THE HUNTER'S ARCADIA. 



by a thankful look and a grateful wag of his 

 but without a vocal expression of the pain he had 

 suffered. Not so with the black man, who not only 

 sang out as if he were being murdered while I was 

 disengaging the trap from him, but kept up the 

 same music the whole way to the wagons, and for 

 some time after our arrival at them. 



Soon after my companion came in, looking none 

 the worse for his misadventure. As his taciturnity 

 was proverbial until he had eaten, I deferred 

 questioning him upon the cause of his protracted 

 absence until he had satisfied his hunger. His 

 narrative was as follows : " About three or four 

 miles from here I almost rode on the top of an 

 ostrich ; in fact, it jumped up so close before me 

 that I felt assured the horse had trodden on it. In 

 this belief I became more and more confirmed from 

 it appearing impossible for the bird to do more than 

 keep in front of me. I pushed the gray, and every 

 moment expected to be able to knock my quarry 

 on the head, but somehow or other, at the very 

 moment I expected to do so, the bird seemed to be 

 gifted with a fresh spasm of vitality. This went on 



