James H. Foster

“ A Fearful Discovery NEVER in their lives had the explorers witnessed anything like the terrible onslaught that followed. The violent, ruthless wind dashed the monoplane about dangerously, threatening at every moment to tear it to pieces. It was but a frail, man-made machine when caught in those forces of nature.
Karl’s ability as a pilot promised to be tested to the utmost. If he could keep the ship straight it would be nothing short of miraculous. The less skillful aviator would send his craft dashing down to the foamy water below. But Karl was by no means a novice. ”

“ The sound of the locomotive’s whistle made the explorers sit up in eager anticipation.
It was a novel sensation to the youths—sitting on the cowcatcher of the engine. As the latter picked up speed, they experienced a feeling of real exhilaration. For seeing the shining rails slip by and watching the scenery move toward them was most unusual indeed, especially here in Africa.
The farther they went the more plentiful wild life became. On one occasion Joe almost caught a bright red bird with his hands as it flew across the path of the oncoming train. ”

“ During the next hour Bob and Joe related some of their experiences in Brazil and North Africa, while their newly made young friend listened breathlessly. By the expressions on his face they knew that he was absorbing every word with interest. When they had finished, his admiration for them was beyond expression.
“Gee! You two are real naturalists,” he said.
“Not yet,” corrected Bob, “though we hope to be some day. To be a naturalist you must go through college and get your lessons every day. But it isn’t hard if you want to like it.”
For a time young Spike seemed lost in thought. ”

“ Professor Bigelow was muttering. He had seen too.
Mr. Holton and Mr. Lewis nodded, on their faces a grave expression. They were so taken aback as to be almost speechless.
“I think perhaps we had better get away from here,” said the professor, who, although deeply attentive to scientific work, knew when he was in a dangerous situation. “I know enough of the ways of primitive people to surmise what they’ll probably do to us if we stay. Their appetites for human flesh will be so stimulated that they will no doubt kill us also. ”

“ If you have not before traveled on desert under moon, you have much to see.”
They plodded continually on, Bob and Joe occasionally taking motion pictures. As the heat gradually became less intense, the youths felt a thrill of exultation run through their veins. Now there was nothing to worry about, no fierce sun to sweat under, no cares or anxieties to occupy their minds. Life—life on the boundless Sahara—seemed great. ”

“ But Bob and Joe did not care to observe the beauties of nature just then. Their thoughts were dwelling on the probabilities of the future. What lay in store for them? Would they be able to get home in time to accompany their fathers to the Andes Mountains, or would fate rule that they remain for an indefinite period in this box car? If the truth were known, the youths were not a little worried.
Darkness was beginning to enshroud the travelers, and the necessity of making improvised beds moved them to action. There was a large pile of burlap sacks in a far corner of the car. ”

“ Mr. Holton and Mr. Lewis exclaimed in delight and surprise when they caught sight of Bob and the strange creature he was carrying.
“Where did you ever find it?” asked Mr. Lewis, and Bob was forced to tell of the entire experience.
“The great hairy eagle,” pronounced Mr. Holton, when the youth had finished. “I thought they were confined to the jungles of Guiana, didn’t you, Ben?” he asked of Joe’s father.
“Yes,” was the reply. “Never heard of their being found here. Such is unusual indeed. The claws are the most powerful of any known bird.” ”

“ Uneasiness prevailed among the more harmless animals; some of them turned about and disappeared into the jungle depths, while others pricked up their ears and listened.
But there was no mistaking the distant roar. A lion was abroad stalking for prey.
As the minutes passed, Mr. Lewis and Mr. Holton held their rifles ready for instant action. At every second they feared that the lion would appear. Bob and Joe, although realizing that perhaps their lives were in danger, continuing to film the scene, delighted at the unusualness of the occasion. ”

“ Followed by Rascals “THE Sahara Desert! Adventure! Exploration!” breathed Joe Lewis, as he sat with four companions on the deck of the steamer Sylvania, awaiting their first glimpse of North Africa.
“It’ll be wonderful!” muttered Bob Holton, who was also deeply touched. He, like his chum, had often pictured this mission into the heart of the vast expanse of sand. Soon it would be the real thing. Already the youth could feel his feet plod through the loose soil, could sense the delight of long traveling in a little-known land. ”

“ Are you seeking pleasure by traveling?”
“To a certain extent we are,” Bob answered him. “My chum here and myself are with our dads to collect specimens of animal life and photograph the country,” he explained. “Holton is my name—Bob Holton. This is Joe Lewis.”
“Most delighted to know you,” said the white-faced youth. “Cecil Purl Stone is my name. A real [Pg 102] pleasure to know you. I’m—traveling just for the fun of it,” he said with a foolish little laugh. “I do consider travel as one of the most gorgeous ways of enlightening oneself. ”

“ When again on the ground, Bob and Joe were more anxious than ever to be among those of the [Pg 56] expedition who would travel by air. Their eagerness was increasing with every minute.
“You’ve got to let us go!” said Bob to his father, when he and his friends had returned home. “Why, just see what we’ll be missing if we don’t.”
“You may be missing death,” Mr. Holton returned grimly. “But then,” he went on, raising his voice, “the chances are that nothing will happen. Any more, airplane accidents are rare. I’ve almost decided to go myself. It will be a chance of a lifetime.” ”

“ Bob and Joe glanced at the frowning jungle, which was but a short distance away. It seemed to challenge the explorers to penetrate its leafy depths, although in many places this was almost impossible.
“Quite a variety of trees,” observed Bob, his eye scanning the edge. “I suppose there are hundreds of different kinds.”
“There are,” answered Professor Bigelow. “All different kinds, from mahogany to bacaba palms. Much of the wood is worthlessly soft and useless, but mahogany and a few others are shipped to all parts of the world. ”

“ Kirshner. “Almost anything would satisfy my appetite right now.”
The explorers dismounted and prepared the meal, which after the strenuous hours of constant traveling tasted delicious. Then they sat quietly in the semidarkness.
At last the moon came out, and the desert was again seen to take on a new appearance. The sand was even more beautiful than the night before, white as it was from the soft light.
Tishmak motioned for the adventurers to mount their dromedaries and get under way. If they expected to get over much more territory, it would be necessary to hurry. ”

“ The elephant remained where it was, not as much as moving an ear.
Bob and Joe and their fathers were gripped with fear as they saw themselves speed closer toward the huge brute. Let them once strike the animal, and their doom would probably be sealed!
The explorers heard a wild shout from the engineer. Then there was a creaking and grinding noise, and the train’s speed was checked somewhat. But even with the application of the emergency brake the heavy engine plunged on.
“Jump!” cried Mr. Lewis in a wild voice. “It’s the only way to escape!” ”

“ Bob said modestly.
But when he again was able to send a bullet almost directly over the first one, the others knew that it did not just happen.
“Wonderful to be such a shot,” remarked Mr. Wallace. “I suppose it has been the secret of your emerging unharmed from the unknown, hasn’t it?” he said laughing.
“Trying to kid me, are you?” smiled Bob. “Joe and I may be green, but another expedition or two will make us full-fledged explorers. At least we hope so.”
Mr. Wallace grinned.
“That’s what we all think,” he said. “But the fact is, we never do get to be what you call full-fledged explorers. ”

“ The Terrible Battle SPEARS and arrows and darts flew thick and fast, striking down many a man on both sides. Fierce cries filled the atmosphere and made the Americans shudder. Here in the untamed wilds of Brazil was taking place as terrible a battle as the world had ever known. Savages—wild, hostile Indians—were the participants, and no people anywhere were more terrible when excited to insane fury. ”

“ And Joe well knew what that spring would mean.
The youth viewed the hideous scorpion with a terrible awe, fearing to move lest it become angered and charge. What was he to do? He knew he could not get up in time, for his terrible enemy would be upon him. Yet if he should remain sitting, he would surely feel the hairy mass upon him in a very few seconds.
Slowly Joe reached into his holster for his pistol. He was a poor shot with such a weapon, but the chance had to be taken. Still there was a possibility that he might kill the huge spider by throwing the gun at it. ”

“ The scientists in that field have in mind mainly to study the ruins of the vanished Inca civilization. Those Indians, you know, that built so many marvelous works of architecture. That’s about as much as I know about them, though,” he laughed. “My line runs straight through the field of natural history and zoölogy, and incidentally anatomy, histology, taxonomy, embryology, ecology——”
“That’s enough!” interrupted Bob, smiling sheepishly. “You don’t expect Joe and me to be acquainted with all those subjects, do you? We’re pretty good shots, but as scientists we’re as yet a complete flop.” ”

“ Had they been sent down from the sky to bring destruction to villages, or had they wandered from an unknown region in the remote beyond?
For fully ten minutes the savages were silent. Then they began chattering loudly and moved stealthily up to the boys, bows and arrows and blowguns in readiness.
Bob and Joe waited in terrible suspense, half expecting to be pierced by deadly weapons. The youths longed to move about, if only for a moment. Once Joe felt an itching along his back, and the desire to scratch was almost uncontrollable, but he finally managed to remain quiet. ”

“ Especially were Bob and Joe touched, for they realized for the first time that Africa was a land of tragedy.
“Is there nothing that can be done? Will you always be lame?” inquired Mr. Holton.
Mr. Seabury looked even more grave.
“Medical science cannot help me,” he said at last. “I’m afraid my hunting days are over.” For several moments he retained the same expression. Then suddenly his face lightened, as though he had resolved to forget the matter. “Just what fauna are you after this time?” he asked the naturalists. ”

“ Bob reminded his chum. “We’ll have to get our stuff together early.”
Notwithstanding this, the youths’ deep slumber made it necessary for their elders to awaken them. They felt rather sheepish as they arose and noticed that the sun was well up in the sky.
“Guess we haven’t developed our mental alarm clocks yet,” grinned Joe, slipping hurriedly into his clothes.
“Now, boys,” said Mr. Holton, opening the door of their room, “we’re going out to find a guide and camels. You had better come along, so you can practise riding. It isn’t easy to get used to a dromedary’s trot. ”

“ Gradually the path spiraled down the steep slope until it passed through a narrow valley, which was green with a variety of luxuriant vegetation. So dense were the plants that they almost formed a jungle.
“Look at this,” cried Bob, moving over to a vine that was laden with large red berries. “Wonder if they’re good to eat?”
“Yes.” The old man had broken off a branch and was eagerly partaking of the fruit. “They are wild cherries, or tomatoes, as some call them. There is nothing better for taste.”
“Right you are!” agreed Joe, after he had eaten several of the berries. “They’re fine!” ”

“ We’re plenty old enough to take care of ourselves. You see how we made short work of dangerous wild animals in the Andes and in Brazil. Well, we could do the same with lions and elephants.”
“Don’t be too sure of that,” said his father gravely but with twinkling eyes. “There’s scarcely anything worse than a charging elephant.”
“Just the same, we’d take care of the situation,” said Bob boastfully. “They wouldn’t stand much chance before the Lewis-Holton expedition. Why we’d mow ’em down right and left. But seriously, Dad, Mr. Lewis, why can’t Joe and I go with you?” ”

“ We won’t dare stay any longer than our food supply lasts. When that begins to get low, back to civilization we’ll go.”
“How long do you expect to be gone?” Bob asked.
“We—ll, perhaps three or four months. We want to get as much done as possible. You see,” he explained, “as I said before, our stay is limited to the supply of provisions we have with us. If it were possible to carry enough, I would like to spend at least six months there. What a wonderful opportunity to study primitive man in his everyday life.”
“Should think it would be rather dangerous,” remarked Joe. ”

“ Kirshner’s jaw dropped in surprise.
“Footprints!” he cried. “Human footprints!”
He had hardly uttered the words when there came a chorus of yells from behind a large rock. A moment later ten or twelve rough-looking Arabs darted out and surrounded the Americans. The natives at once disarmed the whites by sheer [Pg 192] force and then displayed long knives threateningly.
The Arabs chattered ominous words, which caused Dr. Kirshner to start in alarm and fear.
“We are being captured!” he exclaimed excitedly. “These Arabs are hired by the two thieves who stole Fekmah’s map!” ”

“ Mention of this out-of-the-way place revived the name of Thomas Seabury, the missing brother of the man in Mombasa.
“Wonder if we’ll find him,” mused Joe, gazing off into the dark depths of the jungle.
“Hard telling,” returned his friend. “About all we can do is to ask natives if they have seen or heard of him. And if they haven’t—well, it doesn’t look like there’ll be much chance of coming across him.”
“You’re right, Bob,” affirmed Mr. Lewis. “Africa is a very large place, and he might have left that unknown forest long before. But we’ll certainly do all we can to locate him.” ”

“ That evening Bob and Joe went to Dr. Rander’s hut at the edge of Cuzco. The old man seemed glad to see them, offering them the best chairs he had.
“Now about the secrets,” he began, after he had closed the door and made sure that no one was near. “First of all, we must keep it strictly to ourselves. If, while on our way, anyone should ask why we are going into the mountains, we must not tell them.”
“For one thing, we’re going to take movies of the country,” said Joe, and then explained this in full to the old man.
The youths spent all evening at the old man’s hut. ”

“ There were many wonders that caused the explorers to gasp in astonishment.
“The Ahaggar range is of larger extent than the Alps,” said Dr. Kirshner, as they circled about among the rugged cliffs. “And although not of extremely high altitude, these Saharan mountains have many show points that cannot be found elsewhere.”
“And they are comparatively unknown to the outside world,” put in Bob. “Why, the average person doesn’t even dream of mountains being in the heart of the old Sahara.”
All along the way Bob and Joe took motion pictures of the many strange marvels of nature. ”

“ Lewis’s shot was followed by those of the other whites, and at once panic ensued among the invading savages.
After only a thin defense, they took to their heels with cries of fright and bewilderment, leaving their dead and wounded behind.
“Guess that drove them off all right,” said Bob with a grim smile. “Come on, let’s——But wait! Look! The chief’s tribe is worshiping us.”
Bob was right. The Indians had fallen to their knees, waving their arms and muttering words that were not understood even by Professor Bigelow. ”

“ After those strenuous weeks in the mountains, the youths had been growing anxious to be with their fathers and Mr. Wallace again. Now, as they viewed the men waving at them from below they were overly anxious to land.
There was a wide open place directly under them, and to this Karl sent the monoplane. When finally it came to a stop, Bob and Joe dashed out and ran to meet their fathers and the scientist from Chicago.
“Boys!” cried Mr. Holton, too joyful for words.
He and Joe’s father and Mr. Wallace fairly ate the youths up in their happiness at seeing them alive and well. ”

“ Along toward noon Bob called his chum over to a little clearing.
“Look at that strange track,” he pointed out. “Was that made by a wild animal?”
“Search me,” Joe said. “I never saw anything like it before. Looks like the footprint of a person, only it’s much larger, and there aren’t any toe marks.”
The youths recalled the different animals they had come in contact with and read about. But none, they were sure, could make footprints anything like this.
“I’m sure that couldn’t have been a monkey—even a gorilla,” said Bob, “because there would be marks of its toes.” ”

“ Kirshner. “Dying of thirst is a rare occurrence in this part of the Sahara. But it does happen sometimes, and it is a tragic death indeed.”
“Worst thing is,” explained Mr. Holton, “there is a time when the victim of thirst would die should he touch water. In that case, water is virtually a poison.”
The sand hills that they were passing over were much lower than those in the country below Wargla. The desert stretched away to the horizon in endless waves, which, as far as the travelers could see, were unbroken. ”

“ No more was seen of the alligators, and the explorers again were quiet. But now they were more anxious than ever before, for the past experience had stirred their sporting blood and made them long for a jaunt in the forest. Even Professor Bigelow was affected, and he sat fingering his rifle as if awaiting another such incident.
“Alligators and crocodiles are very much alike,” said Mr. Lewis, wishing to break the silence. “The only difference is in the canine teeth. In the alligator [Pg 100] they fit into pits in the upper jaw; in the crocodile they fit into notches. Otherwise they look alike.” ”

“ The shy Indians with their flat “pancake” hats, the curious llamas and alpacas, the magnificent heights of the mighty Andes, the many old ruins of the Incas—all these and more were depicted on the screen.
It was very inspiring, especially to the boys and Mr. Wallace, who were delighted that before long they would be able actually to visit those wonderful places.
During the drive home the naturalist’s conversation was directed chiefly about this inspiring country, his excitement being almost like that of a small boy. But if the naturalist was impressed, the youths were still more. ”

“ Both youths looked ahead in eager anticipation.
“Here’s hoping I can get a good picture of him,” said Joe, keeping his camera in readiness. “Movies of a buffalo hunt! Sounds good, doesn’t it?”
“And I’m going to try to be the gink that pots him off,” came from Bob, inspecting his rifle. “He won’t live long if he gets one of these high-velocity bullets in his hide.”
Mr. Holton looked around.
“Don’t take any chances, Son,” he warned. “Better not fire till Ben or I give the word. There’s nothing quite as bad as a wounded buffalo.” ”

“ A fierce tiger cat was crouched ready to spring. It had evidently come to the pool for water when it had discovered the youths.
There was no time to take aim with their rifles, for the beast would be upon them.
Slowly Bob reached for his pistol, and Joe followed suit. At last the boys were ready for action.
With a quick motion Bob whirled about and took hasty aim; then fired. A second later the report of Joe’s gun rang out.
“Missed!” cried Joe in horror. “Both shots missed!”
“Well, we won’t miss again,” said Bob, gritting his teeth. “We’ve got to stop him.” ”

“ And as they penetrated deeper into the jungle, vegetation became more dense. Great clusters of bright-colored flowers lined the banks, tall trees showed themselves above the other growth, parasitic vines wound themselves around forest giants. Ferns, high grass, small bushes, oddly shaped stalks—all these caught the eyes of the explorers. ”

“ Hardly five minutes had passed when Bob caught the arm of the policeman, who was nearest him.
“Listen!” the youth hissed. “There’s a car coming. Hear it?”
Sure enough, the faint sound of an approaching automobile was breaking the evening silence. Whether the vehicle was that of the thief, the hiding forms did not know. Their hopes were high, though, as the purring became louder.
Those hopes were not shattered, for a minute later the same car that had been parked in front of Mr. Jordan’s estate turned in the driveway.
“Look!” breathed Joe. “It’s the man we’re after, all right. He’s stopping. ”

“ Bob secretly wondered if Dr. Rander had suddenly changed his mind about sharing the treasure with them and was using this means to evade them. He did not think the old man treacherous, but he wanted to be on the safe side.
“Over there.” Dr. Rander pointed to a narrow path that circled down the mountainside.
“Suppose,” Bob began, “you and Joe go down the slide while I take the mules down the trail. I don’t like the looks of that glassy slope.”
“All right. I’m no longer young, but I still like sport. Here I go.” ”

“ The naturalists glanced at each other.
“Better not ask that question, or you’ll start a heated debate,” laughed Mr. Lewis. “Howard and I are very much in disagreement about it.”
“Why?” persisted Bob.
“You father is inclined to place the rhino as the most dangerous, while I would say the buffalo comes first. But to settle the argument, both are bad enough when they’re after you.”
“But what about the lion?” demanded Joe. “Isn’t he dangerous?”
“Very much so,” answered Mr. Holton. “However, he isn’t considered anything like the two animals that Ben mentioned. ”