Rob Harlow's Adventures: A Story of the Grand Chaco

by George Manville Fenn

  CHAPTER NINETEEN.

  A FRESH PERIL.

  Shaddy's advice was easier to give than to execute. For though byholding on to the boughs they were able to anchor the boat, it proved tobe a difficult task to force it in among the submerged stems to the spotwhere the clear space of elevated ground offered a satisfactorylanding-place.

  Thanks to the skill of the boatmen, however, a landing was at lastachieved, and as soon as Brazier leaped ashore he was followed by Roband Shaddy, the latter giving his men a few sharp orders before joiningthe others, who were trying to force their way back along the banktoward where they had last seen their companion.

  This was difficult, but possible for a short distance, and they pressedon hopefully, for, consequent upon the sudden turn of the river hereforming a loop, they had only to cross this sharp bend on foot, not aquarter of the distance it would have been to row round.

  But before they had gone fifty yards the high-and-dry land ended, andRob, who was, thanks to his activity, first, was about to wade in andcontinue his way among the submerged roots.

  But Shaddy roared at him,--

  "No, no, my lad; don't make matters worse! You mustn't do that. Thethings have moved out of the river in here to be away from the rush andto get food. We don't want you pulled under."

  "But we must go on, Naylor," cried Brazier in agony.

  "It ain't the way to help him, getting ourselves killed, sir," retortedShaddy. "Let's get more in. Water don't go far."

  He was quite right, for after about ten minutes' struggle along the edgethey found themselves as nearly as they could guess about opposite tothe spot where their unfortunate companion had been swept out of theboat, but about a hundred yards inland and separated from the regularbed of the stream by a dense growth of trees, whose boughs interlacedand stopped all vision in every direction, more especially toward theriver.

  "You see, we must wade," cried Rob; and he stepped into the water with aplash, but Shaddy's strong hand gripped him by the shoulder and drew himback.

  "I tell you it's madness, boy. If he's alive still you couldn't reachhim that way."

  "If he's alive!" groaned Rob.

  "If he's alive," said Shaddy, repeating his words. "Steady a moment!He may be up in one of the boughs, for he's as active as a monkey inrigging and trees."

  Then, putting his hands to his mouth, he shouted in stentorian tones,--

  "Ahoy! ahoy!"

  But there was no response, and Rob and Brazier exchanged glances, theirfaces full of despair.

  "Ahoy!" shouted Shaddy once more.

  Still no reply, and a cold chill ran through Rob and his eyes grew dimas he thought of the bright, handsome, dark-eyed lad who had been hiscompanion so long, and with whom he had been such friends till themiserable little misunderstanding had thrust them apart.

  "It must be farther on," said Brazier at last, when shout after shouthad been sent up without avail.

  "Think so, sir?" said Shaddy gloomily. "I thought it was about here,but p'r'aps you're right. Come on. River made a big twist there, andit's hard to tell distance shut up half in the dark among the trees. Idid hope," he continued, as he forced his way in among the trees andheld boughs aside for them to follow, "that the poor lad had swunghimself up and would have made his way like a squirrel from branch tobranch till he reached dry land, but it don't seem to be so. There,sir, we must be 'bout opposite where we saw him. Can't be no farther.Ahoy! ahoy! ahoy!"

  They all listened intently after this, but there was no sound of humanvoice, only the shrieking of parrots and chattering of monkeys.

  Shaddy shouted again, with the result that he startled a flock of birdswhich were about to settle, but rose again noisily.

  They all shouted together then, but there was no response, and feelingthat their efforts were useless, they went on a short distance, andtried once more without result.

  "He'd have answered if he had been anywhere near, sir," said Shaddygloomily. "I'll go on if you like, but take my word for it he ain'there."

  Rob looked at both despairingly, but he was obliged to take the guide'swords for those of truth, and, feeling utterly crushed, he slowlyfollowed the others as they began to return, feeling the while that ifit had not been for the edge of the water by which they walked it wouldhave been impossible to find their way back through the densewilderness.

  Their guide returned by their outward steps as accurately as he could,but it was not always possible, for in coming out the bushes had beenforced on in the same direction and then sprung back together, after thefashion of the withes in a fish-trap, and presenting their points,thorns, and broken stems in a perfect _chevaux de frise_.

  In these cases Shaddy had to select a different path, the exigencies ofthe way forcing him more inland, and at last, in spite of hisexperience, he stopped short, looked about him and then upwards, seekingto make out the sky, but it was completely shut off, and they stood in atwilight gloom.

  "What's the matter, Shaddy?" said Rob at last, after looking at theman's actions wonderingly; but there was no reply.

  "For goodness sake, man, don't say that you have lost your way," criedBrazier excitedly.

  Shaddy still remained silent, and took off his hat to scratch his head.

  "Do you hear me, man? Have you lost your way?"

  "Don't see as there's any way to lose," growled Shaddy. "I ain't seenno path. But I have gone a bit wrong."

  "Here, let me--" began Brazier, but Shaddy interrupted him.

  "Steady, sir, please! Don't wherrit me. I shall hit it off directly.You two gents stand just as you are, and don't move. Don't even turnround, or else you'll throw me wrong worse than I am. You see, theplace is all alike, and nothing to guide you. One can't tell which wayto turn."

  "But tell me," said Brazier, "what are you going to do?"

  "There's only one thing to do, sir: find the river, and I'm going tomake casts for it. You both stand fast and answer my whistles; then Ishall know where you are and can come back and start again. If we don'tact sensible we shall lose ourselves altogether and never get out ofit."

  "And then?" said Brazier.

  "Oh, never mind about _then_, sir. I've lost my way a bit, and I'mgoing to find it somehow, only give me time."

  "Which way do you think the river lies?" said Rob gloomily.

  "I'm going to try out yonder, sir. You see we've turned and doubled sothat I can't tell where we are."

  "But it's out that way, I'm sure," said Rob, pointing in the oppositedirection.

  "Why are you sure, sir?"

  Rob shook his head.

  "Ah, to be sure, dear lad!" said the guide; "you only think it's outthat way, and I daresay Mr Brazier here thinks it's out another way."

  "Well, I must confess," said Brazier, "that I thought the river laybehind us."

  "Yes, sir, that's it. I've been lost before with half a dozen, sir, andevery one thought different. One wanted to go one way; one wanted to goanother. Fact is, gentlemen, we neither of us know the way. It's allguesswork. Once lost, there's nothing to guide you. I can't recollectthis tree or that tree, because they're all so much alike, and it's aspuzzling as being in the dark. There's only one way out of it, and thatis to do as I say; you stand fast, and I'll cast about like a dog doesafter losing the scent till I find the right track. Only mind this: ifI don't have you to guide me back with whistle and shout I shall be lostmore and more."

  "You are right, Naylor," said Brazier; "we leave ourselves in yourhands. Go on."

  "Cheer up, Mr Rob, sir; don't be down-hearted. I shall find the wayout of it yet."

  "I was not thinking about myself, Shaddy," said Rob in a choking voice."I was thinking about poor Joe."

  "Ah!" said Shaddy in a suppressed voice. Then sharply, "I shall whistleat first, and one of you keep answering. By-and-by I shall shout likethis."

  He uttered a peculiarly shrill cry, and they all started, for it wasanswered from a distance.

  "Why, that's Joe,"
cried Rob joyfully. "Ahoy! ahoy!" he cried, andpaused to listen.

  "Nay, sir, that wasn't Mr Jovanni, but one of the wild beasts. Soundedto me like one of them little lions. Stop a bit, though; let's try ashout or two to see if the boys in the boat can hear us now."

  He hailed half a dozen times at intervals, but there was no reply.

  "Thought not," he said. "Only waste of breath. We've wandered awayfarther than I thought, and the trees shuts in sound. Stand fast,gentlemen, till I come back."

  He paused for a few moments, and then forced his way in amongst thetrees in a direction which Rob felt to be entirely wrong, but in hisdespondent state he was too low in spirit to make any opposition, andafter marking the spot where Shaddy had disappeared, he turned roundsuddenly, placed his arm across a huge tree trunk, rested his browagainst it, and hid the workings of his face.

  "Come, come, Rob, be a man!" cried Brazier, laying his hand upon thelad's shoulder. "Never despair, my boy, never despair!"

  "Joe! Joe!" groaned Rob; "it is so horrible!"

  "Not yet. We don't know that he is lost."

  "He must be, sir, he must be, or he would have answered our hails."

  At that moment there was a shout from out of the forest, and Rob startedround as if thinking it might be their young companion, but the cry wasnot repeated; a shrill whistle came instead.

  Brazier answered it with a whistle attached to his knife.

  "It was only Shaddy," groaned Rob. "Mr Brazier, you don't know," hecontinued. "We two had quarrelled, and had not made friends, and now,poor fellow, he is gone."

  "No, I will not believe it yet," cried Brazier; "for aught we know, hemay have escaped. He is too clever and quick a lad not to make adesperate effort to escape. We shall run up against him yet, so cheerup. Ahoy!" he cried in answer to a hail, and followed it up with awhistle.

  "Naylor said he should whistle for a time and then hail," said Brazier,trying to speak cheerfully. "Come, lad, make a brave fight of it. Youare getting faint with hunger, and that makes things look at theirworst, so rouse up. Now then, answer Naylor's signal."

  "I can't, not yet," said Rob huskily. "I am trying, Mr Brazier, and Iwill master it all soon."

  Just then the peculiar cry they had first heard rang out again from adistance.

  "Was that Joe?" whispered Rob, with a ghastly look. "He must be inperil."

  "No, no; it was a jaguar, I think. There goes Naylor again! Whistle!whistle!"

  Rob only gazed at him piteously, and Brazier responded to the signalhimself.

  "Come, come, Rob," he whispered, "be a man!"

  The lad made a tremendous effort to conquer his weakness, and turnedaway from the tree with his lips compressed, his eyes half closed, andforehead wrinkled.

  "That's right," cried Brazier, clapping him on the shoulder. "Who saysour English boys are not full of pluck?"

  He whistled again in response to a signal from Shaddy, and then theylistened and answered in turn for quite half an hour, during which theguide's whistles and cries came from further and further away, butsounded as if he were at last keeping about the same distance, andworking round so as to come back in another direction.

  Then for a time all signals ceased, and they heard the cry of the wildbeast, followed by quite a chorus of shrieks and chatterings, whichceased as suddenly as they had begun.

  "He has gone too far, Mr Brazier," cried Rob suddenly, a completechange having come over him, for he was once more full of excitement andenergy.

  "I hope not."

  "But he is not signalling."

  "I'll try again."

  Brazier raised the little metal whistle to his lips and gave out ashrill, keen, penetrating note.

  Then they listened, but there was no answer.

  Brazier's brow wrinkled, and he refrained from looking at Rob as he oncemore raised the whistle to his lips, to obtain for answer theunmistakable cry of some savage, cat-like creature--jaguar or puma, hecould not tell which.

  "No guns! no guns!" he muttered; and moving away from Rob, he opened thelong, sharp blade of his spring knife, one intended for huntingpurposes, and thrust it up his sleeve.

  Just then Rob whistled as loudly as he could, and they both listened,when, to their intense relief, there came a reply far to their left.

  "Hurrah!" cried the boy excitedly, and then, "Oh, Mr Brazier, what arelief!"

  Brazier drew a long, deep breath.

  "Whistle again, boy," he said; but before Rob could obey there wasanother distant whistle, and on this being answered the signals went onfrom one to the other for quite half an hour, and at last there was abreaking and crashing noise, and Shaddy came within speaking distance.

  "Hear that lion prowling about?" he shouted.

  "Yes, several times."

  "Ah, I began to feel as if a gun would be handy. He came too close tobe pleasant."

  "What have you found--the river?" cried Brazier.

  "No, sir, not yet. I went far enough to be sure it ain't that way."

  A few minutes later he forced his way to their side, looking hot andexhausted.

  "Why didn't you answer me when I whistled and shouted?" he cried.

  "We did, Shaddy, every time we heard you."

  "Nay, my lad, didn't seem to me as if you did. S'pose the trees kep' itoff at times. But all right, gentlemen, I shall soon hit it off, andwe'll get to the boat, have a good feed, and go to work again. Don'tlook down, Mr Rob, sir! How do we know as Mr Jovanni isn't therealready waiting for us?"

  Rob shook his head.

  "Ah, you don't know, sir. Seems queer, don't it, to get so lost! but itain't the fust time. I've known men go into the forest only a score ofyards or so and be completely gone, every step they took carrying 'emfarther away and making 'em lose their heads till their mates found'em."

  "Stop! Which way are you going now?"

  "This way," said Shaddy.

  "But that's back--the way we came."

  Shaddy laughed, and without another word forced his way again in amongthe trees.

  "I give up," said Brazier in despair. "It is too confusing for ordinarybrains. I could have taken an oath that he was wrong."

  He answered a whistle, and they stood waiting till the crackling andrustling made by their guide's passage ceased.

  "I couldn't have believed that we came so far," said Rob, breaking thesilence.

  "I don't think we did come very far, Rob," replied Brazier; "it is onlythat the place is so hopelessly puzzling and intricate. Time is gettingon, too. We must not be overtaken by the night."

  Rob could hardly repress a shudder, and, to make the dismal look of thenarrow space, darkened by close-clustering trees, more impressive, thepeculiar exaggerated cat-like call of the beast they had heard oranother of its kind rang out hollowly apparently not very far-away.

  Almost simultaneously, though, came Shaddy's whistle, and this wasanswered and repeated steadily at some little distance, but at lastgrowing quite faint.

  As they were waiting for the next call there was a rustling soundoverhead, which took their attention, but for some time nothing butmoving leaves could be made out in the subdued light, till all at onceBrazier pointed to a spot some fifty feet above them, and at last Robcaught sight of the object which had taken his companion's attention.

  "Looking down and watching us," he said quickly, as he gazed at thepeculiar little dark, old-looking face which was suddenly withdrawn,thrust out again, and finally disappeared.

  "There is quite a party of monkeys up there, Rob," said Brazier; "andthe tree-tops are thoroughly alive with birds, but they are silentbecause we are here. Ahoy!" he shouted as Shaddy now hailed fromsomewhere nearer, and after a few shouts to and fro they heard himsay,--

  "Found it!"

  A thrill of joy ran through Rob, but it passed away and he feltdespondent again as they started to rejoin their guide, for the thoughtsof poor Joe were uppermost, and he began thinking of the day when theyshould go back and join the scho
oner to announce the terrible accidentthat had befallen the captain's son.

  But he had to toil hard to get through the trees, and this work tookaway the power of thinking much of anything but the task in hand.Shaddy, too, had stopped short, waiting for them to come to him, andthey had to squeeze themselves between trees, climb over half-rottentrunks, and again and again start aside and try another way as theyfound themselves disturbing some animal, often enough a serpent.

  "'Bliged to stop here, gen'lemen, and mark the direction," rang on theirears all at once. "You see, one can't travel in a straight line, and Iwas afraid of losing my way again."

  "How far is the river away?"

  "Not quarter of a mile if you could go straight, my lad, but it'll behalf a mile way we have to twist about. But come along. Once we get tothe water's edge, we'll soon make the boat."

  He turned, and led on slowly and laboriously, the difficultiesincreasing at every step, and more than once Rob was about to breakdown. The last time he took hold of a tree to support himself, and wasabout to say, "I can go no further," when, looking up, there was Shaddypointing down at the water, which had flooded over right in among thetrunks.

  Rob dropped upon his knees directly, bent down, placed his lips to thewater, and drank with avidity, Brazier following his example.

  The discovery of a guide which must lead them to the spot where they hadleft the boat, and the refreshment the river afforded, gave Rob thestrength to follow Shaddy manfully along the margin of the flood overtwice the ground they had traversed in the morning--for their wanderingshad taken them very much further astray than they had believed--and theresult was that just at sundown, after being startled several times bythe cries of the jaguar or puma close on their left apparently, Shaddysuddenly gave a hoarse cheer, for he had emerged upon the clearing atwhose edge the boat was moored.