The Rajah's Fortress — page 110: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

THE RAJAH’S FORTRESS. 101 in the reeds behind them held no implements of fishing or of sport. They saw the strange raft come sailing down the river; they even poised their spears once or twice in a hesitating manner, but quickly changed their minds at Melton’s pistol shot. They saw the short, brief struggle, allowed the assassin to glide unharmed past them, recognizing, no doubt, a more dangerous villain than themselves, and then, as his victim drifted near their retreat, hungry for possible plunder, they reached out and pulled the lifeless form to the shore. With many expressions of delight they dragged the pistol from his bosom—-the other one had gone to the bottom long ago—and presently they found a pocket flask of brandy which had been stowed away in a back pocket. The cap was swollen and refused to unscrew, and while they were fumbling with it, to their. utter fright and consternation, the supposed corpse groaned and sat upright. Beyonda slight dizziness and astinging headache, Melton was all right, but before he could realize the situation, his hands were tightly bound behind his back, and his captors fiercely motioned him to be silent. They jabbered away in a strange, out- landish tongue, pointing at times down the river in the direction of the steamer. The disposal of their prisoner was evidently the object of their palaver, and for a while his fate hung COLUM 1OOO SS co