The fishing-line was laid to dry, the sail was bellied out, and the boat
ran swiftly on again before the brisk breeze.
Lynton, who now steered, kept the little vessel close in shore so that a
good view might be had of the beauties of the lovely surrounding
country, for here tree and shrub had room to grow and assume their
natural shape without being deformed by crowding neighbours or strangled
by the twining monsters struggling upward so as to be able to expand
their blossoms in the full sunshine.
In a short distance, though, the forest grew thicker, and the great
trees crowded down closer to the water's edge.
Brace and his naturalist companion had withdrawn their gaze from the
silvery sheen of the descending fall a mile ahead, to gloat over the
beautifully-coloured birds, insects, and flowers which revelled in
myriads in the light, heat, and moisture of the glorious bank of the
stream.
Fresh beauties rose to the view at every glide of the boat, and Brace
felt that what they ought to do was to check its way and stop to drink
in the glories of the scene.
Chance after chance offered itself, but neither of the gun-bearers felt
disposed to shoot, and their pieces rested in the hollows of their arms
till suddenly, as they passed round a point, they came upon a scene in a
nook some fifty yards away which made each seize and cock his weapon.
There, right down by the edge of the water, squatted a curious and most
uncouth-looking form totally unclothed save by its natural hairy growth,
and apparently quite unconscious of their approach as it bent over and
lapped the water it raised in its shaggy hand.
But the clicking of the gun-locks aroused it to its danger, and,
springing upright, it stood peering at them for some moments from
beneath a pair of great hairy overhanging brows, before giving vent to a
hoarse, long-continued yell.
The result of this was soon perceived, for three more such figures
suddenly bounded from amongst a clump of bushes and made for the dense
forest close at hand.
The first seen stretched itself up a little higher for the moment, until
it looked like a big savage man, and it stood still glaring at the
strangers fiercely and displaying its teeth.
Directly afterwards it uttered another deep-toned yell, and its human
aspect was gone, for it went down on all-fours and seemed to turn itself
into a rear-guard for the other three till they disappeared amongst the
undergrowth.
The first seen then again raised itself to gaze over the bushes at the
boat, and, after uttering a hoarse half-bark, half-human cry, it plunged
in after the rest and was gone.
"Here, why didn't one of you have a shot?" cried Lynton.
"What at?" said Brace quietly.
"Those monkeys. It was an old man and his wife and two youngsters. Why
didn't you fire? You had a good chance."
"That was why I didn't fire at them. I didn't want to hit the old man
nor his wife nor youngsters. I couldn't bring myself to do it."
"That's just how I felt," said Briscoe. "Hang me if I could make out
whether it was a wild man or an ape."
"It's my opinion that it was the former," said Brace, gazing back at the
little embayment they had just passed.
The next few minutes were passed in silence which was at length broken
by Brace.
"Look, there he is again," he said; "he's watching us from behind those
bushes. Couldn't be a wild man, though, could it?"
"Of course not," said Lynton: "whoever saw a wild Indian go off on
all-fours? It was a great monkey."
"But there are no great monkeys in this part of the world," said Brace.
"One has to go to West Africa and Borneo for them. What do you say, Mr
Briscoe?"
"The naturalists all say that there are no big apes in South America;
but some travellers tell a different tale, and the Indians report that
there are great half-human creatures that they are afraid of roaming
about in the woods."
"I suppose that must mean that there are some species of apes on this
continent, but that no specimens have been captured," said Brace.
"I'm going to make a note of what we've seen to-day," said Briscoe, "for
that chap was as big as an orang-outang, and quite as ugly."
"Yes," said Brace. "It looks as if we had made a discovery. I don't
see why there shouldn't be big ones in these vast forests."
"Nor I," said Briscoe thoughtfully. "There's plenty of room, and people
are too ready to say that nothing more remains to be discovered. Why,
only the other day they wouldn't believe in the existence of the
gorilla."
"Look here," said Brace; "don't you think we ought to go back and
endeavour to catch one of those young ones?"
"Perhaps," said the American drily; "but it will mean a fight, and we
should have to kill the old one first."
"Do you think he would make a fight of it?" asked Brace.
"I am certain of it," said Briscoe. "Suppose we put it off for a day or
two and think about it. There is plenty of time, and we are certain to
get another chance."
"Go on, then," said Brace. "Let's prospect up to the falls, cross over,
and try on the other side for the ducks and fish we have got to take
back for the cook."
Lynton chuckled and sent the boat gliding swiftly along for the next few
minutes, opening out again and again lovely vistas of river, forest, and
verdant shore, all of which invited landing and promised endless
collecting excursions. But the present was looked upon as a tour of
inspection, and all eyes scanned the shore and every creek that was
passed in search of Indians, a lively recollection of the first boat
expedition begetting plenty of caution.
And all the while they sailed on and on towards the grand falls, which
rapidly grew in size as they were approached, the water thundering down
and the face of the cataract being obscured by the cloud of mist which
rose slowly till it was wafted away to fade in the glorious sunshine.