ked to the nearest clump of
bamboo, split open a dry joint, and cutting out two sticks of a
certain peculiar shape made a fire by rubbing them together. Having
got his fire he split another large green joint, the center of which
he hollowed out. This he filled with water and set on the fire, where
it would resist the action of the heat until the water in it boiled,
just as I have seen water in a pitcher plant's leaf in America set on
the coals of a blacksmith's fire and boiled vigorously. In this water
he stewed some fresh young bamboo shoots, which make a most delicious
kind of "greens," and finally made me from the wood a platter off
which to eat and a knife and fork to eat with. I acknowledged that
he had won the bet.

It was on one of the excursions which I made into the forest in my
study of these natural resources, that I met the Conjure man. I had
been curious to see him ever since he had called on me that morning
before I was awake, and left the "wise man," in lieu of a card, but
inquiry of Filipe and various other natives invariably elicited the
reply that they did not know where he lived. I learned afterwards
that the liars went to him frequently, for charms and medicines to
use in sickness, at the very time they were telling me that they did
not even know in what part of the forest his home was. Later events
showed that fear could make them do what coaxing could not.

It happened that one of my expeditions took me well up the side of a
mountain which the natives called Tuylpit, so near as I could catch
their pronunciation. I never saw the name in print. The mountain's
sides were rocky enough so that they were not so impassable on
account of the dense under-growth as much of the island was, and I had
much less trouble than usual going forward after I left the regular
"carabaos" (water buffalo) track.

I had gone on up the mountain for some distance, Filipe, as usual,
following me, when, turning to speak to him, I found to my amazement
that the fellow was gone. How, when or where he had disappeared I
could not imagine, for he had answered a question of mine only a
moment before.

If I had been surprised to find myself alone, I was ten times more
surprised to turn back again and find that I was not alone.

A man stood in the path in front of me, an old man, but standing well
erect, and with keen dark eyes looking out at me from under shaggy
white eyebrows.

I knew at once, or felt rather than knew, for t