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He lived in touch with nature, and without ever knowing when or how the information came to him, he could call the birds by their names and knew the nests and eggs of each of them, knew the trees by their leaves and their bark, and was familiar with the haunts of the rabbit and the squirrel, the land- and the water-turtle.
However, that which none of these authors knew my head boatman, Mashauana, stopped the canoe to tell us, namely, that a water-turtle which, in trying to ascend a steep bank to lay her eggs, had toppled on her back, thus enabling us to capture her, was an infallible omen of good luck for our journey. * The 'Hagidash', Latham; or 'Tantalus capensis' of Lich.
Presently we saw a creature crawling out of the water, and making its way up the bank. "What creature can that be?" asked Natty. "A water-turtle!" I exclaimed; for I recognised it from the descriptions I had seen of it. Presently it came to a steep part of the bank, and as it was climbing up it fell, and lay helpless on its back. "We will make prize of him," cried Jack. "Paddle away, boys."
"But what have you there, Jack?" asked David, as he saw the turtle which Jack had brought up on his back. "Well, you have indeed a prize, for the turtle will be a pleasant addition to our bill of fare." When the girls went to their hut, we examined the water-turtle, which Timbo and Jack at once prepared for cooking. Opening it, we found that it had upwards of thirty eggs in its body.
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