"You must go together in the morning and kill the thing," he said. "I
don't like destroying life, but these wild creatures of the forest and
swamp must give way to man. If they do not they must perish. All
deadly creatures must be killed without mercy. There is not room in the
parts of the earth we chose to live in for both."
Consequently, after making our arrangements, I called Morgan at
daybreak, and we took a gun and ammunition to execute the alligator.
"Be a lesson for you in the use of a firelock, Master George," said
Morgan, as we travelled on across our clearing, and paused at the edge
of the forest. "Now then, my lad," he cried, giving his orders in a
military way, and bidding me load.
I had seen the charging of a gun often enough to be able to go through
the task sufficiently well to get a few words of commendation, but a
good many of blame.
"Ram well home, my lad. I like to see the rod hop again, and the powder
solid."
"What difference does it make?" I asked.
"All the difference in the world, my lad. Powder's rum stuff, and good
loading makes it do its work well. Bad loading makes it do its work
anyhow."
"I don't understand you," I said.
"It's easy enough, sir. S'pose I take a charge of powder, and lay it
loose on a stone. If I set light to it there's a puff and some smoke,
and that's all, because it has plenty of room. But if I shut it up
tight in a gun-barrel rammed down hard, it goes off with a loud bang,
because it has to burst its way out. If you ram lightly, the bullet
will go only a little way. If you ram hard, your bullet will go
straight to the mark."
"There it is then, rammed hard," I said, as I made the ramrod ring.
"That's right. Now you shall shoot the 'gator. Some folks say their
skin's too hard for the bullet to go through. We shall see."
We went on together toward our landing-place, and then on and away to
the left, following our previous day's trail more and more into the
swamp, beside the river, talking about the fight we had had with the
reptile, Morgan laughingly saying that he should like to have another
with one twice as big, while I thought I should not, but did not say so.
The morning was delightful, with the birds piping and singing, and in
the open sunny parts we caught sight of the lovely orange orioles, and
those all yellow and black--birds which took the place of our thrushes
and blackbirds of the old country. Every now and then a tall crane
would fly up from where he had been prodding about with his sharp bill
in some mossy pool, his long legs trailing out behind him as if he had
been dancing on stilts.
It had all grown familiar to me now, but I was never tired of gazing at
the dark, shadowy places where the cypresses rose right out of the black
water, and the great trailing moss, ten and fifteen feet long, hung down
from the boughs like ragged veils. The place looked as if it might be
the haunt of large, water-loving serpents, or strange beasts which
lurked in waiting for the unwary traveller; but we heard nothing but the
cries of birds and the rustling and beating of wings, or the hum of
insect life, save now and then when there was a splash from the river
away to our right, or from a black pool hidden from us by the dense
growth.
"Make some of 'em stare over at home, Master George," said Morgan.
"What at?"
"Place like this. Miles and miles of it, and no use made of it. Round
here! That's right. Remember that old rotten tree?"
"Yes," I said; "we must be close to the place now. How near shall I
stand to the alligator when I shoot?"
"Oh, just as near as you like. Mind that hole; I shouldn't wonder if
another one lived there."
I stepped quickly aside from the ugly-looking spot, and felt so vexed on
seeing my companion smile, that I turned back and stood looking down
into the place, forcing myself to do so quietly, and then following in a
deliberate way, though all the time I could not help feeling a kind of
shuddering sensation run over me, as if I had suddenly stepped out of
the hot woodland into a current of fresh cool air.
I glanced at Morgan as I overtook him, but he did not say anything, only
trudged on till, suddenly laying his hand upon my arm, he pointed to a
tree dimly-seen through the overhung shades.
"That's the one I tied the line to," he said; "now I shouldn't wonder if
we find he has scratched himself a hole in the soft earth. It's nearly
half water, and I dare say he could easy."
"And if he has, what then?"
"Why, we must pull him back by the rope. He won't make much of a
struggle; it will be too tight round his neck, and choke him so. There,
what did I tell you!"
He pointed to where the rope ran down from the tree apparently into the
ground.
"But if he had scratched a hole," I said, "he would have made a heap."
"Oh no; it's all so soft as soon as you get through the roots. He'd
worm himself down right out of sight in no time, and--Well, I am took
aback."
Morgan had stooped down and picked up the noose. The alligator had
gone.
"Somebody must have set him free, Morgan."
"Somebody? What somebody would do that? There arn't no monkeys about
here as I know of, or it might have been one of them. Nobody else would
do it. Ah, I see."
He pointed to the noose, and showed me how the rope was frayed and
teazled out, as if by the application of claws.
"That's it, plain enough. He's had all night to do it in, and there he
has been scrat, scrat, scrat, scrat at his neck with those fore-paws of
his, till he got it loose and pushed it over his head."
"Nonsense!" I said; "a thing like that wouldn't be clever enough."
"I don't know," said Morgan. "They're clever enough to hunt and catch
dinners by slapping the water with their tails till the fish are
stunned; they're clever enough to make nests and lay eggs; and this one
was clever enough to try and cut me down with his tail, and I don't see
that it was so very wonderful for him to try and scratch off anything
that hurt his neck. Mind that gun, my lad; you don't want to shoot me,
I know."
I coloured, and felt vexed at my clumsiness in the way of carrying the
loaded piece, and stood watching while Morgan untied the rope from the
tree, rolled it up in a ring, fastened it, and put his arm through
before turning back.
"Never mind," he said, cheerily, "better luck next time. Now let's get
home to breakfast. I dare say he has gone down to the river and got his
long enough ago."
We walked back to find a couple of men from the settlement--which
promised some day to be a town--and as I caught sight of them, I felt
sure that it was bad news which they had brought, and my father's
serious face confirmed the idea as he spoke to one of the men.
"Yes; tell the General I will be there in good time," my father was
saying, as we came within earshot; and the men saluted and went off in
regular military style, for many of them who had now turned settlers and
farmers had served in the army with the leaders of the expedition. And
often, on thinking it over since, I have felt how wise a selection of
men there was; for, as you have yet to learn, it was highly necessary to
have folk who could turn their swords and spears into ploughshares and
sickles; but who, when it was necessary, could turn them back and use
them in the defence of their new homes.
"Have the Indians come back, father?" I asked, eagerly.
He looked round quickly, starting slightly, for he had not seen me
approach, and he was deep in thought.
"No, boy," he said, sighing, "but it seems we are not to enjoy our homes
in peace; a new enemy is in the field."
I looked at him, waiting to hear more, but he was silent, and began
walking slowly to and fro till breakfast was ready.