In the Wilds of Florida: A Tale of Warfare and Hunting

regarding thethreatened hostility of the Indians, he would not allow us to engage inany shooting excursions. We contrived, however, to amuse ourselves bymaking occasional trips in a boat up the river, when Lejoillie succeededin obtaining a number of specimens of birds.

  In a few days Captain Norton arrived with the ponies, and set my uncle'smind at rest by reporting that the Indians had retired westward, andthat it was supposed they would before long finally take theirdeparture, according to the treaty they had entered into, and cross theMississippi. As soon as Carlos heard this, he proposed that we shouldset off on a shooting expedition.

  Lejoillie at once agreed, hoping thus to find opportunities of adding tohis specimens of natural history; but Rochford showed no desire toaccompany us. It was very evident that he preferred the society of theladies, and especially of my cousin Juanita, to whom it appeared to me,he was paying devoted attention. Whether or not the elders of thefamily observed this I could not make out. The girls were also both solively and animated, that it was difficult to be certain that my youngcousin had discovered our guest's feelings towards her, or, at allevents, that she returned them. Her manner was in no way altered; shetreated him, as she did Lejoillie and Captain Norton, in a frank andeasy manner.

  Carlos showed some annoyance when Rochford made excuses for not goingwith us.

  "We are not a large party, and we fully relied on having your company,"said my cousin. "You came out here to see the country, and you willknow nothing about it if you stop in the house and only take a shortride occasionally with the girls or paddle them about on the river. Youcan return with us, and stop here afterwards as long as you like."

  Still Rochford would not promise to go.

  Captain Norton also excused himself. He had, he said, traversed thecountry and camped out often enough in the course of duty. He was notparticularly fond of sport; at all events, it would not recompense himfor the life he should have to lead. He could spend but a few days atCastle Kearney, and must then return to Saint Augustine, where hisregiment was quartered. At this I was not surprised, though I liked himso much that I should have been glad of his society. He, however, Isuspected, was paying attention to Rita, and, as far as I was able tojudge, was making progress in her good graces. My uncle and aunt were,of course, grateful to him for having preserved her from the puma; andthough he claimed no merit for the service he had rendered, it was verynatural that it should be in his favour.

  We had all gone out in the evening to enjoy the cool air in theorangery, in which were seats on raised terraces, where views could beobtained up and down the river. I had separated from the rest of theparty, when, after wandering about by myself for a short time, I passedone of the bowers I have mentioned. On looking in I saw Juanita andRochford. I overheard my cousin say, in answer to something hercompanion had said--

  "It is impossible--I cannot quit my home; and I tell you frankly thatyou have not won my heart."

  As my cousin did not call, though I was sure she must have seen me, Ifelt that it would not be right to interfere, and therefore hurried onuntil I was out of sight.

  Some time afterwards, when the ladies had returned to the house,Rochford came up to me.

  "Maurice, I have made up my mind to accompany you on your expedition,"he said. "I shall be obliged if you will let Carlos know. I see that Icannot with propriety stay here any longer."

  He did not tell me, but of course I guessed, the cause of his suddenchange of plan. I could not help thinking Juanita had done right, forhe was in reality a comparative stranger; and except that he was awarm-hearted, impulsive young man, we knew little of his principles orcharacter. Carlos, on hearing of his intention to go with us,exclaimed, "I am very glad of it; he'll make a capital companion: hesings a good song, and I dare say will prove a good shot."

  At daybreak on the following morning we started, our party consisting ofLejoillie, Rochford, Carlos, Tim, and myself, with two ponies forcarrying game, and four blacks to beat the bushes and make themselvesgenerally useful. We had six dogs, well-trained animals, two beingretrievers, the others, powerful brutes, taught to rush into thicketsand turn out the game, or to pull down the larger animals. The blackscarried guns, axes, and machetes; while we had our rifles, a brace ofpistols, and a long knife a-piece.

  We at once struck away to the south-west, in the direction in whichCarlos considered we were most likely to find sport. Rochford wasunusually silent; a change had evidently come over him, and he seemedalmost morose and sullen. When Carlos bantered him with not being asmerry as usual, he turned away, and soon afterwards dropped behind therest of the party. Lejoillie was too much occupied in observing thevarious birds and animals to remark our friend's behaviour.

  I should have said that one of the dogs was a large handsomespaniel--"Caesar"--of which my uncle had kindly made me a present somedays before. The animal seemed to understand the change of masters, andhaving taken a great fancy to me, obeyed my orders as readily as if Ihad trained him from his puppyhood. Three other animals, if notperfectly well-bred, were closely allied to the Cuban blood-hound, toofrequently employed in hunting runaway slaves, although equally usefulfor driving game out of thick coverts or protecting the camp whencommitted to their charge. They were possessed of great keenness ofscent, were fierce, courageous, and very powerful animals, and couldendure the intense heat of a tropical sun. They could follow the wilyocelot, making their way noiselessly through the dense palmetto-scrub,and could fearlessly tackle panthers or bears.

  We passed, on our course, alternate narrow strips of grass and jungle,with cabbage-palms and numerous live-oaks scattered about in picturesquegroups. Sometimes we came to ponds fringed with saw-grass eight or tenfeet in height, from amid which rose large flocks of the beautifulroseate spoonbill ibis, while the white ibis and ducks of varied coloursstalked and swam around the edges, and snipes rose frequently almostfrom under our feet. From among a flock of turkeys, which flew up froma thick palmetto jungle, we knocked over four fat gobblers, sufficientfor two substantial meals to our whole party.

  I must not stop to describe the adventures of each day. For the firstthree or four, we met with less large game than we had expected, Carlosalways telling us that farther south we should find much more.

  We were not altogether unmindful of the reported bad temper of theIndians, and had we not taken precautions against surprise, we mightpossibly have been attacked; but at night two of the party were alwayson watch, accompanied by a blood-hound, to give notice of the approachof a foe. We put up rough tents, which afforded us sufficientprotection against the weather, though not against the mosquitoes, whichfrequently troubled us severely. It was only towards morning that wefelt any sensation of cold. We were then glad to draw our blanketstightly around us, though a small amount of exercise soon warmed ourblood. Our plan was to breakfast before daylight, so as to get some ofthe cool hours of the morning for hunting.

  We had not been long on foot--the fourth day after leaving CastleKearney--when we saw the hounds running backwards and forwards from onelarge clump of scrub-palmetto to another.

  "They are after a cat," exclaimed Carlos; "but it will be some timebefore they catch it."

  "A cat?" I asked.

  "We call it `cat' for shortness' sake. Its common name is a`catamount,' or, more properly, an `ocelot.'"

  The hounds, who well knew where the ocelot had gone to, were chasing itfrom tree to tree; but still it continued to elude them. All we coulddo was to stand by with our rifles ready to shoot the creature, shouldit burst forth into the open. Nearly two hours must have passed sincethe dogs first got scent of it, and yet the animal managed to evadethem. I was standing in a palmetto-scrub almost up to my shoulders,when about a dozen paces off I saw a movement among the leaves, which Isuspected was caused by a wild beast of some sort. I stood ready toreceive it. In a few seconds, catching a glimpse of a yellow skin, Ifired, but my bullet failed to take effect; and the next instant ananimal, with glaring eyes and outstretched claw
s, sprang towards me, asif about to fly at my throat. I was endeavouring to reload, when Iheard a shot, and the creature fell dead almost at my feet. Turninground, I saw that it was Rochford who had fired.

  "Thank you," I said, as he came forward to examine the animal.

  It was, as had been supposed, an ocelot, the most beautiful creature ofthat region. It measured about three feet in length from the nose tothe root of the tail. It had a reddish fur, marked with black spots,oblong on the back, and round or streaked on the under part and paws.The strongly-formed shoulder showed the power which it could exert whenseizing its prey. Its handsome fur was soon taken off, and placed onthe back of one of the ponies.

  The dogs in a short time hunted out two other ocelots, which werespeedily shot; and we killed also several racoons, polecats, opossums,two deer, besides turkeys, ducks, snipes, and quails,--which I mentionto show the