“In the meantime,” Frank remarked, “we’ll let them watch and shoot at each other on the way to Cloud island. We can loiter along the river and enjoy ourselves.”
“Why not hustle right along, and take no chances on their getting the gold?” asked Case, the most enthusiastic member of the party, now that the goal seemed within reach.
“You boys were planning a good time,” Frank answered, “when I joined you. You were figuring on long days and nights on the Amazon, fishing and hunting. Then I connected with you, bringing my troubles along as my only baggage! Since then we’ve been kept busy keeping alive. We have fought days and kept guard nights, until you must be sick of your bargain, the bringing of yours truly along.”
“Aw, it’s been fun!” Alex broke in, and the rest echoed the thought, though not in the same words. “Besides you had baggage! You’ve got our note now, this minute for $800!”
“And now,” Frank went on, “I see no reason why we can’t fall back on the old program, and loiter along, fishing and hunting and learning something of the country. As for the note, I’ve burned that!”
“That will be all right, too!” Jule cut in, “we all like that! But we’ll pay it all the same, and if you say that we’ve got any the worst of it by bringing you along, I’ll set the dog on you.”
“We should have been lacking in excitement!” Alex added.
“It would have been a quilting party without you,” Clay laughed. “Your affairs have kept us busy—but we like to be busy,” he closed with a friendly poke at Captain Joe, who immediately stood up on his hind legs and dropped his forepaws into an attitude of meditation.
“Oh, say what you will about it,” Frank protested, “I know that I’ve been a marplot all through, and now I want you boys to join in with me and have a game old time. Who’s for it?”
Four lusty yells answered the challenge.