He hummed peacefully and, his adjustment completed, tried out his
motor for a minute or two, then shut it off and descended to the
ground with the intention of stretching his legs and taking a smoke
before continuing his return flight to camp. Now for the first time
he took note of his surroundings, to be immediately impressed by
both the wildness and the beauty of the scene. In some respects the
tree-dotted meadowland reminded him of a park-like English forest,
and that wild beasts and savage men could ever be a part of so
quiet a scene seemed the remotest of contingencies.
Some gorgeous blooms upon a flowering shrub at a little distance
from his machine caught the attention of his aesthetic eye, and as
he puffed upon his cigarette, he walked over to examine the flowers
more closely. As he bent above them he was probably some hundred
yards from his plane and it was at this instant that Numabo, chief
of the Wamabo, chose to leap from his ambush and lead his warriors
in a sudden rush upon the white man.
The young Englishman's first intimation of danger was a chorus of
savage yells from the forest behind him. Turning, he saw a score
of naked, black warriors advancing rapidly toward him. They moved
in a compact mass and as they approached more closely their rate
of speed noticeably diminished. Lieutenant Smith-Oldwick realized
in a quick glance that the direction of their approach and their
proximity had cut off all chances of retreating to his plane, and
he also understood that their attitude was entirely warlike and
menacing.
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