CHAPTER XXIV
IN THE FLOATING FOREST
Putting into operation the suggestion of the professor the boys startedthe _Dartaway_ off after breakfast on a tour of the lake. The day wascloudy and there was a stiff breeze which kicked up something of a sea,but the motor craft was able to weather heavier waves than any the boysencountered.
"There must be an outlet to account for the water flowing away,"remarked the professor, as they speeded along. Bob continued to improveslightly though he was far from well. His delirium had left him,however, and he was very weak.
They traveled many miles around the shores of the lake but discoverednothing in the way of an outlet. The water seemed to be loweringrapidly.
"This is getting serious," remarked the professor as he closely scannedthe surface of the lake. "We've got to do something."
"The question is--what?" said Ned.
"We had better go a little farther," continued the scientist. "Then ifwe do not discover something, we'll camp for the night. In the morningwe may have better luck."
It was well along in the afternoon now and Jerry, who was at the wheel,speeded up the engine to send the craft ahead faster in order to coveras much of the lake as possible. But no explanation of the phenomenonrewarded the efforts of the travelers.
"That looks like a good place to camp," said Jerry, pointing ahead toa clump of forest. The shores were of sloping gravel and the recedingwater has not left exposed a lot of mud. "We can't do better than toput up there," he added.
"Are we going ashore?" asked Ned.
"I think it will be wise," replied Uriah Snodgrass. "Bob is restless inthe narrow bunk and he needs a change."
The sick boy had dozed off and took no part in the discussion.
The _Dartaway_ was headed for the place Jerry had indicated, and in ashort time the travelers were ashore with Ned and Jerry making camp anderecting the tent, while the professor looked after Bob. The boat wasmoored by a long rope some distance from shore as they did not want tofind it aground in the morning in case the waters should continue torecede. They could wade out to it, as the shore was sloping.
Bob did seem a little better when placed on a comfortable cot in thetent. However, he took no interest in what was going on but lay withclosed eyes, for the fever still burned in his veins in spite of themedicine administered by the professor.
"I must get something stronger for Bob," he said. "If I was near adrug store I would have no trouble, but out here I'm afraid I can findnothing that will completely break the high fever. If I met our oldIndian friend he might be able to suggest to me some vegetable remedy."
"We'd better made everything doubly secure to-night," remarked Jerry asthey prepared to retire.
"Why?" asked Ned.
"Because there's going to be a storm, and, if I'm not much mistaken, atough one."
Indeed it did look as though Jerry's prophecy was likely to befulfilled. The sun had long since sunk down behind a bank of ominouslooking clouds, and now a fitful wind was springing up, sighing throughthe palmetto trees and swaying the long streamers of vines like bigpendulums. Whenever the wind died away momentarily there was a curioushush over everything, that magnified slight sounds. It grew darker butwith a peculiar yellow cast that gave objects a sickly hue.
"We're in for a heavy blow," remarked the professor. "Look well to theguy ropes, boys."
They needed no urging, but set to with a will, the scientist helpingthem, to make their camp secure. As the hours went by, and the signs ofthe storm did not increase, they had hopes that it might pass away.
Ned and the professor stretched themselves out on their cots whileJerry, who had agreed to take first watch, sat just outside the tentwatching the fitful play of lightning in the western sky.
"I guess it's coming after all," he said to himself as the flashes grewmore brilliant. Now and then low mutterings of thunder could be heard,and the wind, which, for the last half hour had died away, suddenlysprang up with an increased violence.
Suddenly there sounded a shrill shrieking as though some giganticwhistle had been blown. So startling was it that Jerry sprang to hisfeet thinking that, in some unaccountable way, a steamer had gotten onButterfly Lake. But an instant later he knew it was the hurricane, forthe force of it nearly blew the tent over.
"All hands to help hold things down!" yelled Jerry, springing to a guyrope as the canvas undulated under the force of the powerful wind.
Fortunately Ned and the professor were light sleepers. They sprang upand went to Jerry's assistance. The tent seemed determined to give into the wind and collapse, but the three held on until the first furyof the blast had passed by. It settled down to a heavy blow but theropes held. Then with a dash of stinging globules the rain came, andthe storm was fairly on. The three outside the tent were drenched in aninstant, and hastened inside.
Bob had awakened from the noise of the tempest. He sat up, halffrightened, but when Jerry assured him everything was safe he turnedover and dozed off again, so powerful a hold did the fever have on him.
It was a night such as the travelers had seldom experienced on anyof their journeys, and they had been in some tight places. There wasalmost a continuous rattle and roar of thunder and the lightning wasincessant. Mingled with the rain was the boom of the lake waves on theshore, for the wind kicked up quite a disturbance on the large body ofwater.
"I hope our boat's safe," remarked Jerry as there sounded a fiercerburst of the storm.
It seemed as if morning would never come but at last there was aperceptible lifting of the darkness and the storm seemed to abate some.Ned put on an oil-skin coat, and, donning a pair of rubber boots,ventured out. No sooner had he emerged from the tent than he gave ashout which brought the professor and Jerry to the tent flap.
"What's the matter?" asked Mr. Snodgrass.
"We're adrift!"
"Adrift! What do you mean? We're not on the boat!"
"No, but we're on something that's floating. Look over there at thosetrees on shore and you can see that we're moving!"
Jerry and the professor looked. Getting two tall trees in range theycould easily note that they were moving, as the position of the treeschanged with reference to themselves.
"What could have happened?" asked Jerry.
"We must have landed on an island instead of on the mainland," saidNed. "In some way the island got adrift."
"I think we landed on the main land all right," said Uriah Snodgrass,"but what happened was this: These everglades are not much more thanfloating masses of vegetation, several feet thick it is true, andcapable of supporting large trees. But the fury of the storm probablycut off from the main land the portion we're on. It floated off andtook us with it. We're in the middle of the lake."
"Where's our boat?" asked Jerry.
"Back where you moored it, probably, unless it has also drifted withus," replied Mr. Snodgrass.
"Then we're in for a lot of trouble," exclaimed Ned. "What shall we do?"
"We'd better make some explorations," suggested the professor. "It'sstopped raining. We'll try and discover how large our island is."
They looked to see that Bob was comfortable, and found him sleeping.Placing some water where he could reach it, the three set off expectingto be back in half an hour or so.
Through the woods they went, seeking to get to the other side of thefloating island to look for their boat. It was hard work trampingthrough the underbrush, and they needed all the protection which theirheavy oil-skin coats and rubber boots gave them. On and on they went,taking little heed of direction, for they were all anxious and worried.
But the island seemed very large. They had left the shores and werewell into the interior. It was dark and gloomy for the sky wasovercast. Suddenly the professor called:
"Boys, let's halt a minute."
Ned and Jerry stopped. They looked at their companion.
"I'm afraid we've done rather a foolish thing," he said. "Have eitherof you a compass?"
The boy
s said they had not.
"Neither have I," went on Mr. Snodgrass. "I left mine in the tent. Weshould have been more careful. I don't know in what direction we aregoing, nor which way to go back. This island is larger than I thought."
"Do you think we're lost?" asked Ned, in some alarm.
"Yes, boys, it looks very much as though we were lost in a floatingforest, and I think we'll have trouble in getting back to camp."
The Motor Boys in Strange Waters; or, Lost in a Floating Forest Page 24
