the little fishes, little fishes were preyed on by the ducks and the big fishes, while the birds and the big fishes in turn provided breakfast, dinner, and supper for the crocodiles.  Apparently the crocodiles were too tough, too musky, and too powerful, to serve as food for any other animal higher up in the scale; but it is not to be supposed that they had merely to open their jaws to snatch a meal, for there were shallows all about where the waders could go to sleep in peace, standing on one leg.  And there they stood, regiments of them—­crested cranes, blue cranes, black ibis, pink ibis, flamingoes, and wild geese..  And the noise was tremendous!

The Okapi sailed under a gentle breeze right into the thick of this sportsman’s paradise, and from the low islands armies of mosquitoes gaily advanced to meet her until they formed a moving cloud around her, only kept off from eating up the crew by the merciful intervention of the canvas awning and mosquito curtains.

“What a magnificent specimen of the spoonbill bittern,” groaned Venning.  “If we had only brought an air-gun—­for I suppose we cannot fire.”

“Look at those fat geese in a row,” said Compton.  “What a stew they would make.  Just one shot, sir.”

“It won’t do,” said Mr. Hume.  “A single shot would raise noise enough to wake the seven sleepers.”

“There is another way,” said Muata.

“What way?”

“A line such as you used for fish—­see.”  He shaved off some thin shreds of buffalo biltong, chewed it, and dropped it astern.  An inquisitive teal watched him keenly, and, as the boat went by, made a swoop for the fragment.  The incident was noticed, and a big gander, curiously tame, came sailing up, arching its neck in imitation of the swan.  The boys were at the lockers in a flash, drew out a couple of lines, bent on a large hook, buoyed it, by the advice of Mr. Hume, between two floats, baited the hooks, and payed the line over the stem, while Muata dropped over a few more pellets.  There was a flotilla of duck and geese following in the wake of the Okapi, and in less than a minute there were two bites.  Compton had the black and grey gander, while Venning had a fat duck in tow.  The Okapi was backed full speed astern and the astonished fowl pulled on board before they knew what had happened.  The geese sheered off at once, speaking to each other in subdued tones, but in the next quarter of an hour three more ducks were added to the bag.  Then a piratical craft appeared in the very thick of the peaceful convoy, opened its broadside, as it were, and engulfed a couple.  There was a swirl in the water, a resounding smack made by a long scaley tail, and a third fowl went the way of the others.  Beating their wings, the duck rose with loud quacks to seek the safety of a shallow, and the leery green eyes of the piratical crocodile appeared above the disturbed water.

“You old thief!” cried Venning.

“It is his hunting-ground,” said Muata, with a chuckle, as he passed the birds to his mother, who began at once to pluck them.