Ascending to an altitude of several hundred feet I attempted what is called the “spiral dip,” circling, in the air while gradually descending. But the shadows lay so thick in the forest that I could not tell whether any Faytans remained there or not. So I rose again and headed east across the island in the direction of the Pearl City.
I must have covered five of the ten miles in the next five minutes, and the machine was working perfectly, when on glancing down I discovered a native sprinting across the fields at a rapid pace. After him, but nearly a quarter of a mile away, rushed a horde of savages. There must have been at least two thousand of them, all intent upon the chase.
This was so peculiar that I did another spiral dip to get a little closer to the scene of action, and as I neared the ground and could see more plainly it suddenly flashed upon me that the flying native was Joe. Lucia had said that he had stained his skin and dressed himself in the native loin cloth, but I had forgotten that until now. It explained the scene perfectly. Joe had been discovered in the Pearl City, but had managed to escape and was now heading for the ship, followed by a host of pursuers.
My friend was a mighty runner; I knew that. It was Joe’s especial athletic accomplishment, and with such a lead I believed he could keep the Faytans behind him until he reached the ship, unless—unless the forest still harbored an army of warriors, in which case they could easily head him off.
With this contingency in mind I resolved to pick him up and take him with me; so, judging the distance as accurately as I could, I swooped downward and landed about a hundred yards ahead of the fugitive.
“Climb aboard, Joe!” I called. “Take it easy, old man. We’re safe enough now.”
He dashed up, panting but still full of energy, and said:
“How can we start her, Sam?”
“Take your seat, and I’ll show you,” I replied. I had seen Lucia do the trick and thought I could repeat it. The motor started, but the machine would not rise. It bumped along the rough ground a way until I became alarmed and stopped it.
“Try again,” said Joe, coolly.