, and to meet it
either means to kill it or to be killed.

It is very fond of the tender shoots of sweet potatoes and for this will
often visit the crops cultivated by the Sakais who, for fear of this
dreaded enemy, do not plant very much. Generally, though, the _sladan_
devastates the potato fields during the night.

The ferocity of this beast surpasses that of all others, for whilst the
lion, the bear and even the tiger and panther have been known to show
some feeling of respect, gratitude or fear, the _sladan_ never exhibits
one or the other. It would almost seem that in him is concentrated all
the hatred of a race of animals, fast dying out, against every living
creature whose species is still destined to remain in the world.

And yet quite close to the haunts of these champions in savagery, always
on the look out for blood and carnage, live other quiet and harmless
animals. I will say nothing of the wild boar (that in comparison with
the _sladan_, might pass for a lamb) of the wild goat or of the deer
which are in great numbers, but there are little rodent quadrupeds of
every sort, size, and fur, besides perfect crowds of monkeys of
different kinds. They belong to the herbivorous order and go about by
day in search of food, hiding themselves when the first shades of night
call forth from their dens the heroes of nocturnal tragedies.

A garrulous population of birds enliven the forest; they are
insectivorous, granivorous, and omnivorous but all are beautiful in
their rich and wonderful variety of colour. Amongst these the pheasant
for its oriental plumage and the cockatoo for its querulous voice are
remarkable as the largest.

A gay concert is given in honour of the dawning and the dying day but
long before the birds of prey have unfolded their wings and soar, like
phantoms, through the darkness, the pretty carol-singers hush their
warblings and hide themselves from the horrors of the night.

A collector of butterflies would go into ecstasies over the splendid
varieties that flutter and flit in the air, and the countless multitude
of different insects would be well worth special study; amongst the
latter are verified the most curious mimetic facts that ever the
unprejudiced mind of a man of politics could imagine!

And yet, in the midst of so many contrasts, in the midst of so many
dangers which exact exceptional presence of mind and strong nerves, life
in the forest is full of charm and allurements.

The s