THE LAND OF MYSTERY.
The peremptory tones of Fred Ashman rang out loud and clear above the
roar of the rapids and caused the servants to halt at the moment the
canoe was shoved into the water. They looked up with frightened
expressions and awaited his approach.
"What do you mean?" he demanded as he drew near.
Bippo, who was by far the brightest of the three, had shown a wonderful
readiness in picking up a knowledge of the English tongue. He was so
much superior in that respect to his companions, that they invariably
left to him the duty of conversing with their masters.
"_Dey're_ ober dere," he replied, pointing to the other shore.
"Who's over there?"
"Perfess'r and Long man; we seed 'em, dey motion for us to hurry ober
to 'em."
This was astounding news and Ashman was mystified.
"How did they get over there? And why did they leave camp?"
"Don' know; seed 'em; want us hurry."
Without waiting to reflect upon the strange information, and recalling
that more of the natives were likely to issue from the path at any
moment, the young man stepped into the canoe, and, catching up one of
the paddles, lent his help in propelling the craft across the foamy
Xingu.
"Where Johns'n?" asked Bippo, when the middle of the stream was
reached, and without ceasing his toil with the paddle.
"The natives killed him with a poisoned spear; you will never see him
again."
Bippo made no reply, but communicated the startling tidings to his
companions, who muttered their amazement. It was apparent that the
news had added to their panic, and they bent to their task with such
vigor that the boat rapidly approached the other bank.
Fred was asking himself, that if his friends had managed to get across
the river, why it was they were not in sight. He scrutinized the dark
forest and the line of moonlit space in the expectation, of seeing them
come forth to welcome him, but not a soul was in sight.
He did not know what to make of it. There was something so uncanny
about the whole business, that a strange distrust and uneasiness took
possession of him. It could not be that the natives had deceived him
and were anxious to place the Xingu between them and the fierce savages
who had handled the whites so roughly. Bippo and his comrades had
shown a loyalty from the first which gave their employers the fullest
confidence in them.
The canoe was almost against the bank, where something of the
bewilderment of Ashman seemed to enter the head of Bippo. He spoke to
his companions and the three ceased paddling. Ashman had done so a
moment before and was scanning the bank with a searching but vain
scrutiny.
"You must have been mistaken," he said in a low voice; "they could not
have swam the river and they had no other way of crossing."
"We seed 'em--motion dat way," and the native beckoned with his right
arm, just as a person would do when signaling another to approach.
"I can't understand it," replied Ashman, with a shake of his head.
His doubts were confirmed, when he recalled that the professor and
Jared Long had gone up the bank of the river with the purpose of
learning the extent of the rapids. It followed, therefore, that if
they had made their way to the other shore, it must have been at a
point so far above the angry waters that there was no danger of being
caught in the furious current.
He was turning over these troublous thoughts, when Bippo, who was
facing the bank they had left, uttered an expression of dismay and
extended his arm toward the shore behind them.
Ashman turned his head, and there in the moonlight he saw Professor
Grimcke and the New Englander standing on the land and motioning to
them to return.
"Yes--dat de way he do--he move arm like _dat_," said Bippo; "we hurry
to go to him, den he ain't here--but _dere_."
Ashman could not doubt that the servant believed the extraordinary
assertion he had just made, and such being the case, the startling
truth was manifest; they had seen two strangers whom they mistook for
their own friends, and these strangers had beckoned them to paddle the
canoe to the other shore where they were awaiting them.
If such were the fact--and he did not doubt it--a new mystery
confronted him.
Who were the white men and strangers? and why had they disappeared when
approached by the canoe and its occupants?
Ashman ordered the servants to turn the craft about and return to the
shore they had left with all speed. While doing so, and while Grimcke
and Long were doubtless wondering what had got into the heads of the
others, the young man wrought himself into a most uncomfortable
condition of mind.
He questioned Bippo more particularly as to the appearance and actions
of the strangers. It was clear that he, as well as the other two,
still believed the couple on the opposite bank were Grimcke and Long;
though when reminded that it was impossible that they could have
crossed and recrossed the stream in such a brief time, and without any
means except that of swimming, they only shook their heads, signifying
that, though they could not explain _that_ feature of the strange
business, they would not yield their belief.
Ashman asked further, directing his question to each of the natives in
turn, whether they saw the parties plainly enough to make sure they
were white men. The servants were positive on this point, adding the
distracting statement that they were dressed precisely like the two
absent members of the little company, and that each carried a rifle as
they did.
"Same ones--same ones; don't know how cross riber, but allee same do
so," repeated Bippo, with a grin.
By this time the swiftly moving canoe was well on the way to the camp
which it had left so abruptly, and, a minute later, Ashman sprang out
and grasped the hand of each of his friends in turn.
In a few words he explained the extraordinary incidents of the last
half hour, receiving in return the story of the experience of the
Professor and his companion. The latter were deeply touched by the
loss of Johnston. Danger tends to draw the members of a party closely
together, and, despite the peculiar disposition of the sailor, the
three felt a deep attachment for him. They would have faced any danger
in his behalf, but the time had passed for that, and they could only
mourn the loss of such a valuable comrade.
"But what about this story that Bippo tells?"
Before a reply could be made, the native approached, with his peculiar
grin.
"How you cross riber?--why you come back 'gin? Why you no stay ober
dere when we hurry to go to you?"
"Bippo, you are mistaken," replied the Professor, with all the
earnestness at his command. "We went up this side of the stream, and
have not been on the other side since dark. When we came back and saw
that you were not in the camp, we thought you had all been killed."
The native grinned more than ever, and shook his head.
"De Purfes'r funny man--he make laugh." And he walked back to his
companions with an unshakeable belief in the story given to Fred Ashman
when he dashed in such excitement from the wood.
"Bippo believes what he has told us," said Long, who had studied the
fellow closely; "and it follows that he and the others _did_ see a
couple of white men."
"I imagined," remarked Grimcke with something like regret in his tones,
"that we were the first of our race to reach this spot; but it is hard
in these days to find any place on the globe where some white person
had not been before us."
"If there are a couple of them over there," said Ashman, scanning the
opposite bank, "they ought to be friends; and, after signaling to our
servants to cross, it is inexplainable that they should withdraw from
sight as they did."
"We can depend on _one_ thing," added the Professor; "we haven't seen
the last of them. I would be glad to believe them friends, but their
actions are unsatisfactory. I am inclined to think that the cause of
their withdrawing was your entrance into the canoe. For some reason
they wished to have nothing to do with any of us."
"It may be that since we are suspicious of them," said Fred, "they feel
the same toward us, and are unwilling to make our acquaintance until
after reconnoiterin' us. Helloa! what's up now?"
This question was caused by the action of Bippo, who, trembling in
every limb, and with the appearance of a person overcome with terror,
pointed to the forest behind them.