58 NEIGHBOURS UNKNOWN 



indomitable eyes, still round, gold-and-black, 

 glittering like gems, showed no sign of his 

 weakness or his fear. 



For a long time he lay there motionless, 

 half numbed by the sense of defeat and by 

 that gnawing anguish in his leg. Unheeded, 

 the gleaming dragon-flies hurtled and darted, 

 flashed and poised quivering, just above his 

 head. Unheeded, the yellow butterflies, and 

 the pale blue butterflies, alighted near him 

 on the blooms of the arrow-weed. A big 

 green bull-frog swam up and clambered out 

 upon the mud close before him to catch 

 sight at once of that bright, terrible eye and 

 fall back into the water almost paralysed with 

 fright ; but still he made no movement. His 

 world had fallen about him, and there was 

 nothing for him to do but wait and see what 

 would happen next what shape his doom 

 would take. 



Meanwhile, down along the margin mud, 

 still hidden from view by a bend of the stream, 

 another stealthy hunter was approaching. 

 The big brown mink, who lived far up-stream in 

 a musk-rat hole whose occupants he had cor- 

 nered and devoured, was out on one of his 

 foraging expeditions. Nothing in the shape 

 of flesh, fish, or insect came amiss to him ; 

 but having ever the blood-lust in his ferocious 



