All stopped to listen, but no, sound reached their ears but the hum of insects and the chirping of some distant birds.
"I reckon I had best go first," said Captain Blossom, but he did not seem to relish the task.
Gun in hand, the captain advanced very cautiously. The boys came close behind him, each with his pistol ready for use.
Of a sudden there was a snarl with a strange "yow-yawing," and a great beast leaped up on all-fours directly in their path and darted through the bushes. The captain raised his gun and the boys their pistols, but before they could fire the beast had disappeared.
"What was it?" asked Sam, trembling with excitement.
"I give it up, unless it was a bear," said Tom.
"I think I know what it was," said the captain. "A big baboon or a gorilla."
"I guess you are right, captain," answered Tom. "I saw a gorilla in a menagerie, and it was exactly like that beast. But what a big fellow he was!"
"Gorillas are highly dangerous, especially when cornered," said Captain Blossom. He himself was more frightened than he cared to admit. "They have been known to carry a man off in their arms and bite him to death."
"Thanks, but I want no gorillas around me," declared Sam.