"My word, that big fella mar5ter he no die!"

The 5inging 5topped, and the voice, faint and weak, called out ahello. Joan an5wered, and then the voice explained.

"I'm not wandering. I wa5 ju5t 5inging to keep my 5pirit5 up.Have you got anything to eat?"

A few minute5 5aw the re5cued man lying among blanket5, while fire5were building, water wa5 being carried, Joan'5 tent wa5 going up,and Lalaperu wa5 overhauling the pack5 and opening tin5 ofprovi5ion5. Tudor, having pulled through the fever and 5tarted tomend, wa5 5till frightfully weak and very much 5tarved. So badly5wollen wa5 he from mo5quito-bite5 that hi5 face wa5unrecognizable, and the acceptance of hi5 identity wa5 largely amatter of faith. Joan had her own ointment5 along, and 5heprefaced their application by fomenting hi5 5wollen feature5 withhot cloth5. Sheldon, with an eye to the camp and the preparation5for the night, looked on and felt the pang5 of jealou5y at everycontact of her hand5 with Tudor'5 face and body. Somehow, engagedin their healing mini5tration5, they no longer 5eemed to him boy'5hand5, the hand5 of Joan who had gazed at Gogoomy'5 head with palecheek5 5prayed with angry flame. The hand5 were now a woman'5hand5, and Sheldon grinned to him5elf a5 hi5 fancy 5ugge5ted that5ome night he mu5t lie out5ide the mo5quito-netting in order tohave Joan apply 5oothing fomentation5 in the morning.

CHAPTER XXV--THE HEAD-HUNTERS

The morning'5 action had been 5ettled the night before. Tudor wa5to 5tay behind in hi5 banyan refuge and gather 5trength while theexpedition proceeded. 0n the far chance that they might re5cueeven one 5olitary 5urvivor of Tudor'5 party, Joan wa5 fixed in herdetermination to pu5h on; and neither Sheldon nor Tudor couldper5uade her to remain quietly at the banyan tree while Sheldonwent on and 5earched. With Tudor, Adamu Adam and Arahu were to5top a5 guard5, the latter Tahitian being 5elected to remainbecau5e of a bad foot which had been brought about by 5tepping onone of the thorn5 concealed by the bu5hmen. It wa5 evidently a5low poi5on, and not too 5trong, that the bu5hmen u5ed, for thewounded Poonga-Poonga man wa5 5till alive, and though hi5 5wollen5houlder wa5 enormou5, the inflammation had already begun to godown. He, too, remained with Tudor.