TO RADACK. 55 



with cliildren in their arms, formed a circle round 

 us ; all looked at me with the greatest attention, 

 and the most solemn silence prevailed j suddenly it 

 was interrupted ^ they all sprung up with a loud 

 cry, and ran away, as if they had seen an evil 

 genius, all except the old man, who remained 

 trembling by my side. This confusion had been 

 caused by a dog, which we had brought from the 

 coast of Chih, and as he never quitted me, he had 

 jumped unawares into my boat. To come up to 

 me he was obliged to leap over the shoulder of one 

 of the savages, who were seated in a close circle, 

 when this unexpected circumstance gave occasion 

 to the ludicrous scene, which became still more 

 comic, when tlie dog, who is generally fearful, en- 

 couraged by the cowardice of his opponents, forced 

 them, by his barking, to seek refuge in the trees, 

 which they climbed with the agility of monkeys. 

 I succeeded, with great trouble, in convincing the 

 old man of the harmlessness of the animal, upon 

 which he called his subjects together, who gradually 

 ventured to approach, without taking their eyes 

 from the object of their fear, whose least motion 

 caused them to start. As they are not acquainted 

 with any quadruped except the rat, which is by 

 them called Didirick, they named the dog Didirick 

 Ellip. It was not till I had sent the evil genius 

 into the boat that their countenances brightened 

 up, and the old man presented me with cocoa-nuts 

 and cakes of a very agreeable taste, prepared from 



E 4< 



