He led the way briskly through the trees, and the men, still dripping from their swim, followed him without a word. They climbed the sloping hill for a quarter of a mile, then cut down sharply toward the shore of the reservoir again. They could see the placid water through the trees ahead when Dick stopped them.
“Wait here while I have one quick look,” he said. “Put Bert down, and give him first aid—but fast. Then two others take him when we’re ready to go again.”
The sergeant moved forward to the water’s edge swiftly. In a moment he stood on a huge pile of old rocks which stretched like a wall along one edge of the man-made lake for a distance of about sixty feet. Here was the old dam from the days of the Romans, and stretching away from the wall was the arching aqueduct, spanning a narrow but deep chasm.
“Still standing, all right,” he said to himself. “But not too strong. Those pillars look pretty crumbly, but we’ll have to chance it. Spread out—then there won’t be much weight at one time.”
He hurried back to his men in the shelter of the trees.
“How you feeling, Bert?” he asked.
“Okay, Sarge,” the big soldier replied, but Dick could see the pain behind his smile. “Sorry to cause so much trouble this way. Don’t let me hold you up.”
“Rot! You’re not holding anybody up,” Dick said. “Let’s get going. Spread out about ten feet apart going over the old aqueduct up ahead. It may not be too strong, but we’ve got to chance it. If it’s stood all these centuries it can stand another half hour for us.”
Dick motioned Max to lead the way, and he stayed behind. Max stepped from the trees, on to the old stone wall and then to the aqueduct. He marched across it at a steady swift pace, and another man started off behind him after he had gone about ten paces. Dick watched carefully. There were three men on the ancient structure—now four. Max was only about ten feet from the other end.
“He’s across!” Dick exclaimed, as Max turned at the other end and waved both arms with a smile. “Okay, let Bert and his two carriers go next.”