Part 31 (1/2)

It was Brace's charge of buckshot which tumbled it off with a tremendous splash into the river, where it writhed and lashed the water up into foam before making for the sh.o.r.e, swimming with ease, much to their surprise.

The spot where it landed was fairly open, and in the excitement caused by the adventure the boat, which was always kept towing behind the brig, was manned.

Brace, the American, Dan, the second mate, and four men followed to get a good opportunity for putting the reptile out of its misery when it had about half-crawled out among the bushes.

A well-placed shot in the head effected this, and the body lay heaving gently while the party landed. The question was then eagerly discussed what should be done.

”We ought to have that skin,” said Brace. ”It is an enormous brute.

Why, judging from what we can see, it must be thirty feet long.”

”Say forty,” cried Briscoe, laughing. ”But who's to skin it?”

The question was received in dead silence, everyone gazing down at the slowly-heaving monster, about ten feet of the fore part of its body lying where it had crawled, and it was easy enough to believe that another twenty or thirty feet of the creature lay out of sight in the muddy water.

”I wouldn't do that job for a crown,” whispered one of the men to another, and a chorus of grunts followed.

”Well,” said Lynton, ”who is going to volunteer? Mr Brace wants that skin taken off. We must have a rope round the beggar's neck, throw one end over one of the branches of a tree, and then we can haul him up higher and higher as we peel him down from the head.”

”And suppose he begins to twissen himself up in a knot and lash out with his tail?” growled one of the men.

”Bah!” cried Lynton. ”Here, a couple of you row back to the brig and get a coil of rope. I'll skin the brute myself if someone will help me to do the job.”

”I'll volunteer, Mr Lynton,” cried Brace; while Dan smiled and took off his coat before rolling up his s.h.i.+rt-sleeves.

”Will you, sir?” cried the mate; ”then we'll soon do the job; but it's a bit nasty and slimy, you know, and I expect it will make us smell of snake for some days.”

”Never mind,” said Brace. ”I'd do anything rather than lose that skin.”

There was a low growling among the men as they laid their heads together before pus.h.i.+ng off to the s.h.i.+p.

”Now then,” cried the mate, ”what is it? Why don't you be off?”

”It's all right, sir,” said the man who had first protested; ”we can't stand by and let you and Mr Brace do the job by yourselves. We four'll help Dan peel the beggar as soon as they've fetched the rope from the brig.”

The boat pushed off, and the matter was discussed, the American suggesting that the best plan would be to make an incision just below where the skull was joined to the vertebrae, dislocate these so as to put a stop to all writhing, get a noose round the neck, and then it would be easy to divide the skin from throat to tail, and draw it off.

”Oh, yes, sir,” said one of the men, just as the boat reached the side of the brig; ”we'll soon manage that.”

”I say, Mr Briscoe,” said Brace, ”I suppose the ants won't be long in picking the reptile's bones quite clean.”

”Oh, no; they and the flies would soon finish anything that was left in the way of flesh, but I was thinking of dragging the body afterwards into the river. It's a five-and-twenty footer, though, without doubt.”

”Yes,” said Brace, ”but I hope they're not going to be long with that rope. I say, any fear of Indians about here?”

”Hi! look out!” cried one of the sailors, calling to Brace and the others from where they were dividing the thick growth and peering about trying to see what was beyond.

Three guns sent forth a clicking sound on the instant, as those who bore them turned to face the expected danger.

Brace's nerves quivered with excitement as he listened for the whizz of the arrows he expected to hear rush by.