66 IN THE INDIAN JUNGLE. 



broken by a blow from the head of a boa. The 

 boa has a square nose, like that of a buffalo, and 

 it is not soft, but hard and bony, and it can deliver 

 a blow as hard as that of twenty men together, 

 and strike an object eight feet away. Seeing one 

 of their number killed, the dogs now took counsel 

 together and settled on a plan of action. They 

 formed a complete circle round the snake and 

 kept trotting round and round. One would then 

 make a feint of attacking the snake, and when he 

 launched forth to strike his adversary, another 

 dog would rush from the opposite side and drive 

 its teeth into the great snake's body. This ruse 

 answered admirably for a time, and the snake 

 began to bleed profusely from several severe 

 wounds, and I was expecting a speedy victory for 

 the dogs, when the boa, grown more wary, declined 

 to be drawn by the feigned attack, but reserve< 

 himself for the dog that actually seized him, an< 

 again despatched it with a single blow of hi; 

 formidable head. Several dogs were killed in thi< 

 way, when the whole pack rushed on him at o 

 and tried to seize him by the head. As well try t< 

 seize a rat in a hut. The head was here, there, and 

 everywhere. Ough ! bah ! bah ! it was a sight. The 

 snarls of the dogs, the hiss of the snake, the yelps 

 of the dying dogs ! It was all over in a moment 

 only three dogs were left, and these took to flight. 

 The snake glided back to its old position behin< 

 the log, and seemed to go to sleep. After a tim< 

 I crept cautiously away and went to my village. 

 Several of us came down in our boats in the evening. 



