306 TWO YEARS IN THE JUNGLE. 



pull would bring it down. The rattan line we threw into the 

 stream with the cocoanut buoy at the end, and quietly retired to 

 the village to await developments. 



At the close of the day the bait still hung there undisturbed, 

 and I walked home to Jerom hoping for better luck on the moiTow. 

 The next morning we were there soon after sunrise, and the China- 

 man joyfully informed us the bait was gone. We got into a small 

 Malay sampan and paddled up the creek at once to investigate. 

 We found the cocoanut moving slowly through the water against 

 the current and upon laying hold of the line we felt there was big 

 game at the other end. We gave a vigorous pull, and the next in- 

 stant were almost capsized in mid-stream by a pull we got in re- 

 turn. We then passed the line over the stern of the canoe and 

 while I held it, the rest began to paddle down stream toward the 

 village where we proposed to land our catch. 



Then he showed himself. He rose to the surface apparently to 

 see what was the matter, and, after giving a good look at us, started 

 forward and began to turn as if about to go up stream. Before he 

 had turned half round he fetched up with a violent jerk which 

 must have given one point of the alir a vicious dig into the side of 

 his stomach ; for he began to plunge and thrash around with great 

 violence, sending the water circling around him in huge waves. 

 There was also considerable excitement at our end of the line, for 

 the sampan was small, light, very tipsy, and contained three men 

 of good weight. Chinaman, Malay, and Anglo-Saxon, each shouted 

 at the other two in his own language. Had we been capsized I 

 scarcely know which would have disgusted me most, the ducking 

 in that dirty creek, fvdl of crocodiles, or the loss of my rifle. As 

 soon as we could I tied the weapon fast to the boat so that in the 

 event of a mishap I would not lose it. 



After this struggle the crocodile seemed to give up the fight, 

 for he allowed himself to be towed down to the village without 

 further resistance. But as we neared the landing place where we 

 intended to haul him out, he made a final and still more vigorous 

 struggle to get free. He snapped his jaws angrily together in an 

 effort to cut the Une, but it was no use, so shutting them together 

 like a vice he plunged first to one side and then the other, striking 

 out with tail and legs, diving deeply one moment and suddenly 

 thrusting his ugly snout far out of water the next 



Another boat came to our assistance at this point and the huge 

 old reptile was di-agged shoreward by main force. The men landed 



I 



