A crowd of niggers were hovering round as near my tent as they dared come, hoping to catch an inkling of the news, and I could tell from the tone of their low mutterings that they expected nothing good. For a moment I was badly defeated.
Then a Heaven-sent inspiration seized me--"Well, Brown," I said, raising my voice, "So that's the chlorodyne is it?"--I seized the big brown-paper parcel--"It's five o'clock now; tell every Jack man in camp he's to fall in here sharp at six for a dose of chlorodyne."
The conductor stared at me; I suppose he thought I was mad.
"Don't you hear," I cried; "go off at once, and don't let anybody interrupt us while we have breakfast." And I managed to give him the faintest wink--in another minute I heard him shouting my order through the camp.
"Jimmy, let's make chlorodyne." Jimmy grinned. "Collis Browne's is the best," he said; "twenty drops for an adult."
Then he started whistling again while we shut up the tent and went to work.
"Small bottles are no use," I said, "must have wholesale manufactory; we'll find that demi-john."
We started with two tins of condensed milk--to give it a bit of body--and a tin of Van Houten's cocoa made a grand colouring. Two big spoonfuls of red pepper, "to ginger it up." "Must mix our flavour," said Jimmy, "or they'll recognize the brand"--so in went Bengal chutney and strawberry jam. We were rummaging out our grocery box--"Sardines ain't much use, nor cheese, nor Danish butter; but here's a bottle of the nastiest pickles I ever tasted, let's give them the juice of that; they won't believe it's medicine unless it tastes bad."
"My tooth powder is nasty enough," said Jimmy, "Carbolic something, and warranted to do no harm--in it goes."
The two bottles of Dop were chucked in as a finish and the mixture was nasty enough for anybody--rich brown, creamy, and fiery hot.
Jimmy had entered heart and soul into the business.--"None's genuine without the label," he cried, and rushed at our small stationery box. "Hullo, sealing wax, here, you find a cork and seal it up; these cards will do for labels. Some of these niggers can read and write, so we must play the game right through. If they spot us we're done. Now, men--Genuine Chlorodyne--for coughs, colds, &c.--every three hours till the pain ceases; to be well shaken before taken. And another label--To O.C. No. 2, General Hospital, Viten Sideing,--On H.M. Service--free--franked. Dirty the paper a bit to show it's come a long way--then when we throw the jar away they'll see it's genuine."