Live river

Robert and his friend Archer were really tired when they got back to the camp at
the rubber plantations. There was not much work to do because most of the
rubber was already in the warehouse. That was why Archer and Robert planned a
new journey of discovery.

This time they wanted to explore the rainforest to the north of the camp. These
places were not unknown but our young friends were looking for new kinds of
orchids. And these flowers could only be found north of the Amazon. They
planned the journey for the weekend.

On Saturday morning they set off with the enough food and two guns. The
journey through the rainforest was really difficult and demanding. After several
hours of walking they got to a place where the rainforest was not so dense and
the trees were taller. Even though they went for several hours they weren’t that
far from the camp. You cannot walk really quickly through the rainforest. Often
they had to cut bushes and plants to be able to continue. At these times they
went as little as a kilometre per hour or even less.

The rainforest was full of flowers. Hundreds and hundreds of different colourful
flowers were all around them. And there was even one which even the
experienced „traveller“ Archer had never seen before.

“Robert, take only the bulb of the orchid. Take it out carefully from the ground so
you won’t destroy it. It must be a precious one!” Robert put the bulb the carefully
into his bag.

The evening was coming. They decided to put up their tent at the edge of the
rainforest. They built a fire and after dinner they were getting ready for the night.
The rainforest was silent and a it was a beautiful night.

Robert and Archer decided that each will watch the camp for four hours. The
rainforest was completely quiet. The silence was only from time to time disturbed
by a shout of a night bird or a beast.
At twelve o’clock Archer woke Robert: “Well, friend, it’s time for your watch!”
Archer lay down close to the fire and Robert sat down with the gun in his hand.
The hours were passing and the morning was coming. The black darkness was
changing into a grey morning. It was cold. Robert put some dry branches on the
fire and covered his sleeping friend with the blanket.

It was about half past three in the morning, when suddenly the rainforest came
alive. The birds started to cry and other animals seemed nervous too. First one or
two birds flew over their heads. But after a while hundreds of birds were flying
away. Robert got nervous. Now he could see some monkeys running out of the
rainforest. It was morning now and more and more animals were running out of
the rainforest. So Robert decided to wake Archer.

“Hey, friend, get up! Something is wrong!” Archer was immediately up. “Archer, I
don’t know why, but during the last half an hour I could see a lot of animals
running away. I could see even a cheetah. Do you think that the forest is on fire?”

“I don’t think so. I cannot see or smell any smoke. It must be something else! Let’s
pack up and be ready! We will see what’s going to happen!

There were no more animals running out of the forest. “Robert, all of the animals
ran in one direction – that’s strange! And now the strange and unusual silence!”

Robert wanted to say something but Archer stopped him with a movement of his
hand. “Do you hear the sound. It sounds like a stream running in a distance. Do
you hear it?”

“Yes I can hear it quite well, what is it? Now it’s getting louder. It sounds as if it
was raining into the forest. What can it be?”

“Take our things quickly and let’s run away. Away! We are in the middle of the
stream! Away! The ants are here! Look there, there, everywhere! Quickly, run
away!” Archer shouted.
At the edge of the rainforest they could see a black band.

At the edge of the rainforest they could see a black band. A wide river – live river –
of was running out of the rainforest! Billions and billions of ants were moving!
Everything that was green suddenly disappeared under their bodies.

“But, Archer, they cannot move so quickly, they cannot catch up with us! It is
enough if we walk and in this way we will easily get out of their way!” Robert said.

“You are wrong! You cannot know if the streams of ants aren’t all around us. And
what’s more their march can last for several days. They do not stop. They go and
go and go. And in the end they catch up with everything. Look there.”

The stream of ants has caught up with a big snake. The snake was immediately
covered by the ants. Both of the friends started running towards the camp. After
several hours of running they sat down to have a rest. It seemed that they
escaped the terrible live river. They had breakfast but when they picked up their
bags they heard the noise again.

“They are here! What did I say? I think the stream is several hundred metres wide
and it is heading for the camp. We have to hurry up and warn the camp!”

On their way they saw a lot of anthills houses from which the black inhabitants
were running out to join the live river. No one still knows why all the ants get
together and march for days. Only water or fire can stop them.

Archer and Robert managed to get to the camp and they ran into the office
immediatelly: “Kenny, ants! A stream of ants is coming to the camp!” They didn’t
have to say more. Kenny was an experienced man. He took a gun and went in
front of the office. He shot several times into the air. ALARM! In a minute or two
everyone was standing in front of the office.
“Ten men will bring the fuel! Cut all the bushes and trees around the camp and
built two lines from the wood and pour the fuel on it. The first line will be with
200 steps in front of the camp and the other one 150 steps from the camp. Other
twenty men will take all empty boxes and built a boat out of them. The rest will
take all the food to the river!”

Everyone worked quickly because everyone understood the danger that was
coming. When the second line was finished the ants started coming. First there
were only a few ants which were killed by men with branches and boots.

However a few minutes later the main stream arrived. All you could see was the
black stream of live river.

“Light the first line!” Kenny shouted. The bushes and trees were lit from many
sides and a huge fire started. The river of ants ran into the fire. You could hear and
smell millions of small bodies burning. But the stream was still coming. Millions of
ants were dying but it didn’t stop the ants.

Billions of the black animals entered the flames.

The fire was getting weaker and weaker because the dead ants put it out. The
people were sweating, their eyes were red. In some places the fires stopped and
hundreds of ants were coming through. The 50 metres between the lines filled up
with the black animals really quickly.

Several men shouted in pain because the ants bit them. The second line is lit
quickly and the situation is the same as it was with the first line. Now the situation
is critical.
When Kenny saw that the ants managed to get through the first line he decided:
“We have to break the stream. Cover the branches with old bags, pour the fuel on
them and lit them. Throw them as far as you can into the stream.”

Kenny’s idea was great. The burning branches were falling in the stream and panic
started. The stream started to slow down and then lost its direction. The ants
moved right and missed the camp. After an hour the ants were gone. Several men
watched their march and later that night they came with the news that the ants
disappeared in the rainforest.

Kenny’s idea was great. The burning branches were falling in the stream

This was the third dangerous adventure of the young Robert on his father’s
plantations. After a year in the rainforest he became a good young man. He learnt
to work, he learnt to appreciate a good friend, and he learnt a discipline and
courage.