“Nor I,” said Frank, weak from hysterical laughter. “Come on. Let’s find Bob, and tell him how it worked out.”
Before he could strike away, however, Jack sobering turned to Wimba. Laying a hand on Frank’s shoulder, he said:
“Wimba, here is the fellow who saved your life. It was his idea. He’ll explain it all to you. It is to him you must give your thanks first, and then to your comrade Matse who helped.”
“Oh, come, Jack,” said Frank uncomfortably. But Wimba threw himself once more at Frank’s feet.
“My life belong you, baas,” he said in a choking voice.
CHAPTER III
CAMERA SHOOTING
In after days, Frank was to remember with thankfulness the gratitude of Wimba for his “baas” or master. But now he was embarrassed, and making light of the matter as possible without hurting the black’s feelings he hastened along by Jack’s side across the meadow toward the clump of tents which marked their encampment.
Leaving Jack and Frank to regale the convalescent Bob with the tale of what had occurred under the council tree, while Wimba and Matse put their heads together and discussed the same event surrounded by the awe-stricken native bearers from whom Wimba, at Frank’s warning, was careful to withhold the real explanation, let us consider briefly how the three white boys came to be here in Central Africa.
For those of our readers who have not followed their adventures in other parts of the world as set forth in previous volumes of The Radio Boys Series a brief word or two of introduction is necessary. Jack Hampton was the only son of an internationally famous engineer and explorer, whose wife had died when Jack was only a youngster. Frank Merrick, too, was orphaned and made his home with Bob Temple, whose father was his guardian. The Hampton and Temple country estates on the far end of Long Island, New York, adjoined each other. And the three boys, companions at preparatory school and now at Yale, were the closest of friends.
Supplied by wealthy parents with the means to gratify their scientific bent, all three boys from the beginning of the popularity of Radio had pushed their investigations in that field. And upon the numerous adventures into which they had been drawn in one way or another in South America, Alaska, their own land, and the Sahara Desert in Africa, they had found Radio time and again prove of the greatest service.