The Washington times., 1912-07-25
CHAPTER XII.
Difficulties Ahead.
TSHE next four days slipped by al
most unheeded. Blake saw to II
that not only himself, but his


TsHE next four days slipped by al
most unheeded. Blake saw to II
that not only himself, but his
companions had to work to oc- 1
cupy every hour OF daylight. While not
engaged in cooking and fuel-gathering
Miss Leslie was learning by painful ex-
perience the rudiments OF dressm alsing.
At the start she had all but ruined
the beautiful skin OF the mother leopard
before Blake chanced to see her and
took over the task Of cutting 1t into
shape for skirt. But when 1t came to
making a waist Of the cub fur, he said
that she would have to puzzle out the
pattern from her other one.
Between cooking three meals a day
over an open fire, gathering several
/. armfuls of wood, and making dress
with penknife, thorn and catgut, the
girl had little time to think Of other
matters than her work.
Winthrope had been gazetted as hun
ter in ordinary. His task was to keep
Miss Leslie supplied with fresh eggs,
and each day to kill as many Of the
boobies and cormorants as he could
skin and split for drying
Blake had changed his mind about
taking him when he went for, cocoa
nuts Instead, he had gone alone on
several trips. bringing three or four
loads Of nuts, then little salt from
the seashore-dirty, but very welcome
wrapped in palm fronts.
With this clay he at once began ex-
periments in the art of pottery. Hav-
tits tity, he nodded It into small cups
and bowls, and tried burning them
overnight in the watch fire., A few
came out without crack or flaw.
Vastly elated by this success, he FASH
ioned larger vessels, and within the
week could brag of two pots suitable
for cooking stews and four large non
What was more. all had fairly
good sand-glaze, for he had been quick
to observe a glaze on the bottoms OF
the first pots, and had reasoned out
that 1t was due to the sand which had
adhered while they stood drying In the
He next turned his attention to me-
the river bank for the brown bog ore,
which he believed he had seen from the
farther side
After rs ana and snnxIs hs
came back with nothing more to show
for his pains than an armful OF creep
ers. Late in the afternoon he had TO-
ing in a streak so thin that he coulc
not hope to collect enough for practlca
Lucky we've got something to fal
hack on" he added, after telling Of
his failure. Pass over those Keys O
yours. Win Good. Now untangle thos'
creepers. To night We'll take turns knot IoS
ting them up into some sort OF rope laa
der. I'm getting weary of hoohng !
the civ liver After this I'll go down tn
e at thst end SSe Ss the SaS Become
irritated and depressed during tne ias ~
two days, turned on his heel with TN
look of fretful chiia: r,denes
Miss Leslie spoke somewhat hurriedi!
"But why should you return again !
the river Mr.. Blake? I'm sure You al
risking the fever Se the snd iunFie uners '
.'That's my business groWie
@ Blake. He paused moment; and @ the
added rather less ungracionsly: Wet
II you care, ns TINS rnr way nrs Give a me
little iron ore and Wen mighty 500
have a lot of steel knives and AFRO
heads thatll amount vtsimn to sEmesn,rl wnrt
While with bamboo tips on our arrows
Those boartusks are fizzle.
80 you viii continue niue, TO vsrv rask bysS ys
life for US? 1 think & anat Is very ofa'
anI "uews that?" demanded Blake. n,
little puzzled. He was fully col
scious of the risk; but this was M %, u
first intimation ne ,f,ses haa we're other tha
"Tm! So g, t that's the ticket ae''''
generous saSnG reesting,-you eff are generou
When I think OF all you have done y
have died that first 6is DAY asnorf ane couldn
n.ys weil; 1t don'd o doF e'ams die that way; az
then. fellow needs a Man Friday 4
this sort of thing. AS to you'll haven
always had the luck to. be favored VIII
iaa1ss TSanR You, Mr.. Blake-I quite a.
preciate the compliment. But now
ssss set sssoiowedP Ho ssdPRSsa RSer graceful
with an intentness which, In turn ORE dr,
Winthrope's attention TO himself. III
Englishman smiled IN a & dissgreeap 2
hows with the look Of one who is me
tally preoccupied. After supper
found occasion to spend some little tin
amShs Whsn 'he at sunset Miss Leslie wit
drew into the baobab, Winthrope som
what officiously insisted upon helpil
her set up her screen in the entran'
AS he did so he took the opportunity
hand her a bamboo knife and to dra
her attention to several bamboo stnk
which he had siddem sSs undes ssEsd 'ne tropbl i5
by his furtive glance back at Blake,
"Merely precaution, you know"
whispered, THE ground in there there
fancy. to put up the stakes, with III
points inclined toward the entrance"
But why
mot SO loud, Miss Genevieve!
struck me that II any one should 50
TO enter IN the night he would find th
stakes deucedly unpleasant. It's 8
Of chevaux-de-frise, you know.
careful how you handle them. AS J
see, the sharper points. which are to
set uppermost. run OF Into raz
edge"
'Then you-you fear that
''My dear Miss Genevieve 1t Is "
20 be on the safe side, You must
member that we know very little alb
the NEUTRALITY-SUSPICIOUS.. but the way
looks at you, and certain cxpressi,
he has let fall. But do not be alarm
] am convinced that there viii be
you, and I assure you that this @
trivance will safely enable US to 81