80 Capture and Death of a large Alligator. 



whatever first came to hand. He once seemed determined to 

 force his way, and foaming with rage, rushed with open jaws, 

 and gnashing his teeth, with a sound too ominous to be de- 

 spised, appeared to have his full energies aroused, when his 

 career was stopped by a large bamboo thrust violently into his 

 mouth, which he ground to pieces, and the fingers of the holder 

 were so paralyzed, that for some minutes he was incapable of 

 resuming his gun. The natives had now become so excited as 

 to forget all prudence, and the women and children of the little 

 hamlet had come down to the shore to share in the general 

 enthusiasm. They crowded to the opening, and were so un- 

 mindful of their danger, that it was necessary to drive them 

 back with some violence. Had the monster known his own 

 strength, and dared to have used it, he would have gone over 

 that spot with a force which no human power could have with- 

 stood, and would have crushed or carried with him into the 

 lake about the whole population of the place. 



It is not strange that personal safety was forgotten in the 

 excitement of the scene. The tremendous brute, galled with 

 wounds and repeated defeat, tore his way through the foaming 

 water, glancing from side to side, in the vain attempt to avoid 

 his foes, then rapidly ploughing up the stream, he grounded 

 on the shallows, and turned back frantic and bewildered at his 

 circumscribed position. At length, maddened with suffering, 

 and desperate from continued persecution, he rushed furiously 

 to the mouth of the stream, burst through two of the nets, and 

 I threw down my gun in despair, for it looked as though his 

 way at last was clear to the wide lake. But the third net 

 stopped him, and his teeth and legs had got entangled in all. 

 This gave us a chance of closer warfare with lances, such as 

 are used against the wild buffalo. We had sent for this weapon 

 at the commencement of the attack, and found it much more 

 effectual than guns. Entering a canoe, we plunged lance after 

 lance into the alligator, as he was struggling under the water, 

 till a wood seemed growing from him, which moved violently 

 above, while his body was concealed below. His endeavours to 

 extricate himself lashed the water into foam, mingled with blood ; 

 and there seemed no end to his vitality, or decrease to his resist- 

 ance, till a lance struck him directly through the middle of 



