Again it was resumed in the front, and in a little while it seemed to him that the reeds were alive with the stealthy rustlings of beasts and reptiles, all moving towards him.

A reed bent again a little way off, and he fired in the direction.

There was a crash and a growl, followed by a peculiar moaning from the opposite side.

From somewhere deep in the sea of green there came the hoarse bellow of a bull crocodile.

Nothing now could have induced him to enter that bewildering labyrinth again, and he looked about with a shudder, for the day was sinking to its close, and the night would soon be upon him.