Secrets of the Andes

by Ethel C. Brill

  CHAPTER XXIX

  The Horrible Beast

  The joy of Bob and Joe at seeing the naturalists was certainly great.After those strenuous weeks in the mountains, the youths had beengrowing anxious to be with their fathers and Mr. Wallace again. Now,as they viewed the men waving at them from below they were overlyanxious to land.

  There was a wide open place directly under them, and to this Karl sentthe monoplane. When finally it came to a stop, Bob and Joe dashed outand ran to meet their fathers and the scientist from Chicago.

  "Boys!" cried Mr. Holton, too joyful for words.

  He and Joe's father and Mr. Wallace fairly ate the youths up in theirhappiness at seeing them alive and well.

  "You came through all right, I see," laughed Mr. Lewis, after thefirst few remarks were over. "What kind of a time did you have? Andthe treasure--did you find any?"

  "Look," returned Joe and showed them the box of gold beads.

  The men cried out in astonishment. Unlike Karl Sutman, they hadexpected the youths to return without having found anything of value.

  "You were successful, all right," observed Mr. Holton. "Tell us aboutyour adventures."

  While the men listened intently, the boys related their experiencesfrom the time they had left Cuzco with Dr. Rander.

  When at last they were finished, the naturalists shook their headsgravely.

  "It was all very interesting, but at the same time it was dangerous,"said Bob's father solemnly. "Afterward we wished you fellows hadn'tgone."

  "But they came through all right--and brought us a white condor atthat," beamed Mr. Lewis. "No doubt this is the only _condor real_we'll see. We did shoot two of the more common kind, though."

  "Did you get many specimens?" inquired Bob.

  "Come and see for yourselves," smiled his father and led the way tothe naturalists' camp.

  "Great Scott!" cried Joe, surprised at seeing such a vast number ofwild animals and birds. "This region must teem with all sorts ofanimal life."

  "It does," returned Mr. Wallace. "And that reminds me. We were goingout in search of a black 'spectacled' bear this afternoon. We'd liketo have you go with us, if you will."

  "Will we?" cried Joe. "Does a cat miaow?"

  The naturalists had everything in readiness for the bear hunt. Theyhad but to eat a lunch and then they would be ready to start the hunt.

  Mr. Lewis had heard reports from natives that one of the huge animalshad been seen in a dense woodland beside the river. To this spot theparty went, rifles in readiness.

  When they entered the jungle they were met with total surprise. Besidean opening in the hillside was the bear, crouching low for a charge!

  There was only a moment to act.

  "Shoot!" cried Joe fearfully. His rifle had been dashed from his graspby a protruding tree bough.

  Bob had taken a position a number of yards from the others. He hadintended to search another part of the jungle. The youth was holdinghis gun in readiness now, looking for a chance to take aim.

  Then he thought the time had come to fire, and pulled the trigger.

  Bang! The rifle spoke, but the bear had suddenly turned, and thebullet missed.

  With a snort of rage the huge beast turned on Bob, showing itsterrible teeth savagely.

  Bob saw the danger and was hurriedly trying to work the bolt on hisrifle. But unfortunately the mechanism had jammed.

  Helpless, the youth would be at the mercy of those terrible teeth andclaws! Already he could imagine the horror of what would follow.

  Bang! Bang! Two rifles barked, and each bullet found its mark. Anothershot and the huge bear fell dead, almost at Bob's feet.

  "Whew!" gasped Karl Sutman, holding his smoking rifle. "Another narrowescape to add to you fellows' already long list."

  "We're piling 'em up thick and fast," said Bob. He could laugh, nowthat the danger was over.

  They made their way back to camp, after having cut off the great skin.It was at once placed in preservative.

  "One more prize specimen to add to our collection," said Mr. Wallace."I'm betting that Bob and Joe will prove a valuable asset to theexpedition during the next few weeks. They're both good shots, andthey have plenty of courage."

  Indeed the youths tried to justify themselves of this tribute, andwere successful in doing so. During the eventful days that followedthey collected many specimens for the scientists, including aboutevery form of life they could see in this wild region. Often they madelong excursions into the adjoining mountains in search of new wildcreatures, and usually found them. Taking moving pictures alsooccupied their time.

  But although the naturalist party was meeting with success in itssearch for fauna, the men did not wish to remain here too long, forother duties at home prevented it. Especially was Mr. Wallace anxiousto get back to Chicago.

  It was arranged one day that he and Bob and Joe go with Karl Sutman inthe monoplane back to the United States, preceding Mr. Holton and Mr.Lewis, who would arrive later by steamship. The youths' fathers tookit on themselves to attend to getting the specimens on muleback to thecoast, where they would be loaded on the vessel.

  The four leavetakers were given an affectionate farewell by Mr. Holtonand Mr. Lewis, who expressed hope that their sons and friends wouldarrive in the United States without mishap.

  On the way to the coast the air travelers stopped to see Dr. Rust andothers of the archaeologist party. Bob informed them of the Incasecrets he and his friend had found, and gave them the map he had madeof the region. The scientists' delight far exceeded the boys'expectations. They literally mauled the youths in their intenseenthusiasm.

  When the chums, Mr. Wallace, and Karl climbed into the cabin, thescientists gave them a royal send-off, wishing them a safe journey.

  And safe it proved to be. Karl's ability as a pilot was greatlyappreciated as they flew toward the United States, which they reachedwithout incident.

  "Now to get home," said Bob, as he and Joe and Mr. Wallace hailed ataxi. The naturalist intended to spend another day or so with the boysbefore boarding a train to Chicago. Karl Sutman left them at theairport, promising to get in touch with them within the next few days.

  At their homes Bob and Joe and their friend were given a profoundwelcome by Mrs. Holton and Mrs. Lewis, who were desirous of knowingabout their experience.

  "We had a wonderful time," said Joe, as they all sat in the Lewisliving room. "And we met with adventures aplenty. There's nothingquite like exploration, especially when you're looking for ancientsecrets."

  * * * * * *

  Transcriber's note:

  The four books in this series have been transcribed in the samemanner. This means that in some books, table of contents and or/listof series names have been added.

  Except in cases of obvious typographical errors, archaic andinconsistent spelling has been retained.