The Washington times., 1912-07-22
CHAPTER x.
The Banbab.

TT was by no means a pleasant sight
that met Miss Leslie's gaze upon
her return. a
The neatest of butchering can
hardly be termed aesthetic, and Blake
and Winthrope lacked, both skill and
tools. Between the penknife and an
improvised blade of bamboo they had
nayed the two cubs haggled of the
flesh The. ragged strips. spitted on
bamboo rods. were already soaring in
the fierce sun rays.
Miss Leslie would have slipped into
the hollow Of the baobab, with her
arrnful OF fagots and brush, but Blake
waved bloody knife above the body
of the mother leopard and beckoned the
girl to come nearer.
Hold on a minute. please, he said.
What did you find out?"
Miss Leslie drew q few steps nearer
and forced herself to look at the re-
voting sight. She found II still more
difficult to withstand the odor OF fresh
Winthrope was pale and nauseated.
The sight of his distress caused the
girl to forget her own loathing. She
in countering Blake's expectant look
How well you are getting alons!"
she exclaimed.
you'll make II yet! Didn't think you
could stand 1t. But you've got grit
an right, If you are a lady Now, how
runs along like this. and then, slopes
down. But there is cliff at the end,
as high as these walls" ..os plat.
junp-ofr: but how in-how are we go
ing to get up on the cliff? There's an
everlasting lot Of omelets in those
birds nests. If only that blooming
Gw ssMsieS sna wn ssopsb %S wa. on SsSer
side. The woods almost as soft as
punk. We could drive in pegs. and climb
up the trunk"
There are other, trees beyond it."
remarked Miss Leslie.
"Then maybe we can shin up
Il fear the branches that overland the
cliff are too slender to bear any weight"
"And it's too internally high to climb
UP to this overnanging baobab limb"
II say" ventured Winthrope. 'if we
had an ak, now, we might cut up one
of the trees and make a ladder.
"oh. yes; and Il we bad a ladder, we
might climb up the cliff"'
But, Mr.. Blake. isn't there some way
to cut down one of the trees? The tree
itself would be a ladder If 1t fell in such
a way as to lean against the cliff"
swered Blake. $50. ! guess we'll have
TO scratch eggs off our menu-card.
Spring leopard for ours! Now, IL you
really want to help. you might scrape
the soupbones out of our boudoir, and
fetch a lot more brush. It'll take a
smell"
"Win not the tree burn?"
mo; these hollow boababs have green
bark on the inside as well as out.
Funny thing. that! We'd have to keep
a fire going long time to burn
yet it would burn in timer"
Yes; but we're not going to
Then, why not burn through the
trunk OF one Of those small trees, in
'tsas q shsopphls Mls jenny! you've got
American head-piece! Come on. Sooner
we get the thing started. the better"
Neither Winthrope nor Miss Leslie
the carcasses.
They followed close after Blake,
around the monstrous bole of the bao-
bab. A little beyond It stood a group of
eight inches thick at the base. Blake
stopped at the second one, which grew
nearest to the seaward side of the cleft
,on Here's the iaddeT eGnnd he said Gst
though, before you go poking into them.
May be snakes here"
"Snakes--Oh" cried Miss Leslie, and
she she stood Ishqddering ,i at the danger she
The fire had burned itself out on a
bare ledge Of rock between them and
the baobab, and the Clumps of dry
brush left standing In this end of the
cleft were very suggestive of snakes.
now that Blake had called attention
to the possibility of'their presence.
He laughed at his hesitating com,
till you're bit. Most snakes hike out,
II you give them half chance. Take
stick, each, and pound the bushes"
Thus urged both started to work.
But neither ventured into thicker
clumps.