It had been an exciting day, and the previous one had been more exciting still. The most unexpected events had happened since the Rambler had come within sight of the Colorado river. The boy was weary of the complications which had been forced upon his companions and himself, and anxious to be away on stretches of river where there would be only the great facts of Nature to deal with, still his natural curiosity held his attention to the vagrant light on shore.
Half a dozen flares were shown, and Clay began to consider the advisability of responding to them. He put the notion aside for a time, and then, the signals continuing, he got out his searchlight and sent a circle of light toward the shore. Then a boyish voice called out:
“Hello, the boat!”
“That’s not a sailor,” thought Clay, showing his light again. “A sailor would have shouted ‘Ship ahoy!’ Now, I wonder what the fellow wants, at this time of the night?”
Again the voice came out of the darkness:
“I want to come aboard. Can you send a boat after me?”
“We are not at home to-night,” laughed the boy, amused at the impudence of the fellow. “Besides,” he continued, “we have no boat. If you want to see me, you must swim the river.”
This dubious invitation was accepted almost before the words were out of the lad’s mouth, and Clay heard a quick splash in the water. Directly heavy and labored breathing told him that the visitor was nearing the boat, and that he was having a tiresome time on his journey.
Presently the light of the stars showed a head bobbing on the surface of the water, not three yards away, and Clay turned his light in that direction. It revealed only a head of tow-colored hair and a pale, distressed face, with eyes strained and anxious from over-exertion. Then a pair of thin, boyish shoulders lifted above the water.
“It is only some kid seeking adventure,” thought Clay, tossing down a rope. “I’ll take him on board long enough to give him a rest, then he can swim back to the shore. Here, kid!” he went on, “take hold of the rope’s end and I’ll draw you out of the moisture!”