ole house, and as I had
locked my door, no one could get in. I heard my mother and brothers
uttering pious ejaculations to exorcise the evil spirit which they
believed had got hold of me, while I trebled my frantic yells for
deliverance. By vigorously shaking the door, they finally burst it open,
and then I was surprised to see that I was not in my grave, but that I
had tumbled out of bed, and rolled along the floor till I landed in the
space by the door."

"But did you not wake with the fall?"

"No; I felt nothing till I awoke, as I believed, in my tomb, but really
in the shoe receptacle; and since you all assure me that Europeans never
tumble out of their beds, I resign all hopes of ever being transformed
into one. I shall in the future, as I have done in the past, sleep on
the ground, from which there is no danger of tumbling."

THE HIPPOPOTAMUS.

The hippopotamus, or river-horse, is found exclusively in the great
rivers, lakes, and swamps of Africa. Fossil remains of extinct species
have been discovered in both Europe and Asia, but ages have passed since
they existed. This animal is amphibious, and can remain under water five
minutes or more without breathing. When it comes to the surface it
snorts in a terrible manner, and can be heard at a great distance. It is
never found far away from its native element, to which it beats a
retreat at the least alarm. Travellers along the White Nile and in
Central Africa often encounter enormous herds of these ungainly
creatures sometimes lying in the water, their huge heads projecting like
the summit of a rock, sometimes basking on the shore in the muddy ooze,
or grazing on the river-bank; for this animal is a strict vegetarian,
and the broad fields of grain and rice along the Upper Nile suffer
constantly from its depredations.

The hippopotamus is a hideous-looking beast. It has an enormous mouth,
armed with four great tusks that appear viciously prominent beneath its
great leathern lips. These tusks are so powerful that a hippopotamus has
been known to cut holes through the iron plates of a Nile steamer with
one blow. Its eyes are very small, but protruding, and placed on the top
of its head. Its body resembles a huge hogshead perched on four short,
stumpy legs. A full-grown animal will sometimes measure twelve feet in
length and as much in circumference. The hide of this beast is very
thick and strong, and is used to make whips. Ordinary bullets, unless
they st