Page:Under Dewey at Manila.djvu/198

170 for the night. "The six I have left won't last forever. Let us see if we can't keep the fire; and he banked it up with some thick brushwood in such a fashion that it might burn slowly.

The night was spent under the shelter of several dwarf palms which grew close to a rocky elevation overlooking the sea. All went well until nearly dawn, when Larry was suddenly awakened by the movement of something around him.

"Hullo, Luke, what's up?" he cried, when he caught sight of something between himself and the Yankee sailor. He made a savage kick, hitting some small animal in the side, and a shrill squeak followed. Striker was by this time awake, and both leaped to their feet.

"A monkey, that's all!" cried the tar. "Get out of here!" and he made a useless pass with his foot, for the monkey was already hopping off as fast as he was able. In the dim light they made out a score of the animals sitting around them in a circle. With a wild chatter the whole tribe rushed into the trees of the forest behind them and were lost to view, although their chatterings could be heard for a long while after.

"They'll come back sooner or later; their