THE EQUATORIAL ZONE. 317 



ing as they go ; the monkeys huddle together on the trees ; 

 the rhinoceros grunts loudly as he forces his way into the 

 thickest part of the jungle ; the sloth, unable or unwilling 

 to move, utters loud cries of distress ; whilst the panthers, 

 leopards, and hyaenas crouch down, and the lion walks un- 

 easily from place to place ; and all in the common danger 

 seem to forget to be at enmity -"* ..." the insects only, 

 which long before announced the coming uproar, are now 

 silent, and keep close on the under surface of the leaves 

 until all is over, and the sun shines brightly out again." 



In the interior of the forest, even if we ventured into it, 

 we should again find the same dense kind of vegetation 

 which characterizes all the tropical forests ; the lofty Palms, 

 the elegant Tree-ferns, the many-coloured Orchises and 

 epiphytical Pothos plants, the twining Passion-flowers and 

 Aristolochias, and a tangled web of many other climbing 

 plants, with bright-coloured flowers, all luxuriating in the 

 damp, hot atmosphere and soft green light ; so that we 

 will but wander round the edge, or content ourselves with 

 straying a little way into it, admiring the luxuriance of the 

 aromatic Jessamine as "it sweeps the ground from the tops 

 of the highest trees," overpowering us with its wide-scat- 



* From the ' African Wanderers/ by Mrs. 11. Lee. 



