CROCODILES. 311 



liut its usual diet appears to he opossums (Cusci), large la,certilians, 

 and fish. 



The following account of the capture of a crocodile ma}'' interest 

 some of my readers. Ic was effected bv no more formidable weapons 

 than by a number of long staves and a small " bull-dog " revolver. 

 Accompanied by six natives I was making the ascent of a large 

 stream on the north-west side of Alu, when some of my companions 

 espied a large crocodile at the bottom of a deep pool about 200 

 vards from the mouth of the stream. In settin^r to work to effect 

 its capture my men proceeded very methodically to work, and 

 evidently knew the tactics which the creature would employ. 

 Standing in the water just below the pool, we stood awaiting 

 the descent of the crocodile down the stream, whilst one of the 

 natives was rousing it up Avith a long pole to make it leave its 

 hiding-place. After a little time it began to get uneasy, and 

 leaving the pool began to descend the stream. Where we were 

 standing, the stream was only knee-deep, and as the reptile passed 

 us in the shallow water some natives hit it on the head with their 

 poles, whilst others hurled their poles sharpened at the ends, striking 

 it in several places, and I planted a bullet behind its neck. The 

 creature showed no fight and immediately^ hid itself in the pools 

 near the mouth of the stream. During two hours, after we had 

 been driving it from one pool to another by means of our pointed 

 poles and staves, we seemed no nearer to its capture. At length 

 there Avas a loud out-cry from the natives. The crocodile was 

 making: a final rush for Ufa to cross the bar at the mouth of the 

 stream and escape into the sea. We all followed, some in the canoe 

 and some throu2;h the water ; and for a short time I thouirht that 

 the creature would escape. But being a little disabled by our 

 previous attacks, its progress across the bar was somewhat checked ; 

 and the foremost of m}'' men caught hold of its tail just as it was 

 getting into deep water. Very quickly we all came up, and assisted 

 in drawin-T it hirjh and dry on the beach ; and whilst two of our 

 number kept hold of its tail, the remainder belaboured its neck with 

 rocks and sticks until it died.^ Its length proved to be 11 feet. 

 Throughout the whole chase the reptile made no outcry, and even 

 when we were belabouring it to death it only gave a kind of giowl. 

 In its stomach I found a large quantity of partially digested food 



1 An illustration in Mr. Bates' "Naturalist on the Amazons" represents a very similar 

 scene. 



