“Yes; wait till I wake Mr Brazier.”
“Nay; let him be till we’ve got breakfast ready, my lad. He looked regularly done up last night. He can’t bear it all like young chaps such as we.”
Rob laughed, and then a cloud came over him as he stepped out into the soft grey morning, for he had caught sight of the hurrying river, and this brought up the boat and the loss of his companion and friend.
“Look here, Mr Rob,” said Shaddy, changing the current of the boy’s thoughts directly, “I’ve been thinking out that bow and arrow business.”
“Yes, Shaddy.”
“And I’ve found out some splendid tackle for making arrows.”
“What! this morning? Then you have been out and about!”
“Yes, soon as I could see my way. I found a bed of reeds which will make capital arrows with a point of hard wood a bit burned, and there’s no end of ’em, so there’s our shot all straight as— well, as arrows. Now you and I are going to get a fish and put him to cook, and after that we’ll try and find a bit of wood good enough for a bow.”
“And where’s your string, Shaddy?”
“Round your neck, sir. You don’t think you’re going to indulge in such luxuries as silk han’kerchers at a time like this, do you? Because, if you do, I don’t; so you’ll have to pull out all the threads and wind ’em up, like Mr Brazier did. His han’kercher will do for fishing-lines. Yours shall be bow-strings. Why, who knows but what we may get a deer? Anyhow we may get one of them carpinchos, and not bad eating, either.”