Old Gold Part 30

No landing was attempted, the experience they had gained making the travellers disposed to wait until more open country was reached and they could feel more secure.

The captain asked Briscoe what more he could wish for.

"If you take a boat it will only be to go up a small stream and look for curiosities. You can do that as well here on board the brig without f.a.gging the men with rowing along under the trees, where there is not a breath of air. Look yonder now: I don't suppose you'd see such a thing as that if you were rowing. The noise of the oars would make it dive and keep out of sight."

"What is it?" said Brace: "it looks like a buffalo bathing."

"Not it, sir. Look again."

"A dugong," said Briscoe, c.o.c.king and raising his double rifle.

"Dugong or manatee. Sea-cows, we call 'em. Going to shoot it, sir?"

The American hesitated.

"It seems tempting," he said; "but I don't know. It's too big for a specimen."

"And not very good to eat; at least, I don't suppose we should like it."

"I've got it now," said Brace, who had hurriedly adjusted his gla.s.s and was watching the huge creature, which kept on showing itself in a muddy bend of the river a few yards from the bank. "It looks like a monstrous seal."

"Something like a seal, squire, but I should say it was more like a walrus. It hasn't got the great tusks of the walrus, though. You can see it well, eh?"

"Capitally," replied Brace. "Not dangerous, are they?"

"Not that I ever heard of, squire. They're great stupid innocents, as far as I know. That one wouldn't wait for a boat to get anywhere near it; but if it did I daresay in its fright it might upset the craft. I fancy all they want is to be let alone. Pretty good size, eh?"

"Yes," said Brace; "I wish my brother were here to see it."

"Very tempting for a shot," said Briscoe, fingering his gun.

"Very," said the captain sarcastically. "Couldn't well miss it, sir, eh?"

"Oh, I daresay I could," said the American; "I'm very clever that way, skipper, sometimes. But there, I don't want to kill the poor thing.

Would you like to shoot, Brace Leigh?"

"No," said the young man. "It seems such a stupid, inoffensive-looking beast. I should like a shot at a jaguar or a leopard, and I could not resist having a shot at one of those loathsome old alligators if I saw one."

"There you are then," said Briscoe softly, as he pointed to what seemed to be a trunk of an old tree floating along not very far away from the brig between the verdant bank of the river and the side of the vessel.

Brace looked at it hard before he fully grasped what the object was, and then c.o.c.ked the left-hand barrel of his gun.

"Don't shoot," said Briscoe. "It is only waste of powder and bullet."

"I could hit the brute without any trouble," said Brace.

"I don't doubt that," said the American; "but the bullet will most likely glance off, while if it gets home the reptile will only sink."

"So I suppose; but it will be one fewer of the savage beasts."

"One out of millions," said Briscoe. "Besides, you'll scare away that water-elephant, and we may as well watch it for a bit."

"Gone--both of them," said Brace, laughing, as he lowered the hammer of his piece, for the sea-cow suddenly gave a wallow and went down with a loud splash as if it had been alarmed by the sight of something approaching, while its disturbance of the water acted upon the great alligator, which sank at once, startling another, of whose presence the watchers were not aware till they caught a glimpse of the reptile's tail as it disappeared.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN.

THE ENEMIES IN THE STREAM.

In the days which followed Captain Banes navigated his brig so skilfully that the adventurers progressed far up into what seemed to be perfectly virgin country. Before a week had pa.s.sed Sir Humphrey was able to be up on deck, looking a good deal pulled down, but mending fast.

A good-sized awning had been stretched aft for his benefit, and here he sat back during the greater part of the day with a gla.s.s to his eye, watching the many changes of the river as the brig tacked to and fro in some reaches or ran blithely before the wind in others, for the river wound about and sometimes even completely reversed its course.

And now, as the distance between the sh.o.r.es gradually became narrower, the travellers saw the value of the long tapering spars the captain ran up, to bear each a couple of square-sails--sky-sc.r.a.pers he called them.

These were spread so high above the deck that they caught the breeze when the lower pieces of canvas were either quite becalmed or s.h.i.+vered slightly and refused to urge the vessel against the steadily-flowing stream.

The river was still a goodly stream, and its muddy waters ran deep and showed no sign of rock on either sh.o.r.e.

Day after day the same kind of thickly-wooded forest was seen on both sh.o.r.es, until it became almost monotonous.

Now and then they saw a bare trunk, high up whose jagged, splintered branches were marks--dried, muddy weeds and seeds--which still clung and showed to what a marvellous height the river must rise at times, turning the surrounding country for miles into one vast marsh.

"Fine river this, mister," said the captain one day, as they were gliding slowly on, the pressure of the wind being just sufficient to make the brig master the stream. "Plenty of water; no rocks. I think it would be a bit different if it was up yonder where you come from."

"Yes," said Briscoe, smiling. "There'd be plenty of towns on the banks, well-cultivated farms everywhere, and all kinds of plantations; and instead of crawling along like this we should be travelling up in a steamer."

"With plenty of n.i.g.g.e.rs along the banks to cut down the forests for burning in the engine fires, eh?" the captain asked.

"Yes; these forests would soon be put to some purpose, captain."

"Yes," said Sir Humphrey; "it must seem strange to you to sail on for hundreds of miles through wild land and find it quite in a state of nature. How much farther do you think we shall be able to sail up here?"

The captain did not answer immediately, but smiled in a curiously grim fas.h.i.+on. Then he said:

"If you'll tell me how long these favourable winds will last, sir: how long we shall be without a storm in the mountains: and how long it will be before we encounter rocks and falls, perhaps I can answer you; but this is all as new to me as it is to you, and I cannot tell you anything about what's going to happen to-morrow. But I suppose it don't matter for a few weeks. You don't want to do any boat work till you get better."

"That's true," said Sir Humphrey; "and it is very pleasant sailing up between these wonderful banks of trees."

"Yes, very pleasant, sir; but it makes my crew so idle that I'm afraid they won't understand the meaning of the word work, much less be able to spell it when I want it done."

"Never mind, captain," said Brace. "Sail away: it's all so gloriously new."

So they sailed on and on through what seemed to be eternal summer.

Now and then a shot was obtained, and some beautiful bird was collected, or a loathsome reptile's career was brought to an end, the monster sinking down in the muddy water.

On one occasion a great serpent was seen hanging in folds across the bough of a tree which dipped lower towards the river with its weight.