HAMMOCK NIGHTS 213 



of this kingdom, at once welcomed and delicately 

 ignored as any honored guest should be. For 

 this one must make unwonted demands upon 

 one's nocturnal senses. From habit, perhaps, it 

 is natural to lie with the eyes wide open, but with 

 all the faculties concentrated on the two senses 

 which bring impressions from the world of dark- 

 ness — hearing and smell. In a jungle hut a loud 

 cry from out of the black treetops now and then 

 reaches the ear; in a tent the faint noises of the 

 night outside are borne on the wind, and at times 

 the silhouette of a passing animal moves slowly 

 across the heavy cloth ; but in a hamaca one is not 

 thus set apart to be baffled by hidden mysteries 

 • — one is given the very point of view of the crea- 

 tures who live and die in the open. 



Through the meshes which press gently against 

 one's face comes every sound which our human 

 ears can distinguish and set apart from the si- 

 lence — a silence which in itself is onlj^ a mirage 

 of apparent soundlessness, a testimonial to the 

 imperfection of our senses. The moaning and 

 whining of some distant beast of prey is brought 

 on the breeze to mingle with the silken swishing 

 of the palm fronds overhead and the insistent 

 chirping of many insects — a chirping so fine and 



