In a few minutes after they were first heard, their cries rose around the camp on all sides, so near and so loud as to be positively disagreeable--even without considering the nature of the brutes that uttered them.
At last they came so close, that it was impossible to look in any direction without seeing a pair of green or red eyes gleaming under the light of the fires! White teeth, too, could be observed, as the hyenas opened their jaws, to give utterance to their harsh laughter-like cries.
With such a sight before their eyes, and such sounds ringing in their ears, neither Von Bloom nor any of his people--tired as they were--could go to sleep.

Indeed, not only was sleep out of the question, but, worse than that, all--the field-cornet himself not excepted--began to experience some feelings of apprehension, if not actual alarm.
They had never beheld a troop of hyenas so numerous and fierce.

There could not be less than two dozen of them around the camp, with twice that number of jackals.
Von Bloom knew that although, under ordinary circumstances, the hyena is not a dangerous animal, yet there are places and times when he will attack human beings.

Swartboy knew this well, and Hans, too, from having read of it.

No wonder, then, that some apprehension was felt by all of them.
The hyenas now behaved with such boldness, and appeared so ravenous, that sleep was out of the question.