rds from our
steamer, and was swimming steadily across from the right to the left
bank of the river. The yawl had already been lowered, and was pushing
off from the side with five men in it, amongst whom Doughby of course
took the lead.

"There he is again," cited Richards. "Of a certainty the man is
possessed by a devil."

"Hurra, boys! Give way!" shouted Doughby, flourishing a rifle full six
feet in length. The four oars clipped into the water, and the boat
flew to the encounter of the deer, who was tranquilly pursuing his
liquid path.

We were about entering one of those picturesque _spreads_, or bays of
the Red River, which perhaps no other stream can boast of in such
abundance, and on so magnificent a scale. The lofty trees and huge
masses of foliage of the dense forest that covered the left bank, bent
forward over the water, the dark green of the cypresses, and the
silver white of the gigantic cotton-trees, casting a bronze-tinted
shadow upon the dusky red stream, which at that point is full fifteen
hundred feet broad; the right bank offering a succession of the most
luxuriant palmetto grounds, with here and there a bean or tulip tree,
amongst the branches of which innumerable parroquets were chattering
and bickering. A pleasant breeze swept across from the palmetto
fields, scarcely sufficient, however, to ruffle the water, which
flowed tranquilly along, undisturbed save by the paddle of our
steamer, that caused the huge black logs and tree-trunks floating upon
the surface, to knock against each other, and heave up their
extremities like so many porpoises. The steamer had just entered the
bay when a boat shot out from under the wood on the left bank, and
greatly increased the romantic character of the scene.

It was a long Indian canoe made out of the hollowed trunk of a cotton
tree; a many-tined antler was stuck in the prow, and dried legs and
haunches of venison lay in the fore part of the boat; towards the
stern sat a young girl, partially enveloped in a striped blanket, but
naked from the waist upwards, impelling the boat in the direction of
the deer by long graceful sweeps of her oar; in front of her was a
squaw of maturer age, performing a like labour. In the centre of the
canoe were two children, queer guinea-pig-looking little devils, and
near these lay a man in all the lazy apathy of a redskin on his return
from on the hunting ground; but towards the stern stood a splendid
Antinous-like young savage