THE CAMERA-MAN'S DAY 



that any further remarks on the subject would 

 be construed as contempt of court. 



The sentence of the court was carried out and 

 the beach watered with the rich red blood of the 

 turtle while its strongly beating heart was placed 

 where its throbbing could be seen till the sun 

 went down. Thick slices of flesh were carved for 

 broiling, while the remainder was cut into thin 

 strips to be jerked. We made a scaffold of green 

 saplings and beneath it built a fire of black man- 

 grove, the smokiest wood that the country pro- 

 duced. 



I was placing a strip of turtle flesh on the 

 scaffolding, when a dark shadow swept over me 

 and, looking upward, I saw, hovering in the air, 

 sustained by its broad wings with serrated ends, 

 the first of a flock of buzzards. The creature 

 settled on a nearby tree and was followed by 

 others of its family, some of which came from 

 beyond the visible horizon. It was then neces- 

 sary to watch our food as the table manners of 

 our self-invited guests were not to be trusted, so 

 Joe was put in charge while the rest of us pic- 

 nicked and beach combed. 



At the edge of the waves on the beach we 

 99 



