Chapter X: The Leopard

It was a great relief to Ralph, as well as to some others, when he learned that Kirke had escaped; but the men were very wrathful, and Mr. Gilchrist both dissatisfied that he should have avoided punishment, and more than anxious as to his safety. What, he thought, could such a young man do in the jungle, or among the half-civilised Burmese natives, without being able to speak their language at all, or help himself in any way.

All the weeks which he himself had spent in Moulmein, and during which he had worked hard to master the language, only resulted in enabling him to make himself imperfectly understood.

Ralph, indeed, succeeded better, though by ear rather than from book lore. With the happy effrontery of boyhood, he made the most astounding shots at Burmese; and, though the Burman lads laughed at his mistakes till they were fain to roll upon the ground from merriment, they, somehow, appeared to comprehend his meaning.

But nothing availed to make the two old Cornishmen speak anything but their own tongue.

Kirke had received no lessons, gained no experience, what could he do?

"My good sir," said the Chief Commissioner, to whom Mr. Gilchrist imparted his doubts--"My good sir, the lad is certain to be discovered, and brought back here. He is a marked man among the Burmese, and they will not feed him for nothing. A reward will cause him to be brought in before long."

"Drat him!" said Wills. "Good-for-nothing never comes to harm. I hope they there black fellows will read him a good lesson."

None of them were aware that the apprentice had with him a considerable sum of money in English sovereigns, and time passed on, during which nothing was heard about him.

Meanwhile, the mates and seamen proceeded to join their captain in Rangoon; Price and Simpson, the two sailors who had also been upon the raft, electing to go with their shipmates when they had once more met with them. Wills and Osborn adhered to their agreement to join Mr. Gilchrist's party; and that gentleman willingly parted with the others, considering that Indian coolies, Tamil or Telegu natives, would be of more use to him.

It was time to start upon the expedition now, and preparations were soon made. The Rangoon branch of Herford Brothers' house of business franked all expenses; and a bullock-gharrie, or native cart, was purchased, furnished with an awning to protect the travellers from sun and rain, and drawn by a couple of stout buffaloes.

Light baskets and other means for packing orchids were prepared; and stores of various kinds were added, as coffee, tinned meats and biscuits; but they hoped to obtain some provisions as they went through Burmese villages.

The gharrie was packed, the buffaloes harnessed, and the travellers were taking their seats, when suddenly a distant roar was heard.

"Hark!" cried the coolie in charge of the animals, holding up his finger.

The sound distinctly approached, and shouting some unintelligible words, the fellow goaded the buffaloes into as rapid movement as possible, hurrying the whole concern back into its original shelter in the compound.

The reason was quickly made apparent, for black clouds drove up from the weather-quarter, and sheets of rain descended upon the hot baked earth, which, unable to absorb anything like the deluge, allowed it to run off, in every direction, in plentiful streams.

It did not last long. Before two hours were over the ground showed but slight traces of damp, the gharrie was brought out again, and the party set off down the Mapoon road, following the course of the stream upon the way to Amherst.

"What did the fellow tie that bunch of plantains up to the front of the gharrie for?" asked Ralph. "We don't want fruit all covered with dust and flies."

"That is not fruit for us," replied Mr. Gilchrist, laughing. "That is an offering for any spirit whom we may chance to meet wandering about. It might be unfortunate if we should offend such gentry."

"Is it to warn them of our approach that they let our wheels make such a creaking? Cannot we oil them, or something, to stop it? And must we be deafened by those ugly square bells tied to the buffaloes' throats?"

"I believe that it will be best to try and put up with the customs of the country in which we find ourselves, Ralph; at least until we are quite certain that altering them to please ourselves may not be giving the natives unnecessary offence. We shall soon become used to such trifles as that. See, we are approaching the great timber works."

Huge trunks of teak, and other valuable trees suitable for ship building, were floated down as rafts from the dense forests up the river, and here cut into suitable form and size for being transported to England.

It was wonderful to observe the skill and judgment displayed by the elephants employed in moving these immense hulks from the river-banks up to the spot where machinery awaited them. They were no less skilful in perceiving the best way for pushing, lifting, or driving the timber, than wary in avoiding the machinery if obliged to pass near it. Ralph was immensely diverted to observe how each animal, in making his way by the place where a circular saw was at work, invariably moved his own tail to the farther side, so as to preserve his cherished appendage scathless from injury. He was told that at one time many elephants had their tails cut off by accident here, until they learnt caution to this extent.

So much interested and amused were the travellers by all which they saw in this place, that they proceeded no farther that day, it having been late when they started; but the next morning saw them early on their route; and that day, leaving the high roads, they plunged into forest paths, and began to make their way through the jungle in earnest.

They proposed driving to a small Karen village to which a native had offered to guide them, and which was situated in a locality where many orchids were reported to grow.

The native hired to show them the way promised that they should arrive there in "the boiling of two pots of rice." This was understood to be in about half an hour, but the little journey really occupied thrice that length of time, for rain again poured down in a perfect sheet, and the bullocks could hardly make their way through it.

All were glad when they arrived, and were able to procure shelter. The houses were raised upon high posts, comfortably built of wood, and thatched. Whether this elevation was intended to preserve the family from the damp, or from wild animals, they could not discover. Mr. Gilchrist thought the form of erection partook of each reason.

The lower part had a verandah around it, and was floored a little above the ground with bamboos. The gharrie was accommodated in a portion of this lower place, and arranged for the travellers' accommodation at night.

The women of the house prepared them some rice while this was being done, and served it, with fish upon a separate platter.

The rain was over for the time when they were rested and refreshed, so they started for an expedition into the jungle, with which the village was closely surrounded.

They soon found plenty of orchids, and became so much interested in the selection of the rarest specimens, that the light failed them, and they could scarcely "distinguish the veins in a man's hand," which their Burmese guide seemed to consider a felicitous method of describing the hour.

They remounted the gharrie, and were proceeding on their way with the slow deliberation which formed the bullocks' greatest speed, when Ralph perceived a huge, dark mass of something lying right across their path, with two points of living fire gleaming sullenly from it.

It was an enormous leopard, taking its rest, but with watchful eyes.

The bullocks, perceiving the danger in the same moment as the men, made a sudden lurch to one side, nearly upsetting the gharrie, and causing the wheels on one side to sink into a mud-hole, half filled with water from the recent rain.

They stuck fast in this, and the terrified beasts could not drag them out. They plunged, snorted, and laboured desperately; while the beautiful sleek brute rose, stretched himself, and prepared to spring.

Ralph thought his last hour had arrived, but firearms were at hand.

Mr. Gilchrist snatched up a loaded gun, fired, but with too uncertain an aim, for he could not control the trembling of his nerves at this first and sudden sight of so terrible an animal in his native jungle.

The driver of the gharrie, with a howl, abandoned his seat in front, and crept into the recesses within to hide. The leopard made his spring, and fastened upon the nearest bullock. Ralph uttered a cry as desperate as that of the native, and discharged a pistol full at the creature.

So close upon them as he was, it was impossible to miss hitting it somewhere; the bullet entered its shoulder, and a trickle of blood bore witness to the fact.

The pistol was a revolver, and Ralph shot again and again, for all the chambers were loaded; but his hand shook, and several bullets went wide of the mark, though he hit the leopard in the ear and in the side.

The creature abandoned its work of mangling the poor bullock, when it suffered the first shot, raised its proud head and looked the boy full in the face; crouched again, and, lashing its tail with fury, was on the point of leaping straight into the waggon, when, his arm steadied by the emergency, Mr. Gilchrist discharged his second barrel in its face, and shot it straight through the head.

Osborn at the same moment, having withheld his shot until it was certain to take effect, hit it in the neck, and the animal rolled over in its dying agonies.

The Burmese bullock-driver now emerged from his retirement, very glorious over the defeat of the enemy; he danced round it with joy, and lauded "_our_ courage," "_our_ success," "_our_ bravery," until old Wills was obliged literally to spit out his contempt.

"Shut up!" he growled. "Hold your ridiculous jaw! Much good you were, you coward! Next time we will throw you out for the cat to set his talons in those absurd blue breeches of yourn. Better you than our poor buffalo. Here, hand me that knife, and let me put the poor wretch out of its sufferings."

For the buffalo was not dead, though paralysed by the leopard's teeth and claws in its spine, at the back of its throat. It turned a pathetic eye upon its friends, as it asking for help, but there was nothing to be done but to put it out of its misery.

Ralph shuddered, and felt very sick; Mr. Gilchrist also was faint when the pressure of excitement passed away, and Wills made both of them take some cordial to steady their nerves.

Osborn meantime lit their lamps, and set some flaring torches into the ground, preparatory to skinning the leopard, which was a splendid beast.

Ralph collected wood, and built up a fire with some difficulty, as the rain was coming down again almost like a waterspout. However, it stopped after a while, the boy was lavish with his kerosene oil, poured over the damp branches, and a bonfire rewarded his exertions, drying their garments, illuminating the wild scene, and enabling him to boil some coffee, of which they all gladly partook, with biscuits and other comestibles from their tinned stores.

It was late before the leopard was safely and carefully skinned. The buffalo was not worth the trouble, being too much mangled, but the men cut off its head, as the skull and horns were worth preserving. It would soon be reduced to bare bones if left to the mercy of the white ants. To preserve the fine hide of the leopard from them was a greater difficulty.

The party camped down in their gharrie, with fires set around them, for the short night, when all was done; and proceeded in the cool of the morning to the Karen village. Here they were received with great delight when the driver announced the event of the night. The villagers immediately started to bring in the carcase of the leopard upon hurdles. Part of its flesh was dried and pounded, to be used as medicine; but they feasted upon the remains of the bullock; and tried hard, both by fair means and foul, to induce Mr. Gilchrist to part with the leopard's claws, to be used as charms, but he refused all overtures of this kind.

In spite of this, the poor people were very kind to our friends, and they made up their minds to remain there for a few days until they could find a suitable buffalo wherewith to replace their loss, which did not seem to be easy in this place, the people being very poor.