The
Chapter
1
FOUR
MISERABLE INVALIDS
'POOR
Polly!' said a small sad voice outside the bedroom door. 'Poor Polly! Blow your
nose, poor
Polly!'
There
was the sound of loud sniffs, and after that came a hacking cough. Then there
was a
silence,
as if the person outside the door was listening to see if there was any answer.
Jack
sat up in bed and looked across at Philip in the opposite bed.
'Philip
do you feel you can bear to let Kiki come in? She sounds so miserable.'
Philip
nodded. 'All right. So long as she doesn't screech or make too much noise. My
head's
better,
thank goodness!'
Jack
got out of bed and went rather unsteadily to the door. He and Philip, and the
two girls as
well,
had had influenza quite badly, and were still feeling rather weak. Philip had
had it worst, and
hadn't
been able to bear Kiki the parrot in the bedroom. She imitated their coughs and
sneezes and
sniffs,
and poor Philip, much as he loved birds and animals, felt as if he could throw
slippers and
books
and anything handy at the puzzled parrot.
Kiki
came sidling in at the door, her crest well down. 'Poor thing,' said Jack, and
she flew up to
his
shoulder at once. 'You've never been kept out before, have you? Well, nobody
likes your kind
of
noises when their head is splitting, Kiki, old thing. You nearly drove Philip
mad when you gave
your
imitation of an aeroplane in trouble!'
'Don't!'
said Philip, shuddering to think of it. 'I feel as if I'll never laugh at
Kiki's noises again.'
He
coughed and felt for his handkerchief under the pillow.
Kiki
coughed too, but very discreetly. Jack smiled. 'It's no good, Kiki,' he said.
'You haven't
got
the flu, so it's no use pretending you have.'
'Flue,
flue, sweep the flue,' said Kiki at once, and gave a small cackle of laughter.
'No,
we're not quite ready yet to laugh at your idiotic remarks, Kiki,' said Jack,
getting back
into
bed. 'Can't you produce a nice bedside manner quiet voice, and sympathetic
nods and all
that?'
'Poor
Polly,' said Kiki, and nestled as close to Jack's neck as she could. She gave a
tremendous
sigh.
'Don't
not down my neck, please,' said Jack. 'You are feeling sorry for yourself,
Kiki! Cheer
up.
We're all better today and our temperatures are down. We'll soon be up and
about, and I bet
Aunt
Allie will be glad. Four wretched invalids must have kept her hands full.'
The
door opened cautiously, and Aunt Allie looked in. 'Ah you're both awake,' she
said.
'How
do you feel? Would you like some more lime juice?'
'No,
thanks,' said Jack. 'I tell you what I suddenly quite suddenly feel like,
Aunt Allie
and
that's a boiled egg with bread-and-butter! It came over me all at once that
that was what I
wanted
more than anything else in the world!'
Aunt
Allie laughed. 'Oh you are better then. Do you want an egg too, Philip?'
'No,
thanks,' said Philip. 'Nothing for me.'
'Poor
boy, poor boy,' said Kiki, raising her head to look at Philip. She gave a small
cackle.
'Shut
up,' said Philip. 'I'm not ready to be laughed at yet, Kiki. You'll be turned
out of the room
again
if you talk too much.'
'Silence,
Kiki!' said Jack and gave the parrot a small tap on the beak. She sank down
into his
neck
at once. She didn't mind being silent, if only she were allowed to stay with
her beloved Jack.
'How
are the two girls?' asked Jack.
'Oh,
much better,' said Aunt Allie. 'Better than you two are. They are playing a
game of cards
together.
They wanted to know if they could come into your room this evening and talk.'
'I'd
like that,' said Jack. 'But Philip wouldn't, would you, Phil?'
'I'll
see,' said Philip, grumpily. 'I still feel awfully bad-tempered. Sorry.'
'It's
all right, Philip,' said his mother. 'You're on the mend you'll feel yourself
tomorrow!'
She
was right. By the evening of the next day Philip was very lively, and Kiki was
allowed to
chatter
and sing as much as she liked. She was even allowed to make her noise of an
express train
racing
through a tunnel, which brought Mrs. Cunningham up the stairs at once.
'Oh
no!' she said. 'Not that noise in the house, please, Kiki! I can't bear it!'
Dinah
looked at her mother, and reached out her hand to her. 'Mother, you've had an
awful time
looking
after the four of us. I'm glad you didn't get the flu too. You look very pale.
You don't think
you're
going to have it, do you?'
'No,
of course not,' said her mother. 'I'm only just a bit tired racing up and down
the stairs for
the
four of you. But you'll soon be up and about and off to school!'
Four
groans sounded at once and then a fifth as Kiki joined in delightedly, adding
the biggest
groan
of the lot.
'School!'
said Jack, in disgust. 'Why did you remind us of that, Aunt Allie? Anyway I
hate
going
back after the term's begun everyone has settled down and knows what's what,
and you
feel
almost like a new boy.'
'You
are sorry for yourselves!' said Mrs. Cunningham, with a laugh. 'Well, go on
with your
game
but do NOT let Kiki imitate aeroplanes, trains, cars or lawn-mowers.'
'Right,'
said Jack, and addressed himself sternly to Kiki. 'Hear that, old thing? Behave
yourself
if you can.'
'Mother
does look a bit off-colour, doesn't she?' said Philip, dealing out the cards.
'I hope Bill
will
take her for a holiday when he comes back from wherever he is.'
'Where
is he? And hasn't anyone heard from him lately?' asked Dinah, picking up her
cards.
'Well,
you know what old Bill is always on some secret hush-hush job for the
Government,'
said
Philip. 'I think Mother always knows where he is, but nobody else does. He'll
pop up out of
the
blue sooner or later.'
Bill
was Mrs. Cunningham's husband. He had married her not so very long ago, when
she was
the
widowed Mrs. Mannering, and had taken on Dinah and Philip, her own children,
and the other
two,
Jack and Lucy-Ann, who had always looked on her as an aunt. They had no parents
of their
own.
All of them were very fond of the clever, determined Bill, whose job so often
took him into
danger
of all kinds.
'I
hope Bill will come back before we return to school,' said Jack. 'We haven't
seen him for
ages.
Let's see it's almost October now and he went off into the blue at the
beginning of
September.'
'Disguised!'
said Lucy-Ann, remembering. 'Disguised as an old man, do you remember? I
couldn't
think who the old, bent fellow was who was sitting with Mother that night he
left. Even his
hair
was different.'
'He
had a wig,' said Jack. 'Buck up, Dinah it's your turn. Have you got the king
or have you
not?'
Dinah
played her card, and then turned to the radio-set nearby. 'Let's have the radio
on, shall
we?'
she said. 'I feel as if I'd like to hear it tonight. Philip, can you bear it?'
'Yes,'
said Philip. 'Don't pity me any more. I'm as right as rain now. Gosh when I
think how
miserable
I was I really feel ashamed. I wouldn't have been surprised if I'd burst into
tears at any
time!'
'You
did once,' said Jack, unfeelingly. 'I saw you. You looked most peculiar.'
'Shut
up,' said Philip, in a fierce voice. 'And don't tell fibs. Dinah, that set's
not tuned in
properly.
Here, let me do it you girls are never any good at that sort of thing! Dinah
let me do
it,
I said. Blow you!'
'Aha!
Our Philip is quite himself again!' said Jack, seeing one of the familiar brother-and-sister
quarrels
beginning to spring up once more. 'You've got it, now, Philip it's bang on
the station.
Ah
it's a skit on a burglary with John Jordans in it. It should be funny. Let's
listen.'
It
was funny, and Aunt Allie, having a quiet rest downstairs, was pleased to hear
sudden roars of
laughter
upstairs. Then she heard a loud and prolonged whistle and frowned. That
tiresome parrot!
But
it wasn't Kiki. It was John Jordans in the comical play. He was the policeman,
and was
blowing
his police whistle pheeeeeeee! Then someone yelled 'Police! Police!' and the
whistle
blew
again.
'Police,
police!' yelled Kiki too, and produced a marvellous imitation of the whistle
'PHEEEEEEEE!
Police! Police! PHEEEEEEEEEEEE!'
'Shut
up, Kiki! If you shout and whistle as loudly as that you'll have the real
police here!' said
Jack.
'Oh, my goodness! I hope Kiki doesn't start doing this police-whistle
business. She'll get
us
into no end of trouble! Kiki if you shout "Police" once more, I'll
put you down at the very
bottom
of the bed.'
Before
Kiki could make any reply, a knock came on the bedroom door a most imperious
knock
that made them all jump. A loud voice came through the door.
'Who
wants the police? They're here. Open in the name of the law!'
The
door opened slowly, and the startled children watched in amazement. What did
this mean?
Had
the police really come?
A
face came round the door, a smiling face, round and ruddy and twinkling, one
that the children
knew
well and loved.
'BILL!'
cried four voices, and the children leapt out of bed at once, and ran to the
tall, sturdy
man
at the door. 'Oh, Bill you've come back! We never heard you come home. Good
old Bill!'
Chapter
2
WHAT
A SURPRISE!
BILL
came right into the room and sat down on Jack's bed. Kiki gave a loud cackle of
pleasure and
flew
to his shoulder, nipping the lobe of his ear gently. Aunt Allie came in too,
smiling happily,
looking
quite different now that Bill had arrived.
'Well,
what's this I hear about four miserable invalids?' said Bill, putting an arm
round each of
the
two girls. 'You'll have to get up now I'm back, you know. Can't have you lazing
in bed like
this!'
'We're
getting up tomorrow at teatime,' said Lucy-Ann. 'Bill, where have you been?
Tell us!'
'Sorry,
old thing. Can't say a word,' said Bill.
'Oh
very hush-hush then!' said Dinah, disappointed. 'Are you going to stay at
home now?'
'As
far as I know,' said Bill. 'I sincerely hope so. It looks to me as if somebody
ought to look
after
your mother now. She's gone thin. WHY did you all have to have flu together, so
that she
couldn't
have any of you to help her?'
'It
was very selfish of us!' said Jack. 'And even you were away too, Bill. Never
mind
everything
seems all right when you're here doesn't it, Aunt Allie?'
Mrs.
Cunningham nodded. 'Yes. Everything!' she said. 'Shall we all have a picnic
meal up here
in
the bedroom, children, so that we can have a good old talk with Bill?'
It
was a very hilarious meal, with Kiki more ridiculous than usual, blowing her
police-whistle
whenever
she felt like it. Everyone got tired of this new trick very quickly, even Bill.
'Bill!
Bill, pay the bill, silly-billy, silly-bill!' shouted Kiki. She got a sharp tap
on the beak from
Jack.
'No
rudery,' said Jack. 'Behave yourself, Kiki.'
Kiki
flew down to the floor, very hurt. 'Poor Kiki, poor, poor,' she muttered to
herself and
disappeared
under the bed, where she found an old slipper and spent a pleasant half-hour
pecking
off
the button.
Everyone
talked, asked questions, laughed and felt happy. The flu was quite forgotten.
But about
half-past
nine Lucy-Ann suddenly went pale and flopped down on the bed.
'We've
overdone it!' said Bill. 'I forgot they'd all had a pretty bad time. Come on,
Lucy-Ann,
I'll
carry you to bed! Dinah, can you walk to your room?'
Next
day the doctor came as usual, and was pleased with all four. 'Up to tea today
up after
breakfast
tomorrow,' he said. 'Then up the same time as usual.'
'When
can they go back to school, Doctor?' asked Mrs. Cunningham.
'Not
yet,' said the doctor, much to the children's surprise. 'They must go somewhere
for
convalescence
ten days or a fortnight, say. Somewhere warm and sunny. This flu they've had
is
a
bad kind they will feel very down all winter if they don't go away somewhere.
Can you
manage
that, Mrs. Cunningham?'
'We'll
see about it all right,' said Bill. 'But I'm not letting my wife go with them,
Doctor. She
needs
a holiday herself now after so much illness in the house and it wouldn't be
much of a
holiday
for her to be with these four live wires. Leave it to me.'
'Right,'
said the doctor. 'Well, I'll be in on Saturday, just to see that everything
goes well.
Goodbye!'
'A
holiday!' said Dinah, as soon as the door had closed. 'I say! What a bit of
luck! I thought
we'd
have to go straight back to school!'
There
was a conference about what was best to be done. 'It's October tomorrow,' said
Bill, 'and
the
weather forecast isn't too good. Rain and wind and fog! What a climate we have!
It's a pity
they
can't go abroad, Allie.'
'They
can't go abroad without anyone responsible in charge,' said his wife. 'We'll
have to find
somewhere
on the south coast, and send them there.'
But
all the plans were altered very suddenly and dramatically. On Friday night,
very late, the
telephone-bell
shrilled through the house, and awoke Bill and his wife, and also Kiki, whose
ears
were
sharper than anyone's. She imitated the bell under her breath, but didn't wake
the boys. She
cocked
up her crest and listened. She could hear Bill speaking in a low voice on the
telephone
extension
in his bedroom along the landing. Then there was a clink, and the little ping
that sounded
whenever
the telephone receiver was put back into place.
'Ping!'
muttered Kiki. 'Ping pong! Ping!' She put her head under her wing again, and
went to
sleep,
perched comfortably on the edge of the mantelpiece. The children all slept
peacefully, not
guessing
what changes in their plans that telephone call was going to mean!
In
the morning Bill was not at breakfast. All the children were down, and Lucy-Ann
had even
got
down early enough to help to lay the table. They were pale, and rather languid,
but very
cheerful,
and looking forward now to their holiday, even though the place chosen did not
seem at
all
exciting a quiet little village by the sea.
'Where's
Bill?' asked Dinah, in surprise at his empty place. 'I didn't hear him
whistling while
he
was shaving. Has he gone out for an early-morning walk or something?'
'No,
dear he had to leave hurriedly in the middle of the night,' said her mother,
looking
depressed.
'He had a telephone call didn't the bell wake you? Something urgent again,
and
Bill's
advice badly needed, of course! So he took the car and shot off. He'll be back
about eleven, I
expect.
I only hope it doesn't mean that he'll have to race off again somewhere, and
disappear for
weeks.
It would be too bad so soon after he had come back!'
Bill
returned about half-past eleven, and put the car away. He came whistling in at
the side door,
to
be met by an avalanche of children.
'Bill!
Where have you been? You haven't got to go away again, have you?' cried Dinah.
'Let
me go, you limpets!' said Bill, shaking them off. 'Where's your mother, Dinah?'
'In
the sitting-room,' said Dinah. 'Hurry up and talk to her. We want to hear your
news too.'
Bill
went into the sitting-room and shut the door firmly. The four children looked
at one another.
'I
bet he'll be sent off on another hush-hush affair,' said Jack, gloomily. 'Poor
Aunt Allie just
when
she was looking forward to having him on a little holiday all to herself!'
Half
an hour went by and the talking was still going on in the sitting-room, very
low and earnest.
Then
the door was flung open and Bill yelled for the children.
'Where
are you, kids? Come along in we've finished our talk.'
They
all trooped in, Kiki on Jack's shoulder as usual, murmuring something about
'One-two,
buckle
my shoe, one-shoe, buckle my two!'
'Shut
up, Kiki,' said Jack. 'No interruptions, now!'
'Listen,'
said Bill, when the children were all in the room and sitting down. 'I've got
to go off
again.'
Everyone
groaned. 'Oh, Bill!' said Lucy-Ann. 'We were afraid of that. And you've only
just
come
back.'
'Where
are you going?' asked Jack.
'That
I'm not quite sure about,' said Bill. 'But briefly and in strict confidence,
mind I've
got
to go and cast an eye on a man our Government are a bit suspicious of they
don't quite know
what
he's up to. It may not be anything, of course but we just want to be sure.
And they want me
to
fly out and spend a few days round about where he is and glean a few facts.'
'Oh!
So you may not be long?' said Philip.
'I
don't know. Maybe three or four days, maybe a fortnight,' said Bill. 'But two
things are
important
one, that nobody suspects I'm out there for any Government purpose and two,
that
as
the climate where I'm going is warm and summery, I feel you'd better all come
too!'
There
was a dead silence as this sank in then a perfect chorus of shrieks and
exclamations.
Lucy-Ann
flung herself on Bill.
'All
of us! Aunt Allie too! Oh, how marvellous! But how can you take us as well?'
'Well,
as I told you nobody must suspect I'm a lone investigator snooping about on
my own,'
said
Bill. 'And therefore if I go as a family man, complete with a string of
children recovering from
illness,
and a wife who needs a holiday, it will seem quite obvious that I can't be what
I really am
someone sent out on a secret mission.'
The
children gazed at him in delight. A holiday somewhere abroad with Bill and
his wife!
Could
anything be better? 'Wizard!' thought Lucy-Ann. 'I hope it's not a dream!'
'Where
did you say it was? Oh, you didn't say! Do we go to a hotel? What will there be
to do?
It's
not dangerous, is it, Bill dangerous for you?'
Questions
poured out, and Bill shook his head and put his hands over his ears.
'It's
no good asking me anything at the moment. I've only heard the outline of the
affair myself
but I did say that as a kind of camouflage I could take you all with me, and
pose as a family man
and it seemed to click, so I left the High-Ups to arrange everything. Honestly,
that's all I know
at
the moment. And don't you dare to talk about this except in whispers.'
'We
won't, Bill,' Lucy-Ann assured him earnestly. 'It shall be a dead secret.'
'Secret!'
yelled Kiki, catching the general excitement and dancing up and down on the
table.
'Secret!
High-up secret! High, high, up in the sky, wipe your feet, blow the secret!'
'Well,
if anyone's going to give it away, it's Kiki!' said Bill, laughing. 'Kiki,
can't you ever
hold
your tongue?'
Kiki
couldn't, but the others could, as Bill very well knew! They hurried out of the
room and up
the
stairs and into a little boxroom. They shut the door, and looked at each other
in excitement.
'Whew!'
said Philip, letting out an enormous breath. 'What a THRILL! Thank goodness for
the
flu!
Now let's talk about it in whispers, please!'
Chapter
3
AWAY
THEY GO!
THAT
week-end was full of excitement. The telephone went continually, and finally a
small,
discreet
car drew up in the drive on Monday night, and three men got out; they went, as
instructed,
to
the garden door, where Bill let them in. He called to the boys.
'Philip!
Jack! Go and sit in that little car out there and keep watch. I don't think
anyone is likely
to
be about, but you never know. These are important visitors, and although we
don't think anyone
knows
of their visit here, you may as well keep watch.'
The
boys were thrilled. They crept out to the car, and sat there, hardly breathing!
They kept a
very
sharp look-out indeed, scrutinising every moving shadow, and stiffening every
time a car
came
up the quiet road. The girls watched them enviously from an upstairs window,
wishing they
were
hidden in the car too.
But
nothing exciting happened at all. It was very disappointing. In fact, the boys
got very tired of
keeping
watch, when two or three hours had gone by. They were very thankful indeed when
they
heard
the garden door opening quietly and footsteps coming to the car.
'Nothing
to report, Bill,' whispered Jack, and was just about to slip away with Philip
when. Kiki
decided
that the time had come to open her beak again. She had not been allowed to make
a single
sound
in the car, and had sulked. Now she really let herself go!
'Police!
Fetch the police! PHEEEEEEEEE!' She whistled exactly like a real police-whistle
being
blown, and everyone was electrified at once. Bill hadn't heard Kiki's newest
achievement,
and
he clutched at one of the three men in alarm. All of them stood stock still and
looked round in
amazement.
Jack's
voice came penitently out of the darkness. 'Sorry, Bill. It's only Kiki's
latest. I'm awfully
sorry!'
He
fled indoors with Philip. Kiki, sensing his annoyance, flew off his shoulder
and disappeared.
She
let herself down into the big waste-paper basket in the sitting-room, and sat
there very quietly
indeed.
Outside there was the sound of an engine being revved up, and the car moved
quietly out of
the
gateway and disappeared into the night. Bill came back indoors.
'Well!'
he said, coming into the sitting-room and blinking at the bright light. 'What
came over
Kiki
to yell for the police like that? It nearly startled us out of our wits! My
word, that whistle it
went
clean through my head. Where is she? I've a few straight words to say to her!'
'She's
hiding somewhere,' said Jack. 'She knows she shouldn't have done that. She
heard it on
the
radio the other night, and she keeps on calling for the police and doing that
awful whistling.
Bill,
any news?'
'Yes,'
said Bill, filling his pipe. 'Quite a lot. Rather nice news, too we're going
to have some
fun,
children!'
'Really,
Bill?' said his wife. 'How?'
'Well
the place we are going to which I am not going to mention at present, in
case Kiki is
anywhere
about, and shouts it all over the place is quite a long way off, but as we
are going by
plane
that won't matter. And, my dears, the Powers-That-Be have decided that they
will put a small
river-launch
at our disposal, so that we can go on a nice little trip and see the country
enabling
me
to make quite a lot of enquiries on our journey!'
'It
sounds great!' said Philip, his eyes shining. 'Absolutely tops! A river-launch
of our own! My
word,
what a super holiday!'
'It
does sound good,' said his mother. 'When do we go, Bill? I'll have to look out
summer
clothes
again, you know.'
'We
have to catch the plane on Wednesday night,' said Bill. 'Can you manage to be
ready by
then?
Everything will be arranged for us at the other end you won't have to bother
about a
thing.'
Everyone
was in a great state of excitement at once, and began to talk nineteen to the
dozen, the
words
almost falling over themselves. In the midst of a little pause for breath, a
loud hiccup was
heard.
'That's
Kiki!' said Jack, at once. 'She always does that when she's ashamed or
embarrassed
and
I bet she was horrified at her outburst in the dark garden. Where is she?'
A
search began, but Kiki was not behind the thick curtains, nor under the chairs
or tables.
Another
hiccup made everyone look about them, puzzled. 'Where is she? We've looked
absolutely
everywhere.
Kiki come out, you fathead. You haven't got hiccups you're putting them
on.'
A
sad and forlorn voice spoke from the depths of the waste-paper basket. 'Poor
Polly! Polly-
Wolly-Olly
all the day, poor Polly!' There followed a tremendous sigh.
'She's
in the waste-paper basket!' cried Lucy-Ann, and ruffled all the papers there.
Yes Kiki
was
at the very bottom! She climbed out, her head hanging down, and walked
awkwardly over the
floor
to Jack, climbed all the way up his foot and leg, up his body, to his shoulder.
'I
suppose you've forgotten how to fly!' said Jack, amused. 'All right, you idiot
put up your
crest
and stop behaving like this. And DON'T shout for the police and blow that
whistle any more!'
'You're
going on a trip, Kiki,' said Dinah. But the parrot was still pretending to be
very upset,
and
hid her head in Jack's collar. Nobody took any more notice of her, so she soon
recovered, and
began
to enter into the conversation as usual.
After
a while Mrs. Cunningham gave a horrified exclamation. 'Do you know what the
time is?
Almost
midnight and these children only just recovered from being ill! What am I
thinking of?
They'll
all be in bed again if we're not careful! Go to bed at once, children.'
They
went upstairs, laughing. They had quite thrown off the miserable feeling they
had had with
the
flu and now that this exciting trip lay in front of them, they all felt on
top of the world.
'I
wonder where we're going to,' said Jack to Philip. 'Bill didn't tell us even
when he thought
Kiki
wasn't there.'
'Bill's
always cagey about everything till we're really off,' said Philip. 'It's no use
badgering
him
and anyway, what does it matter? It's wonderful to go off into the blue like
this literally
into
the blue, because we're going to fly instead of straight back to school.'
'Lucy-Ann
wouldn't like to hear me say so but it's quite an adventure!' said Jack.
'Come on,
get
into bed. You must have brushed each of your teeth a hundred times.'
The
next two days were very busy indeed. Summer clothes were taken from drawers and
chests,
canvas
aeroplane-cases were thrown down from the loft by the boys, everyone hunted as
usual for
lost
keys, and there was such a hubbub that Mrs. Cunningham nearly went mad.
'Hubbub!'
said Kiki, pleased with the new word, when she heard Bill complaining about it.
'Hubbub,
hip-hip-hubbub! Fetch the doctor, hubbub!'
'Oh,
Kiki I can't help laughing at you, even though I'm so busy,' said Mrs.
Cunningham.
'You
and your hubbubs! You're a hubbub on your own.'
By
Wednesday night all the bags were more or less neatly packed, the keys put
safely in Bill's
wallet,
and arrangements made for someone to come in and air the house, and dust it
each day. Bill
went
to get the car from the garage, and at last it was time to start.
Bill
drove to the airport. It was exciting to arrive there at night, for the place
was full of lights of
all
kinds. A loud amplifier was giving directions.
'Plane
now arriving from Rome. Rome plane coming in.'
'The
plane for Geneva will leave ten minutes late.'
'Plane
arriving from Paris. Two minutes early.'
The
little company, with Kiki on Jack's shoulder, sat in the waiting-room, for they
were early.
They
began to feel sleepy in the warm room and Lucy-Ann felt her head nodding. Bill
suddenly
stood
up.
'Here's
our plane. Come on. We'll have to keep together, now. Don't let Kiki fly off
your
shoulder
or scream or anything, Jack. Put her under your coat.'
Kiki
grumbled away under Jack's coat, but as she felt a little overcome by the
constant roar of
arriving
and departing planes, she said nothing out loud. Soon all six of them, and Kiki
too, were
safely
in their plane-seats.
They
were exceedingly comfortable, and the air hostess plied them with food and
drink at once,
which
pleased the children immensely.
There
was nothing to be seen outside the plane as it flew steadily through the night.
The weather
was
good, the skies were clear and calm. All the children slept soundly in their
tipped-back seats.
Kiki,
rather astonished at everything, settled under Jack's coat and went to sleep
too.
The
plane flew on and on. Stars faded in the sky. Dawn crept in from the east, and
the sky
became
silver and then golden. The sun showed over the far horizon and the children
awoke one by
one,
wondering at first where they were.
'Another
two or three hours and we're there,' said Bill. 'Anyone want anything to eat?
Here's
our
kind air hostess again.'
'I
wish I lived on an aeroplane,' said Jack, when the air hostess brought them a
tray full of most
delicious
food. 'Why is food always so super on a plane? Look at these enormous peaches
and I
don't
think I've ever tasted such delicious sandwiches!'
'This
is fun!' said Lucy-Ann, taking her fourth sandwich. 'Jack, stop Kiki that's
her second
peach,
and she's spilling juice all over me!'
Yes,
it was fun! What a bit of luck that Bill had to go on this trip!
Chapter
4
WHAT
PART OF THE WORLD IS THIS?
THE
children spent a good bit of time after that looking out of the windows and
seeing the earth
below.
They were flying high, and very often wide stretches of white cloud, looking
like fields of
dazzling
snow, lay below them. Then came gaps in the clouds and far down they could see
hills and
rivers
and tiny towns or villages.
There
was a great bustle when the plane at last landed on a long runway. Many men ran
up,
steps
were wheeled here and there, luggage was unloaded, passengers streamed out of
the plane and
were
soon greeted by friends.
A
big car was waiting for Bill and his family. 'They were soon seated comfortably
in it, and a
very
brown-skinned man drove them away.
'Everything
laid on, you see,' said Bill. 'We are going to a fairly small place called
Barira,
where
there is a very comfortable hotel. I don't want to stay in a large place, where
someone might
possibly
recognize me. In fact, from now on I'm going to wear dark glasses.'
The
'small place' was a long way away, and it took the car three hours to get
there. The road
was
very bumpy in parts, and ran through country that was sometimes very well
wooded and
sometimes
bare and desert-like. But at last they arrived, and the big car stopped outside
a rambling
hotel,
white-washed from top to bottom.
The
hotel manager himself came to receive them, a fat little man with a very big
nose. He bowed
himself
almost to the ground, and then barked out very sharp orders in a language the
children did
not
understand. Porters came up and unpacked the luggage from the car, perspiring
in the hot sun.
'You
wish to wash, Madame?' said the hotel manager. 'Everything is most ready, and
we speak
a
hearty welcome to you.'
He
bowed them into the hotel and took them to their rooms. These were spacious and
airy, and
very
simply furnished. The children were delighted to find a shower bath in their
rooms. Jack
promptly
stripped and stood underneath the tepid shower.
'Any
idea where we've come to, Philip?' he called. 'I know Bill said it was
somewhere called
Barira,
but I've never heard of it in my life.'
Bill
came into their room just then. 'Well, everything all right?' he said. 'Where
are the girls?
Oh,
is that their room next to yours? Good! Ours is just across the landing if you
want us. We're to
have
a meal in about a quarter of an hour's time. Come and bang on our door when
you're ready.'
'Hey,
Bill what part of the world are we in?' called Jack. 'The men we've seen look
like
Arabs
or something.'
Bill
laughed. 'Don't you know where we are?' Well, we're some way from the borders
of Syria
a very old part of the world indeed! Tell the girls to join you as soon as they
can, will you?'
The
small hotel proved to be extremely comfortable. Even Kiki was made welcome,
after the
manager
had got over the shock of seeing the parrot perched on Jack's shoulder.
'Ha
what you call him parrot!' said the little fat man. 'Pretty Poll, eh?'
'Wipe
your feet,' said Kiki, much to the man's surprise. 'Shut the door!'
The
little man was not sure whether to obey or not. 'Funny bird!' he said. 'He is
so much clever!
He
spiks good. Polly, polly!'
'Polly
put the kettle on,' said Kiki, and gave a screech that made the man hurry out
of the room
at
once.
There
were no other guests at the hotel. The children sat in the shade on a verandah
overhung
with
clusters of brilliant red flowers. Enormous butterflies fluttered among them.
Kiki watched
these
with much interest. She knew butterflies at home, but these didn't seem at all
the same. She
talked
to herself, and the waiters going to and fro regarded her with awe. When one of
them
coughed,
and Kiki imitated him exactly, he looked very scared and ran off quickly.
'Don't
show off, Kiki,' said Jack, sleepily. 'And for goodness' sake keep still.
You've been
dancing
about on my shoulder for the last ten minutes.'
Next
day plans were made for the river-trip, which was to last at least a week. Bill
produced a
map
which showed the winding course of a river, and pointed to various places.
'We
start here that's where our launch will be. We go here first see? And then
down to
this
town I don't know how you pronounce it Ala-ou-iya something like that. I
leave you
there
and have a snoop round for my man though, as I said, I might take you boys
with me.'
'What's
his name?' asked Jack.
'He
calls himself Raya Uma,' said Bill. 'No one knows whether that is his real name
or not, or
exactly
what nationality he is but we do know he's a trouble-maker who wants
watching. What
he's
out here for we simply can't imagine. It may be something that is perfectly
innocent, but,
knowing
his record, I don't think so. Anyway, all I have to do is to spot him, find out
what he's
doing,
and report back. Nothing more so there's no danger attached, or I wouldn't
have brought
you
with me.'
'We
wouldn't have minded if there had been!' said Philip. 'A spot of danger makes
an
adventure,
you know, Bill!'
Bill
laughed. 'You and your adventures! Now listen this fellow Uma doesn't know me
personally,
and has never met me but he may have been warned that his doings are being
enquired
about, so he may be on the look-out for a snooper. If anyone questions any of
you, answer
candidly
at once. Say you've been ill, and this is a trip to give you sunshine, and so
on which is
perfectly
true as far as you're concerned.'
'Right,'
said Jack. 'What's this man Uma like?'
'Here
are some photographs of him,' said Bill, and he spread out five or six prints.
The children
looked
at them, astonished.
'But
they're all of different men,' said Dinah.
'Looks
like it but they're all our friend Uma,' said Bill, 'He's a master of
disguises, as you
see.
The only thing he cannot very well disguise is a long white scar on his right
forearm, which
looks
very like a thin curving snake. But it's easy enough to cover that up, of
course, with the
sleeve
of his shirt or coat, or whatever garment he happens to be wearing.'
He
gathered up the prints and put them back into his wallet. 'You're not likely to
recognize him
at
all,' he said. 'So don't go suspecting everyone you meet you'll spoil your
holiday! I know
where
to find people who know him, and I may get word of him. On the other hand, he
may not be
anywhere
about now he may have flown to America or Australia. He gads about all over
the
place
a most extraordinary fellow.'
Something
long and sinuous suddenly glided by Bill, disappearing into the bushes nearby.
He
jumped,
and then put out a restraining hand as Philip darted by him. 'No, Philip that
might be a
poisonous
snake don't try any tricks with animals here.'
Dinah
gave a small shriek. 'Was that a snake? Oh, how horrible! Bill, you didn't tell
us there
were
snakes here. I hate snakes. Philip, don't you dare to catch one, else I'll
scream the place
down.'
'Fathead,'
said Philip, sitting down again. 'All right, Bill. I won't keep a poisonous
snake, I
promise
you. That was rather a pretty one. What was it?'
'I
don't know,' said Bill. 'I'm not over keen on snakes myself. And be careful of
some of the
insects
here too, Philip. They can give you nasty nips. Don't carry too many about in
your pockets!'
Dinah
was not so happy now that she knew there were snakes about. She kept her eyes
on the
ground
wherever she walked, and jumped at the least waving of a leaf. The little fat
hotel manager
saw
her and came to comfort her.
'Many
snakes here, yes beeg, beeg ones that do not bite and little, little ones,
which are
much
poison. The little bargua snake is the worst. Do not touch him.'
'Oh
dear what's it like?' asked poor Dinah.
'He
is green with spottings,' said the manager.
'Oh!
What sort of spottings?' asked Dinah.
'Red
and yellow,' said the little man. 'And he is fast with his head when he strikes
so!' He
struck
out with his hand as if it were a snake darting at Dinah, and she gave a small
scream and
drew
back.
'Ah
I fright you!' said the little fat man, filled with dismay. 'No, no, do not
be fright. See, I
have
somethings for you!'
He
scuttled off to fetch the 'somethings' and brought back a dish of extremely
rich-looking
sweetmeats.
'I
give you my apologizings,' he said. 'And my beggings for pardon.'
Dinah
couldn't help laughing. 'It's all right,' she said. 'I wasn't really frightened
you just
made
me jump. But thanks awfully for these sweets.'
The
little man disappeared and the children tried the sweets. They were very rich,
very sticky,
and
very sweet. After one each they all felt slightly sick. Kiki, however, helped
herself generously,
and
then began to hiccup loudly, much to the delight of a passing waiter.
'Shut
up, Kiki,' said Jack. 'That's enough. Be quiet now.'
But
this time Kiki really did have hiccups, and was rather astonished to find that
she couldn't
stop.
'Pardon,' she kept saying, in a surprised tone that sent the children into
gales of laughter.
'That'll
teach you not to be so greedy!' said Jack. 'I say we're starting on the
river-trip
tomorrow!
Bags I drive the launch sometimes!'
'Bags
I, bags I!' repeated Kiki at once, dancing up and down. 'Three bags full! Bags
I! Oh
pardon!'
Tomorrow!
Away on an unknown river to mysterious places in a strange land what could be
more
exciting?
Chapter
5
AWAY
DOWN THE RIVER
NEXT
day they all drove down to the river. The white road wound here and there, and
the natives
they
met ran to the side of the road to keep out of the way of the big car.
'They
look like people out of the Bible,' said Lucy-Ann.
'Well,
many of the people in the Bible came from these parts!' said Bill. 'And in some
ways the
people
and their villages too have not changed a great deal, except for modern
amenities that have
crept
in the radio, for instance, and wrist-watches, and modern sanitation
sometimes. And
cinemas,
of course you find them everywhere.'
'Bill
in the picture-Bible I had years ago Abraham looked exactly like that man!'
said Lucy-
Ann,
nodding towards a dignified, white-robed man walking by the road-side. 'And
look at that
woman
with a pot on her head pitcher, I mean. She's like the picture I had of
Rebecca going to
the
well.'
'Hey,
look camels!' shouted Philip, suddenly excited. 'Oh, there's a baby one. I've
never in
my
life seen a baby one before. Oh, I wish I had it for a pet.'
'Well,
at least you couldn't keep it in your pocket, like a snake or a mouse,' said
Dinah. 'Don't
those
camels look cross!'
'Yes,'
said Bill. 'Camels always look annoyed. That one over there is looking down his
nose at
us
as if he really couldn't bear the sight of our car.'
'He
probably can't!' said Dinah. 'It must smell horrible to him. Yes, he does look
down his
nose,
doesn't he? Cheer up, camel!'
They
saw patient donkeys too, loaded down with such heavy pannier-baskets that it
was a
marvel
they could walk at all. Philip was interested in the birds too, almost as much
as Jack was.
'I
wish I'd brought my big world-bird book,' mourned Jack. 'I'd be able to look up
all these
brilliant
birds then. I did put it 'Out to bring, but I left it on my dressing-table.'
'You
wouldn't have been allowed in the aeroplane with that monster book,' said Bill.
'I see you
brought
your field-glasses, however. You'll find plenty to look at with those.'
'Is
that the river?' said Dinah, suddenly, as she caught sight of a flash of blue
through the trees.
'Yes,
it is! I say it's very wide here, isn't it!'
So
it was. The farther shore seemed quite a distance away. Their launch was
waiting for them, a
trim
little vessel with a native on board looking very clean and neat. He saluted
them when they
came
over from the car.
The
launch was beside a little jetty, and Bill looked at it with approval. He
nodded to the man.
'I
Tala,' said the man, and bowed. 'Tala look after ship, and look after you,
Master.'
Tala
showed them over the launch. It was small but quite big enough for them all.
The cabin was
stuffy
and hot, but nobody planned to be there very much! The bunks down below looked
stuffy
and
hot too, but, as Bill said, they could sleep on deck, providing they rigged up
a mosquito net
over
them. A little breeze blew every now and again, which was very pleasant.
'Master
start now, this minute, at once?' enquired Tala, his black eyes taking them all
in. He had
remarkably
white teeth and a twinkle in his eyes that the children liked immediately. Bill
nodded.
'Yes.
Off we go. You can show me any gadgets there are, and I'll take the wheel if I
want to.
Cast
off.'
The
launch went off smoothly, her engine making very little noise. At once it
seemed cooler, for
the
breeze was now in their faces. The children sat on the deck and watched the
banks slide by on
either
side.
Mrs.
Cunningham went down into the lower part of the launch to see what kind of food
was
stored
away there. She called to Bill.
'Just
look here!' she said. 'They've done you proud again, Bill there's enough for
an army
here
and such nice food too! And there's a fridge packed with butter and milk. You
must be
quite
an important person, Bill, to have all this done for you!'
Bill
laughed. 'You come along up on deck and get some colour into your cheeks!' he
said.
'Hallo,
what are the children excited about?'
The
launch was passing a small village and the native children had come out to
watch it go by.
They
shouted and waved, and Jack and the others waved back.
'What's
this river called, Tala?' asked Philip.
'It
is called River of Abencha,' answered Tala, his eyes on the water ahead.
'I
say, you others!' called Philip. 'He says this river's called the River of
Adventure sounds
exciting,
doesn't it?'
'Abencha,
Abencha,' repeated Tala, but Philip thought he was trying to say 'Adventure'
and not
pronouncing
it correctly. Tala found many English words difficult to say!
'All
right, Tala we heard you,' said Philip. 'It's a lovely name for a river, I
think the River
of
Adventure. Well, this is certainly an adventure for us!'
It
was a quiet, peaceful trip that day, gliding along hour after hour. Bill took
the wheel when
Tala
went down below to prepare a meal. The children wondered what kind of a meal it
would be.
They
were all extremely hungry.
Tala
came up with a marvellous repast. As Dinah said, it was much too grand to be
called just a
'meal'
it was nothing less than a 'repast', or perhaps even a 'feast'!
Tala
had apparently opened a good many tins, and concocted some dishes of his own,
garnished
with
pickles and sauces of many kinds. There were fresh rolls to go with the meal,
and to follow
there
was fresh or tinned fruit. Lucy-Ann pounced on a big peach and put it to her
lips.
'No,
don't eat the skin of that peach, Lucy-Ann,' said Bill. 'All fruit eaten out
here must be
peeled
before being eaten. Don't forget that, please.'
Mrs.
Cunningham really enjoyed that peaceful day, hearing the lap-lap of the water
against the
bows
of the boat, seeing the villages slip by on the banks, and sometimes meeting
other boats on
the
blue-green water.
The
sun and wind tired them all out, and each of them fell asleep at once when they
had bedded
down
on deck. Tala tied up the boat safely, and went to his own shake-down in the stern.
Jack
just had time to think that the stars seemed amazingly large and bright before
he fell fast
asleep.
Nobody heard a sound that night, not even the cry of a night-bird, whose voice
seemed half
a
hoot and half a shriek. Kiki opened one eye and considered whether to answer
back in her own
language
of squawk-and-scream but decided that Bill might not like it!
The
river was beautiful in the early morning. It was a pale milky blue, and Jack
was thrilled to
watch
a whole covey of tiny water-birds swimming round the yacht. 'What are they?' he
asked
Tala,
pointing to the little blue and yellow things. Tala shrugged his shoulders.
'Tala
not know,' he said. Jack soon found that Tala knew absolutely nothing about
birds, insects
or
flowers. He could not put a name to a single one. His whole interest was in the
launch's engine
and
in the care of it.
'We
come to big, big place soon,' said Tala, early that evening. He looked rather
excited. 'Place
name
Sinny-Town.'
'Sinny-Town?'
said Bill, puzzled. 'I don't think so, Tala. There is no big town along this
river-
side
only small ones. I've never heard of Sinny-Town. It isn't on my map.'
Tala
nodded his head vigorously up and down. 'Yes, Sinny-Town. Tala know. Tala been.
Half
an
hour and we see Sinny-Town.'
Bill
took out his map, and looked down the river as it was shown there. He shook his
head again,
and
showed the map to Tala.
'You're
wrong,' he said. 'There is no Sinny-Town marked here. See.'
Tala
put his finger on a place where the river shown on the map curved a little.
'Sinny-Town
there,' he said. 'You will see, Master. Tala right. Tala been there. Big big
town.
Many
peoples. Big big towers, tall as the sky.'
This
was most astonishing. Bill couldn't understand it. Why wasn't this 'big big
place' shown
on
the map? Even small places were shown there. In fact, the little place he had
planned to go to
was
marked as being very near the curve of the river where Tala said Sinny-Town
was.
He
shrugged his shoulders. Tala couldn't know what he was talking about. Towers as
tall as the
sky
what nonsense!
The
darkness came suddenly, as it always does in southern countries. Stars shone
out, large and
mysterious,
and very very bright. The river turned black and silver, and held as many stars
as were
in
the sky.
'Bend
of river, Master then Sinny-Town,' said Tala, in an excited voice. 'You will
see!'
The
launch glided smoothly round the bend and then Bill and the others saw a most
astonishing
sight!
A
great city lay there, on the west bank of the river. A city of lights and
noise. A city with
towers
that went up to the sky, just as Tala had said!
Bill
stared in the utmost astonishment. He simply could not understand it! Here was
a big place
not
even marked on the map and the map was a modern one, not a year old! A city
could not be
built
in a year. Bill was more puzzled than he had ever been in his life. He stood
and stared as if he
could
not believe his eyes.
'Tala
go Sinny-Town tonight?' said Tala, beseechingly. 'Tala like Sinny-Town. Tala
go,
Master?
Boat be all right with you, Master.'
'Yes,
yes you go,' said Bill, finding his voice. 'Bless my soul, this is a most
extraordinary
thing.
A large, lively town, with great buildings and it's not marked on the map,
and no one in
London
told me a word about it. What can it mean?'
'Let's
visit it, Bill,' said Jack.
'Not
tonight,' said Bill. 'We'll see what it looks like in the daylight. But what a
brilliantly
lighted
place and what enormous buildings! I simply don't understand it. It's very
very
queer!'
Chapter
6
SINNY-TOWN
EVERYONE
slept very well that night. They had stayed up fairly late looking at the
lights of the
surprising
Sinny-Town. Tala had gone off in glee, leaping from the launch to the shore
with one
lithe
spring. He had not come back by the time the others had bedded down on the cool
deck, and
Bill
was rather uneasy, wondering if he would return.
But
in the morning the sound of someone tinkering with the engine of the launch
awoke Jack
and
there was Tala, looking rather the worse for wear after his late night, at work
on the plugs. He
grinned
at Jack when the boy stood up and stretched.
'Tala
go Sinny-Town,' he said, and nodded towards the bank. Jack remembered their
surprise of
the
night before and ran to the other side of the launch to gaze at the mysterious
Sinny-Town.
It
was so extraordinary that he called to Bill. 'Bill! I say, Bill do come and
look.'
Bill
awoke and joined Jack. The two of them looked at the sprawling town. Bill was
astonished.
'There's
something queer about it,' he said. 'Look at those towers somehow they don't
look
real
and what's that over there a palace or something? There's something queer
about that
too.
Isn't one side missing? Where are your field-glasses, Jack? Lend them to me.'
Jack
handed them to him and Bill gazed through them. 'No I don't understand this,'
he said,
lowering
them. 'The town is a most peculiar mixture of buildings there are shacks and
sheds,
ancient
houses, towers, that palace, and something that looks remarkably like an old
temple and
here
and there are crowds of people milling round, and droves of camels, and . . .
no, I don't
understand
it.'
'Do
let's go and look at it after breakfast,' said Jack.
'Yes,
we certainly will,' said Bill. 'Sinny-Town is no village it's quite a big
place but
WHY
isn't it marked on my map? I had a look at another map last night, but it's not
shown there
either.
Wake the others, Jack.'
Soon
they were all having breakfast. Mrs. Cunningham was as surprised as the rest of
them to
see
such a strange mixture of a town on the bank of the river.
'That
palace looks quite new,' said Lucy-Ann, staring at it. 'And yet it must be
thousands of
years
old and ought to be in ruins.'
After
breakfast they all went ashore, leaving Tala in charge of the launch. Kiki was
on Jack's
shoulder
as usual, and very talkative, much to the amusement of the natives they met.
'Shut
the door,' she ordered imperiously.' Fetch the doctor, Polly's got a cold.
A-HOO-choo!'
Her
sneeze was so realistic that Lucy-Ann almost offered her a hanky. Soon Jack had
to make
the
parrot stop talking, for, on looking behind him, he found a group of small,
dark-skinned
children
following, pointing at Kiki in delight.
They
came near to the town and then Bill gave an exclamation. 'It's not a real
town! It's a
fake!
All these towers and temples are imitation! Look at this one it is only a
front there's no
back
to it.'
They
stared in wonder. Bill was right. It was just a flimsy false front, which, from
a distance,
looked
exactly like a real temple but behind it was nothing but boards and canvas,
with joists of
timber
holding the whole thing up.
They
went on, coming to well-built sheds, stored with masses of peculiar things,
jerry-built
shacks
that served all sorts of purposes one sold cigarettes, one sold soft drinks,
and others sold
groceries
and so on.
The
people were a curiously mixed lot. Men and women walked or ran here and there,
mostly
dressed
in sloppy-looking European clothes and others, dressed in native costume,
went on their
way
too. Small children with hardly anything on darted everywhere.
And
then, round a corner, they came upon a curious sight. It was a procession of
magnificently
dressed
men, walking slowly, and chanting as they went. In the midst of the procession
was a
space,
and here, surrounded by women dressed in the robes of long, long ago, was a
kind of bed on
which
lay a very beautiful woman, carried by four slaves, tall, strong and
dark-skinned.
Bill
and the others stood and stared and then Bill heard a curious whirring noise.
He looked
to
see what was making it and gave an exclamation.
The
others looked at him. Bill grinned at them. 'I've got it!' he said. 'I see it
all now, and I can't
think
why it didn't dawn on me before. The reason why Sinny-Town isn't shown on the
map is
because
it probably wasn't here when the map was drawn a year ago! See those enormous
cameras?
They're
cinι-cameras they're taking pictures for a film, and . . .'
Then
everyone exclaimed, too, and began to talk excitedly.
'Of
course! It's a town specially built for the making of a film of long-ago days!'
'Why
didn't we think of it before! That's why that temple is only a front and
nothing else!'
'And
why there is such a mixture of people here!'
'And,
of course, it's Cinι-Town, not Sinny-Town as we all imagined!' said Jack. 'A
town of
cinema
cameras taking pictures Cinι-Town.'
'It's
jolly interesting!' said Philip. 'Bill, can we wander round on our own? Look,
there's a
fellow
doing acrobatics over there look at him bending over backwards and catching
hold of the
back
of his ankles with his hands!'
Bill
laughed. 'All right. You can go and have a good look round. I expect this place
attracts a lot
of
show-people, who think they can make a bit of money by their tricks. You may
see something
interesting.
But keep together, please. Boys, see that the girls don't get separated from
you. I'll go
off
alone with your mother, Philip I might pick up some useful information.'
The
children knew what that meant! Bill hoped to find out something about Mr. Raya
Uma.
Well,
it was quite likely that he had come to Cinι-Town!
They
set off by themselves, followed by a little tail of interested native children.
Beggars called
to
them as they passed by, holding out all kinds of wares trays of sticky
sweetmeats, covered
with
flies, that made the two girls shudder in disgust. Fresh fruit in baskets.
Little gimcrack objects
such
as might be found in fairs at home. Pictures of the stars who were, presumably,
acting in the
film
being made in the town. There were all kinds of goods, none of which the
children wished to
buy.
Even
the natives seemed to speak English or, rather, English with a pronounced
American
accent,
for the company making the film was one of the biggest ones from America. It
was easy to
pick
out the Americans and Europeans, not only by their dress but by their quicker
walk and louder
voices.
The
four children wandered round the false temples and towers, wondering what the
film was
that
was being made it was obviously a story taken from the Old Testament. Then
they made
their
way to a large group of huts where a little crowd sat watching a man who was
performing a
most
peculiar trick. He was walking up a ladder of knives!
A
weird chant went up from two of his attendants as he climbed up the edges of
the blades,
setting
his bare feet on them without flinching. Someone began to play a kind of
tom-tom, and the
children
stood there, fascinated.
The
man leapt down, grinning. He turned up the soles of his feet to show that they
were not in
the
least cut. He invited the audience to come and test the sharpness of the
knife-edges with their
hands,
and some of them did.
He
beckoned to the four children and they went to the strange ladder of knives and
felt the edges
too
yes, they were certainly sharp! They gazed at the man in respect, and put a
little money into
his
bag. It was English money, but he didn't seem to mind at all. He could probably
change it into
his
own coinage at any of the ramshackle shops around.
'What
a way to earn your living climbing up sharp knives with bare feet!' said
Lucy-Ann.
'Oh,
look there's a juggler!'
The
juggler was extremely clever. He had six glittering balls and sent them up and
down, to and
fro,
as fast as he could, so that it was almost impossible for the eye to see them.
He caught them so
deftly
that the children stood lost in admiration. Then he took six plates and juggled
with those,
throwing
them over his shoulder and between his legs, one after the other, without
dropping or
breaking
a single one.
Just
as the children were clapping him, Jack felt a hand sliding into his shorts
pocket and turned
quickly.
He grabbed at a small, dirty boy, but the child wriggled away quickly.
'Hey,
you! Don't you dare to do that again!' yelled Jack, indignantly, feeling in his
pocket. As
far
as he could tell, nothing had been taken he had been too quick for the little
thief. Still, it was
a
lesson to him and to all the others too.
'We
obviously mustn't get so engrossed in watching things that we forget to guard
our pockets,'
said
Jack. 'Why didn't you see that little monkey of a fellow, Kiki? You could have
yelled out
"Stop
thief!" '
'Stopthief,
stopthief, stopthief!' shouted Kiki immediately, thinking that it was all one
word.
This
astonished all the passers-by so much that they stood and stared. One small girl
darted away at
once.
'She
thinks Kiki is addressing her,' said Philip, with a grin. 'I expect she had
just planned to
pinch
your little bag, Lucy-Ann.'
Just
then a queer, thin music floated over to them, and they stopped. 'I say that
sounds like
snake-music!'
said Philip, suddenly excited. 'Come on, quick I've always wanted to see a
snake-
charmer
at work. Quick!'
Chapter
7
A
SURPRISING MORNING
JACK,
Philip and Lucy-Ann hurried towards the sound, but Dinah hung back.
'Ugh!
Snakes! I don't want to see them,' she said. 'I hate snakes. I'm not coming.'
'Dinah,
you've got to keep with us,' said Philip, impatiently. 'Bill said so. You don't
need to
watch,
you can turn your back. But you must keep with us.'
'All
right, all right,' said Dinah, sulkily. 'But why you want to go and gloat over
snakes I cannot
imagine.
Horrible things!'
She
dawdled behind, but kept within reach, and then, when they came to the little
crowd
surrounding
the snake-charmer, she turned her back. She felt rather sick, for she had
caught sight of
a
snake rising up from a basket, wavering to and fro. She swallowed once or
twice, and felt better,
but
she did not dare to turn round again. She stared out over the strangely mixed
crowd.
The
other three were in the little crowd round the snake-charmer. He was a rather
dirty-looking
man,
with a turban wound round his head, and a wide cloth round his middle. He had
only one eye.
The
other was closed but his one eye looked round piercingly, and Lucy-Ann decided
that she
didn't
like it at all. It was as unblinking as a snake's!
Beside
the man stood his attendant, a small boy, quite naked except for a cloth round
his middle.
He
was painfully thin, and Lucy-Ann could easily count all his bony little ribs.
His eyes were sharp
and
bright not like a snake's, thought Lucy-Ann, but like a robin's. He was
talking at top speed
about
the snakes in the basket.
He
spoke a curious mixture of his own language and American. The children could
not follow
half
of it, but they gathered enough to know that the snakes in the basket were
dangerous ones, with
a
bite so poisonous that it could kill even a grown man in twelve hours.
'He
dart like this,' chanted the little fellow, and made a snake-like movement with
his arm, 'he
bite
quick, quick, quick. . . .'
The
man sitting by the round basket began to play again the strange, tuneless music
that the
children
had heard a few minutes before. The snake that Dinah had seen had disappeared
back into
its
basket but now it arose again and everyone gasped at its wicked-looking head.
Lucy-Ann
whispered to Jack. 'Jack it's the snake that the hotel manager told us about
green
with red and yellow spots look! What was its name now?'
'Er
bargua, I think,' said Jack, watching the snake. 'My word, it's a little
beauty, but wicked-
looking,
isn't it? See it wavering about as if it's looking round at everyone. My
goodness, here's
another!'
A
second snake had now uncoiled itself and was rising up slowly, seeming to look
round from
side
to side. Some of the crowd came a little closer to the snake-charmer, and at
once the small boy
cried
out sharply, 'Back, back, back! You want to be bit? He bite quick, quick,
quick!'
The
crowd at once surged back, frightened. The snake-charmer went on with his weird
music,
blowing
interminably on his little flute, his one eye following all the movements of
the crowd. A
third
snake arose and swayed from side to side as if in time to the music.
The
small boy tapped it on the head with a stick and it sank down again.
'He
very bad snake, he not safe,' explained the boy, earnestly. The other two
snakes still
wavered
about, and then, quite suddenly, the man changed his music, and it became
louder and
more
insistent. One of the snakes swayed more quickly, and the little boy held a
stick over its head
as
if to stop it.
The
snake struck at it, and then, before anyone could stop it, slithered right out
of the basket
towards
the crowd.
At
once there were screams and howls, and everyone surged back. The small boy ran
at the
snake
and picked it up. He threw it back into the basket, and a cry of admiration
went up at once.
Shouts
and claps and cheers filled the air, and the snake-charmer stood up slowly, and
patted the
small
boy on the head.
'He
save you all!' he said, and then added a few rapid words in his own language.
'He brave.
Snake
might bite him. He brave,' he finished.
'What
a kid!' said an American voice, warm with admiration. 'Here, boy take a hold
of this!'
and
he threw a dollar bill on the ground. The little boy darted on it as quickly as
a snake, and
nodded
his thanks.
That
was the signal for other people in the crowd to throw down money for the boy
too, and he
picked
it all up, stuffing it into a fold of his waist-cloth.
The
snake-charmer took no notice. He was busy putting the lid on the snake-basket,
preparing to
leave.
Jack
put his hand into his pocket to throw down a sixpence, but to his surprise
Philip stopped
him.
'No, don't,' said Philip. 'It's all a fake.'
Jack
looked at him in enormous surprise. 'A fake? How? That kid's as brave as can
be! You
heard
the hotel manager tell us how poisonous those barguas are.'
'I
tell you, it's a fake!' said Philip, in a low voice. 'I agree they are
barguas, and dangerous
but not one of those snakes could hurt a fly.'
'What
do you mean?' asked Lucy-Ann, astonished.
'Come
away and I'll tell you,' said Philip. They joined Dinah and went a little way
away. Jack
looked
at Philip impatiently.
'Come
on, then tell us how it was a fake.'
'Did
you notice that when those snakes were swaying about in the basket they kept
their mouths
shut
all the time?' said Philip. 'They didn't open them at all, or show their forked
tongues, not even
when
one of them was tapped on the head which would usually anger a snake and make
him get
ready
to bite.'
'Yes
now I come to think of it, they did keep their mouths shut,' said Jack. 'But
what does
that
matter? The one that escaped might easily have opened his to strike if he had
had a chance. I
wonder
he didn't pounce at that small boy.'
'Do
listen,' said Philip. 'I was a bit suspicious when I saw that those snakes
didn't open their
mouths
at all so that when one snake escaped though it's my firm opinion that that
"escape"
was
all arranged, part of the trick, you know well, when that snake escaped and
came writhing
near
us I took a jolly good look at him. And believe it or not, the poor thing's
mouth was sewn up!'
The
others gazed at him in horror. 'Sewn up!' said Lucy-Ann. 'Oh, how cruel! That
means, of
course,
that the snake-charmer is perfectly safe he can't be bitten because the
snakes can't open
their
mouths to strike.'
'Exactly,'
said Philip. 'I never knew before how the snake-charmer's trick was done. The
snake
that
"escaped" had its mouth well and truly sewn up I saw the stitches.
The snake was probably
doped
somehow, and then, while it was doped, the man sewed up its mouth.'
'But
it can't eat or drink then,' said Lucy-Ann, feeling sick. 'It's cruel. Why
doesn't someone do
something
about it?'
'That
boy wasn't brave after all then,' said Jack.
'No.
That's what I told you,' said Philip. 'He had been trained to put on that
little bit of
spectacular
courage. You saw how it pulled in the money, didn't you? My word, talk about a
hard-
hearted
swindle! To sew up snakes' mouths and use them for a living ugh, horrible!'
'I'm
jolly glad I didn't throw down any money,' said Jack.
'And
I'm jolly glad I didn't watch,' said Dinah.
'I'm
sorry for those snakes,' said Lucy-Ann. 'I hate to think of them.'
'So
do I,' said Philip. 'Such pretty things too that lovely bright green, and
those glittering red
and
yellow spots. I'd like one for a pet.'
Dinah
stared at him in horror. 'Philip! Don't you dare to keep a snake for a pet
especially a
poisonous
one.'
'Don't
fly off the handle, Di,' said Jack, amused. 'You know jolly well that Bill
would never
allow
him to keep a poisonous bargua. Cheer up!'
'Do
you suppose it's safe to buy ice-creams here?' said Lucy-Ann, suddenly feeling
that she
could
eat at least three. 'My mouth feels so hot and dry.'
'We'll
find a decent place,' said Jack. 'What about that one over there?'
They
walked over to it and looked inside. It was clean and bright, and at the little
tables sat
many
Americans and two or three actors and actresses still in costume.
'This
should be all right,' said Philip, and they went in. People stared at the
children, and
especially
at Jack, who, of course, had Kiki on his shoulder as usual.
A
little bell was on each table, so that customers could ring if they wanted
anything. Jack picked
up
the one on his table and rang it.
'Ding
dong bell,' remarked Kiki. 'Pussy's in the well. Fetch the doctor!' She went
off into one
of
her cackles of laughter, and then began again. 'Pussy's in the well, me-ow,
me-ow, puss, puss,
puss!
Ding dong bell!'
There
was a sudden silence, and everyone stared in amazement at the parrot, who now
proceeded
to cough like an old sheep. Jack tapped her on the beak.
'Now
then, Kiki don't show off!'
'Great
snakes!' drawled an American voice nearby. 'That's a reemarkable parrot, young
fellow!
Like
to sell him?'
'Of
course not!' said Jack, quite indignantly. 'Shut up, Kiki. You're not giving a
concert!'
But
Kiki was! Delighted at all the sudden attention, she gave a most remarkable
performance
and
was just in the middle of it when something happened. A man came in and sat
down at the
children's
table!
'Hallo!'
he said. 'Surely I know you! Don't you belong to old Bill? Is he here with
you?'
Chapter
8
THE
SNAKE-CHARMER AGAIN
THE
four children stared at the man in surprise. He was dressed well, and his face
looked brown
and
healthy. He smiled at them, showing very fine teeth.
Nobody
answered for a moment. Then Kiki cocked her head on one side, and spoke to the
man.
'Bill!
Silly-bill! Pay the bill, silly-billy, pay the billy!'
'What
a wonderful parrot!' said the man, and put out his hand to ruffle Kiki's crest.
She gave
him
a quick nip with her beak, and he scowled at once, making his face completely
different.
'Well?'
he said, nursing his finger and smiling again at the children. 'Have you lost
your
tongues?
I asked you who you were with? Is it old Bill, my good old friend?'
Both
girls got a quiet kick on the leg from Jack and Philip. Everyone had remembered
what Bill
had
said. They were not to give away any information if they were asked questions!
'We're
here with my mother,' said Philip. 'We've all been ill, so this is a sort of
convalescence
trip.
We're just having a short river-trip on a launch.'
'I
see,' said the man.' You don't know anyone called Bill then?'
'Oh
yes,' said Dinah, to the horror of the two boys. 'We know Bill Hilton is he
the one you
mean?'
'No,'
said the man.
'Then
there's Bill Jordans,' said Dinah, and by the glint in her eye the boys knew
that she was
making
all this up. They joined in heartily.
'He
may mean Bill Ponga do you, sir?'
'Or
Bill Tipps he's the fellow who had four big cars and two small ones is he
the Bill you
mean?'
'Perhaps
he means Bill Kent. You know, Jack, the chimney-sweep Mother always has.'
'Or
do you mean Bill Plonk, sir? You might know him he's a biscuit-manufacturer,
and his
biscuits
are . . .'
'No.
I do not mean him or any of the others!' said the man shortly. 'Isn't anyone
called Bill
with
you?'
'No.
As you can see, we're all alone,' said Jack.
'Where's
your launch?' asked the man. This was getting awkward and Jack cast about in his
mind
for a way to bring the conversation to a natural end. He glanced suddenly at
Lucy-Ann and
spoke
urgently.
'I
say, old girl! Do you feel sick? Better go out, if so.'
Lucy-Ann
took the cue at once and stood up, looking as ill as she could.
'Yes.
Take me out,' she said, in a suitably faint voice. The others led her down the
room and out
into
the open air.
'Scoot!'
said Philip as soon as they were outside. 'I don't think he'll come after us
but he
might.
Jolly good idea of yours, Jack, to pretend Lucy-Ann felt sick.'
They
disappeared at top speed round the building and went into an empty shed. There
was a
dirty
window there and they peered through it, keeping a watch for the over-friendly
man. Lucy-
Ann
made a peculiar noise.
'I
think I am going to be sick,' she said. 'Jack was right!' But she wasn't sick
after all, and soon
began
to feel better.
'Here
comes our friend,' said Jack, gazing through the dirty window. 'He's standing
still,
looking
this way and that. Now he's got into a car he's driving off at top speed.
Goodo!'
'Do
you think he was Raya Uma himself?' asked Dinah.
'Shouldn't
think so,' said Jack. 'Though he did have very white teeth did you notice?
And
Bill
said that Raya Uma had remarkably white teeth. I couldn't see if he had a scar
en his arm,
because
his coat-sleeves were long.'
'We
told him about plenty of Bills,' said Dinah with a laugh.
'Bill!
Pay the bill!' said Kiki, joining in as usual.
'We
did, old thing!' said Jack. 'We paid for the ice-creams when they were brought
to us. Didn't
you
notice? You're as blind as a bat!'
'Batty,'
said Kiki, jigging up and down. 'Batty, batty, batty!'
'Quite
right. You are!' said Philip, and everyone laughed. They went to the door of
the shed. 'Is
it
safe to go now, do you think?' asked Dinah. Jack nodded.
'Oh
yes. He won't try and get anything more out of us. He knows we were fooling
with him
but
he doesn't know if it was because we were being cautious, or were just plain
rude. We'll have
to
tell Bill about it and see what he says. I think there's no doubt but that the
man has got wind that
someone's
coming out to snoop, and has been looking out for newcomers.'
They
went out of the shed and wandered round. They came to a collection of
tumbledown native
huts,
which looked as if they might have been built for years, not merely for the
film outfit.
'A
bit smelly,' said Jack. 'Let's go back. I say, though what's that?'
A
sudden cry had come to his sharp ears. He stood still and then the others heard
a cry too. They
also
heard something even worse the sound of a cane or stick being used as a
weapon!
Every
time that the sound of a blow came, there followed immediately a high-pitched
scream of
pain
and terror.
'That's
a child yelling!' said Philip. 'He sounds as if he's being half killed. Come on
I can't
bear
this. We've got to do something about it!'
They
raced round the huts, and came to a bare space, where old boxes and crates lay
about. At
the
back stood a man, thrashing a child with a thick stick. One or two other people
were there, but
nobody
made the slightest attempt to stop the whipping.
'Gosh
it's that snake-charmer!' cried Jack. 'And that's the little boy who picked
up the
money
look, the fellow has got him on the ground!'
All
four of them raced over to the angry man. Philip caught hold of his arm, and
Jack wrenched
the
stick from his hand. The man swung round in fury.
He
shouted something they didn't understand, and tried to catch at the stick. But
Philip put it out
of
reach. 'No you don't! You're a cruel beast, lashing out at that little kid like
that! What's he
done?'
The
man shouted again, and his one eye glittered dangerously. The small boy raised
his head,
and
sobbed out a few words.
'He
say I keep money. He say I rob. But see, I have none!'
He
opened his folded waist-cloth and shook it. He pointed at the snake-charmer. 'I
give him all,
all!
He say I spend some. He beat me. Ai, ai!'
The
small boy put his thin arms across his face and wept again. The man made a move
towards
him
as if to strike him with his bare fist, but Philip jumped forward with the
stick.
'Don't
you touch him again! You 'let him be! I shall report you for this!'
Philip
had no idea to whom he should report the man, but he was determined not to let
him hit
the
child again. The snake-charmer glared at him in fury out of his one eye. Then
he made a sudden
move
towards his snake-basket, which lay on the ground nearby. He lucked off the lid
and at once
the
snakes rose up, scared and angered.
'Run!
Run!' he shouted, in English. 'I tell my snakes bite, bite, bite!'
Dinah
turned and ran at once, but the others kept their ground. If Philip was right,
and the
snakes'
mouths were sewn up, they were harmless, and there was no need to run. Two of
the snakes
came
gliding rapidly over the ground towards them. Then Philip did something
surprising. He
threw
the stick to Jack, and then knelt down on the ground. He made a curious hissing
noise, the
same
noise that he used in his own country when he wanted to tame grass snakes.
The
snakes stopped immediately. They raised their heads and listened. Then they
glided right up
to
Philip and ran their mouths over his hands. One snake writhed up his arm and
hung itself round
his
neck.
The
snake-charmer stared in the utmost amazement. Why the snakes had never done
that to
him!
They had avoided him whenever they could, for they hated him. Never, never had
he seen
wild
snakes go to anyone as they went to this quietly hissing boy! He wasn't even
afraid!
'Snakes
bite bite, bite, bite!' he said, and stamped on the ground to frighten them
and make
them
strike with their shut mouths.
'They
can't,' said Philip, scornfully, and ran his hand gently along the sides of
their mouths.
'You
have sewn them up. In my country you would be sent to prison for such a cruel
deed.'
The
man fell into a rage and yelled loudly in his own language. The small boy ran
to Philip. 'Go,
go!
He call friends, they hurt you. Go!'
Philip
put down the snakes promptly, thinking of the two girls. They must go at once
if there
was
any danger of this fellow's friends coming and making themselves a nuisance.
'We'd better
scoot,'
he said to Jack. But it was too late!
Three
youths had come running at the snake-charmer's call, and they surrounded the
four
children,
pushing Dinah close to the others. Philip put on a bold face. He walked
forward.
'Make
way!' he said. 'Make way, or we'll get the police.'
But
the youths closed in even more, and the boys felt their hearts sink. They
couldn't take on
these
three and the angry snake-charmer too!
But
Kiki was not going to stand this kind of thing. She danced up and down on
Jack's shoulder
in
anger, and screamed out at the top of her voice.
'Police!
Police! Fetch the police!' she screeched, and then whistled like a
police-whistle.
PHEEEEEEEEE!
PHEEEEEEEEEE! PHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!'
Chapter
9
AT
LUNCH TIME
KIKI'S
shouts for the police and her marvellous imitation of a police whistle
terrified all the youths.
They
stood aghast, staring at this extraordinary parrot. Then, with one accord, they
and the snake-
charmer
took to their heels and fled. The snake-charmer snatched up his basket of
snakes as he
went
all three were in it again, which was a pity.
The
four children stood gazing after the runaways, most relieved. Kiki gave an
enormous
chuckle,
and then such a cackle of laughter that the children couldn't help joining in.
'Kiki!
Thanks very much!' said Jack, scratching the delighted parrot on her head. 'I suppose
you
heard
Philip say the word "police" and that reminded you of your
police-whistle performance. Very
very
lucky for us!'
'No
police came, though,' said Lucy-Ann. 'Good old Kiki! That was the best
whistling you've
ever
done better even than your train-whistle.'
'We'd
better get back to the launch, I think,' said Philip. 'I don't like the girls
getting mixed up
in
anything like this. Bill would row us like fury if something serious happened.'
They
were just setting off, when a small figure ran out from behind a hut. It was
the little boy.
He
ran to Philip and took his hand. He knelt down before him.
'Take
me with you, lord! Bula has gone with snakes, and I have no money. He bad man,
I no
like
him. Take me with you.'
'I
can't,' said Philip, gently undoing the boy's hands from his. 'I will give you
money, though.'
'Not
money. Take me with you, take Oola with you!' said the boy, beseechingly.
'No,
Oola, we can't,' said Philip.
'Yes,
lord! Oola be servant, Oola work for you!' said the boy, clutching at Philip's
hand again.
'You
like snakes, lord? Oola bring you some!'
'Listen,
Oola I do like snakes but not those with their poor mouths sewn up,' said
Philip.
'And
it would be dangerous to have one that could bite. Have you no family to look
after you?'
'Only
Bula, who my uncle is,' said Oola, still clutching Philip's hand. The boy felt
really
embarrassed.
'Bula bad man, Bula hit, see, see!'
He
showed bruises and weals all over his body. Lucy-Ann gave a sudden little sob.
'Poor
little Oola!' she said. 'Can't we take him, Philip?'
'No,
Lucy-Ann, we can't,' said Philip. 'We can't collect all the poor, ill-used
animals or children
we
see here that mangy dog over there, the poor donkey I saw today, with sores
all over it the
little
baby, so thin and tiny, that we saw lying on a dirty rug, don't you remember?
They each want
help
and friends but we can't collect them all and take them to the launch. No,
Oola we
cannot
take you.'
'What
I do? What I do?' said Oola in despair.
'We'll
take you to the First Aid Tent,' said Philip. 'I saw one somewhere about. They
will look
after
you and help you, Oola. They will bathe your bruises for you.'
Oola
went with them disconsolately, dragging his bare feet, his head hanging down
but as
soon
as they came to the immaculately white tent, with its nurse at the door in a
starched apron,
Oola
fled! They heard him wailing as he went, and both Dinah and Lucy-Ann had tears
in their
eyes
as they watched the half-naked little figure running behind a shack.
'Blow!'
said Jack. 'I feel awful about this. I feel as if we've let Oola down very
badly But I
don't
see what else we can do.'
'Come
on,' said Philip. 'Let's go back to the launch. We're supposed to be back by
one, and it's
almost
that now.'
They
made their way back to the river, none of them feeling very happy. Philip kept
a watch for
the
man who had questioned them, but there was no sign of him. They arrived safely
at the launch,
and
were greeted with pleasure by Tala. They all jumped aboard, and heard Bill's
voice calling to
them.
'You're
rather late. We were getting a bit worried about you. Go and wash and we'll all
have a
meal.'
Over
the meal they exchanged news with Bill. 'Did you find out anything about that
fellow Raya
Uma?'
asked Philip, dropping his voice so that Tala could not hear.
'Not
a thing,' said Bill. 'But perhaps I shall when I get to Ala-ou-iya. Your mother
and I just
wandered
about, found out about this film, saw a friend we knew, and came back here.
Very dull.
What
about you? What did you do?'
Bill
sat up straight when the children began to tell him about the man in the
ice-cream shop who
had
come up and questioned them. 'He didn't say your surname, Bill,' said Jack. 'He
just kept on
saying
"Bill". Wouldn't he know your surname?'
'No.
But he might know my Christian name,' said Bill. 'You didn't by any chance say
what my
surname
was, did you?'
'Of
course not,' said both boys, indignantly. 'But we told him a whole lot more
Bills, and asked
him
if he meant them,' added Jack, with a chuckle.
'What
do you mean?' said Bill, puzzled.
'Well
we asked him if he meant Bill Hilton or Bill Jordans or Bill Ponga or
Bill
Tipps,
who has four big cars and two small ones,' said Jack.
'Or
Bill Kent the chimney-sweep or Bill Plonk who makes biscuits,' went on Dinah.
Bill
threw back his head and laughed. 'You little monkeys! All make-believe Bills, I
gather.
Well,
what happened next?'
'Oh
he asked where our launch was we'd told him about the river-trip for our
convalescence,'
said Philip, 'and we realised things might get a bit awkward so Jack decided
that
Lucy-Ann looked as if she was going to be sick, and we shot out with her, and
hid.'
Bill
roared again. 'I'd rather have you kids on my side than against me,' he said.
'You're too
smart
for words! Well it rather looks as if that fellow was a spy of Raya Uma's.
What was he
like?'
They
told Bill. 'It doesn't somehow sound like Uma,' said Bill. 'Except for the'
teeth. No, I
don't
think it was Uma. If he's going about openly like that he couldn't be up to
anything serious.
He
could be too easily watched. Still, it looks as if Uma is out here, if he has a
friend who spots you
and
asks you leading questions about someone called Bill. Thanks for keeping my
surname secret!'
'Any
other news?' asked Mrs. Cunningham. 'What else did you do?'
'Oh
the snakes!' said Dinah, remembering. 'You tell about them, Philip.'
Philip
related the whole story, right down to where Kiki had yelled for the police and
whistled.
Bill
frowned.
'Now
this kind of thing won't do, you know,' he said. 'You might have got yourselves
into
serious
trouble. You must never go wandering about native quarters again.'
'Yes,
but Bill we couldn't let that fellow go on hitting Oola without doing
something about it,
surely?'
said Jack.
'You
two boys could have gone to stop the man, and have sent the girls away for help
they
would
have been quite safe then,' said Bill. 'Even if your feelings run away with
you, you have
ALWAYS
got to think of your sisters first. If you want to jump into a brawl, do it
when you're
alone.
Understand?'
'Yes,
sir,' said both boys, rather red in the face. 'Sorry, Bill!'
'Sorry,
Bill,' echoed Kiki. 'Sorry, sorry, Bill.'
Everyone
laughed, and Bill changed the subject. 'That's an extraordinary place,' he
said,
nodding
his head towards Cinι-Town. 'Scores of all kinds of buildings put up just for
six months!
Did
you see the fair they've got there?'
'No,'
said the children, surprised. 'We missed that.'
'Oh
yes hoopla stalls, gambling games, dancing girls, shooting acts and goodness
knows
what,'
said Bill. 'I've no doubt your snake-charmer came from there. Whether he will
venture back
again
after Kiki's alarming call for the police I very much doubt. They've even got a
fire-eater
there.'
'A
fire-eater!' said Philip. 'I'd like to see him do his act. Take us, Bill!'
'No,
I think not,' said Bill. 'I'd better be getting on to Ala-ou-iya. That's where
I really hope to
get
news of Uma. You'll have to hope to see a fire-eater another time. By the way,
did you see the
fellow
climbing a ladder of knives? We saw him just as we came back.'
'Yes,
we saw him too,' said Jack. 'I do wish we had more time to spend at Cinι-Town
it's
ugly
and queer, but it's quite fascinating!'
Bill
got up, filling his pipe. He called to Tala. 'We've finished, Tala. Start for
Ala-ou-iya in an
hour's
time, please. We should be there about six o'clock. We'll spend the night
there, off-shore, of
course.'
'Good,
Master!' called back Tala, and came to collect the trays. The children settled
down under
an
awning to read. Bill had given them some books about the countryside nearby,
telling them that
it
was extremely interesting, and that civilisations thousands of years old had
lived in the
countryside
they passed on their way down the river.
It
was a pleasant trip on the water that afternoon. Cinι-Town was soon left behind
as the launch
glided
slowly and smoothly along. Tala called to them just before six o'clock.
'We
come to Ala-ou-iya!' he chanted, making the name sing on his tongue. 'You know
old
town,
Master? It called Ala-ou-iya, Gateway of Kings!'
Chapter
10
THAT
NIGHT
TALA
took the launch deftly to a mooring-post by a small wooden jetty. One or two
fishing-boats
were
there already. Trees came right down to the water, but beyond them the children
could see the
outlines
of native houses, low and whitewashed. Smoke rose on the evening air, rising
straight up,
for
there was no breeze away from the river.
'What
did Tala mean that Ala-ou-iya is the Gateway of Kings?' asked Dinah. 'It says
that too
in
the books you gave us to read, Bill but it doesn't explain it.'
'I
don't expect it means anything much,' said Bill. 'Unless it is a name handed
down from old
times,
when much of this country was the site of civilisations thousands of years
old.'
'As
old as Ur, the town in the Bible?' asked Lucy-Ann.
'Yes
as old as Ur and probably much older!' said Bill, with a laugh. 'There must
have
been
great palaces and temples here in this country even before the Great Flood,
when Noah sailed
off
in his Ark.'
'Oh!
"The Gateway of Kings" might really have meant something then,' said
Dinah. 'There
might
have been a golden gateway leading to a palace or to a temple. I wish this
book explained
more.
Bill, it's strange, isn't it, to think that perhaps seven or eight thousand
years ago, if we had
sailed
down this river, we might have passed the most wonderful buildings on the way!
All
towering
high and glittering in the sun!'
'We
might have seen the Tower of Babylon, that reached to the sky,' said Lucy-Ann.
'Should
we,
Bill?'
'Not
from this river. Babylon is miles away,' said Bill. 'Look here comes nightfall
and out
come
the stars!'
'And
we can see the gleam of the fires now, outside the huts, through the trees,'
said Dinah. 'I
love
the evenings here. That little group of native houses looks most picturesque
now but I know
if
we went and sat near them they would smell horrid. It's a pity.'
'Spitty!'
said Kiki, at once. 'Spitty, spitty, spitty.'
'I
didn't say that, Kiki,' said Dinah. 'I said "It's a pity." Don't be
rude!'
'Spitty,'
said Kiki, working herself up in a crescendo. 'Spitty, spitty, SPITTY . . .'
'Be
quiet,' said Jack, and tapped her on the head.
'Spitty!'
repeated Kiki at once, and went off into a shriek of laughter. Tala burst into
laughter
too,
and his huge guffaw made them all jump. He thought Kiki was the funniest thing
he had ever
met,
and was always bringing her titbits. He brought her one now a piece of
pineapple out of a
tin.
She took it in one foot, and shook the juice from it.
'Don't!'
said Dinah. 'I don't like pineapple juice down my neck, Kiki. Do be good.'
'Good,
good, goody good,' said Kiki and nibbled daintily at the pineapple. 'Good boy,
goodbye,
good
morning, good afternoon, good . . .'
Tala
roared again, and Bill motioned him away. He would have stood all evening
watching Kiki
if
he had been allowed to.
'Are
you going ashore tomorrow or tonight, Bill?' asked Mrs. Cunningham.
'Tonight,
I think,' said Bill. 'The man I want to talk to may be out all day and anyway
I'd
rather
talk to him at night, with no one about.'
Bill
went off about nine o'clock, slipping like a shadow through the trees. He had
been told how
to
find the man he wanted, and any native would direct him to the house, which was
built alongside
a
big store.
'I
think I'll turn in,' said Mrs. Cunningham, after a while. 'I don't know why
this air makes me
feel
so sleepy, but it does. You turn in too, children and remember your
mosquito-nets!'
Dinah
was already yawning. She and Lucy put up their net not far from Mrs.
Cunningham,
arranging
it over their mattress on the deck. The boys were not sleepy and hung over the
side of the
launch,
talking in whispers. Tala could be heard snoring at the other end of the boat.
'Wonder
how Bill's getting on,' said Jack, in a low tone. 'Shall we wait up for him?'
'No.
Better not. He may be pretty late,' said Philip. 'Let's turn in now. It must be
about half-past
ten.
Where's our net? Oh, you've got it. Good. Come on then.'
They
lay down on their mattress, glad to feel cool after the heat of the day. It was
very peaceful
lying
there, hearing the small lappings of the river, and a night-bird calling out
suddenly, or a fish
jumping
in the darkness.
Jack
went drifting off to sleep, and began to dream of enormous palaces and golden
gates, and
vast
store-houses of treasure. Philip tossed and turned, listening for Bill.
Ah!
There he was! Philip heard a noise as if someone were creeping on to the
launch, trying to
keep
as quiet as possible. He listened for Bill to strike a match and smoke a last
cigarette as he
always
did. But no sound came. Bill must have decided to turn in at once.
Another
small sound made him sit up suddenly. Was that Bill? Somehow it didn't sound
like
him.
Bill was big and heavy, and no matter how quiet he tried to be, he always made
some noise.
Surely
he would have made more noise than this? If it wasn't Bill then who was it?
Philip
rolled quietly off his mattress and pushed aside the mosquito-net. He sat on
the bare floor
of
the deck and listened again. Yes someone was creeping about! Someone in bare
feet.
It
couldn't be Tala. He had bare feet but Philip could quite well hear his
snores at the other
end
of the boat. Was it was it that man who had asked them questions about Bill,
come to snoop
about?
Or could it possibly be the snake-charmer, come for a revenge of some sort? No
that was
impossible,
surely!
Philip
listened once more. A small sound came to him again, this time down in the
cabin of the
launch.
He crept silently over the deck, only the stars showing him the way.
He
came to the top of the hatchway steps that led down to the cabin, and listened
again. Yes,
someone
was down there and it sounded as if the someone was helping himself to food.
And
drink
too! There was a noise exactly like someone drinking!
Philip
thought it was probably some native from the group of huts beyond the trees.
What should
he
do? Wake Tala? That might be a bit of a job, and Tala would probably wake up in
a fright and
yell,
which might give the intruder time to get away!
Then
a bright thought came to Philip. Of course he could close the hatchway and
catch the
thief
that way! So he tried to shut it down, but it was tightly fastened back, and he
couldn't move it.
He
decided to creep back to Jack and wake him. Together they would be a match for
any native.
He
crept back very quietly, stopping every now and again to listen for any other
sounds from the
intruder.
He half thought he heard one behind him and listened again. No. Nothing.
On
he went, and rounded the corner that led to his mattress, coming out of the
shadow into the
starlight.
And
then he saw a black shadow standing in front of him! A shadow that seemed to
look at him
and
recognise him. It flung itself on him, and held him tightly, while he struggled
to shake it off.
'Lord!'
said the shadow. 'Lord, Oola follow you. Oola here, lord. Oola here!'
The
sound of Oola's voice woke everyone up everyone, that is, except the snoring
Tala. Mrs.
Cunningham
sat up at once. Jack leapt off his mattress and found himself entangled in his
mosquito-net.
The girls sat up with hearts thumping loudly. What was happening?
Jack
switched on a torch, and Dinah felt about for hers. Mrs. Cunningham threw aside
her net,
and
flashed her own torch in the direction of the noise. It lighted up a queer
sight!
Philip
was standing on the deck, and little Oola was kneeling in front of him, his
arms clasping
Philip's
knees so tightly that the boy couldn't move!
'Let
go!' said Philip. 'You're waking everyone up. What on earth have you come here
for?'
'Oola
yours, lord,' said the small voice. 'Oola belong you. Not send Oola away.'
'Philip!
What is all this?' called Mrs. Cunningham. 'Where's Bill? Isn't he back yet?'
'No,
Mother!' said Philip. 'This is the kid we rescued from that snake-charmer we told
you
about
the one who was beating him. He's followed us all the way here!'
'Oola
follow boat, all way, all way, Oola run,' said Oola.
'Good
gracious! Fancy running all the way down the banks of the river!' said Jack.
'Poor little
creature!
He seems determined to be your slave, Philip. Oola, are you hungry?'
'Oola
eat down there,' said the little boy, pointing towards the hatchway. 'Oola no
food two,
three
days.'
Mrs.
Cunningham examined him by the light of her torch, and exclaimed in horror.
'Why, he's
absolutely
covered in bruises and weals and he's as thin as a rake. Poor little thing!
Has he
really
run all the way after the boat to find you, Philip?'
'Seems
so,' said Philip, finding his heart suddenly full of pity and affection for this
strange little
creature.
He couldn't bear to think of him clambering through the bushes by the riverside
all day
long,
trying to follow the boat hungry, thirsty, tired and sore. All because Philip
had rescued him
from
his hateful uncle! Perhaps nobody had ever been kind to him before.
Suddenly
a voice came from the bank. 'Hallo! Are you all still up? I hope you didn't
wait for
me.'
It
was Bill. He leapt on to the launch, saw Oola kneeling on the deck, and stopped
in
amazement.
'Whatever's
all this? What's happening?' he demanded. 'Who's this come to visit us in the
middle
of the night?'
Chapter
11
OOLA
AND HIS PRESENT
OOLA
crouched down at the sound of Bill's loud voice. Philip felt him trembling
against his knees.
He
pulled him up. 'It's all right,' he said. 'Don't be frightened. Bill, this is
that kid we rescued this
morning
from the snake-charmer. He's followed us all the way here, running along the
banks.'
Bill
stared in astonishment. 'But he can't do this!' he said. 'Climbing on board
someone
else's
boat in the middle of the night! Has he stolen anything? These small kids are
taught to steal
as
soon as they can walk.'
'He
took some food from the cabin. He says he hasn't had any for two or three
days,' said Lucy-
Ann.
'Bill, he seems to think he wants to be Philip's slave. Whatever are we to do?'
'He'll
have to go,' said Bill. 'It's just a trick to get on the boat. No doubt his
snake-charmer
uncle
has put him up to this, and is waiting for his share of the goods! Clear off,
now, boy! Quick!'
Oola
was so scared that he could hardly walk. He left Philip and stumbled over the
deck towards
the
jetty. As he passed Mrs. Cunningham, she put out her hand to the stumbling boy,
and caught
him,
so that he came to a standstill. She turned him round gently so that he stood
in the light of her
torch,
with his back towards Bill.
'Bill
look!' she said. And Bill looked, and saw the poor thin little body, with the
bruises all
over
it. He gave an exclamation.
'Good
heavens! Who did that? Poor little creature, he looks half-starved. Come here,
Oola.'
Oola
came, half reassured by the kinder tone in Bill's voice. Bill shone his torch
on him, and the
boy
blinked. 'Why did you come, Oola?' asked Bill, still stern. 'Tell me the truth
and nothing will
harm
you.'
'I
come find him,' said Oola, and pointed to Philip. 'I make him my lord. Oola his
servant. Oola
bring
present for lord.'
Bill
looked him over. Except for the dirty cloth round his waist, Oola had nothing
to bring!
'You
bring no present,' said Bill. 'Why do you lie, Oola?'
'Oola
spik truth,' said the boy. 'My lord, he say he like snake. Very much like
snake. So Oola
bring
one. Bargua snake!'
And,
to everyone's horror, Oola slid his hand into his waist-cloth and brought out a
slim,
wriggling
green snake, spotted with bright red and yellow!
'Its
mouth isn't sewn up!' yelled Jack. 'Look out, everybody! Look out, Oola, you
fathead! It's a
poisonous
snake. Its bite will kill you!'
Dinah
shot to the hatchway, ran down and locked herself into a cupboard, trembling
all over. A
bargua!
One of the most poisonous snakes there were! How COULD Oola wear it round him
like a
belt!
She felt quite sick.
Oola
still held the snake, which writhed about in his hand, opening its mouth and
showing its
forked
tongue.
'Throw
it overboard, Oola!' shouted Bill. 'For goodness' sake, throw it overboard! Are
you
mad?'
'Oola
bring present for lord,' said Oola, obstinately. He lifted the snake towards
Philip, who
retreated
at once. He liked snakes. He was not afraid of them. But to take hold of a
poisonous one
which
was already frightened and 'full of anger would be a crazy thing to do!
'THROW
IT OVERBOARD!' yelled Bill, terribly afraid that somebody would get bitten. 'You
silly
little idiot!'
'Snake
not bite,' said Oola. 'All poison gone. See!'
To
everyone's horror he forced open the snake's mouth. Philip bent down and looked
inside,
suddenly
feeling that the snake might not be dangerous after all. He looked for the
poison-gland
and
the duct that led down to the hollow tooth out of which poison pours when a
snake bites.
He
looked up again in the midst of a dead silence. 'The snake's not poisonous,' he
said, and he
calmly
took it from Oola. 'Someone has cut the ducts that take the poison from the
poison-glands to
the
teeth. It's a horrible trick, because it usually means that the snake dies in
three or four weeks'
time.
Oola who did this?'
'Old
woman,' said Oola. 'Oola tell her my lord wants bargua snake, and she give Oola
this one.
Safe
snake, lord, not like snake-mouth sewn up. Lord like this one?'
Philip
was now talking to the snake in his special 'animal' voice, and it was
listening, lying quite
still
in his hands.
'Poor
thing!' said Philip. 'All because of me you have been injured! You have no
poison in you
now,
but you will die because of that. You shall live with me and be happy till
then. Oola, you must
never
have such a thing done to snakes again! It's cruel!'
'Yes,
lord,' said Oola, humbly. He looked round fearfully at Bill. 'Oola stay?' he
enquired.
'Oola
lord's man. Belong him,' and he pointed at Philip.
'All
right you can stay for the night anyhow,' said Bill, feeling quite exhausted
with all this.
'Come
with me. I'll wake Tala and you can sleep with him.'
'Go,
Oola,' said Philip, seeing the boy hesitate, and Oola went.
'I
wanted to put some ointment on his back,' said Mrs. Cunningham. 'Poor little
mite! Oh,
Philip
have we got to have that snake living with us now?'
'I'll
keep it in my pocket,' said Philip. 'I won't let it out unless I'm alone, or
with Jack. It's quite
harmless,
Mother. Mother, can we let Oola stay with us? He can help Tala, and I'll see
that he's not
a
nuisance. I can't imagine why he has attached himself to me.'
'Well,
you rescued him from that awful uncle of his, didn't you!' said Lucy-Ann.
'We'll
see what Bill says,' said Mrs. Cunningham. 'He'll do what he can for him, I
know.
Where's
Dinah?'
'Probably
locked in the broom cupboard!' said Jack. 'I'll go and see.'
Dinah
was still in the cupboard, feeling rather ashamed of herself now, but not
daring to come
out
till someone fetched her. She was most relieved to see Jack.
Jack
decided not to tell her yet that Philip had the snake. She might kick up a
terrible fuss and
have
a Violent quarrel with Philip. Better have all that in the morning, not now,
when everyone was
tired
and upset.
'Come
on out, Di,' he said, opening the door. 'What an ass you are! The snake wasn't
even
poisonous!
The poor thing has had its poison-ducts cut, so no poison can run down to the
hollow
fangs.
We had all that fright for nothing.'
'I
don't believe it,' said Dinah. 'It's still poisonous. You're just making that
up to get me out!'
'No.
It's true, Dinah!' said Jack. 'Do come out. Everyone wants to go to bed now.
Oola has gone
to
sleep with Tala. He's absolutely determined to be Philip's slave, poor little
monkey!'
Dinah
imagined that the snake had also gone with Oola, and she consented to come up
on deck
again.
Soon everyone had settled under their mosquito-nets and were soon asleep. What
an
extraordinary
evening!
In
about half an hour, when Tala was snoring loudly again, a small figure crept
over the launch
to
where the boys slept. It was Oola. He had come to be near his 'lord'! He curled
himself up on the
bare
deck at Philip's feet, and closed his eyes, perfectly happy and at peace. He
was with his 'lord'.
He
was guarding him! No one could come near Philip without waking Oola.
In
the morning Tala, as usual, awoke first. He remembered the episodes of the
night and looked
for
Oola. The boy was gone. He nodded his head in satisfaction. Had he not told
Master that boys
like
that were no good? But Master had said, 'He sleeps with you, he will stay here.'
And now the
boy
was gone, and Tala was right.
He
prepared breakfast, planning what to say to Bill. 'Master, Tala right. Tala
spoke true. Boy
gone.'
Tala
was therefore extremely surprised and disappointed to see Oola curled up at
Philip's feet.
He
gave him a push with his foot and Oola was up on his feet at once, ready to
defend Philip.
'You
go back there,' said Tala, fiercely, in his own language, but under his breath
so as not to
wake
anyone. He nodded towards his own quarters. Oola shook his head and sat down by
Philip
again.
Tala raised his hand as if to strike him and Oola slid away deftly, running to
hide.
But
as soon as Tala went away Oola came back to Philip again, and sat looking down
at the
sleeping
boy with so much pride and admiration in his face that Philip would have been
quite
embarrassed
to see it.
The
snake was safely in a little basket beside him. Oola scratched his finger
against the basket
and
whistled very softly. The snake hissed and tried to get out.
'You
are my lord's snake,' Oola told it in his own language. 'You belong him, Oola
belong
him!'
What
a to-do at breakfast when Dinah realised that the snake now belonged to Philip,
and he was
going
to keep it. She gave such a shriek when its head peeped out of his pocket that
everyone
jumped.
'Philip! I won't have you keep that snake. You know how I hate snakes. Bill,
tell him he
mustn't.
Bill, I do so hate them. I shan't stay a minute longer on this boat if you say
he can keep it.
I'll
go back to the hotel!'
'All
right, Dinah,' said Bill, mildly. 'There's no need to go up in smoke. I shan't
stop you from
going
back to the hotel if you are so distressed. I'll get Tala to run you back with
a note to the hotel
manager.
You should be quite all right there, especially as he has two nice old English
ladies
coming
to stay at his hotel this week to do some painting. They'll look after you.'
Dinah
couldn't believe her ears. What! Bill would actually let her go back all
alone
instead
of ordering Philip not to keep the snake?
'I'll
call Tala now, shall I?' said Bill.
Dinah
went brilliant red, and looked at him with tears in her eyes. 'No,' she said.
'I'd I'd
rather
put up with the snake than leave you all. You know that. You win, Bill.'
'Good
girl, Dinah,' said Bill with a sudden smile. 'Now what are our plans for
today? And
WHAT
are we going to do with Oola?'
Chapter
12
GOOD
NEWS FOR OOLA
OOLA
had been sent to have breakfast with Tala. Tala was very offhand with him, and
kept him
strictly
in his place. He liked children, but this boy had no business here, on his
boat, thought Tala.
Oola
did his best to please Tala. He listened to all that he had to say, only spoke
when he was
spoken
to, and put himself at the man's beck and call, running here and there at top
speed for him.
When
Tala was tinkering with the engine, Oola crept away to see Philip. He sat down
in a corner
and
feasted his eyes on the boy, noting the tuft of hair in front, just like
Dinah's, the loud, merry
laugh,
and the way he waited on his mother.
Oola
nodded in satisfaction. This was his 'lord'; never before had he met anyone to
whom he
wanted
to give such utter loyalty or love. He had never known his mother, who had died
when he
was
born, and he had hated his father, who was as cruel as Bula, his uncle. When
his father had
gone
away he had given the boy to Bula, to be of use to him in his snake-charming.
And
then had begun a miserable life for Oola, which had become steadily worse. But
now ah,
now
he had chosen a master, his 'lord' Philip, the boy who sat over yonder,
listening to big Master
Bill.
Oola patted his full stomach contentedly, and thought about the present he had
given to his
'lord.'
Philip had the snake in his pocket or somewhere about him yes, under his
shirt. Oola
could
see the boy put his hand there at times as if he were caressing something.
He
heard his name being spoken by Bill, who was just then saying, 'And WHAT are we
going
to
do with Oola?'
Oola's
heart nearly stopped beating. To do with him? What did Big Master Bill mean?
Would
they
throw him overboard or give him to the police? He bent forward anxiously to
listen and
just
at that moment a strong brown hand came down, and yanked him upright by the
neck.
It
was Tala! 'What are you doing here?' he said, in his own language. 'Sitting
here half asleep in
the
morning! You come and help me, you lazy little son of a tortoise!'
Oola
gazed at him fiercely, but did not dare to disobey. The words Bill had said
rang in his ears
still.
'What are we to do with Oola?'
Bill
and the others were discussing everything. Bill was all for putting the boy
ashore, giving
him
some money, and letting him go off to some relative. How could they bother with
a boy like
that
on the boat?
Mrs.
Cunningham wanted him to have a chance. 'At least let him stay till we've fed
him up a bit
and
put some flesh on him,' she said. 'He's such a miserable little specimen. And
when he looks up
at
me with those big frightened eyes as if all he expects is a blow, I just can't
bear it.'
'He'd
be an awful nuisance to Philip,' said Bill. 'I know what it is when one of the
natives takes
a
fancy to anyone. Philip would find him underfoot all the time!'
'I
could deal with him,' said Philip, quietly. 'I wouldn't mind.'
'What
do you others think?' asked Mrs. Cunningham, looking round.
'We'd
like him,' said Lucy-Ann, and everyone nodded. 'We'll keep him in his place
and so
will
Tala! Once Tala has got used to him he'll like him, I know he will. Don't send
him away, Bill.'
Dinah
was sitting as far away from Philip as she could, trying not to think of the
snake he had
somewhere
about his person. She still felt very upset but she was doing her best to be
sensible. Bill
felt
pleased with her. He turned to her.
'You
agree too, Dinah?'
She
nodded. 'Yes. I wish he was cleaner and not so smelly, but I like him.'
'Oh,
well we can soon get rid of the dirt and the smell,' said Bill. 'I'll give
him a trial, and
tell
Tala to see that Oola washes himself, and has a clean bit of cloth to wind
round his middle. I'll
call
Oola. OOLA! OOLA!'
Oola
dropped the piece of wire he had been holding while Tala tinkered with the
engine and ran
forward
immediately, his heart thumping. Was he to be turned away?
He
stood before Bill, eyes downcast. 'Oola,' said Bill, 'we are going to give you
a chance and let
you
stay with us while we are on this ship. You will do everything that Tala tells
you. I am Big
Master,
he is Little Master. Understand?'
'Big
Master kind, Big Master good!' said Oola, his eyes shining. 'Oola glad. Oola be
good
worker!'
He
looked at Philip, his face one big smile. 'I be with my lord!' he said to him.
'Oola lord's
servant!
Oola work for him!'
Bill
called Tala. 'Tala! Come here a minute!' Tala came so quickly that it was quite
obvious he
had
been listening. He bowed and stood waiting, his face rather sulky.
'Tala
Oola is to stay with us while we are on the ship. See that he washes himself
and
becomes
clean. See that he does not steal. Give him work to do. Tell me if he is good
or bad.'
Tala
bowed again but said nothing. He sent a quick look at Oola, who was now
standing as close
to
Philip as possible, his head bowed, listening.
'That's
all, Tala,' said Bill. 'Today we go on down the river, and I will tell you
where to stop.'
'Very
good, Master,' said Tala, and went off, still looking rather grim. He heard his
name called
again.
'Tala!
Tala, Tala, Tala!' He went running back at once. But this time the caller was
Kiki, who
felt
that she could not keep silent any longer!
'Tala!
Wipe your feet! One, two, four, seven, three, quick march! PHEEEEEEEEEEE!'
The
police-whistle ending startled everybody, especially Oola, who almost threw
himself
overboard
in his fright. Tala forgot his sulks and burst into one of his enormous
guffaws, staggering
about
the deck in delight at the parrot's ridiculous talk.
'Stop
that whistling, Kiki,' ordered Mrs. Cunningham. 'It goes right through my head.
What a
din!'
'Din-din-din-dinner!'
chanted Kiki, enjoying the interest she had created. 'Din-din-din . . .'
But
a sharp tap on her beak from Jack silenced her, and she flew to a corner and
muttered rude
things
all to herself.
'Tala,
take Oola with you and deal with him,' said Bill. 'See that he gets clean from
top to toe
first
of all. He smells.'
This
was news to Tala. He hadn't even realized that Oola had an unpleasant smell.
But he
sniffed
in his direction at once and pretended that he could smell something horrid. He
wrinkled up
his
nose in disdain.
'Bad,'
he said, scornfully. 'Bad smell. Pooh!'
'Pooh!'
repeated Kiki in delight, waddling out of her corner. 'Pooh! Boo! Bad smell,
pooh!'
Tala
roared, grabbed Oola by the hand, and went off with him, Oola protesting all
the way.
When
they were safely out of hearing, Jack turned to Bill.
'Did
anything interesting happen last night?' he asked. 'At Ala-ou-iya, I mean. You
were jolly
late
back, weren't you?'
'Yes.
I don't know that I found out much,' said Bill. 'The man I had to contact
didn't come
home
to his house till fairly late, and I had to wait for him. He knows Raya Uma, of
course, and he
thinks
he is up to something, because he keeps disappearing, but nobody knows where he
goes.'
'What
is Uma supposed to be doing when he isn't disappearing?' asked Mrs. Cunningham.
'Well,
apparently he is interested in Cinι-Town,' said Bill. 'He goes there quite a
lot has a
bedroom
in the big hotel they've run up there. He says he was an actor himself once,
and is
extremely
interested in films that may be just a tale, of course, to cover other
activities.'
'Yes
but I can quite well believe that he was once an actor,' said Mrs.
Cunningham. 'Those
photographs
you have of him they might all be of different men! I am sure he could put on
different
voices and ways with each change of costume!'
'You're
right,' said Bill. 'Well, granted that he was once an actor, and is interested
in films,
where
does he disappear to for a week or ten days every now and again? He's up to
mischief of
some
kind, I'm sure!'
There
was a pause. 'What sort of mischief, Bill?' said Jack.
'Well
here is a list of some of his past activities,' said Bill, taking out a
notebook. 'Gun-
running
on a big scale that means supplying guns illegally to those who will pay a
big price for
them.
Spying he's clever at that, but no Government will use him now, because they
can't trust
him
he's quite likely to go over to the other side if they offer him a bit more.'
'What
a charming fellow!' said Jack, stroking Kiki, who was now on his knee.
'And
smuggling,' said Bill. 'That's another thing he is very successful at. He did
it on such a big
scale
once that he almost made himself a millionaire then someone gave him away,
and in spite
of
big bribes he offered to others to take the blame, he had to go to prison. Well
those are just a
few
things he has done. Now it's said that he has very little money indeed, not
many friends, and is
determined
to pull off something big.'
'And
you think that that something big might be hatched out here?' said Philip. 'How
can you
stop
him?'
'It
isn't my job to stop him only to report back to headquarters,' said Bill. 'If
it's nothing that
will
harm our own country or its trade, they won't do anything, but if he's stirring
up trouble
somewhere
arming some tribe or other that will start a small war and plunge us all into
danger
once
more, then we shall have something to say.'
'And
you found out nothing much last night?' said Mrs. Cunningham. 'Well, maybe
you'll track
down
something at the next place what was its name?'
'A
place called Ullabaid,' said Bill. 'The man. I saw yesterday says that Uma has
a small motor-
boat
himself, and uses this river quite a bit so it's clear that the places he
goes to are somewhere
on
or near the river. Well we'd better start. Go and see if Tala is ready, Jack.
Tell him we'll go
slowly
it's a lovely day, and we're in no hurry!'
Jack
hurried off to the other end of the boat.
'Can
you start again now, Tala?' he called. 'You can? Good! Off we go, then!'
Chapter
13
AFTER
TEA
IT
was a lovely trip that day. The sun as usual shone all day long, and Tala kept
near to the left
bank
on which tall trees grew, in order to have a little shade when possible. They
passed many
villages
on the banks, and whenever the natives saw the boat gliding along, out they
came and
shouted
and waved.
Oola
was kept busy by Tala, and Philip saw little of him till the afternoon rest.
The sun was so
hot
then that the boat was run in under the shade of trees, and moored. Everyone
puffed and blew,
and
Bill ordered a general rest.
Then
it was that Oola crept forward to where the boys lay in a shady corner, and
curled up not
far
off, his eyes on Philip.
Philip
saw him and grinned at him, and Oola was happy at once. 'Lord,' he whispered,
'Oola is
here
to guard you. Sleep in peace!'
And,
although everyone else on board, including Tala, slept soundly, Oola was awake,
his eyes
darting
about at any sound, but always coming back to rest adoringly on Philip's
flushed face. Once
he
saw the wicked-looking head of the bargua snake peeping out of the boy's shirt,
and smiled
proudly.
Ah his lord had his present safely. He even kept it close to his heart.
Tea
was a very pleasant meal. Everyone felt refreshed after their sleep, and was
ready for
biscuits
and something to drink. Mrs. Cunningham was the only one who wanted a cup of
tea
the
others all demanded lime juice.
Oola
had disappeared as soon as he heard Tala calling for him in a fierce whisper.
Tala was
actually
quite pleased with the small boy but he was jealous of the way he went to sit
near the
children
when he had a chance. Tala would not have dared to do that.
Oola
had become extremely interested in the launch's motor. Tala was already amazed
at the
way
the boy grasped all the details. 'Oola drive boat!' said the boy, after tea.
'Oola know how!'
'Oh
no you don't,' said Tala, at once. 'No monkey tricks from you, Oola, or I go
straight to Big
Master
and say "Throw this boy overboard, he no good, Master!" You hear,
Oola?'
'I
hear, Little Master,' said Oola at once, terrified that Tala might complain of
him. 'Oola clean
up
oil for you? Oola polish?'
Yes
Oola was welcome to do any of the dirty work, certainly. The only thing that
Tala
regretted
about that was that the boy would become filthy dirty again and Tala had
taken great
pride
in getting him spotlessly clean that morning. He had rubbed far too hard, and
the boy had
cried
out when his bruises had been roughly scrubbed.
'Ah
no smell, now, no pooh!' said Tala, when he had finished. 'You had much pooh,
Oola,
very
very bad.'
Oola
certainly looked better now clean, his too-long black hair smoothed back, and
a new,
brilliant
blue cloth round his middle, of which he was extremely proud.
They
came to Ullabaid, a pleasant-looking village set a little back from the bank of
the river.
There
was quite a fleet of small boats tied to the fairly big jetty.
'I'm
going ashore,' said Bill. 'Like to come with me? We'll leave your mother in
peace, I think.
We're
a noisy lot, you know!'
The
children leapt to the jetty with Bill and ran ashore, leaving Tala, Oola and
Mrs. Cunningham
behind.
Tala was annoyed, because he would have liked to stretch his legs ashore too,
and because
he
could not go he would not let Oola go, either, and set him a long job to do.
Oola scowled,
determined
to slip off as soon as Tala's back was turned or, as was most likely, the man
fell
asleep.
He had the native's gift of being able to sleep at any moment, and in any
place, no matter
how
uncomfortable.
The
village of Ullabaid was quite a big one. There were the usual low, whitewashed
houses,
with
sleeping-roofs, and the usual hearths outside for cooking. There were also the
crowds of
almost-naked,
brown-skinned children, first half afraid and shy, then bold and curious.
Bill
went to the biggest house in the place, which turned out to be a school. The
teacher was a
native,
with a fine face, intelligent and kind. He seemed surprised to see Bill, but
when Bill showed
him
a card, and spoke a few words in a low tone, he asked him in at once.
The
four were left to wander round. Kiki was quite silent for once in a way,
staring round at the
big-eyed
children of the village.
A
boy about twelve came up with a packet of post-cards in his hands. He showed
one to Jack,
and
pointed away in the distance, nodding his head vigorously, and saying something
over and over
again.
The
four children crowded round to look at the card. It was a picture of a ruin
an old old
temple
which had apparently been discovered and excavated some years before when a
famous
archaeologist
had brought along a big digging-party.
'The
Temple of the Goddess Hannar,' read Philip. 'Looks interesting. Shall we go and
see it
while
Bill is busy? Here, boy how far is it? How far?'
The
boy could not speak any English, but he guessed what Philip was saying, and
gestured that
he
would take them.
They
followed the boy between the trees and then through some cultivated fields, and
were
themselves
followed by a rabble of excited children, who could see that a tip would soon
be
forthcoming.
And
behind the rabble came a small figure, keeping out of sight Oola! He had waited
till Tala
had
fallen asleep, and had left the launch immediately. He had asked where his
friends had gone,
and
had been told and now he was keeping them in sight, not daring to join them.
The
rabble of children began to push close to the four friends, and Jack looked
round
impatiently.
'Keep back!' he said. 'Do you hear me? keep back!'
But
after a moment or two the little crowd was on their heels again and this time
Kiki took a
hand.
'Back!'
she ordered. 'Back, back, quack, quack, BACK!' And then she gave her famous
imitation
of an aeroplane about to crash, which alarmed the little crowd behind so much
that they at
once
kept a very long distance away.
Philip
laughed. 'Good old Kiki!' he said. 'I don't know what we'd do without you!'
They
came to the temple at last. It was rather disappointing much more of a ruin
than the
picture
appeared to show. 'It's like one of those buildings in Cinι-Town,' said
Lucy-Ann. 'All front
but
not much at the back!'
'Look
here,' said Philip, suddenly. 'See these funny little insects, basking in the
sun I think
my
snake would like those. He's probably hungry by now.'
And,
to Dinah's horror, Philip slid the bargua snake from beneath his shirt, and let
him loose on
the
ground, not far from the insects.
Dinah
screamed, of course, and ran back. Her scream startled the native children
and when
they
saw the snake, which they all knew to be deadly poisonous, they too screamed in
terror and
fled.
'Bargua!'
they shouted. 'Bargua!' The big ones dragged along the little ones, and even
the big
boy
who was the guide fled too, after one look at the gliding snake.
'Good
gracious!' said Philip, quite as startled as the native children. 'They've all
gone just
because
I took my snake out for a meal. What a to-do!'
'I
don't blame them,' said Dinah, from a distance. 'We know the snake's safe but
they don't!
Honestly,
Philip, that was a mad thing to do. Anyway, you'll lose the snake now, thank
goodness!
It
won't come back to you now you've let it loose.'
'Well,
if it doesn't, it can go,' said Philip. 'But I bet it'll come back!'
The
snake snapped at the insects, and had a very good meal. It also glided into
some
undergrowth
and caught a small frog, which it swallowed whole. Then it came back to Philip!
The
others
watched in amazement as it glided over to him, and, without any hesitation at
all, wriggled
up
his leg, made its way between two buttons of his shirt, and disappeared.
'Ugh!
It makes me feel sick,' said Dinah, watching in fascinated horror.
'Don't
watch then, silly,' said Philip. Then he looked round, alarmed.
'I
say I believe it's going to get dark pretty soon what's the time? Whew,
yes, we've let
the
time slip by without noticing it. We must get back to the launch at once. Come
on.'
But
after about ten minutes the children knew they had gone wrong. They stopped and
looked
round.
'We
didn't pass that tree struck by lightning before, did we?' said Jack,
doubtfully. 'Anyone
remember
it?'
Nobody
did. 'Better go back a bit,' said Philip, feeling anxious. 'Buck up. Darkness
may come
at
any moment and none of us has a torch.'
They
went back for a hundred yards or so, and then took another path. But this one
led them into
a
wood and they knew that was wrong. They went back again, all of them in rather
a panic.
'I'll
shout and see if those native children will come back,' said Jack. So he called
in a stentorian
voice:
'Hey, you kids! Come back! Come back, I say!'
'Come
back, I say!' echoed Kiki, and ended with a screech that could surely have been
heard
half
a mile away.
But
no little dark-skinned children came running up. Except for a bird that went on
and on
singing
without a stop, there was hardly a sound to be heard.
'What
are we to do?' said Jack, anxiously. 'There isn't even a house in sight. Gosh,
this is awful,
Philip!'
'What
I'm afraid of is that darkness will fall suddenly, as it always does here,'
said Philip.
And,
just as he said that, darkness did fall, like a black curtain! Now they were
truly lost, and
Lucy-Ann
caught hold of Jack's hand in fright.
'What
are we to do?' she said. 'What are we to do?'
Chapter
14
BACK
TO THE BOAT
THE
four children stood in the darkness, hoping to see the stars shine out bright
and clear. Then
they
might be able to see a little. But for once in a way it was a cloudy night, and
only when the
clouds
parted could a few stars be seen.
Their
eyes got used to the darkness in a little while, and they made a few steps
forward. Then
Jack
thought he caught sight of something moving cautiously a short distance away.
'Who's
there?' he called at once. 'Don't come any nearer. Who is it?'
The
shadow moved quickly forward, and knelt down at Philip's feet. He felt two
hands grasping
his
knees. It was Oola!
'Oola
here, lord,' said a voice. 'Oola follow, follow. Tala say no, not come, but
Oola come. Oola
guard
you, lord.'
Such
a wave of relief went over all four children that they could hardly speak!
'Oola!
Goodness gracious, you're the last person we expected,' said Philip, gladly. He
patted the
boy's
head as he knelt. 'Get up. We're VERY glad to see you. We're lost. Do you know
the way
back
to the launch?'
'Yes,
lord,' said Oola, delighted at the pat on his head. 'Oola take you now. Follow
Oola.'
'Have
you been behind us all the time, Oola?' asked Lucy-Ann, astonished.
'Yes,
Missy, all time Oola follow, follow,' said Oola, walking on ahead. 'Oola guard
his lord.'
Oola
seemed to have cat's eyes. He went forward without any hesitation, taking this
path and
that,
and at last they came to the village, which now had fires alight, and looked
rather mysterious.
The
native children came running up when they saw strangers walking through their
village
but
when they saw that it was the same children who had had the terrible snake,
they ran away in
fear,
crying out loudly, 'Bargua! Bargua!'
Philip
stopped. He had seen the big boy who had acted as guide. He was standing some
distance
away,
peering at them, lighted by the flames from a fire.
'Oola
see that boy over there?' said Philip, pointing. 'Go give him this money.'
'No!
Boy not good!' said Oola, indignantly.
'Oola,
obey!' said Philip in a commanding voice, and Oola at once took the money and
sped off
to
the boy. Judging by his angry voice, he was ticking the boy off well and truly
but he gave him
the
money all the same. The boy was delighted and ran into his house at once,
calling out
something
in an excited voice.
'After
all, the kid did take us all the way to the old temple,' said Philip, and the
others agreed.
'Whew!
What a stir the snake made! I never dreamed that those kids would be so
frightened.'
'We're
going to get into a frightful row with Bill when we get back to the launch,'
said Jack,
gloomily.
'He won't like us being out in the dark like this.'
'Let's
hope he won't be back,' said Dinah, who had no wish to make Bill annoyed again.
They
made their way quickly to the river, and went on board the launch. Mrs.
Cunningham was
sitting
reading down in the cabin, for it was unexpectedly cool that evening. She was
most relieved
to
see them.
'Oh
you had Oola with you that's all right then,' she said,'as she saw Oola's
face peering
down
the hatch with the others. 'Bill's not back yet. Are you hungry? Because if so,
tell Tala, and
we'll
have supper.'
'We're
always hungry,' said Jack. 'You never really need to ask us that, Aunt Allie.
But we'd
better
wait for Bill.'
Bill
came back ten minutes later. 'Had supper yet?' he asked. 'Good, tell Tala we'll
have it. I'm
famished.
Well, what did you four do?'
'Nothing
much just went to see an old temple, but there wasn't much to look at when we
got
there,'
said Jack.
'There
was a lot of digging round about this district some years ago,' said Bill.
'I've been
hearing
about it from that teacher you saw a very fine and intelligent fellow. Made
me wish I
could
do a little digging myself!'
'Did
you hear anything about Raya Uma?' asked Jack, very much relieved that Bill had
shown
so
little interest in their own doings that evening. He was determined to keep
Bill on some safe
subject
now.
'Yes.
The teacher knows him quite well, and likes him. Says he is a most interesting
man and
can
talk on any subject under the sun! Even archaeology, which is rather a learned subject
the
study
of old buildings and other remains. He appears to think that Uma is here to
study the old
temples
and so on that have already been excavated but he's not, of course. That's
just a cover
for
something else he's doing!'
Jack
suddenly sniffed hard. A most delicious smell was coming from Tala's quarters.
Fried fish!
'Yes,'
said Mrs. Cunningham with a laugh. 'Tala has been fishing and we're having
his catch
for
supper. Doesn't it smell good!'
'My
word, yes,' said Philip. 'We've been having so many cold meals that I didn't
even guess
that
Tala could cook. I bet Oola is pleased he'll enjoy a meal like that.'
'That
reminds me Tala was very angry because Oola slipped off this evening, after
you had
all
gone,' said his mother. 'He came to me in quite a rage. But as Oola had
apparently done all the
work
Tala had set him to do, I didn't take much notice. I suppose he went after you,
didn't he?'
'Yes,'
said Jack. 'He came to guard his lord! He's cracked about Philip. I simply
can't
understand
it!' He looked at Philip and grinned.
'I
can't understand it either,' said Dinah, at once. 'I mean I could understand
him having an
admiration
for Jack, because of Kiki but why Philip?'
The
conversation was cut short by Oola and Tala bringing trays. The big dish of
fried fish,
garnished
with some strange greenery, and surrounded by most succulent vegetables, was
hailed
with
enormous enthusiasm, and Tala grinned in pleasure as he saw the smiling faces
that greeted
him.
Oola
was a little subdued. He had been well scolded by Tala, who had threatened to
tell Bill how
he
had left his work and run off.
But
when Oola had related to Tala how the children had been lost in the darkness,
and how he,
Oola,
had rescued them and brought them safely back, Tala said no more. He did not
praise Oola,
for
secretly he was jealous of what the boy had done, but at least he ceased to
scold him.
Oola
was very much hoping that Tala would let him share in this delicious meal, and
so he was
most
attentive and obedient. Tala could not hold his anger for long, and had already
made up his
mind
to give the boy a big helping as soon as he could.
Everyone
set to and ate heartily, even Mrs. Cunningham, who usually had a very small
appetite.
'Tala
would make his fortune in a restaurant as a chef,' she remarked. 'What is this
sauce? I've
never
tasted anything so delicious in my life.'
'Better
not ask,' said Bill, mischievously. 'It might be a score or so of some peculiar
insects
mashed
up or . . .'
Dinah
gave a small scream, and spat out a mouthful of the sauce at once.
'Don't,
Dinah!' said Mrs. Cunningham. 'Do remember your manners. Bill, don't say things
like
that.
You've rather spoilt the sauce for me too.'
'Sorry,'
said Bill, contritely. 'It was just a bit of fun. I do agree that this sauce is
marvellous. Ah,
here's
Tala. Tala, this sauce is fine. What is it made of?'
Dinah
put her hands over her ears at once. She felt sure that it was mashed-up
insects, as Bill
had
said, or water-snails, or something equally horrible.
'Master,
it is milk and onion, and bark of tree called in our language Mollia,' said
Tala, pleased
at
the praise. 'Also some mashed-up mashed-up how you call it? er . . .'
'Insects,'
supplied Jack, helpfully.
Tala
looked hurt. 'Tala not use insects. Tala use yes it is mashed-up potato a
very very
little.'
Everyone
roared. It seemed so ordinary after what Bill had been suggesting. Tala smiled.
He
liked
to make people laugh, though he certainly had no idea what the present joke
was.
'Take
your hands from your ears, Dinah,' said Jack. 'It was only mashed-up POTATO
very
very
little!'
Dinah
took down her hands, very much relieved to be told that the sauce was so
harmless. The
dish
was soon completely empty, and everyone felt much better.
Oola
was sent with a dish of fresh fruit, bought by Tala at one of the villages that
day. It was
about
all that anyone could manage after the very rich fish.
When
the meal had been cleared away, Tala and Oola sat down to theirs. Oola was very
happy.
Here
he was, with the most marvellous meal in front of him, and the evening's
adventure to gloat
over.
He had guarded his lord, and brought him safely back to the boat!
He
began to tell Tala about it all over again, but Tala had no wish to hear such
an epic twice. He
told
Oola to take the dishes and scrape them over the side of the launch.
'Fish
eat pieces, fish grow fat, Tala catch fish, we eat again,' he explained to
Oola, who saw the
point
at once.
Oola
went to scrape the dishes, and suddenly caught sight of another boat gliding up
through the
darkness,
its prow set with a single light. He stared at it. Would it pass by without
hailing their own
boat?
It
slid in to the bank, and stopped by the jetty. Bill had heard the motor, and
was already looking
over
the side.
A
man jumped out of the motor-boat and walked to where the launch was tied. He
called up
loudly.
'Anyone
there?'
'Yes.
Who's that?' Bill shouted back.
'Someone
to see you!' came an answering shout. 'Can I come aboard?'
'What's
your name?' asked Bill.
'RAYA
UMA!' came the answer, and everyone on board sat up at once. Goodness Raya
Uma!
Chapter
15
MR.
RAYA UMA
BILL
was enormously surprised. He was so nonplussed that he didn't say a word.
'Hey
can I come on board or not?' said the voice impatiently. 'I heard there was
an English
family
on the river, and I thought I'd like a chat.'
Bill
recovered himself. 'Yes come on up,' he shouted back. 'You took me by surprise.
I
wasn't
expecting to hear an English voice here, I must say!'
'Shall
we go away, Bill?' said Jack, in a low voice. Bill shook his head.
'No.
Better stay with me. I don't know if he guesses who I am or not. Anyway, it's
better if he
sees
a whole family aboard. Here he is!'
Tala
had gone to light the man up to the launch. Now he was bringing him to where
Bill and the
others
sat under an awning draped with mosquito-netting, lighted by a big lantern.
Everyone gazed
at
him in interest.
They
saw a medium-sized man, dressed in ordinary summer clothes flannel trousers,
shirt and
thin
pullover. He wore a white linen hat, and had a beard and thin little moustache.
He wore dark
glasses
like Bill.
He
smiled down and the children saw that he had very white teeth. He bowed to Mrs.
Cunningham,
and, as Tala held back the mosquito-net, he put out his hand. She shook it, and
then
he
shook hands with Bill. He nodded at the four children.
'Ah
you've got your family with you, I see!'
'Yes
the children all had flu very badly, and the doctor said they should go
somewhere warm
abroad if possible so we decided to come out here,' said Mrs. Cunningham,
politely. 'I must
say
it's doing them a great deal of good.'
'Ah
and what are the children's names?' asked Mr. Uma, smiling down and showing a
lot of
teeth.
Philip
answered for all of them. 'I'm Philip that's Jack Lucy-Ann and Dinah.'
'And
what is the parrot's name? What an unusual pet!' said Mr. Uma.
'Her
name's Kiki,' said Jack. 'Kiki, this is Mr. Uma.'
'Wipe
your feet, blow your nose, fetch the doctor,' said Kiki, politely, spoiling the
whole effect
by
giving a terrible screech at the end.
'Don't,
Kiki,' said Mrs. Cunningham. 'Not when we have visitors!'
'How
did you hear of us?' asked Bill, offering Mr. Uma a cigarette.
'Oh,
news soon gets round, you know,' said Mr. Uma. He gave Bill a straight look.
'I've no
doubt
you've heard my name too,' he said.
'Er
yes,' said Bill, frowning as if he was trying to remember where. 'Someone
told me of a
Mr.
Uma who was interested in films at Cinι-Town.'
'Oh,
that's only a side-show for me,' said Mr. Uma, puffing at his cigarette. 'My
great hobby is
archaeology.'
He looked at the four children and made what they considered to be a very
feeble
joke.
'That's the study of arks, you know!'
The
children ha-ha-ed politely. How old did he think they were, making feeble jokes
like that?
Lucy-Ann
tried to see if he had the snake-like scar on his arm, but his shirt-sleeves
were long, and
she
couldn't.
'We
went to see an old temple outside Ullabaid this afternoon,'said Jack. 'Very
disappointing.
All
front and no back like the one at Cinι-Town.'
Mr.
Uma took this as a joke and laughed too much. 'Ah, yes,' he said. 'Well, of
course,
archaeology
is disappointing. Like the story of old Brer Rabbit, you know "he
diggy-diggy-dig
but
no meat dar".'
'I
suppose it's very very expensive to do a lot of excavating for old towns and so
on, isn't it?'
asked
Mrs. Cunningham, seeing that the children did not appreciate Mr. Uma very much.
'Yes,
Ma'am! You can pay out thousands of pounds doing that!' said Mr. Uma. 'I've
given it
up,
it's too expensive. You don't make any money out of it, either your only
reward is the
excitement
of er uncovering ages-old civilisations. All the same, it's a wonderful
hobby. I've
decided
to combine an interest in films with my hobby make a bit of money in films,
and spend
it
wandering about this old, old country, making maps and plans of the last
excavations and so on.
And
what about you, sir are you interested in that kind of thing?'
'About
as much as the average man,' said Bill, cautiously, knowing that he was being
sounded
about
his own mysterious work. 'But any new experience is of interest to me. I write
articles, you
know,
and one of these days I'm going to write a book plenty of interesting things
to put into it!'
The
children smiled quietly to themselves. Bill did write articles. That was true
but this was
the
first time they had heard of a book. Bill could write a marvellous book if he
were allowed to!
The
things he had seen and done were quite unbelievable. They felt proud at having
shared in so
many
of his adventures.
'Ah
a writer! A man of leisure,' said Mr. Uma. 'It's only you writers and you
painters that
can
afford to dispense with an office and go all over the world to look for
material for your brush or
your
pen.'
The
children began to feel bored. It was quite obvious now that Mr. Uma did not
know for
certain
who Bill was, nor whether he had come out merely for a holiday or on some other
mission.
He
and Bill had been 'crossing swords' so to speak, testing each other out. They
felt that Bill was
winning.
He had persuaded Mr. Uma that he was a writer, they were sure of it.
'Where
are you going to next?' asked Mr. Uma. 'May I offer you any hospitality? I have
a little
shack
farther down the river I'm on my way there now, actually. I would be pleased
to give you
dinner
such as it is if you and your wife would care to come?'
Bill
considered this invitation quickly. Should he accept? It would look queer if he
didn't. Well
he might conceivably find out a little more if he went to Uma's house. So he
nodded and
thanked
him.
'Well,
thank you, that's kind of you. We'll be pleased to come. When? Tomorrow?'
'Certainly,'
said Mr. Uma, and got up to go. 'Tomorrow night at seven o'clock, shall we say?
Your
man will know the landing jetty at Chaldo, I'm sure. I will be there to meet
you and take you
to
my house.'
'Stay
and have a drink,' said Bill. 'I'll call Tala.'
But
Mr. Uma would not stay. He bowed very politely, and raised the mosquito-net.
Then he
almost
fell over somebody crouching on the floor just outside.
He
kicked out and there was a yell.
'Now
then who's this? Get out of the way there, lying ready to trip me up!' roared
Mr. Uma,
losing
his temper suddenly and surprisingly. He kicked out again.
Philip
was up in a trice, guessing it was Oola who had crept up as usual to be near him.
'Mr.
Uma it's only the little native boy who helps our man,' he said, angrily, and
at once felt
Bill's
hand pressing his shoulder warningly.
'Sorry,
Mr. Uma,' said Bill. 'I hope you haven't hurt your foot, kicking out like
that.'
Mr.
Uma didn't quite know how to take that. He recovered himself immediately, said
goodnight
quite
heartily, and was led off by Tala with a lantern.
'Oola!
It serves you right if people fall over you, if you hide in corners like that!'
said Bill.
'Bad
man, that,' said Oola. 'Bad bad man. Oola come to guard lord from bad man.'
'Don't
be silly,' said Bill. 'You don't know anything about him. Or do you?'
Oola
shook his head. 'Oola know he bad man, Oola say so. Oola not seen bad man
before.'
'Go
behind with Tala,' said Bill. 'And don't come over to us again till we call
you. Understand?'
Oola
disappeared, and Bill went under the mosquito-net to the others. Uma's
motor-boat had
now
been started up, and had gone down the river, disturbing all the stars
reflected in the water.
'Well?'
said Bill to his wife. 'What do you think of our friend Uma?'
'I
don't trust him a scrap,' said Mrs. Cunningham. 'He's, he's . . .'
'Slimy,'
said Dinah, and everyone nodded. It was just the right word.
'What
do you suppose he is up to?' said Bill. 'Anything?'
Mrs.
Cunningham considered. 'No,' she said. 'I think he's got a bad reputation and
knows it,
and
he's nervous in case anyone should think he's up to anything and spy on him. I
think he's
probably
hard-up, and making a bit of money in Cinι-Town somewhere. He was so insistent
on his
love
for old buildings that I feel his real interest must be in something else.'
'You
mean he may be using this archaeology hobby of his to camouflage the business
he's doing
in
Cinι-Town?' asked Bill.
'Yes,'
said Mrs. Cunningham.
'Well,
I bet whatever he's doing in Cinι-Town is something underhand,' said Jack.
'Probably
backing
a shady little fair or something or a string of shops and having an
interest in the film
too.
Plenty of irons in the fire.'
'Well,
if that's the kind of thing he's doing, it's pretty harmless from my point of
view,' said
Bill.
'I am after bigger stuff than that the kind of things I told you he had done
before! If it's no
more
than messing about in Cinι-Town, well, he's of no interest to the High-Ups!'
'Good,'
said Mrs. Cunningham, heaving a sigh of relief. 'I don't want you mixed up in
anything
dangerous,
Bill and I somehow think that Raya Uma could be very dangerous and very
ruthless.'
'You're
quite right, my dear!' said Bill. 'Now, what about bed? I'll just go and smoke
my last
cigarette.
The stars are out beautifully now, and I shall enjoy a quiet ten minutes
looking down the
river.'
They
all said good night. They were tired, and fell asleep immediately their heads
were on the
pillows.
Bill stood silently smoking, thinking of the strange Mr. Uma. Then he saw a
small figure
creeping
over the deck and settling down at the foot of Philip's mattress. Oola had come
to guard
his
lord!
Oola
sat up in fright when Bill came over, on his way to his own mattress.
'You
may stay, Oola,' said Bill, softly, and Oola sank down again happily. His lord
was asleep
and he, Oola, was guarding him!
Chapter
16
NEXT
DAY
NEXT
day Tala took the boat farther on down the river. They went very slowly, for
Chaldo was
only
half a day's run, and they did not want to get there too soon. They passed some
desolate
country
on the way, almost desert-like.
'Some
of Mr. Uma's beloved excavations must have been going on here!' said Jack.
'Bill, it
certainly
must cost an awful lot of money to dig over this enormous expanse look!'
'It
does,' said Bill. 'But there are rewards, you know. It's not only old ruined
cities that are
found
lying beneath the mud and dust of centuries, it's treasure too.'
'Treasure!'
said Philip, surprised. 'What treasure?'
'Well,
much of this country held age-old buildings that housed the tombs of rich
kings,' said
Bill.
'Don't ask me their names, I've forgotten them.'
'Nebuchadnezzar?'
suggested Lucy-Ann.
Bill
laughed. 'You certainly know your Bible, Lucy-Ann. Yes probably even
Nebuchadnezzar
might have lived in a palace not many miles from here, or the great King
Saigon. I
really
don't know. Anyway, when they died, they were buried in magnificent tombs,
surrounded by
their
jewels and their other treasures, such as jewelled shields, wonderful swords,
and so on.'
'My
word!' said Jack, thrilled. 'And do you mean to say that things like that have
been dug up
things' thousands of years old?'
'Oh
yes,' said Bill. 'They are in museums all over the world bought gladly
because of their
historic
value. They are valuable in themselves too, of course. I have seen one
beautifully carved
gold
bowl, with bulls all the way round it, that must have been worth thousands of
pounds. It was
set
with wonderful precious stones.'
'Well,
then,' said Jack, 'I'm not so sure that Mr. Uma's hobby isn't just the right
one for him.
Picking
up priceless treasures for nothing!'
'That's
where you're wrong,' said Bill. 'They can't be picked up for nothing as I
told you, a
digging
outfit, composed perhaps of fifty or so natives, and a good sprinkling of white
experts, may
cost
thousands of pounds. And we should certainly know if Mr. Uma had an outfit like
that!'
'Yes
I suppose you would,' said Jack. 'I mean you can't help seeing wholesale
excavations
going on, can you? It would be in the papers too, of course.'
'Look
there are some ruins, over there!' cried Lucy-Ann, pointing to the opposite
bank.
'They
look fairly recent. Would Tala know about them, do you think?'
'Go
and ask him, if you like,' said Bill. 'I don't expect he can tell you much.'
The
children went off to ask Tala. He nodded his head. 'Tala know. Tala's father,
he dig there.
Dig
for treasure, much, much treasure. But no find any. All gone.'
That
seemed to be all Tala knew. The children went back to Bill and repeated what
Tala had told
them.
He nodded.
'Yes
he meant that whatever expert was in charge of the digging probably had a
plan
showing
that royal tombs were to be found at a certain depth below tombs possibly
with much
treasure.
But when they got down to them, the graves were probably already despoiled and
robbed.'
'But
who did that?' said Lucy-Ann.
'Maybe
robbers three or four thousand years ago,' said Bill, and smiled at Lucy-Ann's
surprised
face.
'I told you that this is an old, old land, that goes back thousands of years.
Under the dust
archaeologists
may find ruins of city upon city, one built above the other.'
This
was almost impossible for Lucy-Ann to grasp city upon city! She tried to send
her mind
back
through the centuries and to imagine the years passing over the land on which
she was now
gazing
cities rising, falling into ruin, other cities rising on the ruins and
themselves falling into
dust,
only to have yet more towns built upon them.
She
gave a little shiver. 'I don't much like thinking about it,' she said. 'Let's
talk about
something
else, Bill.'
Bill
gave her a hug. 'Well what about lime-juice?' he said. 'Shall we talk about
that, Lucy-
Ann?
It seems a very suitable subject for this hot day.'
'Oh,
Bill what you mean is that you want me to fetch you some,' said Lucy-Ann, who
knew
Bill's
little ways very well. 'Jack Philip do you want some lime-juice?'
'Juice!'
echoed Kiki. 'Juicy, juicy, juicy! Juicy Lucy! Send for the juice! Blow the
juice!'
Philip
was giving his snake an airing, and it was slithering round and about his feet.
Lucy-Ann
did
not mind it, but Dinah did, so the boys usually chose a moment when Dinah was
down below,
doing
something there.
'Isn't
it a lovely creature?' said Philip, admiring the bright green of its skin, and
the brilliant
markings,
or 'spottings' as the hotel manager had called them. 'It's a shame it's had its
poison-
ducts
cut, isn't it, Jack?'
'Well,
personally, at the moment, I'm glad it can't give me a poisonous bite,' said
Jack.
The
lime-juice arrived, Oola carrying the tray proudly. He was pleased to see the
snake gliding
round
his present to his lord! Dinah stopped dead when she saw it, and Philip
picked it up at
once.
The
day went pleasantly enough, especially as, for the first time, they came to a
little cove where
the
water was clean and clear enough to bathe.
'You
come in too, Oola,' said Jack. 'Do you good!'
But
nothing would persuade the small boy to get into the tepid water. He touched it
with his toe,
screamed
loudly and drew it back as if something had bitten him. He gazed in wonder and
admiration
as all four children swam and dived and kicked about under water. He had been
deputed
to
hold the bargua while Philip bathed, and he was very proud to hang it round his
neck and keep it
there.
Kiki
was not very pleased with the way in which everyone deserted her for the pool.
She flew to
an
overhanging branch and screamed at them.
Philip
splashed her. 'Stop that row, Kiki! You sound as if you're being killed!'
Kiki
flew high in the air, angry at being splashed. She flew down to the deck and
waddled up to
Oola
for sympathy. But when she saw the snake hanging round his neck she backed
away, hissing
exactly
like a snake herself. Mrs. Cunningham smiled to see her, and made her come to
her
shoulder.
'Poor
Polly,' said Kiki, into her ear. 'Poor poor Polly. Jolly Polly, jolly Polly.'
'Well,
which are you, poor or jolly?' said Mrs. Cunningham, laughing. 'Now don't sulk,
the
others
will soon be out of the water!'
'I
wish we hadn't got to go out to dinner tonight,' said Bill, a little later.
'It's a nuisance, Allie. I
wish
I hadn't said we would. I do so enjoy the quiet evenings on the boat.'
'So
do I,' said his wife. 'Never mind we don't need to stay long and we might
learn
something;
you never know!'
The
boat glided on down to Chaldo and arrived about half-past six. Bill and his
wife got ready
and
waited for Mr. Uma to fetch them. 'You children have your supper,' said Mrs.
Cunningham,
'and
then read and go to bed as usual. We shan't be late. Tala will look after you.'
'Here
comes Mr. Uma,' said Jack, spotting someone coming along in the dark, with a
lantern.
'Goodbye
and keep your eyes and ears open! Mr. Uma may not be as innocent as he
seems.'
Mr.
Uma called up to the launch.
'Good
evening! If you are ready I will guide you to my house. It is not very far. I
am wondering
if
the four children would like to watch a dance in the next little village. There
has been a wedding
there,
and the dancing is amusing to watch. My man here can take them.'
'Oh
yes do let us!' cried Lucy-Ann, and the others joined in.
'No,
I don't think I want them to go,' said Bill, firmly. 'I'd rather they stayed on
the boat.'
'Oh,
blow!' said Jack. 'Be a sport, Bill. We'll be all right, and we won't do
anything silly, I
promise
you.'
'I
think not,' said Bill. 'I'd rather you didn't go. Village wedding dances are
not always safe to
watch
your presence might be resented!'
There
was no more to be said, but the four children were very disappointed. They
called a
subdued
goodbye, and watched the lantern held by Uma's servant bobbing away through the
trees.
'I
wish we could have gone,' said Dinah. 'What harm could we come to, with Uma's
servant
beside
us? Blow!'
'Oh,
well it's no good thinking about it,' said Jack. 'I wonder what's for
supper?'
Tala
produced a fine meal, and when they were in the middle of it, the children
heard him
talking
to a man who had come to the side of the launch.
'Who
is it, Tala?' called Philip, at once.
'It
is Jallie, Mr. Uma's servant,' said Tala. 'He say Master send him tell you go
watch dancing.
He
say he change mind, you go.'
'Oh,
good, good, good!' cried Dinah, delighted, and the others exclaimed in pleasure
too. They
finished
their supper hurriedly, and called out to Tala.
'Tell
the man we're ready. We're just getting our cardigans. It's a bit chilly
tonight.'
'Oola
go too?' said a small voice. But Tala overheard and called him roughly.
'No!
You have work to do. Master send word you not go. You stay with Tala.'
Oola
was bitterly disappointed. He made up his mind to do his work quickly and then
go to meet
the
others. He would soon find out where that village was.
'Goodbye!'
called Lucy-Ann to the disappointed boy. 'We won't be long. Look after the
boat,
Oola.'
Oola
stood looking after them in the darkness. A curious dread had come over his
heart.
Something
was going to happen something bad, bad, bad! Oola knew!
Chapter
17
EXTRAORDINARY
HAPPENINGS
IT
seemed quite a long way to the village. The children stumbled along, and
suddenly, for no real
reason,
Jack felt uneasy.
'How
far is the village now?' he asked Jallie, the man with the lantern.
'It
quite near,' answered the man, in a surly tone.
Ten
minutes later there was still no sign of the village, and Jack spoke to Philip
in a whisper.
'Philip,
I don't like this. I don't feel easy in my mind. Ask him about the village
again.'
'What
about this village?' demanded Philip, tapping the man on the arm.
'It
quite near,' answered Jallie again.
Philip
stopped. He too now had a very uneasy feeling. He began to wonder if the
message about
going
to the village dance was genuine. Suppose it was a way to get them off the boat
so that
Uma
could send someone to search it? It wasn't really at all like Bill to change
his mind about a
thing
especially when he had been so determined that they were not to go.
'Come!'
said the man, and held the lantern high to see why they had stopped.
'Lucy-Ann
pretend you feel ill cry, and say you want to go back!' whispered Jack. Lucy-
Ann
obeyed at once.
'J-J-Jack!'
she cried, pretending to weep. 'I don't feel w-w-well. Take me b-b-back!
Oooooooh!'
'Oooooooh!'
said Kiki, in sympathy.
'Oh,
poor Lucy-Ann!' said all the other three, and began to pat her on the back.
'Yes, you shall
go
back.'
Jack
went to Jallie. 'My sister must go back to the boat,' he said. 'She isn't well,
as you can see.
We
must return at once.'
'No,'
said the man. 'Come.'
'Don't
be silly!' said Jack, angrily. 'You heard what I said. Lead us back.'
'No,'
said the man. 'I have orders. Come.'
'Look
here what's all this?' said Philip, joining in. 'There's something queer
here. I don't
believe
you're going to take us to any wedding dance! Anyway, my orders are that we go
back.
Understand?'
Jallie
glared at them. It was obvious that he did not quite know what to do. He could
not make
four
children come with him by main force. On the other hand he certainly did not
mean to take
them
to the launch.
The
children glared back, Lucy-Ann giving sobs that were now becoming real, for she
felt
frightened.
'You
will take us back,' said Philip, slowly. 'See I have someone here who will
make you
take
us back!'
He
slipped his hand under his cardigan and shirt, and pulled gently at the snake
coiled there, fast
asleep.
The gentle pressure awoke the sleepy creature and it wriggled in pleasure at
feeling Philip's
hand
on it.
The
boy slid out the snake, and the man saw it suddenly in the light of the
lantern. He stared at it
as
if he could not believe his eyes.
'Bargua,'
he gasped, backing away. 'Bargua!'
'Yes,
bargua! My bargua! He does what I say,' said Philip. 'Shall I tell him to bite
you?'
The
man fell on his knees, trembling, as Philip held the writhing snake between his
hands. He
pointed
it at Jallie, and the snake darted its forked tongue in and out.
'Master,
I take you back,' said the man, in a shaking voice. 'Mercy, master. Put your
snake
away.'
'No,'
said Philip. 'I hold him near you, see, like this!' And he thrust the snake
nearer to the man,
who
at once fell over backwards in utter fear.
'I
send my snake after you if you leave us and run,' went on Philip, quite
determined that he and
the
others were not going to be left in an unknown place in the darkness of the
night.
'Master,
I take you,' whimpered the man.
'Well,
get up and go, then,' said Philip, cradling the snake against him. It ran its
forked tongue
caressingly
over the boy's wrist. The man shuddered and for the thousandth time Lucy-Ann
admired
Philip, and the way he could tame all creatures and make them love him.
The
man picked up the lantern and set off, his legs trembling as he walked along,
thinking of the
snake
behind him, that very poisonous snake. What manner of boy was this that could
harbour
deadly
snakes in his bosom?
He
went along, taking the same path as he had gone before, though the children
could not know
this
for certain, and just hoped for the best. The two boys were extremely worried.
'If
Uma sent this fellow to take us goodness knows where, with orders to leave us
stranded
somewhere,
whatever is he doing to Bill and Mother?' thought Philip, desperately.
On
and on they went, and at last through the trees came the welcome glint of
silvery water
the
river.
'The
River of Adventure!' thought Jack suddenly. 'My word it's living up to its
name.'
Jallie
pointed with a trembling hand to the river. 'I bring you back,' he said. 'I go
now, please.'
'Yes.
Go,' said Philip, and thankfully the man fled with his lantern, stumbling in
his haste.
Someone
came from the trees and flung himself down by Philip. It was Oola!
He
moaned as he laid his head against Philip's knees. 'Bad men come,' he said.
'Bad men. What
I
do, what I do?'
In
alarm Philip jerked him to his feet. 'Oola! Tell me quick what's happened?'
Oola
pulled them through the trees to the jetty. He pointed through the starlit
night, and the
others
looked in astonishment and fear.
The
launch was gone!
'Oola
what's happened?' asked Philip, shaking him.
'Bad
men come. Bad men put Big Master and Missus on launch. Bad men get Tala and tie
him
up,
and throw him on ground. Bad men take launch away, away down river!' said Oola,
sounding
as
if he were going to burst into tears.
'Whew!'
said Jack, and flopped down on the grass, quite knocked out by all this news.
The rest
sat
down too.
'How
do you know all this, Oola?' said Jack, at last. 'Why didn't they tie you up
too?'
'Oola
just going after his lord,' said Oola. 'Oola creep away from boat and then
see bad men.
Bad
men no see Oola. Oola watch. Oola hide.'
'Well,
we've now got a pretty good picture of what has happened,' said Philip, grimly.
'Uma
suspected
old Bill of knowing too much and so he's captured him very neatly. But what a
pity
Mother
had to be captured too! We were going to be neatly put out of the way as well.
Thank
goodness
for Oola!'
'And
Tala,' said Jack. 'Tala's about too, apparently all tied up. We must get him.
What in the
world
are we going to do?'
They
got up and walked down to the edge of the water. Oola pointed to a dark shadow
close by
the
bank, away from the jetty.
'Bad
man's boat,' he said. 'Why he no take that?'
'I
suppose because he wanted to hide away all evidence of us and our boat,' said
Jack. 'I wish he
had
taken his own boat. Hallo that sounds like Tala.'
Groans
could now be heard somewhere near by. Oola disappeared and then they heard him
calling.
'Tala
here!'
They
all hurried over to him and there was Tala, so securely tied up that it was
very difficult to
free
him! He was in two different states of mind at once he felt extremely sorry
for himself, and
also
extremely angry. He wriggled impatiently as the boys tried to untie him. In the
end they cut the
ropes
and he rolled free.
Tala
poured out his version of the happenings, pausing to bang his chest in anguish
when he
related
how he saw Big Master and Little Missus being dragged away, and then yelled out
in anger
at
the idea of him, Tala, being bound and thrown out like a sack of rubbish.
'Tala,
listen,' said Philip. 'Was it Uma who came?'
'No.
Other men,' said Tala. 'Servants. Bad men. Tala spit on them!'
'Where
have they taken Big Master and Missus?' asked Jack.
'Down
river,' said Tala, pointing. 'I hear them say Wooti. Tala not know Wooti. Tala
very
angry!'
'What
are we going to do?' said Dinah. 'We can't spend the night out here but where
can we
go?
We don't know the way to anywhere.'
'Oola
know,' said Oola's eager voice. 'Oola show lord,' and he pulled at Philip's
sleeve.
He
took the boy away from the jetty, to the corner where Uma's motor-boat was
tied. 'See
bad
man's boat. We take, yes?'
'Oola!
What a brain-wave!' said Philip, delighted. 'Of course! Tit for tat. We'll go
off in it now,
straight
away back up the river!'
'No
let's go down to Wooti,' said Jack. 'It's probably just as near as the last
village we
visited.
Let's hope it's a big place and we can get word about this to someone in
authority. We can
get
news of our own launch there too.'
'Yes
that's the best idea, I think,' said Philip. 'Tala, can you manage this
motor-boat?'
'Yes,
yes, Tala know,' said Tala, eagerly. 'We chase bad men, yes?'
'I
don't quite know what's going to happen!' said Jack. 'But we're certainly not
going to stay
here
and let Uma catch us in the morning! Come on in we all get!'
And
one by one they clambered into the motor-boat, while Tala tinkered with the
engine. Now
where
were they off to? Wooti? And what would happen there?
Chapter
18
AWAY
THROUGH THE NIGHT
THEY
were all in the motor-boat very quickly indeed, half afraid that someone might
come out of
the
shadows to stop them. Jallie might have gone to tell his friends that after all
he had been
compelled
to bring back the children, instead of abandoning them far off in the darkness
and
three
or four of Uma's men might have come to look for them, and taken them captive.
But
nobody came. Nothing stirred except the murmuring river, and the only other
noises were
the
little sounds made by Tala as he tried to start up the engine. Oola patiently
held a torch for him
to
see by.
'Click-click!
Click-click!' The engine was coming to life good! There it was going!
'Buck
up, Tala!' whispered Philip, urgently, for the noise now sounded very loud in
the stillness
of
the night. 'We may get some unpleasant callers if we don't go off soon.'
With
a sudden roar the boat went off into mid-stream, and the children heaved sighs
of relief. It
steadied,
and then, keeping in the starlit centre of the river, it headed downstream.
There
were no angry shouts behind them. Nobody seemed to know that they had gone in
Uma's
own
motor-boat. Jack spoke to Tala.
'You
said you didn't know Wooti. Do you know how far down the river it is?'
'Yes,
Tala hear about Wooti,' said Tala. 'It far down. Oola know Wooti?'
Oola
didn't, but he remembered that another village was near to Wooti.
'Village
name Hoa,' he said. 'We come to Hoa, Oola go there, ask about Wooti, yes?'
'Right,'
said Jack. 'We don't particularly want to arrive at Wooti all set to be
captured! We must
tie
up somewhere some distance away, and then go in cautiously and see what we can
learn.'
'Tala
will you keep going for an hour, say, then tie up somewhere so that we can
sleep?'
asked
Philip. 'If we sail through the night we shall probably miss Wooti we'd far
better bed
down
for a few hours, as soon as we feel safely out of reach of Uma's men.'
'Well,
as far as we know there were no more boats at Uma's place, so no one could
chase us,'
said
Jack. 'Still, it's no good taking risks. Yes, drive the boat for an hour, Tala,
and then we'll tie
up
somewhere.'
Tala
steered on through the starlit night, and the children talked quietly among
themselves. Oola
was
contentedly sitting close to Philip, perfectly happy. Why should he worry? Were
these children
not
clever enough to do anything, clever enough even to defeat bad man Uma? And
anyway, he had
the
thrill of being near Philip all the time now, because the motor-boat was much
smaller than the
launch.
After
about an hour Jack called to Tala. 'All right, Tala. We'll tie up somewhere. We
don't seem
to
have passed any villages at all. This must be a deserted part of the river. Tie
up anywhere.'
Tala's
trained eye picked out a straight young tree on the edge of the left bank. He
steered
towards
it, and it came to rest by the tree with a gentle bump. The engine stopped, and
the quiet
night
closed in round them.
'Good,
Tala,' said Jack. 'I'll help you to tie up. Then we'll all curl up and sleep.'
In
five minutes' time everyone was fast asleep, though, like a dog on guard, Oola
slept with one
ear
open! The two girls were huddled together, and the boys lay beside them, with
Oola at Philip's
feet.
Tala slept by the wheel in a most uncomfortable attitude, snoring loudly at
intervals. Kiki sat
on
Jack's leg and slept, head under wing.
They
slept on and on. Dawn came and silvered the water. The sun rose and a pleasant
warmth
fell
on the six sleepers. The bargua snake felt it, and slid silently out of
Philip's shirt, to lie on his
shoulder,
basking in the sun.
Dinah
awoke first, wondering why she felt so stiff. She lay still, remembering the
events of the
night
before. She moved a little to look round at the others and she saw, quite
close beside her,
Philip's
snake, lying on his shoulder, enjoying the sun.
She
gave a scream before she could stop herself. Everyone awoke immediately, and
Tala
reached
automatically for a knife he had somewhere about him. Oola leapt to his feet in
front of
Philip,
ready to protect him to the death!
'Who
screamed?' demanded Jack. 'What's up?'
'I
screamed,' said Dinah, penitently. 'I'm sorry but the first thing I saw when
I woke was
Philip's
snake looking at me. I just couldn't help it. I'm so sorry.'
'So
sorry, so sorry!' chanted Kiki, and then gave a scream like Dinah's.
'Now
don't you make a habit of screaming!' said Lucy-Ann. The snake had now slid
into hiding
somewhere
about Philip, and Dinah felt better. They all rubbed their eyes and took a good
look
round.
There
was nothing of much interest as far as the river was concerned. It ran on as
smoothly as
ever,
lined on each side with trees that came down to the water's edge. What was of
interest to the
children
was the motor-boat!
Was
there any food or drink in it? Was it merely a boat that ran Uma here and
there, as a car
would
run him about on roads?
'Let's
see if there's any food,' said Philip, and they hunted round at once.
'Look
at this!' said Jack, swinging open the door of a cupboard set under a seat in
the bows.
They
looked. It was full of tins! They read the names there was tinned ham, bacon,
sardines,
fruit
of many kinds, and even soup.
'Funny!'
said Philip. 'Why does Uma want to take food about in a motor-boat like this?
He must
have
gone off sometimes on queer little jaunts, and stayed away long enough to need
food and
yet
not near enough to villages to get any.'
'Well,
I don't care why he takes food about with him,' said Dinah. 'All I care is that
he
conveniently
left some for us! And drink too look, there are tins of lime-juice and
orange-juice
they'll be very strong so we shall need water with those.'
Tala
nodded his head towards a small enclosed tank. 'Water there,' he said.
But
he was wrong. It was empty. So if the children wanted anything to drink it
would have to be
very
strong undiluted orange- or lime-juice.
In
another cupboard were ropes, powerful torches, and big strong hooks. 'Whatever
are these
hooks
for?' said Lucy-Ann, in surprise.
'They're
grappling hooks often used for climbing,' said Jack. 'Now why did Uma want
those?'
'I
know! For his hobby archaeology,' said Dinah. 'Don't you remember? Well, if
he goes
about
exploring all the old, deep-hidden places here, I suppose he would use these.
Anything else of
interest?'
'Some
spades,' said Jack, 'and a small pick. Well, if Uma uses his hobby of studying
old
buildings
as a camouflage for his other dirty work, whatever it is, I must say he seems
to take it
pretty
seriously. Look there are books about it here too.'
He
pulled out books, some new, some old, all evidently well-read, for there were
small notes
written
here and there on certain pages.
'I'll
have a snoop into these when I've had something to eat,' said Jack. 'I'm
beginning to feel
hungry
now!'
So
were the others. They found two tin-openers hanging on a nail in the cupboard.
Jack
promptly
put one into his pocket for safety! They opened a tin of ham and two tins of
pineapple,
feeling
that these might go quite well together. They drank the juice in the tins, but
still felt rather
thirsty.
'We
ought to try and fill this water-tank,' said Philip, peering into it. 'It looks
perfectly clean.'
'Tala
and Oola fetch water next village,' proposed Tala. 'And bread.'
'Right.
But we'll have to make sure it's not Wooti before we go boldly into it,' said
Jack. 'Look
at
Kiki! That's her fifth bit of pineapple! Hey, Kiki, are you enjoying it?'
Kiki
swallowed the last bit and flew over to the tin again. It was empty. She gave a
squawk of
disappointment.
'All gone!' she said, in a singsong voice. 'All gone. Send for the doctor!'
'Fathead,'
said Jack. 'Tala, are you ready to start? Stop at a village that you think is
safe.'
Tala
untied the boat and set the engine going. They chugged into midstream and set
off. The sun
was
lovely and warm now, and everyone felt more cheerful though nagging at their
minds all the
time
was the worry of what had happened to Bill and his wife.
They
came to a small village whose huts ran right down to the edge of the water. At
once native
children
ran to watch the boat. Tala swung in towards shore, where there was a small
jetty for
boats.
He
conversed rapidly with a brown-skinned boy. Then he turned to the others.
'He
say this Hoa village, Wooti long way on. Two-three hours. He say will give Tala
water-bag
and
bread. Yes?'
'Right,'
said Jack. 'We'll come ashore and stretch our legs too. You and Oola go and see
what
the
water's like. It must be drawn straight from the well. Draw it yourself, Tala.
Come on, you
others
it seems quite safe here, but all the same, we'll keep near the boat!'
Chapter
19
THE
RIVER IS VERY PECULIAR
IT
was good to stretch their legs. Kiki as usual was on Jack's shoulder and
created great interest
among
the native children. They crowded round, pointing and chattering. Philip kept
his snake
hidden
he knew what a stampede it would cause if it so much as showed its head!
Tala
and Oola had fortunately discovered a couple of large pails in the boat and had
taken those
to
fetch the water. The children were glad none of them liked the big skin bags,
made of animal-
hide,
that water was so often carried in by the natives.
Tala
and Oola were a long time coming back, and the children began to feel worried.
'Why
don't they come?' said Jack. 'I do hope nothing has happened to them. We should
be in a
fix
without Tala.'
However,
at last the two came, each carrying a heavy pail of water, and with loaves of
bread
strapped
over their bare shoulders. Fortunately Tala knew enough of the ways of white
people to
know
that they liked their bread wrapped and he had managed to get some cloths to
wrap it in.
'You've
been too long, Tala,' said Jack, not at all pleased.
'He
talk and talk,' said Oola. 'Oola want to come back, but Tala talk.'
Tala
glared at him, and then drew himself up to his full height. 'Yes, Tala talk.
Tala find out
much
things. All peoples know Uma. He diggy-diggy-dig. Much much dig. Peoples say
Uma know
where
is big treasure. Much gold.'
Jack
laughed. 'You've been gossiping. Uma likes to make people think he's digging
for lost,
long-ago
things but that's not what he's really doing. He's got something else up his
sleeve
and
I wish I knew what it was.'
Tala
didn't understand this. 'What he got up sleeve?' he enquired. 'Big knife?'
'Come
on,' said Philip impatiently. 'Let's put the water in the tank. I'd like a
drink of orangeade
straight
away. I'm jolly thirsty.'
They
all were. As the water splashed into the tank Jack considered it. It didn't
really look very
much
for six people!
'Let's
go on,' he said to Tala. 'We can look out for Wooti after two hours, if it's
really two or
three
hours away.'
Tala
started up the engine and on they went again. They passed quite a few small
villages, and
then
came a larger one. Could this be Wooti? Jack glanced at his watch. No they
had only been
going
for an hour and a half, and Tala had been told that Wooti was two or three
hours away.
'Tala
stop?' called Tala. 'Tala ask name of village?'
'No.
It can't be Wooti yet,' said Jack, and on they went. And then, quite suddenly,
the river
became
very wide! The children were most astonished as the banks receded farther and
farther
away.
It almost seemed as if the river had become a lake!
'Goodness!
If the river gets much wider we shan't be able even to see the banks!' said
Dinah.
Lucy-Ann
stared out in amazement. 'Jack,' she said, 'we we're not out at sea, are we?'
Everyone
roared. Even Tala smiled. Lucy-Ann went red, and Jack clapped her on the back.
'Never
mind! It certainly looks as if we're all at sea! I expect the river will narrow
soon. Maybe
the
river bed is very shallow here, so the water has spread itself out well and
made itself wide.'
Philip
called to Tala.
'Tala!
Better keep to one or other of the banks, or we'll lose our sense of direction.
I can hardly
see
the right-hand one as it is!'
Tala
swung over to the left to find the bank there. It was quite a long way away!
'I
wish we had a map of the river here,' said Jack. 'Like the one Bill had, do you
remember? It
showed
every village on it, and it would have shown us where Wooti came, and what
happens to
the
river here why it gets so wide, and if it narrows again!'
They
were now close to the left bank instead of in midstream. The opposite bank
could not be
seen.
The water seemed to stretch away interminably on their right, giving the
impression that they
were
on the edge of the sea, sailing close to the shore just as Lucy-Ann had
imagined!
Tala
was surprised, and a little afraid. 'The river's very wide here,' he said to
Oola in his own
language.
'We shan't see Wooti if it's on the other bank.'
This
had also occurred to Philip. He pulled at Jack's sleeve. 'Jack suppose Wooti
is on the
other
bank? We'd miss it!'
'Gosh,
yes,' said Jack. 'We can't even see the bank, let alone any village on it. Well
let's see
we'll get Tala to stop at the next little village on the left here, and ask
about Wooti. If it is on the
opposite
bank we'll have to chug over there and look for it! Let's hope we haven't gone
right past
it!'
They
looked out for the next little village, but the undergrowth was thick and grew
right down to
the
water's-edge, so that even if any village had been on the left-hand side, they
could not have
seen
it. An hour passed, and the children grew uneasy.
'I
wish we had a map!' said Jack. 'Blow Uma! Why didn't he keep maps on his boat!
They
would
have been such a help. Hallo I can see something on the right yes, it's the
right-hand
bank
come back into view at last!'
Sure
enough a line of brown could be seen over to the right. It seemed rapidly to
come nearer,
which
meant, of course, that the river was narrowing again, so that both its banks
could be seen.
In
fact, it narrowed so much that the banks were far nearer to one another than
they had ever
been
before!
'This
is extraordinary!' said Philip, suddenly. 'The river flows in the direction
we're going, as
you
know we've been taking advantage of the current the whole time. Well rivers
usually
keep
either more or less the same width as they flow to the sea, or they get wider
as other streams
feed
them by joining them. And they are at their widest as a rule when they flow
into the sea.'
Jack
stared at him. 'Yes. I know. Then how is it this river has suddenly gone so
small and
narrow?
Especially after being so wide! I know we're nowhere near the sea, and I can't
imagine
why
it went so wide just as I can't imagine now why it's gone so narrow!'
'It
must have split into two streams or perhaps more,' said Philip. 'Maybe it
made itself into
two
separate rivers, some way back one wide, one narrow and we're in the narrow
one.
That's
the only thing I can think of.'
'Tala!
Stop the boat a minute,' commanded Jack. 'We must talk.'
Tala
stopped the boat gladly. He was feeling extremely worried. What had happened to
the
river?
Where was Wooti? What was the best thing to do?
They
all talked together in the middle of the boat. It was a very serious conference
and even Kiki
did
not dare to interrupt.
'Tala
what do you think has happened? Why has the river gone small? Do you think it
split
into
two or three separate streams some way back?' asked Jack.
'Tala
not know. Tala frighted,' said the man. 'Tala say, go back. This bad river
now.'
'Well,
you're not much help, Tala,' said Philip. 'We must have missed Wooti
altogether. I bet it
was
on the right-hand bank and we couldn't spot it because we were too far away.
Blow! This
looks
like being serious.'
'Let's
go on,' said Dinah. 'We're bound to come to some place soon, absolutely bound
to.'
Jack
looked over the side of the boat, to the left bank and then to the right.
'It
all looks pretty desolate to me,' he said. 'Just a few trees only and some mouldy-looking
bushes
and then nothing but sand or dust in hillocks and mounds. Well we'll go on
for half
an
hour and then if nothing turns up no village or anything where we can ask for
advice, we'll
go
back and cruise along the right-hand bank of the river. Maybe we'll find
Wooti then.'
'Tala
say, go back,' said Tala, obstinately. 'This bad river now. Deep deep water,
see!' He got
up
and pointed downwards over the side.
'You
can't tell how deep it is,' said Jack, looking down into the water, which was
now murky
instead
of clear.
'Tala
know. Boat sound different on deep water,' said Tala, sullenly. 'Bad river
now.'
'All
right. We'll sail on bad river for another half-hour,' said Philip firmly.
'Then if there is no
village
anywhere we'll turn back. Start up the motor, Tala, please.'
But
Tala stood there obstinately, and the boys' hearts sank. Surely Tala was not
going to be
difficult
at this important moment? They could not give way to him. He would consider
himself on
top
then, and any other decision they made might also be put aside by Tala.
'Tala!
Do as you're told!' said Philip, sternly, imitating Bill's voice exactly. Still
Tala sat there,
mutinous
and obstinate.
And
then, to everyone's astonishment, the motor of the boat suddenly started up,
and the boat
shook
and quivered as it shot forward and sent everyone almost on their faces!
A
voice came from behind them. 'Oola obey lord! Oola drive boat for lord!'
With
a fierce yell Tala leapt over to Oola. He rained blows on him and took the
wheel from him
at
once. He shouted a long string of unintelligible words at the grinning Oola,
and then, still with a
very
fierce expression on his face, he guided the boat down the narrow river.
Oola
scrambled back, not seeming to have felt Tala's blows at all. He was smiling
all over his
face.
'Oola make Tala obey lord!' he said, and was delighted at the grins he got.
'Jolly
good, Oola,' said Philip. 'But don't do that kind of thing too often. You gave
us all, a
frightful
shock!'
Chapter
20
WHATEVER
HAPPENED?
TALA
drove the boat rather fast, to show that he was still angry. Philip signalled
to him.
'Slower,
Tala!'
And
Tala slowed down, afraid that Oola might come and show him how to drive more
slowly.
The
boat went on between the banks, which were now narrowing even more. And then,
as well as
narrowing,
the banks began to grow higher!
'Why
we seem to be going between cliffs now!' said Jack, in wonder. 'Tala! Don't
go so
fast!'
'Tala
not go fast!' called back the man, looking puzzled. 'River go fast very fast!
Take boat
along.
Tala stop motor, and you see!'
He
stopped the motor, and the children did indeed see what he meant! The current
was racing
along
at top speed, and the boat needed no motor to take it along it was carried by
the current!
The
cliff-like banks rose even higher, and the children felt alarmed.
'We're
in a kind of gorge now,' said Philip. 'A gorge that must be dropping down in
level all the
time,
and making the water rush along. Hey, Tala, stop! This is getting dangerous.'
Tala
called back at once. 'Tala no can stop! Boat must go on, on, on. River take
boat all time.'
'Whew!
He's right!' said Jack. 'How can we stop? And if we did, where? There are only
these
high
cliffs of rocks on each side now nowhere to stop at all! We'll be dashed to
pieces if Tala
doesn't
keep the boat straight.'
The
two girls were very pale. Kiki was terrified and put her head under her wing.
The boys
looked
up at the rocky cliffs on each side. Yes they were now getting so high that
they could see
only
a strip of sky. No wonder it seemed dim now, down here in the boat.
The
water raced along, no longer smooth, but churned-up and frothy. 'It's pouring
down a rocky
channel,
a channel that goes downwards all the time, and makes the water race along,'
said Jack,
raising
his voice a little, for the water was now very loud.
'We
must be going down into the depths of the earth,' said Philip, staring ahead.
'Jack listen,
what's
that noise?'
They
all listened, and Tala went as pale as his brown skin would allow.
'Water
fall down, water fall down!' he called, above the roar of the river.
Jack
clutched at Philip, panic-stricken. 'He's right. We're coming to a cataract! A
gigantic
underground
waterfall! We're pretty well underground now, it's so dark. Gosh, Philip, the
boat will
swing
over the top of the fall, and we'll be dashed to pieces. It sounds an enormous
cataract!'
The
noise became louder and louder, and entirely filled the rocky gorge. It seemed
to be the
loudest
noise in the world, and the girls pressed their hands to their ears, terrified.
Tala,
too, was terrified, but he still had his hand on the wheel, trying to prevent
the boat from
crashing
into the rocky sides. He suddenly gave a scream.
'We
come to waterfalling!'
The
children could not hear anything now but the roar of the waterfall ahead. Nor
could they see
anything,
for the gorge was now too deep to admit much daylight. They could only clutch
at the
boat-seats
and each other.
And
then and then the boat swung violently to the left, almost turned over,
rocked
dangerously
to and fro, and came to a shuddering stop!
All
round was the sound of the giant cataract, but the noise had diminished. What
had happened?
Wonderingly
the children raised their frightened faces and peered round. They were in
darkness
and
could see nothing.
Philip
felt something clutching his knees a pair of hands. That must be Oola at his
feet.
'Is
lord safe?' said Oola's voice, sounding over the noise of waters.
'Quite
safe, Oola,' said Philip, finding his voice trembling as he spoke. 'You all
right, girls?'
'Yes,'
they answered, but that was the only word they could manage to say. They were
still
clutching
each other tightly.
'I'm
safe too,' said Jack's voice, sounding unexpectedly cheerful. 'Hey, Tala! Are
you all right?'
The
sound of moaning reached the children, a doleful regular moan. Jack felt his
way across the
boat
to Tala.
'Are
you hurt?' he asked, feeling the man all over. He felt for his torch in his
pocket and flicked
it
on. Tala was at the wheel, bent over it, with his hands over his head. He
moaned all the time.
Jack
could not see that he was hurt. He shook Tala, and at last the man looked up.
He was
crying.
'ARE
YOU HURT?' shouted Jack, thinking that Tala must have suddenly gone deaf.
Tala
seemed to come to himself. He blinked at the torch and rubbed his wet eyes. He
felt himself
all
over very carefully.
'Tala
not hurt,' he announced. 'Tala good.'
Jack
flashed his torch around to see where they were. They appeared to be in a quiet
pool
surrounded
by walls of rock. How extraordinary! How did they get here, out of the raging
torrent?
Only
just in time too, for the waterfall could not be far away.
He
went back to the others, who were now recovering. 'Well, we seem to be safe for
the
moment,'
said the cheerful Jack. 'I vote we have something to eat. Nothing like
something in our
tummies
to make us feel better. Where's Kiki?'
'In
that cupboard,' said Dinah. 'I heard a little unhappy squawk from there just
now.'
Jack
flashed his torch at the cupboard. The door was a little ajar, burst open by
the tins that had
rolled
about violently. Kiki had gone there to hide in peace, away from the roar of
waters.
'Kiki!
You can come out now,' called Jack. And Kiki waddled out, her crest down,
looking very
old
and bent and sorry for herself! She climbed all the way up Jack, as if her
wings couldn't
possibly
fly, and was at last on his shoulder. She settled there, grumbling away, angry
at all the
disturbance
she had been through.
'Get
out a few tins, Dinah you're nearest to the cupboard,' said Jack. 'Cheer up,
Lucy-Ann.
Philip,
reach over to that lamp and light it, will you? It's the one used for the prow
of the boat and
ought
to be bright. Buck up!'
It
was a good thing that Jack took charge. He made everyone brighten up, even
Tala, whose
moaning
still went on for a while. Soon they were all sitting together, munching
sandwiches made
of
bread and ham, with orangeade to drink.
'Fun
this, isn't it?' said the indomitable Jack, looking round at the little
company, lighted quite
brightly
by the boat's lamp.
Lucy-Ann
managed a weak smile, though she felt that nothing could possibly be fun at the
moment.
'Don't
be silly,' said Philip. 'Let's enjoy our misery before we say it's fun! Gosh
I feel as if
I'm
in a peculiarly unpleasant dream. Anyone know what happened yet?'
Nobody
did. It seemed an utter mystery. There they had been, whirling onwards to what
must be
an
enormous cataract by the sound of it and yet, all of a sudden, they had shot
round to the left
into safety.
The
food loosened their tongues, and soon they were talking much as usual. Tala
condescended
to
take a sandwich, and he soon felt better too. He astonished the company by
suddenly beaming
round
at them with the broadest smile on his face that the children had ever seen.
'What's
up, Tala?' said Jack, amused. 'You look as if you've lost a penny and found a
shilling!'
Tala
looked puzzled. 'Tala not lost penny,' he said.
'All
right, all right forget it!' said Jack. 'What are you suddenly so happy
about?'
'Tala
brave man. Tala save everybodys,' said Tala, beaming round again.
There
was an astonished silence. Whatever did Tala mean? He sounded slightly mad, and
certainly
looked odd, sitting there in the light of the lamp, nodding his head up and
down like a
mandarin.
'I
don't get it,' said Jack. 'How did you save everybody?'
'Tala
just now remember,' said Tala, still beaming. 'Boat go fast, fast, fast big
noise come
waterfalling
near. Then Tala sees where cliff break Tala swing boat round bump-bump
boat
nearly over. Now we here!'
There
was another astonished silence. All the children stared at Tala, and even Kiki
peered at
him
round Jack's face.
'But,
Tala you couldn't see a break in the cliff it was too dark!' said Jack at
last.
'Yes,
yes,' said Oola's voice from beside Philip. 'Oola see big hole too big hole
in cliff. Have
good
eyes for dark, Tala too.'
'Well,
I'm blessed!' said Philip. 'I never saw a thing. But I suppose Tala must have
been
deliberately
looking out for some break in the cliff, and caught sight of one just in time.
He must
have
eyes like a cat!'
'Tala
eyes good, very good,' agreed Tala, pleased at the interest he had caused.
'Tala see much,
much.
Tala save everybodys. Tala good man.'
Tala
looked as if he would burst with pride at being such a 'good man'. Jack reached
over and
patted
him on the back.
'Tala,
you're a marvel!' he said. 'Shake hands!'
This
idea delighted Tala enormously. He shook hands very solemnly with everyone,
including
Oola
and was most gratified when Kiki too bent down and offered him her foot.
'God
save the Queen,' said Kiki, in her most pompous voice, and gave a hollow cough,
feeling
sure
this must be a solemn occasion.
'So
that's what happened!' said Jack, handing round more sandwiches. 'Well, whether
this is a
dream
or not and I'm not really certain about it yet! it's pretty exciting. Let's
finish our meal
and
then do a spot of exploring. We may be out of the frying-pan and into the fire,
of course!'
'Gosh
I hope not!' said Philip, looking round. 'But I can't say that I feel awfully
hopeful!'
Chapter
21
MUCH
EXCITEMENT
IN
about ten minutes' time they all felt cheerful enough to want to get out of the
boat and explore
round
the cavern they were in. It was not part of the gorge, that was quite clear,
for the rocky roof
closed
over their heads about ten feet above them. The torches showed this clearly.
'It's
a big cave opening into the cliff from the gorge outside that takes the river
to the waterfall,'
said
Jack. 'That much is clear, anyway.'
'Tala
see one, two, three others,' said Tala, nodding his head. 'Boat go by fast.
Tala no stop.'
'I
see. Yes, I daresay there are quite a lot of caverns in the sides of the
gorge,' said Jack. 'The
thing
is are they just caves or do they lead anywhere?'
'We'll
have to find out,' said Philip. 'Now, before any of us step out of this boat on
to any ledge
nearby,
please see that you each have your TORCH. We'll leave the lamp burning on the
boat
then
we can all see it and come back to it safely. But for goodness' sake keep
together if possible.'
Tala
had put the boat near to a ledge on the left-hand side of the cavern. He had
managed to find
a
jutting rock nearby and had tied a rope round it. He was terrified that the
boat might swing over
the
pool, and be drawn by the current into the river again.
Soon
all six were out on the ledge. Tala had a powerful torch that he had found in
the boat, and
proudly
flashed it all around. As far as they could see, the cavern stretched a good
way back,
ending
in darkness.
'Perhaps
this quiet pool runs right back, and becomes a kind of underground stream,'
suggested
Jack,
hopefully.
'What
a hope!' said Philip. 'Why, we can't even see a way out for ourselves, let
alone the boat.
You're
too cheerful, Jack. Pipe down a bit, or you'll be raising false hopes all the
time!'
'Let
him say what he likes,' said Lucy-Ann, flashing her own torch round. 'I feel as
if I want to
hear
all the cheerfulness possible in this horrible place!'
Oola
was well in front of everyone, scrambling about with a torch that was very
faint indeed.
But
he seemed quite literally to be able to see in the dark! Jack called out to
him.
'You
be careful, Oola! You'll fall into the water and you know you can't swim.'
'Lord
pull Oola out,' called back Oola cheerfully. 'Brave lord save Oola.'
That
made everyone laugh. They scrambled about, flashing their torches here and
there, getting
farther
and farther towards the back of the cavern.
The
water ran back in a wide channel, a rocky ledge beside it on each side. The
cavern narrowed
at
the end. Oola, who was first, shouted back.
'Ai!
Ai! Here is tunnel!'
At
once everyone felt excited. A tunnel? Then surely it must lead somewhere.
They
clambered over beside Oola. He was right. In the centre of the back of the
cavern the water
stretched
away into a narrow tunnel, pitch-black, and most mysterious!
'Could
we get the boat along here, Tala?' asked Philip, excited.
Tala
shook his head. 'Much dangerous,' he said. 'Boat get stuck? Water stop? Boat
get hole?
No,
no. We go on. We see more.'
'Oh
well come on, then,' said Philip, who had had wonderful visions of taking the
boat along
this
underground tunnel and coming out into daylight somewhere else. He knew Tala
was right, of
course.
They must explore much farther before they could plan to move the boat.
The
tunnel ran on and on, curving at times to right or left. It sometimes widened,
sometimes
narrowed.
At times the roof grew so high that it could not be seen; at others it came
down low, so
that
it seemed only an inch or two above their heads.
'We
could bring the boat along as far as here, anyway,' said Jack to Philip. 'Hallo
what's the
matter
with Oola? He's away in front there, yelling like anything!'
Oola
was shouting in excitement. 'Come! Come see, lord!'
Jack
and Philip made what haste they could, though it was not easy in this rocky,
slippery
tunnel,
with the dark water waiting beside them.
They
found Oola in a great state of excitement. He was peering through an uneven
hole in the
side
of the tunnel wall.
'What's
up?' asked Philip, pushing him aside.
'Bricks,'
said Oola. 'Old bricks!'
Philip
pushed his torch through the hole and gazed at something that was certainly a
very
peculiar
thing to see just there!
His
torch lighted up what seemed like part of a brick wall! But surely that could
not be so? Who
would
build with bricks under the earth like this and why?
'It
looks as if someone built them on the other side of this hole to hide it,' said
Philip.
'Or
perhaps it's part of a wall built along some passage underground!' said Jack.
'Maybe the
wall
went past this hole and wasn't meant specially to hide it.'
'Yes
but why should a wall be built here?' said Philip. 'It's most peculiar. Tala,
come here
what
do you make of this?'
Tala
came thrusting forward. He shone his very powerful torch through the hole and
on to the
bricks.
'Ha!' he said. 'Old bricks. Very very old. Tala see bricks like this before.
Tala's father dig
them
deep deep down.'
'Whew!'
said Jack, startled.' 'It looks as if this, then, might be a place where people
long long
ago
built tombs for their kings or queens. They were big places, weren't they?
deep underground
with passages leading to them.'
'We'd
better read a few pages of those books of Mr. Uma's, in the boat,' said Philip.
'Let's go
back
and see if we can't find out something about this place surely that great
waterfall must be
marked,
for instance.'
Tala
squeezed into the hole, and struck the nearby bricks hard with the flat of his
hand. To the
boys'
utter amazement they collapsed into dust!
'Tala
clever! Tala see father do same, Tala remember!' said Tala triumphantly. 'Ai!
Ai! Now
what
you do, Oola, son of a monkey!'
Oola
had pushed Tala roughly aside and had squeezed past him, taking Tala's breath
away. He
leapt
through the broken wall and stood beyond, flashing Tala's powerful torch.
'Here,
here! A road is here!' he called, in excitement. 'Oola go!'
'Come
back, you idiot!' yelled Philip. 'Don't get separated from us. OOLA, obey!'
Oola
had already disappeared, but came back at once. 'Oola here, lord,' he said, in
a subdued
voice.
Philip looked at him sternly, and then he and Jack also got through the hole in
the wall,
followed
by the others.
Yes.
Oola was right. Here was an underground way. Was it a passage made down to some
old
tombs?
Had anyone else found it? Perhaps it was an underground cellar to some temple
or
palace?
'Come
on let's go down it,' said Jack. 'This is too exciting for words. Keep
together,
everyone.
Kiki, stop dancing about on my shoulder. Your feathers tickle. Keep still!'
'Keep
still!' repeated Kiki at the top of her voice. 'KEEP STILL!'
Then
everyone suddenly stopped in fright. An enormous giant-like voice echoed all
round them.
'KeepstillkeepstillKEEPSTILLKEEPSTILL!'
Lucy-Ann
clutched at Dinah and made her still more scared. Jack was startled at first
and then
laughed
and immediately his laugh ran round and round, and came back to him, eerie
and
scornful.
'Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha. . . .'
'Oh
dear it's only an echo,' said Jack, lowering his voice so that the echo could
not so easily
catch
it. 'It made me jump out of my skin. It's shut Kiki up all right!'
But
at that moment Kiki lifted her head and let out one of her cackles of laughter
and
immediately
everyone closed their ears in horror. The echo came at once, sounding like a
hundred
jeering
giants laughing together.
'For
goodness' sake, Kiki!' said Lucy-Ann. 'Don't do that any more!'
'Come
on,' said Jack. 'Are we all here? Where's Oola?'
But
Oola had gone. There was no sign of him.
'Blow
him!' said Jack. 'Where is he? We simply must keep together!'
'Together!'
shouted the echo. 'Together!'
'Oh,
shut up,' said Jack, angrily, and back came the echo. 'Shutupshutupshutup.'
Oola
came into sight behind a rock. He was terribly scared of the echo, for he had
never in his
life
heard one before. 'Come on, ass,' said Philip, not unkindly. 'Keep close to me.
I won't let the
echo
eat you!'
They
made their way down the sloping passage. It was quite empty. The walls were of brick,
and
here
and there an archway of brick had also been made.
'Mud
bricks,' said Jack. 'Not quite the same shape as ours more the shape of long
loaves of
bread
with rounded tops. Hallo here's a big door. Can we get through? I expect it
is locked.'
Thousands
of years ago it had not only been locked but sealed, too, for the old seal
still hung
there,
waiting to fall into dust. Jack pushed the great carved door gently and to
his horror it fell
into
fragments, giving a little sigh as it went. It was absolutely rotten!
What
was beyond? Philip flashed his torch and saw only a blank wall of rock. Then
the light
picked
out something else a flight of steps going down into the earth down, down,
down!
By
this time the little company was so excited that nothing could stop them
continuing their way
underground!
'Come on let's go down!' said Philip, and put his foot on the first step.
'Everybody
here? Follow carefully it's jolly steep. Talk about an adventure this is
the best
one
we've ever had!'
Chapter
22
THE
MYSTERY IS SOLVED
BEFORE
Philip could go down to the second step, someone pushed roughly past him,
almost making
him
fall. Oola's voice cried out loudly.
'No,
lord, no. Danger here, lord. Oola go first, lord. Oola go first!'
And
Oola began to climb down before Philip could even grab at him. 'Come back!'
yelled
Philip,
really angry. 'You hear me, Oola? Come back! What do you think you're doing.'
'Ai!
Ai!' came a doleful yell, and there was suddenly the sound of a series of
thuds. 'Ai! Ai!'
'He's
fallen,' said Jack, in alarm. 'Gosh, isn't he a little idiot! These steps may
be as rotten as
that
gate! Now what are we to do?'
Tala
called out. 'Tala go get rope. Rope in boat. Tala go now.'
There
didn't seem anything else to be done about it. Philip yelled down to Oola.
'Are
you hurt?'
'Oola
not hurt. Bump-bump-bump! Oola climb up again, lord!'
'Don't
try! You may fall even farther next time!' shouted Philip.
'Gosh
he certainly saved you from falling, Philip,' said Jack. 'You'd have gone
down with a
crash.
We were idiots not to think of that.'
'Let's
sit down while we wait for Tala,' said Dinah. 'Poor Kiki you don't like all
this, do
you?
You've lost your tongue!'
They
talked as they waited for Tala. They were all quite determined to go on. For
one thing, they
had
to find a way out, that was certain. Jack wanted to go back up the passage to
see if it led to the
open
air far above them. But Philip firmly said no.
'That
would be idiotic just now,' he said. 'We'd be properly separated then . . .
Oola down there
Tala gone to the boat and us exploring somewhere else. The main thing at the
moment is not
to
lose touch with one another. Ah is this Tala? Good old Tala, he deserves a
medal!'.
It
was Tala, with a rope from the boat. He had also brought a grappling hook,
which was very
sensible
of him.
'Rope
coming down now, Oola!' shouted Philip. Tala forced the great hook into a
jutting-out
piece
of rock. He tied the rope to it, and he and Philip let the thin, very strong
rope run down the
old
steps. Oola, down below, felt it slithering against him, and caught the rope in
his two hands.
With
Tala and Philip pulling, and his own efforts at climbing, he was soon at the
top.
'Well,
thanks for falling down instead of me,' said Philip, clapping him on the back.
'But don't
do
it again.'
'Oola
guard lord,' was all that the small boy had to say. Philip turned and spoke to
the others.
'Well,
now that we've talked over everything, we are all agreed that the best thing to
do is to go
back
to the boat and have a meal and a rest. What's the time? Half-past six gosh,
no, it's half-
past
eight! Would you believe it!'
'Half-past
eight at night?' said Lucy-Ann, and she looked at her own watch to make sure.
'Yes,
so
it is. Well, when it's as dark as this all the time, it's difficult to know
what the time is!'
'We'd
better have a meal, and a night's sleep, not just a rest,' said Jack. 'We'll
all feel fresh in
the
morning. Then what do we do, Philip?'
'We
have a good breakfast we study the books up there in the boat, in case we can
find out
anything
about this place, and get some idea whereabouts we are,' said Philip. 'Then we
tie ropes
round
our waists, we each make up a fat parcel of food, and we start off.'
'Right,
lord,' said Jack, and made everyone laugh.
'Anyone
think of anything else?' asked Philip. Nobody did, so the little party started
off back to
the
boat. Through the hole in the wall, back through the watery tunnel, and lo and
behold, there was
the
boat, rocking very gently on the big pool just off the gorge.
They
all had a meal, and Kiki ate so much that she began to hiccup.
'Hiccup!
Pardon! Hiccup! Pardon! Coin the corner!'
'Yes,
that's where you ought to go,' said Jack. 'Greedy bird. You ought to be ashamed
of
yourself!'
'Let's
get those books now and have a look at them,' said Dinah, when they had
finished their
meal.
'I'm not, a bit sleepy. I feel awfully excited, really. I just wish we could be
sure that Mother
and
Bill are all right.'
'I
don't think we need worry too much, seeing that Bill is there,' said Jack.
'He's come through
tougher
spots than this. I think Uma has put them both carefully in hiding somewhere
while he
finishes
whatever hush-hush affair he's on something away in Cinι-Town, I've no
doubt.'
'Do
you remember how he tried to pretend he was so interested in archaeology and
old buildings
and
things like that?' said Dinah. 'He thought he would put Bill off the scent!'
'Well,
pretence or not, he's got some jolly interesting books here,' said Philip, who
now had
them
all out on the deck, in front of him. 'Here, take one each and see if you can
track down this
River
of Adventure in any map, if you can find one it will be called River of Abencha,
don't
forget.'
Neither
Tala nor Oola took up a book. They had no idea how to read books of that sort
in
fact,
Oola could not read at all. They sat and lazed, feeling pleasantly full.
'Here's
a map!' said Dinah, suddenly. 'Oooh a good one too. Look, it unfolds out of
the
inside
cover of this big book. No wonder we didn't find it before!'
They
all looked at it. Jack gave an exclamation. 'It shows the river see going
all the way
down
the page. This is fine. "River of Abencha" that's the one. Now,
let's trace the villages
we've
called at.'
'Here's
Ala-ou-iya,' said Lucy-Ann. 'It's such a pretty name, I think. And I like its
meaning too
the Gateway of Kings!'
'Yes
and here's Ullabaid, where we went to see that temple, and the children were
frightened
by
Philip's snake,' said Dinah, pointing.
'And
Chaldo, see where that horrible Mr. Uma kidnapped Bill and Mother,' said
Philip. 'And
where
we took his motor-boat. And here's Hoa, where we got the water and bread.'
They
traced the river down the page, their fingers passing over the names of
villages they did not
know.
They were looking for the village of Wooti, to which Uma had probably taken
Bill and his
wife.
'Here
it is,' said Jack. 'We did pass it, then look, it's where the river begins to
widen. We
were
in midstream then, and didn't see it. Blow! We went right by it. Now see how
the river widens
in
the map!'
They
were following the curving river line with great interest. Philip gave an
exclamation.
'It
does divide look! I thought it did. See, it actually divides into three. One
bit flows to the
east,
one goes on to the south and the third one is only just a tiny line that
must be the one
that
narrows into the gorge we went into. Yes, it is.'
They
all looked. The third leg of the river was called, quite simply, 'Teo Gra',
which, Tala
explained,
meant Deep Gorge, or Tunnel. It came to a very sudden end on the map. That
seemed
strange!
'Funny!
Where does the gorge water go to eventually?' wondered Philip.
'Underground,
I should think,' said Jack. 'After all, it was pretty well underground already
when
we
shot off into this cavern. After the waterfall it must be right underground. My
word I'm glad
we
didn't go with it! We certainly should be right off the map too!'
'Well,
we've solved the mystery of the dividing river,' said Philip, pleased. 'Now
let's try and
find
out what underground cities or temples or tombs are near here. Are there any
marked on this
map?'
'There
aren't,' said Jack. 'I tell you what let's look up Ala-ou-iya, Gateway of
Kings, in
some
of these books. They might tell us something about the district round this
curious gorge.'
They
looked up Ala-ou-iya. Most of the books said exactly the same thing, to the
effect that this
part
of the country was very rich in buried palaces and temples, and that only part
had been
excavated.
'Listen
to this,' said Jack, suddenly, and began to quote. ' "It is known that in
the land around
the
strange and mysterious Deep Gorge there was once a most magnificent temple, far
exceeding in
beauty
any other temple of that day (about seven thousand years ago). Excavations have
continually
been made, as it is likely that some of the greatest finds in the history of
archaeology
will
be found here, and treasures beyond price. The temple was erected in honour of
a well-loved
goddess,
and to her were brought gifts from kings and noblemen for many many
generations. These
were
probably placed in the underground compartments of the temple, and securely
sealed.
Whether
robbers have been at work during the thousands of years since history lost
sight of the
temple
is not known." '
'I
say!' said Philip and Dinah together. 'Is it true, do you think?'
'Well
this is a very serious, solemn sort of book,' said Jack. 'I expect it doesn't
go in for
fairy-tales
only for what is true, or what is likely to be true.'
'What
about that queer passage we found and those steps leading downwards, through
that
old
door?' said Lucy-Ann, sounding quite out of breath with excitement. 'Could we
could we
possibly
have found the way to some sort of old temple or palace, do you think with
the dust of
thousands
of years burying its ruins?'
'It's
possible,' said Jack. 'After all the entrance we found is not the usual one!
I don't expect
anyone
has ever gone into this cavern before how could they? Nobody in their senses
would
ever
go into the gorge in a boat. We wouldn't have, either, if we'd studied a map
and seen it
marked.'
'And
another thing,' said Dinah. 'I bet this gorge wasn't as deep as it is now, all
those centuries
ago.
It must have been quite shallow then it takes hundreds of years to make a
deep gorge, cut
right
down into rock, like this one. I expect that all those thousands of years ago
the gorge was
quite
shallow perhaps not a gorge at all and therefore our cavern entrance
wouldn't be almost
above
water, as it is now it would be far away below it. Nobody could possibly get
into it then.'
'Dinah's
right,' said Philip. 'The river-bed would be higher than this cavern, in those
far-off
days.
That means that we have found a way underground to any old ruined cities there
are here, that
nobody
else has ever found!'
This
was a very startling thought. They stared at one another, deeply excited. And
then a loud
noise
made them jump. It was poor Tala, so tired that he was fast asleep and snoring,
even in the
midst
of this truly exciting talk.
'We'd
better try to go to sleep too,' said Jack, laughing. 'Do you know it's midnight
now? Leave
the
ship's lamp on, Philip. You can turn it down to a glimmer but I'm sure we'd
all feel happier
if
we had a night-light tonight!'
It
wasn't long before everyone was sound asleep, and the tiny glimmer of a light
showed no
movement
at all in the boat, except when Philip's snake slid out of his shirt and went
scouting
round
to find something to eat.
It
found nothing at all and had to return to the warmth of Philip's shirt, still
hungry. It settled
down
again and after that there was nothing to be heard except quiet breathing
and the
constant,
menacing roar of the torrent outside the cavern.
Chapter
23
AN
ASTOUNDING SIGHT
DINAH
woke first and switched on her torch. A quarter to eight! Goodness! She awoke
the others at
once
and they all sat up, yawning and stiff. Tala turned up the light in the ship's
lamp. He glanced
round
to see that everyone was all right.
'Ai!
Ai!' he cried. 'Oola is gone!'
'Gone!
He can't have gone!' cried Philip and, at that very moment, Oola came into
the
cavern
from outside, dripping wet!
'Where
have you been?' asked Philip, sternly. 'You are wet. Did you fall into the
water? You
cannot
swim!'
'No,
lord. Oola not fall,' said the boy. 'Oola go see waterfalling! Oola go see
wonderful thing.'
'Well,
I'm blessed!' said Philip. 'You little scamp! You might have been killed! How
did you
go?'
'Oola
show lord,' said the boy eagerly. 'Wonderful, wonderful! Lord come? Quite safe,
lord!'
He
ran along the ledge beside the water in the cavern, and stood at the opening.
He turned and
beckoned,
his face shining. 'Come, lord. Oola show you.'
'Well,
we'll see what he means,' said Jack, feeling a sudden surge of excitement. What
a thing
to
see that waterfall pouring down from the gorge, hurling itself over, and
disappearing
underground!
Oola
had his torch, for although it was day very little light penetrated down
between the tall
narrow
cliffs. Tala unhitched the ship's lamp and took that along too, feeling the
same excitement.
The
roar of the waters increased tremendously as they came to the entrance. Outside
was a broad
rocky
ledge, just above the level of the tumultuous water.
'Follow
Oola!' cried the boy. 'Safe, quite safe! Go higher soon.'
The
spray from the water about three feet below them soon soaked them through. The
ledge
went
steadily higher and was certainly broad enough to be quite safe.
Soon
it had risen to about twelve feet above the water, and now the daylight was
much stronger.
The
children snapped off their torches, and put them into their pockets.
The
roar became louder and louder and beat painfully on their ear-drums. Oola led
them
onwards
and up, and then stopped dramatically.
'Here,
lord!' he shouted, his voice quite unheard in the din of waters. 'River gone!'
The
six gathered together on a little natural platform, and gazed down. The floor
of the gorge
came
to an abrupt end just below them, and dropped in a sheer cliff of rock hundreds
of feet down.
Over
this edge poured the swirling, tumultuous water in a mass of foam and froth and
spray. It
plunged
down, and down, and down nobody could see where it ended, for it went into
utter
darkness.
Far
down below, strange lights danced and played, like little specks of rainbow,
brilliant and
glowing.
It was a strange and magnificent sight, and nobody spoke a word as they stood
and
looked.
The
spray flew so high that it fell on the platform of rock on which they stood,
drenching them
time
and again. But nobody even felt it. They were nothing but eyes and ears,
revelling in what
must
surely be one of the most astounding sights in the world!
The
gorge itself went on and on but there was no water in it beyond this spot
all the great
torrent
of river fell into this enormous fathomless hole, disappearing endlessly into
the heart of the
earth.
That was the end of the river that ran through Teo Gra, the Deep Gorge.
'Where
does it go to?' wondered Lucy-Ann, more awed than she had ever been in her
life.
'To
think that our boat might have gone over this, if Tala hadn't seen the cavern!'
thought
Philip,
and shivered to his very soul.
'How
beautiful!' thought Dinah. 'Those broken rainbows down there I shall never
forget
them
all my life long!'
'Unbelievable!'
thought Jack. 'Absolutely unbelievable!'
Tala
thought it was time to go back. How long would these children stare and stare?
He Tala,
was
hungry, and water did not make a meal. He pulled gently at Jack's sleeve.
Jack
turned, startled. Tala put his mouth to Jack's ear. 'We go back? Yes?'
'I
suppose so,' said Jack, though he could quite well have stayed there all day.
He nudged Philip,
and
together they all made their way along the sloping ledge, back to the cavern.
They
were silent for quite a while. 'I feel as if I'd been to church,' said
Lucy-Ann, voicing what
they
were all feeling. 'It was so awe-inspiring, wasn't it?'
Kiki
had not liked the continual drenching spray, and had not seen anything of the
waterfall at
all.
She had hidden herself under Jack's cardigan, afraid of the noise and afraid of
the spray. Now
she
was very glad indeed to be back in the boat, with a tin of pineapple being
opened in front of her
very
eyes!
Breakfast
was an unexpectedly hilarious meal. Everyone laughed a great deal, and Oola
surpassed
himself by laughing so much at Kiki that he actually fell over the side of the
boat.
Fortunately
he fell on to the rocky ledge beside it.
They
packed up as much food as possible when they had finished, and tied string
round it, after
wrapping
it in old papers. Tala hung two tins of lime-juice round his neck, and Oola was
also very
well
laden.
'Now
then everybody got their torches? Everybody got their parcel of food?
Everybody quite
sure
they will keep in touch with the one in front?' said Jack.
'Yes,'
answered everybody, Kiki too.
'Got
the ropes round your waist, Tala?'
'Tala
have rope,' said Tala. 'And hook. And Tala have trowel and fork!'
So
he had, all tied with string somewhere about his person. He had wanted to take
a spade too,
but
all the spades were heavy, and it didn't seem possible to drag one about all
the time, strong
though
Tala was.
'You're
carrying as much as a camel,' said Philip, with a laugh.
'Oola
carry like camel too,' said Oola at once, jealous of any praise of Tala from
his lord.
'Oh,
Oola carry like two camels!' said Philip, and the plucky little boy was happy
at once.
'Well,
I suppose it's 'goodbye to this boat,' said Philip, looking round it. He
stopped and picked
up
something.
'What's
that?' asked Dinah.
'Oh,
just an idea of mine,' said Philip. He tore a page or two out of one of Uma's
books and
stuffed
them into his pocket.
'It's
some pages that Uma marked,' he said. 'If he thought them important enough to
mark, we
may
as well take them. You never know they might come in useful!'
They
set off along the little ledge that ran alongside the water in the cavern. They
came to the
hole
that had once been backed by the old brick wall, which Tala's hand had touched
and crumbled
into
dust.
They
went through it and stood in the passage-way. It was dark all around them, save
for their
torches.
'We'd
better just explore this passage upwards and make sure that we can get out that
way,
before
we explore that exciting-looking flight of steps we found,' said Jack. 'I
expect the passage
leads
to ground-level.'
'I
sincerely hope so!' said Philip. 'Though I have my doubts. Surely if there were
a way out up
there,
other people would have found it and come in by it? Yet that sealed door that
fell into bits
was
still in place.'
'Yes
and that looks as if nobody had come down here since it was put there,' said
Dinah.
'Well
let's go on up!'
They
went upwards, shining their torches into the darkness but some way up the
passage they
came
to a full stop. A wall of stone greeted them, built right across the passage.
This
wall was not made of mud bricks that crumbled at a touch! It was made of solid
blocks of
stone,
set in rows, one above the other. Now it was plain why no one had ever come
that way! At
some
time someone must have ordered the stone wall to be built, to block up
completely the
entrance
to whatever was below.
'No
good,' said Philip, a little cold feeling gripping his heart. 'No way out here.
We'd better go
downwards
again to that old flight of steps. They may lead us somewhere!'
Chapter
24
A
STRANGE AND WONDERFUL FIND
JACK
looked at Philip in the light of the torches. Philip pursed up his lips and put
on a grim look
they
were certainly up against things now! He nodded his head towards the girls,
warning Jack not
to
frighten them. Jack nodded back.
They
went down the passage to where the rotten old gate had been. They came to the
flight of
steps.
Although these were of stone, the edges had crumbled badly, which was why Oola
had
slipped
and fallen. Even so, he had not fallen right to the bottom!
'Tala,
you and Jack hold the end of the rope,' said Philip, who had now taken command.
'Send
the
other end down the steps that's right. Now, I'll take hold of it and go down
carefully,
examining
the steps, and counting them and if I come to a rotten one I'll shout up what
number
it
is, so that when we all go down we can be extra careful when we come to that
step.'
'Good
idea,' said Jack. He and Tala held the rope firmly and Philip began to go down.
Oola was
prevented
by Tala from pushing in front and going down first, or he would have done
exactly the
same
as he had done before. He was very angry, but it was no good he had to stay
behind.
Philip
went slowly and carefully down the steps, counting as he went. 'One, two,
three, four
number
four is crumbling, Jack five, six, seven, eight, nine number nine is almost
gone
ten,
eleven . . .'
'One,
two, six five, ten!' shouted Kiki, thinking this was a number game. 'One two,
good fat
shoe,
nine ten, buckle my hen, three four . . .'
'Number
fifteen is gone and number sixteen,' called Philip.
'Four,
nine, fifteen, sixteen,' repeated Jack. 'Shout louder, Philip it's difficult
to hear you
now
you're going down low.'
'Right,'
yelled back Philip, holding tightly to the rope, afraid of missing his footing.
'These
steps
are jolly steep. You'll all have to be careful!' He went on calling up the
numbers, but when he
came
to number 39 they could hardly hear his voice. There had been so many missing
or crumbling
steps
that Lucy-Ann had had to find a pencil in Jack's pocket and scribble them down
in his
notebook.
'I'm
at the bottom now,' yelled Philip.
'WHAT?'
yelled Jack.
'I'M
AT THE BOTTOM!' yelled back Philip. 'Let Dinah come next. BE CAREFUL!'
Dinah
set off down the steps. The others heard her counting them, and when she came
to a bad
one
they shouted a warning to her. But Dinah had them all in her memory. She
managed very well
indeed,
holding hard on the rope. At last she was standing beside Philip.
Then
came Lucy-Ann. She was more afraid than Dinah, and slipped at the fifteenth
step. But her
hold
on the rope saved her, and she soon recovered her balance.
Then
Jack came, steady and sure of foot. It seemed a very long way down. The steps
were very
steep
at times, and the hole down which they went was not very wide.
'Now
that's us four here,' said Philip, shining his torch. 'Tala, send Oola down!'
he shouted.
But
Tala came next instead. He explained that Oola wanted to come down last of all,
and didn't
need
the rope. He had sent it slithering down the steps after Tala had reached the
bottom.
'He'll
fall and break his leg,' said Jack, vexed. 'He's a fathead!'
But
even as he spoke Oola was beside them, grinning in the light of the torches.
Now that he
knew
that so many steps were rotten, he had been careful. He was as sure-footed as a
cat in his bare
feet.
'Oola
here, lord,' he announced to Philip.
'Now
where do we go from here?' wondered Philip. He shone his torch in front of
him. There
was
another passage there, narrower than the one above the steps. Its walls were
made of the same
kind
of bricks they had seen before. The children did not dare to touch them in case
they too fell
into
dust. There was something rather horrible about that!
They
went along the passage, which sloped quite steeply downwards, and came to an
archway,
also
built of bricks.
'I
suppose they kept making these archways in order to strengthen the roof of the
passages,' said
Jack.
'It's amazing that some of them haven't fallen in.'
'I
bet a lot of them have,' said Dinah. 'I hope nobody sneezes while we're down
here I feel as
if
it might bring the roof crashing in on top of us.'
'Don't,'
said Lucy-Ann, sharply. 'I'm afraid of that too.'
The
passage led them to a kind of room, almost round, with a great door at the
farther end. The
children
stopped and flashed their torches round. In one corner was a curious heap of many
things,
and
they went over to them.
But
even as they came near, the sound of their footsteps disturbed the air enough
to make the
little
heap crumble into dust! With small sighs it settled into a much smaller heap
but one thing
still
stood, solid and bright.
'What
is it?' said Dinah, not daring to touch it. Very carefully Jack picked it up.
It shone
brightly.
'A
bowl!' he said. 'A golden bowl! Set with stones, look, all round the edge. Gold
is one of the
things
that never perishes, or loses its colour and this bowl has lasted all through
the centuries!
Isn't
it lovely!'
They
all looked at it in awe. How old was it? Three, four, five thousand years old?
Who had
used
it? Who had carved these camels round it? It was beautiful!
'This
must be priceless,' said Philip, in wonder. 'It must have contained offerings
to some god
or
goddess that the people of those days worshipped. My word this is wonderful!'
'Philip
do you think is it possible that we're near the lost temple of that well-loved
goddess
you read about in Uma's book?' asked Lucy-Ann.
'I
should think it's quite possible,' said Philip, running his hand round the
bowl. 'We may even
now
be getting near to the temple itself or perhaps we are under it and coming
to the
compartments
beneath it where gifts were stored! My word no, surely such a thing couldn't
really
happen!'
'It
might it might!' said Dinah, excitement almost choking her voice.
Oola
and Tala were most interested in the bowl, particularly Tala. 'Gold!' he said,
tapping the
bowl.
'Tala know gold. This gold!'
'Carry
it, Tala,' said Philip, 'and don't dare to drop it! Now, what about this door?
It is sealed.'
Oola
ran to it, and shook the great seal. It dropped into his hands! Philip went to
the door and
pushed
at it. It suddenly sagged on its hinges and then fell away from them, hanging
oddly
sideways,
leaving a gap big enough for everyone to climb through.
And
now it was quite obvious that they were in some old and mighty building! Here
were great
rooms,
stretching one into the other, some with doors that had crumbled, some with no
doors at all.
'They're
rather like great cellars,' said Jack, as their torches shone down square
compartments
built
of stone, and then on oblong ones, then on communicating passages. It was a
vast labyrinth,
and
piled everywhere were strange heaps of unrecognisable things. Everything had
perished except
what
was made of metal or stone.
'Look
here's a tiny statue, standing in a niche of its own,' said Lucy-Ann, and she
picked it
up.
It was carved out of some curious stone most beautifully done, with every
fold of the robes
lovingly
wrought. They all looked at it. How old was it? How many many centuries ago had
some
craftsman
toiled over it in delight for weeks or months? Who had brought it to the temple
to give to
the
goddess? They would never know!
They
began to examine some of the things set in heaps. Gold always stood out well,
for its
colour
was unchanged and there was much gold! Gold statues, gold bowls, gold combs,
gold
ear-rings,
gold ornaments . . .
In
one small square room there were swords, their hilts set with precious stones.
What stones?
Nobody
knew! Jack picked up a dagger whose hilt was carved and ornamented with gold.
'I'd like
this!'
he said.
'We
can't take anything!' said Philip. 'Except what we need in order to show the
value of our
discovery.'
'Right.
Then I'll take this dagger,' said Jack, and stuck it into his belt.
'I'll
take this gold comb,' said Dinah. 'I'll wear it in my hair!'
'I'll
have this tiny statue,' said Lucy-Ann. 'I wish it really could be mine it's
beautiful. But,
of
course, these things can never belong to any one person they belong to the
whole world,
because
they are bits of real, long-ago history.'
'You've
said exactly what I was thinking myself, Lucy-Ann,' said Philip. 'I'm taking
along this
cup
at least, I think it's a cup. It's gold and look at the carvings of bulls
all round it!
Marvellous!'
They
went on until at last they came to the end of the store-rooms. They felt quite
bemused by
the
thousands of things they had seen! No robbers had been here, that was certain.
Here were
treasures
that had been undisturbed through all the ages that had passed since they had
been given
to
the goddess of the temple!
'Lord,
Oola wants sun,' said Oola to Philip. 'Oola no like dark. No like this place.'
'Well
I expect we all feel that we want a bit of sun,' said Philip. 'But has anyone
seen a way
upwards,
a way out of these underground cellars? I haven't!'
Chapter
25
IS
THERE A WAY OUT?
THEY
had all been so interested and absorbed in the treasure they had found that
they had quite
forgotten
their danger. Jack sat down on a stone seat. He sat down gingerly, half afraid
it might
crumble
as did so many things in these storerooms. But it was of stone, and bore his
weight safely.
'There
must have been some way down to these store-rooms,' he said. 'Two or three
ways, I
should
have thought, because they're so vast in extent. Anyone see any steps
downwards?'
'Only
those we came in by,' said Philip. 'Maybe that was the only entrance.'
'No.
I should think that was a secret entrance, used by the priests,' said Jack.
'There must have
been
some more usual way into this place. I imagine that the temple itself was
immediately
overhead
it must have been an enormous place!'
'Yes
but don't run away with the idea that it's there still, rising magnificently
into the air!'
said
Philip. 'It was in ruins thousands of years ago, and other buildings may have
been set above it,
and
yet others above them! We may be far down under the earth and probably are.
You read bits
of
those books in Uma's boat, didn't you? We are in a long-ago, lost, forgotten
place, which we
have
happened on by chance.'
Everyone
listened to this in silence. Lucy-Ann gave a little shiver. Long-ago lost
forgotten
they were somehow sad, frightening words. It was strange, too, to think that
above their heads
might
be ruins of several other temples, also lost and forgotten.
'I
want to get out of here,' said Lucy-Ann, suddenly. 'I feel frightened now.'
'Let's
have something to eat,' said Jack at once. Everyone always felt better after a
meal, he had
noticed
even Lucy-Ann, whose imagination was more vivid and sensitive than that of
the others!
So
they sat down in one of the temple storerooms, and enlivened the centuries-old
silence by
chatter
and even laughter, for Kiki decided to join in the meal and the chattering too.
'Where's
your hanky?' she demanded of the surprised Tala. 'Blow your nose! One, two, how
do
you
do? Wipe your feet, knock-knock, who's at the door? A-whoooooosh-oo!'
Her
sneeze was so realistic that Tala and Oola stared in wonder. Then Kiki
practised various
kinds
of hiccups, and Tala gave one of his guffaws, which echoed round and round the
little stone
chamber
in a most remarkable way, quite silencing Kiki. It also disturbed a small,
mouldering heap
of
things in a nearby corner, and they subsided with one of the queer little sighs
that the children
now
knew so well.
'There,
Tala see what your laugh has done,' said Jack, pointing. 'You'll have the
whole place
down
on our heads if you laugh as loudly as that!'
Tala
was quite horrified. He gazed at the roof by the light of his torch as if he
really thought it
might
be coming down. Oola gazed too. He was very silent, and obviously scared and
unhappy. He
kept
very near to Philip.
Tala
threw down the wrapping from his sandwiches. 'No you don't, Tala!' said Jack,
at once.
'Pick
that up! It's impossible to litter up a place like this with modern
newspapers!'
Tala
picked up the paper, looking as if he thought that Jack was quite crazy. Philip
felt about in
his
pocket, and pulled out the two or three pages he had torn out of one of Uma's
books the ones
on
which Uma had made notes.
'I'll
just have a look at these,' he said. 'I don't expect they'll be of any help,
but they might. I
have
an idea that this place we're in is the one that interests Uma and, knowing
what is here
through
seeing it with our own eyes, I am beginning to feel that we've made a big
mistake about
Uma.'
'How
do you mean?' asked Jack. 'We were more or less certain that he was using his
"hobby"
of
archaeology to cover up his real affairs in Cinι-Town, weren't we? Do you mean
that we were
wrong?'
'Yes.
I think his real business is archaeology!' said Philip. 'But not because he is
interested in
history
or old buildings oh no! All that Uma is interested in is getting at the priceless
treasure
that
he thinks may be here! He's just a mean, ordinary robber all his digging is
merely to find
and
steal the kind of treasure we can see around us this very minute! He is after
such things as that
gold
bowl we gave Tala to carry, and . . .'
'Yes!
You're right!' cried Jack. 'And probably just as he is feeling that his
excavating is almost
at
an end, and he'll soon be able to take what he wants, along comes Bill! And
Uma's afraid,
because
he knows Bill's reputation, and is certain he's come out here to watch him!'
'That's
it!' said Philip. 'And he makes his plans carefully kidnaps Bill and Mother
plans
to
get us out of the way too and to finish his digging and clear off with the
spoils!'
'Whew!'
said Dinah, quite overcome by all this explanation. 'I think you're right! And
what
happens
is that we go off in Uma's boat, and actually find the treasure chambers
ourselves!'
'Yes
but we're up against a very big snag,' said Philip, soberly. 'We don't know
how to get
out
of here!'
'Have
a look at those notes of Uma's. See if there's anything in them to help us,'
said Lucy-
Ann.
'He was looking for this place, wasn't he? and you said that you thought he
had almost
finished
his excavations so his digging must have brought him very near these treasure
chambers!
Look at his notes!'
Philip
spread out the marked pages on the floor, and Tala shone his powerful torch on
them. The
children
knelt down to examine them.
On
one page was a list of the buildings that were known to have been built over
the site of the
great
temple. Uma had put ticks beside them, and also the word 'Trouvι'.
'Trouvι!
That's French for found,' said Jack. 'That means that in his digging he has
come across
some
of these other remains and has dug through them. Yes he's done well. He must
be very
near
here in his digging. I wonder how many men he's got on the job. It's usually a
very long job,
isn't
it, Philip?'
'Not
if you're merely a robber and not an archaeologist!' said Philip. 'A man really
interested in
old
things would not dig straight through them, destroying all kinds of interesting
bits of history
he
would go carefully, bit by bit sifting the soil, examining everything. But
Uma . . .'
'Yes
Uma's only a robber! All he'd do is to pay natives to dig, and tell them
where and to
dig
fast!' said Jack, interrupting. 'Gosh he's clever!'
'Not
clever,' said Dinah. 'Just smart! Horrible man! Do you suppose his men are
digging over
our
heads this very minute?'
'Maybe!'
said Philip. 'Hallo, look here's a little map he's drawn. Is that any use to
us?'
They
pored over it, but could not make out what it was meant to be. Philip sighed.
'Well
except
that they give us an idea of Uma's real business, these papers aren't much
help. Come on
let's
really hunt for an exit. There simply must be some way out of these underground
chambers
into
the temple that was above.'
They
wandered all over the store-rooms again, becoming very tired of the darkness
and the
mustiness,
which seemed to be more 'smellable' now, as Dinah kept pointing out. Oola was
frankly
miserable,
and trailed along after his lord, dragging his bare feet dejectedly.
They
sat down again at last in the biggest store-room of all. 'The only thing I can
think of is to
climb
up those steps again, and go all the way back to the boat,' said Philip at
last. 'I honestly don't
see
any sense in staying here any longer there doesn't seem to be ANY way out!'
'What's
the good of going back to the boat?' said Jack, gloomily. 'There's no way of
escape
from
that cavern!'
'I
don't know about that,' said Philip. 'You remember that rocky platform that
Oola took us to
where we looked down and saw the river disappearing far below? Well, there
might be a chance
of
climbing up and up the sides of the cliff at the side of the gorge, and getting
to the top.'
'Impossible!'
said Jack. 'I had a jolly good look when we were there. Still we'll go back
and
see.
I agree that it's no good sitting here. Nobody's likely to rescue us!'
Most
dispiritedly they made their way back through the vast range of store-chambers.
They
came
to the door that still hung partly on its hinges, and climbed past it into the
room where they
had
found the beautiful golden bowl, and then through that and into the narrow
passage beyond,
that
led to the steep steps.
'Oola
go up first, you climb like a cat,' said Philip. 'Tala, give him the rope to
take up, and
the
grappling hook. Oola, lord needs help. Oola must run up steps carefully CAREFULLY
with
rope and hook. Oola understand?'
Oola
was a different being at once, now that he thought they were leaving the great
rooms down
below.
He nodded eagerly and took the rope. Ah he was doing something for his lord
something
important. He, Oola, and not Tala! Very proudly he began to climb the steps,
feeling
each
with his hands before he trod on it. He slipped once, but managed not to fall.
At
last he was at the top, and yelled down.
'Oola
here! Oola safe! Here come rope!'
Oola
let the rope slither down the steps, carefully holding the other end himself.
He had tied it to
the
big hook, which he now stuck firmly into a jutting-out rock as he had seen Tala
do before.
The
rope tightened in his hands, and he knew that someone was climbing. Perhaps his
lord?
Oola
held on tightly, bracing himself behind a rock, in case Philip slipped and had
to pull on the
rope
to save himself.
And
then Oola heard something that scared him almost to death! It was a knocking
sound away
up
the passage behind him! Knock-knock thud, thud, thud! Oola's heart turned
over and he fell
to
the ground in fright, letting the rope go slack.
At
once he heard Philip's voice. 'Tighten the rope, Oola it's slack! Hey, what
are you doing?'
Knock-knock-thud-thud!
Was it the old gods and goddesses coming back, angry because people
had
been in their temple? Oola screamed loudly, and Philip almost fell down the
steps in alarm.
'The
gods! They come!' screamed Oola. 'They come!'
Chapter
26
'THE
GODS! THEY COME!'
PHILIP
couldn't hear what the boy was screaming and he was most alarmed. He hurriedly
climbed
the
rest of the steps, trying to be extra careful, for Oola had forgotten all about
holding the rope
tight,
he was so terrified.
'Oola!
What's up? What are you screaming for?' demanded Philip, as soon as he had
reached
the
top.
'The
gods!' wept Oola, pointing up the passage. 'They come. Hark, lord!'
Philip
had heard nothing but Oola's screaming when he was climbing the steps but now
to his
startled
ears came the sound of the knocking that Oola had heard!
Knock-knock-knock-knock!
Thud!
Philip
stared up the dark passage, his heart beating. For one wild moment Oola's
terror infected
him,
and he imagined angry gods demanding entry. What was that noise?
He
turned and called down. 'Come up, quickly! Something's happening!'
His
hands trembling, he held the rope as tightly as he could, with Oola clinging to
his knees,
quite
crazy with fright. Dinah came up, alarmed at Philip's shout. As soon as she
stood beside him
she
heard the knocking too and was very scared, especially as she heard Oola's
continual plaintive
moans.
'The
gods! They come! They come!'
The
others climbed up, Tala last. As soon as he heard the knocking he turned in
fright to go
down
the steps again, missed his footing and rolled howling to the bottom. He too
thought that the
gods
had come to revenge themselves on the little company of people who had dared to
wander
through
their temple rooms!
Philip
had no time to think of the terrified Tala, nor even to wonder if he were hurt.
He had to
decide
what to do about the knocking. Where exactly did it come from?
'It's
somewhere up the passage and we know there's no way in, because we've been
there
and
seen the wall of stone that is built right across!' said Philip. 'Jack do you
think it is Uma and
his
men?'
'Can't
be anyone else,' said Jack. 'Do shut up, Oola. I can't hear myself speak.'
Knock-knock-knock!
'They
come, they come!' moaned Oola, still clinging to Philip's knees.
'Uma
must have found a plan or map that somehow enabled him to dig down to this
passage,'
said
Philip, thinking hard. 'But instead of coming in at this side of that stone
wall, they dug down
just
behind it. They must be trying to break the wall down. What a hope!'
'They'll
do it, though,' said Jack, listening. 'They've got some powerful tools. Quick,
Philip,
what's
our plan?'
'Can't
think of one. It's all so sudden!' groaned Philip. 'Gosh, I'm glad to know that
at any rate
we'll
be able to get out of here!'
'Uma
won't be pleased to see us, if it's really him and his men,' said Jack,
soberly. 'Well, we
can't
do anything but wait. Philip, I'm afraid Uma is going to rifle those temple
store-chambers
now
and take away things that are of absolutely priceless value. I don't see how
we can prevent
that.'
'I
wish we could!' said Philip, and the girls echoed his wish. It was shocking to
think of Uma
and
his gang of robbers stripping those old rooms of the marvellous treasures there.
The knocking
went
on and on, and they all stood and listened. Obviously the stone wall was very
strong!
Then
suddenly part of the wall gave way, and one of the big stones fell into the
passage with a
crash.
The children heard it, though they were not near enough to see what had
happened.
'The
wall's giving way,' said Jack. 'They'll soon be through. Just stand here
quietly and wait.
Oola,
stop that awful row. These are not gods who are coming, but men.'
'No,
no Oola say gods! Tala say gods!' moaned Oola. Tala had now climbed up the
steps
again,
feeling his bruises with horror, and quite determined that, gods or no gods, he
was not going
to
fall down those steps again. But as soon as he heard the knocking he almost
repeated his
performance,
and only just clutched the rope in time. Fortunately the grappling hook held
and he
pulled
himself to safety.
Another
crash. That would be the stone next to the first one. Now it would be easy for
the men
to
prise out two more and then creep in through the hole.
Crash!
Thud! Then came shouts, echoing down the passage. Tala listened in
astonishment. Why
these gods were speaking in his own language! He began seriously to doubt
whether they could
be
gods! Oola listened too and stood up. Who were these gods who talked as men
who spoke the
same
words as he and Tala?
A
light shone far away up the passage. 'One of the men is through,' said Philip.
'Ah there's
another
light. Two men are through. Here they come!'
Two
men, carrying torches, came down the passage cautiously, flashing the light
here and there
to
see what kind of place they were in. They came suddenly upon the silent group
of children, with
Tala
behind, and stared as if they could not believe their eyes. Philip stepped
forward, about to
speak.
But,
in absolute panic, the men fled at top speed back to the broken wall, shouting
in terror.
'Men
frightened,' said Oola, in great satisfaction. 'Men go.'
'Come
on let's go to the wall and get through it ourselves,' said Philip. 'I'm
longing for some
good
clean air and the sun on my shoulders. I daresay it's a long long way up to the
sun, but
however
long the climb it will be worth it!'
They
all moved up the passage, and came to the stone wall. Tala shone his big torch
on it, and
they
saw that four great stones had been prised out and had fallen into the passage.
'Come on,' said
Philip.
'You go first, Jack, and we'll follow.'
But
at that moment a man looked through the hole, and shone a torch right on to
them. He
whistled.
'So
the men were right. There is someone here and surely surely it's Bill's
little lot! Well,
I'm
blessed is this a dream? How did you get here?'
'Never
mind that,' said Philip, coldly. 'We have plenty of questions to ask you, Mr.
Uma!
Where
are Bill and my mother? Are they safe?'
Mr.
Uma didn't answer. He ran his torch quickly over the little group to see how
many there
were.
'Was it you who took my motor-boat?' he asked, abruptly. 'Where is it?'
'Never
mind that,' repeated Philip. 'Tell me about my mother and Bill. You're going to
get into
trouble
about all this, Mr. Uma. We know all about your plans you're nothing but a
robber!'
'You
hold your tongue!' shouted Mr. Uma, suddenly losing his temper. 'How did you
get here?
There's
no way in except this.'
'Oh
yes there is,' said Philip. 'But it isn't one you are ever likely to find! Now,
let us out of this
hole,
and tell us where to find Bill.'
Mr.
Uma then addressed Tala in his own language, and by his angry tone and fierce
expression
he
was threatening Tala with all sorts of things. Tala listened stolidly to the
questions and threats
thrown
at him.
'Tala
not know, Tala not know,' he kept answering, in English, which really
infuriated Mr.
Uma.
'What's
he saying, Tala?' asked Philip.
'He
say, how come we here? He say he catch us all, no let us go. He say many bad
things. He
bad
man.' Tala suddenly spat at Mr. Uma, who immediately flung his torch at him,
hitting him on
the
cheek. Tala laughed, bent down, picked up the torch, and put it into his
waist-cloth. Then he
stood
gazing stolidly at the angry Mr. Uma.
Mr.
Uma shook his fist and then disappeared. They heard him shouting for his men.
'He
send men tie us up,' said Tala, listening. 'Mr. Uma bad man, very bad man.'
'Will
he really have us tied up?' asked Dinah, fearfully.
'I
shouldn't be surprised,' said Jack. 'He needs us out of the way while he steals
what he wants
from
those treasure-chambers. Then, when he has taken all the best and most valuable
things, he'll
be
off, and we'll be set free I hope!'
'Beast!'
said Dinah, fiercely. 'I suppose he's got Mother and Bill tied up somewhere
too.'
'Yes.
Probably in his house at Chaldo,' said Philip. 'What are we to do? We can't
fight a whole
lot
of men!'
'Let's
climb through that hole in the cavern wall, and get back to the boat,' said
Jack, suddenly.
'Quite
a good idea,' said Philip. 'Except that it leaves Uma free to rifle all through
those
storerooms,
and take what he pleases and I've been hoping somehow we might be able to
stop
him.'
'We're
too late,' said Lucy-Ann. 'Here come the men!'
She
was right. A man came through the hole in the wall, and then another and
another. It was too
late
now to run, for the men would follow them and see where they went. So the
children stood
their
ground. Kiki, who had been silent for some time, was very excited when she saw
the men
squeezing
through the hole. She jigged up and down on Jack's shoulder and gave a loud
screech,
which
startled the men considerably.
There
were now six men through the wall, and they came menacingly towards the
children.
'Keep
off,' said Philip, commandingly. 'Don't lay hands on us, or you will get into
serious
trouble
with the police!'
'Police!'
screamed Kiki at once. 'Police! Fetch the police! PHEEEEEEEEEEEE!
PHEEEEEEEEEEE!'
The
men stopped abruptly, startled almost out of their wits. The shrill whistle
that Kiki gave
echoed
round and round the passage in a very terrifying manner. 'PHEEEEEEE,
PHEEEEEEEE,
PHEEEEEEE.'
It went on and on and then, to crown everything, Kiki added her noise of a
motor-car
back-firing. 'Pop! Crack! Crack!' These joined the whistling echoes, and
alarmed the
men
so much that they turned and ran for the wall, adding their own screams to the
crazy chorus of
echoes!
The
children laughed as they watched the men scramble through the wall in a panic.
'Thanks,
Kiki,' said Jack, stroking the parrot's feathers. 'For once in a way I shall
not say "Be
quiet!"
You just came in at the right moment!'
Chapter
27
WHAT
NOW?
TALA
laughed heartily as he saw the men scrambling to get away from the mysterious
noises. His
enormous
guffaws filled the passage too. Oola danced about and clapped his hands in
glee. Both
appeared
to think that now that they had put the men to flight all their troubles were
over.
But
the children knew better. They turned gravely to one another. 'Should we try to
get through
the
hole ourselves, now there's a chance?' said Philip.
'I
don't know. We are comparatively safe here, now that the men have been so
frightened,' said
Jack.
'What do you think, Tala? Will those men come back?'
'Men
frighted, very frighted,' said Tala, showing all his white teeth. 'Men no come
back. Never
come
back. We go, then?'
'No.
Wait a bit,' said Jack. 'We don't want to walk out of the frying-pan into the
fire. The men
will
go to Uma, and tell him what happened and he'll perhaps lie in wait for us,
hoping to catch
us
as we climb through the wall.'
Tala
nodded. 'That good talk. We wait. Uma much bad man.'
They
sat down and waited. Nothing happened for a while, and then a man came to the
hole in
the
wall. He wore a turban and white robes.
'I
would speak with you,' he called, in a voice that was not quite English. Philip
thought he
might
be a good-class native, and waited to see what he would say.
'I
would come through the wall. I would speak with you,' repeated the man.
'Come
through, then,' said Philip, wondering who the man was.
The
man squeezed through the hole and came over to the children. He had a very
polite manner,
and
bowed gravely to them all.
'May
I sit with you?'
'You
may,' said Philip, on his guard. 'Why do you come?'
'I
come to tell you that my friend, Mr. Raya Uma, is sad that he has frightened
you,' said the
man.
'He was how do you say it? startled at your being here. He said things
that he is
sorry
for.'
Nobody
said a word. Jack and Philip were all ears. What was Mr. Uma's little game now?
'His
men have been to him to say that they will not work for him any more,' went on
the man, in
his
soft voice. 'They are too afraid. That is bad news for him. He must get others.
So he has sent me
to
say that you may go unmolested. He will see that you are set on the right road,
and he will lend
you
his biggest car, so that you may go back to Chaldo in safety.'
'Why
Chaldo?' asked Philip, at once.
'Because
it is there that he has Mr. Bill and his wife,' said the soft-spoken man. 'You
will join
them
and can then do what you will. Is this agreeable to you?'
'Who
are you?' asked Jack, bluntly.
'I
am his friend,' said the man. 'But I am not so hasty as he. I said he was wrong
to frighten you,
you
are but children. He listens to me, as you see. Now will you accept his
generous offer? He is
sincerely
sorry for his foolishness.'
'Go
and tell him we will think it over,' said Jack. 'We need to talk about it. We
do not trust Mr.
Uma,
your friend.'
'That
is sad,' said the man, and he stood up. 'I go to wait outside the wall, and you
will come to
tell
me when you have talked together. We are agreed?'
The
man suddenly saw the golden bowl beside Tala, and stared at it in surprise.
'Where
did you get that?' he asked. 'May I see it?' He bent down to pick it up, but
Tala snatched
it
away, standing up with it held high in his hands. Uma's friend reached up for
it, his white sleeves
falling
back over his bare arms. But Tala would not release his hold on the bowl. He
said something
rude
in his own language, and the man looked as if he were about to strike him. But
he recovered
himself,
bowed and walked off to the hole in the wall. He squeezed through it and stood
waiting on
the
other side.
'Well
what about it?' said Philip.
Jack
shook his head vehemently. 'No, no, no! Didn't you notice something when he
reached up
to
get the bowl from Tala? He's no friend of Mr. Uma's!'
'Who
is he, then?' said everyone, astonished.
'He's
Mr. Uma himself!' said Jack. 'Didn't you see his right fore-arm when he reached
up for
that
bowl? His sleeve fell back and there, on his arm, was the white scar of an
old wound just
like
a curving snake!'
There
was a dead silence. Then Philip whistled. 'My word!' he said. 'The daring of it
coming
to
us like that the cunning! It never once occurred to me that it was Mr. Uma
himself all got
up
like a high-class native speaking the same kind of broken English. My, he's a
cunning
fellow!
No wonder all those photos of him looked as if they were of different men!'
'Well!'
said Dinah, astounded. 'Fancy having the nerve to come and talk to us like
that! Trying
to
persuade us to walk right into a clever little trap. Good thing you saw that
snake-like scar, Jack!'
'Good
thing Bill told us about it!' said Jack. 'Well what do we do now? Go and tell
him it's
no
go, we know who he is?'
'Yes,'
said Philip, getting up. 'Come on, we'll tell him now, Jack. You others stay
here.'
The
boys walked up the passage to the wall. Mr. Uma, his hands folded inside his
robes, waited
impassively,
looking for all the world like a distinguished native.
'Mr.
Uma,' said Philip, boldly, 'we say no to your little trap.'
'What
do you mean?' said the man. 'I am not Mr. Uma! I am his friend. Do not be
insolent,
boy.'
'You
are Mr. Uma,' said Philip. 'We saw the snake-like scar on your right arm your
mark,
Mr.
Uma, and a good one too for your ways are surely as cunning as a snake's!'
Mr.
Uma cast away his soft voice and polite manners. He screamed at them, both his
fists in the
air.
'You
bring it upon yourselves! I will teach you a lesson! You think you will walk
out of here
and
up to the sun. You will not! You will not! I will block up this hole and you
shall not come this
way!'
'We'll
go out the way we came, then,' said Jack, boldly. 'This is not the only way
in.'
'Ah,
you cannot go out the way you came in!' said Mr. Uma. 'If you could, you would
have left
by
now. I am not so foolish as you think. You need a lesson, and you shall have
it!'
He
called loudly, leaning away from the stone. 'Come here, men. Come! I have work
for you to
do!'
The
children and Tala and Oola were now all beside the wall, listening. No men came
in answer
to
Mr. Uma's call. He shouted again in a language the children could not follow,
and this time two
men
came, very reluctantly.
'Bring
bricks! Block up this hole!' commanded Uma. The natives stared at him sullenly,
looking
fearfully
in through the hole, remembering what their comrades had said when they had
come back
from
the passage beyond.
Uma
began to talk very fast to them, and the men listened with sudden interest.
'What's
he saying, Tala?' asked Jack.
'He
promise gold,' said Tala. 'He say they rich men if they obey. Much, much rich.'
The
men looked at one another and nodded. They went off and came back with a pile
of bricks.
A
third man brought mortar, and the blocking up of the hole began.
The
little company inside were in despair. They knew that they could go back to the
boat and
find
plenty of food, and could get fresh air outside the cavern but for how long
was Uma going
to
imprison them? They would have to give in sooner or later. They watched the
gradual filling-in
of
the hole and then Philip suddenly had an idea!
He
put his hand inside his shirt and gently eased out the bargua snake he still
cherished. He slid
the
bright green creature on to the edge of the small hole still left in the wall,
and held it there.
'Mr.
Uma!' he called. 'Mr. Uma are you there? Here is something for you!
Uma
came at once to the wall, and put his face near to the hole, shining his torch
into it. He saw
the
writhing bargua snake at once. He gave a scream of real panic as the snake came
gliding out.
The
three men outside saw it too, dropped their tools and fled, shouting in terror.
'Bargua!
Bargua!'
Nobody
could see what happened next, for the other side of the hole was now in
complete
darkness.
The children could hear nothing, after the cries had died away in the distance.
'Tala
break wall,' said Tala, suddenly. He took the little trowel he still had
hanging round his
neck
and attacked the wall vigorously, Oola helping him with his bare hands. The
mortar was still
soft
and it was not very difficult to force out the roughly-set bricks and make the
hole as big as it
was
before.
'Good,
Tala good, Oola!' said Philip. 'Now, out we all get as quickly as possible,
while the
bargua
is still scaring everyone. Ready?'
They
squeezed out one by one and found themselves in a very narrow passage,
evidently quite
newly
excavated. They went along it and came to what looked like a shaft going
straight up. Rough
steps
were cut in the side and a rope hung down as a handhold.
'Well
up we go!' said Philip, shining his torch upwards. 'Good luck, everybody
this is our
only
chance of escape!'
Chapter
28
UMA
IS IN TROUBLE
IT
was a long and difficult way up the deep shaft. Philip reached the top first,
feeling quite worn
out,
for the footholds were none too good, and it was tiring work climbing,
climbing, climbing,
with
only a thin rope to pull on.
He
found himself still in darkness at the top, in a small narrow tunnel that
sloped upwards. He
stood
at the top of the shaft to help Lucy-Ann out and then went to see where the
passage led. It led
to
another shaft, but a much shorter one, for Philip could see daylight at the
top. His heart leapt.
Daylight
again! What a wonderful thing!
Soon
all the others had arrived safely up the shaft, though Tala was complaining
bitterly. 'Tala
slip,'
he said. 'Tala hold rope, Tala burn hand, see!'
Poor
Tala! He had slipped, and had slid down the rope so fast that he had scorched
his hands on
it.
Philip handed him his handkerchief.
'Here
you are. Bind it round,' he said. 'There is no time to make a fuss. I wish I
could see my
bargua
snake somewhere, but I can't.'
'You
surely didn't expect it to climb the shaft, Philip!' said Dinah.
'Snakes
can wriggle anywhere,' said Philip. 'Come on! There's another shaft to climb
then
daylight!'
Everyone
was delighted to hear that. They were soon climbing the next shaft, which was
very
much
easier because it had a rope ladder hanging down the side. They were soon at
the top.
'It's
heaven to stand in the daylight again!' said Lucy-Ann, blinking at the
brightness around.
'And
doesn't this sun feel good, Dinah! Oh, Philip you're surely not looking for
the bargua up
here!
It couldn't climb two shafts, poor thing!'
Dinah
was secretly very glad indeed that the spotted bargua had gone, but she didn't
dare to say
so,
for it had been the cause of their sudden freedom. She stood looking round
eagerly, delighting
in
the sunshine.
They
were in a most desolate spot. 'Like a builder's yard in the middle of a dusty,
sandy desert!'
she
said, and they all agreed.
'Where
is everyone?' wondered Jack. 'Oh there are the men over there. What are they
doing
bending down over something.'
The
men heard the voices and looked round. Then one of them came running at top
speed,
leaping
over the mounds of dug-up earth. He prostrated himself in front of Philip and
Jack, calling
out
something in his own language.
'What
does he say?' asked Philip, turning to Oola and Tala, puzzled at the man's
urgency.
Oola
laughed triumphantly. 'He say bargua snake bite his master. He say master very
frighted,
will
die, because bargua poison-snake. He say Mr. Uma want speak with you.'
The
children looked at each other, and smiled small, secret smiles. They knew that
the bargua
snake
had no poison, but it had bitten Mr. Uma and now he thought he was certain to
die unless
he
was taken to a doctor at once and treated for snake-bite!
'Could
your bargua bite?' asked Dinah, in a low voice. 'Even though it has no poison?'
Philip
nodded. 'Oh yes but its bite is now harmless. Well this is rather funny.
Let's go and
talk
to Mr. Uma. He's evidently feeling very sorry for himself.'
They
went over to where he was lying on the ground, so frightened that his brown
face was
almost
white. He was holding his right arm and groaning.
'That
snake it bit me,' he said to Philip. 'You'll have caused my death unless you
help to take
me
to Cinι-Town at once. There are good doctors there they may save me.'
'Your
man Jallie told us that you had taken Bill and my mother to Wooti,' said
Philip, sternly.
'Answer
me. Is that so? Are they there?'
'Yes.
And the motor-launch too,' said Mr. Uma, feebly. 'We will go there at once. Mr.
Bill can
take
me in his launch to Cinι-Town, away up the river he shall find me a doctor.
Help me, boy. I
may
not have long to live. Have mercy it was your snake that bit me!'
Philip
turned away, scorning this man who now cried for mercy and for help, although a
short
while
back he had given orders to his men to brick them into the underground passage.
He spoke to
Tala.
'Arrange
this, Tala. There is a lorry over there, and a van. Tell the men to put Mr. Uma
into the
van,
and we will come in the lorry. Mr. Uma will know the way. You drive the lorry,
Tala, then if
there
is any trickery you can put your foot down hard and race us to safety.'
But
there was no trickery this time. Mr. Uma was in such a panic over the
snake-bite that all he
wanted
to do was to get to Wooti and beg Bill to take him to Cinι-Town as soon as
possible.
They
set off, the van leading the way and Tala following after in the lorry. Both
were
exceedingly
well-sprung, strong vehicles, and this was just as well, for there was no real
road to
speak
of. The lorry and van jerked and jolted over hills and mounds, and poor Mr.
Uma, lying in
the
van, cried out in misery as he rolled from side to side. He was not really ill,
but he was so
certain
that his whole body was being poisoned by the snake-bite that he was sure he
had aches and
pains
all over!
It
was a long way to Wooti, but they got there at last. Mr. Uma gave his driver a
few directions
when
they arrived, and both lorry and van stopped outside a shack set by itself
beside a desolate
cart-track.
The
driver got down and took some keys from Mr. Uma. He unlocked the door of the
shack and
out
came Bill at once, looking more furious than the children had ever seen him
look before.
'Now
then!' shouted Bill. 'Where's that fellow Uma?'
The
van-driver gesticulated and said a good deal. Evidently he was telling Bill
about the snake-
bite.
Bill, however, was not at all sympathetic. Jack and Philip judged it time to
say a few words
themselves
and they leapt out and ran over to Bill.
He
stared at them as if he were dreaming. 'Jack! Philip! What on earth good
heavens, what is
all
this? Explain quickly, Philip.'
Philip
explained a little, enough to make Bill understand what was happening at the
moment.
'Uma's
back in the van,' he said. 'He thinks he's been bitten by a poisonous snake
but he
hasn't
really, it was only my own bargua and you know how harmless that was! He's so
anxious
to
get to a doctor at Cinι-Town up the river that he agreed to take us here and
free you, so that you
could
take him in your launch to find a doctor. That's briefly what's happening now,
Bill.'
'Well,
I'm blessed,' said Bill again. 'So our friend Uma thinks he's been fatally
bitten, does he?
Then
perhaps he would like to confess a few things and clear his conscience! Right
find out
where
the launch is, boys, tell Uma I'm coming, and I'll just go and fetch my wife.'
Bill
ran off to the shack, and Philip, anxious to see his mother, went with him.
Jack went to tell
Uma
that Bill was coming, and to ask where the launch was.
Uma
was still very pale. He groaned. 'Good boy,' he said. 'Ah, this is a punishment
for all my
sins.
I have been a wicked man, boy.'
'It
sounds like it,' agreed Jack, hard-heartedly. 'Bill wants to know where the
launch is.'
'By
the riverside,' groaned Mr. Uma. 'The poison's working in my veins, I know it
is! We shall
have
to hurry!'
Bill
came out with his wife, who certainly looked none the worse for being locked up
in the
shack
for a few days. She seemed quite cheerful, and had been told a little of the
children's
adventures
by Philip. She and Bill had had no idea, of course, that the children had been
through so
much
excitement.
They
drove off to the river. Bill went in the van with Uma, who poured out such a
lot of
confessions
that Bill was almost embarrassed. The things that Mr. Uma had done in his life!
His
sins
had certainly been very many.
The
launch was by the river as Uma had said. By the time they reached it Mrs.
Cunningham had
heard
more of the children's news from everyone in the lorry, and had been greeted
joyfully by
Kiki,
who insisted on shaking hands with her at least a dozen times.
'Pleasedtomeetyou,'
said Kiki, running all the words together. 'Pleasedtomeetyou, good
morning,
goodbye!'
'Oh,
Kiki it's so nice to see you all again,' said Mrs. Cunningham. 'We imagined
that Tala
would
look after you, and that he would raise the alarm and bring help to us as soon
as possible. I
never
realised you had been through a bad time like this! Poor Mr. Uma he must be
in a terrible
panic
over this snake-bite.'
'Don't
say "poor Mr. Uma", Mother!' said Dinah. 'He's wicked. You wait till
you hear all our
story.
It's hair-raising, really it is!'
The
lorry and the van were left at Wooti, and the launch took everyone to
Cinι-Town, with Mr.
Uma
tossing and groaning all the time. It seemed remarkable that he could simulate
all the
symptoms
of snake-bite like this, and Bill half wondered if Philip's bargua had been as
harmless as
they
had imagined!
He
frowned as he thought of all the things that the scared Mr. Uma had blurted out
to him
and
this latest plan to rob the old, forgotten temple of its priceless treasures
for the sake of mere
greed
sickened Bill. Mr. Uma was not, of course, being taken to see a doctor no, he
was being
taken
to see some very high-up police!
It
was a really terrible shock to Mr. Uma to be handed over to the police at
Cinι-Town, when
they
arrived there. Bill had ordered two cars as soon as the launch had reached
Cinι-Town, and he
and
his wife and Uma had gone in the first one, and the other six, with Kiki, in
the second and
they
had all driven to police headquarters. Mr. Uma could hardly believe his eyes
when he was half
led,
half carried into a bare police-station, instead of into the pleasant private
room of a hospital
that
he had expected.
'What's
this?' he cried. 'Is this a kind trick to play on a man dying of snake-bite a
poisonous
snake
bite?'
'You're
quite all right, Uma,' said Bill with a laugh. 'It wasn't a poisonous bite
the snake had
unfortunately
had its poison-ducts cut, and was no longer poisonous. So cheer up you're not
going
to die but you've got a tremendous lot of things to explain to the police,
haven't you?'
Chapter
29
END
OF THE ADVENTURE
IT
wasn't only Uma who had to explain a great many things it was the children
too, who had so
much
to tell Bill and his wife that they felt it would take a week to finish their
tale!
After
Uma had been taken charge of by some much-amused police officers, who had heard
the
whole
story from Bill and the others, they had been allowed to depart for the launch.
'The
police seem to find it very funny that Uma is so disappointed not to have had a
poisonous
bite
after all,' said Bill, as they left. 'Of course it is bad luck when one's
sins find one out but
they
always have a nasty little habit of doing that. Grime simply does NOT pay!'
'Well,
Uma's learnt that now or do you think he hasn't?' asked Philip. 'Will he
start his bad
ways
all over again, now he knows he hasn't been bitten by a poisonous bargua,
Bill?'
'I
fear he will have to disappear from public life for quite a time!' said Bill.
'Long enough to get
over
any snake-bite, real or imaginary. I must say that snake of yours repaid you
well for your
kindness
to him, Philip.'
'Yes.
But I wish I could have got him back,' said Philip. 'I liked him.'
'Don't
say that in front of Oola or he'll produce a few more barguas,' said Dinah, in
a panic.
It
was wonderful to laze on the launch again, and talk and talk. Bill was amazed
at the children's
adventures.
'There
were we, cooped up in a silly shack with barred windows and a locked door and
nothing
whatever
happening and you four having the time of your lives,' he said. 'Rushing down
gorges,
almost
shooting over cataracts, crawling through holes, exploring age-old treasures .
. .'
'It
was pretty tough at times,' said Jack. 'The girls were marvellous. Good as boys
any day.'
This
was such an unusual compliment from Jack that both the girls stared in
surprise.
'Kiki
did her bit too,' said Jack. Bill laughed.
'She
certainly did, from all you've told me!' he said. 'She seems to react
marvellously to the
word
"police".'
'Police!'
called Kiki at once. 'Fetch the police! PHEEEEEEEEEEEEE!'
Some
natives stopped beside the launch at once, eyes round with fright.
'It's
all right,' called Jack. 'It's only the parrot. Don't do that too often, Kiki,
or one of these fine
days
you'll find a policeman will come along and lock you up!'
'PHEEEEEEEEEE!'
began Kiki again, and got a tap on the beak.
'Bad
boy!' she grumbled at Jack. 'Bad boy! Fetch your nose, blow the doctor!'
'It's
nice to hear her again,' said Mrs. Cunningham. 'Bill and I could have done with
a bit of
Kiki's
fun those long dull days in that shack.'
'I
suppose you know, you youngsters, that you have made the find of the century?'
said Bill,
after
a while. 'I know that Uma was also on the mark, but he's a bit discredited, at
the moment
finding
a place like that wonderful old temple merely to rob it is rather different
from discovering it
by
accident as you did, and doing your best to keep off those who wanted to
despoil it.'
'What
do you think of the things we brought back, Bill?' asked Dinah, eagerly. 'That
gold bowl
it is gold, isn't it? and the cup and the little statue and the dagger.
Don't you think they
are
marvellous? I wish we could keep them, but I know we can't.'
'No,
you can't. They belong to the whole world,' said Bill, 'not only to our own
generation, but
to
all those who follow us. They are wonderful relics of the history of man and
I am prouder
than
I can say that you have had a hand in bringing them to light.'
'What
will happen about the temple, Bill?' asked Jack. 'And what is going to happen
to the
things
we brought back? we had to leave them at the police station, you know.'
'Yes
well, they are being shown to some of the finest experts in the world,' said
Bill. 'The
police
say that when the news gets round that this long-lost temple has been found,
there will be
many
famous archaeologists flying here, anxious to see that any excavating is now
done properly.'
'Shall
we meet them?' asked Philip, eagerly.
'No.
You'll be at school,' said Bill, hard-heartedly, pulling at his pipe.
'School!
Oh, Bill, you're mean!' said Dinah, who had imagined herself having a wonderful
time
talking
learnedly to famous men. 'Aren't we going to stay on and see it all being dug
out?'
'Good
gracious, no!' said Mrs. Cunningham. 'It may take five or six years even more
to
excavate
that wonderful temple. It's not done in the haphazard way that Mr. Uma did it,
you know.
Why,
practically every piece of earth will be sifted!'
'Oh!
How disappointing that we can't stay for the excitement!' sighed Lucy-Ann.
'My
dear Lucy-Ann haven't you had enough excitement already?' asked Bill,
astonished. 'I
should
have thought that you four had had enough adventures to last the ordinary
person for the rest
of
his life!'
'Well
perhaps we're not ordinary persons?' suggested Philip, with a twinkle in his
eye.
'You're
not an ordinary person, Philip!' said Dinah. 'I wish you were! No ordinary
person
would
take a snake about with him. I expect you'll adopt a camel next!'
'Well,
that reminds me Bill, I did see a baby camel today that didn't look too
happy,' said
Philip,
hopefully. 'I thought that if any prizes were going for brilliance in finding a
long-forgotten
temple,
perhaps mine might be something like a baby camel.'
'Certainly
not,' said Mrs. Cunningham, sitting up straight. 'You can't be serious, Philip!
What
take one home, do you mean?'
'Well,
this was a very little one,' said Philip, earnestly. 'Wasn't it, Lucy-Ann? Not
more than
two
days old. It was absol . . .'
'Philip
do you or do you not know that camels grow very big and that they do not
like a
cold
climate like ours?' said his mother. 'And that I would not dream of having a
camel sitting in
the
middle of my rose-beds, and . . .'
'All
right, Mother, all right,' said Philip, hurriedly. 'It was only just an idea of
mine and you
both
seemed so pleased with us that well . . .'
'That
you thought you'd make hay while the sun shone and cash in on a camel?' said
Bill with a
grin.
'No go, Philip, old son. Try something else.'
'I
hope we're not going back to school immediately,' said Jack. 'I did rather want
to show you
that
waterfall hurling itself over the edge of the gorge, Aunt Allie. Can't we go
and explore a bit
down
in the old temple wouldn't we be allowed to, seeing that we found it? Then
you could
creep
through that hole in the cavern wall and crawl out on to the ledge and go and
stand on the
platform,
and see what Oola calls the "waterfalling" it's unbelievable!'
'Oola
find waterfalling, Oola show kind Missus?' said Oola's voice, and his small
black head
appeared
round a corner.
'Oh!
So there you are!' said Philip. 'Come here, Oola. Sit with us and tell how you
went out all
by
yourself to find the waterfalling.'
Oola
was very proud to tell his story. He would not sit down to tell it, but stood
there, a small,
lithe
figure, still with the marks of bruises and weals on his back, his eyes
sparkling as he told his
tale.
Mrs.
Cunningham drew him to her when he had finished. 'You're a good little boy and
a brave
one,
Oola,' she said. 'We shall never forget you.'
'My
lord remember Oola too?' asked Oola, looking at Philip with love in his eyes.
'Always,'
said Philip. 'And when we come back here, sometime in the future, to see the
temple
when
it is all dug out, and its treasures on show, you must be here to guide us
round, Oola.
Promise?'
'Oola
promise. Oola keep clean, Oola go to school, Oola do all things like lord say,'
said the
small
boy, valiantly. He gave an unexpected bow and disappeared, his eyes shining
with proud
tears.
There
was a little pause after he had gone. 'I like him very much indeed,' said
Lucy-Ann,
emphatically.
'Don't you, Jack?'
Everyone
nodded vigorously. Yes Oola had been as astonishing a find as any of the
treasures
in
the temple. Would they ever see him again? Yes, of course!
'Well,
we've talked so much that I really feel my tongue is wearing out,' said Mrs.
Cunningham.
'But
I must tell you one thing to relieve your minds. We are not going to fly back
home we are
going
by sea, and we shan't be home for a week or more.'
'Oh
super!' cried Dinah, and the others agreed in delight. Another whole week
what luck!
'Do
you think we shall have had enough convalescence by then?' asked Lucy-Ann.
'Shall we be
fit
to go back to school?'
'Good
gracious you're all as fit as fiddles!' cried Mrs. Cunningham.
'Fiddles!
Fiddle-de-dee!' shouted Kiki. 'Diddly-fiddly, cat and spoon!'
'You're
getting a bit mixed, old thing,' said Jack. 'Sign of old age! Now, don't peck
my ear off,
please!'
They
all sat silent for a while, and listened to the river flowing past, lapping
gently against the
boat.
'The
River of Adventure,' said Lucy-Ann. 'We couldn't have given it a better name.
We ran into
adventure
all the way along its banks.'
'And
what adventures!' said Jack. 'Oh, don't keep nibbling my ear, Kiki,
pleeeeeeeeeeese!'
'Pleeeeece!
Fetch the pleeeeeece!' shouted Kiki, and whistled. 'PHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!'
Goodbye,
Kiki. You always have the last word!
THE
END