HUNTING THE JAGUAR 51 



maintain the peaceful serenity of the still forest 

 depths as long as I consistently could. Nor did 

 I propose to go meatless ; for it was not for noth- 

 ing that I had provided myself with a few good 

 hooks and lines, and had nodded my consent when 

 John Charley held up his bow and arrow the first 

 day I had laid eyes on him. 



After a hard tropical downpour which had 

 lasted all morning, I went out to try for a few 

 "lukananni." This fish is rather similar to the 

 perch, and when fresh caught makes a most ex- 

 cellent dish. Rigged with a rod of which a king 

 might be proud the price of which was the mere 

 cutting of it (Ranjettan having taken it off 

 with one slice of his cutlass) for bait I used 

 a grub nearly three inches long, of brilliant col- 

 oring. Down would go the tip with a vengeance, 

 and these finny fellows would give me a little 

 pleasant excitement until I finally dropped them 

 into the bottom of the boat. With more luck 

 than artifice, I soon had a half-dozen of these 

 handsome fellows, all of which would weigh be- 

 tween two and three pounds. 



As we paddled back to camp I saw high up in 

 the top of some mighty mora trees, a great band 

 of the red, howling monkeys, generally called 

 the red baboon, but incorrectly so. They were 



