“Any more?” asked Bumpus, so deeply interested by all this narrative that he had been sitting there without moving for half an hour, his big head supported by his cupped hands, and his round eyes glued on Alligator Smith’s face.
“Thar’s another feller as I knows on wot makes moonshine whisky, but only in small lots, ’case he can’t git the cawn he wants fo’ his mash. Nobody ever bothers ole Pap Dody, an’ he’s done made his stuff yeahs and yeahs.”
“Seems like this old swamp might hold a lot of queer people and their secrets?” remarked Giraffe, yawning.
“It certain do, son,” replied the other, as he helped himself for the third time to the strong coffee the boys had made for him. “But then yuh must ’member as how she kivers a heap o’ territory. I never did know jest how many miles acrost from east to west this swamp is—anyway from ten to twenty, and nigh as far from no’th to south. But I forgot tuh tell yuh ’bout the voodoo doctor or medicine man.”
“Oh! is there one of those horrible negro wizards around here?” and Smithy shuddered as he put the question, showing that he must have read more or less on the subject.
“He holds out on the other side, so we ain’t likely tuh run acrost him,” Tom Smith went on. “They be heaps o’ the blacks as goes regular tuh see him, an’ I been told as how they hev a regular heathen fetish worship and dance like over in Afric. But they ain’t never offered up any human sacrifice, as I heard tell on. If they knows what’s good fo ’em they’ll fight shy o’ thet. The planters ’round hyah wouldn’t stand fo’ no sech goings on as thet, nohow.”
As the boys were showing signs of weariness, and the hour had grown late, the scout-master decided they had talked themselves out for one evening.
And so he went around to make sure that everything was secure, the boats protected as on the preceding night, the paddles, as well as all else of value taken into the tents, and every object calculated to tempt a prowling negro looked after.
The guide declared that he had no need of shelter, but would lie on the ground. And woe to the thief, either on two legs or four, who attempted to invade the camp while he was around.
His presence gave the boys much comfort.