“Must wait till light come,” decided Salloo at last, “no can make out trail in dark.”
It seemed a whole eternity till dawn, but at last it grew light and the Malay darted hither and thither in the vicinity. At last he announced to Captain Sparhawk that he thought he knew, from the direction the trail took, the place to which the prisoners had been conveyed.
“Me think they take um to old fort on river,” he declared.
“Then let us go there at once,” said Captain Sparhawk eagerly. “Is it far?”
“No velly far through jungle. But Salloo no know trail. Velly bad swamp in there and if no know trail get in tlubble plenty quick.”
“Then we can’t reach them,” said Billy with a groan.
“Salloo know other way,” was the reply, “we go round by ribber. Then climbee cliff, find fort at top.”
“Then let’s start at once,” said Captain Sparhawk. “I don’t want to lose a second of time.”
“No, begorry, those spalpeens may have taken them further on by the time we git there if we don’t put a good foot forward,” said Muldoon.
Salloo glanced up at the sky. A light, fleecy haze overspread it.