116 THE SWAMPS OF THE MISSISSIPPI. 



fact, and, if I properly recollect, one of them told me tliat a person whom he 

 knew, had either got his legs hroken or severely injured by standing close 

 beside the head of one some short time previously. I gave him right and 

 left again, and with the exception of what shot entered his eyes, the rest 

 rattled off his head, as peas would do from the head of a cask. Daiv, who I 

 afterwards discovered had partly retired from the' scene, holloed out for me 

 to " keep workin' on him," and to shoot him under the jaws. As he kept 

 lumbering about, and occasionally raising his head, I planted it all in the 

 right place, and the next barrel I shot down his throat. As the enemy had 

 not yet surrendered, I fired two other shots into the under part of his body, 

 from which the crimson flowed most copiously. Keeping my eye steadily 

 upon him I loaded again, upon the principle that the best way to prevent 

 war is to be prepared for it. As he appeared rather overcome, I stepped out of 

 my canoe, up to the knees, amongst the decayed and slushy materielle, with 

 the intention of stabbing him with my clasp knife between the spaces of the 

 scales, and, if possible, betwixt the ribs. Before doing so, I sat down upon 

 his shoulder and cut out one of the horny projections from the upper part 

 of his neck, (which I have also here), and by way of completing his destruc- 

 tion I stuck my knife into his body, which caused him to snort with such 

 violence, that I started for my peroque so very quickly that any person 

 would have imagined I was in a hurry. 



I must have presented a very ridiculous appearance in scrambling and 

 floundering through the reeds, for not only was I up to my knees, but my 

 arms were occasionally up to the shoulders. I called out for Daiv to kill 

 him, but as he had all along considered me the greatest Alligator of the two, 

 he thought there was no necessity for rendering me any assistance. I 

 shoved my peroque before me, and was soon in the lagoon, and on my way to 

 the Shells. My sooty appearance, arising from perspiration and gunpowder, 

 would nearly have guaranteed 750 dollars for me in the slave market of New 

 Orleans. The emission of musk during the struggle was particularly strong, 

 and on cutting off" his head the following day, it was doubly so, from having 

 severed the vessel containing the fragrance. The following morning, at the 

 usual hour, I rose and shook myself, and providing myself with my gun, an 

 axe, and my bowie-knife, I slid into the marsh, and taking up a position as 

 formerly, I shot a number of Ducks and Coots about day break ; and about 

 eight o'clock I hunted up the fallen enemy. As I had no assistance, it gave 

 me much trouble to get my peroque into its old place; he was just laying 

 as I left him, and in the full belief that I had bowled him over, I went up to 

 him, and with my whole strength I struck the knife up to the handle into 

 the side of his throat ; he turned his head immediately round and nearly caught 

 me by the shoulder. If I was in a hurry before I was in a greater one this 

 time. I laid hold of my gun and gave him two other remembrances of his 

 old acquaintance ; I loaded as quickly as possible, as the hissing and snoring 



