"Take this, Harry; your guns are not loaded."
Harry turned and grasped it and without stopping went in pursuit. Before he had reached the former location of the wagon the animal ran into a tree, which threw him back on his haunches, and after several efforts to raise himself, fell over on his side.
The Professor's shot had entered his left eye, but the vitality of the animal was such that he ran nearly a hundred feet before it took effect.
The yaks were soon rounded up. It is a wonder that more damage was not done. Aside from the displacement of their bedding, and the ditching of some of the cooking utensils, everything was found intact.
"That was a rather ill-advised adventure on our part. We should have guarded our supplies; but I was as much to blame as you were. We must be more careful in the future."
On every side the rough character of the land was more apparent, and it was becoming more and more difficult to find tracks which were suitable for the team.
"This matter of going further with our wagon is now getting to be a serious problem. I think we should turn to the right and move in the direction of home, or direct our course southeast toward the mountains on the other side of South River."
"I think we have discovered enough on this trip," was Harry's conclusion.
George assented, so that on the twelfth day of their journey the yaks were directed towards home. For two days the travel was southeasterly, through the most broken and tortuous paths, crossing innumerable small streams and rivulets on their course. During this troublesome part of their journey the weather was stormy, with numerous rains, some of them so prolonged as to prevent traveling for hours, so that they made less than twenty miles during that time.