d Earle instantly flung up his rifle and shot
it. It was as big as a donkey and resembled a hare in every respect,
except that it had ears shaped like those of a mouse, while its coat was
of short hair instead of fur. It was entirely new to Earle, and he was
much gratified at securing it, as were the others of the party, for its
flesh proved to be very juicy and palatable.

Their next adventure occurred during the afternoon of the following day.
They had just passed beyond the confines of the swamp, and were
travelling over somewhat rising ground toward a line of forest
stretching right athwart their path, when, during a temporary halt,
which Dick was utilising to scan the surrounding country through his
field-glasses, he caught a momentary glimpse of what he imagined to be
Indians, moving stealthily about among the boles of the trees,
apparently reconnoitring the party. He directed Earle's attention to
them, and after an eager search with his glasses, the American also
caught sight of them, and agreed with Dick that their movements were
suspicious, and that it would be wise to be prepared for a sudden
attack. They loaded their repeating rifles, each stuck a pair of
automatic pistols in his belt, and when the march was resumed, went on
ahead, accompanied by Inaguy, with the object of establishing a parley
with the strangers.

But when, some ten minutes later, they arrived at the outskirts of the
forest, there was no sign of them, and no response to Inaguy's repeated
calls in several different Indian dialects. It was not only a puzzling
but also a disconcerting circumstance; for the failure of the strangers
to reply seemed to indicate a hostile disposition; and for the party to
plunge into the depths of the forest with a band of hostile Indians
dogging their footsteps, or perhaps preparing to ambush them, seemed to
Earle the opposite of good generalship; after considering the matter,
therefore, it was decided to camp for the remainder of the day, at a
sufficient distance from the forest to render a surprise attack
impossible, and there await developments.

This was done, and for about an hour after the camp was pitched,
sentinels being posted about halfway between it and the border of the
forest to give timely notice of a threatened attack, nothing happened.

Then one of the sentinels shouted that there were people moving among
the trees, upon which Dick and Earle, fully armed, moved out to
reconnoitre, with Kin