Chap. XIX. MY CLOTHES AND PAPERS RETURNED. 385 



the opposite side and demanded what our visitors 

 wanted. " Londa," said the same voice, with the 

 greatest coolness, and as if he was transacting a 

 very ordinary piece of business, " come over here 

 and receive the ' white devil's ' trunks and clothes." 



My first impulse on hearing this conversation 

 was to rush out of the boat and endeavour to seize 

 these men, who I had no doubt were the thieves. 

 But common-sense told me that any endeavour to 

 do this in the darkness would surely fail, and 

 might endanger the safety of the things they had 

 brought back. It also struck me that, as the most 

 valuable part of my property was of no use to 

 them, I might possibly recover my books and 

 papers. These considerations induced me to re- 

 main quiet in the boat and allow the Chinese to 

 manage matters in their own way. 



When my men reached the opposite side of the 

 canal the thieves had disappeared, but had left on 

 the banks my boxes and clothes. On these being 

 brought into my cabin the first thing I examined 

 was the box in which I kept my money and 

 papers. I saw at the first glance that the pad- 

 lock had been wrenched off, but the lid was now 

 fastened carefully down with a piece of twine. 

 On cutting this I observed that a small box inside 

 in which I had kept my money had also been cut 

 open, and the dollars were all gone. But every- 

 thing else in the trunk, although bearing evident 

 marks of having been under the examination of 

 the thieves, had been carefully put back. My 



