OH, SHOOT! 



watch us, and we could see that the place was 

 surrounded by women. After a time, their 

 curiosity proved too much for them and they 

 likewise edged in through the doors. Some 

 of them bold, brazen characters, no doubt 

 had the courage to stand close behind us. 

 Fingers touched us; tiny brown hands ex- 

 plored our garments. By and by we began 

 to distribute change among the children and 

 to play with the babies. Thenceforth we got 

 along splendidly. 



It was after the chief and some of his head 

 men had accepted our invitation to lunch with 

 us that an incident occurred which briefly 

 threatened not only to interrupt our relations 

 and destroy what understanding we had es- 

 tablished, but also to involve us in a decidedly 

 awkward situation. We were on our way out 

 to the yacht when we heard a gunshot. 



"Who fired that gun?" Hyatt inquired, 

 quickly. We could not imagine. 



As we neared the Wisdom we saw signs of 

 something untoward, for canoes were scuttling 

 shoreward and our crew was rushing about the 

 deck. Next we discerned the body of a man 

 laid out upon one of the cots; a bare brown 

 calf and arm hung over the side. 



I2O 



