This last was not a thought to ease their anxiety. If they were to escape at all, they knew that it must be by means of the flying auto-ship. If the Indians had demolished it, they would not be much better off even if they did escape from their prison. In that trackless jungle they could hardly go a league without getting into difficulties. It would be a simple matter for the Indians to overtake them and effect their re-capture, in which case they would be even worse off.
“I wonder if it wouldn’t be possible to bribe one of them to give us our freedom,” said Mr. Chadwick, after a long silence, during which he had been absorbed in deep thought.
“How do you mean?” asked the captain. “These chaps have no use for money, and what else could you offer ‘em?”
“The diamonds,” rejoined Mr. Chadwick quietly.
“By the Flying Dutchman, I’d clean forgotten all about ‘em! Maybe we could buy one of ‘em in that way. It’s worth trying, anyhow. Are you sure you’ve got ‘em safe?”
“Here they are,” said Mr. Chadwick, diving into his garments and producing from his belt the six glistening stones.
The captain selected the largest and balanced it in his hand, toying with it as if he found a delight in its flashing, pellucid beauty. Mr. Chadwick had slipped the others back into his belt.
“Cracky, what a stone!” muttered the captain, as he examined the diamond. “It’s a king’s ransom, that’s what it is, and here we are sitting around like bumps on a log and might as well be at the North Pole for all the good it is. Hullo! What’s that?”
A shadow had suddenly cut off the flood of afternoon sunlight that was pouring into their place of captivity through the lattice work grating. They all looked up swiftly and beheld the face of the red-robed interpreter. At once Captain Sprowl made a rapid movement to conceal the stone, but he was too late. The Indian, as had been noticed by them, had a remarkably expressive face. They could read on it as plain as print, as they looked up at him, that he had seen the diamond.
At almost the same instant his countenance vanished.