“Suppose you summon your friends, and I will explain in more detail,” rejoined the professor.
Joe, who was polishing up the brass work and putting things to rights generally on the storm-battered craft, was nothing loath to obey Nat’s summons to the bridge. Ding-dong Bell announced that his engines were in good running order and could be left to themselves for a time. So it was not long before they all, including Mr. Tubbs, were grouped in interested attitudes about the man of science.
“As Mr. Tubbs knows,” said the professor, “it was our original plan to resume our voyage on the Tropic Bird, following our observations and picture making at the volcanic islands. Our destination was to be the coast of Chile. From there we were to go in search of a lost Inca city, which is described in documents recently discovered.”
“G-g-g-g-g-gee wer-w-w-w-whiz!” sputtered Ding-dong.
“Hush!” admonished Nat, who could hardly attend to his steering for interest. As for Joe Hartley, his eyes fairly bulged in his head.
“A lost Inca city,” he murmured. “Sounds good to me.”
“Is nothing known of the location of the place?” inquired Nat.
“Not except in a general way,” was the reply. “It is known to be situated on an island in the midst of a lake high up on an Andean plateau in Bolivia.”
“Like the one on Lake Titicaca in Peru,” said Nat.
“Ah, you have read of that?” said the professor approvingly. “Yes, from the documents which came into the possession of the institute as the gift of a traveler in Chile, it is probable that the ruins which I am commissioned to search for are very similar in character to those you have mentioned.”