y fever, and for several
days lay between life and death. When he became convalescent he
recovered strength very slowly. The heat was prodigious and the
mosquitos rendered sleep almost impossible at night. The country at this
place was low and swampy, and, weak as he was, Mr. Goodenough determined
to push forward. He was, however, unable to walk, and, for the first
time, a hammock was got out and mounted.

There is no more comfortable conveyance in the world than a hammock in
Africa. It is slung from a long bamboo pole, overhead a thick awning
keeps the sun from the hammock. Across the ends of the pole boards of
some three feet long are fastened. The natives wrap a piece of cloth
into the shape of a muffin and place it on their heads, and then take
their places, two at each end of the pole, with the ends of the board on
their heads. They can trot along at the rate of six miles an hour, for
great distances, often keeping up a monotonous song. Their action is
perfectly smooth and easy, and the traveler in the hammock, by shutting
his eyes, might imagine himself swinging in a cot on board ship on an
almost waveless sea.

After two days traveling they got on to higher ground, and here they
camped for some time, Mr. Goodenough slowly recovering strength, and
Frank busy in adding to their collections. In this he was in no slight
degree assisted by the Fans, who, having nothing else to do, had now
come to enter into the occupation of their employers. A good supply of
muslin had been brought, and nets having been made, the Fans captured
large quantities of butterflies, the great difficulty being in
convincing them that only a few of each species were required. They were
still more valuable in grubbing about in the decaying trunks of fallen
trees, under loose bark, and in broken ground, for beetles and larvae,
a task which suited them better than running about after butterflies,
which, moreover, they often spoilt irreparably by their rough handling.
Thus Frank was able to devote himself entirely to the pursuit of birds,
and although all the varieties more usually met with had been obtained,
the collection steadily increased in size.

Frank himself had severe attacks of fever, but none of these were so
severe as that which he had had on the day of the death of the leopards.

At the end of a month Mr. Goodenough had recovered his strength, and
they again moved forward.

CHAPTER XII: A NEGRO'S STORY

On arriving at a l