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Rob Harlow's Adventures: A Story of the Grand Chaco, a fiction by George Manville Fenn |
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Chapter 30. An Unexpected Enemy |
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_ CHAPTER THIRTY. AN UNEXPECTED ENEMY Mr Brazier's recovery took a month from the day of his regaining the balance of his reason, and even then he was weak; but he was about again, and, though easily fatigued, took his part in the many little duties they had to fulfil to sustain life in their forest prison. All thought of escape by their own efforts had been given up, and they had all taken the good course, roughly put by Shaddy as "making the best of things." In fact, the horror and shock of their position had grown fainter, the loss of poor Giovanni a softened memory, and the cowardly desertion of the Indians with the boat a matter over which it was useless to murmur. For the human mind is very plastic, and, if fully employed, soon finds satisfaction in its tasks. It was so here. Every day brought its work, for the most part in glorious sunshine, and scarcely a night arrived without one of the three having something to announce in the way of discovery or invention for the amelioration of their lot. "There is always the possibility of our being sought out and escaping," Mr Brazier said; "and in that hope I shall go on collecting, for the plants here are wonderful; and if I can get specimens home to England some day there will be nothing to regret." In this spirit he went on as he grew stronger; and as for some distance inland in the triangle of miles, two of whose sides were the greater river and its tributary, they had formed so many faint trails in their hunting and fruit-seeking expeditions, the chances of being "bushed," as the Australians call it, grew fewer, plenty of collecting expeditions were made, at first in company with Shaddy and Rob, afterwards alone. One evening a tremendous storm of wind and rain, with the accompaniments of thunder and lightning of the most awe-inspiring nature, gave them a lesson in the weakness of their shelter-place, for the water swept through in a deluge, and after a terrible night they gazed in dismay at the river, which was running swiftly nearly up to the place where they kept their fire going. That the flood was increasing they had not the slightest doubt, and it promised before long to be right over where they stood, fortunately now in the brilliant sunshine, which rapidly dried their clothes and gave them hope as well. "We shall have to go inland and seek higher ground," Mr Brazier said at last. "And where are you going to find it, sir?" said Shaddy rather gruffly. "There's high land away back on the far side of the river, but we can't get there, and all out as far as I've been on this is one dead level. Look yonder; there's a lesson for us what to do if it gets much worse," he continued, pointing toward a great tree at the edge of the forest. "Yes," said Rob as he watched a little flock of green-and-scarlet parrots circling round and perching in the upper branches, "but we have no wings, Shaddy." "No, my lad, and never will have; but I didn't mean that. Look a bit lower." "Oh, you mean in that next tree. Ugh! how horrible!" cried Rob, with a shudder. "Has that been driven here by the water?" "I don't know what you're talking about, sir. I mean that tree I pointed to. Look there in the fork." "Yes; I can see it, Rob," said Mr Brazier. "It's comfortably asleep. We must do as it does. Not the first time an animal has given men a lesson." Rob stared from one to the other as if wondering why they did not see with his eyes. "Can't you see it, Rob--your puma?" "Eh? Oh yes, I see him now, but I meant in the other tree. Look! the great brute is all in motion. Why, it's a perfect monster!" "Phew!" whistled Shad; "I didn't see it. Look, Mr Brazier, sir. That is something like a snake." He pointed now to where a huge serpent was worming its way about the boughs of one of the trees in a slow, sluggish way, as if trying to find a spot where it could curl up and be at rest till the water, which had driven it from its customary haunts, had subsided. "What shall we do, Shaddy?" whispered Rob. "Why, that must be nearly sixty feet long." "It's nearer two foot long, Mr Rob, sir. My word! how people's eyes do magnify when they're a bit scared." "But it is a monstrously huge serpent," said Brazier, shading his eyes, as he watched the reptile. "Yes, sir, and as nigh as one can judge, going round his loops and rings, a good five-and-twenty foot, and as big round as my thigh." "We can't stay here, then!" cried Rob excitedly. "Don't see why not, sir. He hasn't come after us, only to take care of himself; and I'm beginning to think it's a bad sign." "That it does mean to attack us?" said Brazier. "Not it, sir. I mean a bad sign about the flood, for somehow, stupid as animals seem, they have a sort of idea of when danger's coming, and try to get out of its way. I should say that before long the waters will be all up over where we are, and that it's our duty to get up a bit, too, and take enough food to last till the flood's gone down." "And how long will that be?" Rob asked. "Ah! that's what I can't say, sir. Let's get together all we can, and I'm sorry to say it ain't very much, for we punished the provisions terribly last night." "Yes, we are low," said Brazier thoughtfully. "There's some nuts on that tree where the lion is, so we'll take to that," said the old sailor thoughtfully. "He'll have to turn out and take to another, or behave himself. Now what's to be done beside? We can't get any fire if the flood rises much, and for certain we can't catch any fish with the river like this. What do you say to trying to shoot the big boa with your bow and arrows?" "What?" cried Rob, with a look of disgust. "Oh! he's not bad eating, my lad. The Indians feast on 'em sometimes, cutting them up into good stout lumps, and it isn't so much unlike eel." "What, have you tasted it?" "Oh yes, sir; there's precious few things used for food when men are hungry that I haven't had a taste of in my time." Just then Mr Brazier pointed to the place where they kept their fire, and over which the water was now lapping and bearing off the soft grey ashes, which began to eddy and swim round the little whirlpools formed by the swift current, before the light deposit from the fire was swept right away. By this time, as Rob kept his eyes upon it, the great serpent had gradually settled itself down upon one of the far-spreading horizontal boughs of the huge monarch, which, growing upon the edge of the forest, found ample space for its spreading branches, instead of being kept back on all sides by fellow-trees, and so directing all its efforts in the way of growth upward toward the sun. Brazier noticed Rob's looks, and laid his hand upon the lad's shoulder. "I don't think we need fear any attack from that, Rob," he said, "for the water, if it goes on rising like this, will soon be between us, and I don't suppose the serpent will leave one tree to get up into another." "Not it, sir," interposed Shaddy; "and, excuse me, let's be sharp, for the water's coming down from miles away on the high ground, and it will be over here before long. Look at that!" They were already looking at a great wave sweeping down the furious river, which was covered with boughs and trees, the latter rolling over and over in the swift current, now showing their rugged earth and stone-filled roots, now their boughs, from which the foliage and twigs were rapidly being stripped. "Why, it's right over our kitchen now." "And will carry away my pots!" cried Rob, running away to save the treasures which had caused him so much trouble to make. "Look sharp, sir!" cried Shaddy; "here's quite a torrent coming. We'll make for the tree at once, or we shall be lost once more." "All right!" cried Rob, as he ran to the far edge of their fireplace, where the boughs and pieces of wood collected for fuel were beginning to sail away, and he had just time to seize one great rough pot as it began to float, when a wave curled over toward the other and covered the lad's feet. But he snatched up the vessel and hurried toward the tree in which the puma was curled up, Brazier and Shaddy following, with the little food they had left, and none too soon. They handed Rob's two pieces of earthenware up to him, and then joined him in the fork of the tree. The water was by now lapping softly about its foot, but from time to time a wave came sweeping down the river as if sudden influxes of water kept on rushing in higher up to increase the flood, and in consequence ring after ring or curve of water swept over the land, gliding now up amongst the trees of the forest, penetrating farther and farther each time, and threatening that the whole of the country through which the river passed would be flooded for miles. The puma snarled and looked fierce as the two men followed Rob, but it contented itself with a fresh position, higher up in a secondary fork of the tree, where it crouched, glaring down at those below, but hardly noticed, for, after recovering their belongings, the attention of those on the fork was divided between the rising of the water and the uneasy movements of the great occupant of the next tree. "I suppose we may confess to being afraid of a reptile like that," said Brazier, measuring the distance between the trees with his eyes and looking up to see if the branches of either approached near enough to enable the reptile to make its way across. "No fear, sir!" said Shaddy, with a smile, as he read his companion's thoughts. "We've only the water to trouble us now." "But it will never get up so high as this?" cried Rob in alarm, as he thought of the trees which he had seen swept down the river, forest chiefs, some of them, which had been washed out by floods. "I hope not, sir; but we have to be ready for everything in this country, as you've found out already." This set Rob thinking as he watched the waves coming down the river, each sweeping before it a mass of verdure, pieces at times taking the form of floating islands, with the low growth upon them keeping its position just as the patches had broken away from undermined banks. "Don't you wonder where it all goes, Mr Rob?" said Shaddy suddenly. "Yes; does it get swept out to sea?" "Not it, sir. Gets dammed up together in bends and corners of the river, and makes it cut itself a fresh bed to right or left. This country gets flooded sometimes for hundreds upon hundreds of miles, so that you can row about among the trees just where you like. Ah! it would be a fine time for Mr Brazier when the flood's at its height, for we could row about just where we liked--if we had a boat," he added after a pause. Just then the puma gave a savage growl. "Here, what's the matter with you?" cried the guide sharply. The puma snarled again and showed its teeth, but they saw that it was staring away from the tree. "He can see the serpent," said Rob eagerly; and they now saw the reason, for, evidently aware of their proximity, and from a desire to escape, the great reptile was all in motion, its fore-part beginning slowly to descend the tree, the head and neck clinging wonderfully to the inequalities of the bark for a part of the way, and then the creature fitted itself in the deep groove between two of the buttress-like portions, which ran down right away from the main trunk. They all watched the reptile with curiosity, for its actions were singular, and it was exciting to see the way in which the whole length of the animal was in action as the head, neck, and part of the body glided down in a deliberate way, with the tongue darting out and flickering about the hard, metallic-looking mouth, while the eyes glistened in the sunshine, which threw up the rich colours and pattern of the scaly coat. "He don't like it, and is going to swim off," said Shaddy suddenly, as the head of the serpent was now approaching the surface of the water. "I never saw one of this kind take to the water before. Say, Mr Rob!" Rob turned to him. "You had better get your cat down here, in case he means coming across to this tree.--No: there won't be any need. I don't think he could swim against this current: it might sweep him away." Rob drew a breath full of relief as he glanced at Brazier, whose face, pallid with his late illness, certainly looked paler, and his eyes were contracted by his feeling of horror. But their companion's last words relieved him from his dread, and he sat there upon the huge branch that was his resting-place watching the actions of the serpent, which still glided on, and moved with its head close to the groove in the trunk till it was close to the water slowly rising to meet it, and a length of quite twelve feet reached down from the fork, like the stem of some mighty climbing fig which held the tree in its embrace. "Yes, he's going to swim for it," said Shaddy eagerly. "Fancy meeting a thing like that on the river! I thought it was only the anacondas which took to the water, and--Well, look at that!" The man's exclamation was caused by the action of the serpent, for just as its head reached the surface of the flood one of the waves came rushing inland from the river, leaped up the tree three or four feet, deluging the head and neck of the serpent and sinking down again almost as quickly as it had risen. The reptile contracted itself as rapidly, drawing back, and, evidently satisfied with the result of its efforts to escape, began to climb again, holding on by its ring-like scales as it crept up and up till its head was back in the great fork of the tree, and the anterior part of the body hung down in a huge loop, which was gradually lessened as the great creature resumed its place. There was nothing to fear from the serpent, to the great relief of those who watched; but it had begun to be questionable how long their present position would be safe, for the water was rising now with wonderful rapidity, great waves tearing down the river from time to time, bearing enormous masses of tangled tree and bush and sending out masses of foam, sweeping over the clearing with an angry rush, which changed into a fierce hiss as of thousands of serpents when the wave reached the edge of the forest and ran an among the trees with a curious wail till it died away in the distance. When the waves struck the tree amongst whose branches the party were ensconced, the puma growled at the heavy vibrations, and began to tear at the bark with its claws. As one, however, worse than usual struck the trunk, it gathered itself together, uttered a harsh growl, and was about to spring off and swim, as if it feared being crushed down by the branches of the washed-out tree; but a few words from Rob pacified it, and it settled down once more, half hanging, as it were, across the fork, where it was swinging its tail to and fro and gazing down at the human companion it had chosen. _ |
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