“Not unless we can find water,” said the American.
“And not even then,” replied the boy, “with the risk of getting bitten.”
“If there are no more than we started we’re not going to give up for that,” said Griggs coolly. “Why, they’re quite scarce.”
“But we haven’t been upward on those terraces. They may be swarming there,” cried Chris.
“Yes, and there may be none. We don’t want to go up there to-day. What we want is water. Now, where is it?”
“Nowhere, seemingly.”
“Oh, that notion won’t do,” said the American. “Here, it is plain enough that once upon a time this was a big place with no end of people living in it.”
“Yes; so my father thought.”
“Very well, then; I dare say it was just such a dry, hot place as it is now, and they must have had water close at hand, or they wouldn’t have settled here.”
“They got it out of the gully through which we came.”