The Peril Finders Part 31

"Yes," cried Chris, "and I'll go and throw the hook till I catch the chain."

"Nay! That's where I come in, my lad," cried Griggs. "You shall have all the credit, but I'll do the work."

"No, no," said Chris angrily. "It's my invention, and I shall do it."

"No," said the doctor firmly; "you both had the same idea, my boy, but Mr Griggs is your senior, he is better adapted for the dangerous task, and you must give way."

"Must I, father?" said the boy, in a disappointed tone.

"Yes. You have run risks enough for one day."

"Ha, ha!" cried Ned, laughing, to the astonishment of all, and his satisfaction rang out in his tones. "You can't do it, after all, Griggs," and though he said no more his eyes looked a finish to the sentence--serve you right for getting the better of Chris!

"Why can't I do it?" said Griggs quietly.

"Because there's no fire to heat the iron."

"But I can soon make one."

"What of? Stones?"

Griggs brought his right fist down into his left hand with a loud _spang_, uttering a low hiss the while, for there was not a sc.r.a.p of wood in sight.

Then his face lit up and he went to the mule laden with the tent, cast loose a rope, and ran an iron ringed peg about two feet long off from where it had been placed for safety, and walked off amongst the rocks till he found a crevice suited to his purpose. There he thrust the thin end of the peg in between the sides some six inches, and exerting his strength a little, bent the iron round till the lower part stood off at right angles to the upper. This done, he raised the iron, placed the point upon the surface of a level block, and pressed heavily down, the point yielding slowly, and, the iron being fairly soft, he very shortly produced a roughly-made hook.

"'Taint so neat as I could wish," he said quietly; "but it is a hook, and you can't call it anything else."

"Yes," said Chris frankly, "and it's a better one than I expected; but wouldn't it be better to try if you can catch the chain with it before it gets dark?"

"He would have to keep on throwing several times perhaps," said Bourne, "and bring the snakes swarming out."

"Well I don't know that it would matter much," said Griggs thoughtfully.

"I should be standing perhaps a dozen yards from where the hook kept on falling, and they'd strike at it and not at me. I shall try it at once, doctor, for it'll be far better than doing it by lanthorn light."

"Yes," said the doctor thoughtfully; "and at the worst, if the reptiles swarmed out, we would hurry away till they settled down again."

"Yes," said Griggs, with a quick nod of the head, and a few minutes later he had his tackle ready, the hook securely tied on, the rope hanging in coils from his hand, and all ready for the advance.

"I'll go alone, please, and at once," he said sharply. "In ten minutes it will be getting dusk. Did any one notice whether the chain lay at the top?"

"Yes," cried Chris sharply; "I did. So that it would be quite easy to catch."

"Good," cried Griggs, in a satisfied tone. "Then here goes."

"Promise me you'll be careful, Griggs," said the doctor.

"Yes, sir," said the American, smiling, "if you'll strike a bargain."

"What do you mean?"

"Promise me you'll have that stuff ready to give me a strong dose if I'm bitten."

"Trust me," said the doctor.

"And trust me, sir," cried Griggs.

The next minute he was striding along over the sand in and out amongst the scattered blocks of stone, and followed by his friends, cautiously on the alert for any reptiles that might be coiled up asleep.

But it was past their time; the sun had gone down, and the dusk of evening was rapidly growing into darkness, showing the party that if they had waited until a lanthorn was necessary there would have been great difficulty in putting into practice that which in theory sounded as easy as drawing on a glove.

Not a snake was to be seen when the party halted, following Griggs's example, and standing about thirty feet behind him, the many blocks of rugged stone in front completely hiding the place where the barrels lay.

"Can you see any of the enemy?" said the doctor, just loudly enough for his voice to reach the American's ears.

Griggs turned quickly, shook his head to indicate that the coast was clear, and then turned back to face his task.

The next minute they saw the deftly-thrown hook flying through the air, describing a curve, and the rings of the rope opening out as they followed the iron.

There was a loud jangling sound, and Chris held his breath as he saw the operator begin to draw upon the rope hand over hand, fully expecting to see a check, and that the hook had caught.

The boy was not disappointed--it had, and Chris uttered a low cheer.

"Got it!" he whispered.--"Why is he doing that?"

_That_ was the jerking of the rope to set it at liberty to be drawn in again, for the simple reason that the catch was only the corner of a rock.

But Griggs was soon ready again, and he mounted on to the top of a stone before taking careful aim, as he swung the hook to and fro, and then once more launched it through the air, to fall this time with a dull sound as if it had struck upon wood.

"He'll do it this time," whispered Ned excitedly. "Yes: he has got it."

For as Griggs hauled there was again a check, evidently, from the sound of the iron, against wood.

"Oh!" groaned Chris, as they saw the rope hauled in again quickly for another throw. "What a while he is! He won't be able to see."

"All right, Chris," cried Ned cheerily; "third time never fails."

"We shall have to do it, Ned," replied Chris merrily. "Now then, once to be ready, twice to be steady, three times to be off: there it goes."

Away went the hook, and after it the dimly-seen coils of rope, followed by a sharp clang again of iron upon stone.

"Now he's hauling," whispered Ned, and all held their breath, for the change from daylight into darkness was rapidly going on, and Griggs's figure standing erect upon the grey rock began to look as if some thin, filmy, smoke-tinted veil was being drawn over it.

_Tchingle_! came--clearly heard!

"Hurrah!" cried Chris. "He has caught the chain this time. He'll want us to help haul."

The boy strained forward as if ready to start at the first call; but he did not, for no call came, but Griggs himself began to move sharply after a tug at the rope, and then leaping down from the stone upon which he had stood, he came running towards them swiftly, dodging in and out amongst the stones standing in his way.