154 THE HUNTER'S ARCADIA. 



a most formidable mouth, but it never could reach 

 the object it desired, for the boy, with a dexterous 

 and powerful shake, forced it to straighten itself. 

 I had little fear now who was to be victor. Step 

 by step the young imp of darkness drew his prey 

 on to the bank some feet clear of the water, then, 

 with rapidity equal to a conjurer's, took his knob- 

 kerrie in his right hand from his mouth, and with 

 it showered such blows upon the amphibian as 

 caused it to cease from troubling. I should like to 

 have taken that boy with me ; plenty of good food 

 would have soon made wonderful and improving 

 alterations in him. Although I pointed all this out 

 to his chief, he would neither lend nor hire him to 

 me. With such an addition* my manage would have 

 been perfect. 



On a sandbank further up stream I found the spoor 

 of a leopard. It had probably been made about sun- 

 rise. From the numerous small rocky copjes in the 

 vicinity, I should not be surprised to find that these 

 gentry were abundant hereabouts. On pointing out 

 this spoor to the small boy, it was too good a treat 

 for one man alone to be witness of the pantomimic 

 actions he employed to endeavour to explain to me 



