I asked Juag how Hooja expected to reach the mouth of the river which
we were in search of if he didn't cross the gulf, and the islander
explained that Hooja would undoubtedly follow the coast around. For
some time we sailed up the coast searching for the river, and at last
we found it. So great was it that I thought it must be a mighty gulf
until the mass of driftwood that came out upon the first ebb tide
convinced me that it was the mouth of a river. There were the trunks
of trees uprooted by the undermining of the river banks, giant
creepers, flowers, grasses, and now and then the body of some land
animal or bird.

I was all excitement to commence our upward jour-ney when there
occurred that which I had never before seen within Pellucidar--a really
terrific wind-storm. It blew down the river upon us with a ferocity
and suddenness that took our breaths away, and before we could get a
chance to make the shore it became too late. The best that we could do
was to hold the scud-ding craft before the wind and race along in a
smother of white spume. Juag was terrified. If Dian was, she hid it;
for was she not the daughter of a once great chief, the sister of a
king, and the mate of an emperor?

Raja and Ranee were frightened. The former crawled close to my side
and buried his nose against me. Finally even fierce Ranee was moved to
seek sympathy from a human being. She slunk to Dian, pressing close
against her and whimpering, while Dian stroked her shaggy neck and
talked to her as I talked to Raja.

There was nothing for us to do but try to keep the canoe right side up
and straight before the wind. For what seemed an eternity the tempest
neither increased nor abated. I judged that we must have blown a
hun-dred miles before the wind and straight out into an unknown sea!

As suddenly as the wind rose it died again, and when it died it veered
to blow at right angles to its former course in a gentle breeze. I
asked Juag then what our course was, for he had had the compass last.
It had been on a leather thong about his neck. When he felt for it,
the expression that came into his eyes told me as plainly as words what
had happened--the compass was lost! The compass was lost!

And we were out of sight of land without a single celestial body to
guide us! Even the pendent world was not visible from our position!

Our plight seemed hopeless to me, but I dared not let Dian and Juag
guess how utterly dismayed I w