“He suffers from under-nourishment and exposure,” he told the anxious group. “The head wound appears superficial. If you can get him back to the Holloway place, we’ll take him from there by ambulance to the hospital.”
Mr. Holloway and Mr. Hatfield personally supervised the moving of the old Indian. They would not allow Dan to help bear the stretcher, insisting that because his clothing was damp, he must hasten on ahead.
“You’ve done more than your share now,” the Cub leader warmly assured him. “You and Brad hike as fast as you can for the house. Put in a call for an ambulance, so it will be waiting when we get there.”
“And don’t let Red show you the way,” Mr. Holloway added with a smile. “He’s not too good at finding the trail.”
Brad had no intention of twice losing his way. Taking no chances, he announced his intention of taking the longer but better marked path.
Hastening back to the camp, the two friends brought each other up-to-date on what had occurred.
“Tell me about the pow-wow,” Dan urged after he had revealed everything he had learned from Old Miquel in the cave. “Den 1 came out ahead, I reckon?”
“The pow-wow isn’t finished yet.”
“Then they didn’t go ahead when we failed to show up?”
“All the events except one have been run off. They were just starting the last one—the canoe race—when Red and I hit camp. We’d have been there a lot quicker only we got lost in the woods.”