"This doesn't look very hopeful," said Dick as they stopped the heavy work for a few minutes' rest. "Hadn't we better go back a ways and hunt up a more open trail?"
"Not on your life," replied Ned. "We are on the right track and we've got to fight it through. The only thing I'll stop for is a mangrove swamp, and I'll try mighty hard to get around that. But we won't find any mangrove swamp to trouble us."
"You seem to know just what we're going to find on this trail, if you call it a trail."
"I know what we ought to find, and that's better."
"Why is it better?"
"Because then we'll know if we're on the right track."
"All right, Neddy, I quite agree with you. I only wanted to know that you were sure of your ground."
The trees became heavier in a narrow belt along the stream, but open sky could be seen beyond them.
"Don't you want to walk across to that open place, Ned, to find out what kind of country it is?"
"I know now. It's open prairie or swamp and the next big water we strike will be the salt-water lakes. We will probably come to a fresh-water river first and that pretty soon."