For fully a minute they watched; not a fold even quivered.
"Struck by lightning," said Gray; "the buzzards will get him." And he drew a folding butterfly net from his saddle boot, affixed ring and gauze bag, and cantered forward briskly in the wake of a great velvety black butterfly which was sailing under the live-oaks above his head.
His father, wishing to talk to Eudo Stent, rode ahead with the guide, leaving Shiela and Hamil to follow.
The latter reined in and waited while the girl leisurely returned the fowling-piece to its holster.

Then, together, they walked their horses forward, wading the "branch" which flowed clear as a trout stream out of the swamp on their right.
"It looks drinkable," he said.
"It is, for Crackers; but there's fever in it for you, Mr.Hamil....
Look at Gray! He's missed his butterfly.

But it's a rather common one--the black form of the tiger swallow-tail.

Just see those zebra-striped butterflies darting like lightning over the palmetto scrub! Gray and I could never catch them until one day we found a ragged one that couldn't fly and we placed it on a leaf; and every time one of those butterflies came our way it paused in its flight for a second and hovered over the ragged one.

And that's how Gray and I caught the swift Ajax butterflies for his collection!...