"And those cookies we got in Asheville," mourned Stacy. "I was figuring on having cookies all the way across the mountains. Now I'll have to eat hard-tack and biscuit."
"So long as you don't have to eat salt horse, you ought to consider yourself lucky," retorted Rector.
"As I was about to say when interrupted," continued Professor Zepplin, "the Black Mountains lie in Buncombe and Yancy counties—"
"Does Chops come from Buncombe?" interrupted Stacy.
"Again I say, they form a spur of the Blue Ridge," resumed the Professor unheeding the interruption, "and are a part of the Appalachian system. They lie between the French Broad River and its main tributary, the Nolichucky."
"Is this the Trolleychucky here at our feet, Professor?" questioned Chunky innocently.
Tad gave the fat boy a prod with the toe of his boot, whereat Stacy turned an indignant face to him.
"Mount Mitchell, Black Dome, Guyot's Peak, Sandoz Knob and Gibbe's Peak, including Smoky Bald and others, form the divide between the Tennessee and Catawba River basins. That, for the present, will be quite sufficient for the topography of the country. As you are no doubt aware, most of the rocks through this region are highly crystalline, but whether of paleozoic or azoic age, is not certain," concluded the Professor.
"Yassir," murmured the fat boy. Chops had been listening with wide open mouth and eyes, not understanding a word of what had been said, but being sure it was something of tremendous importance because he could not understand.
"Here comes the storm," cried Tad as a vivid sheet of lightning flashed up the pass, followed by a deafening peal of thunder.