safe.

It took us a long time to reach The Nest that night. My wife did her
best to dress some of the flesh of the land crab, but it was tough, and
did not taste so nice as the soup made from the beast that we had
caught by the nose.


CHAPTER IX.

FRITZ and I spent the whole of the next day in the woods. We took the
ass and one of the dogs with us, but left all else at home.

Our way first lay through a dense wood, where we saw no end of small
birds, but such game could not now tempt Fritz to waste his shot. We
then had to cross a vast plain, and to wade through the high grass,
which we did with care, lest we should tread on some strange thing that
might turn and bite us.

We came at last to a grove of small trees, and in their midst I saw a
bush, which I knew to be the wax tree, for the wax grew on it like
white beads. I need not say how glad I was to find so great a prize. We
had up to this time gone to bed as soon as the sun went down, for we
had no lamp to use; but as we could now make wax lights, I told Fritz
that we had found what would add two or three hours per day to our
lives. We took as much of the wax as would serve us for some time, and
then made our way out of the grove.

"How came you," said Fritz, "to know so much of the queer beasts,
trees, and plants that we have found here?"