, 1909-01-21
Into The Primitive
CONTINUED from 2nd page)

the Gin.
There's only the penknife." an
swered Blake. so ] guess we'll have
70 scratch eggs off our menu card
Spring leopard for ours! Now, ii you
really want to help, you might scrape
the soup bones out of your boudoir.
n fetch a lot more brush. tn take
a big fire to rid the hole of that cat
smell"
will not the tree burn?"
mo; these hollow baobabs have
green bark on the inside as well as
out. Funny thing, that! We'd have
to keep a fire going a long time to
burn through"
Yet 1t would burr in timer"
Yes; but we're not going to"
Then why not burn through the
trunk of one of those small trees, in
stead of chopping it DOWN."
"'By-heck, Miss Jenny, you've got
an American headpiece! Come on.
Sooner we get the thing started, the
better"
Neither Winthrope nor Miss Leslie
was reluctant to leave the vicinity of
the a They followed close
after Blake, around the monstrous
bole of h baobab. A little beyond it
stood a group of slender trees, whose
trunks averaged eight inches at the
base. Blake stopped at the second
one, which grew nearest to the sea
ward side of the cleft.
Here's our ladder" he said. Get
some firewood. Pound the bushes.
though. before you go poking into
them. May be snakes here"
"Snakes?-oh!" cried Miss Leslie,
and she stood %shuddering at the dan
ger h had already incurred.
The fire had burnt itself out on a
bare ledge of rock between them and
the baobab, and the clumps of dry
brush left standing in his end of the
cleft were very suggestive of snakes,
now that Blake had called attention
to he possibility of their presence.
He laughed at his hesitating com
panions. Go on, go on! Don't squeal
till you're bit. Most snakes hike out,
If you give them half a chance. Take
a stick each of you, and pound the
bushes"
Thus urged, both started to work.
But neither ventured into the thicker
clumps. When they returned, with
large armfuls of sticks and twigs,
they found hat Blake had used his
glass to light a handful of dry bark.
out In the sun and was nursing 1t in
to a small fire at the base Of the tree,
on the side next the cliff.
Now, Miss Jenny" he directed.
you're to keep this going-not too big
a fire-understand? Same time you
a keep on fetching brush to fumi-
gate your cat hole. 1t needs 1t, all
right"
VIII not that be rather too much
for Miss Leslie?" asked Winthrope.
We'll, If she'd rather come and rub
brains on the skins,-Indian tan, you
know,-or-"
How can you mention such things
before a LADY," protested Winthrope.
BEG your pardon, Miss Leslie! you
see, I'm not much used to ladies' com.
pany. Anyway. you've got to see and
hear about these things. And now I'll
have to get the strings for Wins
bamboo bows. Come on, Win. We've
got that old tabby to peel, and a lot
more besides"
Miss Leslie's first impulse was to
protest against being left alone, when
Mt any moment some awful venom
Gus serpent might come darting at her
out OF the brush or the crevices in
the rocks. But her half-parted lips
drew firmly together, and after a mo
ment's hesitancy. she forced herself
to the task which had been assigned
her. The fire, once started. required
little attention. She could give most
OF her time to gathering brush for the
fumigation of the leopard den.