This Was Quickly Accomplished, And The Men Remained Knee-Deep
Hauling Upon The Rope To Prevent The Stream From Carrying Away The Body.
In The Mean Time Monsoor Had Mounted My Horse And Galloped Off For
Assistance To The Camp Of The "Forty Thieves."
Crocodiles are very tenacious of life, and although they may be shot
through the brain and be actually dead for all practical purposes, they
will remain motionless at first, but they will begin instinctively to
move the limbs and tail a few minutes after receiving the shot.
If lying
upon a sand-bank, or in deep water, they would generally disappear
unless secured by a rope, as the spasmodic movements of the limbs and
tail would set upon the water, and the body would be carried away.
The crocodile, that had appeared stone dead, now began to move its tail,
and my two men who were holding on to the rope cried out that it was
still alive. It was in vain that I assured the frightened fellows that
it was dead. I was on the bank, and they were in the water within a few
feet of the crocodile, which made some difference in our ideas of its
vivacity. Presently the creature really began to struggle, and the
united efforts of the men could hardly restrain it from getting into
deeper water. The monster now began to yawn, which so terrified the men
that they would have dropped the rope and fled had they not been afraid
of the consequences, as I was addressing them rather forcibly from the
bank.
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