Secrets of the Andes Page 14

  CHAPTER XIV

  An Unexpected Displeasure

  As the ship moved slowly into port, Mr. Lewis, standing anxiously onthe deck, caught sight of his friends and waved wildly. Obviously hewas exceedingly glad to see them again.

  Others of the expedition who recognized Mr. Holton or the boys alsowaved a friendly greeting, which was returned by those on shore.

  When the boat had come to a standstill, a huge crane swung out and upto the deck. At the end, attached by a massive hook, was a chair. Intothis the boat's passengers were to sit and be hoisted down to thedock.

  "Funny way of unloading passengers," laughed Bob, as he watched awoman rather nervously sit down in the chair.

  "No other way, I guess," came from Mr. Wallace. "The surf billows rolltoo high for the conventional method."

  The onlookers watched closely as the chair was raised off the deckand suspended over to the shore.

  The woman who was carried in this manner laughed as she left the chairand turned to see the motion repeated. From the look on her face, ithad been an exciting experience.

  "Here comes Dad!" observed Joe happily. "Wonder how he'll like it?"

  Mr. Lewis had seated himself in the chair and was being carried highin the air to the dock.

  When he set foot on the ground, he rushed toward the others, on hisface a look of intense joy.

  Words fail to describe the meeting that followed. Mr. Lewis wasliterally mauled by his son and friends, who were overjoyed to havehim again with them. Especially was Joe happy.

  "I worried from the time you left Washington," the naturalist toldthem, throwing an arm over Joe's shoulder. "The more I thought aboutthat airplane trip the more anxious I became. You didn't have anytrouble, did you?"

  "It's according to what you call trouble," laughed Bob. "If you meanaccidents, we didn't have any. But if you mean just common bad luck,we had plenty."

  "Could have been worse, though," his father reminded him. "And let metell you that Karl is an excellent pilot. If he weren't, we probablywouldn't be here now."

  "As if I didn't know it," smiled Mr. Lewis, glancing at the blushingaviator. "If anyone else had offered to take you to Peru, I wouldn'thave thought much of the idea. Karl Sutman, though----"

  At this moment a group of men came up, to be recognized by Mr. Lewisand Mr. Holton.

  The youths, Mr. Wallace, and Karl were introduced to them as membersof the archaeological and geological divisions of the expedition. Dr.Rust, Professors Allan and Kelley, and Mr. Dunn, as their names were,had come to this region to search for additional Inca ruins and tostudy the land in the mountain section.

  Two other men completed the personnel of the expedition. They were Mr.Buenagel, assistant, and Dr. Brown, physician, both of whom had beenon numerous expeditions with the others. They now came up and receivedthe same hearty welcome.

  "Now that we're all together," began Dr. Rust, "we want to decidewhere we'll make our headquarters. Is everyone in favor of having ourbase in or near Cuzco?"

  "I should say yes," came from Professor Kelley. "Cuzco, after all, isa very strategic point, and is quite easily accessible from all partsof this section. So why not locate there?"

  As everyone agreed, the question was settled. Now came the problem oftransporting the expedition's supplies, of which there were many.

  Karl generously offered the services of the monoplane in getting thetrunks and bags over to Cuzco. He explained that he would be glad todo this for them, even though it might be necessary to make two orthree trips.

  But Dr. Rust, leader of the expedition, stoutly refused.

  "We don't wish to put you to that trouble," he said. "As long as thereis a railroad running up to Cuzco, we'll make use of it and have ourstuff shipped, even though it may take a few days longer."

  Karl wondered afterwards if the scientist secretly feared an accident.The tall young man remarked to Bob and Joe several days later thatperhaps Dr. Rust did not wish to take a chance on the monoplanecrashing with the expedition's supplies on board.

  As had been suggested, the supplies, including those of Mr. Holton andMr. Lewis, were placed on board the first train that left for Cuzco.The boxes and trunks would not reach their destination until severaldays later, however, since it was necessary for them to be changedaround several times.

  Except for the three naturalists, the scientists boarded the sametrain for Cuzco. Mr. Wallace and the youths' fathers were to accompanyKarl and Bob and Joe in the monoplane. With Mr. Lewis in the cabin,there would be an added load, but Karl told them it would not bedangerous.

  "Just have to watch the take-offs and the landings more closely," theaviator explained. "Outside of that, we'll never know that anotherperson is inside, as far as the ride goes."

  "Won't ride any easier?" queried Joe, trying to appear innocent.

  "Quit your kidding!" snapped Karl with a laugh. "This bus isn't anautomobile."

  "But a bus is an automobile," said Joe persistently.

  He dodged a pass that Karl swung at him. Then, seriously, he turned tothe others, who were busy attending to minor tasks about the airplane.

  "Everything's ready," announced Mr. Wallace, stepping inside thecabin. "Suppose we get started at once, so as to get there and lookaround some before the others arrive by train."

  Karl was willing. He climbed into the cockpit and started the engine.Mr. Holton, the last to enter the cabin, closed the door tightly justas the monoplane began rolling over the field.

  "We're off for Inca land!" shouted Bob excitedly, raising amotion-picture camera to his shoulder. "And won't we have fun!"

  "We'll also have a little work," said his father quietly. "If we getenough specimens from this region to satisfy the museum heads we'llhave to go some."

  Flying over this interesting land was exciting to the youths, whoviewed the sights curiously. Before long they could make out the townof Arequipa away over to their right, and just behind it, El Mistivolcano, whose sides sloped up to a point.

  Karl guided the 'plane as near the ground as possible, knowing that heand his friends could not stand the rare air of several thousand feethigher without the use of oxygen. A few tanks of this valuable gaswere now on the train en route to Cuzco. Karl had not thought itnecessary to use them in the 'plane so soon.

  At the speed they traveled, it did not take them long to sight Cuzcoin the distance. Several miles away they could also see the town ofAnta, which was a mere village compared to its neighbor city.

  When they came nearer, Karl flew straight for the central plaza, so asto get a fine view of all the buildings and places of importance.

  "Look at the people swarming to see us," said Joe. "I guess it isn'toften that an airplane comes here."

  At about three hundred feet they soared leisurely over the centralplaza, where natives were gathering rapidly. Directly below them wasthe huge cathedral, which, as far as they could see, was the mostimposing building in the city. All about were low structures, with anoccasional higher building dotting the landscape.

  It was a wonderful view. Even from that low altitude, the explorerscould easily make out the surrounding mountains, on many of which wereInca ruins, including the "staircase farms."

  Joe considered it a wonderful opportunity to take several hundred feetof motion pictures. He pointed the camera first at the city belowthem, then at the near-by mountains, turning the crank continuously.

  When he had flown a few times around the town, Karl picked out a levelstretch to the east and began the dangerous task of landing. Well heknew at that altitude it would be easy to crash.

  The monoplane headed downward at high speed, the wheels touched theground, bumped back into the air, touched the ground again. Themachine rolled ahead at fifty miles an hour, forty, thirty, andfinally came to a stop dangerously near a large pile of stones.

  "All out," called Karl, when he had switched off the motor. "We'rehere. And we came down without a smash-up."

  Directly across the river Almodena the adventure
rs could see Cuzco,looking strangely quaint in its pocket in the mountains.

  "Here come more natives," observed Mr. Holton, as a horde of twenty orthirty men, women, and children rushed toward the Americans.

  As they came nearer, they uttered something that none of the newcomersunderstood.

  "They're speaking in Quichua--that's the native tongue in this part ofPeru," explained Mr. Lewis. "It's the same language that was used bythe ancient Incas."

  Although the natives scrutinized the airplane carefully, they were notbothersome, staring rather in awe at the great "bird" that had comemysteriously to their city.

  Karl thought it best to have the craft guarded against possiblemarauders. But how he could secure a guard was a problem, since noneof the Indians could understand English or Spanish. And the aviatorknew not one word of Quichua.

  "Suppose we take turns watching it," suggested Mr. Holton. "I'll takethe first watch of, say, two hours. Bob, you can take the second, andso on until we can make some other arrangements."

  "And while Dad's staying here with the 'plane," began Bob, "I'd liketo look around a bit. Anybody want to go with me?"

  "Sure." Joe was anxious to see the sights in this strange land.

  "Don't be gone long, boys," cautioned Mr. Lewis. "We all want to be onhand when the train arrives from Mollendo."

  The chums walked south over a level plain, hoping to see something ofinterest before long.

  They had not long to wait. In a little open grassy stretch beside awall of rock was a herd of ten or twelve llamas, grazing peacefully.These animals were about 4 feet high, with long necks and a head likethat of the camel.

  "Let's go up and see them," said Bob, moving over to the herd.

  "Better not," warned Joe. "They might be dangerous."

  "Dangerous? Those things dangerous? Wait a minute and I'll show youhow peaceful they are."

  Bob had walked up to the foremost black animal and now began to strokeits woolly back.

  Then an unexpected and unpleasant thing happened. The llama turnedsuddenly on Bob and spat violently in the youth's face.