"Well, we haven't seen anything of Beecher
and his friends," remarked the young inventor
as they were about to start.
"No, he doesn't seem to have arrived," agreed
Professor Bumper. "We'll get ahead of him,
and so much the better.
"Well, are we all ready to start?" he continued,
as he looked over the little flotilla which carried
his party and his goods.
"The sooner the better!" cried Tom, and Ned
fancied his chum was unusually eager.
"I guess he wants to make good before Beecher
gets the chance to show Mary Nestor what
he can do," thought Ned. "Tom sure is after
that idol of gold."
"You may start, Senor Jacinto," said the
professor, and the guide called something in Indian
dialect to the rowers. Lines were cast off and
the boats moved out into the stream under the
influence of the sturdy paddlers.
"Well, this isn't so bad," observed Ned, as he
made himself comfortable in his canoe. "How
about it, Tom?"
"Oh, no. But this is only the beginning."
A canopy had been arranged over their boat
to keep off the scorching rays of the sun. The
boat containing the exploring party and Val
Jacinto took the lead, the baggage craft following.
At the place where it flowed into the bay
on which Puerto Cortes was built, the stream
was wide and deep.
The guide called something to the Indians,
who increased their stroke.
"I tell them to pull hard and that at the end
of the day's journey they will have much rest
and refreshment," he translated to Professor
Bumper and the others.
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