CHAPTER XIX
IN DESPERATE PERIL
Bobby stood the first watch, Fred the second, and Lee the last. Nothingof any importance occurred during the night, although the swamp allaround them seemed teeming with life. Above the croaking of frogs andthe hum of night insects there rose at times a strange bellowing noise,that sent shivers creeping over Bobby and Fred, and which they were at aloss to explain. But next morning Lee told them the source of thestrange noise.
“What you heard were alligators,” said Lee. “There are lots of them inthis swamp, and we’ve got to look out for them. They’re pretty fierce,and they’ll attack anything under the sun.”
“Gee!” said Bobby, “if I had known that, I think I’d have spent thenight up a tree. I could hear one pretty close while I was keeping thefire going, too.”
“Probably he was attracted by the light of the fire,” said Lee. “But Idon’t think they’d bother any one on land, as a rule. But they’ll tackleanything in the water, and if they once get a grip with those pointedteeth of theirs, its all over for the one that’s caught. The alligatorjust drags him down under the surface, waits until he’s drowned and thendrags him up on the nearest sandbank and swallows him at his leisure.”
“That’s fine—for the alligator,” muttered Fred, with a slight shiverwhich was not all the result of the clinging mist. “I don’t think I’lldo much swimming while we’re in this swamp.”
“I’d advise you not to,” said Lee. “I sure hate ’gators, but just thesame I wouldn’t mind finding a few of their eggs for breakfast.”
“Eggs!” exclaimed Bobby and Fred together.
“Certainly,” said Lee, laughing at their amazed look. “I don’t care forthem much as a rule, but one or two now wouldn’t be half bad.”
“Good-night!” exclaimed Fred. “What do they taste like, anyway?”
“Oh, they’re not so bad. They have a rather unpleasant musky taste, butif you’re hungry enough you don’t mind that. The darkeys think they’refine, and spend a lot of time hunting them out.”
“Where do you find the eggs?” inquired Fred.
“The ’gators dig out holes in the sand or mud, fill them with eggs, andthen cover the whole thing over with more sand,” said Lee. “After awhile the heat of the sun hatches out the eggs, and then the mother’gator takes charge of the little fellows and protects them untilthey’re big enough to take care of themselves.”
“Well, I feel hungry enough now to eat an alligator egg omelet,” saidBobby. “I think we’d better get started, and maybe we’ll run across oneof those cute little nests Lee was telling us about.”
After eating the last of the fish they had caught the day before, theboys started out, intending to follow the river as nearly as possible.But they soon found that the ground kept getting softer at every stepthey took, and were forced to bear away from the stream, although stillkeeping as near as possible to the right direction. Lee was moreexperienced than the other boys in the matter of making progress overthis kind of treacherous footing, and he took the lead. On every sidedark pools of water oozed up through the quaking ground. Here and theretussocks of grass had formed, and these offered the only footing to behad at all. Even these were very soft and shaky, and it was necessary toleap continually from one to the other in order to avoid sinking in. Atrare intervals some larger hillock then, usual would give the boys achance to rest a few minutes and get their breath, and it was on one ofthese that they paused at last, panting and tired.
“Gee!” exclaimed Bobby, as he mopped at his streaming face. “A mile ofthis is worse than ten miles on hard ground.”
“Harder, and a lot more dangerous,” agreed Lee, soberly. “One fall intoone of those green pools and you’d be done for. It would suck you downso fast that nothing could save you.”
The heat was growing intense, and, aided by the rank steam that ascendedfrom the rotting vegetation, seemed almost unbearable. But the boys knewthat they had to keep on, because if darkness found them before theyreached some firmer ground, their fate would be sealed. After nightfallthey would be almost certain to fall into one of the green and stagnantpools and be sucked down to a horrible death.
Even as the boys tried to rest and get their breath, they could feeltheir feet slowly sinking into the muddy grass, and as they lifted theirfeet pools of water formed in the depressions left by them.
“Guess it’s a case of ‘keep moving,’” said Fred, as one foot sank in tohis ankles and he pulled it out with difficulty. “This swamp is the lastplace in the world I’d pick for a hike if I had my choice.”
“There’s no choice about this,” said Bobby, setting his lips grimly.“We’re here, and we’ve got to get out just as soon as we can. Let’s go!”
Somewhat rested by their brief halt, they started on again. SuddenlyLee, who was ahead, shouted a warning.
“We can’t get any farther this way!” he cried, as Bobby and Fred caughtup with him, and he pointed ahead. The boys saw a large stagnant pond,covered with green scum, from which protruded the rotting trunks oftrees. At intervals around the bank lay what appeared to be other logs,but even as they looked, one of these seeming logs stirred, and crawlingslowly through the ooze, flopped into the water with a loud splash.
“We’re blocked, sure enough,” said Bobby. “We’ll have to go back and trysome fresh path.”
“Looks that way,” assented Lee. “And I hope we find some bit of solidground soon, fellows, because I’m pretty near all in. I can’t go muchfurther.”
For the first time the boys realized the deadly danger in which theystood. The strenuous exertions necessary to keep away from beingswallowed up by the black mud, the terrific heat, and the deadly gasesthat rose continually from the rotting vegetable matter, were allcombining to sap their strength. And if that once gave out they realizedthere was no alternative but death in the clinging, suffocating mud.
Bobby felt his own heart sink, but he showed nothing of this in hismanner as he said: “Ah, we’ll be all right in a little while, Lee. We’rebound to hit dry ground pretty soon. Keep a stiff upper lip and we’llget through right enough.”
“Well, you’d better set the pace, and I’ll do my best to keep up,”returned the Southern boy.
Accordingly, Bobby started off, followed by Lee, with Fred last. Bobbyhad become somewhat used to picking his way over the grass tussocks bythis time, and in addition he seemed to have a sort of instinct which,told him what path to take and which to avoid. Under his guidance theymade better progress, and after a time Fred remarked:
“I may be only dreaming, but it seems to me that the ground is getting alittle firmer. What do you fellows think?”
“I reckon it is,” panted Lee. “I’ve heard the darkeys say there was anisland in the swamp somewhere, and maybe we’re getting near it.”
Sure enough, they soon spied higher ground ahead of them, with sometrees growing on it. The sight gave them fresh courage, and theystruggled gamely on, until at last came a time when they could put footto ground without feeling it sink into slimy mud.
Bobby Blake on a Plantation; Or, Lost in the Great Swamp Page 19
