Andy had accompanied his chum in that backward movement; but never for an instant did he remove his eyes from the strange spectacle that was taking place there in front of them both.
Undoubtedly the well aimed bullet had crashed through the fearful head of the suspended anaconda. Instantly it released its many coils above, and a tremendous length of writhing snake could be seen whipping over the ground. Nothing in the way of small vegetation could stand in the path of those powerful springy coils, as they shot this way and that.
"Oh! my!" gasped the astounded Andy, as he moved farther back, so as to avoid any chance contact with the flying destructive force that was leveling everything in the glade for twenty feet around. "Did you ever see anything to equal that? Talk to me about your harvesting machines, here's one that's got 'em all beat to a frazzle. Ain't he ever going to give up the ghost, Frank? Guess these anacondas must have the nine lives of a cat!"
"Well," remarked Frank, "you must have forgotten that among boys it's said that a snake won't die till sundown. I've seen one's tail wiggle hours after we thought the thing was stone dead. There, he's moving off into the forest, and a good riddance. While I'd like to measure the serpent just from curiosity, we've got no time to waste waiting for him to kick the bucket."
"That's right," assented Andy. "And as for going anywhere near such a whirlwind, you'd have to excuse me."
They watched the dying anaconda gradually vanish in the depth of the forest; and both boys were glad that it had turned out that way, since they were anxious to depart from the place.
"Don't I wish I'd had my little camera along, so I could have snapped a shot at that dandy chap! The fellows would believe me then, when I told about what happened to us here. And anyway, Frank, I don't think we'll forget this camp, do you?"
"Well, hardly," replied his chum, smiling broadly. "Because we've sure had enough happen to us here to make us remember. But I'm glad to find there's going to be more space for the run than I thought at first."
"We'll need every inch of it," declared Andy, as he looked dubiously at the tops of the lower trees about the place where the snake had held forth. "Don't I wish we'd brought a few sticks of dynamite along, though."