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 partly because he was thinking about Siddereticus, and partly because his back hurt, he was not asleep. Larry, who shared the same cabin with Fen, always fell asleep the instant that Mammy turned off the light, and he had done so to-night with his usual promptness.

Fen could see one star through the porthole, and he could hear the soft wash of the river against the side of the yacht. Upstream, the crew of an anchored dahabiyeh were singing a sort of endless chantey:

They sang it over and over again, their voices rising in a shrill and prolonged