The foliage rustled above and around him; insects hummed; in the distance he heard the wailing call of some strange night bird, the booming note of a giant frog, the bark of a beast of prey. In these there was nothing alarming. But his uneasiness, the sense of impending danger, grew upon him, and at last, unable to endure the mysterious feeling any longer, he was on the point of awakening John, for the mere relief and pleasure of hearing a human voice, when all at once the other man, farther from him, uttered a shriek of mortal terror. [Illustration: IN THE PYTHON'S TOILS] The effect upon Royce was as startling as the shock from an electric current. He started up, almost losing his balance. The cry had this good result, that it enabled him to shake off the numbing horror that had oppressed him. Groping in his pocket, he drew out a small electric torch which he used but sparingly, because of the impossibility of re-charging it. With the other hand he seized his revolver. A flash of the torch made all terribly clear. The hapless carrier was in the toils of an immense snake. John crouched near him, paralysed with horror. The snake was gradually tightening its hold, and its hideous head was swaying within a few feet of its victim. Royce snapped his revolver at the reptile's head. The shot went wide. He fired again. This time his aim was true. For a moment the snake convulsively tightened its coils about the inert black body, causing the man to groan under the crushing pressure. Then the coils relaxed, the head drooped, and in a few moments the monster dropped with a thud upon the ground. CHAPTER VIII SETTING A TRAP There was no more sleep for any of the three that night. Royce's nerves were on edge; the negroes, though they recovered sooner than he from the shock, remained in a high state of excitement. John related a dismal story of the absorption of a cousin of his by a snake, showing such a relish for gruesome details that Royce ordered him to choose another subject. With the earliest glimmer of dawn they descended from their perches. At the foot of the tree lay an unusually large specimen of the African python, measuring at least eighteen feet. Royce shuddered at the thought of the fate which the Hausa had so narrowly escaped. They made the best breakfast they could, and as soon as it was light enough to mark the trail, they set off again in the track of the enemy. Royce knew that, lightly burdened as he and his companions were, their speed was likely to be much greater than that of the raiders, whose pace must be regulated by the men carrying heavy loads. So he was not surprised, after marching only two or three hours, to reach the spot where the party had encamped during the night.