'  Who  comes  there  ? '  challenged  the  nearest  sentry,  one  of  his
own  company.
'A  friend — Captain  Compton;  do  you  know  where  Mr.
Balfour  is  ? '


140  TIPPOO  SVLTAVN.
'Yonder,  sir;  the  officer  of  the  native  regiment  is  with  him;
they  are  sitting  under  the  tree  near  yon  fire.'

Thither  they  proceeded — ^it  was  but  a  few  steps  off.
'  Ah !  this  is  kind  of  you,  Herbert  and  Philip,  to  come  to
cheer  my  watch ;  not  that  it  is  lonely,  for  Mr.  Wheeler  here,  who
shares  it  with  me,  has  a  store  of  coffee  and  other  matters  very
agreeable  to  discuss ;  but  it  was  kind  of  you  to  come  to  me.
Now  be  seated,  camp  fashion,  upon  the  ground,  and  let  us  talk
over  the  affairs  of  to-morrow ;  we  are  likely,  it  appears,  to  have
some  work.'

'  How  do  you  know?  have  you  any  late  news  ? '  asked  Philip.
'  Mr.  Wheeler  can  tell  you  better  than  I ;  but  a  short  time  ago
the  sentry  yonder  challenged  in  the  direction  of  th*e  pass,  and,
no  answer  being  returned,  I  took  a  corporal's  guard  and  made
a  little  expedition,  which  was  in  some  degree  successful;  for  we
caught  two  fellows  who  looked  marvellously  like  spies,  but  who,
on  being  interrogated  by  my  friend  here,  swore  lustily  they  were
deserters,  who  had  come  to  give  information.  From  them  we
learned  that  at  least  twenty  thousand  of  Tippoo's  valiant  troops
were  prepared  to  make  this  a  second  Thermopyte,  that  we
should  have  to  storm  entrenchments,  and  perform  prodigies  of
valour,  and  that  we  might  possibly  get  near  the  top;  but  as  to
surmounting  it,  that  was  out  of  the  question:  was  it  not  so,  Mr.
