The professor was wearied from a hard day's work, and, feeling that everything possible had been done for the safety of all, stretched out upon his blanket on the soft ground and was soon asleep.
He expected to assume his duty as guardsman in the course of a few hours, and needed all the rest he could get before that time.
Bippo and Pedros were so disturbed by what they had witnessed, that, though they lay down at the same time, it was a good while before they closed their eyes in slumber2. Their homes were near the mouth of the Xingu, and, even at that remote point, they had heard so many fearful accounts of the ferocious3 savages5 that infested6 the upper portions of the river, that they never would have dared to help in an attempt to explore the region but for the liberal pay promised, and their unbounded faith in the white men and their firearms.
The poor fellows would have given all they had, or expected to have, to be transported down the Xingu and out of the reach of the terrible natives who used their poisoned arrows and javelins7 with such effect; but, behold8! the explorers, undaunted by what had taken place, had no thought of turning back, but were resolved to push on for an unknown distance, and Bippo and his friends had no choice but to go with them, for to run away would insure certain death at the hands of these people who seemed to be all around them.
Jared Long had so little faith in the usefulness of the servant Quincal as sentinel, that he arranged to place the least dependence9 possible on him. With no supposition that any danger was likely to come from the woods behind them, he sent the fellow a short distance back, instructing him to keep his ears and eyes open, since if he failed to do so, some wild animal was likely to devour10 him.
In crossing the Xingu below the falls, the rapid current had swept the canoe downward, so that it lay against the bank at a point fully11 two hundred yards below. It was here that the American stationed himself, standing12, like Fred Ashman, just far enough from the water to be shrouded13 in the slight but increasing shadow made as the moon slowly worked over and beyond the zenith.
Looking across to the other shore, he could discern nothing upon which to hang a suspicion; but the first thing, perhaps trifling14 in itself, which attracted notice, was the unusual quantity of driftwood which appeared to be coming through the rapids and floating past.
As has been stated, in such a wooded country as the Matto Grasso there was always more or less of this, and Long had taken a critical survey of the rapids and noted15 the stuff which went plunging16 and dancing through them. Now, however, he was sure there was an increase, and a good deal of it consisted of large trees and logs, which must have been brought down by some cause more than ordinary.
Had there been anything else to occupy his attention, the fact would have escaped him, but the sentinel who is alive to his duty, notes little things, even when they seem to have no bearing on the great subject which engages all his energies.
It was a long way from the camp to the source of the Xingu, and in such a vast country as Brazil, there might have been a violent storm raging at that moment above and below them without the least evidence, so far as they could see, around them. Like all countries, that portion of empire is ravaged17 at times by fierce hurricanes and cyclones18, which might have uprooted19 scores of trees and flung them into the waters which were now bearing them toward the Amazon and the broad Atlantic.
The sentinel naturally gave his chief attention to the other side of the Xingu, where so many stirring scenes had taken place that afternoon and evening. The camp-fire, which had been left burning, had smouldered so low that none of the embers were discernible, and only a thin column of smoke crept slowly upward marking where it had been. But this vapor20 was so clearly seen in the wonderful moonlight that it was easy to fix the precise point where the trail entered the wilderness21.
It was just there, as Long believed, that the savages would debouch22 into sight, and renew the warfare23 which thus far had been only one series of disasters to them.
He was not mistaken, when, shortly after he had noticed the increasing number of logs and driftwood, he fancied he detected something going on at the very point on which his gaze was fixed24.
As was the case with Fred Ashman, it was some time before he could so much as conjecture25 its nature. The glimpses were so faint and momentary26 that nothing tangible27 resulted, though he was positive that some of their enemies were there.
At the moment he uttered an exclamation28 of impatience29, he made out three figures of the natives, who advanced far enough from the wood for him to identify them.
Not only that, but they walked stealthily to the edge of the river and stood several minutes, as if looking across at the canoe.
Long was confident that he could drop one of them at least, and he was tempted30 to do so. The most effective way of keeping the savages off was by nipping their schemes in the bud, and filling them with additional terror of the white strangers.
But he decided31 to wait a while, suspecting, as he did, that some scheme whose nature he could not guess was under way, and that if the projectors32 were undisturbed, it would soon be revealed.
Jared Long, we say, was convinced that the natives were scrutinizing33 the canoe and seeking to learn something about the occupants, whom they had doubtless watched as they made their way from the water to the shelter of the wood. Such was his belief, and yet he was altogether mistaken.
It struck him as odd that the savages acted as they did, when it would seem that they could see just as well from the edge of the wood, where they were not exposed to the fire of their enemies; but he reflected that there was precious little about the conduct of the natives from the first that could be explained on the line of common sense and consistency34.
The trio stood in view less than five minutes, when they darted35 back to cover, as if afraid of being seen by the whites, a theory altogether untenable under the circumstances.
The natural supposition of the sentinel was that a large number of the savages had gathered under the bank and were making ready for some demonstration36, which would soon take place.
It was not yet time to awaken37 the Professor and the natives. In fact, the plucky38 New Englander half believed that with his repeating rifle he would be able to beat off any approach from the other shore.
At this moment, he was amazed to see one of the savages do an extraordinary thing.
Darting39 out from the wood behind him, he ran to the smouldering camp-fire seized a brand that was covered with ashes, and circled it so swiftly about his head that it was fanned into a roaring blaze.
While doing this, he stood apparently40 with one foot in the margin41 of the Xingu, and evidently with not the slightest fear of the white strangers within gun-shot. He not only swung the brand forward several times, but reversed and spun42 it in the other direction, with a velocity43 that made it look like a solid ring of fire.
Suddenly the truth flashed upon the bewildered sentinel: the savage4 was signaling to some friend or friends on the other bank! That being the case, it followed that the friend or friends were most uncomfortably close to the camp of the white men.
And still Long failed to attach any importance to the unusual quantity of logs and driftwood that was sweeping44 down the Xingu in front of him.
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1
immediate
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| adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的 | |
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2
slumber
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| n.睡眠，沉睡状态 | |
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3
ferocious
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| adj.凶猛的，残暴的，极度的，十分强烈的 | |
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4
savage
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| adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人 | |
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savages
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| 未开化的人，野蛮人( savage的名词复数 ) | |
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6
infested
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| adj.为患的，大批滋生的（常与with搭配）v.害虫、野兽大批出没于( infest的过去式和过去分词 )；遍布于 | |
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7
javelins
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| n.标枪( javelin的名词复数 ) | |
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8
behold
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| v.看，注视，看到 | |
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9
dependence
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| n.依靠，依赖；信任，信赖；隶属 | |
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10
devour
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| v.吞没；贪婪地注视或谛听，贪读；使着迷 | |
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11
fully
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| adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地 | |
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12
standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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13
shrouded
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| v.隐瞒( shroud的过去式和过去分词 )；保密 | |
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trifling
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| adj.微不足道的；没什么价值的 | |
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15
noted
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| adj.著名的，知名的 | |
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plunging
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| adj.跳进的，突进的v.颠簸( plunge的现在分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降 | |
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17
ravaged
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| 毁坏( ravage的过去式和过去分词 )； 蹂躏； 劫掠； 抢劫 | |
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18
cyclones
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| n.气旋( cyclone的名词复数 )；旋风；飓风；暴风 | |
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19
uprooted
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| v.把（某物）连根拔起( uproot的过去式和过去分词 )；根除；赶走；把…赶出家园 | |
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20
vapor
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| n.蒸汽，雾气 | |
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21
wilderness
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| n.杳无人烟的一片陆地、水等，荒漠 | |
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22
debouch
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| v.流出，进入 | |
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23
warfare
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| n.战争(状态)；斗争；冲突 | |
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fixed
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| adj.固定的，不变的，准备好的；(计算机)固定的 | |
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25
conjecture
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| n./v.推测，猜测 | |
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26
momentary
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| adj.片刻的，瞬息的；短暂的 | |
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27
tangible
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| adj.有形的，可触摸的，确凿的，实际的 | |
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28
exclamation
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| n.感叹号，惊呼，惊叹词 | |
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29
impatience
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| n.不耐烦，急躁 | |
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30
tempted
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| v.怂恿（某人）干不正当的事；冒…的险（tempt的过去分词） | |
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31
decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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32
projectors
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| 电影放映机，幻灯机( projector的名词复数 ) | |
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33
scrutinizing
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| v.仔细检查，详审( scrutinize的现在分词 ) | |
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34
consistency
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| n.一贯性，前后一致，稳定性；(液体的)浓度 | |
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35
darted
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| v.投掷，投射( dart的过去式和过去分词 )；向前冲，飞奔 | |
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36
demonstration
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| n.表明，示范，论证，示威 | |
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37
awaken
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| vi.醒，觉醒；vt.唤醒，使觉醒，唤起，激起 | |
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38
plucky
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| adj.勇敢的 | |
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39
darting
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| v.投掷，投射( dart的现在分词 )；向前冲，飞奔 | |
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40
apparently
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| adv.显然地；表面上，似乎 | |
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41
margin
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| n.页边空白；差额；余地，余裕；边，边缘 | |
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42
spun
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| v.纺，杜撰，急转身 | |
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43
velocity
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| n.速度，速率 | |
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44
sweeping
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| adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的 | |
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