154 TROPIC DAYS 



persistently waited, and watched. The dogs frequently 

 detected his presence, if their eloquent alarms and their 

 excursions were to be credited. Though she continued 

 to pit her wits against the secret cunningness of the 

 dreaded old man, Soosie was often preoccupied, seeming 

 to regard herself as one not primarily concerned. Her 

 calmness was preternatural, contrasting strangely with 

 her previous petulant agitation and tragic despair. 

 She avoided Dan, while clinging with profuse demon- 

 strations of affection to her foster-sisters. 



The reason for her change of policy and manner was 

 revealed with distressing suddenness. At daylight one 

 morning the door of the room in which she slept under 

 lock and key was wide open, and on her quaintly em- 

 bellished table a primly written note : 



"Dear Mum, 



"That horrible man who wants to take me away 

 is right, and the Bible is right. I belong to this country, 

 and must go. 1 would rather die than go to the camp; 

 but I must know the big mountain. The dreadful 

 people don't go there. They are frightened of it ; I 

 love it. I shall live there by myself till I die, and Dan 

 will never be disgraced. You and Dada and Clare and 

 Fan and Bob have been all the world to me. You did 

 your best to make me white at heart ; but since this 

 trouble began I have thought and thought, and found 

 that the black in me smudges all the good out. Don't 

 try to come after me. I shall hide. I would be too 

 much ashamed ever to look at you again. Forget 

 me, for I am nothing but an ungrateful little savage. 



"Soosie." 



In all haste Dan and I set out for the camp, a mile or 

 so further in the jungle. It was situated in a natural, 



