Trapped by Malays

Trapped by Malays, by George
Manville Fenn

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Manville Fenn This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost
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Title: Trapped by Malays A Tale of Bayonet and Kris
Author: George Manville Fenn
Illustrator: Steven Spurrier
Release Date: May 16, 2007 [EBook #21494]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ASCII
*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK TRAPPED
BY MALAYS ***

Produced by Nick Hodson of London, England

Trapped by Malays, A Tale of Bayonet and Kris, by George Manville
Fenn.

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This is good lively yarn by the master of suspense. There is continuous
action throughout the book, and you are kept on your toes wondering
how we are going to get through the latest apparent disaster.
Sometimes just a little reminiscent of The Middy and the Ensign, set in
a similar location, with similar personnel, but different enough to
escape too much criticism. Makes a good audiobook.
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TRAPPED BY MALAYS, A TALE OF BAYONET AND KRIS, BY
GEORGE MANVILLE FENN.
CHAPTER ONE.
"TWO BAD BOYS"--SERGEANT RIPSY.
"Oh, bother!" The utterer of these two impatient words threw down a
sheet of notepaper from which he had been reading, carefully smoothed
out the folds to make it flat, and then, balancing it upon one finger as
he sat back in a cane chair with his heels upon the table, gave the paper
a flip with his nail and sent it skimming out of the window of his
military quarters at Campong Dang, the station on the Ruah River, far
up the west coast of the Malay Peninsula.
"What does the old chap want now? Another wigging, I suppose. What
have I been doing to make him write a note like that?--Note?" he
continued, after a pause. "I ought to have said despatch. Hang his
formality! Here, what did he say? How did he begin?" And he reached
out his hand towards the table as if for the note. "There's a fool! Now,
why did I send it skimming out of the window like that? It's too hot to
get up and go out to the front to find it, and it's no use to shout,
`Qui-hi,' for everybody will be asleep. Now, what did he say? My
memory feels all soaked. Now, what was it? Major John Knowle
requests the presence of Mr Archibald Maine--Mr Archibald Maine--

Archibald! What were the old people dreaming about? I don't know. It
always sets me thinking of old Morley--bald, with the top of his head as
shiny as a billiard-ball. Good old chap, though, even if he does bully
one--requests the presence of Mr Archibald Maine at his quarters
at--at seven o'clock this evening punctually. No. What's o'clock? I think
it was six. Couldn't be seven, because that's dinner-time, and he
wouldn't ask me then. It must be six. Here, I must get that note again,
but I feel so pumped out and languid that I am blessed if I am going to
get up and go hunting for that piece of paper. Phee-ew! It's hotter than
ever. I should just like to go down to the river-side, take off all my
clothes under the trees, and sit there right up to my chin, with the
beautiful, clear, cool water gurgling round my neck. Lovely! Yes--till
there came floating along a couple of those knobs that look like big
marbles--only all the time they are what old Morley calls ocular
prominences over the beastly leering eyes of one of those crocodiles on
the lookout for grub. Ugh! The beasts! Now, what could crocodiles be
made for?--Oh, here's somebody coming."
For all at once, faintly heard, the fag-end of the "British Grenadiers,"
whistled very much out of tune, came floating in at the window.
"Peter Pegg, by all that's lucky!"
The footsteps of some one evidently heavily laden came nearer and
nearer, till, just as they were about to pass the young officer's quarters,
the occupier screwed-up his lips and gave vent to a low, clear note and
its apparent echo, which sounded like the cry of some night-bird.
The next moment there was the sound as of a couple of iron buckets
being set down upon the ground, followed by the clang, clang of the
handles; a dark shadow crossed the window, and a voice exclaimed:
"You call, sir?"
"That you, Pete?"
"Yes, sir."

"What are you doing?"
"Fatigue-work, sir. Got to take these 'ere buckets round to cook's
quarters."
"Can you see a letter lying out there anywhere?"
"For the mail, sir?"
"Mail! No, stupid! A piece of