y, "What
on earth do you mean by that?"

"Oo-o-o-oo-o!" roared Peterkin.

Hereupon the monkey uttered a terrific shriek of passion, exposed all
its teeth and gums, glared at its adversary like a little fiend, and
seizing the branch with both hands, shook it with all its might. The
result was, that not only did the coveted bunch of fruit fall to the
ground, but a perfect shower of bunches came down, one of which hit Jack
on the forehead, and, bursting there, sent its fragrant juice down his
face and into his beard, while the parrots and all the other monkeys
took to flight, shrieking with mingled terror and rage.

"You see I'm a practical man," observed Peterkin quietly, as he picked
up the fruit and began to eat it. "Knowledge is power, my boy. A man
with a philosophical turn of mind like yourself ought to have been up to
a dodge of this sort. How capital this fruit is, to be sure!--Does it
make good pomade, Jack?"

"Excellent; but as I'm not in the habit of using pomade, I shall wash
this out of my beard as quickly as possible."

While Jack went to a brook that ran close to where we stood, I tasted
the fruit, and found it most excellent, the pulp being juicy, with a
very pleasant flavour.

While we were thus engaged a wild pig ran grunting past us.

"Doesn't that remind you of some of our doings on the coral island,
Ralph?" said Peterkin.

Before I could reply a herd of lovely small gazelles flew past. Our
rifles were lying on the ground, and before either of us could take aim
the swift creatures were lost sight of in the thick underwood. Peterkin
fired one shot at a venture, but without any result.

We were still deploring our stupidity in not having our rifles handy,
when a strange sound was heard in the distance. By this time Jack had
come up, so we all three seized our rifles and listened intently. The
sound was evidently approaching. It was a low, dull, booming roar,
which at one moment seemed to be distant thunder, at another the cry of
some huge animal in rage or pain. Presently the beating of heavy hoofs
on the turf and the crash of branches were heard. Each of us sprang
instinctively towards a tree, feeling that if danger were near its trunk
would afford us some protection.

Being ignorant, as yet, of the cries of the various wild beasts
inhabiting those woods, we were greatly at a loss to determine what
creature it could be that approached at such headlong speed. That its
mad career w