A PROWL BY WATER
It was disappointing and hard for two boys to bear, situated as they
had been--singled out by the old hunter as the first receivers of the
news; but they had determined to be heroic over it, and after a
fashion they were.
"Don't let's seem to mind it the least bit in the world, Phra," Harry
said.
"What shall we do? go up the river?"
"Go up the river? No. Let's see them start, and help them with their
guns when they mount the elephants. They'll be watching to see how we
look, and we're going to puzzle them."
"But will not that look queer?"
"I dunno," said Harry, "and I don't care; but that's what I've made up
my mind to do. What do you mean to do?"
"The same as you do," said Phra firmly.
The result was that at the time appointed Harry walked up to the court
by the palace main entrance, shouldering one of the rifles, and there
his heart failed him for a moment or two, but he was himself again
directly.
For the sight of the two huge elephants with their howdahs, and their
mahouts with their legs hidden beneath the huge beasts' ears, each
holding his anchus--the short, heavy, spear-like goad with hook which
takes the place of whip, spur, and reins, in the driving of the huge
beasts--was almost too much for him.
There was a party, too, of pretty well fifty spearmen to act as
beaters, some of whom were furnished with small gongs. Altogether it
formed a goodly show, and it sent the sting of disappointment pretty
deeply into the boys' breasts, so that they had to bear up bravely to
keep a good face on the matter.
The King was there to see the start made, after Mr. Kenyon, with Sree
for his attendant, had mounted one of the elephants by means of a
bamboo ladder, the doctor and a trusted old hunter in the King's
service perching themselves upon the other.
Then the King wished them both good fortune, the word was given, and
half the spearmen marched off in front; the elephants at a word from
their mahouts shuffled after, side by side, and the remainder of the
spearmen followed, passing out of the gateway.
The King said a few words to the boys, and then retired, leaving them
alone in the yard with the armed men on guard.
"Shall we follow them part of the way?" said Phra then.
"No, that wouldn't do," replied Harry. "It was right to come and show
that we weren't going to mind; but if we followed now, I know what my
father would think."
"What?" said Phra abruptly.
"That we were following in the hope of being asked to get on the
elephants. It would be too mean."
"Yes," said Phra, "of course. I did not think of that. Well, what
shall we do?"
"I dunno. Lie down and go to sleep till they come back; that's the
best way to forget it all."
"Bah! I'm not going to do that. I know: get over the river in a boat,
and go and see the big Wat."
"What for? Who wants to see the old place again, with its bonzes, with
their yellow robes and shaven heads?"
"We could go up the great tower again."
"Nice job to climb all the way up those steps in a hot time like this!
What's the good?"
Phra looked at him and smiled.
"You could take the telescope up, and see for miles."
"But I don't want to carry that lumpy thing up those hundreds of
steps."
"I'd carry it."
"But I don't want you to carry it, and I don't want to see for miles.
I can see quite as much as I want to-day without the telescope. I
don't feel as if I want to see at all. It was quite right, I suppose,
for us to be left at home, and proper for us to come and make a show
of not minding; but now the excitement's all over, and they're gone, I
feel just as if I could howl."
"What! cry?" said Phra wonderingly.
"No--ooo! Howl--shout with rage. I want to quarrel with some one and
hit him."
"Well, quarrel with and hit me."
"Shan't. I should hurt you."
"Well, hurt away. I won't hit back."
"Then I shan't be such a coward. Here, I know: I'll go and take that
chap's spear away, and break it."
He nodded his head towards one of the guards on duty close to the
entrance of the palace.
"What for?"
"Because I'm in a rage," said Harry between his teeth. "Oh, I could do
that, and then run at another and knock him down, and then yell and
shout, and throw stones at those great vases, and break the china
squares over the doorway. I feel just like those Malay fellows must
when they get in one of their mad tempers and run _amok_."
"Why don't you, then?" said Phra mockingly.
"Because I can't," cried Harry bitterly.
"Can't? Why, it would be easy enough. You could go and break the
spears of all the guards, and take their krises away. They wouldn't
dare to hurt you, seeing what a favourite you are with my father."
"I know all that," said Harry, snapping his teeth together.
"Then why can't you do it?" said Phra mockingly. "Go on; run _amok_."
"Shan't--can't."
"Why can't you?"
"Because I'm English, and I've got to fight it all down, and I'm going
to, savage as it makes me feel. Here, what shall we do?"
"Go right up to the highest window in the big tower of the Wat over
yonder, and take the telescope up with us."
"I tell you I don't want to. There's nothing to see there that we
haven't seen scores of times."
"Yes, there is."
"No, there isn't."
"Yes, there is, I tell you."
"Well, what is there?"
"We could watch and follow them with the glass nearly all the way to
the new sugar plantation, and perhaps see the tiger hunt."
Harry started excitedly, and caught his friend by the arm.
"So we could," he said, with his face lighting up. "I needn't go back
for our glass; you could get one from your father; he'd let you have
that if he wouldn't let you have the elephants."
"Yes. Shall I fetch it?"
"No," cried Harry sharply; "I won't take any more notice of the
hunting; we'll do something else."
"But you'd like to see it," said Phra.
"Of course I should, but I won't. There."
"But it's like--what do you call it when you're doing something to
hurt yourself?"
"Hurting myself," said Harry bluntly.
"No, no, no. Ah, I've got it. Biting your own nose off in revenge of
your face."
"All right, that's what I'm going to do--bite it off. I won't watch
them going, and I won't take any more notice of the miserable,
disappointing business."
"Oh, Hal, what a temper you're in!"
"I know that, but I'm fighting it all the time, and I mean to win."
"But you'll be obliged to be here when they come back."
"No, I shan't; I won't hear them."
"You can't help it; they'll come marching back, banging the gongs and
tomtomming and shouting, with the tiger slung on the back of one
elephant, and the doctor and your father in the same howdah. Oh,
you'll be obliged to come and meet them."
"Yes, I suppose so," said Harry, drawing a deep breath. "If I don't,
they'll think me sulky."
"So you are," said Phra, laughing.
"I'm not; no, not a bit, only in a temper."
"I wish the cricket and football things had come."
"I don't believe they ever will come," said Harry. "See what time it
is."
"They will come," said Phra gravely.
"How do you know?"
"Because my father said that we should have them. There, you're better
now."
"No, I'm not; I'm ever so much worse," said Harry, through his set
teeth.
"Well, let's go and kill something; you'll be better then."
"Don't believe I should," replied Harry. "What should we go and kill?"
"I don't know. Let's get the guns and make two of the men row us up
the narrow stream, right up yonder through the jungle where the best
birds are. Your father would like it if we got some good specimens
ready for Sree to skin."
"Very well," said Harry resignedly; "I shan't mind so long as you
don't want me to go up the big temple tower to watch them. I say,
Phra, I'm beginning to feel a bit better now."
Phra laughed, and the two boys went into the palace, where the former
gave an order to one of the servants about a boat, and then led the
way to his own room, a charming little library with a couple of stands
on one side bearing guns and weapons of various kinds, beside
fishing-rods and a naturalist's collecting gear.
"Which gun will you have?" asked Phra.
"Either; I don't care," was the reply; and by the time they were
prepared one of the attendants announced that the boat was ready.
They walked down to the great stone landing-place at the river,
stepped into the boat, and seated themselves under the little
open-sided roof, while their two rowers pushed off, and keeping close
in shore, where the eddy was in their favour, sent the boat rapidly on
through the muddy water.
For some distance the forest lay back away from the river, while the
bank on their right was pretty well hidden by a continuous mass of
house-boats, so close together as almost to touch; but at last these
were left behind, and the trees on their left began to encroach upon
the fields and fruit gardens, where melons, pines and bananas grew in
wonderful profusion, and the air was full of life such as would have
delighted an entomologist.
By degrees cultivation ceased and the wild jungle came close down to
the stream, and in places even overhung and dipped the tips of
branches in the water. Now and then, a small crocodile scuffled off
the muddy bank and plunged into the river. Fish began to be more
plentiful, little shoals showing on the surface, and in two or three
places a heavy fellow springing out in pursuit of its prey and falling
back with a splash.
Birds, too, began to be seen: tiny parrots whistled and chattered in
the trees; a big hawk hovered overhead; and several times over great
long-legged waders were disturbed.
But no attempt at firing was made, the two lads sitting quiet and
thoughtful beneath their sheltering roof, musing over the expedition,
and wondering whether it was being successful.
In imagination Harry seemed to see it all: the men spread out to beat
some fairly open space and drive the tiger towards where the two
elephants would be stationed some fifty yards apart, with their
occupants, rifle in hand, watching for the slightest movement in a
clump of bushes or tuft of reeds.
"Oh, what would I not give to be there!" said Harry to himself at
last. "I wish I were not such a boy!"
The colour came a little, though, into his cheeks--or it might have
been caused by the heat of the sun, at any rate it was there--as he
thought of what the doctor had said, and of his own words to his
father.
And as these thoughts came, he felt something like shame at his
feeling of dissatisfaction with what he had, and his striving after
that which he had not.
"I won't be such a dissatisfied donkey," he muttered, and his face
looked brighter as he turned sharply to speak to Phra.
His change affected his companion, who brightened up too.
"We're getting close to the mouth of the little river," he said.
"I'm glad of it," said Harry cheerfully. "I say, they have been quick;
it's hot work for them."
"Yes," said Phra, "but they'll have a good rest soon while we're going
slowly, and there will be nothing to do but steer, going back."
"I say, suppose they get back first with the tiger."
"I hope they will not," cried Phra; "but it isn't likely. They've a
long way to go, and the beating will take a long time. We shall be
back first. Ugh, you brute!" he whispered, reaching for his gun,
cocking both barrels softly, and taking aim at a large crocodile.
_Snip! snap!_ and then a splash, as the reptile disappeared.
"I don't think you have killed it," said Harry seriously, but with his
eyes dancing with mischief.
"Ah, you're better," cried Phra pettishly. "You don't want to run
_amok_ now. How could I be so stupid! I never thought about not being
loaded."
"Better think about it now," said Harry, beginning the operation in
the tedious, old-fashioned way that ruled so long before the cartridge
was invented for a sportsman's use. "But we were only to shoot birds,
I thought."
"Yes, birds, and only beautiful specimens," replied Phra. "I couldn't
help being tempted to fire at the brute, though. I shall always be
shooting at them now."
"Here we are," said Harry, and at a word from Phra the light sampan
was guided into a sluggish side stream only some twenty yards or so
wide, while on either side the trees rose like a wall of verdure, the
water lapping the leaves, which dipped and played up and down with the
motion of the stream.
"You take that side and I'll take this," said Phra; and then giving
the order to the rower in front, the man ceased paddling and made his
way right astern, to squat down on the little platform beside his
fellow, who cleverly propelled and steered the light craft with his
one oar, leaving the look-out forward free for the gunners.
"Hullo! How are you, old gentleman?" cried Harry suddenly, as a
grey-bearded, venerable-looking little face was suddenly thrust out
through the leaves, so that its owner could look down at the strange
visitors to his wild home.
There was a sharp chattering, the head of the monkey was drawn back,
and then a rustling and waving of the boughs on the left began, going
on a little in front.
"There's a whole troop of them travelling along," said Harry.
"Yes, and they'll scare all the birds," cried Phra. "Look, they've
startled those lovely parroquets. What's to be done?"
"They'll soon go," replied Harry. "Row away."
The man astern thrust the boat along with his easy, Venice-like
manipulation of the oar, and the light boat glided on right in the
centre of the beautiful green lane with its watery floor; but the wave
as it seemed to be likewise glided along, with a peculiar rustle in
the foliage some twenty yards in front.
There was not a sound beside, save when, further ahead, some parroquet
darted out with a shriek to cross to the other side of the stream, or
a sharp flapping of wings told that it was a dove darting frantically
through the twigs to escape from enemies with a great love for eggs,
and no objection to savoury, plump morsels in the shape of
half-fledged young, by way of change from a fruit diet.
"Let's stop," said Phra, on seeing that the undulation in the green
wall on their left kept on at about the same rate.
"Stop, and let them go on?" said Harry. "Very well."
At a word the man ceased paddling, the boat glided on from the impetus
already given, but less and less fast, till completely overcome by the
stream it was meeting, it gradually came to a standstill, and was on
the point of giving way and being borne back, when Harry burst into a
hearty laugh, which had the result of making the grey, inquiring face
of the monkey that had just peered out, pop back again.
"Row," said Phra, "and keep the boat stationary."
The rower dipped his oar gently, and the boat ceased to retrograde.
"What rum little customers they are!" said Harry, as he watched the
place where the grey head had disappeared. "Just like a little old man
watching us. Think they're gone now?"
"No; look."
Harry was looking, and saw at the same moment the little face
cautiously thrust out again, but withdrawn as he made a threatening
movement with his gun.
Then all was perfectly still for a minute.
"Perhaps they're gone now," said Harry.
"No; they are too inquisitive. I daresay there are fifty of them
hidden in among the boughs."
"I think they're gone," said Harry at the end of another minute.
"Well, try. Go on," said Phra, and the oar was once more silently
plied, gently disturbing the water, while at the same moment the wave
in the trees began again, with its gentle rustling, showing that the
monkey troop was once more travelling along just in front, scaring the
birds away as they advanced.
The boat was stopped again, and the monkeys followed suit, the same
curious old face peering cautiously out and watching.
The boat went on, so did the monkeys; and this was repeated over and
over again, stopping and going on, the wave in the trees seeming to be
so exactly influenced by the rowers' agitation of the water that it
was as if one touch moved both water and leaf.
"Well, they are comical little beggars," cried Harry, who was once
more in the highest of spirits. "I say, old man, just take your
friends away; we're going shooting. Do you hear?"
The little head popped in out of sight, but as the boat did not move
it popped out again, as if to find the reason why.
"We shan't get a bird, for they'll keep on like that for miles."
"It's tiresome," said Harry. "Here, I say, if you don't toddle I'll
give you pepper."
The gun was raised threateningly as the boy spoke, and the head
disappeared.
"He knows English," cried Harry, "and he's an uncommonly sensible old
gentleman. Father told me that the country folks at home say rooks can
smell powder. So can monkeys, seemingly."
"Country folks at home? What country folks?"
"Not yours; ours, in the old home, England. There, let's get on and
begin shooting, or we shall get nothing."
"It doesn't matter," said Phra quietly; "it's very beautiful gliding
along without killing things."
"Yes, but as we came to get specimens, let's get a few. I want to, so
as to show father and the doctor that we haven't been moping. Row
away."
The man smiled, and sent the boat gliding up the bright stream again,
for the sun was so nearly overhead that scarcely any shadow was cast
on their left.
But the moment the boat moved the wave ran along the trees again, and
Phra laughed aloud at his companion's face.
"Yes, you may laugh, but it's too bad. There, I'll keep my word,
though, and as soon as my grey-headed gentleman shows his face I'm
going to pepper him with small shot."
"No, you're not," said Phra, laughing. "You don't want him for a
specimen."
"No, of course not. I don't want to shoot him. It would be just like
killing a little old man. I'll only pepper him so as to scare him and
his friends away. They'll spoil all our fun."
"Hi! Look out, Hal!"
There was a great flapping of wings and a loud rushing sound, as two
large birds dashed out from where the troop of monkeys were passing,
to fly across the river to the trees on the other side. But before
they were two-thirds of the way across a couple of reports followed
rapidly one after the other, and the birds fell in the water, which
one of them beat with its wings for a few moments, and then became
motionless, floating down towards the boat, which was dexterously
driven on to meet them.
The birds were carefully lifted in, and with their plumage smoothed
down, laid in a kind of locker, proving to be a finely developed pair
of the great hornbills, no beauties as far as feathering was
concerned, but singular as specimens, from the enormous development of
their bills, and the great addition in form which has earned for them
the sobriquet of rhinoceros.
"That's capital," said Harry. "Father was saying he wanted a good
specimen or two, for ours were very poor."
The boys were loading again now, and the boat was once more advancing.
"The monkeys did not drive those away," said Phra.
"No; just drove them out right for us. Did as well as dogs,
but--Hullo! where are they?"
The boys stared up at the great green wall on their left, but the
trees were motionless in the hot sunshine, not a leaf stirring, the
only movement visible being in one spot where a gigantic wreath of
some flowering creeper hung down from far on high, spreading to the
sunshine hundreds of trumpet-shaped white blossoms, and among these
somewhere about a score of tiny sun-birds were hovering and darting,
the brilliant, metallic, scale-like plumage of head and breast looking
as if the diminutive creatures wore helmet and gorget of wonderfully
tinted and burnished metals, others approaching in lustre the polish
of brilliant gems.
It was a beautiful sight as the little creatures darted about, their
rapidly beating wings almost invisible, but giving the birds the
appearance of being surrounded by a soft haze. Here one would be
apparently motionless beneath a hanging blossom, into which its long
thin beak was thrust to probe the nectar like a gigantic bee. There a
couple would be engaged in chase and flight, with flash after flash of
metallic light reflected from the surface of their plumage as they
darted about in full career, turning different portions of their
plumage to the sun's rays. Again one would seem to be of the most
sober colours, almost dingy, till it moved, and then as it caught the
light at some other angle it flashed into a thing of beauty, dazzling
in its tints of ruby, sapphire, and purple.
The boys had seen these tiny representatives of the humming birds in
the New World scores of times, but always found satisfaction in
watching them, and for the time being the monkeys were forgotten.
"What a chance!" said Harry, as the boat was sent in close to the
burdened tree without disturbing the sun-birds in the least. "If
father wants any more specimens of these, we couldn't come to a better
place."
"But next time we come by, that bush will not be in flower, and there
will be no sun-birds there."
"But they would be somewhere else," said Harry philosophically. "Look
at that one with the red band across his breast. What a beauty! I say,
next time we want any I vote that we don't shoot them with sand or
water, but try a butterfly net."
"Couldn't reach," said Phra.
"Could if we had it at the end of a long bamboo."
"No," said Phra decisively; "you could not handle it quickly enough
then. It would be too clumsy, and the bird would be as quick again.
Couldn't do it, Hal."
"S'pose not," said the boy thoughtfully. "I say, look at that one with
the rose-coloured head."
"Am looking at it. I don't think I ever saw such a beauty."
"Oh dear!" said Harry, with a deep sigh.
"What's the matter?"
"I was thinking what poor, stupid things our stuffed skins are. They
don't look a bit like these tiny beauties all in motion, and seeming
to be a fresh colour every time they move. They're so soft and round,
and so quick. And see how they fly, too. I say, Phra, it seems a shame
to shoot them."
"Horrible! Nothing could be more beautiful," said Phra, thoughtfully.
"Humming-birds are more beautiful," observed Harry.
"Ever seen any?"
"No, but my father says they are. He has seen them stuffed, and they
are so beautiful then that they must be wonderfully lovely alive."
"Let's go on," said Phra thoughtfully. "Perhaps we shall get another
shot or two, in spite of the monkeys."
The man set the boat gliding on again, and Harry sat with his gun
cocked, waiting to see the little grey face peer out from among the
leaves.
"I wouldn't pepper him, Harry," said Phra.
"Not going to," was the reply. "I've only put some powder to frighten
him."
"That's right; but I don't see anything moving."
"They'll show themselves directly. Then we'll stop, and when the
little old fellow shows his face I'll fire."
But the shots already fired had been sufficient, sending the troop
away through the trees at the quickest pace they could command, and
the two boys looked in vain.
Soon after, they had capital chances at different kinds of parrots,
but did not lift their guns, these birds being abundant, and the
little museum amply supplied with their skins; but upon coming abreast
of an opening, the boat stopped, for it seemed a likely place for
something novel.
"Hist!" whispered Phra, pointing. "That's a bird you've not shot yet."
"Yes, like the one you missed that day. Let me try for this one.--How
tiresome! it's gone in beneath the bushes."
It was evidently a bird of secretive habit, for it had dived into a
dense place; but just as Harry was about to give up, and tell the man
to go on, the bird came into sight again, rose from the top of a low
tree, and was in the act of flying across the opening, when Harry
raised his gun quickly and fired.
"Down?" he said. "I couldn't see for the smoke."
"No," said Phra; "it flew right away yonder."
"Oh, it couldn't; I took such a careful aim. Did you see it?" he asked
the men.
They both replied in the affirmative, and Harry looked puzzled.
"It seems queer," he said, beginning to reload his gun. "I don't know
how I could have missed."
"I know," cried Phra. "You loaded to frighten the monkey."
"And did not put any shot in!" cried Harry. "Oh, how stupid!"
At that moment Phra raised his gun and fired at a similar bird, as it
crossed the river, and dropped just at the edge of the opening.
A turn or two of the oar sent the boat alongside, the bird was
retrieved, and Harry was in ecstasies with its beautiful shades of
turquoise blue, pale drab, and grey.
"It's the kind father was saying he was so eager to get a specimen
of," cried Harry. "Do you think any more will come if we wait?"
"I don't think so," was the reply; "but let's try."
They waited for half an hour, but not another bird appeared, and they
went on, having the luck to bring down one of the lovely ground
thrushes at the next opening.
After this Phra shot one of the scarlet-breasted trogons, a beautiful
insect-eating bird, nearly allied to our goatsuckers and cuckoos,
with, in addition to its rosy, scarlet breast, a delicate pencilling
of grey and black, while the greater part of its back was of a fine
metallic green.
Flycatchers with inordinately long tails were the next trophies, and
Harry was beginning to think that enough had been secured for Sree to
skin and preserve, when Phra pressed his companion's arm, and pointed
to what looked like a streak of vivid blue being drawn in the air just
above the water.
It was too far off to fire, so the boys strained their eyesight to
note where the beautiful object settled, but without result, so the
boat was urged gently forward, and, finger on trigger, the boys
watched the spot where they had last seen the bird.
"It has a splendid tail, Hal," said Phra, in a whisper. "You had
better fire."
"No, you; it's a beauty."
"Then you fire; you are so much surer than I am. I'll hold my shot in
case you don't bring it down."
They were in momentary expectation of seeing the bird rise to continue
its flight up the watery way; but there was no sign of it, and the
lads were getting in despair, when there was a flash from a spot least
expected. Phra, in his excitement at seeing it going away without
Harry getting a good view of it, fired, though it seemed to be too
late. However, the bird fell into the river, and another rose at the
report, skimmed along just above the surface, and was getting almost
beyond range, when Harry drew trigger, and the bird dropped.
"I shan't shoot any more to-day," said Harry excitedly, as the two
birds were retrieved and laid for their plumage to dry, being two
perfect specimens of the racket-tailed kingfisher, whose azure
adornments render it one of the most lovely birds of that part of the
world. "I say, what beauties! We have done well."
"We've shot those bird often," said Phra, as he raised one of the
kingfishers by the beak, and drew it softly through his hand, removing
part of the water which remained, and straightening the produced
feathers of the tail, each with its narrow almost naked shaft ending
in a lovely blue ellipse of web. This done, he laid the damp bird in
the sunshine to dry, adding, "But I don't think we ever shot better
specimens, or hurt the plumage so little."
A low, hissing noise drew the boys' attention to the man who was not
rowing, and, as he caught their eyes, he pointed to something in one
of the overhanging trees.
"What is it?" said Harry; "I can't see;" and he cocked his piece,
quite forgetting his words of a short time before.
"Only nests," said Phra; "we don't want them."
In effect there was a cluster of about a dozen pensile nests, formed
like a chemist's retort by the clever bird-weavers, and hanging neck
downward from the ends of thin branches, where they were perfectly
safe from the intrusion of active, long-armed monkeys.
There was, in fact, something attractive at every few yards, for when
birds were not in sight magnificent butterflies or day-flying moths
came flitting out of the openings into the forest, one of which was
the atlas, as much as ten inches across the wings.
And now the tension of seeking for choice specimens being over, the
boys sat back carelessly, watching the various objects which came into
view. Now it would be fish, temptingly suggestive of the sport that
might be had up this lovely stream, did they feel disposed to bring
tackle. A little farther on the boat was stopped for a cluster of
beautiful orchids to be secured, but they were rejected on account of
their being inhabited by a colony of virulent ants.
"I say," said Harry suddenly, "this would be just the place for
fireflies. Let's tell Dr. Cameron, and we'll have a trip up some
night. We might shoot some of the queer night birds."
"Yes," said Phra, "and something else too. There are tigers up here,
they say."
"So much the better. We should get a chance to shoot one then by
accident. I say, where should we come to if we kept right on as far as
the river ran?"
"To the place it started from."
"Well, I know that; but where is it?"
"Oh, it's all our country. There are mountains there, and plenty of
elephants, Sree says."
"Let's have an expedition right up then, and bring a tent and plenty
of provisions. We ought to be able to get all kinds of new specimens."
"I'm willing," said Phra; "but hadn't we better turn back now?"
"Think they will be coming back from the tiger hunt?"
"Most likely. I say, Hal, it hasn't been a bad time, has it?"
"No," said Harry with a sigh. "Tell him to go back."
At the order the man who had been resting returned to the fore part of
the boat, and seized his oar, making that the stern now, while his
companion laid in his oar, and squatted down for his rest.
"Hullo! look!" cried Harry; "there's another of those queer-looking
old chaps," and he nodded in the direction of the other side of the
river, where it was evident that a fresh troop of the quaint little
animals were travelling along in the trees. They were going up the
river, but as soon as they found that the boat was retiring they at
once altered their direction, and the foliage waved and trembled as
they kept alongside, travelling through the dense jungle about
five-and-twenty feet above the ground, and very rarely giving the
occupants of the boat a chance of seeing their lithe, active forms.
How far these eager, inquisitive little fellows would have followed
them, if left undisturbed, it is impossible to say; but after watching
their movements and the eager, excited face of their leader for some
time, Harry grew tired of their company.
"Send a shot over them, Phra," he cried.
The boy raised his gun, pistol fashion, in the air, and fired it,
while Harry watched the wall of verdure.
Just as the gun was fired the little old face of the leader was being
reached out from the extremities of the boughs, the monkey holding on
in what proved to be a very precarious position, for the suddenness of
the report frightened it out of its small wits, and made it give such
a bound that the next moment, collapsed into what looked like a ball
fringed with white, it came rushing through the leaves, splash into
the water, making the occupants of the boat roar with laughter.
"What is fun to you is death to us," said the frogs to the boys, in
the fable, and this was nearly the case with the monkey.
For as soon as the rower saw the beginning of the mishap he gave a
tremendous sweep with his oar, changing the direction of the boat and
giving it greater speed at the same time, so that it might glide in
close to where the trees dipped, and pick up the monkey before it was
drowned or succeeded in dragging itself up.
The movement was cleverly conceived and carried out, but it had a
different culmination from that which was expected.
Full of excitement now, the boys were watching for the monkey to rise
from its deep plunge, and so well had the boatman judged his distance
that the swiftly moving prow was within a yard of the little
unfortunate when it rose to the surface.
At the same moment the gaping, teeth-armed jaws of a crocodile shot
out of the water, and the next would have closed upon the delicate
mouthful, had not the prow of the sampan struck the reptile full on
the shoulder with a tremendous shock which made the boat quiver, while
from the shape of the prow and the force with which it was going, the
boat rose and scraped right over the reptile's back, gliding down on
the other side amidst a tremendous turmoil in the water.
The boys held on by the sides, fully expecting to be capsized, but not
a drop of water was shipped, and when they turned to look back it was
to see that the unoccupied man had snatched at the monkey and lifted
it on board, while the crocodile, a creature of about twelve or
fourteen feet long, was lashing the water into a foam with its tail.
"Here, take us back," cried Harry. "I must have a shot at that brute."
The man reversed the movement of the oar he handled, and the sampan
began to glide back.
"Mind!" said Phra excitedly. "It will be horrible if we are capsized."
"I'll capsize him as soon as I get close enough," said Harry between
his teeth, and he knelt ready in the boat, as it approached nearer and
nearer.
The monkey seemed to be in an utter state of collapse from fear, as it
crouched in its captor's lap, huddled into a drenched ball, till it
caught sight of the crocodile, when it was literally transformed.
In an instant its eyes were flashing and teeth bare at the sight of
its hereditary enemy, the murderer of hundreds of the unfortunates
which from time to time played and slipped, or descended to the ends
of branches to drink from the river; its dull state of helpless
weakness had gone, and before the man who held it could grasp what was
about to happen, the little creature uttered a shrieking, chattering
cry of anger, bounded to the end of the sampan, and raged at the
reptile.
That was enough. The crocodile responded to the angry challenge and
monkey-like, violent language apparently being heaped upon it, and
made a dash at the sampan; but as it reached the prow the monkey
bounded on to the top of the palm-leaf roofing, while, reaching
backward, Harry discharged his piece right between the reptile's eyes.
Firing as he did, with the muzzle of his piece not above a yard away,
the effect of the charge of small shot was much the same as would have
been that of a heavy bullet the diameter of the fowling-piece's bore.
The rower was on his guard too, and as the lad fired he forced the
light sampan away so that they were quite clear of the violent blow
given by the creature's tail, as it swung itself round and then sank
like a stone.
The effect upon the monkey was again startling to a degree.
At the report of the gun it leapt upward from the roof of the shelter,
and instead of coming down in the same place it dropped on all-fours
close to Harry, who caught it by one arm.
"Mind," cried Phra warningly; "they can bite very sharply."
"Oh, I don't think he'll hurt, poor little chap," was the reply, and
the boy drew his little prisoner close to him, laid down his gun, and
patted its shoulder. "Shall we keep it as a pet?"
"No," said Phra; "it would pine away and die. You must get a young one
if you want them to keep."
"Yes, of course," said Harry. "Isn't he comic? I wish I'd got
something to give him. He's ready to make friends."
"So he ought to be," said Phra; "we saved his life. That croc would
have swallowed him like we do Doctor Cameron's pills."
"That he would. What a narrow squeak! I say, have you got anything you
can give him?"
"No, give him his liberty."
"I'm going to. Poor little wretch, how he shivers! He's too much
frightened to bite or do anything. Hi! old gentleman, get up there on
the top."
He lifted the monkey up, and it went slowly on to the hot roof, gazing
back at its captor with wondering eyes.
"Now run the boat in close to the trees," said Harry, as he patted and
stroked the utterly cowed prisoner.
The next moment the open, cabin-like construction was brushing against
the palm leaves with a loud, rustling sound.
This seemed to galvanize the little creature into life, and it uttered
a loud _chick, chick, chack!_
This was answered by a chorus from above; for, unnoticed by the
occupants of the boat, the trees had been in quiet motion all the
while as they glided down.
That was enough; the monkey seized the twigs nearest to it and the
next minute had swung itself up out of sight. There was a tremendous
chattering, which grew distant as if the troop was hurrying through
the trees in one direction, while the boat was gliding swiftly down in
the other, and then Harry said laughingly,--
"Well; he might have been a bit more grateful; never so much as said
Thank ye."
"I think he was wonderfully grateful, for he did not bite. I say,
though, how careful one has got to be about the crocodiles. I turned
quite cold, for I thought we were going over."
"I felt a bit queer," said Harry thoughtfully. "If I were your father
I'd offer a reward for every crocodile that was killed in the river.
They're no good, and they must do a deal of mischief in the course of
the year."
"Let's tell him so," said Phra, smiling. "Perhaps he will."
The journey back was beautiful enough, for they were looking at the
long, sunlit course from a different point of view; but it had ceased
to interest, for the lads were hungry and tired, glad enough too when
the great stone landing-place was reached, and after giving
instructions to the men to take in the birds to place them in Mike's
charge for transfer to Sree when he returned, they went into the
palace, Harry to be Phra's guest over a very hearty, semi-English
meal; for the hunters had not returned and there was no temptation for
Harry to go home and eat alone when he was warmly pressed to stay
where he was, so as to be present when the hunters returned in
triumph.
It was growing late by the time they had done, and they strolled out
into the court, and then into the beautiful garden, one of the King's
hobbies.
It was a lovely moonlight night, with here everything turned to
silver, there all looking black and velvety in the shade. The river,
too, looked its best, with the moonbeams playing upon its surface; but
the boys were growing too weary to admire the beauties around, or to
heed the buzzing, croaking, and booming that came from across the
river.
"Look here," said Harry at last, "they've gone farther than they
meant, and they're not coming back to-night."
"Going to camp out?" asked Phra dubiously.
"Not a doubt about it. Perhaps going to watch through the night for
the tiger, with a goat or calf tied up for bait."
"Very likely," said Phra, yawning.
"There, don't turn sleepy like that."
"Can't help it."
"I say, look here; go and tell your father you are coming down to the
bungalow to keep me company to-night, because I don't like to be
alone."
"No, you stop and sleep here. Then you will not have the bother of
walking down there."
"No," said Harry firmly; "father's out, and I'm sure he wouldn't like
me to leave the house when he's away. Come and sleep at our place
to-night, there's a good chap."
"Very well," said Phra. "Come with me and speak to father."
"All right," said Harry, coolly enough, and they walked through the
moonlit garden together, when, as they passed toward the palace, the
incongruity of it all seemed to strike the boy, and he laughed softly.
"I say, how comic it all seems! Here's your father a great Eastern
king--king over this big country, and yet he's only your father, and
I'm going with you to talk to him just as if he was nobody at all."
"But he is," said Phra thoughtfully. "He's very different with other
people, but he talks to you, and about you to me, just as if you were
a--I mean a boy like I am."
"Well, it's very nice of him," said Harry. "I've never done anything
to make him like me. I never went down on my knees and held my hands
on each side of my face, and seemed as if I were going to rub the skin
off my nose on the ground because he's a great king."
"No; he laughed about it one day, and said that's why he liked you to
be my playfellow."
"That's funny, isn't it?"
"No; he said he liked you because you were frank, and manly, and
independent."
"Ah," said Harry, after a brief pause, "he doesn't know what a bad one
I can be sometimes."
"Hist!"
"What for?"
"Listen."
"I am listening, but I can't hear anything."
"I can, right away in the distance. Can't you hear?"
"No, nothing but the frogs at the riverside, and the barking of a
croc. Yes, I can; something going thump, thump, far away."
"It's the drum. They're marching back with the elephants."
"Hurrah!" cried Harry excitedly. "Well, I am glad, because I should
have lain awake ever so long thinking that something had happened, or
that father was in danger from the tiger, perhaps. I say, you don't
feel sleepy now?"
"Sleepy? No, not a bit. Here, let's get down yonder so as to meet
them."
"But they'll be half an hour yet. Look there; the guard has heard the
drum."
As he spoke the picturesque beauty of the place was enhanced by the
appearance of the guard turning out, bearing lighted torches, some of
which were stuck at intervals about the courtyard, throwing up the
grotesque figures and carvings abundantly scattered around.
Then more were fetched, and the place became brilliantly lighted for
the reception of the King's friends who were bringing the body of the
slain tiger in triumph home.
The red glare of the torches mingled strangely with the silvery light
of the moon, so that some of the men's spears seemed to be tipped with
silver, some with gold; and listening and noting these things the time
of waiting soon passed away for the boys, who at last joined a party
of a dozen torch-bearers setting off to meet the returning party.
But before they reached the gate Phra stopped short and arrested his
friend.
"No," he said in an earnest whisper, "don't let's go. Very likely my
father will come out, and he would like us to be near to seem to be
honouring and paying him respect."
"Very well," said Harry shortly; for it was against his grain.
"Yes, there he comes," said Phra eagerly, as the palace entrance was
lit up by numbers of lanthorn-bearers, and the King came and stood on
the terrace to welcome his English friends.
At last the party of spearmen in advance marched in, with the
elephants shuffling along side by side behind; but each bore its load
the same as when it started, no alteration having been made.
Harry ought to have let the elephants go close up to the terrace and
kneel before the King, to whom the result of the hunt should have been
first communicated, but in his excitement he forgot all about Court
etiquette, and ran up to the side of the nearest beast.
"Well, father, Where's the tiger?" he cried.
"Over the hills and far away," cried the doctor.
"Yes, my boy," said Mr. Kenyon; "we have seen nothing but his pug--the
marks of his feet."