useum. What do you say?"

"Well," said Brazier, drily, "self-preservation's the first law of
nature. I do not want to show the white feather, but really I think we
had better do as the men have done--get on board and wait for our enemy
there. What do you say, lads!"

"Decidedly, yes," cried both eagerly.

"But we don't know as it is our enemy yet, sir," replied Shaddy,
thoughtfully. "Hah! hark at that!"

They needed no telling, for all shivered slightly, as another cry, very
different from the last, rang out from the forest--half roar, half howl,
of a most appalling nature.

"Here, let's get on board," said Brazier.

"Not for that, sir," cried Shaddy, with one of his curiously harsh
laughs. "Why, that's only one of them big howling monkeys who would go
off among the branches twisting his tail, and scared 'most into fits, if
you looked at him."

"A monkey!" cried Rob. "Are you sure?"

"Oh, yes, I'm sure enough 'bout that, gentlemen. It's the other thing
that puzzles me."

They ceased speaking and stood watchfully waiting; but after a
retrograde movement toward the boat, so as to be able to retreat at any
moment. The cry was not repeated, though, and the feeling of awe began
to die off, but only to return on Shaddy continuing,--

"There's a something there, or else that there howler wouldn't have
hollered once and then gone off. The lions and tigers, too, have
slinked away. That's a lion--puma you call him--ever so far off; and, I
can hear a couple of tigers quite faint-like; but all the things near
here have stopped calling, and that shows there's that thing prowling
about."

"But the men?" whispered Rob. "They ran away as if they knew what it
was."

"Tchah! They don't know. Their heads are full of bogies. Soon as they
hear a noise, and can't tell what it is, they say it's an evil spirit or
a goblin or ghost. Babies they are. Why, if I was to go near a lot of
natives in the dark, hide myself, and let go with Scotch bagpipes,
they'd run for miles and never come nigh that part of the forest again."

All at once the chorus in the forest was resumed, with so much force
that it sounded as if the various creatures had been holding their
noises back and were now trying hard to make up for the previous check.

That was Rob's opinion, and he gave it in a whisper to his companion.

"Then, it's gone," said Joe. "I say, didn't you feel scared?"

"Horribly."

"Then I'm not such a coward after al