Instantly Otter grunted in exact imitation of a hippopotamus-calf.
"A sea-cow," said a man in Portuguese.

"She won't hurt us.

The fire will frighten her." Leonard and Otter waited awhile, then crept to a clump of reeds whence they could hear every word that was spoken.

The men round the fire numbered twenty-two.

One, their leader, appeared to be a pure-bred Portugee, some of the others were Bastards and the rest Arabs.