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The truth is, they were upon a timbered stream an affluent of the Trinity river; and as the latter was at this season overflowed, all the wild animals bears, cougars, wolves, lynxes, and javalies had been driven out of the low bottoms, and were roaming through the adjacent woods, more hungry and fierce than they commonly are.
They had no tails only knobs in their place; and their tapering snouts opened into a pair of long jaws, with white tusks, that could be seen even in the distance. "Javalies!" cried Lucien, who, although he had never seen the animal, knew them from description. Javalies they were in fact the wild-hogs of Mexico. All three had pulled up, as soon as they saw the animals were not wolves.
It was necessary to take into consideration how they should now act. Their circumstances were very much altered. The whole of their provisions of dried meat, flour, and coffee, had been dropped by Jeanette in her flight, and, of course, eaten up or destroyed by the javalies. Henceforth they would have to depend entirely on their guns to supply them.
Marengo, who was an old Texas hound, had seen javalies before; and having wisely shied off upon the prairie, stood looking on. The young hunters soon saw that it was no use keeping their ground, and prepared to retreat.
Not unfrequently the Mexican hunter is "treed" by javalies, and compelled to remain on his perch for hours, and sometimes for days, before his besiegers retire, and leave him to descend with safety. The place where our adventurers now encamped was in a large grove of white oaks and shell-bark hickory-trees.
Her legs, too, were much torn by the tusks of the wild-hogs. Moreover, the tent that had got loose, trailing on one side to the ground, considerably impeded her flight. This last circumstance in the end proved her salvation; for the javalies, overtaking her, seized the hanging canvas in their jaws, and pulled it from the pack.
They are sometimes called "barking" wolves; because, as we have noticed, the first two or three notes of their howl resemble the bark of a dog. It ends, however, in a prolonged and disagreeable scream. "I am glad it is they," said Lucien, in reply to Basil's remark. "It is well it is no worse. I was afraid it was our friends, the javalies, who had come to pay us a visit."
While the meat was drying, Basil melted some of the fat in the kettle, which fortunately was one of the utensils that still remained. With this fat which beyond a doubt was genuine bear's grease he anointed poor Jeanette's shanks, that had been almost clean skinned by the teeth of the javalies.
Lightened of her load, she struck out into a fleet gallop, and soon overtook the horses; and the whole cavalcade now kept on, until they had placed several miles between themselves and the javalies. Here they halted with the intention of pitching their camps, as their animals were not only wearied, but Jeanette was hardly able to travel at all.
They did not halt long, for Jeanette was in danger. She was still kicking and squealing like a cat; while the javalies, although several of them lay stretched behind her heels, were uttering their shrill grunts, and rushing at her shanks whenever these rested for a moment upon the earth. There were more than a hundred of them around her feet.
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