"It's light as paper."
However, he managed to creep up behind the snake and slash off at a
blow the foul, flat head that reared itself above the slime.
"And I suppose this swamp is full of those things."
"Probably. But my land isn't in the swamp, remember; it's beyond the
head of the river."
"There's some real ground ahead; I can see the tops of some pines."
Half an hour later they entered a stretch of open country. A few
spindly pines grew near the river. To the north and west, as far as
the eye could reach, was a prairie, covered with a sparse growth of
grass. Small circular islands of palmetto scrub dotted the monotonous
scene and at rare intervals a clump of somber cypress told of the
presence of water. In a nearby bunch of palmetto a pair of horns were
visible; and a herd of wild cattle, incredibly thin and fleet, leaped
with a snort into the open, stared an instant at the intruders and
sprang out of sight with the speed of deer. A covey of small, brown
quail broke close at hand and sailed away, skimming the top of the
grass. Fox squirrels were to be seen through the hanging moss on the
cypress trees. A great whooping crane waded into view and flapped away
in clumsy fashion. A flock of teal duck, flying swift and true as an
arrow, came winging their way to the river.
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