CHAPTER X
THE LEOPARD
It was a great relief to Ralph, as well as to some others, when helearned that Kirke had escaped; but the men were very wrathful, and Mr.Gilchrist both dissatisfied that he should have avoided punishment, andmore than anxious as to his safety. What, he thought, could such a youngman do in the jungle, or among the half-civilised Burmese natives,without being able to speak their language at all, or help himself inany way.
All the weeks which he himself had spent in Moulmein, and during whichhe had worked hard to master the language, only resulted in enabling himto make himself imperfectly understood.
Ralph, indeed, succeeded better, though by ear rather than from booklore. With the happy effrontery of boyhood, he made the most astoundingshots at Burmese; and, though the Burman lads laughed at his mistakestill they were fain to roll upon the ground from merriment, they,somehow, appeared to comprehend his meaning.
But nothing availed to make the two old Cornishmen speak anything buttheir own tongue.
Kirke had received no lessons, gained no experience, what could he do?
"My good sir," said the Chief Commissioner, to whom Mr. Gilchristimparted his doubts--"My good sir, the lad is certain to be discovered,and brought back here. He is a marked man among the Burmese, and theywill not feed him for nothing. A reward will cause him to be brought inbefore long."
"Drat him!" said Wills. "Good-for-nothing never comes to harm. I hopethey there black fellows will read him a good lesson."
None of them were aware that the apprentice had with him a considerablesum of money in English sovereigns, and time passed on, during whichnothing was heard about him.
Meanwhile, the mates and seamen proceeded to join their captain inRangoon; Price and Simpson, the two sailors who had also been upon theraft, electing to go with their shipmates when they had once more metwith them. Wills and Osborn adhered to their agreement to join Mr.Gilchrist's party; and that gentleman willingly parted with the others,considering that Indian coolies, Tamil or Telegu natives, would be ofmore use to him.
It was time to start upon the expedition now, and preparations were soonmade. The Rangoon branch of Herford Brothers' house of business frankedall expenses; and a bullock-gharrie, or native cart, was purchased,furnished with an awning to protect the travellers from sun and rain,and drawn by a couple of stout buffaloes.
Light baskets and other means for packing orchids were prepared; andstores of various kinds were added, as coffee, tinned meats andbiscuits; but they hoped to obtain some provisions as they went throughBurmese villages.
The gharrie was packed, the buffaloes harnessed, and the travellers weretaking their seats, when suddenly a distant roar was heard.
"Hark!" cried the coolie in charge of the animals, holding up hisfinger.
The sound distinctly approached, and shouting some unintelligiblewords, the fellow goaded the buffaloes into as rapid movement aspossible, hurrying the whole concern back into its original shelter inthe compound.
The reason was quickly made apparent, for black clouds drove up from theweather-quarter, and sheets of rain descended upon the hot baked earth,which, unable to absorb anything like the deluge, allowed it to run off,in every direction, in plentiful streams.
It did not last long. Before two hours were over the ground showed butslight traces of damp, the gharrie was brought out again, and the partyset off down the Mapoon road, following the course of the stream uponthe way to Amherst.
"What did the fellow tie that bunch of plantains up to the front of thegharrie for?" asked Ralph. "We don't want fruit all covered with dustand flies."
"That is not fruit for us," replied Mr. Gilchrist, laughing. "That is anoffering for any spirit whom we may chance to meet wandering about. Itmight be unfortunate if we should offend such gentry."
"Is it to warn them of our approach that they let our wheels make such acreaking? Cannot we oil them, or something, to stop it? And must we bedeafened by those ugly square bells tied to the buffaloes' throats?"
"I believe that it will be best to try and put up with the customs ofthe country in which we find ourselves, Ralph; at least until we arequite certain that altering them to please ourselves may not be givingthe natives unnecessary offence. We shall soon become used to suchtrifles as that. See, we are approaching the great timber works."
Huge trunks of teak, and other valuable trees suitable for shipbuilding, were floated down as rafts from the dense forests up theriver, and here cut into suitable form and size for being transported toEngland.
It was wonderful to observe the skill and judgment displayed by theelephants employed in moving these immense hulks from the river-banks upto the spot where machinery awaited them. They were no less skilful inperceiving the best way for pushing, lifting, or driving the timber,than wary in avoiding the machinery if obliged to pass near it. Ralphwas immensely diverted to observe how each animal, in making his way bythe place where a circular saw was at work, invariably moved his owntail to the farther side, so as to preserve his cherished appendagescathless from injury. He was told that at one time many elephants hadtheir tails cut off by accident here, until they learnt caution to thisextent.
So much interested and amused were the travellers by all which they sawin this place, that they proceeded no farther that day, it having beenlate when they started; but the next morning saw them early on theirroute; and that day, leaving the high roads, they plunged into forestpaths, and began to make their way through the jungle in earnest.
They proposed driving to a small Karen village to which a native hadoffered to guide them, and which was situated in a locality where manyorchids were reported to grow.
The native hired to show them the way promised that they should arrivethere in "the boiling of two pots of rice." This was understood to be inabout half an hour, but the little journey really occupied thrice thatlength of time, for rain again poured down in a perfect sheet, and thebullocks could hardly make their way through it.
All were glad when they arrived, and were able to procure shelter. Thehouses were raised upon high posts, comfortably built of wood, andthatched. Whether this elevation was intended to preserve the familyfrom the damp, or from wild animals, they could not discover. Mr.Gilchrist thought the form of erection partook of each reason.
The lower part had a verandah around it, and was floored a little abovethe ground with bamboos. The gharrie was accommodated in a portion ofthis lower place, and arranged for the travellers' accommodation atnight.
The women of the house prepared them some rice while this was beingdone, and served it, with fish upon a separate platter.
The rain was over for the time when they were rested and refreshed, sothey started for an expedition into the jungle, with which the villagewas closely surrounded.
They soon found plenty of orchids, and became so much interested in theselection of the rarest specimens, that the light failed them, and theycould scarcely "distinguish the veins in a man's hand," which theirBurmese guide seemed to consider a felicitous method of describing thehour.
They remounted the gharrie, and were proceeding on their way with theslow deliberation which formed the bullocks' greatest speed, when Ralphperceived a huge, dark mass of something lying right across their path,with two points of living fire gleaming sullenly from it.
It was an enormous leopard, taking its rest, but with watchful eyes.
The bullocks, perceiving the danger in the same moment as the men, madea sudden lurch to one side, nearly upsetting the gharrie, and causingthe wheels on one side to sink into a mud-hole, half filled with waterfrom the recent rain.
They stuck fast in this, and the terrified beasts could not drag themout. They plunged, snorted, and laboured desperately; while thebeautiful sleek brute rose, stretched himself, and prepared to spring.
Ralph thought his last hour had arrived, but firearms were at hand.
Mr. Gilchrist snatched up a loaded gun, fired, but with too uncertain anaim, for he could not control th
e trembling of his nerves at this firstand sudden sight of so terrible an animal in his native jungle.
The driver of the gharrie, with a howl, abandoned his seat in front, andcrept into the recesses within to hide. The leopard made his spring, andfastened upon the nearest bullock. Ralph uttered a cry as desperate asthat of the native, and discharged a pistol full at the creature.
So close upon them as he was, it was impossible to miss hitting itsomewhere; the bullet entered its shoulder, and a trickle of blood borewitness to the fact.
The pistol was a revolver, and Ralph shot again and again, for all thechambers were loaded; but his hand shook, and several bullets went wideof the mark, though he hit the leopard in the ear and in the side.
The creature abandoned its work of mangling the poor bullock, when itsuffered the first shot, raised its proud head and looked the boy fullin the face; crouched again, and, lashing its tail with fury, was on thepoint of leaping straight into the waggon, when, his arm steadied by theemergency, Mr. Gilchrist discharged his second barrel in its face, andshot it straight through the head.
Osborn at the same moment, having withheld his shot until it was certainto take effect, hit it in the neck, and the animal rolled over in itsdying agonies.
The Burmese bullock-driver now emerged from his retirement, veryglorious over the defeat of the enemy; he danced round it with joy, andlauded "_our_ courage," "_our_ success," "_our_ bravery," until oldWills was obliged literally to spit out his contempt.
"Shut up!" he growled. "Hold your ridiculous jaw! Much good you were,you coward! Next time we will throw you out for the cat to set histalons in those absurd blue breeches of yourn. Better you than our poorbuffalo. Here, hand me that knife, and let me put the poor wretch out ofits sufferings."
For the buffalo was not dead, though paralysed by the leopard's teethand claws in its spine, at the back of its throat. It turned a patheticeye upon its friends, as it asking for help, but there was nothing to bedone but to put it out of its misery.
Ralph shuddered, and felt very sick; Mr. Gilchrist also was faint whenthe pressure of excitement passed away, and Wills made both of them takesome cordial to steady their nerves.
Osborn meantime lit their lamps, and set some flaring torches into theground, preparatory to skinning the leopard, which was a splendid beast.
Ralph collected wood, and built up a fire with some difficulty, as therain was coming down again almost like a waterspout. However, it stoppedafter a while, the boy was lavish with his kerosene oil, poured over thedamp branches, and a bonfire rewarded his exertions, drying theirgarments, illuminating the wild scene, and enabling him to boil somecoffee, of which they all gladly partook, with biscuits and othercomestibles from their tinned stores.
It was late before the leopard was safely and carefully skinned. Thebuffalo was not worth the trouble, being too much mangled, but the mencut off its head, as the skull and horns were worth preserving. It wouldsoon be reduced to bare bones if left to the mercy of the white ants. Topreserve the fine hide of the leopard from them was a greaterdifficulty.
The party camped down in their gharrie, with fires set around them, forthe short night, when all was done; and proceeded in the cool of themorning to the Karen village. Here they were received with great delightwhen the driver announced the event of the night. The villagersimmediately started to bring in the carcase of the leopard upon hurdles.Part of its flesh was dried and pounded, to be used as medicine; butthey feasted upon the remains of the bullock; and tried hard, both byfair means and foul, to induce Mr. Gilchrist to part with the leopard'sclaws, to be used as charms, but he refused all overtures of this kind.
In spite of this, the poor people were very kind to our friends, andthey made up their minds to remain there for a few days until they couldfind a suitable buffalo wherewith to replace their loss, which did notseem to be easy in this place, the people being very poor.