208 EDGE OF THE JUNGLE 
to be condoned; and this ignorance, in turn, is 
due to that lack of desire for a knowledge of 
new countries and new experiences, which lack 
is to be deplored and openly mourned. Many 
years ago, in Mexico, when I first entered the 
vampire zone, I was apprised of the fact by the 
clotted blood on my horse’s neck in the early 
morning. In actually seeing this evidence, I ex- 
perienced the diverse emotions of the discoverer, 
although as a matter of fact I had discovered 
nothing more than the verification of a scientific 
commonplace. It so happened that I had read, 
at one time, many conflicting statements of the 
workings of this aerial leech; therefore, finding 
myself in his native habitat, I went to all sorts 
of trouble to become a victim to his sorceries. 
The great toe is the favorite and stereotyped 
point of attack, we are told; so, in my ham- 
mock, my great toes were conscientiously ex- 
posed night after night, but not until a decade 
later was my curiosity satisfied. 
I presume that this was a matter of ill luck, 
rather than a personal matter between the vam- 
pire and me. ‘Therefore, as a direct result of 
this and like experiences, I have learned to make 
proper allowances for the whims of the Fates. 
