How changed the scene! When the moon looked down upon this same islet it seemed as if a warlike city had sprung suddenly out of the sea, with a navy at anchor in front of its bannered walls! In a few days six full regiments had encamped upon the hitherto uninhabited island, and nothing was heard but the voice of war.
These regiments were all "raw"; and my duty, with others, consisted in "licking them into shape".

It was drill, drill, from morning till night; and, by early tattoo, I was always glad to crawl into my tent and go to sleep--such sleep as a man can get among scorpions, lizards, and soldier-crabs; for the little islet seemed to have within its boundaries a specimen of every reptile that came safely out of the ark.
The 22nd of February being Washington's birthday, I could not get to bed as usual.

I was compelled to accept an invitation, obtained by Clayley, to the tent of Major Twing, where they were--using Clayley's own words--"to have a night of it." After tattoo we set out for the major's marquee, which lay near the centre of the islet, in a coppice of caoutchouc-trees.

We had no difficulty in finding it, guided by the jingling of glasses and the mingling of many voices in boisterous laughter.
As we came near, we could perceive that the marquee had been enlarged by tucking up the flaps in front, with the addition of a fly stretched over an extra ridge-pole.

Several pieces of rough plank, spirited away from the ship, resting upon empty bread-barrels, formed the table.