generations of my dead imaginary progenitors, who had ranged
these woods back to the dim forgotten years before Columbus; and
if the pleasure I had in the fancy was childish, it made the day
pass quickly enough. Kua-ko was constantly at my elbow to assist
and give advice; and many an arrow I blew from the long tube, and
hit no bird. Heaven knows what I hit, for the arrows flew away
on their wide and wild career to be seen no more, except a few
which my keen-eyed comrade marked to their destination and
managed to recover. The result of our day's hunting was a couple
of birds, which Kua-ko, not I, shot, and a small opossum his
sharp eyes detected high up a tree lying coiled up on an old
nest, over the side of which the animal had incautiously allowed
his snaky tail to dangle. The number of darts I wasted must have
been a rather serious loss to him, but he did not seem troubled
at it, and made no remark.

Next day, to my surprise, he volunteered to give me a second
lesson, and we went out again. On this occasion he had provided
himself with a large bundle of darts, but--wise man!--they were
not poisoned, and it therefore mattered little whether they were
wasted or not. I believe that on this day I made some little
progress; at all events, my teacher remarked that before long I
would be able to hit a bird. This made me smile and answer that
if he could place me within twenty yards of a bird not smaller
than a small man I might manage to touch it with an arrow.

This speech had a very unexpected and remarkable effect. He
stopped short in his walk, stared at me wildly, then grinned, and
finally burst into a roar of laughter, which was no bad imitation
of the howling monkey's performance, and smote his naked thighs