THE TECCARY. 135 



to my unbounded astonishment, overheard one more 

 version of the peccary stor}': — " One, two, three hours 

 passed, but no lielp kem, and I felt my strength 

 giving way. I cud liave managed to kill all the pigs, 

 but unfort'nately my rifle had dropped ! What cud I 

 do ? I was about to give it up in despair, and jump 

 down among the critters, to try what a rush would 

 do, when my friend appeared on the scene. D'rectly 

 he saw me in so dangerous a position, he never 

 thought of the consequences to himself, but aimed 

 at the biggest peccary, and killed it dead, Sune as 

 he did this, the hull herd turned round and rushed 

 at him, gruntin' furiously. In order to save hisself, 

 my friend had to do as I did, so he dropped his 

 rifle, and climbed up the nearest tree. On this, 

 I kem down, while the peccaries were jumpin 

 round the foot of the tree up which my friend had 

 got, and, getting to my rifle, I loaded it, and killed 

 another of 'em. Then they kem at me full pelt; 

 but I was up the tree like a squirl, and my friend 

 kem down, got his rifle, and did 'xactly as I had 

 done ; and so on we went, until (would you believe 

 it, sirs ?) we had done this fifteen times each, and I 

 had killed fifteen peccaries, and ni}'- friend fifteen. 

 Yes, indeed, we bagged the thirty peccaries between 

 us." 



The fertile imagination of this Texan certainly 

 beat everything of the kind I had ever heard. I 

 asked the captain of the steamer what he knew of 



