154 TEAVEL, ADVENTURE, AND SPOET. 



wildered at having lost me, while I skulked away 

 as quickly as I could, and regained my road by a 

 circuitous route. I had not proceeded much farther 

 when the sun set, and in the very short twilight 

 which follows in that climate, I perceived two ani- 

 mals come out of the jungle into the path, about 

 100 yards before me. In the uncertain light I at 

 first took them for the half-grown calves of wild 

 buffaloes, an animal abounding in that part of the 

 island, and they proceeded with their heads down 

 towards a large tree by the side of the road I had 

 to pass, where they began snuffing about the roots. 

 I was now near enough to see that they were bears 

 of a very large size. To turn aside was impossible, 

 as the jungle was of a kind impenetrable to a man, 

 being full of the very long thorn, called the buffalo 

 thorn, from its toughness. To go back never entered 

 my mind indeed I had little time for thought, as 

 I was now within thirty paces of them. They lifted 

 up their heads and marked their anger by a short 

 roar, which I returned by charging them till I found 

 myself within three yards of them, without their 

 offering to move away. They made a step towards 

 me, the largest one, evidently the male, about its 

 length before the other. I kept my face towards 

 them, and edged round so as to get on that side of 

 them by which I was to pursue my route. At this 

 moment they made a short bound at me, which I 

 escaped by springing backwards, but still fronting 



