refreshed ourselves by a brief rest, and armed ourselves
with two stout cudgels cut from a neighboring tree by Pharaoh's knife,
which was the only weapon we had, we set forth through the woods, he
leading the way. By that time we were faint with hunger and could well
have done with a meal, but though there were, doubtless, Indian villages
close at hand we dare enter none of them, and so went forward with empty
stomachs. In the woods, however, we came upon prickly pears, which there
grow wild, and these we essayed to eat; but had great difficulty in
stripping them of the prickles, which, if they enter the tongue, do
cause an unpleasantness that is not soon forgot. Our hunger growing
very keen we sought to capture or slay some bird or animal, and Pharaoh
being accustomed to this sort of hunting--for he had known many
adventures--presently succeeded in knocking down a wild turkey, flocks
of which bird we constantly encountered. We lighted a fire by means of
his flint and steel, and cooked our quarry, and so went forward again
refreshed by the food, which was pleasant enough to hungry men.

We pressed on for two days through the woods, living as we best could
upon such animals as Pharaoh was able to knock down, and on the pears,
which were all the more aggravating to our hunger because of their sharp
spines. During those two days we did not come in contact with human
beings, though we thrice saw parties of Indians and had to conceal
ourselves from them. We followed no path, and if we chanced to cross
one we immediately left it and plunged deeper into the woods. By the end
of the first day our clothes were torn to rags, and hung in strips from
our backs; by the end of the second our shoes had been cut to pieces,
and so we looked as wretched and lost a couple of vagabonds as you ever
saw.

On the evening of the second day we came to the verge of the wooded
heights, and saw before us the wide plain of Orizaba, which lay between
us and Acapulco, and must needs be crossed if we meant to reach the
Pacific coast.

"It is here that I see most reason to be a-feared," said Pharaoh, as we
halted and looked out across the plain. "There is precious little cover
or shelter on this plain, and it will be a miracle if we escape
observation in crossing it. Moreover, there are constantly traversing it
bodies of Spaniards, going to and from Oaxaca and Mexico, so that we
shall be liable to capture at any moment, having nowhere to hide
oursel