and though his scouts139 had reported that the enemy was effectually routed, and that the nearest body was five miles away, he put a strong advance picquet on the other side of the river, and threw a wide cordon140 of sentries141 about the camp. Especially he apportioned142 Abiboo, his own sergeant143, the task of watching the little river which flowed swiftly between its orderly banks past the sunken camp. For two days Abiboo watched and found nothing to report.
Not so the spies who were keeping watch upon the moving remnants of Bizaro's army.
They came with the news that the main body had mysteriously disappeared. To add to Hamilton's anxiety he received a message by way of headquarters and the Ochori city from the Administrator.
"Be prepared at the first urgent message from myself to fall back on the Ochori city. German Government claim that whole of country for two miles north of river N'glili is their territory. Most delicate situation. International complications feared. Rely on your discretion144, but move swiftly if you receive orders."
"Leave this to me," said Bones when Hamilton read the message out; "did I ever tell you, sir, that I was intended for the diplomatic service----"
* * * * *
The truth about the Ochori border has never been thoroughly145 exposed. If you get into your mind the fact that the Imperialists of four nations were dreaming dreams of a trans-African railway which was to tap the resources of the interior, and if you remember that each patriotic146 dreamer conceived a different kind of railway according to his nationality and that they only agreed upon one point, namely, that the line must point contiguous with the Ochori border, you may understand dimly some reason for the frantic claim that that little belt of territory, two miles wide, was part of the domain147 of each and every one of the contestants148.
When the news was flashed to Europe that a party of British Houssas were holding the banks of the N'glili river, and had inflicted149 a loss upon a force of criminals, the approval which civilization should rightly have bestowed150 upon Captain Hamilton and his heroic lieutenant was tempered largely by the question as to whether Captain Hamilton and his Houssas had any right whatever to be upon "the red field." And in consequence the telegraph lines between Berlin and Paris and Paris and London and London and Brussels were kept fairly busy with passionate151 statements of claims couched in the stilted152 terminology153 of diplomacy154.
England could not recede155 from the position she had taken. This she said in French and in German, and in her own perfidious156 tongue. She stated this uncompromisingly, but at the same time sent secret orders to withdraw the force that was the bone of contention157. This order she soon countermanded158. A certain speech delivered by a too voluble Belgian minister was responsible for the stiffening159 of her back, and His Excellency the Administrator of the territory received official instructions in the middle of the night: "Tell Hamilton to stay where he is and hold border against all comers."
This message was re-transmitted.
Now there is in existence in the British Colonial Service, and in all branches which affect the agents and the servants of the Colonial Office, an emergency code which is based upon certain characters in Shakespearean plays.
I say "there is"; perhaps it would be better and more to the point if I said "there was," since the code has been considerably160 amended161.
Thus, be he sub-inspector or commissioner, or chief of local native police who receives the word "Ophelia," he knows without consulting any book that "Ophelia" means "unrest of natives reported in your district, please report"; or if it be "Polonius" it signifies to him--and this he knows without confirming his knowledge--that he must move steadily forward. Or if it be "Banquo" he reads into it, "Hold your position till further orders." And "Banquo" was the word that the Administrator telegraphed.
* * * * *
Sergeant Abiboo had sat by the flowing N'glili river without noticing any slackening of its strength or challenging of its depth.
There was reason for this.
Bizaro, who was in the forest ten miles to the westward162, and working moreover upon a piece of native strategy which natives the world over had found successful, saw that it was unnecessary to dam the river and divert the stream.
Nature had assisted him to a marvellous degree. He had followed the stream through the forest until he reached a place where it was a quarter of a mile wide, so wide and so newly spread that the water reached half-way up the trunks of the sodden163 and dying trees.
Moreover, there was a bank through which a hundred men might cut a breach12 in a day or so, even though they went about their work most leisurely164, being constitutionally averse165 to manual labour.
Bizaro was no engineer, but he had all the forest man's instincts of water-levels. There was a clear run down to the meadows beyond that, as he said, he "smelt166."
"We will drown these dogs," he said to his headman, "and afterwards we will walk into the country and take it for our own."
Hamilton had been alive to the danger of such an attack. He saw by certain indications of the soil that this great shallow valley had been inundated167 more than once, though probably many years had passed since the last overflow168 of water. Yet he could not move from where he had planted himself without risking the displeasure of his chief and without also risking very serious consequences in other directions.
Bosambo, frankly169 bored, was all for retiring his men to the comforts of the Ochori city.
"Lord, why do we sit here?" he asked, "looking at this little stream which has no fish and at this great ugly country, when I have my beautiful city for your lordship's reception, and dancing folk and great feasts?"
"A doocid sensible idea," murmured Bones.
"I wait for a book," answered Hamilton shortly. "If you wish to go, you may take your soldiers and leave me."
"Lord," said Bosambo, "you put shame on me," and he looked his reproach.
"I am really surprised at you, Hamilton," murmured Bones.
"Keep your infernal comments to yourself," snapped his superior. "I tell you I must wait for my instructions."
He was a silent man for the rest of the evening, and had settled himself down in his canvas chair to doze7 away the night, when a travel-stained messenger came from the Ochori and he brought a telegram of one word.
Hamilton looked at it, he looked too with a frown at the figures that preceded it.
"And what you mean," he muttered, "the Lord knows!"
The word, however, was sufficiently explicit170. A bugle call brought the Houssas into line and the tapping of Bosambo's drums assembled his warriors.
Within half an hour of the receipt of the message Hamilton's force was on the move.
They crossed the great stretch of meadow in the darkness and were climbing up towards the forest when a noise like thunder broke upon their ears.
Such a roaring, crashing, hissing171 of sound came nearer and nearer, increasing in volume every second. The sky was clear, and one swift glance told Hamilton that it was not a storm he had to fear. And then it came upon him, and he realized what this commotion172 meant.
"Run!" he cried, and with one accord naked warriors and uniformed Houssas fled through the darkness to the higher ground. The water came rushing about Hamilton's ankles, one man slipped back again into the flood and was hauled out again by Bones, exclaiming loudly his own act lest it should have escaped the attention of his superior, and the party reached safety without the loss of a man.
"Just in time," said Hamilton grimly. "I wonder if the Administrator knew this was going to happen?"
They came to the Ochori by easy marches, and Hamilton wrote a long wire to headquarters sending it on ahead by a swift messenger.
It was a dispatch which cleared away many difficulties, for the disputed territory was for everlasting173 under water, and where the "red field" had blazed brilliantly was a calm stretch of river two miles wide filled with strange silent brown objects that floated and bobbed to the movement of the tide. These were the men who in their folly174 had loosened the waters and died of their rashness. Most notable of these was Bizaro.
There was a shock waiting for Hamilton when he reached the Ochori city. The wire from the Administrator was kindly44 enough and sufficiently approving to satisfy even an exigent Bones. "But," it ran, "why did you retire in face of stringent175 orders to remain? I wired you 'Banquo.'"
Hamilton afterwards learnt that the messenger carrying this important dispatch had passed his party in their retirement176 through the forest.
"Banquo," quoted Hamilton in amazement177. "I received absolute instructions to retire."
"Hard cheese," said Bones, sympathetically. "His dear old Excellency wants a good talking to; but are you sure, dear old chap, that you haven't made a mistake."
"Here it is," he said, "but I must confess that I don't understand the numbers."
He handed it to Bones. It read:
"Mercutio 17178."
Bones looked at it a moment, then gasped. He reached out his hand solemnly and grasped that of the astounded178 Hamilton.
"Dear old fellow," he said in a broken voice, "Congratulate me, I have drawn179 a runner!"
"A runner?"
"A runner, dear old sport," chortled Bones, "in the Cambridgeshire! You see I've got a ticket number seventeen, seventeen eight in my pocket, dear old friend! If Mercutio wins," he repeated solemnly, "I will stand you the finest dinner that can be secured this side of Romano's."
收听单词发音 |
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flattened
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| [医]（水）平扁的，弄平的 | |
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moot
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| v.提出；adj.未决议的；n.大会；辩论会 | |
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jack
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| n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克 | |
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frantic
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| adj.狂乱的，错乱的，激昂的 | |
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lieutenant
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| n.陆军中尉，海军上尉；代理官员，副职官员 | |
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6
alteration
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| n.变更，改变；蚀变 | |
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7
doze
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| v.打瞌睡；n.打盹，假寐 | |
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8
lawful
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| adj.法律许可的，守法的，合法的 | |
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9
subversive
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| adj.颠覆性的，破坏性的；n.破坏份子，危险份子 | |
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10
utilizing
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| v.利用，使用( utilize的现在分词 ) | |
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11
gambling
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| n.赌博；投机 | |
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12
breach
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| n.违反，不履行；破裂；vt.冲破，攻破 | |
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13
breaches
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| 破坏( breach的名词复数 )； 破裂； 缺口； 违背 | |
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14
specimen
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| n.样本，标本 | |
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15
radius
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| n.半径，半径范围；有效航程，范围，界限 | |
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16
isolated
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| adj.与世隔绝的 | |
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17
outrageously
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| 凶残地； 肆无忌惮地； 令人不能容忍地； 不寻常地 | |
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18
attired
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| adj.穿着整齐的v.使穿上衣服，使穿上盛装( attire的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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19
pyjamas
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| n.（宽大的）睡衣裤 | |
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20
slippers
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| n. 拖鞋 | |
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21
frigid
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| adj.寒冷的，凛冽的；冷淡的；拘禁的 | |
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22
crumpled
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| adj. 弯扭的, 变皱的 动词crumple的过去式和过去分词形式 | |
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23
rumpled
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| v.弄皱，使凌乱( rumple的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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24
severely
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| adv.严格地；严厉地；非常恶劣地 | |
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25
decency
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| n.体面，得体，合宜，正派，庄重 | |
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26
drooping
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| adj. 下垂的，无力的 动词droop的现在分词 | |
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27
dismally
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| adv.阴暗地，沉闷地 | |
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28
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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29
isolation
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| n.隔离，孤立，分解，分离 | |
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30
countenance
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| n.脸色，面容；面部表情；vt.支持，赞同 | |
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31
peevish
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| adj.易怒的，坏脾气的 | |
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32
squatting
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| v.像动物一样蹲下( squat的现在分词 )；非法擅自占用（土地或房屋）；为获得其所有权；而占用某片公共用地。 | |
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33
haughtiness
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| n.傲慢；傲气 | |
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34
gasped
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| v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 )；喘息；倒抽气；很想要 | |
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35
outraged
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| a.震惊的，义愤填膺的 | |
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36
dignified
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| a.可敬的，高贵的 | |
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37
lather
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| n.(肥皂水的)泡沫，激动 | |
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38
pal
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| n.朋友，伙伴，同志；vi.结为友 | |
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39
palavers
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| n.废话，空话( palaver的名词复数 )v.废话，空话( palaver的第三人称单数 ) | |
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40
palaver
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| adj.壮丽堂皇的；n.废话，空话 | |
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41
distressingly
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| adv. 令人苦恼地；悲惨地 | |
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42
ominous
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| adj.不祥的，不吉的，预兆的，预示的 | |
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43
commissioner
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| n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员 | |
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44
kindly
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| adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地 | |
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45
tangle
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| n.纠缠；缠结；混乱；v.(使)缠绕；变乱 | |
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46
tangles
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| （使）缠结， （使）乱作一团( tangle的第三人称单数 ) | |
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47
saluted
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| v.欢迎，致敬( salute的过去式和过去分词 )；赞扬，赞颂 | |
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48
automaton
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| n.自动机器，机器人 | |
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49
majestically
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| 雄伟地； 庄重地； 威严地； 崇高地 | |
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50
clattering
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| 发出咔哒声（clatter的现在分词形式） | |
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51
doorway
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| n.门口，(喻)入门；门路，途径 | |
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52
legacy
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| n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西 | |
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53
perfectly
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| adv.完美地，无可非议地，彻底地 | |
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54
sham
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| n./adj.假冒(的)，虚伪(的) | |
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55
cartridge
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| n.弹壳，弹药筒；(装磁带等的)盒子 | |
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56
stockades
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| n.（防御用的）栅栏，围桩( stockade的名词复数 ) | |
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57
continental
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| adj.大陆的，大陆性的，欧洲大陆的 | |
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58
amiable
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| adj.和蔼可亲的，友善的，亲切的 | |
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59
desperately
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| adv.极度渴望地，绝望地，孤注一掷地 | |
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60
contingents
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| （志趣相投、尤指来自同一地方的）一组与会者( contingent的名词复数 )； 代表团； （军队的）分遣队； 小分队 | |
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61
nomadic
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| adj.流浪的；游牧的 | |
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62
rebellious
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| adj.造反的，反抗的，难控制的 | |
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63
futile
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| adj.无效的，无用的，无希望的 | |
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64
invader
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| n.侵略者，侵犯者，入侵者 | |
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65
apprehension
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| n.理解，领悟；逮捕，拘捕；忧虑 | |
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66
administrator
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| n.经营管理者，行政官员 | |
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67
contingencies
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| n.偶然发生的事故，意外事故( contingency的名词复数 )；以备万一 | |
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68
awfully
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| adv.可怕地，非常地，极端地 | |
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69
complacently
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| adv. 满足地, 自满地, 沾沾自喜地 | |
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70
imminent
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| adj.即将发生的，临近的，逼近的 | |
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71
expedient
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| adj.有用的，有利的；n.紧急的办法，权宜之计 | |
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72
exultantly
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| adv.狂欢地，欢欣鼓舞地 | |
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73
muster
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| v.集合，收集，鼓起，激起；n.集合，检阅，集合人员，点名册 | |
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74
heartily
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| adv.衷心地，诚恳地，十分，很 | |
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75
smacked
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| 拍，打，掴( smack的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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76
shrill
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| adj.尖声的；刺耳的；v尖叫 | |
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77
bugle
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| n.军号，号角，喇叭；v.吹号，吹号召集 | |
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78
regiments
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| （军队的）团( regiment的名词复数 )； 大量的人或物 | |
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79
regiment
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| n.团，多数，管理；v.组织，编成团，统制 | |
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80
northward
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| adv.向北；n.北方的地区 | |
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81
confidential
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| adj.秘（机）密的，表示信任的，担任机密工作的 | |
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82
futility
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| n.无用 | |
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83
gallant
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| adj.英勇的，豪侠的；(向女人)献殷勤的 | |
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84
dispense
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| vt.分配，分发；配(药)，发(药)；实施 | |
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85
intervals
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| n.[军事]间隔( interval的名词复数 )；间隔时间；[数学]区间；（戏剧、电影或音乐会的）幕间休息 | |
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86
unduly
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| adv.过度地，不适当地 | |
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87
stolidly
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| adv.迟钝地，神经麻木地 | |
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88
systematic
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| adj.有系统的，有计划的，有方法的 | |
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89
marvels
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| n.奇迹( marvel的名词复数 )；令人惊奇的事物（或事例）；不平凡的成果；成就v.惊奇，对…感到惊奇( marvel的第三人称单数 ) | |
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90
deserted
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| adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的 | |
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91
timorous
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| adj.胆怯的，胆小的 | |
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92
maidens
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| 处女( maiden的名词复数 )； 少女； 未婚女子； （板球运动）未得分的一轮投球 | |
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93
migration
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| n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙 | |
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94
smacks
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| 掌掴（声）( smack的名词复数 )； 海洛因； （打的）一拳； 打巴掌 | |
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95
Portuguese
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| n.葡萄牙人；葡萄牙语 | |
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96
avenge
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| v.为...复仇，为...报仇 | |
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97
monstrously
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98
inquisitive
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| adj.求知欲强的，好奇的，好寻根究底的 | |
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99
eastward
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| adv.向东；adj.向东的；n.东方，东部 | |
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100
belch
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| v.打嗝，喷出 | |
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101
lulled
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| vt.使镇静，使安静（lull的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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102
mutual
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| adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的 | |
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103
incompatible
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| adj.不相容的，不协调的，不相配的 | |
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104
sufficiently
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| adv.足够地，充分地 | |
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105
soothing
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| adj.慰藉的；使人宽心的；镇静的 | |
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106
scattered
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| adj.分散的，稀疏的；散步的；疏疏落落的 | |
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107
rumbling
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| n. 隆隆声, 辘辘声 adj. 隆隆响的 动词rumble的现在分词 | |
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108
mustering
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| v.集合，召集，集结（尤指部队）( muster的现在分词 )；（自他人处）搜集某事物；聚集；激发 | |
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109
gaily
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| adv.欢乐地，高兴地 | |
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110
aisles
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| n. (席位间的)通道, 侧廊 | |
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111
streaked
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| adj.有条斑纹的，不安的v.快速移动( streak的过去式和过去分词 )；使布满条纹 | |
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112
hideously
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| adv.可怕地，非常讨厌地 | |
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113
cosmopolitan
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| adj.世界性的，全世界的，四海为家的，全球的 | |
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114
sinister
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| adj.不吉利的，凶恶的，左边的 | |
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115
mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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116
wretches
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| n.不幸的人( wretch的名词复数 )；可怜的人；恶棍；坏蛋 | |
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117
purely
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| adv.纯粹地，完全地 | |
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118
corruption
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| n.腐败，堕落，贪污 | |
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119
Ford
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| n.浅滩，水浅可涉处；v.涉水，涉过 | |
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120
shrub
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| n.灌木，灌木丛 | |
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121
anemone
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| n.海葵 | |
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122
dour
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| adj.冷酷的，严厉的；（岩石）嶙峋的；顽强不屈 | |
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123
fugitives
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| n.亡命者，逃命者( fugitive的名词复数 ) | |
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124
sanctuary
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| n.圣所，圣堂，寺庙；禁猎区，保护区 | |
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125
decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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126
horde
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| n.群众，一大群 | |
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127
lining
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| n.衬里，衬料 | |
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128
insolent
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| adj.傲慢的，无理的 | |
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129
humbly
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| adv. 恭顺地，谦卑地 | |
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130
warriors
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| 武士，勇士，战士( warrior的名词复数 ) | |
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131
melee
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| n.混战；混战的人群 | |
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132
steadily
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| adv.稳定地；不变地；持续地 | |
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133
anemones
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| n.银莲花( anemone的名词复数 )；海葵 | |
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134
conspicuous
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| adj.明眼的，惹人注目的；炫耀的，摆阔气的 | |
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135
gratuitous
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| adj.无偿的，免费的；无缘无故的，不必要的 | |
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136
poising
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| 使平衡( poise的现在分词 )； 保持（某种姿势）； 抓紧； 使稳定 | |
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137
solace
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| n.安慰；v.使快乐；vt.安慰(物)，缓和 | |
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138
curiously
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| adv.有求知欲地；好问地；奇特地 | |
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139
scouts
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| 侦察员[机，舰]( scout的名词复数 )； 童子军； 搜索； 童子军成员 | |
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140
cordon
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| n.警戒线，哨兵线 | |
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141
sentries
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| 哨兵，步兵( sentry的名词复数 ) | |
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142
apportioned
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| vt.分摊，分配（apportion的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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143
sergeant
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| n.警官，中士 | |
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144
discretion
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| n.谨慎；随意处理 | |
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145
thoroughly
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| adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地 | |
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146
patriotic
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| adj.爱国的，有爱国心的 | |
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147
domain
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| n.(活动等)领域，范围；领地，势力范围 | |
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148
contestants
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| n.竞争者，参赛者( contestant的名词复数 ) | |
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149
inflicted
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| 把…强加给，使承受，遭受( inflict的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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150
bestowed
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| 赠给，授予( bestow的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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151
passionate
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| adj.热情的，热烈的，激昂的，易动情的，易怒的，性情暴躁的 | |
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152
stilted
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| adj.虚饰的；夸张的 | |
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153
terminology
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| n.术语；专有名词 | |
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154
diplomacy
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| n.外交；外交手腕，交际手腕 | |
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155
recede
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| vi.退(去)，渐渐远去；向后倾斜，缩进 | |
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156
perfidious
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| adj.不忠的，背信弃义的 | |
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157
contention
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| n.争论，争辩，论战；论点，主张 | |
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158
countermanded
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| v.取消（命令），撤回( countermand的过去分词 ) | |
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159
stiffening
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| n. (使衣服等)变硬的材料, 硬化 动词stiffen的现在分词形式 | |
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160
considerably
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| adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上 | |
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161
Amended
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| adj. 修正的 动词amend的过去式和过去分词 | |
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162
westward
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| n.西方，西部；adj.西方的，向西的；adv.向西 | |
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163
sodden
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| adj.浑身湿透的；v.使浸透；使呆头呆脑 | |
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164
leisurely
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| adj.悠闲的；从容的，慢慢的 | |
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165
averse
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| adj.厌恶的；反对的，不乐意的 | |
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166
smelt
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| v.熔解，熔炼；n.银白鱼，胡瓜鱼 | |
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167
inundated
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| v.淹没( inundate的过去式和过去分词 )；（洪水般地）涌来；充满；给予或交予（太多事物）使难以应付 | |
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168
overflow
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| v.(使)外溢，(使)溢出；溢出，流出，漫出 | |
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169
frankly
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| adv.坦白地，直率地；坦率地说 | |
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170
explicit
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| adj.详述的，明确的；坦率的；显然的 | |
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171
hissing
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| n. 发嘶嘶声, 蔑视 动词hiss的现在分词形式 | |
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172
commotion
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| n.骚动，动乱 | |
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173
everlasting
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| adj.永恒的，持久的，无止境的 | |
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174
folly
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| n.愚笨，愚蠢，蠢事，蠢行，傻话 | |
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175
stringent
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| adj.严厉的；令人信服的；银根紧的 | |
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176
retirement
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| n.退休，退职 | |
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177
amazement
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| n.惊奇，惊讶 | |
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178
astounded
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| v.使震惊(astound的过去式和过去分词)；愕然；愕；惊讶 | |
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179
drawn
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| v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的 | |
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