"Thank you, Lenny," gasped the boy breathlessly, as he saved himself from falling forward by catching at the nearest sailor; "but don't hit quite so hard next time; it hurts." A roar of laughter followed this, and the doctor took off his pith helmet to wipe his forehead. "That's a nice sort of an example to set a fellow," muttered Ned as he stood on the other side, rather unnerved by what he had seen. "Makes a poor man feel as if he would rather be at home cleaning the plate." Then in a fit of determination he flung up his arms, and in regular boyish fashion shouted-- "Clear the way, there. Here comes my ship full sail." He cleared the gulf with a good foot to spare, and felt triumphant. Each took his gun or rifle directly without a word of allusion to Jack's narrow escape, and with the doctor leading the way they began to climb the steep ascent in silence. "I hope that fellow's shouting has not scared our birds," said the doctor after a time. "Quiet as you can, below there." "They were so far off I don't think the birds could have heard him," replied Jack. "Perhaps the noise would not have gone out of the gully." "Perhaps not," said the doctor. Then laconically: "Hurt?" "Oh, not much," said Jack, smiling. "He did hit me a good bang though." "Never mind, my lad; I like to see you bear it stoically. Shows me you're recovering tone. Phew! this is warm work. How much more of it is there?" "Not half-way up yet," panted Jack. "Take it coolly, men, or our hands will be all of a tremble, so that we can't shoot straight." There was no need to advise an impossibility, for no one could have taken it coolly. The blocks of stone, the tangled creepers, and higher up the dense undergrowth, made it a slow, laborious task; but at last the huge trees of the upper slope were reached, and the work promised to be lighter. The doctor made a sign, and they both sat down to rest for a few minutes, the men who came on smilingly following suit; but all at once a peculiarly hoarse cooing sound arose from not far away among the trees, and all the fatigue passed away as if by magic. "Pigeons!" whispered the doctor excitedly. "Hark! more of them! They must be the big fruit birds, Jack, and we must have a pair or two of these. When you're ready we'll go on." "I'm ready," whispered Jack. "Then we'll go abreast. Don't you study me. Keep your eyes open, and the first moment you have a good chance you fire. Get one with each barrel if you can." Jack nodded, and directly after they advanced among the trees, with Ned about a couple of yards behind, carrying a second gun for whichever needed it. These were exciting moments, more exciting than they knew of, as they crept forward among the huge trunks, and gazing upward among the branches, expecting moment by moment to catch sight of the flock of great fruit-pigeons, whose cooing kept stopping and commencing again.