“What can we do?” said Bob, his tone showing his dismay. “Seems like we are in a bad fix. ‘No boat, no can go!’ as the Chinaman says.”
Jerry, however, was not so pessimistic. “Oh, I’m not beaten yet. I think I’ve got a scheme that’ll work, although it means we won’t be dry again until we get out of the canyon2.”
“What do you mean? Are we going to swim the rest of the way?”
“You’re not far off,” said Jerry, laughing. “But even if we’ve got to swim we won’t have to carry all our junk. Have you thought what a bully3 raft our air mattress4 will make?”
“Gee whiz, that’s some idea,” said Bob. “We can load our stuff on it and let it float down stream, can’t we?”
“You bet! But it will be pretty rough going. We’ll have to nurse it pretty carefully. A submarine rock could torpedo5 it in a minute. But come on, let’s try it.”
They blew up the mattress to its fullest extent and launched it. Piling on it the things they felt absolutely necessary to take with them, they were overjoyed to find the improvised6 raft equal to the task. The rest of the truck had to be abandoned.
“Well, might as well start, I reckon,” said Bob. “This is the first time I’ve ever gone in for an all-day swim. We won’t really need a bath the rest of the summer after this.” Jerry laughed a reply.
It didn’t turn out to be so bad as they had imagined. Shortly after they started the river grew smoother and shallower, so that wading7 was quite possible. During the afternoon of the next day, with almost startling suddenness they found themselves out of the canyon. It ended almost as surprisingly as it had begun. A sudden bend through the high cliffs and they were in the open country.
In the midst of their mutual9 congratulations a hail came to them from the bank. Surprised, they looked up to see a figure waving to them. They pulled ashore10 and found a grizzled old man standing11 up beside a camp fire.
“Did ye come through the gap?” was his greeting in a mild, unsurprised tone.
The boys answered in the affirmative. The old man nodded his head. “Pretty good, pretty good. You sho’ surprised me. Only ones what I’ve seen come through before have been dead ones. Sit ’round and in a minute I’ll have something to eat for ye.”
Jerry recognized the type at once. It was a desert rat, one of those old men who, lured12 by the dream of gold, haunt the desert, usually alone. Years pass over their heads in the search which never ends. At last the gold mine that they will find some day becomes merely the excuse not the aim of the unending pilgrimage. The desert, the loneliness is claiming them. If they found a mine worth the developing, probably they would sell it and blow in the proceeds and be off again as soon as possible. They have been too long away from civilization for anything to surprise them. The desert is mysterious, the loneliness makes everything possible.
The old man’s meal was sour dough14 biscuits and a sort of soup made from jerked beef and river water. But he offered it to them and served it as if it were a banquet. To the tired, hungry boys it was a banquet. They had done tremendous deeds on a diet of canned goods and any change was welcome.
The old man ventured no further curiosity in what they had done. They had come through the Labyrinth, he had accepted the fact, and that was all there was to it. He spoke15 very little and when the boys asked the way to the nearest railroad, his answer was given in rather a relieved tone. It was as if he would be glad to have the silence to himself again.
To the boys’ great joy, they found they had come out of the canyon at a point only twenty miles from the railroad. They determined16 to hike for it the next day. Before they started the next morning, Bob had an idea.
“Let’s give the old fellow our air mattress. We won’t need it any more and maybe he would like it.”
“Bully,” agreed Jerry and took it over to the old man.
They showed him how to blow it up and then let all the air out and rolled it up into a small parcel. He was as delighted as a child with a new toy and thanked them for it. At last they started out on their hike, carrying with them only enough food for lunch, the transit17 and as much water as possible. When they were about fifty feet from camp, the old man called out after them.
“I forgot to ask what this here thing you give me might be for.”
“To sleep on.”
“Well, you’d better take it back, then,” he said. “I hain’t slept on nothin’ but the old earth here for forty year and I reckon I won’t sleep on nothin’ else until I sleep in it. This here thing ain’t goin’ to do me no good.”
The boys laughed and Jerry called back, “Well, give it to the burro to sleep on then.”
With a last wave of the hand, the boys started on their long hike.
From the river the country had looked flat. But once faced in the direction the old man had told them to go, they found the way was quite hilly. Perhaps they had been so used during the past days in the canyon to the walls towering straight up on each side of them that the gradual rise did seem flat. But they soon realized it would be quite a climb.
Noon still found them ascending18 and they ate their lunch and hurried on. It was sizzling. There were some trees, but these were few and far between. Most of the footing was sandy and made hard walking. Owing to these conditions it was not until after nightfall that they saw the first sign of civilization. Bob was in the lead and was the first to see a reflection on the horizon.
“I thought I saw a light ahead, Jerry,” he cried. “Way off there.”
“Heat lightning, I guess,” returned the other, but before the words were out of his mouth the same phenomenon occurred and this time he saw it.
“Take it all back, Bob; you’re right. I saw it too.”
“But what is it?”
“Reflection from the fire box of an engine on the smoke that passes over. The reason it comes in flashes is that it only shows when the fireman opens the door to pitch on another scoop19 of coal. Yes, there it is again!” They plodded20 on, much encouraged.
Jerry had jollied and cheered up Bob during the long tramp, for Bob, while more adapted to the water, found himself at a disadvantage beside his new chum when it came to navigating21 the desert. When at last they made the track, they were footsore and weary. Finishing their last bit of water, the boys started to walk the ties in the direction they thought the nearest station must be. But after a few steps Bob refused to go farther.
“I don’t care what you do,” he announced to Jerry, “but I stop right here, and unless you give me a shove off the track I probably will sleep right between the rails. The morning will be plenty soon enough for me to go on, hungry as I am.”
“I won’t argue with you,” said Jerry. “And I guess the sand will seem just about as comfortable as any feather bed could, the way I feel. I’m right with you.”
The intense desert sun, however, woke them early to the realization22 of their weary muscles. Bob was up first and disturbed Jerry’s slumbers23 by a sudden peal24 of laughter.
The other scrambled27 to his feet and, blinkingly, scanned the horizon. Not more than a quarter of a mile away was a water tank and a few houses! The night had been so dark and they had come to the railroad so late that all the lights had been extinguished in the settlement. But as far as they were concerned, the town might just as well have been ten miles away instead of the few yards it was in reality.
“I guess it was a good one on us, all right,” Jerry had to admit. “Come on and we’ll see if we can rustle28 up some breakfast. Also a wash up. We must be two awful looking sights.”
They found something to eat and water to wash in and felt ten times better.
No questions were asked them. Evidently they were taken for tramps who had a little money.
They decided29 they might just as well find out if there was any news from Whiskers before they made any move, so they telegraphed to the Grand Canyon, asking that any telegram that had come be forwarded on to them. Then they proceeded to loaf until the answer arrived.
“Gee, this is bully,” commented Bob, as he lay stretched out on the porch of the general store, out of the glare of the sun. “I never thought just resting could be such fun!”
Neither boy had the energy to lift a finger. They were dead tired and the mere13 fact of doing nothing was infinitely32 enjoyable. They had a whole day of this, for it was not until the following morning that an answer came to their wire. It proved to be from the Boss and had been sent from Washington.
“Be at Las Cruces on June 20.”
“We’ve just got time to make it,” said Jerry. “That was sent three days ago and right now Mr. Whitney ought to be pulling out of Kansas City. We’ll catch the local out and be there just before he arrives.”
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1
wreck
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| n.失事，遇难；沉船；vt.(船等)失事，遇难 | |
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canyon
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| n.峡谷，溪谷 | |
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bully
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| n.恃强欺弱者，小流氓；vt.威胁，欺侮 | |
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mattress
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| n.床垫，床褥 | |
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torpedo
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| n.水雷，地雷；v.用鱼雷破坏 | |
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improvised
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| a.即席而作的,即兴的 | |
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7
wading
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| （从水、泥等）蹚，走过，跋( wade的现在分词 ) | |
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8
labyrinth
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| n.迷宫；难解的事物；迷路 | |
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9
mutual
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| adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的 | |
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ashore
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| adv.在(向)岸上，上岸 | |
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standing
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| n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的 | |
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lured
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| 吸引，引诱（lure的过去式与过去分词形式） | |
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mere
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| adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过 | |
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14
dough
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| n.生面团；钱，现款 | |
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15
spoke
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| 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 | |
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16
determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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transit
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| n.经过，运输；vt.穿越，旋转；vi.越过 | |
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ascending
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| adj.上升的，向上的 | |
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scoop
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| n.铲子，舀取，独家新闻；v.汲取，舀取，抢先登出 | |
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20
plodded
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| v.沉重缓慢地走（路）( plod的过去式和过去分词 )；努力从事；沉闷地苦干；缓慢进行（尤指艰难枯燥的工作） | |
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21
navigating
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| v.给（船舶、飞机等）引航，导航( navigate的现在分词 )；（从海上、空中等）横越；横渡；飞跃 | |
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22
realization
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| n.实现；认识到，深刻了解 | |
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slumbers
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| 睡眠，安眠( slumber的名词复数 ) | |
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peal
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| n.钟声；v.鸣响 | |
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drowsily
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| adv.睡地，懒洋洋地，昏昏欲睡地 | |
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giggled
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| v.咯咯地笑( giggle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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scrambled
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| v.快速爬行( scramble的过去式和过去分词 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞 | |
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28
rustle
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| v.沙沙作响；偷盗(牛、马等)；n.沙沙声声 | |
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29
decided
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| adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的 | |
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30
grunted
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| （猪等）作呼噜声( grunt的过去式和过去分词 )； （指人）发出类似的哼声； 咕哝着说 | |
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assent
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| v.批准，认可；n.批准，认可 | |
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infinitely
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| adv.无限地，无穷地 | |
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