Will shuddered as he said:
‘I confess it tasted all right, but I do not think I should have eaten it had I known what it was.’
They were about to resume their journey, when they heard someone ‘cooeying’ loudly, and the sound proclaimed the person was some distance away.
Yacka had carefully avoided meeting wanderers in the country they had come through, and when he heard the ‘cooey’ he held up his hand, and they stopped.
‘Let us see who it is,’ said Edgar. ‘It will be a change to meet a stranger.’
‘All right,’ said Yacka; ‘I know where that comes from. We are near the telegraph route. Send news from Adelaide right across the country to Port Darwin. It is men, perhaps, looking after the line.’
‘Bravo!’ said Will. ‘We shall at least be able to hear some fresh news.’
They proceeded in the direction of the sound, and in the course of a quarter of an hour came upon a camp, where four white men were sitting down smoking and chatting.
‘Hallo! what have we got here?’ said one of the men, as he saw Yacka advancing in front of Edgar and Will.
‘Glad to see you,’ said Edgar, stepping forward. ‘We have not had any company but our own for such a long time that we are thankful to have fallen in with you.’