d held back. Come along, my
lad, and I think we shall soon slay this modern dragon."

All this time Ebo had been looking at us wonderingly; but no sooner did
we examine our guns and start forward, than he shouldered his club and
went before us towards the piece of marshy ground.

I walked on by uncle's side with my gun ready, and all the time I kept
on wondering what he would have said to me if he had known how nervous I
felt.

The thoughts of what we were approaching seemed to take all the
brightness and beauty out of the scene, which was as lovely as could be.
Strange birds flew by us, glorious trees were on every side, some of
them covered with flowers, while the brilliant greens of various shades
made up for the want of colour in others. Where we were the land seemed
to slope down into a little valley, while farther back there was a ridge
clothed to its summit with beautiful vegetation.

But just then, as the poetical writer said, the trail of the serpent was
over it all, and I kept on seeing imaginary reptiles' heads reared above
the beautiful waving canes and grasses, and fancied I detected the
rustling noise made by the creature's scales as they glided through the
dry stems.

"Now," said my uncle, as we stood at last on the edge of the moist
depression, "we must contrive some plan of attack, Nat. We must not let
the enemy escape, or he will be scaring us all the time we stay."

I thought it very kind of him to say _us_ when I know he meant _you_,
but I did not say anything, only eagerly searched the thickly-spread
canes and broad-leaved plants as far as I could see with my eyes, and
then I could not help thinking what a beautiful spot that marsh was in
spite of the serpent, as two or three of the lovely pitta thrushes
flitted amidst the bamboos, and half a dozen sun-birds darted about a
convolvulus-like plant, and kept flashing in the sunshine, which every
now and then seemed to make their feathers blaze.

"Now, Nat," said my uncle, "I think this will be a good place for you,
by this trickling rill; you see the place is roughly in the shape of a
ham, so you shall have the place of honour, my boy, by the knuckle-bone,
while I and Ebo go round the fat sides and see if we can find the enemy
there."

"Do you think it will come this way, uncle?" I said.

"Yes, Nat, just below you there, so be cool, and give it both your
barrels as it goes by. You may depend upon one thing, and that is that
the reptile,