“What!” he cried. “You don’t know that yet? I thought we discussed that matter several days ago.”
“If you did, I wasn’t there,” Bob returned, grinning. “We’ve been so busy with preparations that I haven’t given it a thought.”
“All right, I’ll tell you. We sail from New York on the steamer Empire, a vessel of ten thousand tons. It is scheduled to arrive in Macapá, which is several miles inland on the Amazon, in twelve days. Fairly good time, considering a stop at the West Indies.”
At frequent intervals Mrs. Holton and Mrs. Lewis expressed the desire for their sons to give up the thought of accompanying the expedition, but the boys did their best to convince their mothers that, while there were dangers attached, they were not as numerous as one might think.
“Come to think of it, you can’t blame them, though,” said Joe. “We’re rather inexperienced in the art of exploring.”
“We’ll come through all right,” Bob assured him. “Oh! How I wish the time would pass quicker!”
Despite Bob’s desire, the great day of leaving took its time in coming. But when it did arrive, everyone was in readiness.
“Weather’s cool and the sky’s clear,” observed Joe, as he and Bob lugged their belongings out to the front porch of Bob’s home, where the members of both households were to gather before the party would leave.
“Just the right temperature,” declared Mr. Holton, who had moved up in time to hear his son’s chum.
The train was to leave for New York at ten o’clock and the party barely had time to get breakfast and prepare themselves and their possessions, which, by the way, included the motion-picture cameras and several thousand feet of film, sent ahead by the Neuman Film Corporation.