CHAPTER VI. 

 BAITING FOR AN ALLIGATOR. 



"1 REMEMBER," said Mr. Pallister, "an adventure 

 that occurred in the Arkansas country, near Lake Jeffer- 

 son. I was stopping at the house of a man named Jack- 

 son. One day, while I was seated with him and his fa- 

 mily, a little negro boy came into the room, shouting, 

 * Oh, massa ! terrible big alligator ; him run at me/ 

 When we got him to speak a little more coherently it 

 appeared that he had been bathing in the lake, and that 

 an alligator had suddenly rushed at him, and when the 

 boy, who luckily was not in deep water, had escaped by 

 running to land, the brute had actually pursued him along 

 the shore. We instantly started off in quest of the 

 monster, accompanied by the boy, who came as guide. 

 After carefully exploring the bank and reeds, though un- 

 succesafully, we concealed ourselves in hopes of seeing 



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