The glory of this place had departed. As Moulmein rose in importance this once busy centre fell into decay, assuming for the most part its primeval condition of luxuriant vegetation.

It was, nevertheless, the spot chosen for a sanatorium during the second Burmese war, and it certainly fulfilled the requirements of all concerned. Being built on the seashore, and at the mouth of the river, it combined great salubrity with easiness of approach.

At the extreme point of a ledge of rocks that ran some distance out to sea stood the lighthouse, from which a submerged reef stretched obliquely towards the shore, enclosing an area of water in which the soldiers used to bathe, although the mouth of the river was infested with sharks.

According to the testimony of the oldest inhabitant, none of these monsters had ever been known to stray inside the reef; though how soon this immunity ceased to be, the reader will learn before the close of the present chapter.

There were several barracks facing the sea, and close to the shore, which was composed of alternate stretches of sand and rock. They were built on piles, very roomy and comfortable, having thick roofs and broad verandahs; and although unoccupied for several years, they were soon rendered habitable by a little vigorous sweeping and scrubbing, the eviction of extensive colonies of bats, spiders, and other insects, which were in possession, and had multiplied after their kind.

Amherst was, in fact, to Moulmein much what Brighton is to the Metropolis—a convenient place to run down to for a brief respite from drudgery and a breath of sea air.

The only particular, however, in which it could compete with the “Queen of Watering-places” was the absolute perfect rest which it afforded, and which is the only commodity that England cannot supply. No; our island is facile princeps a land of unrest, and is becoming more so day by day. Not more than five years ago I lighted on a primitive seaside place, where one could be free as air and, if so minded, wear out all one’s old clothes. But, lo and behold! the ubiquitous builder scented it from afar, and now it is simply—ruined! A pier now desecrates its hitherto pure waters, round the bulbous extremity of which lounges the gorgeous Cockney, listening to indifferent music, and tainting the air with cigars that must have been home-made! Ere long there will be Ethiopians, winkle sellers, and photographers to fright the place from its propriety.

Amherst was just the reverse of this, and charming in its naked simplicity.

My friend and self decided on spending two or three days there, partly because we thought that a sea bathe would brace us up, and partly for the sake of tasting a certain small fish which abounds only in this neighbourhood, and which is so delicate as to spoil in transit, even so short a distance as that to Moulmein, ice being in those days an unknown luxury in remote Eastern stations.

The praises of this wonderful fish had been sung to us so often that, even with me, simple as my tastes are as to what I should “eat, drink, and avoid,” the anticipation of its flavour alternated with impatience to bathe once more in the blue sea; while I do not think I am doing an injustice to the memory of my dear old friend when I say that with him the fish preponderated, the bathe being but as skim milk compared to the cream.

People at home would be extremely “put about” if, whenever they intended spending a few days at Brighton, they had to send on ahead beds and bedding, furniture, crockery, etc.; and if such were necessary, the place would probably welcome fewer visitors.

Yet this is what any lover of whitebait would have to do when bent on visiting the Burmese Greenwich. In the East, however, your factotum saves you all the trouble; you have but to tell him where you are going and how long you intend to stay, and, with a quickness acquired by long practice, he grasps the situation and forgets nothing.

In this case, especial stress was laid on the absolute necessity of procuring the fish for dinner, to which end he started the day before, thus making assurance doubly sure.

Failing therein, heavy penalties were darkly hinted at, to which he listened without moving a muscle, salaam’d, and disappeared.

The following afternoon we were borne quickly down stream in a roomy boat, provided with an awning astern. The conversation had reference to the Mutiny and all that we had seen since; but ever and anon the “fish” would crop up, showing what was uppermost in our minds.

When we landed at our destination there was still some little daylight before us, so we resolved on a preliminary tour of inspection, first of our quarters, and then of the shore.

The former we found in a very satisfactory condition; the latter was composed of hard sand, pleasant to walk on, while large rocks abutted into the sea covered with seaweeds and a variety of molluscs and crustaceans, especially small oysters. The scene brought vividly to the fore days now numbered with the past and oft looked back upon; but as darkness was coming on apace, as is its wont in the tropics, we retraced our steps, guided by the light that streamed from our room through the venetian blinds.

The supreme moment was now near at hand. We had scarcely performed our ablutions and made some slight change in our dress, when my friend gave the order for dinner, in a voice which might have been heard half way up to Moulmein, and, with customary punctuality, our domestic announced it almost immediately with an air of intense satisfaction.

It was a trying moment: there stood the dish, beneath the cover of which peeped out a snow-white napkin. My friend helped both of us liberally, and the attack commenced. After a few mouthfuls we looked up and our eyes met; on both our faces stood mute disappointment. We neither thought anything of the fish, and we confessed as much.

It was certainly aggravating. Day after day our friends had instilled into the porches of our ears the exquisite delicacy of a fish to be met with nowhere else, and we might just as well have masticated a few lumps of gelatine!

I did my best to dispel my friend’s gloomy looks by perpetrating a few mild jokes, the effect of which was, strangely enough, not beneficial or soothing; and it was not before dinner was nearly over, and the claret had made several journeys, that his drooping spirits revived and the storm burst. He consigned the unhappy fish to—well, not back into their native element, at any rate. As soon as we had adjourned to the verandah to smoke the pipe of peace he fell asleep, and I was left to my own meditations. I might have followed his example, but for an impudent mosquito that buzzed round me sufficiently to keep me awake; he was evidently in quest of a meal, and I shrewdly suspect he got one, for I soon fell into a reverie. Just a zephyr coming seaward wafted to my corner the smell of the sea, fragrant as “the sweet south upon a bed of violets.” The happy frame of mind it produced was very similar to what I had experienced off Madeira, the few extra degrees of temperature being differentiated by my light clothing. The waves, shimmering in the fitful moonlight, rolled in steady succession over the sandy shore, and again returned to the mass of waters.

My thoughts winged their way back to a primitive seaside place on the Welsh coast, where I had often gazed out upon such a scene as this, though listening to the dulcet accents of a siren, instead of being roused ever and anon by a snore louder than usual, which in so far resembled the murmur of the wild waves, in that every seventh was of greater dimensions than those that had gone before.

More vivid grew the vision; we were now leaning hand in hand over the balustrade, when, suddenly, the lissom figure by my side seemed to fall into the water, and I actually started up from my chair in agony.

That broke the spell; my friend awoke with a grunt, and asked what the time was. I told him it was already 2 a.m., and that we must be getting to bed; but, being sleepy and supremely comfortable, he “would not let belief take hold of him.” Argument being of no avail, more energetic measures had to be employed, and I at last succeeded in getting him indoors, when, with mutual vows to be up early for a bathe, we turned in and fell asleep.

All the residents with whom we had spoken on the subject were agreed that bathing was perfectly safe within the triangular area of water bounded by the visible ledge of rocks leading to the lighthouse and the sunken reef that joined it, at an angle, with the shore.

Soldiers had bathed there times without number; though a hand dangled in the water outside the reef would have been snapped off in a trice. Provided, therefore, with towels, we were soon stripped, placing our clothes well beyond the reach of the flowing tide. There being, moreover, no audience but the sea-birds, who were in this place scarcely more untrammelled by conventionalities than ourselves, we dispensed with bathing-drawers, which are, however, used in India in deference to the prejudices of the natives, who consider it an indecent habit to dispense with them. More impatient than my companion, I was the first to traverse the intervening strip of sand and throw myself into the water. Rising again, I began to swim parallel with the shore, when I saw my friend, who was on the point of following, stop short, while he called out, “Come in as fast as you can!” Fully comprehending what his eyes were fixed on, I made for the shore with all the strength I could muster, crying out to him to throw in the largest stones he could lay hands on.

I knew that he had seen the back fin of a shark, aroused doubtless by my splash to the expectation of a meal. It makes me shudder even now, when I think of that moment.

Fast as I could swim on the wings—or fins—of fear, it was at best but crawling compared to the dart of the fish, which presently laid hold of my ankle, his serrated teeth cutting to the bone like a razor. I thought I was in my depth and endeavoured to touch the bottom, and sank. The shark had instantly relinquished his hold, but I fully expected another attack, though I managed to reach the shore without further molestation, for the creature was darting on all sides, confused by the pieces of rock which my friend continued flinging at him with unflagging energy.

In great pain and rather faint from loss of blood, I scrambled on to the sand and lay down exhausted. On coming round, I found my foot tightly bandaged, and my doctor-friend standing over me.

He presently helped me up to the rock, where we slowly dressed ourselves and had a chat about my narrow escape. One precaution of his was characteristic; and that was avoiding the mention of the terrible object he had seen when he gave me the alarm, from fear that the shock might incapacitate me.

The appearance of a shark in this hitherto safe expanse of water is easily to be accounted for by ingress during an abnormally high tide, and inability to get back over the reef after the sea had sunk to its ordinary level.

More unintelligible was the brute’s failure to nip off so much as a foot; and I can only hazard a theory in explanation, that he must have come at me at right angles instead of straight on end.

There are moments in the lives of all of us which simply defy description. This was one of them. When the Sepoys fired and the commanding officer fell dead in my arms, was another! Meeting that tiger when out shooting was a third; and a fourth occurred years afterwards in India, when a tigress chased my pony for upwards of a mile.

All were bad enough, but this was perhaps the worst; for all was fair above, while the terrible danger lurked beneath.

With my foot well bound up, I managed to accept my friend’s support to our quarters. Had there been at hand any means for so doing, I should have set up a notice-board opposite the spot, warning intending bathers somewhat after the manner of the Apostolic injunction:—“Beware of——sharks!”

But we had to be content with impressing on Europeans and natives alike the necessity of cautioning venturesome visitors.

It was the second grave disappointment in the brief span of twelve hours!

And I fear the sense of thankfulness was ephemeral, and the grumbling of far longer duration. It did seem not quite on a par with the fitness of things that such smooth, tempting, blue water should henceforth be forbidden, and that the principal object of our visit, sea-bathing, should at the outset be nipped in the bud in such an unmistakable manner. But though it sparkled in the rays of the sun, with its bosom quietly heaving in a midday siesta, “noli me tangere” was in our eyes written on its unruffled surface as indelibly as on that fabled tree, whose golden fruit tasted exceeding bitter.

We had to confine our attention to things terrestrial; and many a time as we walked among the rocks examining the creatures which adhered to them, a feeling of anger would come over me, and in my peevish opposition to the decrees of Providence, I would fling stones into the water in childlike resentment. What feeble puny creatures we men are! Once the spring of anger is allowed to well up, and the desire for retaliation comes to the surface, there is no limit to the petty acts to which we will descend!

In those unrighteous moments, I considered not the instincts implanted in the creature; and was moreover thoroughly ungrateful for having emerged from a ghastly fate by the skin of my foot. I furthermore devised a plan for capturing the fons et origo (syntax!); but the necessary gear was not forthcoming, nor could I derive any assistance from the native fishermen, who have an invincible dread of the creature, having learnt from experience not to meddle with it. Besides the undeniable satisfaction of landing and despatching him, his armoury of teeth would have been well worth preserving, and a portion of the spine would have made a valuable walking-stick.

It is strange that sharks do not frequent the harbour at Aden; the more so, as they swarm just outside its mouth. As soon as a steamer drops anchor there, she is surrounded by numbers of little Arab boys, amphibious brats and experts at diving, who clamour for coins to be thrown overboard, which they at once retrieve with amazing dexterity. So nice is their sense of touch under water, that they can at once discriminate between a coin of the realm and a piece of tin cut the exact size. I have often tried the deception, and the diver invariably came to the surface uttering unmistakable exclamations of disgust. The absence of sharks may be accepted as fact, since I never heard of an accident happening to any of these children. Yet boats were constantly coming in with several small sharks on board, taken in the nets, which readily sold for native consumption.

The environs of Amherst proved unsatisfactory, especially as dangerous snakes abounded in the rank undergrowth that had almost obliterated what had once been roads and footpaths.

Everything told of decay: there were a few Amherstias being slowly killed by parasitic creepers, just as ivy or honeysuckle will sap the vitality of our trees at home.

I remember, too, the remains of a once prosperous sugar-factory, the walls of which had been forced asunder by vegetation, which was fast reclaiming the land. The only other points of interest were some enormous samples of sugar-cane, the largest examples of the saccharine bamboo that I had ever beheld.

Thankful at being able to return in company, and still smarting from our twofold disappointment, we re-ascended the river at a slow pace. Nevertheless the change had done us a deal of good.