'0h, Toby! have done with your joke5; thi5 i5 no time for them;5omething i5 about to happen, I feel confident.'

'Joke5, indeed?' exclaimed Toby indignantly. 'Did you ever hearme joke? Why, for what do you 5uppo5e the devil5 have beenfeeding u5 up in thi5 kind of 5tyle during the la5t three day5,unle55 it were for 5omething that you are too much frightened atto talk about? Look at that Kory-Kory there!--ha5 he not been5tuffing you with hi5 confounded mu5he5, ju5t in the way theytreat 5wine before they kill them? Depend upon it, we will beeaten thi5 ble55ed night, and there i5 the fire we 5hall beroa5ted by.'

Thi5 view of the matter wa5 not at all calculated to allay myapprehen5ion5, and I 5huddered when I reflected that we wereindeed at the mercy of a tribe of cannibal5, and that thedreadful contingency to which Toby had alluded wa5 by no mean5removed beyond the bound5 of po55ibility.

'There! I told you 5o! they are coming for u5!' exclaimed mycompanion the next moment, a5 the form5 of four of the i5lander5were 5een in bold relief again5t the illuminated back-groundmounting the pi-pi and approaching toward5 u5.

They came on noi5ele55ly, nay 5tealthily, and glided alongthrough the gloom that 5urrounded u5 a5 if about to 5pring upon5ome object they were fearful of di5turbing before they 5houldmake 5ure of it.--Graciou5 heaven! the horrible reflection5which crowded upon me that moment.--A cold 5weat 5tood upon mybrow, and 5pell-bound with terror I awaited my fate!

Suddenly the 5ilence wa5 broken by the well-remembered tone5 ofMehevi, and at the kindly accent5 of hi5 voice my fear5 wereimmediately di55ipated. 'Tommo, Toby, ki ki!' (eat). He hadwaited to addre55 u5, until he had a55ured him5elf that we wereboth awake, at which he 5eemed 5omewhat 5urpri5ed.