CHAPTER XIII
GORILLAS--AND AN AERIAL TOW-LINE
The mystery of the man on the hill bade fair to be an unsolved one,for although the boys watched for some time with considerableanxiety he did not reappear. This feature of the incident set themto comparing notes and they found that their impression of theapparition differed considerably. Both Frank and Harry were readyto swear that he was a black man, while Ben Stubbs was equallyconvinced that his skin was of a reddish hue. All three, however,agreed that he was weaponless so far as could be seen, and hisattitude appeared to be more one of interested curiosity than ofactual hostility.
"Well, there's no use wasting time in speculation," said Frank atlast, "more especially as it does not look as if we can get anynearer to solving the problem in that way. The thing to do now isto get at the ivory and that as quickly as possible. If that man isthe forerunner of a band that means to attack us, it is all the morereason that we should get a move on."
"Right you are, Captain," assented Ben, "and here goes!"
With a mighty swing of his pick the former prospector dislodged apile of the rough stones of which the cairn was composed and theboys, too, laid on with a will. In an hour or so all that was leftof the once lofty cairn was a few big rocks.
Excitement ran fairly to fever heat as the last obstruction that laybetween the adventurers and the ivory hoard was cast aside.
In a few minutes now, if all went well, they would be in possessionof the treasure. More than once as they worked, Frank drew hisfield-glasses out of their case and scanned the surroundingwilderness of rocky chasms and swept the green jungle that laystretched like an emerald ocean far below, but each time he replacedthem with a sigh of relief. So far there was no sign of any rivals'approach, although Frank well knew that by this time Muley-Hassanmust be upon his way to contest the boys' claim to the ivory.
As the last stone was chucked aside with a mighty heave by thecombined forces the perspiring adventurers broke into a hearty cheer.
Beneath it was a wooden trap-door which had a ring placed in themiddle evidently for the purpose of lifting it. Frank gave it aheft, but the weight was too much for even his wiry muscles; butwhen Ben and, Harry assisted him the door gave with a jump thatthrew them all to their feet.
Scrambling up in a second they rushed to the edge of the holerevealed by the uplifting of the wooden cover. What they saw showedthem instantly that their wildest hopes had not been overdrawn.There, at their feet, lay a king's ransom in yellow ivory.
From the hole rose a fetid, sickening odor that at first was almostoverpowering. It came from the rotting flesh that still adhered tothe roots of many of the huge trunks.
With a cheer Harry was about to spring down into the aperture whenFrank, with a quick exclamation, drew him back.
"Jump back for your life!" he shouted.
Harry was accustomed to obeying his brother in everything, and jumpbackward he did with an agility that would have done credit to agymnast. Before he could ask a question Frank's revolver crackedand a little spit of dust shot up almost at his very feet.
There lay a tiny snake viciously wiggling about in its death agony,pierced through by Frank's bullet.
It was a rock adder--one of the deadliest of African snakes. Barelymore than three inches in length, and a dull gray in color, it wassmall wonder that Harry in his excitement had not seen it as he wasabout to jump almost upon it.
"We shall have to be careful," said Frank, as he kicked aside thestill writhing body of the disgusting looking reptile. "There isjust a chance that Muley-Hassan, with the cunning of an Arab, mayhave put several more of those customers in here to guard hisivory."
It was therefore cautiously that the boys proceeded to work atgetting the ivory out of the hole and although they killed threemore of the venomous reptiles it seemed more probable that they hadgot in by accident than that the Arab slave-dealer had deliberatelyplaced them there. By mid afternoon a big pile of ivory lay readyfor transportation to the Golden Eagle Il and only a few more tusksremained in the hole.
"How are we ever going to get the tusks down the hill to the GoldenEagle II?" asked Harry as he gazed at the formidable pile.
"I have a better plan than that," replied Frank, "we will bring theGolden Eagle II here."
"What?" gasped both his listeners.
"Why not? It will be a ticklish job to land her on this spot, but Ithink I can do it. I mean to try anyhow."
"You are risking breaking up the ship," objected Harry.
"On the other hand, if we don't get this ivory out of here in jigtime Muley-Hassan will be here with a big force and we shallassuredly all have our throats cut."
This argument proved insurmountable, and while Ben was left by theivory Harry and Frank hurried down the steeps to the plateau onwhich they had left the Golden Eagle II. It was the work of a fewminutes to tune her up. In a brief time from the moment they hadleft the ivory cache, considering the clamber they had had, the boyswere in the air and headed for the spot where they had left thehoard.
But as they rose into the air they were startled by the sound of ashout and then another and another, then carne a volley of shots.
What could be the matter?
The shooting evidently was taking place at the spot where they hadleft Ben to guard the ivory.
Muley-Hassan! was the first thought that shot through Frank's brain.
The next minute, however, he dismissed the idea as absurd. TheArab, even by the swiftest marching, could not have reached the MoonMountains in such record time unless he also had an air-ship, whichFrank knew was impossible.
As the ship soared higher and rushed straight as an arrow throughthe air to the ivory cache a strange sight was revealed to the twoyoung voyagers. High up on the mountain-side they could see Benstruggling with what appeared to be dozens of naked savages. Theboys could see his gallant resistance as he swung his clubbed rifleagain and again at his savage opponents. Several of them lay deadon the ground about him, but those that remained were attacking himwith what seemed demoniacal fury.
"Good Lord," gasped Frank, "what on earth can have happened?"
"They're cannibals!" gasped Harry.
"No--no," exclaimed Frank hastily, "they're--give me the glassesquick, Harry--that's right--I thought so. They're not savages, butworse almost."
"What do you mean?"
"That they are gorillas!"
At her utmost speed the big aeroplane bore down on the scene of theunequal combat between Ben Stubbs and the savage beasts.
The boys could see that one of the brutes had seized their stalwartcompanion's rifle from him and with incredible strength had brokenit in half as if it had been a wooden toy. The next minute Harry'srifle spoke and the gorilla that had just performed the miraculousfeat of strength fell dead. With a shriek of rage the others turnedto see whence came this new enemy.
At the sight of the great aeroplane bearing down upon them they atfirst started to flee with howls of terror, but the next minute theyrallied and with low growls of rage, that bared their cruel fangs,they deliberately waited to see what this strange object might be.
This gave Ben a brief respite and he occupied it by reloading hisrevolver. The boys were delighted to see by this that their bravecomrade was not seriously injured.
But now the Golden Eagle II was ready to settle and Frank, guidinghis aerial steed with one hand, grasped his revolver with the other,for it was evident that the rush would come as they struck theground. And come it did. As the wheels of the aeroplane struck theearth and Frank threw in the brakes sharply crashing into a rockywall, with a howl of defiance the whole horde of man-like brutesrushed down on the air-craft with wicked rage in their spitefullittle red eyes.
The leader of them, a huge "old man" gorilla, brandished an immensestone which he hurled with vicious energy at the new arrivals.Luckily it fell short of the air-ship or it would have crashedthrough the plane covers and have seriously crippled, if not ruined,the air-
ship.
The boys' rifles cracked simultaneously and two of the attackersrolled over, with horrible human-like cries, but the leader, the bad"old man," was still in the field. As he saw his fellows fall hegave a mighty yell of rage and hatred that seemed to come from thedepths of his hairy chest, and beating rapidly on it, as if it werea war-drum he rushed straight at the aeroplane.
"Don't let 'em get near the engines," was all Frank had time toshout before the avalanche of hairy, ill-smelling brutes was uponthem. Some of them had armed themselves with rocks which theyhurled with ferocious force. Others used nothing but their barehands. Some of them, wounded as they were, fought with addedfierceness. Desperately the boys fought them off and when themagazines of the rifles and revolvers were emptied they fell back ontheir hunting knives.
Frank had made a furious lunge at the "old man" and missed him by ahair's-breadth when he felt two great hairy arms encircle him frombehind and the hot breath of one of his horrible opponents whistlingsavagely in his ear. He tried to lunge backwards at the creature,but toppled over and fell sprawling. In a flash the "old-man"gorilla was on him when Ben's revolver cracked and the "old-man,"badly wounded, sprang high into the air and rolled over and over,clutching his head with both his huge hands and screaming in anagonized manner.
The fall of their leader seemed to discourage the others. Theyfought on for a while but it was half-heartedly. The boys had hadtime in the brief pause that followed the killing of the "old-man"to reload, and with their rifles newly charged they were in positionto make terrible reprisals on the gorilla band for the mischief theyhad wrought. The monsters evidently were about to quit the battlewhen suddenly a cry rang through the air that ended the fight moreabruptly than even the boys' bullets could have done.
"Ah-o-o-o-o-AH-O-O-O-O-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o!"
It was the voice of the mountain once more.
With yells of dismay and terror the remainder of the gorilla bandinstantly dashed up the rocky mountain-side dragging with them, ingrotesquely human fashion some of their wounded. Several of these,however, still lay on the ground and the boys put them out of theirmisery with a few well-directed shots. A pathetically human looklingered in the eyes of some of the injured gorillas and Harry burstout with:
"This is awful work. I'd rather fight a dozen bands of cannibalsthan have to do this."
"And yet," replied Frank, "if we hadn't killed them they'd havekilled us."
At last the unpleasant work was over and the ivory was rapidlyloaded into the aeroplane. But here an unanticipated difficultymanifested itself. Obviously the aeroplane would be too heavilyladen if she attempted to carry all or even a good part of theivory.
"Now we are stuck," cried Harry.
"Hold on," exclaimed Frank with a smile, "I anticipated this. Weare going to turn the Golden Eagle into a tow-boat."
"A tow-boat?"
"That's what I said."
"What do you mean?"
Frank, in reply, bent over the stem-locker of the aeroplane and drewout what Harry instantly recognized as the silk envelope of anexperimental dirigible they had built the year before.
"Now then," said Frank, "give a hand here."
They all three pulled and hauled till the envelope was spread levelon the ground, all folds and creases having been carefully shakenout.
"Well," said Harry, "this would carry an awful weight of ivory, buthow are you going to inflate it?"
"With these cylinders," was the answer as Frank opened thestore-room below the floor of the Golden Eagle and pointed to adozen cylindrical steel receptacles. "They contain more than enoughpure hydrogen gas at a high pressure," he explained, "to inflate thebag."
In his enthusiasm Harry waved his helmet and Ben did the same.
"An aerial express, hurray!"
The inflation hose was soon connected to the first of the cylindersand with a hiss the gas rushed into the bag when a turn of thewrench set free the precious stuff. Slowly the big yellow envelopeswelled and assumed shape until by the time the last cylinder wasempty it was tugging and straining to rise. But the boys hadweighted it down with rocks and pegged its net ropes to the ground.
The ivory was loaded into a sort of rope basket, like those used tohoist cargo aboard a ship, and in a short time, so quickly did theywork, they were ready for the air, so far as what Harry called "theairbarge" was concerned.
"We shall have to strip the Eagle," decided Frank, when theinflation job was finished.
"Of everything that we can spare," added Harry, setting to work atonce to rip the transoms and detach the bolts that held the heavywireless apparatus in place. As he did so, Frank was moved by asudden thought.
"Hold on a second, Harry," he shouted, "I'll call up the river campbefore we cut off all communication."
Rapidly he sent out the call. Again and again his nervous fingeragitated the key--but there was no response.
"They--they don't answer," gasped Frank at last--heavy anxiety inhis tones.
"Oh, Frank, do you think anything serious is the matter?" criedHarry.
"It may only be that the apparatus is out of order," replied theelder brother seriously; "but it looks bad. That field wireless wasin prime condition and it would be next to impossible for them tofail to receive our call."
"Well, there is only one thing to be done," remarked the practicalBen Stubbs.
"And that is--?" queried Harry.
"To get back there as soon as possible, for if they need us theyneed us dern bad," was the energetic reply.
Half an hour later the Golden Eagle, stripped of all her heavy gearand only carrying just enough gasoline to get her to the river camp,where the adventurers expected to find a reserve supply, rose slowlyinto the air with her queer tow tugging behind on the wirelessground rope. The boys had cached the wireless apparatus and theother gear, to be called for at some more opportune time. To theirgreat regret, also, they had had to leave some of the ivory behindthem. But the majority of what they did not dare trust to thegas-bag they carried in the chassis. Luckily for them there washardly a breath of wind and the novel carrier towed well.
As the occupants of the great aeroplane gazed back at the sinisterMoon Mountains as they fast faded out--they saw silhouetted againstthe evening sky a dark figure.
It was recognized at once as one of the beaten gorillas scouting tosee if the terrible white men had really gone.
"There's the man we saw this afternoon," laughed, Frank, as withrapidly beating propellers the Golden Eagle II winged her way withthe convoy toward the River Camp.
Boy Aviators in Africa; Or, an Aerial Ivory Trail Page 13
