Day 28, Chapter 19

[mars_manliness]

Chapter Nineteen

In which there is an excursion.

Bracy was as good as his word, and when Gedge was judged well enough by the Doctor they went back into the city and spent a day exploring the towers again. Gedge was very tired and happy when they finally reached the fort that evening, and was doing his best not to favour his ankle in any way. His friends looked askance at him and did not mention his excursion in a way that seemed almost to shout out their unease that he should have such a strange interest. Gedge did not let them influence him in any way and slept soundly and peacefully, images from his day surfacing in his dreams. It was not until mid morning the next day that Fred snatched a word with him.

'Why d'you like those old towers?' he asked, looking at Gedge in such a way that it seemed he was awaiting an honest answer.

Gedge shrugged. 'I jest like them,' he said. 'They're terrible old, Fred. Lieutenant Bracy says they're thousand of years old. Imagine that! The Martians buildin' things like that thousands of years ago!'

'Well, they've gone downhill since then,' said Fred bluntly. 'You'd think folk as could put up a tower like that might have given us a bit of bother, but it's our town now.'

'They gave us enough bother,' said Gedge, 'and you've got the scar to prove it.'

'They ain't throwing us off Mars, though, are they?' said Fred. 'You should be thinkin' about the future, Bill, not diggin' up the past. Don't yer want to get ahead?'

'Yes, 'course I do,' said Gedge.

Fred took a deep breath and looked at nothing much in particular. 'That why you're with Mr Bracy every day?' He frowned at Gedge, saying, 'I tole you, you spend too much time with him. You didn't listen, did yer? We're yer friends, not him.'

'You think I'm tryin' to get him to favour me, get me a pr'motion?' asked Gedge. 'Fred! How can yer even think that?'

'No,' said Fred. 'But, see here, Bill, d'you want to be his servant? 'Cos that'd be a good position for anyone to have, but yer wouldn't advance too far, would you? I thought you wanted to be a reg'lar sojer.'

Gedge did not answer, thinking that he would indeed be happy to have such a position and yet he would not want to be separated from his friends. That seemed a safe thing to say, so he quirked a smile at Fred, saying, 'C'mon, pard'ner, I wouldn't run off on yer, you know that.'

'I know,' said Fred. 'I jest want to see you with yer own kind, Bill. A man needs friends, and orficers ain't friends with enlisted men. If you told me he wanted you to carry his things up the tower, or wanted you to take down notes on what he said, I'd understand that. But you said he jest wanted to explore the tower with you, and why'd he want to do that? You ask yourself, Bill. You ask yourself why an orficer would act chummy with an 'listed man, and then you tell me, 'cos I don't know.'

'He likes me,' said Gedge, and felt himself blush. 'I think he does,' he continued.

'He likes his friends with their posh school speech; he likes never worryin' 'bout how he'll pay for anything; he likes bein' a gentleman. Don't fool yerself, Bill,' said Fred. 'Don't let him make a fool of you. You were terrible cut up before, when he jest stopped the lessons without a by-yer-leave. I don't want to see you so sad again, Bill, if he decides he's had enough of bein' your pal. It hurts something awful when a friend stops wantin' to be with you, stops wantin' to be yer friend.' He looked at Gedge sadly, in a way that made him feel guilty and uncomfortable.

'No doubt yer right,' said Gedge, an unhappy awareness in his heart that he would say almost anything to make Fred stop talking. 'I know my place, I'm jest a swaddy like you, Fred. I ain't puttin' on airs.'

'I know that,' said Fred, clapping him on the shoulder. 'I know you.'

They went about their duties, and Gedge found his heart torn, for Fred was one of his oldest friends and had only his welfare at heart. Yet Gedge could not keep from his mind the image of Bracy in the towers, looking at the carvings and calling his attention to details, encouraging him to read slowly and hesitatingly from the inscriptions. When he shut his eyes he could see the silent hot rooms, and Bracy eagerly running from window to window, looking out in sheerest pleasure at the city and the canals, and sitting on the deep sills, the sunlight brightening his fair hair. 'I'm sure he likes me,' thought Gedge, 'and it ain't disrespectful for me to like him, is it?' He thought about what Fred had said to him, and tried to imagine enjoying with Bracy the same pastimes he did with his friends. He could not quite manage to see Bracy playing poker, nor singing the popular songs the private soldiers liked. He could not imagine either what Bracy might consider an amusement, or what he did with Roberts in the evenings. It was too difficult to think of, so he turned his mind away from it. He had, after all, to be able to bend his mind to hard work that afternoon when he had his lesson in the Martian tongue.

After another two days Gedge was roused from his idle staring at the lesson book as it was twitched from his hands. He looked up in great surprise to see Bracy smiling at him.

'Why, Gedge,' said Bracy, 'you have been staring at the same page for almost a quarter of an hour. I do not think your mind is upon your tasks.'

'Sorry, sir,' said Gedge.

'Well, I have some news to focus your mind,' said Bracy. 'You remember, I hope, that there is a site of antiquarian interest at some distance down the great canal?'

Gedge found himself eagerly awaiting what Bracy would say to him.

'I have received permission to go and examine this site,' said Bracy, 'and I hope you might still be agreeable to the idea of accompanying me?'

'Oh, sir!' cried Gedge, 'oh yes!'

'Well, then,' said Bracy. 'I have made the acquaintance of a certain Professor Macquarrie, a Scottish gentleman, who proposes to journey to see these carvings as well, and who has offered to explain them to us. He has engaged a boat to take us down the site, where we will spend the night, journeying back by the next night. I am afraid I took the liberty of assuming you would come, and have already arranged for your leave. We set out tomorrow at dawn.'

Gedge could hardly concentrate on any task for the rest of the day, and that evening found himself in the unusual circumstance of losing at cards to Fred. His friends all laughed at him mercilessly, especially Fred, who pocketed his winnings quickly, as if they would vanish.

'What's got into you, Bill?' asked Davids. 'You ain't been yerself all day.'

'I'm going out of the fort tomorrow, overnight,' said Gedge in some excitement. 'Mr Bracy wants -' he looked at their faces close, and went on in some confusion, ' - he wants me ter help out some civilian folk who're going down the canal. I s'pose they want a mil'try escort.'

'Oh,' said Wilson, as if this was reasonable, 'bad luck he picked you, Bill. Those city people were complainin' from morn till night.'

Gedge shrugged, ashamed that he seemed to be such a skilled liar. Fred smiled at him in a way that seemed to say he did not believe the story, but nothing more was said of it. Gedge lay awake half the night, alternately excited at the prospect of his adventure and deeply ashamed to have told such a lie. He felt he had let both himself and Lieutenant Bracy down. After only a few hours of sleep he woke again and quietly readied himself, slipping silently outside and hurrying to the gate where he could see Bracy already standing.

'Sorry, sir,' he said, 'I didn't mean to be late.'

'You're not,' said Bracy, peering at his pocket watch in the pre-dawn dusk. 'We're both early, Gedge. Come on, let's go.'

They walked smartly to the canal and after a little came to the steps where Bracy said they would be collected. Gedge wandered back and forth, finding himself unable to keep still. As he peered up the canal in the direction of New London he saw a shape moving towards them in a slow and steady manner.

'Sir, sir!' he said in excitement.

'I see it,' smiled Bracy, lifting his bag.

The boat drew up by the steps and Gedge looked down at the Martian holding out a hand to help him down. 'Hello,' he said, in his best accent. 'I'm William Gedge, what's your name?'

The Martian smiled shyly at him and kept silent. Gedge hopped down into the boat, the Martian catching him to keep him steady. Bracy climbed down behind him, and stepped forward to shake the hand of the older gentleman that Gedge now saw rising from his seat upon some cushions.

'Professor Macquarrie,' said Bracy, 'I'm most awfully pleased that you were kind enough to allow us to come with you.'

'Not at all, my dear Lieutenant Bracy,' said Professor Macquarrie in an accent far stronger than that of Lieutenant Drummond. 'May I present my daughter, Margaret?' Two women became visible suddenly as they stepped forward, 'And my daughter's governess, Miss Sharpe,' continued the Professor.

'Miss Macquarrie, Miss Sharpe,' said Bracy, politely bowing, 'thank you so much for extending your hospitality to a couple of soldiers.'

'A pleasure to meet you, Lieutenant Bracy,' said Miss Macquarrie, a girl of no more than twenty, softly holding out a hand for him to take.

'Hmph,' said Miss Sharpe, a woman of middle years whose appearance matched her name in every particular.

'And this is Private Gedge,' said Bracy.

'Private Gedge,' said Miss Macquarrie politely.

'Honoured to meet you, Miss,' said Gedge, feeling rather out of place. 'And pleased to meet you too, Miss Sharpe.'

Miss Sharpe looked at him in a way that made him feel like he'd been caught hiding spiders in prayer books, and he retreated out of range. He looked round the boat instead, leaving Bracy to talk to the ladies. It had seemed quite large from the outside, but now that he was standing on its deck it suddenly seemed much smaller. There was a central mast, with a sail all rolled up at the top of it, and a variety of boxes were stacked here and there at the sides. Across the centre of the boat ran two benches. The Martian crew spoke quietly to each other, and shoved the boat away from the wall of the canal with long oars. Then they settled themselves on the benches and began to row. The boat moved smoothly along, and Gedge wondered if they'd let him take a turn at the oars. It looked like it might be fun, although he thought he might find it arduous once the sun had reached its height. After they had rowed for perhaps half an hour, the light was growing stronger, and Gedge could see that they had left the fort far behind. The light shone from the water, making him feel that they were travelling on a canal of silver. The apparent eldest of the Martians rose from his seat and unrolled the sail, which belled out a little in the morning breeze. He then went to the tiller, leaving two of his comrades still rowing and the fourth to rummage in one of the boxes and bring forth trays upon which he set food. He brought them first to the ladies and then to the Professor and Bracy, finally quietly handing one to Gedge, who looked about for a place he might eat and be out of the way.

'Come and join us, Private Gedge,' said Miss Sharpe in a tone he felt he could not disobey. He sat on a cushion she pushed out for him, feeling anxious. He did not know what to say to her, or to Miss Macquarrie and hoped they would not tire of speaking to Bracy. Alas, he found himself being regarded by Miss Sharpe's bright blue eyes.

'And what is your interest in these antiquarian pursuits, Private Gedge?' she asked abruptly.

'I - I je-jest like them, Miss,' stammered Gedge. 'I learned some Martian, with Lieutenant Bracy, and he said I could come along with you all.' His voice trailed away as he saw Miss Macquarrie regard him in a manner that said she was too well-bred to laugh, even at a rough fellow who thought he had some learning.

'Gedge is remarkably proficient at the language,' said Bracy, warmly. 'He is an admirably hard worker.'

Gedge blushed with pleasure, smiling happily at Bracy, who returned the smile in a carefree manner.

'I hope you are willing to learn more than just the constructions of grammar, Gedge?' asked the Professor, 'for they will avail you little when it is not the logic of a sentence in a foreign tongue that you must unravel, but the logic of artistic representations. Are you familiar with the work of the Assyrians, Gedge?'

'No, sir,' said Gedge in a panic. He had the vaguest thought that they were connected with wolves in some way, but felt wholly unequal to making any comment. He quickly realised that his contribution to the conversation was unneeded, however, as the Professor continued speaking without, as it seemed, noticing that Gedge had spoken at all.

'You will see the same monumental characteristics,' said the Professor, 'the same attention to the detail of the musculature and the ornamentation of the robes. If it were not for the greater size of the Martian eye when one compares it to the human, not to mention the additional digit they bear upon each hand, one would at first think that the art was the product of the same ancient hand. Geographical elements within the scene they also reproduce in the same manner, in a most naive and charming fashion.'

The Professor continued in this vein for some time, as Gedge watched him in interest to see if the man would ever draw breath. He seemed only to need an audience, and to be content to know that people listened to him, without ever needing a response, unless it were to give him an opportunity to discourse further on a minor point.

As the sun's heat increased, the Martians set up an awning for their passengers to take shelter. The ladies withdrew into its shade, and the Professor fell silent at last, quire overcome by the intense heat and glare. Gedge's wakeful night caught up with him at last and his eyes felt heavy and sleepy. He stayed awake as long as he could, but at length, seeing even Bracy's head droop, he gave in and curled up at the edge of the shade, and was asleep before he had even made himself comfortable.

He awoke a long time later with a start, to discover Bracy sitting up beside him, his hand resting on Gedge's shoulder. 'Sir,' he mumbled, struggling into an upright position, 'you're awake.'

'Look,' said Bracy quietly, pointing out over the land. 'How desolate it is! And yet how beautiful!'

Gedge looked at the red crags of rock through which the canal cut, straight as a die. His eye was drawn to small flickers of movement that resolved themselves under his gaze to creatures like sheep, almost as red as the rock, nimbly wandering to and fro high above them. It was a wonderful sight, he thought, feeling himself quite the explorer. He smiled at his folly, for he knew that British people had come down to see this area often, and yet it was so new to him, so far from anything he had dreamed of as a child that he felt himself transformed. He looked eagerly at Bracy, a wide smile upon his face.

'It's lovely, sir!' he said.

Bracy squeezed his shoulder companionably, and the two of them looked at the landscape drifting past. Gedge felt peaceful and happy and gave a broad and delighted grin at the youngest of the Martians, surprising him into smiling back. He wished that the others would stay asleep all day, but it was not long before they were stirring and peering about them.

'Is it much further?' asked Professor Macquarrie, speaking loudly to the Martians.

'No,' one of them said, 'not far.'

'It's so hot out here,' said Miss Macquarrie. 'Can't we have something to drink?'

'Gedge, that's a water barrel,' said Bracy, indicating the item in question. 'Fetch Miss Macquarrie a cup of water, and one for Miss Sharpe too.'

'Yes, sir,' said Gedge, scrambling up. He lifted the lid on the barrel and dipped up a cup of water, placing it on the deck beside him while he filled another. The young Martian silently handed him a tray and some more cups. 'Thank you,' said Gedge, smiling and filled cups for the Professor, Bracy and himself. He took them back to the little group, and sat down again, enjoying the feeling of his throat not being so dry.

Not more than twenty minutes after this the boat drew up at the side of the canal, and the Martians made it fast, securing it with ropes to a great stone ring. There were fine steps leading up the side of the wall, covered in sand that obscured their sharp lines. The Martians steadied the boat as the Professor ran up the steps, disregarding their hands held out to help him. Bracy looked after him, a surprised expression on his face, and turned to Miss Macquarrie, saying, 'May I offer you assistance, Miss Macquarrie?'

'Thank you, Lieutenant Bracy,' she said, taking his arm, and leaning on him as he helped her up the steps.

Miss Sharpe made an annoyed sound, and Gedge nervously cleared his throat. 'Can I give you a hand, Miss Sharpe?' he asked, sounding rather like a boy faced with the most fearsome of his aunts.

'I trust I am not yet incapable of climbing a flight of stairs, young man,' said Miss Sharpe, and swept up the steps before him.

Gedge breathed a sigh of relief and looked around to see the Martians still on board quickly hiding smiles. He grinned cheerfully, picked up Bracy's bag and skipped up the steps himself. At the top he could see the Professor, still running ahead of the others, and Miss Macquarrie still leaning on Bracy's arm, with Miss Sharpe walking beside her. He hurried to catch up, and was stopped by the oldest of the Martians.

'Leave the bag,' said the Martian, 'we will put it in the tents.' He cast an eye over the others and continued, 'do not make things more tiring for yourself in the dry places than need be.'

'Thank you,' said Gedge, and put the bag down. He walked more quickly without it and was soon with the others.

'There is no need to walk quite so slowly,' Miss Sharpe was saying.

'In this heat it is surely better to conserve one's strength,' said Miss Macquarrie, 'don't you think so, Lieutenant Bracy?'

'Most certainly, if one is of a delicate constitution,' said Bracy, 'although it could be argued that staying for a longer period in the direct sunlight argues against a leisurely pace.'

Up ahead, the Professor waved at them frantically and hallooed loudly.

'Ah,' said Bracy, 'I believe your father wishes us to join him with all speed, Miss Macquarrie.'

They all hurried forward to where the Professor stood in a curve of the rock. He swept his arms about him in a dramatic manner, as if he were cast as the villain in a melodrama, and cried, 'Behold!' They looked about them in awe, taking in the massive figures carved on every side of the natural amphitheatre in which they stood. The Martians of the past looked down upon them with their great eyes, and stood in grave or martial stances as they regarded each other. Strange beasts reared up, or were led by halters in procession, while in the topmost register of the carvings, riders on ayit soared serene above the other figures. Rich vegetation of a sort they had seen nowhere formed a backdrop to the scenes; trees hung heavy with fruit, vine like creepers, plants they could not guess at. High up, carved between the ayit, were representations of the celestial bodies, the sun, the moons and the stars. Time and again, Gedge saw the figure he remembered from the entrance hall of the highest tower, with swords drawn and smiting a foe, with arms uplifted towards the heavens, sitting on a throne upheld by richly dressed Martians as wealth was poured out before the throne. Bands of writing separated the scenes, and Gedge looked hard at them, doing his best to decipher the ancient and angular script.

'A most magnificent example of the ancients of the world's skill in figurative art,' cried the Professor. 'See how sensitively the sculptor has depicted the flow of the garments! And the exquisite humour with which he has depicted the beasts of the procession, not to mention the sheer majesty with which he has shown the grandeur of the past kings. Observe this superb example of a manly physique - the strength in the arms, the delicate delineation of the chest and torso, the fine muscling on the legs. This is without a doubt a ritual scene of combat - see how this fine specimen wrestles, apparently without any hardship, with this fell beast, a monster from their legends, I would say. Here is this fellow again, with one of their sheep like animals in his arms - clearly a ritualistic presentation of the need for a king to provide mercy and justice to the poor of his realm. And the text here tells us that -'

'She who bestrides the mountains,' said Gedge, having done his best not to listen as he was concentrating on the text.

The Professor looked at him in surprise, as if he had forgotten that Gedge was there, and frowned.

'No, not at all,' he said. 'This figure is unconnected with the hero, and is moreover male - if what you have read is a name in the first place, it is 'He who bestrides the mountains.' The element 'mountain' is always found with male names, never female. You are quite clearly forming the pronoun incorrectly, although it is indeed a rare thing to find a common soldier who has the slightest interest in such matters. It seems you spoke no more than the truth, Bracy, for a soldier he has an unusual skill.'

Gedge blushed at having made a foolish mistake and hung his head at the rebuke implicit in the Professor's tone. A hand rested briefly on his shoulder and Bracy spoke firmly yet respectfully, saying, 'Why, I had read it that way myself.'

'I assure you, it is an incorrect reading,' said the Professor. 'Barbarians the natives may have been - and indeed some would say still are, although I would not - but can you really imagine them subsisting under female leadership? The Martian ladies are even more passive and timid than our own. I find it impossible to conceive of one of them being as ruthless as the early kings would surely have had to have been.' He waved a hand at the walls, saying, 'Hard, cold science is what is needed here, not flights of fancy about warrior queens.' He looked at the walls in satisfaction and said, 'How I should like to remove these from this far flung and deserted location, and place them in the British Museum, for the whole world to see!'

'But they belong on this world!' cried Gedge passionately.

The Professor frowned at him once more and continued his discourse on the advisability of removing such art from the hands of the natives, who like children left unsupervised with the family silver would use it inappropriately and end by ruining it utterly. Gedge sighed and tried not to listen, but the Professor had an inexhaustible store of opinions on how to best take care of the carvings, what was in them and whether or not the writings had anything to do with the figures, or whether it had been added at a later date. Gedge was utterly glad when at length the little party repaired back some distance to where the crew of the boat had set up two tents for sleeping, one for the men and one for the ladies, and an open sided canopy under which they had erected a table and benches. A smell of cooking rose into the air and soon they were eating a stew of sorts, although it was somewhat too spicy, Gedge thought to merit the name. Throughout the dinner the Professor held forth on one topic or another, such as the impertinence of other nations in attempting to scrabble for a foothold in space, or why Britain should assert its right to the sole governance of Mars and should seize Venus to boot. When he had exhausted this topic he spoke with fervour on the education of the poor and how they could be bettered within two generations, and why there were so many undeserving poor among their number. It was with a sense of relief that Gedge crept into the tent to sleep, only to discover to his horror that the Professor had no intention of falling silent even as the night progressed. The night was well progressed when the man laid his head down at last.

Gedge revelled in the silence, and wished he had not come at all if he had to endure the Professor's views. He felt the beautiful carvings had been quite spoilt and that the Professor had done his best to suck the pleasure away from learning. After lying there thinking in this vein for some time, Gedge rose to his feet and slipped outside as silently as he possibly could. He put on his boots and jogged back to the carvings, marvelling how different they looked in the light of the moons: cold, hard and altogether alien. The rock was as highly polished as in the towers and it gleamed with a soft light. He ran a hand over a band of writing, enjoying feeling how deeply cut it was into the hard red rock. He was seized with the desire to touch as much of the carvings as he could reach, and began running his hands lightly over the surface, feeling the raised figures and the deeply carved details upon them. It felt right, like an act of worship. He stopped, vaguely worried about what the chaplains would think of such a view and then reflected that he would not have to tell them.

After some time he heard the crunch of boots on sand and turned to see Bracy coming toward him.

'Gedge,' said Bracy, 'I awoke and found you gone. I had a feeling I should find you here.'

'Yes, sir,' said Gedge, 'I wanted to see them without being told what I was seeing.'

'Ah,' said Bracy, and looked with pleasure upon the rock. 'They are altogether beautiful, are they not?'

'Lovely, sir,' said Gedge. 'Especially this lady, She Who Bestrides the Mountains.'

Bracy looked at him sidelong and laughed. 'Stubborn Gedge!' he said. 'But I believe you are right. She is the lady we saw before, and she is most certainly not a man. I prefer your interpretation, Gedge. Perhaps she is a goddess, and so may bear a male name?'

'Perhaps he jest got it wrong,' said Gedge in some irritation.

Bracy smiled at him, and bent his gaze back upon the carvings in silence, taking in the graceful trees, the ayit floating high above the world, the serene and unworldly beauty of the faces of the Martians carved upon the rock. He rested a hand on a delicately rendered flower, beside Gedge's hand.

'I am sorry, Gedge,' he said quietly. 'It is so much better like this. We should have come alone. When I can arrange for leave again we can come back.' He looked at Gedge in the white cold light, a little shyly, Gedge thought. 'If, that is,' he continued, 'you would care to do so, of course?'

Gedge smiled brilliantly at him, overjoyed at the thought. 'Oh yes, sir!' he cried. 'I'd like that so much! And could we stay a day or two and explore, jest by ourselves?'

'I don't see why not,' said Bracy, considering. 'Although we would of course have to hire the natives to bring us here, and take care of our needs. But the crew of the boat have most clearly done this before, and are well equipped. I could simply engage them. They are quiet and discreet.' He moved his hand from the wall and put it on Gedge's shoulder. 'Does that sound agreeable?'

'Yes,' said Gedge, looking up at Bracy's face, which was half hidden in shadow. The young officer was looking at him intently and silently, and Gedge felt suddenly as if a hand was holding his lungs closed. 'Yes, sir,' he said. 'I'd like that, very much.'

'I would like it too,' said Bracy softly, an expression almost of puzzlement upon his face.
He dropped his hand from Gedge's shoulder, and took his hand in a firm grip.

Gedge looked up at him with earnest affection in his eyes, saying, 'When can we do it, sir?'

'As soon as ever I can get us both free of the fort again,' said Bracy quietly. They stood there for several moments. Then, 'Gedge,' whispered Bracy, falling silent once more.

'Sir?' said Gedge as quietly. He looked at the officer's face, which was both joyous and terribly sad at the same time, and wished he could do something to take away the sadness and leave only the joy.

'Ah, the soldiers are no longer missing in action!' cried a voice coming closer. 'I found I had more room to stretch out and thought an evil beast might have crept in to snatch you. I am glad to see you need no rescue!'

'Professor Macquarrie,' said Bracy, turning quickly. 'We did not mean to disturb you, I am most terribly sorry.'

'No, no,' said the Professor. 'I do not sleep as much as I did when I was young. Why have you come to see the carvings now?'

'I jest thought they might look nice in the moonlight,' said Gedge.

The Professor leaned in close to the rock and looked with great interest at the carvings. 'The light seems to show me some added detail,' he said, 'see, if one looks closely one can see the marks left by the tools upon the rock.' And he began to speak about the differing marks left by different types of tools, the average depth to which Martian carvings were cut, at this site and when this was compared to others, the role of the moons in ancient Martian cults and the undoubted existence of a belief in astrology. Gedge felt as if he might cry out in annoyance, and let his ankle turn deliberately under him.

'Ah!' he ejaculated.

'Gedge! Are you all right?' asked Bracy.

'My ankle, sir,' said Gedge, putting all his weight on the other foot.

'Gedge sustained an injury some time again that is not yet fully healed,' explained Bracy. 'I should help him back to rest.'

'Go on, go on,' said the Professor. 'I wish to look at these carvings in a new light, ha-ha!' And he bent all his attention upon the rock.

Bracy put an arm about Gedge's waist and said, 'Lean your weight on me,' walking slowly and painfully along. Even when Gedge tried to walk more normally he found he could not, as Bracy's arm was so tight about him. When they reached the tent they pulled off their boots and scurried inside.

Lying in the dark he heard Bracy's muffled laughter. 'That was very wicked, Gedge,' said Bracy. 'and for me to involve myself in it in any way - appalling!'

'I'm sorry, sir,' said Gedge, 'I jest couldn't take one minute more of that noise.'

'Neither could I,' whispered Bracy, making Gedge laugh. 'Shh! Shh! You'll wake the ladies,' said Bracy. 'Goodnight, Gedge,' he whispered.

'Goodnight, sir,' said Gedge, and softly took Bracy's hand in his. Bracy curled his fingers around Gedge's and soon Gedge heard his breathing quieten in sleep. Closing his eyes, he fell into a deep and peaceful slumber also, his dreams blessedly quiet.