At the end of his two hours, Kennedy returned with a
string of fat partridges and the haunch of an oryx, a sort
of gemsbok belonging to the most agile species of antelopes.
Joe took upon himself to prepare this surplus stock
of provisions for a later repast.
"But, dinner's ready!" he shouted in his most musical voice.
And the three travellers had only to sit down on the
green turf. The trunk and feet of the elephant were declared
to be exquisite. Old England was toasted, as usual,
and delicious Havanas perfumed this charming country
for the first time.
Kennedy ate, drank, and chatted, like four; he was
perfectly delighted with his new life, and seriously
proposed to the doctor to settle in this forest, to construct a
cabin of boughs and foliage, and, there and then, to lay the
foundation of a Robinson Crusoe dynasty in Africa.
The proposition went no further, although Joe had, at
once, selected the part of Man Friday for himself.
The country seemed so quiet, so deserted, that the
doctor resolved to pass the night on the ground, and Joe
arranged a circle of watch-fires as an indispensable barrier
against wild animals, for the hyenas, cougars, and jackals,
attracted by the smell of the dead elephant, were prowling
about in the neighborhood.
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