The swimmers had not been in the water more than five minutes when the cry of "Crocodiles!" came from Achang, who had stationed himself just forward of the engine. Probably he had a keener vision for the reptiles than the Americans; for the seamen had not yet seen anything that looked like one. He could tell by the appearance of the water that the enemy was approaching, though the disturbance of its surface was near the other side of the stream.
The party in the water turned about, and headed for the boat, swimming with all the vigor they could command. Achang had his rifle in his hand; but even he could not make out the crocodile clearly enough to be sure of his aim. Five minutes more elapsed; for it required that time for the swimmers to reach the yacht. The seamen assisted the party into the boat, and they rushed with all speed into the cabin; for a quartet of Dyak maidens had already reached the bank of the river, and were begging the men for more tobacco.
Achang fired his rifle; but three crocodiles could now be seen moving towards the yacht. Their approach was not impeded by the shot, for it was impossible to see the eyes of the reptiles in the semi-darkness. But the cabin party were safe, and it was as useless to fire at them as it would have been at a stone wall.
"I advise you not to try that experiment again, young gentlemen," said Mr. Eng as the bathing party came out into the waist.
"I don't think we shall, though we were protected by half a dozen rifles," replied the captain, who had been the leader in the venturesome exploit.
"If you do try it again, do so in the daylight, when your riflemen can see the eyes of the enemy," added the agent. "I must bid you good-by now, for I have business on shore here. I don't think the crocodiles will come any nearer to you, but be prudent. I shall hope to see you at Simujan on your return."
Mr. Eng shook hands with all the cabin party, and went ashore. The captain gave the order to cast off the fasts, and Lane was ordered to take the wheel. The two sampans had before made fast to the shore; and as the Blanchita got under way, one of them put off, and paddled towards the crocodiles. The last that was seen of the craft, it had a saurian hooked after the Malay mode of fishing for them.
After breakfast had been served in the cabin, and the party had gone to their seats forward, the character of the river began to change, becoming much narrower. They came to another Dyak village, where the jungle was cleared off and paddies were near the stream. It looked as though all the inhabitants had gathered on the bank, male and female. A long-house was to be seen on a knoll, and the wheelman was ordered to take the boat within a couple of rods of the shore.
"Are you going to make a landing at this village, Captain Scott?" asked Louis.
"No; we have seen enough of these people, but we will see what we can as we pass along. They are all beckoning us to go ashore; but we won't do so, for any more Dyak maidens would be rather monotonous."