206 TWO TEAKS IN" THE JUNGLE. 



stream, and I made Vera bathe his foot in the cold water while 1 

 cut a pair of forked sticks to serve him as crutches. A native of the 

 East Indies has no more idea of a crutch, and how to use it, than 

 of a quadrant. I was stooping down on a broad, sloping sheet of 

 rock, trimming a stick with my hatchet, with Vera standing above 

 and behind me, when he suddenly fainted from loss of blood, and 

 the first thing T knew, he pitched forward full upon my back, 

 knocking me flat upon the rock and half into the water. It was a 

 lucky fall for him, for had it not been broken by me as it was, he 

 would have pitched head first upon the rocks, and very likely 

 broken his neck or cracked his skull. 



We brought him round in due time, and leaving Nangen with 

 him we started on to camp, to send back four men with my ham- 

 mock slung to a pole to bring him in. I sent after him immedi- 

 ately upon reaching camp, but the men met him half way, walking 

 slowly along, and a good dose of ai*rack helped him to accomplish 

 the remaining distance. But he was utterly incapacitated for work 

 for an indefinite time, and I lost his valuable services during the 

 remainder of our task. 



This was the first of a series of unnecessary and imlooked for 

 misfortunes and difficulties which came upon me during the prepa- 

 ration of that elephant skin and skeleton. That night there was a 

 social scandal and a grand row in the Mulcer camp, not far from 

 our huts. About bed-time, while I was writing in my journal a 

 record of the day's events, the usual murmur of voices in the huts 

 across the river gradually swelled into a loud jangle, which rapidly 

 increased in volume every moment until it became a perfect tem- 

 pest of angry voices, pitched on their highest key. Very soon it 

 became evident that an unusual commotion was afoot, for the 

 lights suddenly went out, a bamboo hut was torn down, women 

 and children began to scream, and we distinctly heard the sound 

 of men struggling and blows falling upon bare flesh. 



Thinking it high time to interfere, I called for Doraysawmy 

 and the elephant doctor, and snatching up a lantern, we ran down 

 the hill toward the Mulcer camp. The place was in total dark- 

 ness, but the sounds which met our ears plainly indicated that the 

 Mulcers had gotten up a little hades of their own. Our sudden 

 appearance upon the scene, with a loud call for " order " from the 

 doctor, caused most of the Mulcers to fall back, but the principals 

 in the fight paid no attention. We soon pulled them apart, how« 

 ever, and commanded them to keep the peace. The boy Moreeah, 



