Soon they came to the top once more, clapping their great jaws
together, and roaring. They fell on each other again, and sank to the
bottom. But one of them was by this time beaten. He swam away into the
reeds on the bank. The other rose to the top of the water, and
celebrated his victory by a loud roaring sound. All the alligators
along the shore joined in the horrible roaring at the same time.

The alligators had gathered in great crowds at certain places to catch
the fish that were coming up from the sea. Bartram wanted some fish
for his supper. He took a stick to beat off the alligators, and got
into his canoe. But the farther he paddled from the shore, the more
the alligators crowded round him. Several of them tried to overturn
his canoe. Two large ones attacked him at the same time, with their
heads above the water, and their mouths spouting water all over the
botanist. They struck their jaws together so close to his ears that
the sound almost stunned him.

Bartram beat them off with his club, and paddled for the shore. When
he got near the shore, the alligators left him. He went a little
farther up the river, and got some fish. When he came back, he kept
close to the shore. One alligator twelve feet long followed him. When
Bartram went ashore near his camp, the creature crept close to his
feet, and lay there looking at him for some time.

[Illustration]

Bartram ran to his camp to get his gun. When he came back, the
alligator was climbing into his boat to get the fish he had caught. He
fired his gun, and killed the great beast. But while he was cleaning
his fish, another one crept up to him, and would have dragged him into
the water if Bartram had not looked up just in time to get out of his
way. The next day he was pursued by more alligators; but he beat them
off with his club, and got away.

JASPER.

"Marion'S Men" were famous in the Revolution for their bold
adventures. The best known of all these bold men was Sergeant Jasper.
At the battle of Fort Moultrie, when the flag of the fort was shot
away, Jasper jumped down outside of the works, and picked it up. The
balls were raining round him all the time he was outside, but he
coolly fastened the flag to a rod which was used to wipe out the
cannon, and then stuck it up in the sand of the breastworks.

When General Moultrie saw what he had done, he took off his own sword
and gave it to Sergeant Jasper.

When Moultrie and his men were hiding in th