THE CAMP FERE. 3l 



"Bless me, I forgot them!" exclaimed the Doctor, 

 diving his hands up to his elbows in his capacious poc- 

 kets ; out came bits of thread, seeds of plants, little tin 

 boxes, claws of birds, and finally two or three young 

 alligators, about the size and shape of small daggers. 

 They were of a mottled chocolate and yellow color, and 

 feeling the genial effect of the fire, commenced scram- 

 bling around like tortoises. The Doctor, with a hand on 

 each knee, regarded them with unfeigned delight, and 

 Mike, between his puffs of tobacco, looked on the scene 

 with a quirk in his cheek. 



" Mammalia, oviparous, amphibious," enunciated the 

 Doctor. 



Just then one of the little animals inserted his nose 

 under Caesar's neck, as he lay snoring by the fire, and 

 commenced wriggling himself into the woolly retreat. 



" Bress de Lord !" shouted Ctesar, springing to his 

 feet ; " what am dat yer pizen little varmint what fur 

 you cum here, hey ?" 



Seeing our laughter, he shook himself, and going to 

 the other side of the fire, rolled up again like a ball, pull- 

 ing his blanket over his head, and went to sleep as 

 soundly as before. 



" Charlie, do you see that alligator's tail ?" said the 

 Doctor, as he pointed with the mouth-piece of his pipe at 

 the caudal extremity of one of the little brutes, as it lay 

 on the warm sand. I admitted that I did, first because 

 it was true, and next because I saw the Doctor was in 

 a humor to talk, and I did not want to contradict him. 



