Lost Soul'[6]; and they were always seized with panic when it was heard. [6] This strange cry is often heard in the depths of the forests in this region, and has never been accounted for, the only explanation given by the Indians being the one stated above, viz., that it is 'the cry of a Lost Soul.' It is alluded to by the American poet, Whittier, in the following lines:-- "In that black forest where, when day is done, * * * * * Darkly from sunset to the rising sun, A cry as of the pained heart of the wood, The long despairing moan of solitude And darkness and the absence of all good, Startles the traveller with a sound so drear, So full of hopeless agony and fear, His heart stands still, and listens with his ear. --The guide, as if he heard a death-bell toll, Crosses himself, and whispers, 'A Lost Soul!'" There were other cries and sounds equally mysterious and perplexing; and, so the Indians began to declare, strange sights too. Of these they could give no clear account, but they maintained that, in the shadows in the darker places, or just before nightfall, while returning from their work, they now and then caught passing glimpses of vague shapes that seemed to peer at them and then disappear within the gloomy forest depths. And even Elwood and Templemore were conscious of the occasional presence of these silent unfamiliar shapes, and sometimes fired at them, though without result. These facts they made no attempt to conceal from one another, though, in their intercourse with the Indians, they put a bold face on matters, and affected to disbelieve the stories told them. Monella alone was--or appeared to be--entirely undisturbed by all these things. If conscious of them, he gave no sign of it, but went about whatever he had to do as though danger were to him an unknown quantity. There was, however, one unpleasant fact that could not be ignored, and that was the unusual number of 'bush-masters' of large size in the wood. This is a poisonous snake, very gaudily coloured, whose bite is certain death. It does not--like most serpents--try to get out of the way of human beings, but, instead, rushes to attack them with great swiftness and ferocity. It is the only _aggressive_ venomous snake of the American continent. It usually attains a length of five or six feet; but, in this forest, the explorers killed many of eight or nine feet, and two--that came on to the attack together--were nearly eleven feet long, with fangs as large as a parrot's claw. In consequence of the frequency of the attacks of these reptiles, so much dreaded by the Indians, and indeed by all travellers, one or two of a working party, armed with shot guns, had to be told off to keep watch; rifles being of no use for the purpose.