but Taffy was too incited
to notice.

'That's quite easy,' she said, scratching on the bark.

'Eh, what?' said her Daddy. 'I meant I was thinking, and didn't want to
be disturbed.'

'It's a noise just the same. It's the noise a snake makes, Daddy, when
it is thinking and doesn't want to be disturbed. Let's make the
_ssh_-noise a snake. Will this do?' And she drew this. (7.)

[Illustration: 7]

'There,' she said. 'That's another s'prise-secret. When you draw a
hissy-snake by the door of your little back-cave where you mend the
spears, I'll know you're thinking hard; and I'll come in most
mousy-quiet. And if you draw it on a tree by the river when you're
fishing, I'll know you want me to walk most _most_ mousy-quiet, so as
not to shake the banks.'

'Perfectly true,' said Tegumai. 'And there's more in this game than you
think. Taffy, dear, I've a notion that your Daddy's daughter has hit
upon the finest thing that there ever was since the Tribe of Tegumai
took to using shark's teeth instead of flints for their spear-heads. I
believe we've found out _the_ big secret of the world.'

'Why?' said Taffy, and her eyes shone too with incitement.

'I'll show,' said her Daddy. 'What's water in the Tegumai language?'

'_Ya_, of course, and it means river too--like Wagai-_ya_--the Wagai
river.'

'What is bad water that gives you fever if you drink it--black
water--swamp-water?'

'_Yo_, of course.'

'Now look,' said her Daddy. 'S'pose you saw this scratched by the side
of a pool in the beaver-swamp?' And he drew this. (8.)

[Illustration: 8]

'Carp-tail and round egg. Two noises mixed! _Yo_, bad water,' said
Taffy. ''Course I wouldn't drink that water because I'd know you said it
was bad.'

'But I needn't be near the water at all. I might be miles away, hunting,
and still----'

'And _still_ it would be just the same as if you stood there and said,
"G'way, Taffy, or you'll get fever." All that in a carp-fish-tail and a
round egg! O Daddy, we must tell Mummy, quick!' and Taffy danced all
round him.

'Not yet,' said Tegumai; 'not till we've gone a little further. Let's
see. _Yo_ is bad water, but _so_ is food cooked on the fire, isn't it?'
And he drew this. (9.)

[Illustration: 9]

'Yes. Snake and egg,' said Taffy 'So that means dinner's ready. If you
saw that scratched on a tree you'd know it was time to come to the Cave.
So'd I.'

'My Winkie!' said Tegumai. 'That's true too. But wait a minute. I see a
dif