The boat sped on and presently the figures disappeared. Had they gone to get rocks with which to pelt the boat? This was soon answered. Before ten seconds had passed they were back again. But this time, to the boys' horror, they saw that the natives had a large stone which they were rolling to the edge of the defile. Their evident intention was to drop it on the boat as it passed beneath.
"Pull for your lives!" yelled Captain Akers. "There's one chance in a hundred we may beat them."
The boat shot forward in a desperate spurt.
At the same moment the natives trundled the stone to the edge of the ravine. For one instant it trembled on the lip of the abyss, and then—it fell!
Involuntarily those in the boat crouched as they saw what was coming. But this time, at least, fortune favored our friends, for the big stone missed the boat by a fraction of an inch, the force of its impact with the water sending up great waves from the stern.
Before the savages, who had launched the stone just one fraction of a second too late to annihilate the boat, could recover their wits, the lads were out of harm's way. For the surface at the summit of the cliff was covered with underbrush and the savages, who were the advance guard of the rest, could not hope to keep pace with the boat through it. A shower of spears came after them, striking the water like hail. But not one struck the boat.
Half an hour later the boat traversed the curtain of creepers and emerged upon the surface of the open sea.
"Now for the 'Nomad'!" shouted Joe, as they shoved through the suspended panoply. But his rejoicing was rather premature.
To their dismay, and no less astonishment, no sign of the "Nomad" was to be seen. As far as the eye could reach the sea was empty of life as the desert at noonday.
It was a bitter disappointment and for some time not one of the party could find words to convey the bitterness of his spirits.