to
him, and, turning, he remarked:

"The lake looks particularly enticing this morning, Arima. Are there
any balsas near at hand? Because, if so, you shall fetch me one, and we
will go out together to deep water and indulge in a glorious swim."

"A swim, Lord, in the deep water of the lake?" ejaculated Arima in
horror-stricken accents. "Nay, that is impossible."

"Impossible!" repeated Harry. "And why, pray?"

"Because of the monsters, Lord," answered Arima. "Were we to venture to
plunge into the lake we should almost certainly be devoured."

"Indeed!" answered Harry. "So there are monsters in the lake, are
there? I was not aware of that. And what are those `monsters'? Are
they alligators, or voracious fish, or what are they? I should hardly
have supposed that the water of the lake was warm enough for alligators
to flourish in it."

"Nay, Lord," answered Arima, "they are not alligators. I have seen
alligators in some of the northern rivers, and know them well enough to
be able to distinguish between them and the monsters which haunt our
lake. Nor are they fish; or if they be, they are quite unlike any other
fish that these eyes of mine have ever beheld. We call them `monsters'
because our forefathers did so, and because we have no other name for
them; also because of their exceeding size and malevolence."

"Ah!" commented Harry. "Well, what are these creatures--these
monsters--like, and how big are they? Have you ever seen them?"

"Yes, Lord," was the answer. "I have seen them no less than three times
at close quarters, and always with the same disastrous results. The
first time was when, during my passage of the lake on a balsa, one of my
companions had the misfortune to fall into the water. Ere the balsa
could be stopped and paddled back to where the man was struggling, two
of the monsters appeared and tore him limb from limb. The resemblance
to an alligator lies chiefly in the shape of the head, which, however,
is longer in proportion and more pointed than that of the alligator.
Also, our monsters have smooth skins, nearly black in colour, and
instead of feet and legs they have fins. The tail also is differently
shaped from that of an alligator, being wide and flat at the end."

"By Jove!" exclaimed Harry in astonishment, "they must be queer and
formidable-looking creatures indeed; and fins in place of legs and feet!
I'll be shot if I can place them at all. Are there many of them?"

"W