by, which, the more you tell it to be
quiet, sets to work the more earnestly to increase and add to the vigour
of its roaring. So Martin wisely let the parrots alone. They also
startled, in passing through swampy places, several large blue herons,
and long-legged cranes: and on many of the trees they observed the
curious hanging nests of a bird, which the hermit told them was the
large oriole. These nests hung in long strings from the tops of the
palm-trees, and the birds were very actively employed moving about and
chattering round their swinging villages: on seeing which Martin could
not help remarking that it would astonish the colony not a little, if
the top house were to give way and let all the mansions below come
tumbling to the ground!

They were disappointed, however, in not seeing monkeys gambolling among
the trees, as they had expected.

"Ah! my friends," said the hermit, "travellers in my country are very
often disappointed. They come here expecting to see everything all at
once; but although there are jaguars, and serpents, and bears, and
monkeys, plenty of them, as your ears can tell you, these creatures keep
out of the sight of man as much as possible. They won't come out of the
woods and show themselves to please travellers! You have been very
lucky since you arrived. Many travellers go about for months together
and do not see half so much as you."

"That's thrue," observed Barney, with his head a little on one side, and
his eyes cast up in a sort of meditative frown, as if he were engaged in
subjecting the hermit's remarks to a process of severe philosophical
contemplation; "but I would be very well plazed av' the wild bastes
would show themselves now and then, for--"

Martin Rattler burst into a loud laugh, for Barney's upward glance of
contemplation was suddenly transformed into a gaze of intense
astonishment, as he beheld the blue countenance of a large red monkey
staring down upon him from amid the branches of an overhanging tree.
The monkey's face expressed, if possible, greater surprise than that of
the Irishman, and its mouth was partially open and thrust forward in a
sort of threatening and inquiring manner. There seemed to be some bond
of sympathy between the monkey and the man, for while _its_ mouth opened
_his_ mouth opened too.

"A-a-a-a-a-ah!" exclaimed the monkey. A facetious smile overspread
Barney's face--

"Och! be all manes; the same to you, kindly," said he, taking off