The Treasure of the Incas A Story of Adventure in Peru

one but a hundred yards when they heard a sound that was new to them. It sounded like the grunting of a number of pigs. Dias was attending to the mules. Harry and Bertie caught

as?" he asked in surpri

is a p

a sort of p

but they will keep watch there, regardless of how many are shot, until hunger obliges them to retire. They are the bravest beasts of the forests, and will attack and kill even a lion or a tiger if it has seized one of their number. I beg you to stroll back quietly, and then sit down. I will go to the head o

this time forty or fifty of the peccaries had issued from the trees; some were rooting among the herbage, others stood perfectly quiet, staring at the group on the rise above them. Seein

han a herd of peccaries. These little animals are always ready to give battle, and once they begin, fight till they die. The more that are killed the more furious do th

hey eat?"

ill great numbers of snakes. Even the largest python is no match for a h

y lucky that you stopp

ome across stragglers. And it is well that they do, for otherwise the woods would be full of them, though fortunately they do not multiply as fast as our pigs, having only two or th

idea of having pork while

, Dias?" Maria called suddenly. "It seems t

tie could not

nd, in order that, should the peccaries attack them, he might be ready at once to snatch up his rifle

t difficult places, and with her light springy step had taxed the power of the others to keep up with her. These offers had not come from Dias, who showed his confidence in his wife's powers by paying no att

s you. I saw nothing but a little pig. Then, when he came slowly back with you and suddenly seized me and jerked me up on to that bough, I felt

d. "With our rifles we could have faced four lions or tigers with a better hope of success than those little pigs you saw. They were peccaries,

gone in among a herd of little pigs quite as big as those things, and never

There is as much difference between our pig and a peccary as there is between a q

Dias. There is no fear of those cre

rection, otherwise I should have said that we had better stop here for

through the forest, at the foot of the

it?" Di

tanding in front of tha

u sure,

hen I called to you he must have slipped round the tree. I only to

s we have. It may be twenty-four hours, it may be three or four days, before he makes his appearance again; but it is certain that, sooner or later, we shall hear of him. Hunters as they are, they can follow a track where I should see nothing; and

we better

ong the foliage, and the first we should know of their presence would be a shower of arrows; and as they are excellent marksmen, we should probably be all riddled at the first volley. There can be no sauntering now, we must push the animals forward at their best

rt halt while they gave a double handful of grain to each of the ani

afe to light

hink there is any chance of their overtaking us until tomorrow. The man José saw may have had companions close at hand, but they will know that we are well armed, and will do nothing until they have gathered a large number and feel sure tha

e turns with

ounds of the forests, yours are not. If you

assed witho

ved at a gorge that suited their purpose. For two hundred yards the rocks rose perpendicularly on each side of the stream, which was but some thirty feet wide. No rain had fallen for some days, and the water was

n form a strong breast-work on the rocks nearly out to the middle of the stre

ly to besiege

t I do not think they

ient when roaming the f

ue to them; besides, th

will therefore try t

o give it up fro

hook h

ng down monkeys from the trees, and can snare small animals. However, se?or, we can talk over these things to-morrow. We had best begin the bre

high on both sides. Some twelve feet in the centre were open. They had chosen a spot where so many fall

ter completing their labour, "but it is a joke to this. My back is fairly broken, my arms feel a

the morning. We shall only want to add to them on the lower face in order to form a sort of parapet that will shelter us as we lie down

ble to fight their wa

an they get down into this valley behind us; the rocks

e shall have to examine them very carefully when we have finished the wall. If we find that it is po

ink we are safe f

hat we have stopped here, and will certainly want to find out our position before they attack. One or two may come up as scouts, and in that case they may attack at

watched all last night. My eyes are as go

protested, but

quiet. These savages have ears like those of wild animals, and if

lent when I

n't remember in all these years we have been

for it shows at least that I am never sulky. Well,

need be forbidden to talk in a low tone, for the roar of the water among the r

the wall with Bertie. José, after a last look at t

ork, and the building of that wall has pretty nearly finished me, so if I don't get t

hen his brother roused him he could hardly be

latter said. "You were sleeping like a top; I had

en I lay down, and will just run down to the stream and sluice my head,

ria, and, taking both his shot-gun and rifl

her seen nor hear

whateve

he next four hours. It is eleven o'clock now, so yo

d. "If they attack, as I expect they will as soon as the dawn

g Dias w

ly woman's work

that the savages were beating us I should stab myself. They would kill you, but the

e on each side, but really I shirk the thought of wading through the river waist-deep at that shallow place we fou

se?or," Maria said with a little l

talk occasionally; we shall have

aid; "I can see the white water but nothing else, and I

ise above the surface. When our eyes get quite accustomed to the dark we should

to talk, for I am sure if I were to lie with my eyes straining

rough parapet. No attempt had been made to fill up the spaces between the stones, so that, except for the rounded shape, it would be next to impossible to make them out between the rough rocks of the crest. Harry

nestly but could see nothing. A minute later, however, a rock about fifteen yards away seemed to c

I can make out one above the rocks; t

AN INDIAN SPIES

rry had no doubt that they were examining the two blac

s on this side, se?o

ap of two arrows striking on the st

e begun it," H

where the two men seen by his companion must be standing. The head disappeared, and loud cries broke from the other side. The stillness that had reigned in the valley was brok

see any

him throw up his arms, and it was he who screamed. The man by him dropped where he st

later Dias and

have come

ne. They shot two arrows at us, and I answered them. The man I saw was killed, an

d I doubt whether they will come down in the morning. They can get sight of the barricades from that ben

Now that I see how sharp Donna Maria's eyes ar

hall have no chance of going off to sleep

back and fetch a blanket, it is chilly here; then if

n eight-and-forty hours on deck more than on

aria continued their watch, but no longer with the same intentness as before. They were sure that Dias would not have lain down unless he fe

brother is fast asleep, but I will

day. If I see anything suspicious I will rouse him. We may have

d on him more than on us; his figure

k to the tent

daylight breaks pleas

is the best time for work down in the plain, and I generall

oundly until

beginning to ge

ce. José was alread

hat gun of yours with you. If the savages do attack,

ion, José took up the old musket

ou got in th

hot that you gave me

carry far like a bullet; but if fired when they are close it is bett

and though he could not be called a good shot, he could sho

as still

ing quie

thing moving si

tirring his brother up with

up now?" he said. "Ay, what, is it you, Ha

middle of my watch, and Dias has been

at I have slept for over five hours? Why d

ed you if I had seen anything of the savages. Besides, Don Harry said you

f," Bertie said. "I don't want t

esides, you know, you would have been of no use had you been awake, for you could have seen nothing. Donna Maria's eyes were a good deal sharper than mine, and I am quite sure that, tired a

orty or fifty yards, but beyond that

able to stop them before

ght, a figure showed itsel

hould think that our guns won't reach them. Besides, if th

and two or three others came out. "They think that our gun

e frequent changes, until at least

last disappeared. "They see what they have got be

aid. "At any rate they will not do so until the

llsides and ascertain whether there is any place where they can come down. You know a great deal better than I where active n

uldered his rifle and w

eturned in

e José here, and we will go and talk matters over while we eat. The tents are only a hundred yards away, so that if

or two points by which they could climb down we could prevent their doing so by picking t

r points on the right-hand side and three on the left where I could make

if not, we shall have to settle whether to go up the gorge till we get to some place where the mules can climb out of it, or stay here and fight it out. By camping on the stream at a point where it could not be fo

to be able to find some spot where we could do so. But that would mean the failure of our expedition, for we certainly could n

s gold stream. The star would not be in the same place again for another year, and even then we might not find it; so we must make up our minds to do our best in some other direction. That point we must consider as settled. I should not feel justified in

ack empty-handed," Dias said after a silence of two

eeing that they are sure to lose many lives before they overpower us. Then, if they determine to attack us, they will have to settle how it is to be done. Numbers of them will go up to the top of the hills on both sides and try to find a point at which they can make their way down; oth

be settled is whether we can find a more defensible spot than this, th

many points higher up

in making our way through this gorge; there may be others higher u

path I will open fire upon them. I don't say I should be able to hit them, for the top of those hills must be eight or nine hundred yards' range, and it is not easy to hit an object very much above or very much below you; but it is important that the

e sides. I don't suppose they know any more of this place than we do. They always keep down in the plains, and it is only because they met us down there that they have followed us so far. I believe they will follow on as long as they think there is a chance of destroying us, for t

e and the two double-barrelled guns and José's musket they could

and fired. He had aimed above rather than below them, as, had the ball struck much below, they might not hear it, whereas, if it went over their heads, they would certainly do so. A couple of seconds after firing he saw a sudden mov

even at that distance they were not safe. I have no doubt that astonishment as much as fear made them bolt. They'

impressed them with the necessity for precaution, as they no longer kept together, and they had apparently crawled up to continue their investigations. Beyond keeping a watch to see that no

widens again, but the extent is not more than half what it is here. The walls are almost perpendicular, and I do not think that it would be possible to climb them at any point. Farther up there is another ravine. It

out except by the way they came in. As for ourselves, we migh

here we may be safe. We have plenty of provisions, we can catch fish in the stream, and no doubt shall find birds in the bushes at the lower part of t

, How long will it ta

ierce in attack, soon tire of waiting, and are eager to return to their homes again. I cannot think that they will speedily leave. They have assembled, many of them perhaps from considerable distances; they have had two days' marc