336 UTILITARIAN ZOOLOGY 



of them in about a second; then I waited. Three o'clock came, 

 then four, and no sign of the boys. Some of the pigs would feed 

 while the others stood guard; then they would change off. I was 

 so tired I could scarcely stay in the tree ; so I took my belt off and 

 buckled myself fast to the trunk, so that I would not fall out. 

 Seven o'clock! I could see no change; they still camped near me, 

 showing no signs of weakening. Then the sun went behind the 

 mountain ; darkness came on, and I was thirsty, hungry, and tired ; 

 but, worse than all, I was a prisoner. Twelve o'clock! The 

 moon shone brightly, and I could see my sentinels scattered 

 around. Two o'clock! Then came a signal from some of the 

 outside ones; the rest snuffed the air, then away they all went. I 

 could hear them far below, going down the mountain. . . . Here- 

 after, anyone who wants to hunt Peccaries can hunt them, and be 

 blanked; but I prefer some kind of game that is not so fond of 

 human flesh as they are." Without the friendly tree the adventure 

 might have ended differently, for the same writer tells us of these 

 animals that — " If one of their number is wounded so that it 

 squeals, the whole herd becomes ferocious, will charge their 

 enemy on sight, and speedily destroy him, unless he escapes by 

 climbing a tree or by flight". 



The blood-sucking Bats have been spoken about elsewhere 

 (see vol. ii, p. 39). 



Personal Enemies among Reptiles (Reptilia). — The larger 

 Crocodiles and Alligators are particularly destructive to human 

 life, though their sphere of operations is obviously much limited 

 by their aquatic habits. Speaking of Ega on the Upper Amazons, 

 Bates says (in The Natuj-alisf on the Amazons) : — " Alligators were 

 rather troublesome in the dry season. During these months there 

 was almost always one or two lying in wait near the bathing-place 

 for anything that might turn up at the edge of the water — dog, 

 sheep, pig, child, or drunken Indian." With reference to Crocodiles 

 in Madagascar, Sibree remarks (in The Great African Island): 

 — " They are regarded with a superstitious dread by many of the 

 Malagasy tribes, and are so dangerous in some parts of the island 

 that at every village on the banks of the rivers a space is carefully 

 fenced off with strong stakes, so that the women and eirls can draw 

 water without the risk of being seized by the jaws or swept off by 

 the tail of these disgusting-looking creatures". Tales about the 

 ferocity of Crocodiles are sufficiently numerous, many of them, of 



