Soon the Spectre was sailing over the jetties and the delta of the Mississippi, and beyond were seen the waters of the Gulf.
Captain Nicodemus walked the deck of the air-ship, completely in his element.
He sniffed the air and leveled his long glass at the distant horizon.
“This beats ocean navigation all to pieces,” he declared. “There’s nothing like an air-ship.”
“Then you like it better than the sea?” asked Frank.
“Why not, skipper? In the first place, you can sail faster. You are surer of making port on time. There’s no sails to furl or set. It’s handsome sailing, and no care for the wind.”
Frank saw the old captain’s logic, and was inclined to agree with him.
“You are right, captain,” he said. “Aerial navigation beats all else. But looking into the future, what shall we make a bee line for when we get across this gulf?”
“For the Andes of Peru, then follow on down their eastern slope. I think by so doing we shall come to the mysterious country.”
“Very good. But how will you identify the Transient Lake if the water is all out of it?”