There was no reason why the fire should be so large,
since they had little to cook and the air was hot, but they made it
so for the same reason that Jeekie answered questions, for the sake of
cheerfulness. At least it gave light in the darkness, leaping up in red
tongues of flame twenty or thirty feet high, and its roar and crackle
were welcome in the primeval silence.
Alan lay upon the cork mattress in the open, for here there was no need
to pitch the tent; if any rain fell above, the canopy of leaves absorbed
it. He was amusing himself while he smoked his pipe with watching the
reflection of the fire-light against a patch of darkness caused probably
by some bush about twenty yards away, and by picturing in his own mind
the face of Barbara, that strong, pleasant English face, as it might
appear on such a background. Suddenly there, on the identical spot he
did see a face, though one of a very different character. It was round
and small and hideous, resembling in its general outline that of a
bloated child. At this distance he could not distinguish the features,
except the lips, which were large and pendulous, and between them the
flash of white teeth.
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