He raced down the hill, while the others came closely after him. They reached the plant into which Jack had bounced. The flap, or top piece, had closed down, tightly over the unfortunate boy. “Quick! We must save him or he will be smothered to death or drowned in the liquid the cup contains!” Mr. Henderson exclaimed. “Attack the plant with anything you can find!” “Let’s cut through the side of the flower-cup!” suggested Mark. “That seems softer than the stem.” His idea was quickly put into operation. Andy’s long hunting knife came in very handy. While the sides of the long natural cup were tough, the knife made an impression on them, and, soon, a small door or opening had been cut in the side of the pitcher plant, large enough to enable a human body to pass through. When the last fibre had been severed by Andy, who was chosen to wield the knife because of his long practice as a hunter, there was a sudden commotion within the plant. Then a dark object, dripping water, made a spring and landed almost at the feet of the professor. It was Jack, and a sorry sight he presented. He was covered from head to foot with some sticky substance, which dripped from all over him. With hasty movements he cleared the stuff from his eyes and mouth, and spluttered: “It’s a good thing you cut me out when you did. I couldn’t have held on much longer!” CHAPTER XIX THE BIG PEACH Jack soon recovered from his remarkable experience. The terrible plant that had nearly eaten him alive was a mass of cut-up vegetable matter which attracted a swarm of insects. Most of them were ants, but such large ones the boys had never seen before, and the professor said they exceeded in size anything he had read about. Some of them were as large as big rats. They bit off large pieces of the fallen plant and carried them to holes in the ground which were big enough for Washington to slip his foot into, and he wore a No. 11 shoe. But the adventurers felt there were more important things for them to look at than ants, so they started away again, the professor telling them all to be careful and avoid accidents. It was while they were strolling through a little glade, which they came upon unexpectedly, that Washington, who was in the lead called out: “Gracious goodness! It must be Thanksgivin’!” “Why so?” asked Jack. “'Cause here’s th’ remarkablest extraordinary and expansionist of a pumpkin that ever I laid eyes on!” the colored man cried. They all hurried to where Washington had come to a halt. There, on the ground in front of him, was a big round object, about the size of a hogshead. It was yellow in color, and was not unlike the golden vegetable from which mothers make such delicious pies. “I allers was fond of pumpkins,” said Washington, placing his hand on the thing, which was almost as tall as he was, “but I never thought I’d come across such a one as this.”