“Imbeciles!  But the stay must be welded.”

“Well, we’ll pretend we can do without ’em.  I daresay that will bring them round.”

For a few minutes the two men made a great show of activity, completely disregarding the crowd curiously watching them.  The plan had the desired effect.  The Hindu came forward and said that the smith would accept the gold piece, if he were paid in advance.

“Not a bit of it.  If he likes to help he shall have it when the work is done,” replied Smith, turning to resume his interrupted work.

The smith, now fearful of losing his customer, began to abuse the Hindu for not completing the bargain.  At length, with a show of reluctance, Smith relented, and with the aid of the villagers the aeroplane was wheeled to the smithy.  It proved to be very poorly equipped, having a very primitive forge and a pair of clumsy native bellows; but Rodier set to work to make the best of it, welding the broken stay with the smith’s help, while his employer remained outside the hut to keep watch over the aeroplane, which the people were beginning to examine rather more minutely than he liked.  To drive them off, Smith set the engine working, causing a volume of smoke to belch forth in the faces of the nearest men, who ran back, holding their noses and crying out in alarm.

Smith filled in the minutes by opening a tin of sardines and eating some of the fish sandwiched between biscuits.  The sight of small fish brought from a box struck the villagers with amazement, which was redoubled when he removed the stopper from a soda-water bottle and drank what appeared to be boiling liquid.  Presently, however, he noticed that some of the men were quietly withdrawing towards the huts, behind which they disappeared.  Among them was the Hindu, who was apparently summoned, and departed with a look of uneasiness.  Smith went on with his meal unconcernedly, though he was becoming suspicious, especially when he found by-and-by that all the men had left him, the crowd consisting now only of women and children.

“Nearly done, Roddy?” he called into the hut.

“Yes, mister.  The smith has took his hook, though.”

“All the men have gone behind the huts.  I wonder what they are up to.”

Rodier took up a hammer, and gently broke a hole in the flimsy back wall of the hut.

“There’s a big crowd beyond the village,” he reported.  “Having a pow-wow, too.  They’ve got spears and muskets.”

“That looks bad.  Hurry up with the stay.  The sooner we get out of this the better.”

He noticed that the smith had now rejoined the crowd.  No doubt he intended to make sure of getting his money.  The mob behind the huts was growing noisy, and Smith gave a sigh of relief when Rodier came out with the mended stay and proceeded to fix it in place.  While he did this, Smith beckoned some of the lads forward, and made them understand by signs that he wished them to help him wheel the aeroplane round.