| 105 | 106 | 107 | 108 | 109 |
| 1 | 74 | 149 | 223 | 297 |
|
still. And then came the bats, and the star that was like Ugh-lomi crept
out of its blue hiding-place in the west. She called to it, but softly,
because she feared the lion. And all through the coming of the twilight
the thicket was still.
So the dark crept upon Eudena, and the moon grew bright, and the shadows
of things that had fled up the hillside and vanished with the evening
came back to them short and black. And the dark shapes in the thicket of
reeds and alders where the lion lay, gathered, and a faint stir began
there. But nothing came out therefrom all through the gathering of the
darkness.
She looked at the squatting-place and saw the fires glowing smoky-red,
and the men and women going to and fro. The other way, over the river, a
white mist was rising. Then far away came the whimpering of young foxes
and the yell of a hyæna.
There were long gaps of aching waiting. After a long time some animal
splashed in the water, and seemed to cross the river at the ford beyond
the lair, but what animal it was she could not see. From the distant
drinking-pools she could hear the sound of splashing, and the noise of
elephants--so still was the night.
The earth was now a colourless arrangement of white reflections and
impenetrable shadows, under the blue sky. The silvery moon was already
spotted with the filigree crests of the chestnut woods, and over the
107
Page
Quick Jump
|