y. The day had now fairly broken, and the
sun was just rising over the blue waters of the Gulf.

His rays, prinkling over the waves, caused them to dance and sparkle
with a metallic brightness; and it was only after shading my eyes that I
could distinguish the tall masts of ships and the burnished towers of
the city.

To the south and west stretched a wide expanse of champaign country,
glowing in all the brilliance of tropical vegetation. Fields of green,
and forests of darker green; here and there patches of yellow, and belts
of olive-coloured leaves; at intervals a sheet of silver--the reflection
from a placid lake, or the bend of some silent stream--was visible upon
the imposing picture at my feet.

A broad belt of forest, dotted with the lifelike frondage of the palm,
swept up to the foot of the hill. Beyond this lay an open tract of
meadow, or prairie, upon which were browsing thousands of cattle. The
distance was too great to distinguish their species; but the slender
forms of some of them convinced me that the object of our search would
be found in that direction.

The meadow, then, was the point to be reached.

The belt of forest already mentioned must be crossed; and to effect this
I struck into a trail that seemed to lead in the direction of the
meadow.

The trail became lighter as we entered the heavy timber. Some distance
farther on we reached a stream. Here the trail entirely disappeared.
No "signs" could be found on the opposite bank. The underwood was
thick; and vines, with broad green leaves and huge clusters of scarlet
flowers, barred up the path like a wall.

It was strange! The path had evidently led to this point, but where
beyond?

Several men were detached across the stream to find an opening. After a
search of some minutes a short exclamation from Lincoln proclaimed
success; I crossed over, and found the hunter standing near the bank,
holding back a screen of boughs and vine-leaves, beyond which a narrow
but plain track was easily distinguished, leading on into the forest.
The trellis closed like a gate, and it seemed as if art had lent a hand
to the concealment of the track. The footprints of several horses were
plainly visible in the sandy bottom of the road.

The men entered in single file. With some difficulty Major Blossom and
his great horse squeezed themselves through, and we moved along under
the shady and silent woods.

After a march of several miles, fording numer