“Had any experience with the desert?” Linda asked lightly.
“Hunted sage hens some,” answered Donald.
“Oh, well, that’ll be all right,” said Linda. “I wondered if you’d go murdering yourself like a tenderfoot.”
“What’s the use of all this artillery?” inquired Donald as he stepped from the car.
“Better put on your hat. You’re taller than most of the bushes; you’ll find slight shade,” cautioned Linda. “The use is purely a matter of self-protection. The desert has got such a de’il of a fight for existence, without shade and practically without water, that it can’t afford to take any other chance of extermination, and so it protects itself with needles here and spears there and sabers at other places and roots that strike down to China everywhere. First thing we are going to get is some soap.”
“Great hat!” exclaimed Donald. “If you wanted soap why didn’t you bring some?”
“For all you know,” laughed Linda, “I may be going to education you up a little. Dare you to tell me how many kinds of soap I can find to-day that the Indians used, and where I can find it.”
“Couldn’t tell you one to save my life,” said Donald.
“And born and reared within a few miles of the desert!” scoffed Linda. “Nice Indian you’d make. We take our choice to-day between finding deer-brush and digging for amole, because the mock oranges aren’t ripe enough to be nice and soapy yet. I’ve got the deer-brush spotted, and we’ll pass an amole before we go very far. Look for a wavy blue-green leaf like a wide blade of grass and coming up like a lily.”
So together they went to the deer-brush and gathered a bunch of flowers that Linda bound together with some wiry desert grass and fastened to her belt. It was not long before Donald spied an amole, and having found one, discovered many others growing near. Then Linda led the way past thorns and brush, past impenetrable beds of cholla, until they reached a huge barrel cactus that she had located with the glasses. Beside this bristling monstrous growth Linda paused, and reached for the axe, which Donald handed to her. She drew it lightly across the armor protecting the plant.