"Never mind, my lad; I like to see you bear it stoically. Shows me
you're recovering tone. Phew! this is warm work. How much more of it
is there?"

"Not half-way up yet," panted Jack.

"Take it coolly, men, or our hands will be all of a tremble, so that we
can't shoot straight."

There was no need to advise an impossibility, for no one could have
taken it coolly. The blocks of stone, the tangled creepers, and higher
up the dense undergrowth, made it a slow, laborious task; but at last
the huge trees of the upper slope were reached, and the work promised to
be lighter.

The doctor made a sign, and they both sat down to rest for a few
minutes, the men who came on smilingly following suit; but all at once a
peculiarly hoarse cooing sound arose from not far away among the trees,
and all the fatigue passed away as if by magic.

"Pigeons!" whispered the doctor excitedly. "Hark! more of them! They
must be the big fruit birds, Jack, and we must have a pair or two of
these. When you're ready we'll go on."

"I'm ready," whispered Jack.

"Then we'll go abreast. Don't you study me. Keep your eyes open, and
the first moment you have a good chance you fire. Get one with each
barrel if you can."

Jack nodded, and directly after they advanced among the trees, with Ned
about a couple of yards behind, carrying a second gun for whichever
needed it.

These were exciting moments, more exciting than they knew of, as they
crept forward among the huge trunks, and gazing upward among the
branches, expecting moment by moment to catch sight of the flock of
great fruit-pigeons, whose cooing kept stopping and commencing again.

It had sounded to be so close that they felt puzzled, and wondered
whether they had passed them, for the doctor argued that if they had
taken fright the rustle of their wings would have been heard among the
branches.

All at once Jack, who walked on the doctor's left, held his gun in his
left hand only, and made a sign with his right.

His companion crept close to him, and the next moment a flock of
enormous pigeons, which had been feeding on the fallen nuts of one of
the biggest trees, rose with a tremendous rushing of wings, and four
barrels were fired into them, with the result that three birds fell.

"Our dinner, Jack, and the men's too," cried the doctor; and the boy
felt a chill of horror run through him, as from close behind there was a
wild cry from Ned, followed by a shouting amongst the