Lost in the Jungle

Querlaouen, Gambo, and Malaouen. We are sworn friends; we have resolved to live in the woods and to

e were quietly seated somewhere near the left bank of the River Ovenga, by the side of a bright fire, and,

when I go back to the land of 'the spirits.'" Malouen, Gambo, and Querlaouen shouted at once, "Let us go in search of the ebony-tree; let

say, the ebony-tree, when old, becomes hollow, and even some of its branches are hollow. Next to the bark is a white "sap-wood." Generally that sap-wood is three or four inches thick; so, unless one knows the tree by the bark, the first few blows of an axe would not reveal to him the dark, black wood found insi

MP

had, such as represented in the accompanying drawing. I show you, also, the drawing of a

heir sharp-pointed leaves! These trees were not very far from the river, or I should rather say from a creek which fell i

f Querlaouen's plantations, and which his wife had forwarded to us. Some bunches of plantains were of enormous size. There were two bunches of bananas for

hunting in the morning, and cut the wood into billets in the afternoon. As we w

here we obtained our drinking water, and a little below tha

great number of mullets which at a certain season of the year come there to spawn. Besides the mono, the

G EBON

les. These birds could look down from the tops of the high trees, on wh

t a ripple could be seen on them. High up on some of the tr

ll over the country, for it is found as far as the sea. Its body was white, and of the size of a fowl, and it had black wings

e young ones. The nest was built, like most of the fish-eagles' nests, with sticks of trees, and occupied a space of several feet in diameter. When once the nest is built it is occupied a good number of years in succession. It is generally placed between the forks of the branches, and can be seen at a great distance. Each year the nest requires repairs, which both the male and female birds atte

ow quick they were in their motion! Sometimes one would catch a fish so big and heavy that it seemed hardly strong enough to rise in the air with it. The natives say that sometimes the eagle

sy, evincing their impatience for the treat of fresh fish, with which the paren

s of offal made a smell which it was surprising the young eagles could endure. In the mean time the young ones had tumbled out of the nest, and while we were looking for them, and just after I had captured one, the parents came swooping down. Goodness! I thought I was going to be attacked by them, for they hovered round, sometimes coming quite close to

tree, from whence, with the aid of my field-telescope, I could watch all that went on in the nest, which contained two young eagles. During the first few days the old birds would feed their young by tear

e, I thought I would go in that direction; so I took out the small shot with which one of the barrels of my gun was loaded, and put in a heavy bullet instead. My revolvers were in the belt round my waist, and had been loaded that very morning. As I approached the spot where the beast was, the more awful sounded the roar, till at last the whole forest re-echoed with the din, and appeared to shake with the tremendous voice of the animal. It was awful; it was appalling to hear. What lungs the monster had, to enable him to emit so deep and awe-inspiring a noise. The other inhabitants of the forest seemed to be silent; the few birds that were in it had stopped their warbling. Suddenl

ch followed the setting of the sun warned me to hurry faster than ever if I wanted to reach the camp. Hark! I hear voices. What can these voices be, those of friends or enemies? I moved from the hunting-path and ascended an adjacent tre

the side of a blazing fire and dried my clothes, which