THE MISSISSIPPI RESERVES 293 



and with whom hard work, and gentle regard 

 for the rights of others, and the joy of hfe, all 

 went hand in hand. 



Toward evening of our first day the weather 

 changed for the worse; the fishers among the 

 party were recalled, and just before nightfall 

 we ran off, and after much groping in the dark 

 we made a reasonably safe anchorage. By 

 midnight the wind fell, dense swarms of mos- 

 quitoes came aboard, and, as our mosquito- 

 nets were not well up (thanks partly to our 

 own improvidence, and partly to the violence 

 of the wind, for we were sleeping on deck be- 

 cause of the great heat), we hved in torment 

 until morning. On the subsequent nights we 

 fixed our mosquito-bars so carefully that there 

 was no trouble. Mosquitoes and huge, green- 

 headed horse-flies swarm on most of the islands. 

 I witnessed one curious incident in connection 

 with one of these big, biting horse-flies. A kind 

 of wasp preys on them, and is locally known as 

 the "horse-guard," or "sheriff -fly," accordingly. 

 These horse-guards are formidable-looking things 

 and at first rather alarm strangers, hovering 

 round them and their horses; but they never 

 assail beast or man unless themselves molested, 

 when they are ready enough to use their power- 

 ful sting. The horses and cattle speedily recog- 



