ou been all this time?"

"They took me north to another village."

But more interesting things were now happening. The witch doctor who was
about to go to his fallen companion, hesitated. He turned to the Chief.
The latter merely stretched out his hand, and with an impatient gesture
appeared to order him on.

"I warn you!" said Uraso. "It will be death to touch him."

If there is one thing, more than another, that is liable to add terror
to a low order of human beings, it is noise. It may be said that the
most intelligent are not entirely devoid of the feeling of fear at
inexplainable noises.

As an example, take the sensations produced by thunder and lightning,
one which affects the ear, and the other the eye. During a thunderstorm,
the feeling of fear becomes acute only when the roar is heard.

In this case we know what it is that produces the reverberations; but
even under those circumstances many people are seriously affected by it.
A terrific explosion, of which we do not know the cause, is often the
source of great terror.

This is particularly true with all savage people. The drums referred to,
evidence this particular feeling of awe, and the louder and more
violent, the more intense is it to the untutored mind. It is with this
idea in their minds that they exercise the bad spirits by driving them
away by making great noises, a practice true of most savage tribes.

When John returned to Wonder Island from the United States he had taken
with him several of the well-known Silencers, which, when attached to
the muzzle of a gun, will so deaden the sound that no explosion is
heard.

[Illustration: _Fig. 4. Silencer. Convolute Blades._]

For general use, John knew that the unmuffled gun would be far more
effective than those equipped with the new invention. Smokeless powder
was also used in the guns which John and his company carried. The
absence of smoke thus centers the mind of the native on the sound alone,
and he sees the effect on the victim.

To the savage the sound and the effect of the shot produce the sensation
that there is something more than human in the discharge. It is hard for
them to form an idea of the connection between the report and the
mission of the bullet. It is some monster which speaks in a loud voice.

But it was more than that to the islanders when they saw the witch
doctor fall. There was a white Korino who spoke with a voice of thunder.
They were not aware that he held somethi