“Whoever dreamed of the reptiles being there!” burst out Boxy.
“We might have known it,” put in Harry. “Snakes always live around rocks.”
“But why didn’t we see them first?” questioned Andy.
“They were out of sight and half-frozen,” responded Jack. “I suppose our moving around and the heat from the campfire roused them up.”
“Wot we gwine to do?” asked Pickles, dolefully. “I wouldn’t go back dar fo’ a billion dollars in cash, by golly, I wouldn’t!”
“The blankets and the sled are in there,” put in Andy. “We must get them.”
“Yes, we can’t even locate another camp until we have them,” said Harry. “We’d freeze to death without covers.”
“I move we fight the snakes and kill them,” remarked Jack. “I don’t believe they are very harmful.”
“They may be rattlers!” said Boxy, with a shiver. “And I don’t want to ‘climb the golden stair’ just yet.”
“I doubt if they are rattlers,” returned Jack. “And even so, they are not yet warm enough to show much fight. The likelihood is that we can kill them off without much trouble.”