Page:Dick Sands the Boy Captain.djvu/241

MTSGIVINGS. 213 had seen plenty of them before, for owing to theîr réputation of being the most clever in mimickry of the Psittacidae, they hâve been domesticated everywhere in both the Old and New worlds. But Jack's dissatîsfaction was nothîng compared to Cousin Benedict's. In spite of beîng allovved to wander away from the rank, he had failed to dîscover a single insect which was worth the pursuît ; not even a fire-fly danced at nîght ; nature seemed to be mocking him, and his ill-humour increased accordingly. In this way the journcy was continued for four days longer, and on the i6th it was cstimatcd that they must hâve travelled between eighty and ninety miles north-east- wards from the coast. Harris positîvely asserted that they could not be much morethan twenty miles from San Fclice, and that by pushing forwards they might expect in eight- and-forty hours to find themselves lodged in comfortable quarters. But although they had thus succccdcd in traversing this vast table-land, they had not seen one human inhabitant. Dick was more than ever perplexed, and it was a subject of bitter regret to him that they had not strandcd upon some more frequented part of the shore, near some village or plantation whcrc Mrs. Weldon might long since hâve found a suitable refuge. Deserted, however, as the country apparently was by man, it had latterly shovvn itself much more abundantly tenanted by animais. Many a time a long, plaintive cry was heard, which Hairis attributed to the tardîgradcs or sloths often found in wooded districts, and known by the nameof"aïs;" and in the middie of the dinncr-halt on this day, a loud hissing suddenly broke upon the air which made Mrs. Weldon start to her feet in alarm. " A serpent ! " cricd Dick, catching up his loadcd gun. The negroes, following Dick*s example, wcrc in a moment on the alert. " Don't fire ! " cricd Harris. There was îndeed nothing improbable în the supposition that a " sucuru," a species of boa, sometimes mcasuring forty