The Wanderers; Or, Adventures in the Wilds of Trinidad and Orinoco

by William Henry Giles Kingston

  CHAPTER SIX.

  WE LIGHT A FIRE--A MORNING SCENE--DESCRIPTION OF "GROVE ISLAND"--ATTACKED BY MACAWS--THE SLOTH--KALLOLO TAMES A PARROT.

  We had no fear of starving, even though we might not be able to quit ourpresent abode for many days to come, but we were surrounded by dangersto which we could not shut our eyes. The trees, vast as they were,might be uprooted and hurled prostrate into the flood, should anotherstorm come on; or the lightning might strike them, and every one of usbe destroyed. Besides, many weeks might pass before we could descendand travel over the dry ground; and even then, in what direction shouldwe go? Very probably we should fall into the hands of savages, whowould keep us in slavery; at all events, we should have to encounterseveral wild beasts and venomous serpents,--the mighty boa, or anaconda,or the still more terrible bush-master, or labarri, so dreaded in thisregion.

  What had become of our father and the brave skipper, Jan van Dunk, wecould not tell. Uncle Paul did his utmost to keep up our spirits,setting us the example by his cheerfulness, and by showing his perfectconfidence in Providence.

  We had, as I have said, a supply of food; but how to cook it? was thequestion. Kallolo declared there would be no danger in lighting a firein the fork of the tree, provided we did not allow it to burn longerthan was necessary, and kept a watch to prevent its extending up thebark on either side. Uncle Paul always carried a small tinder-box andmatches, so that we could at once obtain a light. We accordinglycollected a supply of dry branches, of which there was an abundanceattached to the various parts of the trees. Kallolo again set off,taking my wand and noose; and by the time the fire had been lighted andhad burned up sufficiently, he returned with several birds, addingconsiderably to our stock of provisions. They were all quickly pluckedand spitted, and we were soon busily engaged in cooking them. Timinsisted on dressing his frogs, and Sambo the lizard he had caught, bothdeclaring that they would prove more tender than the birds. How theymight have appeared had they been put into a pot and boiled, I cannotsay; as it was, they certainly presented an unattractive appearance.Some large leaves served us as plates, and we had to use our fingersinstead of knives and forks; but notwithstanding, we made a very heartymeal. I tasted part of the hind leg of one of the frogs, and Icertainly should not have known it from a tender young chicken cooked inthe same way. Kallolo in his last trip had brought down a few morefigs, one of which he presented to each of us as a dessert. Timdeclared that the banquet would have been perfect if we could have had alittle of the "cratur," or, in the absence of it, a cup of hot coffee.We had to quench our thirst with some of the very turbid watersurrounding us, which we brought up in our hats.

  The day passed far more rapidly than I could have supposed possible.The storm had completely subsided, but the waters in no way lessened;indeed, they were slightly higher than on the previous night. UnclePaul advised that we should all look out for sleeping-places, where wemight rest without the danger of tumbling off. Our first care was tofind one for Marian. A mass of sepos hung down and formed a regularhammock close under a bough, and by carefully arranging a few moresepos, Uncle Paul and Arthur made it so secure that it was impossiblefor her to fall out. They told me to take a berth of a similarcharacter close to her, while Uncle Paul formed one for himself on abough, a little on one side. The rest of the party arranged themselvesas they thought fit; Kallolo, with his new friend, climbing up to one ofthe higher boughs, on which he stretched himself, with the monkeycrouching down close to him. The way in which he kept close to thenative showed that he had long been accustomed to human society, and wasdelighted to find himself in it again.

  Our first night in our tree-home was passed in perfect tranquillity.Scarcely a breath of air moved the leaves. The sky was clear, and thecrescent moon overhead afforded just sufficient light to enable us toget into our respective berths. We were all weary with the exertionsand anxiety we had gone through, and the want of sleep during theprevious night, and scarcely had we got into our nests when the eyes ofmost of us, I suspect, were closed. I just kept awake long enough tosee that Marian had gone off into a quiet slumber, and then quicklydropped into the land of dreams; and I don't think I ever slept moresoundly than I did in my strange resting-place.

  I might possibly have slumbered on till the sun was high in the sky, butI was awakened, ere the light of early dawn had penetrated amid thethick foliage which surrounded us, by a strange concert of sounds.Monkeys were jabbering overhead; tree-frogs were quacking; parrots werechattering and macaws were screeching more loudly than all, as they flewover the topmost boughs. For some time I was too much confused toremember where I was, or what was producing the strange din in my ears.In vain I tried to go to sleep again, and at length I was completelyaroused. My first impulse was to look out for Marian. She was stillsleeping calmly, while the rest of the party, as far as I could discernby the uncertain light, were resting in the positions in which I hadseen them at night. Gradually the dawn drew on, and on sitting up Icaught sight of half a dozen ugly-looking faces peering down on us. Iknew that they were those of monkeys which had descended from thetopmost boughs, whither they had retreated when we took possession oftheir abode. Two or three of them then approached Quacko, and tried toinduce him to rejoin them. He answered their invitations by indignantgestures, which seemed to say that he had no intention, after findinghimself again in civilised society, of returning to savage life. Thenoise he made awoke his new friend Kallolo, however, who began to talkto him in the language which he seemed to understand, and presently themonkey came down from his perch and nestled in his arms.

  The rays of the rising sun streaming amid the boughs awoke the rest ofthe party, who, getting out of their respective nests, scrambled on tothe main bough. Uncle Paul suggested that we should set to workimmediately to procure food for breakfast. My plan for noosing birdsbeing generally adopted, Arthur, as well as Kallolo and Sambo, at oncecut some wands and fitted them in a manner similar to mine.

  We agreed to let Marian sleep on till breakfast was ready. Before thefood could be eaten, however, it had to be hunted for and cooked, and aswe were all hungry, we set off among the branches in search of whateverwe could find. I climbed higher than I had before done, and reached asmall fig-tree growing in the fork of a large branch. A number of birdswere perched on it, some with black and red plumage, others with headsand necks of a bright red, while the wings and tails were of a darkgreen and black. They were employed in eating the ripe fruit. Idetermined to catch as many as I could before securing some of thelatter. Carefully climbing on, I set to work, and succeeded in noosingfour of each species. Having filled my pockets and cap with as many ofthe ripe figs as I could carry, after I had driven the birds away withloud shouts, hoping they would not return till I had made a second visitto the fig-tree, I began to descend, though not without difficulty; for,as every one knows, it is easier to climb up than to get down a tree,and a fall from a branch would have been a serious matter.

  I reached our resting-place in safety, and found Marian seated by theside of Uncle Paul. The rest of the party came in soon after, allhaving had some success. Tim, however, had got only one bird, but heboasted of having collected half a dozen frogs; while Sambo had caughtthe same number of lizards. Arthur had secured a couple of good-sizedparrots; and Kallolo had discovered a macaw's nest, the young of whichhe had taken, with a good supply of figs. Altogether, we had reason tobe satisfied with our morning's hunt, as we had food enough to last usfor the day. The birds I had caught were found to be manakins andtiger-birds. The latter were small, and though their bodies wereill-shaped, their flesh was tender and well-tasted.

  Though our position was full of anxiety, we should not have been unhappycould we have known that our father had escaped. Uncle Paul told usthat he had been to the end of a bough from which he could obtain a viewboth up and down the stream, but that he had failed to get a sight ofthe sloop; neither could he see anything of the mate and the Indian, whohad been carried overboard when attempti
ng to secure the vessel to thetrunk of a tree.

  We collected some more dried branches and withered leaves, sufficient tomake a fire for cooking our provisions.

  "I wish we had a pot for boiling water," I remarked.

  "It would be a mighty good thing, Mr Guy, if we had any tay to make init, and some sugar to sweeten it," observed Tim.

  "In the meantime, we should be thankful that we have got so muchwholesome food, and cold water to quench our thirst; though, forMarian's sake, I should be glad to have had some tea," said Uncle Paul.

  "Oh, don't think about me," exclaimed Marian. "I am perfectly contentto drink cold water, and do not wish for anything which it is impossibleto obtain."

  "You are a sensible girl," said Uncle Paul, patting her cheek. "Theuncomplaining spirit you possess will greatly aid you in going throughthe dangers and hardships we may have to encounter."

  I must confess that we made a very hearty meal, though it would havebeen more palatable had we possessed some salt. That I knew, however,it would be impossible to obtain, situated where we were. Having partlyroasted the remainder of the birds, as well as the frogs and lizards, toassist in preserving them we hung them up in a shady place which wecalled our larder, under a thick branch, where we hoped they would keepsweet till they were required for food. Marian felt her position moreirksome than did any one else, as she was unable to climb about, thoughArthur and I helped her to walk up and down the thick bough; but it wasvery much like a fisherman's walk,--three steps and overboard. However,it was preferable to sitting still, and prevented her limbs frombecoming cramped. She then went and sat down again, when Uncle Paul,Arthur, and I started off on an exploring expedition through our grove.There were not, altogether, more than seven main trunks; but numberlesssepos interlaced the boughs, and striking downwards, where they hadapparently taken root, had again sprung upwards, forming spiral stems,some considerably thicker than a man's body, others as thin as thesmallest ropes of a ship's rigging. We had no great difficulty inmaking our way, but caution was necessary to save ourselves fromtumbling down into the water. Among the trees was a beautiful cedar,three palm-trees of different species, and a cotton-tree of prodigiousheight, with widespreading top. Another was called the mulatto-tree;which had a tall, slim trunk, and leaves of a dark green, with branchesspreading amid those of its neighbours, and covered with clusters ofsmall white flowers. But I cannot attempt to describe either the treesor the numerous parasitic plants, some worthy to be called trees fromtheir size, which formed this curious grove. Several besides thefig-trees bore fruit and nuts, affording food to monkeys and otheranimals, and to various species of birds.

  One end of the grove was less closely united than the main portion, butstill two projecting boughs interlaced, and were joined likewise bychains of sepos, forming an easy communication between the two parts.Arthur and I, wishing to explore the whole of this somewhat confinedregion of which we were for a time the inhabitants, made our way acrossthis natural bridge I have described. When we got to the further end weheard a concert of gentle "caws," far less sonorous than those made bythe parrots we had seen passing near the grove on the previous day, thesounds now rising, now falling. Stopping to ascertain from whatdirection in the grove the noises proceeded, we soon discovered thatthey came from a tree which shot out several branches about a dozen ortwenty feet from the surface of the water.

  "Those noises must come from parrots, I am sure," said Arthur, after wehad listened a little time. "We shall be able to get a fine collectionof young birds, which will be far more tender than the old ones. Wewill just take a few for supper to-night, and we can return when we wantmore."

  Accordingly, we climbed along among the branches.

  "I see some old birds there too," observed Arthur. "If they areparrots, they are very large ones. I suspect that they are macaws. Weshall soon find out, however."

  We had stopped to rest, for that sort of climbing was somewhat fatiguingwork; but again we went on, Arthur leading the way. He had a largesheath-knife, which Sambo the black had lent him, secured to his waist.

  The tree we had reached was of great age, and was full of holes andnumerous hollow stumps of boughs broken off by tempests or lightning.In each of these hollows was a large nest with a couple of fledgelings;but no sooner did Arthur and I stretch out our hands to seize some ofthe young birds, intending to transfer them to the bags which we carriedat our backs, than the old birds sitting on the branches above us set upa deafening screaming and screeching, while others appeared from allquarters. Some flew across, as it seemed, from the opposite forest;others came forth from various parts of the surrounding foliage, bywhich they had been concealed, with the evident intention of doingbattle for their young. Down they flew, screaming loudly, with openbeaks and fierce eyes, and surrounded us on all sides; some assailingour heads, and some our bare legs and feet, while others got hold of ourshirts and pulled lustily at them. It was only with the greatestdifficulty that we could defend our eyes, which they seemed resolved totear out.

  "Leap, Guy--leap into the water; that is the only chance we have ofsaving ourselves!" exclaimed Arthur, drawing his knife and attempting tokeep the savage birds at bay. I had no weapon to defend myself with,so, following his advice, I leaped down to a part of the tree whence Icould spring into the water, and putting my hands above my head, plungedinto the turbid flood, diving down some feet, regardless of the risk Iran of striking any concealed boughs beneath the surface. Escapinginjury, I quickly rose again, in time to hear Arthur's plunge as hefollowed me. The macaws darted down upon us; but as we again dived,they flew up--to ascertain, we supposed, whether we had plundered theirnests. Happily, the current not being very strong, we were able to stemit, and make good way, till we reached the main part of the grove,where, getting hold of some sepos which hung down into the water, weclambered up again to a branch, on which we were glad to rest after ourexertions, having escaped a danger which might have been of a veryserious nature. We agreed, however, that should we be pressed for food,we would, notwithstanding, make another attack on the "macawery," tocoin a word, and carry off some of the young birds. We found that wehad not escaped altogether free. I had received two or three ugly pecksfrom the birds' beaks, which had torn my flesh, the wounds now smartingconsiderably; while Arthur had fared even worse, two of them having maderents in his shirt, and pecked out three or four pieces of his flesh.

  Having rested, we now began to make our way back to our friends; but Ihad not gone far when I caught sight of a large hairy creature hangingon to a bough at no great distance, apparently watching us as we madeour way amid the branches.

  "O Arthur!" I exclaimed, "there's a bear. He will be down upon us, andtreat us much worse than the macaws have done."

  Arthur looked in the direction I pointed. "Don't be afraid," heanswered. "It will not attack us. The animal is a sloth, as harmlessas any living creature. We may consider him among the other beasts inour domain destined if necessary for our use. He cannot get away, so wewill not attempt to interfere with him at present. He will not ventureinto the water; and even had we ground below us, he would not descend,as he would be sure to be caught if he did. We will climb nearer, so asto get a better view of him, for he seems to have no dread of us, andwill not try to escape."

  We did as Arthur proposed, and found the creature had a short head, witha small round face, and was covered with coarse, shaggy hair, lookingvery much like withered grass. It had powerful claws and long arms,with which it clung to the branch; while its hinder legs, which werehalf the length of the others, had feet of peculiar formation, whichenabled it to hold on to the bough. In truth, we discerned what we hadbefore heard, that the sloth is especially formed to live in trees--though not on the branches, like the squirrel, but under them; indeed,it generally moves suspended from the branch, and at night, whensleeping, rests in the same attitude, under the branch, hanging on byits powerful arms and legs. Its arms being very long and powerful, withstrong claws inste
ad of fingers, it is enabled to defend itself againstthe large snakes which frequently attack it. We could only hope that itwas not alone, and that should we require sloth-steaks we might be ableto have an ample supply. We had no fears, indeed, about obtaining asmuch animal food as we might require, though it was possible that wemight, before we could escape, eat up all the food to be found in ourdomain.

  At length we got back to where we had left Uncle Paul and Marian. Werecounted our adventures to them, when Marian was not a little agitatedat hearing of our encounter with the macaws, and at our having beencompelled to leap into the river.

  "Oh, how dreadful it would have been had you been drowned," sheexclaimed; "or had a shark or alligator, or an anaconda, snapped youup!"

  "There was very little danger of that," answered Arthur. "We had notvery far to swim before we got hold of a branch and drew ourselves outof the water."

  "I am not quite so certain about that as you are, Arthur," observedUncle Paul. "We all have reason to be thankful that you escaped thedanger in which you were placed."

  When Kallolo returned, after another exploring expedition, and heard ofour adventures, he said that he would go at night and capture the youngmacaws, when the parents would not attempt to defend them; and that heshould probably, at the same time, be able to catch some of the olderbirds. He had brought with him an ara parrot, as he called it, which,young as it was, had already grown to a considerable size. Though ithad not yet obtained its full plumage, its colours were very beautiful.Its body was of a flaming scarlet, while the wings were red, yellow,blue, and green; its tail, which was of great length, being scarlet andblue. He had caught the bird with a noose, just as it was about toleave the nest, and he said that he had hopes of being able to tame it.The creature seemed but little disconcerted, and finding that it wastreated kindly, at once fed willingly out of his hand. He secured it bya piece of string to a small branch near us, where it could perch at itsease. Quacko the monkey looked at it with a somewhat jealous eye, butKallolo made him understand that he must not interfere with the newfavourite, and Ara and Quacko soon became friends.

  The day passed away in our truly sylvan abode much faster than I couldhave expected; and could we but have been assured that my father wassafe, we should, considering the circumstances, have been tolerablyhappy and contented. At night we all went to sleep in the positions wehad before occupied.