The Rajah's Fortress — page 200: what you’re looking at

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

THE RAJAH’S FORTRESS. 189 “ Good-bye, Bolton, Mike,” Melton replied. He would have said more, but his captors jerked him roughly forward, motioning him to silence. Bolton started to follow, but was ordered back. A shrill whistle summoned all together, and paying no further attention to the Castle, the dacoits crossed by the bridge which had been swung into position and at once started along the edge of the valley in the darkness, and the last that Forbes ever saw of Castle Bolton was the faint glow of the lantern in the courtyard. His captors were very surly and sullen, angered by their losses, no doubt, for half a dozen dead were left behind, victims to the bullets or Goliah’s wrath. Forbes was stationed in the center, while Dalo was somewhere on in front. The mystery connected with this Hindoo was deep and insoluble. Some secret tie bound him to the dacoits, and something more than an ordinary bond, for he was at the head of the band, an acknowledged leader. Yet the unaccountable part was this—since Chut- ney several years before had saved his life in the Neilgherry Hills, the native had never been near Burma until recently ; in fact, had scarcely been absent for an hour at a time from Chutney’s presence. His relationship with the dacoits then was of long duration, an ancient tie but recently renewed. The more Forbes pondered over it, the deeper COLUM 1OOO SS co