The White Waterfall

tir by daybreak, and after a hasty breakfast we trailed off behind Soma and the carrie

d when we started on the trail, I took particular care to lag behind the procession for the first few hours so that I would be in a position to intercept any diligent runner from The Waif. I

ng to guide him to, and all our suspicions don't amount to much when you put them together. You see we've got nothing definite to go on at present. All we can do is to wat

s we could see. Soma, who was in the lead, found his way by occasional marks that could only be visible to the eye of a n

he replied. "What he doesn't know a

s the strangest expedition that had ever set forth. If Leith was the wicked devil that we suspected him to be, four persons were risking their lives to gratify the whim of a half-crazy scientist who was dying for notoriety. He would not be turned aside from his pursuit of the specimens which Leith had told him of; his daughters would not desert him, and their resolve had brought Holman and mys

ho were inclined to dawdle as the way grew rougher, and, although I would much rather have had the task of helping the two girls, I had to accept th

ng, and through a break in the trees we caught a glimpse of the Pacific. The ocean seemed directly

a stone over to make her a seat. "This stillness stops one from speaking. Do you know that Barbara

prattling old Professor who chattered of the honours he expected as the rewards of his di

iness before it got this far," muttered Holman, as

we have don

e done something though. Pity we didn't lo

now? Has anyth

beginning to put my nerves on edge, but I'm afraid to yell out for fear that I mi

y mu

lman. "The stillness of the place has brought the

oys going, Mr. Verslun," he said. "We want to cross the Vermilion

make it easier for the two sisters, but no matter what amount of trouble we took, they found it a difficult matter to follow. Once, goaded into fury by Leith's attempts

through the thick lenses of his glasses as if I was some new kind of

who wish to share my hardships in the pursuit of information that will be o

coveries," I cried. "They are doing this inf

med. "Mind your own business

back to meet him, evidently convinced of my insanity through my inability to appreciate his efforts to prove that th

from both sides. The trees and lianas became less numerous, and the black rocks came toward us in a sinister manner that conjured up thoughts of a dead something toward which the encircling ridges were guiding us like the arms of a corral. The place was fear-inspiring. It had the unearthly appearance that made the imaginative minds of the ancients people the sil

behalf of the girls struggling in the rear. During the few minutes that Leith grudgingly allowed them in which to recover their breath, the

kens are we go

king patch of country that

the sun went down," I replied. "I guess it is somewhere

g with the place, Verslun. My skin feels it. The island looks as if it has been left too long by itself,

ch suddenly strikes the unimaginative globe trotter who wanders into the cool recesses of a Hindu temple. And I was of the same opinion as Holman regarding the trees and rocks. Traders in the lonely spots of the Pacific have gone insane through becoming convinced that the mountains and the trees were watchin

so that he would cheer up

over some funny stories instead of getting nightmares about the scenery. Why, t

the captain, that a chatak tree at the back of his hut had begun to make faces at him, and I began to understand the complaint that had gripped that trader as I climbed along by the side of the puffing islanders. He had been jammed up too close against a personality. When a place has been too long by itself, as Holman had remarked, it cultivates a strength

y on the higher slopes. The creepers fell away slowly, as if they had done the work they were required to do, and before we realized it we were walking between tw

ery footstep, and he stumbled continuously as he endeavoured to jot down his impressions in the fat notebook. The Professor

iend Professor Hanlaw of Oakland would enjoy a glimpse

ion of the rock. It troubled me little at that moment whether feldspar and augite were the two largest components, and I knew that Holma

side rose the nearly perpendicular rocks that blocked our view of the country immediately beyond. The ground beneath our feet was c

the prospects of a walk upon a down grade were cheering after the stiff climbs. As we neared the place, Soma, who was walking about

who were some distance in the rear. "Hurry up!" he crie

" gurgled th

s open mouth so that he would be able to dab down first impre

big brute, as he walked slowly forwa

ight barrier of rock that appeared to rise higher as we approached the end of the trail. We seemed to sense the approach of something that chilled and yet attracted. The place possessed a devilish fascin

yes. The vermilion walls, thirty yards in front of us, formed part of the sides of an enormous circular crater, a

a cheap showman springing a novelty upon a gaping mob, "you are on the edg