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CHAPTER XX A CALL FOR HELP
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 Disappearing within the tent after his excited exclamations1, Jack2 left two bewildered individuals staring at each other beside the camp fire.
 
“What in the world can he mean?” wondered Bob, getting to his feet.
 
“He has heard something over the radio,” surmised3 Mr. Hampton. “From the way he dashed into the tent, in fact, I’d say he’s still listening in. Come on, let’s investigate.”
 
Hastening across the intervening space, they pushed aside the tent flap, finding the interior lighted by lantern, and discovered Frank seated at the radio with the headpiece clamped to his ears and Jack bending above him.
 
As they entered they heard Frank speaking into the transmitter say:
 
“Here he is, Mr. Ransome. Just a minute.” Pulling the headpiece from his ears, Frank proffered4 it to Mr. Hampton, while getting to his feet.
 
“What’s going on? Who have you?” questioned Mr. Hampton, still bewildered. But at the same time he accepted the proffered instrument, while Jack thrust him into the camp chair vacated by Frank.
 
“It’s the English trader we met at Kisumu,” responded Frank. “He’s calling for you. Says he’s called every night for a week over the station at Entebbe where he is now located. But he’ll explain. Talk to him.”
 
Pulling the transmitter toward him, Mr. Hampton obediently called “Hello.”
 
Then Bob, unable longer to control his impatience5, seized Frank and pulled him outside.
 
“Now tell me what’s going on,” he commanded. “I don’t want to speak in there for fear of disturbing Mr. Hampton. But what’s this all about?”
 
It had grown appreciably6 darker in the short interval7 since Bob had entered the tent, for once the sun goes down in equatorial Africa night comes on apace. But the light of the lantern fell through the opening upon Frank who stood holding back the flap and listening to what Mr. Hampton was saying inside, and this light showed his eyes ablaze8 with excitement.
 
He turned to Bob as if reluctant to discontinue trying to hear what the older man seated at the radio transmitter was saying. Then he grinned at big Bob’s exasperation9.
 
“Listen, old thing,” he said. “We’re in luck.”
 
“Luck?”
 
“Yes, of the biggest kind. The man on the other end of the line is none other than the Englishman we met at Kisumu.”
 
“Well, what of it? Why don’t you tell me what he said?” Big Bob’s exasperation at this teasing grew apace.
 
“He’s been calling every night for a week from Entebbe in the hope that we would pick him up. But as you know we haven’t been using the radio much, and so we haven’t happened to hear him.”
 
“All right,” said Bob, his patience thoroughly10 exhausted11. “I heard that. Now will you talk turkey?” And reaching out a big arm, he pulled Frank against his chest and began to knuckle12 his head with his free hand in the familiar fashion known as administering the “Dutch rub.”
 
“Ouch. Leggo, you big bully,” gasped13 Frank. “Will you talk straight?”
 
“Uh-huh.”
 
Bob released him. “Now speak up,” he said belligerently14, “or who knows what’ll happen to you?”
 
“He wants us to go with him to the Mountains of the Moon?”
 
“Are you trying to—”
 
Frank backed off, laughing, hands held up defensively in front of him.
 
“No, I’m not trying to kid anybody,” he said. “Well, what’s this ‘Mountains of the Moon’ stuff, then?”
 
“Not the Moon in the sky, Bob,” said Frank. “But a mountainous district in the Belgian Conga constituting the very heart of Africa.”
 
“Oh.” Bob was mollified, but still puzzled. “What for?”
 
“There are active volcanoes over there, and Mr. Ransome says they are reported by native rumors15 reaching Entebbe to be in eruption16. He’s going in and says he thought we might want to go along.”
 
Bob felt his interest quickened. Volcanoes in active eruption. That would be something like, a sight worth travelling hundreds of miles to see. “Fine,” he cried enthusiastically. “What wonderful picture stuff.”
 
Frank nodded. “That’s what I thought of the first thing, too.”
 
“But what is Mr. Ransome going in for?” asked Bob.
 
“Oh, I suppose these fellows who knock about the wilds like to take in the sights as well as we who don’t live here all the time.”
 
“Maybe so,” agreed Bob. Then, as a new thought occurred to him, he asked: “How soon could we get to Entebbe? And how much farther does this volcanic17 region lie?”
 
Frank confessed ignorance regarding the answers to both questions.
 
“Come on, let’s go back inside,” he said, “now that your curiosity is satisfied. You know as much about it now as I do. Let’s see what Mr. Hampton has to say.”
 
The latter concluded his conversation with “That’s agreed then and we’ll start tomorrow,” as the boys re-entered the tent, and from Jack who had remained at his father’s shoulder burst a loud “Hurray.”
 
“Are we going?” cried Frank eagerly.
 
Mr. Hampton nodded, and Jack shouted, “First thing in the morning.”
 
“Fine,” cried Bob. “I was about fed up with this district, anyway. Not enough excitement.” Mr. Hampton looked grave.
 
“You’ll get enough of that where we’re going,” he said.
 
“Anything beside volcanoes?” queried18 Bob, struck by something in the older man’s tone.
 
“Ransome said there was some unrest amongst the natives,” Mr. Hampton replied, after a pause. “He seems to believe some of the German officials driven out of East Africa are at the bottom of it, although he said there was no evidence of any such thing. All the native reports, he said, laid the trouble-making at the door of a new medicine man who has appeared in the devastated19 areas and is known as ‘The Prophet.’ I couldn’t, of course, gain a very comprehensive survey of the situation during our rather brief conversation. But I did find out that this medicine man has gathered considerable of a following about him.”
 
“Won’t it be dangerous?” asked a voice from the doorway20, and they turned to find Niellsen standing21 there. So engrossed22 had all inside the tent been that they had failed to note his approach.
 
He put down his motion picture camera and pulling a camp chair toward him sank into it with a sigh of weariness.
 
“I gathered enough to understand a trip to some place which might become hot for us is under discussion,” he said. “What about it?”
 
Mr. Hampton explained, adding: “Like you, I’m afraid it may be too dangerous to undertake. At least, that is,” he added hastily to forestall23 the remonstrances24 which all three boys looked prepared to make, “we can go part of the way. Certainly, into the volcanic region. But whether we push on amongst the disturbed tribes where this medicine man, The Prophet, is supposed to be operating will have to depend on circumstances.”
 
The faces of the three boys grew bright again. “Oh, of course,” agreed Jack, quickly.
 
“But what I can’t understand,” added Bob, harking back to the question he had earlier propounded25 to Frank, “is why this chap Ransome is going in. Does he have plenty of money and time to go running around like this? And why did he call us and ask us to go along? Why has he been waiting at Entebbe for a week, trying to get us, instead of setting out?”
 
Mr. Hampton knew more than he was prepared to state. Had the boys but known, which they did not, they would have suspected as much from the fact that at Kisumu he had been in closest conversation for more than an hour with Ransome, the ostensible26 invalid27 trader, in a locked room at the Club. But of that conference they were unaware28. This much, however, he did state:
 
“I believe him to be a secret agent of the British government, fellows. And, although the Mountains of the Moon lie in Belgian territory, yet Great Britain is vitally interested in anything which may tend to upset conditions amongst the natives. As to his reasons for wishing us to accompany him, it is possible that Mr. Ransome wants us to act as a cloak for him.”
 
“I see,” said Frank. “You mean that if we go in to take motion picture records of events, he can go along as a member of the expedition without arousing suspicion as to his real status?”
 
“Exactly,” said Mr. Hampton, nodding his head in approval.
 
“Time to go to the celebration of Chief Ungaba,” spoke29 a voice at the tent flap as Mr. Hampton concluded.
 
All turned about hastily. As in the case of Niellsen’s approach, they had been unaware of anyone present.
 
It was Mabele, the interpreter who had been employed at Kisumu. He stood in a respectful attitude, holding up the tent flap, but not venturing to enter the tent.
 
“All right, Mabele,” said Mr. Hampton, shortly. “We’ll come at once.”
 
Silently, the black dropped the flap and withdrew. After a moment, Mr. Hampton arose and crossing the tent lifted the flap and stared into the moonlit darkness. Then he let it fall and turned around.
 
“He’s gone,” he said. “Now I wonder how much he heard.”
 
“Oh, I guess he just came at that minute,” said Niellsen, easily. “Anyway, what does it matter?” Mr. Hampton shook his head. “I don’t know as it matters at all,” he replied, thoughtfully. “But that fellow is a man of superior parts. He’s smart. I wonder—”
 
Then he shook himself and smiled.
 
“No matter,” he said. “Niellsen, there’s a bit of food in the ice box which we saved for you. Eat it, and then let’s get under way for the village. We’ll have to stay a little while, in order not to hurt the chief’s feelings. But we’ll leave before the party becomes too boisterous30, so that we can make an early start tomorrow. We have a good five days of travel ahead of us before we can reach Entebbe.”

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1 exclamations aea591b1607dd0b11f1dd659bad7d827     
n.呼喊( exclamation的名词复数 );感叹;感叹语;感叹词
参考例句:
  • The visitors broke into exclamations of wonder when they saw the magnificent Great Wall. 看到雄伟的长城,游客们惊叹不已。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • After the will has been read out, angry exclamations aroused. 遗嘱宣读完之后,激起一片愤怒的喊声。 来自辞典例句
2 jack 53Hxp     
n.插座,千斤顶,男人;v.抬起,提醒,扛举;n.(Jake)杰克
参考例句:
  • I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
  • He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。
3 surmised b42dd4710fe89732a842341fc04537f6     
v.臆测,推断( surmise的过去式和过去分词 );揣测;猜想
参考例句:
  • From the looks on their faces, I surmised that they had had an argument. 看他们的脸色,我猜想他们之间发生了争执。
  • From his letter I surmised that he was unhappy. 我从他的信中推测他并不快乐。 来自《简明英汉词典》
4 proffered 30a424e11e8c2d520c7372bd6415ad07     
v.提供,贡献,提出( proffer的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • She proffered her cheek to kiss. 她伸过自己的面颊让人亲吻。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • He rose and proffered a silver box full of cigarettes. 他站起身,伸手递过一个装满香烟的银盒子。 来自辞典例句
5 impatience OaOxC     
n.不耐烦,急躁
参考例句:
  • He expressed impatience at the slow rate of progress.进展缓慢,他显得不耐烦。
  • He gave a stamp of impatience.他不耐烦地跺脚。
6 appreciably hNKyx     
adv.相当大地
参考例句:
  • The index adds appreciably to the usefulness of the book. 索引明显地增加了这本书的实用价值。
  • Otherwise the daily mean is perturbed appreciably by the lunar constituents. 否则,日平均值就会明显地受到太阳分潮的干扰。
7 interval 85kxY     
n.间隔,间距;幕间休息,中场休息
参考例句:
  • The interval between the two trees measures 40 feet.这两棵树的间隔是40英尺。
  • There was a long interval before he anwsered the telephone.隔了好久他才回了电话。
8 ablaze 1yMz5     
adj.着火的,燃烧的;闪耀的,灯火辉煌的
参考例句:
  • The main street was ablaze with lights in the evening.晚上,那条主要街道灯火辉煌。
  • Forests are sometimes set ablaze by lightning.森林有时因雷击而起火。
9 exasperation HiyzX     
n.愤慨
参考例句:
  • He snorted with exasperation.他愤怒地哼了一声。
  • She rolled her eyes in sheer exasperation.她气急败坏地转动着眼珠。
10 thoroughly sgmz0J     
adv.完全地,彻底地,十足地
参考例句:
  • The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。
  • The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。
11 exhausted 7taz4r     
adj.极其疲惫的,精疲力尽的
参考例句:
  • It was a long haul home and we arrived exhausted.搬运回家的这段路程特别长,到家时我们已筋疲力尽。
  • Jenny was exhausted by the hustle of city life.珍妮被城市生活的忙乱弄得筋疲力尽。
12 knuckle r9Qzw     
n.指节;vi.开始努力工作;屈服,认输
参考例句:
  • They refused to knuckle under to any pressure.他们拒不屈从任何压力。
  • You'll really have to knuckle down if you want to pass the examination.如果想通过考试,你确实应专心学习。
13 gasped e6af294d8a7477229d6749fa9e8f5b80     
v.喘气( gasp的过去式和过去分词 );喘息;倒抽气;很想要
参考例句:
  • She gasped at the wonderful view. 如此美景使她惊讶得屏住了呼吸。
  • People gasped with admiration at the superb skill of the gymnasts. 体操运动员的高超技艺令人赞叹。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
14 belligerently 217a53853325c5cc2e667748673ad9b7     
参考例句:
  • Cars zoomed helter-skelter, honking belligerently. 大街上来往车辆穿梭不停,喇叭声刺耳。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Harass, threaten, insult, or behave belligerently towards others. 向其它交战地折磨,威胁,侮辱,或表现。 来自互联网
15 rumors 2170bcd55c0e3844ecb4ef13fef29b01     
n.传闻( rumor的名词复数 );[古]名誉;咕哝;[古]喧嚷v.传闻( rumor的第三人称单数 );[古]名誉;咕哝;[古]喧嚷
参考例句:
  • Rumors have it that the school was burned down. 有谣言说学校给烧掉了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • Rumors of a revolt were afloat. 叛变的谣言四起。 来自《简明英汉词典》
16 eruption UomxV     
n.火山爆发;(战争等)爆发;(疾病等)发作
参考例句:
  • The temple was destroyed in the violent eruption of 1470 BC.庙宇在公元前1470年猛烈的火山爆发中摧毁了。
  • The eruption of a volcano is spontaneous.火山的爆发是自发的。
17 volcanic BLgzQ     
adj.火山的;象火山的;由火山引起的
参考例句:
  • There have been several volcanic eruptions this year.今年火山爆发了好几次。
  • Volcanic activity has created thermal springs and boiling mud pools.火山活动产生了温泉和沸腾的泥浆池。
18 queried 5c2c5662d89da782d75e74125d6f6932     
v.质疑,对…表示疑问( query的过去式和过去分词 );询问
参考例句:
  • She queried what he said. 她对他说的话表示怀疑。 来自《简明英汉词典》
  • \"What does he have to do?\" queried Chin dubiously. “他有什么心事?”琴向觉民问道,她的脸上现出疑惑不解的神情。 来自汉英文学 - 家(1-26) - 家(1-26)
19 devastated eb3801a3063ef8b9664b1b4d1f6aaada     
v.彻底破坏( devastate的过去式和过去分词);摧毁;毁灭;在感情上(精神上、财务上等)压垮adj.毁坏的;极为震惊的
参考例句:
  • The bomb devastated much of the old part of the city. 这颗炸弹炸毁了旧城的一大片地方。
  • His family is absolutely devastated. 他的一家感到极为震惊。
20 doorway 2s0xK     
n.门口,(喻)入门;门路,途径
参考例句:
  • They huddled in the shop doorway to shelter from the rain.他们挤在商店门口躲雨。
  • Mary suddenly appeared in the doorway.玛丽突然出现在门口。
21 standing 2hCzgo     
n.持续,地位;adj.永久的,不动的,直立的,不流动的
参考例句:
  • After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
  • They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。
22 engrossed 3t0zmb     
adj.全神贯注的
参考例句:
  • The student is engrossed in his book.这名学生正在专心致志地看书。
  • No one had ever been quite so engrossed in an evening paper.没人会对一份晚报如此全神贯注。
23 forestall X6Qyv     
vt.抢在…之前采取行动;预先阻止
参考例句:
  • I left the room to forestall involvements.我抢先离开了这房间以免受牵累。
  • He followed this rule in order to forestall rumors.他遵守这条规矩是为了杜绝流言蜚语。
24 remonstrances 301b8575ed3ab77ec9d2aa78dbe326fc     
n.抱怨,抗议( remonstrance的名词复数 )
参考例句:
  • There were remonstrances, but he persisted notwithstanding. 虽遭抗议,他仍然坚持下去。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
  • Mr. Archibald did not give himself the trouble of making many remonstrances. 阿奇博尔德先生似乎不想自找麻烦多方规劝。 来自辞典例句
25 propounded 3fbf8014080aca42e6c965ec77e23826     
v.提出(问题、计划等)供考虑[讨论],提议( propound的过去式和过去分词 )
参考例句:
  • the theory of natural selection, first propounded by Charles Darwin 查尔斯∙达尔文首先提出的物竞天择理论
  • Indeed it was first propounded by the ubiquitous Thomas Young. 实际上,它是由尽人皆知的杨氏首先提出来的。 来自辞典例句
26 ostensible 24szj     
adj.(指理由)表面的,假装的
参考例句:
  • The ostensible reason wasn't the real reason.表面上的理由并不是真正的理由。
  • He resigned secretaryship on the ostensible ground of health.他借口身体不好,辞去书记的职务。
27 invalid V4Oxh     
n.病人,伤残人;adj.有病的,伤残的;无效的
参考例句:
  • He will visit an invalid.他将要去看望一个病人。
  • A passport that is out of date is invalid.护照过期是无效的。
28 unaware Pl6w0     
a.不知道的,未意识到的
参考例句:
  • They were unaware that war was near. 他们不知道战争即将爆发。
  • I was unaware of the man's presence. 我没有察觉到那人在场。
29 spoke XryyC     
n.(车轮的)辐条;轮辐;破坏某人的计划;阻挠某人的行动 v.讲,谈(speak的过去式);说;演说;从某种观点来说
参考例句:
  • They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
  • The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。
30 boisterous it0zJ     
adj.喧闹的,欢闹的
参考例句:
  • I don't condescend to boisterous displays of it.我并不屈就于它热热闹闹的外表。
  • The children tended to gather together quietly for a while before they broke into boisterous play.孩子们经常是先静静地聚集在一起,不一会就开始吵吵嚷嚷戏耍开了。


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