of the Far
West Forests. The explorers could venture there without having anything
to fear from the heat, for the sun's rays scarcely penetrated through
the thick foliage spreading above their heads. They thus visited all the
left bank of the Mercy, along which ran the road from the corral to the
mouth of Falls River.

But in these excursions the settlers took care to be well armed, for
they met with savage wild boars, with which they often had a tussle.
They also, during this season, made fierce war against the jaguars.
Gideon Spilett had vowed a special hatred against them, and his pupil
Herbert seconded him well. Armed as they were, they no longer feared
to meet one of those beasts. Herbert's courage was superb, and the
reporter's sang-froid astonishing. Already twenty magnificent skins
ornamented the dining-room of Granite House, and if this continued, the
jaguar race would soon be extinct in the island, the object aimed at by
the hunters.

The engineer sometimes took part in the expeditions made to the unknown
parts of the island, which he surveyed with great attention. It was for
other traces than those of animals that he searched the thickets of the
vast forest, but nothing suspicious ever appeared. Neither Top nor Jup,
who accompanied him, ever betrayed by their behavior that there was
anything strange there, and yet more than once again the dog barked at
the mouth of the well, which the engineer had before explored without
result.

At this time Gideon Spilett, aided by Herbert, took several views of
the most picturesque parts of the island, by means of the photographic
apparatus found in the cases, and of which they had not as yet made any
use.

This apparatus, provided with a powerful object-glass, was very
complete. Substances necessary for the photographic reproduction,
collodion for preparing the glass plate, nitrate of silver to render it
sensitive, hyposulfate of soda to fix the prints obtained, chloride of
ammonium in which to soak the paper destined to give the positive proof,
acetate of soda and chloride of gold in which to immerse the paper,
nothing was wanting. Even the papers were there, all prepared,
and before laying in the printing-frame upon the negatives, it was
sufficient to soak them for a few minutes in the solution of nitrate of
silver.

The reporter and his assistant became in a short time very skilful
operators, and they obtained fine views of the country, such as the
island, take