The jungles of India are not among its least wonders. Being a tropical country, its vegetation is exuberant beyond description. There are found the most gigantic trees, enormous flowers, expansive leaves, delicious fruits, overpowering perfumes, spreading creepers, nutritious vegetables, and herbs of inestimable medicinal value.
You have heard of the banyan trees, some of which, with their down growing limbs, each forming a new trunk, measure a fourth of a mile in circumference, one tree thus constituting an entire grove. There, too, is the peepul, delicately beautiful, forcing itself through the mortar and cement of buildings, disintegrating them, and regarded as a sacred growth by the natives; the sisso, fine grained and handsomely veined; the sygwam or teak, the best timber for building; the cocoanut; the bamboo, talipot and mango.
It would be useless to try to classify the fruits, the most common of which are mangoes, pineapples, plantains, pomegranates, pumplenoses, jacks, custard apples, guavas, lemons, melons, oranges, sour sops, almonds, tamarinds, plums, figs, dates, citrons, yams, nolcolls and so on to the end of the chapter.
The bright moonlight, which had been so dangerous at times, now became a great help to the fugitives, who were no more than fairly started when they saw a singular sight.
First came a few mounted soldiers, followed by an immense elephant, covered with spangled cloth and a towering howdah. The great beast had the ends of his tusks sawed off, covered with gold, and tied with streaming ribbons of gaudily colored silk. The howdah was lined with crimson morocco, and the figure of a man could be discerned within, with a voluminous shawl gathered about him, as though it were midwinter.
Next came a smaller elephant, in whose howdah or saddle two men were seated, their gesticulations showing that they were talking earnestly about something. After these were a large number on horseback, the steeds brightly caparisoned and dancing, and finally a long procession of natives on foot, armed with any and all kinds of weapons on which they could lay hands.
Our friends were a little startled when they encountered this curious array, but Luchman assured them they had nothing to fear. The man on the large elephant most likely was a rajah or some native of authority. Luchman made a low salaam to the dignitaries, but they did not consider it their duty to respond, and swung along as though they saw him not.
It struck Dr. Avery that they ran no little risk in meeting this motley crowd, but their guide did not seem to think so. Despite the lateness of the hour, the temperature continued frightfully high. Indeed such a thing as coolness is unknown in that section of India in the month of May. The difference between midday and midnight is often but a few degrees. Night after night, the thermometer never sinks below 90°, and there are times in Madras and Bombay, during the hot season, when men are stricken with apoplexy while lying in their beds, because of the intolerable heat.
Under such circumstances, it will be understood that our friends advanced at a leisurely pace, so that when the growing light in the east drove them to the shelter of another grove, they were yet a number of miles from the extensive jungle of which their guide had spoken. As before, he found them food with little trouble, for they were never far from the hut of some native who was glad enough to sell to those who paid so liberally.
This day's rest proved strengthening, so that when night came again, with its bright moon and clear, hot sky, all were eager to be on the move. From their hiding place among the trees, they saw quite a number of people passing back and forth along the road and across the fields. Most of these were armed, so that the fugitives took particular care to avoid being seen. It looked as though the news of the revolt had reached this section ahead of the little party, and though the rajah and his retinue had deemed them beneath notice, it was unreasonable to hope that all others would do so.