“Meantime, if those two float down the river, as I hope they will, they may help us.”
Dobbin was unable to see how this was possible, and Trim was too busy just then to explain.
The worst of their journey overland was at the very beginning, for the undergrowth in the forest was so dense that in many places it was necessary to stop and cut a path with hatchets.
This made progress extremely slow, and when it came nightfall they were not more than half way up the mountain slope.
Fortunately for Trim his men were a contented lot. They admired his courage and determination, and were perfectly willing to do anything that he wished.
It often happens to travelers in Central Africa that their natives desert them. If this had happened to Trim he would have been indeed in a bad way, but his employees were faithful.
Early the next morning Trim climbed[Pg 23] a tall tree and made an examination of the surrounding country.
His experience in the wild districts of America proved of use to him now, for his trained eyes discovered signs of a pass between the mountains that was certain to be easier than the course they were taking over them.
Accordingly he led the party through the forest along the side of the mountain until they came to a gully that seemed to extend far inland.
It was the bed of what had once been a stream. A little brook was even now trickling through it to the river, but for the most part the gully was dry.