It had come to a stop in a drift of loose sand and appeared to be uninjured. But it was snorting and kicking furiously, its anger visibly heightened to a high degree.
Joe ran over to it and attempted to give aid, but the furious dromedary kicked at him in a rage.
Mr. Lewis and Bob came running down, finding footholds with difficulty.
“Wait!” cautioned the naturalist. “Don’t hurry the camel. Let him take his time. His fit of anger will be over in a few minutes,” and then added: “That was some fall! We were afraid you’d be hurt seriously. No bones broken, are there?”
“I guess not,” Joe replied. “Just shaken up a bit. I’m afraid the dromedary is hurt more than I. Don’t see what could prevent it.”
“You may be right,” his father said solemnly. “We’ll find out in a minute.”
Before long the animal’s anger lessened, and it tried to rise. But its legs refused to move, despite the frantic efforts.
Mr. Lewis’s face took on an expression of anxiety. He bent down and felt of the struggling legs. Then he straightened up and shook his head hopelessly.
“Broken,” he muttered in a tense voice. “Two legs are broken.”
“What!” cried Mr. Holton, who, along with the others, had managed to scramble down the hill.