Page:While the Billy Boils, 1913.djvu/265

 About a mile further on he heard a rustling in the grass to the right, and, looking round, saw another iguana gliding off sideways, with its long snaky neck turned towards him.

This puzzled the shepherd considerably, the strangest part of it being that Five Bob wouldn't touch the reptile, but slunk off with his tail down when ordered to 'sick 'em.'

Theer's sothin' comic about them theer gohanners,' said the old man at last. "I've seed swarms of grasshoppers an' big mobs of kangaroos, but dang me if ever I seed a flock of black gohanners afore!'

On reaching the hut the old man dumped the corpse against the wall, wrong end up, and stood scratching his head while he endeavoured to collect his muddled thoughts; but he had not placed Brummy at the correct angle, and, consequently, that individual fell forward and struck him a violent blow on the shoulder with the iron toes of his Blucher boots.

The shock sobered him. He sprang a good yard, instinctively hitching up his moleskins in preparation for flight; but a backward glance revealed to him the true cause of this supposed attack from the rear. Then he lifted the body, stood it on its feet against the chimney, and ruminated as to where he should lodge his mate for the night, not noticing that the shorter sheet of bark had slipped down on the boots and left the face exposed.

'I spect I'll have ter put yer into the chimney-trough for the night, Brummy, 'said he, turning round to confront the corpse. 'Yer can't expect me to take yer into the hut, though I did it when yer was in a worse state thanLord!'