"But yes," he retorted to their jokes as they surrounded him, "I too have the treasure-hunt fever got! Yet is there one question which puzzles me, my friends!"
"What's that?" laughed Charlie.
"The letter said 'under the left gate post.' Now, when you face the burned buildings here, this one is the left; but when you turn around, it becomes the right!"
"Well, we'll tackle that one first," smiled the explorer. "But we'll have to satisfy Gholab before we do anything else. Impalla steak would taste pretty good right now, to me."
None the less, the boys were too hungry to do much speculating over the treasure, eager though they were. Half an hour later, over their tea, a council was held as to just how to get at the cache. Spades they had none, and the spears and swords of the Masai were not fitted for digging.
"Listen," said Jack impatiently. "Mowbray said he located the cache, didn't he? Well, at best, he had only a few hours over here. When he burned down the place the smoke kept him from knowing that his Arabs had lit out. That stands to reason. He didn't have time to dig around; he knew right where that stuff was hid, and he went for it. If he found it, the earth would still be pretty loose where he dug."
"I've got a better scheme than digging," put in Charlie, his eyes gleaming. "Hitch up the cattle to the posts an' pull 'em out."
"Good!" shouted Schoverling. "We're behind the times on thoughts, Doctor! Gholab, inspan the cattle over by those posts."
Ten minutes later the oxen were standing ready, while the explorer and the boys made the ox-chains fast to one of the heavy posts. Slowly the oxen forged ahead, but to their dismay the post broke off short.
"That's a pretty good sign that the earth is unmoved," declared Schoverling cheerfully. "Now for the other one."