handle. "I am ready to go afoot,
now!" he asserted.

The Mahatma put up one fat, soft hand.

"Nay, now! Listen to the words of wisdom. I, Mahatma Sikandar, am not
the one to be discouraged by difficulties. I have a better plan."

"Out with it, old-timer!" said Dan.

"Patience! Patience! We must all go back instead of forward."

"Never!" interrupted Raal.

"And some miles back from here we are close to a river where my
tribesmen have many canoes."

"They will have to be big ones to carry our horses," said Dan.

"The horses will be put in a corral by the river," went on the Hindu.
"My men will build a corral quickly. Meanwhile we can start out in
comfort, paddling down the smooth river to a point within a mile of the
enemy camp!"

"Now you're talking," said Dick.

He explained to Raal how that would save time; for a canoe could be
paddled more than twice as fast as it would take to travel through a
swamp.

Raal smiled joyfully at this news and muttered, "Good! Longbeard,
good!"

"Hooray for Old Whiskers! He has thought up a good idea at last," said
Dan. "But say," he whispered to Dick, "Sikandar didn't think of that.
It was the black guide. The wise old boy is just stealing the credit
for it."

Mahatma Sikandar scowled at Dan and said, "A fool and his folly cannot
be parted! As I told you, we saved time by talking and taking counsel."

"Okay, let's go!" said Dick. "We travel by canoe to within a mile of
the camp, you say? How is the trail from there?"

Sikandar asked the guide a question. The latter burst out in noisy
explanation.

"Bad. Very bad!" said the Hindu.

"From the river, there is hardly any trail but just a dense growth of
trees, vines and creepers. It is full of wild beasts and huge snakes.
We must cut a path. But the distance is not great."

"Let's be on our way," said Dick. "I can see that Raal is keen to
start."

"Patience, patience!" said the Mahatma, but already Dick had shouted an
order, the horsemen mounted and Mutaba led the way to the river.

When the party reached the bank of the stream, a broad, sluggish river,
almost entirely overhung with the great trees alive with parrots and
chattering monkeys, they found that swift-footed natives had already
reached it by taking short cuts. No time had been wasted. Vines,
tough creepers and branches had been woven between growing trees to
form a large enclosure where the horses could be held in safety.

A fleet