A FRAIL TENEMENT, 
255 
a sleepless night, with such nausea that one 
must not mention cajeput in her presence. 
We have now been here over a month, and are 
as delighted as ever with the beautiful situation. 
But the house has an ominous lean, and has now 
more props to stay it than were contemplated in 
the original design, H. goes out first thing 
every morning to see how much it has slipped ; 
what with the tempestuous weather we are 
having and earthquakes, I fear the whole 
tenement will topple down - the slope one day. 
We have put all the mats and a waterproof 
sheet over the bed, and as there is not another 
diy yard under the roof, it is the storing-place 
for all articles which w T ould take harm — clothes, 
books, gunpowder, food, &c,; and when a torrent 
comes we have to run and hastily throw the 
things that are lying about into it. We then 
get our waterproofs and spread our umbrellas till 
the storm-cloud passes ! 
And we have great difficulty in getting food, 
PI. sends orders in writing (as was arranged) to 
the shop of a Chinaman who speaks Malay ; but 
he never understands rightly, and sends the 
strangest’ things, for which, when our man has 
toiled up the hill with them, we have no use. 
The only flesh readily procurable in Billy is 
