the water. "Hi," exclaimed that dingy individual, making
a torrent of remarks in Portuguese, while he darted his long pole hither
and thither; then, observing that Martin and Barney were gazing at him
open mouthed, he shouted, "Look out, boys! here 'im comes! Take care,
ole feller, or he jump right down you throat! hi-i-i!"

As he spoke, a large alligator, having been rudely stirred up from his
muddy bed, floundered on the surface of the lake, and Sambo instantly
gave it a thump over the back and a blow under the ribs; which had the
effect of driving it in the direction of the shore. Here a number of
Negroes were ready for him; and the moment he came within reach, a coil
of rope with a noose on the end of it, called a lasso, was adroitly
thrown over the reptile's head: ten or twelve men then hauled the lasso
and dragged it ashore amid shouts of triumph. This alligator was twenty
feet long, with an enormous misshapen head and fearful rows of teeth
that were terrible to behold. The monster did not submit to be
captured, however, without a struggle; and the Negroes grew wild with
excitement as they yelled and leaped madly about seeking to avoid its
dangerous jaws and the blows of its powerful tail. After some trouble,
a second lasso was thrown over the tail, which was thus somewhat
restrained in its movements; and Sambo, approaching cautiously with an
axe, cut a deep gash just at the root of that formidable appendage,
which rendered it harmless. "Hi-i," shouted Sambo in triumph, as he
sprang towards the animal's head, and inflicted a similar gash in the
neck; "dare, you quite finish, ole feller."

"Musha but that's thrue!" ejaculated Barney, who stood staring at the
whole proceeding like one in a trance. "Did ye iver git a bite, Sambo?"

Barney received no answer, for his sable friend was already up to his
waist in the water with five or six of his brethren, who were
flourishing their long poles and driving the snorting alligators towards
the shore, where their comrades, with lassos and harpoons, awaited them.
Sometimes they harpooned the alligators, and then, fastening lassos to
their heads and tails, or to a hind leg, dragged them ashore; at other
times they threw the lasso over their heads at once, without taking the
trouble to harpoon them. It was a terrible and a wonderful sight to
witness the Negroes in the very midst of a shoal of these creatures, any
one of which could have taken a man into his jaws quite