the party started out early the next morning. they carried very little food with them; it would only be in their way when hunting, and they trusted mother nature would supply what they needed as they went along. two of the men had guns; the others carried bows and arrows. every one was also supplied with a sharp spear and knife.
the first day was very quiet. nothing was shot but a few birds and bats. when night came they found themselves far from any stream; all were thirsty and there was no water. what should they do? ah! in plain sight was a liana. it is called the "travellers'[69] drink" because any one, on breaking off a stalk, can obtain a cool draught. how refreshing it was!
a fire was quickly made and the birds cooked for supper. they all lay down to sleep. but, alas! that was not an easy thing to get. they had no sooner stretched themselves by the fire than they were attacked. by wild animals, you think at once. by no means. it was a small enemy, fierce for their blood, which darted out from the grass and fastened upon their bodies.
multitudes of leeches have their home in the mountain forests of the philippines, and every native who travels there is armed with a small rattan knife to cut them off as they seize upon him.
alila's party knew that sleep was out of the question for this night. as fast as our little brown brother was able to cut off one of the bloodthirsty creatures, another took its place,[70] till at last the daylight came and the hunters could go on their way.
but what a wretched sight they were! blood streamed from their arms and legs, and they looked like the wounded survivors of a terrible battle. when they came to a spring of water, they were glad enough to have a chance to bathe.
alila can tell you that was the worst night he ever passed in his life, yet he hardly spoke a word of complaint through the long hours, and in the morning laughed gaily with his friends when they gazed at each other's sorry-looking faces.
small creatures can make themselves as troublesome as big ones. perhaps you have already found this out when mosquitoes have found their way to your bedside and waked you in the middle of the night.
after a hasty breakfast, the hunters were ready for a tramp, and they soon found the[71] tracks of wild boars. it was not long till they had killed three of them with little trouble. they were about to make a fire and roast some of the flesh for dinner, when a pitiful cry was heard.
how it rang out through the forest! it sounded almost human. what could it be? alila's father jumped up and crept through the woods in the direction of the sound. his boy followed close at his heels. they had gone but a short distance when a strange sight met their eyes. high up on the branch of a tree lay a huge boa-constrictor. he must have been a hundred years old, he was so large.
his eyes were fastened upon a poor little deer in the coil of his tail, which he had stretched down to trap his prey as it walked along. ah! the deer's eyes close and the piteous cry stops as he is clasped more and more tightly in the clutch of the boa. and now the serpent raises him from the ground,[72] and swings him against the trunk of the tree; he is thrown with such force he is instantly killed.
but what were alila and his father doing all this time? they were too late to save the deer, but the boa did not escape. as he was about to descend the tree to feed upon his victim, his wicked eyes saw the hunters for the first time. out darted his forked tongue in anger, just as two arrows entered his body and ended his life. the rest of the party came up at this moment and helped cut away the skin of the boa. it would be useful for making dagger sheaths.
now indeed they would have a grand feast, for they could add the flesh of the deer and boa to what they had already obtained.
