CHAPTER TWELVE.
HOW WATCH WAS KEPT BY NIGHT.
The sheet which I have called our tent was stretched over a low bough,and secured to pegs at the four corners, being all open at the sides, sothat as I lay I could gaze right away in any direction.
On one side there was gloom, with the tall pillar-like tree trunksstanding up grey and indistinct; on the other side there was the brightfire, which was as dangerous, I thought, as it was useful, for though itserved to keep off wild beasts it was likely to attract savage men, justas moths fly to a flame.
As I lay there I could see the doctor keeping watch, and beside him oneof the natives, whose black face looked curious and ghastly with thebandage he wore round his head, for this was one of the men who had beenseized by the captain of the other schooner, and who had eagerlyvolunteered to be of our party.
This man was gazing intently at the doctor, as if eager to catch theslightest indication of a wish, and so still and misty did he look inthe weird light that but for the flaming of the fire from his eyes itwould have been hard to tell that he was a living being.
Though it was not cold our black followers all slept close about thefire, Jimmy the nearest--so close, in fact, that he seemed as if he werebeing prepared for a feast on the morrow; and this idea of roasting camethe more strongly from the fact that we were in a land whose inhabitantswere said to have certain weaknesses towards a taste for human joints.
Jack Penny was sleeping heavily close to me, and at regular intervalsseeming to announce that he was dreaming of eating, for his lips gavevent over and over again to the word _pork_!
Sometimes this regular snoring sound annoyed me, but I forgot it againdirectly as I lay sleepless there, now watching the gloom of the forest,now the flickering and dancing light of the fire as the wood crackledand burned and the sparks and smoke went straight up, till they werelost on high amid the densely thick branches overhead.
It was a curious sensation to be there in that awful solitude, thinkingof my past adventures, and wondering what the next day might bringforth. I wanted to sleep and rest, so as to rise refreshed when thedoctor called me two hours after midnight, when I was to relieve guard;but sleep would not come, and I lay fidgeting about, wondering how itwas possible that such a small twig could set up so much irritationbeneath my back.
Then, just as I thought I was going off there would be the sensation asof some creeping insect crawling about over my face and in amongst theroots of my hair. Then after impatiently knocking it away, somethingseemed to be making its way up my sleeve, to be succeeded by somethingelse in the leg of my trousers, while I had hardly got rid of thissensation when a peculiarly clammy cold touch taught me that either alizard or a snake was crawling over my feet.
This last I felt constrained to bear, for a movement might result in thebite of some poisonous creature, while by lying still I might escape.
At last I really was dropping off into a sound sleep, when all at once Istarted into wakefulness, fascinated as it were by the sight ofsomething shining in the black darkness to the left of our fire.
With a shudder running through me I rose to my elbow, at the same momentseizing my gun, when a single intent glance convinced me that I wasright, for certainly some creature was watching the doctor, and probablycrouching before making a deadly bound.
I cocked the piece softly, holding the trigger the while, so that thereshould be no sharp click, and in another moment I should have fired,after careful aim, between the two bright glaring eyes, when the doctormade a movement, and the animal darted aside and went bounding off, justgiving me a glimpse of its form, which was that of a small deer.
I saw the doctor shade his eyes and stand watching the flying creature.Then stooping down he picked up a few branches that had been gatheredready, and made the fire blaze more brightly.
As the glow increased I saw something which there was no mistaking for aharmless deer, for not ten yards away there was a large cat-likecreature crouching close to the ground, while, to make assurance doublysure, there came from between its bared and glistening white teeth a lowangry snarl.
I took aim, and tried to get a good sight at its head, but hesitated todraw trigger, for the glow from the fire made appearances deceptive, thebody of the cat-like beast seeming to waver up and down; and directlyafter the creature moved, and its head was covered by a low bush.
But the doctor and his companion had both seen the animal, which uttereda menacing roar as the former stepped forward, snatched a piece ofburning wood from the fire, and hurled it towards the beast, his examplebeing followed by the New Guinea man.
The result was a furious roar, and the great cat bounded away towardsthe forest.
This brought Gyp to his feet with a fierce volley of barking, and hewould have been off in pursuit but for his master, who woke up and ranout exclaiming:
"Dingoes after the sheep! dingoes after the sheep! Here, Gyp, boy!here, Gyp--here--eh! I say, is anything the matter?"
"No, no; all right!" cried the doctor.
"I--I thought I was at home," said Jack, rubbing his eyes; "and--oh! howsleepy I am."
"Lie down again, then," said the doctor; and Jack obeyed, Gyp followingand curling up close by his master, who very soon resumed his heavybreathing, in so objectionable a manner that I felt over and over againas if I should like to kick him and wake him up.
For there is nothing on earth so annoying as to be unable to sleep whensome one close by is snoring away in happy oblivion.
As I lay there with my face turned from the fire, so that it should notkeep me awake, I felt more and more the sensation of awe produced bybeing there in the midst of that wild place. While I was perfectlystill my eyes were directed upwards in amongst the branches of the greattree, now illumined by the bright flame of our fire, and by degrees Imade out that these boughs were peopled by birds and what seemed to besquirrels, and all more or less excited by the unaccustomed light.
I lay gazing up at them, seeing the different objects very indistinctlyin the dancing light, and then all at once it seemed to me that oneparticular branch was rising and falling slowly with a peculiarmovement. It was a strange wavy motion, which was the more remarkablefrom the fact that there was no wind; but after a moment or two'sthought I fancied I had found the cause in the heated air produced bythe fire.
But that did not explain what next took place in the smoky obscurityabove the fire, for the branch seemed to wave about more and more, andto lengthen; and then I made sure that it was the shadow I saw; butdirectly after, a thrill ran through me as I recalled that thesecreatures were fond of nestling high up in branches, where they capturedbirds and monkeys, and I said in a low hoarse whisper:
"Why, it's a snake!"
There was no doubt about the matter, for as it swung lower, holding onby its tail, I could see that it was indeed a snake, evidently ofconsiderable length, and about as thick as my arm. It had been arousedfrom probably a torpid state by the fumes of the fire, and was nowdescending from bough to bough to reach the earth, and I paused for atime, asking myself what I had better do.
The result was that I overcame the unwillingness I felt to move, andcrept so softly towards the doctor that I was able to lay my hand uponhis shoulder before he heard me approach.
"Why, Joe!" he exclaimed, starting, "I thought it was an enemy."
"Yes; there he is!" I said with a shudder, and I pointed up among thebranches.
The black who was the doctor's fellow-watcher had seen me approach, andfollowing with his eyes the direction pointed to by my hand, he toolooked up into the tree, where, glistening in the fire-light, there wasthe reptile swinging slowly to and fro with a pendulum-like motion.
In spite of the horror inspired by such a creature, free and within afew yards of where I was standing, I could not help noticing the beautyof the scales, which shone in the fire-light as if of burnished bronze.But I had little time for examination; one moment I was noting the headand curved neck of the reptile, the next ther
e was a sharp twangingnoise, and I saw the serpent's head jerk upwards, and then what seemedto be a mass of thick rope fell near the fire; there was a tremendouslashing and tossing about, and when the doctor and I approached the spotcautiously with our guns, it was to find that the reptile had glided offinto the forest depths.
"A good shot for a bow and arrow," said the doctor, turning to our blackcompanion, who smiled complacently, our manner plainly showing him thatwe were admiring his skill.
"You are getting a poor night's rest, Joe," said the doctor smiling."Now go and lie down again."
"It is of no use," I said fretfully. "I can't sleep, and I only liethinking about home and him. I shall stay and watch."
The doctor protested, but finding at last that I was unwilling to liedown again, he said:
"Well, I am quite different, for I am so tired that I cannot keep awake.I will go and lie down then, if you promise to come and wake me as soonas you are drowsy. Mind and keep up a good blaze."
I replied that he might be sure of that.
"Don't fire unnecessarily," he continued. "If any wild animal comesnear, a piece of burning wood will scare it away at once."
"As it did that great cat!" I said.
"Did you see, then?" he said.
"I have not been asleep for a single minute," I replied. "What was it--a tiger?"
"Tiger! No, my lad," he said, laughing; "I don't think we shall see anytigers here. There, I shall yawn my head off if I stop here talking.Good night!"
He walked to the shelter, and I went and sat down next our blackcompanion, who smiled a welcome; and thinking this a favourableopportunity, I set to work to try and increase my knowledge of thelanguage, by lifting up different objects and making the black give themtheir native name, which I tried to imitate as well as I could.
He was very intelligent, grasping my meaning at once, and repeating thewords again and again, till I was nearly perfect, when he laughed withchildlike pleasure.
The time passed so quickly in this occupation that I was quite startledby hearing a wild resonant cry that seemed to echo through the forestarcades. Then there was a succession of piercing screams, followed byloud whistling and muttering. A monkey started a chattering noise,which was answered from a distance with a hundredfold power; and lookingabout me I found that the day was breaking and the night-watch at anend.
The change from night to morning is very rapid near the equator, andsoon the sun was making bright and attractive places that had lookedawful and full of hidden dangers in the night; while, in place of thedepression produced by the darkness, I felt eager sensations and desiresspringing up within my heart, and a strong inclination to get forwardonce more upon our journey.
We made a very hearty meal before the sun was much above the horizon;our simple packing was soon done, and we were not long before we werewell on the road of discovery.
I expected to be very tired and sleepy, but to my surprise I did notfeel in the least the worse for my restless night, and we trudged alongpretty swiftly when the land was open, slowly and toilsomely whentangled growth obstructed our way.
I was too much occupied with thoughts of my father to pay much heed tothe fruits and flowers that we came upon in many spots; besides, I wason before with Jack Penny, and Gyp in front of us very intelligentlyleading the way. There was, I knew, always the chance of meeting somedanger, and on this account we kept a very sharp look-out ahead, tillsuddenly we were stopped by a strange noise as of water being struck asuccession of heavy blows; and as Gyp set up his ears, threw up hisnose, and uttered a low whimper, there was the click, click ofgun-locks, and every one prepared for some coming danger, the blacksremaining quiet, and looking wonderingly at our strange proceedings.
The sound ceased as suddenly as it had begun, and though we listenedintently we heard it no more for that time, so we continued our journeywith every one thoroughly on the alert.
Bunyip Land: A Story of Adventure in New Guinea Page 12