LITMIR.BIZ

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Snakes are so strong, and they bite. I think it would be best to go with Harry."

      The hunter said something very humbly in the native tongue.

      "He says that he and his men would hold tight on to the snake if it were angry, and shut it up again; but I don't believe they could. They would all run away too."

      "I don't think there is any danger," said Mr. Kenyon gravely. "These things always try to escape back to the jungle, and they are, I believe, more frightened of us than we are of them. We'll have a look at the creature, then, out here, for I have no suitable place for it at present."

      "You could turn the birds out of the little aviary and let it loose there, father."

      "Good idea, Hal; but let's see it first. Look here, Sree; you and your men must lay hold of the brute if it tries to escape."

      "Yes, Sahib; we catch it and shut the lid down again."

      "That's right," said the merchant. "Yes, who's that? Oh, you, Mike. Come to see the prisoner set free? Come and stand a little farther this way."

      "Thank you, sir; yes, sir," said the man.

      Harry nudged the Prince, and the nudge was returned, with a laughing glance.

      "No danger, is there, sir?" said Mike respectfully.

      "I hope not," said Mr. Kenyon; "but you will be no worse off than we are. Like to go back before the basket is opened?"

      "Isn't time, sir; they've nearly got it open now."

      "Run round the other way, Mike," cried Harry.

      "Me, sir? No, thank you," replied the man. "I don't want to run."

      Meanwhile the two bearers were holding the lid of the basket firmly down while Sree pulled out eight stout elastic skewers of bamboo, which had held the lid tightly in place. And as one after the other was slowly and carefully extracted with as little movement of the basket as possible, so as not to irritate the snake if awake, or to disturb it if asleep, the interest and excitement increased till only one was left, when Harry glanced at Mike, who stood with eyes widely staring, cheeks puffed out, and fists clenched, as if about to start off at full speed.

      Sree looked up at Mr. Kenyon as the two men pressed down harder and he stood ready to pull out the last skewer.

      "Out with it," said Mr. Kenyon, and a thrill ran through all present as the last piece of bamboo was withdrawn.

      But still the lid was pressed down, and of this the hunter took hold, said a few words to his two men, who stood back right and left, ready to help if necessary, while their master had stationed himself at the back of the basket, facing his employer and the two boys. He held the lid with outstretched hands, and once more he paused and looked at Mr. Kenyon as if waiting for orders to proceed, his aim of course being to make the whole business as impressive as possible.

      "Now then, off with it," cried Harry, and in spite of their excitement, to the amusement of the two boys the hunters took off the lid with a tremendous flourish, and stood back smiling with triumph.

      "Just like Mike taking the dish-cover off a roast peacock," as Harry afterwards said.

      It was too much for the last-mentioned personage. As the basket was laid open for the gentlemen to see its contents, Mike took half a dozen steps backward as fast as he could, and with his eye fixed upon the open basket he was in the act of turning to run, when he saw everyone else stand fast.

      "Lies pretty quiet at the bottom," said Harry, advancing with Phra,

      Mr. Kenyon keeping close behind.

      "Only a little one," said the young Prince, rather contemptuously.

      "Here! I say, Sree; what do you mean by this?" cried Harry.

      "Ha, ha, ha!" laughed Phra. "This is one of your tricks, Hal."

      "That it isn't," cried the boy.

      "Where is the snake, Sree?" said Mr. Kenyon. "The basket's empty."

      CHAPTER III

      SREE'S PRISONER

      The hunter took a couple of steps forward, looked down into the basket, looked up, half stunned with astonishment, looked in the lid, then outside it, lifted up the basket and peered under it, threw down the lid, felt in his sarong, and then, as there was no heavy boa twelve or fourteen feet long in its folds, he turned fiercely to the two men in turn to ask them angrily in their own tongue what they had done with the snake.

      Both of them felt in their sarongs and began to protest volubly that they had not touched it; that it was there just now, for they had heard it and felt the weight. It was there – it must be there – and their master had better look again.

      "It's a conjuring trick," said Phra, who looked annoyed.

      "I had nothing to do with it, then," said Harry. "I hadn't, honour bright," he added hurriedly as his companion looked doubtingly at him. "Here, Sree, have you begun to learn juggling?"

      "No, Sahib; it was a lovely snake, all yellow, with big brown spots and purple shadows all over the dark parts. One of these sons of wickedness must have taken it out to sell it to some ship captain to carry away. Surely Sree would not try to cheat the good Sahibs and his Prince by playing tricks like an Indian juggler. Here, Michael; you heard the snake inside before the master came?"

      "Yes," said Mike, who looked quite brave now, as he approached and looked into the basket searchingly. "I'm sure I heard it plainly, but there's no snake here now. There has been one here, though, for you can smell it."

      "Yes, there has been one here," cried Harry eagerly. "Then where is it gone?"

      "Something dreadful has blinded all our eyes, Sahib, so that we cannot see. Thrust in your hand and feel if it is there."

      Harry shrank for the moment, for the idea of feeling after a snake that had been rendered invisible was startling; but feeling ashamed the next moment of his superstitious folly, he plunged his hand down into the basket, felt round it, and stood up.

      "There's nothing in there," he said.

      "Well, you could see that there was not," said his father shortly.

      "But there has been one there quite lately," said Harry. "Smell my fingers, Phra."

      "Pouf! Serpent!" cried the young Prince, with a gesture of disgust.

      "It must have got away."

      Sree took hold of the basket, bent down into it, looked all round, and then to the surprise of all he stood it up again, turned it round a little, and then jumped in, to stand upright.

      The surprise came to an end directly, for Sree pointed downward, and as he did so he thrust his toes through the bottom of the basket, where no hole had been apparent, but which gave way easily to the pressure of the man's foot from within, thus showing that it must have been broken at that one particular place.

      "What! A hole in the bottom for the reptile to crawl out? That was wise of you, Sree!"

      "I was wise, Sahib, and the basket had no hole in it when we put the snake in."

      "Then it must have made one, and forced its way through."

      Sree was silent, and looked at Mike as if waiting for him to speak. But Mike had not the least intention of speaking, and stood with his lips pinched together, perfectly dumb.

      "Why, of course!" cried Harry excitedly; "I see now. Mike gave the basket a tremendous kick as he went by it, and startled the serpent, and made it swing about. Why, Mike, you must have broken a hole through then."

      "Master Harry, I – " began Mike.

      "Yes, Sahib, that was it; he broke a hole through, and once the snake's head was through he would force his way right out."

      "One minute," said Mr. Kenyon rather anxiously; "tell me, Harry: are you perfectly sure that the snake was there?"

      "Certain, father."

      "And you saw Michael kick the basket?"

      "Oh yes, father; and Michael knows he did."

      "That's right

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